10. Volume 1 — part 10

Kutbu-d din Mubarak Shah then ascended the throne in the begin- ning of 716 h. (1316 a.d.). After displacing his brother, ’Umar, he sent to demand Dewal Rani from his brother Khizr Khan, who returned an indignant refusal. Yexed at this opposition, and determined to rid himself of all rivals, the wretch Mubarak Shah sent a ruffian named Shadi to Gwalior, to murder the three princes Khizr Khan, Shadi Khan, and ’Umar. After this butchery had been committed, the garrison violated the ladies of their households. The devoted Dewal Rani, in clinging to the body of her husband, was wounded in the face and had her hands cut off by the assassins. Not long after the murder of the princes, the villains went into the zenana and murdered all the females. All the members of the royal family were buried in the Bijymandar bastion of the fort of Gwalior. The conclusion.

“ Prince Khizr Khan then ordered a confidential servant to place me near the narrative of his love, without attracting the attention of the bystanders. When my eyes fell on the heart-exciting tale, tears fell from them involuntarily. I immediately assented with all my heart, to the wish of the prince, the apple of the eye. My head was exalted by the honour of my selection, and I retired with the narrative in my hand.”

When I came to examine it from beginning to end, I found most of the names (words ?) in it were Hindi. I pondered a long- time with myself how I might join the coarse cloth with the fine, but as some kind of junction was requisite, I thought that no wise man would regard a necessity as a fault. But I was in error, for if you ponder the matter well, you will not find the Hindi words (language) inferior to the Parsi. It is inferior to the Arabic, which is the chief of all languages. The prevalent languages of Bai and Bam, I know, from reflecting well on the matter, to be inferior to the Hindi. Arabic, in speech, has a separate province, and no other language can combine with it. The Parsi is deficient in its vocabu- lary, and cannot be tasted without Arabic condiments ; as the latter is pure, and the former mixed, you might say that one was the soul, the other the body. With the former nothing can enter into com- bination, but with the latter, every kind of thing. It is not proper to place the cornelian of Yemen on a level with the pearl of Dari.

“ The language of Hind is like the Arabic, inasmuch as neither admits of combination. If there is grammar and syntax in Arabic, there is not one letter less of them in the Hindi. If you ask whether there are the sciences of exposition and rhetoric, I answer that the Hindi is in no way deficient in those respects. Whoever possesses these three languages in his store, will know that I speak without error or exaggeration.

“ If I were with reason and justice to speak to you of the merits of Hindi, you would object to what I advance ; and if I were to swear to the truth of my assertions, who knows whether you would credit me or not ? It is true, I know so little, that my acquaintance with it is but as a drop in the ocean ; yet from tasting it, I am well aware that the fowl of the desert is deprived of the waters of the Tigris. He who is far from the Ganges and Hindustan can boast himself of the Nile and Tigris. When a man sees only the night- ingale of China in a garden, how does he know what the parrot of Hindustan is ? 0 ° 0 He who has placed only guavas and quinces in his throat, and has never eaten a plantain, will say it is like so much jujube. The Khurasani who considers every Hindi a fool will think even a pan leaf of no more value than grass. A wise and

just man, and lie who has travelled through several countries ob- servantly, will believe these assertions of Kliusru ; for if the con- versation should turn on Hind or Earn, he will speak fairly, and not without ground asseverate his own opinion, like the man who said that Basra was superior to Syria. And if any one chooses to speak with partiality, no doubt he will be ready to class my (Indian) mangoes below (foreign) figs. They call Hind black, and that is true enough, yet it is the largest country1 in the world. You should look on Hindustan as Paradise, with which it is in fact connected, for, if not, why did Adam and the peacock come to adorn it from that blissful spot ?

[‘■'The Nine Heavens (or Spheres).” This is one of the separate poems of Amir Kliusru, written, as he tells us, in his old age. Its historical notices relate to the reign of Kutbu-d din Mubarak Shah, in whose time it was written.”]

Praise of God and the Prophet, and of the author’s spiritual teacher, Nizamu-d din Aulya. Panegyric on the reigning monarch, Mubarak Shah. The author tells us that he was more than sixty years old when he wrote this poem, and had already written poems on the three preceding monarchs : Kai-kubad, respecting whom he had written the Kiranu-s Sadain ; Jalalu-d din Firoz, on whom he had written Kasidas and Masnavis ; ’Alau-d din Khilji, to whom he had dedi- cated his Khamsa, and addressed panegyrical poems.

The accession of Kutbu-d din Mubarak Shah on Sunday, the 24th2 of Muharram, 716 h.3 (April 18th, 1316 a.d.). After remaining in Dehli for a year, he proceeded to the Dekhin for the conquest of Deogir, at the head of a large army. His first march was to Tilpat, about seven kos from Dehli, and, after a march of two months, he

1 A play upon sawad, meaning both “ black ” and “ country.”

3 This is the date given in the MS. used, but in some loose extracts the date is 717 (April 9th, 1317 a.d.). See supra pp. 211 and 555.

arrived on the borders of Deogir, where he received the submission of all the rdis and rdnas of those parts, except Raghu, the deputy and minister of the late Rai Ram Deo. Raghu, on learning the approach of the king, fled to the hills in open rebellion.

Khusru Khan was detached with a powerful army to repel him, and a royal tent accompanied, in order to do honour to the expedi- tion. One of his officers, named Katlagh, the chief huntsman, seized some of Raghu’s adherents, from whom it was ascertained that he had nearly 10,000 Hindu cavalry under him. Khusru Khan attacked him in a defile, and completely routed him. “The Hindus, who had pretended to independence, were either slain, captured, or put to flight. Raghu himself was most severely wounded ; his body was covered with blood ; his lips emitted no breath. He entered some cave in a ravine, which even a snake could scarcely penetrate. Khusru Khan, with thanks to God after his glorious victory, looked towards the royal tent and kissed the earth. He made over the charge of the army to the ’Ariz, and returned expeditiously to the seat of the throne, for his majesty had urgently summoned him. The king received him with a hundred flattering distinctions, and raised him to the highest honours. May his good fortune always so prevail, that he may bestow benefactions upon his slaves ! ”

Khusru Khan is despatched for the conquest of Arangal ( Warangal), in Tilang,1 with an army consisting partly of Hindus. “ The king said, ‘Turn your face to Tilang to demand jizya.”’ “The royal pavilion was pitched at the end of the street, and on each side were ranged the other tents.” The army advanced march by march, and the Hindus committed as many ravages as the Turks. Wherever the army marched, every inhabited spot was desolated. “ Arangal had two walls, the centre of mud, the inner of stone.” “ When the army arrived there the Hindu inhabitants concealed themselves in the hills and jungles.” “The Hindu horsemen of the rdi vaunted themselves in every direction that they were as bold as lions, and the heralds, whom they call barcls,2 surrounded them, singing their

1 There is no account of this expedition in Ferishta.

praises. The singers kept on resounding the pecans which they use in the wars of their rais. The Brahmans, after their own fashion, offered up their prayers, accompanied by the voices of the minstrels.” “The chiefs, in appearance, were valiant, but trembling in their hearts. Hindus made an attack upon Hindus, to try their respective strength. If the Turks had charged, they would have annihilated the enemy, for, from time immemorial, the Hindus have always been the prey of the Turks.”

The army encamped three bow-shots from Arangal, and the Khan ascended an eminence from which he might examine the fort. “On all sides of it, for the distance of two mils, there were fountains and gardens, calculated to gratify those who are in search of pleasure. All its fruits were mangoes, plantains, and jacks ; not cold apples or icy quinces. All the flowers which he saw were Hindu ; the chamjpa, keora, and jasmine. When the great Khan witnessed all this, he prayed Almighty God for assistance, and then returned to his camp.”

A skirmish described. “The Hindu horsemen were more than 10,000 ; the foot soldiers were beyond all calculation. The horse- men on our side were altogether only 300, or even less.” Notwith- standing these disproportionate numbers, the Hindus were completely routed, when great booty in jewels and gold fell into the hands of the victors. “ They pursued the enemy to the gate, and set every- thing on fire. They burnt down all those gardens and groves. That paradise of idol-worshippers became like hell. The fire-worshippers of Bud were in alarm, and flocked round their idol.”

In the morning Khusru Khan attacked the outer wall, and obtained possession of part of it, when the Hindus saliied from the inner fortress in order to repel the Musulmans. The Khan ordered many of his horsemen to dismount, and made such a vigorous onset that he seized the principal bastion of the outer fortress, which was crowded with Hindus, many of whom were slain, and many taken prisoners ; among the latter was Antil Mahta, the commander of the Bai’s forces.

Next morning, the Khan advanced to the ditch and besieged the inner fortress. He ordered Khwaja Haji, the ’A'riz, “to distribute the army to the proper posts, to dig the trenches, and spring a mine,

the length of which was equal to 150 yards at that time.” When the rdi witnessed these bold advances, he became alarmed, and “ sent wise messengers with expressions of his submission and duty to the powerful one, saying, ‘If I have wealth, or elephants, or country, it is mine only through the protection of the king. I will give all my wealth, my gold, my elephants, if I am allowed to escape with my life.’ When the great Khan heard that message, he thanked Almighty Giod for his victory.” The Khan replied : “ The Khalifa who sent me to this country ordered me to demand three conditions from the Hindus : First, that they should make profession of our faith, in order that its saving tidings may be proclaimed throughout the world ; second, that, in the event of refusal, a capitation tax should be levied; the third is, if compliance with these demands be refused, to place their heads under the sword. It is my recom- mendation that the rdi come forth and place his face upon the ground, in front of the royal pavilion.”

The rdi, in apprehension of his life, refused to leave the fort, but sent jewels, clothes, sandal, gold, horses, elephants, and other valuables to the Khan, by way of jizya. There were one hundred elephants and twelve thousand horses. The rapacious Khan, how- ever, was not satisfied with all this, but sent a message to intimate that what had been sent was but “ a leaf in the garden of the rai’s wealth;” he therefore enjoined him to send everything in his pos- session, or to prepare for war. The rdi solemnly affirmed that he had nothing left of all his former wealth, “ As I am rdi and have a regard for my own fair name, I would not tell a lie, which would not obtain credence.”

To this the Khan replied that if the rdi were speaking truth, he could have no objection to submit to an ordeal. “He should thrust his hand into hot oil, and if he sustain no injury from the heat, no suspicion will exist against him.” To this the rdi would not consent, but on the demand of the Khan, made over some of his relations as hostages, and wrote a letter, saying, “ If any concealed treasure should hereafter be discovered, the fault will be with me, and I am responsible. This written promise soon arrived from Arangal, and it was stamped with the seal of Mahadeo.”

The Khan then received from the rdi, five districts ( mauza ’) of his

country ( akta ), an annual tribute of “ more than a hundred strong elephants, as large as demons, 12,000 horses, and gold and jewels and gems beyond compute. The rdi assented to the whole, with heart and soul, and wrote an engagement to this effect and confirmed it.” He then made a long speech, entreating the consideration of the king, in the course of which he observes, that “ the relation between Turk and Hindu is that of a lion and antelope, and the Turks, when- ever they please, can seize, buy, or sell any Hindu.” The Khan relinquished all the ceded and conquered territory, except “ Badr- kot, a fort as high as heaven, which the Khan had an object in demanding.”

The rdi then ascended the rampart of the fort of Arangal, and turning his face towards the royal pavilion, he bowed to the earth. “ Thus did he for three days, out of respect to the pale of religion ; he turned towards the pavilion, and kissed the earth. He then again, tremblingly, addressed the commander in these words : ‘ I hold from the late Sultan several emblems of military pomp and dignity. What order is there respecting them ? shall I continue to use them, or return them to you ? ’ The Khan replied, ‘ As these were bestowed on you by the late Sultan, why should the reigning one wish to take them back from you ? But it is right to pay due respect to his majesty, by sending the canopy ( durbdsh ) and standard to the royal pavilion, in order that the former may be replaced by a new one, as the beams of the former sun no longer shine.’ ” The rdi accordingly returned the insignia, which were lowered before the empty pavilion of the king, and were then returned to the rdi, with the standard unfurled, and a new canopy.

Khusru Khan, after this ceremony, returned in triumph to the king, by whom he had been summoned in haste. But before his arrival, Mubarak Shah had departed from Deogir, towards Dehli, in the month of Jumada-1 akhir, 718 h. (August 5th, 1318 A.D.).

When Mubarak Shah arrived at Dehli, he gave orders for the building of a Jdmi' Masjid, by the most skilful architects, and when that was completed, he gave orders for completing the city and fort of Dehli, which his father, ’Alau-d din, had left in an unfinished state.

Praises of Hindustan. — Its Climate. — Animals. — Learning and Languages.

“This is a well-known fact, that the language spoken by con- querors who have established themselves, when it has been dissem- inated amongst people, great and small, has become the common language of the country. Just as in Baghdad, where originally but little Persian was spoken, when the Khalifa’s dynasty was over- thrown, the Parsis established themselves in it. Thenceforward, everything that was Arab, became subject to Pars! rules, and the herd acquired respect for the language of the shepherds. The city, which was called Baghdad in Arabic, became converted in its first syllable into Baglichadad. Turk! became just as prevalent, when the Turks conquered the country, and the language of the chiefs bore fruit in a new soil.”

“ Hind has observed the same rule in respect to language. In olden time it was Hindui. When the tribes, great and small, became intermixed, every one, bad and good, learnt Parsi, and all the other languages which existed never moved from their bounds. As God had taught them all, it is not proper to call them all bad. With the exception of Arabic, which, in consequence of the Kuran being written in it, is the most excellent and eloquent of languages, all the tongues differ from one another, and each one has some peculiar merit of its own. This one exclaims, * My wine is better than all others.’ Every one loses himself in his own cup, and no one admits that his own wine is vinegar. In short, it would be useless to enter into further discussion respecting Parsi, Turki, and Arabic.”

“As I was born in Hind, I may be allowed to say a word respecting its languages. There is at this time in every pro- vince a language peculiar to itself, and not borrowed from any other — Sindi, Lahori, Kashmiri, the language of Dugar,1 Dhur Samundar, Tilang, Gujarat, Ma’bar, Gaur, Bengal, Oudh, Dehli and its environs. These are all languages of Hind, which from ancient times have been applied in every way to the common pur- poses of life.

1 This may be considered the country between Lahore and Kashmir. Though now used by us in a more restricted sense, the natives assign to it wider limits.

“ But there is another language more select than the others, which all the Brahmans use. Its name from of old is Sahaslcrit, and the common people know nothing of it. A Brahman knows it, but Brahmani women do not understand a word of it. It bears a re- semblance to Arabic in some respects, in its permutations of letters, its grammar, its conjugations, and polish. They have four books in that language, which they are constantly in the habit of repeating. Their name is Bed. They contain stories of their gods, but little advantage can be derived from their perusal. Whatever other stories and fables they have, is contained in habits, parwdnas, and namahs. The language possesses rules for composition and eloquence. The lauguage is very precious, inferior to Arabic, but superior to Dari ; and though the latter is certainly sweet and melodious, yet even in that respect this language does not yield to it.”

