her place on the Ganges; that for ages her shrines have been holy to millions of men; that for ages the wisest and purest and best of the Indian race have wandered as pilgrims through her narrow streets and plunged themselves as penitents into the waters to wash away their sins. It is all a dark superstition, but let us honor Benares for the comfort she has given to so many millions of sinful, sorrowing souls. And as the white towers and steps of Benares, glistening in the sunshine, are left behind, the tourists look back upon it with something of the respect and affection that belong to antiquity, and which are certainly not unworthily bestowed upon so renowned, so sacred and so venerable a city. General Grant visited Delhi. Upon his arrival there was a grand reception by troops, and the General and his wife drove to Ludlow Castle, the home of the chief officer Delhi is a beautiful city, as the houses are built for air, and not, as in American cities, several stories high. This will account for the great size of Indian cities- that they are so many miles long and so many broad. There are few cities in the world which have had a more varied and more splendid career than Delhi. It is the Rome of India, and the history of India centres around Delhi. It has no such place as Benares in the religion of the people, but to the Indians it is what Rome in the ancient days was to the Roman Empire. One of its authentic monuments goes back to the fourth century before Christ. Its splendor began with the rise of the Mogul empire, and the splendor of the Moguls is seen in what they built, and the severity of their creed in what they destroyed. Outside of the English section, nothing but the ruins and desolation of many wars and dynasties. From the Cashmere gate to the Rutab, a ride of eleven miles, your road is through monumental ruins - tombs, temples, mausoleums, mosques, in all directions. The hori zon is studded with minarets and domes, all abandoned, and many in ruins. The General and party visited the palace of the Grand Mogul; saw the throne of Aurungzebe-the peacock throne. This was simply a mass of jewels and gold, valued at thirty millions of dollars. Mr. Beresford, in his book on Delhi, says it was called the peacock throne from its having the figures of two peacocks standing behind it, their tails expanded, and the whole so inlaid with sapphires, rubies, emeralds, pearls and other precious stones of appropriate colors, as to represent life. The throne itself was six feet long by four feet broad. It stood on six massive feet, which, with the body, were of solid gold, inlaid with rubies, emeralds and diamonds. It was supported by a canopy of gold, upheld by twelve pillars, all richly emblazoned with costly gems, and a fringe of pearls ornamented the borders of the canopy. A visit to the Kutab tower was worthy of remembrance. This tower ranks among the wonders of India. It is two hundred and thirty-eight feet high, sloping from the base, which is forty-seven feet in diameter, to the summit, which is nine feet. It is composed of five sections or stories, and with every story there is a change in the design. The lower section has twenty-four sides, in the form of convex flutings, alternately semi-circular and rectangu 'ar. In the second section they are circular, the third ang lar, the fourth a plain cylinder, and the fifth partly fluted and partly plain. At each basement is a balcony. On the lower sections are inscriptions in scroll work, reciting, in Arabic characters, the glory of God, verses from the Koran, and the name and achievements of the conqueror who bui the tower. It is believed that, when really complete, with the cupola, it must have been twenty feet higher. Attended by an officer who took part in the siege, the General visited the lines held by the English and the Se poys during the mutiny, when the English Empire in India depended for months upon the valor and endurance of the small army which invested Delhi. On February 28, General Grant arrived at Calcutta. The railroad authorities, not having any intimation of the General's visit, made no arrangements for his reception at the railway station. Only a few gentlemen were present. A company of the Madras Fourteenth Regiment, with band and colors, were drawn up in line on the platform, and at the bridge was posted the European constabulary of the Calcutta police, under the superintendence of Mr. Percy. The gentlemen on the platform were Captain Muir, Aidede-Camp to His Excellency the Viceroy; Mr. Lambert, the Deputy Commissioner of Police; General Litchfield, the American Consul; Mr. R. Macallister, Mr. Frederick Coke, Mr. Manockjee Rustomjee and son, and some mas ters of American ships in the river. When the train ar rived, some difficulty was experienced in finding the ca riage the Generai was in, as it was far down the platform, where the company of soldiers was drawn up. The General, Mrs. Grant and Colonel Grant, and two gentlemen belonging to his staff, then stepped out of a first-class carriage and were received by the gentlemen, one of whom handed to the General a letter from Nawab Abdul Gunny Meah, of Dacca, inviting the General over to his place The party then drove to Government House, in two carriages of the Viceroy, which were in waiting outside the platform. As the party neared Government House, there was a salute of twenty-one guns. In the evening the Viceroy entertained the General and his party at a dinner-party at Government House. About fifty ladies and gentlemen were honored with invitations to meet them. After the toast of the Queen-Empress was drank, Lord Lytton rose, and spoke as follows: "LADIES AND GENTLEMEN-I sincerely believe that |