Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1857-09-17
Delhi.

transpred in that city, have attached deep
interest in its history and present condition.
Delhi is situated in the centre of a sandy
plain on the river Jumna, in the Northern
part OF HindostaR, nine hundred and fifty
six miles from Calcutta, and eight hundred
and eighty miles from Bombay. According g
TO tradition it was founded three hundred
years before Christ. 1t is the Capital of
the province of Delhi, and was for a long
time the Capital OF Hindostan, the seat OF
the Great Mogul, the boast of India; and
during the era of its spleBdor, is said to
have occupied site of twenty miles in
length, and the ruins nJw cover nearly as
great space. AT the end of the l7th CEN
tury it is reported to have contained two
millions of inhabitants In II03 it was
taken by the Mohammedans un1er Cutta-
baddeen Khan, who fixed his residence
there. In 1898 it was taken, pillaged, and
reduced to a heap of ruins by Tamerlane.
In 1851 the Emperor Shah Jehan built a
new city On the right bank of the Jumna,
and this forms the modern Delhi, which is
about five miles in circumference. AMI is
seated IN range of rocky hills. II is sur
rounded by walls constructed of large blocxs
of granite, and fortified with good loop
holed parapet. Several gateways and bas-
tions oc ;ur in the walls at intervals, and
the whole has been strengthened and put in
repair by the English Government. The
gateways ure magnificent buildings, and
are named after the provinces and cities 10
which they point.
The city has seven gates, and contains
! the remains of several fine palaces, the res
licences of former rulers. The modern city
contains many good houses, chiefly of brick.
The streets, with the exception of tine prin-
cipal ones, are in general narrow, as in other
Eastern cities.
There are several fine mosques in Delhi,
the largest, the Jumna Musjd, built bv
Shah Jehan, being a splendid and enormous
edifice Of white marble and red granite. 1t
is considered the larges' and handsomest
place of Mussulman worship in India. The
Mogul's palace is remarkable structure,
surrounded ON three sides by an embattled
wall thirty feet high, and more than one
mile in circumference. 1t is place of but
! little military strength, however, the walls
being adapted only Tor bows and arrows, or
musketry In the opinion of Bishop Heber +,
it far surpssses the Kremlin in architectural
beauty. The gardens, which were formed
by Shah Jehan, are said to have cost fI,-
900 900. Their original character has long
been completely lost, and they now present
the appearance OF a small, neat park, with
some charming groves of orange trees.
Among the other notable edifces of the
city are the tykunas, or under ground houses,
which are formed under or. und, having out
lets for light above, and ingress at one place
only. They are handsomely arranged and
furnished, dnd possessing Temperature of
twelve or even fourteen degrees below that
of the rooms at the surface, furnish a pleas
ant retreat in the hot months of April, May
and June.
Delhi is well situated for conducting the
traffic between the peninsula of India and
the countries tc the North and West, and
has cons iderable commercial activity. Cot
ton cloths and shawls are manu- octured in
the city, and indigo is produced in the sur
rounding country. 1t is great mart for
shawls, and a constant trade is kept up with
Cashmere, whence the splendid fabrics so
much priced all over the world are brought
in large quantities, some plain, to have Dor.
ders sewed upon them, others to be embroid-
cred IN silk or gold, whence they derive the
name of Delhi shawls. The goldsmiths of
Delhi are also celebrated beyond those of
any other Indian city, and eminently merit
their high reputation. 1t is difficult for per-
sons best acquainted with the chef d'euUres
of European artists to imagine the surpri
ing beauty Of the Delhi work.
The Jumna overfows the Country to a
wide extent during :he rainy season, but
does not confer fertility at Delhi, owing to
the waters in this part of its course being
strongly impregnated with natron, exten-
sive beds of which abound in the neighbor-
hood. The population IN Delhi in lS47
amounted to 1877 ,977, besides about % 600
in the suburbs A college has been es,ab
lished, and between two and three hundred
schools opened Tor the instruction OF pour
children. The Emperor of Delhi, the rep
resentative OF the great Timur, though still
recognized bv the British Government as a
sovereign prince, has long been shorn of all
his grandeur, and except within his own
palace, exercises no attribute of royalty,
though looked up to ani regarded by all the
Nohammedan population Of India with res
pect and attachment. tie is allowed fl3O,-
600 year from the revenue of certain dis
tricts. bu, much of it is said to be in reality
spent in his name by the British residents.