C. L.S.I. Indian Readers This Series of School Readers was compiled in 1906-7 by the Rev. Henry Gulliford, and is designed to teach the language, as far as possible, without the use of forbid- ding grammars. It is printed in clear new type on excellent paper, and very abundantly illustrated. It consists of seven books. Indian Primer I. 32 pp., Globe 8vo. Limp .\s. 3. Indian Reader II. 32 pp., Globe Svo. Limp, As. 3. The aim of these Primers is (i) to teach the letters of the Engli-sh alphabet gradually ; (2) to accustom the child to the more common sounds of English words, so that his pronunciation may be correct ; (3) to supply him with a small but useful vocabulary ; and so (4) to enable him at an early stage to use what he has learnt in conversation. No object is mentioned that is not more or less familiar to every child. Indian Reader I. 64 pp. Globe Svo. Limp, As. 4. Indian Reader II. 80 pp. Globe Svo. Limp, As. (>. Indian Reader III. 104 pp. Globe Svo. Limp, As. 8. Indian Reader IV. 160 pp. Globe Svo. Cloth boards. As. 10. Indian Reader V. 20S pp. Globe Svo. Cloth boards, As. 12. These books are designed to meet the requirements of modern educational Codes. All contain a fair amount of poetry, and great attention has been given to make the lessons not only instructive, but also interesting. The idiom of the language is carefully explained, and the lessons are made the basis of instruction in grammar, derivation, and word-building. Reader V. consists of extracts from well-known English writers. CHRISTIAN LITERATURE SOCIETY FOR INDIA. 9, Duke Street, Adelphi, London. Memorial Hall, Madras, and Dam St., Colombo. q / C.L.S.I. Grammatical Series Primer of English Grammar. Globe 8vo., 80 pp.. As. 3. A complete introduction to the study of English Grammar and idiom, and the structure and analysis of the sentence. With abundant graduated exercises. Manual of English Grammar. Globe Svc, Z2\ pp. cloth limp, As. 8. A complete handbook of English Grammar and idiom, with full chapters on word -building, the structure and analysis of the sentence, figures of speech, and punctua- tion. With Ixxviii. exercises. These two books, which have long enjoyed great popularity in India, have recently been completely re-written and made more suitable than ever for all Secondary Schools. Advanced English Grammar, for High School and University Students. Fscap. 8vo., 280 pp, cloth, As. 14. This book differs from the Manual chiefly in its more abundant exercises (with questions for self-examination) and in the fact that fuller treatment is given to the structure of the Sentence. Errors in idiom peculiar to India are pointed out and there is a chapter on Prosody. A Guide to English Spelling and Pronunciation. iSmo., 72 pp.. As. 2. The sounds of the vowels and consonants are illustrated by examples ; with general rules for spelling and lists of anomalous words. CHRISTIAN LITERATURE SOCIETY FOR INDIA, 9, Duke Street, Adelphi, London, Memorial Hall, Madras ; and Dam St., Colombo. Geography of India Physical, Political and Commercial GEORGE PATTERSON Late Prof, of Histoiy and Political Econoru}- in the Madras Christian College, and Fellow and Examiner of the University of Madras LONDON : tibe CbtlBtian Ulterature Socfctg for JnOta 35, John St., Bedford Row, W.C. 1909 [A /I Rights reieived Stack r>^- Annex Preface TN its main substance and style of treatment this book is an enlargement of the Chapter on India in my Handbook of Geography for Indian Schools and Colleges, but many subjects which it was impossible even to touch upon there are introduced here. It may be thought that I have given a somewhat wide interpretation to the term Geography, and perhaps that is so. I have not confined myself to mere topographical or physical details. Many subjects are briefly treated of which the youths who graduate from our Indian Universities are often sadly ignorant, but which it greatly concerns them to know. In the spelling of Indian proper names I have in most instances followed the revised edition of the Imperial Gazetteer of India. All political, commercial and statistical information is brought down to the end of the year 1907, and much of it to a still later date. G. P. London, ■^oth September, 1909. The two Parts of this book, Part 1, India AS A Whole, and Part II, India in Pro- vinces AND States, may be had separately, in limp cloth, price lo annas each. Contents PART I.— INDIA AS A WHOLE Chapter T. General View.. Chapter II. The Climate of India Chapter III. The People of India Chapter IV. The Natural Productions of India Chapter V. Manufactures, Communications, and Commerce Chapter VI. The Government of India PP- -47 48-63 64-81 82-110 III-T33 135-158 PART II.— INDIA IN PROVINCES AND STATES General Survey . . Bengal Eastern Bengal and Assam Nepal, Bhutan, and Sikkim United Provinces of Agra and Oudh The Punjab North-Western Frontier Province Kashmir . . Baluchistan Rajputana Central India . . Central Provinces Hyderabad Bombay Madras Travancore Mysore Burma. Foreign Possessions Appendix : List of chief Native States Index age 159 » 163 „ 184 „ 194 ,, 201 „ 217 ,, 229 „ 233 „ 236 „ 241 ,. 247 „ 255 .. 263 ,, 269 „ 281 ,. 296 ,, 299 ., 303 „ 314 „ 315 „ 319 List of Maps and Diagrams The Indian Empire, phv^^ical (coloured) . . Frontispiece The Indian Empire, political (coloured) to face page i6i Fig. I. Ocean-Depths south of Asia .. .. •• „ 3 2. Mountains branching from the Pamirs 3. The Himalayas 4. The Tibetan Plateau . . 5. The North-West Frontier Mountains 6. Mountains of the Xorth-East Frontier and Burma 7. The Great Plain and Peninsular India 8. The Indus and its Tributaries The sources of the Great Northern Rivers Basins of the Ganges and Brahmaputra The chief Rivers of the Peninsula The River Systems of Burma. . Karachi Harbour Bombay Islands and Harbour Point de Galle and Galle Bay. . The Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta The Andaman Islands. . The Mean Annual Temperature of India The Mean and Extreme Ranges of Tempera ture Mean Temperature for March, May, August and December Isobars for May Isobars for July Isobars for October Isobars for December . . ... Direction of the Monsoon Winds Average Rainfall for January, April, July and October Mean Annual Rainfall Race-distribution in India Density of population. . Languages of India Geological Outline of India . . Forest areas of India . . Areas of Rice cultivation q. 10. II. 12. 13- 14. 15- 16. 17- 18. 19. 22. 23- 24. 25- 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31- 32- 33 LIST OF MAPS AND DIAGRAMS Fig. 34. Areas of Wheat cultivation . . ,, 35. Areas of Tea, Sugar, Coffee, and Tobacco cultivation 36. Areas of Cotton cultivation . . 37. The principal Railways of India 38., The chief lines of Foreign Communication . 39. The East India House in the 17th century . 40. The Growth of the British Empire of India. 41. The Province of Bengal 42. The Province of Bengal in relief 43. Districts and States of Bengal 44. The River Hooghly 45. Government House, Calcutta 46. Temple at Bhubaneswar 47. Eastern Bengal and Assam 48. Ditto, in relief . . 49. Districts and States of ditto 50. A Buddhist Monastery 51. A Window in Benares . . 52. The United Provinces . . 53. Ditto, in relief . . 54. Districts and States of ditto 55. The City of Benares 56. The Taj Mahal, Agra . . 57. Mausoleum of Akbar, Secundra 58. The Punjab, the North- Western Frontier Province and Kashmir . . 59. Ditto, in relief . . 60. Districts and States of the Punjab 61. The Palace, Lahore 62. The Jumma Musjid, Delhi 63. Districts of the North- Western Frontier Province 64. The Bridge, Srinagar . . 65. Baluchistan and Sind . . 66. Tribesmen of the North- West Frontier 67. Rajputana Agency 68. The chief States of Rajputana 69. Rajputana and Central India in relief 70. Central India Agency . . 71. The chief States of Central India 72. Gwalior from the South-East. . page 93 LIST OF MAI'S AND DIAGRAMS 73. A Kajput Trooper 74. The Central Provinces and Berar 75. Ditto, in relief . . 76. Districts and States of the Central Provinces 77. Districts of Hyderabad 78. The Presidency of Bombay . . 79. Bombay and Sind in relief 80. Districts and States of Bombay and Sind 81. The Victoria Railway Station, Bombay 82. Monolithic Carvings in the Island of Ele phanta 83. Madras, Hyderabad and Mysore 84. Ditto, in relief . . 85. Districts of Madras and Mysore 86. Temple at MahabalipGram 87. Temple at ^ladura 88. The Pagoda, Conjeevaram 89. Trichinopoly Rock 90. A Ryot's House in Cochin 91. A Village Street in Mysore 02. The Maharaja's Palace, Bangalore 93. The Province of Burma 94. Ditto, in relief . . 95. A Group of Kachins . . 96. A Burmese Paddy Boat 97. Districts and States of Burma 98. The Incomparable Pagoda, Mandala page 254 256 259 261 267 268 271 275 277 278 282 285 290 292 293 294 295 298 300 302 305 307 308 309 3" 313 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA PART I. INDIA AS A WHOLE CHAPTER I GENERAL VIEW (i) Geographical Position 1. The great continent of Asia divides in the south into three vast peninsulas ; Arabia on the west, Indo-China on the east, and the southern half of India in the centre. India proper includes the whole of the central peninsula, and stretches northwards to the mountain ranges which separate it from Central Asia. The northern half is often called Continental India, to distinguish it from Peninsular India, the southern half. The Tropic of Cancer is, speaking roughly, the dividing line between these two. From this line Peninsular India stretches southwards for more than 15°, or over 1,000 miles ; while Continental India extends almost as far to the north. 2. The natural boundaries of India are exceedingly well defined. The peninsula is separated from Arabia by the Arabifin Sea, and from Indo-China by the Bay of Bengal. These two arms of the Indian Ocean give the peninsula a 2 GEOGRAl'HY OF INDIA coast line of nearly 3,000 miles. In the north the Hima- layas form an almost impassable barrier for 1,500 miles. On the north-west for 800 miles, and on the north-east for 400 miles are regions of more broken mountainous country stretching in ever diminishing altitudes from the extremities of the Himalayan wall to the sea. These give north-west and north-east frontiers, both of which are fairly well defined. As frontiers they are imperfect only in com- parison with the mighty mountainous ramparts which protect the north. No other country, of equal extent, not being an island, is so completely isolated as India, or forms so true a geographical unity. This fact, more than any other single cause, has moulded its destiny and guided the development of its people. 3. In strict geographical usage the name INDIA should be applied only to this well-defined geographical whole. In common use, however, a wider sense is often given to it, making it synonj^mous with The Indian Empire. The Empire of India extends beyond the natural boundaries of India proper, both on the east and the west. On the east it takes in Burma and on the west Baluchistan, both of which are frequently spoken of as provinces of India. This is convenient when political matters are under con- sideration. But it should not be forgotten that it is only politically that cither of these provinces belongs to India. In almost all the aspects with which non-political geography is concerned, both the Indo-Chinese peninsula and Baluchistan are widely different from India proper. 4. On the other hand the island of Ceylon, though politically separated from India, geographically belongs to it, being a part of the great land-mass which forms the Indian peninsula. Ceylon is a " continental island," standing on the " continental shelf." At one time the shallow strait which now separates Ceylon from the mainland did not exist ; and a very slight elevation of the bed of the strait would make it a part of south India again. In all their physical conditions Ceylon and the southern part of the peninsula arc one, though the name India is never used to include the Island Colony. SURROUNDING SEAS (2) The Indian Seas 5, The Indian peninsula is washed on the cast by the Bay of Bengal, and on the west by the Arabian Sea. If the level of these seas were reduced by but a few feet, Ceylon would be united with the mainland by a narrow isthmus. If it were reduced by 600 feet (or 100 fathoms) this isthmus would be 130 miles wide. The " hundred- Fig. I. Showing the Ocean Depths south of Asia. fathom line " is commonly taken as the boundary of the " continental shelf." The depth of the water increases slowly up to this point, and then the ocean bed drops rapidly to a depth of 1,000 fathoms or more. A glance at the map (Fig. i) will show this. Around the peninsula of India the hundred-fathom line varies in distance from the coast from about 50 miles off Madras to 300 miles off the Gulf of Cambay. Wliere the coast is rocky the ocean bed often drops to a great depth with exceeding rapidity. This is the case to the east of Ceylon, where a depth of over 1,000 fathoms is reached within 25 miles of the shore. 4 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 6. If the level of the surrounding seas were reduced by about loo fathoms the general contour of India would not be greatly changed. Ceylon would, cis we have seen, be united with the mainland, and the whole of the peninsula would be considerably increased in width, particularly in the north. The Gulfs of Cambay and Cutch would disappear. Bombay would be 250 miles from the sea, and Karachi 80 miles ; while Orissa and Chittagong would be united by land, except for one curious arm of greater depth, stretching in a north-easterly direction towards the mouth of the Ganges, which would still be claimed by the sea. But on the whole the general shape of peninsular India would be but little changed. 7. Far greater would be the changes wrought in the eastern and western peninsulas of southern Asia. In the west, the shallow Persian Gulf would be drained, and Arabia would no longer be a peninsula. In the east, Indo- China would stretch 1,000 miles south of Annam, and would take in the great islands of Sumatra, Java, Borneo, and the Celebes, which are all continental islands. The Andaman and Nicobar groups of islands would then each form one long and narrow island, and the two together would enclose between themselves and the mainland a deep and almost land-locked sea. 8. If the level of the sea were reduced by 1,000 instead of 100 fathoms, the further changes in the contour of the land would be trifling, for from 100 to 1,000 fathoms the depth increases everywhere with great rapidity. The hundred-fathom line, or the edge of the continental shelf, is thus the true continental boundary. It indicates, far more accurately than the coast line, the actual contour of the great land-mass that forms the continent. (3) The Natural Divisions of India 9. Sir William Hunter remarks that if we could view the whole of India from a balloon, we should see that it is divided into " three separate and well-defined tracts." In the north and north-west is the region of mountains, the NATURAL DIVISIONS 5 vast Himalayan range with their alUed systems. Imme- diately to the south is the almost equally vast region of plains, the soil of which has been deposited by the great rivers that drain the mountains. To the south again is the region of plateaux, which includes almost the whole of peninsular India. The plateaux are bounded by ranges of hills, broken along the north and east but more con- tinuous on the west ; and between the hills and the sea there is everywhere a narrow strip of alluvial land formed, like the great plains of the north, by the rivers that drain the higher land. To these three well-defined regions of India proper, we must now, if we speak of the Empire of India, add a fourth, viz., Burma — a region of alternate mountain ranges and valleys, with the great delta of the Irrawaddy towards the south. (4) The Himalayan Region 10. India, we are often told, is " bounded on the north by the Himalayas." But this great mountain chain is much more than a mere boundary. The vast system of highlands of which the Himalayas form the southern wall, is of such immense importance to India that it claims the most careful attention, and forms the natural starting point for any study of Indian Geography. 11, From the Pamir Plateau which lies to the north- west of Kashmir, and from its great height is appropriately called in the native language, " the roof of the world," the Hindu Kush range runs in a south-westerly direction into Afghanistan. From the same centre, but running in an east-south-easterly direction, are the Muztagh or Karako- rum Mountains, a range of great and sustained height. To the south of this range, and running at first almost parallel with it, is the western portion of the Himalayas proper. The river Indus, rising in Tibet, flows in a north-westerly direction between the Karakorum and Himalaya ranges, breaking through the Ladakh Range on its course, and then, bending sharply to the south-west, divides the western extremity of the Himalayas from the spurs of the Hindu Kush. From this point the Himalayas, there called the GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA Zaskar range, run first in a south-easterly direction, and then gradually bend round to the cast. The Brahmaputra (in the upper part of its course called the Tsan-pn) rises Fig. 2. Showing the mountain-chains o/ high elevation branching from the Paniir Piateau. near the Indus, north of the main range, and after flowing in an easterly direction for over 800 miles, rounds the eastern extremity of the Himfilayas just as the Indus rounds the western. The entire range is thus held " within the gigantic arms " of these two mighty rivers. The length of the range is about 1,500 miles, and its width from 150 to 200 miles. In parts it is flanked on its southern side by low and detached parallel ranges of hills, wholly different in geological structure and history. But in most places the main range rises from the plains with considerable abruptness. Throughout its entire length one continuous range can be traced which contains most of the loftiest peaks, more than twenty of which exceed 24,000 feet in height. 12. The most westerly peak in the Himalayas proper is Nanga Parbat, which lies just within the angle of the Indus and rises to a height of 26,020 feet. About 150 THE HIMALAYAS miles to the north-east, and at the other side of the river. Mount Godwin-Austen (28,258) second, only to Mt. Everest, dominates a magnificent group of peaks in the Karakorum Range. Nanda Devi (25,661) is in Kumaon, south of the watershed that separates the Indus and the Tsan-pu. To the west are Dhaulagiri (26,826), Gosai Than (26,300), Everest, or Gaurisankar, the highest mountain in the world (29,140), Kinchinjunga (28,i76),andChamalhari (23,929). In many re- spects Kinchinjunga is the most notable of these great mountains. It has no rival near it, so that its mighty pro- portions are well seen. From Darjeeling the view is particularly fine, and is admitted by most travellers to surpass in sublimity and grandeur anything to be seen elsewhere. 13. The passes across the Himalayas are numerous, but of com- paratively little account. Some are over 18,000 Fig. 3. The Himalayas, showing the chief peaks and passes. 8 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA feet in height. Tlic Bara Lacha and Parang-la passes cross into Kashmir from the north-west corner of the Punjab. From Kashmir one of the best roads to Uiasa is via the Pangong Lake. Most of tlie trade between Northern India and Tibet has for centuries been by these routes. In the north of Kashmir the Karakorum and Muztagh passes, which cross the Karakorums respectively east and west of Mount Godwin- Austen, have been the chief routes of the trade with Central Asia. The Niti pass is north of Nanda Devi, near the source of the Ganges, and leads from Garhwal into Tibet. The No-la pass crosses the mountains in the north of Nepal, and the Jailep-la pass is south of Chamalhari, and east of Sikkim. 14. The Himalayas are, however, only the southern wall of a great mountain system which should be studied as a whole. Branching from the northern side of the Karakorum Range are the Kwen Lun Mountains which run at first due east, then bend slightly to the north, and further east to the south again. These form the northern boundary of the Plateau of Tibet. Between them and the Himalayas the elevation nowhere falls below 12,000 feet, and the average is probably over 15,000. The length of the Plateau from east to west is 1,600 miles, and its width from north to south varies from 200 to 600 miles. Its area is nearly half a million square miles. There is no other mountain-mass in the whole world at all to compare \\-ith it. It is difficult to give any adequate idea of its size. The Alps of Central Europe do not cover one-thirtieth of its area,* and are greatly inferior in average height. Its importance to India can hardly be over-estimated. It forms a northern rampart which no enemy has ever scaled, and with its great southern buttress, the Himalayas, exerts an influence upon the climate and rainfall of India which has done much to determine the character of the country and the development of its people. 15. The main chain of the Himalayas, though of much greater average height than any other continuous chain traversing the plateau, does not constitute the water- • See a striking map on page 123 of Holdich's "India." THE TIBETAN PLATEAU Fig. 4. Showing the extent of the Tibetan Plateau. parting between India and Tibet, which is from 100 to 200 miles to the north of it. A second waU of the Himalayas has often therefore been assumed to run north of the trough of the Indus and Tsan-pu. Dr. Sven Hedin, the Swedisli traveller, claims to have traced, during his travels in Tibet in 1907-8, a continuous chain running east and west at a distance varying from 130 to 300 miles north of the Hima- layas and forming the true watershed. This range he names the Trans Himalaya. It is not, however, a part of the Himalayan system, but a more ancient range, and though it forms the watershed it does not rival the Hima- lO GEOGRAPHY OF INOIA layas in hci,i,'lit. Geological evidence shows that the general lines of drainage as they exist to-day were estab- lished long before the upheaval of the main Himalayan range, and that the process of upheaval was slow enough for the rivers to maintain their ancient channels by their own erosive power. This is seen most clearly in Nepal, where the drainage is not to the Tsan-pu in the north, but southward through deep gorges in the vast Himalayan chain, gorges which the streams themselves have cut. 16. Geological evidence also shows that the eastern Himalayas are far more ancient than the western, but the entire range is young in comparison with the Aravallis or the Eastern Ghats, both of which are of great geological antiquity. There was, doubtless, a time in very remote geological ages when what now forms the Indian peninsula was joined to South Africa by a broad stretch of land, of which we still have remnants in the Maldives, the Laccadives, the Seychelles, and Madagascar. In those early days the Eastern Ghats constituted the eastern boundary of the land, while the Aravallis bounded it on the west. Long ages of erosion have worn these two ranges down till they are now, probably, but a shadow of what they once were. At that time the Aravalli peaks looked out over a vast north-western sea, which appears to have been entirely cut off from the southern ocean. The rocks which now compose the mountain systems west and north of the Indus, as well as most of the great Tibetan Plateau, were then being slowly formed at the bed of the sea. There is also abundant evidence that in subsequent ages thev were repeatedly thrust upwards and again submerged, existing alternately as dry land and sea bed, until the final upheaval began which slowly raised them to their present altitudes. 17. The Eastern Ghats were apparently also at one period connected by an unbroken chain of hills with the eastern Himalayas, a connection which continued till a comparatively recent geological age. The whole southern drainage of the Himalayas consequently, being cut off from the eastern seas, found its wav across the continent NORTH-WEST FRONTIER II and reached the sea by the Indus valley. The gradual subsidence of a vast tract, including probably the whole of Bengal as well as a long stretch to the west, established an easterly drainage and diverted the Himalayan rivers to the Bay of Bengal. But that the main drainage of the Himalayas has from the very earliest ages been towards the south is clearly shown by the character of the beds that form the Siwaliks and other parts of the sub- Himalayan range of hills. These are all composed of fresh water deposits, which were laid down by the age-long action of rivers that drained the adjacent mountains, and then thrust upwards by much later earth-movements. (5) Mountains of the North-West i8. Jnst as on the north the Himalayas separate India from the Plateau of Tibet, so on the north-west lower and more irregular ranges separate it from the great Plateau of Iran, which includes almost the whole of Afghanistan, Baluchistan, and Persia. The Iranian Plateau is of much inferior altitude to the Tibetan, varying from 3,000 to 5,000 feet above sea level. It is also more broken by mountains, and in the centre contains a large oval depres- sion, the inland basin of the Helmandj a desert tract with an average elevation of about 1,500 feet. The ranges that divide 'the plateau from India run almost parallel to the river Indus, and from 50 to 150 miles west of it. They are broken and irregular, fairly high in the north, but decreasing in altitude as they approach the sea. 19. From the Pamir Plateau the Hindu Kush, a fiat- backed ridge of great elevation runs in a south-westerly direction, forming the watershed between the systems of the Indus and the Oxus. Branching from the Hindu Kush the short but lofty Safed Koh range runs in an easterly direction south of the Kabul river. From this range rugged and broken extensions stretch south as far as the river Gomal. South of the Gomal are the Sulaiman Moun- tains running north and south, of lower elevation, but culminating in the north in the lofty peak of Takht-i- Sulaiman, over 11,000 feet high. Towards the south the 12 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA folds of the Sulaimans open out, and, in steadily decreasing altitudes, bend round to the west. Further to the south again, and further west, are a number of still lower ranges, running in almost parallel ridges at first in a southerly direction, and then, like the Sulaimans, bending gradually round to the west. The most easterly of these, the Khirthar range, maintains its southern direction almost to the sea. 20. These various mountain ranges form the natural north-west frontier of India proper. The frontier line, as in the old Sikh days, is the extreme limit of cultivation on the eastern slopes. Theoretically this is still the boundary of British India. But partly for the sake of frontier defence, and partly to bring under effective control the turbulent mountain tribes that were a constant menace to the frontier provinces and trans-frontier trade, British influence has been steadily pushed beyond the frontier. The North Western Frontier Province lies chiefly, and Baluchistan wholly beyond it. But even the latter is now practically within the boundaries of the Empire. 21. Across this frontier, which extends for nearly 850 miles, numerous passes over the mountains provide gate- ways between India on the east and Afghanistan and Baluchistan on the west. The passes across the Himalayas into Tibet are of comparatively little moment, being only the laborious routes of a small and uncertain trade. Very different is it with the passes across the North West Frontier. Every invading host that has ever penetrated into India by land has forced its way through one or other of these north- western passes. Through one or other of them also each of the successive swarms of immigrants who have helped to people India have found their way into the northern plains. As trade routes the north-western passes are greatly more valuable than those of the Himfdayas ; but their chief importance lies in the fact that most of tliem are possible military roads (or might easily be made such) through which an invading foe might again force his way. The safety of India on the north-west is only secured by the strength with which the passes are held. NORTH-WEST FRONTIER 13 ^.;^l 4 fed^G ELEVATIONS Over 10,000 feet |^|^| 7,000 to 10.000 lljiJ-iliiiilil 4,000 to 7,000 2.000 to 4.000 Under 2.000 English Miles 60 100 160 200 Fig. 5. The North Western Frontier Mountains from the sea to the Pamirs. 14 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 22.^Until comparatively recent years almost all the passes that were regarded as of primary importance were situated to the south of the Kabul river. But now those which give communication between India and Central Asia via Chitral are receiving almost greater attention than any others. These are the Malakand Pass in the east of Chitral, and the Barogil and Dorah passes over the Hindu Kush. The present importance of these passes is due to the fact that they are within loo miles of the nearest Russian outpost. To the south of the Kabul River the most important of the passes are the Khyber, the Kuram, the Tochi, the Gomal, and the Bolan. 23. The Khyber Pass is over the eastern spurs of the Safed Koh, twenty-five miles west of Peshawar, on the road which leads from Peshawar to Kabul. This is by far the most important line of communication between India and Afghanistan. It is an important trade route and a still more important military highway. A portion of the Khyber route west of the pass is along the valley of the Kabul, but the pass itself is considerably south of the river, as in the eastern part of its course the Kabul river flows through impassable gorges. The Kuram Pass is on another route to Kabul by the valley of the Kuram river. The pass itself crosses the western spurs of the Safed Koh at a height of nearly 12,000 feet. The Tochi Pass is on the road from Bannu to Ghazni, once the capital of Afghanistan. The road follows the valley of the Tochi, a tributary of the Kuram, and then crosses the mountains south-east of Ghazni at a height of 11,500 feet. The Gomal Pass is 30 miles north of Takht-i-Sulaiman on the road passing up the valley of the Gomal to the plateau of Afghanistan. The Gomal marks the boundary between Afghanistan and Baluchistan. The Gomal Pass is the oldest of all the l)asses, and has for many centuries been the route by which the caravan trade from Persia through tlie valley of the Helmand has reached India. The Bolan Pass, which lies to the west of the southern Sulaimans, is now traversed by a railway which connects Quctta with India, and runs beyond Quetta to the frontier of Afghanistan. NORTH-EASTERN FRONTIER I5 (6) The North-Eastern Frontier and the Mountains of Burma 24. The eastern extremity of the great Himalayan wall is, like the western, flanked by a series of lower chains running for the most part in a southerly or south-westerly direction. To the north-east of the bend of the Brama- putra these ridges are arranged in almost concentric arcs curving round to the south, and the inner one to the south- west. Geologically they are of much later formation than the Himalayas, and their upheaval diverted the Brahma- putra from its original course to the east and turned its enriching flood into Assam and Bengal. These ranges form an effective boundary to Eastern Bengal and Assam, and constitute the natural north-eastern frontier of India proper. This frontier is, however, of little importance compared to the north-western. In the past there has been considerable Mongolian immigration into India across the mountain barriers, but India has been peopled almost exclusively from the west. And though the Burmese have occasionally raided parts of Assam, no great conquering host has ever penetrated into India on this side. Now that Burma is a Province of the Empire, the geographical frontier is no longer of imperial, but only of provincial, moment. But it nevertheless separates two parts of the Empire that are widely and essentially different. 25. Three main chains can be traced, which start from the bend of the Brahmaputra and continue their coiirse tar to the south. The chain nearest to the river bends sharply to the south-west and under the name Patkai Hills shuts in the Brahmaputra valley on the south. The Naga and Lushai Hills continue the chain, bending gradually to the south again. From the Nagas, but separated from them by a narrow valley, the Khasi Hills stretch in a westerly direction into Bengal. South of the Lushais the main range takes a south-south-easterly course, and is then known as the Arakan Yoma. It becomes narrower and lower as it passes south and bends slightly to the west again. At Cape Negrais it dips into the sea, and continues i6 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA as a well-defined submerged range for over 500 miles, cropping up at the Coco, Andaman, and Nicobar Islands, and finally emerging as the island of Sumatra. The second main chain runs south from the northern highlands, marking the watershed between the Irrawaddy and the Sal win. East of Bhamo it spreads out into a broad belt of highlands, known as the Kachin Hills in the north and the Karenni Hills in the south. Further south it narrows into the Poung-loung range which divides the Sittang basin from that of the Sal win. Between these two main ranges in the south is a short and low range, known as the Pegu Yoma, It divides tlie basins of the Irrawaddy and the Sittang, but is nowhere over 2,000 feet in height. The third main range, the Tanen- Taung - Gyi Mountains, bounds the Salwin basin on the east. It maintains a lofty elevation further south than either of the other ranges, and, as the Tenasserim Yoma, runs down the narrow arm of the peninsula, as far as Cape Victoria. These three Yomas, or ridges, give a configuration to Lower Burma totally different from anything to be found in India. They are all fairly regular and continuous, decreasing in elevation towards the south. They divide the country into narrow valleys along which the rivers take almost parallel courses to the sea. Fig. 6. The Mountains of the N.E. Frontier ar.d Burma. Showing the main lines of elevation irrespective of height. THE GREAT PLAIN ly (7) The Indo-Gangetic Plain 26. Immediately south of the great mountain wall, the general curves of which it closely follows, lies the great plain of the Indus and the Ganges. The drop from the high ranges to the plain is made with comparative abrupt- ness, and then the plain extends southwards, with a width varying from 100 to 300 miles, till it meets the broken highlands that form the northern boundary of the Deccan. The plain is entirely alluvial, being formed of the silt brought down by the great rivers which traverse it. The thickness of the alluvial deposit does not appear to be anywhere less than 600 feet, and in the delta of the Ganges there is reason to believe that it is three times this thick- ness. Geologically the plain is older than the Himalayas. There are also many indications that the plain has been subjected to steady depression, acting slowly through long ages. Geologists believe that the great forces that up- heaved the Himalayas also reduced the level of the plain, and that the two processes went on together, both being parts of the same great earth-movement. The eastern part of the plain was in later ages subjected to a further depression. Originally the entire plain sloped towards the west, and the whole drainage was, as we have seen, into the Arabian Sea. The later subsidence of the eastern part of the plain changed the course of the rivers, and for ages the entire drainage from the Jumna eastwards has been to the Bay of Bengal. 27. The area of the plain is about 300,000 square miles. It includes almost the whole of the basins of the Indus and Ganges, and thus stretches without a break from the Arabian Sea to the Bay of Bengal. The watershed between these two basins is slightly to the west of the city of Delhi, where the plain reaches its greatest height, 924 feet above sea-level. From that point to the mouth of the Indus is 850 miles, and to the mouth of the Ganges 1,050 miles. The slope towards the sea is thus extremely gentle on both sides, and the rivers consequently flow slowly, depositing their silt as they go. The northern and eastern portion i8 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA of this great plain is the most fertile and populous part of India. The rainfall, especially towards the east, is ample, and the river deposits greatly enrich the soil. In the east of the plain the Brahmaputra mingles its waters with those Fig. 7. The Great Plain and Peninsular India. of the Ganges, and it has been estimated that the two rivers bring down annually more than 40,000 million cubic feet of solid matter to enlarge and enrich tlieir common THE INDIAN PENINSULA I9 delta. In the west a large part of the plain — that lying south-east of the Indus and at a little distance from the river — is comparatively barren. The soil is sandy and the rainfall scanty. From 50 to 80 miles east of the Indus the waters of the river are made available, either by irrigation works or by the annual overflow, but beyond that the land is desert. (8) Peninsular India 28. South of the Indo-Gangetic Plain a belt of high- lands, fairly well defined in the west, but broken and irregular in the east, runs right across India, separating the northern plains from the plateaux of the Deccan. This belt of hills runs, roughly speaking, along the Tropic of Cancer, so that the whole of central and southern India lies within the Tropics. 29. Starting from the west we have first of all the Vindhya Range running almost due east from the Gulf of Cambay. The Vindhyas are the lowest of the ranges that form this belt of highlands, and exceed 2,000 feet in height only in one or two places. They are separated from the Satpura Range to the south by the narrow and beautiful- valley of the Narbada. North of the western extremity of the Vindhyas, but separated from them by the valley of the Mahi, are the southern spurs of the Aravallis, a low and broken range, which stretch in a north-easterly direc- tion into the northern plain. The highest point in the Aravallis is Mount Abu in the south-west, which attains a height of 3,900 feet. The Aravallis are, as we have seen, by far the most ancient of all the mountains in the west of India. What we see now is but the remnant of a mighty range that has survived the ravages of countless ages. The Satpuras are a shorter range than the Vindhyas, but of considerably greater height. They form the north- eastern boundary of the Deccan proper. East of the Satpuras and Vindhyas, the Mahadeo Hills, the Maikal Range, and the hills of Chota Nagpur, continue the belt of highlands right across the peninsula to the plains of Bengal. 20 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 30. South of this belt lies the great Plateau of the Deccan, whicli constitutes the central core of the peninsula. Except where broken in the east by the great rivers which flow into the Bay of Bengal, this plateau maintains an elevation of from 1,500 to over 3,000 feet. It is highest in the south and west, and slopes very gradually to the north and east. 31. The Plateau is bounded on the west by the Western Ghats, or Sahyadri Mountains. The northern extremity of this range is separated from the Satpuras by the valley of the Tapti. From this point the Western Ghats run southwards nearly parallel to the coast, and at no great distance from it, almost to the southern point of the peninsula. The range is fairly continuous, but there are iour important breaks. Two of these are near Bombay, another near Goa, and the fourth is the Palghat Gap, 200 miles further south, where the elevation drops swiftly from over 6,000 ft. to little more than 1,000 ft. Through all these openings in the hills railways now pass, connecting the west coast with other parts of India. 32. In the south the Western Ghats attain to much greater altitudes than in the north. Indeed, the highest peaks to be found south of the Himalayas lie immediately north and south of the Palghat Gap, where, in sharp con- trast to the Gap itself, elevations of over 8,000 ft. are reached. The Nilgiri Hills lie to the north of the Gap, the Anamalais to the south. Eastward of the Anamalais are the Palnis, and to the south stretch the Cardamom Hills, maintaining an altitude of over 4,000 ft. to within 25 miles of Cape Comorin. On their western side, throughout their entire length, the slope of the Western Ghats is fairly steep, and between the foot of the hills and the sea is a well- watered and fertile strip of alluvial plain varying in width from three or four miles in its narrowest part to thirty miles in the south, where the mountains recede somewhat from the sea. On their eastern side the slope is less rapid, and the elevation drops gradually to that of the plateau. 33. The eastern boundary of the plateau is a broken range of highlands stretching southwards from the hills of THE GREAT RIVERS 21 Orissa till their southernmost spurs, the Shevaroy Hills, almost meet the eastern spurs of the Nllgiris. The eastern highlands, though commonly called the Eastern Ghats, have little in common with their western namesakes. They are comparatively low, seldom exceeding 3,000 ft., as well as irregular and broken, and are separated from the sea by a much broader alluvial plain. Like the Aravallis, the Eastern Ghats are the remnants of a very ancient range, worn down by long ages of " weathering." The Western Ghats, on the other hand, are of comparatively recent elevation. This, together with the fact that almost the whole drainage of the plateau is to the east, accounts for the greater breadth of the alluvial plain, which varies from 50 to 150 miles in width, and stretches far inland where the great rivers force their way to the sea. 34. The plateau itself is highest in the southern angle formed by the converging eastern and western ranges. In that angle lies the State of Mysore, a large part of which maintains an altitude of over 3,000 ft. In the west the plateau is almost everywhere well over 2,000 ft. From these higher levels it slopes gradually, and almost imper- ceptibly, in an easterly and northerly direction till it meets the Western Ghats, the low crests of which seldom rise to more than 1,000 ft. above it. (8) The Great Rivers and their Basins. 35. Most rivers begin their course as mountain torrents, and this is particularly the case in north India, where almost all the chief rivers rise at exceptionally high alti- tudes, and before they emerge from their mountain bed have become streams of considerable volume. Most of the Himalayan rivers take their rise at elevations varying from 10,000 to 17,000 ft., and fall swiftly almost to the level of the plains through rocky channels which they have cut out for themselves. Their fall being rapid their flow is swift, and their erosive power proportionately great. Many of them flow at the bottom of steep ravines of their own making many thousands of feet deep. Mountain 22 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA torrents cannot, therefore, change their course, but retain it from age to age, confined by the rocks through which they have cut their way. Such mountain torrents bring down a vast amount of soUd matter to the level of the plains. The steep sides of their ravines are continually crumbling, and the disintegrated matter is washed into the bed of the torrent by which it is continually being carried down to lower and lower levels. If the rapidity of flow is checked at any point in the descent, so that a lake is formed, this solid matter is deposited, and in course of time a fertile valley is the result, through which the stream flows placidly to recommence its swifter descent further on. Many such valleys have thus been formed in the Himalayas, the beautiful Vale of Kashmir being one. 36. When such a river reaches the plains, it enters upon what we may call the second stage of its life. Its flow becomes slower in proportion to the flatness of the plain, and the silt which it has brought down is rapidly deposited on its banks and bed. In seasons of flood these deposits are again disturbed and carried further down. Sometimes such a river will build up its bed to a level above that of the surrounding plain. Or sometimes, having half filled up its channel, it will, in a season of great flood, overflow its banks ; and as these banks are soft and easily destroyed, they are soon washed away, and the river cuts out a new, or auxiliary, channel for itself. As it approaches its mouth the flow becomes still slower, till in its estuaries it meets and mingles with the tidal waters of the sea. Here the final deposit of its solid matter takes place, and the land steadily encroaches on the sea. The old channels, or distributaries, of the river are continually being partially blocked up with silt, and in periods of flood its waters over- flow and cut out new channels for themselves by means of which they reach the sea. Much of the silt brought down by such a river when in flood is washed out to sea. There it gradually settles, and the bed of the sea is raised around the river's mouth, or the numerous mouths of its distribu- taries. Mud islands presently appear, which in course of time are joined to the mainland, and others further out THE GREAT RIVERS 23 are formed. So the " delta " is always being slowly- enlarged, and the land pushed further and further out. 37. Such is the character of almost all the rivers of India. In one point, however, the rivers of the north contrast sharply with those of the peninsula. The former are snow-fed, the latter are not. The gfeat inountains of the north are a vast storehouse of water in the form of snow. The line of perpetual snow is at a height of about 16,000 ft. on the south side of the Himalayas, and at about 18,000 to 19,000 ft. on the north side and on the mountains of the north-west. In the winter the snow does not melt, and the northern rivers are, therefore, lowest in the early months of the year, when the effect of the monsoon rains is past, and the melting of the snow has not yet begun. But as soon as the warmer weather sets in the snows begin to melt, and then for several months there is a steady supply of water to all the rivers of the north. This is greatly increased when the rains set in, and in July the Himalayan rivers are in full flood. But the flow from the snows con- tinues long after the monsoon rains have ceased. The rivers of the peninsula have no such supply, for there are no mountains south of latitude 27° N. high enough to reach the snow line. The southern rivers, therefore, being dependent upon the rains alone, are subject to much greater variation in volume than those which come down from the north and water the great plain. 38. The great rivers of the north, the Indus, the Brahma- putra, and the Ganges, drain the main slopes of the Hima- layas both north and south ; and the Indus and Brahma- putra bring the drainage of the north round the western and eastern extremities of the mountain chain. Some of the greater tributaries of these rivers rise north of the main chain, and make their way across the chain through deep gorges between the mountains. The Indus, its main tributary, the Sutlej, the Brahmaputra, and the Gogra, one of the chief tributaries of the Ganges, take their rise within 100 miles of each other, near Lake Manasarowar in Tibet, at an elevation of over 16,000 ft. The Ganges and another of its tributaries, the Jumna, rise in the 24 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA mountains to the west of this lake. Manasarowar is thus the great hydroKraphic centre of North India. 39. The Indus. Rising in Tibet, the Indus flows first in a north-westerly direction for 800 miles, passing through Kashmir between the Himalayas and the Karakorums, and receiving the drainage of both these chains. Rounding 70 75 80 1 1 1 ''w' L^ ^"^^ 55 - «^%^ 1 M {'^ i?T^^S^^^c£§/ 50 '.■■yf iO >^/ i L - Lahore *^,' 1 N D 1 A N / • A . Amritsor 1 f \ 1 y ,• M = miian \ \ '.DCS E RJX '* W • Haidarcbad 25 1 1 "\ ' fv '' 2S ^/j 1m ■'•'-■ ^^^?^ '=<^=^^m. ^ ^^-c--i lu. :^.y . .' _ ^° 75 so Fig. 8. The Basin of the Indus. the great peak of Xanga Parbat, the most westerly peak of the Himalayas proper, it turns sharply to the south-west, breaking through a magnificent gorge with clilYs at both sides over 14,000 ft. in height. From this point it con- tinues its flow in a south-westerly direction till it reaches THE INDUS 25 the sea. Just at its bend it receives the waters of the Gilgit river from the west. Two hundred miles further on, near Attock, it is joined by the Kabul river, which, with its tributaries the Swat, the Panjkora, and the Chitral, drains the eastern slopes of the Hindu Kush and the Chitral Hills. Other important affluents from the west are the Kuram, with its tributary the Tochi, and the Gomal. 40. But the great affluents of the Indus are from the east. They are five in number, and, watering the Punjab, give that Province its name — Panj-ab, five rivers. The Jhelum is the most westerly of these, and pours its waters into the Chenab, which, further down, also receives the Fig. 9. Showing Lake Manasarowar and the rise of the great northern rivers. waters of the Ravi. All these take their rise in the Hima- layas, and, like the Indus, flow at first in a north-westerly direction. The Sutlej, the most easterly of the five rivers of the Punjab, flows from Rakas Tal, a lake to the west of Manasarowar, and, breaking through a gorge in the Hima- layas north of Simla, enters the Punjab from the east. 26 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA When lialf way on its course to the Indus it is joined by the Beas, which rises on the southern slopes of the hills not far from the source of the Chenab. At this point the Sutlej changes its course, which has hitherto been almost westerly, and after flowing for 300 miles in a south-westerly direction, joins the Chenab. One channel, called the Panjnad, thus carries the water of all five rivers to the Indus. 41. All these rivers being fed by the melting snows, as well as by the monsoon rains, are in flood in the late summer. After their emergence from the hills their course lie^ across an almost level alluvial plain composed for the most part of a soft loam. They therefore carve for themselves numerous wide and shallow channels, which they constantly tend to change. This is true also of the Indus in many parts of its course, as well as of most of the tributaries of the Ganges. In the broad plain there are no hills to confine them, and the soft earth of which their banks are composed is unable to withstand the erosive action of their flood waters. 