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horofcope of his fate. Subuctagi being afleep at the time of his birth, dreamed that he beheld a green tree springing forth from his chimney, which threw its fhadow over the face of the earth, and fcreened from the ftorms of heaven the whole animal creation. This indeed was verified by the justice of Mamood; for if we can believe the poet, in his reign the wolf and the sheep drank together at the fame brook. In the first month of his reign a vein of gold, refembling a tree of three cubits in circumference, was found in Seiftan, which yielded pure gold till the reign of fultan Mufaood, when it was loft in confequence of an earthquake.

* When fultan Mamood had fettled his difpute with his brother, he haftened to Balich, from whence he sent an ambassador to Amir Munfur, emperor of Bochara, complaining of the indignity which he met with in the appointment of Buctufin to the regency of Chorraffan: it was returned to him for anfwer, that he was already in poffeffion of the territories of Balich, Turmuz, and Herat, which held of the empire; and that there was a neceffity to divide the favours of Bochara among her friends. Buctufin, it was alfo infinuated, had been a faithful and good fervant.

• But fultan Mamood, not discouraged by this answer, sent Abul Haffen Jemmavi with rich prefents to the court of Bochara, and a letter in the following terms: "That he hoped the pure fpring of friendship which had flowed in the time of his father fhould not now be polluted with the afhes of indignity, nor he himself reduced to the neceffity of divefting himfelf of that obedience which he had hitherto paid to the imperial family of Samania,"

When Abul Haffen delivered his embaffy, his capacity and elocution appeared fo great to the emperor, that defirous to gain him over to his intereft by any means, he bribed him at laft with the honours of the vizarit, but never returned an anfwer to Mamood. Sultan Mamood having received information of this tranfaction, through neceflity turned his face towards Nefhapoor; and Buctufin, advised of his intention, abandoned the city, and fent the emperor intelligence of his fituation. Amir Munfur, upon this, exalted the imperial ftandard, and in the rafhnefs of inexperienced youth, haftened towards Chorraffan, and halted not till he arrived at Sirchus, Sultan Mamood, though he well knew that Amir Munfur was in no condition to oppofe him, yet gratitude to the imperial family of Samania wrought fo much upon his mind, that afhamed of measuring fpears with his lord, he evacuated the country of Neshapoor, and marched to Murghab. Buctufin, in the mean time, treacherously entered into a confederacy with Faeck, and forming a confpiracy in the camp of Amir

Munfur,

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Munfur, feized upon the perfon of that prince, and cruelly put out his eyes. Abdul, the younger brother of Munfur, who was but a boy, was advanced by the traitors to the throne. Being however afraid of the resentment of fultan Mamood, the confpirators haftened to Murve, whither they were purfued by the fultan with great expedition. Finding themselves, upon their march, hard preffed in the rear by Mamood, they halted and gave him battle. But the fin of ingratitude had darkened the face of their fortune, so that the gales of victory blew upon the standards of fultan Mamood. Faeck carried off the young king, and fled to Bochara, and Butufin was not heard of for fome time; but at length he found his way to Faeck, and begun to collect his scattered troops. Faeck, in the mean time, fell fick, and foon went into the regions of death. Elich Chan feizing upon the opportunity offered him by that event, marched with an army from Kashgar to Bochara, and rooted Abdul Mallick and his adherents out of the empire and the foil of life. Thus the profperity of the house of Samania, which had continued for the space of one hundred and twentyfeven years to illuminate the firmament of empire, set for ever in darkness.'

Notwithstanding the extenfive conquefts of Mamood, and his becoming the most powerful emperor of his time, he still owned the calif of Bagdat for his fuperior, and paid him all the respect which was due from a tributary. This submission arofe from his zeal for the laws of Mahomet; and he feems to have adopted the doctrine of that great impoftor, that nonconformity with Mahometanism is a fufficient warrant for waging the most unjust wars, and perpetrating the most inhuman massacres. It is of no great importance whether Mamood was a real or pretended zealot, but he was at the head of enthufiafts who embraced his doctrine, and performed wonders under his command. His firft expedition to Hindoftan was about the of Chrift 1000. year We cannot enter into particulars; but his fuccefs was great, and his acquifitions incredible. His fecond expedition foon fucceeded the firft; and his third was undertaken in 1004. The rajas or Indian princes oppofed him with great spirit: nothing, however, could withftand the valour of Mamood, and the enthusiasm of his followers.

In his fourth expedition, which he undertook about the year 1006, he had a great battle with a raja, one Elich Chan, whom he at laft defeated, chiefly by his own personal valour.

The fultan (fays our author) after this victory, propofed to pursue the enemy, which was thought unadvifeable by his generals, on account of the inclemency of the feafon, it being then winter, and the troops hardly capable of motion: but

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the king was pofitive in his refolution, and marched two days after the runaways. On the third night, a great storm of wind and fnow overtook the army of Mamood in the defart. Ther king's tents were with much difficulty pitched, while the army was obliged to lie in the fnow. Mamood having ordered great fires to be kindled around his tents, they became fo warm,c that many of the courtiers begun to turn off their upper gar ments; when a facetious chief, whofe name was Dilk, came in fhivering with cold. The king obferving him, faid, Go out, Dilk, and tell the Winter that he may burft his cheeks with bluftering, for here we value not his refentment. Dilk went out accordingly, and returning in a fhort time, kiffed the ground, and thus prefented his addrefs: "I have delivered the fultan's meffage to Winter; but the furly feafon replies, that if his hands cannot tear the fkirts of the king and his attendants, yet he will fo execute his power to night on his army, that in the morning his majefty shall be obliged to faddle his own horfes."

The king fmiled at this reply, but it presently rendered him thoughtful, and determined him to proceed no farther. In the morning forme hundreds of men and horfes were found to have perished with the cold.'

