British valor so complete, that although apparently numerous enough to
have destroyed the little band without difficulty, not a man dared raise
his voice or lift a weapon.

"What are all these wonderful ruins?" Dick asked Captain Hodgson, by whose
side they were riding.

"This is where old Delhi stood. These great buildings are tombs of kings
and other great men; the smaller houses have gone to dust centuries ago,
but these massive buildings will remain for as many centuries more. Wait
till you see Kotub Minar; in my opinion there is nothing in India or in
the world to equal it."

Another half-hour's riding brought them into sight of a magnificent shaft
of masonry, rising far above the plain.

"That is the Minar," Captain Hodgson said; "it is the same word as
minaret. Is it not magnificent?"

The Kotub Minar is an immense shaft tapering gradually toward the top. It
is built in stages, with a gallery round each. Each stage is different. In
one it is fluted with round columns like a huge mass of basalt. In another
the columns are angular; and in the next, round and angular alternately.
The highest stage is plain. The height is very great, and the solidity of
execution and the strength of the edifice are as striking as its height
and beauty.

They were not, however, to go so far as the Kotub, for, questioning some
peasants, they learned that the king had halted at a building called
Durzah-Nizam-oo-deen. The gates were shut, and it was certain that the