THIS work is an abridgment of the Khulásatu-t Tawáríkh, by Umráo Singh, of Benares, continued down to the accession of Muhammad Akbar II., or rather to the appointment of Sir E. Colebrooke as one of the Commissioners of the “Ceded and Con­quered Provinces,” an era of importance to the author, as he seems to have been employed by the British Government in the Revenue Department. The work opens in a manner which would lead us to suppose it the production of a Musulmán rather than a Hindú.

The Zubdatu-l Akhbár is divided into seven Books, of which the first five are abstracted from the Khulásatu-t Tawáríkh, a portion of his labour which the author tells us occupied him fifteen days. He also informs us that he was fond of studying history, and reading Arabic and Persian works, and was seldom engaged except in these agreeable occupations. One day, after reading the Khulásatu-t Tawáríkh, it came into his head that he would abridge that work, because he found it tedious to peruse so long a history, which was comprised in 656 pages, each num­bering 20 lines, and he wishes to save others the trouble he had experienced in turning over so many leaves.