olridges.

Abbas-Meerza was evidently a Persian, or the son of one; for he was clothed
in the full costume of that country. He wore a rich robe, reaching to his
ankles, with a broad silk belt around his waist. His cap, of equally costly
material, was a tall cylinder, with the top slanting down to the left side,
as though it had been cut off. He spoke English as fluently as the general.
He invited the party to step to a certain point, and view the mosque as a
whole.

The wall of the esplanade was a continued series of pointed arches, with a
handsome frieze above it. On the elevated platform was a colonnade of the
same arches on each side, with a pillared tower at each corner, interrupted
only at the grand entrances. It looked as though one might walk entirely
around the vast structure in the shade of this colonnade.

Within the enclosure could be seen three domes, the one in the centre
overtopping the other two, two lofty minarets, with small domes at the
summit, supported by several columns, and an immense pointed arch leading
into the great mosque. The whole edifice is built of red sandstone. The
visitors mounted one of the staircases, and entered a court paved with
marble tiles. They walked around the esplanade under the arches of the
colonnade, or cloisters as some call them, and finally entered the mosque
itself. The interior was very simple in its style, but very beautiful. The
roof, pavement, pillars, and walls were of white marble, ornamented with
carvings in the stone. Slabs of black marble presented sentences to the
praise of God, and in memory of Shah Jehan, who was the founder of the
mosque.

"Formerly no person not a Mussulman was permitted to enter this mosque,"
said Sir Modava, while the general and his host were engaged in their
devotions; "but for more than thirty years it has been open to all. From
the top of one of the minarets a very fine view of the surrounding country
can be obtained; but the ascent is by a very narrow flight of circular
stairs, two hundred in number. He advised Dr. Hawkes and Uncle Moses not to
attempt it."

A venerable mollah was found, who put half a dozen of the party in the way
of going up; and they reported the view as worth the labor and fatigue. The
aged priest then proposed to show them the relics of the mosque; and a fee
was paid to him, and to the man who unlocked a door for their admission.
The mollah produced a small golden box, from which he took a silver case.
Mu