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ten to him, at my requeft, for the newly dif covered fragrant grafs; and fhould the plants be sent before the last ships of the season fail, they shall be sent to you. Whether they be the nard of the ancients, I muft doubt, because we have fweet graffes here of innumerable fpecies; and Reuben Burrow brought me an odoriferous grafs from the place where the Ganges enters India, and where it covers whole acres, and perfumes the whole country. From his account of it, I fufpect it to be Mr. Blane's; but I could make nothing of the dry fpecimens, except that they differ widely from the Fatamanfi, which I am perfuaded is the Indian nard of Ptolemy. I can only procure the dry Jatamanfi, but if I can get the stalks, roots, and flowers from Butan, I will fend them to you. Since the death of Koenig, we are in great want of a proffeffed botanist. I have twice read with rapture the Philofophia Botanica, and have Murray's edition of the

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genera et species plantarum" always with me; but, as I am no lynx, like Linnæus, I

cannot examine minute bloffoms, especially

thofe of graffes.

We are far advanced in the fecond volume of our Tranfactions.

Sir William Jones to John Wilmot, Efq.

Sept. 20, 1789.

Every fentence in your letter gave

me great pleasure, and particularly the pleafing and just account of your truly venerable father. Lady Jones, after the first pang for the loss of hers, refigned herself with true piety to the will of God. She is very weak, and always ill during the heats. I have been, ever fince my seasoning, as they call it, perfectly well, notwithstanding inceffant business feven hours in a day, for four or five months in a year, and unremitted application, during the vacations, to a vaft and interefting study, a complete knowledge of India, which I can only attain in the country itself, and I do not mean to stay in the country longer than the laft year of the eighteenth century. I rejoice that the King is well, but take no intereft in

the contests of your ariftocratical factions. The time never was, when I would have enlifted under the banners of any faction, though I might have carried a pair of colours, if I had not spurned them, in either legion. My party is that of the whole people, and my principles, which the law taught me, are only to be chang ed by a change of existence.

Sir William Jones to Mr. Juftice Hyde.

Oct. 20, 1789.

Though I hope, my dear Sir, to be with you almost as soon as this letter, yet I write it because it is the laft that I fhall write to any one for the next eleven months, and I feel so light, after the completion of my fevere epiftolary task, that I am disposed to play a voluntary. I have answered fifty very long letters from Europe, and a multitude of short ones; among the reft, I had one from the Chief Baron, who defires his remembrance to you by the title of his old and worthy friend. Another from Master Wilmot informs me, that his father, Sir Eardley, had nearly ended

his eightieth year, with as good health, and as clear intellects, as he ever had in the prime of life. When I express a hope of seeing you in two or three days, it is only a hope; for I fhall affront the Mandarin at Chinfura*, if I do not make my annual vifit to him; now I can only visit him at night, and the wind and tide may delay me, as they did laft year. In all events, I fhall be with you if I live, before the end of the week, as I am preparing to go on board my pinnace. Befides my annuities of Europe letters, which I pay at this season, I have been winding up all the odds and ends of all my private or literary concerns, and shall think of nothing for eleven months to come, but law, European or Indian. I have written four papers for our expiring fociety, on very curious subjects, and have prepared materials for a discourse on the Chinese the society is a puny, rickety child, and must be fed with pap; nor fhall it die by my fault; but die it muft, for I cannot alone fupport it. In my youthful days, I.

* Mr. Titsingh, Governor of Chinsura.

was always ready to join in a dance or a concert, but I could never bring myself to dance a folitary hornpipe, or to play a folo. When I fee Titfingh (who, by the way, will never write any thing for us, as long as his own Batavian fociety fubfifts), I will procure full information concerning the pincushion rice, and will report it to you. Lady Jones is as ufual, and fends her beft remembrance. too am as ufual, and as ever, dear Sir, your faithful, &c.

I

WILLIAM JONES.

Sir William Jones to J. Shore, Efq.

Oct. 20, 1789.

Your approbation of Sacontala, gives at least as much pleasure to the translator as you had from the perusal of it, and would encourage me to tranflate more dramas, if I were not refolved to devote all my time to law, European and Indian.

The idea of your happiness, (and few men have a brighter prospect of it than yourself,) reconciles me to our approaching feparation,

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