some trifling presents. If the teacher finds a difficulty in obtaining scholars, he begins the college with a few junior relatives, and by instructing them and distinguishing himself in the disputations that take place on public occasions, he establishes his reputation. The school opens early every morning by the teacher and pupils assembling in the open reading-room, when the different classes read in turn. Study is continued till towards mid-day, after which three hours are devoted to bathing, worship, eating, and sleep; and at three they resume their studies which are continued till twilight. Nearly two hours are then devoted to evening worship, eating, smoking, and relaxation, and the studies are again resumed and continued till ten or eleven at night. The evening studies consist of a revision of the lessons already learned, in order that what the pupils have read may be impressed more distinctly on the memory. These studies are frequently pursued, especially by the students of logic, till two or three o'clock in the morning.

"There are three kinds of colleges in Bengal, one in which chiefly grammar, general literature, and rhetoric, and occasionally the great mythological poems and law are taught; a second in which chiefly law and sometimes the mythological poems are studied; and a third in which logic is made the principal object of attention. In all these colleges select works are read and their meaning explained; but instruction is not conveyed in the form of lectures. In the first class of colleges, the pupils repeat assigned lessons from the grammar used in each college, and the teacher communicates the meaning of the lessons after they have been committed to memory. In the others, the pupils are divided into classes according to their progress. The pupils of each class having one or more books before them, seat themselves in the presence of the teacher, when the best reader of the class reads aloud, and the teacher gives the meaning as often as asked, and thus they proceed from day to day till the work is completed. The study of grammar is pursued during two, three, or six years, and where the work of Panini is studied not less than ten, and sometimes twelve years are devoted to it. As soon as a student has obtained such a knowledge of grammar as to be able to read and understand a poem, a law book, or a work on philosophy, he may commence his course of reading also, and carry on at the same time the remainder of his grammar studies. Those who study law or logic continue reading either at one college or another for six, eight, or even ten years. When a person has obtained all the knowledge possessed by one teacher, he makes some respectful excuse to his guide and avails himself of the instructions of another."- pp. 20, 21.

It would also seem that in the matter of college vacations, and the bestowment of literary honors, no extraordinary degree

of sagacity, or enlargement of mind, is evinced. again from the Report.

We copy

"The colleges are invariably closed and all study suspended on the eighth day of the waxing or waning of the moon; on the day in which it may happen to thunder; whenever a person or animal passes between the teacher and pupil while reading; when an honorable person arrives, or a guest; at the festival of Saraswati during three days; in some parts during the whole of the rainy season or at least during two months, which include the Durga, the Kali, and other festivals, and at many other times. When a student is about to commence the study of law or of logic, his fellow-students with the concurrence and approbation of the teacher, bestow on him an honorary title descriptive of the nature of his pursuit, and always differing from any title enjoyed by any of his learned ancestors. In some parts of the country, the title is bestowed by an assembly of pundits convened for the purpose; and in others the assembly is held in the presence of a Raja or Zamindar who may be desirous of encouraging learning, and who at the same time bestows a dress of honor on the student and places a mark on his forehead. When the student finally leaves college and enters on the business of life, he is commonly addressed by that title."— p. 22.

The Hindoo colleges in the District of Nuddea are among those in the highest repute. In 1829, they were twenty-five in number.

"These are called tols, and consist of a thatched chamber for the pundit and the class, and two or three ranges of mud-hovels in which the students reside. The pundit does not live on the spot, but comes to the tol every day on which study is lawful at an early hour, and remains till sunset. The huts are built and kept in repair at his expense, and he not only gives instruction gratuitously, but assists to feed and clothe his class, his means of so doing being derived from former grants by the raja of Nuddea, and presents made to him by the zemindars in the neighbourhood at religious festivals, the value of which much depends on his celebrity as a teacher. The students are all full-grown men, some of them old men. The usual number in a tol is about twenty or twenty-five, but in some places, where the pundit is of high repute, there are from fifty to sixty. The whole number is said to be between 500 and 600. The greater proportion consists of natives of Bengal, but there are many from remote parts of India, especially from the south. There are some from Nepaul and Assam, and many from the eastern districts, especially Tirhoot. Few if any have means of subsistence of their own. Their dwelling they obtain from their teacher, and their clothes and food in presents from him and the

shopkeepers and landholders in the town or neighbourhood. At the principal festivals they disperse for a few days in quest of alms, when they collect enough to sustain them till the next interval of leisure. The chief study at Nuddea is nyayu or logic, there are also some establishments for tuition in law, chiefly in the works of Raghunanda, a celebrated Nuddea pundit, and in one or two places grammar is taught. Some of the students, particularly several from the Dekhin, speak Sanscrit with great fluency and correctness." pp. 85, 86.

Of the means employed by the Mohammadan population of Bengal, to preserve the appropriate learning of their faith and race, it is impossible, according to the Report, to speak with much distinctness or confidence, partly because these means are less systematic and organized than those adopted by the Hindoos, and partly because less inquiry has been made, and less information is possessed respecting them, by the officers of government.

