हम्मीर महाकाव्यम् (रणथम्भौर चौहान वीरगाथा एवं इतिहास)

39

of 'Alâud dîn, a monarch who had destroyed all his enemies,
who possessed numerous strong forts and well furnished arsenals
and magazines, who had put to shame Mahâdeva himself by
capturing numerous impregnable forts, like Dêvagadha,
whereas the fame of the god rests on the successful capture of the
fort of Tripura alone.
Hammîra, who had listened with impatience to the ambas-
sador's speech, was incensed at the insulting message delivered to
him, and said to Srî Molhana Deva that if he had not been
there in the capacity of an accredited envoy, the tongue with
which he uttered those vaunting insults should ere this have been
cut out. Not only did Hammîra refuse to entertain either of
the conditions submitted by the envoy, but on his part he proposed
the acceptance by 'Alâu'd dîn of as many sword cuts as the
number of the gold mohurs, elephants, and horses he had the
impudence to ask for, and told the envoy he would look upon
the refusal of this martial offer by the Muhammadan chief as
tantamount to his ('Alâu'd dîn's) feasting on pork. Without any
further ceremony, the envoy was driven from the presence.
The garrison of Ranathambhôr now prepared for resist-
ance. Officers of approved ability and bravery were told off to
defend various posts. Tents were pitched here and there on the
ramparts to protect the defenders from the rays of the sun. Oil
and resin were kept boiling in many places ready to be poured
on the bodies of any of the assailants to scald them if they dared
come too near, and guns were mounted on suitable places. The
Muhammadan army, too, at last appeared before Ranathambhôr.
A desperate struggle was carried on for some days. Nusrat
Khân was killed by a random shot in one of the engagements,¹³
and, the monsoon having set in, Ulugh Khân was obliged
to stop all further operations. He retired to some distance from

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¹³ Elliot and Dowson's History vol. III. p. 172.—ED.