Page:Early English adventurers in the East (1917).djvu/277

 Ornate mosques and temples minister to the religious needs of the polyglot native population, and in the outskirts of the city, on the breezy altitudes of Malabar Hill, and the wave-washed strand of Oumballa, are noble mansions in which amid all the refinements and luxuries of the West the merchant princes of Bombay, European and native, secure a well-earned relaxation from the strain and stress of the mart and the counting house in the hot and dusty confines of the far-away fort where Gerald Aungier mused on the possibilities of greatness that were inherent in this matchless situation. And over these manifestations of man's activity is the glamour of a tropical environment of surpassing charm. All around are the sparkling waters of the Indian Ocean dotted on the harbour side with craft of every imaginable description and of every size from the leviathan liner, or stately cruiser, to the tiny canoe which a bronzed little native boy is navigating with his hands as paddles. Across the broad expanse of the harbour rise from the water the low-lying Butcher's Island and beyond the loftier outlines of classic Elephanta, while away in the distance on the landward side, seen through a shimmering violet haze, are the irregular peaks of the Western Ghauts, a glorious background to a superb picture. Truly it is a city "full of goodly prospect," whether it is viewed from the standpoint of material development or of natural beauty.