Page:Dictionary of Indian Biography.djvu/9



There are Biographical Dictionaries which contain lives of Indian celebrities, and there are many biographies of individuals who have distinguished themselves in India. But the Dictionaries are large, expensive works, and the separate "Lives" or "Memoirs" are often lengthy or inaccessible. There is no single volume of moderate size, containing such information as is sufficient for the ordinary reader, regarding the careers and doings of the large number of persons connected with India, in history, by their exploits, services, and writings. The object of this "Dictionary of Indian Biography" is to supply this want. It purports to be a handy Work of Reference, giving the main facts of the lives of about 2,600 persons—English, Indian, Foreign, men or women, living or dead—who have been conspicuous in the history of India, or distinguished in the administration of the country, in one or other of its branches, or have contributed to its welfare, service, and advancement by their studies and literary productions, or have gained some special notoriety. Such a work must be limited by considerations of time, space, and cost. It has been thought desirable to commence the present volume from about 1750 A.D., a date which admits of the inclusion of Lord Clive and his contemporaries in Southern India, when the English power in India was being established. It has been found necessary to treat the lives in an indicative rather than in an exhaustive manner. It is impossible to include everybody who has been in India, and nothing has been harder than the attempt to fix a standard of merit to entitle its possessor to inclusion. No one consulted has been able to suggest a criterion of "distinction." The titles and decorations of the various Orders of Knighthood afford no certain ground. A complete and full Biographical Dictionary for India could only be undertaken, and might well be undertaken, by Government Agency, or under a financial guarantee of the cost of production. In all the difficulties of the problem, it is only possible to decide, for inclusion or exclusion, upon general principles, general reputation, or notoriety : and the many persons omitted for want of space are likely to challenge the conclusions of the Editor. Again, in such a work, unintentional omissions are sure to occur, in spite of all precautions, but they can be supplied in future editions. In many cases, even of prominent names, sufficient biographical information is not available, or, at any rate, has not come to hand. It is equally impossible to avoid, entirely, mistakes of dates or facts : the sources of information consulted often disclose discrepancies, which personal knowledge has sometimes been able to determine. Accuracy has been a main object in the compilation, but the short lives cannot be made more accurate than the sources of