Page image — the source of record
Machine transcription
105
body complained that the King was taking no
active part in the management of public affairs
and was only a mouthpiece of his crafty Vazier.
The Minister could make a puppet of the King
but he could not wipe out the free spirit of the
chiefs by his oppressions or intrigues. Alarmed at
their growing influence, Wafadar Khan resolved
to destroy them all, but his efforts in this direction
finally proved his ruin, as well as that of the
Sovereign himself. A number of these disgusted
Sardars conspired to assassinate the Vazier, depose
Zaman Shah, and place his brother, Shujaul-Mulk,
on the throne. They were also aiming at a con-
stitutional monarchy. The plot was, however,
discovered by the treachery of Mirza Sharif Khan,
one of the conspirators. Whereupon the ring-
leaders, including Sardar Payanda Khan, head of
the Barakzais, Mohammed Azim Khan, chief of
the Alokozais and Amir Arsalan Khan of the
Jewansher clan, were arrested and executed.
Besides, a large number of other influential nobles,
who had absolutely no share in the plot, fell
victim to the envy and fear of Wafadar Khan.
This cold-blooded wholesale massacre of the
Roughly two thirds of characters agree with a modern printed edition of the same text. Much of the disagreement is editorial, not misreading. Treat the transcription as a finding aid and read the page image before quoting. How this was measured.