454 ox SANSCRIT AND 



bein^ hopeless of recovering her, they are happily 

 relieved by the arrival of Sauda'mini, the former 

 pupil of the priestess. She has rescued Ma'lati 

 from the hands of the sorceress, and now restores her 

 to her despairing lover. The play concludes with a 

 double wedding.' 



From this sketch of the story it will be readily 

 perceived, that the subject is not ill suited to the stage: 

 and making allowance for the belief of the Hindus in 

 magick and supernatural powers, attainable by worship 

 of evil, beings as well as of beneficent deities, the 

 story would not even carry the appearance of impro- 

 bability to an Indian audience. Setting aside this 

 consideration, it is certainly conducted with art ; and, 

 notwithstanding some defects in the fable, the intereil 

 upon the whole is not ill preserved. The incidents are 

 striking. I^he intrigue well managed. As to the 

 style, it is of the highest order oi Sanscrit composition: 

 and the poetry, according to the Jndiant2iSie,\s beautiful. 



I SHALL now close this essay with the promised 

 cxtfact from the play here described. It contains an 

 example, among other kinds of metre, of the Dan^daca 

 or long stanza: and is selected more on this account 

 rhan as a fair specimen of the drama. This disad- 

 vantage attends all the quotations of the present essay. 

 To which another may be added: that of a prose 

 translation, which never conveys a just notion of the 

 original verse. 



Extract from Mulati' Mdd'hava. Act 5. 

 M'd'hava continues to vcander m the cemtHry. 



" Human flesh to be tjold : unwounded real flfesh from tiie 

 members of a man. Take it. Take it. *" 



• Anuihtuhh. [See Plate D. Fig. 4.] 



