All that remain of them at the present day are good Muham-madans and God-fearing men; so much so, that Darwésh Dáúd, Míán Hamúl and Míán Ismáíl Súmra, who were among the chief men of the town of Akham, in the Pargana of Samáwátí, entertained five hundred students of the Kurán, in the college, feeding and clothing them all, for the love of God, at their own expense. The late Mírzá Muhammad Bákí Tarkhán, notwithstanding his parsimony and economy,* which will be described when I speak of him, gave away, in charity, the produce of his husbandry. His collectors once complained to him, that a certain darwesh, not content with having tilled every bit of land in the district, sought to appropriate all their lord's possessions to his own use. Find therefore, said they, some other employment for the present cultivators. The Mírzá replied: “that he should till my lands is but little, were he to drive a plough over my head, I should deem it a favour.” Fakírs, widows, and the poor were the recipients of his bounty. A well-provided table was at all hours spread for his guests,—but he himself constantly fasted. When the hour came to break the fast, a barley-loaf, without salt, constituted his only food. A guest coming to him one day, a sumptuous meal was ordered for him, but the guest did not partake of it. “Why,” asked the Mírzá, “do you not like the food?” “I wish,” replied the stranger, “to eat off the same plate with your majesty.” “Oh, what happiness,” exclaimed the latter. When evening came, he bid his guest to come and share with him the barley-loaf—that being all his meal. “Oh,” said the man, “I thought your own meal would have been better than what you gave your guests; this was the cause of my indiscretion, but pray pardon me; I am satisfied to partake of the former repast.” The host replied: “Yes, the dainty repast is best suited to your taste, the mere loaf is plenty for mine; for it is no light task to conquer the flesh and abjure the world—the world, that faithless creature, that slays her husband and devours her sons-in-law. No true man will give her a place in his heart. To do so is the act of the mean-spirited. Renounce the faithless harlot in the four extremities of the universe, and cleanse the skirt of your robe from all desire of her.”

Religious men love not the world,
For they seek not women.
If you are bound in the chains of a woman,
Boast not again of your manliness.
Have you not read in the ancient book,
What befel Husain and Hasan, owing to a woman?
A woman, be she good or bad, should be thus treated:
Press your foot upon her neck.

Depopulation of the country of the Súmras.

When through the tyranny of Dalu Ráí, the river of the town of Alor became dry, the passage of the river of the Panjáb came to be made near Síwán, and that town, which is still flourishing, became populated. The want of water ruined the lands of the tribe of Súmra, and the tyranny of Dúdá Súmra drove many complaining to the Sultán 'Aláú-d dín, at Delhi. This monarch sent back with them a powerful army, under the command of the royal general named Sálár. The men of Súmra prepared themselves to die, and sent off their children in charge of a minstrel, to be placed under the protection of Ibra Ibrání-This Ibra was one of the very Sammas who had fled from the persecu­tions of the men of Súmra, and had made themselves masters of Kach in the manner which has been related above. It is a custom of these people to hold in high respect their minstrels, such as the Katriyas, the Chárans, the Dóms and the Márats (?). After the departure of their families, numerous engagements took place between the men of Súmra and the Sultán's army. Sahar Sultání, the Súmra commander, was slain in the field of battle, and the remainder sought safety in flight. The royal army advanced in pursuit of the women and children. From the capital, Muhammad Túr, to Kach they proceeded march by march, digging every night a deep trench round their camp, through fear of their foes.* Such was the extent of these trenches, that, to this day, great pools still remain. When they reached the confines of Kach, Ibra Samma, the ruler of the country, fought stoutly in defence of the children and fugitives, but fell at last in the field. The women, whose countenances no stranger had ever beheld, were now surrounded on all sides. These virtuous women saw that the royal army had come to carry them into captivity, and that there was no refuge for them but in God's mercy; then, raising their hands in supplication, they exclaimed: “We have no other help, oh God! but in thee. Cause this mountain to protect us, poor helpless creatures, and save us from the hands of our cruel enemies.” The prayer of these women was heard by Him, the nearest and dearest friend: the rock burst asunder, and showed openings, through which they all entered, and before the enemy could reach the spot they were all hidden; but fragments of their garments remained without, showing where they had passed. The pursuers were struck with awe, and retraced their steps. That mountain, and traces (of this event) may be seen to this day, in the land of Kach. In short, as no man was left in Sind, among the Súmras, of sufficient power to govern the country, the Samma people set to work to cultivate new territories on another part of the river.

After the destruction of the power of the above-named tribe the dynasty of the Samma ruled from the beginning of the year 843 H. (1439 A.D.) until the date of the total ruin of Sind.* The Samma people, who had been subject to the Súmras in the days of their rule, founded a town and fort below the Makalí mountain. The former they called Sámúí,* and the latter Taghurábád, of which Jám Taghur had laid the foundation, but had left unfinished.* Other towns and villages, still flourishing, were also built by them,—but the spots cultivated during the dominion of the former masters of the soil soon ran to waste for want of water. Lands hitherto barren, were now carefully cultivated; there was hardly a span of ground untilled. The divisions into súbas and parganas, which are main­tained to the present day in the province of Tatta, were made by these people. When the labour and skill of each individual had brought the land to this state of prosperity, Jám Nanda bin Bábiniya was acknowledged by all, great and small, as their chief, and re­ceived the title of Jám, which is the name of honour among these people. Such splendour spread over what had been but dreary solitudes, that it seemed as if a new world had sprung into existence. Before his time, there was nothing worthy of being recorded, but his reign was remarkable for its justice and an increase of Muhammadanism. I have omitted none of the events which oc­curred in his reign and in after years, as they have been related to me by old residents of those parts. This chieftain passed his days and nights in devotion. He permitted no one man to tyrannise over another; the poor were so happy that all the day long his name was on their lips. Peace and security prevailed to such an extent, that never was this prince called upon to ride forth to battle, and never did a foe take the field against him. When, in the morning, he went, as was his custom, to his stables to look at his horses, he would caress them, kiss their feet, and exclaim: “Heaven forbid that an invader approach my dominions, or that it ever be my fate to saddle these animals, and engage in war! May God keep every one happy in his place!”