GALLE TRILINGUAL STONE. 127 



His life was spent in journeys abroad, and after the death of Yung 

 Lo, that Emperor's grandson Hsuan Tsung (reign title Hsuan Te) 

 despatched him on yet another excursion, in the course of which he 

 passed up the Persian Gulf and received tribute from the rulers of 

 Bunder Abbas, Bushire, and what we may perhaps identify as Koweyt. 

 In all he opened trade relations with forty-three States. He died at an 

 extreme old age about 1444, during the troublous reign of Ying Tsung. 



Edmund Backhouse 

 Pekin, March 31, 1911. 



Appendix III. 



Translation of the Tamil Inscription. 



Mr. F. H. de Vos of Galle was able to procure an imperfect translation 

 of the Tamil inscription from a " Young Tamil Schoolmaster of Galle." 

 This is given below : — 



Year [very indistinct] Treaty This island . , 



conquerors therefore this to the enemy 



this rough messengers China up to this 



time sent demanding in all this land 



peacock feathers [?] firstly these conditions 



tribute the Turks who conquered yesterday des- 

 cription of the tribute beautiful fifty different kinds 



of silk pearls if not given safety 



ten ten lamps (brass) 



Appendix IV. 



Copy of Letter from Professor Giles to Director, Colombo Museum. 



Selwyn Gardens, 

 Cambridge, March 2, 1911. 



Sir, — In reply to yoiu- letter No. 49 of February 7, the Chinese 

 inscription is mostly obliterated, but enough remains for me to tell you 

 roughly that the tablet bears date the seventh year of the Emperor 

 Yung Lo of the Ming dynasty = 1409 a.d. The name of Buddha 

 occurs more than once ; also such items as five copper censers, five 

 golden boxes for incense, and five receptacles for perfumed oil. 



In 1405 the eunuch Cheng -Ho was sent to Ceylon to acquire a tooth 

 of Buddha ; and Chinese history tells us that, after a fight, he succeeded 

 in carrying off the relic. This tablet is probably connected in some 

 way with that event. 



H. A. Giles. 



