[A Journey through the Kingdom of Oude, Volumes I & II by William Sleeman]@TWC D-Link bookA Journey through the Kingdom of Oude, Volumes I & II CHAPTER II 34/46
The trees are now in perfection, but the garden has been neglected; and the bungalow in the centre, in which he resided, is an entire ruin.
He kept a large establishment of men and cattle, for which sixty thousand rupees a-year were regularly charged in the accounts of the manager of the district, through his reign and those of Ghazee-od Deen, Nuseer-od Deen Hyder, Mahomed Allee Shah, and Amjud Allee Shah, and the first year of the reign of his present Majesty, Wajid Allee Shah; though, with the exception of two bullocks and two gardeners, the cattle had all disappeared, and the servants been all discharged some thirty years before. In October last, when six guns were required from the great park of artillery at Lucknow, to be sent out on detached duty with the Gungoor Regiment, an inspection of the draft-bullocks took place, and it was found, that the Court favourite who had charge of the park had made away with no less than one thousand seven hundred and thirty of them, and only twenty could be found to take the guns.
He had been charging for the food of these one thousand seven hundred and thirty for a long series of years.
On mentioning this fact to a late minister, he told me of two facts within his own knowledge, illustrative of these sort of charges.
This same Court favourite, in the reign of Nuseer-od Deen Hyder, in 1835, received charge of sixteen bullocks, of surpassing beauty, which had been presented to the King, and he was allowed to draw, from the Treasury, a rupee a- day, for the food of each bullock. In the reign of Mahomed Allee Shah, his prudent successor, a muster of all the bullocks was called for, and Ghalib Jung, to whom the muster was intrusted, to spite the favourite, called for these sixteen bullocks.
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