The Sultán’s anger now flamed violently at the insolence of the Mahrattas, and he ordered that they should be driven from their position, and Syud Hamíd, Shaíkh Onsur, and Ahmud Beg, Sipahdárs, therefore, with the regiments of Monsieur Lally, marched, following the low grounds to attack the Mahratta park of artillery;— it happened, how­ever, that on their way thither, they fell in with a large body of the Mahrattas; estimated at thirty thousand well appointed horse, who had concealed themselves in the dry bed of a tank* near their position, and were lying in wait for an opportunity to attack the Sultán’s troops. The brave Sipah­dárs and gallant Frenchmen immediately levelled their muskets and poured forth their fire in vollies with such effect, that the enemy from the tumult and throng, could not wheel about without diffi­culty, and, therefore, of necessity presented their breasts as a mark for the bullets and bayonets of the musketeers, and they were consequently pierced with as many holes as a net; two officers of the Mahrattas, who each rode an elephant, were killed, and the rest leaving their horses and arms escaped with their lives only. In fine, in the twinkling of an eye, seven or eight thousand horse of the Mah­rattas were destroyed and their bodies scattered upon the plain.

When the chief of the Mahrattas saw the marks of fear and despondency on the foreheads of his soldiers, he turned away from the fight, and his courage failing him, he withdrew his guns and retreated to the distance of two stages. The Sultán, now therefore victorious, with the spoil of the Mahrattas, his drums beating for joy at his suc­cess, returned to his tent, and the next day marched further on towards Sanore.

It is not to be omitted here, that Abdul Hukím Khán, the chief of that state, after the death of the Nawáb, without reason estranged his heart from the Sultán, indeed from his (the Sultán’s) youth even, he had been his inveterate enemy:— moreover after the accession of the Sultán, he sent neither letters of congratulation, nor presents of cloths, &c., courtesies which are esteemed the pledges of friendship and good-will. His agent, however, Chíntoo Pundit, on his own part, and merely to pay court to the Sultán, made some presents, but although these circumstances hurt and aggrieved the feelings of the Sultán;— still on account of the ties of relationship which existed between them, the Sultán gave him no molestation, but on the contrary, overlooked some very unworthy actions done by him.

Notwithstanding all this, this unlucky man never put any confidence in the Sultán, and had now leagued and intrigued with the Mahrattas. When he found, therefore, that the Sultán was approach­ing him, reflecting on his own unworthy conduct, he trembled like a reed at the sound of the hoofs of the Sultán’s horse, and with certain of his friends, and the dependents of his household, that is his women and a small sum of money he had by him, he at night fled and joined the army of the Mah­rattas, leaving Abdul Khira Khán, alias Khira Mean in the city. The date of this flight is given in the following Hindostanni words,

When the Sultán heard of his flight, and his junc­tion with the Mahrattas, he was astonished, but at night despatched Syud Humíd, and Syud Ghuffar Sipahdárs to take possession of the city, and in the morning he himself marched and encamped before the place, and then despatched Mír Sadik, and Mahdi Khán, Bukhshi, with orders that all the property and wealth of the state of Sanore, which the Kháns of former days had collected at a vast expense, should be sent to the presence, and all this Hukím Khán by his foolish enmity gave gratuitously to the winds. The officers sent, agreeably to their orders, without opposition from any one, took and despatched to the presence whatever they found of gold, silver, carpets, or tents, vessels, arms, &c.; as for instance, in Abdul Hukím’s wardrobe, they found fifty turbans of different colours, of the Boorhanpoor chintz kind, hung upon pegs in the wall, and honorary dresses of great splendour and value, of the same colour corresponding to the turbans, under cloth covers or in packages:— but besides these, articles of great value brought from all countries laid about in heaps, and these with lists of all of them were sent to the Sultán, and after being inspected by him were deposited in the Tosha Khána.

The light guns were all added to the Sultán’s artillery, and one gun composed of five metals,* twelve legal guz in length was broken up and sent to the mint to be coined into halfpence. In fact, all the valuables, among which were carpets of the most elegant patterns with gold and silver flowers, each the load of four or five camels, and the Kalecchas and Sutrinjas, (other kinds of carpets) of which each was the load of an elephant, were all seized by the Sultán’s servants. A short time after this, Khira Mean on horseback, and accompanied by two or three servants arrived, and was honoured by being admitted to an audience;— at this audience the Sultán addressed him and said, “what has befallen your father, that he should have run away in this manner? we ourselves in no matter, and in no mode, ever interfered with or molested him, but on the contrary, our favour towards him increased daily; but setting this aside, shame on your relationship, that without any injury or breach of engagement on our part, your father should have joined with the Mahrattas, the enemies of our house and openly displayed his hostility. Depend on it that he will never be the better for it, nor ever see the days of prosperity.” Khira Mean in reply, said, “that undoubtedly his father had acted unwisely, and that the bread of his fortunes had been dried up in the sun of despair;— that he, the Sultán’s ransom, or sacrifice, was ignorant of what had been done, or he would have opposed it to the utmost of his power.” After this the Sultán placed him near his own tent, and sent him twice a day, dishes from his own table;— he, however, kept him under strict restraint or surveillance in the same way that he kept Kumruddín.