xliv Vice-President’s Address. [ February, L911. 
Journal only the first instalment of a subject Catalogue of 
the work. Dr. Cordier has also recently published a volume of 
nominal catalogue, and it is understood that Mr. Thomas is en- 
gaged in London on a similar task. Here manifestly is an ex- 
tensive field of research, where the laborious scholar may hope 
to find profitable work, and no one need regret that he was not 
born in the last century when Indian studies were still in their 
infancy. I sincerely trust that our young men will take, in 
large numbers, to the study of Tibetan, which, under the sanc- 
tion of the Government of India, is now recognized by the Uni- 
versity of Calcutta as one of the subjects of examination. 
Let us now turn our attention to the work done by our 
members during the last year in the field of Indian Philology, 
History and Antiquities. Here, again, we have fortunately 
acquired what must be deemed an invaluable treasure from the 
desert of Central Asia. Our Philological Secretary was able to 
secure for us six old leaves, written in Brahmi characters, be 
longing to a very old Puthi found by Mr. Karain the Takla 
Makan Desert. Three other leaves are known to exist, two 
in Chicago, and one in Berlin; the latter has been deci- 
bhusana. Their papers raise important questions in connection 
with ancient and mediaeval Indian History, and topics such 
4s supposed reference to Babylon in the Rig Veda, the causes 
of the downfall of the Empire of Asoka or the date when the cele- 
brated poet Asva Ghosha flourished, must obviously be deem 
highly controversial. Other writers, amongst whom may be 
mentioned Mr. Stapleton, Babu Rakhal Das Banerji and Babu 
m 
