1887.] Dr. Hoerule on the 1th International Congress of Orientalists. 129 



desirable to make a representation to the Government of India as to the 

 propriety of reviving the post. Mr. Fleet had rendered great services, 

 and there were few, if any, scholars so well qualified for the duty. 



" Next followed an interesting lecture in English by Dr. Stein, 

 of Budapesth, on the Paropamisus, or Hindu Kush, in ancient Geo- 

 graphy. Guidad by the oldest Greek form of the name, Parnasos, 

 as given by Aristotle, he was enabled to identify it with the mountain 

 Upairigaena of the Zend Avesta. The meaning of this last name 

 is ' higher than the flight of an eagle,' and a curious legend con- 

 cerning the Hindu Kush is recorded by the Chinese traveller Hiuen 

 Tsiang (a. d. 600) that it is too high for birds to fly over it, but that 

 they have to cross it on foot. This legend is also mentioned by Marco 

 Polo, by the Emperor Baber in his memoirs, and in modern times by the 

 traveller Burnes. Dr. Stein considered that much correct information 

 as to the geography of Afghanistan could be found in Avestic texts. 



" He was followed by Professor E. Kuhn, of Munich, who read an 

 important paper on the dialects of the Hindu Kush, founded on 

 materials furnished by Captain Tanner, of the Survey Department, which 

 were collected during the last Afghan war. Professor Kuhn was of 

 opinion that these dialects, together with Kashmiri and the Romani of 

 the Gypsies, formed a special group among the languages of the Indie 

 branch of the Aryan family. A lively discussion followed, in which, 

 amongst others, Mr. Leland, Professor Hunfalvy, Dr. Burkhard, and 

 Mr. Grierson took part. The point which excited most criticism was 

 the theory that Romani belonged to this family of languages. To this 

 we, as well as some others, were unable to agree. 



" The question of the Gypsies was next handled by Mr. G. Leland, 

 the well known ' Hans Breitmann,' and probably the greatest master of the 

 Romani language and lore in the world. His paper dealt with the origin 

 of the Gypsies. He concluded a most interesting paper with the state- 

 ment that he had found that there actually existed in the Panjab a 

 wandering race, who called themselves Rom and spoke Romani. Mr. 

 Leland does not profess to be well acquainted with the Indian Verna- 

 culars, and this final statement immediately gave rise to the most 

 lively criticism on the part of the Indian scholars then present. Dr. 

 R. Cust, Mr. Macaulrffe, Captain Temple, and both of us, all united in 

 being unable to confirm his opinion. That there are in India argots, or 

 slangs, or thieves' languages, or artificial trade languages, there can be 

 no doubt, but no proof could be asserted of the existence of a so-called 

 Romani language in that country. Mr. Grierson, who had studied 

 Romani both in Europe and in India, was disposed to believe that Mr. 

 Leland's former identification of Rom, 'a Gypsy,' with the Doms of 



