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diff --git a/old/54718-0.txt b/old/54718-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index bbea61a..0000000 --- a/old/54718-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,8893 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of India Impressions, by Walter Crane - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - -Title: India Impressions - With some notes of Ceylon during a winter tour, 1906-7. - -Author: Walter Crane - -Release Date: May 14, 2017 [EBook #54718] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK INDIA IMPRESSIONS *** - - - - -Produced by Chris Curnow, Charlie Howard, and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - - - - - - - - - -INDIA IMPRESSIONS - - - - -[Illustration: THE MANIKARNIKÁ GHÁT BENARES] - - - - - INDIA IMPRESSIONS - WITH SOME NOTES OF CEYLON - DURING A WINTER TOUR, 1906–7 - BY WALTER CRANE, R.W.S. WITH - A FRONTISPIECE IN COLOUR AND - NUMEROUS OTHER ILLUSTRATIONS - FROM SKETCHES BY THE AUTHOR - - - [Illustration] - - - NEW YORK - THE MACMILLAN COMPANY - 1907 - - - - - TO MY WIFE - MY TRAVELLING COMPANION - ON THIS TOUR, AND TO WHOM - THE PROJECT WAS DUE, I - NOW INSCRIBE ITS RECORD - -[Illustration] - - - - -PREFACE - - -Although many books descriptive of India and Indian life have recently -appeared, even a short visit to that wonderful country presents so -extraordinary a series of spectacles to the European, especially to one -seeing the East for the first time, that it occurred to me that a few -notes and fresh impressions from an artist’s point of view, accompanied -by sketches made on the spot, as well as illustrations of the lighter -side of travel, might not be without interest to the public. - -Even apart from the enormous artistic interest and architectural -splendours of India, which are so rich and abundant that one feels that -hundreds of drawings would be necessary to give any adequate idea of -their beauty, there is the human interest of these vast populations, -among whom so many streams of race, language and religion are found, -not to speak of the problems of government and administration they -present. - -I cannot claim to have had any special facilities in seeing the -country—no more at least than might be at the command of an ordinary -English tourist, and have trusted chiefly to what powers of -observation I may possess in describing the various cities visited, -and the districts traversed, and I offer these notes strictly as -personal impressions. - -Owing to ever increasing facilities of travel, the East is, in a sense, -drawn nearer to the West, or, rather the West to the East, but nothing -strikes the traveller so much as the apparently vast gulf dividing the -dark-skinned races from the white—a gulf deeper and wider than the -oceans. - -I mean the profound differences in ideas, in religion, in sentiment, -in life, habit and custom. Western influence where even it has had any -apparent effect—apart from commercial enterprise—seems to be but a thin -veneer, and it is a constant wonder how the British should have been -able to acquire and maintain their grasp over this vast peninsular, and -to hold the balance between antagonistic races and creeds so long. - -But it is not a comfortable thought for an Englishman, loving freedom, -and accustomed to the principles of popular and representative -government at home, to realise that this vast empire is held under the -strictest autocratic system; and that the national aspirations that -are now beginning to make themselves heard and felt should be entirely -ignored, and the voice of native feeling sternly suppressed. - -One can only hope that the great British people will take more trouble -to study and understand their great Dependency, and not be prevented -by official explanations from making independent inquiries and -observations for themselves, and finally to “be just and fear not.” - -If, however, in any way and from any point of view, these impressions -may serve, in however slight a degree, to increase the interest of my -own countrymen and women in India, I shall be very glad. - - WALTER CRANE - - KENSINGTON, _July 1907_ - - - - -CONTENTS - - - CHAPTER PAGE - PREFACE vii - - I. THE VOYAGE 1 - - II. BOMBAY AND THE CAVES OF ELLORA 21 - - III. AHMEDABAD 48 - - IV. AHMEDABAD TO AJMIR 62 - - V. CHITORGARH AND UDAIPUR 74 - - VI. JAIPUR 96 - - VII. AGRA 112 - - VIII. GWALIOR 127 - - IX. DELHI 144 - - X. AMRITZAR AND LAHORE 161 - - XI. LUCKNOW 185 - - XII. BENARES 200 - - XIII. CALCUTTA—DARJEELING 218 - - XIV. MADRAS AND THE SOUTH 239 - - XV. NOTES OF CEYLON 290 - - - INDEX 319 - - - - -LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS IN THE TEXT - - - PAGE - ROUGH SKETCH MAP OF INDIA xvi - - LONDON TO PORT SAID, A HIEROGLYPHIC OF OUR VOYAGE 3 - - COALING AT PORT SAID—AND AFTER! 6 - - SPOILING THE EGYPTIANS? OR BEING DESPOILED BY THEM! 7 - - SENSATION IN SOLAR TOPIS 7 - - THE SUEZ CANAL 9 - - THE PASSAGE OF THE RED SEA (THERM: 88° OR SO!) 12 - - IN THE SAME BOAT—A CONTRAST AT ADEN 14 - - SOME TYPES AMONG OUR FELLOW PASSENGERS 17 - - LANDING AT BOMBAY 22 - - AWAITING THE CUSTOMS—BOMBAY 23 - - STREET PERFORMERS—BOMBAY 24 - - INTERVIEW WITH CANDIDATES FOR THE POST OF BEARER—MOSTLY - UNBEARABLE! 31 - - A BED AT THE DAK BUNGALOW! MUNMAD (KEEP IT DA(R)K) 35 - - WE ARE INTRODUCED TO THE CAVES OF ELLORA 39 - - AND ITS WASPS 42 - - THE FEET OF PILGRIMS (AT MOHAMMEDAN MOSQUES) 50 - - POOR RELATIONS 52 - - A FAMILY PARTY—CRANES ON A MANGO TREE (SARBARMATI RIVER) 54 - - STREET SCENE, AHMEDABAD. ENGLISH TRAVELLERS SKETCHING AND - MAKING PURCHASES 57 - - THE CAMEL’S CRINOLINE (SUGAR CANE) AJMIR 71 - - FIRST ELEPHANT RIDE. (CHITORGARH) 78 - - RAJPUTS AND THEIR RARITIES. (UDAIPUR) 85 - - HOTEL ACCOMMODATION (JAIPUR), “FOR YOUR EASE AND COMFORT” (OR - RATHER FOR THE EASING OF YOUR RUPEES?) 98 - - TO AMBER ON AN ELEPHANT 106 - - SHOPPING IN JAIPUR 109 - - AGGRAVATING AGRA 115 - - THE MAINSTAY OF INDIA. AQUARIUS—THE WATER-BEARER 119 - - TO GWALIOR FORT BY PALANQUIN 129 - - CALLERS AT THE GUEST HOUSE, GWALIOR 137 - - A DASH FOR THE DINING-CAR AT AGRA ROAD 146 - - DELHI DRIVING. WANTED—A RULE OF THE ROAD 159 - - SHE WON’T BE HAPPY TILL SHE GETS EVERYTHING PACKED UP 162 - - DEMON HOTEL TOUTS AT AMRITZAR FIGHTING FOR THEIR PREY 163 - - THROUGH AMRITZAR—SIT TIGHT AND HOLD A SMELLING BOTTLE! 165 - - AN INDIAN AUTOLYCUS 168 - - ENJOYING A LOG FIRE AT LAHORE 172 - - “THE WOMAN IN WHITE” AT LAHORE (SUGGESTION FOR A DISGUISE - PARTY) 175 - - THE MERCHANTS OF KASHMIR 182 - - IN HOSPITAL, LUCKNOW. THE OPERATING TABLE (PATIENT HAD A BIT OF - GRIT IN HER EYE AFTER A TRAIN JOURNEY)—SIXTEEN RUPEES WERE - EXTRACTED! 186 - - JUGGLERS AT LUCKNOW—THE MANGO TREE TRICK 187 - - BETTER LUCK AT LUCKNOW—THROUGH THE CHOWK ON AN ELEPHANT 195 - - THE MAHARAJAH PLACES HIS CARRIAGE AT OUR DISPOSAL 202 - - BENARES: VIEWING THE GHATS FROM THE MAHARAJAH’S PEACOCK BOAT 207 - - WE SEE SNAKES AT BENARES 209 - - THE MAHARAJAH’S RECEPTION, DECORATING THE VISITORS 214 - - THE SOOTHSAYER AT CALCUTTA—(OR PALMISTRY UNDER THE PALMS) 220 - - THE DARJEELING TOY-RAILWAY TRYING TO CATCH ITS OWN TAIL! 225 - - CHARACTERS IN A TIBETAN MASQUE, DARJEELING 228 - - THE SHY PEAK OF KINCHIN JUNGA 233 - - A RIDE AT DARJEELING: “UP HILL SPARE ME” 234 - - A HAILSTONE CHORUS—DEPARTURE FROM DARJEELING 236 - - CALCUTTA TO MADRAS—SECTION OF SLEEPER—OR SOMETHING LIKE IT 240 - - LADIES OR GENTLEMEN? (FASHIONS IN SOUTHERN INDIA) 243 - - MADRAS—A JIN-RICKSHAW MADE FOR TWO 250 - - TANJORE—NATIVE THEATRE—HOUSE FULL. PERFORMANCE FROM 9 P.M. TILL - 2 A.M.—BUT WE DIDN’T STOP TO SEE IT THROUGH 265 - - TRICHINOPOLY—OX TONGA—VITA BREVIS! 271 - - THE SACRED ELEPHANTS OF SERINGHAM—SECURING TWO-ANNA PIECES 274 - - THE RIVALS. OUR MOONSAWMY AND THE MADURA GUIDE 277 - - TUTICORIN. DEPARTURE FOR COLOMBO. THE LAST OF THE KITES AND - CROWS 287 - - LANDING AT COLOMBO 291 - - COMMON OBJECTS OF COLOMBO. (JIN-RICKSHAWUS BIPEDES) 293 - - A CINGALESE WAITER 294 - - IN CEYLON—EXTREMES MEET—THE MOTOR AND THE OX-CART 296 - - TEA PLANTATION, CEYLON 303 - - TEA AND RUBBER IN CEYLON—A RISING INDUSTRY 309 - - A FEW TRIFLES THE WIFE WISHED TO BRING HOME FROM INDIA 316 - - - - -LIST OF PLATES - - - THE MANIKARNIKÁ GHAT, BENARES _Frontispiece_ - - TO FACE PAGE - THE KYLAS, CAVES OF ELLORA 38 - - ARRIVAL OF MR DADABHAI NAOROJI AT BOMBAY, DECEMBER 14, 1906 46 - - TOMB OF GUNJ BAKSH, SARKHEI 58 - - SHRINE OF THE KWAJA, AJMIR 66 - - THE MAHARAJAH’S PALACE AT UDAIPUR, FROM THE JAGMANDIR PAVILION 88 - - THE MAHARAJAH’S STATE ELEPHANT, JAIPUR 102 - - THE TAJ MAHAL, FROM THE GATEWAY 116 - - IN THE BAZAAR, GWALIOR 134 - - APPROACH TO THE PALACE OF MAN MANDIR, GWALIOR 138 - - THE JAMA MUSJID MOSQUE, DELHI 152 - - LAHORE—THE MOSQUE OF WAZA KHAN 182 - - IRRIGATION WELL, LUCKNOW 196 - - KINCHIN JUNGA FROM DARJEELING 232 - - TANJORE—THE GREAT GATE OF THE TEMPLE 254 - - SACRED TANK OF THE GREAT TEMPLE, MADURA 282 - - UNDER THE PALMS AT THE GALLE FACE, CEYLON 292 - - -[Illustration: ROUGH-SKETCH SKELETON-MAP OF =INDIA= TO SHOW OUR RAILWAY -ROUTE & POSITION OF THE PLACES VISITED] - - - - -INDIA IMPRESSIONS - - - - -CHAPTER I - -THE VOYAGE - - -A visit to India and the East had long been a cherished but somewhat -vague dream with us. It seemed a far cry, and to make a break of a -few months in the midst of the occupations of a busy life is always a -difficult matter. The impossible, however, became in course of time -possible, and even practicable. Inquiries as to ways and means had the -effect of clearing our path; and having the _will_, the _way_ was soon -discovered. - -“Only sixteen days to Bombay!” our Indian friends in London told us, -and they were always urging us to go and see their wonderful country -for ourselves. Mr Romesh Dutt and Dr Mulich had been visitors at our -house. The former had presented his interesting translation of the -“Ramayana,” illustrated by Miss Hardy, to my wife. Besides these we had -from time to time made the acquaintance of several native gentlemen in -London who were reading for the Indian Bar. They came and went, but all -were earnest in their hope that we should visit India, and I think that -they had discovered our sympathies were with those of their countrymen -in their aspirations to participate in the administration of the -affairs of their own country. - -The decisive step of booking our passage was at last taken in the -summer of 1906, and the 19th day of November following saw us _en -route_ for Marseilles, where we committed ourselves to the care of the -Messageries Maritime, and embarked on the S.S. “La Nera” in due course, -putting to sea on Wednesday, the 21st November. - -It was a lovely bright afternoon as we left the port, the southern -sunshine flooding everything in golden light. It is a wonderful moment -when the ship casts off. The great liner, which had seemed a part of -the land itself while the stream of passengers passed up the gangways, -and their baggage after them, begins to throb with life and movement—to -tremble, as it were, with expectation of departure. As a swimmer about -to take the water casts off all impedimenta, so the ship casts off her -cables and all that links her to the shore, and glides off into the -great blue deep, breasting the waves of the vast open sea. Incredibly -fast as the engines beat the solid land fades away. The domes and -towers and chimneys silhouetted against the bright sky, the people on -the quays, the ships riding at anchor, the tossing harbour buoys, the -small sailing craft flitting about, all are rolled by as on the canvas -of a moving diorama, as the steamer clears the port, and all detail -becomes merged and lost under the bold main outlines of the rocky -coast, or the dim shapes of the distant mountains. - -As the long shining wake increases astern and the coast recedes, those -nautical camp-followers the gulls, which have pursued the ship from the -harbour, begin to diminish their numbers, though they wing a long way -out to sea, attracted by the crumbs which occasionally fall from the -region of the cook’s galley. - -[Illustration: LONDON TO PORT SAID, A HIEROGLYPHIC OF OUR VOYAGE] - -A glorious sunset inaugurated our first night at sea—of the order of -the Golden Fleece, as it might be called—a distinct type, when in a -windless sky a large field of delicate fleecy cirrus cloud spreads -in a level field from west to east, and as the sun sinks its under -edges are lighted up by golden light, changing to orange, scarlet, and -crimson, when he disappears beneath the horizon. So our voyage began -propitiously, and with a smooth sea. Early the next morning we passed -through the Straits of Bonifazio, between Corsica and Sardinia, the -coasts of which we had a glimpse of through our port-hole, and on the -morning of the third day, after a little tossing, we sighted Sicily, -passing Scylla and Charybdis at the entrance of the straits, and close -to Messina. Etna soon came into view, its summit covered with a crown -of snow (as we had seen it on our visit to Taormina in 1904). - -The Calabrian coast, too, was very interesting, the mountains -of striking form, and the lines very varied all along to Cape -Spartivento—the toe of the boot-shaped continent of Italy. We could see -the little white towns along the coast and among the hills, and the -monasteries perched high upon crags. Etna gradually faded away, like a -vision, beyond the dark blue edge of the sea, and almost immediately -after passing the cape we encountered a strong easterly wind from the -Adriatic, which met the Mediterranean here. - -At sunset there were huge banks of grey clouds of fantastic shapes -rising like high wooded islands, but we had moonlight on the waters -every night. - -Those grey banks of cloud, however, were ominous, and by November -the 24th the weather grew so rough that the “fiddle-strings” became -necessary on the tables in the dining-saloon, where the attendance, -too, grew distinctly thinner. Towards evening we sighted the cliffs of -Crete (Candia), the fissured, mountainous, and dangerous-looking coast -plainly visible in the sunlight, though a bank of cloud covered the -summits of the island. - -After much tossing and rolling through another day and night the lights -of Port Said were sighted about four o’clock on the morning of November -26. There was a powerful search-light from the lighthouse. We got into -harbour about 5.30, and the coaling began. It was a weird scene. Six -black lighters were hauled alongside our steamer, three on the port bow -and three on the starboard, and boats crowded to the water’s edge with -coolies in long ragged garments and turbans, mostly of a dusky red and -blue, the colours shining through the coal dust which darkened their -naturally swarthy visages and forms. As these crowded boats approached -with their weird passengers, one had an irresistible suggestion of -Charon ferrying lost souls across the Styx—there was generally only -one pair of oars, as the distance to the steamer from the wharf was -very short. Well, these were our coal-slaves, upon whose cheap labour -the speed of our steamers depends quite as much as on their own -engines, one felt. From the boats they scrambled into the lighters—some -shovelled up the coal into hand baskets of matting which others lifted -on to their shoulders and carried across a narrow plank into the ship, -forming a weird line of black figures silhouetted against the shining -water. The coolies worked hard and fast in a black mist of coal dust -and kept up a continual hubbub of cries in Arabic and other strange -tongues which added to the weirdness of the scene. - -[Illustration: COALING AT PORT SAID—AND AFTER!] - -Port Said looked very new and flimsy, and was hopelessly vulgarised by -flaming posters and advertisements of Western origin both in French and -English. Boats swarmed round the ship’s side, and swarthy eager-eyed -hotel touts came aboard in Fez caps, as well as a motley crowd of -traders, Egyptian conjurers, and European musicians who played the -latest popular waltzes. We were glad to escape the coal dust and go -ashore, where an intelligent but probably not too scrupulous Egyptian -guide undertook to show us everything, and we went with him round the -town, passing through the market crowded with the picturesque life of -the East, which indeed showed itself everywhere through the thin veneer -of modern European commercialism. A venerable-looking prophet swept the -streets, and, of course, there were plenty of street arabs ready to -turn “cart-wheels” or anything that would turn a more or less honest -penny in their direction, and the cry of “Backsheesh” was raised on -the slightest provocation. Our guide took us into a small Mohammedan -mosque, modern, but, of course, strictly according to the traditional -plan and oriented towards Mecca. We had to put on loose canvas shoes -over our own shoes to enter the sacred precincts, and our guide gave -us a long exposition of the necessary ablutions to be performed by the -faithful before and after prayers, and showed us the water tank fitted -with taps, at one of which a devotee was busy having his wash. - -[Illustration: SPOILING THE EGYPTIANS? OR BEING DESPOILED BY THEM!] - -[Illustration: SENSATION IN SOLAR TOPIS] - -The bazaar bristled with European goods, and topis and cigarettes were -much in evidence, though there were some charming Egyptian fabrics in -the form of scarves brocaded with patterns in gold or silver thread or -black on white fine linen. - -On the whitewashed walls of some of the houses I noticed some primitive -paintings in distemper, apparently representing camels, travellers, and -palm-trees, done in profile. They were carried horizontally across the -front of the houses as a sort of frieze, and were curiously suggestive -in a childlike way of a survival of the ancient Egyptian method of -decorating. Our guide said that they indicated that the dweller in the -house had visited Mecca. Returning to “La Nera” we found her indeed -blacker than she was painted, as everything on board was covered with -a fine coal dust, which the energy of the crew with copious hose-pipes -eventually got rid of. The harbour of Port Said is always busy, -many liners and transports coming and going, war vessels of various -nationalities lying at anchor, boats plying to and fro, and young, -lithe, brown-skinned natives on the quays, ready to dive for silver -pieces, crouching shivering on the edge of the wharf, or in a boat, and -crying in an almost continuous monotone, “à la mer,” “à la mer,” “à la -mer,” until the hoped-for small coin is thrown into the water, when -they adroitly dive and intercept it as it falls turning and glittering -in the water, and reappear with it in their mouths, which soon open for -more. - -[Illustration: THE SUEZ CANAL] - -We started again at 12.30 for Suez, entering the canal. Our steamer was -stopped at the first village to allow two steamers to pass—the “Clan -Campbell” of Glasgow and the “Herefordshire” of Liverpool. - -The weather was quite cool and cloudy and it turned out a showery -afternoon. Flocks of pelicans were seen on the waters of the wide -shallow lakes we passed. There was a stormy sunset, and there was -lightning after nightfall, but later the moon shone brightly, falling -on the wan sand of the banks, which had quite the effect of snow under -its clear cold light. - -The steamer moved slowly through the canal at about the rate of five -knots. A passenger was landed at Ismailia, after which we entered -the bitter lakes, and next morning we were within fifteen miles from -Suez, but our steamer had to stop owing to a transport ship having got -aground ahead of us. A German steamer was close behind us, and while -waiting many of the passengers landed and roamed about on the desert -sand. It was not long, however, before the transport was got off, and -she presently passed us, a huge white steamer named the “Rena,” crowded -with English “Tommies” homeward bound. - -The passage of the Suez Canal is very interesting and comes as a -welcome relief after tossing on the open sea out of sight of land. The -long level lines of the sandy desert have a reposeful effect, but fine -ranges of mountains are often seen beyond, and the desert is frequently -varied with the - - “strip of herbage strown” - -embroidered with palm-trees, and these elements of Egyptian landscape -steeped in the translucent atmosphere are relieved by striking -bronze-coloured figures in blue robes and swarthy Arabs in white in the -foreground on the sand-banks, or an occasional string of camels. - -We reached Suez about midday and anchored off the town. The Consul’s -tug paid us a visit, and our vessel was soon surrounded by a small -fleet of picturesque craft with lateen sails, and gunwales painted -with eyes, and in the semblance of quaint fish in bands of green and -white, manned by swarthy Arabs and Egyptians. These brought cargo and -provisions to be hoisted on board, and the process took an hour or two, -but in the afternoon we steamed away again and entered the Red Sea. - -The weather grew perceptibly warmer, but was still not oppressive, -and there was a cool breeze in the evening. There was a beautiful -roseate light at afterglow on the eastern shore, where Mount Sinai was -pointed out, and the well of Moses, and the traditional place of the -Israelites’ passage of the Red Sea. The sun set in gold and purple -behind a bold range of craggy mountains on our starboard side, and a -splendid moonlight night succeeded, the moon nearly at full. - -On the morning of the 28th November we passed “The Brothers” lightships -to starboard, and the next day we were out of sight of land, with a -pleasant breeze under the double awnings of the upper deck, enjoying -the best summer weather, which we should think ourselves lucky to have -in England. The Red Sea was really as blue as the Mediterranean, though -of course subject to changes according to the sky, which turned to a -wonderful clear greenish gold after sunset, powdered with small dark -clouds which floated across it; a violet flush above the gold blending -it into the deep blue of the upper sky, the small floating clouds -against it showing ashy grey, while against the gold of the afterglow -they looked nearly black, the sea being of a rather cold metallic blue. -The serene weather and the splendour of the moonlit nights continued, -but the temperature rose considerably, reaching 88° Fahr. in our cabin, -which was on the starboard side of the ship. It is as well to remember -that port side cabins are cooler for the outward voyage, and those on -the starboard side for the homeward voyage, as going eastwards the heat -of the sun falls on the starboard side necessarily for the greater part -of the day, while going westwards of course the reverse is the case. -This applies more particularly to the Red Sea. - -[Illustration: THE PASSAGE OF THE RED SEA - -(Therm: 88° or so!)] - -On November 30th we passed the island of Jubbelteer, on which was -a lighthouse, and later, “The Twelve Apostles,” a series of rocky -volcanic-looking islands of bold and angular outline, and apparently -barren. Sea-birds, however, were seen with black and white bodies and -brown wings flying close to the water. - -On December the 1st we passed Mocha, of coffee celebrity, and the -island of Perrim, where there are lighthouses and signal stations, -but, like the other islands we had seen, otherwise desolate in the -extreme. Later the Arabian coast came into view and the sea was dotted -with the sails of Arab dhows. The coast as we approached Aden showed -volcanic-looking mountains, striking in form and bold in outline, with -stretches of sand and rock between. Aden was reached about 2 P.M., a -school of dolphins playing about the ship as if to welcome our arrival. - -Aden looked a queer uninviting place, baked dry by the sun—a cluster -of temporary and barrack-like buildings huddled together anyhow along -the rocky coast, with never a tree to be seen; the ragged, precipitous, -barren edges of extinct volcanoes forming a background to the -red-roofed barracks and bungalows. - -Several large white warships lay at anchor in the harbour, and lent a -touch of gay colour by being decked with strings of bunting from stem -to stern in honour of our Queen Alexandra’s birthday. A German liner -got in just before us and we saw the coal lighters being rowed up to -her. “La Nera” coaled here also, but it was a less grimy proceeding -than at Port Said, as the coal was in sacks. The type of coolies, too, -was very different, and there were many African negroes (Soumalis) -among them, whose skins could hardly be made blacker than they were by -nature. In addition to its cluster of coaling lighters, our vessel, now -at anchor, was soon surrounded by boats filled with natives who swarmed -round the gangways, and soon invaded the ship—a crowd of Soumali -traders offering ostrich feathers and feather fans (of a European -look), ostrich eggs, wicker bottle-shaped baskets, shell necklaces, -and amber beads, who drove their trade amongst the passengers on deck, -whilst others endeavoured to catch their eyes from the boats. Thin, -lithe young natives with fuzzy hair were very numerous, and some had -dyed their hair red, which had a grotesque effect with the black skin. -I noted a strange contrast in the same boat, too, which contained two -natives, one of whom wore a sort of large-checked suit of pyjamas with -his mop of red-dyed hair, while his companion had his head clean shaved -with “nodings on”! Some natives seemed to have used face powder—at any -rate had smeared some kind of whitening over their countenances with -ghastly effect. - -[Illustration: IN THE SAME BOAT—A CONTRAST AT ADEN] - -The scene was a strange one altogether. The crowd of Europeans on deck, -in which nearly every nationality was represented, mostly clad in topis -and white garments, the black traders moving about them; the swarm of -boats at the sides of the vessel full of bright spots of colour—scarlet -turbans, white, orange, yellow, and purple in the costumes—swaying on -the turquoise-coloured sea; brown-backed gulls flapping over the water -and kites hovering over the harbour; and all steeped in the bright -sunshine of the East. Many of the passengers went ashore in the native -boats, but the scene seemed more amusing from the ship and we remained -on deck. - -Aden itself looked more interesting at night, with bright lights here -and there on the shore and on the ships, and the rising moon translated -everything into terms of mystery and romance. - -I watched an Arab dhow set sail. It is one of the most beautiful of -sailing vessels, and has a high old-fashioned poop—the line of the -gunwale making a fine curve from stem to stern—a mainmast with a big -lateen sail, two jibs on a short bowsprit, and a secondary smaller mast -astern. The sun set behind the Arabian coast, the jagged peaks of which -we had previously passed. The coaling did not finish till nightfall. -The coolies seemed to undertake all the mechanical arrangements for the -work, fixing the hauling gear and the necessary ropes and planks, and -often in the process seeming to hang on to the ship with little more -than their eyelids. When they pulled a rope together the cry to keep -time sounded like “Leesah!” or “Leeshah!” with emphasis on the first -syllable. - -The coaling finished, and the curious swarm of native life that had -surrounded us departed, “La Nera” weighed anchor and pursued her course -eastwards, skirting the rocky coast bathed in the moonlight as she made -for the open Arabian Sea. - -The next day in the early morning we had sight of some flying-fish. -They have almost the appearance of swallows at a distance, especially -when seen against the light, but, glancing, as they leap out of the -water, to disappear into it again very quickly, they flash in the sun -like silver. - -The Arabian coast was still faintly visible towards the north, but -gradually faded from view. The pleasant light breeze continued and it -was not nearly so hot as in the Red Sea, in fact quite pleasant either -on deck or below—especially with a “windle” fixed to the cabin port. - -We had made an interesting acquaintance on board, a French gentleman -who knew India well and who was on his way to revisit that country, -intending to join an English friend there on a shooting expedition. -He was an old sportsman and had shot big game in Tibet. He united -the keenness and experience of a sportsman with literary tastes -and a love of history and archæology. This gentleman introduced -us to “the green ray,” a phenomenon peculiar to the Eastern seas, -I believe. Just at the moment when the sun disappears beneath the -horizon there is the appearance of a vivid green spark flashing like -a gem which seems to detach itself from the glowing orb and fly -upward, instantly disappearing in the reddening haze. We witnessed -this on several occasions, but in order to see it a clear sunset is -absolutely necessary—that is to say that one must be able to see -the sun sink below the horizon clear of cloud. The lovely moonlight -nights continued, the moon being now ahead, and the apparent goal -of the vessel’s course. One night, however, was disturbed by the -steamer stopping in mid-ocean. One gets so accustomed to the throb -of the engines on board a steamer that its sudden cessation is quite -startling. Passengers clustered near the engine-room to learn the -cause, which turned out to be something wrong with “a washer” which -affected the movement of the shaft. After about three hours this was -repaired and the “Nera” continued her course. She generally made about -300 miles in the twenty-four hours. - -Incidents in the Indian Ocean were few and far between. Flying-fish -were to be seen, but only in the early morning as a rule; a whale -was noticed spouting, and two sharks were sighted. I saw, too, a -large turtle turn over close to the ship’s side, but such sights very -occasionally varied the wide seascape, and many were glad to turn to -deck games or bridge for diversion, if they could not find it in books, -or in observing their fellow passengers. - -[Illustration: SOME TYPES AMONG OUR FELLOW PASSENGERS] - -Certainly amongst these latter there was no want of interest or -variety; they were quite an international group, and included English -and Anglo-Indians returning after leave of absence in Europe to take -up their official duties, civil or military, on new appointments -with their wives and families; a large proportion of French (it -being a French steamer); then there were Portuguese and Dutch (going -out to Australia), Germans and Canadians, Armenians from Rangoon, -and Indians from Bombay; several Armenian priests also, probably -missionaries; there were negroes and Arabs in the fo’castle, and -among the second-class passengers a characteristic group of English -workmen—foremen engineers and navvies. They were bound for Bombay, -having been engaged to direct coolie labour on new and extensive docks -at that port, their contract being for three years, and their passage -paid. I think they got very tired of doing nothing and did not feel -quite happy with the French dinners, although the heaviest man of the -party made it a rule to devour everything that was set before him, -taking Saint Paul’s advice, and “asking no questions.” I think all the -ages of man—and woman—were represented on board, including more than -one infant “mewling and puling in its nurse’s arms.” A little sample of -the big world chipped off and sent adrift on the ocean—a ship of life, -not without its enigmas, its little ironies and uncertainties, tossed -upon the very type of uncertainty—the sea. - -A ship, however, is a castle of indolence as far as the passengers are -concerned, though the crew, I suspect, would tell a very different -story, as, apart from the severe work of the engineers and stokers, -their work never seems at an end, and it is only by constant washing, -scrubbing, and sweeping that a steamer can be kept decently clean and -habitable. - -To break the monotony of the five days’ voyage on the Indian Ocean -a concert was got up by an energetic young lady and her friends. -They went round the ship to discover what hidden musical or -histrionic talent might be concealed under the more or less disguised -personalities of the passengers, and they succeeded in drawing out -enough for an evening’s entertainment on the saloon deck, which was -picturesquely draped with bunting for the occasion, and a piano was -wheeled into position. Various songs were given, and a French princess, -who was among the passengers, recited. The young lady who had been the -leading spirit in organising the concert herself gave some charming -songs which she accompanied on a guitar, and a pretty song in Japanese -costume and umbrella from “The Geisha,” I think, with much spirit. -The proceeds went to the benefit of the orphans of the Messageries -Maritimes sailors. - -After this violent excitement the days passed as days do at sea, the -fine weather continuing with delightful monotony. The fresh easterly -breeze was strong enough to fleck the blue plain with “white horses,” -yet not cause any trying movement of the vessel, which ploughed -steadily through the waves, driving the spray from its bows, and -causing dancing rainbows on the foamy crests as they rebounded from the -ship’s side. The sun rising in clear glory from the sea, disappeared -each evening in tranquil splendour, showing the green ray, and the -deep red along the horizon in the west afterwards, over the dark blue -sea. The dark blue above and the illuminated sky between, recalled the -favourite effect in Japanese prints by Hiroshigi, and at the same time -testified to its truth. - -But all things have an end, even ocean voyages, and about four o’clock -on the morning of Friday, December the 7th, our steamer slowed down and -took on board the pilot, and we, cautiously steering past mysterious -islands under the dawn, finally cast anchor in Bombay harbour. - - - - -CHAPTER II - -BOMBAY AND THE CAVES OF ELLORA - - -The first impression of Bombay from the sea is perhaps a little -disappointing from the pictorial point of view. The town spreads -along the low flat coast, lined with long quays without any great -domes or conspicuous noble buildings. One is aware of wharves and -factory chimneys, and even the palms and gardens of Malabar Hill, and -blue mountains inland do not altogether mitigate the commercial and -industrial aspects of the place; but the light and colour of the East -fuse all sorts of incongruities, and the feeling of touching a strange -land and of setting foot for the first time in India is sufficiently -exciting to throw a sort of glamour over everything. - -The steamers cannot disembark their passengers at the quays, so they -have to be landed in boats which cluster about the sides of the big -liner. The official tug comes alongside first, and the official visit -is paid. We were due the evening before, and inquiries as to the why -and wherefore of the delay had to be satisfied. Busy agents and eager -hotel touts come on board, and all is bustle and preparation for -landing. - -[Illustration: LANDING AT BOMBAY] - -Our Indian friend had been unexpectedly called away and was unable to -meet us, but he committed us to the care of other friends at Bombay. -We landed, however, with our friend the French explorer, with all our -baggage, in a native boat, and by dint of a ragged lateen sail and oars -plied by a swarthy, wild-looking crew, soon reached the quay, where a -crowd of coolies waited to spring upon our belongings. - -[Illustration: AWAITING THE CUSTOMS—BOMBAY] - -Our French friend spoke Hindustanee fluently, fortunately for us; and -amid the clamour of tongues which surrounded us, was able to arrange -for an ox-cart to take our united baggage to the Custom-House, where, -after an interview with some languid English officials clad in white -drill and topis, having nothing contraband, we were duly passed, though -our friend, possessing firearms, was delayed longer, and of course had -to pay. The Bombay ox-carts are two-wheeled with high sides of timber, -forming a square open lattice, and drawn by a pair of oxen. Committing -our worldly goods to this delightful prehistoric vehicle, we took a -carriage—a little, one-horse, open victoria, which is the street cab of -Bombay, and similar to those in use in the towns of Italy—and drove to -the Taj Mahal Hotel, a vast, new, modern caravanserai—which, however, -was quite full, so we went on to the old-established “Watson’s” on the -Esplanade, where we got a good room with a balcony and a view. There -was also a pleasant covered terrace, or verandah, extending the whole -length of the building, which on the north side, always in shade, -faced a garden green with well-watered lawns and thickly planted with -umbrageous mango and banyan trees, amid which the ubiquitous crows of -India (resembling our hooded crow) kept up a continual cawing chorus -as they flitted about, now swooping down on some ill-considered trifle -in the street, or perching expectantly about the hotel precincts, on -the lookout for scattered crumbs. Great brown kites hovered in the -air, forming a second line of watchful but silent scavengers. The -terrace also commanded a view of the street with all its varied types -in costume, race, and colour and character. The prosperous, sleek -Parsee merchant in his curious shiny, sloping high hat, long black -alpaca or white tunic, and loose white nether garments and umbrella; -Europeans in white drill and grey or white pith helmets, which gave -a superficial family likeness to all who wore them; native servants, -Hindu, Portuguese, and half-caste, in every variety of turban and -costume, sitting or standing about in groups, waiting to be hired; -wandering minstrels, dancing women, and jugglers and tumblers trying to -catch the eye—and the small change—of the traveller; men with tom-toms -and performing monkeys, water-carriers with their dripping goat-skin -slung at their side, coolies and coolie women constantly passing to and -fro from the quays, bearing their burdens on their heads; the bearer -and the ayah in charge of faired-haired English children, passing in -and out of the gardens; the British soldier in khaki, and the native -policeman in blue with a flat yellow cap. These and such as these were -the prevailing types in the scene from the hotel balcony, from whence, -also, we could see the tram-cars, drawn by horses in big white topis, -trailing up and down the Esplanade, while motors flashed by, and smart -European ladies drove in their dog-carts. Beyond the trees of the -garden rose a modern clock tower which told the burning hours in the -familiar Westminster chimes. - -[Illustration: STREET PERFORMERS—BOMBAY] - -The modern British buildings of Bombay would probably in newspaper -language be described as “handsome.” There were many showy and -pretentious structures in a sort of Italian Gothic style, but they -looked imported, and were decidedly out of place in a country which -possesses such magnificent specimens of architecture of its own -growth—as one might say. The many balconied and shuttered fronts, -with projecting stories, the ridge-tiled roofs and plastered walls -that we saw in the older quarters of the town seemed, as types of -dwelling-houses at least, much more suitable and characteristic, -and such types would surely be capable of adaptation to modern -requirements. The Crawford Market is one of the sights of Bombay. -Outside, with its steep roofs, belfry, and projecting eaves it has a -rather English Gothic look, but inside the scene is entirely oriental, -crowded with natives in all sorts of colours, moving among fish, fruit, -grain, and provisions of all kinds, buying and selling amid a clamour -of tongues—a busy scene of colour and variety, in a symphony of smells, -dominated by that of the smoke of joss-sticks kept burning at some of -the stalls as well as a suspicion of opium, which pervades all the -native quarters in Indian cities. There is a sort of court or garden -enclosed by the buildings, and here the live stock is kept—all sorts of -birds and animals. - -A drive through the native bazaar of Bombay is a revelation. The -carriage works its way with difficulty through the narrow, irregular -street, crowded with natives in every variety of costume (or next to -no costume), forming a wonderful moving pattern of brilliant colour, -punctuated by swarthy faces, gleaming eyes, and white teeth. Shops of -every kind line each side of the way, and these are rather dark and -cavernous openings, shaded by awnings and divided by posts or carved -pillars on the lowest story, but raised from the level of the streets -by low platforms which serve the purposes of counter and working bench -to the native merchant or craftsman who squats upon it, and often -unites the two functions in his own person. He generally carries -on his work in the presence of his whole family, apparently. All -ages and sexes crowd in and about the shops, carrying on a perpetual -conversazione, and the bazaar literally swarms with dusky, turbaned -faces, varied by the deep red sari of the Hindu women, with their -glittering armlets and anklets, or the veiled Mohammedan in her—well, -pyjamas! - -The older house fronts above the shops were often rich with carving -and colour, the upper stories being generally supported over the -open shop by four columns. It reminded one of the arrangement of -a mediæval street, as also in its general aspect, the shops being -mostly workshops; and, as in the old days in Europe, could be seen -different crafts in full operation, while the finished products of -each were displayed for sale. There were tailors stitching away at -garments, coppersmiths hammering their metal into shape, leather -workers, jewellers, cook-shops, and many more, the little dark shops -in most cases being crowded with other figures besides those of the -workers—each like a miniature stage of life with an abundance of drama -going on in all. The whole bazaar, too, was gay with colour—white, -green, red, orange, yellow, and purple, of all sorts of shades and -tones, in turban or robe—a perfect feast for the eye. - -In the course of our drive through the bazaar we met no less than -three wedding processions, though rather broken and interrupted by the -traffic. In one the bridegroom (who, with the Hindus and Mohammedans, -is considered the most important personage in the ceremony as well -as the spectacle) was in a carriage, on his way to fetch the bride, -in gorgeous raiment and with a crown upon his head. He was followed -by people bearing floral trophies, perhaps intended for decoration -afterwards. These consisted of gilt vases with artificial flowers -in them, arranged in rows close together, and carried in convenient -lengths on a plank or shelf by young men bearers. - -Another of the bridegrooms was mounted on a horse, crowned and robed -like a Byzantine emperor with glittering caparisons and housings, a -tiny little dusky girl sitting behind him and holding on, who was said -to be his little sister. - -The third bridegroom we saw was veiled, in addition to the bravery -of his glittering attire. Flowers were strewn by boys accompanying -him, and a little bunch fell into our carriage as we waited for the -procession to go by, in which, of course, the musicians went before. -We afterwards passed the house where the wedding was being celebrated, -the guests assembling in great numbers to the feast, a tremendous noise -going on, drums beating and trumpets blowing. In one of the processions -very antique-looking trumpets or horns were carried of a large size, -much resembling the military horns of ancient Roman times. These were -Hindu weddings. - -We also had a glimpse of a Parsee wedding. This was in the open court -of a large house arcaded from the street, brilliantly illuminated, -where sat a great crowd of guests all attired in white. - -Working right through the native bazaar we reached the Victoria -Gardens, a sort of Kew and Zoological rolled into one, being well -stocked with fine palms and many varieties of tropical trees, as well -as birds and animals, and all looking in good condition and well kept. -Many Eurasians were here walking about, looking very weird in European -dress. In these gardens are situated the Victoria and Albert Museum of -Bombay. - -Sir George Birdwood had given me an introduction to H.H. the Aga -Khan and we drove out to his abode, only to find, however, that His -Highness had gone to Calcutta on his way to Japan. I was not much -more fortunate with my other introductions to the eminent Parsee Sir -Jamsetji Jijibhai, and Sir Cowasji Jehangir Readymoney. Although the -son of the latter magnate did call upon us and brought us an invitation -from Lady Jehangir, we were unable to accept it owing to the shortness -of our stay in Bombay. I understood that the Calcutta Races in December -attracted a great many of the rich Bombay residents, and this accounted -for the absence from their homes of many at that time. - -We had a glimpse of some of the palaces on Malabar Hill, seeing -the latter first against a glowing sunset. Fringed with palms and -plantains, with its fantastic buildings silhouetted on the sky, it -recalled the banks of storm cloud I had seen on the voyage, with their -vaporous trees and aerial hanging gardens. - -A closer acquaintance did not impress us with any conviction of the -healthiness of Malabar Hill, though of the sumptuousness of its houses, -and often their fantastic character, and the luxuriance of its palms -and gardens, there could be no doubt. We passed the grey wall of the -Tower of Silence, the burial (?) place of the Parsees, where the crows, -the kites, and the vultures were gathered together, but did not linger -there. From the hill there is certainly a magnificent view of the city -of Bombay: especially if seen just before sundown, when a golden glow -seems to transfigure the scene; and later, looking down on the vast -plain, the white houses partly hid in trees scattered along the shore, -the quays, and the ships at anchor in the bay, all seem to sink like a -dream into the roseate atmosphere of sunset. But even that lovely light -is darkened by a heavy smoke cloud drifting on the city from the forest -of gaunt factory chimneys rising in the East like the shadow of poverty -which is always cast by the riches of the West. - -One rather wondered that Bombay was content to allow its best drive -to be disfigured by a continuous succession of hideous commercial -posters painted along the walls of one of its sides, the other being -lined with palms and open towards the sea. This is, however, not worse -indifference—in fact not so bad—as ours at home in allowing the posters -along the railway lines to disfigure the charming and varied landscape -of our own country. - -[Illustration: INTERVIEW WITH CANDIDATES FOR THE POST OF BEARER—MOSTLY -UNBEARABLE!] - -One of the first necessities to the traveller in India, especially if -he be ignorant of Hindustanee, is the engaging of a native bearer or -servant. There is always a large class of these seeking engagements. -They may be seen hanging about Messrs Cook’s Tourist Offices in groups. -They usually wear white clothes and turbans, but the half-caste -Portuguese are dressed in semi-European fashion with their cloth suits -and small, flat, round caps of the sort which used to be termed “pork -pie” in England, only lower. These are embroidered round the rim, and -a similar sort of head covering is also worn by superior caste Hindus. -For the post of bearer the traveller will find plenty of applicants -when he makes his requirements known, in fact their number is rather -embarrassing, and they all produce “chits” or letters of recommendation -from former employers. These, indeed, are the only references to go -upon, unless one happens to come with the personal testimony of a -friend. The bearers mostly register their names at Cook’s offices, -but they do not take any responsibility there for them in any way. -These native servants expect 35 rupees (and upwards) a month, with an -allowance for clothes, but out of this pay they find their own food. -If, however, their food is provided, they take less pay—about 25 -rupees—but prices generally have an upward tendency. The engagement -may probably be for three or four months, which gives the ordinary -European tourist time to get round India, visiting the principal places -of interest _en route_. A rupee in India is now only worth one shilling -and four-pence, and fifteen rupees are the equivalent of a sovereign, -it should be remembered. - -Of course the bearer’s travelling expenses and washing are paid as -long as he is with his master, and his fare home when his engagement -comes to an end, and then, too, probably he would get a present if -his conduct has been satisfactory. One does not generally expect -mirrors of virtue and trustiness on such terms. No doubt native -bearers vary considerably in capacity and experience as well as in -appearance, to say nothing of honesty and fidelity, and some are -better as couriers than as body or camp servants, or vice versa. Some -claim to be efficient _valets des places_ in addition to ordinary -services, but it should be remembered that the bearer caste are not -allowed to enter the sacred precincts of the great temples in India. -Our choice, influenced mainly by a personal recommendation, fell on -one Moonsawmy—a not unusual Hindu name. He had been in the service of -Sir Samuel Baker and had had some experience in tiger-shooting, or at -any rate had been out on such expeditions and in camp with the famous -traveller and sportsman, but he had also acted as courier to English -parties travelling in India, and professed to know the country well. We -had planned an excursion to the caves of Ellora from Bombay with our -friend M. Dauvergne, who had never seen them and was anxious to do so. -Having mapped out our route we started on our expedition on December -the 10th. Leaving Victoria Station, Bombay, at noon, we travelled by -the G. I. P. (Great Indian Peninsular Railway), making our first train -journey in India. The line crossed a cultivated plain at first, getting -clear of Bombay; groups of date palms here and there were suggestive of -Egypt. We passed native villages of different types, some with thatched -roofs and some with tile—brown ridge tiles not unlike what one sees in -Italy, and even corrugated iron was visible (alas!) here and there. -The low huts built of sun-dried bricks or mud with flat roofs were the -strangest and most eastern-looking. One could get glimpses, too, of the -inhabitants, the Hindu women in saris, often of red or purple or blue, -bearing on their heads water jars or bright brass or copper vessels, -with much natural grace, some also carrying little brown babies -supported by one arm on their hip. - -[Illustration: A BED AT THE DAK BUNGALOW! MUNMAD (KEEP IT DA(R)K)] - -Leaving the plains we entered a very interesting hill country covered -with jungle and forests where we saw many teak trees and banyans, -besides many varieties of acacia. Mountains of striking form came into -view, suggestive of castled crags. We soon afterwards passed the Thull -Ghat, where the line rises as much as 1050 feet in a distance of about -ten miles—which means a steep gradient. We passed rice fields, also -sugar canes, and a kind of Indian corn, but not maize, and castor-oil -plants which are cultivated extensively. There were interesting and -picturesque groups of natives at all the stations. Finally Munmad was -reached towards six o’clock in the evening. This was our first stage, -and the junction for Daulatabad our next, in the territory of the Nizam -of Hyderabad. We, however, decided to stay the night at Munmad and go -on the next morning—in fact, if I remember right, it was a case of -necessity, as there was no train on that evening. So we were conducted -to the Dak Bungalow, some little walk from the station, through a -native village, with our baggage carried on the heads of women coolies. -We found the bungalow a most inhospitable place of incredible bareness, -and nothing to sleep on but narrow wooden framed couches, having a sort -of stringy webbing full of holes. The gaunt draughty rooms were almost -destitute of other furniture and had no conveniences of any kind. The -native keeper of the place seemed helpless. There was no food to be -had, and he could not have cooked it if there had been, so we had to -make shift as best we could with what we had in our tea baskets. I -should not advise any one to travel in India, at least at all off the -track of hotels, without provisions and bedding. There was not much -sleep to be had that night. The beds were frightfully uncomfortable -and the room was cold. An Anglo-Indian official on the forest service -occupied the best room, we afterwards discovered, but he, as is usual, -travelled with his horses and several servants, including a cook, -and a supply of necessaries of all sorts. We left the inhospitable -bungalow early the next morning, processing through the village in -the same way as that in which we had come, with our baggage on the -heads of the coolie women. We made the acquaintance at Munmad of the -charming, frisky little palm squirrels which abound everywhere in -India—delightful little greenish-grey creatures with dark longitudinal -stripes extending from their noses to their tails. They play about the -dwellings quite familiarly, but are off like a shot up a tree and out -of sight at the smallest alarm. Scaling the trunk of a tree spirally, -they have almost the appearance of lizards, and they are certainly as -nimble. - -The buffalo cow, too, is seen in every Indian village, a strange, -dusky, rough-coated beast, with a weird, half-human, but rather -sinister expression in its dark eyes, with long horns turned back upon -their necks. They walk scornfully along to be milked, with an air which -seems to say they thought the world but a poor place. - -We took train to Daulatabad and entered the Nizam’s territory. A police -officer in his service was in the train, and was very intelligent -and gave us much useful information. We now passed through a more -arid-looking country than before, where cactuses and low trees grew -sparsely on burnt yellow slopes and rocky hills, often of strange form, -the country showing signs of a great upheaval from the sea. - -At Daulatabad, a small road station, a tonga was waiting for us, drawn -by two poor broken-down ponies and a rather ragged red-turbaned driver. -Our destination was the town of Rozah, a drive of some ten miles and -mostly uphill, on a loose, rough road. - -A conspicuous object in the landscape at Daulatabad is the ancient -fortress upon a steep hill rising abruptly from the plain. It was -a famous stronghold, but was conquered by the Mohammedans in the -thirteenth century. There are the ruins of the ancient city which it -once protected, and within the citadel are remains of Hindu temples, -one transformed into a mosque by the Moslems. Our road lay through -the shattered gates which still marked the extent of the city with -fragments of the outer walls, the whole area overgrown with trees and -herbage, and clusters of native huts here and there. The road to Rozah -is an almost continuous ascent, and in some places very steep, which -made it very hard work for the wretched ponies which dragged our tonga, -though, of course, we relieved it of our weight by walking up the worst -hills. The sun was blazing, but there was a