Siyar al-mutaʾakhkhirin 17.5.3

17.5.3

I answered that I would, but that as Puraniah was in a corner, and out of the high-road from Hindostan, none would be procurable, but people of Puraniah; to which he replied, that he had no objections to them, provided they should be picked men. The body in question was soon raised; but news came a little after, that Abul-mansur-qhan had thought proper to return to Aud, his capital; so that the suspicions he had raised in Bengal, subsiding by his departure, the new levies were all dismissed, to the great discomfort of the Commanders, who after having wished for some war and some dispute, were now reduced to the necessity of making interest for their being, kept in pay. But he kept only two-and-twenty Afghan troopers, who being excellently mounted, were reserved for his body-guards. As to myself, hearing of this general reform, I presented him a paper purporting, "whether it was not his pleasure that I should dismiss my own new levies also, which were numerous enough?" In answer to my question, he wrote at the bottom these words: "Why does His illustrious Lordship trouble himself about these matters? Let there be to-morrow a general review of his corps, and then their fate shall be determined." The next day I carried all my people to the review. He looked at them all, but ordered that they should be kept in pay, and he moreover added the two-and-twenty Afghans to them;