Mention of some of the powers of sorcery and enchantment possessed by the inhabitants of India. “ First of all, they can bring a dead man to life. If a man has been bitten by a snake and is rendered speechless, they can resuscitate him after even six months. They put him on a river which flows towards the Fast, and he speeds on his voyage as swift as lightning. When he arrives on the borders of Kamru, an experienced witch instils life into him.”

“ Another mode is this, and the power is possessed by the Brah- mans as a secret ; namely, that they can bring a man to life after his head has been cut off. I will tell you another story, if you will not be alarmed at it, that a demon gets into one’s head and drinks as much wine as satisfies him, and whatever he utters in this state, is sure to become true. Another is, that through their art they can procure longevity by diminishing the daily number of their ex- pirations of breath. A jogi who could restrain his breath in this way lived in an idol to an age of more than three hundred and fifty years.”

“ Another process is, that they can tell future events by the breath of their nostrils, according as the right or left orifice is more or less open. They can also inflate another’s body by their own breath. In the hills on the borders of Kashmir there are many such people. Another is, that they know how to convert themselves into wolves, dogs, and cats. They can also extract by their power

the blood from one’s body and infuse it again. They can also, even while moving, affect a man, whether old or young, with bodily disease. They can also make a body float from shore to shore. They can also fly like fowls in the air, however improbable it may seem. They can also, by putting antimony on their eyes, make themselves invisible at pleasure. Those only can believe all this who have seen it with their own eyes.”

“ Though this be all sorcery and incantation, yet there is one marvel which you must acknowledge to be fact, that is, that a woman in her senses will burn herself on the funeral pile of her husband, and that a man will burn himself for his idol or for his master. Though this be not legitimate in Islam, yet see what a great achieve- ment it is ! If this practice were lawful amongst us, pious devotees might surrender their lives to the air.”

When Khusru Khan was returning to the king after the defeat of Raghu, he received intelligence on the road that Rana Harpal had rebelled, and taken up a position in the hills at the head of a power- ful army. The Khan went in pursuit of him, and was vigorously attacked two or three times by the rebel, who, in the end being desperately wounded, was taken captive, and his army put to flight. He was brought, bound hand and foot, before the king, who gave orders that he should be put to death ; after which his body was delivered to his attendants to be burnt. “ When his way had been taken towards hell by the sword, the king gave his body to the other hellites, that this great infidel and little Satan might become one of its chief ornaments of their kingdom. The hellites who had accom- panied him out of regard and had fought by his side, also afforded food to the flames of the infernal regions. Those hellites did not desire that he should be burnt by himself alone, so they accompanied him into the flames, and hell was gratified by that sacrifice.”

In the beginning of the month of Rajab, 718 h., the king, on his return towards Delili from Deogir, crossed the Nerbadda in a boat.

“ Nerbadda is a river which flows very rapidly, and is so deep that it cannot be fathomed. Swifter than an arrow, and about two bow-shots broad from shore to shore, even an expert swimmer dare not attempt to cross it.” On the day of the passage of the river, the captured elephants arrived in the royal camp from Telingana.

Admonitions and precepts for kings, chiefs, soldiers, and the common people.

“ I have heard a story that, in Dehli, about five or six hundred years ago, there was a great rdi, called Anangpal. At the entrance of his palace he had placed two lions, sculptured in stone. He fixed a bell by the side of the two lions, in order that those who sought justice might strike it, upon which the rdi would order them to be summoned, would listen to their complaints, and render justice. One day, a crow came and sat on the bell and struck it ; when the rdi asked who the complainant was. It is a fact, not unknown, that bold crows will pick meat from between the the teeth of lions. As stone lions cannot hunt for their prey, where could the crow obtain its usual sustenance ? As the rdi was satisfied that the crow j ustly complained of hunger, having come to sit by his stone lions, he gave orders that some goats and sheep should be killed, on which the crow might feed himself for some days.”

The king’s fondness of hunting. — His preserves. — Praise of the seasons of Hindustan. — Dialogue between the king’s bow and arrow.

Birth of Prince Sultan Muhammad on the 23rd of Eabi’u-1 awwal, 718 n. (June 25th, 1318 a.d.). — The king distributes gold and jewels among the nobles after seeing the child. — Its education.

Encomium upon spring and new year’s day ; on flowers and birds. — The king’s public audience, and the honours and robes be- stowed by him upon the nobles, especially upon Khusru Khan.

The king’s skill in the game of chaugdn. — Dialogue between the bat and the ball.

The poet exalts his own merits, and boastingly says that though at that time, in all ’Ajam and Tran, the two poets of chief celebrity

were Shaikh Sa’di Shirazi and Hakim Humam Tahrizi, yet he ex- celled them both ; heeause, whatever might he the merit of their verses, they possessed not the same multifarious accomplishments as himself.

He tells us that he was sixty-five years of age, and becoming infirm, when he concluded this poem on the 30th of Jumada-s sani, 718 h. (August 24th, 1318 a.d.), and that it contains 4.509 lines.

[This work, sometimes called InsJia-i Amir Khusru, is a collection of farmans, despatches, and letters by Amir Khusru. It is rather an extensive work. A MS. belonging to Nawab Ziau-d din, of Delili, consists of 382 pages of small writing, nineteen lines in the page. The documents it contains are, as usual, written in the most grandiloquent style, a very small amount of information being wrapped up in a bewildering maze of words. The following abstract, made by a munsJii, of a portion of one despatch, relates to a matter upon which the historians are silent. Bami says nothing of ’Alau-d din’s ascendancy at Ghazni, and Firishta (I. 364) speaks only of plundering expeditions into that and the neighbouring countries.]

Abstract (Book IY., Sec. iii., Letter 3) of part of an Arz-dasht of Hajib Badr to the address of Prince Khizr Khan, the eldest son of Sultan ’Alau-d din Khilji. The letter has no date.

This servant, Badr, begs to state, for the information of his high- ness Prince Khizr Khan, son of Iskandar-i sani (’Alau-d din), that, according to the royal orders, he marched with an army, and, after travelling through the various stages, he reached the banks of the Indus. He crossed the river in boats, and, proceeding onwards, arrived at Ghaznin in winter. The season was exceedingly cold. The Mughals of the place were in great alarm, from fear of the Musulman army. But when the purport of the royal far man was read to them, they became comforted, expressed their obedience, and were happy. As the king had ordered that the Tchutba of his name should be read in Ghaznin, all the Muhammadans, who had con-

cealed themselves in mountains and ravines, as well as all the elders and principal Musulmans of Ghaznfn, who were looking with the eye of expectation towards Dehli, assembled in the Jdmi’ Masjid of the city, and on Friday the Tchutba was read in the name of Sultan ’Alau-d din. The noise of the acclamations of joy and congratulations rose high from all quarters. The vest of honour, which was sent by the king for the reader of the hhutba, was put on his shoulders. One of the walls of the mosque, which was decayed and had fallen down, was newly raised.

On xhe same Friday, before the assembly of the Muhammadans, when the name of the king was pronounced in the khutba, he (Badr) offered, near the pulpit, the jewels which he had brought with him, and also one plate full of gold. He threw them down on the earth, and people fell on them and picked them up. The Mughals saw this from the top of the walls of the Masjid, and spoke something in their own tongue. In these days some of the infidels have embraced the Muhammadan faith.

[The author of these Odes, whose real name was Badru-d din, “ the full moon of religion,” was more familiarly known as Badr-i Chach, from his native country of Chach, or Tashkand. He came to India and attracted some notice at the Court of Muhammad Tughlik, as may be gathered from the following extracts of his poems. His Kasdid, or Odes, were lithographed at Lucknow in 1845, and there is a short notice of them in Stewart’s Catalogue of Tippoo’s Library, and in Sprenger’s Catalogue of the Oude Libraries, p. 367. Beyond this, nothing is known of him. The following extracts and notes are entirely the work of Sir H. Elliot,]

Congratulations on the Arrival of a Khila't from the 'Ablasi Khalifa.

Gabriel, from the firmament of Heaven, has proclaimed the glad tidings, that a robe of honour and Patent have reached the Sultan from the Khalifa, just as the verses of the Kuran honoured Mu- hammad by their arrival from the Court of the immortal God. * a Cf The Imam has given the Shah absolute power over all the world, and this intelligence has reached all other Shahs throughout

the seven climates. The Patent of the other sovereigns of the world has been revoked, for an autograph grant has been despatched from the eternal Capital. The wells of the envious have become as dry as that of Joseph, now that the Egyptian robe has been received in Hindustan from Canaan. ° ° ° A veritable ’Id has arrived to the Faithful, now that twice in one year a Ichila't has reached the Sultan from the Amiru-l Muminm. 000 Eajab arrived here on his return in the month of Muharram, 746 h.1 2 (May, 1345 a.d.). o o o The king now never mentions his desire of sitting on an ivory throne, since his enemies sit on the point of elephants’ tusks.2 0 0 ° Be happy, oh Badr, for by the grace of God, and liberality of the king, your difficulties have ceased, and the period of benefactions has arrived.

Decorations of Dehli upon the same occasion.

Yesternight, at the time that the sun, the king with the golden garments, invested itself with a black mantle, and the king of the host of darkness,3 whose name is the moon, filled the emerald vault with sparks of gold, a robe of honour and a patent of sovereignty arrived, for the king of sea and land, from the lord Khalifa, the saint of his time, Ahmad ’Abbas, the Imam of God, the heir of the prophet of mankind. An order went forth that the embroiderers of

1 This is a very difficult passage, and variously interpreted. I have made as much sense of it as it seems capable of bearing. The literal translation is : “ On the very date on which one month was in excess of the year 700 from this journey, in the month of Muharram, the before Sha'ban arrived.” The chronogrammatic value of “one month” is forty-six; some copies, by the omission of the alif, make it “forty-five,” and some only “ nine,” which latter is out of the question. Eajab is the month before Sha’ban, and that is also the name of the ambassador who had been sent by Muhammad Tughlik to the Khalifa. Firishta says one khila't arrived in 744 h., and another in 747 h. Here a contemporary says the second arrived in 746 h., or it maybe 745 h., and that both khila’ts arrived within one year. The introduction of the Khalifa’s name upon Muhammad Tughlik’s coins begins as early as 741 h. ; but this must have occurred before the arrival of an ambassador, and sufficiently accounts for the errors in the name of the reigning Khalifa, which do not occur at a period subsequent to this embassy. See E. Thomas, Coins of the Patan Sultans, New Edition, pp. 254, 259, and Fraehn, Recensio, p. 177.

2 That is, your enemies are placed before elephants, to be gored or trampled to death by elephants.

3 There is a double meaning here— the “ host of darkness” being, in the original, “the army of Hind;” and the “black mantle,” “the khila't of the ’Abbasis ;” which image also occurs in the preceding ode.

curtains should prepare a beautiful and costly pavilion in the centre of four triumphal arches, which were so lofty that the vault of heaven appeared in comparison like a green fly. Each arch was adorned with golden vestments, like a bride. The floors were spread with beautiful carpets, and there were ponds of water to excite the envy of Kansar, the rivulet of paradise. In the chambers poets recited verses; songsters, like Yenus, sang in each balcony. The chamberlains were in attendance, with their embroidered sleeves ; the judges, with their turbans ; the princes, with their waistbands. All classes of the people assembled round the buildings to witness the scene. This gay assemblage had collected because a lehila't and Patent had been sent by the lord Imam. The con- tents of it were : “ May everything on the face of the earth, in the fire and in the water, remain under the protection of the king — Turk, Rum, Khurasan, Chin, and Sham — both that which is good, and that which is bad ! If an azure canopy be granted, the heaven is at his command ; if a red crown be desired, the sun will provide it. Let his titles be proclaimed from every pulpit — the Sultan of East and West, the King of Kings by sea and land, the Defender of the Faith, Muhammad Tughlik, the Just, in dignity like Saturn, in splendour like the Messiah ! ” The Imam has sent a Tihila’t black as the apple of the eye, calculated to spread the light of the law through the hearts of men. For fear of the justice of thy government, the hart and the lion consort in the forest. May the eyes of thy enemies shed tears of blood. May he who raises his head against thy authority, have his face blackened, and his tongue slit, like a pen-reed ; and so long as the moon is sometimes round as a shield, and sometimes bent like a bow, may arrows pierce the heart of thy ruthless enemies. May every success attend Badr through thy good fortune, and may he never be visited by any calamities of the time !

Doubtless, this festival appears as if it were held in Paradise, in which armies of angels stand on the right and left. A thousand crowned heads are bowed in reverence ; a thousand throned warriors stand awaiting orders ; a thousand stars (armies) are there, and

under each star are arranged a thousand banners. In each course behind the screens are a thousand songsters, melodious as night- ingales. If the palace of a thousand pillars were not like Paradise, why should rewards and punishments be distributed there like as on the day of judgment? Certainly this abode of happiness, Khur- ramabad, is chosen as a royal residence, because there the king, by his execution of the laws, acknowledges his subservience to the Khalifa of the world, Abu-1 Eabi’ Sulaiman, the celebrated Imam, to whom the Khusru of Hind is a servant and slave in body, heart, and soul. This Khusru is a holy warrior, Muhammad Tughlik, at whose gate the King of Chin and Khita is in waiting, like a Hindu porter. ° ° ° The blade of thy sword smites the necks of thy enemies, and with equal power does thy hand wield the pen, clothed in a yellow tunic, like a Hindu.

When the sun was in Cancer, the king of the time took the stone fort of Nagarkot, in the year 738 h. (1337 a.d.). ° ° ° It is placed between rivers, like the pupil of an eye, and the fortress has so pre- served its honour, and is so impregnable, that neither Sikandar nor Dara were able to take it. Within are the masters of the mangonels ; within also are beauties resplendent as the sun. Its chiefs are all strong as buifalos, with necks like a rhinoceros. Its inhabitants are all travelling on the high road to hell and perdition, and are ghuls, resembling dragons. The exalted king of the kings of the earth arrived at night at this fortress, with 100,000 champions. His army contained 1,000 stars, and under each star 1,000 banners were displayed. ° ° ° Muhammad Tughlik is obedient to the laws of Muhammad, the apostle, and the orders of his vicegerent, Abu-1 Eabi’ Sulaiman Mustakfi, the essence of the religion of the prophet, the light of the family of Khalifas, the Imam of God, to whom the king is a servant and slave in body, heart, and soul.

