Page:History of the French in India.djvu/11

 PREFACE TO THE NEW EDITION. QUARTER of a century has passed away since I first XJL offered this volume to the British public. During that time it has made the tour of Europe. It has been translated into French ; quoted largely by Italian writers ; read with avidity in Germany; and has procured for the author appreciative letters from distinguished men. Within the last three years the demand for it has been so continuous that I have been asked to edit a new edition. This must be my excuse for once more introducing it to the public. Since I brought out the book in 1868 I have largely prosecuted my studies in Indian history, especially in the history of the periods immediately preceding and running parallel to the events of which I treat in this volume. I am bound to add that the increased know- ledge has not brought to light any errors of importance. The reasons for the conduct of La Bourdonnais after the capture of Madras, my account of which one writer challenged four years ago, have been found, after the most exhaustive examination, to have been correctly stated in the first edition. They, therefore, appear here unaltered. The curious reader who may care to examine the question for himself, will find the con-