air cities, _Salere_ and _Muliere_, where
the mamudies are coined. Each of these towns has two mighty castles, the
roads to which only admit of two men abreast, or an elephant at most;
having also on the way eighty small fortresses dispersed among the
mountains to guard the passage. On the tops of these mountains there is
good pasture and abundance of grain, with numerous fountains or streams,
which run thence into the plains. Akbar besieged him for seven years,
and was in the end obliged to compound with him, giving him Narampore
Dayta and Badur, with several other _aldeas_, for safely conducting his
merchants along this plain; so that he is now in peace with the king, to
whom he sends presents yearly, and leaves one of his sons in Boorhanpoor
as a pledge of his fealty. He is said to have always in readiness 4000
mares of an excellent breed, and 100 elephants.

Leaving Badur on the 26th, I went 7 coss to _Nonderbar_, or Nundabar, a
city, short of which are many tombs and houses of pleasure, with a
castle and a fair tank. The 27th to _Lingull_, 10 c. a beastly town,
with thievish inhabitants, a dirty castle, and a deep sandy road near
the town. 28th 10 c. to _Sindkerry_, or Sindkera, a great dirty town. On
the way, the governor of Lingull, with others as honest as himself,
would have borrowed some money of me; but finding I would only give him
powder and shot, he desisted, and allowed our carts to pass without
farther trouble. Beyond Sindkera runs a small river of brackish water,
by drinking of which I got the bloody flux, which continued with me all
the way to Boorhanpoor. The 29th 10 c. to _Taulneere_, or Talnere, a
thievish road, but a fair town with a castle and river, which is not
passable in the rains without a boat.[235] The 30th 15 c. to _Chupra_,
or Choprah, a great town. I rested here two days on account of the
rains; in which time came the governor of Nundabar with 400 horse,
without whose company I could not have continued my journey without
danger, as Khan-Khana had been defeated and obliged to retire to
Boorhanpoor, after losing the strong and rich town of _Joulnapore_, or
Jalnapoor, on which the Deccaners became so insolent, that they made
inroads as far as the Taptee, plundering many of the passengers.

[Footnote 235: The author seems not to have been aware that this was the
Taptee, or river of Surat.--E.]

The 2d February we went 6 c. to _Rawel_, or Arawul, a country village,
where unseasonable thunde