On the 1st of Sha’ban, in the year 745, represented by the letters in “ The power of the king,” orders were issued that I should go to

the country of Deogfr, and I was thus addressed : “ Oh, Badr, accompanied by Jamal Malik, the poet, and Nekroz, the slave, take thy departure with a pomp worthy of Rustam. May he who accom- plishes all designs aid thee ; may the God of both worlds protect thee ; but speak not of Deogir, for it is Daulatabad to which I allude, a fort exalted to the heavens ! Although it is but a point in my kingdom, it comprises what is equal to 1,000 kingdoms of Jam- skid. * 0 0 Go to the court of the governor of the country, Katlagh Khan, and acquire honour by this presentation, and having thy mouth in honey, say thus from me : ‘ Oh thou, from whose lips sugar distils, in whose foi'tunate1 breast the light of the flame of the knowledge of God is reflected ; thou, that art the best of those pos- sessed of gold ; thou, that art the essence of those who are excellent among men ; thou, whose bounteous hand is so munificent that the fathomless ocean is but a drop compared with it ; come, and gratify me by your arrival, as water does the thirsty. If thou hast any desire to reach the summit of thy exaltation, proceed towards the north.2 Come and feast thy eyes upon the black khila't, so pro- pitiously sent by the Imam of the time, and look with due reverence on the Patent which has issued from the Khalifa Abu-1 ’Abbas Ahmad, the sun of the earth, and the shadow of God. It is through his justice that an antelope is able to seize the tail of a wolf. Use every exertion to come to the royal court, for henceforward you and I have obtained everlasting salvation.’

“ When thou, oh Badr, hast delivered this address to the Khan, kiss his hands and bow down, like a pen dipping into an inkstand. Obey every order that he gives, and deem yourself honoured with every gift that he presents. 0 0 0 When the equipage of Jalalat Khan proceeds in state to the throne of the Sultan, the king of earth and sea, proclaim to the world that the Kkwaja is coming, like the resplendent sun, with 100,000 footmen, 100,000 horsemen, 100,000 spears, and 100,000 bows, sitting in his silver ambar'i, like the moon in the milky way.”

1 Mubarak is the Persian translation of Katlagh.

2 The annotator says, “ Proceed on a mission to the Khalifa ; ” hut this is a very imperfect interpretation.

In Commemoration of the Building of Kliurramabad.

The inscriptions over its gateway record, in verse, the praise of the Khalifa repeatedly ; may his throne he established to eternity, as well as that of the King of the World, who has declared that it is his pleasure to serve the Imam of God. The Shah has given it the name of Kliurramabad, and Zahiru-1 Jaiush was its architect, the slave of the lord of the universe, the prelate of religion, the most select among the pious. This fortunate building was completed in Muharram, in the year 7 44 h. (June, 1343 A.D.). Badr has strung the pearl of this ode in one night, and made it worthy of ornament- ing the ears of the nobles of the land.

Without, though the courts, full of armies, are raising a tumult and uproar, yet within it is so quiet, that prayers for pardon can be offered up.1 0 0 ° All is so still and clear that the ear of man might hear the humming of a fly’s -wing reverberate like music, o 0 o Speak not of a fort, speak not of a sarai, for in appearance and stability it is like the Ka’bah of Paradise. Zahfru-d din erected this blessed structure by the propitious order of the Khusru of the time, the director of the architects, and in the name of the Khalifa. May his life be prolonged for the confirmation of the religion of Muhammad, the Apostle of God. It was completed on the date, “ Enter thou into Paradise,” or, that I may explain more openly, 744 h. I have been entitled by the king, Fakhru-z zaman ; call me not by that name, but rather the sweet-noted parrot.

In Celebration of the Completion of the Shah-nama.

In the year of Arabia, represented by “the power of the king” (745 h., 1344 a.d.), heaten completed the verses which I had strung together. Every line was like a pearl, which dazzled the eye in the dead of night. 0 0 ° The whole of the poem is filled with praises of the king, Shah Muhammad, the defender of the law

1 In allusion to the mode in which these multi-columned buildings are constructed, so as to render the centre compartments private, while externally all appears exposed.

of the Prophet, and by right the ruler of the earth, by order of the Imam. Everywhere crowned heads swear fealty to him, every- where celebrated men are the slaves of his behests.

C. — M AS ALIKU-L ABSA'R FI' MAMALIKU-L AMSAR

[“ Travels of the Eyes into the Kingdoms of Different Countries.” This is the work of Shahabu-d din ’Abu-1 ’Abbas Ahmad, also called ’Umari and Dimashki, or native of Damascus. He was born in the year 697 h. (1297 a.d.), and died at Damascus in 749 (1348 a.d.). Shahabu-d din says little about himself and his family, but he mentions that his ancestors were, like himself, employed in the service of the Sultan of Egypt. His father, Kazi Mohiu-d din, was secretary of secret despatches at Damascus, and after being dis- missed from that office, and remaining some time without employ, became chief of the department of secret correspondence in Egypt. Shahabu-d din assisted his father in both his offices, but he incuiTed disgrace, and retired into private life at Damascus, and so lived until his death.

Shahabu-d din was a man of very considerable learning and ability. He studied different sciences under men of celebrity, and his extensive works testify to his learning, research, and literary activity. He is known to have written seven different works, inclusive of the one now under notice. Most of his writings have perished, or are at least unknown, but the Masalik, which is the most important of them in its extent and research, has come down to us in an imperfect state. The complete work consisted of twenty volumes, but of these only five are known to be extant. They are in the Bibliotheque Imperiale at Paris, and in 1838 M. Quatremere published in Tome XIII. of the Notices et Extraits des MSS. his description and specimens of the work, from which the present notice and the following extracts have been taken by the Editor. So early as 1758 Deguignes gave a short notice of the MS. in the

Journal des Savants, and he frequently refers to the author under the surname of MaraicasM in his Histoire des Huns ; but M. Quatre- mere shows this title of MaraicasM, or “ native of Morocco,” to be a mistake.

The MS. is a small folio of 231 leaves, and consists of six chapters. 1. Description of Hind and Sind. 2. The Empire and family of Changiz Khan. 3. The Kingdom of J ilan. 4. The Kurds, Lurs, and other mountain tribes. 5. Turk states in Asia Minor, with notices of the empires of Trebizond and Constantinople. 6. Egypt, Syria, and Hijjaz.

At the close of his notices of India, he mentions the name of Muhammad Tughlik as the reigning sovereign, and the general tenor of his observations points unmistakably to that able but perverse ruler. The author quotes occasionally the works of other authors on geography and history, and among them Abu-1 Fida and Juwaini; but he depends principally on the oral information sup- plied by intelligent and learned travellers with whom he had come in contact. His method of gathering and using information is apparent in the following extracts. The work stood high in Oriental estimation, and was often quoted by later writers — among others by the author of the Nuzhatu-l Kulub.^\

India is a most important country, with which no other country in the world can be compared in respect of extent, riches, the numbers of its armies, the pomp and splendour displayed by the sovereign in his progresses and habitations, and the power of the empiz'e. ° ° ° The inhabitants are remarkable for their wisdom and great intelligence ; no people are better able to restrain their passions, nor more willing to sacrifice their lives, for what they consider agreeable in the sight of God.

According to the information of Sii'aju-d dm Abu-1 Fath ’Umar, a lawyer, and a native of the province of Oudh, who had lived long at the court of the Sultan of Dehli, the dominions of that monarch consisted of twenty-three principal provinces. 1. Dehli. 2. Dawakfr (Deogir). 3. Multan. 4. Kahran (Kuhram). 5. Sarnana. 6. Siwistan. 7. Uch. 8. Hasi (Hansi). 9. Sarsuti (Sirsah). 10. Ma’bar.

11. Tilank (Telingana). 12. Gujarat. 13. Badaun. 14. Oudh. 15. Kanauj. 16. Lakhnauti. 17. Bihar. 18. Karra. 19. Malwa. 20. Lahor. 21. Kalanor (Gwalior?). 22. Jajnagar. 23. Tilanj Darusamand (Telingana (?) and Dwara-samudra).

According to the account of Shaikh Mubarak, the city of Dehli is the capital of the kingdom of India. Next comes Dawdkir (Deogir), which was founded by the Sultan of that empire, and named by him “ Kabbatu-l Islam, or the Metropolis of Islam.” This place, said the Shaikh, is situated in the third climate. When I left it six years ago the buildings were not completed, and I doubt if they are yet finished, the extent it covers being so great, and the number of its intended edifices so vast. The king divided it into quarters, each of them intended for men of the same profession. Thus there was the quarter of the troops, that of the ministers and clerks, that of the ledzis and learned men, that of the shaikhs and fakirs, and that of the merchants and those who carry on trades. Each quarter was to contain within it everything necessary for its wants, mosques, minarets, markets, baths, mills, ovens, and workmen of every trade, including even blacksmiths, dyers, and curriers, so that the inhabi- tants should have no necessity to resort elsewhere for buying or selling, or the other requirements of life. Each quarter was to form a separate town, entirely independent of those surrounding it.

I questioned the Shaikh Mubarak about the city of Dehli and the court of its sovereign, and I obtained from him the following details. “ Dehli consists of several cities which have become united, and each of which has a name of its own. Dehli, which was one among them, has given its name to all the rest. It is both long and broad, and covers a space of about forty miles in circumference. The houses are built of stone and brick, and the roofs of wood. The floors are paved with a white stone, like marble. None of the houses are more than two stories high, and some only one. It is only in the palace of the Sultan that marble is used for pavement. But if I can believe the Shaikh Abu Bakr bin Khallal, this description applies only to the old houses of Dehli, for the new ones are built differently. According to the same informant, Dehli comprises an aggregate of twenty-one cities. Gardens extend on three sides of

it, in a straight line for twelve thousand paces. The western side is not so furnished, because it borders on a mountain. Dehli con- tains a thousand colleges, one of which belongs to the Shdifa'is, the rest to the Hanafis. In it there are about seventy hospitals, called Danish Shifd, or houses of cure. In the city, and those dependent upon it, the chapels and hermitages amount to 2,000. There are great monasteries, large open spaces, and numerous baths. The water used by the people is drawn from wells of little depth, seldom exceeding seven cubits. Hydraulic wheels are placed at their tops. The people drink rain-water, which is collected in large reservoirs constructed for that purpose, the distance across each of them being a bowshot, or even more. The chief mosque is celebrated for its minaret, which, in point of altitude, is said to have no equal in the world. If the statement of Shaikh Burhanu-d din Burst can be believed, the height of this part of the edifice is 600 cubits.

According to Shaikh Mubarak, the palaces of the Sultan of Dehli are exclusively occupied by the Sultan, his wives, concubines, eunuchs, male and female slaves, and mamluks. None of the khans and amirs are permitted to dwell there. They make their appearance there only when they come to wait upon the Sultan, which they do twice a day, morning and afternoon. Afterwards, each one of them retires to his own house.

As regards the great officers of State, those of the highest rank are called khans, then the maliks ,l then the amirs, then the isfah- sdldrs (generals), and, lastly, the officers ( jand ). The court of the sovereign comprises eighty lchdns, or even more. The army con- sists of 900,000 horsemen, some of whom are stationed near the prince, and the rest are distributed in the various provinces of the empire. All are inscribed in the registers of the State, and partake of the liberality of their sovereign. These troops consist of Turks, inhabitants of Khata, Persians, and Indians. Among them are to be found athletes ( pahlawdn ), runners, ( shattdr ), and men of every kind. They have excellent horses, magnificent armour, and a fine costume. 9 ° * The Sultan has 3,000 elephants, which, when ac-

1 The French translation says “ rois,” but I have no hesitation in substituting “ mali/c,” -which is no doubt the original word.

coutred for battle, wear a covering of iron gilded. 000 He has 20,000 Turk mamluks. 0 0 0 It is not the same in India as in Egypt and Syria, where the maliks, amirs, and generals have in their service men whom they maintain out of their own resources. In India the officer has only to care for himself. As to the soldiers, the Sultan summons them for service, and they are paid from the public treasury. The sums granted to a Man, a malilc, an amir, or a general, are given exclusively for his own personal main- tenance. The chamberlains and other dignitaries ; the military men, such as the Mans, the malilcs, and the amirs, all have a rank in proportion to the importance of their employ. The isfah-sdldrs (generals) have no right to approach the Sultan. It is from this class that governors and other similar functionaries are chosen. The Man, has 10,000 horse under his command, the malilc, 1,000; the amir, 100; and the isfali-saldr a smaller number. The Mans, malilcs, amirs, and isfah-sdldrs receive the revenues of places as- signed to them by the treasury, and if these do not increase, they never diminish. Generally speaking, they bring in much more than their estimated value. The Man receives a grant of two lacs of tanlcas, each tanlca being worth eight dirhams. This sum belongs to him personally, and he is not expected to disburse any part of it to the soldiers who fight under his orders. The malilc receives an amount varying from 60,000 to 50,000 tankas, the amir from 40,000 to 30,000, and the isfah-sdlar 20,000, or thereabouts. The pay of the officer varies from 10,000 to 1,000 tankas. A mamluk receives 500 tankas, and all receive, in addition, food and raiment, and forage for their horses. Soldiers and mamluks do not receive grants of land-revenue, but draw their pay in money from the public treasury. The officers have villages of which they receive the revenues. As this same traveller observed to me, the revenues of these lands, if they do not increase, certainly do not decrease. Some of the officers receive double, and even more than that, in excess of the estimated value of their grants.

The slaves of the Sultan each receive a monthly allowance for their maintenance of two mans of wheat and rice, and a daily allowance of three sirs of meat, with all the necessary accompaniments. Besides, he receives ten tankas per month, and four suits of clothes every year.

The Sultan has a manufactory, in which 400 silk-weaver's are em- ployed, and where they make stuffs of all kinds for the dresses of persons attached to the Court, for robes of honour and presents, in addition to the stuffs which are brought every year from China, ’Irak, and Alexandria. Every year the Sultan distributes 200,000 complete dresses; 100,000 in spring, and 100,000 in autumn. The spring dresses consist principally of the goods manufactured at Alexandria. Those of the autumn are almost exclusively of silk manufactured at Dehli or imported from China and ’Irak. Dresses are also distributed to the monasteries and hermitages.

The Sultan keeps in his service 500 manufacturers of golden tissues, who weave the gold brocades worn by the wives of the Sultan, and given away as presents to the amirs and their wives. Every year he gives away 10,000 Arab horses, of excellent breed, sometimes with saddle and bridle, sometimes without. ° ° ° As to the hacks which the Sultan distributes every year, their number is incalculable. He gives them in lots or by hundreds. Notwith- standing the number of horses in India, and notwithstanding the numbers annually imported, the Sultan has horses brought from all countries, and buys them at high prices for presents. These animals are consequently always dear, and yield a good profit to the horse- dealers.

The Sultan has under him a naib, chosen from among the Mans, who bears the title of Amriya, and enjoys, as his official appanage, a considerable province, as large as ’Irak. He also has a wazir, who has a similar large appanage. This officer has four deputies called shak, who receive 20,000 to 40,000 tankas per annum. He has four dabirs, or secretaries, each of whom receives the revenue of a large maritime town. Each of them has under his orders about 300 clerks, the lowest and worst paid of whom receives 10,000 tankas a year. Some of the highest rank have towns and villages, and some have both (pay and lands) to the value of fifty (thousand).

