hung with gold brocades, and flowered satin canopies fastened with
red silken cords were raised over the whole apartment. The floor was
covered entirely with the most magnificent silk carpets. A gorgeous
tent, larger than the hall, to which it was fastened, and supported
by poles overlaid with silver, was pitched outside. Every compartment
of the arcades round the courtyard was decorated by one of the great
nobles, at his own expense, with gold brocades and costly carpets,
each one vying with the other to attract the attention of the Emperor,
to whom, on such occasions, an offering of gold or jewels, more or less
valuable according to the pay and rank of the giver, must be presented.

JAHANGIR'S CISTERN.--Just in front of the Diwan-i-am is a great stone
cistern, cut out of a single block, with steps inside and out, known
as Jahangir's _Hauz_, a bowl or bath-tub. There is a long Persian
inscription round the outer rim; the only part now decipherable shows
that it was made for Jahangir in 1019 A.H. (A.D. 1611). It is nearly 5
feet in height and 8 feet in diameter at the top. Its original place
is said to have been one of the courts of the Jahangiri Mahal.

THE TOMB OF MR. COLVIN.--Close by Jahangiri's _Hauz_ is the grave of
Mr. John Russell Colvin, the Lieutenant-Governor of the North-West
Provinces, who died in the Fort during the disturbances of 1857.

The Inner Mina Bazar.

Before entering the private apartments of the palace, which are at
the back of the Diwan-i-am, we may pass through the gateway on the
left of the courtyard, and enter a smaller one, which was the private
bazar where merchants sold jewellery, silks, and costly brocades
to the ladies of the zanana, who were seated in the marble balcony
which overlooks it (Plate IV.). A narrow staircase gave access to
the balcony from the courtyard.

We may well believe that a considerable part of the ladies' time
was spent in this quarter of the palace. Sometimes the Great Mogul
and his court would amuse themselves by holding a mock fair, in
which the prettiest of the nobles' wives and daughters would act
as traders, and the Emperors and the Begums would bargain with
them in the most approved bazar fashion. The Emperor would haggle
for the value of an anna, and the ladies would feign indignation,
scold his Majesty roundly, and tell him to go where he could suit
himself better. "The Begums betray, if possible, a still greater
anxiety to be served cheaply; high