THE SOURCES OF TFIE GANGES. 43^ 



being at best founded on oral information, and very imperfe6l; notices^ 

 hastily coUedled in a season of danger and perturbation. 



Anc^uetil Du Perron, who, as before observed, rejected, on good 

 grounds, the Lama's authority for the sources of the Ganges, published 

 in 1784 the result of the geographical researches of father Tieffen- 

 THALLER, a Jesuit misssonary in India. With the usual partiality of a first 

 publisher, he places great faith in the accuracy of the missionary's itine= 

 rary and maps. They, were certainly not undeserving of attention. But 

 TiEFFENTHALLER had not Surveyed in person, either the Sarayu, of which 

 he gives the course from the lake Mdnasarovara to the plains of Hindus-' 

 tan, nor the Ganges above Devapraydga, the course of which he deline- 

 ates to the Gangoutri. I shall subsequently adduce proof of the latter part 

 of this assertion. The former part of it has never been doubted „ 



Major Rennell, on the erroneous supposition that Tieffenthaller 

 did himself visit Gangoutri, has relied on the position assigned by him to 

 that place, hi the doubt even whether Tieffenthaller might not ac- 

 tually have taken the latitude of Gaiigoutri by observation ; Major Ren- 

 nell did not venture to alter the parallel in which the missionary has 

 placed it (33^,) though he conjedlured it to be too far north: and pro- 

 ceeded to adjust to that position the supposed course of the Ganges, from 

 the Lama's lake Mapayna, imagined to be the same with the Mdnasard' 

 vara, to the catara6l described by Tieffenthaller at Gangoutri.^ 



■ It is strange that Major Rennell should have ever supposed, that the 

 missionary had visited Gangoutri m person. An^uetfl Du Perron, who 



* Gmi^ofri sou Cataracta Gan^is, quani etiam Os VaccoD appella,nt : rx rupe prapccps 

 actus, in iovoani aiiiplamct profundam illabifur. Jacel iu 3^° circiter gfadu lat. borcaliSj 

 TSMong. TiKFf. cited by ije;720i;///. 2. 280. 



L 5 



