97. THE TAJ MAHAL It was a hot day of the hot season in India. The streets were drab, dry, and dusty. The adobe houses were the color of the street, and before we had gone three blocks our carriage matched the houses. A big elephant in from the country puffed dust over his sides and behind his big ears to keep away the spiteful little flies that tortured man and beast alike. Camels, their dun coats laden with the grime of the road, ambled past one after the other, somehow looking out of place in their very own home. As our driver yelled for the right of way, little brown boys, half-clad, tumbled grinning from under the carriage wheels, and tall, agile looking men wrapped their white robes about them and spat in the dust to show their resentment at being hurried, as they grudgingly let us pass. But what cared we for dust and heat? Were we not on our way to the Taj Mahal, most famous of all the famed buildings of the world? Just as we neared the outer gate, a muezzin called the hour of prayer. All the faithful took their dusty prayer rugs, spread them in the dusty street and, facing Mecca, began to pray, each one entirely oblivious of the other. Our driver was among the faithful, and he solemnly climbed down from his high perch and left us to manage as best we could the two big restless fly-bedeviled horses. We found it a little difficult to keep ourselves in a prayerful mood as we toasted in the heat which smote our faces like the dry, hot air from an oven. Prayers over, everyone resumed his work and our driver came back to his high position. A crack of his long whip and we were before the great red sandstone gate where a number of priests and a squad of soldiers guard the entrance to the grounds surrounding the Taj Mahal. As we passed through the superb archway we found ourselves at the top of a broad flight of stairs looking down at the beautiful garden with its great lily pond, bordered by tall, dark trees. The deep shadows of the pond and the green of the foliage seemed to enhance the gleaming whiteness of the white marble structure facing us. No other building in the whole wide world has so often been described, modeled, carved, and painted as has the Taj Mahal. But not a single attempt to reproduce it has been entirely satisfactory. Perhaps it is impossible for any one person, even though he be a genius, to reproduce in words, paint, or plaster, the structure which represents the combined genius of three famous architects. There are a thousand unusual things which might be said about the Taj Mahal. One fact that seems very strange to us is that the entire structure contains no metal, not a metal nail, bolt, or beam. It is made entirely of marble. From the biggest block of marble in the foundation to the tiniest marble leaf in the floral inlay, the parts are held together by cement. Oral work. You have doubtless noticed that the first part of this lesson tells a story. The writer was so interested in what he saw on his way to the Taj Mahal that he just had to tell about that first. Notice that only a few details are given. The elephant using dust for talcum powder; the ungainly camels, the children, the tall, dark men and the carriage driver who left his post of duty to pray. You have doubtless made a journey to some point of interest and have had unusual things happen on the way. Tell the class about your trip, being careful to mention only the things which will be of greatest interest. Written assignment. Write an account of a trip to some place of interest. The following topics may help you recall some journey you have made: 1. A Visit to Washington, D. C. 5. A Trip to Alaska 6. Through the Panama Canal 9. Our Ride to the Bathing Beach 11. A Trip to the Country 12. On Our Way to Camp 98. USES OF PRONOUNS I PERSONAL PRONOUNS A pronoun is used in the same way as a noun, except that a pronoun is seldom used as an exclamation or as a nominative of address. A pronoun is used as: 1. The subject of a verb-"He is going." 4. The object of a preposition-"I walked with him." Notice that the pronoun, when used as the object of a verb or of a preposition, has a different form from that which it has when used as a subject or a predicate nominative. A pronoun has also a form to show possession; as, "It is his book." The pronouns in the foregoing sentences represent the person spoken of. Other pronouns represent the person speaking or the person spoken to. When pronouns represent the person speaking, the person spoken to, or the person or thing spoken of, they are called personal pronouns. If the pronoun represents the person speaking, it is called a pronoun of the first person. The forms are: If the pronoun represents the person spoken to, it is called a pronoun of the second person. The forms are: If the pronoun represents the person or thing spoken of, it is called a pronoun of the third person. Notice that the plural forms of the pronoun he, she, and it are the same; and that the plural forms of you are the same as the singular. II POSSESSIVE FORMS OF PRONOUNS The pronoun does not form its possessive case by using the apostrophe as nouns do How does a pronoun |