On the 8th, Asaph Khan sent me word in plain terms, that absolutely he would procure nothing for me sealed, that in any respect concerned the government belonging to the prince, and that I must rest satisfied with a firmaun or order, signed by the prince, which was quite sufficient, and I needed not to apply any more to him. This clearly revealed the purpose he had so long intended, that we should be entirely dependent on the prince; and I now had just cause to look out for new friends, Asaph Khan having forsaken me. He that first took him for our solicitor engaged us in all this misery, for he was the known protector of our enemies, and a slave to their numerous bribes. I therefore determined to try the prince, and to seem entirely dependent upon him. So I went to the prince on the 10th, and desired he would grant his firmaun for the four articles formerly sent to his secretary, which he threw down to his secretary, so that I hoped to be at rest. I received it on the 11th, but on reading it over, I found two of the four clauses much altered, and one entirely left out; so I returned it, declaring roundly I could not accept it, neither would I suffer any goods to be sent ashore. Never was any man so distressed with such pride, covetousness, and falsehood.
At night, I rode to visit the prince's secretary, Mirza Socrolla, with whom I expostulated the business, declaring my resolution to depart. But I now found the firmaun quite different than I had been informed, and containing all the clauses I had required, though in some phrases rather ambiguous in my judgment, which the secretary interpreted favourably, declaring it was the prince's intent to satisfy me entirely, and that every thing was quite sufficient for our purpose. After urging the obscurity of some points, and as he had declared the meaning of the prince to me, I requested he would explain them in the same sense to the governor of Surat, which he agreed to; and especially gave order that the customer should pay for fifty pieces of cloth, which he had bought many months before, and wished now to return upon the factors, to their extreme loss. At the close of our conference, he expressed the prince's desire that we would rely entirely on him, and not cross him in matters belonging to his government, by applying to the king, declaring that we should so find him a better friend than we expected. Being thus satisfied, I was in some hope of success, especially as this man is no taker of bribes, and is reputed honest, and pledged his credit that we should sustain no loss or injury, every thing being referred to him by the prince. So I accepted the firmaun, which, on having it translated, I found very effectual and satisfactory.
The 16th, I went to visit the prince, intending to seem entirely dependent upon him, till I heard what entertainment our ships were likely to meet with. But I found him in much perplexity, fearing the coming of Sultan Parvis to court, he being only at the distance of eight coss, anxiously desiring leave to kiss his father's hands. The king had even granted his desire, but by the influence of Nourmahal, the favourite queen, he had revoked the permission, and Sultan Parvis was ordered away directly to Bengal.[205] The resolution of the king to remove the court from Agimere still continued, but no one knew certainly where he intended to go.
[Footnote 205: At this place there is an expression in the Pilgrims, coupled with this sentence, which is quite inexplicable. "Yea, although the king had fallen down, and taken his mother by the feet, to obtain her leave to see her son." We are not sufficiently conversant in the secret history of the Zenana of Shah Jehan-guire to explain this; yet strongly suspect that this sentence ought to have run thus: Although the prince's mother fell at the king's feet to obtain leave to see her son.--E.]
S.4. Broils about Abdala Khan and Khan-Khannan: Ambitious projects of Sultan Churrum to subvert his eldest Brother: Sea Fight with a Portuguese Carrack; and various other Occurrences.
Several days now passed in soliciting the king and great men, and paying my court to them, without any remarkable occurrence; till on the 9th October, I had letters from Surat, giving me an account that four English ships had arrived there. On the 10th, Abdala Khan, the great governor of Ahmedabad, being sent for to court in disgrace, to answer for many insolent and contemptuous neglects of the king's commands, thought to stand upon his defence and to refuse compliance. But Sultan Churrum, whose ambitious views sought to turn every thing to his advantage, being desirous to oblige so great a man, who was reckoned one of the chiefest captains in the empire, prevailed upon him to submit, on his word to protect him. Abdala came therefore, in pretended humility, habited as a pilgrim, attended by forty servants on foot, until he arrived within a day's journey of the court, having 2000 horse attending him at some distance behind. He was this day brought to the Jarruco, the place where the king sits in public to see sports and hear complaints, and advanced towards the king, between two noblemen, having chains on his legs, and holding his turban over his eyes, that he might see no one till he had the happiness to behold the king. After making his humble reverence, and answering a few questions, the king forgave him, caused his irons to be taken off, and clothed him in a new vest of cloth of gold, with a turban and sash, as is the custom.
