BIKANER CITY 219
below the surface, and, though not plentiful, is generally excellent
m quality. There are io Jain monasteries (updsdras) which possess
many old manuscripts, 159 temples, and 28 mosques; but none of
these buildings is particularly striking in appearance. Outside the
city the principal buildings are the Maharaja's new palace called
Lalgarh, a handsome edifice of carved red sandstone, fitted with electric
light and fans ; the Victoria Memorial Club, the new public offices
called Ganga Kacheri, and the Residency.
Bikaner is famous for a white variety of sugar-candy, and for its
woollen shawls, blankets, and carpets. Since the establishment of
a municipality in 1889, the sanitation and lighting of the city have
been greatly improved. The average income of the municipality is
about Rs. 1o,6oo a year, derived mainly from a conservancy tax and
a duty on ghi ; and the average expenditure is about Rs. 31,400, the
deficit being met by the Darbar. A number of metalled roads have
been constructed in the city and suburbs, the principal one from the
new palace to the fort being lit by electric light. The Central jail
is probably the best in Rajputana; it has accommodation for 590
prisoners. In 1904-5 the daily average number of inmates was 300,
the expenditure was RS. 2o,ooo, and the jail manufactures yielded a
net profit of Rs. 9,400. There are seven State schools at the capital,
one of which is for girls; and in 1904-5 the daily average attendance
was 462 boys and 85 girls. The principal educational institution is
the high school, which is affiliated to the Allahabad University. Be-
sides the Imperial Service regimental and the jail hospitals, one general
hospital and two dispensaries for out-patients are maintained, while
a hospital solely for females is under construction. The general
hospital, named Bhagwan Das, after a wealthy Seth of Churu, who
provided the necessary funds for its construction, has accommodation
for 70 in-patients, and is largely attended.
Five miles east of the city is the Devi Kûnd, the cremation tank
of the chiefs of Bikaner since the time of jet Singh (1527-41). On
the sides of this tank are ranged the cenotaphs of fourteen chiefs from
Kalyan Singh to Dangar Singh ; several of them are fine buildings,
with enamel work on the under surface of the domes. The material
is red sandstone from Dalmera and marble from Makrana (in Marwar) ;
on the latter are sculptured in bas-relief the mounted figure of each
chief, while in front of him, standing in order of precedence, are the
wives, and behind and below him the concubines, who mounted his
funeral pile. The date, names of the dead, and in some cases a verse
of Sanskrit are inscribed. The last distinguished sati in Bikaner was
a daughter of the Udaipur ruling family named Dip Kunwar, the wife
of Maharaja Sùrat Singh's second son, Moti Singh, who died in 1825.
Near the tank is a palace for the convenience of the chief and his
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