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670
HINDUSTAN
(May 3rd) On Tuesday (Sha'ban 24th) we marched from where the river had been crossed, went on for nearly one kuroh (2 m.) and dismounted on the fighting-ground at the confluence.1 I myself went to enjoy Ustad 'Ali-qull's firing of culverin and firingi; he hit two boats today with firingi-stones, broke them and sank them. Mustafa did the same from his side. I had the large mortar2 taken to the fighting-ground, left Mulla Ghulam to superintend the making of its position, appointed a body of vasdwals 3 and active braves to help him, went to an island facing, the camp and there ate mctjiin.
Whilst still under the influence of the confection * I had the boat taken to near the tents and there slept. A strange thing happened in the night, a noise and disturbance arising about the 3rd watch (midnight) and the pages and others snatching up pieces of wood from the boat, and shouting " Strike ! strike ! " What was said to have led to the disturbance was that a nightguard who was in the Farmalsh along-side the Asaish in which I was sleeping,5 opening his eyes from slumber, sees a man with his hand on the Asalsh as if meaning to climb into her. They fall on him ;6 he dives, comes up again, cuts at the night-guard's head, wounding it a little, then runs off at once towards the river.7 Once before, on the night we returned from Munir, one or two night-guards had chased several Hindustanis from near the boats, and had brought in two swords and a dagger of theirs. The Most High had me in His Keeping!
(Persian) Were the sword of the world to leap forth It would cut not.ยป vein till God will.8
■ i.e. near 'Ali-qulJ's emplacement. * Cf. f. 303, f. 309, f. 337 and n. 4.
3 " Theyasawal is an officer who carries the commands of the prince, and sees them enforced " (Erskine). Here he will have been the superintendent of coolies moving earth.
4 tna'jiin-nak which, in these days of Babur's return to obedience, it maybe right to translate in harmony with his psychical outlooli of self-reproach, by >na'j&n-po\\ute<i. Though he had long ceased to drink wine, he still sought cheer and comfort, in his laborious days, from inspiriting and forbidden confections.
s Probably owing to the less precise phrasing of his Persian archetype, Erskine here has reversed the statement, made in the Turkl, that Babur slept in the Asalsh (not the Farmaish).
6 austida tashlar. An earlier reading of this, vis. that stones were thrown on the intruder is negatived by Babur's mention of wood as the weapon used.
1 su sari which, as the boats were between an island and the river's bank, seems likely to mean that the man went off towards the main stream. Mems. p. 415, "made his escape in the river" ; Mims. ii, 418, dans la direction du large.
8 This couplet is quoted by Jahangir also (Tuziik, trs. Rogers & Beveridge, i, 34%)-
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