HINDUSTANEE HOROMETRY. 83 



night of 26 only, or vice verja : but, what is mod 

 lingular in the Indian horometry, their gjourees are 

 unequally diftributed among the day and night watches; 

 the former varying from 6 to 9 in the latter, which are 

 thus prevented from any definite coincidence with our 

 time, except about the equinoclial periods only, when 

 one puhur nearly correfponds to 3 Englijh hours. I fay 

 nearly, becaufe even then the four middle watches 

 have only 7 gjourees, or 2 hours 48 minutes of ours ; 

 while the extremes have 8 gjourees a-piece, or 24 

 Englijh minutes more than the others, and confequently 

 agree with our 3 hours 1 2 minutes ; while at other 

 times the fuhur is equal to no lefs than 3 hours 36 

 minutes ; a fact which I believe has never yet been 

 ftated properly ; though many writers have already 

 given their fentiments to the public on the fubjedr. be- 

 fore us ; but they were probably milled by faying 4- 3s 

 are 12 hours for the day, and the fame for the night. 

 Without confidering the fexageiimal divifion, we muft 

 firft make of the whole 24 hours, or 8 watches, 4 of 

 which, during both equinoxes, having 7 gjourees 

 only, give 28 : and the other 4 extreme watches, 

 confifting at thefe periods alfo of 8 gjourees each, 

 form 32 — 60 in all; not 64 gjourees,* as fome 

 calculators have made it, who were not aware that 

 the gjouree, or dund, never can be more nor lefs 

 than 24 of our minutes, as 1 have proved above, 



F 2 by 



* One of thofe vulgar errors originating in the crude and 

 fuperncial notions which none take the trouble to examine or 

 correct, and being thus implicitly adopted, are not foon nor 

 eafily eradicated; nay, this very idea of fixty-jour maybe fup- 

 ported from an old diflich. 



At,h puhur chounjut gjiuret, k,huree pokaroon pee, 



Jee nikfe, Jo pee mile ; nikusja, e yih jee. 

 But I anfwer, the bard feems a forry aftronomcr, or he would 

 not have followed the erroneous opinion of there being 8 gjiurees 

 in each of the eight puhur, and 64 in the natural day : though 

 this prevails among the illiterate Indians uncontroverted to the 

 prefent hour; and, were I not to expofe it here, might continue 

 a Mumbling-block for ever; and in this random way have we 

 alfo imbibed the doftrine that 4 pu/'iur, of three hours each, are 

 twelve of courfe; and eight of thefe muft give our 24. A biicr. 

 but truly incorreft, mode of fettling this account. 