42. From its confluence with the Panjnad the Indus flows midway between the frontier hills of Baluchistan and the region of the scantiest rainfall in India, the Thar or Indian Desert. It has, therefore, no further affluents of importance and in the lower part of its course gives more water than it receives. It does for Sind precisely what the Nile does for Egypt, watering and fertilizing the land for many miles on both sides. By the vast amount of silt which for ages it has brought down from the mountains it has built up for itself a bed higher than the surrounding country. Streams therefore flow from it instead of into it. This makes irrigation from the Indus for the most part exceedingly simple and easy, but at the same time it increases the danger of disastrous floods. The same force which has built the broad soft banks can also destroy them. When the river is in flood the swirling waters often make vast lireachcs in thcni, and witlcspread inundations with great loss of life and property are the result. Occasionally, also, the river will in consequence change its course, or THE BRAHMAPUTRA 27 make for itself a subsidiary channel often at a considerable distance from the main stream. At Sukkur, about 300 miles from its mouth, the river narrows into a rocky channel, and is spanned by a great railway bridge. Two hundred miles further south the Delta begins, and the river pours its waters into the Arabian Sea by many ever- shifting distributaries. 43. The Brahmaputra. This river, called the Tsan-pu north of the Himalayas, enfolds the eastern portion of the great mountain chain just as the Indus enfolds the western. Rising in the neighbourhood of Lake Manasarowar, it flows almost due east for a distance of almost 700 miles ; then, bending sharply round the mountains, takes an almost westerly course through the narrow valley of Assam. On its way it receives the southern drainage of the Himalayas and the northern and western drainage of the Patkai and Khasi Hills. West of the Khasis it turns south, and almost immediately begins to throw off distributaries. About 100 miles from its mouth its main stream unites one of the chief distributaries of the Ganges. Their united waters reach the Bay of Bengal through two main channels known as the Pudda (or Padma) and the Arialkhan rivers. Two of the larger distributaries of the Brahmaputra, thrown off before its junction with the Ganges, flow into the Meghna, a river which drains the southern slopes of the K^hasi Hills, and the western slopes of the Nagas and Lushais. The Meghna then unites with the Pudda fifty miles from the sea. 44. Throughout its whole course from the north-east of Assam the Brahmaputra cuts for itself a multitude of channels, spreading itself in parts over a width of many miles and forming numerous river islands, most of which are covered with verdure in the dry season but completely submerged when the river is in flood. 45. The Ganges. The Ganges system is by far the most important river system in India. Not only is its basin the largest, but it includes the richest and most populous provinces of the Empire, provinces whose wealth and prosperity are in great part the gift of the river. 28 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA i- ^ a s ( 1 1 n\ \ "o 1> "^\ c V> "o 2 -S ,'''\ \ \ -^ c ° S ^ --si ^\ -~ V D D "5 ~ "> *■ ^ ^-'''"^ y\ \ ««: QQ a. Q cj lO 'r* ^ ^C ^^ • • ■ • , "" ~ /f x' ^JVt ^"'i-, «»: ca a. Q o jrr^ / / V. r' 'Tv'^ ^^- ^ } / \^ "^^^'l' ^^^ K C |-A% '-^^^^C^^ a. ^1 / .^''qvT^'cS^ ^ 2 CO - ; t ^"'^^'''^y'""^^'i/^;^'~^^ "^ ■< '""^ z^, --'' ^;^^U(^S^^ ^ N c £ ' V"^^"^''' .i^^^^G^^ "^ '^ 3 ^,' ? "^'i«^j^^^°?/r?jf^id I V ^"L^ Jy*^-'*^'^! '^ ^7 '^ ij^^^^TiS ,- -. ' ^^"i / '^ t ) ' yo^ 1*^ y j^ K^" ^^^nl. ''/ -^'j '' ri-^~~^ \ ■'\ /''"^ \^\ •-/ ( / /' ; Z/"'^// Av° 1-v >i-^'' / ^\ ■"■•^•:^ '^^0A\ W^-' V^ '''' Vh, /^ V ■^-^'^ip^^j / If "^^^f ' i "^' \. '' s- };^ ^-'----'■■'■y^ /\'^^^^i>-^^'K r^' ~' ~S /A/-^ ; T^ r Z^'*' ''/^ ■Sv ^^-O^'i 1* y Ji ^\ "VV ^"^^^ f J *i \v- J^^^^^^^^^\ '■* — - \. \> /' v^; \ V 1 • " "'* -X'v"^^^"^^^'"'! Y i ^ _ ■^•^''vV---..,.^^,^ — ^ clS \ (V^ ••••'■•, ^ ^\. - >o 1 7 \i •^ V )\ \ v^ ^^ w \ C • ^V ' w \ \ - I ' •-..J-,:%^;? \^^^^ 1 . 1 "^MiIiIIiIIm o J, o to fSJ est THE GANGES 29 46. The Ganges proper is formed in Garhwal by the union of two rivers (see Fig. 9, page 25), the Bhagirathi, which rises among the glaciers of Gangotri and is often called the Ganges, and the Alaknanda, which rises to the north-west of the great peak Nanda Devi and breaks through the Garhwal Himalayas. The Alaknanda is much the larger of these confluents. The river thus formed flows for 50 miles in a south-westerly direction, and then gradually bends round to the south and south-east, maintaining the latter direction till it has passed Allahabad. On its eastern and northern side it receives many tributaries, the chief of which is the Ram- ganga, which also rises in Garhwal. From the west and south it receives no tributary of importance till it reaches Allahabad, where it is joined by the Jumna. 47. The Jumna also takes its rise north of Garhwal and west of the Bhagirathi. In its course it describes a curve similar to that of the Ganges, and for the greater part of its way to Allahabad maintains a distance of from 50 to 80 miles west of that river. Unlike the Ganges, however, its main affluents are from the west and south. The most important of these is the Chambal which drains the north- eastern slopes of the Aravallis and Vindhyas. 48. From Allahabad the Ganges flows eastwards, passing Benares, and a few miles further on is joined by the Gumti, which descends from the frontiers of Nepal. A hundred miles lower down it receives the waters of the Gogra, which rises near Lake Rakas Tal and breaks through a gorge in the mountains. On its way the Gogra receives the waters of the Sarda and the Rapti, and by the time it reaches the Ganges it rivals it in volume. Within the next 30 miles the Ganges is joined by the Son from the south and the Gandak from the north, and when north of the Rajmahal Hills it receives the Kiisi from the north. Both the Gandak and the Kiisi rise north of the Himalayas and break through the mountain chain, while the numerous feeders of the Son drain the rocky highlands of the Central Provinces and Chota Nagpur. After passing the Raj- mahal Hills the Ganges bends toward the south-east, and 30 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA soon begins to throw off its distributaries to the south. The first of these is the Bhagirathi, which lower down becomes the Hooghly, and the pcjint at which tlie Bhagirathi branches off is the beginning of the delta. The main stream still continues in a south-easterly direction, till south of Pabna it divides into two almost equal streams, one of which, the Madhumati, or Haringata, takes a more southerly course to the sea, and the other, the Pudda (or Padma) follows a more easterly course to Goalanda, where it unites with the Brahmaputra. 49. The northern and southern tributaries of the Ganges differ greatly in character. The former are fed, as we have seen, not only by the heavy rains which fall on the Himalayan slopes, but also by the melting snows. They are therefore much more constant than they would be if dependent on the rains alone. Though in flood in July and August they continue to bring down a fair quantity of water through the greater part of the year. The southern tributaries have no snow reservoirs to draw upon. Their basins have also a much smaller rainfall than the Himalayas, particularly in the west. The ground they drain is also for the most part rocky, off which the water flows with great rapidity. The rivers, therefore, rise rapidly as soon as the summer monsoon brings its store of rain, and fall almost as rapidly when the rain ceases. When in flood they rival the northern rivers in volume, but for the greater part of the year they are little more than rivulets. For this reason they are of much less value for irrigation pur- poses than the Himalayan rivers. While (as we shall presently see) there are vast irrigation systems that draw their supplies from the latter, the systems dependent on the southern tributaries are few and small. The Ganges is also of immense value as the chief waterway of north India. Its volume is always sufficient to bear upon its bosom a vast host of boats of every description. At the various registering towns along its course over 130,000 river boats of various kinds are licensed to ply upon its waters. The river thus brings down a large part of the immense produce of the rich provinces which it traverses. THE GREAT RIVERS 3I (10) The Rivers of the Peninsula 50. Most of the great rivers of the peninsula pour their waters into the Bay of Bengal. In the map on page 28 the water-parting between east and west is shown by a line of heavier dots extending from north of the Himalayas to Cape Comorin. It will be noticed that from the southern point this line follows the Western Ghats, till, from the northern extremity of this range, it strikes sharply west- wards where the narrow basins of the Tapti and Narbada stretch far across the peninsula, the latter nearly two- thirds of the way to the Bay of Bengal. With these two exceptions the rivers which flow westwards are small and of little moment. The great rivers of the peninsula, though rising as a rule within a few miles of the west coast, make their way eastwards, gathering volume as they go. 51. The Narbada, rising near Mount Amarkantak, in the north of the Central Provinces, and a little to the east of Chota Nagpur, takes an almost straight course to the Gulf of Cambay. It receives few tributaries, and no large ones. Like the Ganges it is a sacred river of the Hindus, and from its source to its mouth it is by very far the most beautiful river in India. " Of all the rivers in India," says Sir Lepel Griffin, " there is none which is surrounded by more romance and mystic interest ; whilst for strange and fantastic beauty it takes high rank among the celebrated rivers of the world." 52. The Tapti rises south of the Mahadeo range of hills, and flow westward along the northern valley. Debouching through a gorge at their western extremitj^ it is joined by the Piirna which drains the southern slopes of the same hills. Like the Narbada, from which it is separated by the Satpura range, the Tapti flows westwards and empties itself into the Gulf of Cambay, a little to the north of the ancient port of Surat. 53. The four great rivers of peninsular India which discharge into the Bay of Bengal are the Mahanadi, the Godavari, the Kistna, and the Cauvery. 32 GEOGRAPHY OT INDIA 54. The Mahanadi. The basin of the Malianadi meets tliat of tlic Xarbada, and one of its tributaries takes its rise, like that river, on the slopes of Mt. Amarkantak. The Mahanadi itself rises on the northern slopes of the hills that form the northern boundary of the State of Bastar in the Central Provinces. It flows at first in a northerly direction till, having received its chief tributary, the Seonath, from the west, it turns to the east and flows east and south, past Sambalpur. Its numerous affluents drain a large tract of hilly country, and in the rainy season the river is of unusual volume for its length. When in flood it almost equals the Ganges. But, like all the Vindhyan rivers, it rises quickly and quickly falls again. The Mahanadi breaks through the hills by a gorge 40 miles long and of great beauty, and, after passing Cuttack, divides into the numerous channels of its delta. The river brings down a very large quantity of silt, and the delta is extensive and rapidly increasing. 55. The Godavari rises in the Western Ghats a little" north of Bombay. It flows through the Nizam's Dominions, and for more than 350 miles its various tributaries form the northern boundary of that State. The general course of the Godavari is west-south-west for the first two-thirds of its length, then it turns to the south-west and maintains that direction till it reaches the sea. Its main tributary on the .south is the Manjira, which rises in the Bhir country on the borders of Bombay. From the north, just at the point where it bends more to the south, it receives the waters of the Pranhita, a river almost as large as itself. The Pranhita is formed by the union of three rivers, the Painganga from the west, the Wardha from the north-west, and the Wainganga from the north. Further on it receives from the north-east the Indravati, which rises on the western slopes of the Eastern Ghats and drains the un- healthy jungles of Bastar. In their passage through the Ghats the waters of the Godavari are confined for 20 miles within a deep and narrow channel, and the scenery on both sides is wild and grand. Shortly after its emergence from the Ghats it broadens into a vast and noble river, and at RIVERS OF THE PENINSULA 33 Rajahmundry it is crossed by a railway bridge if miles long. At Dowlaishweram, the apex of its delta, the river divides into three main distributaries and many smaller ones, and so reaches the sea. Fig. II. Basins of the chief rivers of the Peninsula. 56. The Kistna and its tributaries receive the eastern drainage of considerably more than one-half of the whole length of the Western Ghats. The Kistna basin, unlike that of the Godavari, is broadest towards the west, and gradually narrows as it approaches the Bay of Bengal. 34 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA The Kistna rises near Mahabaleshwar ard flows first in a soutlierly direction. It has two ;,'reat tributaries, the Bhima from the north and the Tungabhadra from tlie south. The Bhima rises to the north of Poona, and after flowing south-east through Bombay and the Nizam's Dominions, joins the Kistna a Uttle to the north of Raichur. The Tungabhadra is formed by the union of two rivers, the Tunga and the Bhadra, both of which rise in the west of the Mysore State. They unite within the boundaries of that State, and, flowing in a north-easterly direction, separate the Presidency of Madras first from Bombay and then from Hyderabad. After receiving the waters of the Tungabhadra the Kistna turns to the north-east and con- tinues its flow in that direction till it has passed the Nallamalai Hills, which cut it off from the plain of the eastern sea-board. Then it turns sharply to the south- east and so reaches the sea. 57. The Cauvery and its tributaries drain the whole of southern Mysore, the eastern slopes of the Nilgiris and Anamalais, and the northern and eastern slopes of the Palnis. It flows through some of the most productive and populous districts of South India, notably Tanjore, which it waters by means of extensive and ancient irrigation works. After passing Trichinopoly its delta begins. The river divides into two arms, the smaller of which, still called the Cauvery, flows almost due east, and divides again into several channels before it reaches the sea. The larger, called the Coleroon, flows in a north-easterly direc- tion, and empties itself into the sea half way between Pondicherry and Negapatam. A few miles from the city of Mysore the Cauvery divides, and the two arms, uniting again low-er down, enclose the river island of Seringapatam, the famous stronghold at which Tipu Sultan made his last stand. Further down, two similar islands are formed, both held to be of great sanctity by Hindus. These are the island of Sivasamun- dram, at the southern frontier of Mysore, and the island ot Srirangam, near Trichinopoly, the site of one of the largest and most famous Hindu temples. THE RIVERS OF BURMA 35 58. The peninsular rivers depend for their supply of water upon the rainfall alone. For the most part also they traverse rocky land with a comparatively shallow soil into which little of the water sinks. During the dry season the river beds are, as a rule, nothing but vast expanses of sand, with a few sluggish and shallow rivulets. But when the rains begin, these rivers rise with extra- ordinary rapidity, coming down from the hilly country in vast and ever increasing volume and with a swift and irresistible flow. Sometimes the " freshes " come down with such suddenness, and in such volume, as to overwhelm travellers who may be crossing their broad bed. Breaking loose from their banks these rivers often flood the country for many miles around. But, except in their delta stage, they do not tend, like the rivers of the great northern plain, to change their course or cut for themselves new channels. When the flood subsides they sink again into their old beds. Because of the violence of their floods their action on the land is unusually great. Their flood waters are thick and muddy, and often discolour the sea for many miles from their mouths. Where the speed of their current is checked this mud, the washings of the inland hills, is deposited. Along the eastern coast this process has been going on for countless ages, for the Eastern Ghats, as we have seen, share with the Aravallis the honour of being the oldest hills in India. In the course of ages these hills have been worn down, and with their washings the rivers have built up a broad and fertile alluvial plain along the sea-board, which they are ever increasing and enriching. (11) The River Systems of Burma 59, We have seen that the mountains of the Indp- Chinese peninsula run from north to south, stretching southwards in almost parallel ranges, and in ever diminish- ing altitudes, from the great mountain systems of the north. Consequently, the great rivers of Burma which separate these ranges all take a southerly course. They are the Irrawaddy, with its great tributary the Chindwin, the Sittang, and the Salwin. 36 GEOGRAPHY OF INDTA 60. The Irrawaddy drains the greater part of Burma. It is a noble river, navigable by light draught steamers as far as Bhamo, 700 miles from the sea. and by smaller craft still further. Being snow fed it rises and falls, but is never very low. Till railways were constructed it was almost the only highway of commerce between Upper Burma Fig. 12. Rivers of Burma. and the coast, and it is still the chief. The Irrawaddy rises in the rugged mountains east of the bcntl of the Brahmaputra, and with the exception of about 60 miles after passing Bhamo, and again for a similar distance after passing Mandalay, when it turns in each case to the west, its general course is almost due south. A\. a distance of THE IRRAWADDY 37 800 miles from the sea it is more than half a mile wide, and it maintains a width of from, half a mile to a mile and a half all the way to its delta, except in four places where it breaks through defiles in the mountains, and, amid scenery of surpassing beauty, narrows into deep rocky channels. In one of these the river is only 600 ft. wide, but over 1,000 ft. deep. A little below Mandalay the Irrawaddy is joined by the Myit-nge which drains the Shan Hills to the north-east. Thirty miles further down it receives the waters of its main tributary, the Chindwin. Rising, like the Irrawaddy itself, east of the bend of the Brahmaputra, the Chindwin drains the eastern slopes of the Patkai and Naga Hills, and the Arakan Yoma. In its lower course, before its junction with the Irrawaddy, it waters a broad and fertile valley. A little below the point of confluence the Irrawaddy bends gradually to the south again. More than 100 miles from the sea the delta begins, and the river finds its way to the Gulf of Martaban through fourteen channels. On the most easterly of these distributaries stands the port of Rangoon, the chief port of Burma, and on the most westerly, the smaller port of Bassein. 61. The basin of the Sittang is separated from that of the Irrawaddy on the west by the Pegu Yoma, and from that of the Salwin on the east by the Poung-loung Hills, both of them fairly Continuous, though low, ranges, which run north and south, and enclose a rich and fertile valley from 50 to 90 miles in width. A glance at the map will show that the basin of the Irrawaddy meets that of the Salwin, about 100 miles south of Mandalay. The Sittang is, therefore, a comparatively short river, and being shallow at its mouth it is useless for navigation. It is subject also to a severe tidal bore. The tidal wave, concentrating in the apex of the gulf, rushes up the broad estuary as a wall of water, often from fifteen to twenty feet in height. The Sittang valley is fiat, and provides an excellent route for the railway to Mandalay. 62. The Salwin, like so many of the rivers of North India, rises amid the snows of Tibet. Bending to the south, 200 miles east of the Brahmaputra, it makes its long ^^ GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA journey to the Gulf of Martaban between ranges of hills which in the north narrow its basin to a few miles. Through- out its whole course it lias a rocky bed. At seasons of flood, when the Tibetan snows are melting, the Salwin brings down more water than the Irrawaddy. But numerous rocky rapids on its course make navigation impossible for more than loo miles from its mouth. (12) Coast Line and Harbours 63. The total coast line of India and Burma, from Cape Monze on the western point of Sind to Victoria Point in the south of Tenasserim, is slightly over 4,800 miles in length. Seeing, however, that the peninsula of India stietches southwards from Latitude 25° N. for nearly 1,200 miles forming almost an equilateral triangle with that parallel as its base, and that Burma stretches about the same distance to the south on the other side of the Bay of Bengal, this long coast line is relatively short. It is comparatively uniform and regular, and is broken by few indentations of any magnitude. For the greater part of its length a sandy and almost level coast strip is washed by shallow seas. The waves, rolling in unbroken from the open ocean, break in the shallow water in long lines of surf, which even in fine weather are a difficulty and danger to small boats, and iu stormy weather lash the shore with almost irresistible fury and make it impossible of approach. This is particularly the case on the south-cast coast, but is more or less true all round the peninsula. In natural harbours India is unusually poor. Vast stretches of coast present no convenience or shelter whatever for shipping, neither land-locked bays nor navigable estuaries. India could therefore never become a great maritime country, and all her foreign sea-borne trade is carried in the ships of other nations. 64. Both the east and the west coasts of India are greatly affected by the surface currents, or drifts, in the surrounding seas, which arc induccil by the steady seasonal winds. During the south-west monsoon the currents run COAST LINE 39 along the west coast of the peninsula from north to south, and along the east coast from south to north. During the north-east monsoon these directions are reversed. These currents exercise considerable erosive power, and at the same time they wash up, and move along the coast, vast quantities of sand, which is deposited wherever the force of the current is checked by its entry into a bay, or by its conflict with the river currents prolonged into the sea. The influence of these drifts is thus twofold. Where they beat upon an exposed promontory they gradually eat into the land. When they flow into a confined bay they wash more sand in than they can wash out, and slowly tend to fill the bay up. Striking examples of these two effects are to be found on the west coast, where the currents exert on the whole a more powerful influence than on the east. The extreme north-western point of Kathiawar, which is exposed to the full effect of the south- west monsoon drift as it bends round the north of the Arabian Sea, is being rapidly worn away, and the sea is steadily encroaching on the land. On the other hand, the Gulfs of Cutch and Cambay are rapidly silt- ing up. One curious result of these drifts, seen almost equally along both coasts, is the formation of long banks of sand and mud, or bars, as they are called, a little distance from the mouths of all rivers. These bars are just beyond the scouring power of the flood water of the river, and they constitute an effectual barrier to navigation. 65. Beginning at the extreme west of India we have the excellent harbour of Karachi, a natural bay formed by a projecting ridge of rock and greatly improved by an extensive breakwater. Karachi is about 12 miles west Fig. 13. Karachi Harbour. 40 GEOGRAPHY OK INOIA of the most westerly outlet of the Indus. Being the nearest Indian port to Europe, and having direct railway communication with north India (by a bridge across the Indus at Sukkur), it attracts to itself the greater part of the sea-borne trade of Rajputana and the Punjab, and is a rapidly-growing port. Owing to the steady silting up of the entrance, however, the channel has to be incessantly dredged. 66. For 1 20 miles southeast of Karachi extends the delta of the river Indus, the shifting channels of which are navigable only by small craft. At one time the chief channel of the Indus discharged its waters into the Great Rann of Cutch, which separates the island of Cutch from Sind. Between Sind and the promontory of Kathiawar on the south are the Little Rann of Cutch and the Gulf of Cutch. The Ranns arc shown as arms of the sea on all maps, but they are no more than vast salt morasses, covered with shallow water only in the wet season, and in the dry months for the most part baked dry and hard. They are the haunt of wild asses, which wander about in herds of 50 or 60, and are so timid and fleet that they can seldom be approached. The Ranns are sea-swamps in process of natural reclamation. The Gulf of Cutch is also exceedingly shallow, and when the tide is low much of it is bare sand. South-east of Kathiawar is the Gulf of Cambay, which, as we have seen, is gradually silting up. The port of Cambay at the north of the Gulf has lost almost all its sea trade, and the more famous ports of Broach, on the Narbada, and Surat, on the Tapti. are yearly being rendered more difficult of access from the same cause. Surat was at one time the wealthiest and most famous port in India. 67. About 150 miles south of the Gulf of Cambay is the excellent natural harbour of Bombay. It is protected by the islands of Bombay and Salsette, and offers abundant and safe anchorage. But owing to the constant deposit of silt at its entrance great care has to be taken to keep it open, and the largest vessels have to enter with caution. Bombay is admirably situated as tlie principal port for COAST LINE 41 communication with the west, and is the chief mail route. It is almost equidistant from the north, south, and east of India, and is accessible by rail from all parts. 68. From Bombay south to Cape Comorin, though there are many small seaports, there are only two harbours that offer a safe anchorage in bad weather for vessels of large size. These are Goa and Karwar. The former is now served by the Southern Maratha Rail- way, and is growing in importance. The rest are " fair weather ports " only, and many of them are quite unapproachable when the south-west mon- soon is blowing in force. Near the south of the pen- insula there is an exten- sive system of backwaters or lagoonSjSeparated from the sea by broad banks of sand through which occasional openings give an outlet for flood water in the rains, and an inlet for the sea. In ancient days it is probable that these channels, as well as the lagoons themselves, were of much greater depth, and admitted ships of fair size. Now, how- ever, though of inestim- ^'S- M- Bombay islands and Harbour. able value as inland waterways, these lagoons are useless for seafaring purposes. 69. Rounding Cape Comorin we enter the Gulf of Manar, on the western shore of which stands the small port of Tuticorin. The water is exceedingly shallow, and EngUsKMiLes SaihveLys thus ^ 42 GEOGRAPHY OK INDIA steamers have to anchor some miles out. but in spite of this Tuticorin has come to be of some importance as the chief peninsular port for communication with Ceylon. Nortliwanl arc the Palk Straits, almost blocked by the islands of Rameswaram on the west and Manar on the east, and a long sand bank which almost unites the two. On the landward side of the two islands arc shallow passages known as the Manar Passage and the Pamban Passage. Till a few years ago neither of them was more than six feet deep, and although they have recently been deepened and widened, they offer no route for large ocean steamers, which have to pass round the south of Ceylon. 70. The west coast of Ceylon, like that of the peninsula itself, is low and sandy, and is subject to the same silting. There are extensive backwaters, in many respects similar to those on the west coast of India, and, like them, of great value for boat traffic. The port of Colombo, nearly 100 miles from the most southerly point of the island, is rapidly becoming one of the most important ports of call in Asia. It has a fair natural harbour, which has been very greatly improved by the con- struction of a long breakwater. As a port of call, and the point where almost all the great steam- ship lines traversing the Indian Ocenn converge. Colombo has superseded Galle in the south of the island, though Galle Bay forms an excellent and fairly safe harbour. 71. The east coast of Ceylon contrasts sharply with the west, as well as with the entire coast of the peninsula, being everywhere rocky and descending quickly to tlie sea. The depth of water increases with unusual rapidity, a depth ^w J til •■(r-.. Tnfa„ ^ - — "S "^fSi ir n.1 1 — ?^ jV^fc? t 2>e 6aae= = ^ fta-iiuiFt.^ ^^-'^^4 = 3^'|§r^ ^ai" # ' ^ ^? f Fig. 15. Point de Galle and Bay. COAST LINE 43 of 12,000 ft., or over 2J miles, being reached within 50 miles of the shore. There are several excellent and safe natural harbours, the chief of which is Trincomallee Bay, large enough, it is said, to accommodate all the navies of the world, and to be a safe refuge for ships of the largest order. Trincomallee is a British naval station ; though in this respect it is of comparatively little moment, being off the main lines of sea-communication. 72. The east coast of India, from Pamban northwards to the Hooghly, has not a single natural harbour of any kind, and offers no shelter whatever to shipping in the furious storms that at particular seasons prevail in the Bay of Bengal. It is an unbroken stretch of inhospitable surf- beaten sands, or low, deltaic, mud islands. Across the mouths of all the great rivers bars stretch, which effectually close them to everything but boats of low draught. There are several ports along the coast at which there is a fair amount of shipping trade, but coasting steamers have to anchor far out to sea — in some places five or six miles — and in bad weather the open sea is their only refuge. At Madras vast breakwaters have been constructed of solid blocks of concrete which enclose a portion of the roadstead. In good weather these secure for ships a smooth-water anchorage where they can load and unload without the inconvenience that they previously suffered from the restless waves. But as a place of refuge from bad weather the harbour thus made is useless, or worse than useless. The action of the surface drifts on the east coast is similar to that on the west, but as a rule not quite so powerful. In some places the land is gaining at the expense of the sea through the piling up of sand, and at others is being worn away by steady erosion. A remarkable instance of both these effects has been seen at Madras since the erection of the breakwaters. On the south side of the harbour the coast line is being pushed out to sea, while on the north side the sea is eating into the land. 73. Of the many distributaries that bring the waters of the Ganges to the sea, the only ones that are navigable for anything larger than river boats are the Hooghly and the 44 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA Mutla. About 80 miles up the Hooghly stands Calcutta, the metropolis and premier port of India. The river is, how- ever, exceedingly difficult to navigate, and in one part perilous. At tlic bend in its course, where it receives the waters of the Kupnarayan, the James and Mary Sands have been formed. This is the most dangerous bank of quick- Long t 90ofCf lig. I'). The Ganges-Brahmaputra Delta. sands in the world. Vessels that strike it are swallowed up with appalling rapidity. Calcutta, therefore, holds its position as the chief port of India more because it taps the richest and most productive of all the Indian Provinces than by reason of its excellence as a seaport, in which respect it is far surpassed both by Bombay and Karachi. COAST LINE 45 In olden times the ships of the East India Company used to go no further up the river than Diamond Harbour, which still enjoys a certain amount of trade, and is now connected with Calcutta by railway. About forty years ago an attempt was made to relieve Calcutta of some of its shipping, which often greatly crowds the river, by opening a new port, called Port Canning, on the Mutla river, a channel of the delta, about 25 miles east of the Hooghly. Port Canning also is connected by rail with Calcutta, from which it is distant about 20 miles, but as a port it has not developed as was at first confidently expected. 74. From the Hooghly for a distance of 200 miles to the eastward stretch the low mud islands of the delta. In many parts, particularly in the east, these islands are cultivated, but they are mostly covered with low trees and shrubs, and are infested by tigers and crocodiles. The entire district is known as the Sandarbans, and is subject to disastrous floods both from the waters of the rivers and from storm waves. One such wave which swept over the Sandarbans about thirty years ago caused an immense loss, both of life and property, no fewer than 100,000 people being drowned. None of the channels of the delta are navigable, save for river boats, till we come to the Meghna in the east, which will allow of the passage of river steamers at all times, and is an important waterway to Dacca. The Meghna is, however, subject to a severe tidal bore which makes its navigation difficult and dangerous. The Hooghly is subject to the same phenomenon, but not to so serious a degree as the Meghna. 75. The eastern shores of the Bay of Bengal are totally different from the western, being fringed with innumerable small rocky islands, mostly volcanic in origin. The sea bed immediately adjacent to the land being in most places rocky, the river mouths are not so greatly blocked with sand bars as is the case almost all round the Indian penin- sula. The rivers are therefore more open to sea traffic. For example, the comparatively small river Kaludan, at the mouth of which is the safe and well-protected port of Akyab, is freely open to the sea, in spite of a small bar. 46 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA and can be navigated for over 50 miles by vessels of 400 or 500 tons burden. Akyab is the only port of any conse- quence north of Cape Negrais. Bassein and Rangoon are on channels of tlie Irrawaddy delta, and Moulmein is at the mouth of the Salwin. All these are easily accessible, and give safe anchorages to the largest vessels. This is also true of the smaller ports on the Tenasserim coast, Amherst Tavoy, and Mergui. (13) Islands 76. With the exception of Ceylon, which does not belong to the Indian Empire and will be treated separately, the Islands of India are of comparatively little moment. They are, however, exceedingly numerous, especially off the coast of Burma, and though small, their united coast-line exceeds 3,000 miles in length. The total coast-line of the Indian Empire is 8,415 miles. 77. Salsette and Bombay are now connected with the mainland by a causeway, and can hardly be considered islands. Elephanta and Trombay are within the harbour of Bombay. Other smaller islands, mostly composed of volcanic rock, belong to the same group. The Laccadive and Maldive Islands are, as we have seen, remnants of the broad belt of land which, in far back geological ages, united India and South Africa. Or, more accurately, they are coral structures raised slowlj^ by the coral polyp (which can only live comparatively near the surface of the water) upon the gradually submerging land. The Laccadives are about 200 miles west of the Malabar coast, ami belong to India. The Maldives are 300 miles south-west of Cape Comorin, and are under a Sultan tributary to Ceylon. Nine of the Laccadive Islands are inhabited, and seventeen of the Maldives, the population being respectively about 10,000 and 30,000. Rameswaram and Manar are two islands lying between Ceylon and India, tiic former belonging to India, the latter to Ceylon. Rameswaram is a noted place of Hindu pilgrimage. Of the many low islands at the mouths of the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna, tlie only ones of any moment are Saugor island in the west, and Shahbazpur antl Sandip islands in the east. 47 Coro Ch anil cl 78. The islands off the Burmese coast are totally different from those to the north of the Bay of Bengal, being mostly rocky, and volcanic in their origin. They differ also from the Laccadives and Maldives, inasmuch as, with the single exception of some of the Coco Islands, there is hardly any coral formation to be found among them. North of Cape Negrais the only islands of any moment, among the many hundreds with which the coast is studded, are Barongo and Savage Island, which protect the port of Akyab, and the larger islands of Ramri and Cheduba a little further to the south. From Cape Negrais a well-defined submarine ridge runs southwards to Sumatra. About 75 miles south of the cape it crops up in the Pre- paris Isles, a group of minute volcanic peaks. Fifty miles further south are the Coco Islands, similar in every way except that they contain a minute volcano that is still very slightly active. Thirty- five miles south of the Cocos the Andaman Islands begin, a beautiful and in many ways important group, consisting of four large islands and many small ones, and stretching from north to south for a distance of over 200 miles. Further south again are the Nicobars. The Andamans and Nicobars constitute a Chief-Commissionership, and They have many excellent Tin Dcffree Cka 'Lnc7 Fig. 17. The Andaman Isles. will claim attention later. natural harbours, well protected and with good anchorages. The same is also true of the Mergui Archipelago, which consists of many hundreds of rocky islands skirting the whole length of the Tenasserim coast. CHAPTER II CLIMATE OF INDIA 79. Blanford remarks that we may speak of the climates but not of the climate of India, for " the world itself affords no greater contrast than is to be met with at one and the same time within its limits." It would be a vain task to describe the climate of every part of India, and any attempt to do so is unnecessary. Climate is everywhere the result of certain conditions whose influence is well understood. The presence or absence of these conditions enables us readily to explain and understand all climatic differences. (i) Temperature 80. The Tropic of Cancer crosses India almost midway between its northern and southern points. Passing through Cutch on the west and the Gangetic Delta on the east, it very nearly marks the division between peninsular and continental India. The whole of the peninsula is within the tropics, and Cape Comorin is just over 8° north of the equator. The Indo-Gangetic plain, on the other hand, lies outside the tropics, but near enough to be within the region of greatest solar radiation in the summer months. In the absence of all other modifying causes, therefore, we should expect the south of tiie peninsula to have the highest mean annual temperature, and the lowest annual range. Passing north we should expect the mean annual tempera- ture steadily to diminish, and the mean annual range to increase ; while from 2° south of the Tropic to 6° or 8° north of it we should expect to find the summer maxima higher than in any other part of India. In the main this is the case, but in India, as in all other countries, the presence or absence of water, the prevailing winds, the proximity of mountain chains, elevation and aspect often make the ordinary temperature of places in tlic same latitude totally different. TEMPERATURE 49 81. It is easy to see how very greatly the cUmate of India is moderated by these various causes. Water in all its forms is the great moderator of heat and cold. Happily the greater part of the country is, as a rule, sufficiently well supplied with water to render extreme day and night temperatures impossible, and in many parts the climate is remarkably equable. The in- fluence of the sea is also felt far inland all round the peninsula. In Rajputana, Sind and Baluchistan, however, the daily range is often so great as to be extremely trying to all but the most robust. In the highlands of Baluchistan during the late summer or early autumn a day temperature of 80° F. is often followed by a night minimum of 10° F. The air is exceedingly dry, the ground a mixture of rock and sand, and radiation proceeds with amazing rapidity. 82. It is in this connection that the nature of the soil, and the presence or absence of vegetation, exercise a powerful influence on climate. Some soils are shallow and porous and rest upon a bed of impenetrable rock, so that the rainfall quickly flows away and they are soon dry. Such is the character of the greater part of the east and south of peninsular India.* Other soils have a remarkable power of absorbing and retaining the rain that falls upon them. The black " cotton soil " that pre- vails over the greater part of the north-west of the peninsula and Kathiawfir, and the mixture of clay and loam which forms the eastern part of the Gangetic plain, are both of this nature. From such soils there is always a large amount of evaporation, even when their surface seems quite dry, and they neither heat nor cool rapidly. The sands of Sind and Rajputana on the other hand retain no moisture. What little rain they receive soon dries up, and in the hot weather they are perfectly dry for several feet below the surface. Under the summer sun, therefore, they heat with great rapidity and to a very high degree ; so much so that it is said often to be possible to cook an egg by simply laying it on the sand in the sunshine at noonday. 83. Winds almost always blow from colder to warmer regions, and are one of nature's chief ways of equalising tem- perature. How much India owes to seasonal changes of wind we shall see presently. We may notice heie, however, a common diurnal change which greatly mitigates the summer heat along See Geological Outline Map on page 83. 50 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA the coasts of the peninsula. Diirinf,' the early jiart of the day the air over the land is warmed hy the sun's rays far more than that over the sea. In the course of the afternoon, therefore, a cool and refreshing breeze sets in from the sea which attains its greatest strength a little before sunset and is felt for many miles inland. The hotter the day and the drier the air, the sooner does the sea-breeze begin and the stronger floes it blow. A few hours after sunset it dies down, and then, if the night be clear the air over the land cools more rapidly than that over the sea, so that towards morning a land-wind is established blowing out to sea. The sea breezes which blow daily in the hottest weather greatly moderate the heat along the Coromandel coast. 84. That elevation reduces temperature is a very familiar experience in India, where cool refuges from the heat of the plains are found at a multitude of hill stations. The extent of this reduction is about i° F. for every 270 feet of vertical ascent. The plateau of Mysore, being over 3,000 feet in height, is always from 10° to 12° F. cooler than the adjacent plains. The same cause greatly moderates the heat all over the Deccan. 85. Hills or mountain chains exercise in other wa\-s also a powerful influence on climate. The slope of the hills turned towards the sun is always much warmer than the slope that looks away from it. Mountain chains also often intercept winds, increasing, or sometimes, though more seldom, reducing, the temperature of the protected plains as a result. The Himalayas protect the Gangetic plain from the keen and icy north winds that blow in winter across Tibet. On the other hand, during the south-west Monsoon, the Western Ghats keep both wind and rain from the plains immediately to their east, where both would be more than welcome. 86. In the light of tlic foregoing paragraphs we may now illustrate the prevailing temperatures of India by a series of isothermal charts. In the following charts the recorded temperatures are reduced to sea-level, i.e.. they are increased by 1° F. for every 270 feet of elevation. The approximate temperature of any place can therefore easily be found by dividing its elevation in feet by 270 and deducting that number of degrees from the temperature shown on the chart. TEMPERATURE 51 87. Fig. 18 shows the Mean Annual Temperature. It illustrates very clearly the cooling effect of the sea round Fig. I?. Fig. 19. 52 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA tlie coasts of the Indian peninsula. Fig. 19 shows : (i) the Mean Annual Range, or the difference between the mean temperatures of tlie hottes* and Ihc coldest months. It will be seen that the difference is but slight in the south, but increases rapidly as we pass north : (2) the Annual Extreme Range, or the average difference between the highest and lowest temperatures recorded in the year. It should be noticed that the extreme range is greater on the east coast than on the west, owing to the fact that the west coast receives its chief rains in the hottest months. In June and July the south-east coast is nearly 10° hotter than the south-west. rnm. SST. to 8(fF. I ' I Fnn TOT. U TFr. SO' ., «■ r.'.- .1 „ 73* " to' .. M° » T0° l::::::l .• to' •■ t$- I'ig 20. Showing the ttiuporaturf ol India for four months. THE MONSOONS 53 88. Fig. 20, which gives the mean temperatures for four months of the year, is worth}^ of special study. It will be observed that in December, the coolest month of the year, the hottest part of India is a small tract inland from Goa, almost half way between Cutch and Cape Comorin, where the mean temperature is over 80° F. Next come the southern and western parts of the peninsula, then the eastern as far north as a line stretching from north of Bombay to Vizagapatam. From this point the isotherms stretch irregularly from east to west across India, colder temperatures prevailing as we pass further and further north. By March the sun has come north to the equator and the temperature has increased all over India, but the peninsula is still the hottest part. Along the coast the temperature is from 80° to 85° F., but a large interior tract is over 85° F., and within that is a smaller tract over 90° F. Taking India as a whole, May is the hottest month of the year, the sun being well on his way to the Tropic of Cancer and the south-west monsoon as yet hardly felt. The region of greatest heat, over 95° F., is in Central India, with a large tongue stretch- ing into Rajputana. The surrounding area, from 90° to 95° F., keeps clear of the coast except in the north-west, and stretches into Baluchistan. The coolest parts of India are a strip along the west coast and the whole region north and east of the Bay of Bengal. By August the full cooling effects of the monsoon have been felt, and it will be seen that the area of high temperature has moved away to the north-west, to a region untouched by the monsoon currents. (2) The Monsoons and Rainfall 89. The Monsoons are the seasonal winds that prevail in India and blow alternately from the south-west and north-east, bringing the abundant rains upon which the fertility and wealth of the country depend. The south- west monsoon, which in ordinary years reaches the south- west coast in May and blows in full force in the northern Provinces by the end of June, is by far the most important. It is emphatically the monsoon. It brings to five-sixths 54 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA of peninsular and continental India and the southern slopes of their p;rcat mountain wall their main supply of water. Tlie north-east monsoon, thougli of less moment to the country as a whole, is of great importance to the south-east of the peninsula and the north of CcAdon. These parts receive but little rain from the south-west, and the north- east monsoon makes up the deficiency. 90. The causes of the monsoons are not difficult to under- stand. We have seen that winds always blow from regions of higher to regions of lower pressure, and that regions of high temperature are also regions of low pressure. Winds therefore blow on the surface of the earth from colder to warmer regions. If the surface of the earth were all water, winds would blow in both hemispheres toxvards the equatorial belt, which would constitute a permanent zone of low pressure. By the rotation of the earth such winds would be diverted towards the west, and therefore north-east winds would prevail in the northern hemi- sphere and south-east winds in the southern hemisphere, and in each case these winds would be strongest when the sun was at the other side of the equator. As the southern hemisphere is mainly water, south-cast winds do actually prevail over the greater part of its surface. But the northern hemisphere has more land than water, and therefore, owing to the different degrees in which land and water are heated bj' the sun's rays, the areas of lowest pressure are sometimes far removed from the equator, and the direction of the prevailing winds are changed. The winds in the northern hemisphere are therefore not charac- terised by the comparative uniformity that prevails in the south, and sometimes — as in the case of the south-west monsoon in India — the primal conditions are completely reversed. 91. By March 22nd the sun has passed the equator on his way north, and the whole of India, then everywhere fairly dry, is rapidly increasing in temperature. During that month the average pressure falls over the entire country. By the end of April an area of deeper depression has been formed over the United Provinces and Central India, and already over a con- siderable part of the peninsula light south-west winds have begun. These do not come from the sea, however, and so bring no water with them. By the mitldle of May the depression has largely increased in extent and its centre has become tlecper. Its influence is consequently felt over a wider area, and as far THE SOUTH-WEST MONSOON 55 Fig3. 21 & 22. Illustrating the formation of the low pressure system which causes the S.W. Monsoon. 