The new dominion. [volume] (Morgantown, W. Va.) 1876-1904, 1884-09-13

Lucknow! A word to conjure with
"A word once in the mouth of every
body and bringing up memories in de-
tail of that most remarkable of all
sieges. when for five long months a
starving garrison of 1900 souls held
out against the harassing fire of we'll
armed, well provisioned pagan enemy.
Commencing at $50 o'clock one morn
ing we managed to do" Lucknow,
sup critically at least, by noon-the day
favoring that late exposure. The first
place visited was the Dilkusha palace.
Only the ponderous ruins of this once
grand structure are now standing. The
walls are fully two feet thick, and large
trees are growing in the interior. The
palace was built Gin European style)
by an old Mussulman as a hunting box
and private residence for favorites of
his harem. The grounds are still very
pretty.
We were next driven to the Martin
iere or Constantia, huge rambling
pile still in good state of preservation,
smbodying many types of essentially
Occidental architecture. The top is
ornamented with good deal of stucco
gingerbread work, and with profusion
Of statues, including images Of mytho-
logical deities and prancing lions with
lanterns for eyes. In front of the
building. and between it and the
Goomty River. is large tank with a
tall column in its center. This build
ing has qnite history. 1t was erected
by philanthropic Frenchman named
Claude MARITIME, who came to India as
3 penniless adventurer and died a
Major-General worth millions of dol
lars. The building was put up at an
enormous cost little over sevepty-five
years ago. MARITIME died before it was
ment as school, ordering that his re-
mains should be entombed in it to
secure it from possible confscation.
Thus, as we approached the building.
we could hear the hum of 200 voices,
and saw dark but smoothskinned
Anglo-Indian boys wandering about
perusing their lessons.
The tomb of the first King Of Odde
was the next thing on our list. Pass
ing by a frowsy- headed woman who was
beating her breast on the street, we
walked under an immense gate bearing
the inscription: "Shah Nuzzuf," and
name of the King, Mirsa Gahzeeod-
deenhyder. The tomb proved to be an
immense domed mausoleum, adorned
with thousands of candle holders out
side for purposes of illumination, and
with vast quantities of glassware and
tinsel stuff within. 1t was before this
tomb that the ''relief" of Lucknow met
with its severest opposition. Here it
was, also, that Brigadier Adrian Hope
distinguished himself by going alone to
seek for an unguarded wicket gate.
which he found just at the supreme
moment.
The Kaiser Bagh, one of the chief
monuments of Lucknow, was the great
work of the present ex-King of Dude,
who is a State prisoner at Garden
Beach, in the suburbs of Calcutta. II
was commenced in 184S and finished
about two years later at a cost of some
thing like 50. 100000 in our money.
The palace of Caesar, as the name sig
mites, must have been the theater OF
numerous brilliant spectacles before 1t
was despoiled of its royal furniture and
appointments. Its fountains, gardens
and pavilions still testify of the splen-
doris of the past, when they belonged to
| one of the most extravagant OF eastern
courts. Lying all around the great
open square of the Kaiser Bagh proper
are various piles, more or less preten-
tious, that served to shelter some part
of the royal household or its belongings.
There is one court that was formerly
paved with silver There are tombs,
gates, and observatories, and over on
the bank of the GOomty River are two
more elaborate palaces, one called the
Clutter Munzil by reason of the gilt
umbrellas with which its domes are sur
mounted This building is now used
as museum and public library hall.
But whatever of architectural fame
Lucknow has is embodied in the great
Imambara. Even this is of brick plas-
tered over, but one quite forgets that
in the first burst of superficial admira-
ton. The entrance to the tomb-for it
is tomb, like many of midas grand
est palaces-is marked by the usual
richly -decorated double gateways.
within which is large tablet inscribed
with the British lion and unicorn, and
the universal "Dieu ct Mon 'Droit. y
The real Imambara stands up
on an elevated terrace at the
rear of spacious court filled
with fountains and flowers. 1t was
built by Nawab Asafuddanlah at an in
estimable cost. He was anxious to per-
petuate his memory, and required the
achitects to submit their plans to a com
petition, each one vouching that his
building should be a copy Of no exist
ing structure, and that it should surpass
everything of the kind ever built in
architectural beauty. Kaifiat-ullah,
the successful competitor, builded well,
and humbly bow before this graceful
monument Of the art of antiquity. The
dimensions of the grand hall are 1857
feet by 522 feet, and at each end are
octagonal apartments fifty-three feet
in diameter. The interior is filled with
the same exquisitely useless insignia
that l noticed in the Shah Nuzzuf.
Around abont the Imambara are various
magnificent foundations and incomplete
structures, left by this same Nawab.
There is an incipient musjid intended
to surpass the famous Jumma Musjid
of Delhi, but at his death it failed to
matcrialize further. There are also
four stories of . gigantic watchtower
which he started that he might look
down from its top upon 1.-THE great
Babylon that he had built" also falling
into decay Cor. Philadelphia Press.