The King now moved towards Rohtas, to bring to Agra the treasure which his father had deposited in that place. On the route, Syeed Khan, the brother of Azim Hoomayoon, having left the camp suddenly, fled to Lahore, and the King, con­cluding that some insurrection was in agitation, returned immediately to his capital, where, having assembled his forces from all quarters, he marched to Dehly, and on this occasion ordered the new city built by Hoomayoon Padshah to be walled in with stone. At Dehly he was joined by Shoojaat Khan from Malwa, and having remained only a few days to organize his army, he took the route of Lahore. Azim Hoomayoon, Khowas Khan, and other disaffected chiefs, with more than double the King's forces, met him at Amballa. Sulim Shah, arriving within sight of the insurgents, ascended a rising ground for the purpose of recon­noitring, and after viewing for some time their disposition, said, “It is not consistent with my “honour to trifle with these rebels;” and having ordered his line out, he advanced against them. It happened fortunately for him, that on the pre­ceding night a dispute had arisen among the con­federate generals as to the succession to the throne. Khowas Khan, still a friend to the fa­mily of his patron Sheer Shah, insisted on search being made for the Prince Adil Khan; while Azim Hoomayoon affirmed, “That empire was no “man's inheritance, but belonged to him who had “the longest sword.” This so plainly indicated his own ambitious views, that faction arose in the camp, and on the next day, when the troops were formed, Khowas Khan withdrew with his division without going into action at all. This circum­stance so discouraged the army of the confede­rates, that their resistance was faint, and Sulim Shah gained an easy victory.

In the midst of this good fortune, Sulim Shah

A. H. 953.
A. D. 1546.

narrowly escaped with his life from a daring attempt of Syeed Khan, the brother of Azim Hoomayoon. This chieftain, with ten faithful friends, in armour, mixed without discovery among the royal troops, and advanced towards the King as if about to congratulate him. An elephant driver, who stood near the royal person, recognizing Syeed Khan, struck him with his spear. In spite of this circumstance, Syeed Khan and his band cut their way through the guards sword in hand, and escaped. The insurgents (styling themselves Neeazies) retreated after this defeat to D'hunkote, near Roh, in the mountains. Sulim Shah pursued them as far as the new fort of Rohtas, which his father had built; and having directed Khwaja Veis Sheerwany to continue the pursuit, he returned by the route of Agra to Gualiar. Shoojaat Khan, governor of Malwa, on going up to the fort one day, in front of the King, was attacked by one Othman, a person whom he had deprived of his right hand some time before, and who now, con­cealing himself by the road-side, rushed out, and inflicted a dagger wound on Shoojaat Khan; who, without further enquiry, conceiving the act had been preconcerted with the King, fled with pre­cipitation towards Malwa with all his troops. The King pursued him as far as Mando; but hearing that he had fled to Banswalla, he returned, leaving

A. H. 954.
A. D. 1547.

Eesa Khan Soor, with twenty thousand horse, at Oojein, to watch his motions. These events occurred in the year 954. Khwaja Veis Sherwany having been some time before deputed to carry on the war against the Neeazies, engaged them near D'hunkote, but was defeated by Azim Hoomayoon, and pursued as far as Nowshehra. Sulim Shah, hearing of this cir­cumstance, sent another army against the insur­gents, which compelled them in turn to retreat to D'hunkote. A third action took place at Sum-balla, in which the Neeazies were overthrown with great slaughter, and Azim Hoomayoon's mother, together with all his family, were taken prisoners. After this defeat, the Neeazies were compelled to seek protection among the Gukkurs, in the moun­tains of Kashmere. Sulim Shah, finding that he should have little peace without effectually put­ting down this rebellion, marched in person to the Punjab, and for the space of two years carried on war against the united force of the Gukkurs and Neeazies.

In this expedition, a person having concealed himself one day in a narrow path, by which Sulim

A. H. 955.
A. D. 1548.

Shah was ascending the mountain of Man-kote, rushed on him with a drawn sword. Sulim Shah had scarcely time to draw to defend himself; but having slain the assassin, he perceived the sword of the ruffian to be one that he had formerly given to Yekbal Khan, one of his own officers. The Gukkurs and Neeazies, driven from place to place, and unable to face the King's troops, Azim Hoomayoon endeavoured to enter the king­dom of Kashmere; but the ruler of that country, apprehensive of Sulim Shah's resentment, not only opposed and defeated him, but sent the heads of Azim Hoomayoon, his brother Syeed Khan, and Shahbaz Shan to the King. Sulim Shah, thus secure against further disturbance in that quarter, returned to Dehly.

