It is unnecessary to proceed with a minute chronologi cal enumeration of Sir William's various occupations dur ing the remainder of his residence in India. We must not, how ever, omit to mention the great design, so long employed his hours of leisure, of compiling a digest of Indian law, especially of the laws relating to contracts and succession, with the view of conferring greater se curity on the property of the natives. Having obtained the sanction of government, he entered upon the execu tion of this great work before he had resided four years and an half in the country. Other pursuits, at the same time, occupied a considerable share of his attention. In the beginning of 1789, the Calcutta Society published the first volume of their Researches ; and the indefatigable president, besides supplying about a third of the contents of the volume, undertook the laborious office of selecting the papers, and superintending the printing. In the same year he presented the public with a translation of Se contala, or the Fatal Ring, an ancient Indian drama, by Calidss.
In the mean time, the delicate constitution of Lady Jones had suffered much from repeated attacks, and a change of climate had long been prescribed by the physicians, as the only expedient to preserve her life. Sir William's engage ment to translate the Digest of Hindu and Mahommedan Laws was an insuperable obstacle to his accompanying her to England ; and she was, at length, reluctantly prevailed upon to undertake the voyage without his society. The ship, in which she embal ked, sailed from Calcutta in December 1793 ; and Sir William proposed to follow her in the ensuing season.
In the beginning of 1794, he published a translation of the Ordinances of tllenu, containing the Hindu system of duties, religious and civil. This proved to be the last of his labours: for the useful life of this eminent scholar was now drawing to a close. In the month of April 1794, he was attacked by an inflammation of the liver, which, with a progress uncommonly rapid, terminated fatally in the course of seven days. He expired on the 27th of April, 1794. The funeral ceremony was performed on the fol lowing day, with the honours due to his public station ; and the numerous attendance of the most respectable British in habitants of Calcutta evinced their sorrow for his loss, and their respect for his memory. His death, indeed, was uni versally lamented, both at home and abroad. A society of gentlemen in Bengal, who had received their educa tion at Oxford, subscribed a sum to be presented, as a prize, to the student at that university, who should compose the best dissertation on Sir William's character and merits. The premium was adjudged to Henry Philpotts, A. NI. Fellow of Magdalen College. By an unanimous vote of the East India Directors, a characteristic monument to the memory of a public functionary, who had so many claims to distinction, was erected in St. Paul's Cathedral; and a statue of the great orientalist, from the hands of a Bri tish artist, has likewise been placed in a conspicuous situa tion in Bengal. As a memorial of her affection and esteem,
Lady Jones employed Flaxman to erect, in the anticham her of University College, Oxford, an elegant monument, with a suitable inscription, to the memory of her husband ; and, at the same time, fixed his reputation on a solid and du •able basis, by presenting the public with a complete edition of his works in six volumes quarto. His life has been written with accuracy and elegance by his friend, Lord Teignmouth.
After the foregoing sketch of the life and pursuits of Sir William Jones, it is unnecessary to expatiate on his cha racter; in which we cannot fail to perceive a rare union of the attainments of a scholar, the accomplishments ofa gen tleman, and the principles and conduct of a Christian. As a linguist, his acquisitions are perhaps unparalleled. His knowledge of Greek and Roman literature was extensive and profound ; and in the universality of his attainments as a philologer, he had no rival. He wrote nench with the correctness and elegance or a native ; and he under stood, more or less perfectly, no less than eight•and-twen ty different dialects. His poetical productions exhibit no ordinary portion of vigour and elegance; and his transla tions from the oriental poets are peculiarly happy. Al though a great share of his attention appears to have been devoted to philological pursuits, yet he successfully culti vated general science, without neglecting the studies pecu liar to his profession. His botanical, philosophical, and chronological disquisitions, together with his historical re searches, are rendered uncommonly interesting by the no velty, depth, or importance of the knowledge they display, as well as by the elegant diction in which his information is conveyed to the reader ; and his legal tracts sufficiently evince his laborious study of the principlesofjurisprudence, and his intimate acquaintance with the laws and institutions of his native country. His works attest, at once, the depth and the variety of his acquirements. To him our Indian em pire is deeply indebted for the zeal he displayed in explor ing its learning, laws, and manners ; for kindling that spirit of research which has since produced such successful re sults ; and for his laborious exertions to secure the proper ty and promote the comfort of the native inhabitants, by dispensing justice according to the principles of their own established laws and usages. It is certainly a matter of great regret, that Sir William Jones did not live to trans late the digest of Hindu law, on the compilation of which he had bestowed so much time and attention. This labori ous work, however, has been undertaken and completed by Mr. H. T. Colebrooke, in a manner which does the highest credit to his talents and industry. See The Works of Sir William Jones ; and Memoirs of the Life, Writings, and Correspondence, of Sir William Jones, by Lord Teign mou t h. (z)