BOORHANPOOR. 
123 
of Akbur and co-operating with him in his expedi- 
tion, shut himself up in the fort of A seer, and pre- 
pared himself to withstand the power of the emperor. 
For this purpose he assembled twenty thousand of 
his subjects, including all sorts of mechanics and 
tradespeople within his capital, and also provided 
himself with immense stores of cattle of every des- 
cription, as well as of grain and all other necessaries. 
When Akbur heard of these acts of defiance, he sent 
orders to his generals -in-chief, Kahn Kahnum and 
Prince Danael Mirza, to continue the siege of Ahmed- 
nuggur, while, in the interval, he himself marched to 
the south and took possession of Boorhanpoor, and 
one of his generals laid siege to Aseer. The won- 
derful resources possessed by Bahadoor Kahn, and 
the impregnable character of the defences of Aseer, 
might have enabled that prince, had he possessed 
even a measure of prudence and energy, to have 
endured a siege of many years. But, owing to the 
lazy spirit of the garrison, and the want of attention 
on the part of the proper authorities, and owing 
also to the continued season of debauchery which 
reigned within the fortress, the common duties in 
every department of the service were altogether ne- 
glected ; and soon, from the accumulation of filth and 
the great numbers of cattle which dying daily were 
suffered to lie where they had fallen, the place 
became a sink of pollution. Hence, the air being 
contaminated, a fetid epidemic was engendered, 
