bble, were brought in Diwana, the tunic-weaver and Kalaashuq,1 headlong leaders both, in brawl and tumult; they vere ordered to death with torture in blood-retaliation for our foot-soldiers, killed at the Lovers' Cave.2 This was a comnlete reverse for the Samarkandls; they came out no more even when our men used to go to the very edge of the ditch and bring back their slaves and slave-women.
The Sun entered the Balance and cold descended on us.3 I therefore summoned the begs admitted to counsel and it was decided, after discussion, that although the towns-people were so enfeebled that, by God's grace, we should take Samarkand, it might be to-day, it might be to-morrow, still, rather than suffer from cold in the open, we ought to rise from near it and go for winter-quarters into some fort, and that, even if we had to leave those quarters later on, this would be done without further trouble. As Khwaja Didar seemed a suitable fort, we marched there and having dismounted in the meadow lying before it, went in, fixed on sites for the winter-houses and covered shelters,4 left overseers and inspectors of the work and returned to our camp in the meadow. There we lay during the few days before the winter-houses were finished.
Meantime Bai-sunghar Mirza had sent again and again to ask help from ShaibanI Khan. On the morning of the very day on which, our quarters being ready, we had moved into Khwaja Didar, the Khan, having ridden light from Turkistan, stood over against our camping-ground. Our men were not all at hand; some, for winter-quarters, had gone to Khwaja RabatI, some to Kabud, some to Shlraz. None-the-less, we formed up those there were and rode out. ShaibanI Khan made no stand but drew off towards Samarkand. He went right up to the fort but because the affair had not gone as
' This seeming sobriquet may show the man's trade. Kdl is a sort of biscuit ; qashiiq may mean a spoon.
2 The U.S. does not ascribe treachery to those inviting Babur into Samarkand but attributes the murder of his men to others who fell on them when the plan of his admission became known. The choice here of " town-rabble " iot'retaliatory death supports the account of U.S. ii.
It was the end of September or beginning of October " (Erskine). owi u hipa y'wlar. Awl is likely to represent kibitkas. For klpa ylr, see Zenker p. 782.
