"That's over a thousand pounds in English sterling."
"Is that a large amount in your king's coinage, Ambassador?"
"It's a substantial sum of money."
"Over the following year, during the evenings, His Majesty will call the poor of Agra to come before him and he will give them the money with his own hand."
"How far will nine thousand rupees go to feed all the poor of Agra?"
"I don't understand your question, Ambassador?"
"Nothing. I . . . I was just wondering if perhaps King James should do the same."
"It is an old Moghul tradition here." Nadir Sharif turned back to the scales, where Arangbar was calling for the next weighing. "But watch. Now he will be weighed against gold mohurs."
The pile of bags was mounting, and again Arangbar's platform slowly began to rise into the air.
"There are twelve weighings in all. You will see. After the gold coins, he is weighed against gold cloth that has been given to him on his birthday by the women of the zenana. Then bags of jewels that were contributed by the governors of India's provinces, carpets and brocades from Agra nobles, and so forth. He is also weighed against silk, linen, spices, and even ghee and grains, which are distributed later to the Hindu merchant caste."