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98 year, and it is doubtful if a hundredth part of these copies is sold to the Bhadralokas or gentlefolk. Our masses are not at all in awe of the Sanskrit vocabulary. On the other hand they seem to be in love with it. They are fond of pedantic words and when they commit mistakes in using such words in their conversation, our scholarly people smile in derision. Our Calcutta theatres have many farcical scenes in which the rural folk, attempting a high flown style, are held up to ridicule, for the inappropriate use of words. Thus the artificial style of the present day originates in a variety of causes attending the revival of Hinduism, and so long as the rich vocabulary of Sanskrit is not fully exhausted, this process of the recovery of words and the importation of choice expressions from it for literarary and technical purposes, is not likely to cease. No one would leave a precious store until it has given him all that he needs. The genius of our language moves towards the Sanskrit ideal, being attracted to it by its unparallelled wealth of expression, and until it has taken full advantage of this treasure, it is not likely to change its present course. Our learned men desire this and our rural folk desire it no less. Broad-based as is the movement of our language towards the classical model, on the natural requirements of the Paurāṅik renaissance, we cannot forcibly retard this stream.

Our masses, as I have said, are not afraid of encountering Sanskrit words. The very nature of their environment has accustomed them to this. If the modern literature of Bengal affords them any difficulty, it is found in those modes of expression and of constructing sentences in which Bengali