Shimshir-qhan after having tarried awhile in that spot, sent order to Haiàt-qhan to bring Hadji-ahmed, father to the murdered Prince. That officer had already been sent to him, as if upon a visit; and he was there, when the order came. The Hadji on hearing of the order, was confounded and thunderstruck; but yet he would have escaped upon some good horse, and would have taken shelter at Radja Sunder-sing’s or in some other place of safety, had he not been withheld by an attachment to his money, and to his women, and above all, had he not been kept back by the force of a destiny which blinded him intirely. Whilst the satellites were breaking open his gate, he escaped by a breach in his wall, and went to a neighbouring house, where he was found at last, and confined; and for seventeen days together he underwent a variety of supplices inflicted upon him to oblige him to a discovery of his riches. So that they took from a secret part of his house, where he kept an impression of the sacred foot, about seventy lacs buried underground; and continuing to tor­ment him, and to extort confessions, they got from him besides that sum, a great quantity of jewels and uncoined gold, which were buried in divers parts of his house; and yet from the house of his son, the Governor, they could get no more than about three lacs, as the report goes, and very little from all the houses of his murdered friends; the utmost they could get from each family, not amounting to more than a few thousand rupees a piece. At least this is as much as is come to the public knowledge. Hadji-ahmed spent with a variety of tortures, expired at the end of sixteen or seventeen days; and he was buried close to the Samel­p8r quarter on the water side, a few paces beyond Djaafer-qhan’s garden; and it was in such a tomb as fell to his lot. After this, a guard was sent to the houses of both by Shimshir-qhan, who went and took up his residence in Djaafer-qhan’s garden, (leaving M8rad-shir-qhan to command in the city) his intention being to fight Aaly-verdy-qhan, who was reported to be coming. This intelligence made him spend his money and favours with an unsparing hand. He wrote everywhere to his countrymen, inviting them to come to his assistance; and it happened by a particular dispensation of Providence, that Afghans seemed that year to shoot up out of the ground like so many blades of grass. For it was at that very time that Ahmed-abdaly, the Afghan Monarch, had brought from his dominions of Herat and Candahar* an army of seventy thousand horse against Shah-djehan-abad; and about the same time, and whilst people were in daily expectations of that Prince’s arrival, Aaly-mahmed-rohilla, another Afghan, had quitted Serhend, where he commanded; and cutting his way through Soharen-p8r, he had come to Berhéily, where he had put everything in combustion. So that all India being now in arms, and every part of it full of Afghans, not a day passed, but the inhabitants of Azim-abad had their attention roused, and their fears awakened five or six times a day, by the sound of the Nagara or kettle-drum; and on inquiry it was always found that this was occasioned by some Afghan Commander who was coming to Shimshir-qhan’s assistance with so many men.

During all this time the city was a prey to all the horrors of sack and plunder. That General’s people as well as those of Bacshy-bö8liah’s, being restrained by no discipline, nor over­awed by any constraint, spread throughout every quarter of that unfortunate city, where not a day passed without some houses undergoing all the horrors of violence and defilement. Dis­honouring whole families became familiar; and few houses, and few persons did escape the defiling hands of an unbridled sol­diery, and the infamous practices of that nation of miscreants.