Mamood's fifth expedition was undertaken about the year 1008, or the year of the Hegira 399, at which time he was obliged to entrench himself and his troops against a confederacy of the rajas. The confequences are remarkable.

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The king having thus fecured himself, ordered a thoufand archers to his front, to endeavour to provoke the enemy to advance to the entrenchments. The archers accordingly were attacked by the Gickers, who, notwithstanding all the fultan could do, pursued the runaways within the trenches, where a dreadful scene of flaughter enfued on both fides, in which five thousand muffelmen in a few minutes drank the wine of martyrdom. The enemy at length being flain as faft as they advanced, the attack became fainter and fainter, when on a fudden the elephant upon which Annindpal rode took fright at the report of a gun, and turned his face to flight. This circumftance ftruck the Hindoos with a panic, for thinking they were deferted by their fovereign, they immediately followed the example. Abdulla Tai, with fix thoufand Arabian horfe, and Arfilla Hajib, with ten thousand Turks, Afghans, and Chillages, pursued the enemy for two days and nights; fo that twenty thousand Hindoos were killed in their flight, together with the great multitude which fell on the field of battle.'

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This circumftance of the elephant being frightened, at that time, by the noise of a gun, is taken notice.of by Mr. Dow, who obferves, that they are mentioned by many Eastern wri

ters

ters of this period; and, indeed, there can be no doubt of the fact, that the Chinese, long before this date, knew the use of great artillery and gunpowder. It was probably introduced into Germany by fome of the European foldiers who had ferved under Tamerlane; and it is poffible that the materials of the compofition might have been discovered by a German monk or chemist. Ho

Mamood, after this, proceeded with irrefiftible rapidity in his conquefts; but a reader who is not acquainted with the Eastern manner of computing, must be at a loss to form proper ideas of the plunder he made in gold and jewels. We may cafily, however, conceive it to have been immenfe; for it happened very conveniently for him, that the breaking and carrying away the maffy idols of the Hindoos formed part of his creed, and therefore became with him a religious duty.

His fixth expedition was in the year of Chrift 1011, and his seventh in 1013. His eighth was in 1016; and upon his return from it to Ghizni, covered with victory and loaded with fpoil, he ordered a magnificent mofque to be built of marble and granate, of fuch beauty and structure, as ftruck every beholder with aftonishment and pleafure. This mofque he af terwards adorned with fuch beautiful carpets, chandeliers, and other ornaments of filver and gold, that it became known by the name of the Celestial Bride. In the neighbourhood of this mofque he founded an univerfity, which he furnished with a vaft collection of curious books, in various languages, and with natural and artificial curiofities. He appropriated a fufficient fund for the maintenance of the ftudents, and learned men who were appointed to inftru&t the youth in the fciences."

It is not to be diffembled, that however entertaining this work is, and whatever its authenticity may be, yet the English reader is under great disadvantages from the very conmendable punctuality of Mr. Dow in retaining the original hames of men and places. We think, in fo.ne paffages, he would not have violated his fidelity, if he had contracted the barbarously-founding appellations of his originals into any fingle name, fo as the perfon or the place might be known by it, instead of multiplying fo fcrupulously as he has done their defignations in the Perfian tongue. The authors of the Modern part of the Universal History have, in this particular, exceeded Mr. Dow, by a tenacious attachment to names, fome of which are a line and a half long. The practice, however, is natural in writers, who being completely mafters of a language, are not bound to reflect, that what is familiar to them may found uncouth to their readers.

Ferifhta defcribes the city of Ghizni, at this time, as the cheft and most pompous in the world. Of this we must en

tertain

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tertain fome doubt, because we have heard of none of those ftupendous ruins which ftill mark the glories of Rome and Athens, and other cities of far greater antiquity than Ghizni. We fhall not tref afs farther upon the reader, in giving the particular dates of Mamood's fubfequent expeditions (which were above twelve) into Hindoftan. It is fufficient to say, that the hiftory of his fucceffes, conquefts, and acquifitions, would appear fabulous, were they not rendered credible by thofe of the Eaft India company in the fame country. Had Mamood encountered any other than the effeminate Hindoos, we fhould have entertained higher ideas of his prowefs and valour. It is not, however, to be doubted that he was a brave, indefatigable prince, and endowed with many noble qualities for government. Upon his last victorious return to his capital, he died of the stone in the fixty-third year of his age, and in the year 1078 of the Chriftian æra.

Mamood's fucceffion was difputed between his two fons, Mohummud and Mufaood. They were twins, and Musaood, who was the elder, prevailed.

[To be continued. ]

II. Philofopbical Transactions, giving fome Account of the present Undertakings, Studies, and Labours of the Ingenious, in many confi derable Parts of the World. "Vol. LVII. For the Year 1757. 4to. Pr. 155. Davis and Reymers. Concluded.

RTICLE XXVI. contains experiments on the Peruvian

A bark, by Thomas Percival, M. D. F. R. S. formerly

published *.

Number twenty-feven is an inquiry into the probable parallax and magnitude of the fixed ftars, from the quantity of light which they afford us, and the particular circumstances of their fituation, by the Rev. John Michell, B. D. F. R. S.

The hypothetical method here propofed, is to inquire what would be the parallax of the fun, if he were removed fo far from us, as to make the quantity of light, which we should then receive from him, no more than equal to that of the fixed ftars. In this paper we find the following folution of the twinkling of the fixed stars.

Having never yet feen any folution of the twinkling of the fixed ftars, with which I could reft fatisfied, I fhall offer the following, which may not perhaps be found an inadequate caufe of that appearance; at leaft it has undoubtedly fome fhare in producing it, efpecially in the smaller stars.

* Vide Critical Review, vol. xxv. p. 105.

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