Page:"Round the world." - Letters from Japan, China, India, and Egypt (IA roundworldletter00fogg 0).pdf/215

 ish decoration and beauty which once made it the wonder and admiration of every beholder. The ceiling of this hall was once composed entirely of gold and silver filigree work, and the walls richly ornamented with gold arabesque. The roof vested of massive square marble arches, around the cornice of which is the inscription, quoted by Moere in "Lalla :"

"If there be a Paradise on earth it is this, it is this"

In the center of this room stood the famous “Peacock Throne,” so called from its back being formed by jeweled representations of peacocks’ tails. It was composed of gold, studded with diamonds and precious stones, and its value was estimated by Tavenier, a Frenchman, who saw it, at six millions of pounds sterling. A suite of apartments which formed the Seraglio and royal baths, overlooking the river, were partially restored and regilded last year on the occasion of the Visit of the Duke of Edinburgh. In each of these rooms is a fountain, and the floor, walls and ceiling are of white marble, with inlaid borders of arabesque designs. A large portion of the palace has been cleared away since the mutiny to make room for a splendid range of barracks which have been built for the European troops.

Leaving the Fort, we drove through Chaudnee Chowk, the principal street, one hundred and twenty feet wide, a mile in length, and adorned with an avenue of trees. Here are the best shops and several buildings handsomely decorated. In front of their shops stand the richly-dressed, turbaned owners, who beseech you, in Parsee-English, to come in and inspect their wares. In the cool of the evening you will see the native merchant the narrow, projecting balcony enjoying his otium with a hubble-bubble, clad in a most invitingly cool dishabille of white muslin.

A canal of pure, clean water, brought from the hills twenty miles distant, flows through the centre of the city, adding much to the health and comfort of the inhabitants.

We next visited the Jumna Musjid, the largest and finest of all the Mahometan temples in India. It is built on a small rocky eminence, and is approached on three sides by noble gateways, to which lead broad flights of steps. In the center of the open court is a large fountain, around which a space, three hundred and twenty-five feet square, is paved with blocks of white marble three feet long and one and a half broad, each being surrounded by a black border.