Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1895-01-11
ATOMB ANDA TEMPLE
THE FAMOUS TAI MAHAL AND THE
ELEPHANTA CAVES.

| Rev. DIR. Talmage Describes at Length the
Exquisite Architecture of the Hindoos
and Compares Their Materialism with
the Spirituality of the Christian Faith.
BROOKLYN, Jan. 6.-In continuing
his series Of round the world sermons
through the press Rev. DR.. Talmage to-
day chose for his subject Tomb and
Temple, having reference to that most
famous and beautiful of mausoleums,
the Tai Mahal. The text selected was,
From India even unto Ethiopia" (Es-
ther i, u.
In all the Bible this is the only book
In which the word India occurs but it
stands for realm Of vast interest in the
time of Esther, as in our time 1t yield
ed then, as now, spices and silks and cot
ton and rico and indigo and ores of all
richness and precious stones Of all
sparkle and had a civilization Of its
own as marked as Egyptian or Grecian
or Roman civilization. 1t holds the cost
liest tomb ever built and the most
unique and wonderful idolatrous temple
ever opened. For practical lessons in
this my sixth discourse in round the
world series l show you that tomb and
temple of India.
In a journey around the world it may
not be easy TO tell the exact point which
divides the pilgrimage into halves. But
there was one structure toward which
we were all the time travelling, and hay
ing seen that we felt that if we saw
nothing more our expedition would be
a success. That one object was the TAI
Mahal of India 1t is the crown Of the
whole earth. The spirits of architecture
met to inthrone king, and the spirit Of
the Parthenon of Athens was there, and
the spirit of st. Sophia of Constantine
pie was there, and the spirit Of st. Izaak
of st. Petersburg was there, and the
spirit of the Baptistery of Pisa was there,
and the spirits of the great pyramid
and of Luxor obelisk, and of the Porce-
lain tower of Nankin, and Of st. Marks
of Venice, and the spirits of all the
great towers, great cathedrals, great
mausoleums, great sarcophagl, great
capitols for the living and Of great ne
cropolises for the dead were there. And
the presiding genius of the throng with
gavel of Parian marble smote the table
of Russian malachite, and called the
throng Of spirits to order, and called for
a vote as to which spirit should wear the
chief crown, and mount the chief throne,
and wave the chief scepter, and by unan'
imous acclaim the cry was: Long live
the spirit of the Tai, king Of all the
spirits Of architectural Thine is the Tai
Mahal Of India"
FulfIls All Expectations.
The building is about six miles from
Agra, and as we rode out in the early
dawn we heard nothing but the hoofs
and wheels that pulled and turned us
along the road, at every yard Of which
our expectations rose until we had some
thought that we might be disappointed
at the first glimpse, as some say they
were disappointed But how can any
ono be disappointed with the TAI is al
most as great wonder to me as the Tai
itself. There are some people always
disappointed, and who knows but that
having entered heaven they may criti-
else the architecture Of the temple and
the cut of the white robes, and say that
the river of Life is not quite ITO their
expectations, and that the white horses
on which the conquerors ride seem a lit
tie spring halt or spawned?
Ny son said, "There it isl" said,
"Where?" For that which he saw to be
the building seemed to me to be more
like the morning cloud blushing under
the stare Of the rising sun. 1t seemed
not so much built up from earth as let
down from heaven. Fortunately you
stop at an elaborated gateway of red
sandstone one-eighth of a mile from the
Tai, an entrance so high, so arched, so
graceful, so four domed, so painted and
chiseled and scrolled that you come
very gradually upon the Tai, which
structure is enough to intoxicate the eye
and stun the imagination and entrance
the soul We go up the winding stairs
of this majestic entrance Of the gateway
and buy a few pictures, and examine
few curios, and from it look off upon the
Tai, and descend to the pavement OF the
garden that raptures everything between
the gateway and the ecstasy Of marble
and precious stones. You pass along a
deep stream of water in which all man
ner of brilliant fins swirl and float.
There are 81 fountains that spout and
bend and arch themselves to fall in
showers of pearl in basins Of snowy
whiteness. Beds Of all imaginable flora
greet the nostril before they do the eye
and seem to roll in waves Of color as
YOU advance toward the vision you are
soon to have Of what human genius did
when it did its best; moon flowers,
lilacs, marigolds, tulips and almost
everywhere the lotus; thiokets Of bewil-
dering bloom; on either side trees from
many lands bend their arborescence over
your head or seem with oonvoluted
branches to reach out their arms toward
you in welcome. On and on you go amid
tamarind and cypress and poplar and
oleander and yew and sycamore and BAN
van and palm and trees Of such novel
branch and leaf and girth you cease to
ask their name or nativity.
An Ideal Memorial.
AS you approach the door Of the TAI
one experiences a strange sensation OF
awe and tenderness and humility and
worship. The building is only grave,
but what a gravel Built for a queen,
who, according TO some, was very good.
and according to others was very bad. /
choose to think she was very good. AT
any rate, it makes me feel better to
think that this commemorative pile was
set up for the immortalization OF virtue
rather than vice. The Tai is a mountain
Of white marble, but never such walls
faced each other with exquisiteness;
never such tomb was cut from block
Of alabaster; never such a congregation
of precious stones frightened and gloom
ID and blazed and chastened and glori-
aed building since sculptor's chisel cut
fits first curve, or painters pencil traced
i a -. ....rzv,f - f,luft,h line