1 22 EARLY HISTORY OF RUNJEET SING.
2 " Immortals/' and complimented the envoy on the bravery of his
3 small band of followers. He saw, however, in this incident
4 enough to convince him that an army disciplined as these men
5 were, was not to be assailed with any hope of success by his own
6 wild troops, and he gave up for a time his cherished design of
7 measuring his strength with that of his haughty neighbours.
8 Having thus learned the value of discipline, he was seized with
9 the desire to possess a disciplined army, and as is well known,
10 was not content with idly desiring it, but using all means
11 available for effecting his purpose, at length saw himself at the
12 head of a force such as no eastern power had ever before pos-
13 sessed, and with which he hoped when the opportunity occurred
14 to be able to battle with the British for the sovereignty of
15 Hindostan.
16 In 1818 Run'eet Sing made himself master of Moultan
17 and soon afterwau s of Peshawar. In the following year he
18 conquered Cashmere and annexed it to his already extensive
19 dominions. The following account of the fate of the man
20 who was the immediate agent of these and his other conquests
21 will serve to illustrate some curious points in the character of
22 the Maharajh.
23 While Runjeet was engaged in the conquest of the Hazareh,
24 Chotah, and Gundeghur districts, he found Mahomed Khan,
25 the chief of Goolzeree, a much more powerful and obstinate
26 enemy than any other of the chiefs around him. For this
27 reason he deputed Misser Dewan Chund, the commander of
28 his troops, to visit the chief and endeavour to bring him to
29 terms by making many fair promises. But the MiSser
30 when he went on this embassy was not aware that Runjeet's
31 only object was to get Mahomed Khan into his power, when
32 he could do whatever he pleased with him. He therefore
33 exerted all his powers of persuasion to induce the Mussulman
34 chief to accompany him to his master's camp near Rawul Pindee,
35 and he finally succeeded in his purpose. Runjeet at first treated