^62 AN ESSAY ON THE 



of their genuineness and antiquity ; and as for the 

 others of less importance, he did not entertain the 

 least doubt about their being equall}'^ genuine. He 

 added, that learned pandits were, besides, well ac- 

 quainted with the general outlines of most of the 

 other legends I had produced ; and concluded by 

 saying, that he intended to make some remarks on 

 my essay on Egypt, in which he would express his 

 conviction in those terms. 



In the remarks which Sir William Jones did 

 afterward subjoin to my essay, and which were 

 published with it in the third volume of the transac- 

 tions of the Jsiatic Society, he could not have in- 

 tended a stronger public testimonial than that which 

 he had communicated to me privately. But as the 

 terms of one passage, relative to the Sanscrit papers 

 which I transmitted to him, as taken from the Pu- 

 rcinas, and other books, might be understood to 

 imply, a more general collation of my extracts with 

 the original works, than had taken place, or could 

 have been meant, I have thought it incumbent on 

 me to add the preceding explanation of the real 

 circumstances. 



I shall ever lament that I was the cause of Sir 

 William Jones being thus misled like myself. I 

 have shewn that I was exposed to imposition ; first, 

 from the nature of my literary pursuits ; and, in the 

 second place, from the confidence which I reposed 

 in the integrity of my native assistants, and more 

 particularly my chief pandit. This no longer exists, 

 and of course no similar deception can now take place. 

 If a word, or a passage of importance in any manu- 

 script, bears the least mark of adulteration, it must be 

 given up, unless corroborated by collating it with 

 otlier books, which are totally free from suspicion. 



I ha\e prepared two copies of my vouchers, one 

 for the Asiatic Society, and the other for the Col- 