56 GEOr.RAPHY OF INDIA south as the equator the winds are now mainly south-west. They strike the west coasts of India after traveUing over warm oceans for many luindreds of miles, and come laden witli moisture. By the entl of June the depression has increased enormously in extent, and has still further deepened over northern India. The monsoon is now fully developed, and south-west winds prevail for 30° north of the equator and from the coast of Africa to the Phihppines. In July the depression is still larger and its centre of greatest depth is over Baluchistan. During August and September the depression gradually diminishes and moves to the south-east. The charts on page 55 illustrate the formation of the low pressure system and indicate the prevailing winds. 92. By September 22nd the sun has passed south of the equator, and the vast dry highlands of Asia are cooling with extraordinary rapidity. The conditions of Central Asia as to pressure are therefore soon totally reversed. By the middle of October a large system of moderately high pressure has been formed, extending from the Caspian Sea to China. \\'hat remains of the old depression, greatly reduced, is now over the Bay of Bengal. North-east winds have begun to blow in the north of the Bay, though south-west wintls still prevail in the south and east. Now w-inds blowing from the north-east come from colder and comparatively dry latitudes. They bring little moisture with them, and though they would take up a con- siderable quantity from the Bay of Bengal, they could give little rain to the east coast of India, upon which they blow. For they are travelling from colder to warmer latitudes, and, growing warmer as they go, are ever increasing their water-bearing power. But south-west winds are still blowing in the south and east of the Bay of Bengal, and these coming from the warmer southern oceans are laden with moisture. Meeting the north-east winds this southerly current is bent round in the north of the Bay, and, chilled by the colder current which turns it back, it sheds its moisture in a fertilising flood on the east coast of the peninsula and far inland. It is for this cause that the north-east monsoon is sometimes called the " retreating monsoon," for its rain- giving power depends upon the south-west winds which it meets and overcomes. The rains of the north-east monsoon are, however, soon over, for by the end of November, the high pressure area having increased in intensity, north-east winds prevail over the whole Bay and the warm water-bearing THE NORTH-EAST MONSOON 57 Figs. 23 and 24. Illustrating the formation ol the high pressure system which causes the N.E. Monsoon. 58 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA currents are turned back long before they reach the latitude of India. The charts on the preceding page show the formation of the high pressure system over Central Asia, and the prevailing winds for October and December. 93. Though we speak of the "South-West Monsoon" and the " North-East Monsoon," thereby indicating the general direction of the wind, it must not be supposed that the winds actually maintain these directions in every part of India. They do not. They are diverted from their original direction to some extent by local variations of pressure, and to a much greater extent by the configuration of the country. The decline in barometric pressure from Fig. 25. Showing the direction of the winds when the SAV. and N.E. Monsoons are fuUv established. west to east during the south-west monsoon (see Figs. 21 and 22) bends the south-west winds round towards the east, and they strike the coasts of Bombay as westerly winds. The opposite is the case in the north of Burma where the rapidly decreasing pressure to the north-west bends the winds round towards the north and then to the north-west. This influence is greatly intensified by the northern mountain wall, across which they cannot pass. The south-west monsoon current in the Gangetic plain blows, therefore, from tlie south-ejist, travelling from RAINFALL 59 Bengal up the plain to the Punjab and then bending north again. For similar reasons the north-east monsoon in the Gangetic plain is a north-west wind, travelling from the Punjab to Bengal, where it bends round to the south. Blowing from the north-east in the northern part of the Bay, it' skirts the area of depression, bending gradually towards the south. 94. We must now follow the course of these winds and mark the conditions which determine the deposit of their life-giving store of water. The south-west winds, striking the west coast, are at once checked by the Western Ghats. To pass these the current is forced upward to colder alti- tudes, and at once a large part of its vapour is condensed, and heavy and continuous rains are the result from beyond the summit of the mountains to the sea. The rainfall is great all along the western coast during the whole of the south-west monsoon, but more particularly in the south, where it commences earliest. East of the Ghats the rain- fall rapidly declines, for the current descends to warmer regions. In the month of July, when rain is falling heavily all along the Western Coast the winds reach Madras as hot and scorching blasts. 95. Towards the north the Western Ghats decline in height, and thus present less hindrance to the monsoon current. North of the Ghats are the long valleys of the Tapti and the Narbada. Up these the current sweeps, depositing a portion of its water as it goes, but reserving the bulk of it for the broken highlands of the Central Provinces and Chota Nagpur, where during the month of July the rainfall is very abundant. Further north again Kathiawar and Cutch get comparatively little, and Sind and the Indus valley very much less. The land is hot, and there are no mountains to force the current upwards, and so the winds sweep past, carrying their moisture with them till it is condensed on the slopes of the western Himalayas. 96. On the eastern side of India the south-west monsoon first gives a heavy rainfall to the south and west of Ceylon, but leaves the northern and eastern part of the 6o GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA island almost untouched. Sweeping up the Bay it strikes the coasts of Burma. Tenasserim receives a very copious watering, as also does the Arakan coast west of the Yoma. Fairly heavy rains, indeed, prevail for a couple of months over almost the whole of Burma, except a central area a couple of hundred miles north and south of Mandalay, which is comparatively dry. It is a warm and sheltered region consisting of plains and low hills, and the monsoon current, having deposited much of its water in the south and west, passes over it without shedding much more of its moisture till it meets the colder mountains of the north. 97. North of the Bay of Bengal, and in the valley of Assam, the rainfall is very heavy. Cherrapunji, on the southern edge of the Khasi Hills, has a fall far in excess of that of any other place in the world, receiving as a rule over 600 inches of rain in the year. This phenomenal fall, which extends only over a very small area, is due to a combination of causes. The clouds have swept up over many hundreds of miles of the warm bay and the Ganges delta, and the air is completely saturated with moisture. The slopes of the hills are sharp, and the current is swiftly diverted upwards. But this alone would not account for such a fall. Just at that point the current that is diverted toward the west by the frontier hills of Burma, meets that coming up direct from the bay, and it is probable that an upward swirl is caused that carries vast volumes of saturated air to cooler heights, ridding it thus of almost all its moisture. From the Khasis one branch of the south- western current is diverted in a north-westerly direction along the southern slopes of the Himalayas and the great plain, and the other, turning to the east, passes up the valley of the Brahmaputra. Both these branches yield abundant rain, and the Provinces which they traverse are among the best watered tracts in India. 98. During the north-east monsoon the rainfall is chiefly on the east coast, extending inland in the south right across the peninsula to the Western Ghats. These are the districts to which the i^^uth-west monsoon gives but little rain, blowing over them for the most part as a RAINFALL 6i comparatively dry and warm wind. The north-east monsoon makes up for this deficiency, and in the place of the summer rains which prevail elsewhere gives them a full supply in the autumn. 99. -The following diagrams give the rainfall and the isobars {i.e., the lines of equal barometric pressure) for four typical months. ^ \^^^^:^ — II^3o~~- ^Wlocs V.;"'^'^ ^^ isS^F l:=^ ^^ ^^£p \/\y ^^A .'i5S5'~V m"^ /- — ^ /^ %=^ JANUARY ^-^ '^^^S'^ ,-^ ^ m K 89^6^3 'E— ^^'^^Eus? ^ ^^: -89:60 '^\y /^Jrft -Jgl' 'y. ^ -jT?" -^■IS — JULY J ^ Cy^ Si K TjiC 0/^ ^ *^ ^ - 1 ^i»SO ^ OCTOBER ZtLinfti.ll utuUr 0.S Inch [ " 0.6 to 2 Inches Bcinjcil g to i Inches |-:>: :':| SainfaU Sloielnchtal 4to i ■• l-:-:-:-:"J -. over le •• l Fig. 26. Showing the isobars and average rainfall in four typical months. January is a dry month. Over a large part of India cool, dry, north-easterly breezes are blowing, but the influence of the re- treating monsoon has passed away. In the north, however, along the slopes of the niOTntains and in the northern plains, and especially in the north-west, there is a small amount of rain 62 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA due to the influence of cold north-westerly winds that blow at this season from the highlands of Afghanistan. In April the south-west monsoon currents are slowly forming, and by the end of the month Ceylon and Travancore have received the beginning of their rains. In the diagram for this month, as well as in those for July and October, notice should be taken of the comparatively dry area in central Burma. In July the south-west monsoon is in full force, and it will be seen how greatly the Western Ghats keep the rain from the districts to the east of them. In October the north-east (or " retreating ") monsoon is beginning. From the direct south-west currents rain is still falling on the south-west coasts of India and Burma, and the retreating current has begun to shed its store along the coast of Madras. 100. Taking the rainfall of India as a whole, we find tliat in most parts it is fairly abundant. The north- eastern portion of the great Indo-Gangetic plain, the whole of Bengal and Assam, the greater part of Burma, and the West Coast Districts from the Gulf of Cambay to Cape Comorin, have a very copious supply. Next to them come the eastern Districts of the Deccan Plateau. These have as a rule a heavier fall than the western Districts, where the rains are much more uncertain and variable. In the north-west of India the fall is alwa^^s scanty and insufficient, and much of the land is consequently little better than desert. East of the Indus a long narrow^ strip is almost rainless. 101. Though the climate and rainfall of India are thus subject to well ascertained laws, and are on the whole exceedingly regular, they are nevertheless liable, particularly at the change of monsoons, to local disturbances of peculiar violence. Thunder storms are very common in many parts, and, though quickly over, they often ileluge large tracts of country over which they pass. They are as a rule very welcome. They bring relief from the oppressive heat, anil their rains refresh the whole face of nature. In the Bay of Bengal Cyclones of great severity are also frequently generated, especially at the change of monsoons. They seem, as a rule, to take their rise in the neighbourhootl of the Andaman Islands, and travel at first in a westerly tiirection gradually changing their course to north and then north-east. RAINFALL 63 Cyclone storms are approximately circular or elliptical, and their centre is an area of deep depression. The wind blows round the centre, but bends ever inwards and upwards. Cyclones commonly strike the coast to the north of Madras, and, passing northwards, the fury of their winds often does great damage along the coast. They are usually accompanied by exceedingly heavy rains. Owing in part to the rapid decrease in barometric pressure towards the centre (which alone would account for a Fig. 27. Mean annual rainfall. rise of 3 feet in the level of the water), and in part to the inward and upward motion of the wind, vast storm waves are sometimes formed, and when these strike a confined bay they sweep over the land for many miles, causing great destruction of life and property. About thirty years ago the town of Masulipatam was almost destroyed by such a wave, and a few years later a similar one swept over the Sandarbans and up the estuaries of the Ganges, doing immense damage and destroying over 100,000 lives. CHAPTER III THE PEOPLE OF INDIA (l) Ethnology 102. The ethnology of India is still in its infancy, and only its bare outlines can be regarded as in any degree settled. In some respects it is less settled now than it appeared to be a few years ago. By modem ethnologists more reliance is placed on the study of physical types than on that of language, and many conclusions that were believed, on linguistic evidence, to be firmly established are now widely rejected. Twenty j'ears ago language was regarded as yielding by far the most valuable testimony as to the origins of races and tribes and their pre-historic movements. At the present time a minute study of physical t>'pe is more relied on. and in this direction a large amount of most valuable material has been gathered by the Ethnographic Survey of India, commenced in Bengal twenty years ago and now proceeding in most of the Provinces. The results of this survey up to 190 1 were carefully worked out in the General Report on the Census of that year. Chapter XI. But before summarising these results, it will be well to glance briefly at the theories commonly accepted till within the last ten years. In the main these are supported by recent investigations, but in some important points they must now be greatly modified. 103. The vast majority of the people of India have long been known to belong to two great stocks, the Aryan and the Dravidian. To what extent these two stocks have mingled, where the purest blood of each is now to be found, and over what extent of the country each now predominates — these are questions on which a variety of opinions have been held, and tti which a study of type alone can give a decisive answer. ETHNOLOGY • 65 104. In addition to these great stocks, three others of subordinate importance to India have been distinguished. The Tibeto-Burman, which has influenced the country on the east ; the Scythian, of Mongolo-Tartar origin on the west ; and the Kolarian, of doubtful origin, but closely related to the Dravidian, and represented in modern days by scattered tribes east and west of Central India 105. That the Aryans entered India from the north- west, pressing on in successive swarms probably through many centuries, has long been universally agreed. Lan- guage, custom, and tradition alike bear testimony to this. Wliether the Dravidians and Kolarians had similarly an external origin, and entered India in invading swarms long anterior to the inroads of the Aryans, or whether they should rather be regarded as the true aborigines of the country, has been a disputed point. As regards the Dravidians, the former conclusion has been the one most favoured. There exists in Baluchistan a " linguistic island " of Dravidian speech, the Brahiii language, cut off from the main body of Dravidian tongues by -nearly 1,000 miles. This has been taken as strong proof that the Dravidians, like the Aryans after them, came from the north-west. Sir W. W. Hunter accepted this, and further held that the Kolarians came into India from the east, and, stretching across the north of the peninsula, peopled the highlands from Orissa to the mouth of the Narbada before the influx of the Dravidians ; and that the latter, when pressed by the Aryans in the north, broke through the Kolarian line and forced their way into the south of the peninsula. The Dravidians had thus driven " an ethnic wedge " down the centre of the peninsula, dividing the Kolarians into two sections. He thus accounted for the separation of the Bhils, Kolas, etc., of the west from the Santhals, Kols, etc., of the east — all of which tribes he believed to be Kolarian. 106. To these four stocks a fifth was added almost in historic times. The Scythians appear to have come from Central Asia, and to have forced their way across the north- west frontier. Their influence is to be traced throughout F 66 GEOOKAl'll V OK INOIA tlic wliolc of west Iiulia, but Hunter believed that this race had permanently occupied the j^lains of the Indus, and that the noble race of Rajputs, and the Jats, the most important agricultural tribe of western Punjab, are their modern representatives. 107. Such were the conclusions drawn mainly from a study of language, with whatever additional light was to be had from a comparison of social systems, from tradition, and from a general agreement of type. ^lodern ethnolo- gists, however, hold that physical type is far more persistent and unchanging than language, and that, when we can decipher it, we shall find the ethnic history of every people more truly recorded in their physical characteristics — shape of head, style of features, stature, hair, eyes, etc. — than in their speech. They further hold that a minute study of physical type is likely to prove of peculiar value in India, where for centuries tribes and castes have lived apart, with but little intermixture of blood ; for in such a case types may be expected to persist with unusual definite- ness. 108. It is exceedingly probable that this line of investi- gation may yield most valuable results in India within the next few years. In the Census Report Mr. H. H. Risley, C.I.E., summarises the results of the Survey as far as it had then proceeded, and on the basis of the data collected divides the people of India into the following seven distinct types : — I. The Turko-Iranian type, in Baluchistan and the North- west Frontier Province. Stature above wean ; complexion fair ; eyes mostly dark, but occasionally grey ; hair on face plentiful ; head broad ; nose moderately narrow, prominent, and very long. II. The Indo-Aryan type, in Punjab, Rajputana and Kash- mir. Stature mostly tall ; complexion fair ; eyes dark : hair on face plentiful ; head long ; nose narrow and prominent, but not specially long. III. The Scytho-Dravidian type of Western India. Head broad ; complexion fair ; hatr on face rather scanty ; stature medium ; nose moderately fine and not conspicuously long. IV. The Apyo-Dravidian type in the United Provinces, parts of Rajputana, in IJihar, and Ceylon. Head long or medium ; ETHNOLOGY 67 complexion from light brown to black ; nose from medium to broad ; stature usually below the average. V. The Mongolo-Dpavidian type of lower Bengal and Orissa. Head broad ; complexion dark ; hair on face usually plentiful ; stature medium : nose medium, with a tendency to broad. VI. The Mongoloid type of the Himalayas, Assam, Nepal, and Burma. Head broad ; complexion dark, with a yellowish tinge ; hair on face scanty ; stature below average ; nose fine to broad ; face characteristically flat ; eyelids often oblique. VII. The Dravidian type of Madras. Hyderabad, the Central Provinces, most of Central India and Chota Nagpur. Stature short, or below mean ; complexion very dark, approaching black ; hair plentiful, with an occasional tendency to curl ; eyes dark ; head long ; nose very broad. 109. It will be seen that the Aryan element is much less prominent than has hitherto been thought, and on the other hand, that the Dravidian element is more widespread. The purest Aryan type is found under Type IV. among the Rajputs, Khattris, and Jats, and the theory that would assign a Scythic origin to these races may be regarded as finally disposed of. They have apparently maintained very largely the purity of their blood, while the Indo- Aryans of the United Provinces have commingled with the Dravidians. In explanation of this Mr. Risley surmises that they came into India by slow and peaceful migration, bringing their women with them, while the ancestors of their western neighbours, coming into India at a later date and by a more toilsome and hazardous route, brought few, if any, women with them, and took wives of the daughters of the land. With regard to the Dravidians, Mr. Risley's conclusion is that they are the earliest inhabitants of India of whom we have any knowledge. no. The map will show the localities in which these several types prevail. It must be remembered, however, that each type gradually shades off into the neighbouring one, and that the boundaries are therefore only approxi- mate. The divisions, moreover, only indicate the general type of the bulk of the people. The proportions in which the racial elements combine in different classes of the 68 GEOGRAl'IIV Ol- INDIA comiminity arc also very various. Among the Scytho- Dravidians the Scythic element predominates in the RIaratha Brahmans, and the Aryan element predominates among the Brahmans of the Aryo-Dravidians. There is also a certain admixture of the Arj'an element almost lACE DI8TIIIBUTI0II MONOOLOIO INCX>-ARr«N DRAVIDIAN MONCOLO DOAVIOIAN ARVO-DRAVlOltN sevTHOonAvioiAN TURKO-IRANIAN Fig. 28. Showing Race Distribution. everywhere among the higher castes, and traces Scythic and Mongolian blood are found among Dravidians of the south. of the (2) Distribution of the Population III. India is essentially an agricultural country. According to the last Census nearly 200 millions of tlie people were engaged directly in agricultural or pastoral occupations. These people arc necessarily scattered over DISTRIBUTION OF POPULATION 69 the land and not congregated together in towns. Many more are indirectly employed on the land, being engaged in ministering to the needs of the agriculturists proper. These also are scattered over the country. India has no great mineral resources, and even what she has are as yet but little worked. Nor are there any great manufactures to draw the people together in towns. Small manufactures there are in plenty, and some have their centres in particular localities. But in no sense can India, or any Province of India, be called a manufacturing country. The result of this is that the vast majority of the people live in hamlets or villages, and the towns and cities are comparatively few, and for the most part small. This is best seen by com- paring* India with a great manufacturing country like England. While in India, out of a population of 294 millions, only 27^ millions — or considerably less than 10 per cent. — live in towns of 5,000 inhabitants and over, in England 77 per cent, of the total population live in such towns. In the one case over 90 per cent, of the people are scattered over the land, but in the other only 23 per cent. India is thus emphatically a land of villages. 112. In ancient days these villages were generally self- contained and self-organised communities. They had but little communication with the outside world and needed little. Living upon the soil, the majority of their people were culti- vators, but the simple handicrafts, etc.. necessary for the in- dependent life of an agricultural community were represented in every village, and all occupations passed from father to son. In ordinary years, when nature was propitious, such villagers had few inducements to look beyond their own narrow borders. Roads were few ; travelling difficult and dangerous ; and, except when some religious festival drew them to some famous shrine, they spent their quiet and laborious days among their own people. In many parts of India this is still to a large extent the case, but in others it is rapidly passing away. Better roads, and other means of communication, the spread — even among the illiterate — of some knowledge of the world beyond, the increase of their means, and the opening of outside markets for their produce, are all enlarging the outlook of the people, breaking down their village exciusiveness, and bringing them into touch 70 GEOGRAPHY OF INOIA with a wider world. But these inlluences do not ten^^:^>i^-^,^ --?v,;f iC' . 'iip *■ _*•' Fi^. 29. Showing the Density of the Population. is found in the well-watered Provinces of the Gangetic valley and the south-west coast. Ne.xt come thej|^cast and west coast districts, where also the rainfall is fairly reliable and abundant. (4) Language 121. The two great families of languages lliat divide between them almost the whole of India proper are the Aryan and the Dravidian. Indo-Chinese languages prevail in Burma and along the Himalayas. LANGUAGE 75 At one time Dravidian forms of speech probabfy occupied the whole country. That is at least suggested by the fact that scattered tribes, speaking Dravidian tongues, are still found as far north as Baluchistan in the west and Chota Nagpur in" the east. Now, however, the vernacular languages of at least four-fifths of the Indian people belong to the Aryan family. A comparison of the language map on p. 78 with that showing race distribution on p, 68 will show that Dravidian blood is far more prevalent in India to-day than Dravidian speech. This is precisely what might have been expected. Wlienever a stronger people, more advanced in all the arts of Hfe, and with a more developed language, dispossess a weaker race, the latter will in course of time adopt the language of their conquerors, even though, through intermarriage, the races themselves may coalesce. The superseded tongue may contribute any number of words to the new language which the conquered must adopt, but ultimately the language which survives will be, in idiom, form and struc- ture, the language of the conquerors. This process has gone on largely in India. Though Dravidian blood still prevails in some degree almost up to the Himalayas, and in comparative purity as far north as Central India, Dravidian languages are, with the exception of a few scattered remnants, confined to those parts of South India over which the waves of Aryan immigration never swept in force. 122. The principal Dravidian languages are Telugu, Tamil, Kanarese, and Malayalam, which are spoken respec- tively by about 2o|, i6|, loi, and 6 millions of people, inhabiting an area which forms a solid linguistic block in south-east India. Gond is spoken by over a million people, chiefly in the Central Provinces ; Tulu by over half a million in South Kanara ; Kurukh, or Oraon, by about the same number on the hills of Chota Nagpur. and Kandh by nearly as many on the hills of Orissa. There are many other Dravidian languages spoken by smaller numbers, the most interesting of which is BrahiJI, spoken by an isolated group in eastern Baluchistan. 76 GEOGRAPHY OF INPIA Santali and Kol, the languages of the Santhals and Kols, who number nearly three millions and are found in Bihar, Chota Nagpur and Orissa, arc the chief languages of the Munda Sub-Family. There are several other members of tliis group, but less known, and spoken by smalltr numbers. These languages used to be called Kolarian, and the Kolarians were believed by some to have entered India from the north-east. The group is, however, essentially Dravidian, and is probably identical in origin with the Dravidian languages of the South. 123. The Aryan languages spoken in India fall into two classes, the Irano-Aryan, or Iranian, which prevail west of the Indus, and of which Baloch, Pashto, and Persian are the chief examples, and the Indo-Aryan which prevail from the Indus to the confines of Burma, and southwards till they meet the Dravidian languages of the peninsula 124. All the chief Indo-Aryan languages are Sanscritic in their character, Sanscrit, the great classical language of India, having in all probability been developed into the form in which it is found in the Vedas long after the final Aryan immigrants had settled in the " Middle Land." A comparison of these languages suggests that they were introduced into India at two different periods, probably separated by several centuries ; that the earliest wave of immigrants, coming, most likely, from the west, spread over the greater part of western and northern India before the arrival of the second wave ; and that these latter, coming most probably across the northern frontier, forced their way into the middle of the previous settlers, and, as they grew in numbers, drove them gradually to the east, south and west, and to some extent also to the north. Dr. Grierson, the head of the Linguistic Survey of India, calls the languages whose origin is to be traced to these later settlers, the Inner Indo-Aryan languages, and those that appear to have sjirung from the language of the earlier settlers, the Outer Indo-Aryan languages. To the east of the Inner gnnip tlicre is also a smaller Intermediate class formed probably by a fusion of the two. The chief LANGUAGE 77 languages belonging to each group, with the approximate number of people speaking them, are as follows : — Inner Indo-Aryan. Western Hindi . . . . 39,367,000 Rajasthani . . . . 10,917,000 Gujapati . . . . . . 9,928,000 Punjabi 17,070,000 Pahapi 3,124,000 Intermediate Indo-Aryan. Eastern Hindi . . . . . . . . 20,986,000 Outer Indo-Aryan. Kashmiri .. .. .. .. 1,007,000 Lahnda . . . . . . . . 3,337,000 Sindhi . . . . . . . . . . 3,006,000 MapathI .. .. .. .. 18,237,000 Oriya . . . . . . . . . . 9,687,000 Bihapi . . . . . . . . 37,076,000 Bengali . . . . . . 44,624,000 Assamese . . 1,350,000 125. The locaHties in which these various languages are spoken are shown on the map on the following page. It should be remembered, however, that neighbouring languages shade off into one another by almost imper- ceptible gradations, and though the boundaries are of necessity sharply defined on a map, they are not so in reality. 126. Most of these languages have numerous dialects, sometimes exhibiting a very wide degree of divergence. The only one of these that we need notice is Hindustani, the chief dialect of Western Hindi. Hindustani is spoken more or less all over India, and particularly by the Muham- madans, and is often spoken of as the lingua franca of India. Urdii is literary Hindustani, written in the Persian character, and often greatly modified by the introduction of Persian words. The prevalence of Hindustani throughout India is due to the widespread influence of the Mughal Empire, and to the fact that Muhammadans are numerous in every' Province. 127. In the extreme north of India are tribes speaking Non-Sanscritic Indo-Aryan languages. They are few in 78 GEOGKAI'HV OI-- INDIA number, however, and none of their dialects have native characters. 128. The Indo-Chinese languages spoken in India, of which by far the most important group is the Tibeto- Fig. 30. Showing llic Distribution ol Languages. Burman, are very numerous, including no fewer than 92 ot the 147 languages enumerated in the Census Report. They are spoken, however, by a comparatively small fraction of the people, less than twelve millions in all, RELIGION 79 including the people of Burma and the border mountains, the Khasi and Garo Hills, and the slopes of the Himalayas. Burmese, the most cultivated of these languages, is spoken by about jh millions. Karen and Shan, spoken by tribes bearing the same names, are closely related to Chinese, and are each spoken by about a million people. The rest of the languages of this group are spoken by mere handfuls of people. Comparatively little is known as yet about many of the Indo-Chinese languages. (5) Religion 129. Of the 294 millions of people in India in 1901, 207 millions were classed as Hindus. But the term Hinduism, as now used, includes such a wide variety of beliefs and customs that definition becomes impossible. The early Dravidians were Animists, i.e., believers in spirits, mostly malign, that had constantly to be propitiated by sacrifice and offering. The non-Caste population of south India are little more than this to-day. The Aryans, on the other hand, early developed a philosophic cult, chiefly pantheistic in character, which was overgrown in later ages by a vast mass of Brahmanical ceremonial and custom. The Aryans in India greatly influenced the earlier races with which they came in contact, imposing their authority and im- parting their religious rites, but at the same time adopting and sanctioning many elements of their primitive animistic beliefs. Every type of religion in which a Hindu element is discoverable in any degree is now classed as Hinduism, and that term therefore covers every variety of belief and ceremonial custom, from almost the crudest animism to philosophic pantheism. Between the various sects of Hinduism, or between the multitudinous castes, there are to-day hardly any common bonds save reverence for Brahmans, the observance of caste rules., and belief in the sacredness of the cow. Only a few primitive tribes inhabiting hilly tracts in the peninsula are now classed as Animists. Their number, which is decreasing, is about 84 millions. 8o GKOGKAl'HY OK INDIA 130. Muhammadanism has more than f)Z millions of adherents in India. They form the majority of the popu- lation in the Punjab, the North-West Frontier Province, Bengal, and Assam, cis well as in the State of Kashmir, and are numerous all over India. Muhammadanism was introduced into India in comparatively recent times by the incursions of the Afghans, the Mughals, and others, and its prevalence throughout India is to be traced mainly to the influence of the Mughal supremacy. Its doctrines, based on the Quran, make Muhammadanism an essentially aggressive faith. Over India, as over many other lands, it was spread chiefly through the influence of civil and military power. It is still aggressive in many parts of India, though its growth now is mainly due to social influences. 131. Buddhism was in its origin a revolt against Brah- manism, and was founded by Gaut.\ma, who was born about five and a half centuries before the Christian era. Though it flourished greatly in India for several centuries, Benares itself being for long a Buddhist city, it has not taken permanent root in the land of its birth. It has spread, however, over the greater part of eastern Asia, and now numbers over 100 million votaries. At the date of the last Census there were nearly gi million Buddhists in the Indian Empire, but they were almost entirely confined to Burma. 132. Jainism arose about the same time as Buddhism, or perhaps a little earlier, and has much in common with it. It does not, however, make nirvana the great goal of aspiration, but believes that the soul, when delivered from the bondage of matter, will enjoy a separate and conscious spiritual life. The modern Jains number about 1,300,000, and are found chiefly in Rajputana, Bombay and Central India. They observe caste, have an inordinate number of temples, and are remarkable for tlicir reverence for every form of animal life. 133. Sikhism is of much more modern origin. Its founder, Baba Nanak, was a vigorous preacher born near Lahore a little more than 400 years ago. His followers formed a religious society, which his successors in power RELIGION »I bound together by strict political organisation and military discipline. In the history of India the Sikhs have been rather a military than a religious force. As a religion Sikhism acknowledges one God, inculcates reverence for its sacred writings, or Granth, and rejects all caste distinc- tions and ceremonies. The Sikhs number now about 2| millions, and have their headquarters at Amritsar in the Pan jab. 134. Christianity, in one form or another, has existed in India for many centuries, chiefly on the south-west coast, where the Syrian Christians have long been settled. Both Roman and Protestant Christianity have increased rapidly in India of recent years, and the number of Christians returned at the last Census was nearly 3 millions. 135. Among the minor religious bodies found in India are the Parsis and the Jews. The Parsis are fire-wor- shippers, whose ancestors came from Persia. Their sacred book is the Zend-avesta of Zoroaster. They are settled chiefly in Bombay, where they constitute a thriving com- mercial community numbering about 95,000. There are over 18,000 Jews in India, two-thirds of whom are in Bombay and along the west coast. How or when they came is a disputed point, but in some places they enjoy very ancient rights. As in all other countries the Jews in India keep themselves rigidly separate from the people among whom they dwell. CHAPTER IV NATURAL PRODUCTIONS 136. As gi necessary preliminary to any useful study of the natural prochicts of India, and especially of the culti- vated vegetable products, we must first consider the nature of the soil and the supply of water for agricultural purposes. We have glanced at both these subjects in other connections, but they claim now a more detailed and careful examination if we would understand the natural distribution of vegetable products, and tlie reasons why diflferent crops, or different methods of cultivation, prevail in different districts. (I) The Soil 137. The soil is the weathered product of the rocks of which the earth's crust is composed. WTienever rocks, however hard, are exposed to the influence of air and water, heat and cold, they slowly crumble. This process, which is partly chemical and partly mechanical, is termed " weathering." It is accelerated by the presence of vegetation, for not only do plants promote chemical action, but their roots, penetrating into the minutest crevices, soon split the hardest rocks. The soil is the product of long ages of such weathering, increased and enriched by the decay of plants and animals. 138. Whatever other substances may have mingled with it and modified it, it is plain that the character of the soil must everywhere depend primarily upon the character of the rock from which it is derived. In a great alluvial plain like that of the Ganges the soil is a mixture of the crumblings of many kinds of rock which tlie rivers have brought from great distances, and which have been ground down by attrition to a fine impalpable mud. But in other THE SOIL 83 cases there may be little mixture, and especially is this the case where particular geological formations cover large areas, when the difference between different soils is almost as marked as the difference between the rocks from which they are derived. Nowhere is this more clearly seen than in the Deccan, where the soil that prevails in the north-west offers a striking contrast to that of the cast and south. 139. We have seen that the Aravallis and the Eastern Ghats are the most ancient hills in India. The geological formation of which they are in the main composed extends right across the peninsula south of a line drawn from Goa to Masulipatam, and across the eastern half of that part of the peninsula which lies north of that line. Over the greater part of this area, and again in the west from the 84 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA nortlicni sjiurs of tlic Aravallis to the piilfs of rutch and Cambay, Jiard crystalline archican rocks prevail. Such rocks weather very slowly, and although the process of disintegration has been going on for countless ages, the soil is of no great depth excc])t where it has been washetl down from the hill sides into the valleys. The soil from such rock is porous and light, and the rain sinks into it readily. But as the rock itself is comparatively near the surface and is impervious to water, the moisture that the soil receives drains away with rapidity, or is collected in deep hollows of the rock. 140. Between the Archaean region of the Aravallis and that of tlie south-west there is a vast area of basaltic rock, known as Deccan Trap, which is volcanic in its origin. Through long geological ages that part of India was the scene of vast and recurrent volcanic disturbances, the outflow of which ultimately covered an area of upwards of 200,000 square miles. It forms the entire north-western part of the Deccan and two-thirds of Katliiawfir, and in successive layers extends to a very great depth, in some places exceeding 6,000 feet. Deccan Trap weathers com- paratively quickly, and the resulting soil is dark in colour and very fertile, and is known as the black cottoyi soil. Unlike the soil from the crystalline rocks of the east it retains its water, so much so that it is often described as " water-holding soil." And since, owing to the rapid disintegration of the trap, the soil is generally fairly deep, there is usually a good supply of water a little way below the surface which can easily be tapped by wells. 141. The water-holding power of any soil is of the greatest possible value to the agriculturist. Where the soil has but little such power the effects of drought are very speedily felt, the fields are burnt up and the wells run dry. A water-holding soil, however, may be caked on the surface, but still vegetation flourishes, for as the surface dries the water rises from below. With such a soil it is only after many rainless months that the effects of drought begin to be seen. The cotton soil possesses this power to a remark- able degree. To a less degree it is also characteristic of IRRIGATION 85 most of the alluvial soil of India. This is particularly the case in the valley and delta of the Ganges, where the soil is a mixture of clay and mud, and to a less extent also in the northern part of the great plain between the Jumna and the Indus, where the soil is a light, but not sandy, loam. Passing south-west, however, down the Indus valley, the soil becomes more and more mixed with sand, till in Sind it is little else. The scanty rains which that region receives are quickly absorbed by the light and porous earth ; but they evaporate almost as quickly, and the ground is soon perfectly dry for many feet below the surface. (2) Irrigation 142. By irrigation we commonly mean the watering of the land for the purposes of agriculture by water brought from a distance by means of canals from rivers, or from storage tanks. In many parts of India a sufficient supply of water can be obtained in ordinary years from wells alone. This is the case wherever water-holding soil pre- vails. Where wells can be depended on there is less need for other sources of supply, though even there a perennial supply of river water may be both cheaper and better for the land. Well-irrigation exists all over India, sometimes alone, and sometimes side by side with other systems, and, taking India as a whole, probably a greater area is watered by wells than by all other systems of irrigation put together. But well-irrigation is chiefly a private work, and land so watered is seldom, in the technical sense, irrigated land. It is probable that irrigation from wells may in some places be taken up by Government, experi- ments with power-pumps having been made in several taliiks in the south. But so far little has been done. 143. The rivers and plains of North India are peculiarly suitable for the development of great systems of canal irrigation. The rivers being snow-fed afford even in their upper courses and in the digest seasons a fairly abundant supply of water. This can be drawn off into canals at the 86 GEOGKAI'IIY OK INDIA highest part of the almost level plain, and the gentle slope of the plain then gives the fall necessary for steady flow. 144. As an illustration oi this system, and as shownng the magnitude of the works that have sometimes to be undertaken, we may take the Upper Ganges Canal which has been in opera- tion for upwards of half a century. The Canal head is near Hardwar, a few miles below the junction of the Bhagirathi and Alaknanda. At this point the Ganges is a fair-sized river, having a flow of about 7,000 cubic feet per second in the driest season, and much more in the rains, or when the snow has begun to melt. The vast head-works of the Canal are of solid masonry and are so arranged as to draw off about 6,500 cubic feet of water per second. This great volume of water is taken in a south-westerly direction across the course of other mountain streams which it does not disturb. It passes under one by means of a tunnel, and is carried over another by an aqueduct two miles in length. Then it bends to the south, and by means of main channels over 450 miles in length, and smaller distri- butaries with a total length of almost 4,500 miles, waters an area of 1,500 square miles of land between the Ganges and the Jumna. A little lower down, when the Ganges has again become a river of considerable volume, another canal takes olT an almost equal quantity of water. 145. Similar canals are taken from almost all the main tributaries of the Ganges and Indus, and some are of even greater magnitude. The Sirhind Canal from the Sutlej waters more than 1,200 sq. miles of the Panjab, as well as large tracts in the Native States of Patiala, Nabha and Jind. Its main channel exceeds 500 miles in length, and has over ten times that length of distributaries. The Lower Chenab Canal has a main channel of 427 miles, and waters the large area of 3,040 square miles. The Jumna, the Ravi, the Jhelum and the Gandak, provide water for other canal systems which give a perennial supply to many millions of acres. In the Punjab alone S.250 square miles of laud are thus watered. 146. In the canals already mentioned the supply of water is constant, the head-works being so constructed as to draw off a sufficient volume even when the river is at its lowest. In the lower course of the Indus a dilTerent system is adopted, the canals being tilled only during the lime lh;it the river is in flood. Such canals are distinguished as Inundation Canals, i'he Indus, IRRIGATION 87 owing to the high level of its bed, offers special facilities for this system, which, though not affording so perfect a protection, has the advantage of cheapness. The solid masonry canal heads necessary for the perennial canals give place to simpler earth- works, and a much smaller capital expenditure is required. While the Upper Ganges Canal has cost over ;£2, 000,000, and. the Sirhind and Lower Chenab Canals each not very much less, the Indus Inundation Canals, with over 650 miles of main channels, have cost less than ;^ioo,ooo. Sind is almost entirely dependent upon irrigation of this kind. 147. In the peninsula canal irrigation from the rivers is much more restricted than in the northern plains, since the rivers, not being snow-fed, do not offer a continuous supply of any great volume until they are comparatively near the sea. Small canals, however, draw their supplies from the upper reaches of the Godavari and Kistna ; and the Son, shortly before its confluence vdth the Ganges, supplies canals which irrigate a considerable area in Bihar. But it is in the deltas of the rivers that the great irrigation works of the peninsula are found. The waters of the Mahanadi, the Godavari, the Kistna and the Cauvery are all thus utilised, as well as those of some of the smaller rivers. An anicat, or masonry dam, is thrown across the river near the apex of its delta, which prevents the water draining away too rapidly to the sea. The level of the water above the anicat is thus considerably raised, and a slight fall secured that enables it to be easily distributed throughout the delta and to some extent further inland. The irrigation systems that water the deltas of the four great rivers that discharge into the Bay of Bengal have over 2,000 miles of main canals and 5,300 miles of dis- tributaries, and give an unfailing supply of water to over 4,000 square miles of exceedingly fertile land. 148. Irrigation in the interior of the peninsula is, how- ever, chiefly from tanks. We have seen that the rivers are in flood for only a short time, and that over the whole of the eastern and southern half of the peninsula the ground is such that the water speedily drains away. The problem to be solved is, therefore, how to hinder the water 88 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA that Hoods the land during the rainy season from running to waste. This is solved by storing it in " tanks " where it is available for future use. These tanks are of all sizes, from mere ponds to lakes five or six miles in length. They are usually constructed by throwing a dam or bund of masonry or earthwork across a narrow valley through which a stream passes, thus confining the natural drainage. Or sometimes tlicsc tanks, or lakes, are constructed at some distance from a river whose waters are artificially turned into them. The water is then distributed over the sur- rounding country by a network of channels. 149. In the Madras Presidency alone there are 60,000 such tanks of all sizes. Many of them are ancient works, but most of the greatest have been constructed in recent years. One notable illustration may be mentioned — the Periyap Project, as it is called. The Periyar is a river on the western side of the Western Ghats, whose waters used to be lost in the Arabian Sea. They are now diverted and carried through a tunnel under the Ghats to the eastern side of the hills where water was greatly needed. They supply a vast artificial lake capable of watering more than 300 square miles of land. 150. Indian irrigation works surpass in extent and utility anything else of the kind in the whole world. The total capital outlay upon them up to the end of 1906 exceeded £^3 1,000,000. The payment received from the cultivators for the water supplied meets all the working expenses and returns a fair interest on this large sum. The extent to which such works increase the wealth of the country, and especially of the ryots, is best seen from the fact that in seasons of only slight scarcity the value of the crops raised on irrigated land, and which, but for irrigation, could not have been raised at all, exceeds the whole capital outlay on the works themselves. (3) Forests 151. The forests of India constitute a valuable part of ttic natural resources of the country, because of the limber they provide, and they arc of further importance because of their influence on climate and rainfall. Forests protect the hill-sides, the roots of the trees binding the soil and FORESTS 89 hindering it being waslied away. They also check evapora- tion, and so preserve the moisture of the soil. And, what is of still greater moment, wherever a large extent of forest occurs its comparatively cool area is frequently sufficient to attract the clouds and determine a downpour of rain, which, when once started, spreads far beyond the actual Fig. 32. Showing the forest areas and the areas under irrigation. forest area. Forests are of importance for another reason. They encourage and protect the undergrowth of grass and small shrubs, which constitute an invaluable grazing ground when vegetation on the more exposed land is burnt up. 152. If tradition is to be believed the forests of India covered at one time the face of the whole land. But for centuries they go GEOGRAPHY OV INDIA have been exposed to indiscriminate " destruction. No steps were taken for their preservation till 1846 when conservancy operations were begun in Bombay. Ten years later this example was followed in Madras. In 1861 the Forest Department of the Government was created, and the work thus begun was com- pleted by the Forest Act of 1878, which gave to India a com- plete, scientific, and efficient system of forest administration. In all the Provinces there are now large areas of " reserved " forests, which are entirely under the control of the Department, as well as other, and in some provinces considerably larger, areas which are demarcated and efficiently protected. The objects which the Department has in view are (i) the protection of such forests as now exist from damage through unscientific felling of timber, or from fires ; (2) the extension of the forests by planting suitable and useful trees over areas reserved for the purpose ; (3) the production of as much good timber and firewood as the forest can yield without injury ; and (4) the provision of grazing areas which can be relied on in times of drought. The total demarcated forest in British India is over a quarter of a million square miles, or about twice the area of the British Isles. 