Travels in the Mogul Empire (Bernier) 3.9.7

3.9.7

'It is your wish that I should adhere rigidly to the old custom, and declare myself heir to every person who dies in my service. We have been accustomed, as soon as an Omrah or a rich merchant has ceased to breathe, nay sometimes before the vital spark has fled, to place seals on his coffers, to imprison and beat the servants or officers of his household, until they made a full disclosure of the whole property, even of the most inconsiderable jewel. This practice is advantageous, no doubt ; but can we deny its injustice and cruelty ? and should we not be rightly served if every Omrah acted as Neik-nam-Kan, and if like the Hindoo merchant's widow, every woman concealed her wealth ? 'I wish to avoid your censure, and cannot endure that you should form a wrong estimate of my character. My elevation to the throne has not, as you imagine, filled me with insolence and pride. You know by more than forty years' experience, how burthensome an ornament a crown is, and with how sad and aching a heart a monarch retires from the public gaze. Our great ancestor Ekbar, anxious that his successors should exercise their power with mildness, discretion and wisdom, recommended to their serious attention in the excellent memoirs left behind him, a fine characteristic of Mir-Timur. He recounts that on the day on which Bajazet was made prisoner, when he was brought into the presence of Timur, the latter, after attentively fixing his eyes upon the haughty captive, laughed in his face.