A. G. Serial. TITLES OF THE ANECDOTES.
      Part I, Chapter XIII: On Wiles and Stratagems in Statecraft.
f174a f122b 676 Introduction. The Prophet agrees with the tactics of Nu‘aym b. Mas‘úd ath-Thaqafí against the Jews of Baní Qurayẓa. (Cf. H. S. R. pp. 680—2).
f174b f123a 677 The encounter of the two artful personages — the Artabun or Arṭiyyun of the Byzantines and the Arṭiyyun of the Arabs, i. e., ‘Amr ibnu’l-‘Áṣ.
678 ‘Abdu’llah b. ‘Ámir besieges Níshápúr, finds it impregnable, but at last forces the enemy to evacuate it by a stratagem. (Cf. the fall of Troy).
f123b 679 The celebrated revenge of Zabbá against Jadhímatu’l-Abrash (the Kitáb-i-Kalíla wa Dimna is referred to).
f175b f124a 680 The hoax of Majjá‘a b. Murára the Musaylimite against Khálid b. Walíd to save his tribe.
f124b 681 Tactics of Sa‘d b. Abí Waqqás about reinforcement, and his great victory at Qádisiyya.
f176a 682 Trouble in ‘Iráq and Khurásán in the time of the Caliph ‘Uthman, and the artifice of ‘Abdu’llah b. ‘Ámir in defeating Qárún.
f176b f125a 683 Imám Ḥasan abdicates the Caliphate and Mu‘áwiya prevails upon Qays and Sa‘d-i-‘Ubáda to acknowledge him as the leader.
684 The poisoning of Imám Ḥasan at the instigation of Mu‘áwiya.
f177a f125b 685 The suppression of the Khárijites by Muhallab b. Abí Ṣufra.
686 The advance of Qutayba b. Muslim towards Khurásán and Transoxiana, and the capture of Khwárazm in the days of Ḥajjáj.
f126a 687 Qutayba and his brother Ṣáliḥ force the surrender of Samarqand.
f177b 688 The old woman who duped Hárúnu’r-Rashíd and got a thousand dínárs from him for showing the hidden place of Ibráhím Mahdí, his rival.
689 A Marzubán saves his life by a clever trick before the Caliph ‘Umar.
f126b 690 The surrender of a besieged army whose provisions were destroyed by the malicious agency of Alexander.
f178a 691 The fable of the powerful serpent and the artful mouse. (Taken from an Indian source).
692 How Qubád cheated the thieves and recovered his jewellery by threats.
693 The Rája of Gujrát and Nahrwála called Jaysingh threatens the Rája of India, called Duwarka (?), by exerting magical power.
f178b f127a 694 Harthama’s hoax upon Abu’s-Saráyá about the news of the death of the Caliph.
f128a 695 How Qábús b. Washmgír, having been murdered by his son, took posthu­mous vengeance by poisoning him (the story of the Ḥabbu’l-Jimá‘).
f179a 696 How Muḥammad b. Abu’l-Qásim b. ‘Alí b. Ḥusayn escaped by the help of a rope from the prison of Mu‘taṣim (T. F. S.)
f179b * 697 The arrest of Abú Muslim and his treacherous assassination. (The Ta’ríkh-i-Khulafá-i-Baní ‘Abbás as the source). See above, p 47.
f128a 698 Ḥasan-i Zayd ‘Alawí selected as leader in Ṭabaristán and the retreat of the army of Sulaymán b. Muḥammad the governor of Muḥammad b. ‘Abdu’llah b. Ṭáhir.
f128b 699 Ya‘qúb b. Layth’s trick with Runabil (?). The capture of Bust, the murder of Ṣáliḥ b. Nadhr, his master, and the annexation of Sístán.
 
A. G. Serial. TITLES OF THE ANECDOTES.
f180a f129a 700 Qásim the ruler of Herát revolts against Ya‘qúb b. Layth, his suppression at the hands of Jaghlán, and the annexation of Kirmán to Herát.
701 Ya‘qúb b. Layth’s advance towards Fárs, the capture of Shíráz, imprison­ment of Musta‘ín’s generals, ‘Alí b. Ḥusayn and Ṭawq b. Qays, and recognition of their power by the Caliph Muntaṣir and the overthrow of the Ṭáhirids.
f180b 702 Balkátigín’s advance upon Ghazna, Abú Isḥáq, the Wazír of the Sámánids, cheated, and Sabuktigín’s skill and bravery displayed.
f182b f129b 703 Afshín excites rebellion through Mankajú; Mu‘taṣim sends Mus‘ab b. Zubayr to suppress the revolt; Afshín’s trial and execution.