little shade to be had -occasionally under the fine banyan trees which skirted the roadside. - -Towards evening we saw the domes of Rozah on a high plateau in front -of us, and presently entered the town through a battlemented gate. It -was a Mohammedan town with many important domed tombs, but it had a -neglected and sparsely peopled aspect and a look of departed splendour. -We made our way along a straggling street, and, passing through another -gate, came out upon the other end of the plateau, from which we saw, -opening before us as far as the eye could reach towards the west, the -vast, green, fruitful plains of the Deccan. In command of this view we -found our quarters for the night—the Travellers’ Bungalow—but this, -the Nizam’s bungalow, was a great contrast to the one at Munmad, being -clean and comfortable, with good beds and sufficient furniture and -rugs, and a bath-room. The native in charge was able to provide food, -too, and to cook a dinner, which, if not exactly Parisian, was, at all -events, a vast improvement upon our last one. The sun set without a -cloud, the last golden light lingering upon the white and black domes -of the tombs around us. Then followed the afterglow, and then the -darkness fell like a curtain, but the stars were intensely bright in -the clear sky. The air was very pure and the silence of the place was -profound. We were glad to rest after our long, hot, dusty journey, but -I managed to get a sketch done before the light went. - -After breakfast the next morning (December 12) we started to walk to -the caves at Ellora, which we found were only a short distance down the -hill. A winding road led us past another of the Nizam’s bungalows to a -sort of terrace in front of the first great cave, or, more properly, -rock-cut temple, the Kylas, which, coming down the hill from above, one -does not see until close upon it, and it is only on entering the court -through the great gateway that one slowly realises the wonder of it. A -huge temple of symmetric ground plan cut clean out of the great cliff, -the straight sides of which are seen rising like a vast wall above it. -A mass of intricate and richly carved detail, a veritable incrustation -of carving of extraordinary richness rises before one. Standing clear -in a spacious court, enclosed on three sides by a deep arcade cut in -the sheer sides of the cliff (which shows the tool marks), having an -outer row of massive detached columns and an inner row of engaged -columns, and deep recessed chambers. - -[Illustration: THE KYLAS, CAVES OF ELLORA] - -On each side of the entrance to the temple in the court stand two -isolated columns or pylons, and near these two great stone elephants. -These columns and elephants really flank a big pedestal of stone with -steps cut in it which lead up to a huge image of a Sacred Bull within a -square chamber, from which a bridge is crossed and the portico of the -temple is reached. Through this the great central hall, or nave, of -the temple is entered, divided into four parts by groups of pillars, -leaving an open passage up the middle and across to a portico on each -side. From this chamber a few steps lead to the shrine of the Lingam, -through a doorway. There are steps and doorways to each side of the -shrine which lead on to open platforms, where are five recesses richly -covered with sculptures of the Hindu mythology, as indeed is the whole -temple, both within and without. The carved treatment and the whole -idea of the scheme suggests that the original prototypes of such -temples must have been structures of wood, and the elaborate treatment -and small scale of some of the ornamental work seems reminiscent of -wood-carving. - -[Illustration: WE ARE INTRODUCED TO THE CAVES OF ELLORA] - -The carved work may be said to be of two kinds. There was a sort of -architectural or formal ornament in low relief resembling in style and -treatment Assyrian work, in which the lotus frequently appeared treated -as a flat rosette and used as pateræ, arranged in rows with intervals; -and there was a high relief treatment of figure sculpture. Among the -horizontal courses of carved decoration I noted a treatment of the -garland or swag, the ends being twisted through rings from which they -were represented as depending. These might have been of a Greek or -Roman pattern. - -The exterior carving of the temple in the parts sheltered under eaves -and by doorways showed traces of painting—the colours being red and -green on white. The whole of the surfaces appear to have been coated -with plaster to receive colour, in the same way as may be seen at the -temple of Castor and Pollux at Girgenti. - -The stone when exposed to the weather was very much blackened and -resembled the gritstone of Derbyshire in colour and texture. - -The Temple was dedicated to Siva, but the whole Hindu pantheon of the -Vedic gods appeared to be sculptured in this marvellous place, as well -as the different avators of Siva. - -The Hindu religion is really a great system of nature worship, all -the powers, forces, and influences being personified and symbolised, -nothing being accounted “common or unclean”—the elephant-headed Ganesha -and the monkey god Hunuman taking their place as “eligible deities”—the -whole scheme resting on the acknowledgment of the sexual origin of -life. The generative organs themselves being revered as sacred, and -symbolised in the mysterious Lingam which is enshrined in all the Hindu -temples, and the object of special devotion. - -The god Siva and Parvati his spouse form the principal subject among -the sculptures of the Kylas. A striking design rather Egyptian in -feeling was to be seen in a large carved panel of Parvati represented -as seated on the water, or rather on a mass of lotus leaves and -flowers—the flower of life—with attendant elephants symmetrically -arranged on each side, showering water upon the goddess from their -trunks. In all countries religious symbols are taken from familiar -and characteristic objects common to each, although, as Count Goblet -d’Albiella points out in his most interesting and learned work on -the “Migration of Symbols,” there is also a process of exchange and -adaptation in ideas between different peoples and countries by means -of which we get imported types, which, however, become naturalised and -reappear in the form or convention peculiar to the country of their -adoption. - -[Illustration: AND ITS WASPS!] - -As we gazed up at the cliffs from which this wonderful structure had -been hewn, we noticed a number of green parrots fluttering about or -clinging to the sheer walls of rock—like vivid green flashes of light -upon the cold stone. Down in the court a number of extraordinarily -large-sized wasps came buzzing about us. They looked formidable enough -but did not do any damage, though their obtrusion did not facilitate -the process of a sketching against time. - -Besides the Kylas, which is said to date from about 750–850 A.D., there -were a number of other and smaller temples, cut in the face of the -cliff at intervals extending along the hill on each side of the Kylas. -The most ancient is supposed to date from 200 B.C. and the latest from -the thirteenth century A.D. A guide on the spot showed us several -Buddhist temples and these were much more cave-like in character. One -had very fine massive carved and fluted columns. - -The second temple we saw suggested in its plan and form an apsidal -basilica, and in detail wooden structure, the roof being carved in -close ribs, curved to the form of a pointed arch, supported by a -horizontal cornice and columns set very close together. A colossal -figure of the seated Buddha filled the view at the end of the nave, but -there was an ambulatory behind it. The figure was painted a dark red -with white drapery and black hair, the eyes, with strongly marked white -and black pupils, had a fixed stare which carried the whole length of -the Temple. - -The next temple visited, also Buddhistic, was much plainer, and was -being supported by new buttresses of masonry to prevent the cliff from -falling. The third was larger but also quite plain and square cut, the -structure of the pillars and cornice being again on timber principles; -but none approached the Kylas in beauty and interest. - -The village of Ellora lay on the plain among trees about a mile and a -half away from the foot of the cliff. Our guide pointed out some Jain -temples there half hidden in masses of foliage and suggested a walk -there, but by this time, between 10 and 11 o’clock in the morning, the -sun was very powerful and the heat great, and as there was no shade -till the village was reached and we had to get back to our bungalow, -we gave it up and climbed the hill again. As we left the Kylas a large -and most picturesque group of natives were squatted outside the gateway -having a sort of picnic, a day out with their wives and numerous -children, and they were wandering all over the temple chattering -and laughing as they examined the sculptures and seemingly enjoying -themselves much. They gazed at us curiously as we passed, as at some -strange animals from an unknown country. - -M. Dauvergne took some photographs of the caves, while I managed to get -a coloured sketch of the Kylas, and a few notes. - -We found the return journey to Daulatabad rather easier, being mostly -downhill, though it was so precipitous in places that it was a marvel -our poor ponies kept on their legs. We met many natives on the road, -both Mohammedans and Hindus, as well as herds of goats, and asses with -sacks of grain slung across their backs, black sheep and zebu carts. - -We reached Daulatabad station about the middle of the day, or early -afternoon, and were fortunate enough (owing to the language at the -command of our friend who explained our wants) to get quite an -excellently cooked and nicely served tiffin in the waiting-room. - -There were interesting native figures about the station, and a group -of figures at the village well not far off, where I got a sketch of -a Hindu girl in a blue sari with a water jar on her head. She had a -little round mark (Buddhist) like a red seal on her forehead, and her -name was Hashuma. - -We got a train about 5.30 back to Munmad arriving there soon after -9 at night. After dining at the station we bade farewell to our -friend M. Dauvergne, who was travelling on to Bareilly, far up in the -north-western provinces to join his shooting companion. Our train from -Bombay did not leave until 3 A.M., but sleep was impossible owing to -the noise, although we had a waiting-room to ourselves. It was only -the usual conversazione which is carried on at every Indian station -by the natives who throng the platforms, often waiting all night for -a train, squatting in groups and keeping up a continual stream of -talk. We were relieved when a faithful coolie announced the arrival of -our train and carried in our bags. We had a compartment to ourselves -for the most part until nearing Bombay, our only fellow-passengers -being at different times a very quiet Hindu, and a British officer of -the Royal Scots who did not travel far. But, before we got in, the -carriage became crowded with every variety of costume, Parsee and Hindu -merchants getting in for Bombay, until we were quite full up and—oh! -so hot. Glad we were to get in at last, but not till noon—the hottest -time of day—feeling rather fagged after our long journey. The heat -in Bombay is very oppressive even in the so-called cool season. We -generally lived in a temperature of about 88°, this in the dining-room -being mitigated by electric fans; but it is always a relief when the -sun declines, and a drive in the cool of the evening is delightful. - -We planned a rather extensive tour, and with the assistance of Messrs -Cook, worked out a complete itinerary through India, ending at Ceylon, -from whence we purposed to return in the following March. - -[Illustration: ARRIVAL OF MR. DADABHAI NAOROJI AT BOMBAY, DEC. 14, 1906] - -On December 14 M. Dadabhai Naoroji arrived by the _Arcadia_ at Bombay -on his way to the National Congress at Calcutta of which he had been -elected President. He had a great welcome. Flags and triumphal arches -were put up along the esplanade, and he was brought from the Taj Mahal -Hotel in a motor car decorated with flowers. An enormous crowd turned -out to welcome him, chiefly of the Parsee community, and Parsees were -conspicuous in the balconies of the houses and hotels along the route -of the procession and parsee inscriptions of welcome hung across the -streets. It was a striking scene from our balcony altogether. The -last golden rays of the sun were slanting across the open esplanade -alternating with broad luminous shadows and along the front streamed -a vast white clad crowd—so different to the black crowds we are -accustomed to in Europe—a white crowd varied with notes of bright -colour and black here and there, and the red bunting floating around -the bronze equestrian statue of King Edward VII. in the foreground: -while the balconies were gay with Parsee ladies in their delicate -embroidered silks, canary coloured, pink, blue, green, violet and -scarlet. - - - - -CHAPTER III - -AHMEDABAD - - -We left Bombay for Ahmedabad on December the 15th. Finding that the -best train was a night one, and as it was a journey of some three -hundred miles or more, and time was an object, we made up our minds, -though not given to night travelling, to make an exception to our -usual practice, although we should lose the sight of the country by -the way. Railway travelling in India is quite as comfortable as one -might expect. The carriages, it is true, vary on different lines and -according to age, but, as a rule, the trains have separate carriages -for Europeans and for different classes of natives, and it is often -quite possible to have an entire compartment even for a long distance. -On some lines the first-class carriages are scarcely better than the -second, but the fare is double. The best carriages have compartments -containing two long leather-covered seats, each side under the -windows, which can be turned into sleeping couches at night. There is -a good space between them and also at the end between the doors, and -a lavatory is always attached. Above the seats are slung two upper -berths, so that the compartment _could_ be arranged for four sleepers. -Any amount of light luggage can be taken into the compartments by -passengers, but the heavy must be registered. The windows are protected -from the sun by Venetian shutters, which can be let up or down, as well -as glass, clear or toned, and sometimes fine wire screens. Outside -there is a sort of hood, between which and the tops of the windows is a -space for air, so that the fierce heat of the sun is tempered, and the -carriage shielded to a certain extent from its rays. - -We found very well-appointed sleeping-cars to Ahmedabad, but divided -into ladies’ and gentlemen’s compartments. As it happened, another -couple were the only others travelling by the first-class sleeping-car -besides ourselves, so that we were able to arrange between ourselves -that husbands and wives were not divided, each pair having a -compartment to themselves. - -Ahmedabad was reached about half-past seven in the morning. A crowd of -coolies usually rush to seize your baggage on the arrival of a train, -and our bearer was useful in keeping them at bay a bit. There was a Dak -bungalow at Ahmedabad, but we did not feel any decided leaning towards -it, and, finding there were quite decent bedrooms to be had at the -station and that we could feed in the refreshment-room, we decided to -stay there. - -[Illustration: THE FEET OF PILGRIMS (AT MOHAMMEDAN MOSQUES)] - -Carriages were to be had at from six to eight rupees a day, and we -engaged one and had a drive through the town, stopping to see the -mosques for which it is so famed. The Jama Musjid had a splendid, -spacious court in front of it, walled around, the entrance being -through a rather small door, where it is necessary for the visitors -either to put off their shoes or to consent to have enormous loose -ones of grass or matting tied on over their own, which seems to prevent -desecration quite as efficiently. The mosque had fifteen domes, and -inside was a forest of white pillars (260), and a large gallery for -the women, screened with pierced stone-work in lovely patterns. There -were the marble tombs of Ahmad Shah—the builder of the mosque—and his -son and grandson, richly carved in delicate relief, the sides being -arcaded, and under each arch the representation of a hanging lamp, or -censer, some of the latter showing an ornamental treatment of smoke -ascending from them. - -The marble pavements had a peculiar fine dull polish, noticeable in -mosque pavements throughout India, which is the result of the constant -movement of the bare feet of the natives passing over their surface. -The tombs of the queens of Ahmad Shah were carved with remarkable -fineness. One, inlaid with delicate trees in white marble or black, was -as fine as any Persian cabinet work in ivory. - -The Queen’s Mosque, with three domes, contains charming carving and -pierced screen-work. - -The mosque of Rani Sipri and her tomb are marvellously rich in fine -carving in red sandstone and screen-work, and suggest in some of their -forms and the rich incrustation of their ornament the influence of -Hindu work, which, indeed, is a characteristic of many here. Beautiful -pierced screens of stone-work, divided into panels by the supporting -columns, enclose the tomb. - -[Illustration: POOR RELATIONS] - -For the loveliest designs, however, in pierced screen-work, one still -turns to those of the windows of the Sidi Sayyids’ Mosque, especially -to the two wherein palms and rose-trees are combined in a sort of -natural formation to form a lovely mesh of intricate, yet perfectly -coherent and balanced pattern, which fills the tympanum shape of -low-arched windows; a design in light on dark seen from the outside, -and in dark against light seen from within, when it fulfils its purpose -of breaking up the light of the sun, and producing that enchanting -luminous twilight so characteristic of Eastern interiors. There are -reproductions of two of these windows at our Indian Museum at South -Kensington, but I had long desired to see the originals, and I was -not disappointed. The warm light of the late afternoon sun lingered -in their interstices, and, seen from below, the under sides of the -marble fret took rich golden reflections, which gave the designs quite -a new aspect, and filled them with life and colour, giving the effect -almost of sunlit foliage. We drove to see Shah Alam’s Mosque, built -about 1420, which was reached in about half an hour beyond the city -gates, along a cool avenue of acacias. The mosque has a fine court -and minarets, and a splendid canopied tomb, with pillars inlaid with -mother-o’-pearl; beautiful metal-work in pierced brass gates and -screens. - -On returning from this drive we stopped near the river Sarbarmati in a -grove of trees, chiefly banyan, mango, and acacia. Here a native boy -set up a peculiar hooting sort of call, and presently we saw troops -of silver grey monkeys dropping from the trees and gambolling along -towards us between the stems—hundreds of them apparently—hurrying up to -feed on the dried peas we scattered for them. They came crowding around -us, but were quite friendly, and many would feed out of our hands. They -varied much in size, but were mostly large, and carried their tails -high in the air and curled over their backs in spirited curves when -walking on all-fours. Many of the female monkeys carried their young -ones with them. All looked beautifully clean and healthy, and were full -of play—in fact as different as possible in their freedom from the poor -captives in cages at zoological gardens. It was amusing to watch their -pranks and to note the ease with which they would climb up into the -trees, some of which were as full of monkeys almost as branches. - -As we left the monkeys we had another unusual sight. We saw a large and -leafy mango tree leaning over the river, which seemed to have suddenly -burst into white blossoms; but we soon perceived these supposed flowers -begin to flutter, and winged ones detached themselves from the mass of -white, which we then discovered were white cranes. They would rise in -a cloud and settle again ever and anon among the green foliage. They -were a small kind, not larger than a heron, and are common all over -India. We often saw them afterwards rising by the side of the pools -by the railway track, or fishing, or flying over the submerged paddy -fields, but in smaller numbers, and never so beautifully. - -[Illustration: A FAMILY PARTY—CRANES ON A MANGO TREE (SARBARMATI -RIVER)] - -On the white and dusty road to Ahmedabad we met numbers of wagons -loaded with cotton bales and drawn by large white oxen. The country -carts had wicker bodies, somewhat like those I have seen in Germany, -and primitive massive wheels with eight spokes in a double cross. -Camels were occasionally seen ridden by natives. As at Bombay, there -were extensive cotton factories here, and cotton was very largely grown -in the country around. - -The bazaars and the street life in Ahmedabad are most various and -interesting, all sorts of trades and crafts being carried on. There -is still a great quantity of silk-weaving done, and brocades wrought -with gold thread. A proverb of the place quoted by Mr W. S. Caine has -it that the prosperity of Ahmedabad hangs on three threads—“gold, -silk, and cotton”; and these three threads still symbolise the main -industries of the city. A picturesque incident in the streets is the -silk-winder—in some open space in front of the shops you may sometimes -see a native woman standing (like Mr Holman Hunt’s “Lady of Shalott”) -within a low square enclosure formed of bamboo sticks wound with long -strands of silk thread. She holds a sort of spindle in her left hand, -and a long tapering wand in her right, by means of which she divides -or regulates the thread as she winds it off on to the bamboo sticks, -rapidly twirling the spindle as she does so. It is an extremely pretty -and picturesque sight. The old methods of hand-weaving are practised, -and for weaving the brocades or “kincobs” the treadles in the loom are -lifted from above by a boy, who draws up the cords attached to the -threads of the warp according to the pattern the weaver is working. -It is said that the native trade in the finer brocaded silks has been -injured owing to the richer natives following the European fashion -of dressing plainly, the rich silk woven with gold thread being only -worn on state occasions, another instance of the depressing influence -of Western ideas and habits upon the East. The rich merchants, and -the Maharajahs and their court officials no doubt believe they are -improving their style in adopting fashions from Europe, but the effect -is practically only to vulgarise the native taste. The native princes -and the well-to-do merchants now dash about in imported motor cars -in raiment of dingy tints, instead of proudly prancing upon stately -elephants and clothed in splendour and colour. Eastern life is made -less joyous in its aspects by such changes. The mass of the people -do not change, however, and seem to have no desire to, and they are -the common people everywhere who give the characteristic life and -colour. Though they only wear cotton or muslin, the beauty and variety -of the tints are wonderful, and fill the bazaars with a stream of -ever-changing hues in the most unexpected combinations and harmonies. - -Driving through the bazaars at Ahmedabad, we came to a sort of open -space from which several streets diverged, and here was being held -a sort of open market of cloth—chiefly muslins and cottons of every -variety of colour and pattern. These were laid out in piles on the -ground, the merchants squatting by their goods or spreading them out -to show their customers. - -[Illustration: STREET SCENE, AHMEDABAD - -ENGLISH TRAVELLERS SKETCHING AND MAKING PURCHASES] - -We stopped our carriage, and got our bearer to bring us some of -the stuffs to look at and to inquire the prices, and we were soon -surrounded by an eager crowd of dark faces and turbaned heads, and were -nearly buried in a rainbow-tinted cloud of muslin and cotton cloth, -amid which deliberate selection became difficult. I noted, however, -many examples of the native method of dyeing cloths in patterns by the -tying and dipping methods which often produce most delightful results, -the pattern having a softer and more blended effect than the ordinary -block printing. Although Manchester cottons were in evidence, it was -pleasant to see that native methods were not forgotten, and were still -in demand. - -The native pottery, too, at Ahmedabad is extremely interesting, the -common forms are always good, as indeed they are throughout India. -Enormous earthen jars are made here to hold grain, or for carrying -water from the river on ox-carts. The ordinary earthen water-jar, which -the Hindu women carry on their heads, resembles the ancient Greek -Hydria in form, and is so beautiful that it is distressing to see -it occasionally substituted by the hideous tin kerosine can—another -European innovation—much more difficult to balance one would think. -In the streets of Ahmedabad occasional features are small, richly -carved octagonal minarets supported on posts, and looking like -glorified pigeon houses. There is a big Hindu temple—a Jain temple -of no antiquity, only about thirty or forty years old. The shrine of -Hathi Sing. It has the characteristic pagoda domes, and is elaborately -painted and decorated, though rather coarsely. The finest features were -the marble pavements where, again, one noticed the peculiar soft polish -given by bare feet. - -A very interesting excursion is that to Sarkhei, a drive of about -seven miles outside the city gates. The road crosses the wide river -Sarbarmati—or rather its bed, as the water shrinks into a rather narrow -stream, and is almost lost sometimes among great stretches and banks -of sand. At the water’s edge, as we passed, we saw the people busy -washing clothes (which made a pretty coloured pattern when spread on -the sands to dry) or themselves, or watering horses and bullocks, or -refreshing their baskets of vegetables they had borne along the dusty -ways by dipping them in the stream. - -[Illustration: TOMB OF GUNJ BAKSH, SARKHEI] - -Our road was deep in dust, but generally pleasantly shaded by fine old -trees, chiefly banyan, teak trees, and acacias. The little striped -squirrels were very numerous and active, frisking up and down and -around the tree stems. Monkeys were occasionally seen—of the same -silver grey sort we had seen on our visit to the Mosque of Shah Alam—in -the jungles at the side of the road, or in the trees. A bird rather -like a large bullfinch was common, and we saw many peacocks wandering -about, and, of course, kites and crows everywhere. On the road we -passed many a heavy-laden ox-cart, piled with bales of cotton, making -their way to Ahmedabad, as well as droves of white asses, and many -groups of natives. About two miles out we saw at the side of the road a -large brick-built Mohammedan Tomb, said to be the tomb of the architect -of Sarkhei, who was a Persian. - -Further on our carriage turned out of the main road down a narrow -lane to the right and up a steep bit of hill, flagged with flat -stones. Presently we arrived in front of a fine gateway of Moslem -architecture, which formed the entrance to a large quadrangle, shaded -by a very old acacia tree. We had to put on the usual clumsy canvas -shoes before entering this court, which enclosed the splendid mosque -and tomb of Gunj Baksh (begun by Mahmudshah in 1445 and finished by -Begara in 1451), with a low, flat cupola, and many pilastered front, -the structures of the caps showing Hindu influence. There is a finely -worked lattice screen of brass surrounding the octagonal shrine within, -containing the tomb. The floor is inlaid with coloured marbles, and -the roof is rich with gilding. An open pavilion stood in the court in -front of the shrine, raised upon a platform, with steps supported by -sixteen carved marble pillars. Opposite to this is a charming portico, -through which one can get a glimpse of the great tank, though it was -almost dried up when we saw it, the water hardly enough to conceal an -alligator, though white cranes were standing in the pool in the forlorn -hope of catching fish, and monkeys gambolled about the steps. On the -side of the court near the entrance are the tombs of Mahmud Begara and -his two sons—of the usual Mohammedan type, an arcaded pattern in low -relief along the sides; with censers hanging between the arches of -similar type to those at Ahmedabad. - -There is a pathetic feeling of departed or half decayed splendour about -Sarkhei, as well as a sense of romance and mystery, and one leaves -it impressed with the idea of the refinement, sense of beauty, and -spaciousness of the departed princely builders who lie buried within -their own architectural dream. - -There are always a number of hangers on about Indian tombs and -temples, self-constituted guides, and persons of indefinite status and -occupation who cluster around the arriving and departing stranger, who -has to smooth his path with backsheesh, and Sarkhei is no exception. -We had a hot drive along the dusky highway back to Ahmedabad in the -middle of the day, the sun blazing down very fiercely, and we were glad -of the protection of the carriage hood. - -In the course of one of our evening drives about the town, our -Moonsawmy pointed out an acacia tree we passed by the roadside which -appeared to be full of what looked like large pendant pear-shaped fruit -of black and golden brown colour. These, however, were really clusters -of fruit-bats hanging in the tree until nightfall. Some of them, as we -looked, were already moving and stretching out their wings in the last -rays of the evening sun. - -We passed through the triple arched ancient gateway which stands at -the head of the main street. The bazaars were crowded with buyers and -sellers, chiefly of cotton and other stuffs. The people themselves in -every variety of costume formed a wonderful scheme of colour, varied by -the brownskins of babies and little children playing about quite naked, -and the brown backs of the workers bending over their crafts. The whole -scene fused in the light of afterglow and rich in tone and chiaroscuro. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -AHMEDABAD TO AJMIR - - -The railway station at Ahmedabad has the unusual distinction of two -striking minarets of brick-work, richly cut and moulded in successive -circular tiers, which rise to a considerable height from amid the -palms and plantains of a small well-watered Eastern garden, with -many straight-cut paths between the thickly planted trees. These are -the remains of a Mohammedan mosque which once stood there. It is an -unusually interesting and pleasant place to wander in while waiting for -a train. - -Our bearer secured a comfortable coupé for our journey to Ajmir, which -was to be our next halting-place. We had originally intended to visit -Mount Abu to see the wonderful Jain temples of Delwara, but before we -reached the Abu road heavy rain came on, and as it would have meant a -pony ride of sixteen miles from the station to Mount Abu, we decided to -go on to Ajmir without a break. - -Leaving Ahmedabad at 8.15 we breakfasted in the train, there being -a restaurant car put on. The trains not being corridor trains it is -necessary to get out at the stopping stations and find one’s way to the -car and back to one’s carriage again. - -The country at first was very flat and generally cultivated, but with -occasional belts of jungle, where monkeys and peacocks were seen. Fine -banyan and acacia trees here and there. Ploughing with oxen was going -on, and the yoke of oxen drawing at the irrigation wells was a frequent -sight. - -About the middle of the day dark clouds rolled up and we had a heavy -shower with promise of more to come. Mountains came into view at the -same time as the change in the weather, and it was not long before we -reached Abu Road Station. The fine mountain range on the left of the -line amid which Mount Abu was situated was veiled in cloud and rain, -but as we left the mountains the sky cleared again, and we entered -a flat, desert-like region covered with stunted trees or dry scrub -bush, stretching for miles. A strange-looking country was afterwards -traversed, where huge granite boulders lay on the earth like mounds and -partly overgrown, others might have been imagined to be the shells of -gigantic tortoises. At a station called Mori this characteristic was -the most striking. The stations on this line through Rajpootana were -built after the Moslem fashion and had a superficial resemblance to -mosques, being domed, the smaller buildings and wayside signal huts -being treated in the same manner. - -After a rainy sunset of orange and grey, darkness soon fell, and it was -not long before we reached Ajmir after about twelve hours’ travel—a -distance of over three hundred miles. We found fairly comfortable -quarters at the station refreshment-rooms, the bedrooms being above -and opening on to spacious terraces from which interesting views of -the town and country could be had. The only drawbacks were the noises. -What with the shrieks of the engines, and the perpetual conversazione -carried on on the platforms, which were generally thronged with most -picturesque crowds of natives, sleep was very broken. - -Ajmir is very beautifully situated, with a fine background of -hills, the town itself being on a slope with an old fort crowning a -height immediately above it. There is a large military station, the -cantonments with the residency and the English bungalows lying on a -plain quite away from the native town. - -We hired a carriage and drove around the town the morning after our -arrival, visiting the old palace and massive fortress built by the -Emperor Akbar, who has left so many noble buildings in the north-west -of India to testify to his power and influence in the past. We -entered through a noble gateway into a large quadrangle surrounded by -tremendously high, thick walls and having octagonal bastions at four -corners. A pavilion rose in the centre of the court, raised upon a -platform led up to by steps of marble. Extensive restorations were -being carried on under the Indian Government, so much so that one had -fears they were in danger of going too far in the direction of renewal, -and did not draw the line with sufficient decision at the limits of -preservation and repair. Certainly new work was being put in freely. It -was interesting, however, to see that most beautiful and characteristic -Indian craft of piercing patterns in marble being carried on. The -native carver, turbaned and grey-bearded, was squatting on the ground -busy with a small marble grill or screen. He was drilling a geometric -diaper pattern through a panel of marble which had a worked moulding -for frame. The slab was bedded in clay to keep it from under the -worker’s hands, and to prevent splitting. When the holes were drilled -he finished the work with chisels and mallet, working out the different -bevels and facets of the quatre-foils, and putting in the work that -which gave all the richness and the effect of the pattern. He seemed -pleased to have his work noticed, and anxious that we should see it -in its finished state he went to where a group of native women were -at work on other similar grills which had left the carver’s hands, -cleaning the pierced patterns from the clay, and showed the completed -panels clear cut in the white marble. It was noticeable that the women -only did the cleaning and polishing up, but not the carving. - -We had a fine view from the ramparts and minarets of the pavilion. - -From the fort we went on driving through the bazaars of Ajmir, which -were highly interesting but less busy and crowded, perhaps, than at -Ahmedabad. Gay coloured cottons and muslins, embroidered slippers, -pottery, and grain of all kinds were mostly in evidence, the latter -arranged in heaps on cloths spread on the ground in front of the shops, -and measured out by the traders squatting by their merchandise. The -fronts of the native houses here were mostly in white plaster, often -painted with designs in blue and yellow of formal flowers in vases, -or quaint animals and figures in profile. There was much fancy and -variety in the design of the little arcaded projecting balconies -corbelled out from the wall, and ogee arched windows, and moulded -plaster and painted ornament. - -We presently, at the end of the principal street, approached the -magnificent double gateway of the famous Dargah—named the Dilkasha (or -“heart-expanding”) gate. From the street one really sees three ogee -arches of different heights in succession, one beyond the other, the -highest being flanked by towering minarets crowned with cupolas. The -whole gateway in the bright morning sunlight looked a fairy-like aerial -structure, fair and white, and glittering here and there with gold, and -tile patterns in blue and yellow. - -The Dargah of Ajmir is revered as the burial-place of one Kwaja Sahib, -a saint of the thirteenth century. His beautiful white and gold domed -shrine enclosing his silver tomb occupies the centre of the inner -court, and is visited by troops of pilgrims. A great festival is -held in honour of the saint every year, when Ajmir is thronged with -pilgrims. Two enormous iron pots are shown, standing each side the -entrance to the Dargah, in which at the festival are cooked tons of -food freely given to the pilgrims. The biggest pot is reputed to hold -no less than 10,000 lbs. of food. The food consists of mess of rice, -oil, sugar, raisins, and almonds, which is rather suggestive of a sort -of plum pudding, and on this scale costs about £100. - -[Illustration: SHRINE OF THE KWAJA, AJMIR] - -On first entering the Dargah through the great gateway one sees a large -paved court with several domed tombs and a mosque, and rising high -the old fort of Tarrgarh, white-walled on the brown hill, is seen -above. I noted a very fine bronze many-branched candelabra on one of -the domed tombs. Passing through this court the second court is entered -where stands the shrine. It is surrounded by a low marble balustrade, -and is picturesquely overshadowed by a large ancient ilex tree, through -the spreading branches of which with their masses of rich dark foliage -glows the colour and gold of the richly decorated shrine. Through -the open doors gleam the silver of the tomb, and the ivory-like dome -fretted and crested with gold sparkling in the full light of the sun -pierces the deep blue sky. Curious low tapering pedestals with small -cupolas at the top are placed about the courts and around the shrine at -intervals. These are pierced with small recesses, in which, on festival -occasions, small lamps are placed. Beyond the shrine we come out upon -a high-walled terrace which extends with a succession of bays along -the sides of a deep narrow tank, flights of steps leading down to the -water’s edge at different points. - -It is the custom when visitors leave the Dargah for the attendants to -hang garlands of flowers about their necks, and in return for this -graceful attention an offering to the shrine—or to its hangers on—is -expected. - -The visitor is, however, rather carefully watched inside the Dargah. -The shrine itself is not allowed to be entered. Shoes must be removed -on entering the court, or the big canvas shoes put on over them. On -sketching intent I was not allowed to pitch a camp stool near the -shrine or in the sacred precincts, and even open umbrellas, for shade, -were objected to by these jealous watchful devotees. - -From the Dargah we went to see the roofless mosque of -“Arhai-din-ka-Jhonpra,” which being interpreted signifies “The house -of two and a half days.” It is on the hill opposite the fort, but -on the lower slope, and is approached through narrow streets, and -finally reached by a steep flight of steps which lead to the gateway -of the court of the mosque. It is now little more than a beautiful -red sandstone carved screen of open pointed arches, but the detail is -exceedingly rich and happy in scale, and largely consists of bordering -inscriptions outlining the arches and their rectangular framings, the -texts being in both Cufic and Togra characters, and both these and the -surface decoration generally are delicately but sharply cut in sunk -carving, which preserves a certain unity of ornamental effect. Arranged -along the side of the court are many carved fragments which are the -remains of the Jain Temple, transformed into the Mussulman Mosque in -the year 1236 by Altamash, who conquered the city, and was said to have -effected the transformation in two and a half days. - -The mosque was not used for worship. In the court a rope or cord maker -was at work. The white strands stretched over canes from the man -working at one end of the walk to where at the other end his assistant -sat at a sort of wheel by means of which the strands were twisted into -a cord of the required thickness. - -After this we drove to the Daulat Bagh (Garden of splendour)—then -passing through a beautiful park full of pine-trees we came to the -white marble pavilion built by Shah Jehan, standing on a marble -balustraded terrace, and overlooking a lovely lake, bounded by -mountains—a lovely spot. The pavilion has been restored by the Indian -government, and looks quite new. Marble, however, does not seem to -weather or discolour in the Indian climate, and the difference between -new and old is not nearly so marked as in European countries, while -the imitative faculty of the Hindu workman and the traditions of -craftsmanship under which he still works help to complete the illusion -when restoration is done. New or old, it was an enchanting place, -especially when the evening sun floods the whole scene with golden -light, streaming through the trees, and filling the marble porticoes -with warm colour. The lake still as a mirror, reflecting the fairy -palace and the dreamy distance in its glassy surface. The chief -commissioner should be happy to have his residence in the midst of this -lovely garden. The lake is as useful too as it is beautiful, as from it -is obtained the water supply of Ajmir. - -Another of our evening drives was through the cantonments outside the -native city. We passed through the English military quarters, and -saw the long low barrack-like bungalows of the soldiers, clean and -neat, but bare and ugly. There were more comfortable bungalows of -the officers and other English residents in gardens and amid trees, -with entrance gates and drives, almost suburban, allowing for little -differences in detail. The names of the residents, for instance, were -painted in white block-letters on ugly black boards placed outside the -gates of the gardens. There was the usual club house in a landscape -garden, and here a military band of native infantry was playing, -conducted by a man in a straw hat. English ladies, and children with -their native aejahs and bearers scattered about the lawns. - -On the road a little distance from the town a large number of natives -were busy making up the road over a new bridge across the railway. Many -of these coolies were very attenuated, and might have come from the -famine districts. - -Passing through the bazaar on my return from sketching in the Dargah, I -noticed among the stalls of a crowded and picturesque native street a -craftsman at work putting a border pattern upon the edge of a piece of -orange-coloured muslin. He first printed or stamped the border, a small -leaf and flower pattern, from a wood block with some sort of size of a -brown colour, and when this was sufficiently “tacky” he laid on silver -leaf over the pattern thus defined by the block in size, and finished -by brushing away the superfluous leaf with a soft brush, much as our -gilders do. - -A quaint effect was produced by the camels here, laden with great -sheafs of sugar-cane, which trailed behind, spreading out over their -hind quarters in a way that suggested skirts or a crinoline—viewed from -behind. - -[Illustration: THE CAMEL’S CRINOLINE (SUGAR CANE) AJMIR] - -From our terrace over the railway station we could observe the varied -groups of natives which continually thronged the platforms and the -yards outside. Certainly the native in India makes constant use of the -railways, although the railways do not take any trouble to make them -comfortable. The native carriages seem always in an overcrowded state, -and many of them are rather suggestive of cattle trucks with rough -wooden partitions. Troups of natives will come to a railway station -and camp all night waiting for some train in the morning. On inquiring -what classes or manner of people these poor travellers mostly were, I -was told that they comprised chiefly pilgrims to various shrines and -festivals in different parts of the country, and small traders. The -Ryot, or agriculturist, did not travel much, as might be supposed. -The people usually bore great bundles with them, bedding presumably, -and other necessaries for long journeys. These the women carried upon -their heads. In the evenings groups of natives would be seen gathered -round fires made on the ground. These were often mere flares of straw, -and did not last very long, though they may have served to mitigate the -chill of the nightfall, which is always so sudden in India. - -As evidence of the extraordinary variety of colour arrangements in the -costume of the natives in the bazaars, here are a few notes made of the -colours worn by passers-by, both men and women, at Ajmir observed in -the course of a few minutes. - -1. Citron tunic, emerald green turban, white trousers. - -2. Buff turban black tunic, white trousers. - -3. (Woman.) Large vermilion cloak, pink skirt. - -4. Pea green turban, crimson velvet tunic, white trousers. - -5. Orange turban, black tunic, white trousers. - -6. White turban, wound round a red fez, deep brown orange cloak thrown -over brown jacket and white breeches. - -7. Orange muslin simply covering head and body, scarlet trousers. -(Mohammedan woman.) - -8. Turquoise turban, golden orange tunic (long) lined with pale yellow. - -The agricultural country folks generally wore white, though it was -rather a dusky white. Groups of herdsmen were occasionally seen with -long straight wands, their dark faces and bare limbs emerging from -white cotton turbans, tunics and cloaks. - -Travellers in India as well as English residents are often greeted -with salaams in the native bazaars and passers-by on the road. The -word “salaam” is pronounced by natives sometimes in a tone almost of -command, but as far as I could understand it was intended to suggest a -mutual exchange of salutations, or even the word alone might be taken -as a salutation sometimes; but it is always expected that an answering -salute of some kind will be given, but it is said that one should -never salute with the left hand if it is wished to avoid offence. -The ordinary mode of salutation in any country should be carefully -observed, as in no way can offence be more easily given, however -inadvertently, by any apparent neglect of what are considered the -ordinary courtesies of life sanctioned by the customs of a country. - -It is true that the native children seemed sometimes inclined to mock -at a stranger, in a spirit of monkey mischief, perhaps, but there -are little street gamins in any city, and the latest product of our -civilisation, the London street arab, would be difficult to beat -anywhere, East or West. - - - - -CHAPTER V - -CHITORGARH AND UDAIPUR - - -From Ajmir there is a branch line to Chitorgarh and Udaipur, and no -traveller in India should miss the opportunity of visiting both these -highly interesting places. Leaving Ajmir, the railway runs south -through a rather flat country, passing Naisirabad, an important British -military station. The English “Tommy” in khaki, and white helmet and -putties, or the sun-burned, brown-booted and spurred British cavalry -officer, were in evidence at the railway station. Among the native -crowd here we saw a turbaned man in pink carrying a very thin, aged -woman, probably his mother, pick-a-back fashion. - -A very dry and almost desert tract of country is traversed after this, -though occasionally varied by irrigated fields and green crops. The -irrigation wells, worked by oxen as before, and the native ploughing, -were the chief incidents in the landscape. The plough is a very -primitive-looking implement with a single shaft, with a cross handle -fixed at right angles to the shaft, which consists of a sharpened piece -of wood, tipped with iron. The plough is drawn by a pair of zebus, -and is light enough for the man to lift up and turn at the end of the -furrow, or even to be carried home on his shoulder at the end of the -day. There were thick hedges of spikey sort of cactus, branching out -from a main stem, something like candelabra, the fronds growing in a -longitudinal, rigid form. These hedges fenced the railway line from the -fields on the desert. Another plant of common occurrence, both here and -all over India, was a broad-leaved shrub of symmetric order, having -small, pale, lilac flowers, the stems rather a yellow, and the leaves a -lightish blue green. We noted also a sort of wild laburnam. The prickly -pear was common, and a sort of prickly acacia-like shrub much liked by -camels. The trees were mostly various acacias, the banyan tree (Ficus), -and the teak. In places we saw both date and cocoa palms. At one -station (Mandal) the level plains, with pyramidal hills in the distance -and a grove of palms and camels in the foreground, again recalled Egypt. - -The cultivated crops we passed were cotton, tobacco, rice, wheat, and -sugar cane. - -At every station may be seen the water filter, a wooden tripod stand, -holding three red earthen water-jars, one above the other. The natives -drink quantities of water, and always carry a small drinking-vessel -of bright brass, which they take every opportunity of filling. The -water-bearer is a characteristic figure everywhere, and comes up to the -train with his cry, “Panee! panee!” which (with an Italian prepossessed -ear) is more suggestive of another, and solid, necessary of life. -Bread, however, in Hindustanee, happens to be “roti.” - -Having left Ajmir by the 9.20 A.M. train, we arrived at Chitorgarh -about five in the evening, and put up at the station rooms for the -night. There was a considerable crowd on the long, open, gravelled -platform, mainly natives, with a small contingent of English and -American tourists. European tourists in India, however, were generally -few and far between, the United States being much more numerously -represented. A picturesque group was formed by a native resident from -Udaipur, with his retinue, waiting for their train on. The chief was -a venerable and a kindly-looking man, with white hair and beard, -reminding one rather of the late G. F. Watts. He was gaily dressed in -a pink turban and a lilac silk coat, and was seated on a chair on the -platform, surrounded by his attendants in scarlet; among these was his -trumpeter, with a bugle slung around him, and a quad of four soldiers -in khaki and turbans. - -We found the Traveller’s Bungalow was about three-quarters of a mile or -so away from the station. The bedrooms were all taken by the English -and American parties, but we could feed there, so, retaining our -quarters at the station, we walked to the Bungalow for our dinner. -It was a lovely moonlight night, with bright stars, but there was a -cold north wind as we were guided by our bearer with a lantern along -a rather rough track, and crossed the railway to the Bungalow, a new -stone building, bare and cheerless as they make them, standing all by -itself in a stoney yard without a tree near it. The dinner, or supper, -was not very rewarding, and we trudged back again to the station in the -cold moonlight. The station we found quieter than usual. The servants -of the resident had encamped upon the platform, and formed picturesque -groups around fires, cooking and gossiping; their master sleeping in -the train, which was drawn up ready to start for Udaipur early the next -morning. - -It seems highly necessary for travellers in India anywhere off the -track of hotels to provide themselves with bedding of some sort, at -least quilts, rugs, sheets, and pillows. The nights at this time of -year in Rajpootana are quite cold, and warm wraps are welcome. - -The next morning we engaged a large elephant—which waited at the -station to take travellers to Chitorgarh—to carry us to the fort and -deserted city on the height we could see from the station. This was a -distance of some seven miles there and back, it was said. - -[Illustration: FIRST ELEPHANT RIDE. (CHITORGARH)] - -The elephant was made by the driver to kneel while we mounted, by means -of a ladder of bamboo, and seated ourselves on the flat, cushioned -seat, having a low hand-rail and a foot board, slung by ropes. The -elephant moved with a peculiar swaying, swinging movement, not unlike -that of a ship, though regular. We started over a stretch of rough, -common-like ground, broken into hillocks and hollows, overgrown with -scrub bush, the track not being very definite. The elephant picked its -way most carefully over the rough parts, especially when descending a -hollow. We reached a roadway which led over a bridge across a river, -and brought us up to the city of Chitor at the foot of the hill, and -extending upon its lower slopes. We entered the city through a Moslem -arched gateway, and threaded our way through the narrow streets, -our elephant filling the whole of the roadway. Pottery, beads, glass -bracelets, cheap lacquered ornaments, and small merchandise of various -kinds were spread out on the ground, their proprietors squatting by -their stock in trade. The native houses were small and low, for the -most part hardly more than huts of mud, roofed with sun-baked tiles, -laid scalewise over a trellis of bamboo, often very dilapidated. There -were remains of better houses and older, with arcaded balconies, and -here and there we passed a small white-washed temple, with quaint -elephants with gay housings painted in profile on the white walls -each side the entrance. These elephants are drawn in a very spirited -manner, and are generally represented going at a trot, and full of -action with trunk and tail in the air, decorated with bells on his feet -and gorgeous red and yellow housings and domed howdah, set off by the -solid black of the elephant and his ivory tusks, the turbaned driver -flourishing his goad. From our commanding eminence, the elephant’s -back, we could take a comprehensive survey of the life of the city, -and see the people at work at various trades. The inhabitants did not -take much notice of us; some would stare and others would salaam as we -passed. I imagine the elephant with European travellers on its back -not infrequently passed through Chitor, although we managed to startle -a tethered camel in one of the streets considerably, and the animal -tugged at its rope and plunged alarmingly at the sight of our elephant. - -Leaving the city of Chitor, which seemed very