Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1899-04-13
YaW..B OF B4HAiyALPUR.
He Is One of the Native Princes of the
Indian Empire.

Indian Empire.
Century.
The enormous extent Of the empire
over which Lord Curzon, Viceroy OF
India, rules is illustrated by an ac-
count of one of its petty divisions,
for His Highness Sir Zadick Moham-
med Khan Abassie, G. c., ST., Nawab
of Bahawalpur, is the great man OF a
strip of territory only about 300 by 100
miles in size, which forms one of the
minor States of Rajputana. Yet his
wealth his enormous and his surround
ings magnificent.
The nawab is man about 36 years
old, six feet tall and we'll proportioned;
he has dark and prominent features,
long black curly hair, beard cut close
and very long dropping mustaches.
curling into ring at the ends. He
is extremely sentitive, has strong will
and constitution Of iron, and is in
tensely suspicious and Jealous. the
natural result of his position.
Except Oh special occasions, the
nawab dresses in white muslin trousers,
very wide and baegy; silk or cloth
coat and waistcoat, and silk and gold
turban. His pockets are numerous and
their contents surprising. 1t is COM
mon thing for him to wear two or
| three watches, and very beautiful ones
| they arc. This does not astonish one
so much as the fact that he possesses
no less than LOO watchs OF all descrip-
| tions and is constantly purchasing
others. He has also some remarkably
| fine jewels. His crown weighs nine
| pounds, and Is mass of diamonds set
| in silver, with row of very large
pearshaped pearls as pendants around
| the base. He has sword the jeweled
scabbard and hilt of which a revaued
at S500,0 lie wears some extra
ordinary rubies and uncut emeralds
attached to chains of rubies and pearls
that he wears as a necklace. He has
also set of uncut rubes as large as
the largest of the emeralds, They are
historic gems, with the names Of the
mogul emperors engraved upon them.
They are very irregular in shape, and
measure fully one and one-half inches
in diameter.
He is never without pocket of gold
mohurs and rupees. A gold mohur is
coin that is not in circulation as
money but it is a custom among the
native princes to present these coins to
friends and to receive them AS presents
on certain ceremonial occasions. 1t is
| Vi DuTb HUlu anu NhflbS Ill ElAt anu
value from 20 to 50 rupees. A rupee
is silver coin about the size of u 80
cent piece, but according to the present
rate of exchange is worth only about
% cents.
The nawab leads very active but
whimsical life. His greatest passion is
hunting, consisting Of shooting, pig
sticking and hawking. He is an ex.
cellent shot, especially il the game is
moving rapidly, and | should be afraid
to say how many wild bears he has
killed, pig sticking being sport moi
generally INDUCED in by Moham
medans. He, like most Indian princes
has killed his tiger. He is equal,
skilled in telling story, and his Eng
lish, though slow and measured, j,
very good, From the time he was
years old he was under an English
tutor, appointed by the British govern
ment.
, At the death of his father, the forme
nawab, the whole State passed into tn,
hands Of the British government unit
the young nawab, coming of age, wa
placed on the throne and given full
powers to govern his 600, ZOO subjects
together with several crores of rupees
which had accumulated in the treasur,
under the administration of the Eng
I lish. { A crore is 10000, 900 rupees o
3 100 laos, lac being 100, 600 rupees.
1t is only natural that the younI
prince, once in possession OF his grea
wealth, should desire to spend it, an,
] the result was that four new palace
were built at the capital Of the State
D Bahawalpur, and at an old town, abou
2 80 miles distant, called Ahmedpur, tn
l former residence of the nawabs Q
l Bahawalpur since 1927.
, The nawab has bodyguard of 40
mounted men, nearly all from Balu
9 picturesque set, and the best and tn
g He maintains only one squadron @
Q cavalry and half a regiment of in
9 fantry, but has 1900 domestic servants
C and 800 shikarees, or hunters, dis
I tributed over the whole. State. who's
y duty it is to send news to the nawa
o when game is found in their localit,
't and to keep poachers from trespassing
p He has also stable of $50 Arat
u English and Australian horses, an
u two large river steamers are held j
II readiness for six months at time q
9 the Sutlej, which forms the norther
q boundary of his State for distance
d about 200 miles.
} The nawab's present income is abor
le Is laos of rupees year. He is a
10 absolute monarch, holding the powt
"a of signing life or death sentences G
IL criminals The administration Of stat
affairs is in the hands of his Prin
Minister and other officials, but Il
measures can be enacted without ii
nawab's written signature.