. As for ourselves, we were differently situated.
We were helped by a whole society of educated Hindus, who were as deeply
interested in the same questions as ourselves. Besides, we had a promise
of the revelation of some secrets, and the accurate translation of some
ancient chronicles, that had been preserved as if by a miracle.

The history of India has long since faded from the memories of her sons,
and is still a mystery to her conquerors. Doubtless it still exists,
though, perchance, only partly, in manuscripts that are jealously
concealed from every European eye. This has been shown by some
pregnant words, spoken by Brahmans on their rare occasions of friendly
expansiveness. Thus, Colonel Tod, whom I have already quoted several
times, is said to have been told by a Mahant, the chief of an ancient
pagoda-monastery: "Sahib, you lose your time in vain researches. The
Bellati India [India of foreigners] is before you, but you will
never see the Gupta India [secret India]. We are the guardians of her
mysteries, and would rather cut out each other's tongues than speak."

Yet, nevertheless, Tod succeeded in learning a good deal. It must be
borne in mind that no Englishman has ever been loved so well by the
natives as this old and courageous friend of the Maharana of Oodeypur,
who, in his turn, was so friendly towards the natives that the humblest
of them never saw a trace of contempt in his demeanour. He wrote before
ethnology had reached its present stage of development, but his book
is still an authority on everything concerning Rajistan. Though the
author's opinion of his work was not very high, though he stated that
"it is nothing but a conscientious collection of materials for a future
historian," still in this book is to be found many a thing undreamed of
by any British civil servant.

"Let our friends smile incredulously. Let our enemies laugh at our
pretensions to penetrate the world-mysteries of Aryavarta," as a certain
critic recently expressed himself. However pessimistic may be our
critics' views, yet, even in the event of our conclusions not proving
more trustworthy than those of Fergusson, Wilson, Wheeler, and the rest
of the archeologists and Sanskritists who have written about India,
still, I hope, they will not be less susceptible of proof. We are daily
reminded that, like unreasonable children, we have undertaken a task
before which archaeologists and historians, aided by all the influence
and wealth