* 704 Sultan Maḥmúd tricks Abu’l-Fadhl a spy of Abú ‘Alí Símjúrí and defeats him.
f130a 705 ‘Umlúq the tyrant of Yaman, his murder at the hands of Aswad b. Dihqán, and the vengeance taken for him by Khán Tubba‘. — The eyes of Warqá’ of Yamáma.
f182a 706 The Emperor of Rúm asks help from the King of Abyssinia against Dhú-Nuwás, who defeats Aryáṭ, the Abyssinian general, by means of a stratagem.
707 Abraha defeats Dhú-Nuwás and revolts against Najáshí. His solemn vow and its fulfilment.
708 Nu‘mán captures the fort of Naháwand by a surprise attack, and the great victory of the Muslims over the Persians.
f181b f130b 709 Ṭáhir the Ambidexter defeats ‘Alí b. ‘Ísá Máhán and decoys al-Amín’s army to ruin.
710 Ya‘qúb b. Layth’s early life as a robber and his voluntary levies.
f181a f131a 711 Another instance of his blackmailing a caravan from Multán.
f181a, f183a 712 How Ya‘qúb b. Layth equipped his gang with horses by plundering a caravan from Baṣra and Ahwáz.
f131b 713 Ya‘qúb b. Layth in the service of Ṣáliḥ b. Nadhr, his treachery towards the sons of Ḥayyán the Khárijite, the ruin of Kuthayyir (b.) Warqá’ and the strengthening of Ya‘qúb b. Layth at the expense of both.
714 Ya‘qúb b. Layth and Ṣáliḥ b. Nadhr and the defeat of Muḥammad (b.) Ibráhim’s army by a mean trick.
715 Ya‘qúb b. Layth breaks with his master Ṣáliḥ b. Nadhr, the ruler of Sístán, and creates dissension by embroiling the Sajzís with the Bustís, the two parties of the army of Ṣáliḥ.
f183b f132a 716 The vain attempts of Ṣáliḥ b. Nadhr to recover Sístán from Ya‘qúb b. Layth.
* 717 Ya‘qúb b. Layth’s ordeal of basking in the sun before setting out for the conquest of Herát in summer. (Anecdote found in pt. II, ch. xvii. 1452).
* 718 Ya‘qúb b. Layth’s attack on ‘Abdu’r-Raḥmán the Khárijite, and the capture of the fort of Bsang (?) when winter and snow set in.
* 719 How Ya‘qúb b. Layth deceived the ambassadors of Muḥammad-i-Wáṣil, and ultimately defeated the army of Muḥammad and conquered his territory.
f184a f132a 720 Muḥammad-i-Wáṣil and Abú Ja‘far unite forces against Ya‘qúb b. Layth and invade Dínawar; ‘Iyádh b. ‘Amr the governor of Dínawar betrays them and orders a general massacre.
 
A. G. Serial. TITLES OF THE ANECDOTES.
f184a f132a 721 Ya‘qúb b. Layth captures Kirmán, Fárs, ‘Iráq and Ahwáz; the Caliph Mu‘tamid’s campaign against him, and the flight of Ya‘qúb ending in his death.
f184b f132b 722 Garsíwaz’s jealousy and his treacherous attempts to separate Afrásiyáb and Siyáwush.
723 Khushnawáz’s trick against Fírúz and the destruction of the army of the latter by pit-falls.
f185a f133a 724 The fable of the Lark and the Elephant.
725 The treacherous attack of Chengíz Khán on the City of Rayy and the vile massacre of 40,000 Muslims. (Probably the author was in Khurásán at this time).
726 Sultan Mu‘izzu’d-Dín Muḥammad the Ghúrid’s battle against Kúla at Sarhind, and his device to frighten the elephants of the enemy.
f185b * 727 The above Sultan’s invasion of Khwárazm and his failure. Muḥammad in Khwárazm by a clever trick.
* 728 The mother of Khwárazmsháh stops the invasion of the Ghúrid, Sultan Mu‘izzu’d-Din Muḥammad, while the King was absent with his army in Khurásán. (Author in Khwárazm).
f133a 729 The attack of the same Ghúrid Sultan upon Khusraw-Malik, the Ghazna­wid, and the annexation of Lahore to the Ghúrid Kingdom.
f133b 730 Malik Táju’d-Dín Ḥarb of Ghazna invades Sístán and captures the fort by a trick.
731 A clever trick of a Wazír of an Indian Rája called Fúr by which he destroys the Brahmins who had conspired against his life.
f186a 732 Sultan Maḥmúd orders his son Mas‘úd to arrest a band of robbers in the forest of Khabíṣ near Ṭabas from amongst Kúch and Balúcḥ.
f186b f134a 733 How Sultan Mas‘úd destroyed a band of robbers in Kirmán by the device of poisoned apples. (Cf. N. S. N.).
734 The goldsmith and the carpenter of Ádharbáyján who stole an idol from Constantinople and their disloyalty to each other.
f187a f134b 735 How Maslama b. Abdu’l-Malik forces the evacuation of an impregnable for­tress in Rúm.
      The chapter ends with a short eulogy on the Wazír.