Note 718 — APPENDIX.

The advantage of their publication was to strongly felt by the Council of the Royal Asiatic Society that in 1873 they, backed by a letter from Sir Walter, appealed to Her Majesty’s Secretary of State for India in Council, to sanction an expenditure not exceeding £200 for the purpose. It seems, however, that the finances of India could not bear the strain, for in August last a reply was received to the effect that “His Lordship regrets that he cannot consent to charge the public revenues of India with the cost of such an undertaking.” As the Indian Council are responsible, and know best what should be done and what refused, there is no more to be said about the matter, though to outsiders this seems slightly inconsistent with their grant of £2000 to Max Müller for doing nothing that he had not been well paid for doing beforehand. As no other means are available in this country, it is to be hoped that either the French or German Governments will take it up. They have always abundance of funds for such purposes; and had these inscriptions been collected by one of their countrymen, they would have been published without a year’s delay after having been brought home, although they have no interest in India that can for one moment be compared with ours.