Halat-i Asad Beg 1.4

1.4

He had taken Gadai Khan the Afghan and his son with him, but left their troops with me; had he but had a hundred of them with him, that disastrous accident had never occurred. True, Gadai Khan was a tried courageous man, but he fought alone; he fell, charging the enemy; his son escaped with a wound. Another Afghan, Jalal Khan by name, charged and fell; and two others, Salim Khan and Sher Khan, were taken prisoners, and put to death for refusing to betray the most learned. Mansur Chabuk too, one of the Nawab Khan-khanan’s servants, who had resigned his former office and come to Sironj, under pretence of turning fakir, and had been employed in the kitchen, charged and fell; he was of the Turkoman race. Mirza Muhammad Khan Beg was also among the slain, as well as Jabbar Khassa-khail, an Abyssinian, who was with them. When the Nawab was pierced and fell, he slew the Rajput who had wounded him, and rushed upon the enemy. He had still life in him when Nar Singh came up with the main body. He first trod Jabbar under foot, and then cut off the head of the great 'Allami. Excepting those I have mentioned, all, whether veterans or raw troops, escaped. Had they set off, as Mirza Muhsin, son-in-law of Fazl Khan of Badakhshan, advised, when he told them that robbers were lying in wait, they would have arrived safely; but as Fate had decreed, so it occurred; there was no help for it.