153. Numerous valuable timber trees are native to the forests of India. Of these by far the most important is teak. The tree is found chiefly in the forests of Burma and the Western Ghats, in both of which regions much attention has been given to its cultivation. About 150,000 tons of teak, are exported from Burma yearly. It is floated in vast rafts down the rivers, particularly the Salwin. Teak is a hard and durable wood, and until it is very old is not attacked by white ants. It is, therefore, specially useful for building purposes and for furniture. The sal is found in great abundance in the forests of the Himalayas and the Central Provinces. Its wood is hard and heavy, and is used for building purposes and railway sleepers. The sissoo is also characteristic of the Himalayan forests. Its wootl is of a rich dark brown colour, hard and capable of a fine polish, and is used tor furniture. The blackwood is found chiefly on the Western Ghats. Its heart- wood is a deep reddish-black, hard and lirm. anil is greatly used for carved furniture and decorative work. FORESTS 91 The sandal grows in the drier parts of the peninsula, especially in Mysore. It is cultivated by Government in the Central Provinces. The heart-wood, has a lasting fragrance, and is much used for carving, and as a perfume. It is also employed in the manufacture of incense, and is exported for this purpose. The khair and the toon, both of which are common in the N.W. Himalayas and Burma, yield red woods used for furniture. The heart- wood of the former is dark in colour and very hard and durable, and is valuable for building. The deodar, a kind of cedar, along with various species of pines, are the chief trees in the higher forests of the Western Himalayas. The ebony tree grows on the Western Ghats, and in Burma the ironwood tree is next in importance to the teak. 154. The forests yield other important products besides timber. From the heart-wood of the khair cutch, or catechu, an astringent gum-resin used both in tanning and as a medicine, is obtained. Myrobalans, the dried fruit of several species of terminalia, are also a valuable tanning material. They are exported in considerable quantities. Caoutchouc, or India rubber, is obtained from the milk which exudes from incisions in the stem of the rubber tree, a species of fig, which is found in the eastern provinces of the Empire. Great attention has been paid of late to the cultivation of this tree, and Government plantations have been started in Bengal, Assam, and Burma. Two other species of the same genus, the banyan and the peepul are common in most parts of India. They, are large and handsome trees, but are not of any great economic value. The peepul is a sacred tree among the Hindus. The bamboo, a giant grass, is common in almost all parts of India where water is plentiful, up to an elevation of 3,000 feet. It is an important forest product, the reserved forests yielding in a single year nearly 100 million canes. 155. Many trees not indigenous to India have been intro- duced of recent years. The most notable of these are various species of eucalyptus which have been introduced from Australia and of which there are now extensive plantattons on the 92 GEOGKAHIIY OF INDIA Himalayas, Nilgiris, ami Palnis, where they Hourish greatly. The leaves of these trees contain an aromatic resin, and their cultivation is said to counteract malaria. The tree grows to an immense height, but develops so ijuickly that its wood is of little use except for fuel. The pain tree is also spreading in the hotter plains. It grows with great rapidity, spreading its branches over a wide area, and giving a thick and welcome shade. The casuapina is another quick-growing tree, which is cultivated in many places along the coasts of the peninsula. Large Govern- ment casuarina plantations have been establislied on the east coast. The straight poles of the trees are used for scaffolding, but the chief value of the casuarina is as a source of e.\ccllent firewood. (4) Food Grains 156. Rice. Of all tlic food grains of India rice is the most important. It is the staple food of more than a fourth of the people, and a common article of diet of at least as many more. Rice requires for its cultivation an abun- dant supply of water and warmth, and is therefore chiefly grown in those dis- tricts on the plains which have a copious rainfall or are well irrigated. The rich wet plains of Bengal form one of the larg- est and most pro- ductive rice-fields in I-'ig. 33. In the ari-.is printed black more tluiii half the WOrld, though the cultivated land is devoted to rice. In the other their produCe doCS shaded parts more than a quarter. , , ■ ,., not equal m quality the Carolina rice of the United States. Out of about 74 million acres dcvotcfl to rice culture in British India, 36 millions are in Bengal alone. Lower Burma is also a % %> RICE / 1 Jm^B^ ^P r ps li % 1 FOOD GRAINS 93 great rice- producing province, but its total output is less than one-fourth that of Bengal. In both these provinces rice is the main food of the people, but while the vast population of Bengal consumes almost the whole of the rice grown in the province, three-fifths of the crop of Lower Burma is available for export. Rice is also exten- sively grown in the deltas of the peninsular rivers, and wherever the conditions of the country are favourable. 157. Wheat is cultivated largely in North and Central India, and is a cereal of increasing importance, both as a staple food of the people and as an article of export. It requires for its cultiva- tion much less water than rice. When young it can stand keen frosts, but after the ear is formed it needs a dry air and bright sunshine to bring it to perfec- tion. The plains of Northern and Central India, especially to- wards the west, are thus well adapted for its growth. Indian wheat is hard and of excellent quality, and is growing in favour in Europe. Its cul- tivation is, therefore, spreading, and its export rapidly increasing. In the year 1907 the extent of land devoted to wheat culture in British India was 25 million acres, against 73^ million acres devoted to rice. The total rice crop was about 21 million tons, and the wheat crop exceeded 8 million tons. 158. Millets. The chief millets grown in India are cholum (or jowar), cumbu (or bajra), and ragi. They Fig. 34. The black areas are the centres of wheat cultivation. It is less abundantly grown in the districts shaded with lines, and still less in those shaded with dots. 94 GKOGR.MMI^• OF INDIA require much less water than rice and take the place of that grain in most of the drier provinces of India. In all but the great rice-producing districts of the peninsula millets form the staple food of the poorer people, rice being a luxury of the wealthy. In Bombay, Sind, and Berar more than half of the total area devoted to food grains is given up to millets, and more than one-third in Madras and in at least half the Districts of the Punjab, Agra, and Upper Burma. Taking British India alone the millets are not so important a food crop as rice, but if the Native States be added, the majority of which are less abundantly watered than the British Provinces, they are more important, and form the staff of life to a larger number of people. 159. Pulses. Various pulses, the chief of which are gram and dal, are widely grown in the United Provinces and the Punjab, and less extensively in other provinces. They are valuable as foods, being more nutritious than either rice or millets, because of the larger proportion of nitrogenous matter they contain. They are eaten in com- bination with less nutritious grains almost all over India. 160. Barley is grown in the United Provinces, and to a less extent in the Punjab and Bengal, It is less nutritious than the millets, but is cheaper, and is, therefore, largely used by the poorer classes. Barley is also extensively used for brewing. 161. Maize, or Indian corn, is also cultivated in these provinces, and to a less extent in many other parts of India. It is nowhere, however, a crop of first importance. (5) Other Vegetable Products 162. Palms. Various species of Palms are common throughout the plains of India, and on the hill sides, though being an essentially tropical order they do not flourish at any great height. By far the most useful of these is the cocoanut. It loves a well- watered, sandy soil, and flourishes all round the coasts of the peninsula, and FRUITS AND VEGETABLES 95 particularly around the backwaters of Cochin and Travan- core. It is also largely cultivated in the interior. The chief products of the cocoanut are copra and coir. Copra is the dried kernel of the nut from which cocoanut oil is expressed. Coir is the fibrous husk of the nut, which is woven into coarse matting and rope. There is a con- siderable export of both copra and coir from the ports of the West Coast. The palmyra palm which is common all over the peninsula, but cannot stand the cold nights of the north-west, is chiefly of value as a source of " toddy," which is the sap drawn from the flower stalk and slightly fermented. The areca palm, cultivated chiefly in Bengal but found almost wherever the cocoanut grows, yields a nut which is chewed all over India along with the leaf of the betel, or pepper vine. A species of date palm, known as the bastard date, is found all over India, particularly in Bengal, and is one of the chief sources of jaggery, or native sugar. The true date, the fruit of which is of great value in Arabia and North Africa, needs a dry, hot climate; and brings its fruit to perfection only in Sind. The wood of all the palms is used for temporary buildings, and the leaves make an excellent and durable thatch. 163. Fruits and Vegetables. Many kinds of fruit are grown in India, the most universal and useful of which is the plantain or banana. The mango, one of the most luscious fruits in the world, is abundant, and much attention has in some places been given to its culture. Oranges of excellent quality, limes and figs are cultivated in many parts. The jack fruit, the papaw, custard apples, guavas, pomegranates, melons, and pineapples are also common. On the hills many kinds of European fruit have been intro- duced — apples, pears, plums, strawberries, etc. — and in some places with fair success. The same is also true of European vegetables. Peas, beans, cabbage, cauliflower, etc., are grown on the hills and on the Deccan plateaux, and potatoes have taken kindly to the country and are now grown even on the plains. The vegetables native to India are very numerous, but of little importance. The most useful are the sweet potato, a species of convolvulus. qf> GEOGRAFMIV OF INDIA and the brinjal, or egg plant. But a tropical country, especially where the rainfall is precarious and confined to particular seasons, is not well adapted to the cultivation of succulent fruits or vegetables. The temperate regions are richer both in the variety and quality of these products. 164. Oil Seeds. About 1.) million acres in British India are devoted to the cultivation of various seeds which are valuable chiefly for the oil which they contain. The largest areas of cultiv-ation are in Bengal, the Central Provinces, Bombay, and Madras. The greater part of the crop is annually exported, the shipments in 1904-5 repre- senting a value of nearly 10 millions sterling. Linseed is the most important of these seeds, and accounts for nearly half their total value. Linseed oil is a drying oil, and is used for mixing paints. Rapeseed yields rape, or colza oil, which is used for lamps and for lubricating. Sesamum (til or jinjili) seed yields an oil much used in India for bathing purposes. Cotton seed, mustard seed, and ground nuts yield oils which are used in the manufacture of soaps. The last two are also used in the manufacture of sweet- meats, chiefly in France. There is a considerable export of ground nuts from Pondicherry to French ports for this purpose. Castor seed yields an oil valuable as a medicine. The dry residue of these seeds, after the oil has been expressed, forms oil cake, a useful food for cattle. Linseed cake, rape cake, and cotton cake are especially valuable. 165. Sugar. The sugar cane is largely grown in the United Provinces. Bengal, the Punjab, and tlie North Western Frontier Province, and to a less extent in other parts of India. In the whole of British India, nearly 2.\ million acres are devoted to its cultivation. It needs abundant water, and is therefore grown on irrigated land. The total crop in an ordinary' year yields about 2,000,000 tons of sugar, or about four-fifths of the entire amount consumed in the country. 166. Tea is the fermented and dried leaves of a shrub native to the forests of Assam. The production of tea in India has increased enormously of recent years. Its cultivation on any large scale is, indeed, entirely a develop- TEA, ETC. 97 ment of the last half-century. In 1S30 the Government established a small plantation of the China shrub on the slopes of the Garhwal Himalayas, and China tea is still grown there, chiefly for export by land to Tibet and Central Asia. About the same time the shrub was discovered in the forests of Assam. During the next quarter of a century experimental cultiva- tion, gradually increas- ing in extent, was carried on in many places, but it was not until about forty years ago that the Indian Tea industrj'- really began ; and in Ceylon it was ten years later. In 1865 only 2 per cent, of the tea used in Great Britain came from India, and none from Ceylon ; in 1907 India supplied 54 per cent., and Cey- lon 36 per cent. In the last twenty years the output of Indian tea has increased threefold. The area devoted to tea in British India is over half a million acres, more than nine-tenths of which are in Bengal and Assam. The rest is on the hills of the Punjab and the United Provinces, and the Nilgiris and Palnis in Madras. There are also about 24,000 acres of tea in the State of Travancore. The value of the tea annually exported is from five to six millions sterling. 167. Coffee is the dried berry of a shrub said to have been introduced into India from Arabia, where it grows in great perfection. For some years coffee culture has been declining in India. Bad seasons and the ravages of insects have done much to discourage planters, and the Fig. 35. Showing the districts where tea, coffee, sugar and tobacco are grown. The darker shading shows more e.xtensive culti- vation. 98 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA decline in prices has made the cultivation unremunerative. Indian coffee at the best can hardly compete with Brazilian. The area devoted to coffee at present is under 100,000 acres, of which more than three-quarters are in Mysore and Coorg, and the rest on the Nilgiri Hills and the Western Ghats. Comparatively little coffee is used in India, and the bulk of that grown is exported to Great Britain. The total export for 1907 was about 25,000,000 lbs., and its value ;^66o.ooo. 168. Spices and Condiments. Of these India has no great variety. Chillies and turmeric arc grown in mosi parts and arc universally used. Coriander, aniseed, ginger, and cummin are also cultivated. Several species of pepper are grown along the Malabar coast strip, and in Travancore cardamoms are a valuable Government monopoly. 169. Opium is a powerful narcotic drug obtained from a species of poppy. Shortly after the plant has flowered incisions are made in the green capsule. The juice which exudes solidifies on the outside of the capsule, from which it is daily collected. Cleaned and further dried this exudation constitutes the crude opium of commerce. Opium is an exceedingly valuable medicine. It is also widely used as an article of vicious indulgence. For this purpose it is commonly smoked, or small quantities of it are swallowed, or an infusion is made and drunk. In what- ever form it is used it acts first as a stimulant and then as a powerful narcotic and soporific. It has long been widely used as a luxury by many classes in India, notably the Sikhs and Rajputs ; and, in parts of Bengal, Assam, and Burma, it is relied on as an antidote to malaria. 170. Following the example of the Mughal Emperors the British Rulers of India early made opium a Government mono- poly. In British India it is produced chiefly in Bihar and the United Provinces, where the cultivators grow it under otticial inspection, the Government making advances on the crop, the whole produce of which is handed over to their agents. The centra! Government Opium Depots are at Patna and Ghazipur. There the opium is packed in chests and forwarded to Calcutta, where it is sold by auction for export. Opium is also grown in TOBACCO, ETC. 99 the Native States of Central India and Rajputana. From some of these States large quantities of the drug are despatched to Bombay for export. This is known as Malwa Opium, and is subject to a very heavy tax as it passes through British territory. The area devoted to the culture of opiiim in the Ganges valley is about 600,000 acres, and the value of the crop is usually nearly 5 millions sterling. About 93 per cent, of the entire produce is exported, chiefly to China. 171. Tobacco is not a native of India, but was introduced by the Portuguese. It is now grown and used in every province, but most extensively in Bengal, Madras, and Burma. The area under tobacco in British India in 1907 was over a million acres, more than half of which was in Bengal. Much of the Bengal tobacco goes to Burma, where smoking is a universal habit. A small quantity of manu- factured tobacco is exported to Europe. 172. Cinchona. The Cinchona tree is grown for its bark, which is the source of quinine, the most useful of all febrifuges. Cinchona was introduced into India in i860, prior to which time it was almost confined to South America. There are now large Government Cinchona Plantations on the Nilgiris and at Darjeeling, and numerous private ones. The tree is also grown on many coffee estates, being planted between the coffee bushes. At the factories on the Govern- ment plantations quinine and a mixed febrifuge are manu- factured and are supplied to the public at a cheap rate. Quinine is also supplied to the public through the Post Offices, where it is sold in small pice packets. An abundant supply of a cheap and effective febrifuge is of the greatest importance where fever is so prevalent as in India. 173. Indigo is a dark blue dye extracted from the leaves of a small annual plant by maceration in water. The indigo crop used to be of great value, but the dye is being rapidly superseded by a chemical product which is much cheaper though not so good. Indigo culture is con- sequently rapidly declining. Between 1880 and 1890 the value of the indigo exported from India averaged over 2 J millions sterling. It has now fallen to about one-fifth lOO GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA ol tliat amount. Indigo is chiefly grown in Bengal, Madras, the United l^rovinces and the Punjab, four-ninths of tlie entire amount produced being grown in Bengal, an' distant date to supply the entire needs of India. A con- siderable quantity of petroleum is also obtained at M'lkuni in Assam. WILD ANIMALS IO5 188. Manganese ore is fouiKl in Madras, near Vizagapatam, and, in unusual richness and purity, in the Central Provinces and Central India. The amount raised has increased twelve-fold during the last eight years, and in 1906 nearly half a million tons were exported. Manganese is used chiefly in the manufacture of steel. 189. Mica of excellent quality is found in Bengal, and in smaller quantity in Madras. About 2,000 tons are shipped to Europe yearly. Saltpetre is found in Bengal, as well as in some of the ether northern Provinces, and about £-2^0,000 worth is exported yearly. Copper also exists in Bengal, but is not as yet worked. Plumbago is found in Travancore. Tin exists abun- dantly in the southern parts of Tenasserim, but is not worked to any large degree. 190. Precious Stones. Burma has valuable puby mines. Indeed, of the best stones it has a monopoly, and supplies the world. .Mong with the rubies a few sapphires are also found. The Mines are worked by a Company who hold them on lease from the Government. The Company also grants mining license? to private individuals who make no return of their finds. The total output is, therefore, difficult to discover. Jade, a green stone greatly valued by the Chinese, is also found in Burma. Valuable diamonds have been found in the past in the Godavari basin, and are occasionally found now. But there is no systematic mining for them. (7) Wild Animals 191. The lion is now found only in Kathiawar, and though for many years it has been rigidly preserved, it is almost extinct even there. The tiger is found in most parts of India wherever extensive forests or jungles exist. Tigers abound in the Terai, the jungles of the Sandarbans, and the forests of Central India and the Western Ghats. The panther, or leopard, is still more common. The cheetah, or hunting leopard, is a different species, and is native only to the Deccan. It is trained for hunting the antelope, but though swift and sure in attack has no staying power. Wolves abound still in the open country but shun the forests. The common black bear is met with in the forests of rocky hills, and the Tibetan sun bear is found throughout the whole length of the Himalayas, but only at heights of over Io6 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 5,000 feet. Hyaenas ;ire nunicrous, but only where the wolf is not. Jackals are common everywhere and are useful scavengers. The wild dog, which hunts in jiacks, is found in the forests of Burma and Assam. 192. The wild elephant exists chiefly in the forests of Eastern Bengal and Assam ; less commonly in those of Burma and the Indian peninsula. Under a special Act of the Indian Legislature the elephant is strictly preserved, and can only be captured by license. Considerable numbers are caught and trained for the Government service and for sale. The elephant is not found at all in the north-west of India, where the climate is too dry and the temperature too variable for him. Several species of rhino- ceros haunt the swamps of the Brahmaputra valley, the San- darbans, and Chittagong ; and their horns are valued by certain classes of the natives. The wild hog is common in most Pro- vinces in the vicinity of cultivation, and hunting him is a danger- ous and exciting sport. The wild ass roams in herds of 20 to 30 in the deserts of Sind and Cutch, and several species of wild sheep and goats have their home on the Himalayas, the moun- tains of the north-west, and the Sulaiman range. The ibex, a species of goat, is found on the mountains of the peninsula and Kashmir. Antelope arc fairly common in Central India and in the coast flats of Gujarat and Orissa. Bison are mot with in the hill jungles of South India and Burma, and the wild buffalo in Burma and .\ssam. Of deep there are many species, the chief being the sambup. Monkeys of many kinds are exceedingly numerous almost everywhere. Rats and mice abound through- out the land, and the bandicoot, the most gigantic member of the tribe, is exceedingly destructive. 193. Of reptiles, snakes and scorpions of many kinds are everywhere found. The largest Indian snake is the python, which sometimes attains a length of 30 feet. Most of the snakes found in India are harmless, but there are three or four whose bite is deadly, and for who.se poison no effective antidote is known. One of the worst of these, and at the same time one of the commonest, is the cobra di capello. Numerous j^ioisonous water snakes are also fouml. The blunt-no.scd cpocodile infests swampy rivers and backwaters, and the sharp-nosed species, the ghavail, which preys only on fish, is numerous in some of the greater rivers, especially the Ganges, Brahmaputra, and Mahanadi. BIRDS, FISH, ETC. IO7 194. The destruction of life and property by wild animals and snakes is very great, and shows little tendency to decline. The total number of persons killed by wild animals (chiefly tigers and leopards) in 1904 was 2,157, ^^^ of cattle 88,206. Poisonous snakes are ten times as destructive of human life, but not so fatal to cattle. Deaths from snake bite in 1904 numbered 21,880, and the number of cattle killed by snakes was 10,376. Rewards are given by the Government for the slaughter of poisonous snakes and many species of dangerous wild beasts. 195. The birds of India are very numerous and beautiful, but are more esteemed for the gaiety of their plumage than for the sweetness of their song. Parrots abound, and many kinds are made household pets, as also is the maina, a species of starling which can be taught to talk. Small winged game exists in great variety, including snipe, partridge, quail, plover, teal, and wild duck. The peacock is found in the forests of the Deccan, Assam and Burma ; the pheasant in the Himalayas ; and the red jungle-fowl, from which domestic poultry are said to have been derived, is met with in most parts. The common cpow is familiar everywhere. 196. Of birds of prey the vulture and the kite are the best known. They are everywhere useful scavengers. Eagles are numerous in the Himalayas. Several species of falcon are trained by the natives for hawking purposes. Hawks, herons, and kingfishers of many kinds abound, and the last is much sought after for its beautiful plumage. 197. Fish of many excellent varieties abound in all the rivers and most of the tanks. The best river fish belong to the carp and barbel families. The mahsir, sometimes called the Indian salmon, is found in the hill streams both of the Hima- layas and the peninsula, and grows to a great size. The hilsa is a similar fish, though smaller in size, which abounds in the streams of the Gangetic delta. All round the coasts salt water fish is caught in great abundance, and the fisheries are a source of wealth to many thousands of people. 198. As in every tropical country insect life is abundant in India. Ants of many species are found everywhere, and though destructive, they are of immense use as scavengers, for they quickly remove every particle of decaying animal matter. The most destructive of all insects, and one that has to be con- I08 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA stantly guarded against, is the white ant, <>r termite. Tl»€ mosquito is, j)crha])s, the greatest ot insect plagues, and where it alioimds renders life almost unendurable. Fierce war is waged against the mosquito now, as one species has been proved to be the chief distributer of malarial poison. Of useful insects the bee, the silk-worm, and the lac insect arc cultivated. (8) Domestic Animals 199. Horses and ponies are common in cver)'^ Province of India, but in relation to the population are most numerous in the Punjab, the United Provinces, and the Central Provinces. Indian bred horses are not,- however, so good as those imported from Arabia, Persia, and Australia. Pegu ponies liavc long been famous. Asses and mules are most numerous in the Punjab. The Indian Government breeds mules for use in army transport. They are strong and hardy, and especially useful in hilly districts and rougli roads, being more sure-footed than the horse. 200. Cattle, i.e., bulls, bullocks, and cows, are every- where reared and greatly valued. They are almost equally common in every Province, and their number is everywhere found to be roughly proportionate to the population. The Government has of late years paid great attention to the improvement of the breeds of cattle, and their pro- tection from disease, as well as to the provision of fodder. Sheep au.d goats also are pretty generally distributed, except in Burma, where they are rare. Sheep are most numerous in Madras, and next in the Punjab. Goats are most numerous in the United Provinces, next in the Punjab and Madras. 201. The elephant is used for state display by the Native Princes, and for heavy transport by the Govern- ment. In Burma elephants are trained to work in the timber yards and may be seen hauling and stacking the heavy logs. For sagacity the elephant is hardily equalled even by the dog. The camel, the most useful of all beasts of burden in a hot and dry climate, is commoner than the horse in Sind, and almost as common in the Punjab and the ANIMAL PRODUCTS lOQ North-Western Frontier Province. Camels arc nsed also to some extent in the United Provinces, but in other parts of India they are hardly known. The buffalo is common throughout India, and, like the bullock, is used for draught purposes both on the road and in the fields. As in every other country, dogs of various breeds are universal. The most notable are the mastiff of the Himalayas, and the polegar hound of South India. (9) Economic Animal Products 202. The ordinary animal products which are everywhere used as food, and, as such, are common objects of local pro- duction, trade and consumption, need only be mentioned. Such are milk, butter, ghee, eggs, fish, poultry, game, flesh, etc. Flesh, either of beasts or birds, is a less common article of diet in tropical regions than in colder latitudes, and in India a vegetable diet has the added sanction of religion. Of the natives of India few beyond the Muhammadans and the lowest castes of Hindus are habitual flesh eaters. Milk, butter, and ghee, and all forms of dairy produce, are, however, universally used. So also are eggs. Fish, wherever it can be had, is a welcome food to full}' two-thirds of the people, and in the deltas of the rivers and along the coasts it forms a staple article of diet. 203. Fish curing is being developed in India as an economic industry, and it is possible that at no very distant date salt fish may become an article of export. Already there is a small quantity exported from Sind. Fish in India is commonly eaten fresh, and until very recently the process of fish curing was hardly known, or was rendered impossible by the prohibitive price of salt. For some years now the curing industry has been fostered by Government on the coasts of Madras and Bombay. Fish curing yards have been opened, and salt for the purpose has been supplied at a nominal figure. 204. There is a considerable production of wool in India, though of an inferior quality. Much of it is u.sed locally in the manufacture of carpets, "StCj and almost all the rest is exported to Great Britain. The value of the raw wool exported in 1907 was /i, 600,000. For the best class of woollen manufacture in India raw wool is imported. no GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 205. Hides of various kinds are a valuable article of commerce. They are collected in every Province both for the local leather industry and for shipment to Germany, Italy, and Austria. The value of the hides exported in 1907 was over ;/^ 10,000,000. There are also small exports of horn, bone manure, and bristles. 206. Silk is the produce of the silk-worm, which is cultivated largely in Bengal and Assam, and to a less extent in several other provinces. It lives only on the leaves of the mulberry tree. Of late years great attention has been given to the culture both of the silk-worm and of the mulberiy, and the silk industry is increasing. A wild silk is obtained in large quantities in A.ssam, which is known as tusser silk. It is locally manufactured, and silk fabrics are much used by the Assamese. A good deal of the cultivated silk is also manufactured locally. The value of silk exports in 1907 was over ,^500,000. 207. Lac is deposited by the lac insect, and is collected by the hill tribes in the Central Provinces and Chota Nagpur. It is the source of shellac, a material used in the manufacture of varnishes and sealing-wax, and of lac-dye. The lac insect lives on many kinds of forest trees, and its artificial culture has been attempted by the Forest Officers in the Central Provinces. The lac industry is a remunera- tive and a growing one, and the exports of lac and lac-dye in 1907 were over ;^2,30o,ooo in value. CHAPTER V MANUFACTURES, COMMUNICATIONS, AND COMMERCE (i) Manufactures 208. We have already seen that India is essentially an agricultural country. According to the last Census, out of a total of 138I million " workers " agriculture claims 88 millions. To these must be added many millions more whose occupations are incidental to agriculture, such as the care of cattle and sheep, the construction and repair of agricultural buildings and implements, and the exercise of the various handicrafts and trades which supply the domestic and economic needs of a simple agricultural people. Directly or indirectly these are all dependent on the soil. The crops are their one ultimate source of wealth, and an unpropitious season brings distress upon them all. Taken together these classes constitute not less than five- sixths of the workers of India, and represent a total popu- lation of at least 250 millions. There are few, if any, countries in which agriculture takes so predominant a place or bulks so largely in the occupations of the people. Never- theless, India has a few important manufactures. 209. Cotton Manufactures. Cotton spinning and weaving are very ancient industries in India. They go back as far as history will take us. For many centuries the products of the hand -looms of India were greatly prized in the West, and were a valuable Indian export. In its early years the East India Company did a considerable trade in Indian cotton cloths, and established most of its factories near the chief seats of the weaving industry. 112 GEOGRAPHY OF rXDIA But when, less than a couple of centuries ago, Great Britain began to manufacture cottons for herself, the English market for the Indian article was closed, since in order to protect the growing home industry the importation of foreign-made fabrics was prohibited. This greatly reduced the production of the best cottons in India, and especially of the delicate muslins. In 1813 the trading monopoly of the East India Company was abolished, and the Indian trade thrown open to private enterprise. One of the results of this change was that English-made cottons began to compete in India with the local manufacture. By that time power-looms had taken the place of hand-looms in England, but were completely unknown in India. Now hand-woven goods, though usually better in quality, cannot compete in price with the fabrics so swiftly produced by power-looms, and accordingly Indian-made goods gradually gave wa}^ before the " piece goods " of JManchester, in which a vast Indian trade grew up. The quantity of English- made cottons sold in India to-day is more than twenty times as great as the entire produce of the English mills 100 years ago. Little wonder that the Manchester manu- facturers fought hard, and still fight, for so important a market. 210. But though greatly reduced, the Indian hand-loom industry has by no means been destroyed. It still gives employment to over 2\ millions of weavers, and supports a total population of over 5! millions. The fabrics pro- duced are chiefly of the commoner and cheaper order, or of kinds especially adapted to Indian tastes, and which Manchester does not copy, or cannot equal. Such are tlie beautiful saris and turbans of Gujarat, which are some- times mixed with silk, or bordered with silk and gold, and the exquisite muslins of Dacca, Murshidabad and Ami. Dacca muslin was once famed throughout the world, but now its manufacture is on a very limited scale. Vizagapa- tam, Nellore, Surat, Ahmadabatl, Poona, Dharwar, and many other places are consitlerable centres of hand-loom weaving still, and to some degree the manufacture is found in every town and almost in every village. MANUFACTURES II3 211. Cotton Mills. During the last half-century India has been regaining a part of her lost cotton manufacture by the adoption of Western machinery and the use of steam power. The first steam cotton mill was opened in Bombay in 1854. Thirty years later there were 74 such mills at work in India, and twenty years later still, i.e., in 1904, their number had increased to 206. These mills represent a total capital of about ;^i 2,500,000, and give employment to over 200,000 people. In the last ten years their out-turn has risen from 430,000,000 lbs. of yarns and woven goods to 820,000,000. Bombay is the great centre of the steam cotton industry in India just as Manchester is in England, but there are mills in many other parts of the country. The importation of Manchester piece-goods has not been gi-eatly affected by the establishment of mills in India, for the English fabrics are cheap and good, and meet the needs of the poorer classes. But the growth of the steam industry has given India a valuable export trade in cotton yarns and piece goods, most of the former going to China and the latter to Ceylon and the Straits Settlements. 212. Jute Manufactures. The valuable jute industry of Bengal is quite a recent growth. The plant was hardly known in India fifty years ago. There are now 44 jute mills, almost all in Bengal, which give employment to over 160,000 people. The chief manufactures are gunny bags and gunny cloth. Gunny bags are vised in commerce for the transport of grain and other articles. In 1907 over 250 million bags were shipped from Calcutta to various parts of the world, the largest customers being Australia, Great Britain, Chile, the Straits Settlements, and Egypt. Gunny cloth is a strong and coarse material, also used chiefly for packing. The manufacture of gunny cloth has increased greatly of late years. In 1897 the export was 169 million yards, in 1907 it was 696 million yards. The total value of manufactured jute articles exported in the latter year was nearly 13 millions sterling. 213. Woollen Manufactures. There are six woollen mills at work in North India which, give employment to about 3,500 people. They make serge and blankets, 114 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA chiefly for the Army and Police services. For this purpose they employ a mixture of Australian and Indian wool, the latter alone not being of sufficiently good quality. Far more important are the hand woollen manufactures in which about 180,000 people are engaged. Like all hand manufactures wool weaving is found in almost every district, being represented sometimes by single families of weavers, sometimes by small communities. Carpets, rugs and rough blankets are the principal articles made. The best carpets are produced in Kashmir and Sind, and at Mirzapur and Agra, and cheaper kinds at Masulipatam and Bangalore. Blankets are made in every Province, and rugs have become a very common jail manufacture. The Kashmir shawl, which used to be so famous, is woven of the soft wool of a Himalayan goat, but its production has greatly declined. 214. Silk Manufactures. The indigenous silk industry of India provides employment for over 200,000 people. Silk fabrics are woven chiefly in Bengal and Assam, where the silk-worm is extensively reared. It is also found wild in the forests of Assam, where the cocoons are collected, and the raw silk woven into the material known as tusser silk. Silk mills have been established in Bombay which employ nearly 3,000 people. They produce excellent fabrics, chiefly for the Burma market ; silk being a favourite article of costume among the Burmese. About ^50,000 worth of manufactured silk is exported annually. Silk carpets are made at Tanjore and Salem. 215. Metal-work. Gold, Silver, Brass, Copper and Iron workers are found everywhere. The gold- and silver-smiths of India number over half a million. These metals are employed mainly for ornament, and special types of manu- facture prevail at different centres. Trichinopoly is famous for what is known as " swami " jewellen,' ; Cuttack for silver filigree work ; Kashmir for carving on gilded silver ; Cutch, Lucknow, and Dacca for hammered silver. Brass and copper workers number over 150,000 and chiefly manufacture culinary and other household utensils. Orna- mental carved brass work is produced at many places. MANUFACTURES II5 notably at Benares. Most of the brass and copper used in India is imported from England. Ironworkers number over half a million. The iron and steel used in India is mostly imported from England and Belgium. Owing to the great quantity of iron and steel manufactures also imported, which exceeds in value the entire import of the unmanufactured metals, the native industry is declining. This is especially the case as regards cutlery. 216. Pottery. This is an important native industry found in almost every considerable village. Vessels of coarse earthenware of almost every kind required for household or industrial use are made by the village potter, but the better class of wares are all imported. In Sind, tastefully ornamented and very finely glazed vessels and tiles are made ; but in no part of India has the fine porcelain of China been equalled. Tile factories, on a large scale and employing European methods, have been established in most Provinces. 217. Carved Work. Carving in wood, ivory, and horn, are also very ancient Indian industries. Amritsar, Benares, Murshidabad and Vizagapatam are all noted for their ivory work, much of which is of exquisite delicacy. The chief woods used are sandalwood and ebony. In Gujarat and Burma much beautiful carving is done for building purposes, especially ornamental panels and pillars. Fine inlaid work, in ivory, horn, and metals, on a base of sandal- wood or ebony, is also done in many parts. A large quantity of Indian carved and inlaid work is shipped to Europe. 218. Other manufacturing industries are small. Paper- making by native methods is carried on to a small degree in most Provinces, and eight paper mills using steam power and European machinery have been established. They supply most of the paper used for Government printing. Twenty-seven breweries are also at work, and supply the greater part of the beer consumed in India. Several sugar factories and tanneries have also been started, chiefly in the United Provinces and Bengal, as well as steam flour mills in the wheat districts. But these five industries together Il6 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA do not employ quite 20,000 people. Other industries, which are sometimes classed as manufactures, are merely the preparation of raw products for export. Such are cotton cleaning, ginning, and pressing, jute pressing, and rice cleaning, which together find employment for over 130,000 workers in about 1,200 mills. 219, Taken as a whole the manufactures of India are exceedingly few and small compared with the size and population of the country. The use of modern machinery and steam power is very restricted, and is not likely to extend with any great rapidity. Two things are against it : (i) the cheapness of labour, and (2) the great cost of setting up steam mills. It is said to cost three times as much to set up a cotton mill in India as in England, owing to the fact that all the machinery has to be imported. Other mills are almost equally costly. So long as this is the case, and hand labour continues to be available and cheap, everything that can be done by hand will continue to be so done. The course of industrial development will doubtless change these conditions in India as elsewhere. But the process will be comparatively slow. (2) Roads 220. Till within the last 75 years there were few good roads in India except in the immediate vicinity of the larger stations. Away from these the only semblance of roads were broad tracks, marked sometimes by avenues of trees which the piety of native rulers had planted. Such tracks were seldom even levelled, and, though they served for palanquin bearers or pack animals, they were practically useless for wheeled trafi&c. The East India Company did not realise the importance, either for military or commercial purposes, of easy means of communication, and were un- willing to face the heavy outlay that the construction of roads must entail. Even so late as 1S30 Sir Charles Metcalf declared that Ivdiu did not waut roads. But wiser counsels were already prevailing. The grand trunk road ROADS 117 from Calcutta to Delhi, which had for some time been under construction, was completed in 1835, and was carried beyond Delhi to the North-West Frontier at Peshawar. Other trunk roads soon followed. Bombay was connected with Agra on the one hand, and Madras on the other, by roads which crossed the Western Ghats at the Thai and Bor passes respectively. A few years later Calcutta and Bombay were united by a road crossing the peninsula by way of Nagpur, and joining the Bombay- Madras road at Poona. Calcutta was also connected with Madras by a road that skirted the east coast and was continued sovithwards into Tinnevelly. All these roads were metalled and bridged throughout, and the way in which they were carried over mountain barriers was often justly regarded as a triumph of engineering skill. 221. Road-making in India received a great impetus during the Governor-Generalship of Lord Dalhousie, who did more than any other ruler before or since to improve Indian internal communications of every kind. It was during his rule that the Public Works Department was organized, and was made responsible for the construction and maintenance of roads suited to heavy- wheeled traf&c. From that time the improvement of road communications has been steady and unceasing. Trunk roads have been multiplied, from which branch roads, often of a lighter and less costly make, lead to every considerable town. The principal object kept in view in planning some of the greater roads was undoubtedly the military needs of the Government, provision being thus made for the easy trans- port of troops and heavy artillery. But the roads became also great arteries of commerce, and so served a far greater and more beneficent end. In course of time the extension of railways in India robbed the roads of their military value, but at the same time greatly increased their com- mercial importance. They have become the auxiliaries and feeders upon which the railways depend. For the last thirty years the economic, and not the military, needs of the country have determined the construction of roads in all save the Frontier Provinces. Il8 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 222. I'or some time after the establishment of the Public Works Dcjxirtmcnt most of the roads were under its care. The extension of local government has changed this, and now the Local Boards or other local authorities are responsible for thcni, and meet the cost of construction and maintenance from local funds. Only a few of the more important roads are maintained by the Provincial authorities, and these are still under the care of the Public Works Department. 223. The total length of roads in British India is now over 200,000 miles. About a quarter of this length is metalled, i.e., composed of hard stone, broken evenly, and well compacted. The metalling of roads in any Province naturally depends upon the ease with which a supply of suitable stone can be had. If this is not available locally, only the more important roads can be metalled, as the cost of bringing stone from any distance is prohibitive. In the great plain of the north there is no supply of stone except in the vicinity of the hills, and therefore out of 100,000 miles of road less than 10,000 miles are metalled. In the Presidency of Madras, on the other hand, out of 24,000 miles of road more than 16,000 miles are metalled. (3) Railways 224. The first railway constructed in India was a short line from the city of Bombay to Thana, which was opened in 1853. In that year Lord Dalhousie penned a Minute, which has become historic, on the need of railway con- struction throughout the land and the duty of Government to encourage and facilitate it. He planned a number of great trunk lines to connect the chief cities and provinces of India, and which he thought might be constructed by private Companies under the safeguard of a Government guarantee of five per cent, interest on the capital expended. As a return for this guarantee the Government would retain the final control of the railways, and so would be able to secure their adaptation not only to tlie commercial and social needs of the country, but also to possible military' RAILWAYS 119 requirements. He believed that with such a guarantee companies would soon be formed to construct and work all the lines which he most desired to see, and he did not believe that the financial risk 'to the Government would be serious, as the lines would be likely soon to earn the full interest guaranteed. 225. It was on this system that railway construction in India on a large scale was begun. Three great companies were speedily at work, the East Indian Railway, with its headquarters at Calcutta, the Great Indian Peninsula Rail- way at Bombay, and the Madras Railway at Madras. The first undertook the line from Calcutta to Delhi and the north-west. The second was to connect the western Presidency town with the East Indian line by means of a line crossing the Western Ghats, and meeting a branch of the East Indian Railway at Jubbulpore. Towards the south another branch of the G.I. P. was planned to cross the Ghats at the B5r Pass and run as far as Raichiir, where it would join the northern arm of the Madras Railway. Another arm of the Madras line would cross the peninsula further south, and passing through the Palghat Gap unite the East and West Coasts. 