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 448 REVIEWS OF BOOKS July been tapped, it was natural that further drafts should be made upon it, and, as elsewhere, the prospects of the invaders were favoured by internal dissensions. They found, as others have found, that having invaded a country they could not easily abandon it, and the desire for plunder developed into imperialism. Among the motives which induced these sultans to endeavour to maintain their hold over the invaded countries was probably the sentiment that the Moslem communities whom they already found established would incur terrible vengeance after the invaders' departure. As happened in Spain and in Asia, with the weakening of the central authority, the newly acquired territory split up into independent states ; and presently, somewhat as in Spain, though with differences, the non-Moslem elements grew sufficiently strong to recover the country for themselves. The two hundred pages, of which this volume, apart from the appendixes, consists, are very full of matter, and it is possible that some of the author's conclusions, especially in matters of geography, may be questioned. There will be no doubt that he has contributed a chapter of the greatest value to the history of mediaeval India. D. S. MARGOLIOTJTH. The Later Mughals. By WILLIAM IRVINE, I.C.S. (retired) ; edited by JADUNATH SARKAR, I.E.S. Vol. i, 1707-20. (London : Luzac, s.a.) THE late William Irvine had planned a history of the Mughal empire from the death of Aurangzib in 1707 to Lord Lake's capture of Delhi in 1803, when the victorious British troops found the sightless Shah Alam sitting forlornly enthroned under a tattered canopy. He lived to carry the work down to about the year 1738, but not to publish it. Most, however, of the chapters of the present volume have already appeared in the form of articles in the Asiatic Quarterly Review and the Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal. The history now appears for the first time in book form under the able and scholarly editorship of Mr. Jadunath Sarkar, who may be said to have been trained in Irvine's school and intimately to have known his methods. Irvine as a Scotsman .and civil servant was in the direct line of descent from the other famous administrator-historians of India. James Grant Duff, Joseph Davey Cunningham, Mountstuart Elphinstone (whose great work this book so largely amplifies), and Sir John Malcolm were all civil or military servants of the East India Company, and they all came from north of the Tweed ; while James Tod was at least Scottish on his mother's side, and Robert Orme, who was born in India, was probably of Caledonian stock. These men may almost be said to have founded an historical school of their own, characterized by laborious accuracy, expert know- ledge, solidity of judgement, and dignity of style. In industry, thorough- ness, and accuracy Irvine may rank with the greatest of the school ; in general historical knowledge and linguistic attainments he was probably their superior ; in style and power of presentation he falls below them. He had himself no illusions as to the character of his work. He spoke of it as a preparatory clearing of the ground : ' at some future day the genius may arise who shall make these dead bones live ; and when in