LUCKNOW 75 



gets is of dust everywhere on the trees, on the 

 buildings, and especially on the natives. One must 

 go farther East to find Kipling's " cleaner, greener 

 land," and as for the "neater, sweeter maiden/' the 

 Punjabi lady can hardly claim to share that dis- 

 tinction with her Burmese sister. But Lucknow as 

 a city is very much more imposing. The richest 

 Mohammedans of India live there, and they have 

 built palaces which, though monstrosities of archi- 

 tecture, show that lavish wealth has been put into 

 their construction. The city, too, is broadly laid out 

 and is interspersed with many charming parks and 

 gardens. 



I reached Lucknow after a single day at Cawn- 

 pore, and went to a hotel which though second-rate 

 was the best I had yet seen in India. On the follow- 

 ing day, January i, was celebrated the coronation 

 of the new King, Edward the Seventh being pro- 

 claimed Emperor of India amidst a mighty salute of 

 guns and the stirring singing of the national anthem 

 by thousands of troops and civilians gathered on the 

 great parade-ground. During the singing an Eng- 

 lishman standing near me noticed a native gentle- 

 man who, with his family, although in western dress 

 and wearing no turban, had failed to uncover. With 

 a " Why the devil don't you remove your hat, sir," 

 he raised his stick and sent the man's bowler flying 



