to this pompous figure by a connecting ribbon of silver is a peculiar arrangement carried by attendants, and an object of great reverence to all. It is a metal dish, partly screened by profuse decorations of flowers, tinsel, and crimson cloth, and holding holy water, brought direct from the sacred stream of the Ganges. Following this come the Court ladies, two and two, rivalling a chain of butterflies' wings in the quaint cut of their costumes and the vividness of the colouring. The leading couple are clad in a piercing emerald green, their voluminous satin trousers—each leg of which would have exceeded a crinoline of the "forties" in itself—draped partially by gauze over-jackets flashing with tinsel. Each carries a smaller red, long-handled umbrella, but kept furled out of deference to the leading lady at the front. These are followed by a rainbow of bright colours, pale blue succeeded by vivid carmine, then pure white, and after this a deep red, with a royal purple behind, more green—a turquoise—and so the colours ripple up the line—a double string of faceted jewels, the sunlight scintil-