The Sadr-i Jahdn, or Kdziu-l kuzat, which office is held, at the time I am writing, by Kamalu-d din, son of Burhanu-d din, has ten towns, producing a revenue of about 60,000 tankas. This dignitary is also called Sadru-l Islam, and is the chief officer of justice. The Shaikhu-l Islam, who corresponds to our Shaikhu-sh shuyukh, has

the same revenue. The Mulitasib, or chief of the police, has a village which brings him in about 800 tankas.

At the Court of this prince there are 1,200 physicians, 10,000 falconers, who ride on horseback, and carry the birds trained for hawking, 300 beaters to go in front and put up the game, 3,000 dealers, who sell the articles required for hawking, 500 table com- panions, 1,200 musicians, not including the mamluk musicians to the number of 1,000, who are more especially charged with the teaching of music, and 1,000 poets skilled in one of three languages, Arabic, Persian, or Indian. All these are men of fine taste, who are included in the establishment of the Court, and receive magnificent presents. If the Sultan hears that one of his musicians has sung before any other person, he has him put to death. I asked my informant what pay these various officers received, but he did not know ; he could only inform me that the table companions of the prince held some of them one, and some of them two towns ; and that each of them, according to his rank, received 40,000, 30,000, or 20,000 tankas, without taking into account dresses, robes of honour, and other presents.

According to Shaikh Mubarak, the Sultan gives two audiences daily, in the morning and in the evening, and a repast is then served, at which 20,000 men are present, khans, maliks, amirs, isfah-sdldrs, and the principal officers. At his private meals, that is, at his dinner and supper, the Sultan receives learned lawyers to the number of 200, who eat with him and converse upon learned matters. Shaikh Abu Bakr bin Khallal Bazzi told me that he asked the Sultan’s cook how many animals were killed daily to supply the royal table, and the reply was 2,500 oxen, 2,000 sheep, without taking into account fatted horses and birds of all descriptions. * ° °

The amriya has under his charge the army and the people at large. Lawyers and learned men, whether inhabitants of the country or foreigners, are under the inspection of the Sadr-i Julian. The fakirs, whether natives or strangers, are under the Sliaikliu-l Islam. Lastly, all travellers, ambassadors, or others, men of letters, poets, both native and foreign, are all under the dabirs, or secre- taries. 415 ®

When the Sultan goes hunting his suite is less numerous. He

only takes with him 100,000 horsemen and 200 elephants. Four wooden houses of two stories are carried in his train by 200 camels. Tents and pavilions of all kinds follow. When he travels from one place to another, for pleasure or for other motives, he takes with him 30,000 horsemen, 200 elephants, and 1,000 led horses, with saddles and bridles worked with gold, and with other trappings of gold, set with pearls and jewels.

The Sultan is generous and liberal, and at the same time full of humility. Abu-s Safa ’Umar bin Is'hak Shabali informed me that he saw this monarch at the funeral of a falcir of great sanctity, and that he bore the coffin on his shoulders. He is noted for knowing the Holy Book by heart, as also the law book called Hiddya, which expounds the principles of the school of Abu Hanifa. He excels in all intellectual accomplishments. He possesses in the very highest degree a talent for caligraphy. He is given to religious exercises, and is careful to regulate his passions. To these advantages he adds literary acquirements. He is fond of reciting verses, com- posing them, and hearing them read, when he readily seizes their most hidden allusions. He likes to consult with learned men, and to converse with men of merit. He is also particularly fond of contending with poets in Persian, a language which he knows perfectly, and understands all its niceties of expression. ° ° °

The stories I have been told of the benevolence and generosity of this Sultan towards strangers, and to all who have recourse to him, pass all belief. 0 ° *

The Sultan never ceases to show the greatest zeal in making war upon the infidels, both by sea and land. ° ° ° Every day thou- sands of slaves are sold at a very low price, so great is the number of prisoners. According to the unanimous statements of the travel- lers I have cited, the value, at Dehli, of a young slave girl, for domestic service, does not exceed eight tankas. Those who are deemed fit to fill the parts of domestic and concubine sell for about fifteen tankas. In other cities the prices are still lower. Abu-s Safa ’Umar bin Is’hak Shabali assured me that he bought a young slave in the flower of his youth for four dirhams. The rest may be understood from this. But still, in spite of the low price of slaves, 200,00 tankas, and even more, are paid for young Indian girls. I

inquired the reason, ° e ° and was told that these young girls are remarkable for their beauty, and the grace of their manners. ° ° ° According to what I heard from Shabali, the smallest quantity of wine is not to be found either in shops or in private houses : so great is the Sultan’s aversion to it and so severe the punishments with which he visits its votaries. Besides, the inhabitants of India have little taste for wine and intoxicating drinks, but content themselves with betel, an agreeable drug, the use of which is per- mitted without the slightest objection. ° ° °

From the information of the learned Siraju-d din Abu-s Safa ’Umar Shabali, it appears that the Sultan is very anxious to know all that passes in his territories, and to understand the position of all those who surround him, whether civilians or soldiers. He has emissaries, called intelligencers, who are divided into a great number of classes. One goes among the soldiers and people. When any fact comes under his notice which ought to be communicated to the Sultan, he reports it to the officer above him ; this one, in like manner, communicates it to his superior ; and so in due course the fact comes to the knowledge of the Sultan. For communicating the events which happen in distant provinces, there are established, between the capital and the chief cities of the different countries, posts, placed at certain distances from each other, which are like the post-relays in Egypt and Syria; but they are less wide apart, because the distance between them is not more than four bow-shots, or even less. At each of these posts ten swift runners are stationed, whose duty it is to convey letters to the next station without the least delay. As soon as one of these men receives a letter, he runs off as rapidly as possible, and delivers it to the next runner, who starts immediately with similar speed, while the former returns quietly to his own post. Thus a letter from a very distant place is conveyed in a very short time with greater celerity than if it had been transmitted by post, or by camel express. At each of these post-stations there are mosques, where prayers are said, and where travellers can find shelter, reservoirs full of good water, and markets where all things necessary for the food of man and beast can be purchased, so that there is very little necessity for carrying water, or food, or tents.

All through the country which separates the two capitals of the empire, Dehli and Deogir, the Sultan has had drums placed at every post-station. When any event occurs in a city, or when the gate of one is opened or closed, the drum is instantly beaten. The next nearest drum is then beaten, and in this manner the Sultan is daily and exactly informed at what time the gates of the most distant cities are opened or closed. * ° °

I will now speak about the money, and afterwards about the price of provisions, seeing that these are regulated and calculated upon the value of money. Shaikh Mubarak informed me that the red lac consists of 100,000 tankas (of gold), and the white lac of 100,000 tankas (of silver). The gold tanka, called the red tanka, is equal to three miskals and the silver tanka comprises eight dirhams hashtkan'i .' The dirham hashtkan'i has the same weight as the silver dirham current in Egypt and Syria. The value of both is the same, with scarcely the slightest difference. The dirham hashtkan'i answers to four dirhams sultdms, otherwise called dukdnis. A dirham sultani is worth the third of a dirham shashkani, which is a third kind of silver coin current in India, and which is worth three-fourths of the dirham hashtkdm. A piece, which is the half of the dirham sultam, is called yakdn'i (piece of one), and is worth one jital. Another dirham, called dwdzdahkdm (piece of twelve), passes for a hashtkan'i and a half. Another coin, called shdnzdahkani, corresponds to two dirhams. So the silver coins current in India are six, i.e. the dirham shdnzdahkani, the dwdzdahkdm, the hashtkan'i, the shashkani, the sultani, and the yakdn'i. The least of these pieces is the dirham sultam. These three kinds of dirhams are employed in commerce, and are taken universally, but there is no one of more general use than the dirham sultani, which is worth a quarter of the dirham ■ of Egypt and of Syria. The dirham sultani is equal to eight fals [or fulus] ; the jital to four fals ; and the dirham hashtkan'i, which corresponds exactly to the silver dirham of Egypt and Syria, is worth thirty-two fals.

The ritl of India, which is called sir, weighs seventy miskals, which, estimated in dirhams of Egypt, is worth 102§. Forty sirs

1 I retain the original spelling, as Mr. Thomas contends that kani, and not gant, is the true reading. As, however, the Arabic has no g, but uses k for it, this passage decides nothing. See supra, p. 357.

make one man. They do not know the way of measuring grain in India.

As to the price of provisions, wheat, which is the dearest article, sells for a dirham hashtkani and a half the man. Barley costs one dirham the man. Rice, one dirham three-quarters the man ; but some sorts of this grain are higher in price. Two mans of peas cost a dirham hashtkani. Beef and goats’ flesh are of the same price, and are sold at the rate of six sirs for a dirham sultan'i, which is the quarter of a dirham hashtkdm. Mutton sells at four sirs the dirham sultan'i. A goose costs two dirhams hashtkanis, and four fowls can be bought for one hashtkdm. Sugar sells at five sirs the hashtkani, and sugar-candy at four sirs the dirham. A well-fatted sheep of the first quality sells for a tanka, which represents eight dirhams hashtkanis. A good ox sells for two tankas, and sometimes for less. Buffaloes at the same price. The general food of the Indians is beef and goats’ flesh. I asked Shaikh Mubarak if this usage arose from the scarcity of sheep, and he replied that it was a mere matter of habit, for in all the villages of India there are sheep in thousands. For a dirham of the money of Egypt four fowls can be bought of the best quality. Pigeons, sparrows, and other birds are sold very cheap. All kinds of game, birds, and quadrupeds, are extremely plentiful. There are elephants and rhinoceroses, but the elephants of the country of the Zinjes are the most remarkable. 45 * 45

Our shaikh, the marvel of the age, Shamsu-d din Isfahan!, gave me the following details. Kutbu-d din Shirazi maintained that alchemy was a positive science. One day I argued with him, and endeavoured to prove the falsity of the art. He replied, “You know very well the quantity of gold that is annually consumed in the fabrication of various articles and objects of many kinds. The mines are far from producing a quantity equal to that which is thus withdrawn. As regards India, I have calculated that for the last three thousand years that country has not exported gold into other countries, and whatever has entered it has never come out again. Merchants of all countries never cease to carry pure gold into India, and to bring back in exchange commodities of herbs and gums. If gold were not produced in an artificial way, it would altogether have disappeared.” Our shaikh, Shahabu-d din, observed upon this that

what this author asserted of gold going into India, and never coming out again, was perfectly true; but the conclusion which he drew from this fact, as to alchemy being a real science, was false and illusory.

He adds the following statement: “I have heard say that one of the predecessors of the Sultan, after making great conquests, carried off from the countries he had subdued as much gold as required 13,000 oxen to carry.”

I must add, that the inhabitants of India have the character of liking to make money and hoard it. If one of them is asked how much property he has, he replies, “ I don’t know, but I am the second or third of my family who has laboured to increase the ti'easure which an ancestor deposited in a certain cavern, or in certain holes, and I do not know how much it amounts to.” The Indians are ac- customed to dig pits for the reception of their hoards. Some form an excavation in their houses like a cistern, which they close with care, leaving only the opening necessary for introducing the gold pieces. Thus they accumulate their riches. They will not take worked gold, either broken or in ingots, but in their fear of fraud refuse all but coined money.

The following information I derived from the Shaikh Burhanu-d din Abu Bakr bin Khallah Muhammad Bazzf, the Sufi. The Sultan [Muhammad Tughlik] sent an army against a country bordering upon Deogi'r, at the extremity of that province. It is inhabited by infidels, and all its princes bear the title of rd [ rat] . The reigning prince, finding himself pressed by the troops of the Sultan, made this communication: “Tell your master that if he will leave us at peace, I am ready to send him all the riches he can desire ; all he has to do is to send me sufficient beasts to carry the sum he requires.” The general sent this proposition to his master, and was ordered to cease hostilities, and to give the rdi a safe conduct. When the rd'i appeared before the Sultan, the latter heaped honours upon him, and said: “I have never heard the like of what you have proposed. What is the amount, then, of those treasures that you undertake to load with gold as many beasts of burden as we like to send ? ” The rai replied : “Seven princes have preceded me in the government of my kingdom. Each of them amassed a treasure amounting to seventy

bairns, and all these treasures are still at my disposal.” The word bal'm 1 signifies a very large cistern, into which there is a descent by a ladder on each of the four sides. The Sultan, delighted by this statement, ordered his seal to be put on these treasures, which was done. Then he ordered the rai to appoint viceroys in his dominions, and to reside at Dehli. He also invited him to turn Musulman, but on his refusal he allowed him to adhere to his own religion. The rai dwelt at the court of the Sultan, and appointed viceroys to govern his territories. The Sultan assigned him a suit- able income, and sent considerable sums into his territories to be distributed as alms among the inhabitants, seeing they were now subjects of the empire. Lastly, he did not touch the labins, but left them as they were, under seal.

Ibn Batuta was a native of Tangiers, who travelled over the greater part of Asia, and visited India in the reign of Muhammad Tughlik. Elphinstone’s summary of the character and value of this traveller’s writings is so brief and so much to the point that it can hardly be improved. He says Ibn Batuta “ could have had no interest in misrepresentation, as he wrote after his return to Africa. He confirms, to the full extent, the native accounts, both of the king’s talents and of his crimes, and gives exactly such a picture of mixed magnificence and desolation as one would expect under such a sovereign. He found an admirably regulated horse and foot post from the frontiers to the capital, while the country was so disturbed as to make travelling unsafe. He describes Dehli as a most magnificent city, its mosque and walls without an equal on earth ; but although the king was then repeopling it, it was almost a desert. ‘The greatest city in the world, he said, had the fewest inhabitants.’ ”

The extracts which follow have been selected as containing the most important and interesting events and facts which he has recorded about India. His details do not always precisely agree with those

1 Babni in Hindi signifies a snake’s hole, and in Hindu belief snakes keep guard over hidden treasure.

of the regular historians. He recounted, and no doubt honestly, the information he received from the respectable and well-informed in- dividuals with whom he was brought in contact; and there is an air of veracity about his statements which favourably impresses the reader. In his African home he carefully wrote down that which he had gathered in the free course of conversation. But, while on the one hand he doubtless heard many facts and opinions which the speakers would not have dared to commit to writing and publish, some de- duction must be made on the other side for the loose statements and bold assertions which pass current when there is no probability of bringing them to the test of public judgment. Thus he distinctly relates that Muhammad Tughlik compassed the death of his father by an apparent accident, and he is probably right in his statement, but Barm' records the catastrophe as a simple accident, and Firishta only notices the charge of foul play to reject and condemn it.

