366 IN AFRICA 



constructed by a jeweler. It was built by Shah Je- 

 han as a memorial to his wife and for centuries it 

 has stood as a token of his great love for her. 



When I visited it this year I was surprised to find 

 that Lord Curzon had placed within the great mar- 

 ble dome a hanging lamp as a memorial to his own 

 wife. It seemed like a shocking piece of presump- 

 tion much as if the president of France should 

 hang a memorial to one of his own family over the 

 sarcophagus of Napoleon, or a president of the 

 United States should do the same at Washington's 

 tomb at Mount Vernon. It seemed like an inex- 

 pensive way of diverting the most beautiful struc- 

 ture of the world to personal uses. 



And yet later I was compelled to modify this 

 opinion when I saw how much excellent work Lord 

 Curzon did toward restoring the old palaces of 

 Agra and preserving them for future generations. 

 As a reward for this work, perhaps, there may have 

 been some justification in placing a memorial lamp 

 in the dome of the Taj, especially as the lamp is 

 exquisite in workmanship and adds rather than de- 

 tracts from the stately beauty of the interior. But 

 just the same the first verdict of the spectator is 

 that Lord Curzon displayed a colossal egotism in 

 so doing. 



The tourist's beaten track in India was as 

 thronged with American sightseers as the chateau 

 country in France. Lucknow was crowded, Ben- 

 ares was crowded, Calcutta was crowded, and the 

 trains that ran in all directions were crowded. A 



