JOURNAL 



OF 



THE ASIATIC SOCIETY 



No. 76.— April, 1838. 



f. — Restoration and Translation of the Inscription on the large 

 Arracan Bell now at Nadrohighdt, Zillah Alligarh, described 

 by Captain Wroughton in the Journal of the Asiatic Society, 

 December 1837. 



At the suggestion of Colonel Burney the larger of the two facsimiles 

 prepared by Captain Wroughton, which appeared to his pandit to be 

 in the Talain dialect, was sent to Mr. E. Blundell, Commissioner at 

 Maulmain, with a request that he would endeavour to get it read and 

 translated by the natives of that place. 



By the hands of Dr. Richardson it was returned to us with a fair 

 transcript of the whole, which we hasten to set up with the aid of the 

 new fount of Burman type cast for the publication of Mr. Lane's Dic- 

 tionary. The two sides of the bell contain separate copies of the same 

 text, one in Burmese and the other in Talain, both with an admixture of 

 Pali at the commencement and termination. On setting up the Talain, 

 we found so many characters to be wanting that we were obliged to 

 break up the form ; but we have had the whole written in lithography 

 rather than omit it, thinking it might prove interesting to students of 

 these dialects to have the corresponding texts face to face. 



For the translation, Mr. Blundell informs us, we are indebted to a 

 young military friend of his who has made some progress in studying the 

 language. The concluding portion being in Pali was translated by Dr. 

 Richardson himself on his way to Calcutta, To all these friends, as 

 well as to their native assistants who must have had no easy task in 

 deciphering the facsimile notwithstanding the care and minuteness with 

 which it was executed, we beg to return our best thanks. 



It will be seen that the inscription contains a scrap of history of no 

 small interest in its way. 

 2 o 



