called Rajahs. They are rulers only in name, but are allowed to live in their palaces, in all their former luxury, so long as they obey English rule. Several of these native princes attended the Columbian Exposition, at Chicago, in 1893, and then made a tour of our country, visiting the principal cities.

With this brief survey of the Indian Empire, we are to visit this ancient land, see a few of its interesting cities, learn something of the manners and customs of its strange peoples, and look with wonder upon its splendid palaces, temples, and tombs.

CHAPTER III.

THE WESTERN GATE OF INDIA.

STATELY Bombay is the second city in size in the whole British Empire, and has been appropriately I called the Western Gate of India. It is exceeded in size by the city of London alone. Its harbor is one of the finest in the world, and well merits the name, said to have been given to it by early Portuguese sailors, of Bom Bahia, or "Beautiful Bay." It is crowded continually with the ships of all lands — China, Japan, Africa, and Australia, as well as England, America, and the countries of the Mediterranean.

The commercial supremacy of Bombay is due largely to its favorable situation. It is the first important port in India reached by steamers from Europe, and, since the opening of the Suez Canal, it has grown rapidly,

until it is now the most important modern city in Asia.

Bombay is situated upon an island about eighteen miles square, not far from the mainland, to which it is joined by a breakwater, or embankment. As we enter the harbor we seem to be approaching an English city. Our attention is attracted at once by the fine docks extending along the city front, the massive warehouses, and the immense public buildings-all reminding us of Liverpool. Because of its commercial importance, Bombay is sometimes called the Liverpool of India. We soon learn that nearly all of these great docks and buildings have been made at an immense cost by the English people, and represent, in some degree, England's interest in the Indian Empire.

Our first experience on landing at Bombay is with the customhouse; and this, except for the presence of so many Hindus in native costume, is not a novelty, but is, in fact, attended with the vexatious confusion and delay common to all customhouses. Leaving the customhouse, we find ourselves within one of the most important and interesting quarters of the city — known as "The Fort." It is in reality the business section, and during business hours is a scene of incessant activity. Here is transacted the immense trade in cotton and other staples for which Bombay is a center.

"Go to The Fort at seven o'clock in the morning," says a recent writer, "and traverse those long, dark, narrow streets; you will find them abandoned, except by the policemen on duty. But about ten o'clock a change comes o'er the spirit of the dream! At the

extremity of the vast esplanade that surrounds it on three sides, appears an army of carriages conveying masters, employees, merchants, and purchasers.

"All direct their course to The Fort; the streets fill, and in a few minutes the silence gives place to the noise and tumult of a great busy town.

The popu

"At four o'clock a fresh change is seen. lation retire from The Fort with greater haste than they used in entering it; the carriages are filled; horsemen ride away; and files of natives, armed with umbrellas and clad in white, pass along the esplanade. Near The Fort stand the mint, the banks, and the town hall.

As we go farther into the city we see, in the English quarter, broad streets; and here, too, are the buildings seen from the deck of our steamer, some of which on closer inspection we find to be noble works of architecture. Among these larger buildings are the post office, the university, and the government buildings. A splendid, white marble statue of the Empress of India, a gift to the city by one of the native princes, stands opposite the post office.

Strange as it may seem, we find in this far-away city of Bombay the largest and costliest railway station in the world. It is the terminus of the Great Indian Peninsular Railway, which, with connecting lines, extends to nearly every part of India.

Among other evidences of modern civilization, we discover, to our surprise, that we can ride in the ordinary street cars - tram cars they are called here — to almost any section of the city. We learn later that

1

the credit for the introduction of the tramway system is due to an American, Mr. George Kittredge, a Boston

man.

Notwithstanding all that has been done here by the English people, Bombay is still a Hindu city. On every hand we see crowds of dark-skinned natives, all wearing immense turbans and dressed in snowy white, but

that laboring people go about their work wearing very little clothing. One article of dress, however, is sure to be worn. This is the turban. It often contains as many yards of cloth as would suffice for a whole American costume. Among the wealthy classes the turban is often made of costly silk.

It is India we have traveled so many hundred miles to see, and so we soon turn aside from our survey of

the great buildings to visit the native quarter, where the many nationalities in this city can be seen to the best advantage. In a short time we find ourselves among the bazaars, as the shops are called. The streets are very narrow and are densely crowded.

The shopkeepers sit crosslegged among their goods, seeming never to be in a hurry about business; but let a customer appear, and they begin with great vigor to recommend their wares. Within these shops we see skilled workmen engaged in manufacturing various useful and ornamental articles. As everything is made by hand, the sight is very novel and interesting. These bazaars are like small rooms in the walls of the houses, and all are open in front. In them we find exposed for sale every sort of article used for food, clothing, household utensils, jewelry, sweetmeats, and a great variety of things new and strange to us.

We cannot go far in Bombay without asking the reason for many strange customs. For instance, we see tattooed upon the forehead of the turbaned Hindu a peculiar mark. This, we learn, is to indicate the particular god he worships, or the caste to which he belongs.

Every Hindu is born into a certain caste, from which he has no power to change. There are four principal castes, the Brahmins, the Warriors, the Merchants, and the Slaves. Below these castes are the Pariahs. These original or principal castes have been subdivided, until there are countless other and minor classes. The poor people do not all belong to the lower castes. The slaves, or Sudras, as they were