1866.] Proceedings of the Asiatic Society. 157 



past, if a man went to the China Bazar and asked for a mdn-chitra of 

 Europe or Asia, no one would understand that he wanted a " map." 

 The word " naksa" might be understood, but that is equally foreign 

 to the Bengali with " map." The Society should never encourage a 

 speculative coining of terms when it has not the power of enforcing 

 their use, and it would only throw the Society into ridicule to contend 

 for what may prove an impracticable theory. The last speaker, 

 said Mr. Banerjea, has referred to the Medical College and to its 

 dogged adherence to English terms, unwilling to translate even such 

 words as " hot water." I think the fact speaks volumes. The 

 medical profession has to deal practically with science and human life, 

 and its practice, as my learned friend himself has described it, adds 

 force to the resolution. The experience of such a profession is not 

 to be despised. And there may be many reasons for not translating 

 even the words " hot water." The words are of course translateable, 

 every community has a word for heat and one for water. But there 

 may be occasions in which a Doctor may do much harm by translating 

 them. And this reminds me of a case in which harm was done. 

 Many years ago a person (a native) was taken ill of the cholera, and 

 and there was congestion of the brain. A sub-assistant surgeon 

 ordered the application of hot water bottles to the feet : he translated 

 the order to the female who was attending on the patient. How did 

 the lady understand the order and how she executed it ? She had 

 water warmed and then cooled and putting it in bottles, applied them 

 to the feet. Cold water bottles were thus applied instead of hot t and 

 the patient died I Speculative purism must not be pushed to the 

 extent of sacrificing everything else before the shrine of oriental lore. 



On the other hand, he would not proscribe terms existing in the 

 vernaculars or the classics. He himself translated the elements 

 of Euclid into Bengali twenty years ago, and with a solitary exception 

 or two, he found all the necessary terms in Sanscrit, and freely 

 adopted them. The Hon'ble mover of the resolution, he thought, 

 would not wish the ignoring of such terms, and under this im- 

 pression and with the slight alteration he had suggested, he would 

 cheerfully give his vote for the resolution. 



Babu Rajendralala Mitra begged permission to say a few words 

 with reference to the amendment suggested by the Rev. Mr. Banerjee. 

 He did not care whether names of foreign things were taken from 



