244 ON ORISSA PROPER 



Kohestan, of the hills, &c. and they are represented as powerful chiefs 

 possessing forts, armies, and political influence, such as to this day are the 

 attributes of Khetri and Rajput Chiefs. It is curious enough, that, in near- 

 ly every instance where his translator Dow has introduced the word Ze- 

 mindar, and more especially in those few interesting passages of Ferishteh,. 

 which touch upon the internal arrangements and institutions of the empire, 

 the term has been gratuitously foisted in, and is not to be found in the ori- 

 ginal. As a guide to future enquirers, I shall point out some of these errors 

 which have attracted my notice. Dow states of Sultan Balin, " Wherever 

 the King marched, there was an order for the Subehs, Zemindars, Fouj- 

 dars, &c. to meet him." This is, merely the translator's explanation of the 

 sense of the passage. The original is, " Sultan Balin made it a rule, that, 

 whenever he returned from his army, the head-officers and respectable 

 men, (^Sudur-o-Akabir,) came to meet him and offer presents." When the 

 same Prince goes to.Sunargaon, in pursuit of the rebel Togral, Dow makes 

 the Zemindar of that place join him with his troops ; the original says only, 

 *' Dhoj Rai the Zabit or local governor." In the accounts of the reigns of 

 Feroze 2nd and Alla-ud-deen, the word Antra, used by Ferishteh, is twice 

 erroneously translated Zemindar. In the description of the latter reign, a 

 still more important inaccuracy occurs, in the account of the King's mea- 

 sures, for improving both the condition of his ryots,, and the revenues of 

 the Royal Exchequer. Zemindars dndj'armers are not once mentioned by 

 Ferishteh, but it is observed, that, as the Choivdris and Molcaddams were 

 very oppressive in their behaviour towards the ryots (zeberdest), they 

 were set aside, and their dues (wajeh) resumed, so that they who had be- 

 fore worn fine clothes, rode on horses and affected all the state of A mras, 

 were now reduced to the lowest ebb of poverty. In the history of Moham- 

 med Third's reign, the term Zemindar is again gratuitously introduced 

 by Dow, as follows, " Nizam Bam, a Zemindar, possessed of some lands 

 in Oude, collected a mob of the discontented farmers and rebelled." The 

 original text, which is obscure in my copy, calls him an Amir of some kind, 

 but never once makes use of the word Zemindar. Again, in pages 51 and 



