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THE JAINA GAZETTE.
our great past are thus disappearing it is the duty of the community to do everything possible to secure and preserve them. The Association has organised a library for this purpose and is sending out an Upad:sak to collect manuscripts, going from place to place even by paying for them if necessary. It has also applied to the Government and the University of Mysore for help in this connection. It has also sent representations to the Government to add a good number of Jaina works to its libraries and prescribe Jaina Texts for the University Examinations. The Karnataka Sahitya Parishat of Mysore is doing valuable work in this direction and the Association is in close touch with their work so far as Jaina literature is concerned. It is with regret that we have to state that our attempt to secure the renowned master-piece, viz., "Jayadhavala" has so for not been successful and we hope that with greater pressure being brought to bear on the owners concerned, we may get the manuscript soon and be able to publish this glorious work of Jaina literature.
The Association is trying to utilize to its greatest advantage the reforms recently granted by the benign Government of His Highness the Maharaja, and has won recognition as an important representative body of the Jaina community in Mysore. It has obtained special representation in the Representative Assembly and Local Boards and is now on the way to secure a reserved seat in the Legislative Council as an importar.t minority and a separate social unit whose interests deserve special protection.
It is now six years since the Association was started and the reports which are being issued annually will convince you that it has a substantial record of work done for the improvement of the community in several directions. It is all however very little in comparison with what it has beiore it still to do, and we take this opportunity of appealing to the generosity of the gentlemen assembled here for liberal subscriptions and donations so that we may have sufficient funds ready in our hands to help us to realise the larger schemes in view.
We have the pleasure to announce that Sriman Mothikhana Padmanabhiah of Bangalore has given over to the Association a
building which has cost him nearly Rs. 25,000 to run a hostel in Shree Sudharmaswami Gyanbhandar-Umara, Surat
www.umaragyanbhandar.com
