In a retired part of Kannoge, I was induced to visit the remains of an immense building[12], expecting the gratification of a fine prospect from its towering elevation; my surprise, however, on entering the portal drove from my thoughts the first object of my visit.

The whole building is on a large scale, and is, together with the gateway, steps, roof, pillars, and offices, composed entirely of stone:  from what I had previously conceived of the ancient Jewish temples, this erection struck me as bearing a strong resemblance.  It appears that there is not the slightest portion of either wood or metal used in the whole construction; and, except where some sort of cement was indispensable, not a trace of mortar is to be discovered in the whole fabric.  The pillars of the colonnade, which form three sides of the square, are singular piles of stone, erected with great exactness in the following order:—­

A broad block of stone forms the base; on the centre is raised a pillar of six feet by two square, on this rests a circular stone, resembling a grindstone, on which is placed another upright pillar, and again a circular, until five of each are made to rest on the base to form a pillar; the top circulars or caps are much larger than the rest; and on these the massy stone beams for the roof are supported.  How these ponderous stones forming the whole roof were raised, unacquainted as these people ever have been with machinery, is indeed a mystery sufficient to impress on the weak-minded a current report amongst the Natives, that the whole building was erected in one night by supernatural agency, from materials which had formerly been used in the construction of a Hindoo temple, but destroyed by the zeal of the Mussulmauns soon after their invasion of Hindoostaun.

The pillars I examined narrowly, and could not find any traces of cement or fastening; yet, excepting two or three which exhibit a slight curve, the whole colonnade is in a perfect state.  The hall, including the colonnade, measures one hundred and eighty feel by thirty, and has doubtless been, at some time or other, a place of worship, in all probability for the Mussulmauns, there being still within the edifice a sort of pulpit of stone evidently intended for the reader, both from its situation and construction; this has sustained many rude efforts from the chisel in the way of ornament not strictly in accordance with the temple itself; besides which, there are certain tablets engraved in the Persian and Arabic character, which contain verses or chapters from the Khoraun; so that it may be concluded, whatever was the original design of the building, it has in later periods served the purposes of a mosque.

In some parts of this building traces exist to prove that the materials of which it has been formed originally belonged to the Hindoos, for upon many of the stones there are carved figures according with their mythology; such stones, however, have been placed generally upside down, and attempts to deface the graven figures are conspicuous,—­they are all turned inside, whilst the exterior appearance is rough and uneven.  It may be presumed they were formerly outward ornaments to a temple of some sort, most likely a ’Bootkhanah’[13] (the house for idols).