d divided it among them, as the royal present in honour of
his son's birth.... This event,' adds Jouher, 'diffused its fragrance
over the whole habitable world.'

The birth of the son brought no immediate good fortune to the father.
In July, 1543, Humayun was compelled to quit Sind, and, accompanied
by his wife and son and a small following, set out with the intention
of reaching Kandahar. He had arrived at Shal, when he learnt that his
brother, Askari, with a considerable force, was close at hand, and
that immediate flight was necessary. He and his wife were ready, but
what were they to do with the child, then only a year old, quite
unfit to make a rapid journey on horseback, in the boisterous weather
then prevailing? Reckoning, not without reason, that the uncle would
not make war against a baby, they decided to leave him, with the
whole of their camp-equipage and baggage, and the ladies who attended
him. They then set out, and riding hard, reached the Persian frontier
in safety. Scarcely had they gone when Askari Mirza arrived. Veiling
his disappointment at the escape of his brother with some {54} soft
words, he treated the young prince with affection, had him conveyed
to Kandahar, of which place he was Governor, and placed there under
the supreme charge of his own wife, the ladies who had been his
nurses still remaining in attendance.

In this careful custody the young prince remained during the whole of
the year 1544. But soon after the dawn of the following year a change
in his condition occurred. His father, with the aid of troops
supplied him by Shah Tahmasp, invaded Western Afghanistan, making
straight across the desert for Kandahar. Alarmed at this movement,
and dreading lest Humayun should recover his child, Kamran sent
peremptory orders that the boy should be transferred to Kabul. When
the confidential officers whom Kamran had instructed on this subject
reached Kandahar, the ministers of Askari Mirza held a council to
consider whether or not the demand should be complied with. Some,
believing the star of Humayun to be in the ascendant, advised that
the boy should be sent, under honourable escort, to his father.
Others maintained that Prince Askari had acted so treacherously
towards his eldest brother that no act of penitence would now avail,
and that it was better to continue to deserve the favour of Kamran.
The arguments of the latter prevailed, and though the winter was
unusually severe, the infant princ