Page:History of India Vol 4.djvu/267

Rh revenues drawn from the imperial dominions in the Deccan should be allotted to them for the maintenance of the sar-dēsh-muk, or head of the district-chiefs; and accordingly Ahsan Khan, commonly called Mir Malik, set out from the threshold of royalty with the documents confirming this grant to the Marathas, in order that, after the treaty had been duly ratified, he might bring the chiefs of that tribe to the court of the monarch of the world. However, before he had had time to deliver these documents into their custody, a royal mandate was issued, directing him to return and bring back the papers in question with him. About this time, his Majesty Aurangzib Alamgir hastened to the eternal gardens of Paradise, at which period his successor Shah Alam (Bahadur Shah) was gracing the Deccan with his presence. The latter settled ten per cent. out of the produce belonging to the peasantry on the Marathas for the sar-dēsh-muk, and furnished them with the necessary documents confirming the grant.

When Shah Alam returned from the Deccan to the metropolis, Daud Khan remained behind to officiate for "Amir of amirs" Zu-l Fikar Khan in the government of the provinces. He cultivated a good understanding with the Marathas, and concluded an amicable treaty on the following footing, that in addition to the above-mentioned grant of a tithe for the sar-dēsh-muk, a fourth of whatever amount was collected in the country should be their property, while the other three-fourths should be paid into the royal exchequer. This system of division was accordingly put in practice; but no regular deed