1838.] Proceedings of the Asiatic Society, 



VIL— Proceedings of the Asiatic Society, 



Wednesday Evening, the 5th Decehber, 1838. 



Present. 



The Right Rev. Lord Bishop of Calcutta, V. P. in the Chair. 



Messrs. H. T. Prinsep, Ewart, Hare, Col. D. McLeod, Captain Pem- 

 berton, Major Gregory, Lieut. Montriou, Dr. Evans, Dr. McClel- 

 land, Dr. Spry, visitor, and Dr. W. B. O'Shaughnessy, Officiating 

 Secretary. 



The proceedings of the last meeting were read and confirmed. The 

 Secretary rose to return thanks to the Society for the honor conferred on 

 him hy his nomination as one of their Secretaries during the absence of 

 Mr. James Prinsep. He also informed the meeting, that pursuant to the 

 arrangement made with Mr. Malan for conducting the duties in the 

 Oriental Department, they would carry on a new series of the Journal of 

 the Asiatic Society, after the current year. 



Dr. Goodeve and Mr. R. O'Shaughnessy were proposed by the Secre- 

 tary, seconded by Capt. Pemberton. 



Read a letter from Professor Ottoman Frank of Munick, acknowledg- 

 ing his election as an honorary member. 



Read the following extract of a letter from Major Troyer to the ad- 

 dress of Mr. James Prinsep. 



" Paris 31 Rue de la Madeleine, 15 July, 1838. 

 " My dear Prinsep, 



" I had the pleasure of writing to you a month ago in an3wer to the most valuable 

 account which you gave me of what has been done by you with respect to the copying 

 of the Vedas for the French, and communicated to Mr. Salvandy, the minister of 

 Public Instruction. In answer to it, he ordered that an annual sum of 1500 francs 

 be sent to you, (James Prinsep,) until the completion of the whole work, that 

 is until the whole mass of Vedas be copied. You will undoubtedly receive an 

 epistle from him on the subject. This will be the continuation of a great trouble 

 to you, but I have the pleasure of assuring you that the service which you render by 

 it to all those who take an interest in Sanskrit literature and in Indian antiquities 

 will be duly appreciated. Be pleased to correspond upon the matter as hitherto 

 with roe, and I will not fail to be your faithful reporter to the French minister of 

 Public Instruction. I am forwarding to you with this a letter from Burnouf, 

 who will, among many other things, tell you, that the decoration of the legion of 

 honor is to be offered to Mr. Hodgson of Nepaul, as an acknowledgment of the 

 trouble which he took in procuring and sending to Paris important Sanskrit manu- 

 scripts belonging to Buddhism, which religion appears to grow every day in extent 

 and antiquity. You will be very sorry to hear of Jacquet's death, at the age of 

 twenty-eight years. You will be able to judge yourself what hopes have been buried 

 with that learned and uncommonly active young man. 



" Burnouf is beginning to print the Bhagavat purana with a French translation. 

 You will, before the arrival of this letter, have received a large chest of books sent 

 you by Mr. Cassin, Agent to the Asiatic Society of Paris. I can but recommend 

 you once more to send your Journal, and every oriental work to be sold, directly to 

 Paris, addressed to Mr. Cassin, Agent de la Societe" Asiatique de Paris, Rue de 

 Casanni, No. 12. The sale will be effected better than it can be in any other way, 

 for it is not easy to a great number of persons on the continent who may wish to 

 buy oriental works, to procure them from London, whilst they may easily get them 

 from, or in, Paris." 



(Signed) A. Troyer. 



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