poverty-stricken, we -reached the first gate of the fortress, and began the ascent of some -200 or 300 feet. The road zigzags up the side of the rocky plateau, -upon the summit of which the fort and ancient city were built, the -ancient capital of Rajpootana. Massive walls protect this road on the -outer side, and a continuous warder’s walk runs along it, with flights -of stone steps to the roadway at intervals. We passed through five -gateways on the way up, generally enriched with sculptured ornament—the -last one, Ram Pol, being the richest, and this was finely carved -with Hindu detail and symbols, having friezes of elephants. There -have been extensive restorations at Chitorgarh. The whole length of -the wall seems to have been gone over, and replastered, and in many -places rebuilt with new stone. The tops of the gates were crenellated -in a fashion which suggested a perpetuation in stone of an earlier -type of wooden palisading, a horizontal band connecting the rounded or -pointed stone heads, the divisions between each being continued below -it. In many cases the old massive wooden gates were left under the -archways, bound with old iron bands. By the way, at Ajmir we noted that -the wooden doors of the gateways to the courts were covered with old -horse-shoes nailed on, close together, in some instances actually over -the old rich carved work, and apparently with the same idea of good -omen as is associated with the same emblem in our country. - -Arrived at the summit there were wonderful ruins to be seen. Scattered -over the plateau, half overgrown, amid heaps of shattered stones and -carved fragments, there were the remains of Mohammedan palaces and -Hindu or Jain Temples, rich within and without with intricate carving. - -The guides showed us where the Hindu Queen and the women of the city, -all suffocated themselves in a subterranean chamber to escape their -fate had they fallen into the hands of the Mohammedan conquerors, when -Ala-ud-din took Chitor by storm in 1290. - -The hand of the restorer was seen here again and had been in some -parts rather too thorough. I noticed an arcade over the gateway of the -Moslem Palace, which seemed to have been entirely rebuilt in a kind of -pale green marble, almost the colour of jade, quite sharply cut and -new, and out of keeping with the old work more or less battered and -ruined around it. The famous Tower of Victory had been extensively -restored, even the carving in parts recut. This is going too far, as -it is impossible to unite modern workmanship with old, even in India. -Watchful and careful, timely repair is the only way to preserve ancient -buildings, but there should be no attempt made to replace lost carving -and decoration by modern imitation. - -We entered over broken steps a wonderful Jain temple, very richly -carved, with a remarkable domed ceiling over the central chamber, -arranged in a series of concentric circles, intersected by figures of -dancing girls, with emblems radiating from the centre. Another Jain -temple formed a most picturesque pile, and a delightful mass of light -and shade filled in with intricate detail, in the full sunlight. In -these temples a favourite deity is Ganesha, the elephant-headed god, -whose carved image constantly appears. - -In one part of the ancient city we came upon some natives preparing -cotton yarn for hand-weaving. The yarn was stretched in long lengths -across horizontal canes supported by vertical ones. They seemed to be -cleaning the threads with combs and brushes. The little black-bristled -hand-brushes placed on the top of the turbaned heads when not in use -had a very quaint effect. - -Having explored the ruins of Chitorgarh, we remounted our good -elephant, which waited for us, and descended, moving rather joltingly -down the long hill, and frightening a pony and a camel tethered in the -main street of Chitor. The sun was now blazing, it being noontide, -though tempered by the still cool wind from the north, which we had -found really cold in the morning. - -Returning the way we had come to our quarters at the station, after -taking tiffin at the bungalow we arranged to go on to Udaipur in the -morning, and were advised to sleep in the train, which waited in the -station all night, and left at 6.20 A.M. for Udaipur. So we packed up -and went on board and took our berths, which were on the whole more -comfortable than the station beds. - -In the morning our compartment was invaded by a young Indian who wanted -a seat, but we had kept it to ourselves during the night, which was -cold enough, and we were glad of all our wraps. The young Indian was a -pleasant, bright, and intelligent young fellow who spoke English well, -well clad in the style of a native gentleman, with plenty of wraps and -overcoats. He was obviously curious about us, and wanted to know all we -would tell him. He seemed to have a great wish to see London, and asked -us about the cost of living there, and whether a Hindu could live there -according to his religion without meat. He described India as “a poor -country,” and wondered that we should journey so far to see it. He was -bound for some town where his father lived, sixty miles by tonga from -Udaipur, being under orders not to stop at the latter place, as his -father had told him there was plague there, and wished him to come on. - -The train passed through a very flat and rather cheerless country, -exceedingly dry, and for the most part covered with long jungle grass, -but varied here and there by green crops under irrigation. - -Camels were occasionally seen, generally ridden by two men; also there -were many herds of oxen and buffaloes. As usual, there were many -interesting types and groups to be observed at the stations. - -Approaching Udaipur, the country broke into hills and became more -interesting. We reached Udaipur Station about 11.30, and bidding -good-bye and exchanging cards with the young Hindu, we parted with our -baggage into a little open cart called a “tum-tum,” and were driven -some distance, along a dusty road, to the Udaipur Hotel, which looked -like an expanded bungalow with a second storey added on. Here we found -pleasant quarters and decent beds. - -At the table-d’hôte there was a rather frigid Anglo-Indian family, a -colonel on a tour of official inspection and his secretary and their -ladies; also a voluble American lady, whom we had seen at Ajmir, and a -rather lofty and superior English military man and his wife, who, we -were afterwards informed, were the guests of the Maharajah. - -In meeting one’s compatriots aboard or indeed anywhere without an -introduction one is reminded by their manner strongly of the Oxford Don -who could not do anything to save an unfortunate undergraduate from -drowning because “he had not been introduced.” - -Here, in a remote part of India, chance had thrown half-a-dozen English -people together at the same table, and yet they would hardly speak -to each other, that is to say to any new-comer outside their own -party. Nothing, however, daunts the American traveller, especially the -American lady. She ignores the social ice, or if she perceives it she -boldly breaks it with a hatchet, as it were, rushing in under the guns -of the most frigid and unapproachable personalities with a cheerful and -persistent fire of conversation, popping in leading questions with the -most artless and childlike confidence. This mode of attack generally -succeeds, too, apparently. I have seen severe English official and -military-looking men, after some show of resistance, unconditionally -surrender, and presently empty their intellectual pockets on the demand -of these light-hearted, table-d’hôte, globe-trotting inquisitors. - -A picturesque feature of hotel life in India is the impromptu bazaar -formed under the arcade, which always shades the rooms on the ground -floor, by the travelling merchants, who spread out their wares to tempt -the traveller. - -In Rajpootana, the land of warriors, collections of arms, swords, -sword-sticks, knives and daggers, and fearsome and wonderful blades -of all sorts form a conspicuous part of the stock-in-trade of these -native merchants, the glittering steel making a brave show with the -bright-coloured stuffs, jewellery, and embroideries. At Udaipur they -offered also native pictures, painted in tempera, somewhat crude but -distinctly decorative, and complete with painted borders or frames. -They represented elephants, tigers, maharajahs sabring wild swine, -and such-like, painted in profile in frank flat colours, the animals -singularly faithful in silhouette to nature. In dealing with these -travelling traders, bargaining is, of course, expected, and usually -they are willing to accept about half the price originally asked. - -[Illustration: RAJPUTS AND THEIR RARITIES. (UDAIPUR)] - -An impressive sight at Udaipur is the place of tombs, or the -burning-place, which is a beautiful garden surrounded by a high wall, -full of magnificent domed tombs and cenotaphs. This is the place where -the Kings of Udaipur, since it became the capital of Rajpootana, -have been buried, or rather cremated, with their wives. The city of -Udaipur—a glimpse of which, with its crenellated walls and the huge -pile of the Maharajah’s palace rising above the trees, is seen from the -hotel—is entered, after a short drive through a fine double gateway. -A huge old mango tree grows over the street just inside. Udaipur is a -white town; the streets are very picturesque, having arcaded bazaars -and pretty fantastic balconies here and there, and the native life is -of course very varied and full of colour. The main street rises up to -the eminence on which the palace stands. At an angle before this is -reached, a steep flight of white steps leads up to the gate of the -court of the great temple of Juggernath—a Jain temple dedicated to -Vishnu—the second person in the Hindu Trinity. It was the finest of -its kind we have yet seen. We were allowed to walk around the court -and examine the carvings, but not inside the temple. Two great stone -elephants stand facing one another at the entrance to the court—a -similar arrangement to that noted at Ellora. There is an elaborate -shrine over the gateway in which is a seated bronze or brass figure of -Vishnu with his lotus flower, snakes, and other emblems. The exterior -of the temple is a wonderful mass of carving. On the plinth was a -continuous narrow frieze of elephants on a small scale, having the -effect of a richly carved moulding; above this was a line of horses, -all saddled and bridled but without riders; above this again was a band -of human figures. Over these were carved on a larger scale a series of -figures of dancing-girls in different attitudes. These dancers always -form an important element in the carved decoration of Jain temples. - -We next visited the palace of the Maharajah, which occupies the highest -ground in the city of Udaipur. It is a vast, romantic-looking pile. -The steep street leads the traveller up to a great arched gateway, and -through this is entered a large oblong court. On the right, the vast -white palace walls rise to a great height, with hardly any windows, but -high up are seen fairy-like arcades, balconies, and domed minarets, -glittering with blue tile-work and gold. - -A native custodian conducted us over the Palace. Entering an inner -court, we ascended a steep stone staircase at an angle, the treads -rising about nine or twelve inches high. There were native paintings -on the walls of richly caparisoned state elephants bearing maharajahs, -tigers, and other figures. We passed through a succession of rooms and -courts at different levels, the walls of white marble inlaid with a -very fine sort of glass mosaic, not tessellated but let in in pieces -cut large or small according to the forms to be expressed. These were -generally figures always in severe profile, in elaborate costume, -and jewels the details of which were carefully and richly rendered. -Flowers and delicate palm trees varied the designs, done in the same -way, the leaves and small component parts being cut complete in the -glass. There were also formal floral borders outlining the arches of -the arcades, and forming ceiling patterns in some of the rooms, and on -the walls were hung in frames delicate paintings on vellum, heightened -with gold, such as one sees in old Indian illuminated MSS. In some of -the corridors it was rather a shock to see inserted in the windows -pieces of crudely stained European glass, such as were in vogue in -conservatories here in the “forties.” One room was entirely decorated -with coloured glass, the walls being veneered with a zigzag pattern in -red and white glass. - -Other and smaller rooms in the Zenana quarters, which we had now -reached, and all at the top storey of the Palace, were lined with old -Dutch tiles, others again with Chinese blue and white tiles. These -rooms had graceful, arcaded balconies which commanded extensive views. -We had a bird’s-eye view of the palace courts and the stable yards, -where elephants were tethered in long rows, the busy natives moving -about with horses and oxen. Beyond were seen the clustering, small -white houses with flat roofs, broken by domes here and there, the green -wooded country and the hills far away, while on the other side of the -palace the lake with its pavilioned islands mirrored the sunset framed -in the blue mountains. - -At night we frequently heard the weird cries of the jackals which prowl -around most places in India after dark, and when all is quiet in human -habitations. It is a very wild, shrill sound, rising almost to a shriek -at times. We also thought we caught another note—the laughter of the -hyena. - -[Illustration: THE MAHARAJAH’S PALACE AT UDAIPUR. FROM THE JAGMANDIR -PAVILION] - -A charming excursion by boat may be made to the palace of Jagmandir, -which occupies the whole of an island on the lake, a fairy-like -pavilion enclosing luxuriant palms and fruit trees within its courts -and gardens in which one realised the architecture and scenery of the -Arabian Nights. - -We reached the lakeside through a fine triple-arched gate which led -to a flight of steps descending into the water. Here a striking scene -burst upon us. A crowd of dark Hindu women thronged the steps, clad for -the most part in rich red saris of different tones, varied by orange -and purple drapery and the glitter of their silver bangles and anklets. -They were busy cleaning their brass water jars, scrubbing and polishing -them on the steps at different levels; some standing in the water, -whilst others, filling their vessels and poising them on their heads, -would move away stately and erect, like walking caryatids. - -Presently a rather heavy boat with two native oarsmen, which had been -summoned by our guide moved from the palace to the steps and we, with -our bearer, embarked, and were rowed over to the enchanting island -and the fairy-like palace of Jagmandir where Shah Jehan lived when in -revolt against his father, Jahangir. On the way we rowed around another -island showing white arcades and domes emerging from green bowery -foliage of mangoes and palms. - -Landing at the steps we found the Jagmandir a most lovely place, full -of arcaded courts, and marble pavements, pointed windows and balconies -and marble walls enclosing green gardens full of roses, and palms, -and plantains, a kingly pavilion, displaying all the invention and -refinement of Mogul art. Inside, too, the palace was full of interest. -There was a charming little painted chamber, the walls treated in a -sort of tapestry manner with Indian scenes and decorative landscapes -rich with trees and varied with all the characteristic birds and -animals (the white cranes on the mango tree which we had seen in -reality at Ahmedabad were there) kites and crows, and antelopes, and -the Maharajah and his horsemen hunting the tiger amid these painted -forests and jungles. On one wall the Maharajah himself was painted -at full length in profile in a white turban and dress also white -embroidered with gold, with a gold nimbus about his head as he is -supposed to be descended from Rama, and is considered a sacred person -connected with the sun—a large sun face modelled and gilded appears on -the palace wall. - -Another room was said to have been painted by a French artist. He had -taken the lotus as a motive and had tuned it into a formal scroll -pattern in the frieze, but it was not a success, and had not the -interest or the spirit or decorative instinct of the native artist. - -The chief salon had Parisian carpets on the floor, and a dreadful blue -glass chandelier, and other horrors in glass and furniture of Western -origin. Opening out of this salon was a bedroom raised a step or two on -a higher level and the principal feature here was a large bedstead in -glass and silver! On the walls of one of the courts was a decoration in -gesso inlaid with glass, which was both delicate and effective. There -were figures decoratively treated in severe profile, combined with -trees and flowers somewhat Persian in feeling and similar in style to -some we had seen in the Maharajah’s palace. - -From the landing-place I made a sketch of that palace in the sunlight -reflected in the calm waters of the lake. Then, at noon we rowed back -to the town and returned in our tonga to the hotel. - -Another of the sights of Udaipur is to see the Maharajah’s wild pigs -fed. He has an arena near the town for the cruel sport of pig-sticking, -but keeps vast herds of pigs upon the mountain sides at the head of the -lake. It is a beautiful drive to the spot through the city and out at a -further gate, and through groves and along a terrace-like road by the -lakeside, to a white building on a high ground overlooking the wooded -and rocky mountain side, partially covered with low forest; there from -a terrace we could see many swine feeding. They are like a small kind -of wild boar, but differing in size, and very fierce, bristling their -backs and charging one another over the food, which was Indian corn, -scattered broadcast among them by two natives, one carrying the sack -of grain and the other distributing it from a sort trencher. There -was a sort of Brobdingnagian mouse-trap on the ground, presumably to -catch the boars in, when wanted for the arena. There were but few boars -at first to be seen, but they seemed to know the feeding time, and -gradually gathered in large numbers, and when the grain was scattered, -by their constant rushes after it and violent charges with each others -soon raised such a thick cloud of dust that they became lost to view -as in a thick mist, and could only hear their hoofs scraping over -the rocky ground, and their savage grunts and squeaks. A number of -peacocks hovered on the outskirts on the look out for stray grain as -well as blue rocks and crows which often perched on the hogs’ backs! -The terrace from which we surveyed this strange scene was really the -parapeted flat roof of the keeper’s dwelling. A flight of steps led up -to a higher terrace which surrounded a deep sort of bear-pit, where a -select family of hogs seemed to be treated with peculiar distinction. -Not for these the fierce struggle for grain upon the mountain side, -when the battle was to the strong; no, these were fed upon a special -food—a sort of large brown rissole composed of buttermilk and -sugar-cane; but the hogs were fat and did not devour these attractive -morsels, even with half the zest which their less favoured relatives -outside ate up the scattered maize. The reason of the comparative -luxury in which these selected hogs lived, we learned, was that they -had fought with tigers, and thus were treated as superior beings, by -order of the Maharajah. - -The wooded shores of the lake and the mountains beyond were very -beautiful in the still evening atmosphere, as we drove back to Udaipur, -the road by the lake being so narrow that two carriages could not pass, -and, meeting the Resident, we had to pull in to one side to let his -carriage get by. - -There was a charming view of Udaipur from our hotel seen through the -trees, the massive Maharajah’s palace dominating the city, and bathed -in the roseate early morning sunlight it looked particularly lovely. -I worked at a sketch of this on Christmas morning; I remember, having -to be up at seven o’clock in order to catch the effect, which soon -changed. We had the most brilliant moonlight nights here, too. - -We visited the Maharajah’s gardens where was a sort of Zoo. There -were some handsome tigers in rather small cages, hogs, leopards, one -lion, deer, guinea-pigs, geese, cockatoos, and other birds and beasts, -including some melancholy dogs of various breeds, chained at intervals -around a courtyard. These were supposed to be in hospital. - -From the Zoo we drove through a fine wooded park to the Museum called -the Victoria Institute, where a native curator showed us round. It -was a white building in the Moslem style but quite new. It included -a library in which was placed a bad statue of our late Queen. There -were modelled heads in coloured plaster, ranged in cases numbered and -ticketed, of all the Hindu castes, each with their proper caste mark -upon their foreheads. There was a miscellaneous collection otherwise, -native arts and industries and antiquities, as well as European, -being represented very sparsely. The whole thing had a sort of forced -and artificial character in such surroundings and was quite empty of -visitors. We were, however, early there. - -In driving through the gate of the city, a funeral passed us—a band -of young men bearing on a stretcher the corpse which was swathed in -red cotton and tightly bound up like a mummy. The bearers moved at -a quick, almost jaunty pace, approaching a trot, and with them were -other natives who chanted a sort of song. If it was an equivalent for -a dirge it was quite a cheerful one—but then the Hindus, as well as -the Mohammedans and Indians, look upon death as a happy translation -to another existence, and the accompaniments of gloom to which we are -accustomed in Christian countries have no existence here. - -We departed, on Christmas Day in the morning, from Chitor and Ajmir -again, returning by the way we came. Udaipur is at the end of the -branch line from Ajmir which has not I believe been in existence many -years. - -On the way to the station I noticed some very primitive huts clustered -in a group on a rising ground above the road. They almost exactly -resembled the huts of the early Britons and Gauls as they appear on -Trajan’s column, being circular in form, built of mud or sun-baked -bricks and roofed with a sort of rude thatch laid over a bamboo -trellis. In this land of wonders and contrasts truly, one sees -everything both in customs and dwellings from the most primitive to the -most elaborate and luxurious, from the most ancient to the most modern -forms of life. It is sad to note, however, that at least as far as the -outward aspects of life are concerned, all that Western contact seems -to have done for the people of India is to introduce corrugated iron, -Manchester cotton, and the kerosene can—with petrol and its smell! - -At Udaipur station there was a great native crowd of every variety of -type, wonderful in colour and costume. Many of the men carried sabres -as well as walking-sticks which seem to be the marks of superior caste -in Rajputana. There were, too, the usual crowd of poorer travellers -with their extraordinary bundles and brown babies. A native woman stood -on the platform with a huge sheaf of sugar-cane which she sold in -pieces to the travellers, and, of course, there were the sweet stuff -sellers, and the inevitable betel-nut. - -Reaching Chitorgarh in the late afternoon the old fort with its zigzag -walled road looked quite familiar, and at the station our elephant was -in waiting again. - -We could not get on to Ajmir until night, and so did not arrive -there until about 5.30 in the morning. Coming from a plague-stricken -district passengers were not allowed to leave the train until a medical -inspection had taken place. An English doctor with a native attendant -bearing a lantern came round and went through the farce of feeling -everybody’s pulse before anybody was allowed to leave the station. We -only stopped, however, to get some tea and await a train for Jaipur, -our next destination. - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -JAIPUR - - -In our travels through India we met comparatively few of our own -countrymen and women. The English (or the British) have not as yet -taken much to touring in the Empire of which such a proud boast is -constantly made. The English in India are usually residents connected -with civil or military posts. They go out to take up their official -duties, and directly they get leave they rush “home”—England is always -spoken of as “home,” even by residents in India of long standing. It -generally happens that the officials and their families are quartered -at some particular station in a particular district, and may remain -there all their time, so that the English resident in India generally -does not see any other parts of the great peninsular, and is not -acquainted with the country beyond his own district. A tourist, -therefore, in a few months may have a more complete general or even -particular acquaintance with India at large, as regards its great -cities and famous monuments, than many a resident who has spent the -best part of his life in one station, and who always takes his leave at -“home.” - -French tourists are occasionally met with, but Americans are the most -numerous, and they are met with everywhere. The early morning train -we had taken from Ajmir to Jaipur was invaded by a party of no less -than forty of our Transatlantic cousins, who overflowed it and filled -our compartment with an incredible amount of hand baggage. They seemed -to be, as far as one could make out, connected with some mission. They -reminded me rather of a gathering in one of the cities of the United -States at which I was present (Philadelphia, I think), where one of my -American friends remarked, “Now, all these you see here are types, but -none of them are worth studying”! - -The country traversed between Ajmir and Jaipur is mostly plain, and -very desert-like in places, with distant mountain ranges beyond, not -unlike Arizona in general character. Green crops under irrigation are, -however, occasionally seen, and among them not unfrequently may be -noticed a pair of large, grey-plumaged cranes, feeding in the young -corn, which do not take to flight at the approach of the train. We -reached Jaipur about noon and put up at Rustom’s Hotel, a comparatively -short drive from the station. The hotel stands in the middle of a large -enclosure divided by a low wall from the high road. Tents are pitched -along one side of the building to afford extra sleeping accommodation, -and a sort of bungalow annexe is prepared to take overflow guests. From -pleasant rooms on the terrace we had a view of the Tiger Fort and the -road with its constant procession of natives, ox-carts, and camels and -horsemen trooping into the city about a mile off. A row of tall acacia -trees screened the late afternoon sun, and barred-like fretwork the -golden light of afterglow, and we often watched the peacocks flying up -to roost among the branches, their beautiful forms silhouetted against -the orange sky between the interstices of the leaves. - -[Illustration: HOTEL ACCOMMODATION (JAIPUR), “FOR YOUR EASE AND -COMFORT” (OR RATHER FOR THE EASING OF YOUR RUPEES?)] - -The native proprietor, or manager, during the preliminary ceremony of -taking our names, and in getting a form of application to the Resident -filled up for permission to visit the Maharajah’s palace and the palace -at Amber, made polite speeches, expressing himself only anxious for -“our ease and comfort”—of course without any thought of prospective -rupees. Clusters of native huts built of mud with thatched roofs occur -at frequent intervals around Jaipur outside the city walls; from our -terrace at the hotel we could see several. There was apparently a -small village within a stone’s-throw. One evening the strains of -what sounded like a native chant or song in chorus were wafted to us -from this village, and we heard that a native wedding was going on -there; but the illusion was somewhat destroyed when we learned that -the supposed native music proceeded from the mouth of a gramophone! It -is said that special ones are now prepared for the Indian market with -popular native songs and music—another boon from the West. - -Jaipur is a city within high crenellated walls, built of rubble and -plastered with cement. The same form of palisade-like battlement -crested the walls here as at Chitorgarh, and is the common form in -Mogul defensive buildings. Among the native huts which cluster outside -the walls, I noticed some of wicker; many of the huts, too, had wicker -screens—a sort of lattice-work made of bamboo—covering the otherwise -open fronts. - -Jaipur is known as the rose-coloured city. The Maharajah must be very -fond of pink, in fact he may be said to have “painted the town red.” -The whole of the main fronts of the houses facing the streets are -distempered in a kind of darkish rose pink—really red—the rosy hue -being largely due to the luminous atmosphere in the full sunlight, and -it becomes still rosier in the flush of evening. It is dark enough at -anyrate to show a decoration of lines of floral devices and patterns -painted in white upon the red walls. The whole scheme, no doubt, was -suggested by the red sandstone buildings inlaid with white marble -which are the glory of Delhi and Agra. It is not a sort of imitation -calculated to deceive any one, however, but clearly a scheme of painted -decoration emulating the effect of the solid materials mentioned. The -city has, owing to this treatment, a very distinctive scenic aspect -of its own, and is very striking, the brilliant and varied pattern of -vivid colour in the costume of the natives in the bazaars, with this -roseate background, producing quite a unique effect. One has, however, -after a time an impression of unreality and unsubstantiality, as of -stage scenery which will presently be shifted. The Maharajah of Jaipur -has the reputation of being very advanced and modern in his ideas. -He has at anyrate set up gasworks in his city, which also possesses -a large public garden laid out in the European manner, and is both -horticultural and zoological, and contains a museum and a bronze statue -of Lord Mayo. - -It seems rather a mistake, in a climate like that of India, to lay -out grounds with broad serpentine paths and drives unshaded by trees, -and vast lawns which can only be kept up with a pretence of greenness -by constant and laborious watering. It is another of the mistaken -foreign importations. The Eastern type of garden, on the other hand, -is quite appropriate and adapted to the necessities of the climate. -Its characteristics are narrow, straight paths between closely planted -groves of trees, acacias, plantains, palms, and fruit trees, and varied -with tanks and fountains, and cool marble pavilions, the whole enclosed -in a protecting wall like an earthly paradise. - -[Illustration: THE MAHARAJAH’S STATE ELEPHANT, JAIPUR] - -It does not cheer the English traveller in the East—at least I never -heard that it did—to see a low wall surmounted by a cast-iron -railing and common-place but pretentious gates, enclosing a joyless -“public garden” of a British vestry type. - -The proprietors of the art depots in the bazaars of Jaipur are very -enterprising, and resort to all kinds of allurements to induce the -traveller to enter and purchase. To begin with, the tourist in his -carriage is peppered with a perfect hail of white business cards flung -at him by active touts, who are always on the alert for the passing -stranger in the bazaars, who receives such seductive invitations as -“See my shop?”—“Very nice things”—“Don’t want you to buy—only to look!” - -We visited a large art-dealer’s store. It was prettily arranged around -a small covered court, lighted from the top. An arcade divided a series -of rooms along each side, both on the ground and on a second floor. -This court was richly carpeted and furnished with seats, coffee tables, -and divans. One device of the proprietor or manager was to invite -prospective customers to witness a dance of nautch girls in this court, -presumably to conduce to a favourable mood for extensive purchases. - -At this place was a great display of Jaipur enamels, applied in a -variety of ways from small jewellery to large, chased, brass dishes -and trays. I saw a large dish prepared by the native craftsman (who -was sitting at work at the entrance) for champlévé enamel, very deftly -chased, though the modern reproductions of the traditional Indian -patterns strike one as rather mechanical. The skill of the craftsman -is there, but the feeling and initiative of the artist is too often -wanting. - -Rajput arms and armour hung on the white walls of the court, and there -was an immense stock of all sorts of metal-work and jewellery, mostly -modern, and numbers of small portable articles in brass, evidently -meant for the eye and the pocket of the tourist; amongst these were -quantities of small pierced brass boxes in the form of cushions. I saw -some interesting old Indian miniature pictures from MSS.—one of a rajah -shooting a bow: he was standing upon a globe which rested on the back -of an ox, which again stood upon the back of a fish. - -There were some suits of chain mail of extraordinary fineness, and -wonderful engraved blades of many kinds. Besides the well-known Jaipur -enamelled jewellery there was a quantity of precious stones—garnets, -amethysts, sardonyx, onyx, and jade. Another speciality of Jaipur -work are the charming spherical rolling lamps. These are spheres of -brass chased and pierced all over with floral pattern, and made to -open. Inside, by a very ingenious bit of mechanism, a small lamp is so -suspended that it always maintains a horizontal position, and though -the sphere may be rolled along the ground it never upsets the lamp -within. They are used in the temples at festival times. These lamps are -made at the Art School at Jaipur, where many native handicrafts are -practised. - -Continuing our drive about the city we were introduced to the -Maharajah’s state elephant. He was a fine beast, and occupied a low -walled court, all to himself and his keeper. His forehead, trunk, and -ears were decorated with an elaborate painted arabesque—a pattern in -which vermilion, yellow, and turquoise predominated. His enormous -tusks had had their points truncated, and these were tipped and bound -with moulded bands of brass. The animal was tethered by one of his -hind feet to a post, and stood in the shade of the high palace wall, -tranquilly munching stalks of some kind of corn. I reproduce the sketch -I made at the time of the elephant and the old man, his keeper. - -After tiffin we visited the palace. One could not say much for the -taste of some of the decorations. We were shown several large durbar -halls with open colonnades, which, however, were closed by hangings, -which our guide—a tall, grey-whiskered Rajput—lifted up to show the -interiors. The vaulted ceilings were painted with patterns on rather -a large scale and in crude reds and blues, rather open and spread out -over the white plaster, and somewhat coarse in form. We were then led -through the gardens, which were laid out with long tanks with flagged -walks each side, lined with gas lamps, but there was no water in the -tanks. Farther on we passed through a gateway at the top of a flight -of steps to the alligator tank. Here a native attendant having tied a -piece of meat to the end of a string, another set up a curious weird -call, while yet another ran on to the shore of the lake or tank, and -did his best to wake up one or two very torpid alligators which lay in -the sunshine by seizing hold of their tails and making them take to the -water. Finally, after much persuasion, two alligators were induced to -come up for the food. One of these—an old one with no teeth (none of -them have tongues)—opened its horrid white mouth and snapped at the -piece of meat which the man dangled at the end of the string. Meanwhile -big yellow turtles swam up to join in the game, at which they were much -quicker than the alligators. Large brown kites, too, seeing what was -going on, hovered about expectantly, and dexterously caught fragments -thrown to them in mid air. The ubiquitous crow was there also, ready -for any unconsidered trifles. - -The life of the bazaars at Jaipur is singularly varied and interesting. -The streets are unusually wide as native streets go in India. They find -room to shake out long strips of newly dyed cotton to dry—a man holding -the cloth at each end and waving it wildly about to dry, so that great -plashes of yellow or orange and pink are apt to illuminate the streets -here and there, as this process is a frequent incident. The brightest -red, yellow, green, and blue and pink are also seen in the costumes -or rather draperies of the people—the Hindu women in their graceful -saris, generally in different shades of red; the Mohammedan women -veiling their heads and shoulders in some vivid-coloured muslin—so -that one had a general impression of people walking about attired in -rainbows. Quaint, two-wheeled vehicles were numerous, often elaborately -painted and decorated, called recklas, having awnings over them, and -were driven by a superior caste of natives—possibly they might be a -sort of equivalent for the gig of respectability which Carlyle writes -of. Then there were the heavier ox-carts of the peasant, some of them -with a domed cover draped in red within which hidden from view sat the -women and children. Another kind of cart was built of bamboo, a curious -lattice of the same forming the pole and yoke for a pair of oxen. - -Shaving, massage, cleaning teeth, washing, and all the necessary -operations, which in the west are generally performed in private, are -in Indian native quarters carried on in the open. The natives do not -seem to know what privacy is or to feel the need of it. The little -naked brown babies everywhere playing freely about are delightful. - -Great flocks of pigeons (blue rocks) are always flying about or -swooping down to be fed with grain in the open spaces by women; but -they are driven away from the heaps of grain for sale in the bazaars. - -The women carry everything upon their heads, and seem to do most of -the porterage—bearing endless baskets of brown fuel made in rough flat -cakes, bundles of wood, straw, sugar-cane, green stuff, bedding, and -water jars. In Rajputana the women wear a rather full skirt under the -sari, in many pleats rather after the style of an Albanian fustanelle. -Masses of bracelets, sometimes completely covering their brown arms, -are worn, either of coloured glass, or lacquered metal, or silver, and -silver anklets as a rule with little bells attached. - -Armed horsemen are frequently seen riding in from or out into the -country. Elephants, camels, and flocks of goats vary the street scenes, -and residents’ carriages with outriders; camels are also sometimes -used to draw vehicles, driven in pairs. - -[Illustration: TO AMBER ON AN ELEPHANT] - -Musicians, with the peculiar long handled Indian guitar, jugglers, -conjurers, snake charmers, vendors of stuffs and embroideries, and -photograph sellers haunt the open arcades of the hotels and use every -device to attract the attention of travellers. - -A visit to the deserted city of Amber and its palace is one of the -principal excursions outside Jaipur. It is best to start early in the -morning, as there is a four to six miles drive by carriage to reach -the place whence the ascent to Amber on elephants’ backs is made. The -road thither takes the visitor through a section of the city of Jaipur, -and passes out on the other side into a road skirted with trees and -gardens, from amidst which rise the domes of the pavilions of wealthy -Rajputs. The Alligator lake is again passed, and some distance beyond -this the foot of the hill is reached, when the traveller is expected to -leave his carriage and mount one of the elephants in waiting there to -take him up to Amber—another two miles. - -It is necessary to be furnished with a formal permission from the -Resident to visit Amber. Formerly elephants were placed at the -disposal of visitors by the Maharajah, but since tourists became -numerous elephants must be hired by them. They are by no means richly -caparisoned elephants. The housings leave much to be desired, and the -seats are much out of repair, and one is lucky to find the foot-board -slung at a usable level and fairly horizontal, and if the protecting -rail of the seat does not slip out. - -For those who are willing to sacrifice processional dignity and -spectacular effect, however, as well as a slow shaking, it is quite -possible to walk—for the able bodied, and before the sun is high. - -After a steepish hill at first the road descends again, and passing -along the border of a small lake, turns round at its head and again -ascends to the palace on a considerable height, of which a distant view -is obtained, as one approaches it, from the road. It is a striking -pile of Mohammedan architecture. Three great gateways are passed -on the steep approach up the rocky sides of the hill, and the road -is protected by a wall, as at Chitorgarh. Finally the great gateway -leading into the courtyard of the palace is reached, and we dismount -from the elephant and are surrounded by a number of hangers-on, one -of which comes forward to act as guide over the palace, which showed -traces of considerable restoration. The great doors of solid brass -were exceedingly fine (both here and at the Maharajah’s palace in -Jaipur—really the best things there). There were also doors beautifully -inlaid with ivory and ebony to some of the zenana rooms, all the -doors being interesting for their woods and joinery. There were some -delicate pierced marble screens over the gateway of the inner court -which had a most lovely effect seen against the sky. The rooms were -very elaborately decorated with a sort of veneer of small pieces of -looking-glass arranged in arabesque, and united by cloisonné of gesso -forming the lines of divisions of the pattern, similar to that we had -seen at Udaipur. This decoration, carried all over a vaulted ceiling, -in the sunlight reflected from the floor, glittered like beaten silver. -On the lower halls were delicate marble panels of floral designs in -relief. - -The palace as a whole did not strike us as so beautiful as that at -Udaipur, although vastly more so than the Maharajah’s at Jaipur. - -[Illustration: SHOPPING IN JAIPUR] - -From the roof and terraces we looked down on gardens and pavilions -and on the lake below, then partially dry, and wondered how this vast -palace with all its luxurious decoration came to be deserted. A temple -at the main entrance, however, is still maintained for worship, which -is that of Kali—one of the aspects or secondary characters of Parvati, -the wife of Siva—a savage, blood-thirsty goddess only propitiated by -animal sacrifices. A goat or a kid is still sacrificed daily here. It -was pathetic enough to see the innocent, unconscious intended victim—a -poor little kid tied at the corner of the platform of the temple by -a little heap of sand. Mr W. S. Caine gives a graphic account of how -the head of the victim is instantaneously cut off by the officiating -priest, an act he witnessed, but we felt no desire to see this -execution. - -On our way back I saw a curious instance of the boldness of a kite -and the unerring way in which they swoop at their prey. A native was -walking down the hill in front of us carrying a piece of bread in his -hand, from which he ate, swinging it at his side between whiles. A kite -hovering above made a sudden swoop at the bread, which he struck with -his beak, scattering the crumbs, though he did not succeed in knocking -it quite out of the man’s hand. - -Driving in the evening through the bazaars at Jaipur we stopped -the carriage to purchase some native cottons and muslins, and were -immediately surrounded by a noisy, struggling crowd of rival traders -who filled the carriage with their gay coloured stuffs, and literally -covered us up with them. Our bearer negotiated the bargains, and in the -end we carried off some characteristic textile souvenirs. On the way -back to our hotel we stopped to see the Maharajah’s horses, passing -through a gateway into a large exercise ground, down the sides of which -ran a long open shed, with horses tethered in a line, each horse being -secured by long ropes from each hind fetlock fastened to pegs on iron -rings fixed in the ground, which sloped down to the open court. In -addition to these each horse was tied by a halter, with a rope each -side to rings in the manger, and all, of course, had cloths on. There -were no partitions between the animals, which I suppose was the reason -of their being so carefully secured. There were some very fine animals -among them, and the native grooms were very willing to show them -off—for a little backsheesh. There were white Arabs, Walers, English -hunters, and a tiny Burmese pony. - - - - -CHAPTER VII - -AGRA - - -We left Jaipur for Agra on the 29th of December, finding the usual -excited crowd at the station. The train passed through a rather dry, -plain country, though varied by crops under irrigation. We changed at -a junction named Bandakni, the train we were in going on to Delhi. It -was a refreshment station. Here a good tiffin was procurable. Going on -about 4.30 in the afternoon, we entered a more fertile and interesting -country, the crops being more abundant, and the wells also. There were -some fine groves of trees, and distant ranges of hills to be seen. -Curious mounds and tumbled boulders varied the plains here and there in -places. Peacocks were plentiful, and they even occasionally strayed on -to the railway metals at the stations. Antelopes were also to be seen, -and once an animal resembling a wolf was seen in the jungle. A jungle, -by the way, is not necessarily a slice of tropical forest, full of long -grass, tangled creepers, and tigers, but may be any bit of uncultivated -country. - -We reached Agra about 9 P.M. after a comfortable journey. We put up at -the Metropole Hotel—a kind of extended bungalow, with a two-storied -centre and two long, low wings of rooms under the usual arcaded -arrangement, with a garden in the middle. The rooms were spacious and -lofty, but bare, cheerless and cold. The traveller of course must not -expect any old-fashioned welcome or personal interest in his comfort or -welfare in any country at any modern hostelry in these days. He writes -or wires for his room, and he may be thankful if it is ready for him -when he arrives. He must be content to be merely No. So-and-so, and -may not even see the host or manager at all. There was, naturally, -more or less of a rush on Agra about this time, as the preparations -for the reception of the Amir of Afghanistan were far advanced, and -distinguished visitors were beginning to arrive. The English tourist -who had not furnished himself with introductions in such a place -was apparently regarded as a mere worm by the superior military and -official British circles. - -Driving to the fort next morning we were stopped by an English sentry, -who produced a written card of Regulations forbidding the entrance of -carriages, so we got out and walked through the Emperor Akbar’s great -Delhi gate (1566), which is on a fine scale, and passed on to the Pearl -Mosque, the Moti Musjid, built by Shah Jehan in 1654—the private chapel -of the court of the Mogul Emperors—a beautiful white marble building in -a fair court. An Arabic inscription records when it was built and why. - -We passed on to the great square of the fort which was busily preparing -for the reception of the Amir, who was expected to arrive on the 9th -of January. They were actually building out an extra portico in solid -masonry adding it on to the existing Durbas Hall (Diwan-i-Khas), which -was so blocked with workmen and materials it was not possible to see -much inside, and our bearer, who was by way of acting as guide when -he could, was roughly turned back by an English official. We made the -round of the great Akbar’s Fort, which is certainly on a noble scale, -and returning to the Delhi gate by ugly and mean British barrack -buildings, which have been put up within its massive walls, we could -not but be struck with the contrast between the work of one Empire and -that of another. Over Akbar’s great gate, however, floated our Union -Flag. - -[Illustration: AGGRAVATING AGRA] - -Our next expedition was to the renowned Taj Mahal, the beautiful -marble tomb erected by Shah Jehan in memory of his favourite wife, and -which was to be his own monument also. The way thither lies through -the cantonments and the government gardens. We passed through great -encampments, then in a state of busy preparation. On the road was being -erected a large triumphal arch in the Moslem style, upon which native -workmen were engaged painting and decorating. Native police in khaki -and red turbans lined the route at intervals, and saluted as we drove -past. The Viceroy’s camp was beautifully laid out and arranged with -turf, walks, and flowers. We saw a procession of native women carrying -palms and plants in pots on their heads, from ox-carts unloading them, -for the camp. Camping in India, indeed, seems to be a fine art, and -is carried out in every detail with the utmost completeness. In the -government gardens the ideas of the English landscape gardener were in -evidence. They were laid out with serpentine walks and drives in the -modern public parks style, the large shadeless stretches of would-be -turf struggling to show a little green under repeated waterings, with -groups of young trees here and there. A big statue of Queen Victoria -was placed conspicuously on the high ground in the centre of one of -these desert-like lawns. A little beyond we came to the magnificent -gate of the Taj, a noble structure of red sandstone and white marble, -approached by steps. Passing through its deep shadow under the great -arch the wonderful tomb in all its pearly whiteness, with its graceful -dome and slender minarets, rising sparkling in the full sunlight above -a green bower of trees against the deep blue of the sky, and reflected -in the still water of the long tank, breaks upon the sight like a fairy -vision. The tank with terraced walks, flagged with stone, extends from -the steps of the entrance gateway to the front of the Taj itself, its -long line only broken by a raised marble terrace with seats about half -way. Rows of slender cypresses enforce the long perspective which leads -the eye up to the shrine. The Moslems certainly felt the importance of -spacing and proportion, and the art of leading the eye and preparing -the mind for the appreciation of beautiful art and architecture by -careful planning of the setting and surroundings of their great temples -and tombs. Space is as important an element in their design as the -exquisite handicraft which produced their unrivalled detail. The Taj -itself is on a raised platform of stone, and is flanked on each side by -two noble mosques of red sandstone splendidly inlaid with white marble. -It was the rich decorative effect of such materials no doubt which -suggested to the Maharajah of Jaipur the painting of his town red, -which I refer to in a previous chapter, but the reality compared with -the imitation is as wine to water. - -[Illustration: THE TAJ MAHAL, FROM THE GATEWAY] - -The Taj first impresses one by its beautiful proportion, and the -completeness of its ensemble. It is like a fair woman whose general -carriage and aspect charms the eye before we are near enough to -appreciate the full beauty of her face and form, or to note the -exquisite taste of her delicate attire. - -As one approaches this wonderful shrine which, although so ornate, -possesses a fine breadth in general effect, the beauty and finish of -its decorative detail excites a new admiration. There are delicate -designs of lilies and tulips and crown imperials cut in marble in low -relief, forming the panelling of the lower walls. These are framed -in small-scale, formal floral designs, inlaid with precious stones, -such as jasper, coral, bloodstone, sardonyx, lapis-lazuli, onyx, -turquoise, and other kinds done in a manner associated with Florentine -work, and it is said Italian workmen were employed here. Then we have -the crowning beauty of the pierced work in the marble screens which -enclose the tombs, and break the brilliant light at the apertures -under the dome. These are the jewellery and lace of this architectural -personality. There is something of the fine lady about her—if one may -use the personal pronoun, but one cannot forget the twenty thousand -workmen whose twenty-two years’ toil contributed to her splendour; -and it is recorded, too, that their work was done under conditions of -semi-starvation, and at the price of many lives, over and above the -four millions of money at which the cost is usually estimated. Well, -it remains _their_ monument as well as that of Shah Jehan and his wife -Arjamand Banu: 1648 is the date of the completion of the Taj. - -I was somewhat disappointed not to find the eastern garden described -by Edwin Arnold, and which was seen here by Mr W. S. Caine—a bowery, -romantic garden full of fruit trees—“orange and lemon, pomeloes, -pomegranates, palms, flowering shrubs and trees, with marble fish-ponds -and fountains, speaking of the East in every whisper of their leaves -and plash of their waters.” There is still a charming garden, but -an Anglicised one, with open lawns, broken by masses of beautiful -and varied but rather consciously and professionally arranged trees -and shrubs and palms. The hand and taste of the modern gardener is -a little too evident. It looks as if the original somewhat wild and -characteristic Eastern garden had been taken in hand by an expert from -Kew, and it had been tamed, its wild locks cut off, and the remainder -combed and brushed. - -There is an English country-seat or even suburban suggestion about it -in parts. I cannot but think that it was a pity not to maintain the -garden in its Eastern character, considering the monument it encloses. -However, it would take even more professional treatment to prevent -beautiful trees and flowers from being delightful. - -The garden is still a pleasant place to wander in, and interesting -views of the white domes and minarets, rising above masses of foliage, -can be had everywhere in it. Here, at the end of December, one enjoyed -the temperature, and the sunshine, tempered by the shade of trees, of -a normal June day in England. - -[Illustration: THE MAINSTAY OF INDIA. AQUARIUS—THE WATER-BEARER] - -As regards the garden, I was told that when it was in its original -state as a fruit garden a certain amount of revenue was realised by -the sale of the produce. When Lord Curzon heard of this he considered -it not fitting, and I understood that he was responsible for the -alteration in the character of the garden, which requires the constant -attention of the water-bearer with his goatskin. - -Agra possesses a fine mosque in the Jama Musjid, built by Shah