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Rh tions and became a chin-shih. A number of scholars who later achieved distinction passed the examination with him, including and his brother-in-law, Wang Ming-shêng. In the same year Ch'ien made the acquaintance of who had recently arrived in Peking. Together with Chi Yün he was ordered (1756) to assist in the compilation of the local history of Jehol, 熱河志 Jo-ho chih, 80 chüan, completed in 1781. Both were given permission to accompany the emperor on the autumn hunting tour so that they might gather information in that locality. Ch'ien Ta-hsin became in 1757 a compiler. During these years he acquired the habit, like many other scholars who live in Peking, of frequenting Liu-li-ch'ang 琉璃廠, the famous book emporium and center for antiques. He was thus in a position to satisfy his antiquarian interest and to become a connoisseur and collector of inscriptions on metal and stone. In 1758 he became assistant secretary of the Supervisorate of Imperial Instruction. Owing to his accomplishments in mathematics he was assigned to assist the Imperial Board of Astronomy in making a map of the world (see under ). Several times he officiated as chief or associate examiner—in Shantung 1759, Hunan 1762, and in the Metropolitan area 1766.

After his wife's death in 1767 Ch'ien Ta-hsin was granted leave (in the winter of that year) to return home on the plea of illness. It was in that year also that his critical notes on the Twenty-two Dynastic Histories 卄二史考異 Nien-êr shih k'ao-i, completed in 1782 in 100 chüan, began to take form. In 1768 he purchased a new residence, designating his studio Ch'ien-yen t'ang 潛研堂—a name that appears in the title of many of his collected works. In the autumn of 1769 he returned to the capital and in the spring of 1772 was appointed a reader of the Hanlin Academy, with orders (1773) to supervise the study of the imperial princes and to tutor the emperor's twelfth son, Yung-chi 永璂 (1752–1776). In 1774 he was director of the Honan provincial examination, after which he became director of education in Kwangtung. Although he assumed office late in 1774 the death of his father in the summer of the next year made a necessary for him to retire for the required period of mourning. Thereafter he continued in retirement on the ground of his mother's advanced age.

In 1778, governor-general of Kiangnan, invited Ch'ien to become head of the Chung-shan Academy (鍾山書院) in Nanking where he enjoyed the friendship of such men of letters as and. In the spring of 1780 he went to northern Kiangsu to greet the emperor who was then making his fifth tour to South China. When Ch'ien later (1784) was on his way to meet the emperor, who was on his final tour of the South, he was stricken with paralysis. But having sufficiently recovered by 1785, he became director of the Lou-tung Academy 婁東書院 at Sungkiang, Kiangsu. In 1787 Ch'ien Wei-ch'iao (see under ), magistrate of Yin-hsien, Chekiang, invited him to Ningpo to direct the compilation of the local history of that district. After five months the 鄞縣志 Yin-hsien chih, in 30 chüan, was completed and was printed in the following year (1788). While thus engaged in Ningpo, Ch'ien visited the famous T'ien I Ko Library (see under ) and compiled a catalogue of its epigraphical rarities, under the title 天一閣碑目 T'ien-i-ko pei-mu, in 2 chüan. In 1789 he became director of the Tzu-yang Academy where he himself had studied some thirty years before, and remained at this post for sixteen years, until his death. During this period he taught about 2,000 students, many of whom, such as, , Li Jui (see under ), and T'ao Liang (see under ) became famous. In the summer of 1790 he made his last journey to the capital to congratulate Emperor Kao-tsung on the latter's eightieth birthday. In 1801 Hsing Chu 邢澍, magistrate of Ch'ang-hsing, Chekiang, invited both Ch'ien Ta-hsin and his younger brother, to compile the local history of his district. While Ch'ien Ta-hsin's younger brother stayed in Ch'ang-hsing he himself divided his time between the latter place and the Academy. This local history, 長興縣志 Ch'ang-hsing hsien-chih, in 28 chüan, was completed in 1803 and was printed two years later (1805). Although ill most of the last year of his life he continued to teach, and finally died in the Academy. His name was ordered (1807) by imperial edict to be entered in the temple of local worthies.

Ch'ien Ta-hsin's complete works, Ch'ien-yen t'ang ch'üan-shu (全書) were first printed in 1806, and again in 1840, and 1884. The edition of 1884 consists of thirty-four items, three under classics, twenty-three under history, five under philosophy, and three under belles lettres; but eleven were not included. Under the first class 153