182 Translations from the Tdrihh i Firuz Shdhi. [No. 4, 



his bands, and lie had been guilty of an act condemned alike by- 

 God and man, either with a view to the expediency of the moment, 

 or to deceive the public, or else for the purpose of glossing over the 

 murder of Sultan Jaklluddin, he threw open the door of liberality 

 and munificence before (high and low, i. e.) all grades. He occupied 

 himself too in making preparations for his journey (to the capital of 

 Delhi), but owing to the incessant fall of rain, the copious floods, 

 and the heaviness of the sands, he continued to delay his departure 

 and was purposing to proceed to Delhi after the rising of Canopus. 

 He was under considerable apprehension, however, of Arkali Khan, 

 the second son of Sultan Jalaluddfn, who was one of the Sustains 

 of the age, and the most valiant man of his day. As soon therefore, 

 as the news arrived from Delhi, that the latter had not come yet, 

 Sultan 'Alauddin conceiving his non-arrival to be favourable to his 

 own fortunes, and knowing that the throne of Delhi could not be up- 

 held by Sultan Ruknuddin Ibrahim, and that there was not suf- 

 ficient coin in the Jalali treasury to raise and enrol fresh levies, he took 

 advantage of the opportunity, and in the very height of the rainy 

 season, set out for Dehli. From the excess of rain that year, the 

 Ganges and Jamna had become vast rivers, and every (paltry) stream 

 was as a Ganges or a Jamna. and from the depth of mnd and mire, 

 the roads remained (almost impassable). At a season like this, Sul- 

 tan Alauddin set forth from Karah with his elephants and his 

 wealth and his army ; and he exhorted his Khans and Maliks to use 

 their best endeavours towards raising fresh horsemen, (bidding them) 

 not to be particular or scrupulous in fixing the amount of their 

 pay, nor to take into account the exact year and month (of enlistment,) 

 but to scatter about gold without stint, so that vast hosts might be 

 collected by such bountiful largess. About the time Sultan Alauddin 

 was proceeding towards Dehli, they had constructed some small light 

 moveable machines \_manjani(f\, and at every halting-place where his 

 pavilion was erected, just at the time of his alighting there, they daily 

 placed in front of his portico five maunds of gold coin in one of these 

 waggons, and scattered them among the spectators ; whereupon the 

 soldiery and the neighbouring population used to congregate all 

 round, and carry off' the coin. The concourse in front of the royal 

 portico thus increased day by day, and by the end of two or three 