Ibn Batuta was received with much respect at the court of Mu- hammad Tughlik, and experienced in his own person much of the boundless liberality and some little of the severity of that lavish and savage sovereign. When the traveller arrived in Dehli the king was absent, but the queen-mother received him. He was presented with splendid robes, 2,000 dinars in money, and a house to live in. On the return of the Sultan, he was treated yet more splendidly. He received a grant of villages worth 5,000 dinars per annum, a present of ten female captives, a fully caparisoned horse from the royal stables, and a further sum of 5,000 dinars. Besides this, he was made a judge of Delhi at a salary of 12,000 dinars a year, and was allowed to draw the first year in advance. After this he received another present of 12,000 dinars, but he records the fact that a deduction of ten per cent, was always made from these presents. He afterwards got into debt to the amount of 45,000 dinars, but he presented an Arabic poem to the Sultan in which he recounted his difficulties, and the Sultan undertook to satisfy his creditors. WTien the sovereign left Dehli he received further marks of his favour and liberality, but subsequently he fell into disgrace for having visited an obnoxious shaikh. His account of his terrors is rather amusing. “ The Sultan ordered four of his slaves never to lose sight of me in the audience chamber, and when such an order is given, it is very

rarely that the person escapes. The first day the slaves kept watch over me was a Friday, and the Almighty inspired me to repeat these words of the Kuran : ‘ God is sufficient for us, and what an excellent Protector ! ’ On that day I repeated this sentence 33,000 times, and I passed the night in the audience chamber. I fasted five days in succession. Every day I read the whole of the Kuran, and I broke my fast only by drinking a little water. The sixth day I took some food, then I fasted four days more in sucossion, and I was released after the death of the shaikh. Thanks be to the Almighty ! ” His danger had such an effect upon him, that he gave up his offices and went into religious retirement, but the Sultan sent to recall him, and appointed him his ambassador to the King of China. His ac- count of his journey through Lidia to Malabar where he embarked, is full of interesting matter. Dr. Lee made a translation of Ibn Batuta for the Oriental Translation Fund in 1829, but the complete Arabic text with a French translation has since been published by M. M. Defremery and Sanguinetti. It is from this version that the following Extracts have been taken by the Editor.

The Shaikh Abu ’Abdu-llah Muhammad, son of ’Abdu-llah, son of Muhammad, son of Ibrahim A1 Lawati, at Tanji, commonly known as Ibn Batuta, thus declares: — On the 1st of the sacred month of Muharram, 731 h. (12th Sept. 1333), we arrived at the river Sind, the same as is called Panj-ab, a name signifying “ Five Rivers.” This river is one of the largest known. It overflows in the hot season, and the inhabitants of the country sow their lands after the inundation, as the people of Egypt do after the overflow of the Nile. From this river begin the territories of the great Sultan Muhammad Shah, king of Hind and of Sind. 4S *

The barid or post in India is of two kinds. The horse-post is called uldk, and is carried on by means of horses belonging to the Sultan stationed at every four miles. The foot-post is thus arranged. Each mile is divided into three equal parts, called ddwali, which signifies one-third of a mile. Among the Indians the mile is called lcos. At each third of a mile there is a village well populated ; outside of which are three tents, in which are men ready to depart.

These men gird up their loins, and take in their hands a whip about two cubits long, tipped with brass bells. When the runner leaves the village, he holds the letter in one hand, and in the other the whip with the bells. He runs with all his strength, and when the men in the tents hear the sound of the bells they prepare to receive him. When he arrives, one of them takes the letter and sets off with all speed. He keeps on cracking his whip until he reaches the next ddwah. Thus, these couriers proceed until the letter reaches its destination.

This kind of post is quicker than the horse-post ; and the fruits of Khurasan, which are much sought after in India, are often conveyed by this means. ° ° ° It is by this channel also that great prisoners are transported. They are each placed upon a seat, which the run- ners take upon their heads and run with. ° ° °

When the intelligencers inform the Sultan of the arrival of a stranger in his dominions, he takes full notice of the information. The writers do their best to communicate full particulars. They announce the arrival of a stranger, and describe him and his dress. They note the number of his companions, slaves, servants, and beasts. They describe his style of travelling and lodging, and give an account of his expenditure. Not one of these details is passed over. When a traveller arrives at Multan, which is the capital of Sind, he remains there until an order is received from the Sultan for his proceeding to Court and prescribing the kind of treatment he is to receive. ° ° °

It is the custom of the Sultan of India, Abu-1 Mujahid Muhammad Shah, to honour strangers, to favour them, and to distinguish them in a manner quite peculiar, by appointing them to governments or to places of importance. Most of his courtiers, chamberlains, i oazrrs, magistrates, and brothers-in-law are foreigners. ° ° °

No stranger admitted to Court can avoid offering a present as a kind of introduction, which the Sultan repays by one of much greater value. ° ° When I arrived in Sind, I observed this practice, and bought some horses, camels, and slaves from the dealers. ° ° ° Two days’ march, after crossing the river Sind, we arrived at Janani, a fine large town on the banks of the Sind. It possesses some fine markets, and its population belongs to a rade called Samirah [Sumra], who have inhabited the place for a long time, their ancestors having

established themselves there since the time of its conquest in the time of Hajjaj, son of Yusuf, as is related by historians in the ac- counts of the conquest of Sind. 0 0 0 The people known by the name of Samirah do not eat with any one, and no one must look at them when they eat. They do not connect themselves in marriage with any other tribe, nor will others ally themselves with them. They had at that time a chief named Unar, whose history I shall relate. 0

We arrived at the imperial residence of Dehli, capital of India, which is a famous and large city uniting beauty and strength. It is surrounded by a wall, the like of which is unknown in the universe. It is the largest city of India, and, in fact, of all the countries subject to Islam in the East.

Delhi is a city of great extent, and possesses a numerous popu- lation. It consists at present of four neighbouring and contiguous cities.

1. Dehli, properly so called, is the old city built by the idolaters, which was conquered in the year 584 h. (1188 a.d.).

2. Siri, also called Daru-l-Khilafat or Seat of the Khalifat. The Sultan gave it to Ghiyasu-d din, grandson of the Khalif ’Abbaside A1 Mustansir, when he came to visit him. Sultan ’Alau-d din and his son Kutbu-d din, of whom we shall have to speak hereafter, dwelt there.

3. Tughlikabad, so called from the name of its founder the Sultan Tughlik, father of the Sultan of India whose Court we are now visiting. 0 0

4. Jahan-panah, Refuge of the World, specially designed for the residence of the reigning Sultan of India, Muhammad Shah. He built it, and it was his intention to connect all these four cities together by one and the same wall. He raised a portion of it, but abandoned its completion in consequence of the enormous expense its erection would have entailed.

The wall which surrounds Dehli has no equal. It is eleven cubits thick. Chambers are constructed in it which are occupied by the night watch and the persons charged with the care of the gates. In

these chambers also there are stores of provisions called ambdr, magazines of the munitions of war, and others in which are kept mangonels and raddas (“thunderer” — a machine employed in sieges). Grain keeps in these chambers without change or the least deteriora- tion. I saw some rice taken out of one of these magazines ; it was black in colour, hut good to the taste. I also saw some millet taken out. All these provisions had been stored by Sultan Balban ninety years before. Horse and foot can pass inside this wall from one end of the city to the other. Windows to give light have been opened in it on the inside towards the city. The lower part of the wall is built of stone, the upper part of brick. The bastions are numerous and closely placed. The city of Dehli has twenty-eight gates. First, that of Badaun, which is the principal. ° ° °

The chief Kdzi of Hind and Sind, Kamalu-d din Muhammad, son of Burhanu-d din of Ghazni, Sadr-i Jahdn, informed me how the city of Dehli was conquered from the infidels in 584 (1188 a.d.). I read the same date inscribed upon the viihrab of the great mosque of the city. The same person also informed me that Dehli was taken by the amir Kutbu-d din Aibak, who was entitled Sipah-sdldr, meaning Genei-al of the armies. He was one of the slaves of the venerated Shahabu-d din Muhammad, son of Sam the Ghorian, king of Ghazni and Khurasan, who had seized upon the kingdom of Ibrahim, son (grandson) of the warlike Mahmud bin Subuktigin, who began the conquest of India.

The aforesaid Shahabu-d din had sent out the amir Kutbu-d din with a considerable army. God opened for him the gates of Lahore, where he fixed his residence. His power became considerable. He was calumniated to the Sultan, and the associates of the monarch strove to inspire him with the idea that Kutbu-d din aimed at becoming king of India, and that he was already in open revolt. Intelligence of this reached Kutbu-d din. He set of with all speed, arrived at Ghazni by night, and presented himself to the Sultan, without the knowledge of those who had denounced him. Next day Shahabu-d din took his seat upon the throne, and placed Aibak below, where he was not visible. The courtiers and associates who had maligned Aibak arrived, and when they had all taken their places, the king questioned them about Aibak. They reiterated their state-

ment that Aibak was in revolt, and said, “ We know for certain that he aims at royalty.” Then the Sultan kicked the foot of the throne, and clapping his hands, cried out “Aibak ! ” “Here am I,” replied he, and came forth before his accusers. They were confounded, and in their terror they hastened to kiss the ground. The Sultan said to them, “ I pardon you this time, but beware how you speak against Aibak again.” He ordered Aibak to return to India, and he obeyed. He took the city of Dehli, and other cities besides.

Shamsu-d din Altamsh was the first who reigned in Dehli with independent power. Before his accession to the throne he had been a slave of the amir Kutbu-d din Aibak, the general of his army and his lieutenant. When Kutbu-d din died he assumed the sovereign power, and assembled the population to take from them the oath of allegiance. The lawyers waited upon him, headed by the Kaziu-1 Kuzat Wajihu-d din al Kasani. They entered into his presence and sat down, the Kdziu-l Kuzat sitting down by his side, accord- ing to custom. The Sultan knew what they wanted to speak about. He raised the comer of the carpet on which he was reclining, and presented to them the deed of his manumission. The Kdzi and the lawyers read it, and then took the oath of allegiance. Altamsh became undisputed sovereign, and reigned for twenty-eight years. He was just, pious, and virtuous. Among his noteworthy characteristics was the zeal with which he endeavoured to redress wrongs, and to render justice to the oppressed. He made an order that any man who suffered from injustice should wear a coloured dress. Now all the inhabitants of India wear white clothes ; so whenever he gave audience, or rode abroad, and saw any one in a coloured dress he inquired into his grievance, and took means to render him justice against his oppressor. But he was not satisfied with this plan, and said: “Some men suffer injustice in the night, and I wish to give them redress.” So he placed at the door of his palace two marble lions, upon two pedestals which were there. These lions had an iron chain round their necks, from which hung a great bell. The victim of injustice came at night and rung the bell, and when the Sultan heard it, he immediately inquired into the case and gave satisfaction to the complainant.

At his death Sultan Shamsu-d din left three sons : Ruknu-d din, who succeeded him ; Mu’izzu-d din, and Nasiru-d din, and one daughter named Raziya, full sister of Mu’izzu-d din. When Ruknu-d din was recognized as Sultan, after the death of his father, he began his reign by unjust treatment of his brother, Mu’izzu-d din, whom he caused to be put to death. Raziya was full sister of this unfortunate prince, and she reproached Ruknu-d din with his death, which made him meditate her assassination. One Friday he left the palace to go to prayers. Raziya then as- cended to the terrace of the Old Palace, called Daulat-lchdna, close by the chief mosque. She was clothed in the garments of the wronged, and, presenting herself to the people, she addressed them from the terrace, saying, “ My brother has killed his brother, and wishes to kill me also.” She then reminded them of the reign of her father, and of the many benefits he had bestowed upon them. Thereupon the auditors rushed tumultuously towards Ruknu-d din, who was in the mosque, seized him, and brought him to Raziya. She said, “ The slayer must be slain.” So they massacred him in retaliation for his murder of his brother. The brother of these two princes, Nasiru-d din, was yet in his infancy, so the people agreed to recognize Raziya as Sovereign.

When Ruknu-d din had been killed, the soldiers agreed to place his sister, Raziya, on the throne. They proclaimed her Sovereign, and she reigned with absolute authority for four years. She rode on horseback as men ride, armed with a bow and quiver, and sur- rounded with courtiers. She did not veil her face. She was even- tually suspected of an intimacy with one of her slaves, an Abyssin- ian by birth, and the people resolved upon deposing her and giving her a husband. So she was deposed and married to one of her relations, and her brother, Nasiru-d din, obtained the supreme power.

After the deposition of Raziya, her younger brother, Nasiru-d din, ascended the throne, and for some time exercised royal authority.

But Raziya and her husband revolted against him, mounted their horses, and, gathering round them their slaves and such disaffected persons as were willing to join them, they prepared to give battle. Nasiru-d din came out of Dehli with his slave and lieutenant Ghiyasu-d din Balban, who became ruler of the kingdom after him. The opposing forces met, and Raziya was defeated and obliged to fly. Pressed by hunger and overcome with fatigue, she addressed herself to a man engaged in cultivating the ground and begged for food. He gave her a bit of bread, which she devoured, and then she was overpowered by sleep. She was dressed in the garments of a man ; but when the peasant looked at her as she slept, he perceived under her upper garment a tunic trimmed with gold and pearls. See- ing she was a woman he killed her, stripped her of her valuables, drove away her horse, and buried her corpse in his field. He then carried some of her garments to the market for sale. The dealers suspected him, and took him before the magistrate, who caused him to be beaten. The wretch then confessed that he had killed Raziya, and told his guards where he had buried her. They exhumed her body, washed it, and, wrapping it in a shroud, buried it again in the same place. A small shrine was erected over her grave, which is visited by pilgrims, and is considered a place of sanctity. It is situated on the banks of the Jumna, about a parasang from Dehli.

After the death of his sister, Nasiru-d din remained undisputed master of the State, and reigned in peace for twenty years. He was a religious king. He made copies of the Holy Book and sold them, supporting himself on the money thus obtained. Kazi Kamalu-d din showed me a copy of the Kuran, written by this sovereign, with great taste and elegance. At length his lieutenant, Ghiyasu-d din Balban killed him, and succeeded to his throne.

After Balban had killed his master Nasiru-din, he reigned with absolute power for twenty years. He had previously been lieutenant of his predecessor for a similar period. He was one of the best of sovereigns — just, clement (halm), and good. One of his acts of generosity was this : — He built a house to which he gave the name, “ Abode of security.” All debtors who entered it had their debts

discharged, and whoever in fear fled there for refuge found safety. If a man who had killed another took refuge there, the Sultan bought off the friends of the deceased ; and if any delinquent fled there he satisfied those who pursued him. The Sultan was buried in this building, and I have visited his tomb.

° 0 The Sultan Shamsu-din Altamsh sent a merchant to buy slaves for him at Samarkand, Bokhara, and Turmuz. This man purchased a hundred slaves, among whom was Balban. When they were presented to the Sultan, they all pleased him except Balban, who was short in stature and of mean appearance. The Sultan exclaimed, “ I will not take this one,” but the slave cried, “ Master of the World, for whom have you bought these servants ? ” The Sultan laughed and said, “I have bought them for myself.” Balban replied, “ Then buy me, for the love of God.” “ Good,” exclaimed the Sultan. So he purchased him and placed him with his other slaves.

