62 Address. [Feb. 



different scribes and at different dates ; and that the latest portion must 

 be ascribed to a date not later than the second half of the 5th century, or 

 say 475 A. D., while the earlier portion must be referred to a date half a 

 century earlier. The Bower MS. is therefore the oldest Indian MS. yet 

 discovered, and one of the oldest MSS. existing in the world. 



As to its subject matter, the MS. is composed of five distinct por- 

 tions, of which the first and fifth are medical works, the latter merely 

 a fragment. The second and fourth are collections of proverbial sayings ; 

 and the third contains the story of a charm against snake-bite, given by 

 Buddha to Ananda while he was staying in Jetavana. The following 

 translation of the introductory lines of the first portion will be interest- 

 ing : — " Salutation to the Tathagatas. I am going to write an approv- 

 ed compendium (of medicine) called the Navanitaka, based on the 

 excellent system of the Maharshis as composed by them in olden times. 

 Whatever is useful to men and women afflicted with various diseases ; 

 whatever is also useful for children, that will all be declared in this 

 book. It will commend itself to those physicians whose minds delight 

 in conciseness ; but on account of the multiplicity of its prescriptions, it 

 will also be welcome to those whose minds love many details." After 

 enumerating the contents of the several chapters (16), the preface con- 

 cludes, — " It should not be given to any one who has no son, nor to any 

 one who has no brother ; nor should it be taught to any one who has 

 no disciple." 



Dr. Hoernle has now transcribed nearly the whole of the MS., which 

 consists of 55 leaves, and has translated a large portion of it. hi the forth- 

 coming 3rd number of the Journal, he will publish " An Instalment of 

 the Bower MS," giving the text, and an English translation (with notes) 

 of its 5th portion, consisting of five leaves and containing a fragment of 

 a medical work. He has succeeded in tracing some of the prescriptions 

 given in the MS. to the Susruta, Chakradatta, and Vangasena — medical 

 works still current. Some of the prescriptions are verbally identical. 



Dr. Hoernle's estimate of the age of the MS. is confirmed in a 

 striking manner by Dr. Biibler of Vienna, who, examining the question 

 by the light of the account and the facsimile plates published in the 

 Proceedings of November 1890, came independently to the same con- 

 clusion as to its date. In the account which Dr. Biihler published in 

 the July number of the Vienna Oriental Journal, he writes as follows : 



" I trust that Dr. Hoernle, the able and learned Secretary of the 

 Society, will take the volume in hand and give us a full account of its 

 contents. If the Society wishes to render a real and great service to (lie 

 Btndents of Indian Palaeography, it will publish photo-etchings of the 

 whole volume. Every line of the MS. is of the highest importance." 



