Page:History of India Vol 3.djvu/264

 216 THE EMPEROR BABAR Within a year the invader had struck two decisive blows which shattered the power of two great forces. At Panipat the Mohammedan Afghans went down; Kanwaha crushed the confederacy of the bravest Hin- dus. The storming of the fortress of Chanderi, the stronghold of Medini Rao, the great Rajput vizir of Malwa, completed the overthrow. When the upper fort was carried, the desperate garrison killed their women and children, and rushing forth naked threw themselves upon the Moslem swords, and such as came through leaped over the ramparts to certain death. There was no more trouble with the Rajputs. It was otherwise with the Afghans. Beaten at Delhi, they were still strong in Bihar, and had even resumed the offensive when they saw the emperor absorbed in the Rajput campaign. But their time of retribution was at hand, and as soon as Chanderi had fallen, Babar set out in February, 1528, to reduce the eastern province. The Afghans fell back from Kanauj at his approach, and awaited him on the farther bank of the Ganges. Babar set up his camp opposite and ordered a pontoon to be thrown across the sealike stream. The Afghans mocked at so wild a project, but the bridge went on; and the skilful fire of the matchlocks and artillery, dis- charged from an island and from a battery on the bank, protected the engineers who were constructing the pon- toon. Ustad Ali even succeeded in firing off the great cannon called Dig Ghazi (" victorious gun," a title it had won in the battle of Kanwaha) no less than sixteen times a day, which was clearly a record performance