226. Such were the bold plans with which railway development in India was begun. Almost at the outset the work was greatly interrupted by the Mutiny, but after peace had been restored construction went on apace. By 1871 over 5,000 miles of guaranteed lines were at work, and Calcutta, Allahabad, Delhi, Bombay, Madras, and Bangalore were thus linked together. Meanwhile, other Companies had been formed. The Bombay, Baroda & Central Indian ; the Sind, Punjab & Delhi ; the Eastern Bengal ; the Oudh & Rohilkhand ; and the South Indian, were all guaranteed lines, and most of them had achieved a considerable measure of success by the time Lord Mayo became Governor-General. 227. About that time a new system of railway extension was adopted. Lord Mayo saw the need of providing short railways of lighter make to connect the great trunk lines with the chief towns along their routes and with the great I20 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA centres of production. Tliis work, he held, could best be done by Government itself. Acconlincjly, during the next fifteen years a large number of Indian State Railways were constructed the cost of which was met by the Indian (lovernment from funds raised chiefly by loans. Several of the more advanced Native States followed this example, and other short lines were constructed at the cost of the Native Governments. Later a third system was adopted in what are now called Assisted Railways. These were constructed by private companies, to which the Govern- ment guaranteed only a low rate of interest, and as a rule only for a short term of years, but helped them by making them free grants of land as well as other concessions. 228. In the arrangements originally made with both guaranteed and assisted Companies the Government reserved to themselves the right to take the line over after a certain time and under certain conditions. In this way most of the early guaranteed railways have now become State lines, and are worked by the Companies on behalf of the Government. At the close of 1907 there were 30,010 miles of railway open for traffic in India. Of this total 22,355 rniles were Indian State lines, and 3,517 miles Native State lines, and the remainder belonged to Guar- anteed, Assisted, or Unassisted Companies. 229. The growth of the railw.ay system in India since 1871 has been remarkably rapid. During the three decades between 1871 and 1901 the length of new lines opened for traffic was 4,798, 7,433, and 8,057 rniles respectively. So steady and continuous an increase would be remarkable in any country. Equally noteworthy, as showing the in- creasing utility of the railways and the growing productive power of the country, is the proportionate increase in the traffic over the lines. If we compare the years 1S71 and 1907 we find that the trafl&c per mile of line has increased by 70 per cent. In the former of these years the number of passengers carried for each mile of line open was 5,293, and the quantity of merchandise 1,336 tons : while in 1907 these numbers were respectively io,i9<) and 2,o()9. RAILWAYS 121 Ij^DIJLN OCEAir En^. Mites RailtYays thus x:x. LongE.aOof Gr I^ig' 37" Showing the chief railways of India. 122 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 230. The extent to which railways have benefited India is beyond computation. Not only have they strengthened enormously the administrative and military power of the Government, but, what is of far greater moment, they have developed the resources of the country and so enriched the peoj)lc. A few lines have been constructed mainly with a view to military requirements. Such are those which put strategic points on the North-West Frontier into direct communication with the centres of Government and with the western ports, Karachi and Bombay. The great majority of lines have, however, been designed solely for economic ends — to unite the great centres of population, and to give the main areas of production easy and cheap access to the sea. Railways are consequently most numerous in such districts as the densely peopled and productive valley of the Ganges. But whichever of these objects may have led originally to the construction of any line, when once opened it serves both ends. The railways of the North-West have greatly increased the prosperity of the Frontier Provinces, and the numerous lines in the more densely-peopled Districts of the plains have given the Government an administrative grip that it could not otherwise have secured. 231. Financially the railway system of India has been a complete success and has justified Lord Dalhousie's sanguine forecast. The majority of the lines have more than paid their way almost from the first, and for some years railways have not only been no cost whatever to the State, but have made a considerable and growing contribu- tion to the revenue. The total capital expenditure on Indian Railways up to the end of iqoy amounted to /^265,6oo,ooo, and after interest on this vast sum had been paid the net profit accruing to the Government was over 2 J millions sterling. 232. Nothing is of greater importance to India than a rapid extension of its railway system. It is the only way in which some parts of the country can be eftectually protected against famine. A few lines have been con- structed especially with this view. Though famine may INTERNAL WATERWAYS I23 be acute in particular districts, there is generally in the country as a whole a sufificiency of grain to supply the entire needs of the people. What is wanted is a cheap and rapid means of conveyance. This railways alone will give. Road and canal transit is slow, and the former is costly. Canals, moreover, can only be constructed where the surface of the country is fairly level. No district, therefore, which from its position is liable to severe drought, can be regarded as sufficiently protected till it is opened by railways. And in any district, whether liable to famine or not, railways contribute more to the material welfare of the people than almost any other single cause. They give a ready outlet for their surplus produce, as well as a ready inlet for the commodities that they need ; and by tending to equalize prices throughout the entire country contribute to the wealth and wellbeing of the people. The policy of the Government, therefore, is to push on the construction of railways with all possible speed. At the clo.se of 1907 there M^ere 3,300 miles of new lines either in process of construction or sanctioned. (4) Internal Waterways 233. The great rivers of the north were the most important means of communication before railways were constructed. There were then regular and busy services of steamboats on the Ganges, the Indus, and the Brahma- putra. The through service on the Ganges has been discontinued, and now boats only ply locally in different parts of the river. The Indus service has also been greatly reduced since the opening of the Indus Valley railway, and especially since Karachi has had a through rail service with the Punjab. Steamers still ply on the Brahmaputra, as well as on its tributary the Barak, where they have been less affected by the growth of railway communication. Goods traffic is, however, still common on all three rivers and their main affluents, and some hundreds of thousands of sailing boats are always busy. Especially is this the case on the numerous channels of the Ganges-Brahmaputra delta which are usually crowded with sails. Many of the 124 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA larger canals are also navigable, and a few have been con structcd especially for that purpose. Such are the Baliaghata Canal from Calcutta to the Sandarbans, and the Tidal Canal from the mouth of the Hooghly to Balasore. I3ut the tnifl'ic tliat used to be carried on along some of the irrigation canals has now passed almost entirely to the railways. The Agra Canal has been closed to traffic and it has been proposed to close both the Upper and Lower Ganges Canals, on both of which the traffic has become unremunerative. On the Western Jumna Canal, on the other hand, traffic is growing, and is a source of considerable revenue. 234. Peninsular India has few waterways of any great moment. The rivers, being raging torrents at one season of the year and shallow, sluggish streams at another, are not well adapted for the development of boat traffic. Large sums have been spent with a view to establish a steam service on the Godavari, but with little result. Traffic in small sailing boats is, however, common on most of the larger rivers. On the South-West Coast a series of Back- waters, which have been united by canals, give an almost unbroken stretch of water communication from Cochin to Trivandrum, and form the chief commercial highway of Travancorc. Along the cast coast the Buckingham Canal gives communication between Madras and the Kistna Delta. 235. In Burma, in spite of the construction of railways (which now run northwards from Rangoon for over 800 miles), the Irrawaddy still remains the great highway of the country. Being snow-fed it has an abundant supply of water all through the year, and possesses one of the finest flotillas of river steamers in the world. They ply at all seasons from Rangoon to Bhamo. a distance of ()Oo miles. There is also a very large amount of other traffic on the river. Neitlier the Sittang nor the Salwin is adapted for through traffic, on account of tlie rocky rapids that, here and there, bar the way ; but in different parts of both rivers local boat traffic is common. Rafts of leak are floated down the Salwin. FOREIGN COMMUNICATIONS. I25 (5) Foreign Communications 236, With the exception of the Passes which lead across the mountains to the neighbouring States of the north, India's foreign communications are entirely by sea. Before the opening of the Suez Canal the principal commercial route between India and Europe was round the Cape of Good Hope. The weekly mails, a considerable part of the passenger traffic, and a small quantity of the more precious merchandise, went by the Red Sea and the Mediterranean, crossing Egypt by rail. But that route was too costly for ordinary trade. Since the opening of the canal the old route via the Cape has been gradually superseded. At present more than three-fourths of the foreign trade of India, both exports and imports, passes through the canal, or practically the whole of the trade with Europe and America. This has led to the rapid development of the two great western ports of India, Bombay and Karachi. By the Cape route Calcutta was but little further from Europe than Bombay, but by the Canal route Bombay has the advantage by nearly 1,500 miles, and Karachi by 1,580 miles. Almost the whole of the foreign trade of the Punjab and Sind is carried on via Karachi ; and as Bombay has direct, railway communication with all parts of India, much of the trade that used previously to go by Calcutta or Madras now goes by Bombay. Owing to the rapid growth of foreign commerce the Bay of Bengal ports have been able to do more than hold their own, and Calcutta still remains the premier port of India ; but for over thirty years Bombay and Karachi have enjoyed an advantage of position from which they have reaped a rich harvest. 237. The opening of the Suez Canal has had another effect on the trade of India which is worthy of note. It has caused it to be carried almost entirely in steamships. Sailing ships cannot pass the Canal, and even the Red Sea is not safely navigable by large vessels except under steam. No country in the world has so large a proportion of its sea trade carried in steamers as India. In 1906-7 the ships that entered or left Indian ports laden with cargo had a 126 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA i - .>i, , , ' J .:^^^ J /t S¥ ^ s c r-J ..JX4A-, ^« ^ t 6 >— ^}f^Ky/ J ui'i i^ ^^^^\j/\ fX^T » w 3 f//\ ly ^'' 1 \ f ^J3^^^ // / \\ ^^^ • V'-'flf «^ f s J, Ul A ><(^ •;^'-^^^ A/i a ' '~3^i /^^--^ ^*,' ^1^^524., ;^ > /- 5 ^*^^\ =^^ / '\\ '/ vi^ \ '^^V\ :>^ y\ ,■2 1?^^ V i/ ..<^^ 1 y^ \ 1'^ — ^<^^'i Ji(^ y[// i-; a. 1 T\v l^k^ 1 ^yv yPf \. ^, f i3 y^''^^<^^ 1 'N. \ ■. . g ^ — \ .^^to"^ / '^ 3v "S I0^^f\] , 2 \ " ^w/Kj/ \\\ !X> / Vy =^ \ 1 1 ^^""^ / H. \^ \vl 1 j\^ :f \\ f| / \ s ^. l| i ! ■*' k / 13 / ' S 1 s t o W J^ m 1 S o 1 I'ig. 38. Showing the chief lines of foreign couiniunicaUon. FOREIGN COMMUNICATIONS 127 total tonnage of over ii^ million tons, and of this great total only a little over a quarter of a million tons, or less than a fortieth part, was carried in sailing ships. Though steam- freights are higher than sailing-freights, this is, on the whole, advantageous to Indian trade, chiefly because steamers are more reliable in point of time. 238. There are numerous lines of British steamers running regularly between the various ports of India and London. Most of them touch at one or other of the Mediterranean ports on their way, especially Marseilles, Genoa, Naples, and Brindisi. The mail route is via Bombay and Brindisi and across the continent of Europe by rail. There are also regular steamers from Great Britain to Karachi direct. Another line has recently been established between Marmagao and London. There are several less important foreign lines of steamers which give regular communication between India and various European ports, especially Trieste, Naples, Marseilles, and Hamburg. 239. Colombo is the most important steamship junction in Asia. Almost all steamers bound for Calcutta, Rangoon, Singapore, Hong Kong, and the ports of China and Japan, and many of those bound for Australia, call there both on their way out and home. Regular services of coasting steamers are maintained between Rangoon and Calcutta, calling at the smaller Burmese ports, and between Calcutta and Bombay, calling at most of the peninsular ports as well as at Colombo. These steamers bring much of the produce of the coast districts to the larger ports, and at Colombo connect with lines for all parts of the eastern seas. South India is kept in communication with Colombo by the South Indian Railway to Tuticorin, and thence by steamboats which run daily. (6) Postal and Telegraphic Communications 240. India has the benefit of a postal service which for ef&ciency and cheapness is second to none in the world. The fixed policy of the Government for many years has been to devote the profits earned by the service to the increase of the facilities given to the public. The rates for 128 GKOGRAPHY OF INDIA inland postage arc exceedingly low. Nowhere else can a closed letter be sent for id., or a post card for Jd. The Value Payable Parcel system (now extended to Ceylon) is a convenience provided in few European States, and Is of great assistance in the minor transactions of trade. The other services rendered by the Indian Post Office — the remittance of money, the conveyance of small parcels, the custody at interest of small savings, the purchase of Govern- ment securities for depositors, and the provision of a cheap and simple system of life insurance and annuities — are such as are now generally provided by European post offices. In the first of these services, however, the Indian Post Office gives greater facilities to both sender and receiver than are given in any other country. 241. The following figures show the rapid increase during the last 10 years in the various branches of the Indian Postal Service. 1897. 1907. Post Offices and Letter Boxes . . Total Staff of the Department . . Letters, Post Cards, Newspapers and Parcels delivered Money Orders issued Depositors in P.O. Savings Bank ,~^,^- , ^ , Balanceof Deposits at close of year Ks. 96,392,000 Rs. 147,670,000 242. The inland telegraphic system of India is now fairly complete, and is worked in connection with the post offices and the railways. There arc about 6,500 Telegraph Offices open to the public. Almost every town of over 5,000 inhabitants is served, and the work of connecting up the smaller towns is rapidly proceeding. 243. There are four telegraphic routes to Europe, the two chief being (i) a private company's line ind Suez, and ^2) the Indo-European line vid Teheran. The latter is under the control of the Indian Government as far as Teheran, and proceeds by cable from Karachi to Bushire and thence by a land line north to Teheran, where it joins tlie European system. There is now also a direct land 9.948 17,180 50,754 85,873 438,778,000 779,556,000 10,900,000 21,620,000 713,320 1,190,220 INTERNAL TRADE 129 connection between Quetta and Teheran by the new Central Persian Hne constructed under an agreement between the EngUsh and Persian Governments. Three submarine cables run from Bombay to Aden, giving direct connection not only with Egypt and Europe, but also, by cables along the east coast of Africa, with the Seychelles, Mauritius and South Africa. Two cables run from Madras to Penang, giving connection with the Straits Settlements, as well as with Australia in the south and China and Japan in the north. There are also land routes to China via Bhamo, and to Siam vin Moulmein. Two cables unite Ceylon to India, whence direct cable communication with Australia is under construction. (7) Internal Trade 244. A detailed account of the internal trade of India cannot be given, as no public record of it is, or could be, kept. The foreign trade, both by land and sea, is recorded at the various Custom Houses where import or export duties are levied upon it. But there are no general inland duties, and therefore no complete inland returns. At one time small duties were levied on certain classes of goods as they passed from place to place, but these have now been abolished. Municipalities occasionally levy- octroi duties at the boundaries of their jurisdiction, and then there is a local record of the trade thus taxed. The commerce in a few other articles upon the manufacture and sale of which restrictions are placed, such as intoxicating drinks, salt and opium, is also known. But with these exceptions the internal trade of India goes on unrecorded. 245. But there can be no doubt that in both volume and value it far exceeds the foreign trade. The weight of the sea-borne commerce of India is about 1 1 million tons a year. But the railways of India alone transport nearly 60 million tons of merchandise a year. From this it is plain that, over and above the collection and distribution of exports and imports, the exclusively internal trade carried on by means of the railways must be at least four times the volume of the entire sea-borne trade. Yet the railways K 130 GEOGKAl'llV OF INDIA deal with only a small part of the internal trade, the great bulk of which is carried by road, canal, or river. It is thus of vast proportions, and is of the greatest possible value to the country. The comfort and welfare of the people depend upon it, and the policy of the Government has long been to promote it by every means in its power. Owing to the increasing productiveness of the country as a whole, and the improved means of communication, by which parts once isolated are enabled to bring their surplus products to market, the internal trade of India is becoming greater year by year. (8) Foreign Sea-borne Trade 246. The foreign commerce of India has been steadily growing for many years. Measured in rupees it has more than trebled in the last 30 years, having risen from a total value of 1,139 million rupees in 1877 to 3,439 millions in 1907. The following arc the chief articles of export and import. The figures after each article indicate, in millions of pounds sterling, the value of the quantities imported or exported in the year 1906-7 : — Exports, (121. 5). Raw Cotton, (14.6) ; Twist, Yarn, and Manufiictured Cottons, (8.1) ; Raw Jute, (17.9) : Manu- factured Jute, (12.8) ; Rice, (12.3) ; Oil Seeds, (8.6) Wheat, (5.2) ; Hides and Skins, raw and dressed, (10.2) Opium, (6.2) ; Tea, (6.5) ; Lac, (2.3) ; Raw Wool, (1.6) Treasure, (3.8). Imports, (107.8). Cotton Goods, (27.5) ; Metals, and Manufactures of Metals, chiefly Iron and Steel, (13.3) ; Sugar, (5.8) ; Silk Goods, (1.5) ; Woollen Goods, (1.4) ; Mineral Oils, (1.6) ; Various articles of food and drink, (5.2) ; Treasure, (29.7). 247. Most of the articles of export have been noticed already in the chapter on Natural Productions, and little need be said of them here. The exports of cotton, jute, wheat, and tea have been steadily increasing for some years. But the export of wheat varies greatly from year FOREIGN TRADE I3I to year. It depends upon the comparative price of the grain in Europe and India, and a very slight variation sufifices to increase or diminish the amount shipped. When low prices in Europe coincide with a year of scarcity in India the export is almost suspended. The value of the shipments fell from ;^6, 500,000 in 1898-g to ^20,000 in 1900-1. By 1904 it had risen to nearly ;^i2,ooo,ooo, from which high figure it again fell in the following year to less than ;^6,ooo,ooo. 248. It will be noticed that the import of treasure (i.e., silver and gold) is much larger than the export, in spite of the fact that India is a gold producing country. This has been the case for centuries. In both ancient and modern times the drainage of the precious metals to India has occasionally given Western rulers great concern, and they have vainly tried to prevent it. Previous to 1835 no exact records were published. In the 74 years that have elapsed since then, however, the returns show that the imports of treasure into India have exceeded the exports by the enormous total of ;{346,ooo,ooo. Much of the silver has been used in the currency and for the manufacture of silver vessels and ornaments, but most of the gold has undoubtedly been hoarded either in the form of jewellery or coin. Now that the Indian Mints are open for the coinage of gold sovereigns it is probable that in time much of this will come into circulation. It is exceedingly desirable that it should, for hoarded wealth is unproductive. 249. The proportion of the foreign trade of India carried on from each of the chief seaports is as follows. The values are again given in millions of pounds sterling : — Calcutta, 80.6 ; Bombay, 55.5 ; Karachi, 16.8 ; Rangoon, 14. 1 ; Madras, 9.5. Tuticorin and Chittagong come next with about two millions each. Each of the great staples of Indian export trade has its special port. Most of the cotton goes from Bombay ; a still larger proportion of the jute from Calcutta ; and almost the whole of the wheat from Karachi. Rice goes chiefly from Calcutta and Rangoon, and indigo and hides from Calcutta and Madras. 132 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 250. The following arc the chief countries with which the foreign trade of India is carried on. The imports and exports are given separately, and the various articles of commerce are in each case named in the order of import- ance. Wliere any article constitutes half the total (of imports or exports, as the case may be) it is printed in heavy type ; if it constitutes less than a quarter it is printed in italics. The figures indicate values in millions sterling, and are for the year 1906-7. United Kingdom. Imports from, (48.2). Cotton manufactures, iron, steel. machinery and cutlery, and almost tvtry other article of trade. Exports to, (31.2). Jute, raw and manufactured, tea, wheat, hides, raw wool, oil seeds, rice, raw cotton. China and Hong Kong. Imports from, (i.o). Silk, raw and manufactured, sugar, drugs, and tea. Exports to, (12.6). Cotton goods, especially twist and yarn, opium, juie manufactures. Germany. Imports from, (3.8). Sugar, woollen goods, metals, cotton goods, hardware. Exports to, (13.1). Raw jute, raw cotton, tice, hides, oil seeds. United States. Imports from, (1.7). Mineral oils, cotton goods. Exports to, (10.4). Jute, raw and manufactured, hides, lac. France. Imports from, (0.9). Wines and spirits, gold thread, silks. Exports to, (7.4). Oil seeds, raw jute, raw cotton, wheat, hides, and coffee. Japan. Imports from, (i.o). Silk goods, cottons, matches. Exports to, (4.7). Raw cotton, rice. Belgium. Imports from, (2.9). Steel, dyes, iron, cotton goods. Exports to, (4.8). Raw cotton, oil seeds, wheat. frontier trade i33 Straits Settlements. Imports from, (1.8). Spices, fish, mineral oils, tin. Exports to, (4.4). Rice, opium, jufe, cotton manufactures. Austria-Hungary, Imports from, (2.0). Sugar, metals, glass ware, cotton ^ouds. Exports to, (4.0). Raw cotton, fute, rice, hides. Ceylon. Imports from, (0.5). Bctelnuts, coconut oil, tea. Exports to, (4.2). Rice, cotton manufactures, coal. Italy. Imports from, (0.7). Cottons, silks, dyes, coral. Exports to, (3.8). Raw cotton, hides, jute, oil seeds. Large quantities of gunny bags and other jute manu- factures are also exported to the South American RepubUcs, especially Argentina and Chile, from whence there is no corresponding import trade. Australia also takes almost a million pounds worth of jute manufactures a year, and sells to India horses, wheat, and copper. There is a large import of sugar from the Mauritius and Java, and rice is exported to both these countries. (9) Land Frontier Trade 251. The total trade across the land frontiers of India amounted in 1902 to about 9J millions sterling, and by 1907 had risen to nearly 12 millions. The trade with Nepal amounts to 3 J millions, that with Kashmir to 2 millions, and with Afghanistan to ij millions. Across the Burmese frontier a considerable trade is done with West China, Siam, and the Shan States, which amounted in 1905 to about 2 1 millions. The chief articles of import across the land frontiers are rice, ghee, teak, raw wool, silk, and borax ; and the exports are mainly cotton goods, salt, metals, and sugar. 134 GFOGRArHY OF INDIA Fig. 30. East India House, London, in the spventecnth ccntun.-. Tlio first headquarters of the East India Company. CHAPTER VI THE GOVERNMENT OF INDIA (i) The Growth of the British Dominion 252. When, on December 31st, t6oo, Queen Elizabeth signed the Charter which formed the East India Company, the last thought in the minds of its promoters was the acquisition of sovereign powers over Indian territory. Their aim was to secure a share of the trade which for ages had been the greatest prize of sea-faring supremacy, and which at that time was an object of bitter rivalry between the Portuguese and the Dutch. The attention of the Company was at first directed quite as much to Java and the Spice Islands as to India proper. But the power of the Dutch in the Islands, and their bitter hostility to the English Company, soon led the ofi&cers of the latter to concentrate their efforts upon the coasts of the Continent. Their first settlement was at Surat, on the Gulf of Cambay, where a factory was founded in 1612, and by the middle of the century they had established similar factories at Masulipatam, Madras, Hooghly, and other places. In 1661 the island of Bombay passed from Portuguese to English hands as part of the dowry of Catherine of Braganza, and in 1688 it was made over by the King to the Company. 253. At all these factories, though some of them were strongly fortified, the aim of the Company was trade, and trade alone. Their Charter did, indeed, permit them to make war upon their enemies, and they maintained both land forces and a considerable fleet of warships But these were intended mainly for the protection of their commerce against the Dutch, with whom thev had 136 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA numerous fierce encounters. In India itself, however, their policy was one of peace. With the single exception of one brief period (which, though marked by disaster at the time, led to the foundation of the present metropolis of India) the Board of Directors at home seem never to have dreamed of empire, or of winning for themselves in India the position of an independent political power. Their officers exercised sovereign jurisdiction within the boundaries of their factories, but the Board continually impressed upon them the perils that would attend any open displaj'^ of power, and exhorted them to remember that they were the servants and representatives of a body of merchants whose sole aim was profitable trade. 254. But during the last half of the eighteenth century an irresistible combination of circumstances completely changed this attitude. For some time the Mughal Empire had been rapidly breaking up. After the death of .\urang- zebe in 1707 there was no strong central power in India, and by the middle of the century the great provincial governors, though still owning a nominal allegiance to Delhi, had become practically independent rulers. The Nawab of Bengal held his court at Murshidabad ; the Nawab-Wazir of Oudh ruled over the territories now included in the United Provinces ; and the Nizam-ul- Mulk held the heart of the Deccan and a long stretch of the east coast. In the west the Maratha Confederation had all power in its hands and oppressed the Rajput princes. The Peshwa, the nominal head of the Con- federacy, was supreme along the coast of Bombay ; the Raja of Nagpur had pushed his dominion across the peninsula to the coasts of Orissa ; while Sindhia was pressing his conquests in the north and was soon to wrest from the Afghans the possession of the imperial city and the person of the fallen Emperor. Such was the condition of India at the middle of the eighteenth century. Amid a multitude of chieftains these were the most powerful and aggressive, and as each was set on the extension of his dominions or the plunder of his neighbour, the suffering country was torn by incessant war. GROWTH OF BRITISH INDIA I37 255. Amid such surroundings it would have been impossible in any case for the officers of the East India Company to have held long aloof from Indian politics. The Directors themselves were beginning to feel that the security of their Indian trade would soon depend upon their ability to seize and wield independent political power, and were accordingly busy strengthening their armed forces. But events moved more quickly than they foresaw. Another set of circumstances, of western origin, suddenly threatened their very existence, and quickly plunged them into the vortex of Indian strife. 256. Like the other sea-faring nations of Europe the French had endeavoured to secure for themselves a share of the Indian trade, and a French East India Company, established in 1664, possessed fortified settlements at both Pondicherry and Chandernagore. Commercially the French Company had never been a success, and had been maintained at a heavy cost by the home Government, but in India the French were at least the equals of the English in military power and political influence. Wlien, in 1744, war broke out between England and France in Europe, it precipitated a conflict (that in any case could not have been long delayed) between the two powers in India which, with the exception of a brief interval of peace, lasted for nearly twenty years. In the hostilities that ensued most of the Native Princes of South India and the Deccan were at different periods involved as the allies first of one of the chief combatants and then of the other. The aim of the French commanders was nothing short of the expulsion of the English from India. They hesitated at no intrigue which might assist them to accom- plish their purpose, and as the same may be said with equal truth of the English, both parties were soon plunged in the muddy and turbulent sea of Indian politics. At the beginning of the war the fortunes of the British fell exceedingly low. Madras was taken, and the Governor and chief citizens led captive to Pondicherry. But the genius of Clive and Sir Eyre Coote, coupled with the decline of the French naval power, turned the tide. Lally, the 138 GEOGRArilV or INDIA French General, was finally defeated at Wandiwash in 1760, and the following year Pondiclicrry surrendered to the English. The town was restored by the Treaty of Paris in 1763, but the power of the French in India was utterly and permanently broken, and the political ascendancy of the British established on the firmest of all bases, military prestige. 257. While the French and English were contending in the Carnatic the foundations of the British Empire in India were being firmly laid in Bengal. The Governor of Fort William, having been ordered by the Directors to sec to his defences lest he should be attacked by the French from Chandernagore, proceeded to strengthen his fortifi- cations. The Nawab of Murshidabad commanded him to desist, and upon his refusal seized and sacked the city, and the terrible tragedy of the Black Hole was enacted. Clive was despatched from Madras to retrieve this disaster, and, after retaking Calcutta, routed the Nawab at Plassey in 1757. From that time the rich provinces of Bengal, Bihar, and part of Orissa were under the military control of the Company and greatly strengthened them in their final struggle with the French, from whom they now wrested, without difficult^', the coast Districts known as the Northern Circars, which had been ceded to the French by the Nizam. 258. Clive left India in 1760, and returned to resume the Government of Bengal in 1765. During his absence one Nawab had been deposed and another set up ; the districts of Burdwan, Midnapore, and Chittagong had been added to the Companv's territories ; and the Nawab- Wa/ir of Oudh, who had attacked Bengal in the nominal interests of the Emperor, had been defeated at the battle of Buxar. Clive now set himself to reform and consolidate the Company's rule. He received from the Emperor the diwani, or fiscal government, of Bengal, as well as a formal grant of the Northern Circars ; and, to the great dis- appointment of many of the English officers, restored the Nawab- Wazir to his throne under a treaty which made him dependent on British protection. GROWTH OF BRITISH INDIA I39 259. From that time, as was clearly seen by Clive and others, British power was potentially supreme in India. But neither Clive nor his successors were anxious to increase their dominions, believing that they would best conserve their power by abstaining from territorial aggrandizement. In this policy they were more than seconded by the Directors at home, who consistently deprecated an aggressive and warlike attitude on the part of their servants. But war seemed the one thing which it was impossible for them to avoid, and, whether they liked it or not, an increase of their territory was the invariable and inevitable result. Successive Governors- General were sent out under stern commands to pursue a policy of peace and to stand aloof from the internecine conflicts of the Native Princes, but one by one they found that obedience to such commands was impossible if the power and influence of the Company were to be main- tained. War was the normal condition of most of the Native States, and as the Company had relations with almost all of them its interests were continually threatened, and its forces were consequenth' engaged in almost incessant hostilities. It was not till Lord Wellesley's Governorship (1798- 1805) that definite steps were taken to put an end to this state of things by establishing the acknowledged supremacy of the British throughout India, and so making them the arbiters of peace and war. The policy which that far-sighted statesman inaugurated did so much to consolidate British dominion and secure the peace of India that it deserves special attention. 260. In his own words Lord Wellesley's aim was " to preserve the tranquility of India by exercising a general control over the restless spirit of ambition and violence " which characterised almost every Native Government. He sought to do this by a system of subsidiary treaties with the Native Princes whereby the English guaranteed to them security and protection on condition that they disbanded the greater part of their forces, resigned the right to levy war or make foreign alliances, and agreed to pay an annual subsidy sufi&cient to meet the cost of the l^O GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA troops that the paramount ])o\vcr would maintain for their defence. These subsidiary treaties have done more to give peace and stability to the Native States of India and to determine the map of the country than any other cause. Speaking roughly, the present Feudatory States are those that accepted British protection, and, as a result, exist to-day, while the British Provinces embrace the territories of all such as refused it, together with districts ceded by some of the protected States in lieu of the sub- sidies they had agreed to pay. 261. The policy thus initiated by Lord Wellesley was steadily followed by his successors till the whole country was brought under control. Every native war, every uprising of the turbulent native soldiery against their chiefs, every failure of a native prince to carry out his treaty obligations or to rule his territory' justly, and every act of treachcrj'^ or hostility against the paramount power, led inevitably and quickly to the assumption of control by the British and the extension and consolidation of their empire. We cannot follow the process in minute detail, but the following paragraphs indicate in brief outline the chief stages in the building up of the British dominion both before and after the time of Wellesley. 262. For nearly half a century after the conquest of Bengal the chief additions to British territory were in the south of the peninsula. In 1761, the year after the French power had been broken at Wandiwash, the Nawab of the Carnatic sought British protection. The same j'ear Haidar All, a mercenary soldier in the service of the Mysore Raja, expelled the Hindu dynasty, and seized Mysore for himself. He soon became the most aggres- sive and dreaded ruler in South India. His forces continually tlireatened Travancorc, and the Maharaja sought and obtained British protection. Before the close of the century the British had fought three wars with Haidar All t>r liis son Tipu Sultan. At the close of the second of these the DistPict of Malabar on the west coast was added to the British dominions. The third war resulted in the death of Tipu, who was slain at the siege of Seringapatam, the restoration of the Hindu dvnasty luuhr British protection, the transference of the districts oi Cuddapah, GROWTH OF BRITISH INDIA I4I Bellapy, and part of Kupnul to the Nizam, and the acquisition of South Kanapa and Coimbatope by the British. At the same time the small Maratha Kingdom of Tanjope was handed over to the British. The following year the Nizam entered into a subsidiary alliance, and in lieu of a subsidy ceded the districts he had -received at the partition of Mysore. In 1801 the whole of the territories of the Nawab of the Carnatic, which had long been under British administration, were formally annexed. These various and extensive territories, acquired within the space of three years, together with the Northern Circars (taken from the French in 17 59) were consolidated into ths Ppovince (or Ppesidency) of Madras, the boundaries of which a hundred years ago were very nearly what they are to-day. 263. The first twenty years of the nineteenth century wit- nessed the consolidation of British authority over almost the whole of north India south of the Sutlej and east of the Thar, or Indian Desert. The Kingdom of Oudh had, as we have seen, been practically under British protection since Clive's days. The Nawab-Wazir was, however, threatened by the Marathas all along his frontier, his army was mutinous, and his finances were disorganised. He was therefore very ready to fall in with Lord Wellesley's policy, with whom he entered into a subsidiary alliance, ceding to the British the whole of his frontier provinces in the south and west. His kingdom was thus greatly reduced in size, but being flanked by British provinces on three sides it was secured from attack and continued to exist as a Protected State till 1856, when it was forfeited to the British through misgovernment. 264. The annexation of the frontier provinces of Oudh brought the British into close touch with the most turbulent of the Maratha princes, and to Lord Wellesley the time seemed ripe for such an assertion of British supremac)'^ as would curb their lawlessness. The Maratha confederacy was torn by civil war, and the Peshwa, its nominal head, had fled before his more powerful chiefs. He appealed to the British for help, signed a subsidiary treaty and was restored to his throne at Poona to be henceforth under British protection and control. Such a treaty Sindhia and the Raja of Nagpur, the most powerful Maratha chiefs, scornfully refused to recognise, and British forces were sent against them. The war which ensued led to a great increase of British power in central and northern India, as well as to large 142 GEOGRATHY OF INDIA accessions oi territory. Tlie Raja of Nagpur was compelled to cede the coast district ol Cuttack to the British, and to restore BeP&F to the NizSm ; while from Sindhia Lord Wellesley took the coast districts north of Bombay, and an extensive and fertile tract along the Jumna, most of which is now included in the Province of Agra. Delhi, and with it the person of the Mughal Emperor, thus passed into British hands. BRITISH PROVINCES 1^ PROTECTED STATES _^ Fig, 40. Showing the growth of the British Empire of India. 265. The British now held the whole of the east coast ot the peninsula from Chittagong to Cape Comorin, and the greater part of the west coast also. In the whole of south ImJia and in tiic greater part of the Deccan their supremacy was acknow- ledged, and the country was rapidly settling down to reap the GROWTH OF BRITISH INDIA 143 blessings of peace. But in the north the sturdy and independent Maratha chiefs still struggled for mastery. In 1817, when the English troops were engaged in a war with the Pindari free- booters, the Peshwa thought the moment was opportune for him to throw off the British yoke, and the Raja of Nagpur declared in his favour. The war which followed broke the Maratha power. At its close the teppitories of the Peshwa were incorporated in the Bombay Presidency, and the Napbada and SaugOP distpicts which now form the west and north of the Central Provinces, were taken from the Raja of Nagpur. All the Maratha chiefs now formally bowed to the British supre- macy, as did also the Rajput Princes, who welcomed their deliverance from Maratha oppression. 266. British power was now supreme throughout the whole of India save Sind and the Punjab. After the war with Nepal in 1816 a large tract of hilly country to the north of Rohilkhand had been taken from the Gurkhas, and between the rivers Jumna and Sarda the British frontier had been pushed northward to the summit of the Himalayas. Sind was conquered in 1843, and the western frontier was thenceforward in touch with Baluchistan. In the Punjab the Sikhs had firmly established their power, and for nearly half a century had held the country against all comers. While successive Governors-General were engaged in the reduction of Tipu and the Marathas the Sikh power had been of the greatest service as it effectuallv closed India against all marauders from across the northern frontier. Ranjit Singh had ruled the country with a strong hand, and had loyally observed his treaty with the British by which the Sutlej was made his southern frontier. After his death in 1839 internal disorders broke out, and in 1845 the Sikh army crossed the Sutlej and invaded British territory. The First Sikh War followed, at the close of which the Punjab came under British protection. Two years later an insurrection among the Sikh soldiery led to the Second Sikh War, which resulted in the annexation of the Punjab in 1 849. British territory now stretched up to the natural. north-west frontier of the country. Since then British influence has been pushed beyond the frontier proper, and many warlike tribes have been brought under partial con- trol. But every such forward movement has been made mainly with the object of strengthening the frontier and making it impregnable to attack from without. 144 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 267. VVliiW", IhrouRh the force of irresistible circumstances, British rule has thus spread throughout India, from the southern seas to the Himalayas, in the east it has passed the natural boundaries of India proper. No barrier State protected Bengal from foreign attack, and the depredations of the Burmese on the north-east frontier led to the First P.urincstj War in 1S25, which resulted in the annexation of Assam, Arakan and Tenas- serim. The entire eastern shores of the Bay of Bengal thus came under British control. The Second Burmese War in 1852 led to the annexation of Pegu. In 1886 King Thcbaw, whose cruelty and misrule had long called for chastisement, was deposed and banished, and tlio whole of his dominions annexed. Thus was completed the Province of Burma, the latest, the largest, and in some ways the most progressive, of all the Provinces of the Empire of India. (2) Government and Administration 268. As its territories increased the East India Com- pany gradually ceased to be a trading association and became an administrative and political corporation under the authority of the British Parliament. Up to 1773 Parliament claimed no direct authority over the Com- pany's affairs. The Governors of Fort William, Fort St. George, and Bombay were responsible only to the Board of Directors, and each of them was independent of the others. But when the acquisition of the great Province of Bengal made the Company responsible for the govern- ment of a vast population, Parliament asserted its right of control, and in 1773 the Regulating Act was passed. This Act gave to the Governor of Fort William (who by that time had come to be called Governor of Bengal) the title of Governor-General, and empowered him to exercise a measure of control over the other two Governors in all matters relating to peace or war, or political alliances with the Native States. The same Act established a Supreme Court at Calcutta. By Pitt's India Act in 17S4 a Board of Control was constituted, which was maile superior to the Board of Directors in all matters of Indian administra- ADMINISTRATION I45 tion. At the renewal of the Company's Charter in 1813 its trading monopoly was restricted to commerce with China and the trade in tea, and twenty years later it ceased to be a trading corporation altogether. After the Sepoy Mutiny in 1857 the East India Company was dissolved and the Government of India passed to the Crown, the supreme authority being vested in a Secretary of State assisted by a Council. In 1861 the India Councils Act was passed, and this Act, with certain additions and modifications made in subsequent years, especially in 1892, still prescribes and regulates the various Governments in India. 269. By these and other less important Acts the entire government of the Indian Empire is vested in the Crown and Parliament of the United Kingdom, the King being, by the Royal Titles Act of 1876, Emperor of India. The authority of all the high Officers of State in India is derived directly from the Crown, and they carry on the government in the Emperor's name and subject to the control of Parlia- ment. The revenues of the Empire are also collected in his name, but they are spent exclusively for the purposes of the Indian Government. 270. The Secretary of State for India is a member of the Government of the United Kingdom for the time being, and like all the other principal Secretaries of State he has, by unbroken custom, a seat in the Cabinet. He possesses all the powers exercised by the Board of Control, as well as those exercised by the Company after 1833, and is assisted by a Council of at least ten members, nine of whom must have spent not less than ten years in India. The Members of the India Council do not, however, like the Secretary for India himself, go out of office with the Government. They are each appointed for a period of ten years, and may afterwards be appointed for a further period of five years, and once appointed they can only be removed upon an address from both Houses of Parliament. Vacancies in the India Council are filled up by the Secretary of State for India for the time being. The Council exercises a general supervision over every branch of Indian adminis- L 14^) GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA tration, and has absolute control of the expenditure of the Indian revenue, on which the vote of a majority of the members is final. But in all purely political matters the Secretary of State for India acts alone. 271. The supreme government in India is vested in the Governor-General (commonly called the Viceroy), who is appointed by the Crown, and ordinarily holds the office for five years. He is assisted by a Council of seven members appointed by the Crown, with the Commander-in-Chief who sits as an extraordinary member. Three of the members must have been in the service of the Indian Government for at least ten years, another is always a distinguished lawyer, and one is now a native of India. This Council is executive only. " The Governor-General-in- Council " is responsible for the entire administration of the Empire, and exercises a large measure of control over all the Provincial Governments. For legislative purposes the Executive Council is enlarged by the appointment of sixteen additional members, and is then called the Legislative Council of the Government of India. Of these additional members ten are non-ofificial. All the members are appointed by the Viceroy, but four are nominated by the non-ofi&cial members of the Provincial Legislative Councils, one by the Calcutta Chamber of Commerce, and the remaining five are selected so as to secure " the due representation of the different classes of the community." 272. The functions of the Council when thus enlarged are purely legislative. Although the Budget Statement is made publicly in the enlarged council, and the financial policy of the Government may then be freely discussed and criticised, the Legislative Council has no authority over any matter pertaining to administration. In legislative matters it cannot repeal or modify any Act of the Imperial Parliament which prescribes the constitution of the Indian Empire or its relation to the Cro\\'n, and a few other subjects are also reservetl. But with tliese exceptions the Council exercises full legislative power over the whole of India. Its Acts require the assent of the Viceroy, and may be disallowed b^- the Crown. ADMINISTRATION I47 273. The Provincial Governments are of several orders. The older Provinces of Madras and Bombay have each a Governor with an Executive Council. Like the Governor- General the Governors of Madras and Bombay are usually English statesmen, and both they and the members of their Councils are appointed by the Crown. In both these Provinces the Executive Council is enlarged for legislative purposes by the appointment of additional members, and the functions of the enlarged councils are, within their restricted area, similar to those of the Legis- lative Council of India. 