The coadjutors were engaged in this work for many months in addition to their ordinary official duties. “This important work,” writes Col. Gurdon, “occupied us for many months and ৪ave us plenty to do, the revision and editing being undertaken by both of us in addition to our ordinary duties. while engaged, Hem Gosain and I were naturally much thrown together, and many were the talks we had over the antiquity and beauty of the Assamese language and Assam historical research.” Hemchandra was entrusted with the editing of the vernacular portion of the work, and the fact that Hemakosha has served as the only authority for the spelling and meaning of Assamese words during the spade of nearly thirty fears since its publication in 1900 pays 8 glowing tribute to the careful compilation and editing respectively of the earlier and the later Hemchandra.
Darrang-raj-vamsawali—This is a metrical chronicle of the descendants of Biswa Singha, the founder of the Koch dynasty, who established themselves as rulers in Cooch-Behar, Bijni, Darang and Beltola. The book was composed by Suryyakhari Daibajna during the latter part of the eighteenth century under the patronage of Samudranarayan, Raja of Darrang. The original manuscript embellished with copious illustrations was examined by Mr. Gait who wrote an account in the Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal for 1898. Mr. Goswami recovered the book in 1912 from Kumar Khagen- dranarayan of the now faineant Darrang Raj family. The book was edited by Mr. Goswami and published by the Assam Government in 1917. The language of the book is refined and artistic, and the handling of the materials systematic and picturesque. Apart from the general history of the Koch rulers down to Balinarayan, alias Dharmanarayan, brother of Parikshit, grandson of Cilarai, the interest of the book centers round the vigorous description of the victorious expedition of Sukladhwaja or Cilarai, an the construction of the Kamakhya temple at Gauhati by an architect named
