18 SEPTEMBER 1886, Page 23

A Sketch of the History of Hindustdn. By H. G.

Keene. (W. H. Allen and Co.)—This sketch of the history of Hindustan, from the first Moslem conquest in 1525, to the fall of the Mogul Empire in 1802, should do much to increase our knowledge of the past of our great Eastern Dependency. Even the most superficial reader of this volume cannot fail to be convinced that the British supremacy is a great benefit to India. Under its very best native rulers, the country was constantly devastated by rebellions and wars, and taxa- tion was heavy to an extent which dwellers in European countries can hardly realise. Afghanistan seems to have always occupied a large share of the attention of the rulers of India, and there is much in this book which points to the vast importance of strengthening our North-Western Frontier. So far as we have been able to dis- cover, Mr. Keene is an accurate chronicler, and he writes in an easy, unpretending style. We fear that Eastern history will never be very popular with general readers; but those who take the trouble to peruse Mr. Keene's pages will be amply rewarded for their pains.