"It is believed, however," says Mr. Adam, "that in the Lower, as well as the Western Provinces there are many private Mohammadan schools, begun and conducted by individuals of studious habits who have made the cultivation of letters the chief occupation of their lives, and by whom the profession of learning is followed, not merely as a means of livelihood, but as a meritorious work productive of moral and religious benefit to themselves and their fellow creatures. Few accordingly give instruction for any stipulated pecuniary remuneration, and what they may receive is both tendered and accepted as an interchange of kindness and civility between the master and his disciple. The number of those who thus resort to the private instructions of masters is not great. Their attendance and application are guided by the mutual convenience and inclination of both parties, neither of whom is placed under any system or particular rule of conduct. The success and progress of the scholar depend entirely on his own assiduity. The least dispute or disagreement puts an end to study, no check being imposed on either party, and no tie subsisting between them beyond that of casual reciprocal advantages which a thousand accidents may weaken or dissolve. The number of pupils seldom exceeds six. They are sometimes permanent residents under the roof of their masters, and in other instances live in their own families; and in the former case, if Musalmans, they are supported at the teacher's expense. In return, they are required to carry messages, buy articles in the bazar, and perform menial services in the house. The scholars in consequence often change their teachers, learning the alphabet and the other introductory parts of the

Persian language of one, the Pandnameh of a second, the Gulistan of a third, and so on from one place to another, till they are able to write a tolerable letter and think they have learned enough to assume the title of Munshi, when they look out for some permanent means of subsistence as hangers-on at the Company's Courts. The chief aim is the attainment of such a proficiency in the Persian language as may enable the student to earn a livelihood; but not unfrequently the Arabic is also studied, its grammar, literature, theology, and law. A proper estimate of such a desultory and capricious mode of education is impossible."- pp. 23, 24.

The elementary schools, not indigenous, have had to contend with many obstacles growing out of the prejudices of the natives, their want of confidence in the foreign residents by whom these schools have been established and are controlled, and the narrow and short-sighted policy in which the schools themselves have, in some cases, been conceived and governed. A large proportion of them have been opened in the neighbourhood of the missionary stations, and are under the superintendence of the missionaries. It is to be hoped that these gentlemen have had experience enough to convince them, that, if they would make these schools extensively useful, it must be by conducting them on the most liberal plan, by confining them almost entirely to the children of the poor, and by adapting them, rather to improve by serving as models, then to supersede the indigenous institutions. We also hope, that their efforts will not be unavailing to do away the misconceptions, which lead native parents utterly to neglect the education of their daughters.

The growing desire, amounting even to a passion, on the part of the natives in some places, to give their sons, and their countrymen generally, the advantages of English instruction, and the efforts and sacrifices they have made and are making among themselves for this object, far exceed the common belief, and will be hailed by all as a most favorable omen. The more so, when it is understood from the author of the Report, that within his own knowledge, fifteen years ago, a European of reputed talents and acquirements, resident in Calcutta, in vain sought to obtain a humble livelihood by opening an English school for the Bengalese. The following extract relates exclusively to English schools established and supported by natives in a single District, that to which Calcutta belongs.

"The first English school of this kind is situated at Bhowani

pore, and is called the Union School, in consequence of its having been formed by the union of two such schools respectively established at Bhowanipore and Kidderpore. They were established without any communication with Europeans by native gentlemen for the instruction of Hindoo children in English, and were at first supported by voluntary subscription. In May, 1829, they were placed upon an improved footing; and in the management of them, Europeans and natives were then first associated. They were opened to pay-scholars, and the Calcutta School Society made them a monthly grant towards their support; but, that resource not proving adequate to their wants, they applied to the General Committee of Public Instruction for assistance. Their immediate wants extended only to about 500 rupees for the necessary schoolfurniture; but the General Committee placed 1,000 rupees at the disposal of the School Society for the use of each school, considering it to be a great object to establish schools of this description which might in time serve as preparatory steps to the Hindoo college, and relieve that institution of part of the duty of elementary tuition.' The united school is supported partly by public subscriptions and partly by the fees of the scholars, of whom there are at present about 150. This is a day-school, instruction being given every day of the week from ten to three except on Sundays.

"Another English school of this description is situated at Simliya, and has about 70 scholars. It is exclusively a pay-school, having no other resources except the fees paid by the scholars. There are three teachers, one Englishman and two Hindoos.

"A third school of this kind is situated in Upper Circular Road, and has 30 or 40 scholars. It is a pay-school, and the proprietor is a Christian, who supports himself by teaching.

"A fourth pay-school is situated in Burra Bazar, and has 30 or 40 scholars taught by a native.

"The most popular school of this description is situated at Sobha Bazar, and has about 300 scholars. The proprietors are a Christian and a native, who employ several assistant teachers under them. This is also a pay-school, and the charge is four rupees per month for each scholar; in some the charge is three rupees per month, and in others it is not more than two rupees.

Besides these pay-schools, there are native free-schools for the gratuitous instruction of native youth in English, supported either by public subscription or private benevolence.

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The principal one of these is called the Hindoo Free School, and is situated at Arpooly. It has five Hindoo teachers who instruct 150 scholars. The limited resources of the school do not enable the managers to command the services of the teachers except in the morning between six and nine o'clock, to which hours their instructions are confined.