Jehan in -1644. It is a building of red sandstone and white marble. The big dome -is inlaid in zigzags of white marble and red sandstone alternately, -the whole surface being covered in this way with striking effect. - -It is an interesting drive through the bazaars and over the bridge of -boats across the river Jumna, and through a native village, to the -mausoleum of Itmad-ud-Daulat. In this beautiful building, which is -approached through a massive arched gateway of red sandstone and across -a walled garden, one sees a prototype of the Taj Mahal. In this case -there is a central dome and four minarets, only the cupola is lower -and of a flatter curve, and the minarets are not detached from the -body of the building which is much lower than the Taj. In the design -and execution of its decorative detail, however, it surpasses the -Taj in inventiveness, and variety and richness, both in pierced and -carved work and its _pietra dura_. The detail of the Taj, beautiful -and finely finished as it is, has in comparison, perhaps, rather the -look of having been done to order, whereas in buildings of earlier date -like this one we seem to see the more spontaneous invention of the -craftsman. The restoring hand of Lord Curzon, however, has touched this -monument also, and a new marble balustrade around the flat roof has -been added under his orders. There are lovely views from the minarets. - -We visited the Taj Mahal again by moonlight. It was the 30th of -December and the moon was full, but it was chilly driving out after -dinner and wraps were necessary. There was a light mist from the river -which hung over the garden, and slightly veiled the lower part of the -building as we approached it down one of the long paths chequered by -the shadows of the trees. The front was in shadow and looked mysterious -in the mist, but the dome seemed made of pearl rounded in the full -moonlight in splendid relief against the dark deep blue of the night -powdered with brilliant stars, while the four minarets were like -helmeted sentinels in shining armour, guarding the sacred shrine. - -The moonlight was bright enough for me to make a sketch by. I also -made two coloured drawings of the Taj by daylight, one of which—“the -Taj Mahal from the rose garden” was afterwards purchased by H.M. The -Queen, and the other, from the gate, is reproduced here. Agra was full -of British and native soldiers, and more were continually arriving. -We passed trains of field artillery marching through the government -gardens, and bell tents covered the ground like mushrooms. In many -places earth banks had been cut in tiers for seats, and strings of -small flags fluttered across many of the streets, and there were also -seats and stands of timber being erected. Agra could think of nothing -but the Amir. - -The English and other churches are not admirable examples of modern -architecture, and never seem to look at home in India. There was a -Roman Catholic Church here after the manner of an eighteenth century -one, but any merit it might have had was obscured by its colour. It -had been, so to speak, put into a grey uniform with buff facings. The -English Church was treated in the same way. This must be military -influence. My impression certainly was that civilians did not count for -much at Agra. - -In the bazaars we found we were able to make purchases with rather less -accompaniment of drama than at Jaipur. European goods were much in -evidence, of the cheap and nasty sort as a rule, ugly socks and scarves -and cottons, and tin ware. I saw a crowd of natives clustering round -the trumpet mouth of a gramophone—an instrument which seems to have -considerable charms for them. - -It was chilly enough in the early mornings and in the evenings at Agra, -and our ground-floor rooms were none of the warmest, although, of -course, the sun was very powerful in the middle of the day. The Hotel -proprietors were looking forward to full houses and high prices during -the Amir’s visit, and enormous sums were mentioned as probable charges -for rooms, but we had no intention of staying through the festivities. - -Our last excursion from Agra was to Sikandra—five miles away to the -North West—where we drove to see the tomb of Akbar. The road was a -dusty one, but through pleasant acacia avenues. We passed through -several mud-built villages, and presently saw white minarets rising -above a belt of trees in the distance. At one part of the road where -the square tower of an English Mission Church was seen among trees we -were reminded for a moment of a bit of Norfolk, but only for a moment. -Soon we reached the great red-stone gateway which was on a splendid -scale, and elaborately inlaid with marble, exceedingly fine in style, -parts had been restored, and all the four white marble minarets were -said to be new and placed there by Lord Curzon, not I presume without -good evidence of the former existence of such minarets, but such -renewals cannot possess any historic interest and are in doubtful -taste. The gate was adorned with Togra and Arabic inscriptions, which, -cut in sunk relief in white marble, formed a frame work enclosing -panels of larger pattern in marble inlay. Pilasters of red sandstone on -the front were in zigzag courses, alternately white and red, like the -work on the dome of the Jama Musjid at Agra. - -From the gateway a long and broad flagged way, intersected by tanks, -led us up to the tomb, across a wide park full of fine trees, tamarinds -and mangoes chiefly. Arrived at the great tomb, the cupolas of which -we had seen in front of us as we walked, we first entered a sort -of hall or atrium with richly decorated roof and walls in coloured -plaster, heightened with gold, and with an Arabic text in gold running -round the frieze. There were beautiful designs of trees and vines in -panels. Parts had been picked out in new gold and colour, at somebody’s -expense, to bring out the pattern, but the new work looked hard and -mechanical though on good lines, and the new gold was staring; the -effect of this partial restoration being of course patchy. Still, if -such restorations are allowable at all, it is better that they should -be frank and make no pretence at being really a part of the original -work. It would, however, in this case have been far better to have left -it alone, as the old gold and colour still remaining on the walls and -vault was rich and deep in tone. - -From this hall we entered a small corridor, two native attendants -going before us with lanterns to guide our steps. This passage led -into a vast dark domed chamber, in the midst of which was the plain -marble tomb of the great Akbar. It was impressive in its simplicity, -without any inscription or ornament, the usual narrow parallelogram -with a moulded base. One of the men uttered a deep prolonged note -like the exclamation Ah! but sustained and dwelling on the A. This -was answered by a profound and long-continued echo or reverberation, -dying gradually away, caused I suppose by the height and shape of the -dome. One might imagine it was the voice of the dead Emperor. After -seeing three more tombs, one of which was richly and delicately carved -(a lady’s), we ascended to the terraced roof, and from there to a -second arcaded terrace, from which still a third was reached up steps -of ever increasing height in the treads, and finally to a top story, -emerging upon a beautiful spacious arcaded court of white marble, but -with warm tints in it which made it very much the tone of ivory. There -were delicate, pierced, marble screens on each side, through which the -evening sun sparkled like gold. In the centre of the court on a raised -dais was the second tomb of Akbar, according to the usual Mohammedan -custom of placing an upper tombstone to indicate the position of the -actual tomb in the vault below. This tomb was most elaborately and -delicately carved in white marble, with beautifully designed floral -patterns and Arabic texts and borders of scroll work, which were -like reproductions in marble relief of the designs in the best type -of Persian carpets. The aged native custodians told us that the -famous koh-i-noor diamond was once here on Akbar’s tomb. It might be -interesting to trace its history to its present position. - -The foliated cresting of the parapet of this marble court was also -delicately carved. Altogether the building was one of the finest things -of its type we had yet seen in India. The blend of Hindu construction -with Mogul work in the corbelled supports of the minarets was -noticeable. These corbels were trebled at the angles, and like most of -the building were of red sandstone. - -There was a fine view of the country from this highest story of the -tomb, and we could even see the white dome of the Taj Mahal five or six -miles away. The drive from Agra took about an hour, and the sun had set -before we returned. - -This being New Year’s day Moonsawmy our bearer smilingly came up with -an offering—a plum cake with a pink sugared top and “A Happy New Year” -on it, as if it had come out of an English confectioner’s—and this, -too, was accompanied by a garland of yellow and white flowers after -the native manner—one for each of us. He said this was customary, -and with his good wishes he managed to convey a gentle hint that his -“jentilmens” usually made him a little present in return. This rather -rubbed a little of the sugar off, but, of course, we did not forget -him. He was not a bad servant on the whole, though rather too old -and cunning a bird in some ways. He had rather extravagant ideas in -ordering carriages, which we afterwards discovered were not totally -unconnected with certain commissions extracted from the carriage -proprietors. No doubt, however, native bearers regard the European -tourist as fair game—it is not unheard of in Europe—and they, like -other classes after their manner, lose no opportunity of making the -most of the chances of their rather uncertain profession. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -GWALIOR - - -We left Agra for Gwalior on the 2nd of January. Departing from Agra -Road about 11 in the morning we arrived at Gwalior between 3 and 4 -o’clock in the afternoon. We hoped to meet an Indian friend here, who -was a doctor in the suite of the Maharajah, and whom we had known in -London when he was studying for his degree. He was, however, absent -at Calcutta, so we had to shift for ourselves. There was, however, an -excellent guest-house built by the Maharajah for the use of visitors -to Gwalior, not far from the station, where we found comfortable -quarters, very superior to most of the hotels we had had experience -of. The building itself was a charming pavilion in the Mogul style, -with domes, arcades, and pierced stone work balconies, and elaborately -carved doorways, the material of which it was built being a sort of -yellow sandstone. We were allotted a spacious room opening on to a -pleasant terrace and connected with balconies which extended entirely -around the house, and from here we could see the famous Rock of Gwalior -with its fort and Temples and the old palace of Man Mandir conspicuous -at its further end. There was a large central hall or living room, and -in this was a blazing fire which shed its cheery light and welcome -warmth. There was a good piano and English furniture. There was a sort -of clerestory high in the lofty wall, but no direct light, so that in -the daytime this room was in comparative gloom, by no means ungrateful -after the glare of the sun. The dining-room was fully lighted and -opened on to a portico. In front of the building was a garden with a -rather burnt up piece of lawn encircled by a carriage drive. - -We found a singular silent and reserved company of Anglo-Indians at -dinner—a lady and three gentleman—only one of the latter manifesting -the slightest interest in us. No one appeared at breakfast the -following morning but an English governess and a child she was in -charge of. - -[Illustration: TO GWALIOR FORT BY PALANQUIN] - -We started in a carriage to drive to the fort, stopping on the way -to see the tomb of Mohammed Ghaus, the dome of which is visible -from the guest-house. It is a noble tomb of yellow sandstone, with -fine screen-work. It dates from the early part of Akbar’s reign. We -crossed a river by a bridge and entered a decayed-looking native town, -passing up a straggling street of low houses to the first gate of the -fortress. There we might have hired an elephant to take us up the -steep road to the fort, but the elephant had been already bespoke by -a party of British officers. A palanquin (or jhampan) was produced, -however, in which my wife seated herself and was carried up the hill -by four bearers, four more accompanying them as relays. As for me -I preferred to walk up, and our Moonsawmy went with us. We passed -through several gateways. The Hindu carvings of one called the Ganesha -Gate had been defaced by the Mohammedans. Soon the towers of the old -palace of Man Mandir rose in view near the summit, each crowned with a -circular cupola. It is a striking building of remarkable character in -reddish-yellow sandstone, faced in parts by turquoise blue and yellow -tiles, courses of these tiles running across the façade. The angle -tower and some of the tile-work at the top had been restored. There -was a frieze of geese in yellow on a turquoise-blue ground, the birds -in profile, each showing an expanded wing and set close together. The -design resembled the carved figures of birds often seen on the Jain -temples. The architecture here being Hindu, was much more massive than -the Mogul work hitherto seen, and showed much variety and invention -in the carved corbels and brackets in the interior. I made a note of -a peacock bracket in which the tail is effectively treated, the bird -being considerably formalised in adapting it to its architectural -purpose. There was another of a fantastic elephant. Elephant heads with -their uplifted trunks, by the way, were carved as brackets to support -the balconies at the Guest House, where also I noted that the detail -of some of the carved work of the door heads at the old palace had -been reproduced. The doorways were rather low and small, and the whole -building had more the character of a castle than a palace. On the flat -table land on the summit of the rock there were several Jain temples, -masses of carving within and without. The Sas Bahu is the principal -Jain temple, and there is also a Hindu temple on the rock—near the -farther end from Man Mandir—the Teli-ka Mandir. This stands in a -graveyard, full of carved fragments and upright stones. The elephant -bearing the party of British officers passed us as we were exploring -the temples. There are some ugly barracks, which are very much out -of keeping with the historic architecture of the Rock. The old fort -has stood many a siege. Caine calls it “the cockpit of Central India,” -and “it has been stormed or starved into submission a dozen times at -least.” It seems to have been originally fortified in 773 A.D., and -at various periods since to have alternately fallen into the hands of -Hindu or Mussulman, as now one and now the other prevailed. Akbar the -Great took it in 1556, and we find the East India Company in possession -in 1780, who took it from Sindhia and gave it to the Rana of Gohad. -Then Sindhia retook it, and so it has remained with the Sindhias (to -which family the present Maharajah belongs) practically ever since. The -Rock has always been well supplied with water and has many tanks. - -We had a commanding prospect of the country, stretching in a vast plain -for miles around. We could see the Maharajah’s palace amidst its parks -and gardens—a white building among the green foliage, and nearer the -foot of the Rock the new town of Gwalior, called Lashkar. We descended -on the farther (northern) side of the rock by a winding road, and from -here we saw some huge carved figures cut in the face of the sandstone -cliffs in bold relief. Most of these are said to represent Adinath, -the first Jain pontiff, but there is a seated figure of Nemnath, the -twenty-second pontiff. Each bear their symbols, that of the first -being a bull and of the second a shell. There are life-size as well as -small figures cut on the lower parts of the cliff. The effect of these -strange carvings is very weird. They have an impersonal and unrelated -look, and give one the impression of being more ancient than they -really are; but they only date from A.D. 1441 to 1474. - -We found our carriage waiting for us at the foot of the hill, having -driven round the Rock from the old town, and we got back to the Guest -House about noon. - -In the late afternoon we drove to the Maharajah’s palace, and -presenting our cards, were shown over the rooms by a very polite -English officer. The building is in a sort of late Italian Renaissance -style, all white outside, with a great display of pilasters and -columned porticoes. We entered a vast durbar hall in white and gold, -with modern French-looking furniture with curly legs upholstered in -green. There were many photographs of recent English Governor-Generals -on the walls, as well as indifferent full-length, life-sized portraits -in oil of the late Maharajah. The best of these was said to have been -painted by one Scott—a landscape painter (!). In one of the smaller -rooms there was an English water-colour drawing of Sussex Downs by -A. F. Grace (whom I remember at Heatherly’s in student days), and -several photographic official groups of the usual type, in which the -Maharajah is seated by the Prince of Wales, surrounded by rows of -officials and notabilities, all with “eyes front.” We wrote our names -in the visitors’ book, and then drove through the grounds, which -are very extensive. In one part lions are kept—apparently in a most -insecure way, as they not unfrequently escape and ravage the country -round. In fact, this had quite recently happened, and natives had been -killed by them. A very taciturn gentleman at the Guest House had been -pointed out to us by the more genial of our fellow-countrymen there as -the official who had been sent by the Maharajah to fetch the wandering -lions back, and he had been over a distance of about three hundred -miles before he succeeded in “rounding them up.” He did not tell us, -however, how it was done, though he had a look as of one who “could -a tale unfold”—not to speak of a lion’s tail! When we saw the place -where these lions were kept we were not surprised that they should have -been able to escape if they had a mind to. We looked down on them as -they were gnawing some bones. They were loose in a sort of open court, -overgrown with grass, and enclosed within four plastered walls which -any cat could have scaled, no palisading or iron railing at the top. -There were five lions and one lioness visible. The remains of their -repast of meat was pounced on by kites and crows with much clamour. - -We next saw the Maharajah’s elephants, and passed down a long line of -them, chained by the fore-legs, down one side of an open courtyard, -all eating what looked like the stalks of Indian corn. There were -about thirty elephants here. One of them was handsomely painted on the -forehead in a similar way to the state elephant we saw at Jaipur, but -none of them had quite such big tusks. Returning through the gardens, -we passed the older palace; also a white building, but in the Mogul -style, with many domes and minarets, and facing a large tank with -marble steps. - -Our party at the Guest House was increased at dinner by two very -pleasant American ladies, who, owing to their powers of conversation, -caused the very reserved Anglo-Indians to melt a little and show some -signs of human interest, especially when one of the ladies related her -thrilling experiences during the San Francisco earthquake. - -The next morning we visited the newer city of Gwalior, which we had -seen from the fort. The streets were fairly wide, and some had varied -and picturesque fronts in plaster-work. We were driven to the gate of -a big and rather new Hindu temple, spoiled by the insertion of crude -pieces of coloured glass, of the commonest European make, in the -fan-lights of the doors on each side. A sacred bull of black marble and -a snake fetish were the most interesting things there. - -In the same court was an older temple raised on a flight of steps. To -approach this, one’s shoes had to be taken off, and from the door only -a peep was allowed into the dark interior, which, as far as I could see -was painted all over with figures of deities and emblems in a barbaric -way in coarse and crude colours. The thing to look at, it appeared, was -a portrait of the late Maharajah in his jewels, on what we should call -the high altar, which was suddenly illuminated by artificial light by -one of the native attendants. - -Zebu cows were wandering freely about in the court of the temple, and -here for a wonder no fees were taken. - -[Illustration: IN THE BAZAAR, GWALIOR] - -We went into the new market, which had been opened by the Prince -of Wales on his visit the previous year. It was not, however, -very busy, and many of the stalls were empty. It seemed of doubtful -advantage to the natives, who preferred to do business in the bazaars. -There appeared to be a good supply of fresh vegetables, but very few -buyers. The most interesting stalls were those of the bead sellers. -There were beads of every variety of colour and size. The stalls were -about the height of ordinary shop-counters, and on these platforms, -which extended without divisions along the centre and sides of the -market hall, the native traders squatted with their wares in front of -them, women as well as men. Some of them were engaged in stringing -the beads, and one man was plaiting a cord, the strands of which were -fixed to a hook fixed on an upright stick supported on a stand. He -used his toes like fingers to hold out and divide the strands as he -worked. With the assistance of our bearer we made some purchases, and -again later in the bazaar, when, as the carriage was stopped, I made a -sketch of the scene in front of us, but under difficulties, as we were -immediately surrounded on all sides by an eager concourse of swarthy, -interested spectators, who refused to budge in spite of the rather mild -remonstrances or commands of a native policeman, who, I imagine, used -the Hindu equivalent for “Pass along” or “Move on,” but they didn’t. -Under this “crowd of witnesses” I endeavoured to complete my sketch, -and then we moved on. - -Extending our drive on the Morar Road, we passed the camp of the -Maharajah’s soldiers in waiting for the Amir’s coming, as after the -Agra reception was over he was to pay a visit to the palace at Gwalior -for tiger-shooting. We enjoyed a quiet life at Gwalior, and I was able -to make several drawings unhindered by too curious crowds. The Guest -House was one of the quietest places imaginable, although visitors came -and went and even motor-cars were seen. There was something almost -mysterious in the way guests would appear and disappear—at table one -day and vanished the next; covers would be laid too for guests who -never appeared. - -Tents which were pitched on the ground outside the Guest House for -other unseen visitors would be clean gone as we looked out in the -morning. Everything seemed so transitory; even a native boy, when I -wanted to make a drawing of him, was nowhere to be found, and I had to -make the best of it with an unwilling and quite inferior substitute, -who had no idea of keeping still, and even ended the seance by -squatting on the ground with his back to one! - -It struck me that the natives do not like being drawn or painted, as a -rule, to judge by the various attempts one made to secure models. The -one wanted always disappeared when the time came, and another, but not -a better and without the same characteristics, offered. - -The little palm squirrels were very numerous here, and would scamper -about the terraces and balconies of the Guest House, and even chase -each other into our rooms, or come up for the crumbs we scattered, -sitting up on their haunches to nibble at them, held in their fore-paws -in true squirrel fashion. Equally familiar were the sparrows which -flew in and out, unmolested and fearless, even perching sometimes on -the breakfast table. The crows too would congregate on the balcony -rails if any feeding was going on, frequently joining us at afternoon -tea, at a respectful distance, though within short range of the -scattered crumbs. - -[Illustration: CALLERS AT THE GUEST HOUSE, GWALIOR] - -We witnessed several very lovely sunsets over the Rock of Gwalior, a -type of frequent occurrence being an arrangement of long, low stratus -clouds, brilliantly illuminated on their under edges as the sun sank -below the horizon, the light deepening from orange into crimson. -Another type consisted of golden fleeces of high cirrus clouds, -rippling out over spaces of turquoise. - -We paid another visit to the old town of Gwalior and climbed the hill -as far as the third gate, where I made a sketch showing the towers of -the Man Mandir Palace through the arch. - -From a terrace extending along the hill near this gate there is a fine -panoramic view, the old town lying below, partly ruined and deserted, a -mass of crumbling walls and complicated roof plans mingled with trees -and gardens. - -The first gate at the foot of the hill, where is the guard-house, is -interesting as showing the inlaid enamelled tile-work which decorates -it partially. Deep turquoise is the prevailing colour, and it is used -for the field or background of the designs, and is inlaid in pieces cut -to fit the interstices of the pattern in the yellow sandstone. In a -frieze of geese in close formal procession, the birds were cut in sunk -relief, and the spaces between were filled with turquoise pieces. The -tile decoration on the Man Mandir Palace has been done in the same way, -yellow and green tiles being also used. - -We drove through the bazaar of the old town, a queer, half-ruined, and -ragged place, but exceedingly picturesque, the natives squatting on -their stalls, presiding over curious preparations of food and other -wares, with chatting, many-coloured groups crowding around. Some of -the people would look curiously at us, some would salaam, some were -indifferent, others were derisive or sullen. - -[Illustration: APPROACH TO THE PALACE OF MAN MANDIR, GWALIOR] - -There was rather an important-looking mosque with minarets in the -town, but many of the houses were roofless and deserted. - -In crossing the bridge over the river we noted the people washing -clothes, and a pretty pattern of colour was formed when the stuffs -were spread out over the sandbanks to dry. Here, in central India, -we were able to see more of the everyday life of the people, and had -more opportunities of quiet observation of country life than usual. -The peasants did not seem to have the curiosity of the natives in the -towns, when one sat down to make a drawing, but they went on their -way, bearing their burdens, or driving ox-carts, or herds of goats, or -buffalo cows, or asses. - -It was quite a change to get a grey cloudy effect which occurred one -morning when I had found an interesting subject by the river side. On -the way thither we passed a village burning-place, strewn with heaps -of ashes where the dead had been burned. The river had shrunk to a -small, shallow stream, and at the spot where I sat was crossed by -stepping-stones, over which groups of natives constantly passed to and -fro. Cattle and ox-carts splashed through a shallow ford at intervals, -and higher up natives bathed their brown bodies in the water. We were -on the outskirts of the old town of Gwalior, and could see above on the -rock the dark shapes of the Jain temples looming up against the sky, -while around us were domes of cenotaphs, fragments of tombs, and broken -walls, overshadowed by groups of fine banyan trees and mangoes. At an -old draw-well near by groups of native women were continually coming -and going, bearing their water-jars on their heads, their draperies -forming delightful schemes of colour. - -A dark thin Hindu in a white turban and waist-cloth was ploughing up -his small patch of land near the river for potatoes, which members of -his family working with him were preparing to sow. There were several -sons—youths—two women, and some small children, all working on the land. - -I made a note of the plough, a very primitive implement, having a -single shaft fixed at a right angle to the share, with a cross-handle -at the top. This the ploughman held with one hand—his left—guiding the -plough, while with his right he drove a small pair of zebus under a -yoke, who dragged it along. The share was a wedge-shaped piece of wood, -tipped with iron at the point and along its edge. - -Moonsawmy talked to the man while I made my notes, and he told me -afterwards that the ploughman never managed to earn as much as 200 -rupees in the year, though he and his family—I suppose about ten or a -dozen all told—were constantly at work. His patch of land being near -the river, one would have thought favourable for raising crops; but it -appeared the river not infrequently was completely dry, and they were -hard put to it for water for the soil. The income of the whole family -worked out at about thirteen pounds a year at the most, which, taking -into consideration that it had to be the support of about a dozen -people, seemed narrow enough, and one could easily understand that the -slightest failure of the crops would mean something like famine. - -This state of things bears out the estimates of the average income of -the Indian ryot, calculated by the late William Digby, C.I.E., after -long residence and experience in India, the results of whose study of -the question are given in detail, from undisputed authorities, in his -striking work, “Prosperous British India,” in which is accumulated an -appalling mass of evidence, all pointing to the conclusion that for -famine should very largely be read _poverty_, which is also the root -cause of bubonic plague. The railways, of course, might convey corn to -the starving districts, but where the people have no money to pay for -it they must starve all the same, Government relief-works being the -only alternative; but this sort of relief must often be too late for -poor creatures reduced by hunger and too weak to work. - -The ordinary unprejudiced observer is naturally inclined to ask, Why -this desperate poverty in an industrious population, supposed to be -under beneficent British rule and administration? The answer must -be sought in the fact that thirty millions and upwards are annually -extracted from the country without any equivalent return, and this must -necessarily mean a heavy burden of taxation on the chief sources of -wealth, land and labour. - -One of the greatest principles of our Constitution of which our -public men are never tired of boasting is, “No taxation without -representation,” or, “Taxation and representation must go hand in -hand.” This principle is, however, entirely ignored in India, where -British rule is as autocratic as that of Russia. Is it surprising in -these circumstances that there should be “unrest”? - -The educated Hindu or Mohammedan—the many who come to England and are -trained in English Universities, or read for the Bar, or study for -their degrees in medicine, feel that there is no part or lot for them -in the administration of the affairs of their own country except in a -very subordinate way. I understand that the highest Government post a -native can attain to is the office of assistant-commissioner. - -Time was when, after the great upheaval of the Mutiny—which was really -an attempt to regain possession of the reins of government by the -native princes of Oude, the principle of native representation under -British administration was advocated by leading English politicians. -Nothing, however, came of it, and the policy of the India Office has -remained unchanged through all the changes of party government, there -being no difference in this matter between Liberals and Conservatives. -A Liberal like Mr John Morley, when in office as Indian Secretary, -promptly orders the arrest and deportation without trial of Indian -agitators under an old law of the East India Company which has never -been ratified by the English Parliament. - -Mr Laipat Rai, however, appears to be a self-sacrificing and devoted -advocate of the cause of his people, and as editor certainly cannot -have written so strongly against the English Government as Mr H. M. -Hyndman, who has for years past denounced the conduct of the India -Office, while challenging attention to and redress of the system under -which the people of India are impoverished. - -The attenuated ploughman who has been the occasion of these remarks was -a typical figure. Looking on such figures, able only to secure a bare -subsistence, so common throughout India, one cannot but feel that all -the magnificence and luxury of the Maharajahs, as well as the heavy -burden of the cost of the British Government, is maintained by the -sweat of the brows and the ceaseless toil of such as these. - - - - -CHAPTER IX - -DELHI - - -After a stay of about a week at the Guest House at Gwalior we took the -road again, or rather the railroad, Delhi being the next place on our -itinerary. We thought, however, to break the journey for a few hours at -Agra, and get a view of the entry of the Amir, which was fixed for the -9th of January. - -It was a lowering, cloudy morning when we left our quarters and made -for the railway station, where we had a long wait in the darkness. -An enormous throng of natives filled the platform, squatting on the -ground or standing about in groups, talking or sleeping under covers -which hid them from head to foot. Most were closely wrapped up about -the shoulders, cloths being wound over the turban, even so that they -had generally a top-heavy look with bare legs. Their wraps were only -of cotton though, as a rule, and did not seem adequate against the -chill of the morning. One little swarthy man was busy writing, making -entries on sheets of paper or perhaps bills of lading. He squatted on -the platform against one of the piers of the arcade, writing by the aid -of a lantern’s light. I noticed only one European besides ourselves in -the throng, and he appeared to be an English official and wore a pith -helmet. - -At last up came the train from Jhansi, and we got in, a slumbering -English officer occupying one of the berths. The sky, which was the -only gloomy and threatening one we had experienced in India, and -certainly looked leaden and hopeless enough, soon turned to rain, and -under such an aspect the country looked desolate in the extreme. The -tawny earth and fuzzy, dry grass, sparse trees of prickly acacia and -scrub bushes, the broken hillocks and mounds of clay, looked more -fruitless and forlorn under the steady, soaking rain; groups of poor -country folk in their thin cotton clothing huddled together, waiting at -the stations we passed, or could be seen splashing through the muddy -pools to catch the train. - -Nearing Agra, we saw heavy artillery trains with field guns trailing -along the wet roads. Troops had been pouring into Agra for some time, -and while at Gwalior a native regiment of cavalry (lancers) rode by the -Guest House, preceded by their baggage on mules and camels. - -At Agra Road Station the rain was pouring in torrents. There is an -immense, long, exposed platform, along which we made our way to cover -under the station shed, which was already crammed with people, mostly -English and American visitors, army officers, and officials. - -The weather being quite hopeless, we gave up the idea of seeing -anything of the procession, which of course was a military one, and -then finding there was a dining-car in waiting, we had a scamper -through the rain again down the platform to reach it. - -[Illustration: A DASH FOR THE DINING-CAR AT AGRA ROAD] - -After tiffin we were just in time to catch a train on to Delhi—in fact -it had actually started, but the courteous station-master sent an -official to stop it for us, and to see us safely in with our baggage. -It was now nearly noon, but our train, a slow passenger one, was not -due at Delhi until 5.30. The rain continued steadily, and damp groups -of natives were gathered at the different stopping stations in various -stages of discomfort. They did not, however, appear to mind the wet so -much as one would have expected, but swathed themselves in all sorts of -curious wraps up to the eyes, leaving the legs and feet bare, and some -even squatted on the wet ground. - -The country was again a plain for the most part, and extensively -cultivated under irrigation, several irrigation canals being crossed -by the railway. Green crops of young corn seemed almost hidden by -charlock, the yellow fields having almost the effect of our buttercup -meadows in May. Flocks of black and white cranes were seen, as well as -a large, blue, grey-plumaged kind, which are usually seen in pairs in -the green corn. Three superior-caste Hindus got into our compartment -and occupied the cross-bench at one end. One had a bad cough, but they -kept their windows open and did not seem to mind draughts. Coughs and -throat troubles seemed, indeed, too common in India, and we often heard -distressing coughs in the hotels at night. - -The sky towards evening began to clear in the west, the whole solid -field of rain cloud gradually lifting like a curtain, and the sun -shining out while the rain continued, a brilliant rainbow appeared as -if painted on the black wall of cloud to the eastward. - -The line passes through a part of old Delhi, a vast region of broken -tombs and ruined walls lying outside the walls of the present city, and -afar off we could see the domes and minarets of the Great Jama Musjid -Mosque. - -We got in in good time, and collecting our heavy baggage sent on -from Gwalior, drove to Maiden’s Hotel, through streets dark with rain -and standing in pools of water, a stormy orange sunset casting a warm -glow over everything. The hotel was on the usual Indian plan, with a -centre and two arcaded wings enclosing a court, along which a series -of ground-floor, bungalow-like bed- and bath-rooms extended, chilly -enough at this time of year in the mornings and evenings, especially -in wet weather. The hotel itself was under English management, and -there were large open fires in the dining-room and salon, which looked -comfortable, and the cookery was superior to most of the others -we had experienced. Letters from England awaited us, and added to -our satisfaction. No doubt the mails are delivered with wonderful -regularity, and so long as the traveller can arrange his tour in -order that his letters shall meet him at certain places, and does not -leave before the mail arrives, no complications occur. It is only -when letters follow one about instead of preceding one that delay and -difficulties occur. - -The next morning (January 10) was grey, chill, and damp, when we -started after breakfast to see Delhi. The hotels and the British -residential quarter lie quite outside the native town, as is usually -the case, amid spacious, park-like grounds, here pleasantly undulating, -and varied with gardens and fine groups of trees. The town is walled, -and has a broad dry ditch as a farther defence. We drove through the -famous Kashmir Gate, renowned for the British assault at the time of -the Mutiny, which remains in the battered condition in which it was -left after the siege, with great shot-holes in its masonry, as well -as in the walls each side. A tablet records the circumstances of the -siege, and the names of the officers and soldiers who distinguished -themselves at that terrific time. - -The gate has two ogee-pointed arches, enclosed in rectangular mouldings -in the usual Mogul fashion. As one enters the city, inscribed tablets -recording incidents of the siege are numerous, and the British -authorities have certainly been most careful to preserve the memory of -their side of the fight along with the names of their military heroes, -and every noteworthy spot in the struggle is commemorated in this way. -In addition to such incidental monuments there is the Mutiny Memorial, -an important red-sandstone erection (110 feet high) outside the gates, -upon a rising ground, and so placed that a complete view can be -obtained from its summit of the lines of the siege. - -At the fort, which was formerly the Imperial Palace of the Moguls -(built in A.D. 1628–58 by Shah Jehan), it is distressing to see the -ruthless destruction of superb buildings for which the British have -been responsible, and the barbarous way in which hideous barrack -structures have been substituted. The fort, or palace, is entered -through a noble, deep-red sandstone gate. The Lahore, or, as it is -now called, the Victoria Gate, and the fine court, is marred by these -ugly modern military barracks for which so much beauty was sacrificed. -We were shown two splendid halls, the Diwan-i-am, or public hall of -audience, and the Diwan-i-khas, or private hall of audience. This -is of white marble with beautiful inlays of precious stones, with -a richly decorated ceiling in colour and gold. A marble pedestal is -pointed out as the place whereon the wonderful peacock throne stood. -This must indeed have been gorgeous, the seat between two peacocks with -spread tails, and these encrusted with sapphires, diamonds, rubies, -and emeralds, representing the natural colours of the plumage, a true -emblem of oriental magnificence. Over the arches of the arcade in this -hall is a Persian inscription in raised and gilt characters, which -reads, “If there is a paradise on earth, it is this, it is this, it -is this.” This costly “paradise,” again, was built by the builder of -the Taj Mahal, Shah Jehan, who seems to have outshone all the Mogul -emperors by the splendour of his buildings. Of course there are no -diamonds, or rubies, or emeralds left, and even the small stones used -in the decorative floral inlays have in many cases been picked out. It -is said that Lord Curzon employed Florentine workmen to replace some of -this work at his own expense. - -The decoration of the walls and ceilings in the zenana rooms, -consisting of painted and gilded arabesques, was very lovely, and the -marble Akab Baths exquisite. The river (Jumna) formerly flowed up to -the walls of the palace on that side, and from a beautiful minaret we -could see the river beyond a belt of green foliage, and get a fine -perspective view up and down of the palace wall and buildings. - -Near by, on the other side of the court, is the Rung Mahal, which -is distinguished by particularly fine pierced screen-work. The -vaulted rooms connected with this building were till recently used -as officers’ mess-rooms, when all their beautiful decoration were -obliterated with whitewash. - -Opposite to the Akab Baths is the Moti Musjid, called the Pearl Mosque, -a most exquisite little building of white marble, a cluster of three -domes and many slender pinnacles terminated by lotus flowers. It has -many-cusped arches of Saracenic character, and a fine bronze door. - -It is sad to think that these lovely buildings are after all only -remnants of what were once on this spot when this Imperial Palace -was complete in all its splendour. The Burj-i-Shameli, the great -marble bath-room; the Metiaz-Mehal, a huge quadrangle of palaces -enclosing a garden 300 feet square; the Nobatkhama or music gate, the -Golden Mosque, the hareem courts, and fifty other lovely pavilions, -fountains, and gardens—think of it! The late W. S. Caine, writing -in his “Picturesque India,” adds the following passage: “These and -other glories of the palace have all been swept away by successive -barbarians. Nadir Shah, Ahmed Khan, and the Maratha chiefs were content -to strip the buildings of their precious metals and jewelled thrones: -to the government of the Empress of India was left the last dregs of -vandalism, which, after the Mutiny, pulled down these perfect monuments -of Mughal art, to make room for the ugliest brick buildings from Simla -to Ceylon.” - -The Jama Musjid at Delhi is on a splendid scale, a mosque of red -sandstone inlaid with white marble. There are four great gateways, -approached by long flights of steps, through which the great arcaded -square court, in which the mosque stands, is entered. Reputed relics -of Buddha are shown to visitors at a shrine at one corner of the -court. On the eastern side the mosque faces an open plain from which a -large slice of the native city, which once surrounded the mosque, had -been cleared by the Government. This gives a clear view of the noble -building on this side, but must have been rather distinctive of the -character of the place, and one would have thought the mosque, standing -so high as it does, would have easily dominated the native houses. In -fact, if it had been designed for a site on an open plain, there would -have been no necessity to raise it on such a lofty platform. Modern -improvers are apt to forget the logic of art. - -We went up a side street in the native town on the other side of the -mosque to see the Jain temple, which is an interesting and richly -decorated small building in the Mogul style of architecture, approached -by a doorway in the street and reached by a flight of steps. It is -extremely beautiful in detail. In the curious street there were many -interesting Mogul doorways. We stopped at a stall to buy some specimens -of the glass and lacquered bracelets commonly worn by the native women -which only cost a few annas. - -[Illustration: THE JAMA MUSJID MOSQUE, DELHI] - -The Chandni Chowk (or silver street) is the main business street or -bazaar of Delhi. It is very wide, and has a sort of long island down -the middle planted with trees. This was said to have been originally -an aqueduct. It runs east and west, and we saw a striking effect one -evening—the glowing sunset behind the dark masses of the trees, the end -of the vista lost in mysterious gloom; twinkling lights, here and -there, about the white awnings of the stalls under the trees; white -turbaned figures of natives moving noiselessly up and down, ox-carts -and pony tongas, wandering sacred zebus, and all the mixed and varied -character of an Indian bazaar form a wonderful and picturesque ensemble. - -Individualistic commercial competition is well illustrated in the -Chandni Chowk. The traveller is besieged by touts thrusting their cards -into his hand, or throwing them into his carriage, or surrounding it -with the most importunate solicitations to see their shops. - -We visited an ivory carver’s workshop in a street leading out of the -Chowk. My impression was about this, as in regard to other native -handicrafts, that it was now a craft as distinct from an art. We saw -the carvers at work, quite a number. It was a species of factory. There -were draughtsmen and designers, and miniature painters and inlayers, -quite distinct from the carvers. The former draw the patterns on the -ivory with a pencil. There were some young boys learning to draw -from the craft; one was drawing a bird on a slate. The skill of the -ivory-carvers was very wonderful: they could carve a figure inside an -open scroll-work and leave it distinct, and there were feats of this -kind of which they seemed to be most proud; but these craftsmen seemed -to work almost mechanically, no doubt entirely to order, and without -any initiative of their own in the way of design. They sat cross-legged -on the floor, and more in one room than our factory inspectors would -probably approve. The works here were mostly produced for ready sale -to the tourist. Elephants and paper knives were—I was going to say, -walking hand in hand—all over the shop, and small models of the Taj -Mahal ran them close, models of native ox-carts, tongas, and palkis, -the native ploughman and his yoke of oxen, and such-like images of -familiar things of Indian life; elaborate chess-men, and inlaid caskets -with little miniatures of the Taj Mahal and the Jama Musjid inserted, -in fact all sorts of ivory toys were there, consciously prepared for -the Western eye, and too often the Western want of taste. A loquacious -Parsee-looking proprietor or manager showed us over this establishment. -He had the air of a general director of the works, etc. While not at -all pressing, he took care to show all his attractive things, beginning -at the most elaborate and costly articles, and skilfully grading -downwards, until in price they were within measurable distance of the -visitor’s purse. - -My wife found that native home-spun linen and silks for embroidery were -difficult to find in the Chandni Chowk, where there were plenty of -European goods. - -On January 11th there was a slight frost. The early morning was quite -misty, too, but the sun came out later, and there was a strong cold -wind from the east in spite of the clear, bright, blue sky and the -brilliant sunshine. It suited Delhi far better than the grey sky under -which we had seen it the first morning of our visit, and was favourable -for our excursion to the Kutab Minar, eleven miles out. Driving -through the Delhi and Kashmir Gates again, and along the road past the -Jama Musjid, and out again at a farther gate to the south-east, we -traversed the region known as Old Delhi, a wonderful tract of ruined -cities, shattered buildings, mingled with noble tombs, mosques, and -minarets, extending for many miles outside the present city. Domes of -tombs were seen on all sides, and broken walls, and the ground was -strewn with bricks and stones. Trees (acacias and tamarinds mostly) -bordered the road. Our native coachman (a good guide) spoke of No. 8 -city, and pointed out its ruined gate, under which we passed. Farther -on we took a branch road and stopped before the noble gate of the -ancient city of Indrapat with its strong walls and bastions. Leaving -our carriage, we passed through the gate and on past a squalid group of -wretched huts, where poverty-stricken natives huddled together about -their tumble-down dwellings, and where native children were inclined to -be rude. Farther along the broken path we reached a spacious octagonal -mosque of red sandstone on a marble platform. This was the mosque -of Shir Shah (A.D. 1541). The contrast between the dignity of this -building and the squalor of the village was striking and saddening. - -Resuming our road, we next reached the splendid tomb of Humayun (built -by Akbar the Great about 1560 A.D., in memory of his father the -Emperor Humayun). An important gateway led into a garden with long -tanks and flagged pathways, bordered by formal green hedges, which -led up to a spacious platform upon which the noble tomb was built. In -the central chamber under the tomb the actual tombstone was screened -by pierced marble. There was also a smaller chamber of tombs, each -side the central one. The building was of red sandstone, inlaid with -white marble with a central dome and four minarets. It seemed to be a -prototype of the great Akbar’s own tomb we had seen at Sikandra. - -Then on again we went, making another short detour from the main road -to the cemetery of Nizam-ud-din. Entering through the gateway, we came -upon a deep tank, surrounded with buildings. On the flattened dome of -one—the Nizam’s well-house—sat a group of brown-skinned youths, ready -to dive into the water, a dive of about seventy feet, for backsheesh, -and the entertainment of the visitor. A passage from this led into -a marble court, in the centre of which was the white, marble-domed -tomb of the Nizam, brilliantly decorated with arabesques in colour. -It reminded one of the shrine of the Kwaja in the Dargarh at Ajmir. -There were also other tombs in the court, one to the poet Khusru, whose -songs are said to be still popular in India. An interesting one is -that of Jahanara Begum, daughter of the Emperor Shah Jehan, on which -is an inscription to the effect that she begs that nothing but grass -may cover her. Certainly her wishes are fulfilled, as the grass grows -freely in the marble-sided tomb which has no cover. Up some steps was -the modern tomb of Mirza Jahangir, but a beautiful marble one. - -The carving in marble and ornaments of all these tombs were exceedingly -delicate and beautiful, and would compare well with the work on the Taj -Mahal. - -The visitor on leaving is embarrassed by the number of claimants of -fees. There seemed to be a different custode for every tomb in the -place, and the crowd of hangers-on, hungry for backsheesh, rather -spoils the pleasure which the sight of so much beautiful work gives. - -Returning to the road again and continuing our drive, it was not long -before we descried the great Kutab Minar rising up above the trees in -front of us. We had indeed caught a glimpse of it miles away, when the -tower was almost lost in the haze. There is a good little bungalow -close by where the traveller can get tiffin, or put up for the night if -so minded. - -The Minar, tapering upwards to an astonishing height (238 feet), -piercing the clear blue sky, is of red sandstone with a white marble -top story. There are five stories, and the summit was formerly crowned -by a small cupola and open arcade, which was destroyed by a storm, -and a model of it has been placed near by. Successive bands of small -carving are carried across the deep flutings, both semicircular and -rectangular alternately on the lower storey, semicircular in the -second, rectangular in the third, a plain cylinder forming the fourth, -while the fifth and last is partly fluted and partly plain. These bands -are composed of texts from the Koran, the Arabic characters having -a rich ornamental effect, the carving being wonderfully sharp and -unimpaired, although it dates from the twelfth and the latter part of -the thirteenth century (A.D. 1210–20), having been built as a tower of -Victory, commenced by Kutab-ud-din, and completed by his successor, -Altamsh. - -The tower was built in the centre of the old Hindu fortress of Lalkot -(A.D. 1060). At its foot are various ruins, the most extensive being -those of a fine Mohammedan mosque, constructed out of the materials of, -and incorporated with an ancient Hindu temple, the original columns of -the latter remaining to form the colonnade of the court. - -The images of the Hindu gods have been mostly defaced when they -occurred in the carving. - -There is a fine Mogul arch of red sandstone, similar in treatment and -style to “the mosque of two and a half days” at Ajmir. In front of -this, in the centre of the court, stands a remarkable pillar of solid -wrought iron, supposed to date from A.D. 300 to 400. It is dedicated to -Vishnu, and there are lines in Sanscrit inscribed around it. The wonder -is that such a massive thing in iron could have been forged at that -early period. - -Returning to Delhi by a different road we passed another -important-looking tomb, also near the outskirts of the present city, -the ruins of the Observatories built by different rajahs in the -eighteenth century, which impress one as weighty evidences of the -philosophical knowledge and culture of these native princes. A moon -observatory was pointed out to us, and a vast circular building. The -groups of ruined buildings hereabout recalled to us the Roman Campagna -and its fragments. - -Our coachman (who was perhaps more careful as a guide than as a Jehu) -collided rather violently with a tonga just outside the city, and the -consequences might have been serious, but the wheels were the chief -sufferers, and the tonga must have got the worst of the jolt, one of -the native passengers being thrown out. No bones were broken, and the -incident did not seem to be regarded as at all an unusual occurrence. -There seems no rule of the road in India, and so risks are constantly -run. In the crowded streets the drivers rely on the power of their -lungs to shout out warnings of their approach, and it is a marvel -people escape being run over, and that collisions are not more frequent -and worse than they are. - -[Illustration: DELHI DRIVING. WANTED—A RULE OF THE ROAD] - -At the hotel, where the custom of small, separate, circular -dining-tables obtained, we happened to meet a very agreeable -Anglo-American family from Ceylon, who were travelling in India, and -were returning to their home at Colombo, before visiting Japan and -Europe. We discovered we had several friends in common, and promised to -visit them when we came to Ceylon. - -I got a coloured drawing of the Jama Musjid from the plain before -mentioned, where a few trees afforded a little shade, the sun being -very strong, although a cool wind was still blowing from the east. -The light was particularly clear and the shadows sharp, so that the -architecture looked remarkably distinct, the effect being almost hard. - -We had a stroll in the park-like grounds near the Club. There was an -old and much overgrown Mogul archway here, which had been considerably -battered in the siege. There were fine cypresses and other trees, and -among them little flights of green parroquets flew with their shrill -scream—their flight and their notes reminding one of our swifts. -Toucans were also to be seen, and of course the palm squirrels. We -watched a whole colony of them sleeping in the hollow of a fine old -banyan tree. - - - - -CHAPTER X - -AMRITZAR AND LAHORE - - -We left Delhi by a night train—the Punjab Mail—for Amritzar, but we -had a long wait at the station, as the train was two hours late. The -station was thronged with natives bound for some religious festival -connected with the approaching eclipse of the sun. There was a seething -mass of dark humanity at the entrance, through which we had almost to -fight our way to the platform. - -Our route was by way of Umballa, which we reached in the early morning. -The country was wrapped in a thick white mist before the sun rose, when -it gradually cleared. Beyond Umballa the country was very flat, the -dry lands varied with green crops and yellow with charlock, as before, -and dotted with acacia trees. Occasionally we crossed wide rivers, -or river beds, and the usual flocks of white cranes and brown kites -were seen. Jullumpore was another junction where our train stopped. It -looked an interesting place from the railway, a walled town with towers -and ancient mosques. After leaving Pillour (the refreshment station) a -very broad river was crossed, and on the wide sands of the dry part of -its bed, almost like a desert, we saw a train of thirty camels moving -slowly in single file. - -We did not reach Amritzar until about 1 P.M., more than three hours -after time! On emerging from the station, despite our bearer, we were -nearly torn to pieces by hotel touts. - -[Illustration: SHE WON’T BE HAPPY TILL SHE GETS EVERYTHING PACKED UP] - -The Alexandra hotel had been named to us and we asked for its -representative, but it appeared there was no such hotel at Amritzar. -Each rival tout clamoured for our custom, declaring that the hotel -he represented was the true and only successor to the mythical -Alexandra.