274. Bengal, the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh, the Punjab, Eastern Bengal and Assam, and Burma have each a Lieutenant-Governor, who is appointed by the Viceroy with the approbation of the Crown. Every Lieutenant-Governor must have served in India for ten years prior to his appointment. Lieutenant-Governors have no Executive Councils, but each Province has its Legislative Council in which the Lieutenant-Governor presides. The various provincial Legislative Councils deal only with local questions, and in no way diminish the power of the Governor-General's Council to legislate for the whole of India. A considerable number of subjects are specifically withdrawn from their purview, nor can they repeal or amend any law in force in India prior to 1861. Their Acts require the assent of the Governor-General. 275. The Central Provinces, the North-Western Frontier Province, and British Baluchistan are each under a Chief Commissioner, as also are the smaller charges, Ajmer- Merwara, Coorg, and the Andaman Inlands. Chief Com- missioners are appointed by the Governor-General on his sole authority. They differ from Lieutenant-Governors chiefly in their status, the appointment of the latter having been provided for by a special Act of Parliament. They exercise the same authority in their Provinces, and the entire executive government centres in them. No Chief- Commissioner has a Council. For legislative purposes all the Chief- Commissionerships fall directly under the Legislative Council of India. 140 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 276. All the large provinces of India, whether ruled by a Governor, a Lieutenant-Governor, or a Chief Com- missioner, are divided into Districts. The District is throughout India the unit of administrative organisation. With the exception of Madras, the larger Provinces are broken up into Divisions containing four or five Districts over which a Commissioner presides. In the older Provinces, Bengal, Madras, Bombay (exclusive of Sind), and Agra, — which are known as " Regulation Provinces ' from the fact that the early enactments of the Presidency Councils according to which their government was con- ducted were called " Regulations," — the chief District Officer is called the Collector, while in the Non-regulation Provinces he is styled the Deputy Commissioner. But whatever may be their official title, their duties are similar, and include both revenue and magisterial functions. The powers and responsibilities of a District officer are very great. " Police, jails, education, municipalities, roads, sanitation, dispensaries, the local taxation, and the imperial revenues of his district, are to him matters of daily concern."* " If the District officer is weak and incapable, authority and law in the district are weak also ; if he is strong and competent, they are respected."! The Collector has under him a large body of Government officers belonging to various branches of the service, not only Assistant and Deputy Collectors and minor revenue officials who take charge of revenue subdivisions, but also officers of the Public Works, Police, Forest, and other Departments of Government, all of whom are more or less completely under his authority and look to him for guidance. 277. During the last quarter of a century an immense development has taken place in Local Government of a partially elective character both in towns anil rural tracts. Prior to 1881 many attempts had been made in different parts of India to promote municipal self-government, and numerous Acts had been passed by the various Provincial • Hunter. f Sir John Strachey. LOCAL GOVERNMENT I49 legislatures with this end in view. But no great progress was made till the Governor-Generalship of Lord Ripon, who took a deep interest in the subject. His Government, actively seconded by the Provincial Governments, took steps to promote the formation both of Municipalities and Local Boards, which have had, on the whole, the happiest results. There are now nearly 800 Municipalities in India, and the rural districts are almost entirely mapped out under Local Boards. The Municipal Councils, or Com- mittees, and the Boards for the larger rural areas, are almost everywhere mainly elective, and though subject to a certain amount of official control, they nevertheless secuie to the people a large share in the management of their local affairs. In Madras, where the rural system is more fully developed than in any other Province, there are three orders of Local Boards, — (i) Village Unions, or Panchayats ; (2) Taluk Boards ; and (3) District Boards. The District Boards have a general control throughout the District, and are mainly composed of members elected by and from the Taluk Boards. 278. The duties that devolve upon these local bodies are very varied. The Municipal Committees (or Councils) have control of the streets, drainage and sanitation, water supply, lighting, precautions against fire, hospitals and vaccination, elementary education, and many other matters that bear upon the corporate life of the citizens and the con- venience and beauty of their town. The rural Boards are concerned mainly with roads and other communica- tions, minor public works, dispensaries, vaccination, rest- houses, etc. The total expenditure controlled by local bodies in 1904-5 was over ;^9,ooo,ooo. Municipal revenues are derived mainly from taxes levied on houses," lands, vehicles, trades and professions, and in some Provinces, particularly Bombay, from octroi duties. The revenues of Local Boards consist chiefly of the land cess — a fixed percentage of the land revenue — together with the produce of tolls and ferries and other minor sources of income. To these is now frequently added a contribution from Imperial revenues. 150 GEOGRAPHY f)K INDIA 279. The Judicial Administration of British India difiers considerably in different Provinces. Each of the older, or " Regulation " Provinces, Bengal, Madras, Bombay, and Agra, lias a High Court (established by the Crown in virtue of the Indian High Courts Act of 1S61) which super- vises and controls the whole administration of justice in the Province. Next in rank are the District and Sessions Courts, which are established in almost every District and are presided over by a Civil and Sessions Judge who is a member of the Indian Civil Service. All these courts have both civil and criminal jurisdiction. Of the inferior courts the Magistrates' Courts, of various classes, have criminal jurisdiction only, all civil suits being tried in the Subordinate Judges' Courts and the Munsiff's Courts, both of which are civil courts only. In the more recently organised Provinces other systems prevail which differ from this chiefly in the constitution of the superior courts. The Punjab and Lower Burma have each a Chief Court, established by the authority of the Indian Government, which exercises all the powers of the High Courts in the older provinces. In the Central Provinces, Oudh, Sind, and Upper Burma, the supreme judicial functions are exercised by one or more Judicial Commissioners. 280. The foregoing paragraphs refer only to British India. The Native States are administered by their own Governments, subject to a certain measure of Imperial control. There are altogether nearly 700 Native States in India, but many of them are very small. Most of the larger States are directly under the Viceroy, who is repre- sented by a Resident at the Native Court, or by an " Agent to the Governor-General, ' ' who is made responsible for a group of States. The chief " Agencies " are Rajputana and Central India. The Chief Commissioners of British Baluchistan and the North-Western Frontier Province are respectively Agents to the Governor-General for the Baluchistan States and the tribal territories of the north- west. The smaller Native States which are within, or contiguous to, a British Province are commonly under the control of its Governor or Chief Commissioner. This is THE REVENUE I5I sometimes the case even with large States. Travancore is, for example, under Madras, and its Resident reports to the Governor of that Province. Many of the Native States are excellently governed, and are developing pari passu with neighbouring British Provinces. When that is the case there is no interference on the part of the para- mount power, and the Resident's or Agent's duties are confined to the pleasant ones of counsel, co-operation, and report. Bad government or financial improvidence, how- ever, sometimes render interference unavoidable, and then the Government of India takes whatever action seems needful. (3) The Revenues of India 281. The total revenue of British India for 1906-7 was about 73 millions sterling. Of this amount slightly over 23 millions was raised by taxation and the rest was derived from various other sources. The revenue of the United Kingdom for the same year was 142^ millions sterling, of which iig millions was raised by taxation. The amount of imperial taxation per head of the population was thus £2 i6s. 8d. in the United Kingdom, but only 2S. 2|d. in India. The people of India are more lightly taxed than any other people in the world who enjoy the benefit of a civilized Government strong enough to secure to them the inestimable boons of justice, protection, and peace. 282. The chief taxes by which the Indian revenue is raised are, in the order of their value, the Salt tax. Excise, Customs, Stamps, Provincial Rates, Assessments, and Registration. The revenue from sources other than taxation is derived from the Land, Opium, the Post and Telegraph services. Railways, Irrigation and other pro- ductive public works. Forests, Tributes, the Mint, and the ordinary receipts of the various civil and military depart- ments. Some of these require special notice. 283. The Salt Tax. This tax is one which the British rulers inherited from their predecessors, and it is practically the only tax which touches the whole population. As salt is a necessary of life the policy of the Government is to keep the tax as low as possible. Of recent years it has been reduced from Rs. 2J per 152 GEOGKAI'HY OK INDIA maund (80 lbs.) first to Rs. 2, and then (in 1905) to Ks. ij In 1904-5, when the rate was Rs. 2, the tax yielded over 5 million pounds sterling. The incidence per head of the population is now a little under 5d. per annum. 284. Excise Duties are levied chiefly on alcoholic liquors, Indian hemp (bhang) and opium. The tax is collected in two ways — (1) as a duty paid by the manufacturer according to the quantity made, and (2) as a fee charged for licenses to sell. The amount received under the head of excise has largely in- creased of recent years, owing partly to increased vigilance in administration by which illicit manufacture and sale have been greatly reduced, and partly to increased consumption. 285. Customs. An import duty at the rate of 5 per cent, on their value is now levied on almost all articles of commerce entering India from abroad. On a few articles, such as alcohol, opium, etc., a much higher rate is charged. O)tton piece goods and iron are taxed at a lower rate than 5 per cent. ; and cotton yarns, machinery, food grains, and printed books, are admitted free. For twelve years, from 1882 to 1894. India had no general tariff, import duties being levied only on those articles which are now taxed at the higher rates. The financial difficulties caused by the steady decline in the value of the rupee, led to the reimposition of a general tariff in the latter of those years. That this has not materially interfered with the growth of foreign trade is sufficiently shown by the fact that the value of imports into India increased four times as rapidly in the decade following 1894 as in that preceding it. 286. Till about forty years ago export duties were numerous, but they have been gradually abolished, and now the only article of importance taxed on leaving the shores of India is rice, the e.xport of which is checked by a duty of 3 As. a maund. 287. The other taxes contributing to the revenue are of smaller moment. Stamps and Registration are chiefly Court fees and duties on legal documents, and may therefore properly be regarded as payments for services rendered by the State. The chief item under Assessed taxes is the Income Tax which is levied on non-agricultural incomes of not loss than Rs. 1,000 a year. Stamps and Registration yield over 4 millions a year, and Assessed taxes about 1^ millions. 288. The Land Revenue. The land is by far the most im- portant source of levinue in India. The Land Tax, as it is LAND TENURE 153 commonly called, is not a tax at all in any proper sense of that word, but (as J. S. Mill and others pointed out long ago) is in reality a vent paid for the possession and use of the land. The State in India takes the place of the Landlord in Europe. From time immemorial the land has been regarded as belonging to the Ruler for the time being. All subordinate rights in it have been derived from him and have been held in virtue of an annual payment of a definite proportion of the produce. The British inherited this system from their predecessors, but they take a far smaller share of the produce. According to all competent authorities the land revenue of Aurangzebe was about twice the amount of the land revenue of the Indian Government to-day, although the cultivated area has greatly increased. The revenue, moreover, is collected to-dav with a moderation unknown in earlier times. As the share of the Government is theoretically a share of the tirodnce, the tax is partially or wholly remitted whenever any untoward circumstances, such as drought or flood, damage or destroy the crops. 289. Two systems of land assessment are in force in India, known respectively as the Zamindari and the Ryotwari systems. In the former the revenue is assessed on an individual (or some- times a community) holding an extensive area which is broken up into small allotments and let out on a rental to the actual cultivators. The Zamindars are in most respects similar to the landlords of the west, and they pay the assessed land tax from the rents which they receive. The tenants are of two orders, occupancy tenants, who have an inalienable right to the land so long as they pay their rents, and tenants at will, who may be evicted at any time. Under the Ryotwari system, on the other hand, the Ryot, or small cultivator, holds his land direct from Government. The tax is assessed upon him, and so long as he pays it he holds his land by a fixed and settled tenure. He can sell or mortgage it without the consent of the Govern- ment, and at his death it passes to his heirs. He is thus to all intents and purposes a tenant ppoprietop. The Zamlndari system was at first favoured by the British Government, and a deliberate effort was made in some of the northern Provinces to create a class of " landed gentry " in India. Zamindapi tenures prevail in Bengal, the Central Provinces, the Northern Circars, the United Provinces, and the Punjab ; while the Ryotwari system is the rule in the greater part of Madras, Bombay, Assam and Burma. 154 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 290. The share of the produce payable to the Government is not determined annually, nor is it, except in Bengal, settled in perpetuity. The former was the system of the Native Govern- ments that preceded the British, and was for some time followed by the ofliccrs of the East India Company. It was found to be beset by so many difficulties, however, that in 1793 the assess- ment was declared to be fixed for all time in all the provinces then held by the British, viz., Bengal, and parts of Assam, Madras, and the United Provinces. This is known'as^the Perma- nent Settlement. In most of the territories acquired since 1 793 the assessment is settled once in thirty years. At each settlement everything affecting the value of the land is taken into account, and the amount payable annually for the next thirty years is fixed. The Famine Commission of 1881 found that the incidence of the land revenue varied in different districts from 4 to 8 per cent, of the gross produce of the land, a proportion which is less than one-third of that taken by the Mughal Emperors, and very much less than that paid in the West as rent. 291. Most of the other branches of revenue have been dealt with in another connection and need only be mentioned here. The revenue from opium comes in part from the profits made on the opium grown for the Government, and in part from the tax levied on Mahva opium on its transit through British territory. The large revenues accruing from Railways, Irrigation, and other paying public works, the Post and Telegraph services and the Forests, are more than sufficient to pay the cost of these depart- ments. Not one of them is any burden to the State. They contribute enormously to the well-being of the people, and at the same time earn a net revenue which helps to keep taxation down. (4) Public Expenditure 292. The total expenditure of the Government of India for 1906-7 was a little over 71 i millions sterling. If wc subtract from this total the expentliture on railways, irrigation works, and other " paying " departments, the remainder is about 49 millions. This in round figures is the present cost of the government and defence of the Empire. Of this sum 7 millions are absorbed by the cost of collecting the revenue, z millions by interest on EXPENDITURE T55 debt, and i million by famine insurance. The civil adminis- tration of the country costs 17 J millions, and its military defence 2i-|- millions. 293. The entire public debt of India is about 254 millions sterling, and the interest paid annually on this sum is over 8|- millions. The greater part of this debt, however, has been incurred on account of railways, irrigation, and other paying public works, the revenue from which not only pays the interest on capital but leaves a considerable margin of profit to the Government. 294. The annual charge on account of famine insurance is an attempt to spread over a series of years the heavy burdens that fall upon the Government in seasons of drought and scarcity. India has always been subject to famine, and certain parts of the country must remain so till they are so opened up by railways that in years when their local crops fail they can readily obtain a supply of grain from distant Provinces. In former times famines in India were more frequent and widespread, and immensely more destructive of life than they are to-day. The Native Governments made no attempt to cope with them, and, indeed, it would have been impossible for them to do anything effective owing to the almost complete absence of means of communication. Irrigation has of late years considerably reduced the area liable to famine, and the construction of roads and railways has made relief possible. The Indian Government have now a well- defined code of relief operations, and no sufferer is allowed to die who can possibly be kept alive. This entails from time to time a very heavy expenditure. The famine of 1897 cost the Government nearly 5 millions sterling, and that of igoo over 6 millions. Shortly after the famine of 1877-8 it was resolved so to adjust income and expendi- ture as to secure an annual sum of a million sterling as a famine insurance fund. This sum is used to prevent or reduce debt, or is spent on preventive public works. 295. The expenditure under the head of Civil Adminis- tration covers the whole cost of the various departments of 156 GI•;oGI^\l'll^■ oi- india Indian civil government, both in India and in England. The largest items are the administration of justice and police, which together absorb more than 6 millions. Educa- tion and general administration cost i^ millions each, and the medical, political, marine, and other minor depart- ments about 3 millions. Pensions (chiefly paid in India) take over 3 millions. 296. The Army is the heaviest charge upon the revenues of the country. The total cost includes the whole expendi- ture both in India and in England for the maintenance of the army in an efficient condition, including transport, defence works, and pensions. Though a part of a greater Empire, India is now practically one of the Great Powers of the world, and like all the rest she feels the burden of growing armaments. But with the vast territories of India to defend, no Government could greatly reduce the amount now spent on defence. The cost of her army is the price India paj's for the unspeakable blessings of peace and security, and considering her great extent and immense population it is, in comparison with tlie military expenditure of other countries, not an excessive price. 297. The size of the army in India is not, as armies now go, by any means a large one. But for the facts that the natural defences by land are unusually strong, and that Great Britain has command of the seas, it would have to be very much larger in order efifcctually to secure the country in peace. At present it consists, all told, of about 300,000 men. Of these 75,000 British, and 150,000 Native troops constitute the regular standing army. The remainder is composed of Reserves, Volunteers, and Imperial Service troops, the last being a force of 17,500 men maintained by the Native Princes for purposes of Imperial defence. Till recently the Indian army was divided into three commands, the Madras and Bombay Commanders-in-Chief having a large amount of inde- pendent control. These chief commands have now been abolished, and the Madras and Bombay armies made subordinate commands uutlcr the Commander-in-Chief of India. THE CURRENCY I57 (5) The Currency 298. Till 1835 the coins in common use in India were very various. Not only had many of the Native States a special currency of their own (as, indeed, some of them have still), but the rupees coined by the British Govern- ment in the different Provinces of India were not identical in value. In that year a standard rupee was introduced for the whole of British India. It was originally equivalent in value to the tenth part of an English sovereign, a value which it retained with but little variation for nearly forty years. Till 1898 this rupee was the only legal tender in British India {i.e., it was the only coin which could be tendered in any quantity in payment of a debt, and which no one could refuse to accept) and being current through- out India it largely took the place of the local coinage in many of the Native States. 299. But about 1873, owing to changes in Europe, silver, and with it the rupee, began to decline in value in comparison with gold. This went on for over 20 years till in 1894 the rupee was worth only the eighteenth part of a sovereign instead of the tenth. This decline was prejudicial to India in many ways, but chiefly because it handicapped foreign trade and at the same time was a source of heavy loss to the Government. How it produced the former of these effects is not difficult to understand. No Indian merchant ordering a cargo of goods from Europe, or shipping a cargo to Europe, at prices fixed in gold, could tell with any certainty how many rupees he might have to pay or to receive, for the gold-value of the rupee might change considerably between the acceptance of the order and the settlement of the account. If, on the other hand, the price was fixed in rupees, a similar uncertainty would beset the merchant in Europe with whom he was dealing. Thus trade was made more or less speculative and uncertain. 300. The loss to the Government of India was simpler and more direct. India has been greatly benefited by the foreign capital that has been invested in her railways and 158 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA other productive public works. But the interest on this capital has to be paid in gold. Part of the cost of the army in India, and of the civil service, has also to be paid in gold in England. As the rupee fell in value a pro- portionately larger number of rupees was required to meet these liabilities, and as the revenues of India were collected in rupees this steady increase in expenditure was met by no corresponding increase in revenue, and soon became a most serious drain upon the exchequer. The " loss by exchange " in 1894-5 amounted to the enormous total of 58 millions of rupees. 301. In 1893 and 1898 Acts were passed to remedy this evil. In the former of these years the Indian mints were closed to the public for the coinage of silver. So long as the Government undertook to coin into rupees as much silver as the public chose to send to the mint, it is plain that the exchange value of the rupee could never very greatly exceed the intrinsic value of the silver that it contained. To close the mints to tlie public was thus the first step in the reform. Five years later the English sovereign was made legal tender in India at the rate of fifteen rupees to the sovereign. The effect of this change was to give India a gold standard of value instead of a silver one, and thus to bring her into line with all the great countries of Europe. The rupee still remains legal tender to any amount, but it is now a token coin, its value depending not upon the intrinsic worth of the silver it contains but upon its relation to the sovereign, of which it now represents the fifteenth part. The results of this change have been in every way beneficial. The Govern- ment have been relieved ot a heavy annual loss, and trade of every kind has been stimulated by the removal of a serious source of insecurity. PART II INDIA ACCORDING TO PROVINCES AND STATES GENERAL SURVEY # 302. The Provinces of British India are classified below according to their Government II. Area in Population Provinces. sq. miles. (1901). Under Governors appointed by the Crown. Madras 141,726 38,209,436 Bombay 123,064 18,559,561 Under Lieutenant-Governors appointed by the Viceroy with the approval of the Crown. Bengal 115. 819 50,722,067 Eastern Bengal and Assam 106,130 30,961,459 United Provinces of Agra AND Oudh . . 107,164 47,691,782 Punjab 97,209 20,330.339 Burma 236.73S 10,490,624 Carried forward . . 927,850 216,965,268 l6o GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA Brought forward .. 927,850 216,965,268 III. Under Chief Commissioners appointed by the Viceroy Central Provinces and Berar 100.345 II ,991,670 North-Western Frontier Province , . 16,466 2 .125,480 British Baluchistan 45,804 308,246 AjmerMerwara 2,711 476,912 Coorg 1,582 180,607 Andaman and Nicobar Is- lands 3,M3 ,097,901 24,649 Totals I 232 ■072.832 Each of these Provinces will be dealt with in its turn, but not in the order in which they are named above. 303. In addition to the British Provinces there are in India a large number of Native States. These all octupy towards the Government of India the position of subject states under a suzerain power. The precise relations sub- sisting between their rulers and the paramount power are prescribed b^'^ numerous treaties, and vary in many particu- lars. The following conditions are common to all : — (i) The Suzerain Power guarantees the security of each State, undertaking to protect it against attack from without and rebellion within. (2) No Native Ruler, therefore, needs an army for his o^vn defence. He is permitted to maintain troops for police purposes or for personal display, but not for defence or attack. Any other troops maintained must be for co-operation with the Suzerain Power as " Imperial Service Troops." (3) No Native State is allowed to enter into any direct re- lations with other States or with foreign powers, the Suzerain Power retaining all diplomatic ncgociations in its own hands. (4) As a consequence of this no Native Ruler can exercise any protective power over his subjects when they are outside his own dominions. They become then, to all intents and purposes, British subjects, and are accordeil all tlie protection which they would have had had tliey been born in a British Province. In GENERAL SURVEY l6l virtue of this also the subjects of any Native State are as eUgible for appointment to offices under the British Government as British-born subjects. They are thus recognised subjects of the King-Emperor. (5) The Suzerain Power recognises its obUgations to secure for all its subjects freedom from wanton oppression, and to protect them from misrule. It reserves to itself, therefore, the right of unlimited interference with the internal affairs of subject States if such interference is necessary to secure this end. It may, if it sees fit, take a State under its own control or depose a Native Ruler. (6) The Suzerain Power further reserves to itself final control of the post offices, railways, and telegraphs of every State, these services being regarded as matters of iinpeyial rather than local importance. 304. As far as is consistent with the above limitations, each State enjoys a certain measure of internal indepen- dence. This varies greatly. In some, e.g., Nepal, there is almost entire freedom from further control and supervision, while in some of the petty States the Chief is little more than a nominal ruler. All the States are administered according to their own laws. British Indian law is not in force unless some branch of it has been deliberatelj'' adopted as the law of the State. The Indian Penal Code has been thus adopted in several States. British legal procedure is also being copied in many of the more ad- vanced States, and many of them have introduced the educational and financial systems prevalent in British India. 305. The Imperial authority is exercised over the sub- ject States through ofi&cers of various grades. Many of the larger States have British Residents at the courts of their Rulers. In other cases officers are appointed to represent the Supreme Government, and exercise super- vision over several contiguous States, as in the cases of Rajputana and Central India. Other States are placed under the control of the neighbouring British Provincial Government, which may appoint a Resident or add the State to the administrative charge of a Commissioner or Collector. But in all cases there is some officer of the l62 GKOGRAPHV OF INDIA Britisli Government who lias special charge of the State, and is commonly invested with considerable authority as well as large advisory powers. 306. The following table gives the area and population of the Native States. The seven single States first named are in direct political relation with the Government of India, the first five having British Residents, and Bhutan and Sikkim being under one Political Officer. Each of the three groups that follow is under the charge of an officer appointed by the Viceroy and styled " Agent to the Governor-General." The rest of the Native States are under the supervision of the various Provincial Govern- ments, and are grouped accordingly. Number Area in States or Groups. of states . s 22,8lS 309,014 Central India Agency I4S 77.395 8,510,317 Raj PUT ana Agency.. 20 128,918 9.841.765 Baluchistan Agency 2 78.034 428,640 Madras States 5 9-969 4,188,086 Bombay States 354 65,761 6.908,648 Bengal States 27 33.^13 3.907.828 Eastern Bengal and Assam States 27 16,442 568,309 United Provinces States.. 2 5.079 802,097 Punjab States 34 36,532 4424398 Burma States 3 4.S30 45.795 Central Provinces States ^5 646 28,070 1,604 758 Totals 762,102 67,078,466 BENGAL History 307. Uncil Clive broke the power of the Nawab of Bengal at Plassey (1757) the British territories in that part of India were confined to about 40 villages round Hooghly and Fort William which had been purchased from the native Ruler and were held by the East India Company subject to the payment of an annual revenue. The Battle of Plassey is properly regarded as the foundation of the British Empire in India, for from that date Bengal was entirely at the mercy of the Company's officers, who set up first one puppet Nawab and then another, but did not assume tlie responsibilities of government. The rich districts of Midnapore and Burdwan and the coast tract of Chittagong alone were taken. These were formally ceded by the nominal Nawab, and formed the nucleus of a Province destined to increase with amazing rapidity. 308. The Battle of Buxar in 1764 (in which Major Munro defeated the Nawab Wazir of Oudh, to whose camp the Nawab of Bengal had fled) placed the whole of Oudh and Allahabad at the disposal of the British. Clive re- turned to India the following year, and, as he was averse to the increase of the Company's territory, he reinstated the Nawab Wazir under British protection and restored Allahabad to the Emperor, receiving in exchange a formal grant of the Diwani of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. The Diwani, or fiscal government, included the civil but not the criminal administration. The latter was, however, soon assumed, and from the passing of the Regulating Act in 1773 the British exercised complete rights of sovereignty over the entire Province. 164 GF.OGRAPTIV OF INDIA B,< ee «s 00 ■^ 2S. • !»''\ ..'!•... . , ..W, . ^«^"'"'...„ . _V V^^>.>V-- *•"■■ y 15 /^'-••^^t^^r -^^f i'^B H U T A N *' UNITED T^RO VI NC ES , , r H i m a Ij a V a GorakhpJ^^S^i, r^.^ 1 r/;>«^pur\ / - \ M / . \ /^ ^^^^^ kXW4--^^^\ ^ £^ ■••... \ * *^»^ V7ji ■■ \ "-v . jvtK di k ^ C H T aV CENTRAL iff' „ <.'."<;',;.,„- t,:. Rancni V ,.*<^^'"r^ ■K -i w^ rV w' ■*' n:;^ ^ ° f u^-^^ ^^^^i^S.'l'^^S^T-'^ .i^ A ! P ROVINCES 'y "'"'""' ^^^J^*"^- ^^0 \•a4\^\ .-^^ tt^jj**"^ \ ■••^^J^^^W^W fV ^' r. ^<4,/ !^^^^^ V, •••• ^^^\\^>S^&M f ^ .-.: 5 Majiarurtbf^''^ p\,^...:::i^ (^ toB^^*-^"^' ..'■'if ( iseurbaIpu^'\D;«':y "VJ^ BaJaso..e^Z_^^^^^^y - p( vffix K Hooihiv Ho. Howrah A:^ y~^ ^-"""X—^^ D. Diamond Harbcur .-',,!^^^^;rS^ v>V. Xfodt J-oiK* PC. Port CanninJ G. Goalendi -^if^ :',ii'f' »■ \ • .' i^\\ B. Benares - K i .1 \- •^^?^ '?Z\ M.aMn£ha' Sarai R Ranaghat \^\^ •', M A R A S '^pM^ 'V w 6« 86 E L^'i as M w^m Xnglii\ Wtli Norroif Saujt h'ig. .|i. I'lie Prrvince of Bengal. BENGAL 165 309. In 1775 the Districts of Benares and Ghazipur, which had been under British control for ten years, were formally ceded by the Nawab Wazir. A quarter of a century later, Oudh being threatened by the JNIarathas, the Nawab Wazir entered into a subsidiary treaty with Lord Wellesley, ceding, in return for British protection, the whole of his frontier districts in the south and west. Two years later (1803) war broke out between the British and the Marathas, and led to a further addition of territory to Bengal. By the treaty of the Beas which ended the war in 1805 Sindhia ceded all his northern provinces on both sides of the Jumna from Allahabad to Delhi. At the same time, the Raja of Nagpur ceded the province of Cuttack, which the Marathas had wrested from the Mughal s in 1 75 1. In 1 818 the Gurkha War led to the annexation of the Himalayan districts of Garhwal and Kumaun. The Province had now reached its extreme north-western limit, and stretched in unbroken continuity from the Bay of Bengal to the sources of the Ganges and Jumna. 310. On the north-eastern side the lower portion of the Brahmaputra valley was a part of Bengal at the time of the transfer of the Diwani. After the First Burmese War in 1826, Assam, including the whole of the vipper portion of the valley, was taken by the British. It was at first annexed to Bengal as a Native State under a tributary Raja ; but in 1838 the Raja was deposed for bad govern- ment and the territory formally incorporated with the British Province. On the north the hill station of Dar- jeeling was ceded in 1835 by the Raja of Sikkim, and fifteen j-ears later the surrounding country which formed the southern portion of his State. Other hill tracts, east, north and west, were also gradually brought under British rule. 311. By 1836 the Province of Bengal had grown unwieldy in size. The outlying districts in the north- west were nearly 1,000 miles from Calcutta, and in those days could be reached only by a laborious journey of three weeks. In that year, therefore, the Province was divided, all the districts west of Bihar being formed into a separate \UG GKOflkAPHY OF INDIA Government under the title of the North-West Provinces. The remaining districts — the Provinces of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. and, after 1838, Assam — were thenceforth known as the Lower Provinces of Bengal. The Province thus reduced rcMU lined under the direct rule of the Governor- General till 1853, when it was constituted a Lieutenant- Governorship. 312. In 1874 Assam was separated from the Lower Provinces and made a separate Government under a Chief Commissioner. In 1905 the Province of Bengal proper was divided, all the eastern districts being united with Assam to form a new province under the title of Eastern Bengal and Assam. At the same time five Hindi speaking States were transferred from Chota Nagpur to the Central Provinces, and the same number of Oriya speaking States from the Central Provinces to Orissa. General Physical Features 313. The Province of Bengal as at present constituted includes the old Provinces of Bihar, Chota Nagpur, and Orissa, together with the Western half of Bengal proper. Bihar is the northern part of the Province, and is almost bisected by the Ganges as it flows eastwards from its con- fluence with the Gogra to the point where it bends to the south after passing the Rajmahal Hills. Though lying immediately south of the Himalayas Bihar only touches the lowest slopes of the mountains at its north-western corner where the bend of the Gandak forms its boundars'. Eastwards the boundary recedes still further from the mountains, but at the north-east corner a tongue of terri- tory about 100 miles long, including the District of Dar- jeeling and the small State of Sikkim, stretches due north into the main chain and separates Nepal from Bhutan. 314. South of Bihar lies Cliota Nagpur, and further south, Orissa. The greater part of Chota Nagpur consists of low, broken, hilly country, forming the eastern spurs of the chain of highlands which stretches right across India and separates the great plain from the Deccan. BENGAL 167 For the most part these hills vary from 2000 to 3000 feet in height, but Mt. Parasnath attains an elevation of 4500 feet. Orissa includes the fertile delta and valley of the Mahanadi. Inland from the delta the elevation increases very slowly, but immediately to the north and also to the south-west, are low hills. The former reach a height of over 3,000 ft., and may be regarded as the northern spurs of the Eastern Ghats through which the Mahanadi cuts its way. Western Bengal includes the greater part of the Delta of the Ganges, and is almost perfectly fiat except at its north-west corner. 315. The Province has a coast-line of about 400 miles, or reckoning the many indentations of the Ganges delta of over 600 miles. It extends from the south of Lake Chilka (the southernmost point of Orissa) to the mouth'of the river Madhumati, which divides Bengal from the new Province of Eastern Bengal and Assam. On the land side the Pro- vince adjoins Madras on the south, the Central Provinces and the United Provinces on the west, Nepal on the north, and Eastern Bengal and Assam on the east. 316. Climate and Rainfall. The Tropic of Cancer passes through the delta a few miles south of Goalanda, where the Ganges and Brahmaputra unite. The greater part of the province thus lies just outside the tropics, in those latitudes which have the greatest suinmer heat. It is, however, abundantly watered both by copious rains which fall chiefly in the summer months and by the un- failing snow-fed rivers which traverse it. This greatly moderates the heat in summer and the cold in winter, and reduces the annual, as well as the daily, range of tem- perature. While similar latitudes in Western India suffer from extremes of heat and cold Bengal enjoys a com- paratively equable climate. A moist heat prevails for the greater part of the year. April and May are the driest and hottest months, while from November the air is cool and pleasant. The province is peculiarly subject to exceedingly severe cyclones, the effects of which are occa- sionally disastrous. Sometimes they lead to an abnormally heavy fall of rain, giving rise to widespread and most 1 68 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA BENGAL 86 Fig. J^2. Bengal in relief. BENGAL 169 destructive floods. Or if the cyclone travels inland from the bay a storm wave from 20 to 60 feet in height may sweep over hundreds of square miles of the coastal districts, carrying all before it and resulting in terrible destruction both of life and property. 317. The total rainfall is greatest along the coast, in the north and east of the province, and the inland districts of Orissa, where the average yearly fall is over 60 inches. It is least in Chota Nagpur, the west of Bengal proper, and the south of Bihar ; but even in these districts it averages more than 40 inches a year. In spite of this abundant average, however, the western portion of the province, which is not watered by snow-fed rivers, is more or less subject to drought and famine. The hilly districts of Orissa, Chota Nagpur, and S.W. Bihar have occasionally suffered severely. Their soil is shallow and porous, and the rain they receive drains away with great rapidity. But the greater part of the province is secure from such disasters, and needs no assistance from artificial irrigation. 318. Rivers. The Ganges flows eastwards through Bihar. Near Malda it bends to the south-east, and from that point to near Pabna forms the boundary line between Eastern and Western Bengal. It then gives off, on its right, one of its main distributaries, the Madhumati, which con- tinues the boundary line between the provinces all the way to the sea. The main stream continues its course through Eastern Bengal till it unites with the Brahmaputra near Goalanda. While passing through Bihar the Ganges receives the waters of the Gandak and the Kusi which come down from the north. Both these rivers are snow-fed, and break through the main chain of the Himalayas. When the snows are melting the Gandak is equal in volume to the Ganges itself. From the south-west the Son brings the drainage of the Central Indian highlands. Shortly after turning to the south-east the Ganges reaches its delta and begins to give off distributaries. The two most westerly of these, the Bhagirathi and the Jalangi, unite near Nadia to form the Hooghly, on which the Metropolis of the Empire stands. The Mahanadi is the great river of Orissa, and 170 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA includes in its basin the eastern half of the Central Pro- vinces. Owing to the exceedingly heavy rains that often fall there the river, when in flood, rivals the Ganges. All the other rivers arc comparatively small. The Damodar, the Kasai, and the Subanrekha, all drain Chota .\'a!:;]nir, and flow in a south-easterly direction. The two first join the Hooghly between Calcutta and the sea, and the last reaches the sea half-way between the two deltas. The Baitarani and the Brahmani drain northern Orissa and Chota Nagpur, and join the Mahanadi at the delta. 319. Irrigation. The only irrigation works of any magnitude arc (i) the Son Canals, which water nearly 1,000 sq. miles in South Bihar; (2) the Orissa Canals, which carry the waters of the Mahanadi to a large part of its delta ; and (3) the Midnapore Canal, which runs westwards from the Hooghly. It was estimated that in the Bihar famine of 1896-7, the Son Canals added more than 1} million tons of grain to the food of the people. People 320. Recent investigations show that the people of Bengal are mainly Dravidian in race. From the east, however, there is a strong infusion of Mongol blood, and from the north-west an equally strong infusion of Aryan. In the inland districts of Orissa and in most of Chota Nagpur, the majority of the people arc almost pure Dra- vidians. Along the coast and in the Ganges tlelta they are IMongolo-Dravidians, the Mongolian characteristics in- creasing towards the east. In Bihar they are chiefly Aryo-Dravidians, the Aryan strain becoming more pro- nounced towards the west. The Brahman section of the population is, however, all through the province, more Aryan in character than Dravidian or Mongolian. 321. Dwelling for centuries in the great Delta and the rich valley of the Ganges, where nature is generous and the climate soft and relaxing, the Bengalis and Biharis have not attained great physicad vigour or strength of BENGAL 171 character. Such quaUties are seldom developed save where man has to maintain a constant struggle with nature. But they are acute and intelligent, proud and ambitious, and not slow to adapt themselves to new cir- cumstances. In some respects the Bengalis are the most progressive race in India, but taking the province as a whole education is not so widespread as in Burma, Madras, or Bombay, nor so advanced as in the two last-named Provinces. In religion about five-sixths of the people are Hindus, the rest chiefly Muhammadans. 322. The total population of the Province, including the Native States, is nearly 51 millions, of whom less than 4 millions are dwellers in towns. Although it contains the metropolis of India and has great industrial and mining centres, Bengal is essentially a province of villages, and agriculture is the occupation of over 90 per cent, of its people. In no other Province of the Empire, save Eastern Bengal and Assam, is so small a proportion of the people found in the towns. Excluding the Native States the density of population is nearly 440 to the sq. mile. But Bengal and Bihar are much more thickly peopled than Chota Nagpur or Orissa, having in each case about 650 to the square mile. Products and Industries 323. More than half the whole area of Bengal is com- posed of the rich alluvium brought down by the rivers. This is the case with almost the whole of Bihar and Bengal proper, as well as with a large part of Orissa. And the rivers which have made the soil annually enrich it, for the silt which they bring down when in flood and deposit over enormous areas is the best of all possible natural manures. The abundant rainfall and warm, damp atmosphere are also favourable to vegetation. All causes thus combine to make the Province one of unusual natural wealth. The crops are heavy, and in many parts the land is cropped twice a year. The food-producing power of the country 172 GliOGRAI'IIY OF INDIA is, therefore, enormous, and enables it to support its dense population. 324. The chief food grain is rice. The rich lands of the Delta produce more rice than all the rest of India and Burma put together. Wheat, barley, maize, pulses, and millets arc also extensively grown in the drier parts of Bihar, Chota Nagpur, and Orissa. Oil seeds are more largely cultiv'atcd than in any other province, especially rape, mustard, and linseed which occupy as much land as maize and barley put together. Sugar cane, opium, tobacco, and indigo are important crops, though the cultivation of the last is rapidly declining. Opium is almost confined to the western districts of Bihar. The poppy is grown under Government license and inspection and the opium produced is handctl over to the Government and sold by auction in Calcutta. But next to rice, jute is the most valuable vegetable product. Of this most useful fibre Bengal has almost the world's monopoly. Cotton is grown to a small extent in Bihar and tea is extensively cultivated in the Darjeeling district, and to a less extent on the hills of Chota Nagpur. 325. Mineral products. Coal of fair quality is found, and is successfully worked at Raniganj, Giridhi, and a few other places. The Damodar valley coalfield is by far the richest in India. At Raniganj also iron ore is found, and considerable quantities of the metal are produced. Bihar yields saltpetre, and mica is obtained at Hazaribagh. 326. Industries. In addition to the handicrafts common throughout lutlia (pottery, weaving, etc.), Bengal has important steam industries. Since coal has been worked in the province the use of steam power has been stimulated, and Calcutta is rapidly becoming a great manufacturing centre. The jute mills are the most important. Jute fibre is woven into jute cloth and gunny bags, which are used for packing, and arc exported in large quantities. Cottons, silks, ropes, paper, sugar, and soap, are also manufactured, and there are large engineering works where machinerj' of all sorts is made. BENGAL 173 327. The chief exports of the province are rice, jute, opium, tea, oil seeds, saltpetre, and silk. The chief imports are cotton and woollen goods, machinery and hardware, liquors, glass, and oils. Communications 328. Almost all the large towns of Bengal are now connected by rail. The main line of the East Indian Rail- way runs in a northerly direction from Calcutta till it reaches the Ganges east of the Rajmahal Hills, from which point it follows the course of the river, uniting many impor- tant riverside towns. From Khana Junction 100 miles from Calcutta a loop line branches off in a N.W. direction and passing west of the Rajmahal Hills rejoins the main line at Lakhisarai. From there another loop strikes S.W. to Gay a, and joins the main line again at Mughal Sarai oppo- site Benares. The Eastern Bengal Railway run:s N.E. to the Brahmaputra ; and anotlier branch of the system runs almost due north to the foot of the Himalayas, where it joins a 24 in. gauge mountain railway to Darjeeling. The Bengal and North Western Railway runs east and west on the northern side of the Ganges serving the northern part of the province, and uniting it with Oudh. The Bengal- Nagpur Railway joins Bengal and the Central Provinces. Both this line and the E. I. Railway have connections running right through to Bombay. The East Coast Railway gives direct communication between Calcutta and Madras. All these Railways have numerous branch lines. 329. All lines south and west of the Ganges (except two very small branches) are broad gauge lines, while those to the north and east are of the metre gauge. Numerous ferries across the river unite the northern and southern system?. 330. The waterways of Bengal are scarcely less impor- tant to commerce than the railways. On the great rivers there is an immense trafl&c at all seasons, and the amount of produce annually brought down to the coast by boat is 174 GF.OGRAPHV OF INDIA very great. Over 100,000 cargo boats are continually plying on the Ganges. As a means of transit the river is slower than tiie railway but much cheaper, and, as speed is seldom a matter of first importance in India, the boats get their full share of the increasing traffic of the country. In a great part of the delta the innumerable channels of the river almost take the place of roads and form the principal means of communication, every cultivator who can afford it possessing his own boat. Administrative Divisions 331. Bengal contains six Divisions, each of which forms a Commissioncrship. These are further divided into 34 Districts. Divisions and Districts. Presidency Division — 1. Twenty-four Parganas 2. Calcutta 3. Nadia 4. Murshidabad 5. Jessore 6. Khidna Burdwan Division — Burdwan /• 8. Birbhum 9- Baidxura. 