ve at roots, and what
a time and what an effort must have been required for their
elaboration, and for the elaboration of the ideas expressed in them.

Our battles waxed sometimes very fierce, but we generally ended by
arriving at an understanding. As a young man, Bunsen had clearly
perceived the importance of the Veda for an historical study of
mankind and the growth of the human mind, but he was not discouraged
when he saw that it gave us less than had been expected. "It is a
fortress," he used to say, "that must be besieged and taken, it cannot
be left in our rear." But he little knew how much time it would take
to approach it, to surround it, and at last to take it. It has not
been surrendered even now, and will not be in my time. It is true
there are several translations of the whole of the Rig-veda, and their
authors deserve the highest credit for what they have done. People
have wondered why I have not given one of them in my Sacred Books of
the East. I thought it was more honest to give, in co-operation with
Oldenburg, specimens only in vols. xxxii and xlvi of that series, and
let it be seen in the notes how much uncertainty there still is, and
how much more of hard work is required, before we can call ourselves
masters of the old Vedic fortress.

Bunsen's interest in my work, however, took a more practical turn than
mere encouragement. It was no good encouraging me to copy and collate
Sanskrit MSS. if they were not to be published. He saw that the East
India Company were the proper body to undertake that work. Bunsen's
name was a power in England, and his patronage was the very best
introduction that I could have had. It was no easy task to persuade
the Board of Directors--all strictly practical and commercial men--to
authorize so considerable an expenditure, merely to edit and print an
old book that none of them could understand, and many of them had
perhaps never even heard of. Bunsen pointed out what a disgrace it
would be to them, if some other country than England published this
edition of the Sacred Books of the Brahmans.

Professor Wilson, Librarian of the Company, also gave my project his
support, and at last, not quite a year after my arrival in England,
after a long struggle and many fears of failure, it was settled that
the East India Company were to bear the cost of printing the Veda, and
were meanwhile to enable me to stay in London, and prepare my work for
press.

I had already been working f