serious opposition from the Sikhs, who pursued their usual tactics of avoiding a pitched battle, while harassing the rear-guard of the Afghán army and cutting off stragglers and plundering baggage. Some of the Sikh chiefs thought it would be well to keep on terms with Sháh Zemán, and paid homage to him at Lahore; Ranjít Singh, who had taken the opportunity of the Afghán invasion to raid the country south of the Sutlej, doing so by deputy, and when domestic troubles recalled Sháh Zemán to Afghánistán Ranjít returned to Lahore, which a happy chance allowed him to claim. Crossing the Jehlam in flood, the Afghán monarch lost twelve of his guns, and not being able to wait for their extrication, he promised Ranjít Singh, then master of that part of the country, the grant of the city and district of Lahore, with the title of Rájá, if he would send them to him. This task Ranjít Singh readily undertook and partly performed, rescuing eight guns and sending them to Pesháwar; and Zemán Sháh kept his promise. It was but a barren grant, and the Sikh chief was left to obtain possession as he best could.
The city of Lahore, which has existed for over two thousand years as a royal capital, had always been the object of desire to the Sikh Sirdárs, and during the eighteenth century had been won and lost several times. It was finally taken, in 1764, by Lehna Singh and Gujar Singh, two reckless Bhangi Sirdárs, who entered it through a drain one dark night, captured the deputy governor at a nautch, and were in full
