1891.] Mr. Tawney — Some Indian Methods of electing Kings. 135 



3, Muhammad Sh^h, bin Mahmiid, A. H. 861—863 = A. D. 



1456—1458 ; like B. M. Cat., No. 301, ... 37 



4, HtJSAiN Shah, bin Mahmiid, A. H. 863—900 = A. D. 



' 1458—1500 ; like B. M. Cat. No. 327, ... 59 



Total ... 280 

 Unserviceable coins : — 512 



Grand total ... 792 



Mr. C. H. Tawney read the following note : — 



I do not think attention has ever been drawn to the fact that in 

 Indian tales the royal dignity is often described as bestowed by lot. At 

 any rate this appears to have frequently taken place, when a king died 

 without leaving male issue. In the Katha Sarit Sagara, Taranga 65, 

 we read that it was the custom in a certain country, when the king 

 died, to turn loose an elephant, and any man that he took up with his 

 trunk, and placed on his back, was anointed king. 



In the Katha Kosa, a collection of edifying tales written in Jaina 

 Sanskrit, an excellent manuscript of which has been kindly lent to me by 

 the Principal of the Sanskrit College, a slightly different method is 

 described. We read in the story of Devapala, the second story in this 

 work, that the king of a certain city died of cholera, and left no male 

 issue. " As there was no son to succeed him, the ministers appointed 

 an elephant, and fastened to its temples a pitcher of water, and let it go. 

 It found the servant, named Devapala, asleep under a pxpaZ-tree, and 

 emptied the pitcher on his head. They bestowed on him the kingdom." 



In this way the servant was rewarded for showing devotion to a 

 stone image of the Jina, that he found in a river. 



In the story of Amaradatta and Mitrananda, the 20th story in the 

 Katha Kosa, we find the followiDg account given of the election of a 

 king at Pataliputra : 



"Now it happened that the king of that city died in the course of 

 the night, without leaving issue. Then the ministers had recourse to 

 the five ordeals, {divyani). The mighty elephant came into the garden 

 outside the city. There the elephant sprinkled prince Amaradatta and 

 put him on his back. Then the horse neighed. The two chowries 

 fanned the prince. An umbrella was held over his head A divine 

 voice was heard in the air, ' Long live king Amaradatta.' " 



It happens that in this particular case the person chosen was by 

 birth a prince, and was roaming about incognito. But this is merely a 

 piece of folk-lore justice. 



