1 92 A Short History of the Sikhs.
2 did not tend to allay the suspicion with which he
3 was regarded. It happened, therefore, that while
4 Ranjit Singh was arranging his plan of campaign,
5 preparations for a similar expedition were being made
6 by Shah Mahmud, or rather by his all-powerful
7 minister, Fateh Khan.
8 Ranjit Singh commenced operations by subduing
9 the hill-states of Bhimbar and Rajaori, situated to
10 the west and north-west of Jammu, which latter
11 place, it will be remembered, had been reduced by
12 his father, Mahan Singh ; and it was while he was
13 thus engaged that he became aware that the quarry
14 he was hunting was also being pursued by Fateh
15 Khan. Neither party desired to come to blows, and
16 neither was inclined to advance into the hills with
17 the possibility of having its retreat cut off by the
18 other. There was but one alternative. The leaders
19 met and agreed to finish the hunt together, and
20 divide the spoil. On this understanding the parties
21 advanced, each having made a mental reservation to
22 outwit the other if the opportunity offered. '
23 The expedition now became a race for Kashmir,
24 and Fateh Khan won. The Sikhs were no match for
25 the Afghans when it came to mountaineering, and a
26 heavy fall of snow added to their difficulties. Diwan
27 Mokham Chand, with a few picked troops, pressed on
28 in advance of the main body; but by the time he
29 had descended into the valley of Kashmir, all resist-
30 ance had been overcome by the Afghan troops.
31 Fateh Khan, on the ground that the Sikhs had taken
32 no part in the fighting, refused them their share of
33 the plunder, and the only prize that Mokham Chand