Balban was treated with contempt, and placed among the water- carriers. Men versed in astrology told the Sultan that one of his slaves would take the kingdom from his son and appropriate it to himself. They continually reiterated this prediction, but the Sultan in his rectitude and justice paid no heed to it. At length they repeated this prediction to the chief queen, mother of the king’s sons, and she told the Sultan of it. The words now made an impression upon him, and he sent for the astrologers and said, “ Can you recog- nize, if you see him, the slave who shall deprive my son of the kingdom?” They replied that they had a means by which they could pick him out. The Sultan ordered all his slaves to be brought out, and sat down to review them. They came before him, class after class, and the astrologers looked at them and said, “We have not yet seen him.” It was one o’clock in the afternoon, and the water-carriers being hungry, resolved upon collecting a little money and sending some one to the market to purchase food. So they clubbed their dirhams, and sent Balban with them, because there was no one among them who was more despised than he. In the market he could not find what his companions wanted, and so he went to another market. This delayed him, and when it came to the turn of the water-carriers to be passed in review, he had not

come back. His companions took his water-bottle and pot, and putting them on the back of another youth, presented him as Balban. When the name of Balban was called, this youth passed before the astrologers, and so the review passed over without their finding the person they sought. When the review was over, Balban returned, for it was the will of God that his destiny should be accomplished.

Eventually the noble qualities of the slave were discovered, and he was made chief of the water-carriers. Then he entered the army, and became in course of time an amir. Sultan Nasiru-d din, before he came to the throne, married his daughter, and when he became master of the kingdom he made him his lieutenant. Balban dis- charged the duties of this office for twenty years, after which he killed his sovereign, and remained master of the empire for twenty years longer, as we have already stated. He had two sons, one of them was “ the Martyr Khan,” his successor designate, and his viceroy in Sind, where he resided in the city of Multan. He was killed in a war which he carried on against the Tatars and Turks (Mughals). He left two sons Kai-kubad and Kai-kkusru. The younger son of Balban was called Nasiru-d din, and ruled as viceroy for his father at Lakhnauti.

Upon the death of “ the Martyr Khan,” Balban named Kai- khusru, son of the deceased, as heir to the throne, preferring him to his own son Nasiru-d din. The latter had a son named Mu’izzu-d din, who lived at Dehli with his grandfather. This young man, upon the death of his grandfather, and while his father was living, became successor to the throne under the extraordinary circumstances we will now mention.

Sultan Mu’izzu-d din, son of Ndsiru-d din, son of Sultan Ghiyasu-d

Sultan Ghiyasu-d din died in the night while his son Nasiru-din was at Lakhnauti, after naming as his successor his grandson Kai- khusru, as we have above stated. Now the chief of the amirs and deputy of Sultan Ghiyasu-d din was the enemy of this young prince, and he formed a plot against him which succeeded. He drew up a document, in which he forged the hands of the chief amirs , attesting that they had taken the oath of allegiance to Mu’izzu-d din, grand-

son of the deceased Balban. Then he presented himself before Kai-khusru, feigning the greatest interest in him, and said: The

amirs have sworn allegiance to your cousin, and I fear their designs against you.” Kai-khusru inquired what was best to be done, and the chief of the amirs advised him to fly to Sind and save his life. The prince asked how he was to get out of the city, as all the gates were shut ; and the chief amir answered that he had got the keys and would let him out. Kai-khusru thanked him for his offer and kissed his hand. The amir advised him to take horse immediately, and so he mounted his horse and was followed by his connexions and slaves. The amir opened the gate and let him out, and closed it immediately he had quitted Dehli.

The amir then sought an audience of Mu’izzu-d din, and took the oath of submission. The young prince inquired how he could be Sultan, when the title of heir presumptive belonged to his cousin. The chief of the amirs then informed him of the ruse he had used against his cousin, and how he had got him to leave the city. Mu’izzu-d din thanked him for his exertions, and accompanied him to the palace of the king, where he called together the amirs and courtiers who swore allegiance to him in the course of the night. When morning came, the population followed the same course, and the authority of Mu’izzu-d din was firmly established. His father was still alive, and was in Bengal at Lakhnauti. When he heard of what had taken place, he said, “ I am the heir of the kingdom ; how, then, can my son have become master, and have gained absolute power, while I am alive?” He set off for Dehli with his troops. His son also took the field at the head of his army, with the design of repulsing him from Dehli. They met near the town of Karra, on the banks of the Ganges, a place to which Hindus resort in pilgrimage. Nasiru-d din encamped upon the Karra side of the river, and his son, Sultan Mu’izzu-d din, upon the other, so that the river ran between them. They were resolved upon fighting each other ; but God wished to spare the blood of Musulmans, and imbued the heart of Nasiru-d din with feelings of pity for his son. So he said to himself, “ If my son reigns, it will be an honour to me ; it is only right, then, that I should desire that.” At the same time God filled the heart of Mu’izzu-d din with sentiments of submission to

his father. Each of these two princes entered a boat, and, without any escort of troops, they met in the middle of the river. The Sultan kissed the foot of his father and made his excuses ; and the latter replied, “I give thee my kingdom, and confide the govern- ment of it to thee.” Thereupon he took the oath of fidelity, and was about to return to the provinces he possessed, when his son said, “You must certainly come into my kingdom.” The father and son proceeded together towards Dehli, and entered the palace. The father placed Mu’izzu-d din upon the throne, and stood before him. The interview which they had upon the river was called “The Conjunction of the Two Auspicious Stars,” because of its happy results, in sparing the blood of the people, and in causing the father and son to offer to each other the kingdom, and to abstain from fighting. Many poets have celebrated this incident.

Nasiru-d din returned to his territories, and some years after died there, leaving several children, among whom was Ghiyasu-d din Bahadur, whom Sultan Tughlik made prisoner, and whom his son, Muhammad, released after his death. So the kingdom remained in the peaceable possession of Mu’izzu-d din for four years, which were like festival days. I have heard a person who lived at this period describe the happiness, the cheapness of provisions at this time, and the liberality and munificence of Mu’izzu-d din. It was this prince who built the minaret of the northern court of the great mosque at Dehli, which has no equal in the universe. An inhabitant of India informed me that Mu’izzu-d din was much given to the society of women and to drinking ; that he was attacked by a malady which defied all the efforts of his physicians to cure, and that one side of him was dried up (paralysis). Then his lieutenant, Jalalu-d din Firoz Shah Khilji, rose up against him.

When, as we have just described, Sultan Mu’izzu-d din was at- tacked with hemiplegia, his lieutenant, Jalalu-d din, revolted against him, and, going out of the city, he encamped upon a hill in the neighbourhood, beside a mortuary chapel called Jaishani. Mu’izzu-d din sent out amirs to attack him, but all whom he sent with this object swore fidelity to Jalalu-d din, and enrolled themselves in his

army. The chief rebel afterwards entered the city and besieged the Sultan in his palace for three days. An eye-witness of the fact in- formed me that Sultan Mu’izzu-d din suffered from hunger, and could get nothing to eat. One of his neighbours sent him some food to appease his hunger, but the rebellious amir forced his way into the palace and Mu’izzu-d din was killed.

Jalalu-d din succeeded. He was an amiable and good man, and his gentleness made him the victim of an assassin, as we shall presently relate. He continued in peaceable possession of the throne for several years, and built the palace which bears his name. It was this building which Sultan Muhammad gave to his brother-in- law, the amir Ghada, son of Muhanna, when he married him to his sister, an event which will be spoken of hereafter.

Sultan Jalalu-d din had a son named Euknu-d din, and a nephew called ’Alau-d din, whom he married to his daughter, and to whom he gave the government of the towns of Karra and Manikpur, with the dependent territories. The wife of ’Alau-d din tormented him, and he was continually complaining of her to his uncle (and father- in-law), Sultan Jalalu-d din, until dissension arose between them on the subject. ’Alau-d din was a sharp and brave man, who had often been victorious, and the ambition of sovereignty took possession of his mind, but he had no wealth but what he won by the point of his sword by despoiling the infidels. He set out to carry the holy war into the country of Deogir (or Daulatabad), which is also called the country of Kataka, of which mention will be made hereafter. Deogir is the capital of Malwa and of Marhata (the country of the Mahrattas), and its ruler was the most powerful of all the infidel kings. In the course of this expedition, the horse of ’Alau-d din stumbled against a stone and threw his rider. ’Alau-d din heard a sort of jingling noise made by the stone. He ordered the place to be dug up, and a considerable treasure was foimd under the stone, which he divided among his companions. When he arrived at Deogir, the ruler submitted and surrendei’ed the city without fight- ing, making valuable presents to his conqueror. ’Alau-d din re- turned to Karra, but did not send any portion of the spoil to his uncle. Certain persons stirred up the feelings of his uncle against him, and the Sultan summoned him. He refused to go to Court,

and the Sultan then said, “ I will go and bring him, for he is to me as a son.” Accordingly he set out with his army, and marched until he reached the bank of the river opposite to Karra, at the same place where Sultan Mu’izzu-d din had encamped when he went to meet his father, Nasiru-d din. He embarked on the river to go and meet his nephew. The latter also took boat with the intention of making an end of the Sultan, and he said to his companions, “When I embrace him, kill him.” When the two princes met in the middle of the river, the nephew embraced his uncle, and his companions despatched the Sultan as he had instructed them. The murderer seized upon the kingdom, and took command of the troops of his victim.

Sultan 'Alau-d din Muhammad Shah Khily'i.

When he had killed his uncle he became master of the kingdom, and the greater part of the troops of Jalalu-d din passed over to his side. The rest returned to Hehli and gathered round Ruknu-d din. The latter marched out to attack the murderer, but all his soldiers deserted to ’Alau-d din, and he fled to Sind. ’Alau-d din took pos- session of the palace and reigned peaceably for twenty years. He was one of the best of Sultans, and the people of India eulogize him highly. He personally examined the affairs of his people, and inquired into the price of provisions. Every day the muhtasih, or inspector of the markets, whom the Indians called rats or chief, had to attend before him. It is said that one day he questioned the inspector about the dearness of meat, and he was told that it arose from the high tax upon bullocks. He ordered the tax to be abolished and the dealers to be brought before him. He gave them money, and said, “ With this buy bullocks and sheep, and sell them ; the price that they fetch must be paid to the treasury, and you shall receive an allowance for selling them.” This (order) was carried into execution. And the Sultan acted in a similar way in respect of the fabrics brought from Daulatabad. When corn reached a high price he opened the granaries of the State, and sold their stores, until the price came down. It is said that on one occasion the price of corn rose, and he ordered the dealers to sell it at a price which he fixed. They refused to sell it at the price named. He then

ordered that nobody should purchase grain except at the govern- ment stores, and he sold it to the people for six months. The monopolists were afraid that their stocks would be devoured by weevils, and they begged permission to sell. The Sultan gave them leave, but upon condition that they sold at a price lower than they had before refused.

’Alau-d din never rode on horseback, either to go to public prayer on Fridays, or on festivals, or on any occasion whatever. The reason of this was that he had a nephew, named Sulaiman Shah, whom he loved and favoured. One day he mounted his horse to go a-hunting with this nephew, and this one conceived the idea of dealing with his uncle as he, ’Alau-d din, had dealt with his uncle Jalalu-d din, that is, of assassinating him. So when the Sultan alighted to take breakfast, he discharged an arrow at him and brought him down, but a slave covered him with a shield. The nephew came up to finish him, but the slaves told him that he was dead. He, be- lieving them, rode off and entered the women’s apartments in the palace. The Sultan recovered from his fainting fit, mounted his his horse, and gathered together his troops. His nephew fled, but he was captured and brought before the Sultan. He slew him, and after that ceased to ride on horseback.

’Alau-d din had several sons, whose names were — 1. Khizr Khan, 2. Shadi Khan, 3. Abu Bakr Khan, 4. Mubarak Khan, also called Kutbu-d din, who became king, 5. Shahabu-d din. Kutbu-d din was treated unkindly by his father, and received very little notice. The Sultan bestowed honours on all his brothers — that is, he granted them banners and drums ; but on him he conferred nothing. But one day the Sultan said to him, “ I really must give you what I have given your brothers.” Kutbu-d din replied, “ It is God who will give it me.” This answer alarmed his father, who became afraid of him, The Sultan was then attacked by the malady of which he died. The wife by whom he had his son Khizr Khan, and who was called Mah-hakk, had a brother named Sanjar, with whom she conspired to raise Khizr Khan to the throne. Malik Naib, the chief of the Sultan’s amirs, who was called A1 Alfi,1 be- cause his master had bought him for 1,000 ( alf ) tankas, that is,

2,500 African dinars. This Malik Naib got knowledge of the plot and informed the Sultan, Thereupon he gave his attendants this order: “When Sanjar enters the room where I am, I will give him a robe. As he is putting it on, seize him by the sleeves, throw him down, and despatch him.” This order was exactly executed.

Khizr Khan was then absent at a place called Sandabat (Sonpat), one day’s journey from Dehli, whither he had gone on a pilgrimage to the tombs of certain martyrs buried there. He had made a vow to walk thither on foot, and pray for the health of his father. But when Khizr Khan heard that his father had killed his maternal uncle, he was greatly concerned, and tore the collar of his garment, as the Indians are in the habit of doing when any one dies who is dear to them. His father, on hearing this, was much annoyed, and when Khizr Khan appeared before him, he reprimanded and censured him. Then he ordered irons to be put upon his hands and feet, and gave him into the charge of Malik Naib above mentioned, with orders to convey him to the fortress of Gwalior. This is an isolated fort, in the midst of idolatrous Hindus, at ten days’ journey from Dehli, and it is impregnable. I resided there some time. When Malik Naib took the prince to this strong fort, he gave him into the charge of the liotwdl, or the commandant, and of the mufrids or zamams (regularly enrolled soldiers), and told them not to say that their prisoner was the son of the Sultan, but to treat him honourably. He was the Sultan’s most bitter enemy, so they were to guard him as an enemy.

Finally, the Sultan’s malady growing worse, he told Malik Naib to send some one to fetch Khizr Khan, that he might proclaim him his successor. Malik Naib acquiesced, but he delayed from day to day to execute the order, and whenever his master inquired about the matter, he replied that his son would soon arrive. He continued to act thus until the Sultan died.

When the Sultan ’Alau-d din was dead, Malik Naib raised his younger son, Shahabu-d din, to the throne. The people took the oath of obedience to him, but Malik Naib kept him under his own direction, and after depriving Abu Bakr Khan and Shadi Khan of

sight, he sent them to Gwalior. He also ordered their brother Khizr Khan, who was imprisoned in the same place, to be blinded. They were imprisoned, as well as Kutbu-d din, but the minister spared the sight of the latter. Sultan ’Alau-d din had two slaves, who were his personal attendants; one was called Bashir and the other Mu- basliir. The chief princess, widow of ’Alau-d din, and daughter of Sultan Mu’izzu-d din, sent for them, recounted the benefits which they had received from their late master, and said, “This eunuch, Malik Naib, has treated my children in the way you know of, and now he wants to kill Kutbu-d din.” They replied, “ You shall see what we will do.” It was usual for them to pass the night near Malik Naib, and to enter armed into his presence. They went to wait upon him the following night in his Kliurram-gah, as the Indians call a kind of room constructed of planks and hung with cloth. Here the wazir slept; — on the terrace of the palace during the rainy season. It so happened that he took the sword worn by one of these conspirators, brandished it, and returned it. The slave then struck him with it, and his companion gave him another blow. Then they cut off his head, and, carrying it to the prison of Kutbu-d din, and throwing it down at his feet, delivered him from captivity. The prince went and joined his brother, Shahabu-d din, and stayed with him several days, as if he had been his lieutenant, but at length he resolved to depose him, and carried out his design.

