The most noteworthy part of the history of India must always be that which tells how the people known as Hindoos, speaking languages derived from the Sanskrit, and living in the country between the Himalayas and the Vindhyan Mountains, and in the Valley of the Indus, were formed from originally heterogeneous elements into a nation, and which dfurther describes the origin and development of their system of government and their early religious history. The written materials available for these purposes are unusually abundant, but vary greatly in value.

The following paper, of which a part only was read before the Asiatic Society on March 19th, is founded on a book published in Russian by Prof. Maxim Kovalefsky. In the author gives the results of his investigations into the manners and customs of the Ossetes, with special reference to the light thrown by them on the evolution of law. The late Sir Henry Maine, who may be justly regarded as our authority on ancient law and early customs, has well said in a passage quoted by Prof. Kovalefsky on his title-page, “In order to understand the most ancient condition of society all distances must be reduced, and we must look on mankind, so to speak, at the wrong end of the historical telescope.”

In the course of my reading preparatory to my proposed, trip in September next to Orenberg and the Steppes of Central Asia, I came upon the valuable book by Dr. Radloff, “Aus Siberien,” Leipzig, 1884. His account of the languages spoken in the Zarafshan Valley, of which the famous city of Samarkand is the capital, seems so important, that I have had it translated from the German for publication in the journal.

In an article on Early Buddist Symbolism, in Vol. XVIII. Part 3, of the Royal Asiatic Society's Journal (1886), I expressed my belief that the three objects of worship and ornament so commonly seen on Buddhist scultpures in India, the Svastika, triśūla, were not indigenous Indian emblems, but symbols of Western Asian origin—whether Semitic or Aryan matters little—adopted of old by the Hindus, and accepted, originally by Buddists, not as being in themselves Buddist symbols, but as being symbols of religious signification in general use among the people.

1. Several of the collections of coins made in their own country by intelligent and enthusiastic Chinese Numismatists contain specimens of a curiously-shaped scarab-like copper currency. They are various called Y-pi tsien or ‘Ant's nose metallic currency;’ kuei-tou or ‘Ghosts’ heads,' and finally Ho-pei tsien or ‘Cowries Metallic currency.’

The corrected proof-sheets of Sir M. Monier-Williams's address on the Jains (printed under the Notes of the Quarter in the last Number of the Journal) were unfortunately lost in transmission by post. It was intended to give an errata-list in the present number, but, on examination, most of the misprints appeared too obvious to need pointing out. The only serious errata occur in the Jain prayerformula at p. 281. They should be corrected as follows:

Namo Arihantāṇaṃ namo Siddhāṇaṃ namo Āyariyāṇaṃ namo Uvajjhāyāṇaṃ namo loe Sabba-sāhūṇaṃ. The name of one of the Digambara Pandits mentioned at p. 279 should be Syojī Lāi (not Gyojī Lāi).

So also in Mr. Sinclair's letter, which he had not the opportunity of correcting, ‘Angira’ was printed on p. 273 for ‘Angria,’ and at the end of the same paragraph ‘of’ for ‘or’ (‘or the smaller temples’). The full stop at the end of line 6 on the following page should also be struck out.