The Leavenworth weekly times., 1879-06-05

Gen Grants Journeyings ant
| life in India
A Visit to the Tai.
THE Most Be: utifuI Building
in the World"
The Shrine Of a Hush and's Low,
and a w fs's Consecration.
AGRA, March 8, lS79.-Our stay in Agr.
was short, but i, would have been impossi
BILE to have left India without seeing the
Tai. This building is said to be the mos
beautiful in the world. AS We came into
Agra in the early morning the familiar
lines OF the Tsj-familiar from study oi
pictures and hotographs-,oomed up in
the morning air. You have a view of the
building for some time before entering the
city. The first view was not impressive
and as we looked at the towers of the Tai
and the white marble walls that reflected
the rays of the rising sun it seemed to be a
beautiful building Al. a temple, and no more
Perhaps the long night ride may have had
something to do with our Indifference to
act, for the ride had been severe and dis
tressing, and it was pleasant to find any
shelter and repose. The General and Mrs.
Grant went to the house of Mr.. Laurence
the nephew of Lord Laurence, and mem
Der of one Of the ruling families of India
The remainder of the party found
quarters in hotel, the only one, believe,
IN the place, a struggling, barn-like build
ing, or series OF buildings, over which an
American flag was hying. Indian hotel
life is not the best way of seeing India, as
most travellers, in passing through The
country, are enter tanned in private house,
bungalows Of the officials, mess quarters OF
the officers or missionary stations. TIE
Agra hotel seemed 10 have been built for
the millennium, when all shalt be good and
crime unknown. There were 10 gates or
windows, To doors-all vac open. TIE
rooms all ran into one another, and the
boarders seemed to live on principle OF
association. | never knew who was the
landlord, never saw a servant in authority
Everybody seemed to keep the hotel, and
when you wanted anything you simply
went and took it. Mr.. Bcrie WAS accom-
modated with sn apartment on the ground
floor, the Others qusrtered above him.
SELLING TO THE saHIBs.
Af,er dressing We called on our friend
and found him surrounded BY ali the mer
chants of the town. The moment Sahib
comes to Agra the whole town comes TO see
him, and opens a bszaar a. his door, and
sits there all day with carbuncles, garncts,
sandal wood, arms, mcsaic., photographs.
If you walk across the way TO breakfast
you are in the center Of a chattering group
who force their wares upon yoC, and il you
give them any encourage ment, by which
mean if you do not inilict upon them per-
sonai violence, which noTe OF us were dis
posed to do, they will invade your cham
ber and nestle at your bedside while you
sleep. The forte of the Hindoo is patience,
and he believes that if he waits you will
buy. So when you tell your merchant
you do not want anything, that you have
money, he calmly sits on his Launches and
waits. If you make small purchase for
charity's sake, on the principle Of giving
shilling to an organ grinder TO
get rid OF him, it only gives the
merchant courage and his friends courage
and they all come and wait. You sit down
in your room to read or write, and look up.
There is bearded Moslem with handful
of sabres, which he says are from Nepaul
You drive him away, and in a moment
there is another phantom, a smiling Hin,
doc, who folds his hands and makes a ga.
laam, and unless you reach out for boot
jack or some more serious weapon will un'
roll from hi, belt bundle of preciou:
stones. There is no escaping the merch'
ants, and l am asnamed to confess that
whenever We were sorely pressed we sent
them to Mr.. Borie, who was the purchasing
member Of the party, and never impatient
with the merchants, always finding amuse
ment in trying TO open conversation and in
examining their slender stocks Of goods. .
THE sPL ENDoRs OF THE TAI.
There We're visits to various points from
Agra-all OF which have been described
Jeypore, Bhurtpoor, Futtipoor Sikra, anC
60 on, and We merely used the town az /,
sort of base from which to make excur
sions into the country about. The city
itself contains only one monument, The
Tai, and the remains of a beautiful palace
now used as fort. When the descend ant
of the great house Of Tamerlare overrar
India Agra was among the cities which
they captured. 1t was in the seventeenth
century one OF the wealthy cities of India
a rendezvous for Indian and Persian mer
chants. Akbar, who reigned in the six
teenth century, and was among the creates
Of the Moguls, gave Agra its grandeur
He built his palace, which is now the fort
What it must have been in the time of tn,
Emperor We may imagine from what VI
see at Jeypore, where the Mahsrsjsh stil
reigns and lives in Oriental splendor. N
modern palsce can give you an idea o
what these royal residences must have beel
in their day. Royal life now is not whs
1t was under the great kings. 4
Mogul kept about him thousands Of re
tainers. was told in Jeypore that Their
were. 10 900 within the enclosures of tn
place. A palace was fort, barracks,
home for the sovereign, his harem, his min
listers and his nobility. You can under
stand Why the palace of Akbar should hav
occupied site Of nearly four fquare miles
Bu, the mere s;ze of the Agra palace vii
give you no conception OF its splendor
Many changes have taken place sine
Akbar's time. The mutin- led England t
sweep away certain sections for strategi
reasons. As a monument Of Moslem srchi
lecture the palace is one of the best speci
men, and reminds you Of the Alhambr'