330 AROUND THE WORLD VIA INDIA. 



fire furnished by the cheapest fuel. He did not have 

 to wait long to assist in the happy incarnation of the 

 soul of one of his faith. In returning to the city we 

 met another funeral procession, chanting the same 

 funeral dirge, but to outward appearances the mourners 

 belonged to a higher caste. They were well dressed 

 and undoubtedly expected to pay the priest liberally 

 for his services. 



"It is a brief period of life that is granted us by 

 Nature, but the memory of a well-spent life never 

 dies." — Cieero. 



TAJ MAHAL. 



The Eoyal Tomb, Taj Mahal, at Agra, is the most 

 costly and the most beautiful mausoleum in the world. 

 It was built by Emperor Shahjehan Jeman for his wife, 

 Bagum. It was commenced in 1629 and completed 

 in 1648. It is the most significant landmark of the 

 power, glory and wealth of Turkish rule in India, and 

 Agra to-day is a very important stronghold of Moham- 

 medanism in India, as one-half of its population of 

 150,000 are Mussulmen. How so much money could 

 be spent in memory of even a beloved empress surpasses 

 all understanding. (Fig- 65.) The entrance to 

 the building which contains the tomb is a specimen 

 of exquisite architectural art. From the entrance a 

 pathway, paved with the purest white marble, leads 

 to the main building, lined by columns of the same 

 material and on each side a row of arbor vitae, the tree 

 so constantly found in Mohammedan cemeteries. 



"Thou must leave thy lands, house and beloved 

 wife, nor shall any of those trees follow thee, 

 their short-lived master, except the hated cy- 

 press." — Horatius. 



The passage between pools and fountains and lovely 

 flowers and shrubbery up to the steps of the magnificent 

 marble building characterized by symmetry and beauty 

 in which the precious ashes of the empress have found 

 their last resting place, is unequaled in the world for 

 its oxquisite architectural design. The real tomb is in 



