of universally understood terms shall render his communication level with the capacities of all classes of people," p. v. Our objection to this plan is that it makes a Dictionary not of the Hindi language, but of that and something more. It is, therefore, so far misleading; and we think Mr. Thompson has been drawn aside by it. Any one taking up his Dictionary will easily discover the great proportion of compound words, many of which might well be omitted, see, for example, words compounded with bahu, dharm, dhirgh. These compounds may be all in, or according to, Sanskrit, yet if not in Hindí why should they be inserted? We would not mark such copiousness as a fault if all the compound words were given; but we do not find some words* which are used in Hindí works as andhan wealth in grain, chhbitipat, a land-proprietor, mangaláchár, rejoicing, andhádhundh blind, blindly, (Shaks); hence, one who sees not the right, unjust.

Under certain words idioms are given, for some of which there is no cause, e. g. under bát, háth, as the meaning is very clear from the several words of which they are composed. Shakespear seems to have been followed in this matter, yet not wisely. It was, doubtless not the cold weather when Mr. Thompson was at the letter'g,' or he surely would not have omitted from the idioms under galá,―galá bigarná, to have a sore throat. We have repetitions of words, with their meanings attached, rather superfluously on the same page; as dos and dosh, bhusum and bhusm, bit and bitt.

We have noticed a want of many of the terms used in the different arts and sciences. In Rhetoric, the following terms, used in a Hindí work, we have not found. Upamey to be illustrated by Atyuktá hyperbole. Vritty-anuprás alliteration. We expected to have an explanation of the technical words applied to the different kinds of verse; as Dohá, chaupái, Kabit, Tuk, Pad, &c. and we obtained, “ Dohá, a couplet, distich; Chaupai, a sort of metre or verse, consisting of four feet (pud) or lines; Kubit, a sort of verse, poetry; Pud a foot or rather line of a stanza; Took one line of a poem, a rhyme." This is not clear. How are we to distinguish Doha from kabit ? Is a chaupai two dohas? Are tuk and pud the same? The want of suffi

* Once for all we would state, that owing to different modes of spelling words, as 'b for v,' sh for s, &c; or a different arrangement of the letters, we have freequently thought words, which we ultimately discovered, had been omitted. We have taken care to look at the different places, where by some chances and changes a word might be and believe that in no instance mentioned by us shall the term be found. Mr. Thompson is partly to blame for this, as he is not consistent in his mode. For example the double letter,' ksh' is put in 't' after 'k,' and in 'bh' at the end of all the consonants.

cient definiteness is a great cause of inaccurate impressions. Doha is literally a couplet.' a couplet.' Yet it would be correctly represented by the English common metre in which the first and third lines do not rhyme, each of these lines would be a tuk. But the natives reckon only two lines to a doha, yet say that there are four tuk, not pad. The commonest measures of doha are twelve and fourteen mátr-a-a consonant with a vowel sound attached. Kabit is a short poem. It is said, there are five different kinds as there are more or fewer tuks in the kabti. All chaupais may be kabits; as all pads may be tuks; but we cannot reverse this.

There are many terms connected with agriculture which we do not find in the Dictionary. The compiler asks indulgent consideration for having seemingly neglected, it may be some of the easiest terms. We by no means censure him for this, as such words can with difficulty be all remembered. He will acquit us of all intention to be captious if we mention a few words and meanings, which we have met in reading or conversation, and have not seen in his work. We do not pretend to lexical accuracy in the significations. Anat or Antha, a knot. Anuktá, incomparableness. Apartá, boundlessness. Abir, a powder used in the Holi. Chatil, level. Chhám thin. Nán or Náná, small. Banik, a merchant. Bharsak with all one's power. Geunra,* land close to a village; generally considered to be good, and in which the poppy is usually sown, Vritti style. Halsi one who is delighted, a lover, Sogandh or Saugandht an oath. Tumhárá and hamárá your and our.

Again, omissions of meanings-the words and some significations being given,-Chola, the outer envelopment of a man, the body. Kolhu, a sugar mill. Prasang, a discourse. Parál, straw (of rice should have been added). Charháo, an offering. Saras and Sársáí, a lake, water. Hár, land. at a distance from a village, Palak, twinkle of the eye, the link between eyelid and a moment.' We notice a word in this part which as it signifies changes that are occurring not seldom in these days, in the native as well as the European community, may not be uninteresting. Dewálá, bankruptcy. Shakespear ques

* Mr. Elliot in his glossary gives goend. Our mode of spelling was taken from a Pandit in the Lower Doab; but in the Benares district we have heard goenrá. It is the same word, however. Easy and common changes account for the difference in form.

+ This word is quite Hindi in its appearance, and we have found it in a Bháshá song. Shakespear however has marked it and we regard it as one of these words common to both languages in this meaning, and so notice the omission.

tions whether the word may not be derived from déwálí, barter; and intimates that the fortune has been dissipated in gaming. Very unlikely. The natives seem to be as much at a loss as Europeans to find out the sense of this word. One of them thus explains ;-when a mahajan fails, the carpet of his office is turned over and a light placed upon it. The object of this is to shew that he is in search of his lost rupees. He is than called diwalia, a word which comes from diwali -a winter festival, in which great numbers of lights are burned; we doubt this too, but it might be tried for the funds of a Bank. Another explanation is as follows, and we deem it good though suspicious. We note it as we would have it inserted in the Dictionary. Dewala (from diwala wall), the wall or screen behind which a banker transacts his business; the removal of that wall or exposure of accounts, is bankruptcy. We can question whether the word in itself means bankruptcy, as is given by Mr. Thompson; or not rather always joined, to convey that signification, with nikalna. Hence, of course by the frequent use of this verb with the noun, when the latter alone can be applied to banking affairs, there would be no doubt about its meaning.

