Page:Madras Journal of Literature and Science, series 1, volume 6 (1837).djvu/164

142 may be laid down, and the survey thus carried on without losing time in climbing hills, and the district may be sketched in while proceeding from camp to camp. After the detail has been completed, another observation for the latitude at the extreme of the survey in latitude, will give the difference of latitude between the last station and A, with an error of not more than 1000 feet at the utmost, and then from comparing the true difference of latitude with the computed difference from the assumed base, the true length of the sides of the triangles and the base may be found, without the trouble of measuring a base, even if a piece of ground to measure it on could be found in such a country.

The Editor of the Madras Journal of Literature and Science has been so kind as to refer No. 6 of the Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society to me, with a special indication to articles and, affording me the opportunity of adding any remark respecting them. For this polite and gentlemanly mode of proceeding I feel deeply obliged, while I judge it to be expedient to avail myself of the privilege so accorded. It has also yielded me no small measure of satisfaction to find that any imperfect labours of mine attracted the attention of the Boden Professor of Sanscrit at Oxford; and were honoured with any remarks, in the way of discussion, from one so profoundly versed in the ancient classical language and history of the more northern portion of India. In the two volumes of Translations to which his observations refer, I am fully persuaded that there are so many indications of my very respectful esteem for that learned individual as not to need any laboured reiteration in this place: but I may express some regret, that, in cases wherein I somewhat differed from his conclusions, I had not more scrupulously weighed the exact force of every word, not merely as it would bear on the impressions of others, for they would readily perceive the respect which pervaded the writer's mind; but also as it might influence the person whose deductions were immediately concerned. The Professor will, I trust, pardon me any error, or indiscretion, or want of caution, of this kind, if it occurred, as possibly it may have dose; and will in re-