[A] One went so far as to say he had received a post-card -from us, but when asked to produce it only showed a letter from some -one else! Finally we got into a carriage, which was immediately stormed -by the irrepressible touts, one seating himself on the box, one on -the step each side, and I don’t know how many hanging on behind. Not -liking the look of the first hotel they took us to, we tried a second -and decided to put up there, and so gradually shook off the touts. -There was more of an Eastern character about our quarters here than we -had hitherto experienced. The hotel was quite an Oriental serai in an -Eastern garden, our rooms being in a sort of Indian villa, opening on -to a terrace with steps down into the garden, with its narrow straight -paths between fruit trees, and our room was rather like a small temple -or chapel with recessed walls and ogee arched doorways, a raftered -ceiling, and clerestory windows. Built for coolness, no doubt, we now -found it positively cold in the mornings and evenings, and although -there was a fireplace the lighting of a wood fire made matters worse, -for we were nearly smoked out. - - [A] We learned afterwards that it was the custom to change the - names of hotels every six months or so. - -[Illustration: DEMON HOTEL TOUTS AT AMRITZAR FIGHTING FOR THEIR PREY] - -There were several English or Anglo-English at table preserving their -characteristic frigidity in the presence of strangers. A gentleman from -Manchester was the only one who showed a friendly disposition and who -had any conversation. - -Driving through the city we had recourse to smelling-bottles, as owing -to the open drains each side the streets the odours which saluted our -nostrils were rather trying. I had noticed these open gulleys at Delhi -and in the native quarters in other towns. They run close in front of -the houses and open shops of the bazaars, and are crossed by slabs of -stone placed across them at intervals to give access to the houses, and -as all sorts of refuse finds its way into them it is not surprising -they should be offensive sometimes, though it had not been nearly so -noticeable elsewhere. Amritzar is said to have the benefit of the -advice of an English sanitary engineer. - -The street did not strike us as so varied and interesting as other -cities we had seen, and the house fronts seemed plainer and more -modern, as a rule, though the streets were narrow enough. - -[Illustration: THROUGH AMRITZAR—SIT TIGHT AND HOLD A SMELLING BOTTLE!] - -From a sort of terrace we got our first view of the Golden Temple, -which is built in the centre of the large tank or lake in the centre -of the city. A broad paved causeway connects with the paved walk -along two sides of the lake. After the magnificent and beautifully -proportioned Mogul architecture of Agra and Delhi, the Golden -Temple, built at the beginning of the nineteenth century is rather -disappointing, despite its gilded domes, the building looking rather -squat, though the gold reflected in the rippling water has a charming -effect. The gilded dome of the Atal tower also shows over the -buildings behind the temple seen from the terrace. Leaving our carriage -at this spot we were surrounded and eyed by a curious crowd. Rival -guides apparently contended for us, and there was a sudden quarrel, -ending in a free fight, between two of them, the end of which we did -not remain to see. The temple and its precincts is held most sacred by -the Sikhs, Amritzar being their religious centre, the place is most -jealously watched. It seemed impossible to get away from the crowd, who -appeared to be none too friendly to strangers, and sketching was out of -the question without a bodyguard. - -We had a very courteous and kind reception from Dr Dinghra, three of -whose sons we had known in London. One son and his wife were staying -with him, and we spent a pleasant hour under his hospitable roof, and -he presented us with handsome saddle bags, made of the local carpet, -on leaving. He also introduced us to one of the leading citizens, -a magistrate, who had an extensive pile carpet manufactory, and he -showed us over the works. These were long sheds, having round arched -arcades opening on to a court, and in these were a series of high-warp -hand-looms with rows of shuttles filled with the different coloured -wools hanging from the top. The weavers sat, or rather squatted, in -a row on the ground in front of the warp and worked in the pattern. -They were young boys and youths trained to the work early. They used a -small curved knife like a small sickle to shear off the ends of their -threads and press them home when a particular bit of coloured pattern -was finished. Little oblong labels written in Arabic were placed on the -warp in front of each weaver, which gave the written directions for -the colours to be used in the work. No individual judgment or choice -appeared to be exercised by the weavers. - -There was a design room also open to the court under an arcade, here -some quite aged natives were preparing designs, sketching them out in -pencil or charcoal on squared paper, quite in the European method, and -in some cases working from photographs of special carpets. - -I learned from the manager that the working hours in this factory were -from 8 A.M. till dark. The boy weavers only got one and a half annas -a day! We finally were shown the finished product—a whole series of -large handsome carpets being rolled out for us to see. One of these, of -a Persian kind of design, would be priced at 200 rupees, the manager -said. Before leaving we were requested to write our names, and any -remarks on our visit, in a visitor’s book, where the list had been -headed by the Prince and Princess of Wales, who visited these works on -their tour in India in 1905. - -In the forenoon of January 14th we saw the eclipse of the sun from -our terrace. It rather took us by surprise—the light quickly becoming -curiously pale like moonlight and the air unusually chilly. We could -see the sun turned into a crescent quite distinctly, and pass through -various phases like a moon, till it gradually regained its normal shape -and power shortly after noon. - -[Illustration: AN INDIAN AUTOLYCUS] - -As we sat on the terrace a native pedlar approached with two -portentous bundles. He salaamed, and proceeded to unload his wares -in front of us. His stock, however, consisted entirely of European -goods—small wares such as tapes and buttons, studs, soaps and perfumes, -patent medicines, and such articles as are supposed to meet the wants -of travellers. This Indian Autolycus addressed us as “Father” and -“Mother,” and like the “Mad Hatter” commenced his speeches by saying -“me very poor man,” following this announcement by urgent appeals -to us to buy, after each purchase, beginning all over again afresh. -Probably he felt he had to make the most of his English, as well as of -his stock and his opportunities. - -After another look at the Golden Temple, which it was impossible to -approach without a crowd and without clumsy canvas shoes over our own, -we made our way round to the Atal tower. Here, again, before entering -the anything but clean marble court shoes had to be put off. It is an -octagonal shrine, or tomb, having curious beaten metal plates, gilded -figure designs in repoussé over the doors, but the decorative art here -was much inferior in design and detail to what we had seen further -south. - -We then drove to the public gardens in which stands the pavilion of -Ranji Singh. The gardens are full of beautiful palms and trees of -many different kinds, including fine cypresses and splendid clumps -of bamboos. The roads around Amritzar are lined with trees, and one -sees enormous banyans spreading their great branches and masses of -dark green foliage and casting deep shadows on the long avenues. Large -plantations and fruit gardens, too, surround the city, so that it has a -very attractive look although on a dead level. - -Oranges of a large rough-skinned kind are grown here. They are -deep-coloured, and more like lemons in shape. There was also a very -small circular orange about the size of a large cherry in the hotel -garden, where roses, pansies, and violets were blooming freely. The -native gardener was generally to the fore in offering us small posies -or buttonholes whenever he had an opportunity and for a consideration. - -We left Amritzar for Lahore on January the 15th, having another -long wait for the Punjab mail, this time three hours behind time. -However, about noon another train came up and we were advised by the -stationmaster to go on by that in preference to waiting longer for the -mail. This train, he said, would take us to Lahore more quickly than -the quick train, which sounds like a contradiction in terms. It is only -about an hour’s journey. - -The country between Amritzar and Lahore is, again, flat and has no -striking features. Fields under irrigation green with young crops of -corn, often smothered in charlock, alternated with dry fields or the -standing canes of ripe crops, and stubbles of some newly reaped. The -wells were plentiful. Some of the irrigation wells in this district -are of a different pattern and mechanism to the simple draw-well seen -generally. A pair of oxen turn a horizontal heavy wooden wheel which -has slots at regular intervals around the outside of its rim. These -slots catch the projecting spokes or straight cogs of another wheel, -also horizontally placed and smaller in size, and this in turn by means -of the cogs moves a large water wheel arranged in a vertical position, -the projecting cogs catching the spokes of this wheel, which has a -series of leather buckets or water pots attached to its broad rim, on -the same principle as we see in dredging machines. As the wheel turns -the buckets are dipped one after the other into the well, and as they -rise again full empty their contents into a trough immediately in -front of the wheel, which communicates with another trough connected -with the irrigating trenches, which are thus supplied with water. - -The station at Lahore was comparatively quiet and was a pleasing -contrast to the turbulent crowd at Amritzar. The Charing Cross hotel -received us, but anything less suggestive of the associations its -name recalled it would be difficult to imagine. It was of the usual -extended bungalow type, with long arcades in front of ranges of ground -floor rooms, spacious and lofty and reminding rather of the vast -rooms one sees on the stage with raftered ceilings and whitewashed -walls. The lower wall of our sitting-room, however, was hung with very -interesting Indian hand-painted cotton hangings, which gave it rather -a distinguished appearance. There was a bedroom, something between a -prison and a chapel, and dressing and the usual bath rooms, with zinc -tubs, opening out beyond. There were large sitting and dining rooms, -the latter an enormous one, like the nave of a church, lighted by a -clerestory only, and cold enough, where people dined rather frigidly, -each group at a safe distance at separate little round tables. We were -glad of a log-fire in the evenings, though the sun was powerful enough -during the day. “The Charing Cross post office” was close by, which -had one pigeon hole, and where the stamps were sold outside under the -verandah, by a native squatting on the ground. - -[Illustration: ENJOYING A LOG FIRE AT LAHORE] - -A fine broad avenue through the English quarter is called “The Mall,” -and here the principal government buildings are situated, the Law -courts and the Museum, and the principal stores and bungalows. This -British residential and business quarter is quite distinct and lies -quite clear outside the walls of the native city of Lahore. It is -laid out in broad drives with tan rides at the side, and bordered -with trees. Bungalows and shops and stores in the shape of bungalows -standing detached in gardens are arranged pleasantly from the modern -residential point of view, and forms quite a “garden city,” only marred -by the atrocious way in which the traders announce their names and -business in staring white block-letters on black boards. One piano -warehouse, I noticed, had even a sky sign. Even the private residences -are often disfigured in the same way by black boards with the name of -the occupier in the ugliest block-letters. - -The gardens and hedges, often of roses trained on trellises of bamboo, -are kept very trim up and down the Mall. - -Smart English ladies and officers ride or drive about in their -dog-carts with native tigers behind. We met a very imposing and -original turn out—a fine pair of brown camels, well matched, were -harnessed to a sort of barouche, each ridden, postilion-wise, by -native servants in scarlet, one in the same colour behind the -carriage, which contained two English ladies. This was probably the -Lieutenant-Governor’s carriage. Bicycles were much in use both by -Europeans’ (men and women) and natives—the turban and loose pyjama-like -clothes of the latter looking strange on the machine. The natives, -however, everywhere in the towns where the Europeans’ influence comes -in seem to take to machines. The sewing machine is constantly seen in -the bazaars, always, however, worked by a man. A certain firm’s poster -of the eternal woman enclosed in a hideous S (like a modern Eve and the -industrial serpent) looks particularly incongruous and out of place in -India, where there seems to be no women working at crafts. The men do -the washing too, the Dhobee in white with his bundle of linen being a -frequent and characteristic figure. - -No greater contrast could be imagined than that between the English -quarter and the native city lying within its old walls and great -gates, with its narrow picturesque streets and—stinks! Open drains -as at Amritzar run along each side of the streets, close in front of -the bazaar, where the people sit. The fronts of the houses above the -open shops are mostly of wood of a dark rich tone, corbelled arcaded -balconies and windows jutting out over the street at all sorts of -angles, rich with delicate and varied carvings, as if the builders had -vied with each other which should make the most interesting front. -There are charming little covered verandahs and balconies with slender -columns and ogee arches, and pierced screen-work painted here and -there, but mostly the deep dusky brown tone of the natural wood, dark -with age, which forms an effective background to the vivid colours -and glitter of costumes and draperies of the bazaars. The newly dyed -long strips of cotton or muslin in orange or pink, green or lemon -yellow which are hung out to dry, wave like long banners over the busy -life of the narrow streets, where the turbaned and many coloured, -swarthy faced crowd, jostle along, or stand in chattering groups about -the shops, buying and selling. The types, too, are very varied—the -Hindu, the Mohammedan, the Afghan, the country folk; the Mohammedan -woman in trousers, the Hindu woman in her graceful Sari, with her -glittering silver anklets, and bracelets, toe-rings and nose-rings; -dark eyes and shining whites momentarily seen, and gleaming teeth, the -mysterious-looking figures covered from head to foot in flowing white -drapery, pleated into a close fitting cap, with little perforations -for the eyes, in front, the effect of the whole being ghostly, or -even ghoulish. The white mystery being only betrayed by a brown foot -beneath and the gleam of a silver anklet which tells one it is only the -disguise of a Mohammedan woman. - -[Illustration: “THE WOMAN IN WHITE” AT LAHORE (SUGGESTION FOR A -DISGUISE PARTY)] - -Here again it was rather disappointing to see the native bazaars full -of European goods, and a trivial cheap kind at that. European commerce -has evidently got its foot in. Blue enamelled basins and cups, tin -ware, tapes and buttons, braces, socks and ugly woollen scarfs in -aniline colours are seen everywhere. It is true that one occasionally -may see a native handicraftsman at work, such as the man who prints -the ornamental borders on the edges of the muslin veils of the women, -and picks them out in silver leaf, silver or orange being a favourite -arrangement. The metal-worker is also frequent, though he often only -makes zinc stoves. The food shops are the most numerous, set out with -piles of curious yellow cakes and sweets of all sorts and sizes, the -cooking stove being often in front of the shop, made of clay or mud -with a tiny hole in which they produce hot little fires. - -Through the bazaars our carriage worked its way as through a labyrinth. -The mixed throng of buyers and sellers, beggars and brown babies, and -cheeky little street Arabs, who are inclined to be rude to the stranger -generally, tongas, buffaloes, herds of goats, stray zebu bulls, and -fat-tailed sheep. - -These latter we first saw at Delhi. They are originally from Tibet. The -enormous development of the tail, or fleece of the tail, has a very -extraordinary effect, as if the animal carried a bag of wool behind it, -both broad and long and nearly touching the ground. Occasionally we saw -one of these animals (rams) dyed with orange colour, and marked with -curious patterns all over its fleece. - -Passing through the bazaars we arrived at a large open space, and soon -reached the (Roshanai) gate of the Fort on the other side of it. There -the English sentry, after saying an order was necessary, called an -orderly to take us round. Just inside the gate we got a view of the -old wall of the palace decorated by tiles, the colours being similar -to those used at Gwalior, at the Man Mandir palace, principally -turquoise, green, and lemon yellow, the tile-work being arranged in -bands or friezes of elephants and birds in profile, let into the red -sandstone. - -The very stolid British “Tommy” in khaki conducted us, in slow marching -order and in solemn silence, up the long sloping road to the square of -the Fort where he pointed out, without emotion, a colonnaded Hall of -audience, and then took us through a gateway into the rather spacious -court of the old palace of Akbar, who also built the Fort. On one side -of the court was an interesting armoury of Sikh weapons, beginning with -suits of fine chain mail and Persian-looking steel topis, damasceened -and bossed circular targes up to flint-locks, and match-locks, and -blunderbusses. - -There was quite a mediæval-looking heavy steel mace, and many sabres, -and sword sticks, some made with crutch handles terminating in horses’ -heads. There were also a number of steel cuirasses. I believe this -armoury was arranged by Mr Kipling, the father of Mr Rudyard Kipling, -who was head of the art school of Lahore for many years, and to whom is -due the extremely interesting museum. - -There were relics of elaborate decoration on the walls and -vaults of what remained of the palace, and some of the glass -(convex-mirror-mosaic) work united with gesso-relief ornament, which -we saw at Udaipur, Amber, Delhi, and other places: but the British -occupation had tried its best, by introducing hideous chunks of barrack -buildings, to take the romance and beauty out of the place. - -Close to the Fort outside its gate is the Samadh, or burning-place of -Ranjit Singh. A carved lotus flower, surrounded by eleven smaller ones, -on a raised platform inside the pavilion-like building, mark the place -where his body was burned with eleven ladies of his Zenana. Not far -off rises the dome of the Jama Musjid and its noble minarets of red -sandstone. - -There is a fine park-like country beyond the walls on this side of -the city with groups of old trees. The minarets and domes of Lahore -have a striking effect seen from outside the gate. We returned through -the bazaars a different way, passing the golden domed mosque and also -the Wazar Khan mosque, the latter a very fine one fronting a small -square in the middle of the city, and having two large minarets faced -with enamelled tiles in blue and green and other colours, cobalt -predominating. The spandrils of the main entrance, and in fact the -whole of the front, being decorated with tiles in large arabesques and -borderings, a large Arabic text in blue written boldly over the arch, -and panels down each flank of smaller scale work. It was the first -tiled mosque we had seen, and quite characteristic of the art of a -district which culminates in the renowned tombs at Multan. - -At the English club house on the Mall, the pipers of a Highland -regiment were playing on the lawn in front. The club had well laid out -and ample lawn tennis courts, large blue durries being hung at each end -of the courts to stop the balls, and the players had native caddies -to pick them up. There were zoological gardens near by where we saw -nylghaus and antelopes and birds of various sorts. - -A Victoria memorial on a large scale was in progress at a place where -branching roads met. The work of the British sculptor in India cannot -be said to be much more exhilarating than the work of the British -architect, as a rule, to judge from the specimens we saw, chiefly of -statues of the late Queen Victoria. - -The courts of Justice at Lahore are more successful than most of the -modern examples in India, perhaps because designed in what might be -called the local style—the Mogul. Near by in a little garden enclosed -by clipped hedges was a bronze statue of Lord Laurence offering the -choice of government by pen or sword to the passer by. It had some -dramatic expression, though the choice of a momentary attitude in a -portrait statue is perhaps open to criticism. - -We visited the museum, where Mr Percy Brown has succeeded Mr Kipling -as director. Here is a most interesting collection of typical native -textiles, including the raised wax designs gilded, silvered, and -lacquered on grounds of different coloured cloths, an art which is -still practised in the district with success, traditional designs -of flowers and birds being repeated in a very skilful and effective -way, and applied to the adornment of portières, covers, etc. There -were also good collections of native jewellery and enamels. Champlévé -enamel, such as is done at Lucknow, was illustrated by specimens in -different stages from the commencement to the finish, side by side -with cloissoné (Japanese) illustrated in the same complete way, as -well as complete models showing native industries and handicrafts in -operation; interesting old Hindu herbals and manuscripts on vellum with -characteristic miniatures; drawings of local palaces and gardens in -plan, elevation and bird’s-eye perspective. - -There was a very notable collection of Greco-Buddhist sculptures, which -were extremely interesting and unusual. - -Very little wood-carving, curiously enough, except modern examples -in screens and furniture, the work of the Art School, exhibited in a -separate room. The city of Lahore being so rich in carved wood-work -it was less necessary to have it in the museum, and, of course, much -better to see it _in situ_. The modern way of selling the spoils of -old buildings to private collections or to museums is carried on in -Europe to an alarming extent, so that one begins to fear, in view of -the rapid destruction of ancient houses now going on, whether there -will soon be left any genuine bits of antiquity in this commercial -world. It is better of course that relics of ancient art should find a -haven in a public museum than that it should perish altogether, but any -destruction or removal for the express purpose of transportation to a -museum should be deprecated. - -On the whole the Lahore museum was a well-chosen and arranged museum, -judiciously limited to Indian art, and it was interesting to see the -groups of natives—men, women, and children—apparently scanning the -different objects with the greatest interest and with much animated -conversation among themselves. One afternoon we drove to the Waza Khan -Mosque, and I made the sketch reproduced here of the entrance to the -mosque from the carriage. The crowd was curious, but not nearly so -troublesome as elsewhere, and our conductor, or running footman, kept -them off pretty well. The square had large pools of mud in it here and -there after recent rains. Zebus were straying about, or lying down. -Fruit and good stalls occupied other parts of the ground, and ox-carts -deposited loads of wood. Men sat in groups in the porch of the mosque, -or on the steps, from which boys flew their little diamond-shaped paper -kites. The mysterious-looking white figures of the Mohammedan women -wandered about like substantial ghosts. We saw a pretty little gazelle -at one of the stalls, perfectly tame, and a great pet of the native who -owned it. - -The Cashmere travelling merchants, who display their tempting wares -at all the hotels, spread out their stuffs in profusion—Bokhara -embroideries, Persian covers, kincobs, turbans, and portières of black, -red, or green grounds, effectively decorated with designs in the raised -wax, such as we saw in the museum—and used all their persuasive arts to -effect sales. - -We did not stay long enough in Lahore to see much of the Society there, -but before leaving we had a visit from the Princess Duleep Singh and -her sister, who, hearing from friends at Amritzar that we were there, -came to see us at the hotel. The princess was dressed as a Parsee lady -in beautiful classical draperies, white with embroidered borders, and -she drove herself in a dog-cart, but the sister was in European dress. -The princess recalled the circumstance of my having made a little -sketch in her brother the prince’s cottage on the Norfolk coast, which -had been designed for him by Mr Detmar Blow, which we visited when -staying in the neighbourhood. - -[Illustration: THE MERCHANTS OF KASHMIR] - -We left Lahore the mid-day Lucknow Mail, after a long wait, the -platform covered with picturesque groups of squatting natives. We -eventually shared a compartment, as far as Umballa, with an English -official, his German wife and a little girl. As far as Umballa on this -line, coming north, we had already journeyed. The chief incident after -leaving Lahore was the catching fire of one of the boxes of one of the -carriages of our train, which caused the passengers hastily to leave -it, and crowd into other parts of the train, when it was stopped and -the burning carriage taken off at a small station just before Amritzar. - -[Illustration: LAHORE—THE MOSQUE OF WAZA KHAN] - -At Umballa, the dining station, which we reached when it was dark, some -said we had to change, others said not. This was puzzling. One official -with more authority than the others said emphatically “no,” at last. -So, having just time, we scurried across the bridge to the refreshment -room with light hearts and sharp appetites, snatched a hasty meal and -hurried back to find Moonsawmy, who acted as courier and took charge of -the tickets, in some difficulty with the officials about the tickets. -One official (the stationmaster) came up, and then said we ought to -have changed into the train which was just at that moment steaming out -of the station, excusing his mistake by saying that he had not till -then seen our tickets, fussily ordering a humble Hindu clerk to take -the numbers. - -After this we got into our compartment again and settled ourselves for -a sleep, as we were not due at Lucknow until next morning. During the -night we were constantly disturbed by people opening the carriage door -and peering in—no doubt in search of lower berths, which we occupied. -At one place a Eurasian got in with a quantity of baggage, and got out -again only a few stations off. On leaving, perceiving he had disturbed -us he said he was “sorry for the trouble.” - -At Barielly another man (English) got in with his traps and rugs and -settled himself to sleep on the middle berth—which in some carriages -economises space between the two side ones—though he was at first a -little taken aback at seeing that one of us was a lady. However, he -turned out to be a very agreeable companion afterwards, and we got -quite friendly as the train the next morning approached Lucknow, we -having previously decided not to stop at Cawnpore. - - - - -CHAPTER XI - -LUCKNOW - - -Arriving at Lucknow in due course we parted with our fellow traveller, -who was met by the military chaplain, and we did not see him again. -The chaplain kindly gave us some information, and said that the hotel -we were bound for was reputed to be “the best in India.” This was -good hearing, and we found it quite borne out by our experience of -Wurtzler’s, where we presently found ourselves in comfortable rooms, -bungalow-like, opening on to a verandah. The hotel had formerly been -a palace, and was rather a handsome building in its way, with a -round-arched arcaded front, long and low, with a pleasant enclosure of -trees and flower garden. - -[Illustration: IN HOSPITAL, LUCKNOW. THE OPERATING TABLE (PATIENT HAD -A BIT OF GRIT IN HER EYE AFTER A TRAIN JOURNEY)—SIXTEEN RUPEES WERE -EXTRACTED!] - -There was “a little rift within the lute,” however, which rather -marred the first moments of our arrival at Lucknow, my wife having -unfortunately got a little bit of grit in her eye from the engine while -in the train. There was nothing for it but to drive to the hospital the -first thing after breakfast. Luckily we caught the chief surgeon (Col. -Anderson) just as he was attending to some native cases in waiting. -He at once took us to the “operating room,” which sounded rather -fearsome, and was indeed a severe place with a polished marble floor, -a case of surgical instruments and an operating table being the only -furniture visible. The poor eye-patient had to extend herself on the -table, while the Colonel very deftly found and quickly removed a tiny -black speck which had caused all the trouble—working up right under the -upper lid of the eye. He put some cocaine into the eye first of all, -and afterwards applied a little lint and lotion. The relief must have -been worth anything—it might have been described as a lesser Relief of -Lucknow! - -[Illustration: JUGGLERS AT LUCKNOW—THE MANGO TREE TRICK] - -The next example of human skill or sleight of hand we witnessed was in -the juggling, not the surgical, profession. It was a native conjurer -who, under the arcade of the hotel, showed us the famous mango tree -trick. As additional attractions, or a sort of side-show, he had -a large cobra in a round box, which, when the lid was off, reared -its head all alive and hissing, and ready for a performance with a -well-to-do mongoose, which was held in readiness by a cord tied tightly -round its neck, which is apparently the only way in which to secure a -mongoose. - -The man commenced his performance by placing a monkey’s skull on -the pavement, and sticking a little china doll up in front of it. -Then he produced a very dry-looking mango seed about the size of a -small potato, and this he planted carefully in an ordinary earthen -flower-pot, covering the seed with soil, and then watering it, -muttering some unknown words over it. He then put it under a cloth -raised tentwise by a stick, to let it grow, as he said, while he went -on with a number of small but very skilful conjuring tricks with cards, -coins, marbles, ring and handkerchief, etc., any of which he offered -to teach. Presently he lifted the cloth and showed the mango tree -sending up a shoot of fresh green, and apparently growing vigorously. -Then he covered it up again and performed some more tricks, after -which he again uncovered the mango, which now showed a stem and bunch -of leaves at the top like a miniature tree. Finally, after another -interval of a few minutes juggling and conjuring, he lifted the cloth -again, and, holding the pot in one hand, he pulled up the little mango -tree with the other, showing it had stem, roots, and all. The man had -an assistant, but he only played a very subordinate part, handing the -conjurer the various things he wanted from time to time, holding the -mongoose, but not performing in any way. These wonders were to be seen -for the fee of three rupees. The conjurer was very proud of his “chits” -which he showed, and among the signatures were those of “Castlereagh” -and “Wenlock”; and he asked for a written testimonial in his book. - -At Lucknow we had an introduction to the Chief Commissioner, Mr -Ross Scott, who received us very cordially at his charming house, -and offered to do anything for us. Among other kindnesses he sent -my wife (whose health had suffered from the climate everywhere in -India) a supply of excellent milk from his own cows during her stay, -which proved of immense benefit. At his house we met Mrs Dowden and -her daughter, who kindly undertook to show us over the ruins of the -Residency which were quite close by. The building stands, or what -remains of it after the bombardment it sustained during the terrible -days of “the Mutiny,” amid pleasant lawns and fine trees, and creepers -cover the ruins. In one of the rooms is a good model of the Residency -as it was in 1857 in the midst of the native city on a rising ground, -but thickly surrounded by the houses and mosques, from which guns and -mortars were trained on to it. These were shown planted on flat roofs -or in courtyards, wherever there was vantage ground. Nothing but a -few shapeless ruins remain hereabouts now of the old native city, -which has since been curtailed and cut in two by a broad road for the -rapid movement of troops. However savage and cruel the sepoys may have -been, the British reprisals were certainly severe. They seemed to -have practically “wiped out” old Lucknow afterwards. We were shown a -building—the Sikander Bagh—a high-walled enclosure, once a fair rose -garden, which was taken by Colin Campbell, and where 2000 rebels were -bayoneted without mercy by the British troops. A young English officer, -speaking professionally, perhaps, we met at a friend’s house, said that -Sikander Bagh gave him more satisfaction than any other memorial of -the mutiny. He positively “gloated over it,” and intended to go there -again and “gloat.” It is said even that British soldiers bayoneted even -the sick and wounded Hindu soldiers in the hospitals who begged to be -shot instead! - -The whole place is overshadowed by memories of that awful period. -Nothing can impair the courage and endurance of the heroic defenders of -the Residency; but it is now, I believe, generally admitted that the -outbreak was not without its causes, and that the government of the day -did not act judiciously, to say the least. It is commonly called “The -Mutiny,” but it was really an insurrection, which must from various -causes have been smouldering for some time before it burst into flame. -The “greased cartridges” were only the last straw. There seems to have -been much discontent. Many sepoys, too, had been disbanded. The British -annexation, the deposition and deportation of the reigning King of -Oudh and the confiscation of his revenues, must all be considered as -provocative causes; and it is a question whether at any time British -rule has made itself loved in India, or the British residents have ever -really understood the Indian people. Native feeling must have been -generally ignored. - -It was a formidable revolt, accompanied, no doubt, by explosions of -race hatred and by terrible cruelties, but there was savagery on both -sides—a desperate attempt to regain possession of their own country and -its government on the part of the princes and people. - -The question remains, with all the official solicitude of the -British government for the welfare of the natives, all the railways, -engineering, and irrigation works, are they really better off than they -were under native rule? - -Are they not, though under British administration, more heavily taxed -than they were under the native kings? Mr William Digby, C.I.E., who -had long personal and official experience in India, brings a formidable -array of facts and statistics (from official sources, too), in his -“Prosperous British India,” in support of the view that they _are_, -and, moreover, that the ryot—the tiller of the soil—is gradually -becoming poorer under our rule. - -To a passing observer, the Hindus—nay, the people of India, either -Hindus or Mohammedans—can never be Europeanised. There is a great -gulf between the East and the West. After all these years of British -occupation and administration, the two races live entirely apart and -separate. In religion, manners, and customs, and sentiment, they are -fundamentally different, opposed, one might say. - -The British remain a transitory garrison of military and civil -administrative aliens, in the midst of vast populations, rooted in the -traditions, religious beliefs and observances of untold centuries, -during which they have carried on the same mode of life, and who seem -neither to seek or to desire change. - -The mere struggle to live must occupy the energies of the vast -majority, but among the more educated and leisured classes of natives -there is a growing feeling of what we should call nationalism in -Europe, though it may be more strictly racial than national. It is -difficult, however, to see how anything like a universal movement over -the whole peninsula could arise, considering the differences of caste, -race and religion, or the wide differences which separate Hindus and -Mohammedans. Some, however, rather think that political change may be -forced by bankruptcy, considering the poverty of the people and the -limits of taxation being reached. - -We were shown, at the Residency, the room where Sir Henry Laurence was -struck with the shell, the holes its explosion made in the wall, his -grave also, and many other memorials which have a profound interest -for the English visitors. Old rust-eaten, muzzle-loading muskets, -sabres, and shot and shell, with which the Residency was peppered, were -collected in a group in one of the rooms, and the place, as far as -possible, has been made an historical museum of the period of the siege. - -Our friends introduced us at the Chatter Manzel, formerly a palace -of the kings of Oudh, but now used as an English club. The rooms -were of spacious and good proportions—long in comparison with their -width. Proportion, in fact, is the principal notable quality of -the local architecture at Lucknow, the details being comparatively -common-place after the beautiful inventive detail and decoration -of the Mogul architects at Delhi and Agra, the ornamentation being -mostly mere repetitions. After the marble inlay of the Taj Mahal and -the Diwan-ud-Daulat, and Sikandra, or the rich arabesques of the -Zenana rooms at Amber, the white and yellow wash and the rather -coarse plaster work of the palaces and pavilions of Lucknow look, -comparatively speaking, cheap. The stuccoed domes of the mosques miss -the splendour of the gold and ivory-like marble seen elsewhere. Even -the Jama Musjid, fine in scale as it is, lacks the charm of colour. -There was a smaller mosque near the old stone bridge, however, which -stood out against the deep-blue sky in dazzling whiteness, but this -only showed how beautiful plain whitewash appears illuminated by the -Indian sun—pearly with delicate reflections and warm shadows. - -The Iambara had a beautifully-proportioned court, with steps up to the -pavilion, the symmetry of the spacing being rather pleasantly broken by -the mosque on one side being placed at a different angle in order to -point to the direction of Mecca, as all Mohammedan mosques must do. - -Inside the pavilion, under canopies of heavy embroidery in gold and -silver, supported by chased silver poles, were the tombs of one of -the kings and his zenana. On the walls were mirrors which reminded us -of our English empire-period framed mantle-glasses. Some of these had -curious tempera paintings inserted in their frames of native birds -and trees, and there were other Indian paintings, one showing General -or Captain Martin—the French adventurer who founded the Martinière -at Lucknow in the early nineteenth century—in a blue coat and gold -lace and white nankeen trousers, like a naval officer of that period, -conferring with the King of Oudh and his court. An image of a winged -horse (a Buddhist symbol) strikingly resembled the Assyrian type of -winged man-headed creatures, the treatment being remarkably similar. -The crowned head, with long, black, curled locks, and formal, rather -small, wings, with each feather expressed. There was an umbrella -attached, which moved to and fro over the head of the figure by -clock-work. - -We were interested to see in the Daulat Khan—a sort of gallery up a -steep flight of steps—a series of full-length portraits of the kings -of Oudh in their robes, painted by English artists. Most of these were -signed by my friend T. Erat Harrison, 1882–4, and I recalled the fact -of having seen him at work on one of them about that time. - -An English lady, Mrs Dowden (wife of Colonel Dowden), was kind enough -to conduct us through Lucknow and its wonders, and she proved an -excellent cicerone, and waved off all unnecessary attentions from -caretakers and their hangers-on with the decisive air of a resident. - -We passed a hideous clock tower—one of many in India—put up by some -modern architect (as a Jubilee memorial, I think). It is astonishing -what monstrosities in clock towers have been perpetrated by modern -architects in India. - -Finally, we got to the gate of the old city of Lucknow, by which we -entered the principal street of the bazaar. There were many interesting -native shops. At one I noticed some blocks of patterns for printing -by hand on cotton. They were cut in some hard wood. The handicraft, -too, was still carried on here. There were many pretty bead necklaces, -tassels, and quaint toys. We visited, up a steep narrow staircase, -a muslin and jewel merchant’s store. He showed some charming Indian -muslins spangled with silver spots and patterns. He also had one or two -pieces of old Lucknow enamel not ordinarily seen in the bazaars now. - -[Illustration: BETTER LUCK AT LUCKNOW—THROUGH THE CHOWK ON AN ELEPHANT] - -We visited another friend who had been spending the winter at -Lucknow—Mrs Jopling-Rowe, the well-known artist, whose son is a -Magistrate here, dining with them at their charming bungalow one -evening. Mr Commissioner Jopling very courteously placed elephants at -our disposal on which to ride through the chowk. - -An irrigation well near the hotel interested me, and I made a sketch -of it in a chequered shade. The yoke of oxen and two natives at work -hauling up the water for the garden in a leather bucket. While thus -engaged another friend travelling in the East came up, so that as -regards friends we were quite in luck’s way at Lucknow. - -After this it was time to go and meet the elephants our friends had -ordered at the chowk. Mrs Jopling-Rowe took us in her carriage through -Wentworth Park, and past the palaces to the gate of the city, where -we found two fine elephants in waiting. My wife and I mounted one of -them by the usual ladder, the animal kneeling. A young officer who -was of the party, however, showed us another way. He got a leg up by -means of the trunk, and so over the elephant’s head on to his back. We -then processed through the bazaar (the chowk), preceded by a native -policeman, in khaki with a scarlet turban, to clear the way, and two -more behind. The elephants seemed to quite fill up the narrow street, -so that there was danger of a block when we met an ox-cart. A very -comprehensive view is to be had from an elephant’s back, as one can see -not only a long way ahead, but well into the shops where the people are -at work, and also command the balconies and roofs, where there were -often interesting groups. - -[Illustration: IRRIGATION WELL, LUCKNOW] - -We threaded our way through the chowk, passing at its end under one -of the old arched gateways and along a narrower street, which led -us out into the broad military road, which the British, after the -revolt, ruthlessly cut right through the old city, uglifying it, of -course. There is a wonderful variety and richness, again, here, in the -old house fronts with arcaded balconies and doorways of carved wood. -The patterns, chiefly running borders, treated very fancifully and -delicately. The native houses were not so high as in Lahore, but the -carving might compare with the same sort of work there in detail. - -We lunched at the charming abode of another English official and his -wife (Mr and Mrs Saunders), who were very pleasant and hospitable. The -lady had considerable taste in furniture and decoration, and her rooms -showed the influence of white and green, and looked cool and agreeable -in a light key. - -Afterwards we drove to see the celebrated Martinière, the young officer -accompanying us. The Martinière is the fantastic palace built by the -French General or Captain Martin, before mentioned, and is a curious -conglomerate sort of scenic design of late Italo-French Renaissance -character, reminding one rather of Isola Bella, semi-classical figures -being perched on every pinnacle and balustrade, and there were two -grotesque lions, doing duty as supporters or consoles, with mouths so -open that the sky could be seen through them. The building towered high -in several stories in the centre, and spread out wide into two curved -long and low wings of one story, opening on to broad terraces and steps -leading to a small lake, from the middle of which rose a fluted column. -The general’s heart is said to be buried beneath this. The Martinière -was intended by him to be a college for boys. He founded another at -Calcutta, and another in his native town—Lyons—in France. Martin -seems to have had a curious, eventful history, beginning as a French -prisoner, under the British, afterwards entering the British army and -becoming a captain, when he took service under the Nawab of Oudh and -became general of his army, finally accumulating by some means a large -fortune, which he spent on this building and in founding the schools -which bear his name. - -We passed another house ruined at the time of “the Mutiny,” whence -the women and children were removed to from the Residency, and where -Lieutenant Paul is buried. - -Mr Ross Scott entertained us with a distinguished company to dinner at -his hospitable house before we left Lucknow. One English colonel of the -party with whom I had a conversation had recently returned from Burmah, -and had brought back some fine silk embroidered robes, some china -bowls, and caps. The latter were of soft felt, and could be worn either -with the edge turned down or up, forming a brim. - -The colonel had lived some time in Burmah and had seen service there, -having been through the British campaign against the “Dacoits.” He -said that the Dacoits were largely composed of men of the disbanded -native army (for which I suppose our Government were responsible), and -they roamed about the country preying on the people, plundering and -sometimes murdering them. The Burmese people, he said, only wanted to -be left alone in peace (like most people). He had made many friends -among them, as he knew the language and had lived amongst them at -that time. On revisiting the country and finding things under British -control and administration, he found most of his Burmese native friends -in prison. They were there, he said, merely for breaking some official -regulation which probably they did not in the least understand. The -natives complained to him that the English officials lived aloof from -them, and were not friendly and sympathetic as he (the Colonel) had -been, and they never got any forwarder. - - - - -CHAPTER XII - -BENARES - - -Our next destination was Benares. I had for long had the feeling, from -the descriptions one had read and the photographs one had seen of this -wonderful place, that it would sum up and centralise, as it were, to -the eye the whole life of the Indian people, while it would also be a -symbol of their faith to the mind. - -It was, therefore, with unusual anticipations that we turned our faces -thither, and on the 21st of January took the early morning train from -Lucknow to the great focus of Hindu worship on the sacred Ganges. The -kind commissioner’s native servant, in scarlet, awaited us at the -station with a parting gift and a note of introduction to the Maharajah -of Benares. - -The train passed through a richer and more fruitful country than usual, -but level, plain all the way, reaching Benares Cantonment about two -o’clock. We drove to Clark’s hotel, which has a pretty portico full of -palms, and a splendid orange creeper, then in full flower, hung over -the usual bungalow annexe. The house was quiet, and had a semi-private -aspect, more like a country bungalow. - -Finding the Maharajah’s palace was some five or six miles off and on -the other side of the river, we were advised to leave our letter at -the Guest House with our cards. The Guest House was quite near by. -Continuing our drive through the bazaar we thought the main street -wider than most of the native cities, but the bazaars did not look so -busy, and many shops were vacant. Balconies, the roofs of which were -supported on arcades of slender columns with Hindu caps, were of a -different type to those hitherto seen. In the European quarter there -were poorly-designed, would-be Gothic British buildings, and mission -churches of the usual bald type. There was a Queen’s Park with the -commonplace iron railing and low stone parapet enclosing it, these -innovations, as usual, quite spoiling the surroundings of a native city. - -The next morning we had a visit from the Maharajah’s private secretary, -who invited us to drive in the afternoon to visit the Buddhist topes -and sculptures at Sarnath about five miles from Benares. An American -lady we had previously met was to be of the party, and she was staying -at the Guest House, and at the appointed hour the Maharajah’s carriage, -with a coachman in a green and gold turban and scarlet tunic, and two -active young Hindus, similarly dressed, acted as running footmen to -clear the way, when not at their posts standing at the back of the -carriage. We called at the Guest House for our American friend. It -was a more palatial building than the one at Gwalior, standing in a -small park with outer gates and a drive. The house was in the classic -style—a white building with flat roof and columned portico. In the -large hall on the ground floor there was a small coloured statuette of -the Maharajah on horseback, photographs and portraits upon the walls, -including English miniatures of an English officer and his ladies of -the early nineteenth century, and some engravings of portraits of Queen -Caroline. A stuffed lioness was lying on a side-board. - -[Illustration: THE MAHARAJAH PLACES HIS CARRIAGE AT OUR DISPOSAL] - -The road to Sarnath lay through avenues of fine trees a great part of -the way, chiefly mangoes, banyans, acacias, and tamarinds. The young -trees planted to fill the gaps were protected by circular fences, -sometimes topped by prickly pears. Sometimes the circular fence was -made of bricks, an aperture being left between every alternate brick. - -At Sarnath we saw the results of recent excavations. There was a -wonderful pillar made out of a single piece of marble, but fractured -in digging it out. One part stood upright in the earth, the other lay -horizontally. The top or cap was placed under an awning near by. It was -formed of four lions facing outwards, their heads, chests, and fore -limbs being alone visible, their claws resting on the rim of a circular -fillet, on which was sculptured in low relief a horse, an elephant, a -lion, and a bull, each animal being placed between a wheel of a solar -character, each wheel having twenty-four spokes. Below this fillet -was a curved