MEXICO AND INDIA 209 



in another of still greater size. The last day when the 

 ceremonies were over we were allotted to sundry " big 

 bugs " of the city to see the illuminations, the like of 

 which I have never seen again, the whole place illum- 

 inated by hundreds of thousands of colored oil lamps of 

 all shapes and sizes. 



"I was most fortunate to be able to see this first Dur- 

 bar ; the natives in all their glory, bedecked with pearls 

 and diamonds and rubies and other stones, in great con- 

 trast to the dark European clothing of the guests, the 

 dresses of the ladies and the gay uniforms of some crack 

 English regiment alone relieving the monotony of the 

 European side of the festival. I shall never forget the 

 sullen look of the chiefs, as they seemed to feel the Ni- 

 zam or some of the natives had been slighted, and cer- 

 tainly the mode of procedure of Lord Ripon was enough 

 to irritate the dullest susceptibility. Everything seemed 

 to be done to aggravate the native princes, and it was 

 not a pleasant feeling to know that there were 300,000 

 native troops in a city of the same number of people, all 

 fanatic Mohammedans ready to break out at the least 

 provocation, and to oppose them was one regiment of 

 Lancers and a horse battery of artillery. 



" I was quartered with the Nizam's brother-in-law, 

 who had been educated in Europe and spoke French, 

 and I, being an American, he and the Afghan chief with 

 him did not hesitate to express their feelings towards 

 the English. The Nizam's brother-in-law lived in a pal- 

 ace built in a square with a huge wooden door protected 

 by small field guns and a small garrison ready to defend 

 it from outside attack, half a dozen huge elephants 

 ready to start up and charge any mob that might make 

 themselves unpleasant. 



