EPITOME OF THE MEMOIRS OF THE KHOJAS. 
47 
beguile. Accordingly, they planned to bring him oyer to their own quarters 
on the plea of an interview, there to slay him and show his body to the 
people. This plot became known to Yusuf, who, when invited according 
to previous arrangement, went accompanied by a sufficient guard. Seeing 
this, the schemers gave up their intention against his life, as impracticable. 
Finding all their plots unavailing, they took leave and went to Yarqand. 
Yusuf, however, sent to warn Khwaja Jahan of Yarqand against them, 
and to bid him remain day and night on his guard. The envoys saw that 
all the Khoja brothers were on the alert, so they contented themselves 
with inviting Jahan to go to Ila and visit their chief. He excused himself. 
After a time, with the assistance of Ghazi Beg, Governor of Yarqand, they 
succeeded in inveigling him to their dwelling, under the pretence that the 
chief envoy was dangerously ill and desirous of speaking to him. When 
he came in, they seized him and closed their doors. Some of his officers, 
who were outside, gave the alarm, and the palace was made safe and 
guarded. Some of the Khojas fled towards Khutan. while a messenger 
was despatched to Kash gh ar to inform Yusuf. The Qalmaqs and their 
adherents went in pursuit of Khwaja Sadiq as far as the river Zarafshan, 36 
but he escaped and got to Khutan. He seized Ghazi Beg’s 37 house and 
family at Khutan, sending off: only one of the servants to tell Ghazi Beg 
that he was coming, that the Beg should prepare for war, but that if he 
hurt a ham of Khwaja Jahan’s head, he (Sadiq) would destroy all his 
family to the seventieth generation. He then raised a force of some 6,000 
or 7,000 men from among the Kipchaks who had established themselves 
at Khutan, and from the inhabitants of the country. 
Yusuf, on being made aware of what had happened, shut up the mes¬ 
sengers and made it publicly known that an army of Kirghiz was com¬ 
ing to attack the town. By this means he induced the people to raise a 
considerable force, and, at the same time, sent to warn Ghazi Beg, under a 
threat of retaliation, not to injure Khwaja Jahan. The messengers bear¬ 
ing this letter presented themselves before Ghazi Beg and the Qalmaqs. 
A report spread that Yusuf was coming with a force of 10,000 men, and 
was assembling the Kirghiz tribes under his standard. 
Letters of reproach also came from other Musulmans to Ghazi Beg. 
He began to repent of his conduct and made an attempt to restore himself 
to favour, in case of accidents, by causing his ovn men to dress as Qal¬ 
maqs, and feign an attempt on the life of Khwaja Jahan, their prisoner, 
when he himself came in and pretended to save him at the peril of his own 
sa The Yarqand river. 
87 Ghazi Beg was the Governor of the town of Yarkand and had treacherously 
helped the Qalmaqs to seize the Kh oja. Muhammad Sadiq says of him •* God had 
made Ghazi Beg a scoundrel from the day of his birth. ’ 