drooping fringe of leaves such as are characteristic in -Persian columns as well as Hindu. The marble of which the column and -the sculptures were made was of a peculiar greyish almost of a flesh -colour, with small spots. Both the column and the sculptures were very -highly polished, and the treatment of the lions was remarkably Greek in -character with perhaps a touch of Persian or even Assyrian formalism -in the treatment of the heads and manes of the lions. The animals in -relief, between the wheels, too, were remarkably free, spirited, and -well modelled. - -There were the remains of an ancient Buddhist temple near. In what was -probably the inner shrine was a sculptured standing figure of Buddha, -about two-thirds life size, in alto relievo. The figure was represented -in a long robe, the limbs being boldly expressed through the drapery, -which hung broadly and smoothly over them, without folds, except at the -sides, which were treated in the rather formal spiral manner of early -Greek work. - -The American lady remarked on seeing this figure that “The gentleman -seems to have put his legs through his clothes.” - -The figure was framed in a border of astralagus, cut in low relief, -having a running escalloped border outside it and stepped mouldings. -The doorway to this shrine, too, had a richly carved bordering. - -There were many most interesting fragments collected together in and -around a building near. In the court was a large circular carved stone. -This was called Buddha’s umbrella, and its original position was over -the head of a large figure of the saint, sculptured in the round, close -by. The design of the umbrella, a lotus flower, the flower of life, -the petals radiating from the centre, and enclosing this were a series -of concentric rings of pattern; the first consisted of rosettes, or -smaller lotus flowers, alternating with grotesque lions, winged horses, -elephants, camels, and bulls; the next showed the anthemion, doubled -or reversed, alternating with the fylfot or gammadion 卍, and another -form frequent in early Greek pattern (as well as Chinese) the geometric -four-petalled flower. There were numerous small figures of Buddha -here, treated in a similar way to the one first mentioned, as well as -other sculptures of a Hindu type, resembling those at Ellora. - -There we saw the great Tope (called the Dhamek). This stood on rather -higher ground, and was apparently built of rubble, which was exposed at -the top, but the sides were covered with fine bands of carved ornament -in stone, carried to a considerable height, and consisting of a frieze -of bold scroll work of a Greek character, alternating with bands of -a kind of Chinese-like diagonal diaper, divided by plain belts of -stone. At intervals these bands were intersected by flat dome-shaped -forms slightly projecting beyond the bands, and in these were recesses -intended, no doubt, originally to contain seated figures of Buddha. -These flat dome-shaped forms, connected by bands, suggested a palisade, -which may have been the original way of enclosing and protecting these -topes or tombs; and they may also have been the early form or prototype -of the curious clustered dome-shaped pinnacles which are multiplied to -form the spires of Jain temples so often seen in India. - -Sarnath is the place where Buddha began to preach, and the great tope -is supposed to mark the spot where his first sermon was delivered. The -excavations of General Cunningham here disclose the fragments of a -great city which probably stood here about 2000 years ago. - -Returning to Benares from this intensely interesting spot, we dined at -the Guest House with our American friend. The rooms were luxuriously -upholstered and furnished from Europe, and were occupied by the Prince -and Princess of Wales when they were here in 1905. The dinner was -excellently cooked and served by native attendants, with the choicest -wines and liquors. - -There were some lovely old Indian miniatures on vellum framed and -hanging on the wall of one of the salons, representing various scenes -in the life of a Maharajah—a cock-fight, polo, reception of a foreign -embassy (in Dutch seventeenth century costume), and other subjects, -each full of charming details of architecture, dress and decoration. -Besides these there were the usual official photographic groups, -showing English officers, princes, and governor-generals grouped around -the Maharajah—in one the Czar of Russia appeared. Indian carpets -were on the floor, and English sporting prints on the walls of the -dining-room. - -The next day, January 23rd, His Highness’s secretary had arranged to -send a carriage for us quite early (about 7 A.M.), to take us to see -the ghats. When we reached the river side, which is a considerable -drive from the Guest House, we found a beautiful state barge awaiting -us. It was shaped and painted like a peacock, and had a little pavilion -in the centre. In this lovely vessel we embarked, and glided slowly -down the river with the stream, guided by the scarlet-jacketed oarsmen, -with their long bamboo handled oars, and a broad steering paddle at the -stern. - -[Illustration: BENARES: VIEWING THE GHATS FROM THE MAHARAJAH’S PEACOCK -BOAT] - -The spectacle of Benares from a boat on the Ganges is perhaps the most -extraordinary sight in all India. At every ghat or opening to the -river, down the great flights of steps, a throng of natives in all the -colours of the rainbow press to the water’s edge. Some plunge in, some -approach timidly, and very gradually submerge themselves. Their brown -skins shining in the water. The men always have some sort of waist -cloth on, but the women go in in their garments, or, at least, clad to -their waists. All ages are there—it recalled the mediæval allegories -of the Fountain of Youth. One does not often see infants dipped, though -they are, occasionally, by their parents, and object to the water in -the same natural and vigorous manner as European babies are apt to do -at their baptism. - -Old tottering women and men may be seen, as well as the young, strong -and vigorous, all earnestly washing, or performing strange genuflexions -with the most determined devotion. Characteristic features of this -wonderful scene are the large matting umbrellas of the priests, who sit -on small platforms of bamboo raised on the steps. These expect fees to -be paid them by those who come to bathe at the ghats. Rows of snake -charmers greet the traveller on landing at the ghats, who turn hissing -cobras out of circular boxes and hold them aloft or twine them round -their necks, or perhaps, as an extra attraction, empty out a swarm of -scorpions to catch the eye of the stranger, all eager to perform the -marvels of their art on the slightest encouragement—and a few rupees. -Sacred zebu bulls wander about and often lie on the steps. - -It seems strange that people should lave and drink of the water, which -is fouled one would suppose by all sorts of impurities at the margin. -Washing of clothes goes on everywhere, decayed flowers float along, -even bodies of drowned dogs are seen occasionally. It must have been -at Benares that Æsop’s fable of the two pots was born, for there the -earthen and brazen vessels might quite possibly float down the stream -together. Pots are scoured on the steps, and at the Burning Ghat they -pour the ashes of the dead into the river. - -[Illustration: WE SEE SNAKES AT BENARES] - -At the Burning Ghat they pile up logs of wood to form the pyre, and -the white turbaned dark figures, with nothing on but waist cloths, -are kept busy at their ghastly work. Some of the bodies are brought -down with flowers and chanting: others lie there with no following or -ceremony: some are swathed in red or white cloth like mummies, others -as they were born are lifted on to the piles of logs, which being set -alight, soon reduce all to the same condition. Some of the bodies are -carefully dipped in the Ganges before being burned, and are often left -at the water’s edge while the pyre is being prepared. Wood was placed -over as well as under the bodies, and a torch was put to the mouth. -Other bodies, again, are taken out in boats unburned and apparently -dressed and seated in chairs, and suddenly in mid-stream are toppled -over into the water. We saw an old man disposed of in this way. Our -boatman pointed him out as a specially holy person, and we did not -realise he was a corpse. The bodies of infants, swathed in white, are -also treated in this way. - -The Maharajah’s secretary explained that the Ganges water had been -analysed by European experts and pronounced to be the best water in the -world, having a peculiar property of destroying the germs of disease. -It was difficult, however, to see how even “the best water” could -avoid getting fouled with such operations constantly going on; but of -course there is a strong stream all the time, so that everything must -eventually be carried down to the sea. - -A continuous many-coloured stream of pilgrims, bearing huge bundles -of bedding, were constantly moving along behind this busy life of the -bathing ghats, ascending or descending the great flights of steps -leading up through the various gates to the city. It seemed to be part -of that universal exodus we had witnessed at every railway station -in India. It is said that representatives from every village in the -peninsula may be found at Benares. - -Then, as a no less striking background to these extraordinary human -groups, rise the domes of temples and minarets of palaces, their golden -vanes and finials glittering against the deep blue sky. Windows, -balconies and terraces placed high up, with vast walls below them. -These great walls, which give so much distinction and breadth to the -river front of Benares, have a practical reason, inasmuch as it is a -necessity thus to raise the temple and palace floors, owing to the -sudden rising of the Ganges in the rainy season, when these walls are -sometimes hidden in the waters. - -The musical accompaniments of the spectacle consist in the weird and -wandering notes which issue from the temples, produced by a sort -of hautboy, and the subdued thud of the tom-toms. I saw a dusky -long-haired fakir stand on the steps at the Mahikarunika ghat and sound -a long straight brass trumpet. - -After voyaging in the peacock boat the whole length of the ghats, we -returned to our carriage-in-waiting at a convenient point from which -to approach the Golden Temple. From the main street of the Bazaar we -were conducted by the secretary down a very narrow passage crowded with -worshippers, and then up a dark staircase to a terrace from which we -could see the cluster of gilded copper domes. Afterwards in the sacred -precincts we saw the “well of knowledge,” but did not drink of it, -having too much foreknowledge of the condition of its water. - -Our next excursion was to pay a visit to the Maharajah at his palace. -We were conducted by his secretary in the carriage as before, driving -to the river side opposite the palace some six miles off. On the road -we stopped to see the famous Monkey Temple—a Hindu Temple in an arcaded -court of the usual type. This court was full of monkeys—a sandy-brown -coloured sort with pink faces, probably Macaques—not so handsome as -the wild silver grey ones we had seen at Ahmedabad. They accepted -offerings, but not so greedily, as they were evidently well fed, and -dried peas lay about untouched. They gambolled about the temple at -their sweet will. These monkeys are sacred to Vishnu, and represent -Hunuman the monkey god. - -There was a fine tank with steps to the water’s edge, close by the -temple. Just before this we passed the Hindu College which Mrs Annie -Besant has established for the higher education of native children of -both sexes—but not a mixed school. This work has been liberally endowed -by the Maharajah of Benares, who also granted the site. Mrs Besant is -the principal, but owing to the illness of Colonel Alcott, she was not -then there, being at Madras nursing the Colonel in what proved to be -his last illness. - -Reaching the river side, a boat was in waiting to take us across to the -palace, rowed by two Hindu boys—at least they started rowing, but soon -we got into shallows, where they took to poling, and finally had to get -out and push the boat along, until getting into deeper water again they -rowed us to the palace steps. - -It was quite a high steep flight, no doubt existing for the same -river reason as the high walls of Benares—to be out of the reach of -the floods. There were numbers of natives ascending and descending or -grouped on the steps. - -We climbed up, and entered the palace up more stairs, and were shown -into a large reception salon, where much of the furniture was “under -canvas,” but there was one handsome couch displayed, inlaid with -ivory. Presently H.H. the Maharajah entered, accompanied by his two -chief officers, who spoke English well, his painter in ordinary, and -several attendants. Chairs were placed in the centre of the room, -around a small marble table. The Maharajah seated himself, and we with -the private secretary grouped ourselves about him. The Maharajah was -dressed in a small-patterned long tunic of pink brocaded with gold, a -small round cap on his head, close fitting white trousers and patent -leather shoes. He seemed quite merry and pleased to see us. I showed -him my book of sketches, which interested him, as he said he had never -seen drawings of the kind before. His painter in ordinary, to whom I -was introduced, was also interested, and asked some questions through -the secretary, not himself speaking English. He had painted the full -length portraits of the Maharajahs which hung aloft in this salon. -The Prince presently rose and invited us to the terrace, to which we -passed after him, through an arcade, an attendant holding a large silk -umbrella over him. There was a very fine view from this terrace up -and down the river. The city of Benares, with its domes and minarets, -seen far down on the left, and the open plain country opposite. The -secretary said that when the Ganges rose the city looked as if it was -floating on the surface of the water. - -[Illustration: THE MAHARAJAH’S RECEPTION, DECORATING THE VISITORS] - -We then all returned to the salon (or Durbar Hall, as I ought to -have called it) and took our leave, H.H. presenting us with a book -of photographs of the ghats, with his own portrait, both of which he -inscribed. Finally he placed necklaces of some kind of gold or gilt -tissue around the necks of the ladies, and one of silver-tissue around -mine, and concluded by putting scent on our handkerchiefs from a -handsome silver bottle. - -Before we left the palace the Maharajah’s jewels were shown to -us—wonderful strings of rubies and emeralds almost as big as hen’s -eggs. These were in rather worn and faded cases of velvet, and offered -up on rusty old tea trays—a strange mixture of splendour and squalor. - -The secretary then took us by carriage to see a Hindu Temple, covered -with sculpture, standing clear on a raised platform ascended by a -flight of steps, and surrounded by the usual open court. We saw several -fine elephants waiting at a gateway, and afterwards visited the -Maharajah’s pleasant flower garden, prettily laid out with long centre -tanks, and rose trellises, terraces, and pavilions. From here we soon -reached the river side, and embarking in the boat again, returned in -the same manner we had come, returning to our quarters in the dusk of -the evening, the secretary leaving us at his dwelling at Benares. - -The Maharajah having placed a boat and a carriage at our disposal, we -arranged to visit the ghats again the next day, especially as I was -anxious to obtain a sketch or two of the wonderful scenes by the river. -So driving to the steps again we embarked, taking Moonsawmy with us -to interpret. I got the boatmen to stop the boat off the Manikaranika -Ghat,[B] which is perhaps the most striking of all, with its red -sandstone pinnacles, immense flights of steps and terraces. Here I -worked till noon, when one had rather the sensation of everything -curling up with the heat of the sun, including one’s own frame! The -next morning we again returned to the river, using the Maharajah’s -carriage and boat, which latter was not, however, the beautiful -peacock barge of our first morning, but a very substantial sort of -house-boat, with plenty of space on the upper deck or flat roof of the -house, and solid chairs to sit on. This time I chose the Nepal Temple -for my subject. This temple, with its pagoda-like roof and shining -golden finial, had a Chinese aspect. The temple itself was of a deep -rich Indian red, and had a terrace in front on the top of a high wall -close to the river, on one side being the entrance to the palace with -two minarets. A mass of dark green foliage partly shaded the Temple on -the left hand and added to the charm and richness of the subject—the -throng of figures on the steps, and the boats rocking on the clear -green water, completing the picture at the river’s edge, alive with -colour and movement. The procession of pilgrims in an endless line, and -the whole human drama going on just as before, and as it has been every -day for ages. - - [B] See frontispiece. - -The moon was now again bright at nights and it was much warmer. We -heard the jackals again as at Udaipur. - -We met two London friends at the hotel, and made some pleasant -acquaintances—a young American who had been travelling in China and -Japan and Java and was going on to Europe; also three young Oxford men, -connected with the Oxford Mission, I understood—one of them on his way -to take up some official post in Japan. - -The roses at Clark’s Hotel were very profuse, a beautiful silver bowl -of Benares work full of them each day decorated our table. - -It was extremely quiet except for the almost continual cry of a bird -I could not name, but which at first we thought was a pea-fowl. The -note, however, was not hoarse or grating but full and bell-like, though -very monotonous, consisting of two notes. We heard this bird everywhere -south after Benares. - - - - -CHAPTER XIII - -CALCUTTA—DARJEELING - - -With parting compliments to the Maharajah, whom I ventured to present, -and his officers, with photographs of some of my pictures, we left -Benares for Calcutta on January 26th, departing by a mid-day train, -belated as usual. This took us to Mogul Serai, where we changed into -the Calcutta mail. At the station it was difficult to find a place for -the soles of our feet, as the whole of the platform was occupied by -native infantry, in khaki, who were camping down with their arms piled -and their baggage around them. - -The Calcutta mail was preceded by the limited mail, consisting chiefly -of post-office vans, but having room for a few passengers. One of our -friends of the Oxford party who were going on by it very kindly tried -to get us places also, but there was no room left. However, the other -mail followed very quickly, in which we found plenty of room, our only -fellow-traveller being an American. - -We had, before reaching Mogul Serai, obtained a farewell glimpse of -Benares as we crossed the iron bridge over the Ganges, below the city, -and saw the slender minarets of the Aurangzer Mosque, and the smoke of -the Burning Ghat. The country for some distance was richer and more -fruitful than usual, and well clad with trees, among which were many -fine cocoa palms, their smooth, slender stems having a steely blue -effect against the deep green foliage of mangoes and acacias. - -The scenery grew tamer afterwards, and generally flat, with occasional -mud-walled and thatch-roofed villages huddled together. - -After passing as bad a night as might be expected in the train, we got -into Calcutta about six in the morning at the Howrah station. - -After some difficulty in getting a tickorgary—the Indian equivalent -for a “four-wheeler”—we had rather a long drive to the Grand Hotel, -crossing the river by a bridge just outside the station, where there -was a bathing ghat, gaily populous at that hour, the bathing operations -being followed by breakfast on the steps or in the pavilions on the -terrace behind. - -The streets of Calcutta looked rather dingy and neglected. The hotel -was vast but gloomy, and the prices high; but a bath and a rest after -the long railway journey were very welcome, and we were glad to get our -letters. We found the temperature much warmer, however, and more like -Bombay. - -The Minto Fête—a sort of bazaar and military tournament -combined—absorbed a great deal of attention among the residents. This -occupied a large enclosure on the Esplanade, under canvas. The familiar -posters used for the Military Tournament in London met the eye on all -sides, with gay fluttering bunting strung across the streets as it -appeared the Amir was expected here too, though his visit was to be -considered “private.” - -[Illustration: THE SOOTHSAYER AT CALCUTTA—(OR PALMISTRY UNDER THE -PALMS)] - -One of our introductions here was to Miss Sorabji, a Parsee lady of -much influence, and a most interesting personality, well known and -beloved by a large circle of English friends. She had a charming house, -in a garden of palms, in Carnac Street. We found her entertaining a -party of fashionable ladies at afternoon tea, on a shady lawn in front -of her house. In the midst of the group, squatting on the grass, was a -soothsayer and palmist—a Hindu “wise man,” robed in white, but without -any turban. He had some oblong-shaped pages out of an ancient book of -palmistry, and some curious phrenological-looking diagrams lying on -the grass in front of him, and these he appeared to be consulting from -time to time, while with great deliberation he examined the hands of -the ladies, who gazed at him quite anxiously, as if he were really an -inspired diviner of their lives. This man was supposed to be gifted -with very special powers, and seemed to be taken quite seriously, but -as far as we could gather, he was only mentioning the usual range of -probable or not impossible events which might happen in the course of -any life, though, no doubt, more or less adapted to the circumstances -and character of the lady before him, as far as he could guess it, -and calculated to fit individual cases. He certainly looked wily and -cunning enough for anything, as he moved his finger mysteriously over -the charts, or pretended to count or reckon something while keeping the -lady’s left hand open before him. A curious scene altogether, with the -afternoon tea-table, and the ordinary chatter going on. - -There was an Industrial Exhibition open on some open ground near a -large, yellow-washed, eighteenth century style of church. It combined -a switchback railway, and some of the popular attractions of Earl’s -Court, with an interesting show of hand-weaving in linens, silks, and -carpets, with dyeing, printing, and other industries, the exhibits -being those of societies or firms. In some cases the work of various -schools of Art were shown, as that of the Maharajah’s, at Jaipur, -chiefly metal work and enamelling. Among the brass work were to be seen -the spherical brass rolling lamps, pierced with an all-over intricate -floral design, that left fairly evenly distributed apertures through -which the rays of light would strike when the lamp was lighted within. -This, by an ingenious piece of mechanism, always maintained its level -position, though the sphere might be rolled along the ground like a -ball. It could be opened by hinges in two equal hemispherical halves. -These lamps are used at festivals in the temples, and have a beautiful -effect. - -Calcutta is not impressive architecturally, certainly. The modern -buildings are of the usual commercial type as a rule. Government House -has a certain stateliness with its white columned porticoes among the -palms and greenery of other trees; and Carnac Street is a long wide -street of large detached residences standing in ample gardens. The -Esplanade is a wide open plain in the midst of the town, with some -groups of trees upon it, but rather brown and desolate, the turf being -burned by the sun. The native quarters are very squalid. The bazaars -and shops were often tumble-down temporary-looking sheds and structures -of bamboo sticks and straw, old tins being often seen thrown on to -weight the rotten matting or thatch which formed the roofs, which were -often, too, patched with corrugated iron. Occasionally there was a -house-front which had seen better days—a former villa or mansion, with -a columned portico, but now become a squalid tenement house. - -These were at least one’s impressions on a very short visit; but it -was so oppressive that we were anxious to get away to Darjeeling, and -so took our departure on January 28th by an afternoon train from the -Iscaldah station. For about an hour or so after leaving Calcutta, the -train runs through beautiful groves of palms and mangoes, plantains and -bamboos, intersected by tanks of water, vegetable gardens, and thatched -villages among the trees. Later we crossed the great open plains of -Bengal, cultivated and fertile under irrigation, with but few trees, -stretching as far as the eye could see under the full moon. - -At Sara we changed, having to leave the train to cross the river -Ganges. The scene was a strange one. The waiting steamer lying ready, -had to be approached over the wide shallows by two long narrow -gangways, constructed out of a few planks, suspended from bamboo sticks -stuck upright in the shallow water, with lights at intervals. A troop -of European and American travellers wending their way from the train -along one of the gangways to the white steamer, and a procession of -natives with their bundles crowding along the other to the same vessel. - -Arrived on board we found a table spread ready on the quarter-deck and -we had an excellent dinner—very superior to those provided by most of -the hotels. After this meal was over the steamer started on its voyage -across the wide river, having a strong electric search-light at the -bows which threw a great shaft of white light to the opposite shore, -along which it seemed to travel as if finding its way. Moths and -flying insects fluttering into the beam of light flashed like sparks or -fire-flies. - -We found another train waiting for us at a station on the other bank. -Here we got into sleeping compartments. I had an American bishop and -his friend, a young man, as travelling companions. About 6 A.M. the -next morning we reached the foot of the hills, where another change was -necessary and where breakfast was to be had at the station, after which -we packed ourselves and our belongings into the tiny carriages of the -little narrow gauge, toy-like train which makes the ascent of 7000 feet -to Darjeeling. - -Starting about level, the ascent was quite gradual at first, the line -winding through bamboo groves and tea plantations, and as it grows -steeper the track twists up in =S= curves and loops, threading, like -a steel snake, through umbrageous woodlands, sometimes following the -road, sometimes crossing it. Among the many beautiful trees there was -one of frequent occurrence which was new to us. It had something the -manner of growth of an ash, but having a silvery bark like a birch, -and clusters of large scarlet buds and flowers, without leaves. Some -called it the “Forest Flame.” Many of the trees were hung with climbing -plants, forming lovely tangles and festoons, and through the openings -in the woods, here and there, we had glimpses of the plains veiled -in the morning haze. Higher and higher the little train carried us, -curving so sharply, sometimes, that one could see the little puffing -engine in front, which had almost the effect, when rounding the sudden -curves and loops, of some grotesque creature trying to catch its own -tail, like a playful kitten or puppy! - -[Illustration: THE DARJEELING TOY-RAILWAY TRYING TO CATCH ITS OWN TAIL!] - -At intervals the various attitudes attained were painted on tablets -at the side of the rail, or at the little stations. At Siliguri a -halt was made for tiffin. Here the Mongolian and Bhutian peasants -came up to the railway carriages and offered us interesting things in -the way of silver rings, and silver ornaments set with turquoise, and -large turquoise earrings of a fine bold design. The women all wore -relic or charm-boxes with lids worked in delicate filigree and set -with turquoise, and these were suspended by bead necklaces. Silver -chatelaines and other charming ornaments were shown us, the women -carrying the stock-in-trade of jewellery upon their persons. The high -cheekbones and narrow eyes, black hair and long pig-tails of the -Mongolian were very marked, the men having quite a Chinese look, with -their soft felt, turned-up inverted cup-and-saucer-shaped hats and -pig-tails. The women had broad, smiling faces, the effect of which was -heightened by a kind of bright brown varnish which made their faces -look as if they had been French polished—perhaps to suit somebody’s -furniture?—their hair was intensely black, and they wore two long -plaits or pig-tails. - -The huts of the villages were of wood, and the original native roofing -was of thin wooden shingles, which harmonised perfectly with the -scenery; but unfortunately corrugated iron was being extensively -substituted for roofing purposes, and the old thatch or wooden -shingles were frequently patched with it. At Darjeeling it was almost -universal, and in consequence the buildings might be described as -tin and temporary. Here and there was a fantastic, but generally not -tasteful, touch of Germany, or the Swiss border, in the modern villa. -Little toy-like dwellings are scattered along the mountain-sides in an -accidental sort of way, as if they had been upset out of a box, and had -stuck here and there among the trees in their fall. - -English suburban names catch the eye—at Darjeeling—such as “Daisy -Bank” and “Rose Cottage.” The Europeans come out from Calcutta in -the hot season to dwell here. The huts of the native people look very -frail, almost like card-houses, leaning up against each other on the -edges of cliffs, their roofs of ragged matting, straw thatch, or thin -wooden shingles, or the corrugated iron aforesaid. Tall, tapering -bamboo canes are frequently stuck up outside, bearing vertical strips -of white cotton or linen cloth, like standards, with light tags of the -same fluttering at intervals from their outer edges. These are said to -represent prayers, and are supposed to ward off evil influences. - -We put up at “Woodlands” hotel, which has a pretty walk up from the -station, lined with fine old trees of the pine kind, very thick and -dark, and having a slender cone-like form, reminding one of cypresses. -These abound all down the mountain-sides, but are now in danger -of being thinned too freely. The mountain-sides are intersected -with paths, and terraced bridle roads, along which are perched the -dwellings, above or below the road. As one rides up one can look almost -perpendicularly down upon the tin roofs and into the little gardens, as -these paths almost double back on themselves at different heights, as -they wind up the hills. - -The manager and proprietor of “Woodlands” was an Italian by birth, -but he spoke English like a native. He was one of an expedition which -attempted to climb the Kinchin Junga (18,000 feet), a great snow peak -of the Himalayas, which is conspicuous from Darjeeling when the clouds -disclose the view of the wonderful snow-clad range. - -[Illustration: CHARACTERS IN A TIBETAN MASQUE, DARJEELING] - -He occasionally entertained his guests by a lecture in the evenings, -illustrated by photographic slides taken on the expedition (in 1905) -in which, however, four of the party lost their lives by losing their -footing on a snow precipice. Climbing in the Himalayas seems to be -handicapped by the necessity of taking coolies to carry provisions and -camp furniture, as the explorer leaves the human world entirely behind -him in entering these trackless snow-bound solitudes. - -One evening, just before daylight had quite faded, we witnessed a very -curious and remarkable performance in the courtyard of the hotel, -lighted by a few lanterns, which, however, rather increased the mystery -of the half-light than really added to the illumination of the scene. -It was a Tibetan dance or masque. To the sound of tom-toms, which -marked the time, a dancer in loose white garments appeared—a man; he -wore a white tunic with a full skirt, and held a sort of white veil -up over his head as he moved, and he appeared to have on Mongolian -leggings and boots. He danced like a dervish, whirling rapidly round -and round, his skirts forming a sort of spiral wheel of drapery about -him as he moved. - -This dancer having finished his _pas de seul_, as a kind of prelude, -retired, and was immediately succeeded by another—a fantastic-looking -figure also in white, with the Tibetan conical turban, the details of -whose costume I could not quite make out, owing to the fitful light, -but he appeared in the characteristic loose tunic and leggings and -the Chinese-like shoes. His style of dancing was quite different -to the dervish, and might be described as a combination of the jig -and the reel. While he was dancing there entered two very grotesque -Chinese-looking lions, queer monsters, made up of two people who -furnished the four legs—probably a man for the fore-quarters and a -boy for the hindmost. Their heads or masks seemed to be each formed of -half a tortoise shell, ingeniously enough the openings at the side of -the shell being utilised as the sockets of large fierce staring eyes, -a large open red mouth, and gleaming rows of pointed white teeth, -completing a terrific countenance. Yellow drapery concealed all but -the feet, which were clad in some kind of tawny soft leather. These -lions were extremely lively, and frisked about, and lashed their tails -in a most spirited way, keeping time with the tom-toms through all -their wild movements; as, together with the second dancer, who was, it -appeared, the lion-tamer, they went through a very active and energetic -dance. This over, each lion lay down, one on one side of the ground -(there being no stage), and one on the other, facing the audience as -they couched. - -Then entered a sort of knight, or warrior, on a red hobby-horse, -and the dance was continued by his chasing the lion-tamer round and -round, the latter always eluding his pursuer, and always emphatically -repeating by the action of his arms the beat of the tom-toms in a -defiant sort of way. - -Six more hobby-horsed riders in different costumes and colours next -came in, one after the other, and joined in the pursuit of the -lion-tamer. Presently, however, they changed the figure, the red -hobby-horse remaining stationary, while the other six formed a sort of -quadrille, advancing and retiring, and crossing over, as in the opening -figure of “the Lancers.” I forget exactly how the lion-tamer employed -himself while this proceeded, but I think he must have temporarily -subsided, while the hobby-horses kept the attention of the audience. -Finally they all joined hands and danced in a ring, raising a curious -kind of chant the while, after which the hobby-horses all marched out -in single file, still chanting. - -Then a peacock (with a skirt) came in, moving in a slow, measured and -stately fashion, dancing and bowing in a quaint manner, flapping its -wings occasionally; next it approached one of the couchant lions, who -all this while had remained passive, and apparently sleeping, and gave -it a sudden and decisive peck, the action being instantly emphasised by -the tom-toms. After more genuflexions the peacock finished his dance -by giving a similar peck to the other lion, each lion at the touch -starting violently and lashing their tails. Then exit the peacock. - -Next appeared, crawling in with a sort of wobble, a turtle, also -wearing a skirt which concealed its feet. At its entry the lion-tamer -exhibited all the symptoms of comic fear, trying to hide himself from -the turtle, and finally as it approached nearer, he threw himself on -the ground and wriggled and writhed about in an access of ridiculous -terror. Presently, however, whatever had animated the interior of the -turtle it vanished unperceived, and the shell lay motionless on the -ground. The lion-tamer approaching it apprehensively, but eventually -taking up the shell, he danced up to the lions, who sprang to their -feet, and then all these whirled about in a wild tempestuous dance to -double quick time, until the lions, apparently exhausted, both lay down -again in the same order as before. Again the troops of hobby-horses -entered, and after another spin with the lion-tamer, all marched out, -chanting, the beat of the tom-toms gradually growing fainter till they -ceased as the company disappeared. - -We had not yet been favoured with a glimpse of the great snow -peaks. Kinchin Junga seemed extremely shy, and remained wrapped -in impenetrable folds of cloud which rolled over the edges of the -narrow hills, or steamed up from the deep valleys, enacting the -constant-inconstant drama of cloud and mountain, always a most -fascinating spectacle. On January 30th, however, in the morning, -between seven and eight, we were at last rewarded by a beautiful -glimpse of the snow peaks of the Himalayas, dominated by that of -Kinchin Junga, clear in the golden light of early morning, piercing -the turquoise sky, like the vision of some celestial city floating on -a sea of roseate cloud. The unusual height of the peaks in the sky -surprised the eye, accustomed to see clouds where now were these vast -mountains. The delicate modelling of the snow summits clear and sharp -in the sunlight had the effect of making them look much nearer than the -intervening valleys and dark pine covered slopes lost in mist and deep -shadow, and it was strange to think that one gazed at these snow peaks -across a distance of about 45 miles. - -[Illustration: KINCHIN JUNGA FROM DARJEELING] - -Human dwellings and structures looked flimsy and trifling, no more than -the work of ants or spiders, comparatively speaking, but indeed -Darjeeling has no architecture to boast of. For a region subject -to earthquakes great allowances must necessarily be made, but the -corrugated iron style certainly failed to assert the dignity of man in -such a landscape, and the native hut did not look more permanent or -substantial than a bird’s nest. - -[Illustration: THE SHY PEAK OF KINCHIN JUNGA] - -The little town has a central square where there is a native market. -Little low bazaars line the sides, and the streets, but in the centre -the vendors spread out their stock-in-trade on the bare ground. There -may be seen turquoises in great quantity, and unset stones of many -kinds, and an infinitude of silver rings and ornaments. The best, -however, were always offered by the country people and the coolies, -and the Bhutian women, who always seemed able to produce any number, -and we were followed by quite a little crowd holding out rings and -silver ornaments to tempt us, when we went through the market. My -wife discovered a pair of green pigeons in a characteristic Indian -domed-cage made of canes, hanging outside one of the native huts, -and sent our bearer to negotiate the purchase, and for six rupees -they changed hands. The birds travelled with us to Ceylon, and on the -steamer homewards till we met the cold weather in the Mediterranean, -when the hen bird died, the cock surviving until we reached Italy. They -had to be fed upon a sort of meal made from a kind of powdered dried -peas, not always easily obtainable. - -[Illustration: A RIDE AT DARJEELING: “UP HILL SPARE ME”] - -There were many interesting walks and rides at Darjeeling. A favourite -excursion was to Tiger Hill, a distance of six miles, from where Mount -Everest, the highest mountain of the world, can be seen—in fine clear -weather, and sunrise is the usual time for it. The modes of progression -are by jin-rickshaws or ponies. There are excellent ponies to be had at -Woodlands, and we enjoyed the steepest ride we had ever experienced. - -The pig-tailed Mongolian coolies are always on hand in the courtyard of -the hotel, waiting for custom in either mode of transport. Palanquins -are also used. - -We met here some English friends and fellow-travellers. It was pleasant -to fall in with my old Bostonian friend, Mr Louis Prang, who, with Mrs -Prang, were travelling with a party of some twelve Bostonians. - -[Illustration: A HAILSTONE CHORUS—DEPARTURE FROM DARJEELING] - -The alarming accounts of the prevalence of smallpox at Bhutia deterred -us from going to see the Buddhist temple at Bhutia Busti, though -the immediate cause was a thunder-storm, which came on just as the -rickshaws had been ordered, and stopped our excursion; and being -advised to abandon the project for the reason above given we made no -second attempt. - -Before leaving Darjeeling we were favoured by another clear vision of -the snow peaks and Kinchin Junga in all his glory, before breakfast, -and I was glad to have been able to secure two drawings as a record -of that wonderful view. We departed on the first of February in -a hail-storm, walking down to the station in a pelting shower of -enormous stones, which rattled around us with a thunder and lightning -accompaniment. The hail-stones are so large sometimes in that district, -and the storms so violent, that much damage is done. At Woodlands all -the glass windows here on one occasion were broken, we heard; and also -that the stones were known to have been occasionally large enough to -kill deer! - -We were soon on our way, joggling down to the plains again in the -squeezy little train, the hail turning to rain lower down, and we were -sometimes wrapped in cloud. As we got still lower, however, the sky -towards the north-west began to clear, and there was a striking effect -as of a great curtain being lifted up, showing the bright sky beyond -and the sun shining on the plains. Soon we passed into his light again, -and enjoyed clear weather to his setting. - -Reversing in the course of our journey the changes, we proceeded to -Sara again, recrossing the Ganges, the search-light producing striking -effects as it wandered over the shore and the vessels, picking out its -twin white steamer with startling distinctness. We had the morning -light over the fruitful plains of Bengal, in which the scarlet -flowering trees or “forest flame” before spoken of looked more -wonderful than ever. The thatched huts of the native villages were -interesting in shape, and differed from any other local variety we had -seen. They were built of bamboo, with curving roof ridges. Groups of -these huts were of frequent occurrence; they stood on raised platforms, -interspersed with plantains, or date or cocoa palms, the window -openings on the inward side only, and under the deep overhanging eaves. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV - -MADRAS AND THE SOUTH - - -Availing ourselves of the kind hospitality of our friend in Carnac -Street, we reposed during the day intending to leave Calcutta again by -the night train (Madras Mail) for Madras, our next destination. This -was a considerable journey as a glance at the map will show; in fact it -was our longest in India, occupying two nights and two days. - -After some anxious moments in Carnac Street, through our tickorgary -not turning up for us at the time ordered, or through some muddling on -the part of our bearer, we eventually got conveyed to Howrah Station. -Luckily the train did not start so soon as stated—it never does in -India—and we were saved. - -[Illustration: CALCUTTA TO MADRAS—SECTION OF SLEEPER—OR SOMETHING LIKE -IT] - -The train proved, however, to be very crowded, and we could only secure -a berth each in separate compartments, though there was a small sliding -door between the ladies’ and the gentlemen’s sleeping compartment, -through which communication could be made. Four ladies, a baby, and a -parrot, and the green pigeons made up the complement in the ladies’ -part. I had two travelling companions only, a river-steamer captain or -engineer on sick leave, going south with his family, and an English -officer of the Army Medical Service going to some hill station beyond -Madras. The former kept himself going with whiskey and soda, of which -he freely invited his fellow travellers to partake. The latter proved -to be Capt. J. B. Dalzell Hunter of the 64th pioneers. He was studying -Persian, and introduced me to a most interesting book, the “IQD-I-GUL,” -or “The Rose Necklace,” being selections from the Gulistan and -auwār-i-suhaite translated into literal English with notes by Adālat -Khan. This was full of delightful stories, and rich with oriental -imagery and wisdom. - -Leaving Calcutta in the darkness of night, of course nothing could -be seen of the country till next morning when we were approaching -Cuttack, when we took “Chota Hazri”—or early light breakfast. A little -south of this hills appeared inland reminding one in character and -apparent height of our lake country. We passed Poori, the junction -for Juggernath, where crowds of pilgrims go, especially at the time -of the great festival of Krishna in March, when the image of the god -is borne through the town on the famous car, out to a temple in the -country. The old story we were told in childhood of the dreadful -heathen custom of the natives on such occasions throwing themselves -under the wheels of the car of Juggernath has been discredited. -Krishna, being a god of love and life, not a destroyer, would not be -pleased with human sacrifices, and they would be quite inappropriate. -It might be possible, however, that the car, drawn as it is by men -with great cables, through the press of pilgrims, might accidentally -crush some one fallen in the crowd, and European missionaries may have -misunderstood what had really happened, and had misrepresented and -exaggerated it. - -There were many new and different types of natives at the stations. -We were now on the Bengal-Nagpur Railway, and the native crowds, and -groups entering or leaving the train all down the line, were most -interesting in character and colour. Pilgrims from Juggernaut bearing -small canes back with them as signs of their pilgrimage, Brahmans with -red marks like seals on their foreheads, and others with the triple -pronged fork-like mark of Siva in white and red. The men wore their -hair long like women, sometimes done up in ample knots at the back -of the head, and sometimes hanging down the back. All wore a sort -of tight cotton skirt or piece of drapery chequered or patterned in -colour wrapped round the loins, and depending from the waist to the -feet; a white loose jacket frequently surmounted this, so that judging -only from the back view, the stranger with European prepossessions as -to dress distinctions between the sexes, might have some difficulty -in saying which was which, or who was who, especially as the native -women frequently wore similar skirts, white bodices, and their hair in -knots. It was chiefly the beards that betrayed the gentlemen; otherwise -the equality of the sexes was fairly well established, as to outward -appearance at least, in the way that might astonish some of our Western -reformers. It is true some of the men, like the ancient Egyptians, wore -nothing above the skirt, except perhaps a white scarf on the shoulders, -and the field-workers and coolies all down the Coromandel coast wore -nothing but white turbans and waist cloths. - -[Illustration: LADIES OR GENTLEMEN? (FASHIONS IN SOUTHERN INDIA)] - -We passed the Silver Lake, really an inlet of the sea nearly surrounded -by hills, the train startling large flocks of brown geese from the -margin as it passed. Our old friends the white cranes we saw again -lower down the line among the marshy pools. Paddy fields in various -stages, often under water, irrigation wells drawn by oxen, as well as -another pattern—like the Hungarian or Egyptian, a walking beam weighted -at one end, the other having a rope attached to the bucket. The -Southern Indian ones are, however, worked by the natives, generally -two, working up and down from the centre, from which the beam swings, -making it dip and rise again with bucket, the men steadying themselves -by upright bamboos fixed each side, sometimes chanting a song to mark -the time and enable them to move together. - -Groves of palms were passed and pyramidal hills, bringing the same -suggestion of Egypt we had had before, on the way to Chitorgarh. -There was no doubt about getting further south as the temperature -was much higher, the thermometer registering 75° to 80° and this was -February 4, whereas only two days before we had been shivering over a -fire at Darjeeling! In the burning sun we could see the dark figures -in white turbans and waist cloths, coolies on the railway line, and -ploughmen in the fields toiling in the heat. We stopped for breakfast -at Berhampore. In the district from here to Vizianagram there was -formerly a flourishing silk weaving industry among the natives. “All -gone now,” said a bright-looking European official in white drill and -topi who entered our compartment. From what he told us further, it -seems that this industry declined for very obvious causes—because the -raw silk, the very material upon which it subsisted, was exported and -consequently the occupation of the native hand-loom weavers was gone. - -At Waltair, one passenger left, but our compartment was kept full as -another immediately succeeded him and all four berths were occupied on -the second night. One got more or less broken sleep, but perhaps more -than might be expected. - -At Bapatia next morning there was chota hazri, or early tea, ready, and -it was very welcome. At Bitragunta there was a halt for breakfast. As -we approached Madras, late in the afternoon, we came by lovely groves -of palms, quite dark thick forests of them, with pools of water among -them in which water lilies bloomed. Green parroquets decorated the -telegraph wires, sitting in rows much as the swallows do in England in -the autumn. The telegraph wires all over India are however a favourite -resting perch with a variety of birds, and quick an observer may get a -good notion of the variety of species in Indian Ornithology by noticing -the many kinds of birds which may be seen in such positions, clearly -silhouetted against the sky. - -We arrived at the Beach Station, Madras, about five o’clock on February -4, relieved to have reached the end of our long journey. Hotel touts -here may be described as active and strong on the wing. We eventually -squeezed ourselves into a tickagary with our light baggage, and in -spite of the presence of Moonsawmy—or perhaps in colusion with him—an -officious native guide mounted the box and offered us information as to -the public buildings we passed on the way to the hotel. The Prince of -Wales’s was full, but the proprietor advised us of another not far off, -known as the Castle, which had formerly been the pavilion or palace of -a native prince, and was a large two-storied yellow washed building -with colonnades on the ground floor, and extensive terraces on to -which the rooms opened out, on the first floor. These terraces were -protected by a parapet which took the form of low battlements, whence -possibly the hotel derived its name. There was a pleasant garden shaded -by trees around the building, walled in from the road, and having -entrance gates. Here we found agreeable rooms and plenty of space, -without oppressive luxury or comfort, and as cool as might be expected, -if it is ever cool anywhere in Madras? The hotel was under English -management, and photographs of familiar places at Torquay and on the -Cornish coast hung in our salon. Mosquito curtains told their usual -tale, being generally a necessity in India, but are more particularly -so at Madras. - -On the drive from the station we passed Fort St George which dates from -1680, and is the only building of any historic interest. There were -big Law Courts in a pretentious Italian Gothic style after the manner -of modern Bombay architecture. The British traders and their stores -and posters were in evidence, and “summer sales” going strong at the -drapers, attracting smartly dressed English ladies in their motors -and dog-carts. The streets were broad, and there was plenty of space -everywhere. The hotels and bungalows were surrounded by large gardens, -and abundant trees—palms being very plentiful. - -It was pleasant to hear the clear notes of birds in the early morning, -and of course we had the usual kite and crow chorus. In the evening -there was a children’s party going on at a pavilion in the garden, and -popular European waltz tunes came from a piano. - -The temperature in our rooms ranged from 75° to 80° and we felt -anything but energetic. We had, moreover, in the afternoon an -interesting drive out to the Adyar Library, the headquarters of the -Theosophical Society built by Colonel Alcott who was now lying ill -there. Having had a telegram from Mrs Annie Besant in the morning, a -visit was arranged. She could not leave the Colonel, as he was then -in a dying state. Our road lay between beautiful groves of palms of -various kinds, mostly cocoa palms, and native villages, the huts of -one story, long and low, and roofed with ridge tiles of a delightful -bronze colour, the tiles, probably sun-baked, being doubled and trebled -over and under alternately. The roads were covered with a fine dust of -a rich reddish-brown tint, almost coffee colour, and this tint varied -with the full red and bright white of the dresses of the natives, and -their dark skins, and relieved by the clear light green of the paddy -fields, and the gold and green of the palms, in the warm evening -sunlight, made a fine harmony. - -We passed a Hindu temple and a tank, and crossed a bridge over the -broad river (Adyar) and on the other side presently drove under an -ancient fragment of a stone carved gateway, and so through the wooded -grounds to the Adyar Library, a new building of red brick and red -sandstone of semi-Hindu type. - -A lady clad in white conducted me to a large upper chamber very lofty -and long in proportion to its width, furnished more or less like a -European drawing-room, with chairs and couches, but high on the wall -at intervals were various religious symbols, in white plaster relief, -among which I noticed the Gammadion and the Serpent and the Tree. There -was a pretty view over the river from the windows, on the side. - -Presently Mrs Besant entered. She was robed in white. It was the -sari dress of the native women in some fine soft material, with -embroidered borders also white. Her hair too had whitened since I -knew her in London many years before. We spoke of the old days—of -Cunninghame Graham, G. Bernard Shaw, and Sidney Webb. Mrs Besant, once -an active and ardent socialist, seemed to have quite removed herself -into another world, strikingly different from the one of strife and -protest in which she with her wonderful eloquence had been a potent -influence, and was now devoting her life to inculcating the principles -of Theosophy and educational work among the young Hindus. Her idea was -to gather the best elements out of all religions, and to unite them -in one comprehensive creed, the keynote of which, as I understood, is -universal brotherhood. In