Page:The Seven Cities of Delhi.djvu/219

Shahjahanabad Nearly opposite this house, on a rising ground,is a house, then the residence of the Raja of Ballabgarh. There is nothing of importance in the Faiz Bazar, on the other side of the "lines," except the canal, which is said to have been made in the days of Firoze Shah: how the water was brought to it is uncertain.

Jama Masjid. — This great mosque was commenced about 1650, and occupied five thousand workmen for the space of six years. The court-yard measures as much as four hundred feet each way, and the minarets are a hundred and thirty feet high; altogether, the building is of noble dimensions. The northern minaret was struck by lightning, but was repaired about 1817. The eastern gateway is considered still to be the Royal Gate, and is only opened for the highest personages; but on the steps collect the buyers and sellers of doves, for the people of Delhi are very fond of pets, and especially of fat-tailed sheep. The ceremonies performed during prayer may here be described. First, it is necessary to perform most careful ablutions, and then the worshippers form up in rows, facing towards Mecca, which is represented by an arched niche in the western hall, called the 165