Annual Address. [February, 1905. 
aid towards their purchase, and if they can be bought, the total 
collection of Jain manuscripts which will be in the Society’s 
custody will be the finest in the world. 
These collections demand that the fullest use should be made of 
them, and one of the first duties will be to compile descriptive 
catalogues of the Persian, Arabic and Jain manuscripts, as has been 
done for the Sanskrit manuscripts. In all this fresh work we must 
look more to our Indian members to prosecute the research neces- 
sary. Some use is made of these manuscripts by scholars in Hurope, 
and by Huropean scholars resident in this country ; but the number 
of the latter is very small and will probably be fewer in the future. 
Members of the Government Services can only give of the leisure, 
which they can spare from their official duties, towards qualifying 
themselves in Oriental learning and studying Oriental works; and 
they are less able year by year to find leisure for such studies. Their 
official duties increase and become more exacting, and do not in any 
way conduce towards acquiring any thorough acquaintance with 
ancient learning. The two pursuits have been continually diverg- 
ing more and more markedly. Moreover, to add to the hesitation 
that besets Oriental study here, the standard of Oriental-attain- 
ments required rises with the additional knowledge that is con- 
tinually accumulated by scholars in Europe. These and other 
reasons deter members of those Services from attempting original 
research in these fields, and there are very few, if any, inducements. 
The opportunities therefore are all the ampler for Indian students, 
and a career of distinction is open to them, if they will carry on 
their investigations according to the standard of Huropean scholar- 
ship. This is, no doubt, not a simple qualification, yet it is essen- 
tial; and those of them are fortunate who can receive some part of 
their training from Huropean teachers. It is very much to be 
wished that more training of this kind should be available for them. 
The scientific side of the Society’s work, on the other hand, 
should increase in the future. The Scientific Departments of the 
Government have been strengthened. Among the members of 
those services there is no such disagreement between official duties 
and private pursuits; but the two blend and strengthen each 
other, and scientific research and professional success go hand in 
hand. For scientific investigation, therefore, there are the most 
encouraging inducements. Moreover, as private enterprise develops 
the resources of the country, Science will be applied to those objects 
in larger measure, and the number of workers in scientific fields 
should steadily increase. The Society must hope that it will re- 
ceive the benefit of all such investigations in future, and that more 
scientific papers will be contributed to its Journal rather than 
communicated to the publications of the various Societies in 
England. ' 
A matter that concerns us closely is the style in which our 
Proceedings and Journal are published. This is now under con- 
sideration. The present style is what was adopted many years ago, 
24, 
