mean time, however, Elak was continually
receiving re-enforcements too from Prince Jughi, who was not at a
great distance, and thus the struggle was continued with great fury.

At last Timur contrived an ingenious stratagem, by which he hoped to
cause his enemy to fall into a snare. It seems that there was a small
island in the river, not far from the walls of the city, on which,
before the siege commenced, Timur had built a fortress, to be held as
a sort of advanced post, and had garrisoned the fortress with about
one thousand men. Timur now, in order to divert the attention of the
Monguls from the city itself, sent a number of men out from the city,
who pretended to be deserters, and went immediately to the Mongul
camp. Of course, Elak questioned them about the defenses of the city,
in order to learn where the weak points were for him to attack. The
pretended deserters advised him to attack this fortress on the island,
saying that it could very easily be taken, and that its situation was
such that, when it was taken, the city itself must surrender, for it
completely commanded the place.

So Elak caused his principal engines to be removed to the bank of the
river, opposite the island, and employed all his energies and spent
all his ammunition in shooting at the fortress; but the river was so
wide, and the walls of the fortress wore so thick and so high, that he
made very little impression. At last his whole supply of stones--for
stones served in those days instead of cannon balls--was exhausted,
and as the town was situated in an alluvial district, in which no
stones were to be found, he was obliged to send ten or twelve miles to
the upland to procure a fresh supply of ammunition. All this consumed
much time, and enabled the garrison to recruit themselves a great deal
and to strengthen their defenses.

The operations of the siege were in a great measure suspended while
the men were obtaining a new supply of stones, and the whole
disposable force of the army was employed in going back and forth to
bring them. At length an immense quantity were collected; but then the
Mongul general changed his plan. Instead of throwing the stones from
his engines toward the fortress on the island, which it had been
proved was beyond his reach, he determined to build out a jetty into
the river toward it, so as to get a stand-point for his engines nearer
the walls, where they could have some chance of doing execution. So he
set his me