\ 
1912.] Proceedings of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. exxxvii 
Kabul with the Emperor’s victorious troops. The value of 
the work is further enhanced by the earliest known map of 
Northern India. It exhibits the longitude and latitude of all 
places passed through by M. on his way to and fro between 
Goa—Surat--Agra and Kabul. In fact, it is a marvel of 
accuracy for the time. More than a century later, the geog- 
raphy cf Northern India had not reached the same degree 
of perfection. 
y means of the library marks on the MS. it was possible 
to trace its history in Calcutta during last century. Before 
1$18 the book was in Fort William College (Established : 
1800). In 1836 it was transferred to the Metcalfe Hall Collec- 
tion, or Calcutta Public Library. When, in 1903, the Calcutta 
Public Library had become the Imperial Library, the MS.-— 
through an evident oversight of the librarian—was given away 
to the St. Paul’s Cathedral Library (Anglican), Calcutta. 
Only one press-mark ‘‘ IP46,’’ the oldest in date, remains 
unexplained. I suspect that it belongs to one of the former 
Jesuit houses of Goa: but it is impossible to establish this in 
India, since the Goa of to-day possesses scarcely any relics of 
the once valuable libraries of its convents. Through what 
strange vicissitudes the MS. made its way to Calcutta it is 
impossible to say. 
The early bistory of the MS. is extremely interesting. 
Father Monserrate tells us in his preface that, when he was 
about to proceed to Akbar’s Court at Fathpir Sikri, the 
Provincial of Goa, Ruy Vicente, appointed him historian of 
daily labour of a chronicler, I have described the various 
particulars which my travels and circumstances brought under 
my notice. These are: rivers, towns, countries, the customs 
and manners of peoples, temples, religions; the leanings— 
simulated leanings, it is true—which the king, when we had 
come to his Court, manifested towards the religion of Christ, 
as also the kindness which, from mere self-interest, he affected 
towards Rodolf, to whom had been confided this weighty 
Mission, and towards his companions; again, Rodolf’s zeal, 
consummate prudence and remarkable erudition, and our 
disputations with the Agarenes [Muhammadans, descendants 
of Agar]; next, the Chabul war, which was marked by great 
tenacity of purpose and superior statesmanship on the part of 
Zelaldin [Jalal-ud-din Akbar], and ended successfully by the 
flight of Hachim {his brother]; finally, the joyful ovations 
that signalized this triumph.”’ 
On his return to Goa in September (?) 1582, Monserrate 
brought with him voluminous notes ‘‘taken down on the 
tramp.’’ His friends found them so interesting that they 
urged him to cast them into a connected account. 
