ANNIVERSARY DISCOURSE. 407 



ties, and fome advantages peculiar to herfelf. The 

 ancients were accuftomed to pronounce panegyricks on 

 their own countrymen at the expence of all other na- 

 tions ; with a political view, perhaps, of ftimulating 

 them by praife, and exciting them to dill greater exer- 

 tions; but fuch arts are here unnecefTary ; nor would 

 they, indeed, become a Society, who feek nothing but 

 truth unadorned by rhetorick ; and, although we muft 

 be confcious of our fuperior advancement in all kinds 

 of ufeful knowledge, yet we ought not therefore to 

 contemn the people of AJia, from whofe refearches 

 into nature, works of art, and inventions of fancy, 

 many valuable hints may be derived for our own im- 

 provement and advantage. If that, indeed, were not 

 the principal object of your Inftitution, little elfe could 

 arife from it, but the mere gratification of curiofity ; 

 and I mould not receive fo much delight from the 

 humble fhare which you have allowed me to take in 

 promoting it. 



To form an exact parallel between the works and 

 actions of the Weltern and Eaftern Worlds, would re- 

 quire a traft of no inconfiderable length; but we may 

 decide, on the whole, that reafon and tafte are the grand 

 prerogatives of European minds, while the Afiaticks have 

 foared to loftier heights in the fphere of imagination. 

 The civil hiftory of their vaft empires, and of India in 

 particular, muft be highly intereiling to our common 

 country; but we have a Mill nearer interefl in knowing 

 all former modes of ruling thefe inejlimahle provinces^ 

 on the profperity of which fo much of our national wel- 

 fare and individual benefit feems to depend. A minute 

 tcographical knowledge, not only of Bengal and Bahar, 

 ut, for evident reafons, of all the kingdoms bordering on 

 them, is clofely connected with an account of their many 

 revolutions: but the natural productions of thefe terri- 

 tories., efpecially in the vegetable and mineral fyftems, 



are 