her schools she desired to cultivate the -higher side of the native Hindu religion, refining and spiritualising, -though by no means Europeanizing, but preserving all native -characteristics in dress and courteous manners, and as far as possible -preventing any Western contamination. - -In the great hall on the ground floor the first thing that catches the -visitor’s eye is the text inscribed aloft on the entablature in large -carved characters—“There is no religion higher than truth.” - -On the walls of this hall, also, are carved in stone another series -of symbols, treated as a series of panels in relief, and among these -it was interesting to find Mr Holman Hunt’s well-known picture “The -Light of the World,” reproduced in relief by a native sculptor. In a -recess in the opposite wall was a life-size seated portrait of Madame -Blavatsky in marble. It was intended to place a statue of Colonel -Alcott standing beside her, Mr Besant told me. His loss will be a -severe one for the Society. - -We drove back by way of the Triplicane or Mohammedan quarter—the native -bazaar, a brilliant scene of colour and movement. On the way we passed -several “Toddy Tappers,” as they are called, at work on the palm and -stems. These are natives who extract a sort of spirit from the palm, -and who, clad only in white turbans and waist-cloths, climb the tall, -smooth columnar stems of the cocoa palm, by a curious method—a sort -of loop of cane which encircles the upper part of the body, and hooks -round the tree stem. This they shift in jerks as they climb, using -their legs and feet in the usual way as a grip on the stem. We noticed -the small, gourd-like bottles attached to some of the trees, which are -placed so as to catch the juice from incisions made in the bark. The -spirit made from this juice is sold in the bazaars. - -[Illustration: MADRAS—A JIN-RICKSHAW MADE FOR TWO] - -The jin-rickshaw is much in use in Madras as a means of locomotion, -and some of them will even carry two people at once, though this -seems heavy for one boy. The native boys who draw them are, however, -active enough and but little encumbered with clothes, and are always -eager for custom. Mount Road is the main thoroughfare in the European -quarter, and here all the principal shops and stores are situated. -These as buildings were mostly pretentious and tasteless. St George’s -cathedral was a semi-classic church with a pointed spire. The Post -Office had red-tiled gabled spires of a more or less Swiss type, with -iron crestings, and arcaded balconies on each story. One sees relics -of eighteenth century semi-classic taste in some of the older houses -with plastered walls yellow and white-washed. The vast gardens which -broke the continuity of the buildings, and often isolated them, and the -pleasant avenue-like character of the main roads, always lined with -shady trees, made up for many architectural short-comings, and again -suggested spacious ideas for a garden city. - -At the head of Mount Road was the Munro statue where other roads -diverged—a bronze statue by Chantry of a gentleman in a cloak -pointing—probably to indicate his line of policy, though, more -literally, he might be taken to be showing the stranger what a long -way he was from Madras. The electric trams are no doubt useful as -the distances are enormous and dusty, walking being impossible for -Europeans, as they would soon be covered with a powdering of fine red -dust. - -We paid a visit one evening to the Botanic Gardens where we saw the -Victoria Regia (which is usually associated with the inside of a -hothouse at Kew) growing in the open on a lake. There were beautiful -palms here and many varieties of trees. One we noted was covered with -white blossoms which looked and smelled like orange or lemon flowers, -and had green fruit of an egg shape, hanging from its branches. - -Madras we found too oppressive and inervating to stay long, and so on -February 8th we departed for Tanjore, rising at 4.30 A.M. to catch an -early train, and were only able to snatch a hasty hazri, and get into -a belated carriage and drive through the gloom of the early morning—or -rather by the dim light of the waning moon to the station for the 5.45 -train South. - -Our compartment was shared at different stages of the journey by -British officers. A Babu with a quantity of baggage, and three German -Mission people—a gentleman and two ladies with still more baggage, who -filled it pretty well up to Tanjore. - -The country seemed very productive, and on each side of the line most -of the way were large crops of paddy, much of it under water. In many -places, too, the natives were ploughing _in_ the water. The crops in -some of the fields (or rather pastures separated by low banks of earth) -were a brilliant light green, in others the grain was ripe, and was -being reaped with hooks by the natives, while further on they would be -threshing and stacking the straw. The method of threshing out the grain -was primitive. A man would hold a loose sheaf in his hand and beat it -hard, several times in succession, on the ground; this shook out the -grain, and then he would cast the straw that remained to the men who -were stacking it near by. They made low wide stacks straight on to the -bare earth. The women gathered up the paddy as it was reaped. - -We passed more fine groves of cocoa palms, distant hills were visible -inland here and there, and there were generally large sheets of water -each side of the line, but the rivers which we frequently crossed were -almost dry. - -The crowds of natives at all the stations were again very interesting. -The men generally wearing their hair long and done up in knots. In fact -the men had finer and more luxuriant heads of hair than the women, -whose hair was usually short and fuzzy. Sometimes the men had their -foreheads and temples shaved, and let their hair grow freely at the -back. Caste marks were painted very boldly and distinctly on the dark -foreheads. The sacred mark of Siva occurring most frequently—a red -vertical stroke in the centre between two white lines radiating from -the nose. - -The men also wore the coloured skirt tightly wrapped about their middle -and falling to their feet, the upper parts of their bodies being left -bare, except for a loose white scarf, like a towel, thrown over their -shoulders. The coolies and agriculturists wore nothing but turbans and -waist-cloths. The women invariably wore silver nose rings, earings and -anklets, and the Sari dress. Mahomedans seemed to be very scarce in -these parts. As to colour, reds and whites prevailed in the dresses. -Sometimes the vivid crude (magenta) aniline pink which has become -unfortunately too common in India was to be seen. A favourite blend -was red and yellow in the women’s Sari dresses, in stripes, or crossed -tartan-wise. - -Light cakes, bananas, and painted toys and other trifles were hawked -about at the stations, the sellers uttering curious cries and chants. -Every station had its tap of water, and always a thirsty throng of -natives from their crowded compartments would be seen clustering around -it filling their bright brass drinking cups, which they invariably -carry, quenching their thirst and washing themselves. - -Apropos of the refreshment stations, I find a note in my journal as -to what appears to have been a particularly unsatisfactory Tiffin -at Villuparam, for which we were induced to pay 1 rupee 8 annas in -advance, but of which “only a little currie was really eatable.” How -much more sensible (perchance not so profitable) it would be to give -travellers the chance of ordering from the carte, and paying according -to a fixed tariff. Travellers are by no means always able to eat the -provided meal, and need milk and easily digestible foods, and simple -cookery. The hard meat, stringy fowl, and messed up dishes usually -offered are very inappropriate, if not positively injurious food. -Simply cooked sound fresh food is a great want at hotels and railway -stations all over India. - -We arrived at Tanjore between 6 and 7 in the evening. There were -sleeping and refreshment rooms at the station. The station-master met -us and said that a room would be vacant at 9 o’clock, as Lord and Lady -——? who then occupied them were leaving by the 9 P.M. mail. In the -meantime we had a ladies’ waiting-room to ourselves and could dine -during the interval. The sleeping-rooms were across a bridge on the -other side of the line in a new terraced building, with an English -housekeeper sort of woman to receive us and our rupees. There was quite -an up-to-date porcelain bath, but, on examination, one tap was cut -off, and there was no water in the other! There were spring beds and -mosquito curtains, and it was a fairly cool room. The system here -was to charge 1 rupee 8 annas for a room for the first twelve hours, -and if occupied for longer then the rate was higher. - -[Illustration: TANJORE—THE GREAT GATE OF THE TEMPLE] - -Hearing there was a good Dak bungalow near by, we decided to take up -our quarters there the next morning and found it quite nice, cool, -quiet, old-fashioned and unpretentious, and there being no other -travellers we had it all to ourselves. From what the native in charge -said it appeared that the new station rooms rather injured his custom, -as travellers now mostly stayed there. - -Our exploration of Tanjore commenced by driving to the Old Fort -within which stands the great Hindu Temple dedicated to Siva. The -great gateway is approached by a bridge over a moat, then dry, which -surrounds the Fort. The outer gate is plastered and is crowned by a row -of figures of deities in niches which are brightly coloured. The great -gateway is of yellow sandstone and is richly carved—a mass of figures -and detail. The image of the god Siva and his various incarnations -constantly appears. Various legends connected with these are painted on -the walls of the court at the back of an arcade, and are exceedingly -curious. - -The great Nandi, or sacred Bull of Siva, a colossal image of a -recumbent Bull, richly ornamented with chains and bells around his -neck, is seen on a pedestal approached by steps in the centre of the -court, under a pillared and decorated canopy. When we saw it first a -magnificent peacock had perched himself upon the head of the bull, his -tail drooping over its neck. The bull was carved out of a fine black -stone, really syenite, but much darkened by libations of oil with -which the image is constantly anointed. It has all the character of the -type of zebu in this district. We saw its living prototype in a street -of Tanjore—a splendid black bull (short-horned) lying down with its -yoke companion, a white one, equally noble looking. - -The pillared front of the small temple close by was richly coloured, -and on a sort of frieze was a series of portraits of the reigning -family of Maharajahs. - -The Temple guide spoke a little English, but occasionally would stop -for want of words, but we generally gathered his meaning, and he seemed -unusually intelligent. - -Ganesha, the elephant god (of generation) frequently appeared among -the others, Siva and Parvati being the chief. One of the scenes -painted on the wall of the arcade, already spoken of, represented the -wedding of Siva and Parvati, who stood, hand in hand, with a tree in -the middle—like Adam and Eve. Among the guests at this wedding were -represented two giants, one whose appetite seemed to know no limit, -while the thirst of the other was unquenchable. The first was shown -devouring all kinds of food, and to express the drinking capacity of -the other a stream of water full of fish was flowing into the mouth of -the other. These were very primitive paintings, but expressive. The -figures were drawn in black outline and filled in with flat tints. At -the gate of the Temple there were drawings on the white-washed wall in -thick outline in Indian red, in quite a different style and no doubt of -a much later date. A large number of Lingams were shown in rows placed -together in one corner of the court, and there were many Lingam shrines -in the arcade besides. Here and there was colouring on the carved -figures, but, as a rule, the elaborately carved pagodas were left in -yellow sandstone, which had blackened where exposed to the weather, and -it may have been that colour had been worn off. - -The later temple (dating from about the fifteenth century) had -remarkably delicate carving on its lower courses, the edges being -frequently pierced. At the steps of the entrance an elephant, carved on -each side, formed the balustrade, each having two trunks, one curling -inwards and holding a man in its coil, and the second extended and -terminating in a volute at the end of the steps on each side. - -There was a noticeable point, as giving further evidence of primitive -wooden construction, in the carved detail under the eaves of the great -temple where there was a sort of intersected lattice work faithfully -rendered in stone. It recalled the screens of bamboo and matting, -commonly used in this district, added on to the edges of the tiled -roofs in front of the huts and bungalows as extra shields from the sun, -and this carved stone lattice work may have been derived from the wood -work and the cane and wicker structure of the primitive buildings which -preceded the use of stone. - -In the court of the great temple, in a shed (roofed with corrugated -iron I regret to say), we saw the cars used for the procession through -the city, on the occasion of the great annual festival in March, which -appears to be similar to the Juggernaut. The high pyramidal canopied -roof, supported on columns, was carved like the pagoda of a temple, -which, in fact, it represented. The image of the god being placed -within. The car would be drawn by a pair of oxen. - -We saw afterwards a religious procession of the kind passing down the -principal street. Two men carried a banner in front, a piece of red -cloth suspended between two poles. After them came a band playing -tom-toms and hautboys, such as we heard at Benares. Then came the car -drawn by two zebus, with its high pagoda, accompanied by priests in -white robes, with long hair and marks on their foreheads. - -It struck me as remarkable how closely the dress of the native men -here resembles that of the people of ancient Egypt as pictured on the -monuments. Indeed, the Hindu pantheon itself suggests a certain kinship -to the symbolic Egyptian religion, embracing, as it appears to do, the -deification of all natural forces and types of animals and birds. The -Hindus have their elephant god, their monkey god, and their parrot god, -for instance, each figured with the animal’s head but otherwise human, -just as the Egyptians imaged their hawk-headed, cat-headed, and other -deities. The ox of Osiris, too, seems to present a parallel to the -sacred bull of Siva. - -We next visited the tank in the citadel, noted for the purity of its -water, but it looked muddy enough we thought, and felt no inclination -to test the sample offered us by a native in a cup. - -Near the tank was a very plain Christian church, dating from about the -end of the 18th century or the beginning of the 19th, absolutely bare -of ornament or symbol, with the exception of a small mural monument -at the west end—a bas-relief in marble by Flaxman, in memory of one -Schwartz, a British missionary. Not, however, a very good specimen -of the sculptor’s work, and looking as if it had been rather done -to order, and though it had Flaxman’s characteristic broad simple -treatment, was rather over smooth and “goody-goody” in expression—a -missionary looking benevolent on his death-bed, clerical attendant and -probable successor at his side, group of good boys in front, and row of -turbaned Indians, presumably converts, on the other side of the bed. - -It was curious to see this bare, gaunt, puritanical-looking church, -planted almost in the shadow of the great Hindu temple with its frank -nature worship, pantheism, and riot of symbolism and imagery. - -From the citadel and the temples we drove over the bridge across the -river into the city to see the palace of the Maharajah. Not a very -beautiful building—a big, rambling, yellow-washed pile, looking rather -untidy and neglected. In the guardroom at the entrance gate, there was -a portrait of the father of the present prince. Through a corridor, the -walls of which were painted with quaint figures, we reached a small -chamber, open on one side, but painted on the three other walls with -large equestrian portraits of three Maharajahs—grandfather, father, -and son. They were in profile, very richly dressed, and on finely -caparisoned horses, with hunting dogs—the dogs running underneath the -horses. These mural portraits were painted in tempera, apparently, on -the white-washed wall, and had flaked off in places, but they were good -characteristic Indian work, and reminded one a little in treatment of -European mediæval design, such as may be seen in Burgundian tapestries -of the end of the fifteenth century. - -We next came to a small court where we saw the Durbar Hall, divided -from the court by an open colonnade. Inside was a miscellaneous -collection of objects—portraits, rather dreary ones of the Maharajahs -and favourite hounds, some on very dilapidated canvasses with holes -through them—old-fashioned French lithographs of the early “fifties,” -much fly-blown; a handsome palanquin, with dragons’ heads on the ends -of the poles; another one was carved, and plated with ivory. There -was also a beautiful ivory fan, of a large size and peculiar shape, -probably to be used as a punka. Then, too, there was a bronze bust of -Lord Nelson, presented by some English lady to a former Maharajah, and -her own work. Then we saw the library, which contained quite a large -collection of old-fashioned English books—in eighteenth and early -nineteenth century bindings—such as a set of _The Spectator_, Hayley’s -Poems, Burns, Scott, etc., and also an extensive library of Hindu and -Tamil manuscripts. These were peculiar in form, and consisted of long -oblong sheets of a roughish sort of paper, rather resembling papyrus -in quality, protected by thin boards on loose covers of thin wood, -secured round the middle by ties. These covers were sometimes lacquered -on their outsides in various designs. On one I noticed the typical -design representing Vishnu, with the lotus flower springing from his -navel which contains the figure of Buddha, Laksmi looking on in wonder. -These figures were drawn in black outline on gold, the gold high-toned -with coloured lacquers. A smell of naphtha or some such moth antidote -pervaded the place. - -We were then shown the armoury, where there were some rather showy -sporting guns of English make, bearing the name of Mortimer & Co., and -elaborately chased. There were very vile portraits of King Edward VII. -and Queen Alexandra. - -After this we saw another Durbar Hall—the Maharana’s—adorned with -more dreary portraits of the family and a few stuffed birds. The most -curious thing was a real skeleton in a real cupboard, side by side -with a skeleton beautifully imitated in ivory. There they hung inside -a plain upright cupboard, looking like a hanging wardrobe—but what a -wardrobe! What hung there needed no robes! - -Down the main street of Tanjore there were placed at intervals very -curious and richly carved wooden pagodas, apparently very old, upon -cars with massive wheels of wood, somewhat like rude ox-cart wheels, -some of them being discs. These were probably used in processions at -the festivals. - -The houses were generally low, and of only one story, with the -low-pitched ridge-tiled roofs as at Madras, the porches and raised -terraces on platforms in front forming the shops, being further -protected from the sun by lean-to extra roofs or screens of matting -and bamboo, sometimes supported on uprights of cocoa palm stems. -Occasionally these screens are supported by growing trees which spread -their foliage above. Pumpkins and gourds are often grown upon the tiled -roofs, and have a charming effect with their wandering stems, green -leaves, and golden spheres of fruit scattered over the rich brown tiles. - -The roads are deep in red-brown dust as at Madras, and there is a -continual traffic of little covered tongas drawn by little trotting -zebus in single harness. We had a broken-down victoria to drive in, and -a fearful old crock of a horse, given to jibbing and really not fit to -drive. The carriage seats were sliding ones, too! - -Tanjore spreads itself over a large area of open spaces, interspersed -with trees, gardens, and tanks. The water is abundant, and washing -operations frequent. There is no coherent plan about the town, the -streets wandering about into open space, and leaving off in a casual -sort of way. There was a considerable market going on in provisions, -and there was a silk-weaving quarter where may be seen the native -weavers stretching long threads of silk on bamboo frames the whole -length of the street, and winding it off on to wheels—our carriage -nearly collided with one in a narrow street. The raw silk is often -wound round short staves. - -We visited a weaver’s shop, and were shown some hand-woven silk saris, -brocaded with silver thread, the silver being turned into gold by some -colouring process. A dress of ten yards can be bought of this beautiful -material for 24 rupees. Red and purple are the principal colours, -and these, with the gold thread woven in border designs of elephants, -horses and peacocks, have a very gorgeous effect. - -European influence seems to have declined in Tanjore, although there -are numerous Christian missions about. What strikes the unprejudiced -spectator is the extreme unsuitability of any modern western type of -Protestant Christianity, with all that it involves to the native mind, -to say nothing of climate and habit. - -Western influence, it is true, asserts itself to the eye, at least, -in the form of an ugly clock tower, and we passed “The Tanjore Union -Club,” where we saw native gentlemen in their cool, white, loose -clothing playing lawn tennis in a well laid-out court. But the life of -the mass of the people goes on unchanged as it has done for ages. - -In driving through the town we saw many little white-washed temples -among the native houses, their richly carved pagodas rising above the -low brown tiled roofs. At the doors are quaint paintings of elephants -or tigers, and the white walls of the shops and dwellings are -frequently ornamented in the same way with curious figures, among which -occurs not unfrequently the English soldier with a dragoon’s helmet -and jack-boots. Outside a liquor shop I saw, painted rather boldly -in red outline, a European lady and gentleman refreshing themselves -with wine-glasses in their hands. The lady’s costume reproduced the -rather fussy fashion of twenty-five or thirty years ago, the frills and -furbelows quite carefully worked out with the Indian love of detail, -but somehow the general effect was rather Elizabethan than Victorian. - -In passing along one of the streets we heard a sound of tom-toms, and -presently saw approaching on a zebu cart a large theatrical poster -painted on the outer sides of two large boards leaning together, -tent-wise, on the cart. These bore announcements in Hindustani -and Arabic, with pictures of exciting scenes—Rajahs flourishing -scimitars over people, and so forth. Natives walked alongside the cart -distributing pink bills of the performances printed in Arabic, while -the tom-toms attracted attention to the forthcoming show. - -In the evening we drove to the theatre, accompanied by our bearer. We -reached an open ground outside the town; it was rather dark, but we saw -a row of lights in front of us, and heard the sound of tom-toms. The -old horse jibbed and would not go further, so we left the carriage, -and Moonsawmy conducted us to some temporary structures of matting -and bamboo, where tickets were sold. One rupee secured a chair in the -front row. The theatre was a large, tent-like structure, with plastered -piers supporting a roof of matting. The floor was of earth, the common -ground, in fact, upon which the back rows squatted. The stage was also -of earth, raised about three or four feet, the front being painted in -broad red and white vertical stripes. The footlights were ordinary oil -lamps, clustered in groups. The audience was entirely native (besides -ourselves, who were the only Europeans present). Some sat close up -alongside the stage on raised steps of earth. Dark draperies hung at -the sides of the proscenium, and there was a coarsely-painted drop -scene, of the kind familiar in third-rate provincial theatres and -music-halls at home. - -[Illustration: TANJORE—NATIVE THEATRE—HOUSE FULL. PERFORMANCE FROM 9 -P.M. TILL 2 A.M.—BUT WE DIDN’T STOP TO SEE IT THROUGH] - -The first scene apparently represented a suburban street in the -European quarter of an Indian town; at least there was a square towered -church in it, ugly enough, although some high-pitched gables rather -suggested suburban England. A road in very acute perspective ran -through the centre of the scene, which might, after all, have been -bought from some European travelling theatre. - -The curtain raiser was of a sort of operatic, conventional courtship -motive, and consisted of a musical dialogue between a young lady and -gentleman of uncertain country, costume, and period. The girl was badly -dressed in a white muslin frock, with a little red silk waistband, and -a tinsel coronet or tiara on her head. She kept her eyes on the ground -the whole time, and moved stiffly and shyly; her action, as well as -that of the gentleman, being rather suggestive of marionettes. - -The lady began by singing, each strophe or couplet being repeated or -answered by an antistrophe from a chorus concealed behind the scenes, -to the accompaniment of tom-toms. The little wooer presently appeared -(also a girl), dressed in a cap of tinsel, a tunic of black velvet -trimmed with silver tinsel, and breeches of the same, with brown hose -or boots. He also began singing strophes, which were responded to or -repeated by the chorus, and the lady replied in the same way. Whenever -the lover made any advances the lady repelled them, and, after each of -her sung speeches, crossed over to the opposite side of the stage, the -lover doing the same. After a long course of this monotonous question -and answer, sing-song business, they finally came to terms, and stood -singing together, the lover with his arm round the lady’s shoulders. A -harmonium, playing at the wings, assisted the tom-toms. - -The _pièce de resistance_ next began. The first scene was a room of -state in a Rajah’s palace. The Rajah and his grand vizier, and an old -priest or soothsayer in a turban and Indian dress, were the characters. -The Rajah was a white man, of a rather Irish cast of countenance. He -was dressed in black and silver, having wonderful silver spangles -in circular patches as big as dinner plates down the front of his -trousers. He wore a sabre at his side, and he was seated on a throne -mounted on several steps, and each step was decorated by a large globe -of silvered Bohemian glass. The vizier was attired in a similar way, -but not quite so gorgeous as the king. - -From our bearer’s interpretation it appeared that the Rajah, or king, -who commenced chanting in a most doleful and monotonous way, was in -trouble for want of an heir to the throne, and consulted the turbaned -old gentleman about it, who gave his advice at considerable length. - -The next scene showed the interior of a temple; an image of the sacred -bull was there, and a black man, clad only in a waist cloth, was -officiating, apparently as priest. He was also evidently regarded as -a comic actor by the audience, and it was rather curious to observe -that his obvious burlesque of some native religious observances were -received with laughter. He seemed to put the Rajah, the vizier, and -the soothsayer, who now entered, through their religious paces, waving -a brush over them and putting garlands round their necks, uttering -curious gibberish the while, with extravagant action, which seemed -vastly to amuse the audience. - -The next scene showed the Rajah seated again in his palace, and to him -entered a troop of zenanas to announce the joyful news of the birth -of an heir; but after they had departed with many salaams, something -seemed to go wrong, and the Rajah began his doleful plaint again. The -soothsayer and the vizier were again consulted, and both had a good -deal to say, but matters did not seem to mend much, and the scene -promising to be interminably long, we felt we had had about as much -of the drama as we could do with, and hearing, moreover, that the -performance would continue until 2 A.M., having commenced at nine, we -left Moonsawmy to sit it out, after he had found us our carriage. - -The next day we had another drive through the city and its -surroundings, reaching a pleasant region of palm-groves, and lakes -where buffaloes were enjoying a bath. They lie in the water quite -deeply, with often only their heads out or the ridges of their backs -showing. - -At the bungalow various native pedlars and travelling merchants -came up with their bundles, and, as we sat under the verandah, they -would untie these and spread out their wares before us. These were -generally new silver and copper repoussé dishes and bowls, samples -of the craft of the Tanjore district, but not good, being vulgar and -mechanical in workmanship, although repeating traditional patterns and -representations of the chief deities of the Hindu pantheon. Some of -these were embossed in silver, or rather were partly silvered over the -copper, leaving bright copper in parts, but they had rather a flashy -and tasteless appearance. The best things were the small antique -bronzes and brass objects—bulls, horses, birds, peacocks, lamps, and -curious shaped vessels, and many of these were highly interesting. A -pair of bronze stirrups I acquired were charmingly designed, and showed -delicate design and workmanship. - -In the town they make a kind of brass standard lamp, in various sizes, -having a moulded stem supporting a shallow vessel for the oil, with -niches from four inches, the brass image of a cock is usually placed -at the top as a sort of finial. The parts are made to unscrew like the -well-known antique Roman lamp which, in general design and structure, -this Tanjore lamp strongly recalled. Some, indeed, were terminated by -ring handles just like the Roman ones. - -We had been fairly comfortable at the Dak bungalow, and the two -brothers who kept it were most anxious to please. The cooking was -unusually good, and the place was certainly very quiet. The windows -had no glass, but were closed with Venetian shutters (which did not -always act, however, satisfactorily). The floors were covered with -India matting, and the beds were furnished with mosquito nets. The -meals were nicely served, and the table always decked with flowers. The -thermometer in our rooms registered usually about 75 degrees, whereas -at Madras it went up to 80 degrees. - -Water was not carried here in goat-skins as in Bombay and the -North-West and Central Provinces, but in large earthen jars. A man -would carry one in each hand, or slung by strings from a stick over the -shoulder. There was a fine young native who watered the garden in front -of our bungalow—he had a splendid figure, and was almost the colour of -ebony. I tried to get hold of him to get a study from him, but somehow -he was not to be found when the time came, and another very inferior -specimen was offered in his stead. - -We left Tanjore on the evening of February 11 for Trichinopoly. It -is only a two hours’ journey by the railway, and we arrived quite -punctually about 8.30. It was too dark to see much of the country, or -get anything but a vague idea of the place, especially when under the -cover of an ox tonga, two of which vehicles conveyed us and our baggage -to the travellers’ bungalow about a mile off, the little zebus trotting -along at a brisk pace as fast as ponies, and much better conditioned -than any tonga ponies we saw in India. - -At the bungalow we found an English lady and gentleman, a newly arrived -official and his wife, who had not yet got a house—who were then dining -by candle light on the verandah—in possession of the best room, and had -to make the best of it in a small side room, poorly furnished, and with -no mosquito nets. We got some soda and milk and turned in, but, alas, -the beds were hard as nails and the mosquitoes troublesome and strong -on the wing, while the temperature went up to 80 degrees again! - -[Illustration: TRICHINOPOLY—OX TONGA—VITA BREVIS!] - -After breakfast the next morning we got a carriage (which was a -considerable improvement both as to vehicle and horse to the one at -Tanjore), and drove towards the fort, which stands conspicuously on a -bold rock rising abruptly from the plain. Passing through the native -bazaar we crossed over a long bridge, which spanned a very broad river -thronged with bathers, and people washing clothes, and watering cattle, -all busy in the stream which was quite shallow, not more than waist -high. This bridge had been designed and built by an English engineer, -somewhere in the forties. It was of red sandstone, and our driver -pointed out a stone in the coping inscribed to certain English officers -who served under Clive, and helped to lay “the foundations of the -British Empire in India” in 1750–4. - -At about two miles from Trichinopoly we came to the great Temple of -Seringham. Thatched native huts, forming a sort of bazaar, led up to -and were clustered about the great gates, which resembled the entrance -to the Temple of Tanjore. The height of the gateways were very great -in proportion to their width. The great pagodas piled over them were -carved with the greatest richness and intricacy of detail, and covered -with the figures of gods and imagery of all kinds, surmounted by the -curious rounded long barrel-like cresting, which is so characteristic -of Hindu temple-architecture. The sculptured or modelled work here was -all coloured, but many of the figures were said to be in stucco. - -I think we passed through three of these gateways before we reached the -final one leading into the court, with a many columned pavilion in the -centre, having a painted ceiling in which the Hindu gods figured. The -great Temple of Seringham is sacred to Vishnu, whose image appears very -frequently. Opposite to this central pavilion is a colonnade having a -frieze of carved and coloured figures under a cresting, Vishnu being -in the centre. This seemed to be the Hindu equivalent for a sculptured -pediment. The effect of the thickly clustered columns of white-washed -stone supporting this band of rich carving and colour was very -striking, the sharp light and shade of noontide throwing the front -into strong relief, and through the aisles formed by the columns we -could see another lighted court beyond. - -The main passage through was lined by the little stalls of a bazaar, -grouped at the bases of the columns, where mementoes in the shape of -small tin pictures heightened with coloured lacquer were stamped in -relief with representations of Vishnu and his goddess, bead rosaries -and necklaces, and jewellery were also sold, and little silk bags -embroidered with portraits of the same deities. - -As we stood facing the second court, the sacred elephant of the temple -came up, his forehead bearing the mark of Vishnu, painted large in red -and white. It was amusing to see the animal pick up a two-anna piece -from the ground, and pass it over its head to its keeper and driver -seated on its neck. Another younger and smaller elephant soon joined -the other, and this one had beautiful tusks which his larger companion -was without. This one, too, skilfully picked up the small coins in the -same way, fumbling with the sensitive finger-like point of his trunk to -get hold of them in the crannies of the pavement. - -[Illustration: THE SACRED ELEPHANTS OF SERINGHAM—SECURING TWO-ANNA -PIECES!] - -We then, passing across this second court, entered the Hall of a -Thousand Columns—a sort of architectural forest. Before this is -reached, however, there is a smaller hall which has a very remarkable -range of carved columns—the most extraordinary carved stone work in -Southern India. They are strictly speaking rather columnar brackets, -bracketed columns or corbels resting on bases, and they represent -warriors on horses spearing lions and tigers. The chief feature in -each is the rearing horse, which with its rider and lance, and smaller -figures below, and the attacking tiger, or, sometimes, elephant, form a -connected group cut out of a single block of stone. These sculptures -have so barbaric and antique an appearance that it seems surprising -they should only date from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries -together with the whole of the temple buildings. - -A curious effect is given to the interior of some of the temples here -by the practice of whitewashing the pillars and walls, and leaving the -carved figures untouched in the stone, which gives them by contrast an -unusually swarthy appearance. - -Returning, we had a view of the Rock of Trichinopoly with the old fort -and temple on the summit. This syenite rock crops out in various places -in this district, but not often rising much above the ground, but only -emerging here and there from the earth in a manner rather suggestive of -the backs of tortoises. - -Saw a mongoose at the roadside which soon crept out of sight and hid -in the low brushwood at our approach. Trichinopoly is well wooded, -but is not particularly picturesque, though the scattered tiled or -thatched bungalows look pretty enough in their gardens, but on the -whole it gives one the impression of rather a straggling place. There -was a deserted looking mission church with a few tombstones about it -quite near our bungalow, trying to look like an English village church, -but not succeeding. Leipzig Lutherans and Wesleyan Methodists are -said to have “missions” here, as well as the Church of England. These -missionaries seem to plant their stations wherever there are important -Hindu temples. The wonder is that the natives are so tolerant. - -Madura was our next destination, and we were not sorry to get away from -our stifling little barn of a room at the bungalow, leaving in the -early morning about daybreak for the 5.45 Madras mail. - -The country was flat at first, with, again, large sheets of water along -the sides of the line, but as we passed from the Trichinopoly district -to the Madura district we entered a mountainous region, thickly wooded. -I noted many cedar trees, and a kind of cactus growing high with tall -tree-like stem. It was an interesting and varied country the rest of -the way. The crops were chiefly paddy and castor oil plant. - -One station had the extraordinary name of Ammayanayakanur, and we were -soon in the tobacco-growing district, passing Dindigul with a rock and -an old fort upon it, not unlike Trichinopoly in character. Cigars of -the district were offered at the station, but we saw no tobacco crops -near the line. - -We reached Madura about noon, in time for tiffin, and engaged a room -at the station, which was a great improvement as to beds and general -appointments on our recent bungalow experiences. The sleeping-rooms -were built out on a separate wing which appeared to be new. They opened -on to a corridor which led to a large open terrace, and were in charge -of a Eurasian woman. There was also a good dining-room at the station. - -It was tremendously hot, however, and we could not very well move out -until after 4 o’clock, when having engaged a guide we drove out to see -the great temple. Our bearer objected strongly to the guide and there -was some friction between them, but as native servants were prohibited -from entering the temples, and were always stopped at the gates, -Moonsawmy could not show cause why the guide was not necessary, and -we found him very intelligent, speaking English well, and having the -history of the place at his fingers’ ends. - -[Illustration: THE RIVALS. OUR MOONSAWMY AND THE MADURA GUIDE] - -The Madura temple is so remarkable and is on such a scale that I -was anxious to get all the information about it I could. Mr Pillai -(the guide) was very useful and well-informed, and he gave us many -interesting stories and details about the sculptured figures and -paintings. - -There are four great pagoda-gates, richly carved and painted, of the -same type but larger than those at Tanjore and Trichinopoly. Evidently -the Hindus had no scruples about colouring their sculpture, and the -colouring has been renewed from time to time. The prevailing tints used -are turquoise blue, vermilion, yellow, white, and green. One of the -gates the guide pointed out was granite up to the first story, and the -figures were in stucco above. - -The four gates mentioned are connected by a high wall, on the crest -of which occur at intervals the image of Siva (to whom the temple is -dedicated) seated between two bulls, the bulls being placed upon the -top of the wall, and the image of the God in a sort of arched recess, -sunk into it a little below. The upper part of the wall is uncoloured, -but a sort of high dado is carried along it below, painted in broad -vertical stripes of red and white which seems a favourite scheme of -decoration in Southern India. The wall encloses a broad paved court, -and inside this is another wall with gates, through which the various -temples and columned halls are entered. - -In the centre of all is the sacred tank, a large pool of water -surrounded by steps, and an arcade of white columns. As we approached -this, we saw a crowd of natives, men and women, seated on the paved -margin of the tank along one side and between the columns listening -to a priest who was preaching with much earnestness. Our guide said -he was translating or expounding (one did not know with what gloss) -passages from the sanskrit text of the sacred books which another -priest previously read in the original. - -The scene was a picturesque one. The various colours of the people’s -dresses, in which dark red prevailed, showed against the white wall and -columns, and the brown faces made a harmonious scheme of colour. - -The wall along the upper part was painted with a series of histories of -Siva and his incarnations. These picture-stories were arranged in tiers -or friezes, about four or five deep, one above the other, and running -the entire length of the wall behind the colonade, each side the tank. -These paintings were highly interesting, painted probably with the main -object of making the stories intelligible to the people, they were -quite decorative, full of detail, and forming a rather closely filled -and dark pattern of colour, having the effect of a woven hanging. - -One of the painted legends treated of a certain Maharajah who appears -to have persecuted the early Jain seceders, much as the Roman emperor -treated the early Christians, with great ferocity, finally impaling -them on stakes, and thus they were painted all of a row! - -The Jain sect was at first apparently regarded as a schism, and the -Jains as heretics or apostates falling away from the pure Hindu worship -of Siva. - -One seems here, in this great Temple of Madura, to get back to the -most ancient type of religion, and one which, after all, allowing for -evolution in our ideas, seems the most lasting—Nature worship. The -Hindus in their pantheon include and embrace everything, at least in -their own universe, which is their own country, and to them, truly, -“nothing is common or unclean.” Their deities incarnate themselves in -all sorts of forms. Siva, according to one legend, for instance, even -taking the form of a wild sow, and suckling the young of the mother -which had been slain by the hunters. The second son of Siva rides upon -a peacock, the representative bird of India. The Zebu bull is sacred to -Siva, and in the Lingam is symbolised and revered the male and female -principle of generation, the root and source of all life on the earth. - -In one place in the temple, between two of the columns, was a group of -the nine planets personified and placed around the sun—a golden sphere -in the centre. For each of these embodied planets might be found a -corresponding personality among the deities of the classical world. - -Another striking thing about the Madura temple is the force of -realization and expression in the figure sculpture. Life-sized figures -of different gods and demons are carved in stone in front of the -columns in many of the halls of the temple, the columns themselves -frequently white-washed, while the figures are left in the untouched -stone and look in contrast like bronze figures, their elaborate detail -and undercutting emphasizing this suggestion. Indeed, the variety of -character, invention, as well as the vigour and freedom, governed by -a certain formalism, of some of this sculpture at its best reminds -one of European gothic sculpture in the Middle Ages, not only in its -symbolical and legendary aspect, but also its all embracing character -and sympathy with the life of the people. The type of the Hindu mother -appears, for instance, in one of the best of the figures carrying her -child on her hip, just as the native women do to this day, while a -suckling infant is suspended at her breast. - -Mockery, if not humour, too, seems to come out here and there -sometimes, as in the dancing figure of a mocking musician playing on -his pipes. - -A frequent subject is Siva presenting his sister in marriage to -Vishnu, and there are besides a number of curious legends connected -with the sculptures here, which are very various, and, of course, not -unfrequently become grotesque or monstrous under the influence of the -Hindu religious symbolic ideas and the Hindu inventiveness; but one -feels that here is a genuine piece of ancient life, expressed in the -forms of Hindu art—frank nature worship in full vigour of life, and a -dominant influence in the lives of millions of people. - -In the sacred tank the people were constantly bathing and washing their -clothes. The water never seems to be changed and is perfectly green in -colour. Our guide said it remained pure and ordered a man to show its -quality by dipping his hands in and holding a small quantity in them, -cupwise. The water, however, was, even in this small quantity, quite -green, although a clear green. It must have been full of vegetable -matter, one would think. It reminded us of what the Maharajah’s -secretary had said of the Ganges water at Benares. - -The colouring of the interior of the Temple in parts recalled the -mural decoration of ancient Egypt in its use of simple primary -colours—red, green, white, and yellow prevailing. The lotus flower, -too, was constantly introduced, treated as a rosette upon the ceilings. - -Some of the pillared halls were, however, left in plain stonework, or -simply whitewashed. One long hall we entered looked very impressive in -the dim light, a single ray from the sun penetrating, and making a spot -of intense light upon the floor. - -We saw a gilded copper dome, and a golden flag staff, and our guide -pointed out the great doors behind which the festival cars were kept, -and we saw, too, wonderfully decorated life-sized images of elephants -and horses which formed part of the show on great occasions. There -were two black and two white elephants, standing between the columns, -under rather tawdry and tinselly canopies, and other furniture of the -festivals; one large hanging bearing the words of welcome to the Prince -and Princess of Wales, which must have been used for the occasion of -their visit. - -Various donors of parts of the temple were pointed out, in effigy. The -Czar of Russia appeared (not however in person) as the donor of certain -shrines and a brass canopy or arch which held many lamps. - -[Illustration: SACRED TANK OF THE GREAT TEMPLE, MADURA] - -The practice of drawing the image of the god on festival days through -the streets on great cars seems general at all the chief temples in -Southern India, and not confined to Juggernath. At Seringham we saw -the great car on which the image of Siva was drawn on such occasions, -and also the thick cables—like ship’s cables—which were used for -the purpose—multitudes of men hauling the car out of the temple and -along the streets by these means. Here, too, at Madura the god Siva is -represented seated upon his car which is treated as a kind of throne, -the wheels and the horses sculptured at the sides in a symbolic sort of -way. - -In some of the painted histories on the walls, Siva is shown in a -winged car (suggesting his rapid flight and omnipresence, perhaps) and, -presumably, his image is drawn out on a car at festivals to keep his -presence and moving influence vividly in the minds of his worshippers. - -It was curious to see the bazaars in the corridors and outer courts of -the temple. Rows of stalls, where all sorts of miscellaneous things -were sold—brass ware, pottery, woven stuffs, beads, and all kinds of -knick-knacks and toys. Some of the sellers squat on the pavement and -spread out their goods before them. The temple and its courts is a -great resort of the people, in fact. Pilgrims lie down and sleep near -its shrines, and the children play freely between its pillars. Bats -flutter in and out of the crevices of the ceilings, or hang in little -black clusters up aloft in their recesses. - -In sketching at the sacred tank a very large crowd of natives gradually -collected behind me, and on each side, and it was as much as the guide -could do to keep them from closing in, and completely surrounding me. -Some American visitors to the temple whom we met afterwards in Ceylon -said that, seeing this vast concourse pressing round the tank, they -thought it was a suicide! Travellers usually take snap-shots with hand -cameras, and I imagine that a sketcher in colours is comparatively -rare. The crowd, however, were quite quiet. The guide was encouraging, -and remarked when I had finished that it was “better than a photograph.” - -Another afternoon we drove out through the city and some three miles -beyond to see the “Teppa Tank”—a large sheet of water, enclosed by a -low wall painted in red and white stripes, with steps to the water and -carved bulls decorating the balustrades. On an island in the centre of -the tank rose the pagoda of a temple, in stucco, and four small pagodas -at the four corners of the garden-island—a mass of foliage amid which -the pagodas shone, ivory-white in the sunshine. - -Near this tank on the roadside was another temple sacred to a goddess -who was the object of solicitude in the case of people desiring -offspring, and to whom votive offerings of cradles were made by the -devotees, as well as doll-like images of children made of baked clay -and painted. The flat roof of this temple was peopled with a crowd of -these grotesque images, and the carriage boy was sent to fetch one for -our inspection. - -Then we drove on to where grew a gigantic Banyan tree—eighty feet in -girth, and having quite a small forest around its central vast trunk -of offshoots—new trees which had rooted themselves in the earth from -the parent branches. It was rather suggestive of a many pillared sylvan -temple. - -After this we reached the Palace of Tiramala, which stood at the head -of a large village—an imposing structure in stucco, mostly yellow -washed. The enormous columns of the court looked out of proportion to -the arches they supported, which were of a rather debased Mogul type, -heavy with very elaborate grotesque ornamentation in stucco in the -spandrils and on the ceilings, many of which had as a central device a -large lotus flower formally treated as a rosette, and in some instances -elaborately painted. The effect of the whole building was rather weird, -and suggested a rather queer architectural nightmare, in which massive -Norman cathedral piers had swallowed Roman Doric ones, or vice versa, -and a Hindu modeller had broken up some Mogul arches, and fastened them -together again with grotesque elephants and dragons’ teeth. - -The palace was now used as law courts, and it was curious to see two -modern oil portraits of two neat English lawyers hanging on the walls -of these vast columned halls. - -We next visited a native shop in the village bazaar where the fine -muslins and silks of the district were made and sold. We were duly -seated in chairs and fanned by boys, while an active brown member of -the firm unfolded tempting saris, pugarees, and silk stuffs, some -beautifully brocaded with gold thread, and of course we possessed -ourselves of a few specimens. - -In this district there is a thriving native silk industry, -hand-weaving, also dyeing, and the ingenious native craft of making -patterns on cottons and muslins by tying and dipping. Hanks of cotton -and silk may be seen hung out over bamboo poles placed horizontally, -and ox-carts roll by filled with the dyed skeins. There is a fine dark -rich red, frequently seen in the sari dress of the women, also a dark -purple. The women here generally wear the dark red sari with a narrow -border of black; in some cases the sari is black with a red border. - -In the village street we saw a little native bride drawn in a carriage. - -Returning to the city in the cool of the evening we stopped at the -temple bazaar and bought some zebu bells—curious little pear-shaped -brass bells, each with a different tone, which are hung round the -animals’ necks. Their foreheads, too, are frequently bound with strings -of beads, or shells fixed on leather bands, and their horns are painted -green or red. - -There is a method of decorating the centres of the dining tables -in Southern India which, I think, we first noticed at the hotel at -Madras, or at one of the refreshment stations on the Coromandel coast. -It consists in arranging dyed sago seeds in patterns forming a table -centre on the white cloth. At the station refreshment room at Madura -there was a more elaborate example done by means of stencils—a border -of yellow enclosed a lightly powdered filling, and an effective outer -border was produced by a repeated sprig of a red rose with green -leaves. The general effect was that of an embroidered pattern, but of -course it was liable to slight displacements, and was constantly done -afresh, one of the waiters being the special artist. - -We left Madura on the 15th of February for Tuticorin. - -[Illustration: TUTICORIN. DEPARTURE FOR COLOMBO. THE LAST OF THE KITES -AND CROWS.] - -The country traversed was flat and plain for the most part, with -cultivated crops of castor oil plants, paddy, and corn, alternating -with jungle of brushwood, but no fine trees. Hills were seen in the -distance on the right, and we made several stoppages at short places -with very long names. - -Arriving at Tuticorin about four in the afternoon, we went on to -the beach station, and got on board a small steam launch or tug in -waiting at the jetty, then we saw the last quarter, as it were, of our -Moonsawmy, and took our leave of him, after he had had his usual fierce -dispute with the coolies, who certainly never received trade union -wages from _him_. On the whole we were not sorry to get away from the -rupee-hunting throng which usually hang about stations