the splendor of their
equipage. The trappings of their war steeds were embroidered in silk and
gold; the breastplates and helmets which protected their bodies were
embossed with silver or traced with gold; the scabbards and hilts of
their weapons were encrusted with precious stones; and their mantles
were clasped with fastenings and buckles adorned with jewels. In battle
the body of a dead knight gave much booty to the slayer; the capture of
a canopy enriched the captors; and the defeat of an army and seizure of
its camp gave to the victors a train of spoils.

"For several centuries, the Turkish empire was dominant in the East and
its armies victorious in the field. It was during these centuries of
power that the Moslem rulers gathered the great accumulation of
trophies and spoils of war, valued at untold millions, which we find
stored in the rooms of this marble edifice."

After leaving the Treasury we were led by the official conductor past
the building in which the mantle, sword, and green banner of the great
founder of Mohammedanism are treasured. These personal relics of the
Prophet are considered by the Moslems too sacred to be gazed upon by
infidel eyes.

We tarried awhile in the Bagdad Kiosk, a white marble palace noted for
its interior wall decoration of blue tiling, beautiful doors inlaid with
mother of pearl, and handsome furniture inlaid with inscriptions of
silver, and thence proceeded to a marble pavilion in which, as guests of
the absent Sultan, we partook of refreshments. These refreshments,
consisting of Turkish coffee in tiny cups and Turkish preserves on small
plates, were brought to us by the servants of the Sultan. We stood
awhile on the portico in the rear of the pavilion and admired the
magnificent view of the harbor with its shipping, and the surrounding
shores covered with buildings.

Leaving the portico and its panoramic view with regret, we turned to the
Museum of Antiquities, intending to inspect hastily the relics of
ancient times which it contains. The collection, however, proved to be
much more interesting than we had expected, so, instead of hurriedly
passing through the building, we lingered around the sarcophagi and
studied the hunting and battle scenes which were exquisitely carved on
the polished marble of the exteriors of the old stone coffins. The
most beautiful of these sarcophagi, twenty-one in number, have been
discovered within the past thirty or forty years at Sidon in Syri