struggle put the Arghún forces to flight. The citadel opened its gates, and the conqueror found himself in possession of amazingly rich treasures: indeed, he declares, in delighted hyperbole, 'no one ever was known to have seen so much money.' It was too much trouble to count it, so it was put into scales and divided by weight. The camp was gorged with plunder and spoils of every description, and the army marched back to Kábul driving asses laden with huge sacks of silver, weighing several hundredweight, which they loaded up as carelessly as if it were forage.
Except for the booty, the expedition was useless. Bábar had hardly been home a week when he learned that his brother Násir, lately returned from Badakhshán, whom he had left at Kandahár with a weak garrison, was shut up in the citadel, and that Shaibáni was vigorously pressing the siege. Luckily a rising in another part of his dominions called the Uzbeg away, and Násir was able to retreat to Ghazni from his untenable position, which was immediately reoccupied by the Arghún brothers. The bare news, however, of Shaibáni's approach had thrown Kábul into consternation. Nothing apparently could check the advance of this terrible Tatar, who had trampled upon all Transoxiana, Khuwárizm, Farghána, and Khurásán, and was now drawing nearer and nearer to the last refuge of the fallen house of Tímúr. To defend Kábul seemed hopeless, and Bábar actually determined to fly. He had experienced Shaibáni's strength before, more than once; the feud was deadly, and probably
