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THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY.
[JUNE, 1881.
further notes in proof that Bhatta-Utpala (cir. is on the poetess Fadhl, who holds a prominent 1000 A.D.) in dating his commentary on the Brihat place in the Book of Songs of Abu'l-Faraj elSamhita of Varahamihira († 585) uses the Isfahani. She was originally of Yemáma, & prosymbolic expression: vasv-ashta-ashta-mite kake, vince of Central Arabia, but found her way to "in the Saka year having for its measure 888." | Bagdad, where by her vivacity and talents she On a similar occasion Aryabhata wishing to tell us became courted by the friends of the Khalif and he was 23 years old in the year 3600 of the Kaliyaga, especially by Saeid ben Hamid, a writer and poet uses the expression shashty-abdanam shashļis for at the court. Many specimens are given of her 3600, and try-adhikd vinéatir-abdds for 23.
verses on particular occasions, with notices throwAryabhata then quite understood the value of ing much light on the social life of the times. She the position (sthana) of the figures and the use died in obscurity in A. H. 260 (A. D. 873-874). of zero which he calls kcha. M. Rodet then pro- The second paper is a continuation of M.J. ceeds to compare the system of numeration found | Halévy's Essay on the Himyaritic inscriptions in the early inscriptions and Valabhi plates from Safa. These inscriptions are short memorial with that used in the Rhind's hieratic papyrus. ones, and contain very little, if any, information
M. Feer has a Bauddha essay on becoming a that can be used for historical purposes, but are Buddha, being an explication of the Avaddna- only of interest philologically. Sataka and Karma-Sataka.
To the Miscellanea M. M. Sioufti of Mosul conM. Imbault-Huart contributes miscellaneous tributes a translation from the Arabic of a notice notes on Chinese matters and translations of short of Yabalaha III, Patriarch of the Nestorians, sayings; and the volume is concluded by several 1282-1318 A. D. Under the patriarchate were book notices, the first being a pretty lengthy review twenty-seven archbishops, extending over a very of Darmesteter's Vendidad by C. de Harlez. large area in the east from Jerusalem to Kashgar,
The Journal Asiatique for January 1881 con India, and China, each with from six to twelve tains only two atticles,--the first, by M. Cl. Huart,' bishops subordinate to him.
* BOOK NOTICES. The HISTORY of INDIA from the earliest ages. By J. volumes neither rare nor of much historical value, Talboys Wheeler, vol. IV-part ii. Moghul empire
but the first being in English, and the second in Aurangzeb. London: Trübner and Co, 1881.
French, and we suppose translated for our author, Mr. Talboys Wheeler has completed his fourth
are his principal authorities. In the third of the volume by now publishing pages 321 to 600,
four chapters in this part, the reader is treated to chiefly devoted to the reign of Aurangzeb, which, condensed abstracts of the works of the principal he tells us, "is not generally familiar to English European travellers in India in the 17th and 18th readers." But though we might expect, after this centuries, from Terry to Carsten Niebuhr--whose statement, that he was about to enlighten us with Christian name Mr. Wheeler has found a new
Christian name Mr. Wheeler h the fruits of fresh research, we find not a word of
spelling for. But whilst the author affects additional information that is correct. He indeed
certain degree of accuracy and tells us on the first states that "the consequences" of Aurangzeb's page that "the name of Aurangzeb' has been edict forbidding any one to write the record of his altered to Aurangzeb' and that of Rajpoot' to times" has been that the materials furnished by 'Rajput'," he is not alike precise everywhere, Muhammadan writers for dealing with the reign hence such names as "Garsopa," " Venk-tapa of Aurangzeb are meagre and unsatisfactory. Mr. Naik," and "Onore," which are not in accordance Wheeler, not being able to read any of the Persian with "modern orthograpby." Geography is as histories himself, might at least have consulted little a matter of precision as orthography: hence Elliot's Bibliographical Index, Morley's Catalogue, 'Garsopa' is 'three leagues south of Onore'or Dr. N. Lees's valuable paper on Materials for instead of east; "the Raj of Kanara extended the History of India, before he made such a state- from Onore to Mangalore, and included the Raj of ment. Elliot enumerates no less than fifteen Karnata"; and “Kalyán in the Dekban" where special works on this reign alone, and several of Vijala Raja reigned "is now a railway station to these are works of no small merit or extent, some the eastward of Bombay"! of which are easily accessible, being published in The English reader who desires & more trustthe Bibliotheca Indica. This would not have suited worthy account than Mr. Wheeler's will still use Mr. Wheeler's method however: Catrou's History Elphinstone's valuable History, and supplement it of the Mogul Dynasty (London, 1826; 324 pp. 8vo) from Dow's or Dowson's and Elliot's. We are and History of the Reign of Aurangzebe, founded on surprised that so unscholarly and inaccurate a the memoirs of Manouchi a Venetian physician,- writer finds pablishers for his works.