Much about this time, Kamran Mirza, flying from his brother Hoomayoon, who was now on his march from Persia to the East, took protection with Sulim Shah; but being ill received, he re­tired to the mountains of Sewalik, and eventually joined the Gukkurs. Shortly after this, Sulim Shah received advices that Hoomayoon Padsha had crossed the Indus. The King, when he gained the information, was under the operation of leeches. He instantly started from his seat, and issued orders to march, and on that very evening en­camped six miles distant from Dehly. He there halted for his artillery, which was drawn out by men till the oxen, which were grazing in the country, could be collected. The guns being very heavy and unwieldy, one or two thousand men were required to drag them; yet in this manner he proceeded with considerable expedition till he reached Lahore. Meanwhile Hoomayoon Padshah retreated, as we shall have occasion to mention in the sequel; and Sulim Shah, returning to Dehly, eventually retired to Gualiar, where he took up his residence.

Sulim Shah, while taking the diversion of the chase near Attehr, was waylaid by a banditti insti­gated by some of his enemies; but having perceived them, he was able not only to avoid, but to seize the whole band. On examination, they implicated many of his chiefs, who were executed without much investigation; after which the King became so extremely suspicious, that numbers of officers suffered death on slight suspicions.

Khowas Khan, a man justly renowned for his personal courage, his honour, and his great abili­ties in war, and who had been raised to distinc­tion by the late Sheer Shah, was driven to revolt; and, after flying from place to place, came to Taj Khan Kirany (who owed his preferment to him), and was then governor of Sumbhul. Taj Khan,

A. H. 957.
A. D. 1550.

in violation of a solemn oath, and of the laws of hospitality, assassinated Khowas Khan, in order to recommend himself to Sulim Shah. His corpse was, however, afterwards conveyed to Dehly, where it was interred; and such is the veneration in which the name of Kho-was Khan is held, even at the present day, that his tomb is frequented, and the common people, con­sidering him a saint, go there to offer prayers for success in their undertakings.

Not long after this event, of which Sulim Shah was said to be the instigator, that Prince became afflicted with a fistula, of which he died, in the

A. H. 960.
A. D. 1553.

year 960, having reigned nine years. Like Sheer Shah, he was magnificent in his court equipage, and studied the con­venience of travellers. From Bengal to the Indus he built an intermediate post-house between each of those which his father had erected, requiring that all who passed along the great road should be enter­tained at the public expence. In this year also died Mahmood Shah, King of Guzerat, and Boorhan Ni­zam Shah, King of Ahmudnuggur. In commemor­ation of the remarkable circumstance of these mon­archs dying almost at the same time, the father of the author wrote a short epitaph, in which the words,

“The ruin of kings,”

exhibit the date (i. e. 960.)

Among the most extraordinary events of this reign, is the insurrection produced by Sheikh Allayee. The story is as follows: — The father of Sheikh Allayee was Sheikh Hussun, who professed himself to be a holy man, in the town of Byana; but he adopted opposite tenets to those of Sheikh Sulim of Seekry. Sheikh Hussun dying, was suc­ceeded by his eldest son, Sheikh Allayee, a person as remarkable for his ambition as for his learning. It happened that one Sheikh Abdoolla, a Neeazy Afghan, and a pupil of Sheikh Sulim, having re­turned from a pilgrimage to Mecca, arrived at By-ana, and professed the Mehdvy doctrines of Syeed Mahomed Joonpoory. He and Sheikh Allayee becoming intimate, the latter imbibed the Meh-devy tenets, and abandoning the doctrines of his father and ancestors, quitted his house in town, and, in conformity with the practice of the Mehd-vies, took up his residence outside of Byana; and with a considerable number of adherents, aban­doning all worldly pursuits, gave himself up wholly to devotion, under the firm conviction of predes­tination. He preached daily with such persuasive eloquence, that many persons, becoming riveted to the spot, would not quit him, and abandoning their families, became converts to his doctrines, and ranged themselves among the disciples of Syeed Mahomed Joonpoory, the founder of the sect; so that, in some instances, men employed in agri­culture or trade made vows to devote one-tenth of their receipts to charity and to religious purposes.