10. IMidnajiore . . II. Hooghly 12. How rah lagalpup Division — 13- liliagulpur . . 14. Mcnghyr 15- Purnea 16. Darjceling . . 17. Santal Parganas .4rea in Population sq. miles. (1901). 4,840 . • 2,078,359 32 . 847,796 2,793 . . 1,667,491 2,143 • . 1,333,184 2,925 • • 1,813,155 4,765 • • 1,253.043 2,68.) . • 1,532,475 1,752 . 902,280 2,621 . 1,116,411 5, 1 86 . . 2,789,114 1,191 1,049,282 510 . 850,514 4,226 . . 2,088,553 .^922 . . 2,068,804 4,994 • • 1, 874,794 1,164 240,117 5-47" • • 1,809,737 BENGAL 175 "^Z 2^ '>y. z\ 23 24 /I3 ."i'*^ 15 / ^/ 20 17 27 25 26 28 ■\Zt:- BENGAL BumiHaries of Stjiies — Botxii/iarie.s of Divisixws- ]ioiij373 . 1,969,696 2,674 • • 2,409,509 3,531 . ■ 1,790,463 3,035 • • 2,754,790 3,34s • . 2,gi2,6ii 176 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA Chota Nagpur Division — 23. riazaribiigli .. 7,021 • 1,177,961 26. Ranchi .. 7,128 . 1,187,925 27. Palamau •• 4,914 619,600 28. Manbhum . . .. 4,147 . 1,301,364 29. Singhblifini . . .. 3.891 613,579 Opissa Division — 30. Cuttack • • 3,654 2,062,758 31. Balasore . . 2,085 1,071,197 32. Angul .. 1,681 191,911 33. Purl. . .. 2,479 1,017,284 34. Sambalpur . . .. 3,851 659,971 Chief Towns 332. Calcutta is not only the chief town of the Pro- vince of Bengal, but, as the headquarters of the Supreme Government, the Capital of the Indian Empire. It was founded in 1686, when the E. I. Co.'s servants at Hooghly were threatened by the JNIughal authorities, and for their greater security moved 26 miles down the river and settled at a small village called Sutanuti, situated on its eastern bank, and about 85 miles from the sea. There they found good anchorage for their ships, and in 1 700 they purchased Sutanuti with the neighbouring villages of Calcutta and Gobindpur from Prince Azira the son of Aurungzebe. The " factory " thus founded developed rapidly till in the middle of the century it was the most prosperous, and was considered the safest, centre of the Company's trade. A fort — the first Fort William — had been built, and a moat encircling the factory on the landward side was nearly completed. But in ij^(^ the town was sacked by Siraj- ud-daula, and of 146 prisoners taken 123 perished in the " Black Hole." Swift retribution followed. An expedi- tion from Madras under Admiral Watson and Clive speedily re-took the town, and almost exactly a year after its sack Clive broke for ever the Mughal power in Bengal at the Battle of Plassey, and laid the foundation of the British Province. BENGAL 177 333. With the coinpensation exacted from the Mughals the merchants began to rebuild the town. Modern Cal- cutta thus dates from 1757. A new Fort William was begun, which was completed at a cost of over ;/^2,ooo,ooo ; warehouses and offices for the Company's servants soon sprang up on a scale unknown before ; trade revived ; and an era of growth and prosperity began which has con- tinued unchecked to the present day. The original site was at first little better than a swamp, and for a hundred years after its acquisition the prevailing malaria was deadly. But vast public works, carried out at enormous cost, have changed all this. The city is now excellently drained, and has an abundant supply of pure filtered water, while large open spaces have been secured from the invasion of the builder and laid out and beautified for the recreation of the people. The growth of the city in a century and a half has been phenomenal Calcutta with its numerous suburbs has now a population of over i| millions, and is in this respect the second city in the British Empire, being exceeded only by London. 334. The causes of this rapid development are not difficult to discover. As a seaport Calcutta has had diffi- culties to contend with of a very serious order, but it has at the same time enjoyed compensating advantages which have far outweighed them. Like all deltaic rivers the Hooghly is continually in danger of silting up, and the ever- shifting mud banks are a perpetual menace to shipping, and make the navigation of the river exceedingly danger- ous. Many vessels have been lost on the James and Mary sands, a submerged bank of quicksands near the bend of the river where it receives the waters of the Rupnarayan. At one time it seemed likely that the silting-up of the river would block the approach altogether for vessels of large size, and to prepare for such an eventuality a new port was founded nearer the sea, and on another arm of the river. In this respect Calcutta contrasts very strongly with Bombay, the latter city having a safe and roomy anchorage between the island and the mainland. But the advantage of position enjoyed by Calcutta enabled it to surmount N 178 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA this difficulty. The great waterways of the Ganges and its tributaries put Calcutta into direct connection with two-thirds of north India, and make it the natural outlet for the produce of the richest and most fertile provinces of the Empire. Bombay has no such rivor-ways, being cut CALCUTTA .x- — RapurO ISS, Fig. 44. The Hooghly, showing the approach to Calcutta. ofi from the Deccan and Central India by the Western Ghats, and was therefore in the pre-railway days very far behind Calcutta in wealth and greatness. The opening of railways and the cutting of the Suez Canal have greatly changed this however. Bombay is now connected by BENGAL 179 rail with every part of India, and, with the exception of Karachi, is the nearest Indian port to Europe. Much trade that was previously carried on through Calcutta now goes via Bombay, and consequently the western city has, during the last forty years, grown more rapidly than its eastern sister. But though Bombay is now the first manufacturing city in India, Calcutta still remains the premier port. 335. Calcutta used to be called the " City of Palaces,." but its public buildings are now surpassed by those of Bombay. As it is the seat of the Provincial as well as the Supreme Government, it has two distinct sets of public offices. The Viceregal Palace, built by Lord Wellesley, is almost in the heart of the city, and is separated from the Fort by the broad Maidan. Calcutta is the seat of a university, and has numerous colleges for general educa- tion, as well as for education in arts, law, medicine, and engineering. The two last are large and exceedingly well equipped. The city has an extensive and excellent museum, and zoological and botanic gardens. 336. The principal docks are at Kidderpore, but there is good anchorage for vessels of average size extending for over 10 miles. The bed of the river from Calcutta almost to the sea is under continual inspection, and the condition of the banks is reported almost hourly both to Calcutta and to Diamond Harbour at the mouth of the river. The channel is kept clear by numerous giant steam-dredgers, and no vessel is allowed to pass either up or down except in charge of a certificated pilot. 337. The European quarter of Calcutta is chiefly in the southern portion of the city and the extensive suburbs. At Alipore, 4 miles south of Fort William, is the residence of the Lieut. -Governor of Bengal. Dum-Dum and Barrack- pore to the north are both military stations. The former contains an arms factory, and at the latter is the country house of the Governor-General. Both Port Canning on the Mutla and Diamond Harbour on the Hooghly are connected with Calcutta by rail. At the opposite side of the river is the great suburb of Howrah, now a separate i8o GEOGRAI'MY OF INDIA i municipality, with about i6o,ooc inhabitants. Howrah is a great shipping and industrial centre, and is connected with Calcutta by a pontoon bridge. Here are the termini of the East Indian, the Nagpur, and the East Coast Rail- ways. About one -half of the entire land-trade of Calcutta (which reaches a total of just over a hundred million sterling) is carried by the first of these railways, which taps the rich Provinces of Bihar and Agra. 338. Nadia, on the Bhaglrathi, formerly celebrated for its Sanskrit Schools, was the capital of Bena;al when it was conquered by the Muhammadans, 1203 A.D. Mupshidabad, also on the Bbagirathi, was the last Muhammadan capital of Bengal. It is the residence of the Nawab Nazim of Bengal, and is connected by a branch with the East Indian Railway. Close to it is Kasim- bazap, once noted for its silk manufactures. Ranlganj, on the Damodar, is rapidly growing in importance as the centre of the coal mining industry. Bupdwan, on the same river, is the chief town of the Western Division of Bengal, to which it gives its name. At Hooghly the English had a factory before Calcutta was founded. Near Hooghly is Chinsupa, formerly a Dutch set- tlement. Chandepnagope, south of Chinsura, belongs to the French. Sepampope, still further south, was ceded to Britain by the Danes. Dapjeeling, 7,000 ft. above the sea, is a popular and exceedingly beautiful hill resort on the Himalayas, and the summer seat of the Bengal Government. Tea is extensively grown in the surrounding districts. 339. The principal towns in Bihar are along the banks of the Ganges, near which runs the East Indian Railway. Patna, the largest city in Bihar, though now declining in importance, has still a population of 135,000. Before railways were con- stracted it was one of the greatest trading centres on the river, being near the junction of the Ganges, Gogra, Gandak and Son. Patna is supposed to be the same as Pataliputra, or Palibothra, the capital of the ancient kingdom of Magadha. Bihar opium is collected at Patna. Bankipope, the civil station, and Dinapope, the military station, lie to the westward. Gaya, a noted place of pilgrimage, lies south of Patna, and is connected with Patna by rail. Under a pipal, or bo-tree, at this place, Buddha is supposed to have attained all knowledge. North- east of Gaya is Bihap, an ancient town from which the province l82 GEOORArHV OF INDIA took its name. Monghyp, further east, is an ancient town, once noted for its fort. At Lakhisarai, south-west of Monghyr, the " chord " or straight line of tin- llast Indian Railway joins the "loop" or semi-circular line. At Bhagalpup, still further east, the Ganges is - miles wide. Muzaffarpur nnd Darbhanga lie to the north of the river, and are the chief towns in Tirhut. The Tirhut Railway connects them with the Ganges. They have both suffered through the decline of the Indigo industry. 1 IK. ■\<'- 1 1 inp!" .il l!luib.iiU3\\,ir in Url^^.l. Arpah, on the East Indian Railway, is the chief town in Shaha- bad ; westward on the Ganges, is BuxaP, where the Englisii defeated the Nawab Wazir of Oudh in 1764. Cbupra is at the junction of the Gogra and the Ganges. 340. In Orissa and Cliota Nagpur there are few towns of any moment, the hilly parts of both these divisions being largely overrun with jungles and inhabited only by primitive tribes. Cuttack, the largest town in Orissa. is BENGAL 183 on the Mahanadl. Steamers now touch at False Point near the mouth of the river. Purl, on the coast, is noted for its temple of Jagannath, and is a great place of pilgrim- age. Bhubaneswar is a temple town in the Puri District with great traditions. It has a large number of temples encircling a sacred lake, and is said to have been originally intended as a rival to Benares. Sambalpur (recently trans- ferred from the Central Provinces) was once famous for its diamonds. Ranchi and Hazaribagh are the chief towns in Chota Nagpur. Neither of them is as yet touched by any railway. At Hazaribagh mica is found. (8) Native States of Bengal 341. CoocH Behar is a well-governed and flourishing little State which, though surrounded by districts belonging to the Province of Eastern Bengal and Assam, is politically connected with Bengal. It lies very low, and being inter- sected by several Himalayan rivers the soil is always wet ; in the rainy season, indeed, it is almost a swamp. The climate is consequently humid and trying, but famine is unknown. Large quantities of rice, tobacco, and jute are grown. The chief town is Cooch Behar. A branch of the E. Bengal Railway runs through the south of the State, and the Cooch Behar State Railway runs northwards to the foot of the Bhutan Hills. 342. The other Native States subject to Bengal are very numerous, but of little moment. They are situated chiefly in Orissa. The eastern Hill States that belonged to Bengal before the division have now been transferred to the newly formed Province of Eastern Bengal and Assam. There was at the same time an exchange of Native States between Bengal and the Central Provinces, most of the Oriya speaking States being transferred to the latter. EASTERN BENGAL AND ASSAM 343. Eastern Bengal and Assam is bounded on the west by the now reduced Province of Bengal. From the point where the Ganges bends after passing the Rajmahal Hills the river forms the dividing line as far south as Pabna. It is then continued to the sea by the Madhumati, one of the main channels of the delta, thus giving the eastern half of the delta to the new province. Northward, from the bend of the Ganges, the boundary runs almost in a straight line to the south-west corner of Bhutan, and then east and north-east, along the slopes of the Himalayas, till it crosses the Brahmaputra a little to the north of its bend. On the east the Province has no very clear natural boundary. It runs along the ridge of the Khamti Hills eastward of the river bend, and then along the south- eastern slopes of the Patkai and Naga Hills in the north, and the Lushais and Chittagong Hills in the south ; while in the centre it coincides with the eastern boundary of the native state of Manipur. 344. History. Of the various territories which are now included in the province the first to pass into British hands was the coast district of Chittagong, which was ceded by the Nawab of Bengal in 1760. The valley of Sylhet and the western district of the Brahmaputra valley were in- cluded in Bengal when the Diwani of that province was granted to Clive in 1764. Assam and the Cachar Valley were annexed in 1S26, after the First Burmese War. Assam was at first placed under the rule of a native Raja, who was deposed for corrupt and oppressive government in 1S3S, when his territories were formally incorporated with Bengal. The Bhutan war in 1S65 led to the annexation EASTERN BEXGAL AXD ASSAM 185 of a long strip at the foot of the Himalayas known as the Duars which was also incorporated with Bengal. British authority had also at various times been extended over portions of the hills bordering Bengal on the east, the tribes occupying them having provoked interference either by raids into British territory or outrages on British sub- jects. In 1874 the whole of the Brahmaputra valley down Zti^IisTi Mil^ Broad (iaitge Horror: OouqC Fig. 47 Eastern Bengal and Assam. l86 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA to (but not including) the State of Cooch Behar, together with Sylhct, Cachar, and the hill tracts, were separated from Bengal and made into a separate province under a Chief Commissioner, whose head-quarters were at Shillong on the Khasis. In 1905 all the districts of Bengal east of the boundary already indicated, including Chittagong and Hill Tippcra, were united with Assam to form the present province, which was placed under a Lieutenant-Governor, with a Legislative Council. The seat of Government was at the same time removed from Shillong to the ancient city of Dacca, which thus became the capital of the province. 345. Area and Surface. The province thus consti- tuted has an area of about 106,000 sq. miles. Along the east there is a tract of hilly country stretching from the Chittagong Hill Tracts and Hill Tippera to the Khamtis in the north-east. This belt of hills is about 150 miles broad in the south-west, where it is composed of a series of ridges running roughly north and south, and narrows towards the north-east. From its central portion, but separated from it by a belt of lower elevation along which a railway now passes, is a tongue of hilly countn,^ about 200 miles long and 50 broad, stretching out to the west, and including the Khasi, Jaintia, and Garo Hills. From the same point the Mikir Hills stretch northwards almost to the Brahmaputra, reducing the width of the valley from 60 to 20 miles, and div^iding .\ssam into an upper and a lower portion. The rest of the province is almost all low-lying plain, alluvial in character and exceedingly fertile, and fringed by well-watered mountain slopes. The long, narrow valley of the Brahmaputra stretches from the north-eastern extremity of the province for a distance of 450 miles to the point where the river rounds the Giiro Hills, and 50 miles further down the delta proper begins. South of the Khasi Hills another alluvial plain stretches to the east including Sylhet, the valley of the Surma, and Cachar, the somewhat more elevated valley of the Barak. Nearly half the province is thus composed of rich and well watered plains, and some parts of the delta are among the richest and most fertile districts in India. EASTERN BENGAL AND ASSAM 187 Fig. 48. Eastern Bengal and Assam in relief. ISO GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 346. Rivers. Just as the wcaltli and fertility of Bengal are gifts of the (iangcs, so the wcaltli and fertility of.E. Bengal and Assam are gifts of the Brahmaputra. Both these provinces are in a true sense created by the mighty rivers that traverse them. For the final 800 miles of its course the Brahmaputra flows through this province. It is in flood after the summer rains, which are exceedingly heavy all along its course and on the slopes of the hills which it drains ; but, owing to the melting of the snows in Tibet, it continues to flow in great volume far into the winter months. It brings down enormous quantities of rich mud from which it has built up hundreds of river islands, thus splitting itself up in man}' places into numerous channels, and often spreading out over a width of six or eight miles. Throughout its entire length, from north-east Assam to the sea, the Brahmaputra is navigable, and river steamers, as well as a vast multitude of sailing boats, ply upon it. 347. The only other rivers of any importance are the Barak and Surma. The Barak drains the Lushai Hills and the west of ^Nlanipur, and the Surma the southern slopes of the Khasis. These rivers ultimately unite with one of the distributaries of the Brahmaputra and so form the Meghna. They drain hills which have an exceptionally heavy rainfall, Cherrapunji on the Khasis having an average of nearly 500 inches a year. Hence, though their basins are comparatively small, the Meghna in seasons of flood brings tlown an immense volume of water. About 80 miles from the sea the -Meghna and the Brahmaputra unite and their joint waters, together with those of the main branch of the Ganges which joins the Brahmaputra 80 miles higher up, find their way to the sea through the many channels of their common delta. The Meghna is navigable at all seasons, and when in flood the Barak and Surma are each navigable for nearly 100 miles. The river betls have been raised above the surrounding plains by the deposit of silt. Streams therefore flow from them instead of to them and, carrying great quantities of silt, enrich the surrounding land. EASTERN BENGAL AND ASSAM 189 348. Climate. The low-lying districts of Eastern Bengal are in all respects similar to the rest of the delta. They are well watered both by rainfall and rivers, and during the summer months an extremely moist but not excessive heat prevails. In the drier winter months, from November to March, the air is cool and pleasant, with a mean temperature of about 65° F. The valley of Assam is the wettest part of India. From November to February are the driest months. In all the other eight months of the year the rains are fairly heavy, and espe- cially from May to August. The driest months are also the coolest, the mean temperature being about 60° F. In June, July, August, and September; the mean for all parts of the valley is over 80° F. In the winter fogs are very prevalent along the river and the mountain slopes. 349. People. In Eastern Bengal the majority of the people are of mixed Mongolian and Dravidian blood. In Assam and most of the Hill Tracts, Mongolians of the Tibeto-Burman race predominate. In the hills there are a great variety of tribes, each of which speaks a Tibeto- Burman language of its own. Assamese, the prevalent language of Assam, and Bengali, that of Eastern Bengal, are both Aryan languages. The people of Assam are mostly Hindus in religion. In Eastern Bengal Muham- madans greatly outnumber all others. Among the dwellers in the hills various forms of Animism prevail. In density of population the two parts of the province present a great contrast. Assam is thinly peopled while some of the rich and fertile districts of Eastern Bengal have a population almost as dense as any in India. Nearly 60 per cent, of the whole population of the province live in a quarter of its area, where the density is over 600 to the square mile ; and more than half the province has a density of less than 200 to the square mile. There are few large towns, only six having a population of over 20.000. About g8 per cent, of the population live in villages. 350. Natural Productions. All along the lower slopes of the Himalayas, from Cooch Behar to the bend of the Brahmaputra, stretch dense virgin forests. This tract is igo GEOGKAI'IIV OF INDIA known as the Duars. In many parts the forest growth is so thick as to be impenetrable, save where roads have been constructed along whicli the hill produce is brought down to the river. These forests, and the swamps which in Upper Assam stretch in many places to the river and arc covered with deep jungle, are the home of elephants, rhinoceroses, tigers, and a special species of buffalo. Much valuable timber, chiefly sal, sissoo, and ironwood, is obtained from the forests, and the hill tribes collect india-rubber from the rubber tree. The Government has given much attention to the scientific culture of this tree, and it promises to become a considerable source of wealth to the province. A wild silk is also collected by the natives from which the fabric known as Tussur Silk is woven. 351. Along the terraced land on both sides of the river, but particularly on the slopes of the Naga and Patkai Hills to the south of the valley, and in Cachar and Sylhet, tea, the staple culture of Assam, is largely grown. On the alluvial plains, especially those of Eastern Bengal, rice, oil-seeds, jute, sugar-cane, and tobacco are the principal crops, while further north millets and pulses are largely grown. The valley of Assam tlocs not produce as much rice as is required by its people, and large quantities are carried up the river from Eastern Bengal, where rice fields form nearly 75 per cent, of the total cropped area. Assam has several small coalfields, some of which yield coal of excellent quality. The only mines of any importance, however, arc at Ledo, near Makum, at the base of the Patkai Hills, the yield of which is about 240,000 tons per annum. At Makum there are also petroleum wells, worked by the Assam Oil Co., which yield about three million gallons of oil a year. Large quantities of excellent lime- stone are quarried in the Khasi and Jaintia Hills. 352, Communications. The Brahmaputra is still the great artery of commerce in the province, and in the delta the numerous river channels arc, as a means of communi- cation, of greater importance than the roads. Many excellent trunk-roads have been constructed giving easy EASTERN BENGAL AND ASSAM 191 communication with the hilly districts. Railways are being rapidly extended. The Eastern Bengal Railway runs northward from Sara Ghat to Siliguri, at the north- western corner of the Province, where it joins a mountain railway to Darjeeling. Another line belonging to the same system crosses this at Parbatipur and, running east and west, unites the Ganges with the Brahmaputra. This line is now continued on the northern side of the Brahmaputra to a station opposite the town of Gauhati. The Assam- Bengal Railway runs from Chittagong through Sylhet and Cachar to the south of the Mikir Hills, where it divides, one line running westward to Gauhati, and the other north-eastward to near Sadiya at the head of the Brah- maputra valley. Branches of this line run east and west from Makum Junction ; the one to Ledo where the Makum coal mines are, and the other to Dibrugarh on the river, the centre of the tea industry. At its southern end the Assam-Bengal Railway communicates on the west with Chandpur and in the south with Noakhali and Sahebghat, a little port on the delta. 353. Administrative Divisions. The Province is made up of 26 Districts, which are grouped together into 5 Divisions : — Divisions and Districts Dacca Division — 1. Dacca 2. Mymensingh 3. Faridpur 4. Bakarganj . . Chittagong Division — 5. Tippera 6. Noakhali . . 7. Chittagong . . 8. Chittagong Hill Tracts Rajshahi Division — 9. Kajshahi ID. Dinajpur 11. Jalpaiguri .. 12. Malda Area in Population sq. miles (1901) 2,782 . 2,649,522 6,332 . • 3,915,068 2,281 . . 1,937,646 4.542 . . 2,291,752 2,499 . 2,117,991 1,644 • 1,141,728 2,492 . • 1.353,250 5,138 . 124,762 2,593 • 1,462,407 3,946 . 1,567,080 2,062 787,380 1,899 . 884,030 192 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA Rajshahi Division {continued) — 13. Kaiij^piir 14. Bogra 15. Pal>na Assam Valley Division- 16. Goalpara 17. Kamrup 18. Darrang 19. Nowgong . . 20. Sibsagar 21. Lakhimpur. . 3,403 • 2,154,181 1.359 . 854,533 1,839 . 1,420,461 3.9(ii • 462,052 3.85S • 589,187 3,418 . 337,313 3,843 • 261,160 4,996 . 597,969 4.529 • 371-396 V'\...... ..■■••. L ^TATEs526'-, ' 20 / ./ ..... ^ 25 y N:. 9 .•••■■ 1. '^ '-/^ Y^^ •: |l manipur/ ^/ ) 1 S^W:^ ' J*^ /TIPPE.RA;' ^J^ s \^ vk,^ V r '■« ^^ / EASTERN BENGAL i AND ASSAM / J ^ P^'' N- Boujtifiirifs of Ih visions - - Bouiidarirs of IhjctrUtf 4to^^ MJ }ir>afish Miffs :.o 100 no I'i^'. 41J. Distiicts aiicl Stales of liastcm Uuigal aiid Assam. The numbers agree with tbosc of the list. EASTERN BENGAL AND ASSAM 193 5,388 3,769 7,227 3,070 6,027 2,241,848 455,593 82,434 102,402 202,250 Surma Valley and Hill Districts Division 22. Sylhet 23. Cachar 24. Lushai Hills 25. Naga Hills . . 26. Khasi and Jaintia Hills 354. Chief Towns. Dacca (go, 000), the capital of the Province, is a flourishing town on the Burhiganga, which unites the Brahmaputra and the Meghna a few miles above the point where their main streams join, Dacca was once a Muhammad an capital and the seat of a luxurious court. It was long famous for its muslins, the finest and most delicate in the world, and greatly prized in the west. This industry has alm.ost died out, however, and now jute goods are the chief manufacture. Dacca is the centre of the jute industry for Eastern Bengal, as Calcutta is for the western districts. Narayanganj, 10 miles to the south, at the junction of the Brahmaputra and the Meghna, is the port of Dacca, and a growing town. A railway now connects the two towns and runs northward to Nasirabad, a trading centre in the rich and populous district of Mymensingh, and then westward to the Brahmaputra, 355. Goalanda, at the junction of the Ganges and Brahmaputra, and Noakhali, near the Meghna in the south, are important jute growing centres. Barisal is the chief town in Bakarganj, a district west of the Brahmaputra, and adjoining the Sandarbans. Bakarganj has been called the granary of Calcutta. Malda is the chief town of a district east of the bend of the Ganges, which till 1905 belonged to Bihar. Near Malda are the ruins of Gaur, once the capital of Bengal. Chittagong is a growing sea- port on the eastern coast of the most easterly channel of the delta. It is well situated and has a good harbour, being a few miles up a small navigable river, the Karna- phuli, and now that it is connected with Assam by rail it is rapidly becoming the chief port for its produce. 356. In Assam the principal towns are on the Brah- maputra. Gauhati is the largest town in the Province. Sibsagar, further up the river, and Sadiya near its northern o \<).\ GEOGRAPHY OK INDIA bend arc both great centres of tea manufacture. All these towns are now served by the Bengal- Assam Railway. Makum is the centre of the mining industry. Sylhet, the chief town in the valley of that name, is on the Surma, and is noted for its oranges, large quantities of which are sent down the river. Silchar on the Barak is the chief town of Cachar, and a centre of tea production. 357. Native States. The Native States of Assam are Manipur and Hill Tippera; with twenty-five smaller States situated in the central hilly tract and known jointly as the Khasi States. Manipur has an area of about 8,500 sq. miles, but a population of only 284,000. It is under a Hindu Raja, of Naga family. The people are wild and semi-civilized hill races, and the State makes little progress. Imphal, or Mcinipur, is the capital, a large town with a population of 67,000. Hill Tippera is similar in many respects to Manipur. The people are indolent and semi-barbarous hill tribes. The area is over 4,000 square miles, and the population about 175,000. The Raja is a Hindu, but the people arc chiefly Animists. NEPAL AND BHUTAN 358. These two Native States stretch along tlie whole of the Eastern Himalayas, from Kumaun to within 150 miles of the bend of the Brahmaputra, with the single exception of a strip of about 50 miles where tlie little state of Sikkim is wedged in between them. Geographi- cally they both belong to India, and though they are generally spoken of as Independent States they may with almost equal truth be regarded as belonging to tlie Em- pire of India. The degree of internal independence enjoyed NEPAL 195 by the Native States of India varies from the merest vestige in some of the smaller ones to complete internal autonomy in Nepal. But all alike, Nepal not less than the rest, are completely controlled by the Government of India in all their foreign relations. Nepal, moreover, is not permitted to take Europeans into its service without the consent of the Governor-General, and is bound to receive a British Resident appointed by him. Bhutan is less independent than Nepal, and is sometimes classed among the States belonging to the Province of Eastern Bengal and Assam, as one of the civil officers of that Province, the Commissioner of Rajshahi, used to be ex-officio Political Officer for Bhutan. But the State is now in direct political relation with the Supreme Government, the Political Officer in charge beinc: an Agent to the Governor-General. NEPAL 359. Nepal takes in the whole of the Himalayas from Kumaun in the west to Sikkim in the east, and is bounded on the north by Tibet, and on the south by the United Provinces and Bengal. Its length from east to west is about 540 miles, and its breadth varies from 80 to 140 miles. Its area is about 54,000 square miles, and its popu- lation is estimated at 4 millions. 360. History. A Rajput race who had settled in the district of Gurkha in Nepal established themselves as rulers of the whole country in the latter half of the i8th Century. They were first brought into relation with the Government of India in 1792, when a commercial treaty was signed. In 1814 a frontier outrage compelled the British to declare war, and when peace was restored the following year, the districts of Garhwal and Kumaun were annexed to the Province of Bengal, and Nepal was com- pelled to receive a British Resident. Since that time, friendly relations have been maintained, and in 1857 the INIaharaja sent a detachment of troops to help to quell the Mutiny. igG GKOGRAPHY OF tXDIA 361. Physical Features. Throughout its whole length Nepal embraces the main chain of the Himalayas, and except in its eastern portion the entire width of the range. It includes the highest peak in the world, Mt. Everest, 29,140 feet, and numerous others well over 20,000 feet. There are many fertile valleys running from east to west and watered by tributaries of the great rivers. But the chief lines of drainage cross the main a.xis of the mountain range, the great rivers flowing southwards through deep gorges which they have cut for themselves during the slow upheaval of the mountain folds. The chief rivers are the Kusi in the east, which drains the slopes of Mt. Everest, and flows due south to the Ganges ; the Gandak which takes a winding southern course from the slopes of Dhaula- giri and joins the Ganges near Patna ; and the Gogra, which rises in Tibet and flows through the western part of Nepal into Oudh. All these rivers receive numerous afflu- ents from the valleys running cast and west. 362. Climate and Natural Products. Over the greater part of Nepal the rainfall is heavy. The temperature varies with the altitude, being fairly high at the southern base of the hills, where the long strip of pestilential terai is tropical in character. On the lower slopes of the moun- tains dense forests prevail, but the temperature is too low for most of the more valuable trees of India, such as ebony and teak, their place being taken by sal and sissoo. In the valleys among the hills, rice, wheat, barley, the various millets and oil-seeds, especially rape, are largely grown. The Valley of Khatmandu is similar to the Vale of Kashmu-, being the bed of an ancient lake nearly 5,000 ft. above sea level. 363. People. The governing race, the Gurkhas, are of Aryan origin, the Rajputs being the purest Aryans in India. Two-thirds of the total population belong to various tribes of the Tibeto-Burman race of the great Mongolian family. There has been considerable inter- mixture of races. The language of the Gurkhas called Parbhaliya is Aryan in character. Among the rest Tibcto- Burman dialects prevail. The Gurkhas are short in BHUTAN 197 stature, but vigorous. They have great endurance and enterprise, and love fighting for its own sake. The stand- ing army of Nepal is large for such a State, numbering over 45,000 fairly well trained and equipped troops. The Gurkhas are allowed to enlist in the Indian army, and form some of its best regiments. They are Hindus in religion. The Mongolian races are Buddhists. Nepal is rigidly closed to all Europeans save the British Resident. 364. Trade. There is a growing trade between India and Nepal. In 1905-6, it amounted to about 3^ millions sterling, or nearly one-third of the total trade across the land frontiers of India. The exports of Nepal include cattle, hides, various drugs, wheat, and other grains, oil- seeds, tobacco, and timber ; and the imports are cottons and woollens, metal wares, leather, salt, sugar, petroleum, and spices. 365. Towns. There are only three towns of any conse- quence in Nepal, all of which are in the Khatmandu Valley, within a few miles of each other. Patan is the largest, and was the capital before the Gurkha conquest. Khat- mandu is the Gurkha capital. Bhatgaon is the chief centre of trade. Patan is said to have 65,000 inhabitants, each of the others 50,000. BHUTAN 366. Bhutan lies east of Sikkim, and is bounded by Eastern Bengal and Assam on the south, and by Tibet, with which it has much in common, on the north. Its length from east to west is about 250 miles, and its breadth varies from 75 to 90 miles. Its area is about 20,000 square miles, and its estimated population a quarter of a million, who are all Buddhists. As in the case of Tibet, the Govern- ment is shared by the Deb Raja, or secular head, and the Dharm Raja, or spiritual head. The Indian Government obtains control over these rulers by means of a subsidy of Rs.50,000 a year, in return for which they undertake to keep the tribes on the Indian frontier under control. The T(jS GEOGRArHY OF INDIA STKKTM 109 peace and security of the Assam valley has, however, been more effectively secured by the annexation of the Duars. Though nominally independent, Bhutan is now practically a part of the Indian Empire. The same Political Officer has charge of both Bhutan and Sikkim as Agent to the Governor-General. 367. Natural Features. Bhutan is a maze of lofty mountains separated by well watered valleys. The high- est peak is Chamalhari, in the north-west corner, nearly 24,000 feet. There are many other lofty peaks, especially near Panakha the capital, which is surrounded by some of the finest mountain scenery in the world. The drainage is south to the Brahmaputra by a multitude of small rivers. In climate Bhutan resembles Nepal, being wet and cold on the mountains, wet and warm in the valleys. Rice, maize, millets, pulses, and many kinds of fruit are the chief vegetable products. 368. There is a small trade between India and Bhutan amounting to less than a lakh of rupees a year. Horses, cattle, fruits, ghee, wax, and a cloth of native manufac- ture, are the chief exports. Rice, sugar, spices, and tobacco are the chief imports. The Bhutias produce a very highly tempered steel, of which they manufacture weapons of great excellence. SIKKIM 369. Sikkim is a small mountainous country between Nepal and Bhutan which has been under British protection since 1890. Its area is about 2,800 square miles, and its population nearly 60,000. Like Bhutan it was till recently in political relation with the Province of Bengal, the Com- missioner of Rajshahi being Political Agent ; it is now, however, like all the northern Frontier States, directly under the Viceroy. The trade between India and Tibet is almost all carried on through Sikkim, and since the recent British Expedition into that country the roads have been greatly improved. The chief towns are Tumlong and Gantak. r.HOGRAPHY OF INDIA »%^ Fis. 51. A WinJort- in the Mm Munder, Bcnaros. THE UNITED PROVINCES OF AGRA AND OUDH 370. History. The greater part of the territory now included within the Province of Agra came under British control in the early years of the nineteenth century. After the battle of Buxar (1764) the Nawab Wazir of Oudh, whose dominions included most of the districts which now form the United Provinces, was reseated upon his throne by the British, and was henceforth practically under their protection. He ceded to them the districts of Benares and Ghazipur, but the rest of his dominions he retained intact until I So I. Being at that time seriously threatened by the encroaching Marathas, he entered into a treaty with Lord Wellesley whereby, in return for protection, he gave up his frontier provinces on the west and south. A strip of British territory was thus interposed between the Marathas and Oudh, and hastened the inevitable conflict between the British power and the Maratha princes. In 1802, the Peshwa ceded the districts of Banda and Hamirpur, west of Allahabad ; and two years later, at the close of the first Maratha war, Sindhia was compelled to give up the whole of his Jumna provinces, which extended from the Sewalik Hills to Mainpurl. In 1816 by the Treaty of Sigauli, which ended the war with Nepal, the Raja of that State ceded all his territories west of the river Kali, which now form the Kumaun Division of the Province of Agra. All these various districts were first added to Bengal, but in 1836, they were made into a separate Government under the title of the North West Provinces — a name which at that time was suitable enough, inasmuch as the province stretched to the extreme north-west limit of British India. The Kingdom of Oudh remained independent, being entirely hemmed in by the mountains of Nepal on the 202 GIvOGRArnV OF INDIA north, a!i(l Britisli lorritory on the east, soutli, and west. TIic (iovornment of Oudh was, however, extremely corrupt, and in 1856 after manv warnings, the British Government decided on the deposition of the King and the annexation of his dominions. From 1856 to 1877, Oudh was imder a Chief Commissioner, but in the latter year it was united with the North West Provinces to form a Lieutenant-Governorship. In 1901, when the North Western Frontier Province was formed, the name North West Provinces and Oudh was changed to the more appropriate one which the province now bears. 371. Though the Provinces of Agra and Oudh are closely similar in all physical characteristics, and are united under one Government, they nevertheless differ widely in many important branches of administration. This is mainly to be traced to the different political history of the two provinces. There are fundamental differences in con- nection with the assessment of the land tax, and also in the administration of justice. Many other minor differences necessarily follow from these, so that the United Provinces may be properly regarded as two administrations under one head. 372. Boundaries and Extent. The United Provinces are bounded on the east by Bengal ; on the south by the Native States of the Central India Agency and Rajputana ; on the west by the Punjab ; and on the north by Tibet to the west and Nepal to the east. Their total length from north-west to south-east is 595 miles, and their breadth varies from igo to 350 miles. Their total area is 112,240 square miles, of which 107,164 sq. miles is British territory. Their total population is about 48^ millions. 373. In the north-west corner the boundary stretches into the Himalayas, including the mountain districts of Garhwal and Kumaun, which are bounded on the west by the upper reaches of the Jumna, and separated from Nepal on the east by tlie river Kfdi, the chief affluent of the Sarda. The Jumna forms the boundary line between the Province of Agra, and the Punjab till about 70 miles south of Delhi. The boundary then strikes a little westwanl UNITKn PROVINCES 203 and continues southwards and then eastwards in an irre- gular and broken curve (determined not by any continuous natural feature, but by the territories of contiguous Native States), until it touches the Ganges at Buxar, 55 miles west of its junction with the Gogra. The angle enclosed Fig. 52. The United Provinces of Agra aiul Oudh. 204 CROGRAPHV OF INDIA by these two rivers is the most westerly point of the pro- vince, from which the boundary bends back along the Gogra for a distance of 40 miles, and then strikes north- ward till it meets tlic Gandak. 374, Physical Features. Within these limits the United Provinces contain almost every variety of surface. The northern boundary of the Himalayan portion lies beyond the highest snowy range, and includes several mighty penks over 20,000 feet in height. Among these are Trisiil, Nanda Kot, Badrinath, and Nanda Devi. The last of these is the liighest, 25,600 feet, and is in eveiy way the most notable. It looks down into Tibet, and is within So miles of Lake Manasarowar, the centre from which the chief South Asian watersheds radiate. Near the southern base of the mountains is the low range of the Sewaliks, which stretch from near Hard war into the Punjab enclosing the rich elevated valley of Dehra Dun. The Sewaliks are totally different from the Himalayas, both in structure and age. They are composed of fresh water deposits, tlie washings of the loftier hills, and are remarkable for the great number of fossils they contain. North of the Dehra Dun the hills rise rapidly to a height of from six to eight thousand feet, and at this level the beautiful and salubrious sanatoria of the province are situated ; Mussouri, Naini Tal, and Landour. 375. At the foot of the mountains is a broad belt of swampy and pestilential jungle known as the Terai, which is the haunt of wild beasts, especially the tiger. The swampy nature of the Terai is not due to the overflow of mountain streams, but to the rain which sinks into the mountains and wells up at their base. The width of the Terai varies from sLx to fifteen miles. Beyond it the plain begins which extends southward until it meets the lower spurs of the rocky highlands that form the northern but- tresses of the Deccan plateaux. This plain occupies three- fourths of the province, and consists of rich alluvial soil laid down by the great rivers which intersect it. The western part of the province is very near the watershed between the basins of the Ganges and the Indus, and all UNITED PROVINCES 205 the rivers after making the descent of the hills take an easterly course. The highest part of the plain is only 924 feet above sea level, and its slope, therefore, is exceed- ingly gradual. In the United Provinces the average fall UNITED PROVINCES OF AGRA & OUDH Fig. 53. The United Provinces in relief. 20() r.F.OGRAl'HV OF INDIA from west to east is about i8 inches per mile. The surface is not quite flat, however. Along the course of each of the great rivers there is a stretch of land of varying width which lies below the highest level of the flood-waters of the river. Beyond this, on both sides, a more extensive area is above this level, though only by a few feet. The land is thus divided into two distinct kinds, that which is watered directly by the river and is annually enriched by the river deposits, and that which depends for its water upon rainfall or artificial irrigation from wells or rivers. The former is called Khadar land, the latter Bhangar. South of the great rivers the alluvial deposits become rapidly shallower and the southern Districts touch the northern slopes of the rocky Vindhyan highlands where the soil is light and poor. 376. Rivers, The province is entirely included within the basin of the Ganges. This river rises in Garhwal, and for the first 600 miles of its course is within the United Provinces. Its great western tributary, the Jumna, rises near it, and joins it at Allahabad. Between these two rivers stretches a tract known as the Doab [do-ab, two waters). There are other doabs in India, especially in the Punjab, but this is the Great Doab. About 150 miles before it reaches Allahabad, the Ganges receives the waters of the Ramganga, which also comes down from the Himalayas. Further on, the Gumti joins it, a smaller river whose source is near the western point of Nepal. The Sarda, called the Kali in its upper reaches, and the Gogra, both rise beyond the snowy range, and unite in Oudh. Lower dowTi tliey are joined by the Rapti, which rises in Nepal, and 70 miles south-east of the junction their joint streams unite with the Ganges. None of these rivers save the Gumti are ever dry, as they are fed by the snows of Tibet. The streams that join the Ganges and the Jumna from the south are deep and rapid rivers in the rainy season, but in the drj* weather are shallow and sluggish. The Chambal drains tlie northern slopes of the Vindhyas and the eastern slopes of the Ara- vallis, and unites with the Jumna about zoo miles above Allahabad. Further down, but before it reaches Allahabad, UNITED PROVINCES 20/ the Jumna is joined by the Betwa and the Ken. Below Allahabad the Ganges receives the Tons. The S5n unites with the Ganges in Bihar, but on its way traverses the Mirzapur district of the United Provinces. All these southern rivers are of the same character ; they are depen- dent upon the rains, and drain a country where the rainfall, though fairly abundant, is almost confined to two or three months of the year. 377. Climate. The United Provinces lie outside the tropics, their most southerly point being in Lat. 23° 50' N. But being removed from the moderating influences of the sea their plains have a considerably greater range of tempera- ture than the more southerly plains of Bengal. During May and the early part of June, before the summer rains begin, very high temperatures are reached. The average annual maximum for almost the entire province (save, of course, the hills), is 1 13° F., and the average annual minimum 41° F. Keen frosts are not unknown in the winter even on the plains. In February, 1905, three frosty nights in succession in the district of Allahabad, when a temperature of 18° F. was registered, did damage to crops estimated at over 5 million rupees. In rainfall the districts of the north- east contrast strongly with those of the south-west. The rainfall is naturally heaviest near the hills, along which, however, it decreases rapidly from east to west owing to the gradual exhaustion of the water-bearing monsoon current, which travels up the valley. It decreases still more rapidly from north to south, and all the south- western districts of Agra are within the region of precari- ous rainfall, where drought and famine are only too well known. 378. Natural Productions. All conditions combine to make the districts north of the Ganges and the Jumna exceedingly fertile. The alluvial soil is well adapted for almost all kinds of culture, and is annually enriched along the flood-land bordering the rivers by the silt which the streams bring down. The snow-fed rivers from the north provide at all seasons an abundance of water for irriga- tion purposes. The gentle slope of the land, too, is favour- 2oS GlIOGRAPHY OF INDIA able to canal irrigation on a large scale. In some of the drier parts of the great plain, however, the land is rendered infertile by a saline efflorescence called reh. The salts are brought up by the water as the land dries and are left upon the surface. The province possesses immense and most productive irrigation works, the canals and channels of which carry a supply of water to those parts of the plain which are remote from the rivers or above the flood levels. The Upper and Lower Ganges Canals water almost the whole of the Great Doab. 379. Almost exactly one half of the whole area of the province is annually cropped, and of this large proportion neai-ly a quarter yields two crops a year. Food grains of various kinds are produced in vast quantities, and the pro- vince supports a dense and prosperous population. In barley, maize, pulses, and other secondary crops, the United Provinces stand first among the provinces of India. In the various millets they are exceeded only by Bombay and Madras. Wheat and rice are the most important grains grown. In wheat production the United Provinces stand second only to the Punjab ; and though in the amount of rice grown thej^ are far behind Bengal, they do not come far short of either Burma or Madras. The United Provinces produce more sugar than all the rest of India put together, and more cotton tlian any province out- side the Deccan, where the special cotton soil is most abundant. Opium is also a very important crop in the eas- tern districts, although the area devoted to it is small. Only a hundredth part of the total cropped area is given up to opium, yet this is more than twice the area given to it in Bengal. In the production of opium, as well as of sugar, the United Provinces take the lead. 380. People. The people of the United Provinces are of a mixed Aryan and Dravidian race. About six-sevenths are Hindus and the rest chiefly Muhammadans. In the eastern Districts Bihari is spoken by about 10 millions of the people, .\bout 15 millions in the central Districts speak Eastern Hindi, and about Ji.