Delhi.

A Ruin Near Delhi.

Perhaps the reader may here knit his brow and say below his breath, "Who were the Great Moguls?" For, owing to the busy lives that we have led since leaving school and college, we possibly remember of them now only what Thomas Moore told us in his poem "Lalla Rookh." Few things are easier to remember, however, than an outline of the Mogul Empire. Only three great heroes in that dynasty need to be recalled, - Baber, the Founder; Akbar, the Ruler; and Shah Jehan, the Builder. No matter for the others. These names are like the three stars in Orion's belt. Who, save astronomers, ever care to trace the rest of that great constellation in the vault of night? Baber, who was born almost contemporaneously with the discovery of America by Columbus, invaded and conquered a large part of India in 1525. His throne was the saddle, his canopy the sky. He was a Mohammedan, - a true specimen of those followers of the Prophet who had already built the Mosque of Cordova in Spain, wrested from Christian hands the sepulchre of Jesus, and placed the crescent on the dome of in Stamboul. He would have been remarkable in any age, for with the talents of a warrior and administrator he combined fondness for literature, music, and architecture. He even wrote his own biography in memoirs which have recently been translated into English. They are extremely interesting, for in them Baber tells without restraint the secrets of his heart. The grandson of this conqueror was Akbar, one of the most successful men that ever occupied a throne. A study of his life astonished me. His was the task not merely to extend his Indian Empire, but to unite the various nationalities of which it was composed. This he accomplished grandly, and, though he was a contemporary of Queen Elizabeth and Henry IV, the romantic story of his victories, his statesmanship, and private life, reads like the history of Julius Caesar. He was a handsome man, famed for his physical strength and captivating manners. He was affectionate and loyal to his friends, and ready to forgive his enemies; yet was a most successful warrior and a determined ruler. His breadth of mind was extraordinary. Although born and bred a Moslem, he nevertheless employed, without distinction, both Hindus and Mohammedans, and had among his friends the followers of Brahma, Buddha, Zoroaster, and Jesus. His motto was: "There is good in every creed. Let us adopt what is good and discard the remainder."

An Ancient Fortress.

The Mausoleum Of Akbar.

Tomb Of Akbar, Agra.

When he was dead, men realized with astonishment that during his long reign of forty-nine years India had been exempt from foreign invasions, that universal peace had been established, and that the men of every sect had lived and worshiped in security.

The tomb of Akbar, fifteen miles from Agra, is a noble edifice of richly-tinted sandstone and white marble, combining beauty, strength, and majesty. This was, in fact, the style of architecture that Akbar loved. For, in addition to all else, this emperor built the most imposing structures to be found in India. Not the most beautiful structures: that was the work of Shah Jehan, the builder of the Taj Mahal. The warlike Akbar built gigantic fortresses. His grandson reared within them the most elaborate palaces this earth has seen. One worked in granite, the other in alabaster; -the genius of the first was akin to that of Michelangelo; that of the second possessed the inspiration of a Raphael.

Old Indian Shrines.

On the fifth and loftiest story of this mausoleum stands the cenotaph of Akbar, his body being as usual buried in the crypt below. This upper story is a courtyard of white marble. In the centre (its only canopy the sapphire sky) is a sarcophagus of alabaster, richly carved and bearing an appropriate epitaph. Three feet from this rises a marble pedestal, in the top of which is a slight cavity. It gave me an idea of the magnificence of those old days that I had never grasped before, to learn that here, so far above the usual sight of men, once rested that most famous jewel in the world, - the Kohinoor diamond; now in the possession of one, who, though she has never set foot in India, is, nevertheless, the present Empress of the Mogul Empire - Queen Victoria.