British Beginnings in Western India, 1579-1657. By H. G. Rawlinson.
(Clarendon Press. 10s. 6d. net.)—This is ascholarly account of the early history of the British factory of Surat, which was virtually founded by William Hawkins for the East India Company by 1612, and was more or less clearly recognized by Jahangir at the instance of Sir Thomas Roe. Surat was the chief Mogul port, but it was not a comfortable place of residence for the English merchants who were troubled both by the greed of the native governors and by the open hostility of the Portu- guese. Mr. Rawlinson devotes an interesting chapter to the Portuguese War, which was not wholly one-sided, even after Portugal lost Ormuz in 1621. The first Dutch war of 1652 had its counterpart in the East, where the English were very badly led at sea and suffered in their prestige. Mr. Rawlinson has a keen eye for picturesque details. The great Emperor Jahangir who ruled all India was so much pleased with a small whistle of gold set with rubies, given to him by one of the Company's servants, that he " whistled therewith almost an hour." We are reminded, too, of Tom Coryat, author and buffoon, who caused so much annoyance to Sir Thomas Roe. His great feat was to talk down "a loquacious washerwoman, the terror of Roe's entourage, completely silencing her by eight in the morning ! " The book is illustrated with a number of photographs of old Surat.
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