. The Indian empire: history, topography, geology, climate, population, chief cities and provinces; tributary and protected states; military power and resources; religion, education, crime; land tenures; staple products; government, finance, and commerce . , who was conveyed to his family at Lahore. The success ofthe expedition furnished a fair pretext for the renewal of the inhospitable demand for thegreat diamond; and the king vainly endeavoured to elude the sacrifice, by professing hiswillingness to fulfil the promise made by his wife, when the restoration of his territoryshould enable him
. The Indian empire: history, topography, geology, climate, population, chief cities and provinces; tributary and protected states; military power and resources; religion, education, crime; land tenures; staple products; government, finance, and commerce . , who was conveyed to his family at Lahore. The success ofthe expedition furnished a fair pretext for the renewal of the inhospitable demand for thegreat diamond; and the king vainly endeavoured to elude the sacrifice, by professing hiswillingness to fulfil the promise made by his wife, when the restoration of his territoryshould enable him to redeem the coveted prize. Runjeet, impatient of delay, becameincensed at each obstacle to the gratification of his avarice, and at once threw off themask: he imprisoned his unfortunate guests, threatened them with severe and irksometreatment, and, as a commencement, kept the whole of them without food for severaldays. Perceiving resistance to be useless. Shah Shuja at length yielded, stipulating fora sum of money and a mouths time to pay off the Joan on the diamond, and recoverpossession of it. This was promptly acceded to by the wary Seik, who well knew howeasily he could repossess himself of money advanced to a prisoner : he therefore produced. M &^^ M ^ &tH [kb F THE INDIAN EMPIRE ILLUSTRATED. 41 the two lacs required without hesitation, and a day was appointed for the surrender ofthe Koh-i-noor. The day arrived; Shah Shuja, the representative of a line of kings, sat in dignifiedsilence opposite his avaricious and false friend, whose family, raised to power by a freakof fortune, could only trace their descent from thieves. It is said that for a whole hourthe unfortunate monarch gazed impressively upon the robber-chief, without speaking,and that Runjeet Sing, whom this mute eloquence had failed to move, at lengthdesired somebody acquainted with the Persian language to remind his majesty of thepurpose for which they had met. The Shah, without opening his lips, spoke with hi
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