oaths not to attempt the life of the Prince, who was accordingly carried off from Dehli to Gwalior in two days. There his faithful Dewal Rání became the companion to and solace of his miserable imprisonment.

Death of 'Aláu-d din and subsequent massacres.

'Aláu-d dín, partly through bodily infirmity and partly through mental distress, died on the 7th Shawwál, 715 н. (Jan., 1316 a.d.), when Malik Káfúr placed the king's youngest son, Shahábu-d-dín 'Umar, upon the throne, and despatched Sumbul to Gwalior to blind Khizr Khán. When Sumbul had completed his inhuman deed, he was promoted to the office of Náíb-hájib.

A short time afterwards, the slaves and guards of the late king slew Malik Káfúr, and conveyed the intelligence to Khizr Khán, to show that the curse that he had pronounced against Káfúr had been fulfilled.

Kutbu-d dín Mubárak Sháh then ascended the throne in the beginning of 716 H. (1316 A.D.). After displacing his brother, 'Umar, he sent to demand Dewal Rání from his brother Khizr Khán, who returned an indignant refusal. Vexed at this opposition, and determined to rid himself of all rivals, the wretch Mubárak Sháh sent a ruffian named Shádí to Gwalior, to murder the three princes Khizr Khán, Shádí Khán, and 'Umar. After this butchery had been committed, the garrison violated the ladies of their households. The devoted Dewal Rání, 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 zenána 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.

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Prince Khizr Khán 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."

The Hindi Language.

"When I came to examine it from beginning to end, I found most of the names (words?) in it were Hindí. 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 Pársí. It is inferior to the Arabic, which is the chief of all languages. The prevalent languages of Ráí and Rám, I know, from reflecting well on the matter, to be inferior to the Hindí. Arabic, in speech, has a separate province, and no other language can combine with it. The Pársí is deficient in its vocabulary, 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 combination, 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 Darí.

"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 Hindí. If you ask whether there are the sciences of exposition and rhetoric, I answer that the Hindí 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 Hindí, 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 Hindústán can boast himself of the Nile and Tigris. When a man sees only the nightingale of China in a garden, how does he know what the parrot of Hindústán is? 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 Khurásání who considers every Hindí a fool will think even a pán leaf of no more value than grass. A wise and

just man, and he who has travelled through several countries observantly, will believe these assertions of Khusrú; for if the conversation should turn on Hind or Rám, 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 country' in the world. You should look on Hindústán 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?

4. NUH SIPIHR OF AMIR KHUSRU.

["The Nine Heavens (or Spheres)." This is one of the separate poems of Amír Khusrú, written, as he tells us, in his old age. Its historical notices relate to the reign of Kutbu-d dín Mubárak Sháh, in whose time it was written."]

ABSTRACT.

The First Sphere.

Praise of God and the Prophet, and of the author's spiritual teacher, Nizámu-d dín Aulyá. Panegyric on the reigning monarch, Mubárak Sháh. 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-kubád, respecting whom he had written the Kiránu-s Sa'dain; Jalálu-d dín Fíróz, on whom he had written Kasidas and Masnavís; 'Aláu-d dín Khiljí, to whom he had dedicated his Khamsa, and addressed panegyrical poems.

The accession of Kutbu-d dín Mubarak Sháh on Sunday, the 24th 2 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 Deogír, 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 sawád, meaning both "black" and "country."

2 Ferishta says, the 7th.

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 suprà pp. 211 and 555.

the length of which was equal to 150 yards at that time." When the ráí 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 Khán heard that message, he thanked Almighty God for his victory." The Khán replied: “The Khalífa 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 recommendation that the ráí come forth and place his face upon the ground, in front of the royal pavilion."

The ráí, in apprehension of his life, refused to leave the fort, but sent jewels, clothes, sandal, gold, horses, elephants, and other valuables to the Khán, by way of jizya. There were one hundred elephants and twelve thousand horses. The rapacious Khán, however, 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 ráís wealth;" he therefore enjoined him to send everything in his possession, or to prepare for war. The ráí solemnly affirmed that he had nothing left of all his former wealth, "As I am ráí and have a regard for my own fair name, I would not tell a lie, which would not obtain credence."

To this the Khán replied that if the ráí 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 ráí would not consent, but on the demand of the Khán, 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 Mahádeo."

The Khan then received from the ráí, five districts (mauza') of his

country (aktá'), 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 ráí 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, whenever they please, can seize, buy, or sell any Hindu." The Khán relinquished all the ceded and conquered territory, except "Badrkot, a fort as high as heaven, which the Khán had an object in demanding."

The rái 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 Sultán 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 Khán replied, As these were bestowed on you by the late Sultán, 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 (dúrbásh) 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 ráí accordingly returned the insignia, which were lowered before the empty pavilion of the king, and were then returned to the ráí, with the standard unfurled, and a new canopy.

Khusrú Khán, after this ceremony, returned in triumph to the king, by whom he had been summoned in haste. But before his arrival, Mubárak Sháh had departed from Deogir, towards Dehli, in the month of Jumáda-1 ákhir, 718 H. (August 5th, 1318 A.D.).

When Mubarak Sháh arrived at Dehli, he gave orders for the building of a Jámi' 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, 'Aláu-d dín, had left in an unfinished state.

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