Lieut. -Colonel Briggs on the Life and Writings ofFerishta. 347 



brought together and minutely examined. Of these not one work con- 

 tained the information wliich was required ; for though the history of 

 Nizam-ud-Deen Ahmud Bukhslii embraces a great portion of the period 

 alluded to, yet it was found so defective in some parts, that the author was 

 capable of supplying many of the deficiencies from his personal knowledge 

 alone. The desire, therefore, of becoming the historian of the rise of the 

 Muhamedan power in India more and more filled the writer's mind, and he in 

 consequence began to arrange his materials. And having, in the due course 

 of time, brought his task to a close, he presented this work, in the year of the 

 Hijra 1018 (A.D. 1609), under the title of 'The History of Ferishta,' to 

 his revered monarch, to whom his labours are thus humbly dedicated. 



" As the author conceives it would be highly unbecoming in him to 

 make comments on those writers who have before touched on the same 

 subject, and who have drawn their mantles over their heads and sunk into 

 the slumber of the tomb, he places the finger of silence on his lips, and is 

 dumb as to their imperfections. He leaves his readers to judge of his 

 own performance for themselves ; begging them to understand that the 

 height of his ambition amounts only to the desire, that his work may rank 

 in comparison with theirs, ' as the Caaba at Mecca does with the holy 

 temple at Jerusalem,' and ' as Ali ranks with the prophet Muhamed.' 



" The author's fervent hope is, that these simple and unadorned annals, 

 founded on truth, but devoid of all pretensions to elegance of style or 

 beauty of composition, may be acceptable to the prince to whom they are 

 dedicated ; and that the contents of these volumes may be disseminated far 

 and wide over the regions of the earth." 



In the compilation of this histoiy the following works were consulted : 

 1. Turjuma Yemuny. 

 y. Zein-ul-Akhbar. 



3. Taj-ul-Maasir. 



4. Mulhikat Sheikh Ein ud Din, of Bijapur. 



5. Tubkat-i Nasiri. 



6. History of Ferozc Shah. 



7. Victories of Feroze Sliah. 

 \ 8. Commentaries of Baber, 



9. Commentaries of Humayun. 



10. History of Mubarek Siiah, 



11. A second history of Mubarek Shah. 



