TIMUR BEG. 
31 
this unsuccessful, he one day suddenly seized the 
sword of a sentinel, attacked the guard with des- 
perate energy, put them to flight, and, inflamed by the 
excitement of the moment, pursued them to the very 
presence of their chief. The Turkoman, seeing the 
bravery of his captive, was overcome with sudden 
remorse, took him from the odious den in which he 
had been so long immured, placed him in a more 
comfortable dwelling, and restored to him every- 
thing of which he had been deprived by those who 
had captured him. About this time Aly Beg Ghur- 
bany received a letter of severe reproof from his bro- 
ther for having imprisoned a descendant of the house 
of Jengyz Khan. This letter was accompanied with 
several presents for the royal captive ; but the avari- 
cious Turkoman, though he immediately humbled 
himself before Timur, and besought his pardon for 
the manner in which he had treated him, neverthe- 
less appropriated to his own purposes the most va- 
luable of the presents. 
No sooner had the indefatigable prince escaped from 
this degrading thraldom, than he suddenly collected 
together twelve horsemen and raised the standard of 
royalty. Proceeding with his small but determined 
troop through the wilderness, after two days’ journey 
he reached a village, where he alighted and took pos- 
session of a house ; but he had scarcely occupied it, 
when a party of Turkomans assembled round the dwell- 
ing and prepared to assault it. Timur attacked them 
with his usual intrepidity ; when one of them recognis- 
ing him, as in the former instance, ordered his compa- 