As instances of indefiniteness, we refer to agrásar, upakárí, in which the substantive and adjective meanings are mixed-to par, pay and se for confounding of meanings. The same might be tested by a reference to káran, nimmit, máre, hetu. So far as we have observed, the difference among these useful and frequently recurring terms is, that káran is the doing thing, the agent and not the instrument, the reason for; nimmit the cause as operating, the motive; máre struck with,' the occasion; and hetu the object for which, the design. One of these may often, under certain laws, be used in place of another; but one is not at such variance with itself, or so very closely allied to each other, as the significations given in the Dictionary would make appear.

We have remarked some minor defects too. Some months and days are explained by a reference to the English names; but those of pús and sukarbár are not so. The same thing is noticeable in reference to words expressing the peculiar tenets of Hinduism: as nidhi is fully elucidated; but panchtatur is not.

A number of proper names have been inserted in the body of this Dictionary, but very many are omitted. We would not plead for the insertion of all the proper names in, or even at the end of, a Dictionary, whose principal aim is for other classes of words. We wish only the more common. Here, however, we do not get Udho, the friend and messenger of Krishna; or

Balbír, Krishna's brother; or Birbal, Akbar's celebrated Hindu minister; or the celebrated sectarian Kabir: besides many others always in the mouths of the people. Notwithstanding we find the new terms Khrisht and Khristyan. He does not give Rúm, and the only meaning of Rúmi, excepting its signification of a certain vegetable substance, is Grecian. This is by far too specific. The geographical notions of the natives of India have not been guided by the boundaries of separate countries. Mountains, rivers, seas; or treaties, language, habits, matter little to them in assigning a term or terms to mark the inhabitants of distant countries.

We had noted a few things more; but the fear of being considered tedious, induces us to stop. We deemed it right, however, to make no statement without furnishing part of the proofs on which we grounded it. And while we acknowledge that these may wear the appearance of being unfavourable to the Dictionary, we would beg that no one will give a different interpretation to our remarks than we allow. The Dictionary will fill a place, hitherto unoccupied, in the libraries of those who wish to know Hindi: we know not indeed how any such can get on without it. Mr. Thompson states that it contains about half a lakh of vocables. And though some are given, which might have been left out, and some are omitted that should have been found, it yet constitutes itself as the most complete and best Hindi Dictionary extant.

We have taken this opportunity of indicating what seem to be defects in all our Dictionaries of the languages of Upper India, making this one the occasion of expressing our views, as well as suggesting some things in which improvement might be made on itself.

We have noticed occasional errors of the press, yet they are not many. The whole getting up is very creditable to, and shows great improvement on the outward appearance of works issued from the Calcutta Press.

ART. IV.-1. The Government Gazette and Acts of the Legislative Council of India.

2. The Acts of the Legislative Council of India, with a Glossary; an Analytical Abstract prefixed to each Act, and Copious Index, by William Theobald, Esq. Barrister-at-law and Advocate of the Supreme Court. Calcutta, 1844.

WE purpose concluding in the present article our cursory and chronological review of the Legislative Acts of the Council of India: but before we proceed, we must renew the claim which we have already made to the candid and even kind consideration of the friends of free discussion and the public. The field we are upon, is new; we are but pioneers, to point the way, we trust, to many others after us, who may, we believe, find some useful hints in these pages.

Our last notice came down to the end of 1844. Act No. I. of 1845, (such is the usual mode of quoting Acts of the Legislative Council) is an Act to amend Act No. 12 of 1841, &c.; which last mentioned Act was an Act for amending the Bengal Code in regard to sales of land for arrears of revenue. The manner in which this so-called amendment is made, deserves to be pointed out and commended; it is, by repealing the former Act, and re-enacting it in extenso, with amendments. When amendments, as in the present instance, bear but a small proportion to the whole of an Act, this plan appears to involve an unnecessarily large expense of printing and paper; but all things taken into account it is really economical. For, nothing is more usual, than further amendments rendered necessary by previous ones; and amendments made in separate patches make the whole law unintelligible; the amendments may then be compared to pit falls for the public, and the law becomes a snare and a net in the hands of the lawyers. We must however, observe, that the method which we thus commend is not generally adopted in the Act book of India; and probably we are indebted for it in the present instance, to the direct interest which the Government has in the subject matter. Obscurities in this great revenue sale law, would only multiply references from all parts to the Board of Revenue, and heavily tax the time of the Collectors. Generally, amendments of Acts are made as in the English Statutes: by bits and scraps, which the legist and public are left to collate and put together. In the present Act, the substance or object of the chief amendments is as commendable as the manner of them. They substitute what is fair and equitable for arrange