and wharves—the -kites and crows in pursuit of the traveller, their prey, who for the -time being, at least, now escaped their clutches. - -Tuticorin presented no obvious attractions except the sea, which we -were quite glad to meet again. The launch seemed just large enough -to hold the train-load of passengers—Americans, Germans, and English -with their baggage, and after about half-an-hour’s steam across the -harbour we reached the steamer (the “Pandua” of Glasgow) and climbed -up the gangway to the saloon deck. We secured a rather small but -well-appointed berth opening off the saloon, and were able to enjoy a -well-served dinner—food seems generally better on ship-board than on -land—at least Indian land. Cargo boats were clinging to the steamer’s -side, and, at sunset, one by one cast off and hoisted their lateen -sails (like those of an Arab dhow) each boat having one about the -length of the vessel. The sailors in hoisting up the sail climbed -and clung to the rope, to bring it up with their weight. Chanting a -curious sort of song the while, our steamer weighed anchor and started, -and we looked astern and saw the last of India fading from view behind -the shining wake of the steamer, and lost in the glow of an orange -sunset. - - - - -CHAPTER XV - -NOTES OF CEYLON - - -The voyage across the straits to Colombo proved to be wonderfully calm, -which was rather unusual as we understood it was as a rule tempestuous, -and we did not find our cabin nearly so hot as our room at Madura. -We sighted the coast of Ceylon early in the morning of February 16, -and got into harbour at Colombo about 8 A.M. A fleet of fishing boats -had previously passed us, of the curious native rig—a square sail -apparently arranged to sail before the wind only. Our steamer was soon -surrounded by a little fleet of odd shaped outrigger canoes, some of -them mere planks, paddled by active little darkie boys, who dived for -small silver coins if they could induce the passengers to throw them. -These little amphibians seemed as much at home in the water as in their -canoes, and they swam like fishes. - -Our good friend Mr Bois sent a messenger on board to meet us and help -us through the customs, having secured us rooms at the Galle Face. Most -things are chargeable under the tariff, but the traveller pays duty on -his own valuation. - -The steamer did not land its passengers at the quay, but anchored in -the harbour, and everyone landed in boats. The Hotel boats, manned by -native oarsmen, row swiftly to the Custom House, and often race each -other. After passing the customs we got into a little Victoria and -drove straight to the Galle Face. - -[Illustration: LANDING AT COLOMBO] - -Not much can be said for the architectural beauty of Colombo, the -buildings being, generally speaking, of ordinary commercial type. The -Grand Oriental Hotel, or G.O.H. as it is commonly called, is a big pile -near the harbour, and has an arcade surrounding the ground story, like -most of the stores, and continuous balconies above, partitioned off -according to the rooms which open on to them. Here and there there is -a relic of the Dutch occupation in some of the frontages with round -recessed arches and pilasters. - -The Governor’s house, as usual, is the most attractive looking -building, half hidden amidst masses of palms and other trees. A rather -bold clock tower faces a long esplanade, which extends for nearly half -a mile along the sea front, at the end of which is situated the Galle -Face Hotel, with its cluster of slender-stemmed cocoa palms leaning -over the sea. Here, the long ocean breakers rolling in, the turquoise -waves melting into dazzling foam, seen through the palm trees has -an enchanting effect, both in the sunlight and the moonlight. There -was a young crescent at night—seen, as only seen in the East, on its -back—floating like a fairy boat, and casting a mysterious light over -the dark ocean, the waving palms overhead and the sound of the breaking -waves adding to the wonderful charm of the scene. - -Jin-rickshaws were in great request, but the supply seemed fully equal -to the demand, and the esplanade was always full of the trotting boys -drawing white clad Europeans in topis up and down the terra-cotta -coloured road. There was a wide, green strip extending along the drive, -and on the other side of the suburbs of Colombo extended northwards, -chiefly native houses, and bungalows of European residents often -enclosed in gardens and hidden in ample foliage of trees. - -[Illustration: UNDER THE PALMS AT THE GALLE FACE, CEYLON] - -The hotel was served by an army of Cingalese waiters who wore their -hair much like the southern Indians—long, like a woman’s, and done up -in a knot at the back, their peculiar distinction, however, being a -semicircular comb of tortoise-shell worn like a coronet on the top of -the head, but with the open points in front. Otherwise their costume -consisted of a close white skirt, and a neat white jacket with green -facings. Their feet were always bare, like the Indian boys. - -[Illustration: COMMON OBJECTS OF COLOMBO. (JIN-RICKSHAWUS BIPEDES)] - -There was a band at dinner, served in a vast white hall, and after, on -the terrace, when the guests would sit out among the palms lighted up -by jewels of electric light. The white breakers foaming under the moon, -the shadowy waving palms, the sky flashing with sheet lightning, the -brilliantly lighted hotel, and the white figures flitting about “among -the guests star-scattered on the grass,” all contributed to a striking -stage effect. - -[Illustration: A CINGALESE WAITER] - -The hotel was certainly spacious and well appointed, having large cool -corridors and rooms to sit in—comparatively cool that is to say, and -without the gloom of so many of the Indian hotels. In the matter of -food, cookery, and the service too, it was a great improvement on the -Peninsula. There were electric fans everywhere in motion, and we could -always turn one on in our room—which was normally an oven. The draft -from these fans, however, are said to be apt to give people chills, and -some caution in their use in bedrooms is necessary. - -We visited our friends in their charming house—one of the older style -of Colombo dwellings, in a delightful garden where afternoon tea -was served on a pleasant lawn shaded by fine trees, among which we -recognised the forest flame, which with its wonderful scarlet blossoms -had struck us on the way to Darjeeling, though not then in flower here. - -Another day Mr Bois took us out for a drive in his motor all around -Colombo and its neighbourhood. We went through the town and along by -the dry dock, and through the native quarter (Zeppa or Teppa) and away -through narrow lanes shaded by cocoa palms, plantains, banyans, mangoes -and other trees growing with tropical luxuriance each side the way, in -plantations, and around the bungalows. - -The motor seemed a strange vehicle in the midst of the primitive life -of the Cingalese; and it is said that extremes meet, and certainly a -motor and a primitive ox-wagon represent about the greatest contrast -in means of locomotion and transport that one can well imagine. It -was rather wonderful that we escaped a collision sometimes meeting -such vehicles in the narrow lanes, or that we avoided running over -stray chickens or dogs—the latter kind always resenting the motor and -imperilling their lives by running and barking in close proximity with -the enemy. The natives we met walking, too, were by no means alert in -getting out of the way, and did not seem to realise the danger. - -[Illustration: IN CEYLON—EXTREMES MEET—THE MOTOR AND THE OX-CART] - -We passed mission houses and churches of all sorts, and of every -shade of theological colour—Wesleyans, Roman Catholics, and Salvation -Army—all the plagues of sectarian Christianity which afflict humanity -in Europe, alas! - -Our friend said, à propos of some remarks of mine about the ignorance -and indifference of missionaries as to native religions and their -natural suitability to the races, and their habits of life and the -climates where they are found, that he had cautioned missionaries -against running down the native religion. This in Ceylon, is mainly -Buddhist (and Buddha surely discovered something analogous to Christian -ethics, if not superior, long before Christ). The Tamils are Buddhists, -but there are some Hindus and Mohammedans in Ceylon, and even pure -Buddhism is mingled in some curious way with a primitive devil-worship. - -We saw the golf links and a golf club house—quite _à la Anglaise_—on a -rising ground and bare of trees, for a wonder in Ceylon. It appeared -that these links occupied the site of a farm which did not succeed. -Then we saw the river, where an engineer’s iron bridge had taken the -place of a former bridge of boats. Colombo must have largely lost -its primitive and Dutch character when the old Fort was destroyed. -This has been replaced by terribly ugly Barrack buildings, and the -town is rapidly becoming a modern commercial centre, big warehouses -and universal provider’s stores are rising up after the European or -American type. The native character, however, manifests itself still, -peeping out here and there, especially in the older shops, and there -is more native costume to be seen than one had imagined. The country -ox-cart is a striking object with its huge tilt of matting projecting -forward and backward like a hood, the single zebu by which it is -usually drawn appearing small for the size of the vehicle. - -We did not see many native women about, but those we did see wore the -native dress, consisting of a white bodice, cut round and rather low in -the neck, with a lace edging; a necklace and earrings, and the narrow -skirt wrapped about the lower half of the figure to the feet generally -printed with a pattern, or chequered, similar to that worn by the men. - -We drove round by the Cinnamon gardens, and rested at a club house—a -mixed European Club—a pleasant house with a large and well-kept croquet -lawn in front where ladies were playing. We sat a while, after being -refreshed and making some new acquaintances, we returned in the motor -to our hotel. - -We had thunder and lightning at night. The lightning flashing almost -incessantly all over the heavens, but mostly from great clouds rolling -up from the north and east. - -While sitting at tea in the hall of the Galle Face one afternoon we met -an old friend in the person of Mr Cyril Holman Hunt, the son of the -famous pre-Raphaelite painter, who had been a planter for some years, -first in Ceylon and afterwards in the Straits, from which he had just -arrived. So that it was quite a chance our meeting, as he was not even -staying at the same hotel. - -The same evening the officers of the Italian warship _Marco Polo_ -were entertained at dinner at the Galle Face, and their band played -selections afterwards. - -The scene in the hall of a Colombo hotel is always busy, but in a -different way to a European hostelry—one might almost say it was -feverish haste in the midst of languid indolence—a ballet of energetic -action before a crowd of unconcerned spectators. While some are in -the fuss of departure or arrival, rows of enervated travellers lounge -in wicker chairs, reading, chatting, smoking, or engaged with tea -or cooling drinks, mostly attired in white; many of the ladies in -delicate summer dresses, the men in white drill or tussore suits. All -nationalities are represented, the majority American, and mostly people -waiting for their steamers outward or homeward. - -Most visitors to Ceylon make a trip to Kandy, and one morning early saw -us on our way thither. The railway carriages are good and comfortable, -but they do not allow the stacking of hand luggage in them as they do -to such an extent on the Indian railways. The train passed through -a very rich and fruitful-looking country, where the paddy crops in -different stages—under water, green and ripe or being reaped and -thrashed—reminded us of India. The fields were generally surrounded by -groves of plantains and palms. - -The vegetation being most luxuriant everywhere: banyans, mangoes, and -flowering trees of different kinds including spireas and the “forest -flame” we saw at Darjeeling; tangled masses of creepers hanging from -the boughs, and often covering the whole tree. Several rivers were -crossed the red earth showing on their banks, and the water generally -tinged with the same. - -We reached Kandy about 11.15, the train ascending to this place about -4400 feet. The line curving up the slopes so that we could frequently -see the engine and forepart of the train rounding the loop in front -of us. We could only secure a room for one night at the hotel (the -Queen’s), so that we had to make the most of our time. Accordingly, -after tiffin, we started in a carriage for what the hotel people -prosaically called “No. 2. drive” (!). - -Skirting the large tank or lake in front of the hotel, which has a -solid stone palisading around it cut into points and pierced, we -ascended a steep road, winding up the hills through lovely woodlands, -at every turn presenting fine mountainous and panoramic views of -the country. Beautiful clusters of bamboo of enormous size occurred -frequently, the stems very thick and of an oxidized bronze colour, -varying from dark to light. Another kind had bright golden coloured -stems, and a lighter, more feathery foliage. Cocoa palms, plantains, -and mangoes were abundant, also cinnamon plants. A native boy offered -us a cocoa bean pod, and a spray of cinnamon—a pretty tree with a -tassel-like flower. There were also large trees bearing massive -pendulous fruits, which grow directly out of the trunk suspended on -very short stalks in clusters of two and three. This fruit was called -“Jack fruit.” It looked like a sort of gigantic walnut, and was -covered with a soft green velvety kind of rind. The leaves of this tree -was small and poplar-like in shape. The brilliant scarlet lily-like -bloom of a dark leaved shrub was often seen, the flower having long -stamens hanging out like a tassel. - -The various drives which had been made over the hills and through these -great woods were apparently named after different governors’ wives. -There was Lady Longden’s drive, Lady Macarthy’s, Lady Horton’s, and -so on. We sometimes had the impression, as the carriage followed the -gravelled curves of these drives, that we were approaching some country -seat among the hills. The drives, though well planned for points of -view, and well kept, were, perhaps, a little too suggestive of the -landscape gardener, a little too conscious and laid out to order, to -be thoroughly enjoyable. We should have preferred to see the untouched -work of the original designer of Ceylon scenery. The natural wild -country unanglicised—though I know I should be told that without such -roads and clearings one would not be able to see the country at all. - -We British, somehow, always seem to carry suburban ideas with us -everywhere, and English trimness and neatness even out into the -tropical wilderness. We passed neat homes surrounded by smooth tennis -and croquet lawns, as if bits of Chiselhurst or Surbiton had been -suddenly dumped down in the midst of all this wonderful world of -luxuriant growth and unfamiliar trees, and close to native huts of the -most primitive kind. - -The native roof here, as at Darjeeling, appeared to be either thatch -or wooden shingles, and here, again, we were sorry to see corrugated -iron creep into use everywhere. - -The most primæval sight we had was perhaps that of the elephants -bathing in the river. This was at a spot close to a native village, -where we left our carriage and, walking through a grove, came out on -the river shore where five or six black elephants—one a large one with -fine tusks—were disporting themselves in the water, in charge of native -attendants, rolling over on their sides and squirting the water over -themselves by means of their trunks with the greatest enjoyment. The -water was rather thick and reddish in colour from the clay of the banks. - -On the way back to the hotel we passed the famous Buddhist Temple of -the Tooth with its pagoda-like roof, but it looks but an insignificant -building to be the centre of Buddhistic reverence and tribute. - -This was a lovely moonlight night, and the walk by the lake would have -been perfect but for the touts and vendors of all sorts of things that -you do not want. - -We left Kandy the next morning for Nuwara-Eliya; our travelling -companions were two Germans from Berlin, father and son. The train -continued to climb, the line curving more sharply than before. We saw -some fine mountain distances and Adam’s Peak rising up afar, and soon -entered a vast tea-planted district, the tea plants often bordering the -railway line, and covering the slopes of the hills which seemed covered -with a more or less regular green pattern, the dark velvety green -of the tea plants intersected by the light feathery foliage of young -rubber-trees, planted in regular rows at intervals in some places. The -landscape was very clear and every detail sharply defined in the bright -sunlight, with very little suggestion of atmosphere, except for the -mountain distances which were deep blue. - -[Illustration: TEA PLANTATION, CEYLON - - “She liked coffee, and I liked tea, - And that is the reason we always agree!” -] - -In the afternoon about four or five o’clock we reached Nunnoya station, -where we had to change into a narrow-gauge train to finish the last -part of the journey to Nuwara-Eliya. We continued to climb in shorter -and more loop-like curves, being able often to gaze down on the line -we had just traversed winding below like a glittering serpent among -the wooded hills and tea plantations. Tea everywhere, and not a drop -to drink—yet suggesting potentially more than the whole world could -consume. - -Something after five found us at Nuwara-Eliya where we got into a -wagonette, and a good pair of greys brought us through the village to -the St Andrews Hotel, a very pleasant homelike place in a nice garden -and backed by beautiful woods. The original house looked as if it might -have been a private residence, and there was just a touch of Rydal -Mount about it and its situation, at the first glance, but a new wing -had been added with a tin-roof, and there was a golf course in the -valley just below. - -The valley is very beautiful, with its richly wooded hills and a lake -with blue mountainous distance. Delicate feathery, aspen-like trees -wave in the soft air, and there are numbers of firs and cypresses which -give an Italian touch to the landscape, but no palms. In fact, the -whole character of the country is totally different from Colombo and -Kandy. The climate, too, is much cooler, the thermometer falling to 40 -degrees at night, or even to frost, though the sun is hot enough in the -middle of the day. - -There is a native bazaar, and an English quarter with a red club -house, tennis courts, and a race-course—of course. St Andrews, -however, where we were quartered, was quite away by itself, and was -altogether perhaps the pleasantest place we had stayed at either in -India or Ceylon. It was possible, for one thing, to walk out without -being worried by guides and touts, or to buy things. The climate was -delightful after the enervating heat of Colombo, and there being hardly -any other guests the quiet of the place was a great relief and very -restful. - -One afternoon we had a walk up the opposite hills, the track being -mostly through tea-plantations, with forest bits occasionally. The -tea tree left to itself apparently grows high on a stem, having a -very striking character and shape, suggesting almost the stone-pine. -The small, thick-stemmed, closely-trimmed, flat-headed dwarf bushes -which are its characteristic forms in the tea plantations also have an -interesting effect in some situations on the hill-sides, intersected -by wandering paths whereon the dark natives move up and down. The -tea-plant has a leaf somewhat of the character of a laurel or orange -tree, and its flower recalls that of the orange. Ceylon tea when made -is of a beautiful clear orange colour—I mean when poured from the pot. - -The Hagdalla gardens, founded by the government in 1861, well repay a -visit, and are deeply interesting to anyone interested in the flora of -Ceylon. It is a drive of about six miles; passing through the native -village, and by the English Club and race-course, the lake is skirted, -and after that the road takes the character rather of a mountain pass, -and runs along the edge of a deep wooded ravine down which a rocky -stream tumbles into falls over boulders. There was just a touch of a -sort of Borrowdale, translated into Cingalee, about this part of the -drive. The wild forest which clad the hills each side of the valley was -very different in character and colour to anything seen in Europe, the -trees showed the most lovely tints of varied bronze, from pale green to -copper red. The tea tree was abundant, and the rhododendron, which here -is totally different in character and general shape to the cultivated -shrub-like bushes in English gardens. Here it is a thick-stemmed tree, -with a rugged bark, and a bold irregular outline with rather sparse -leavage and deep crimson flowers which glow splendidly among the dark -metallic green of the leaves. There is a sort of formal grotesqueness -about the tree, too, which is rather Chinese. - -On the way through the ravine, at a solitary spot below the road, we -saw a Buddhist shrine. On a little platform surrounded by a rough fence -of loose stones, and facing the road, was a row of carved images, in -some dark wood, standing figures of Buddha. In front of this rude -structure we saw a native worshipper prostrating himself on the edge of -the road, and bowing and bending towards the shrine. - -The Magdalla gardens are botanic and horticultural gardens laid out -with great care and skill on the slope of a mountain. They apparently -contain all the varieties of trees and plants indigenous to Ceylon. -Tree ferns are there in abundance, flowering trees of many kinds, -and parasitic plants, and orchids in great variety, growing in their -natural manner. As one threads the narrow wandering paths it is as if -one passed through a thick jungle or tropical forest, only that the -walking is made easy, and botanical labels here and there, and signs of -gardener’s care and labour, remind one it is a garden. - -There is a keeper’s lodge, in this Cingalese paradise, covered with -creepers, and a formal level parterre in front, one mass of brilliant -floral colour—African marigolds, fuchsias, poppies, _blue_ centred -daisies, sunflowers, blue convolvulus, Amaryllis, and white eucharis -lilies, canaryensis, polyanthus and many more; some that might be found -in English gardens and hot-houses, with other tropical wonders only -seen at Kew. - -After a ramble here we returned to the carriage, and drove back through -the now burning sun. - -Gorse grows about the links and open common-like ground in the valley -at Nuwara-Eliya, though the bushes seem to grow rather taller and -straighter than they do in England. Instead of our lords and ladies, -arum lilies grow wild. Great clusters of them may be seen by the sides -of streams or in marshy places. The woods were delightful to wander in, -and altogether Nuwara-Eliya might make good claims to be an earthly -paradise, other things being equal. - -We had taken our passage, however, from Colombo, and were due to sail -for home on the 2nd of March. It was now the 28th of February, and -we had to make our way back again, descending from Il Paradiso to -a certainly hotter region. The descent by the narrow gauge railway -was even more striking than the ascent, the train passing through -luxuriant growths of forest in which tree-ferns, rhododendrons, the tea -tree, and what looked like a sort of box tree were abundant. - -The rubber-trade in Ceylon is now being added to the tree-trade, -which, according to our competitive wasteful individualistic system, -has somewhat outgrown its profitable market. One effect of this new -development upon the landscape is devastation, as large tracts of wild -forest on the mountain sides are being cleared by burning the natural -growth in the first place, and then removing the stones and boulders -which cumber the ground. This process does not add to the beauty of the -scenery, nor can we expect that monotonous plantations will be good -substitutes to the eye for the wild beauty and varied and luxuriant -vegetation they displace. - -The Englishman in Ceylon seems to think of nothing but profit-making, -however, like many of his race elsewhere; and is probably often even -unaware of the beauty he destroys for commercial reasons, and he is -always able to import cheap coolie labour from India to carry out his -schemes. - -The Cingalese native it seems is unwilling to work, or probably has not -the physique for heavy field labour, so he prefers to live the natural -life of his country so far as he is allowed by his new masters, and of -course is denounced as a lazy dog. - -Ceylon, indeed, one cannot help reflecting must have been a delightful -paradise, if somewhat warm in parts, for its own people, before -they were interfered with by western civilisation, with its pushful -commerce, and missions, bringing in their train poverty and disease, -and the struggle for existence, in a land naturally fruitful and -bountiful, and able to support its inhabitants without any special -efforts on their part. - -[Illustration: TEA AND RUBBER IN CEYLON—A RISING INDUSTRY] - -The planters are now clamouring for railway extension. In an interview -which the Editor of _The Ceylon Times_ sought with me I gathered that -there was considerable discontent with the Home Government, who, he -asserted, had derived greatly increased revenues from the extension of -rubber planting and the new development of the industry, but who would -not grant money for the desired extensions, the advice given by the -present secretary for the colonies being to the effect that the Ceylon -people should save their money, or “put by for a rainy day.” - -Of course the Editor’s point of view was that of the capitalist, and -that the more the country was opened up the better, and he did not care -to consider the effects of the ultimate outcome of the monopoly which -absorbs the results of and succeeds commercial competition. - -He spoke, however, incidentally of the increase of poverty—poverty -in such a land!—and that there was no poor law _yet_. He said the -Cingalese would not work, and had even neglected the irrigation -machinery which had been set up by the planters for their benefit, _in -obedience to the requirements of the home government_. - -This would seem to show the difficulty of introducing ostensible -benefits in a primitive country which has not reached the necessary -stage of development to be able to take advantage of, or really to -utilise, modern methods. From the point of view of the simple native -no doubt there does not appear to be any reason why he should change -the habits and customs of his race simply for the benefit of foreign -settlers whose chief object is to exploit him. - -Changing trains at Nunnoya we were again greatly impressed by the -splendour of the scenery traversed. For a great part of the distance -towards Kandy and Colombo, the line passes through a mountainous -district, at a high altitude, gradually descending, the line following -the contours of the hill-sides for the most part, though tunnelled -occasionally. One looks across a wide valley with distant mountain -ranges, ridge beyond ridge, in marked and emphatic outlines, and -occasionally abrupt precipices—the sharp conical summit of Adam’s -Peak conspicuous among them. The hill-sides are largely covered with -tea-plantations, but the railway also passes through wild bush and -forest, and high above one may see great towering crags of limestone -and gritstone. Mountain streams are frequently crossed, and these break -into cascades and falls among tumbled black rocks; great boulders -frequently strew the mountain slopes as if tumbled by Titans among the -foliage. There is occasionally a suggestion of Derbyshire scenery here -and there, but on a grander scale. - -After Kandy the line descends still more till we reach the palm groves -again, the river, and the lakes, and the heat of Colombo again. This -time on returning we put up at the G.O.H., which is conveniently near -the pier or departure stage for the steamers. - -Here we met Mr Cyril Holman Hunt again, and were introduced to several -of his planter friends, who were very agreeable. There is a delightful -garden of palms and tropical plants here, which is a pleasant resort in -the cool of the evenings. With Mr Hunt we visited the Colombo Museum, -which was courteously opened specially for us, it not being a public -day. Here in a glass case and alive some extraordinary leaf-insects -arrested our attention. They were feeding on green leaves, which they -exactly resembled in colour, form, and texture, so that it would be -most difficult to tell which was leaf and which was insect without -closely watching them. The young ones were like the red shoots of a -plant, but the mature insects were quite green and quite flat like -a leaf while showing the ribs and veinings. One could hardly have -believed that nature, deceptive and imitative as she is, could have -been capable of such a trick. I remember that a native at Kandy had -shown me one of the green leaf insects in a box, but I thought it was -an artificial thing, which indeed it looks. - -On the staircase were some copies of exceedingly interesting ancient -Cingalese fresco-paintings from caves, resembling ancient Indian work -in style, but in some instances showing a certain freedom in handling, -the brush outline recalling later Greek vase-painting. - -There were excellent collections of native Cingalese decorative art -in jewellery, silver work, and ivory-carving, of which latter craft -some combs were the most delicate and interesting. There were also -block-printed stuffs similar to the Indian hand-printed cottons. -Among the jewellery, the necklaces of garnets and other stones set -in filagree gold were characteristic. There were models of native -boats of which there are several interesting varieties, and these -were exceptionally good life-sized models of types of the aboriginal -inhabitants (the Veddas)—the wild bush-tribes of Ceylon. - -The natural history department was very complete, and the whole museum -judiciously comprehended the history, natural and archæological, of -the island, and included some highly interesting Greco-Buddhistic -sculptured remains, not so fine in style as those we had seen at -Sarnath, but there was the same type of standing figure in drapery -expressing the lines of the figure, and also portions of an “umbrella,” -showing a similar arrangement to the one at Sarnath, with the lotus -flower centre, and the series of concentric rings of ornament -containing the images of the lion, the horse, the ox, and the elephant -in sunk relief. There was also a zoological collection attached to the -museum in sheds and aviaries outside the main building—live animals and -birds, including leopards, jackals, monkeys, flamingoes, pelicans, and -a collection of small birds, minas, doves, etc. - -The time, however, for our departure from Colombo drew near. Our -steamer the _Tourane_ of the Messageries Maritime line arrived -punctually on March the 2nd, calling at Colombo on her homeward voyage -from China, and the same evening saw us aboard. - -We made our adieus, and our steamer cast off, or rather weighed anchor, -about sunset, and we were soon under way. The dinner-bell rang at 6.30, -and going on deck afterwards we saw the last of Colombo—a mere thread -of glittering beads of light on the horizon, and soon lost in the -darkness of night. - -There was a large proportion of French people among the passengers, and -they were chiefly officials and their families returning on leave from -Chinese stations. They were exceedingly gay and lively, and always had -plenty of conversation. It was like a continual comedy going on with -much variety of character. - -On the 7th day, after a voyage of undisturbed serenity over the Indian -ocean, the blueness of the sea varied only by the steamer’s track, and -the foam dancing into rainbows, with flying fish, or an occasional -turtle, or an albatross or two, which flapped heavily after us, we -sighted Aden, and rounded the striking rocky coast to cast anchor off -the port. Here the tugs brought up the coal lighters, and the cargo -boats, and the swarm of Soumalis, as before, and the usual bazaar -on deck took place, and the hauling of the coal and cargo went on -all through the night—the clamours of the coolies being occasionally -fiendish, and the din was often punctuated by bangs on an iron bar, -which sent a shiver through the ship. This was the method of giving -warning to the man engaged in the loading operations in the hold. -We afterwards learned that two poor coolies had lost their lives by -venturing into the hold before it had been ventilated, and the air was -so foul as to suffocate them, and a ship’s officer who went to their -rescue also became insensible for a time. It seemed much hotter, too, -now the ship was stationary. - -Artillery practice was going on from the fort the next morning, and -we could see the shots strike the water. We did not get clear of Aden -till about 10 A.M., but at last the swarm of boats and swarthy Soumalis -left us, and the _Tourane_ entered on her course through the Red Sea, -and in due time passed Mocha (to starboard) and Perim (to port) and -the Arabian coast, the sea churned into foam by the steamer flashed -with phosphorescence at night,—the effect in the wake of the vessel -being very beautiful, green sparks appearing and floating on the -surface, and globes of subdued light glowed under the fleeting foam, -rapidly swept along and lost in the darkness of the night lit only by -stars—among which the Great Bear showed how much we had altered our -latitude. - -The heat continued very great for three days after leaving Aden, -when it rather suddenly grew cooler, and by the time we passed “the -Brothers” towards evening on the 12th of March, the weather grew quite -grey and cloudy with a cold wind. - -We reached Suez early on the morning of the 13th, and here it was fine -and bright again, though the air felt thin and cool. The colour of the -water had changed, too, and was now a fine clear turquoise—precisely -the colour of the Egyptian glass bracelets, but dark blue on the -horizon and against the land, which looked pink. - -The drama of the official tug and the cargo boats was again performed, -and there was much hoisting of coffee-bags, in and out, and a taking of -fresh provisions on board. The Traders came aboard, too, with Fez caps, -bead and shell necklaces, post-cards, and other trifles. It was amusing -to see our French friends buying the Fez freely, and not only wearing -them themselves but putting them on the heads of their children. There -had already been some astonishing transformations in costume on board -since the cooler weather set in, topis and white drill being exchanged -for tweed suits and caps or felt hats, and, in some cases, smart -official uniforms with shakos. - -We left Suez about the middle of the day and entered the canal, the -water still such a brilliant turquoise colour that the reflection in -the strong sunlight caused the white breasts of the sea-gulls, which -now followed our ship, to appear green. - -[Illustration: A FEW TRIFLES THE WIFE WISHED TO BRING HOME FROM INDIA] - -We made some very agreeable acquaintances on board, which made the time -pass more quickly, and we arrived at Port Said early on Friday the 14th -of March. The coaling _this_ time was a comparatively clean process, -the wind not being ahead as before. Some few of the passengers got off -for Egypt here, but we were soon under way again; and M. de Lèsseps’ -large effigy, the green dome of the Custom House, the steamers, the -wharves, and the posters of Port Said soon all faded from view as we -bade farewell to the East and entered the Mediterranean on our way to -Marseilles, the last stage of our long voyage, where after some tossing -we had a passing vision of snow-capped Sicily, and the Lipari Islands, -with Stromboli still smoking away; and so, in due course, through -the straits of Bonifazio, with no further sea troubles, landed at -Marseilles on March 19, safe and sound. - - - - -INDEX - - - Abu, Mount, 62 - - Adam’s Peak, 302, 311 - - Aden, outward and homeward call at, 12–15, 314 - - Adinath, Jain, pontiff, 131 - - Adyar Library, 247 - - Afghanistan, Amir of, preparations for reception of— - At Agra, 113–114, 122; - at Gwalior, 135–136 - - Aga Khan, 29 - - Agra— - Journey to, from Jaipur, 112; - arrival—the hotel, 112–113; - Pearl mosque, 113; - drive to the Fort—Akbar’s great gate, 113–114; - the Taj Mahal, 114–118— - its garden, 118–119; - the Jama Musjid mosque, 119–120, 123; - drive to the mausoleum of Itmad-ud-Daulat, 120; - churches, 121; - bazaars, 122; - excursion to Sikandra—tomb of Akbar, 122–125; - otherwise mentioned, 97, 144, 145 - - Ahmed Khan, 50, 51, 151 - - Ahmedabad— - Journey to, from Bombay, 48–49; - drive through the city, 49 _et seq._; - mosques, 49–53; - cotton factories, 55; - bazaar and street life, 55–58; - native pottery, 58; - railway station, 62 - - Ajmir— - Journey to, from Ahmedabad, 62–63; - Akbar Fort, 64–65; - bazaars, 65–66, 70; - the Dargah, 66–68; - fort of Targarh, 67; - mosque of Arhai-din-ka-Jhonpra, 68; - Daulat Bagh, 68–69; - cantonments outside the native city, 69–70; - custom of nailing horse-shoes on the doors, 80 - - Akbar, Emperor, 64, 131, 155, 177; - tomb of, at Sikandra, 156 - - Alviella, Count Goblet d’, 41 - - Alcott, Colonel, 212, 247, 249 - - Alexandra, Queen, 13, 261 - - Altamash, 68 - - Altamsh, 157 - - Alu-ud-din, 80 - - Amber, deserted city and palace, 106–7 - - American tourists, 76, 84, 96–97, 134 - - Ammayanayakanur, 276 - - Amritzar— - Journey to, from Delhi, 161–162; - hotel touts, 162–163; - the hotel, 163–164; - drive through the—its open drains, 164; - the Golden Temple, 165–166; - carpet manufactory, 166–167; - interview with a native pedlar, 167–169; - the Atal tower, 169; - public gardens, 169; - departure for Lahore, 170 - - Anderson, Colonel, 185 - - Arab dhow, 15 - - Arabian coast, 12, 314 - - Arhai-din-ka-Jhonpra, mosque of, 68 - - Arjamand Bann, 117 - - Arnold, Sir Edwin, 118 - - - Baker, Sir Samuel, 33 - - Bandakin, 112 - - Bapatia, 245 - - Bareilly, 45 - - Barielly, 184 - - Bearer, native, engagement of, 30–33 - - Bedding, need for travellers to supply their own, 35, 77 - - Begara, 59, 60 - - Benares— - Arrival at—Clark’s Hotel, 200, 216–217; - first impressions, 201; - the Guest house, 201–202, 205–206; - expedition to see the Buddhist remains at Sarnath, 201–205; - viewing the Ghats from the Maharajah’s peacock boat, 206–211; - the Burning Ghat, 209–210; - the Manikaranika Ghat and the Nepal Temple, 215–216; - pilgrims, 210; - the Golden Temple, 211; - Hindu College, 212; - the Monkey Temple, 212; - visit to the Maharajah in his palace, 213–215; - farewell glimpse of, 218 - - Bengal-Nagpur Railway, 241 - - Berhampore, 244 - - Besant, Mrs Annie, 212; - visit to, at Madras, 247–249 - - Bhutian peasants, 225–226, 235 - - Birdwood, Sir George, 29 - - Bitragunta, 245 - - Blavatsky, Madame, 249 - - Blow, Mr Detmar, 182 - - Bois, Mr, 290, 295 - - Bombay— - Impressions of, from the sea, 21; - the landing at, 21–23; - Malabar Hill, 21, 29–30; - street scenes, 24–25; - modern British buildings, 25–26; - Crawford market, 26; - bazaar, 26–28; - native wedding processions, 27–28; - Victoria Gardens, 28–29; - Victoria and Albert Museum, 29; - engagement of a native servant, 30–33; - oppressive heat, 46; - welcome of M. Dadabhai Naoroji to, 46–47; - cotton factories, 55 - - Bonifazio, straits of, 4, 317 - - Brahmans, 242 - - British administration, benefits of, discussed—causes of unrest, - 141–143, 190–192, 199, 309–310 - - “Brothers, The,” lightship, 11, 315 - - Brown, Mr Percy, 179 - - Buddhism— - In Ceylon, 297; - remains of, at Sarnath, 201, 203–205— - the Great Tope, 205; - Temple of the Tooth, 302 - - Buffalo cow, 36 - - Burmese people, discontent of, under British rule, 199 - - - Cactus plant, 75 - - Caine, Mr W. S., _cited_, 55, 109, 118, 131, 151 - - Calabrian coast, 4 - - Calcutta— - Races at, 29; - National Congress at, 46; - journey to, from Benares, 218–219; - impressions, 219; - the Minto Fête, 219–220; - a Hindu soothsayer at, 220–221; - industrial exhibition, 221–222; - general impressions, 222; - otherwise mentioned, 198 - - Campbell, Colin, 189 - - Candia, 5 - - Caroline, Queen, 202 - - Carpet manufactory at Amritzar, 166–167 - - Carts, native, 22–23, 55, 104–105 - - Cashmere travelling merchants, 181 - - Ceylon— - Notes of, 290 _et seq._; - decorative art of, 312; - native costumes in, 292–293, 298; - religion of, 297; - rubber trade in, 308–310; - tea-plantations of, 302–303, 305; - vegetation, luxuriant, and scenery, 299–301, 304–307, 310–311; - Western civilisation—its questionable benefits, 297, 301, 308–310 - - _Ceylon Times, The_, interview with editor of, 309–310 - - Charybdis, 4 - - Chitor, city of, 77–79 - - Chitorgarh— - Journey to, from Ajmir, 74–75; - night spent at, 75–77; - visit to the ruined fortress, 77, 79–81; - Tower of Victory, 81; - otherwise mentioned, 95, 108 - - Cinnamon tree, 300 - - _Clan Campbell_, s.s., 9 - - Clock towers, modern, in India, 194 - - Colombo— - Arrival at, 290–291; - general description of, 291–299; - garden of palms, 311; - museum, 311–313 - - Coromandel Coast, native costumes on, 242 - - Corsica, 4 - - Costumes, native, 56, 72; - in Southern India, 241–242, 252–253 - - Cotton factories, 55 - - Cotton yarn, preparation of, for hand weaving, 81 - - Cranes, white, 54 - - Crete, 5 - - Crows, Indian, 23 - - Cultivated Crops, 75 - - Cunningham, General, 205 - - Curzon, Lord, 119, 120, 122, 150 - - Cuttack, 241 - - - Dacoits, 198–199 - - Daulatabad, 34, 36–37, 44–45 - - Dargah of Ajmir, 66–68 - - Darjeeling— - Journey to, from Calcutta, 223–226; - toy railway, 224–225; - general description, 226–227; - Woodlands’ hotel and its entertainments—the Tibetan masque, 227–232; - the town, 233–234; - walks and rides round, 235 - - Dauvergne, M., 33, 44, 45 - - Delhi— - Journey to, from Agra, 146–147; - arrival—British residential quarter—Kashmir Gate, 148–149; - Mutiny memorial, 149; - the palace—peacock throne, etc., 149–151; - Moti Musjid (Pearl mosque), 151; - Jama Musjid mosque, 151–152; - Jain temple, 152; - the Chandni Chouk, 152–154; - excursion to the Kutab Minar, 154–158; - mosque of Shin Shah, 155; - Old Delhi, 155; - ancient city of Indrapat, 155; - tomb of Humayun, 155–156; - cemetery of Nizam-ud-din, 156–157; - driving experiences, 159–160; - departure, 161; - otherwise mentioned, 99 - - Delwara, 62 - - Digby, Mr William, 141, 191 - - Dindigul, 276 - - Dinghra, Dr, 166 - - Dowden, Mrs, 189, 194 - - Driving in India, risks of, 159 - - Dutt, Mr Romesh, 1 - - Dyeing, native methods of, 57, 104 - - - East India Company, 131 - - Eastern life, influence of Western ideas on, 56, 94, 141–143, 190–192, - 199, 309–310 - - Edward VII., 47, 261 - - Egyptian religion, parallelism between the Hindu religion and, 258 - - Elephants— - Excursions on, 77–78, 82, 107; - bathing of, at Kandy, 302 - - Ellora, caves of— - Journey to, from Bombay, 33–38—and back again, 44–46; - temple of Kylas, 38–43; - Buddhist temples, 43; - village of Ellora, 44 - - Enamel, Champlévé, 179–180 - - Etna, Mount, 4 - - Everest, Mount, 235 - - - Famines, native, 141 - - Flaxman, 259 - - Flying fish, 15–16 - - Food at refreshment stations, unsatisfactoriness of, 254 - - “Forest flame,” 224 - - French tourists, 96 - - Fruit-bats, 61 - - Funeral, native, 93–94 - - - Ganesha, the elephant god, 41, 81, 256 - - Ganges, scenes at the Ghats at Benares, 206–211; - the Burning Ghat, 209–210 - - Gardens, Eastern type of, 100–101 - - Girgenti, 40 - - Glass, convex-mirror-mosaic work, 87, 177 - - Gohad, Rana of, 131 - - Grace, A. F., 132 - - Graham, Cunninghame, 248 - - Gramophones in India, 99 - - Green ray, phenomenon of, 16 - - Gunj Baksh, mosque and tomb of, 59–60 - - Gwalior— - Arrival at—the Guest house, 127–128, 134, 136–137; - tomb of Mohammed Ghaus, 128; - drive to the Fort, 128–132; - palace of the Man Mandir, 129, 138; - Jain Temples, 130; - new town (Lashkar), 131, 134–135; - visit to Maharajah’s palace, 132–133; - sunsets over the Rock, 137–138; - description of the old town, 138–140; - departure—scene at the railway station, 144 - - - Hail and thunder storms combined, 237 - - Hardy, Miss, 1 - - Harrison, T. Erat, 194 - - Hathi Sing, shrine of, 58 - - _Herefordshire_, s.s., 9 - - Himalayas— - Climbing in the, 227–229; - snow peaks of, 232–233, 237 - - Hindu and Tamil MSS., library of, 260 - - Hindus— - Educated, debarred from high administrative posts, 142 - Religion of—nature worship in, 41, 279–280; - parallelism between the Egyptian religion and, 258 - Temples of—at Madura, 277–283; - at Seringham, 272–275; - at Tanjore, 255 - Weddings of, 27–28 - Women, 33, 45, 104, 174 - - Hiroshigi, 20 - - Horton, Lady, 301 - - Hotel life, picturesque feature of, 84–85 - - Humayun, Tomb of, 155 - - Hunt, Holman, 249 - - Hunt, Mr Cyril Holman, 298, 311 - - Hunter, Capt. J. B. Dalzell, 240 - - Hunuman, Hindu god, 41 - - Hunuman, the monkey god, temple of, at Benares, 212 - - Hyndman, Mr H. M., 142 - - - India Office, policy of, 141–143, 190–192, 199, 309–310 - - Indian Ocean, incidents on voyage in, 17 - - Iqd-i-gul, or _The Rose Necklace_, 240–241 - - Irrigation wells, 170–171, 196; - of Southern India, 243–244 - - Ismailia, 9 - - Israelites, passage of, through the Red Sea, 11 - - Ivory carver’s workshop at Delhi, 153–154 - - - Jack fruit, 300–301 - - Jagmandir, palace of, 88–91 - - Jahanara Begum, 156 - - Jahangir, 89 - - Jain pontiffs, sandstone carvings of, 131 - - Jain sect, persecution of, 279 - - Jain temples at—Ajmir, 68; - Chitorgarh, 81; - Delhi, 152; - Gwalior, 130; - Udaipur, 86–87 - - Jaipur— - Journey to, from Ajmir, 97; - first impressions, 97–99; - the city, “the rose-coloured city,” 99–100, 116; - bazaars, 101–102, 104–105, 110; - enamelled jewellery of, 101, 102; - spherical rolling lamps of, 102; - the Maharajah’s state elephant, 102–103; - the Maharajah’s palace, 103–104, 118; - street scenes, 105–106; - the Maharajah’s horses, 110–111 - - Jehan, Shah, 69, 89, 113, 114, 119, 150 - - Jhansi, 145 - - Jijibhai, Sir Jamsetji, 29 - - Jopling-Rowe, Mrs, 196 - - Jubbelteer, Island of, 12 - - Jugglers, native—the mango-tree trick, 187–188 - - Juggernath— - Temple of, 86–87; - festival of the Krishna at, 241 - - Juggernaut, pilgrims from, 242 - - Jullumpore, 161 - - - Kali, goddess, 109 - - Kandy, visit to—its scenery and foliage, 299–302 - - Khusru, 156 - - Kinchin Junga, view of, 227, 232–233, 237 - - Kipling, Mr, 177, 179 - - Kites, Indian, 23–24, 110 - - Koh-i-noor diamond, the, 125 - - Krishna, festival of, 241 - - Kunja Sahib, shrine of, 66 - - Kutab Minar, 157–158 - - Kutab-ud-din, 157 - - - _La Nera_, s.s., 2 - - Lahore— - Journey to, from Amritzar, 170–171; - the Charing Cross hotel, 171; - British residential and business quarter, 171–173, 178–179; - native quarter, 173–175; - bazaars, 175–176; - the Fort, 176–177; - the Samadh, 178; - Jama Musjid, 178; - Wazar Khan tiled mosque, 178, 181; - Courts of Justice, 179; - Museum, 179–180; - street scenes in, 181; - visit from the Princess Duleep Singh, 182; - departure for Lucknow, 182–183 - - Lamps, spherical rolling, 102, 222 - - Lashkar, 131, 134–135 - - Laurence, Lord, statue of, 179 - - Laurence, Sir Henry, 192 - - Leaf insects, 311–312 - - Lèsseps, M. de, 317 - - “Light of the World, The,” 249 - - Lipari Islands, 317 - - Longden, Lady, 301 - - Lucknow— - Journey to, from Lahore, 183–184; - Wurtzler’s hotel, 185; - in hospital, 185–186; - native jugglers—the mango-tree trick, 187–188; - ruins of the Residency, 189–190, 192; - the Sikander Bagh, 189–190; - Chatter Manzel, 192; - architecture of, 192–193; - Jama Musjid, 193; - the Iambara, 193–195; - bazaar of the old city, 194–195; - through the bazaar on elephants, 196–197; - the Martinière, 197–198 - - Lyons, 198 - - - Macarthy, Lady, 301 - - Madura— - Scenery near, 276; - visit to the Great Temple, 276–283; - the Temple Courts, 283; - Teppa Tank, 284; - gigantic Banyan tree, 284; - palace of Tiramala, 284–285; - silk industry, 285–286; - table decorations at, 286 - - Madras— - Journey to, from Calcutta, 239–245; - arrival—the Castle Hotel, 245–246; - public buildings and street scenes, 246–247, 249–251; - temperature at, 247; - visit to the Adyar library, 247–249; - Toddy Tappus, 249; - jin-rickshaws, 249–250; - Botanic Gardens, 251 - - Mahmudshah, 59 - - Malabar Hill, 21, 29–30 - - Mandal, 75 - - Maratha chiefs, 151 - - Marble— - Piercing patterns in, 64–65; - suitability of Indian climate for preserving, 69 - - Marseilles, 2, 317 - - Martin, General or Captain— - Painting of, 193; - schools founded by, 197–198 - - Mayo, Lord, 100 - - Mecca, sign of having visited, on house walls, 8 - - Messina, 4 - - _Migration of Symbols_ (d’Alviella), cited, 41–42 - - Mirza Jahangir, tomb of, 156 - - Missionaries, indifference of, to native religions, 275, 297 - - Mocha, 12, 314 - - Mogul Emperors, private chapel of, 113 - - Mogul Serai, 218 - - Mohammedans— - Educated, debarred from high administrative posts, 142; - Tombs of, 8, 59–60; - Weddings among the, 27; - Women, 104, 174–175 - - Mongolian peasants, 225–226 - - Monkeys, silver grey, 53, 59 - - Moonsawmy, 33, 125–126, 183 - - Mori, 63 - - Morley, Mr John, 142 - - Moses, well of, 11 - - Moti Musjid, 113 - - Mulich, Dr, 1 - - Munmad, a night at, 34–36, 45 - - Muslin, native method of printing on, 70 - - Mussulman mosque of Arhai-din-ka-Jhonpra, 68 - - Mutiny, memorials of, 189–190; - provocative causes of, 190 - - - Nadir Shah, 151 - - Naoroji, M. Dadabhi, welcome of, to Bombay, 46–47 - - Naisirabad, 74 - - Nelson, Lord, bust of, 260 - - Nemnath, Jain pontiff, 131 - - Nizam of Hyderabad, 36, 38 - - Nizam-ud-din, cemetery of, 156–157 - - Nunnoya, 303, 310 - - Nuwara-Eliya, 302; - scenery at, 304–305; - the Magdala Gardens, 305–307 - - - Parsees— - Burial place of, 30; - Merchant, description of, 24; - Weddings among, 28 - - Parvati, goddess, 41, 109, 256 - - Paul, Lieutenant, 198 - - Perrim, 12, 314 - - _Picturesque India_ (W. S. Caine), quoted, 151 - - Pillai, Mr, 277–278 - - Pillour, 161 - - Plague, bubonic, 141 - - Ploughs, native, 74–75, 140 - - Ploughman, native, earnings of, 140 - - Poori, 241 - - Port Said, 316 - - Poverty of natives, 140–141, 143 - - Prang, Mr Louis, and Mrs Prang, 235–236 - - _Prosperous British India_ (Digby), cited, 141, 191 - - - Rai, Mr Laipat, 142 - - Railway travelling in India— - Facilities for, 48–49; - native travellers, 70–72 - - Rajpootana, 63, 77, 79 - - _Ramayana_, 1 - - Rani Sipri, mosque of, 51 - - Readymoney, Sir Cowasji Jehangir, 29 - - Red Sea, passage of, 11–12, 314 - - _Rena_, s.s., 10 - - Rhododendron, Cingalese, 306 - - Rozah— - Drive to, from Daulatabad, 36–37; - description of a night at, 37–38 - - Rubber trade of Ceylon, 308–310 - - Russia, Czar of, 206, 282 - - Ryot, Indian, average earnings of, 141 - - - Said, Port, visit to, 5–9 - - Salaams, custom as to, 73 - - Sara, crossing the Ganges at, 223–224, 237 - - Sarbarmati River, scenes on, 53–54, 58–59 - - Sardinia, 4 - - Sarkhai, excursion to, 58–61 - - Saunders, Mr and Mrs, 197 - - Scott, Mr Ross, 188, 198 - - Schwartz, 259 - - Scylla, 4 - - Seringham— - Religious procession at, 282; - Temple of, 272–275 - - Shaw, G. Bernard, 248 - - Sheep, fat-tailed, 176 - - Sicily, 4, 317 - - Sidi Sayyids’ Mosque, 51–52 - - Sikandra, excursion to—tomb of Akbar, 122–125 - - Sikhs, religious centre of, 166 - - Silignis, 225–226 - - Silk-weaving at— - Ahmedabad, 55, 56; - Vizianagram, 244; - Tanjore, 262; - Madura, 285–286 - - Silver Lake, 242 - - Sinai, Mount, 11 - - Sindhia, 131 - - Singh, Princess Duleep, 181–182 - - Siva, god— - Representations of, at Madura, 278, 279, 280, 281, 283; - sacred bull of, 255–256; - sacred mark of, 242, 253; - otherwise mentioned, 41, 109, 256 - - Sketching, native interest in, 283–284 - - Sorabji, Miss, 220 - - Soumalis at Aden, 13–15 - - South Kensington, Indian museum at, 52 - - Spartivento, Cape, 4 - - Squirrels, palm, 36, 59, 136 - - Stromboli, 317 - - Suez, call at, 10, 315 - - Suez Canal, passage through 9–10, 315–316 - - Sun, eclipse of, 167 - - - Table decorations of Southern India, 286 - - Taj Mahal— - Visit to, and account of, 114–118; - gardens of, 118–119; - compared with the Itmad-ud-Daulat, 120; - moonlight visit to, 120–121; - sketches of, 121 - - Tamils, 297 - - Tanjore— - Journey to, from Madras, 251–254; - accommodation at, 254–255, 269; - the old fort and Hindu Temple, 255–258; - religious procession at, 258; - Christian church at, 258–259; - palace of the Maharajah, 259–261; - description of—street scenes, etc., 261–264; - decline of Western influence at, 263; - native theatre, 264–268; - native pedlars—Tanjore craftsmanship, 268–269; - water carrying, 270 - - Taormina, 4 - - Taragarh, Fort of, 67 - - Tea, Ceylon, colour of beverage, 305 - - Tea plantations of Ceylon, 302–305 - - Theatre, native, at Tanjore, 264–268 - - Theosophical Society, headquarters, 247 - - Threshing of grain, native methods, 252 - - Thull Ghat, 34 - - Tibetan fat-tailed sheep, 176 - - Tibetan masque at Darjeeling, 229–232 - - Tiled mosques, 178 - - _Tourane_, s.s., 313 - - Trinchinopoly— - Arrival at—general impressions, 270–272, 275; - visit to the temple of Seringham, 272–275; - the Rock of Trinchinopoly, 275 - - Tuticorin, 287–289 - - “Twelve Apostles, The,” 12 - - - Udaipur— - Native group from, 76; - journey to, from Chitorgarh, 82–83; - hotel experiences, 83–84; - place of tombs, 85–86; - palace of the Maharajah, 87–88; - excursion to the palace of Jagmandin, 88–91; - feeding of the Maharajah’s wild pigs, 91–92; - the Maharajah’s gardens, 93; - Victoria Institute, 93; - departure from—the station, 94–95 - - Umballa, 161, 183 - - - Villuparam, 254 - - Vishnu, 86, 272, 273 - - Vizianagram, 244 - - Voyages out and home, descriptions of, 1–20, 313–317 - - - Wales, Prince and Princess, 167, 206, 282 - - Waltair, 244 - - Water filter and water bearers at railway stations, 75 - - Watts, G. F., 76 - - Wax, raised designs of, on textiles, 179 - - Webb, Sidney, 248 - - Wedding processions in Bombay, 27–28 - - Western civilisation, questionable value of, 94, 308–310 - - Women, native, costumes of, 105, 174–175 - - - Zebu bulls, 256, 280 - - - - - PRINTED BY - TURNBULL AND SPEARS, - EDINBURGH - - - - -Transcriber’s Notes - - -Punctuation and spelling were made consistent when a predominant -preference was found in this book; otherwise they were not changed. - -An attempt was made to regularize inconsistent hyphenation, but many -inconsistencies remain. - -Simple typographical errors were corrected; occasional unbalanced -quotation marks retained. - -Ambiguous hyphens at the ends of lines were retained. - -The illustrations on the title and dedication pages are decorative. - -Illustrations originally printed mid-paragraph have been moved -to nearby paragraph breaks, so the page numbers in the List of -Illustrations do not always match the positions in this eBook. 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