292 ON THE CHRONOLOGY 



Patna, until Nanda afcended the throne, who, prov- 

 ing an active and enterprifing prince, fubdued the 

 whole of* Prachi ; and having thus recovered the con- 

 quells that had been wrelled from his anceitor, pro- 

 bably re-eftablifhed the feat of empire at Bali-putra ; 

 the hiftorians of Alexander pofltively aiYert, that he 

 did. Thus while the kings of Palibothra, as Dio- 

 chrus tells us, funk into oblivion, through their floth 

 inactivity, (a reproach which feems warranted by 

 the utter fiknce obferved of die posterity of Bala Rama 

 in the turanasy not even their names being mention- 

 ed ;) the princes of Fatal i-putra, by a contrary con- 

 duet, acquired a reputation that fpread over all India : 

 it was, therefore, natural for foreign authors, (for fuch 

 at lea It, Ananta w r as,) efpecially in compofitions of 

 the dramatic kind, where the efredl is oftentimes belt 

 produced bv a neglect of hiuorical precifion, of two 

 titles, to which their hero had an equal right to diftin- 

 puim. him bv the moil illuftrious. The author of 

 Sacontah has committed as great a miftake, in mak- 

 ing Haftinapoor the refkience of Dit/tmuinta, which 

 was not then in exiftence, having been built by Haj. 

 the fifth in defcent from Jbuflmumta ; before his time 

 there was, indeed, a place of worfhip en the fame fpot, 

 but no town. The fame author has fallen into another 

 error, in ainVning; a li taxation of this citv not far 

 from the river Malini, (he fhould rather have laid the 

 rivulet that takes its name from a village now called 

 M ..to the weftward oi Lahore : it is joined by a 

 new channel to the Ravy ;) but this is a miftake ; Haf- 

 tinapocr lies on the bonks v( the old channel of the 

 Ganges. The defendants of Peru reiided at Sangala, 

 whole extenfive ruins are to be iee'n .'.cut fifty mi;- 

 to the weftward of Lahore, in a pari of the 

 country uninhabited. I will take c )n to obfer 



here, that Arriari has confounded Sangala with Sal- 

 gcdc. } or SaigariC) or the mil- is been made by 



his copyifb. Frcnthms and Poly gnus have preferved 

 the true name of this pkee, now called Cahmore ; 

 and ;iofe to it is a dcierted viilage ; to this- day 

 * • • called 