The prince, Churrum, now intended to establish his honour and power on the Deccan wars, which his elder brother Sultan Parvis had been recalled from in disgrace, and which the great commander, Khan-Khannan, had not conducted prosperously, being strongly suspected of a secret understanding with the princes of the Deccan, from whom he was believed to receive pensions. Churrum, therefore, induced his father to recall Khan-Khannan, who refused to obey; and wrote to the king, not to send Churrum to the war, but one of his youngest sons, then only about fifteen. This gave Churrum much uneasiness, as he was exceedingly intent upon having the conduct of this war, for which reason he promised to give the subordinate command of the army to Abdala Khan, under himself, if he could contrive to get Khan-Khannan displaced. Fearing troubles from the ambition and factious practices of his son Churrum, the discontent of the two elder sons, Cuserou and Parvis, and the power of Khan-Khannan, the king was anxious to accommodate matters in the Deccan by accepting a peace, and continuing Khan-Khannan in his government; to which end he wrote him a letter of favour, and proposed to send him a vestment, as a sign of reconciliation, according to custom. Before dispatching these, he acquainted a kinswoman of Khan-Khannan, who lived in the seraglio, with his purpose. Whether she was false to her relation, through the secret influence of Sultan Churrum, or was grieved to see the head of her family so unworthily dealt with, who merited so highly, does not certainly appear: But she plainly told the king, that she did not believe Khan-Khannan would wear any thing the king sent, as he knew his majesty hated him, and had once or twice already sent him poison, which he had put into his bosom instead of his mouth, and proved by trials. For this reason, she was confident Khan-Khannan would not dare to put on any thing sent from his majesty. The king offered to wear the dress himself in her presence for an hour, which she might certify in a letter to her relative. To this she answered, that Khan-Khannan would trust neither of them with his life; but, if allowed to continue quietly in his command, would do his majesty good service. Upon this, the king altered his plans, and resolved to invest Sultan Churrum in the supreme command of the Deccan wars, and to follow after him with another army, to ensure his reception.
Khan-Khannan, having due notice of the storm preparing against him, practised with the Deccan sovereigns, who were at his devotion, to offer favourable terms of peace for a season, as he saw no other way of averting the cloud that hung over both him and them, unless by temporizing till the king and the prince were established farther off. For this purpose, there came two ambassadors at this time to court, from the princes of the Deccan, bringing horses richly caparisoned as presents. The king refused to listen to them, or to accept their gifts, and turned them over to his son, saying that peace or war rested entirely with him. The prince was so puffed up by this favour, though informed that the proposed conditions of peace were highly honourable, that he declared proudly he would listen to no terms, till he was in the field at the head of the army, being resolved that Khan-Khannan should not deprive him of the honour of finishing that war.
The ambitious views of this young prince are quite obvious, and form the common talk of the country, yet the king suffers him to proceed, although he by no means intends him as his successor. Sultan Cuserou, the eldest son, is highly beloved and honoured of all men, and almost adored, for his excellent parts and noble dispositions, with which the king is well acquainted, and even loves him dearly. But he conceives that the liberty of this son would diminish his own glory, and does not see that the ambition of Churrum greatly more tarnishes his own fame than would the virtuous character and noble actions of the other. Thus the king fosters division and emulation among his sons, putting so much power into the hands of the younger, which he believes he can undo at his pleasure, that the wisest here foresee much fatal division in this mighty empire when the present king shall pay the debt of nature, expecting that it will then be rent in pieces by civil wars.
The history of this country, for the variety of its incidents, and the many crooked practices of the present king during the reign of his father, Akbar Shah, and these latter troubles, were well worthy of being committed to writing. But, as the country is so remote, many would despise such information, and as the people are esteemed barbarous, few persons would give it credit. I content myself, therefore, with privately contemplating the singular history of this nation, although I could narrate so many singular and amusing state intrigues, subtle evasions, policies, answers, and adages, as could not be easily equalled in the history of one age or country. One incident, however, that occurred lately, I cannot omit relating, as it evinces the wisdom and patience of the emperor, the incorruptible fidelity of a servant, the detestable falsehood of a brother, and the impudent boldness of a faction, ready to dare every infamous action, when permitted by the supreme ruler to exercise an authority beyond the limits of their condition, and contrary to the dictates of reason and true policy.