But let us draw a veil upon all those infamies, and let us look out for Abdol-aaly-qhan, to whose house we have carried his nephew then a boy. That officer after having thought it expedient The Afghans spread throughout the city, which they sack and plunder. to pass the whole day in Sheh-abdol-ress8l’s house, was now (and it was night) retiring to his own lodgings on the water-side, where he had ready a number of boats for his baggage, together with one of those commodious vessels, called Badjaras, for his own person and family. All these were manned and ready; and the head boatman advised and intreated him to avail himself of the night to get in the boats with his family and effects; promising that “before the enemy could know precisely where he might be, he could carry him to thirty cosses distance, where he would not be overtaken, and where he might take what resolution he should judge proper.” He added, “that the city resembling now a place taken by assault, and given up to sack and plunder, the Afghans were not thoroughly acknowledged in it, yet.” And really this was the best resolution that could be taken; but Fate had deter­mined it otherwise. Nor is it uncommon to see every day people who overwhelmed by the force of their destiny, neglect the most obvious means, in order to addict themselves to far fetched schemes and whimseys, and to expose themselves to mighty dangers, which it was in their power to have escaped. In one word, he chose to stay at home. After a few days, M8rad-shir-qhan having been appointed Superintendent of the city, sent Abdol-aaly-qhan word, that he wanted to see him. That Commander on receiving the order, got into his Paleky immediately with his usual train, that is, with a number of horsemen, mace-bearers, soldiers and servants of all sorts, that preceded and followed him at all times; and being arrived at the Afghan’s lodgings, the soldiers of the guard desired him to leave his people and arms at the gate, and to go in only with two or three servants, unarmed. The officer concluding that had any ill usage been intended for him, he had not been sent for by a single messenger, complied with the request, and went in on foot; and that wretched of Afghan, no sooner saw him, than without paying any attention to his high rank, he gave his arms and things to be plundered by his soldiers, and then sent him only with two or three servants to Shimshir-qhan, in a Paleky of his own. This General hearing of this affair, got up just as he was, and running bare-footed out of his tent, he expressed the greatest concern at what had happened, and asked repeatedly pardon for the mistake. Sending at the same time for his Paleky, he requested his making use of it; and dismissed him to his home with every demonstration of honour and regard, appointing a guard of a few men to see that no insult should be offered to his dwelling or person. Sometime after he was obliged to alter his conduct; and hearing that his people vented their resentment in bitter reproaches, and likewise that Aaly-verdy-qhan was coming, he sent for him again, and got him confined in a tent close to his own. At last importuned by M8rad-shir-qhan, and by Mustapha-qhan’s son, he gave orders for his execution. Abdol-aaly-qhan was put in a boat, which was rowed to the other side of the river; and the satellites were going to put their order in execution, when that officer with his companion, Séyd-nevaz-qhan, being informed of their intention, requested just time enough to purify himself by a legal ablution, and to offer a short prayer, after which he would submit to their pleasure; but whilst they were performing their prayers, a controrder arrived, and they were carried back. A religious person of great weight, named Shah Sadyc, was the cause of the controrder. He became surety for Abdol-aaly-qhan’s peaceable behaviour, and he carried him to his home that very day; but it was under condition, that should Aaly-verdy-qhan come, the prisoner would keep himself quiet, without offering in either action or word any injury to the present Government. As to Mehdy-nessar-qhan, my other uncle, he was in Seress-Cotombah, a district where by his master’s order he had been expelling the Zemindar from his lands; but as soon as the news of the Governor-General’s death became public, the Zemindar came back with his people, and attacked him. Mehdy-nessar-qhan with the few people that remained with him, and the money he had collected, made his retreat good to Rhotas, where Aaly-qhan, the Governor, received him as his guest with every demonstration of honour and regard, and lodged him in the fortress. As for the poor man’s house, that is, my mother’s house, I thank God, that it was preserved from disgrace and plunder; and it was in the following manner: The first day it was preserved by the presence of an Afghan officer, who had served under the poor man’s father, and who that day abandoned the out-houses, but saved the audience-hall with the women’s apartment. The second day it was secured by a guard sent by Bahtaver-qhan, another Afghan Commander, who had long been in my father’s service, and in whose presence my father had torn several bonds of his, to the amount of ten or twelve thousand Rupees. Bahtaver-qhan, who was a man of authority, and of great credit with Shimshir-qhan, requested that General to bestow our house upon him as his share of the plunder. He at the same time expressed the great obligations he had received from my father; and also the many important favours likewise which he had conferred on Sheh-mahmed-selah, the Lacnovian, and on Caly-qhan the Belminian, two Commanders of character. Bahta­ver-qhan, in requesting Séyd-hedàiet-aaly-qhan’s house to be spared, had once threatened to part with Shimshir-qhan, and to give advice to the Governor of the conspiracy. His request was complied with; and as Shimshir-qhan, God knows for what reason, had the highest regard for that officer, he promised him whatever he had asked. After the revolution, the three officers above took their quarters in the audience-hall, from whence they used to repair to the Derbar or Court of Shimshir-qhan; and whenever they heard that any Commander was marching towards our lodgings, they would assemble their people, whose number could not amount to less than two or three thousand men, and would prepare for an engagement; and it was by such methods as these that it pleased God in those days of confusion, plunder, and insubordination, to preserve that spot from the most imminent danger of pollution and infamy.