872 W. Irvine —The JBangash Nciwdbs of Farrulchdbdd. [No. 4, 
Emperor Muhammad Shall from whom he obtained the title of “ Farzand 
Bahadur.” 
He was a very strict Sunni, said the prayers five times daily, observed 
Friday, and every day wrote out a verse of the Kura’n. He is said to have 
been a great protector of learned men. He was fond of sport of every kind, 
and at Delhi had the Emperor’s permission to shoot in his private preserves. 
He was also a perfect cavalier, and in those days no one equalled him in the 
wielding of the lance. He had a riding horse named Pari (the Fairy) 
famed even in the Dakhin. Mounted on it he used to hunt the Saras and 
ride them down. Many other horsemen attempted it but not one succeed¬ 
ed. He was also clever in other ways. He could found cannon with his 
own hands ; and he could make very good shoes. Thirty to forty years 
ago shoes of a pattern invented by him called “ Kaim-khani” were much 
worn in Mau and Kaimganj. He is said to have ruled over eighty-four 
mahals, but their names are not given. 
Once a Mahratta in the employ of Baji Rao came all the way from 
Puna to try his skill at the lance with Kaim Khan. The Nawib gave him 
a house at Amethi and entertained him for six months. In this interval 
he made enquiries from Mau Pathans in service at Puna, who wrote 
hack that the man was what he professed. A day was then fixed for 
the tournament in despite of Mahmud Khan Bakhshi’s exhortations. 
All the Pathans were ordered to he ready before sunrise at Shikarpur, 
three or four miles north-west of the city, where in the bed of the Ganges 
was an open space in which the troops were usually exercised. The 
Nawab mounted his horse Pari, and taking the Mahratta with him rode 
out to the plain. There they contended till full noon, but neither had 
been touched. Now, the Mahratta had a handkerchief round his arm, 
such as they usually tie above their other clothes. The Nawab decided 
to try and loose this handkerchief with the point of his spear. He 
touched it repeatedly, but being wet with perspiration the knot had 
become extremely tight. After some hours, however, the Nawab suc¬ 
ceeded in untying it with his lance and carried it off on the point. The 
Mahratta was offered presents which he refused, being a noble in his own 
country, and he then took his departure for Puna. 
Kaim Khan’s home was in the fort at Amethi, which he had built in 
his father’s lifetime. It lay one mile south-east of the city within the 
boundary of New Amethi, a small town founded by the Nawab, round which 
there was a ditch and earthen rampart with bastions which can still be 
traced in parts. The remains of the fort and its site were confiscated after 
1857 for the rebellion of the then Nawab Rais, and being put up to auc¬ 
tion, were bought by ’Ali Muhammad, a native of Amethi, then tahsildar of 
the city. He has used the bricks to build a house of a semi-English 
fashion and he has planted the ground with fruit trees. 