Sultan Kutbu-d din, son of Sultan 'Alau-d din.

This prince deposed his brother Shahabu-d din, cut off one of his fingers, and sent him to Gwalior, where he was imprisoned with his brothers. The kingdom came peaceably into the hands of Kutbu-d din, who left Dehli, his capital, to proceed to Daulatabad, forty days’ journey distant. The road between these two places is bordered with trees, such as the willow and others, so that the traveller might think himself in a garden. In the space of every mile there are three ddwas, or posting-houses, of which the arrangements have been already de- scribed. At each of these stations the traveller finds all that he needs, as if his forty days’ journey lay through a market. Thus the road goes on for six months’ journey, till it reaches the country of Tilang and Ma’bar. At every station there is a palace for the

Sultan and a comer for the traveller, and poor people have no need to carry with them provisions for their journey.

After Sultan Kutbu-d din had set off on this expedition, certain amirs determined among themselves to revolt against him, and to place a son of his imprisoned brother Kliizr Khan upon the throne. This child was about ten years old, and was near the Sultan. When the latter heard of this plot of the amirs, he took his nephew, seized him by the feet, and dashed his head against the stones till his brains were scattered. He then sent an amir, named Malik Shah, to Gwalior, where the father and uncles of the child were confined, with orders to kill them all. Kazi Zainu-d din Mubarak, kdzi of this stronghold, gave me the following account: — Malik Shah reached us one morning, whilst I was with Khizr Khan in his prison. When the captive heard of his arrival, he was frightened, and changed colour. The amir came in, and he said to him, ‘ Why have you come ? ’ and he answered, ‘ Upon a matter which concerns the Lord of the World.’ The prince asked if his life was safe, and he answered ‘Yes.’ Thereupon the amir went out and called for the Icotwdl, or commandant, and his mufrids, or soldiers, to the number of 300; he sent for me, as well as the notaries, and pro- duced the order of the Sultan. The men of the garrison read it, then went to Shahabu-d din, the deposed Sultan, and cut off his head. He was very collected, and showed no sign of fear. Then they beheaded Abu Bakr and Shadi Khan. When they went to decapitate Khizr Khan, he was overcome with fear and stupor. His mother was with him, but the executioners shut the door against her and killed him. Then they dragged the four bodies to a ditch, with- out either wrapping them in shrouds or washing them. They were exhumed after some years and were interred in the tombs of their ancestors.” The mother of Khizr Khan survived some time. I saw her at Mecca in the year 728 h. (a.d. 1327).

The fort of Gwalior here spoken of is situated on the top of a high mountain, and appears, so to speak, to be cut out of the rock itself. There is no other mountain in face of it. There are sub- terranean cisterns in it, and it contains also about twenty bricked wells. Manjanilcs and ’arradas are mounted on the walls. The passage to the fortress is up a spacious road, which elephants and

horses can ascend. Near the gate of the fort there is the figure of an elephant, sculptured in stone, carrying its driver. When seen from a distance, it seems to be a real elephant. At the base of the fortress there is a fine town, built entirely of white hewn stone, mosques and houses alike. No wood is seen except in the doors. It is the same with the palace of the king, the domes and halls. Most of the business men of this town are idolaters, and there are about 600 horsemen of the royal army there, who never cease to fight with the infidels by whom the place is surrounded.

When Kutbu-d din had killed his brothers, and he had become sole master, without any one left to fight with him or revolt against him, God raised up against him his favourite servant, the most powerful of his amirs and the highest in dignity, Nasiru-d din Khusru Khan. This man attacked him unawares, killed him, and remained absolute master of the kingdom. But this did not last long. God raised also against him one who dethroned and then killed him. This was the Sultan Tughlik, as will hereafter be fully recorded, God willing !

Khusru Khan was one of the principal amirs of Kutbu-d din. He was brave and handsome. He had conquered the country of Chanderi, and also that of Ma’bar, which are among the most fertile regions of India, and are at a distance of six months’ journey from Dehli. Kutbu-d din liked this man very much, and showed great fondness for him ; — this was the cause of the Sultan’s meeting death at his hands. c 0 ° One day Khusru Khan told the Sultan that several Hindus desired to become Musulmans. It is one of the customs in this country that, when a person wishes to become a convert to Islam, he is brought before the king, who gives him a fine robe and a necklace and bracelets of gold, proportionate in value to his rank. The Sultan told Khusru to bring the Hindus before him, but the amir replied that they were ashamed to come by day on account of their relations and co-religionists. So the Sultan told him to bring them at night.

Khusru Khan gathered a troop of Indians, chosen from among the bravest and greatest ; his brother, the Khan-i Khdndn, was

among them. It was the hot season, and the Sultan slept on the roof of the palace, having only a few eunuchs around him. When the Indians bearing their weapons had passed four gates of the palace and arrived at the fifth, Ivazi Khan, the keeper of the keys, was startled by their proceedings, and suspected that they had some evil design in view. So he prevented their entrance, and said he would not let them pass without a distinct order from the mouth of the king himself. Finding themselves thus stopped, they fell upon him and killed him. The noise arising from this contention grew loud and reached the Sultan, who asked what it was, and Khusru Khan told him that it was made by the Indians, who were coming to make their profession. Kazi Khan had opposed their entrance, and hence a tumult had arisen. The Sultan was alarmed and rose to go into the inner part of the palace, but the door was closed and the eunuchs stood near it. The Sultan knocked at the door. Khusru Khan then seized him in his arms from behind, but the king was the stronger and threw him down. The Indians entered, and Khusru Khan called out to them, “ Here he is upon me, kill him ! ” So they murdered him and cut off his head, which they threw from the roof of the palace into the court-yard.

Khusru Khan sent immediately for the amirs and maliks who were not yet aware of what had happened. Each party that entered found him seated on the throne. They took the oath (of allegiance) to him, and when morning came he proclaimed his accession, de- spatched his orders into all the provinces, and sent a robe of honour to each amir. They all submitted to him with the exception of Tughlik Shah, father of Sultan Muhammad Shah, who was then governor of Dibalpur, in Sind. When he received the robe of honour which Khusru had allotted to him, he threw it on the ground and sat upon it. Khusru Khan sent his brother, the Khdn-i Khanan, against him, but Tughlik defeated him and afterwards killed him, as will be narrated in the account of the reign of Tughlik.

Khusru Khan, upon becoming king, showed great favour to the Hindus, and issued objectionable orders, such as an order prohibiting the slaughter of bullocks, in deference to the practice of the idolatrous Indians, who do not allow these animals to be killed. * * * Such conduct was one of the causes which made Khusru Khan hate-

ful to the Musulmans, and made them incline in favour of Tughlik. Khusru’s reign did not last long, and the days of his power were not numerous, as we shall relate.

The shaikh and pious imam Ruknu-d din * a ° gave me the following account in his hermitage at Multan. Sultan Tughlik be- longed to the race of Turks called Karauna ,* who inhabit the moun- tains between Sind and the country of the Turks. He was in a very humble condition, and went to Sind as servant of a certain merchant, as his golwani, or groom. This took place in the reign of ’Alau-d d n, whose brother, U'lu Khan,2 was governor of Sind. Tughlik entered his service and was attached to his person, being enrolled among his piddas or footmen. Afterwards he distinguished himself by his bravery, and was entered among the horsemen ; then he be- came a subordinate amir, and Ulu Khan made him his master of the horse. Finally, he became one of the great amirs, and received the title of al malik al ghdzi, “warlike prince.” I have seen the follow- ing inscription, which is placed over the sacrarium of the mosque which he built at Multan : “ I have fought with the Tatars twenty- nine times, and have defeated them. It is for this that I have been called ‘ the warlike prince.’ ”

When Kutbu-d din became king, he made Tughlik governor of the town and district of Dibalpur ; and he made his son (the present Sultan of India) superintendent of the imperial stables. He was called Jaund, the Sun ; when he became king he called himself Muhammad Shah. Kutbu-d din being dead, and Khusru Khan having succeeded, he confirmed Jauna in his office as master of the horse. When Tughlik wanted to rebel, he had 300 comrades in whom he put confidence in the day of battle. He wrote to Kishlii Khan, who was then at Multan, three days journey from Dibalpur, calling upon him for assistance, reminding him of the favours of Kutbu-d din, and urging him to exact vengeance for the murder of that king. The son of Kishlu Khan resided at Dehli, and, con- sequently, he replied to Tughlik that if his son were with him he

1 See Jour. Asiatique, Tome II., 1844, pp. 516, 517. D’Ohsson Hist, des Mongols, IV., p. 46. 2 Ulugh Khan.

would certainly help his design. Tughlik wrote to his son, Mu- hammad Shah, to inform him of his resolve, and desiring him to fly from Dehli to meet him, bringing with him the son of Kishlu Khan. The young nobleman contrived a stratagem against Khusru Khan, which was successful. He told him that the horses had grown fat and heavy, and that they required exercise. Khusru Khan accordingly gave permission for taking them out. So the master of the horse mounted on horseback every day, and, followed by his subordinates, he rode about from one to three hours ; he even extended his absence to four hours, so that one day he was out till noon had passed, which is the time when the Indians dine. The Sultan sent out to look after him, but nothing could be heard of him, and he joined his father, together with the son of Kishlu Khan.

Tughlik then openly rebelled and collected his forces. Kishlu Khan also joined him with his soldiers. The Sultan sent out his brother, the Khdn-i Khdnan, to give them battle, but they totally de- feated him, and his army passed over to their side. The Khdn-i Khdndn returned to his brother; his officers were slain and his treasure captured. Tughlik then proceeded towards Dehli. Khusru Khan went out to meet him with his army, and encamped near the city at a place called Asya-bad, that is to say, the windmill. He ordered the treasures to be opened, and he gave away the money by bags, not by weight or definite sums. The battle began between him and Tughlik, and the Indians fought with the greatest fury. Tughlik’s troops were defeated, his camp was pillaged, and he remained sur- rounded by his 300 old companions. He cried, “Whither can we fly? We shall be taken everywhere and killed.” The soldiers of Khusru were busy plundering, and were scattered, so that there remained only a few near him. Tughlik and his companions went against him. In this country the presence of the sovereign is al- ways indicated by the umbrella carried over his head. * ° **

When Tughlik and his companions advanced against Khusru, the fight began again between them and the Hindus : the Sultan’s troops were routed, and none remained near him. He took to flight, dismounted from his horse, threw away his garments and arms, and keeping only his shirt, he let his hair fall upon his shoulders as the

fakirs of India do. Then he went into a garden near at hand. The people gathered round Tughlik, who proceeded towards the city. The governor brought him the keys. He entered the palace and lodged in one of its wings; then he said to Kishlfi Khan, “Be thou Sultan!” The Khan replied, “ Bather you.” They disputed together, but at length Kishlu Khan said to Tughlik, “ If you refuse to be Sultan, your son will obtain the sovereign power.” Tughlik was averse to this, so he accepted the government, and sat upon the royal throne. The nobles and common people took their oaths to him.

After three days Khusrfi Khan, still concealed in the same garden, was hard pressed by hunger. He came out of his hiding-place and walked about. Then he met the keeper of the garden, and asked him for some food. The man had none to give him, so Khusru gave him his ring and told him to go and pawn it, and buy food. When this person went into the market with the ring, the people had their suspicions, and they took him to the police magistrate. The latter conducted him to Tughlik, to whom he made known who had given him the ring. Tughlik sent his son Muhammad to bring in Khusru, and Muhammad seized him, placed him on a tatu, or baggage-horse, and brought him to his father. When Khusru went into the presence of Tughlik, he said : “I am hungry, give me something to eat.” The new sovereign ordered him to be served with shariat, food, beer, and lastly betel. When he had eaten he rose and said, “ 0 Tughlik, deal with me after the manner of kings, and do not dishonour me.” Tughlik complied with his request ; he ordered him to be beheaded, and he was executed on the very spot where he had killed Kutbu-d din. His head and his body were thrown from the roof of the palace, as he had done with the head of his predecessor. Afterwards, Tughlik ordered his corpse to be washed, wrapped in a shroud, and buried in a tomb which he him- self had built. Tughlik was a just and excellent prince, and he enjoyed the sovereign power in peace for four years.

When Tughlik was firmly established in his capital, he sent his son, Muhammad, to make the conquest of Tilang, three months* march from Dehli. He sent with him a considerable army, attached to which were the principal amirs, such as Malik Timur, Malik Tigin, Malik Kaffir the seal-bearer, Malik Bairam, and others.

When Muhammad arrived in Tilang, he was desirous of revolting. He had for a companion a man called ’Ubaid, who was a poet and lawyer. He ordered him to spread a report of the Sultan Tughlik being dead, for he supposed that all men, on hearing this intelligence, would in hot haste tender him their oath of fidelity. This news spread among the soldiers, but the amirs did not believe it. Every one of them beat his drums and revolted. No one remained near Muhammad, and the chiefs wished to kill him. Malik Timur pre- vented them, and protected him. He fled to his father with ten horsemen, whom he called his “ faithful friends.” His father gave him money and troops, and commanded him to return to Tilang, and he obeyed. But the Sultan was acquainted with his design ; he killed the lawyer ’Ubaid, and he ordered Malik Kaffir, the seal- bearer, to be put to death. A tent peg was driven into the ground, and the upper end of it was sharpened. This was driven into the throat of Kaffir, who was placed thereon, face downwards, and it came out by one of his ribs. Thus he was left. The other amirs fled to Sultan Shamsu-d din, son of Sultan Nasiru-d din, son of Sultan Ghiyasu-d din Balban, and established themselves at his Court (at Lakhnauti).

The fugitive amirs dwelt with Sultan Shamsu-d din. Soon after- wards he died, leaving his throne to his son, Shahabu-d din. This prince succeeded his father, but his younger brother, Ghiyasu-d din Bahadur Burah (this last word signifies in the Indian language black), overpowered him, seized upon the kingdom, and killed his brother Katlu Khan, and most of his other brothers. Two of them, Sultan Shahabu-d din and Nasiru-d din, fled to Tugblik, who marched forth with them to fight with the fratricide. He left his son Mu- hammad in his kingdom as viceroy, and advanced in haste to the country of Lakhnauti. He subdued it, made the Sultan Ghiyasu-d din prisoner, and set off on the march to his capital, carrying his prisoner with him.

