________________
VIII, 39.
CIVIL AND CRIMINAL LAW.
259
34. Property lost and afterwards found (by the king's servants) shall remain in the keeping of (special) officials; those whom the king may convict of stealing it, he shall cause to be slain by an elephant.
35. From that man who shall truly say with respect to treasure-trove, 'This belongs to me,' the king may take one-sixth or one-twelfth part.
36. But he who falsely says (so), shall be fined in one-eighth of his property, or, a calculation of (the value of) the treasure having been made, in some smaller portion (of that).
37. When a learned Brâhmana has found treasure, ; deposited in former (times), he may take even the whole (of it); for he is master of everything.
38. When the king finds treasure of old concealed in the ground, let him give one half to Brâhmanas and place the (other) half in his treasury.
39. The king obtains one half of ancient hoards and metals (found) in the ground, by reason of
Râgh.), or on the trouble which it gave (so also Gov.) and the king's compassion; according to Kull. and Nâr., on the virtues of the owner. Medh. places this verse after verse 34.
35-39. Gaut. X, 43-45; Vas. III, 13-14; Vi. III, 56-64; Yâgñ. II, 34-35.
35. Treasure-trove,'i.e.' valuables secretly buried in the ground' (Medh.). The amount to be taken depends on the virtues' of the finder (Medh., Gov., Kull., Râgh.), or on his caste (Nâr.), or on the place and time, the caste, &c. (Gov.).
36. The amount of the fine depends on the circumstances of the case or the virtues' of the offender (Medh.), or on the virtues' of the offender alone (Gov., Kull., Rågh.).
37. Medh., Gov., Nár. take, as Kull. points out, most improperly pûrvopanihitam, deposited in former times,' to mean deposited by his ancestors. The parallel passages of Vishnu and others are perfectly clear on the point. 39. I take the last clause, which might also be translated '(and)
S2
Digitized by Google
