Xvi CN ASIATIC HISTORY, 



vereign dominion cf extensive A?nerican districts; 

 whilst other British subjects acquire a subordinate em- 

 pire in the finest provinces of India, which the victo- 

 rious troops of Alexander were unwilling to attack. 

 This outline of human transactions, as far as it in- 

 cludes the limits of Asia, we can only hope to fill up 

 to strengthen, and to colour by the help of Asiatic li- 

 terature ; for in history, as in law, we must not follow 

 streams when we may investigate fountains, nor admit 

 any secondary proof where primary evidence is attain- 

 able : I should, nevertheless, make a bad return for 

 your indulgent attention, were I to repeat a dry list of 

 all the Musehnan historians whose works are preserved 

 in Arabic, Persian, and Turkish, or expatiate on the 

 histories and medals of China and Japan, which may 

 in time be accessible to members of our Society, and 

 from which alone we can expect information concern- 

 ing the ancient state of the Tartars -, but on the histo- 

 ry oi India, which we naturally consider as the centre 

 of our enquiries, it may not be superfluous to present 

 you with a few particular observations. 



Our knowledge of civil Asiatic history (I always 

 except that of the Hebrews) exhibits a short evening 

 twilight in the venerable introduction to the first book 

 of Moses, followed by a gloomy night, in which dif- 

 ferent watches are faintly discernible, and at length we 

 . see a dawn succeeded by a sun-rise more cr less early 

 according to the diversity of regions. That no Hindu 

 nation, but the Cashmiruins, have left us regular histo- 

 ries in their ancient language, we must ever lament j 



but 



