1864.] 



Literary Intelligence, Correspondence, Sfc. 



59 



Literary Intelligence, Correspondence, &c. 



Dr. Weber writes to Mr. Cowell from Berlin, November 9th, 1863. 



" Out of the many interesting news contained in your letter of 

 June 5th, that about the Elliot collection of course claims the greatest 

 attention, Mr. Austin's estimate for the cost of printing appears 

 exceedingly moderate. Tour Sanskrit College edition of the Siddhanta 

 Kaumudi will be welcomed very heartily, as it may be used as a text- 

 book in our Universities 5 Sanskrit Courses. The Nagananda too will 

 be very welcome. Your translation of the Kusumanjali must be 

 hard work and will do us a great service. 



Sana's Harshacharitra is a work which seems of the utmost import- 

 ance, to judge after the notices which we owe to Dr. Hall about it. 

 I cannot as yet reconcile myself to the idea that the author of such a 

 dull and clumsy work as the Kadambari, should have lived in the 

 seventh century, before Bhavahhuti wrote his dramas, which indeed 

 show already symptoms enough of a kindred style, but still appear in 

 that regard more to resemble a weak stem, whereas a Kadambari is to 

 be likened to a nyagrodha -wilderness. 



The second part of M. Pictet's " Origines Indo-europeennes" has now 

 appeared. It is a great pity that he is no better Sanskrit scholar. 

 The principles laid out and followed throughout his work are the very 

 best, his assiduity and ardour deserve the highest praise, but the re- 

 sults, alas, are rather too often of a too questionable character to 

 admit of acknowledgment or adoption. Professor Spiegel has just 

 now published a series of old and new papers on " Eran 5 ' (this is the 

 title of his book) : two of them on the relation of the Avesta to the 

 Veda and to the Genesis will be of particular interest : I have not yet 

 read them, but I saw Spiegel in Meissen and we spoke to him about 

 these themes. That meeting in Meissen was a very interesting one, 

 forty members of our German Oriental Society being present (a larger 

 number, than ever hitherto). Professor Wright is now to print under 

 the patronage of our Society an old Arabian grammar, the Kamil of 

 al-Mubarrad (about 800 pages quarto), Dieterici is occupied wioh his 

 translation of the treatises of the Ikhwan 119 £afa. Grosche has given 

 out a prospectus for an edition of the Mufadhdhaliyat, a collection of 

 old Arabic poetry. Amari's publication of the state documents of 



1 2 



