32 Annual Report. [Feb. 



current year two very important works on the Vedic literature, viz. the 

 Aitareya Aranyaka oii\\Q Eig Veda and the Brihaddevatd of Saunaka. 

 Babu Rajendralala Mitra has already collected ample materials for a good 

 edition of the first named work, and the task of collation is in progress. 

 MSS. of the Brihaddevata are exceedingly rare, but the Babu has a good 

 MS. of it of his own, and two others have been lent him by his correspon- 

 dents at Benares. He expects ere long to obtain a sufficient number of 

 MSS. to be in a position to go to press. 



Some time ago Dr. J. Eggeling undertook to prepare an edition of the 

 Katantravritti, an old treatise on grammar, for the Bombay Government, 

 but circumstances prevented his sending it to press. He has since obligingly 

 placed his MS. at the disposal of the Council, and it has since been made 

 over to the printer. 



The Council have been for some time anxious to bring out in the Bib- 

 liotheca Indica an edition of the celebrated poems of Chand, comprising a 

 history of Prithvi Raj, the last Hindu King of Dihli ; but owing to 

 various causes could not do so. They have now the satisfaction to an- 

 nounce that the work has now been sent to press, and a first fasciculus 

 has already been published. The great extent and extremely troublesome 

 character of the work have rendered it necessary'- to entrust the undertaking 

 to two editors, the first twenty-two cantos being placed in the hands of Mr. 

 Beames, and the succeeding forty-seven in that of Dr. Hoernle, 



Arahic and Persian. 

 In the Arabic and Persian Scries, there were issued during 1873, twelve 

 fasciculi, viz. one Arabic, eight Persian, and three Translations from Persian 

 into English. 



Arabic. — Maulawi 'Abdul Hai, of the Calcutta Madrasah, issued a sup- 

 plement to Fasc. X. of the IVth Volume of Al-Igahahfi tamiz il-gihdhah^ 

 a biographical dictionary, chiefly of ' witnesses' who knew Muhammad, 

 written by the renowned Ibn Hajar 'Asqalani. When the work, in 1853, 

 was commenced, no complete MSS. appear to have existed, and Dr. Spren- 

 ger, assisted by several Maulawis, issued thirteen fasciculi (viz. 12 fasc. form- 

 ing Vol. I., up to the end of j re, and one fasc, the beginning of Vol. II, 

 containing the letter ze and a few pages of ^^ sin), containing biographies 

 of 3070 ' male witnesses.' The work, thus far advanced, was dropped in 

 1856, from want of MSS. In 1861^, it was determined to complete the 

 dictionary as far as was possible, and the IVth Volume was commenced, of 

 which Maulawi ' Abdul Hai has now issued the last portion. The volume 

 itself forms a distinct part of the whole, inasmuch as it contains the names 

 of 1254 male witnesses, whose names commence with the words ahu, and 

 the names of 1543 ' female witnesses' of the Prophet. Of the whole work, 

 therefore, the Society has issued Vols. I. and IV, and the beginning of Vol. 



