104 SHAH JAHAN and he would then be weighed, according to Moghul custom, in scales against the precious metals; bowls of costly gems were poured over him, and all these riches, to the value of a million and a half, were ordered to be distributed among the people. The emperor and the court had reached a pitch of luxury that fostered 1 SHAH JAHAN 8 PALACE AT AURA. effeminacy. In his youth and early manhood Prince Khurram had been a brave soldier, a brilliant general, a prudent counsellor, and a stern and resolute governor. As he grew old he abandoned all active pursuits, gave himself up more and more to pleasure, and suffered himself to be managed by his children. His adored wife, the lady of the Taj, had died in 1631, in giving birth to their fourteenth child, and 8hah Jahan, essen-
