Page:History of India Vol 3.djvu/188

 150 MOHAMMAD TAGHLAK AND FIKOZ SHAH who kept two thousand ladies in his harem, ranging from olive Greeks to saffron Chinese, these endowments must have reached a considerable sum. But Makbul was worth his money. As the Sultan's deputy and alter ego, he held the state securely while his master was away, stood always between him and official wor- ries, and administered the kingdom with exceptional skill and wisdom. If the borders of the realm were more limited than before, the smaller area was better developed and made more productive. It was doubtless due to Makbul 's influence, seconded by the Rajput blood which Firoz inherited from Bibi Naila, that the new regime was marked by the utmost gentleness and consideration for the peasantry. It will be remembered that the preceding Sultan had instituted a system of government loans in aid of the agricultur- ists. These loans the peasants, who had not yet recov- ered from the distress caused by Mohammad Taghlak's exactions, were wholly unable to repay. By the advice of the vizir the official records of these debts were pub- licly destroyed in the Sultan's presence, and the people were given a clean bill. Taxation was brought back to the limits prescribed by the law of the Koran, and any attempts at extortion were sternly punished. " Thus," says Afif, the panegyrist of the reign, who was a frequent attendant at the court of Firoz, " the peasants grew rich and were satisfied. Their homes were filled with corn and goods, horses and furniture; every one had plenty of gold and silver; no woman was without her ornaments and no house without good