Page:Indian Journal of Economics Volume 2.djvu/658

 In the presence universally admitted' political thinkers which have not of such (i) that were born yet been historical research of o-day; used to devote a great study and princes and evidence it must great economic in those hoary penetrated by the be and ages sharp development of economics; subjects alike must have (ii) that ancient Hindus deal of their time to the and (iii) that competed in sedulously cultivating this great science. It is, however, s pity that economic works have not escaped the merciless ravages of time, and therefore only s scanty knowledge of economic subjects here and there in various reader has been convinced economic literature in ancient these pages has been fulfilled, great effort may be made to build up Hindu economies from scattered passages which lie embedded in the thick crust of the voluminous Sanskrit literature. lies scattered Sanskrit books. If the of the existence of vast India, the object of and we trust that a Tory of Prie With this introduction we will immediately address ourselves to the details of economic theories developed by Sukra, with occasional reference to Kautilya's tlulutra. It is indeed a pity that the details of the development of Indian economic thought have been lost for ever, should have been-handed that no systematic down to us, should treatise and' that we superstructures should have been obliged to build from incidental allusions scattered in a few important works. Yet it may be said without any fear of contra- Sukra has anticipated many modern several things of fundamental import- generation before economists were their opinions regarding the real diction thst economists in ante. While a sharply divided in