17.—How a vassal carried off riches that belonged to Tämerlin.
When Tämerlin returned from Lesser India, he sent one of his vassals named Chebakh, with ten thousand men, to the city of Soltania,[1](1) to bring to him the five-yearly tribute of Persia and Ermenia which was kept in that city. He came, and took the tribute, and loaded one thousand waggons, and then he wrote to a lord in the country of Massander, who was his friend. He came with fifty thousand men, they made an alliance with each other, and the treasure was taken to Massenderam. When Tämerlin heard of this, he sent a great many people to conquer the above-named country, and bring to him the two lords as prisoners. When the people got to the country, they could not do any harm because of the large forests which surround it, and they sent to Tämerlin for more people. He sent other seventy thousand men to clear the woods and make a road. They did so for ten miles, but could not conquer the territory. They sent to tell Tämerlin, and he ordered them to go home, which they did, without having done anything.
[1] Sultania, to the north of Kaswin. The construction of this city was begun by Ilchan, or by Argun the Persian viceroy, and completed by Chasan. These powerful despots of Persia wanted to acquire, as is not rarely the case with other despots, immortal fame for themselves, by extorting from their subjects for the purpose of constructing magnificent buildings. Their wishes have not been realised. _N._
18.—How Tämerlin caused MMM children to be killed.
Then he went into a kingdom called Hisspahan and made for the capital, Hisspahan, and required it to surrender. They gave themselves up, and went to him with their wives and children. He received them graciously, occupied the city with six thousand of his people, and took away with him the lord of the city, whose name was Schachister. And so soon as the city heard that Tämerlin was gone out of the country, they closed all the gates and killed the six thousand men. When Tämerlin knew this, he returned to the city and besieged it for XV days, but he could not take it, and made peace with them on condition that they should lend him the archers that were in the city, for an expedition; after that, he should send them back. They sent to him twelve thousand archers; he cut off all their thumbs, and forced them back into the city and himself entered it. He assembled all the citizens, and ordered all those over fourteen years to be beheaded, and the boys under XIIII years he ordered to be spared, and with the heads was constructed a tower in the centre of the city; then he ordered the women and children to be taken to a plain outside the city, and ordered the children under seven years of age to be placed apart, and ordered his people to ride over these same children. When his counsellors and the mothers of the children saw this, they fell at his feet, and begged that he would not kill them. He would not listen, and ordered that they should be ridden over; but none would be the first to do so. He got angry, and rode himself [amongst them] and said: “Now I should like to see who will not ride after me?” Then they were all obliged to ride over the children, and they were all trampled upon.(1) There were seven thousand. Then he set fire to the city, and took the other women and children into his own city; and then went to his capital called Semerchant, where he had not been for twelve years.