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OCTOBER, 1890.)
NOTICE OF THE GULABNAMA.
299
Meanwhile the Rajás Dhyan Singh and Suchêt Singh, who had been sent for, collected all the Sikh forces they could during their march from Jammun, and as soon as they arrived in Lâhôr sent a message into the fort to Galåb Stigh, asking him how long he meant to resist the troops of the government, all of which had now joined Sher Singh with powerful artillery. Gulab Singh replied that the garrison would not cease firing unless the besiegers did so. The Rani Chand Kanwar, whom our author henceforth simply calls the Bibi şaḥiba, became frightened, after the manner of women, and sent parwanas to Gulâb Singh in which she praised his heroism, but requested him to make any arrangements he might think proper for putting an end to the hostilities. Gulab Singh also received a parwana bearing the signature of the Maharaja Sher Singh, followed by the manual marks of the great Sardârs Bijai Singh, Bhai Singh, and Lahnâ Singh, as well as by the signature in Roman characters of Ventura Şalib and Sham Singh Atari wala. This last parwana was to the purport that if the musketry fire from the fort ceased, Baba Mahan Singh would be despatched to bring him to the camp with all honours under safe conduct. But he did not at once comply with this invitation and a correspondence ensned, terminating with the surrender of the fort on the condition of granting the Bibi Şahiba a jágir, with a yearly income of seven lákhs of rupees. At last Gulåb Singh had his elephants and baggage removed from the fort one night, following himself at dawn, and encamping on the banks of the Ravi, where the Rajâs Dhyan Singh and Suchêt Singh soon met him and represented that numberless Khâlşa troops were in the vicinity, many of whose comrades had been slain during the siege, and that hostilities might easily again break out. Accordingly the camp was next day removed to Shahdara, where many great Sardars paid Gulab Singh visits with the presentation of compliments from the Maharaja Shêr Singh, and asked him what had induced him to offer resistance to the Mahârâ já. Gulab Singh replied, that as there was much treasure and valuable property in the fort, it would all have been plundered and dispersed if he had not taken possession of it, and that it was moreover necessary to guard the ladies. Being satisfied with this explanation, the Maharaja Shêr Singh, after bestowing upon Gulab Singh dress of honour and a sanad for the jágír of Manawar, gave him leave to depart to Jammûn.
As Gulab Singh had, with his paternal uncle, Diwân Hîrå Chand, who was the commander of his troops, obtained permission from the Bibi Şahiba, whilst she was besieged in the fort of Lihôr, to conquer the ta'luqas of Ghart and Ghariali, so the Diwan first occupied SaratAurangabad, which the troops of the late Maharaja Kharak Singh had taken after a siege, and then marched to the fort of Sukhchonpur, which had been garrisoned on behalf of the Maharaja Sarat Singh, but was now surrendered. Another small fort, Kot by name, was also easily occupied, but Mangala which is on the top of a mountain, and on three sides surrounded by the river Bhôt, fell only after a long and brave resistance.
In St. 1898,49 the Maharaja Sher Singh despatched a Gurkhâ paltan under the command of Prince Partab Singh to punish the malcontents who had slain Manhwan Singh, the Subahdar of Kasmir, and Gulab Singh, who was at that time at Bahlol on the bank of the Chinab; having been ordered to aid the prince, joined him at Bhimbar, with the father of the author and the Diwân Nihal Chand, their forces amounting to four pallans and 600 cavalry. The country being too poor to provide for large bodies of troops, Galab Singh divided his forces. retaining one-half of them and placing the other at the disposal of the Diwan Nihal Chand. marched to Shapiân, where it rained so abundantly as to detain him there. He did not continue his march in the direction of Shêrgarh till the fourth day after reaching it. The troops under the Diwan Nihâl Chand reached Naipur, where two paltuns of rebels opposed hiin at the crossing of the river Dûdbganga. Here the Prince Partáb Singh joined him with Gulab Singh, and the combined forces attacked the rebels aud defeated them with a loss of 600 men,
double game. The above bombastic account of the defence of the fort, given by our author, is contradicted in Ch. 41 of the Zafarnima, according to which Sber Singh compelled the fort to surrender after a siege of ovly three days, chiefly through the mediation of Gulab Singh, who returned just in time from Jammus to bring the negotiations to a satisfactory issue.
49 A. D. 1841.
