Shaibáni and entered his harím; evidently she was part of the capitulation[1].
One would think that nothing could be much more depressing than this midnight exodus from the city of his ambition, which he had twice held and twice lost again, but Bábar's spirits were extraordinarily elastic; and after a night spent in losing himself and his unfortunate companions in the tangle of the canals, when at the time of morning prayers they at last found their road, we find the desolate exile and his 'muddy-brained' follower indulging in a breakneck gallop. Bábar relates it as if it were the sort of amusement that dethroned monarchs usually pursued:—
'On the road I had a race with Kambar 'Ali and Kásim Beg. My horse got the lead. As I turned round on my seat to see how far I had left them behind, my saddle turned, the girth being slack, and I fell right on my head. Though I sprang up at once and mounted, I did not recover the full possession of my senses till the evening, and the world and all that happened then passed before my eyes like a dream or phantasy and disappeared. The time of afternoon prayers was past before we reached Ilán-útí, where we dismounted, and killing a horse, butchered him and cooked slices of his flesh. We stayed a little time to rest our horses, then remounted and reached the village of Khalíla before daybreak; thence to Dizak. . . . Here we found nice fat flesh, bread of fine flour well baked, sweet melons, and excellent
- ↑ This is clearly stated in the Shaibáni-náma, xxxix; but it seems the lady was in love with the brave barbarian, who, however, soon divorced her.
