Description of GILSTON HOUSE. GILSTON HOUSE is situated on the rising ground immediately above Largo Bay in Fifeshire. It was built a few years ago by Colonel Dewar, the present' proprietor, who has greatly improved and beautified a considerable property in this district. The House stands in a most Commanding situation, and enjoys an death of Dr Murray, I beg leave to be considered as a candidate for the Chair. I am, MY LORD, Most obedient humble Servant, WM. PRICE. To the Right Honourable the Lord Provost of Edinburgh. uncommonly fine prospect of the Frith Letter, Professor THOMAS BROWN to of Forth, and the Lothians. Letters on the Subject of the Election of a PROFESSOR of HEBREW and ORIENTAL Languages in the University of EDINBURGH. the LORD PROVOST. 79 Prince's Street, May 17th 1813. MY LORD, I little thought, that almost immediately after addressing to your Lordship a letter from one candidate for the vacant chair, with the testimonials that accompanied it, I should so soon have the pleasure of introducing Letter, Mr W. PRICE to the LORD to your Lordship another candidate, PROVOST. Merriman Lodge, near Worcester, MY LORD, FINDING the Professorship of Oriental Languages is become vacant in the University of Edinburgh, by the great loss it has sustained in the of qualifications so transcendent as those of Mr Price. His wonderful acquirements in Oriental Literature, and his great merits in every respect, which were such as to obtain for him a distin guished and most confidential situation in the late embassy to Persia, are, I believe, already known to your Lordship and the Council; and I therefore regret the less, that the very short interval left to him, after hearing of the vacancy and the day of the intended election, has not allowed him an opportunity of procuring testimonials from any of his eminent friends. But the narrative published by the Bishop of St David's may, I conceive, supersede all necessity of these. It would indeed be gratifying to every one who wishes well to Oriental Literature, if there were another candidate on the field, who could procure evidence of equal attainments, and to whom therefore we might look with equal expectation for the future. In the letter, which inclosed that now transmitted by me to your Lordship, Mr Price has favoured me with a short notice of the different places at which he had an opportunity of making any observations, in his expedition with the embassy; and as the perusal of it may be gratifying to your Lordship and the Council, I have great pleasure in enclosing an extract. Your Lordship cannot fail to be struck with one passage, which shews the importance of a residence in Persia, for acquiring the genuine language of the country, so different from what is spoken as Persic in Hindostan; and as the kingdom of Persia is likely to be soon open to our commerce, I need not remark how important to all those who are to visit it, must be the advantage, which the lessons of such a teacher as Mr Price, would afford them, of acquiring a correct knowledge of the language as spoken in the country. For the truth of Mr Price's remark on this subject, I have the additional authority of my ingenious and accomplished friend Mr Jukes, who was seven years in Persia, attached to our different embassies, and who speaks the language like a native. It is not many months, my Lord, since I had the honour of recommend. ing Dr Murray as a candidate for the Chair, which his own death has now unfortunately once more made vacant. It was no slight happiness to me to enjoy his friendship; and, in the sorrow which I feel for the loss of my illustrious colleague, it will be some consolation to me, if I shall have contributed, through the patronage of your Lordship and Council, to procure for him a successor worthy of prosecuting that noble career, from which he was so soon snatched away. To have recommended two such candidates as Dr Murray and Mr Price, is one of the proudest distinctions of my life, second only to the noble satisfaction, which many members of the present Council may feel, of having given, as patrons, two such Prefessors to the University. I have the honour to be, &c. To the Right Honourable Extract, Letter, MR W. PRICE to DR THOMAS BROWN, dated Worcester, 11th May 1813. His Excellency Sir Gore Ousley, Bart. being appointed Ambassador Extraordinary to the Court of Persia, proposed to me, if I had any inclination, to visit that country, as a more favourable opportunity might never occur than the one which was about to take place. I soon decided, and prepared for the voyage, in capacity of Acting Secretary of Embassy. We sailed from Spithead the 18th July 1810, on board H. M. ship Lion.29. Touched at Madeira.-Sept. 14. Anchored at Rio Janeiro.-Dec. 19. Landed at Pointe de Galle in Ceylon.-29. Touched at Cochin.-Jan. 12. 1811. Arrived at Bombay.March 1. Reached Busheher, one of the the depredations of the Kurds.-25. Arrived at the city of Arzeroom.Aug. 11. Arrived at Jocat, where great numbers were dying of the plague, which had spread itself general between this and Constantinople. the chief ports in the Persian Gulf. There we were encamped on a sandy plain, near the town, till the 27th, when we commenced our march, which, great part of the way, was over stupendous mountains, as far as Shiraz, which we reached on the 8th-21. Arrived at Tossia.-27. At April, and remained there till the 9th Boli.-Sept. 2. Arrived at ConstanJuly, when we continued our journey tinople, where we were entertained towards the Persian capital.-11. by his Excellency Mr Liston till Arrived at Persepolis, where we spent the 14th, when we embarked on board some days among these noble ruins, of a Greek vessel, and, crossing the and arrived at Ispahan on the 19th, sea of Marmor, landed the next day where we continued till the 21st Oc- at Maly, and, proceeding over land, tober, when we proceeded on our arrived at Smyrna on the 21st, where way, and arrived at Tehran the seat we remained at the English consul's of government, on the 9th of No- (Mr Weir) till the 27th, when we vember. We were conducted to a embarked on board H. M. ship Salhouse belonging to Ammin Addow- sette.-28. Touched at Scio.-Oct. lah, one of the ministers, till another 5. Passed Malta.-9. Sardinia.-10. was prepared for us, belonging to Touched at Mahon.-12. Arrived the King. Thus having effected the at the fleet off Toulon.-21. Landed chief objects I had in view, which at Alicant.-31. Touched at Tetuan. were, to take sketches of every thing -Nov. 1. Anchored at Gibraltar.-remarkable; to make myself acquain- 16. Landed at Portsmouth. ted with the manners, customs, religious ceremonies, dialects, &c. &c. of the fire-worshippers, or ancient Persians, as well as those of the wandering tribes and the regular Persians, I obtained leave of Sir Gore, after the conclusion of the definitive treaty, to accompany it to England.-May 25, 1812. The embassy left Tehran, and arrived at Tebriz the 19th June, where we remained till the 1st July, when Sir William Ouseley and myself, after taking leave of Sir Gore, set out with the treaty, on our way to England, bringing with us horses and other presents from the King of Persia for the Prince Regent.-11. Arrived at Erivan, situated near the foot of Mount Ararat, where we passed a few days at the Governor's, made some stay at Euch Eclesia, Nakhshivan, and other places renowned in ancient history, and arrived at Kars on the 18th. After a few days stay here, the Pasha supplied us with a guard to conduct us through some extensive forests, and to secure us against This Sir, will account for my not having made any translations of consequence since my departure from England: it is true, I have a few works by me in M.S. which I translated some years ago; and of which, probably, on looking over them, I should now discover some passages which would strike me in a different sense, since my becoming more familiar with the manners of the people; the allusions to which are generally found the most difficult part of the Oriental Languages. In short, the Persians may be said to use two languages, a written language, and a colfoquial one; the latter differing very much from the former. Sir William Jones has treated very ably on the Persian, according to the old standard; but there is not a work in existence, (that I ever heard of,) which can assist a person in the modern Persian, either in idiomatic phrases, or even pronunciation. A person who has been taught Persian in India, on entering Persia, is either not un der |