HITTITE REMAINS.—Archæology does not only solve problems, but frequently raises new ones. Such a new problem is that of the Hittites. During the past fifteen years, a large series of monuments, many of them sculptured on rocks, have been found in various parts of Asia Minor, from the district of Lake Van almost to the Mediterranean coast, and notably at Hamath, on the Orontes. They all betray the same art, and are accompanied by inscriptions in characters to which the name Hittite has been given. It is to be borne in mind that this term Hittite is to a large extent a conventional one, covering a series of peoples that may have belonged to different races. We hear of these Hittites in the Asiatic campaigns of Egyptian kings from the seventeenth century B. C. down to 1400 B. C. Establishing an empire on the Orontes, they gave the Assyrians a great deal of trouble, and it was not until the end of the eighth century that they were finally conquered. Though we know a good deal of the history of these Hittites from the records of Egyptians, Babylonians, and Assyrians, their origin remains wrapped in obscurity. The Hittite characters have not yet been deciphered, although various attempts of interpreters have been made. The last of these is that of Professor Peter Jensen, of the University of Marburg, who believes that the Hittite language is a prototype of the modern Armenian. Although a number of prominent scholars have acknowledged their acceptance of the Jensen system, it cannot be said as yet to have been definitely established, nor is it likely that a satisfactory key will be found until a large bilingual inscription containing a record in Hittite characters with a translation, perhaps, in Assyrian or Aramaic, shall have been found. Such a find may be expected at any moment. Meanwhile, it may be said that from an ethnological point of view, it seems more plausible to regard the Hittites as a part of the Turanian stock rather than belonging to the Aryan or Semitic races. The exploration of India, China, and Japan can scarcely be said to have more than begun. The notable series of inscriptions that recall the period of Indian history connected with Acoka may be regarded as a specimen of what we may expect when once those distant lands are as thoroughly explored as the countries situated around the Mediterranean sea. [Illustration: HITTITE INSCRIPTION FROM JERABIS.]