There was then at Dehli a saint, Nizamu-d din Badafini. Mu- hammad, the Sultan’s son, often visited him, to pay him respect in the eyes of his followers and to implore his prayers. The shaikh was subject to ecstatic fits, in which he lost all control of himself. The Sultan’s son directed his servants to let him know when the

shaikh was in one of these fits. When he was seized with a fit the prince was informed, and he went to him. As soon as the shaikh saw him he exclaimed, “ We give him the throne.” Afterwards he died while the Sultan was absent, and the Sultan’s son, Muhammad, bore his bier upon his shoulder. The father heard of this ; he sus- pected his son and threatened him. Other actions had already aroused suspicions in Tughlik against his son. He was annoyed to see him buy a great number of slaves, and make magnificent presents to secure friends. Now his anger against him increased. The Sultan was informed that the astrologers had predicted that he would never enter again the city of Dehli on returning from his expedition. He replied by threats against them.

When he came near to liis capital, on his return from the expedi- tion, he ordered his son to build for him a palace, or, as these people call it, a kushk, near a river, which runs by a place called Afghanpur. Muhammad built it in the course of three days, making it chiefly of wood. It was elevated above the ground, and rested on pillars of wood. Muhammad planned it scientifically, and Malik Zada was charged to see the plans carried out. This man was afterwards known by the title of Khwaja-i Jahan. His real name was Ahmad, son of Ay;is. He was then inspector of buildings, but he afterwards became chief icazir of Sultan Muhammad. The object which these two persons kept in view in building the kushk was this, — that it should fall down with a crash when the elephants touched it in a certain part. The Sultan stopped at this building and feasted the people, who afterwards dispersed. His son asked permission to parade the elephants before him, fully accoutred. The Sultan con- sented.

Shaikh Ruknu-d din told me that he was then near the Sultan, and that the Sultan’s favourite son, Mahmud, was with them. There- upon Muhammad came and said to the shaikh, “ Master, it is now the time for afternoon prayer, go down and pray.” I went down, said the shaikh, and they brought the elephants up on one side, as the prince and his confidant had arranged. When the animals passed along that side, the building fell down upon the Sultan and his son Mahmud. I heard the noise, continued the shaikh, and I returned without having said my prayer. I saw that the building had fallen.

The Sultan’s son, Muhammad, ordered pickaxes and shovels to be brought to dig and seek for his father, but he made signs for them not to hurry, and the tools were not brought till after sunset. Then they began to dig, and they found the Sultan, who had bent over his son to save him from death. Some assert that Tughlik was taken out dead ; others, on the contrary, maintain that he was alive, and that an end was made of him. He was carried away at night to the tomb which he had himself built near the city called after him Tughlikabad, and there he was interred. * * °

It was to the skilful management of the wazir, Khwaja-i Jahan, in constructing the edifice which fell upon Tughlik, that he owed the position he held with Sultan Muhammad, and the partiality which the latter had for him. No one, whether wazir or otherwise, enjoyed anything like the consideration in which he was held by the Sultan, and never attained the high position which he possessed near him.

When the Sultan Tughlik was dead, his son Muhammad took pos- session of the kingdom, without encountering either adversary or rebel. As we have said above, his name was Jauna; but when he became king he called himself Muhammad, and received the sur- name of Abu-1 Mujahid. All that I have recounted about the history of the Sultans of India, I heard and learned, or, at least, the greater part, from the mouth of Shaikh Kamalu-d din, son of Burhanu-d din, of Ghazni, chief Icdzi. As to the adventures of this king, the greater part came under my own observation while living in his territories.

Muhammad is a man who, above all others, is fond of making presents and shedding blood. There may always be seen at his gate some poor person becoming rich, or some living one condemned to death. His generous and brave actions, and his cruel and violent deeds, have obtained notoriety among the people. In spite of this, he is the most humble of men, and the one who exhibits the greatest equity. The ceremonies of religion are dear to his heart, and he is very severe in respect of prayer and the punishment which follows its neglect. He is one of those kings whose good fortune is great, and whose happy success exceeds the ordinary limit; but his dis-

tinguisliing characteristic is generosity. I shall mention among the instances of his liberality, some marvels of which the like has never been reported of any of the princes who have preceded him. I call God, his angels and prophets, to witness that all I say about his boundless munificence is the plain truth. °

The palace of the Sultan at Dehli is called Dar-sara, and it has a great number of gates. At the first there is a troop of men posted on guard. ® ° ° Outside the first gate there are stages on which the executioners sit who have to kill people. It is the custom with this people that whenever the Sultan orders the execution of a person, he is despatched at the door of the hall of audience, and his body remains there three days. ° * The third door abuts upon the

hall of audience, an immense chamber called Hazur-sutun, or “the thousand columns.” These pillars are of varnished wood, and sup- port a wooden roof painted in the most admirable style. Here people seat themselves, and in this hall the Sultan holds his great public audiences. [ Etiquette of the Court. — Many instances of the

When drought prevailed throughout India and Sind, and the scarcity was so great that the man of wheat was worth six dinars, the Sultan gave orders that provisions for six months should be sup- plied to all the inhabitants of Dehli from the royal granaries. ° ° ° The officers of justice made registers of the people of the different streets, and these being sent up, each person received sufficient pro- visions to last him for six months.

The Sultan, notwithstanding all I have said about his humility, his justice, his kindness to the poor, and his boundless generosity, was much given to bloodshed. It rarely happened that the corpse of some one who had been killed was not to be seen at the gate of his palace. I have often seen men killed and their bodies left there. One day I went to his palace and my horse shied. I looked before me, and I saw a white heap on the ground, and when I asked what it was, one of my companions said it was the trunk of a man cut into three pieces. This sovereign punished little faults like great ones, and spared neither the learned, the religious, nor the noble. Every day hundreds of individuals were brought chained into his hall of audience ; their hands tied to their necks and their feet

bound together. Some were killed, and others were tortured, or well beaten. It was his practice to have all persons in prison brought before him every day except Friday. This day was to them a day of respite, and they passed it in cleaning themselves and taking rest. God preserve us from evil !

The Sultan had a brother named Mas’ud Khan, whose mother was a daughter of Sultan ’Alau-d din. This Mas’ud was one of the handsomest fellows I have ever seen. The king suspected him of intending to rebel, so he questioned him, and, under fear of the torture, Mas’ud confessed the charge. Indeed, every one who denies charges of this nature, which the Sultan brings against him, is put to the torture, and most people prefer death to being tortured. The Sultan had his brother’s head cut off in the palace, and the corpse, according to custom, was left neglected for three days in the same place. The mother of Mas’ud had been stoned two years before in the same place on a charge of debauchery or adultery. ° ° #

On one occasion the Sultan sent a part of his army, under Malik Yusuf Bughra, to fight against the Hindus in the mountains near Dehli. Yusuf started with nearly all his men, but some of the soldiers stayed behind. He wrote to the Sovereign informing him of the fact, and he directed search to be made throughout the city, and every man who had remained behind to be apprehended. Three hundred of them were taken. The Sultan ordered all of them to be killed, and he was obeyed.

One of the most serious charges against this Sultan is that he forced all the inhabitants of Dehli to leave their homes. His motive for this act was that the people of Dehli wrote letters full of insults and invectives against the Sultan. They sealed them up, and writ- ing upon them these words, “ By the head of the king of the world, no one but himself must read this writing,” they threw them at night into the hall of audience. When the Sultan opened them he found that they contained insults and invectives against himself. He decided to ruin Dehli, so he purchased all the houses and inns

from tlie inhabitants, paid them the price, and then ordered them to remove to Daulatabad. At first they were unwilling to obey, but the crier of the monarch proclaimed that no one must be found in Dehli after three days.

The greater part of the inhabitants departed, but some hid them- selves in the houses. The Sultan ordered a rigorous search to be made for any that remained. His slaves found two men in the streets : one was paralyzed, the other blind. They were brought before the sovereign, who ordered the paralytic to be shot away from a manjamk, and the blind man to be dragged from Dehli to Daulatabad, a journey of forty days’ distance. The poor wretch fell in pieces during the journey, and only one of his legs reached Daulatabad. All the inhabitants of Dehli left ; they abandoned their baggage and their merchandize, and the city remained a perfect desert.

A person in whom I felt confidence assured me that the Sultan mounted one evening upon the roof of his palace, and, casting his eyes over the city of Dehli, in which there was neither fire, smoke, nor light, he said, “Now my heart is satisfied, and my feelings are appeased.” Some time after he wrote to the inhabitants of different provinces, commanding them to go to Dehli and repeople it. They ruined their own countries, but they did not populate Dehli, so vast and immense is that city. In fact, it is one of the greatest cities in the universe. When we entered this capital we found it in the state which has been described. It was empty, abandoned, and had but a small population.

Sultan Tughlik had a nephew, son of his sister, named Bahau-d din Gushtasp, whom he made governor of a province. This man was a brave warrior, a hero ; and when his uncle was dead he refused to give his oath to the late Sultan’s son and successor. The Sultan sent a force against him ; 0 0 0 there was a fierce battle, 0 0 ° and the Sultan’s troops gained the victory. Bahau-d din fled to one of the Hindu princes, called the Bax of Kambila. 0 0 0 This prince had territories situated among inaccessible mountains, and was one of the chief princes of the infidels.

When Bahau-d dm made his escape to this prince, he was pursued by the soldiers of the Sultan of India, who surrounded the rdi’s territories. . The infidel saw his danger, for his stores of grain were exhausted, and his great fear was that the enemy would carry off his person by force; so he said to Bahau-d din, “Thou seest how we are situated. I am resolved to die with my family, and with all who will imitate me. Go to such and such a prince (naming a Hindu prince), and stay with him ; he will defend thee.” He sent some one to conduct him thither. Then he commanded a great fire to be prepared and lighted. Then he burned his furniture, and said to his wives and daughters, “ I am going to die, and such of you as prefer it, do the same.” Then it was seen that each one of these women washed herself, rubbed her body with sandal-wood, kissed the ground before the rdi of Kambila, and threw herself upon the pile. All perished. The wives of his nobles, ministers, and chief men imitated them, and other women also did the same.

The rdi, in his turn, washed, rubbed himself with sandal, and took his arms, but did not put on his breastplate. Those of his men who resolved to die with him followed his example. They sallied forth to meet the troops of the Sultan, and fought till every one of them fell dead. The town was taken, its inhabitants were made prisoners, and eleven sons of the rdi were made prisoners and carried to the Sultan, who made them all Musulmans. The Sultan made them amirs, and treated them with great honour, as much for their illustrious birth as in admiration of the conduct of their father. Of these brothers, I saw near the Sultan, Nasr, Bakhtiyar, and the keeper of the seals, who carried the ring with which the Sultan’s drinking-water was sealed. His name was Abu Muslim, and we were companions and friends.

After the death of the rdi of Kambila, the troops of the Sultan proceeded towards the country of the infidel with whom Bahau-d din had taken refuge, and surrounded it. This prince said, “I cannot do as the rdi of Kambila did.” He seized Bahau-d din, and gave him up to the army of the Sultan. They bound his legs and tied his arms to his neck, and so conducted him to the Sultan. He ordered the prisoner to be taken to the women, his relations, and these insulted him and spat upon him. Then he ordered him to bo

skinned alive, and as kis skin was tom off, kis flesk was cooked witk rice. Some was sent to kis ckildren and kis wife, and tke re- mainder was put into a great disk and given to tke elepkants to eat, but they would not touck it. Tke Sultan ordered kis skin to be stuffed witk straw, and to be placed along witk tke remains of Bahadur Bura,1 and to be exhibited throughout tke country. When these arrived in Sind, of which country Kishlu Khan was then governor, he ordered them to be buried. When tke Sultan heard this he was offended, and determined to make away witk Kishlu Khan, who was tke friend of Sultan Tuglilik, and had helped him in obtaining tke supreme power.

As soon as tke Sultan was informed of what Kishlu Khan had done in tke matter of burying the two skins, he sent for him. Kishlu Khan instantly understood that tke Sultan intended to punish him, so he did not attend to tke invitation. He revolted, spread kis money about, raised troops, and sent emissaries among the Turks, Afghans, and Khurasanians, who flocked to him in great numbers. His army was equal to that of tke Sultan, or even superior to it in numbers. Tke Sovereign marched in person to fight him, and tkey met at two days’ journey from Multan, in tke desert plain of Abuhar. In this battle tke Sultan showed great prudence. He placed Shaikh ’Imadu-d din, who resembled him (in person), under tke royal canopy, whilst he himself moved off during tke heat of tke battle witk 4,000 men. Tke enemy endeavoured to take tke canopy, thinking it was tke Sovereign who was under it. Tmadu-d din was killed, and tkey thought that tke Sultan had perished. Tke soldiers of Kishlu Khan were intent only on plunder, and separated from their chief, who was left witk only a few men. Then the Sultan fell upon him and cut off kis head. When Kishlu Khan’s troops knew this, tkey took to flight.

Tke Sultan then entered Multan, where he seized tke lcdzi, Kari- mu-d din, and ordered him to be flayed alive. He brought witk him tke head of Kishlu Khan, which he caused to be suspended over kis own door. I saw it there when I arrived in Multan.

1 Ghiyasu-d din Bahhdur Btira, King of Bengal, whom he restored to his kingdom, and afterwards defeated and killed. The skin of this victim was torn off and stuffed.

Disaster suffered by the army in the mountain of Karachil {in the Himalayas).

This is a vast mountain, three months’ journey in length, and ten days’ journey from Dehli. Its king was one of the most powerful of the Hindu princes, and the Sultan of India sent an army to fight with him, commanded by Malik Nakbia, chief of the inkstand bearers. The army consisted of 100,000 horse and a large number of infantry. They took the town of Jidiya, situated at the foot of the mountain, and the places adjacent, making prisoners, plundering, and burning. The infidels fled to the heights of the mountain, abandoning their country, their flocks, and the treasures of their king. The mountain has only one road. Below lies a valley ; above, the mountain itself ; and horsemen can only pass one by one. The troops of the Sultan ascended by this road, and took possession of the town of Warangal, in the upper part of the mountain. They seized upon everything it contained, and wrote to their Sovereign informing him of their victory. He sent them a lcazi and a preacher, and ordered them to remain in the country.

When the great rains came on, the army was attacked by disease, which considerably weakened it. The horses died, and the bows grew slack, so the amirs sought permission from the Sultan to leave the mountain during the rainy season, to descend to its base, and to again take up their position when the rains had ceased. The Sultan consented. So the commander Nakbia took all the property he had secured, whether provisions, metals, or precious stones, and dis- tributed them among the troops, to carry them to the bottom of the mountain. When the infidels found that the Musulmans were re- tiring, they waited for them in the gorges of the mountain, and occupied the defiles before them. They cut down old trees, and cast them from the heights of the mountain, and these killed all with whom they came in contact. The greater part of the men perished, the rest were taken. The Hindus seized the treasures, merchandize, horses, and arms. Of all the Musulmans only three chiefs escaped — the commander Nakbia, Badru-d din Malik Daulat Shah, and a third whose name I have forgotten.

This disaster deeply affected the army of India, and weakened it in a marked manner. Soon afterwards the Sultan made peace with