(o. Discomfiture of a reconnoitring party.)
The begs were appointed in turns for scouting-duty. When it was ‘Abdu’l-‘azīz’s turn, he went out of Sīkrī, looking neither before nor behind, right out along the road to Kanwā which is 5 kuroh (10 m.) away. The Rānā must have been marching forward; he heard of our men’s moving out in their reinless (jalāū-sīz) way, and made 4 or 5,000 of his own fall suddenly on them. With ‘Abdu’l-‘azīz and Mullā Apāq may have been 1000 to 1500 men; they took no stock of their opponents but justFol. 310b. got to grips; they were hurried off at once, many of them being made prisoner.
On news of this, we despatched Khalīfa’s Muḥibb-i-‘alī with Khalīfa’s retainers. Mullā Ḥusain and some others aūbrūqsūbrūq[2007]* were sent to support them,[2008] and Muḥammad ‘Alī Jang-jang also. Presumably it was before the arrival of this first, Muḥibb-i-‘alī’s, reinforcement that the Pagan had hurried off ‘Abdu’l-‘azīz and his men, taken his standard, martyred Mullā Ni‘mat, Mullā Dāūd and the younger brother of Mullā Apāq, with several more. Directly the reinforcement arrived the pagans overcame T̤āhir-tibrī, the maternal uncle of Khalīfa’s Muḥibb-i-‘alī, who had not got up with the hurrying reinforcement[?].[2009] Meantime Muḥibb-i-‘alī even had been thrown down, but Bāltū getting in from the rear, brought him out. The enemy pursued for over a kuroh (2 m.), stopped however at the sight of the black mass of Muḥ. ‘Alī Jang-jang’s troops.
Foot upon foot news came that the foe had come near and nearer. We put on our armour and our horses’ mail, took our arms and, ordering the carts to be dragged after us, rode out at the gallop. We advanced one kuroh. The foe must have turned aside.
(p. Bābur fortifies his camp.)
For the sake of water, we dismounted with a large lake (kūl) on one side of us. Our front was defended by carts chained together*, the space between each two, across which the chains stretched, being 7 or 8 qārī (circa yards). Must̤afa Rūmī had Fol. 311.had the carts made in the Rūmī way, excellent carts, very strong and suitable.[2010] As Ustād ‘Alī-qulī was jealous of him, Must̤afa was posted to the right, in front of Humāyūn. Where the carts did not reach to, Khurāsānī and Hindūstānī spadesmen and miners were made to dig a ditch.
Owing to the Pagan’s rapid advance, to the fighting-work in Bīāna and to the praise and laud of the pagans made by Shāh Manṣūr, Qismatī and the rest from Bīāna, people in the army shewed sign of want of heart. On the top of all this came the defeat of ‘Abdu’l-‘azīz. In order to hearten our men, and give a look of strength to the army, the camp was defended and shut in where there were no carts, by stretching ropes of raw hide on wooden tripods, set 7 or 8 qārī apart. Time had drawn out to 20 or 25 days before these appliances and materials were fully ready.[2011]
(q. A reinforcement from Kābul.)
Just at this time there arrived from Kābul Qāsim-i-ḥusain Sl. (Aūzbeg Shaibān) who is the son of a daughter of Sl. Ḥusain M. (Bāī-qarā), and with him Aḥmad-i-yūsuf (Aūghlāqchī), Qawwām-i-aūrdū Shāh and also several single friends of mine, counting up in all to 500 men. Muḥammad Sharīf, the astrologer of ill-augury, came with them too, so did Bābā Dost the water-bearer (sūchī) who, having gone to Kābul for wine, had thereFol. 311b. loaded three strings of camels with acceptable Ghaznī wines.