\ millions in the western Districts Western Hindi. Urdu or Hindustani, a dialect UNITED TROVINCKS 20g of Western Hindi is the official language. Taking the pro- vince as a whole there are 440 people to the square mile, which is a little above the density of Bengal. Oudh is, however, more densely peopled than the Province of Agra, having about 530 to the square mile. There is an unusual number of large towns in the province, no fewer than eigh- teen having over 50,000 inhabitants, and seven over 100,000. This is partly due to the fact that the river waterways have for centuries drawn the people together to particular spots for purposes of trade. But still more is it due to the ancient political history of this part of India, many towns having, at one time or another, been capitals of States. 381. Communications. Much traf&c is still carried along the rivers as well as on many of the main irrigation canals. The increase in the railway service has, however, greatly reduced the through water traffic, and from some of the canals the small steamers which used to ply have been withdrawn. The province is exceedingly well supplied with railways. The East Indian Railway from Calcutta to Delhi runs along the south side of the Ganges as far as Cawnpore, and then crosses the Doab. From Cawnpore the Great Indian Peninsula Railway runs south-west to Jhansi ; the Bengal and North Western Railway connects Oudh with northern Bengal ; the North Western Railway from Delhi serves the northern districts of the provinces ; the Bombay, Baroda, and Central India Railway runs in from the west to Agra and Cawnpore ; and the Oudh and Rohilkhand Railway connects the north-western with the eastern systems. These various railways have numerous branches and loop lines in almost every district of the province, and all the larger towns are thus put into com- munication with the outer world. 382. Administrative Divisions. The Province of Agra contains 36 Districts grouped in seven Divisions, viz. : — • (i) Allahabad, (2) Agra, (3) Meerut, (4) Bareilly, (5) Benares, (6) Corakhpur, and (7) Kumaun. Oudh contains 12 Districts in two Divisions, viz. : — (i) Lucknow and (21 Fyzabad. GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA />/.'/i/o».s and Districts Allahabad Division — I. Cawnpore . . 2. Fatehpur . . 3- Banda 4- HamiqDur . . 5- Allahabad . . 6. Jhansi 7- Jalaun Agra Division — 8. Muttra 9- Agra lO. Farrukhabad II. Mainpuri 12. Etawah 13- Etah Meerut Division — 14- Dehra Dun . . 15- Saharanpur i6. Muzaffamagar 17- Meerut i8. Bulandshahr 19. Allgarh Bareilly Division — 20. Bareilly 21. Bijnor 22. Budaun 23- Moradabad . . 24. Shajahanpur 25- Pillbhlt Benares Division— 2b. Benares 27. Mirzapur . . 28. Jaunpur 29. Ghazipur . . 30- Ballia Gopakhpup Division — 31- Gorakhpur . . 32. Basti 33 Azamgarh . . Area in Population sq. miles (1901) 2,384 • . 1,258,868 1,618 . 686,391 3,060 . 631,058 2,289 • 458,542 2,8X1 • 1,489,358 3.628 . 616,759 1,480 399,726 1,445 • 763,099 1,845 . 1,060,528 1,685 . 925,812 1,675 . 829,357 1,691 806,798 1,737 • 863,948 1,209 178,195 2,228 • 1,045,230 1,666 . 877,188 2,354 • • 1,540,175 1,899 • 1,138,101 1,946 . 1,200,822 1,580 . 1,090,117 1,791 . 779,951 1,987 . • 1,025,753 2,285 . • 1,191,993 1,727 • 921,935 1,350 . 470,339 1 ,009 882,084 5.238 . . 1,082,430 1,551 • 1,202,920 1,389 • 913,818 1,245 . 987,768 4.535 ■ . 2,938,176 2,792 . ■ 1,846,153 2,207 . 1,548,683 UNITED PKOVIN'CES Kumaun Division — 34. Naini Ta 35. Almora 36. Garhwal 2,677 •• 311,237 5.419 •• 465,893 5.629 . . 429,900 Fig. 54. Districts of the United Provinces. Tlic numbers coincide witli those in the list. Lucknow Division— 37. Lucknow . . 967 . 793,241 38. Unao .. 1,792 . 976,639 39. Rae Bareli . . .. 1,748 . • 1,033,761 40. Sitapur .. 2,250 . • 1,175,473 41. Hardoi .. 2,331 . . 1,092,834 42. Kheri • • 2,963 . 905,138 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA Fyzabad Division— 43. FyzabafI 1,740 . 1.225.374 44. Gonda 2,813 • 1,403.195 45. Bahraich 2.647 • ■ 1,051,347 46. Sultanpur . . 1,713 . 1,083,904 47. Partabgarh . . 1,442 . 912,848 48. BaraBankI .. 1.758 . 1,179,323 383. Chief Towns. Allahabad (172,000), the present capital of the province, is situated at the junction of the Ganges and the Jumna. Its ancient Hindu name was Prayag (confluence), and its early importance was due mainly to the fact that it is situated where the great eastern and western waterways meet. Its present name was given by Akbar, who built the fort. Allahabad is a great centre of trade and an important railway junction, but it has no large manufactures. The Government of the North West Provinces Avas transferred from Agra to Allahabad after the Mutiny. Allahabad is 565 miles from Calcutta by rail, and 845 from Bombay, and is now the seat of a University. 384. Lucknow (264,000), on the Gumti, the capital of Oudh, is a large city with many historical buildings of note. It was the capital of the Kingdom of Oudh for more than a century, and the city grew up round the court. There was a town on the same site reputed to have been founded by Lakshman, the brother of Rama, but the present city dates only from last century. In the historj^ of British India Lucknow is famous for the long defence, and ultimate relief, of the Residency during the Mutiny of 1857. 385. Benares, or Kasi (209,000), the largest city in the Province of Agra, is situated on the Ganges, nearly 100 miles below Allahabad. It is a city noted for stone-built houses, narrow streets, and innumerable temples and ghats. Benares was once a Buddliist city. It is now the most famous of the holy places of Hinduism, and is visited by vast crowds of pilgrims. Aurungzebe pulled down the most sacred temple of the Hindus and built a mosque on UNITED PROVINCES 213 r 2 14 OF.Or.RAPHY OF INDIA its site. The luiiopean residents live at Secrole. about three miles from the city. Benares is 476 miles from Calcutta, with which it has direct railway communication by a fine bridge across the Ganges. It is the centre of a fertile and populous district, and a large trade centre. It has also a few ancient and s-till thriving industries, especially carving and inlaying in brass. Ghazipur on the Ganges east of Benares is noted for its rose-water, and is also the headquarters of the Government Opium Agency. Lord Fig. 56. The Taj Mahal, .\gra. Cornwallis died here in 1805. Mirzapur, on the Ganges west of Benares, is a place of some trade, and has important carpet and cotton manufactures. 386. Agra (iSS,ooo), on the Jumna, was the capital of the Mughal Empire before the Government was removed to Delhi. It was founded by Akbar in 1566, and contains many very beautiful buildings which date from the time when the Mughal Empire was at its zenith. Near Agra is the Taj Mahal, the mausoleum built bv Shall Jchan for UNITED PROVINCES 215 his favourite consort, and where he himself also rests. The Taj is the most exquisite building in India. Secundra, about six miles from Agra, contains the tomb of Akbar. Fatehpur Sikri, to the south-west, was Akbar's favourite residence. 387. Cawnpore (190,000) on the Ganges is a prosperous and growing manufacturing town and an important rail- way junction. Five different railway lines converge at Fig. 57. Mausoleum of Akbar at Secundra. Cawnpore ; from Allahabad, Jhansi, Agra, Farrukhabad, and Lucknow. The chief manufactures are leather and leather goods (especially saddlery), and cotton and woollen fabrics. Cawnpore is notorious as the scene of Nana Sahib's massacre. Bareilly (131,000) is the chief town in Rohilkhand, and is a large military station occupying an important strategic position. 2l6 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 388. Meerut (iiS.ooo) situated midway between the Ganges and the Jumna, 140 miles north of Agra, is a large civil and military station. Here the Mutiny broke out in 1857. Though an ancient town it owes its present im- portance to the fact that a large garrison is stationed there. Aligarh, 45 miles north of Agra, is a noted centre of Muhammadan learning. Saharanpur, north of Meerut, is noted for its botanical garden. Here the Oudh and Rohilkhand railway joins the North Western. Hardwar, on the Ganges, where it leaves the mountains, is mucii frequented by pilgrims, and is the site of the great head- works of the Upper Ganges Canal. At Riirki, a modern manufacturing town near Hardwar, are the canal engineer- ing works, and a famous Engineering College. Fyzabad, on the Gogra, was once the Capital of Oudh. Jhansi is a railway junction of growing importance in the south-west. 389. Towns that were once of great importance but have now declined are numerous both in Agra and Oudh. Kanauj, near Cawnpore, was for several centuries the most renowned and splendid city in North India. Muttra, on the Jumna, north-west of Agra, is a very ancient Hindu city, and is the reputed birthplace of Krishna. Oudh itself is the modern representative of the ancient Kingdom of Kosala, once the premier state in north India. Benares repre- sents the Kingdom of Kasi. Both were important states in early Buddhist days. The ruins of Ayodhya, the ancient capital of Oudh are near Fyzabad on the Gogra. Native States in the United Provinces. 390. Rampur, noted for its chaddars, is a small State in Rohilkhand. It is the last remnant of the once powerful confederacy of Rohilla Afghans. The area of Rampur is 900 sq. miles, and the population half a million. Rampur is the residence of the Nawiib. Tehki (Garhwal) is a lar,ncr Slate with an area of over 4,000 sq. miles. But it is all mountainous, and the population is only a (juartcr of a iuilli(jn. The Raja is a Hindu. THE PUNJAB. 391, Position and boundaries. The Punjab is bounded on the north by Kashmir and Jammu ; on the east by Tibet and the Province of Agra ; on the south by Rajpu- tana and Sind ; and on the west by Baluchistan and the North-Western Frontier Province. From the south- eastern point of the province northward to Garhwal the eastern boundary hne is the river Jumna, and south of the North- Western Frontier Province the western boundary runs along the slopes of the Sulaiman range. The north- eastern corner of the province stretches well into the Himalayas. The total area is 133,700 square miles, of which 97,200 are British territory, and 36,500 belong to various protected States. The population of the British territory is 20 J millions, and of the Native States 4I millions. 392. History. The most easterly districts of the Punjab, including the imperial city of Delhi, were in British hands long before the rest of the province. They formed part of the territory wrested from the Marathas at the beginning of the last century, and up to 1S5S be- longed to the North- West Provinces, being known as the Cis-Sutlej Districts. As the Mughal power broke up the Sikhs gradually extended their authority over the greater part of northern Punjab The Mughal Emperors had nominally ceded the Punjab to their Afghan oppressors, but the Sikhs had maintained their practical independence in the east. Early in the nineteenth century their able leader Ranjit Singh consolidated the Sikh territories into a powerful and well-organized military State. With Lahore as his capital, he held undisputed sway for 30 years from the Sutlej to Pesliawar, and gradually extended his authority over tlie whole of Kashniu* and as far south as Multan. In 1809 he entered into treaty relationship with 2l8 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA the British oust of the Sut'.ej, and to the end of his life scrupulously observed his pledges. He died in 1839, but left no capable successor, and six years after his death the Sikh army crossed the Sutlcj and invaded British territory. Thus began the First Sikh War, which carried Fig. 58. Punjab, llie X.-W. Frontier Province, and Kashmir. the British frontier as far west as the river Beas. In 184S the Second Sikh War broke out. which resulted in the complete overthrow of the Sikhs, antl the annexation of the whole of their 1i rrilories, which were made into a THE PUNJAB 219 Chief-Commissionership under Sir John T.awrcnce. During the Mutiny, the Sikhs distinguished themselves by their loyalty to the British. In 185S the city of Delhi, with all the Trans-Jumna districts north of that city, were trans- ferred from the North-West Provinces, and in the following year the Punjab was made a Lieutenant-Governorship. .A. Legislative Council was granted in 1897. In 1901 five of the Trans-Indus districts of the Punjab were separated, to form, along with the neighbouring Hill Agencies, the North- western Frontier Province. 393. Surface. The north-eastern part of the Punjab is mountainous, being composed of lofty ranges intersected by fertile and beautiful valleys. The north-western corner is cut off from the southern plains by the Salt Range, which runs almost in a semi-circle south-eastwards from Kohat, across the Indus near Kalabagh, then east and north-east to the Jhelum. North of the Salt Range is a plateau averaging about 2,000 feet in elevation. The rest of the province is a vast plain sloping slowly to the south- west, except in the south-east corner, where a long ridge of slight elevation runs northward to Delhi. This ridge is the northern extension of the Aravallis, and formed the historic British camping ground in the Mutiny. 394. Rivers. The Punjab includes the greater part of the Indus basin. The name is derived from two Persian words, panj-ah (five waters), and originally denoted the country watered by five rivers, Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej, the five great tributaries of the Indus. All these rivers, like the Indus itself, take their rise in the Himalayan region. The Indus and the Sutlej, respectively the most western and the most eastern of the six, rise near each other beyond the chief snowy range ; the others on the southern slopes. All these rivers flow at first in a north- westerly direction, and then bend round to the south, gradually drawing together till they unite about 60 miles from the south-western corner of the province. The Jhelum first pours its waters into the Chenab, and the Ravi does the same on the other side. The Beas flows into the Sutlej, and lower down the Sutlej and Chenab 220 GEOGRAT'HY OF INDIA The PUNJAB. KASHMIR. AND j NORTH-WEST*' FRONTIER PROVINCE ' Entfl.sh M.U, lij;. so. Tlif I'liiijab, Ac, in rclKf. unite to form the Panjnad which carries the waters of all five rivers to the Indus. These rivers form five doabs. The Sind Sagar Doab, the largest, is east of tlie Indus ; the Jetch Doab is between the Jhelum and the Chenab ; the Rechna Doab between tlie Chenab and the Ravi ; the THE PUNJAB 221 Bari Doab, the most populous, between the Ravi and the Beas-Sutlej ; the Jullundur Doab between the Beas and the Sutlej. 395. Climate and rainfall. Though considerably further north than the United Provinces the Punjab experiences a greater summer heat. In the south-west of the province the thermometer often registers 118° F. in the shade, and 112° is quite common in the hottest months. The winter cold is proportionately severe, 21° F. being the average winter minimum over a large part of the province. The extreme range of temperature is thus unusually great, averaging 80° F. The contrast between summer and winter is not, however, so marked as that between day and night. Owing to the extreme dryness of both the earth and the air during nine months of the year, a fall of 60° F, between sunset and midnight is not unusual. These rapid changes are a constant peril ; but in spite of them the climate of the Punjab is, for eight months in the year, one of the pleasantest in the world. 396. Except on the mountains the rainfall is deficient, averaging not more than 30 inches a year on the lower slopes, and diminishing rapidly towards the south and west, where the native state of Bahawalpur includes part of the Thar or Indian Desert. The chief rains fall in July, but in the north of the province there is a very regular, though slight, fall in January. • 397. Irrigation. The soil of the Punjab being mainly alluvial is very fertile wherever there is a sufficient supply of water. As, however, the rainfall is small, the province is largely dependent upon irrigation from the rivers. There is a larger area of irrigated land in the Punjab than in any other province of India, and the construction of canals from the great rivers has changed thousands of square miles of barren and scrubby wilderness into richly cultivated tracts. The Government has spent over 7I millions sterling upon irrigation works in the province. Over 11,000 square miles are now supplied with water by means of more than 12,000 miles of canals. The main canals also serve as a valuable means of communication. 222 GKOGRAPHY OF INDIA 398. Natural products. Wheat is the principal food- grain grown, as much land being ordinarily devoted to its culture as to all other food-grains put together. The climate and soil are both suitable, and Punjab wheat is equal to any in the world. Large quantities of it are ex- ported to Europe. Next in importance among food-grains are millets and barley. Rice is less extensively grown as it requires much water. Gram and other pulses are very largely cultivated, as also arc oil-seeds, especially rape and mustard. Cotton antl sugar are widely grown on the irrigated land, and to a less extent tobacco and indigo. Tea is cultivated in the Kangra Valley. The silk-worm is successfully reared in the Multan district. Bees are kept in the north and east, and much honey and bees-wax are produced. The chief mineral product is salt. Rock salt is mined at various places in the Salt Range. Antimony and alum are also obtained from the same hills. Large quan- tities of saltpetre are produced in the plains. Coal is found near the Jhelum. 399. Communications. The most important railway in the Punjab runs up the Indus Valley, giving the province direct connection with Karachi its chief seaport. At one time goods had to be taken across the river at Hyderabad by means of a ferry, but now that the river is spanned by the Lansdowne Bridge at Sukkur, there is through railway conncctioli between Karachi and the north of the Punjab via Multan. From Multiln branches of tlie same system radiate up most of the Doabs. The Xortli Western Rail- way unites Delhi with Umballa, Ludhiana and Lahore, and is continued beyond Peshawar in the North- Western Frontier Province. From Umballa a Une now runs up the hills to Simla, the summer seat of both the Provincial and the Supreme Governments. A vast number of fiat- bottomed boats ply on the rivers and canals. 400. People. The people of the Punjab arc of the purest Aryan blood in India. They represent the latest wave of Aryan immigrants, who found tlie country already largely peopled with mixed Aryan races. The chief lan- guages are Punjabi, which is spoken by about iS millions, THE PUNJAB 223 Urdu (or Western Hindi), spoken by about 4 millions, and Rajasthani, spoken by about half a million in the south. Numerous Sanscritic dialects (classed together as Pahari) are spoken in the hill tracts. In religion the Muhammadans slightly outnumber the Hindus, except in the Native States. There are over two million Sikhs, who are most numerous in the districts around Amritsar. Fig. 60. Districts and Ctiief States of the Punjab. Tlie numbers coincide mth those of the list. 401. Administrative Divisions. The Province of Punjab contains 29 Districts grouped into 5 Divisions, as follows : — Division and District. Delhi Division — I. Hissar 2. Rohtak ^• Gurgaon 4- Delhi 5- Kamal 6. Umballa 7- Simla Area in sq. miles 5,217 1,797 1,984 1,290 3,153 1,851 lOI Population, 1901 781,717 630,672 746,208 689,039 883,225 815,880 40,351 22.J GKOGRAPHY OF INDIA Lahore Division— 8. T^ahorc 0. Montgomery lO. Amritsar II. Gurdasp;ir . . 12. Sialkot 1.3- Gujranwala Jullundur Division — 14. Kangra 15- Hoshiarpiir. . 16. Jullundur . . 17- Ludhiana . . 18. Ferozepore . . Rawalpindi Division — 19. Gujrat 20. Shahpur 21. Jhelum 22. Rawalpindi . 23- Attock Multan Division — 24. Mianwali 25- Jhang 26. Multan 27- Muzaffargarh 28. Dera Ghazi Khan 29. Lyallpur 3,704 . . 1,162,100 4,496 .. 4t3.7"t) I, Go I .. 1,023,828 1,889 .. 940,334 1,991 .. 1,083,909 3,198 .. 890,577 9,978 . . 768,124 2,244 • • 989,782 1,431 .. 917.587 1.445 -• 673.097 4,302 . . 958,072 2,051 .. 750,548 4,840 . . 524,259 2,813 •• 501,424 2,010 . . 558,699 4,022 . . 464,430 7,816 .. 424,588 3,852 . . 402,656 6,107 . . 710,626 3,635 . . 405,656 5,306 .. 471,149 3,075 . . 654,666 402. Chief Towns. Lahore (203,000), near the Ravi, the seat of Government, was for some time Akbar's capital, and later the capital of the Sikh Kingdom. The city con- tains the tomb of Ranjit Singh, and numerous other fine buildings. It is now the seat of the Punjab University'. Mean-Meer, the military station, is a few miles distant. 403. Delhi (208,000), on the Jumna, the largest city in the Punjab, was the capital of the Mughal Empire, and is the most famous of the many historical cities of India. The ruins of old Delhi are a few miles distant. The present city was founded by the Emperor Shah Jehan, who built both the palace and the fort as well as the magnificent mosque, the Jumma. Musjid. Delhi has always been a THE PUNJAB ^25 22G GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA great commercial centre, and since the construction of rail- ways it has increased in importance. Six railway lines radiate from the city, and make it the most important railway centre in north India. It has no manufactures of any great moment, but its muslins, as well as its gold and silver work, used to be famous. 404. Amritsar (163,000), midway between the Ravi and the Beas, is the sacred city of the Sikhs. One of the Sikh gurus formed a tank here, which he called Amritsar (Pool of Immortality). Amritsar is noted for its manufacture of shawls, silks, and cottons. It has long been the chief emporium for the trade with Kashmir and Tibet. Govind- garh, a strong fortress, built by Ranjit Singh, commands the city. From Amritsar a railway proceeds north east- ward to Pathankot, the nearest railway station to Dal- housie, a sanatorium. South-east of Amritsar is Jullun- dur (68,000) a military station. Northward lies Kangra, with a famous hill fort, which was plundered by Mahmud of Ghazni. Sialkot is an important military station on the northern frontier. It is situated on the North Western Railway, and is the junction for a branch line to Jammu. 405. Umballa (79,000), between the Sutlej and the Jumna, is a large military station. Northward on the lower Himalayas is Simla, the summer residence of the Viceroy. Soutli of Umballa, Thaneswar, plundered by Mahmud of Ghazni. Near this is said to be the Kurukshetra field, where the great battle of the Mahabharata was fought. About midway between Umballa and Delhi is Panlpat, the scene of several great battles. Ludhiana (50,000), near the Sutlej, is in Cis-Sutlej Territory, and was the British frontier before the First Sikh War. Westward lie Aliwal, Sobraon, Firozshah, and Miidki, where bloody battles took place between the Sikhs and British. 406. Multan (87,000), south-west, near the Chenab, is a military station and a large manufacturing town. It has for centuries been the great centre of caravan trade witli Baluchistan and Persia across the Bolan Pass, and the con- struction of a railway through tlie pass has not robbed it of its trade. It is now the most important station on the THE PUNJAB 227 Indus Valley Railway. Attock on the Indus at its junction with the Kabul river guards the principal route across the Indus. Here a railway bridge now spans the river. Rawal Pindi (88,000), between the Jhelum and the Indus, is a large military station. Near the Chenab is Gujrat, where the Sikhs were finally defeated by the English. Chilianwala, where a bloody battle was fought with the Sikhs, is in the neighbourhood. Not far from this Alex- ander the Great defeated Porus, 327 B.C. Native States in the Punjab. 407. There are 34 of these states, but most of them are very small. They have an area of 36,500 square miles, and a population of 4^ millions. 408. Bahawalpur stretches soutli of the Sutlej and the Indus. It has an area of 15,000 square miles, and a popu- lation of about I of a million. The chief town is Bahawal- pur, the residence of the Muhammadan Nawab. With the exception of a small portion of the State watered by a canal from the river Sutlej, the country is an arid plain. 409. Patiala, a fertile district in Sirhind, south of Ludhiana, is a Sikh State. It has an area of 5,400 sq. miles, and a population of i| millions. The chief town is Patiala towards the east. The Maharaja is an enlightened and progressive ruler, and the State is making rapid progress, 410. JiND, divided into two parts by the British Districts of Rohtak and Hissar ; Nabha, south of Ludhiana ; Kapurthala, which stretches along the Sutlej between Amritsar and Jullundur ; Mandi, on both sides of the Beas, between the Simla Hill States and Chamba ; and Faridkot, which almost divides the District of Ferozepore into two parts, are other Sikh states. Chamba, east of Jammu, and Bussahir, north-east of the Simla Hill States and intersected by the Sutlej, are two of the chief Hill States. 228 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA THE NORTH-WESTERN FRONTIER PROVINCE. 411. The North-Western Frontier Province is bounded on the east by Kashmir and the Punjab, on the south by Baluchistan, and on the west by Afghanistan. In the north a narrow tongue of the province runs along the northern frontier of Kashmir. A narrow strip of Afghan territory stretches between this tongue and the river Panja, the southern boundary of Russian Turkestan. This part of the frontier is, therefore, of great importance, since British territory at one point approaches to within 30 miles of the Russian outposts. The Province forms an oblong territory stretching for 400 miles from north-east to south-west, mainly on the western side of the Indus. It was constituted in igor in order that the tribal terri- tories along the North West Frontier might be brought under more complete and effective supervision. The Trans- Indus Districts (Peshawar, Kohat, Hazara, and a part of Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan) were taken from the Punjab, and, together with the Agencies of DIr, Swat, Chitral, the Khyber, the Kuram, Tochi, and Wana, placed under the administration of an Agent to the Viceroy. The districts taken from the Punjab had an area of 13,197 square miles. The Agencies, being tribal rather than territorial, have never been strictly defined. The total area of the province can, therefore, only be given approximately, but it is esti- mated at 38,665 square miles. 412. Surface. In the north and west the country is a maze of wild and rugged hills separated by deep and often fertile valleys. In Chitral, and south of Safed Koh, the mountains are for the most part bare, elsewhere they are often clothed with fine forests. The highest point is the 230 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA lofty Safed Koh range, whicli branches eastwards from the Hindu Kush, separating the basins of the Kabul and the Kuram, and forms a part of the western boundary. Both at this point, and at the extreme north, an elevation of nearly 15,000 feet is reached. East of the hills the land slopes gradually to the south-east to the valley of the Indus. 413. Administrative Divisions. The following figures give the area and population of the six Districts into which the British portion of the Province is divided. It is impossible to give accurate figures for the Hill Agencies. Area in Population District. sq. miles (1901} I. Hazara ■ ■ 3,391 .. 560,288 2. Peshawar 2,605 788,707 3- Kohat 2,609 217,865 4- Kuram .. 1,27s .. 54,257 5- Bannu .. 1,680 .. 231.485 6. Dora Isma 1 Khan . . .. 3,403 .. 252.379 414. Rivers. The entire province lies witliin the basin of the Indus. The Kabul River enters the province from the west after receiving the waters of the Kunar or Chitral River which drains the Chitral mountains in the north. Further on it is joined by the Swat, witli its tributan,- the Panjkora, which also comes down from the northern hills ; and thirty miles further on it joins the Indus near Attock. The Kuram rises in the Safed Koh range, and flows south- eastwards. Just within the western boundary of the province it receives its chief tributary, the Tochi, and empties itself into the Indus a few miles to the south of the Salt Hills of Kohat. North of these hills a smaller river, the Kohat, flows west to the Indus, and along its valley a railway now runs, uniting Thai, on the Kuram. with Kohat and the Indus Valley Railway. The Gomal rises in the Afghanistan highlands, and for about 40 miles forms the boundary between the North-Western Frontier Province and Baluchistan. After receiving the waters of the Zhob from the south it curves round the northern spurs of the Sulaimans and joins the Indus south N.-W. FRONTIER PROVINCE 231 of Dera Ismail Khan. Along the valleys of all these rivers roads wind into the highlands, leading in every case to one of the passes which form the gateways of com- munication between India and Afghanistan. 415. Climate and Products. Throughout the province the rainfall is scanty, particularly in the south. The heat in summer and the cold in winter are both extreme, so Fig. 63. Districts and Tribal Areas of the Province. The numbers coincide with those on the List. also is the variation between day and night. In all these points the conditions prevailing in the Punjab are inten- sified. With the exception of its north-eastern point the province lies outside the monsoon area. In winter keen and biting north-west winds prevail which often bring heavy snow storms. 416. The cultivated areas are chiefly along the river valleys, some of which are very fertile. Wheat is the chief 232 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA grain, but barley, maize, and pulses arc also extensively grown. TIic cultivation of cotton is spreading. A large quantity of fruit is also grown and pomegranates, quinces, pears, grapes, and peachos are sent to various parts of India. Nearly 1,400 square miles of the best land is protected by irrigation, the principal canals being from the Swat and the Kabul. There are also numerous smaller canals from the Tochi, Kuram and Indus, many of which arc private property. A new canal is under construction by which the waters of the Swat will be brought by tunnel under the Malakand Pass into the Peshawar District where water is much needed. 417. People and languages. The population of the dis- tricts separated from the Punjab was 2,044,000 in 190 1. The hill tribes have never been accurately numbered, but the total population of the province is between two and three millions. Chief among the hill tribes are the Waziris in the south, and the Kohistanis in the north. The principal languages arc Punjabi and Urdu on the plains, and Pashtu in the mountainous country along the west. 418. Towns. The chief town and the seat of Government is Peshawar, which lies almost at the foot of the Khyber Pass, the most important route from India to Kabul. Peshawar is an ancient city and attained considerable importance in the Buddhist period. The modern city owes much to the Sikhs. It is surrounded by a wall with 16 gates, and has a fortress of considerable strength outside the walls. It is now a large military station, and is connected with Rawal Pindi and Lahore by the North Western Railway. Twenty-five miles east of Peshawar a branch of this line runs north to Dargai. Smaller towns arc Kohat, the head of the district of the same name ; Edwardesabad, on the Kuram River ; Dera Ismail Khan commanding the valley of the Gonial ; and Abbottabad, in the Hazara District north of Rawal Pindi. All these are important trade centres. Through the Kuram vallev lies another route from India to Kabul, and in the .south, west of Dera Ismail Khan, is the Gomal Pass, the chief route to Ghazni in Afghanistan. KASHMIR. 419. The Kingdom of Kashmir includes the beautiful valley of Kashmir, in the south-west ; Baltistan, or Little Tibet, in the north ; Ladakh in the east ; Gilgit, Hunza, and Chitral in the north-west ; and Jammu in the south. The greater part of Chitral has, however, been recently- brought under direct British administration. Kashmir is a protected State under the Government of India, and has an area of about 80,000 square miles, and a population of nearly 3,000,000, of whom about three-quarters are Muhammadans, a fifth Hindus, and the rest Buddhists and Sikhs. 420. The history of Kashmir goes back for many cen- turies. It was a powerful kingdom long before the earliest Muhammadan invasions of India, and at one time Kanauj and Kashmir were the most powerful kingdoms in north India, Kashmir having imposed its authority over a large part of the Punjab. It was finally reduced by Akbar, who added it to his dominions. Its beautiful valley then became, and long continued, the favourite summer resort of the Mughal court. On the decline of the Mughal power Kashmir fell to the Sikhs. When the Sikh dominions were annexed by the British, Lord Dalhousie restored the old Hindu Kingdom, adding it to the territories of the Raja of Jammu, a Rajput prince of ancient family, who has since ruled under British protection as the Maharaja of Kashmir and Jammu. 421. Surface. The Vale of Kashmir forms a basin surrounded on every side by lofty mountains. At one time it was a vast lake, where the waters of the Jhelum paused on their way to the plains. In course of ages it was filled up by the silt brought down by the river, and the soil is therefore a rich alluvial deposit. The river now flows through the valley from south-east to north-west, and in the north-west corner it still forms the Wuliir Lake, 234 GEOGRArilV OF IMMA a mere fraction of the ancient one, and yet the largest sheet of fresh water in India. The Vale of Kashmir has an elevation of 5250 feet above sea level. The rest of the State is almost entirely composed of rugged mountains intersected by narrow valleys. The Muztagh, or Kara- korum Mountains, are in the north, and look down into Chinese Turkistan. They contain many lofty peaks, among which are Mt. Godwin Austen (28,278 ft.), Geisher- brum (26,483), and Dipsang (26,279), with others of almost equal height, which form together one of the most magni- ficent groups of peaks in the world. East of this group the Karakorum Pass crosses the range at a height of 18,300 feet. The Ladakh Range runs from north-west to south- east, througli the centre of J^ashmTr. The Himalayas in the south run in the same direction, from the great peak of Nanga Parbat, but open out in double folds which enclose the Vale of Ka.shmir. 422. Rivers. The Indus enters Kashmir from Tibet, in the south-east cornfcr, flows in a north-westerly direction for about 350 miles, and then makes its great bend to the south-west, rounding Nanga Parbat. Just at its bend it receives the waters of the Gilgit River, which drains the mountains of Chitral in the north-west. The joint valleys of the Indus and Gilgit bisect the state diagonally. The Jhelum rises in the hills west of the Vale of Kashmir, and like the Indus, takes a north-westerly course, and then bending sharply to the south form«: for 100 miles the boun- dary line between Kashmir on the cast and the Punjab on the west. The Chenab enters Kashmir from the hills of north-eastern Punjab, and after a winding westerly course for 120 miles, turns to the south forming the boundary of Jammu, and re-enters the Punjab north of Sialkot. 423. People. The Kashmiris are chiefly of Aryan blood, and are vigorous and hardy, as well as fair and handsome. In the north-cast and throughout Ladakh and the Himalayan hills in the south-east, a Mongolian element predominates. The languages spoken arc various Aryan dialects in the west, and Tibeto-Burman ilialects in the east. KASHMIR 235 236 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 424. Climate and Productions. The Vale of Kashmir enjoys one of the pleasantcst climates in the world, being never very hot, and in the winter months cold and bracing. Jammu, in the south, is much warmer, and is the winter resort of tlie Maharaja and his court. Higher up the mountains, and especially in the north-west, the cold is intense. The rainfall is scanty everywhere. On the southern hills there are extensive forests from which timber is obtained, especially deodar, and in the valleys wheat, barley, and millets arc grown. The Vale of Kashmir is famous for its fruits and flowers. 425. Towns. The capital, Srinagar (123,000) on the Jhelum, is a flourishing town, beautifully situated in the hill-enclosed Vale. It is much visited by tourists. The famous " Kashmir Shawls," made of the inner hair of the Kashmir goat, are still made here, but the manufacture has declined. There is a growing manufacture of silk. Carpets are also made. Srinagar is an important junction of trade routes, and a railway is in process of construction which will unite it with the North Western Railway at Rawal Pindi. Leh, the chief town in Ladakh, is near the Indus. It is a point where several trade-routes meet, and is one of the highest to\vns in the world, being more than 11,000 feet above the sea level. Islamabad is south-east of Srinagar, on the Jhelum. Iskardo (or Skardo) on the Indus, is the capital of Baltistan. Gilgit is a town in the north-west, and an important frontier station. Jammu lies to the south of the Himalayas, and is connected by rail with Sialkot. BALUCHISTAN. 426. Though outside the boundaries of India proper, Baluchistan is now a province of tlie Indian Empire. It is bounded by Sind and the Punjab on tlic cast, Persia on the west, Afghanistan on the north, and the Arabian Sea on the south. Its total area is 132,000 sq. miles, of which nearly 46,000 is now British territory. The native BALUCHISTAN 237 territory is occupied by various tribes most of whom owe allegiance to the Khan of Kalat. Las Bela is a small State in the south-east corner. 427. Natural Features. From the northern corner of Baluchistan the Sulaiman inountains run at first almost due south, and then bend round to the west, their folds opening out and decreasing in altitude. About 160 miles Fig. 65. Baluchistan, with Sind. to the west of the Sulaimans is a group of mountains surrounding Quetta, among which are the highest alti- tudes found in the province. From this group of high- lands a multitude of ridges run southwards, and then, like the Sulaimans, open out in decreasing altitudes and bend round to the west, running parallel with the southern 238 GKOGRAl'HY OF INDIA coast-line till in Persia they bend to the north again. This semi-circle of hills, the southern portion of which forms the tract known as the Makran, bounds the arid plateau of Iran, which averages 3,500 feet in elevation. The Makran highlands form the southern boundary of a region of inland drainage which extends northwards in a series of basins for more than 1,600 miles till it meets the arctic basin of the Ob-Irtish. In the north-west of Baluchistan is the smallest of these basins, a depression in the plateau 250 miles from cast to west, and 100 from north to south, in which the drainage is to the Mashkel Hamun, a salt swamp near the Persian frontier and 1,600 feet above sea-level. The entire depression is a rocky and sandj' desert, dry and pnrched. It was not always so, however. There are many proofs that it was once well watered and fertile. The mountainous district of JNIakran is not quite so barren. The hills are bare and rocky ridges, but in the narrow valleys there are strips of green which here and there are cultivated. 428. The most easterly of the ridges running south from the Quetta highlands, the Khirthar range, continues south- wards to Cape Monze, and forms the boundary between Baluchistan and Sind. Between the Khirtliars and the Makran ridges bending round to the west, is a triangle of alluvial land, the delta of the Purali river, which forms the State of Las Bela. On the eastern frontier of Baluchistan, half-way between its northern and southern points, there is a tract of low-lying desert stretching north-westward to the foot of the Quetta hills, and separating the southern Sulaimans from the hills of Kalat. This is known as the Kachhi, and is traversed by the railway from Jacobabad to Ouctta. 429. Climate and Productions. Baluchistan experiences great extremes of temperature. On the low plains it is unendurably hot by day in summer, and intensely cold by night in winter. On the plateau the heat is moderated, but the cold is more intense. The diurnal variation all the year round is extreme. The rainfall is exceedingly scanty everywhere. From the .southern Sulaimans to Las BALUCHISTAN 239 Bela and along the coast-strip the average is under 5 inches a year, and it is nowhere over 10 inches save in the neigh- bourhood of Quetta. The produce is, therefore, small, cultivation being in most parts impossible ; and the popu- lation is very sparse, averaging less than six to the square mile. In the valleys around Quetta the heavier rainfall is assisted by irrigation, and good crops of wheat and millets are secured. Fruit is also largely grown, and the melons produced are the finest in the world. Elsewhere there is little cultivation of any kind. The dates of Makran are famous, and form the staple food of the people. Along the coast large quantities of excellent fish are caught. 430. People. The total population is only about three- quarters of a million. Nearly half are Brahuis, who speak a Dravidian tongue, and are apparently a Dravidian race. The remainder are mostly Turko-Iranians. They are divided into many tribes, classed together as Balochs, and are chiefly a pastoral people, and very largely nomadic. In religion they are Muhammadans of the Sunni sect. 431. British Baluchistan includes Quetta and the Bolan, which have been held since 1883 by a perpetual lease from the Khan of Kalat, together with Sibi, Pishin, and other districts. Quetta is united with India by the Sind-Pishin Railway. This line branches off from the Indus Valley line near Sukkur, and runs up the Kachhi desert tract to Sibi where it divides. The northern branch passes up the valley of a small stream called the Harnai, through the Nari pass to Pishin, and so to Quetta. The southern branch takes a more direct route. At first the line was constructed through the old Bolan Pass. Later, as the Bolan line was found to be exposed to damage from floods, which a very little rain will cause, another line was constructed through the safer valley of the Mashkaf, a few miles to the north. From Quetta the line runs north-west to Chaman, and south-west to Nushki, both on the frontier of Afghanistan. These lines are of immense strategic importance, as they command both the Gomal and Bolan routes to Afghanistan and Persia. Quetta has always been a trading town of some importance as it is 240 GEOGKAF'HY OF INDIA on the direct route to Kandahar. It is now also a strongly fortified military station. For the greater part of the year it has a pleasant climate, being 5.500 ft. above the sea level, and almost surrounded by lofty mountains. 432. Kal.^t is an ancient Khanate, which has succes- sively been under the protection of the Mughal Empire, Afghanistan, and the British. The Khan belongs to a Brahui family, and exercises a loose authority over nearly 400,000 tribesmen. His chief revenue is from the subsidy etc., paid him by the Indian Government, amounting to about ;^i 1,000 per annum. Kalat, his capital, is an in- significant town, situated on the hills west of the Kachhi, and south of Quctta, at a height of 6,800 feet. Las Bela has a population of only 56,000. The Jam is of Arab descent. Iribcsincn of the North-West. RAJPUTANA. 433. Rajputana lies to the east of Sind, and south of the Punjab. It is composed of 20 Native States grouped together for political supervision, and placed under an officer styled " Agent to the Governor-General in Rajpu- tana. ' ' The following table shows the area and population of the larger States : — Population Name. Sq. miles (1901) JODHPUR (MaRWAr) 34.963 1.935.565 BiKANER 23,311 584,627 Jaisalmer 16,062 73,370 Jaipur . . 15.579 2,658,666 Udaipur 12,691 1,018,805 KOTAH 5,684 544.879 Alwar . . ' 3.I4I 828,487 TONK 2,553 273,201 BUNDI 2,220 171,227 Bharatpur 1,982 626,665 SlROHI 1,964 154.544 Banswara 1,946 165.360 Dungarpur 1.447 100,103 Karauli 1,242 156,786 Dholpur 1. 155 270.973 All the above are Rajput States save Bharatpur and Dholpur, which are Jat States, and Tonk, which is partly in the Central India Agency, and is ruled by a Pathan Nawab. Almost in the centre of Rajputana are the small British territories of A j mere and Merwara, which are administered by a Commissioner under the Agent to the Governor-General. 434. History. The Rajputs {i.e., sons of rulers) are, with the Jats, of the purest Aryan extraction. At one time the Rajputs ruled over the greater part of North India, from which they were expelled by the early Mu- hammadan invaders. They took refuge in the compara- tively arid region to which they have given their name. £42 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA where they founded numerous principalities which, through many vicissitudes, have survived till to-day. The Maharanas of Udaipur (also called Mewar) claim descent from Rama, King of Ajodhya, the hero of the Ramayana, and hold the first place among the Rajput Princes. All through the centuries they have maintained the purity of their blood with uncompromising pride. During the Muhammadan age they steadfastly refused to give their English Milf> Fig. 67. Rajputana. daughters to Musalman princes, and even refused to inter- marry with Rajput families which countenanced such alliances. All through the period of Mughal supremacy the 17 Rajput States maintained their independence, and though they suffered much during the turbulent years when the Marathas were supreme in the west, tlie RAjrUTANA 243 barren and uninviting character of their territories protected them against the cupidity which seized everything worth seizing. At the close of the Third Maratha War, most of the Rajput Princes entered into subsidiary treaties with the Marquis of Hastings, then Governor-General of India, whereby they came under British protection. The internal government of the Rajput States is largely feudal in character. Their territories are RAJPUTANA Boujidjirii's lit Hit: ^chjuef Sf«f.:s F.i'/jli.^li. Milxs Fig. 68. Rajputana, showing the chief States. generally divided among Thakurs, or chiefs, who pay certain dues, but over whom the Prince often exercises but little influence. 435. Physical Features. The Aravalli Hills, a low range seldom exceeding 3,500 feet in height except at their southern extremity, where Mt. Abu rises to 5,650, stretch 244 GEOGRArHV OF INDIA across Rajputana in a north-castcrlj' direction dividing the province into two stronf3;ly contrasting parts. The western portion is nearly twice the size of the eastern, and consists chiefly of sandy desert where the rainfall is exceedingly small, and the watered and productive areas few. Beyond the hills the conditions improve. The rainfall is more abun- dant and increases steadily toward the east, and the countrv being of higher level, is richer and more diversified. The south-eastern portion of the province forms part of the Plateau of Malwa, composed largely of Deccan Trap, the volcanic rock which forms the rich black cotton-soil of the Deccan. This plateau slopes gently to the north, with many rocky ridges, and the drainage is to the Jumna, through its great southern affluent the Chambal. The numerous tributaries of the Chambal which drain the northern slopes of the plateau and the eastern slopes of the Aravallis, are the chief rivers of the province. The Liini drains the western slopes of the Aravallis into the Great Rann of Cutch, but its waters are salt, and for half the year its bed is dry. 436. Climate and Products. The heat is great through- out the whole of Rajputana, and especially so in the west, where the rainfall is very small, and the sandy soil dry and parched for the greater part of the year. Westward from the Aravallis there is comparatively little vegetation of any kind, and the various millets are the only crops that can be grown. East of the Aravallis the summer heat is not so extreme, and much of the land is rich and well watered. Agriculture is therefore more flourishing. Millets, pulses and oil-seeds are largely grown, also wheat and barley. The area devoted to wheat has greatly increased during recent years. Cotton and sugar cane are also cultivated. 437. Minerals. The only mineral product of any moment is salt, which is obtained in enormous quantities from Sambhar Lake a little to the north of Ajmere. The waters of this lake arc so exceedingly salt that the crystals gather on the surface, and about 130.000 tons of salt are taken from it every year, without sensibly diminishing its salinity. The lake has been leased to the Government of RAJPUTANA 245 India since 1870. There are also important salt pits near Pachbhadra on the Liini river. Here, over an area of more than 10 square miles, all the springs yield a strong brine. Long pits are dug, and the brine that collects in them speedily evaporates in the intense dry heat. Branches of thorn are thrown into the brine to promote crystallization, and when the pit is dry the salt is removed. In this way about 35,000 tons of salt are obtained annually. 438. Population. Four-fifths of the people are Hindus, and about a tenth Muhammadans. Jains are also numer- ous. The chief languages spoken are Rajasthani and Hindi. The population is very sparse west of the Aravallis, and the towns are few. In the eastern part the density is about 200 to the square mile. 439. Railways. Lines from Delhi and Agra unite near Lake Sambhar, and run right through the centre of Raj- putana by Ajmere to Baroda, thus giving direct connection with Bombay. Another line gives a connection with Karachi in the west passing the Pachbhadra salt works ; and from this a branch runs north through Bikaner into the Punjab. 440. Chief Towns. In Rajputana the States and their chief towns bear the same names, the States being named after the towns. . Most of the towns are strongly built in well chosen strategic positions, and many of them are on rocky hills. In olden times they were fortresses of con- siderable strength. Jaipur (160,000) is the largest city, and is a place of considerable trade. It is a handsome walled town, and contains many fine buildings. Ajmere (70,000) is the chief town in the small British Province of Ajmer-Merwara, and is the residence of the Agent to the Governor-General. Nasirabad, a few miles to the south, is the chief military station in the province. Udaipur is the capital of the premier Rajput State, and is situated on a rocky ridge overlooking a lake. Bikaner and Jodhpur are strongly walled towns in the western part of Rajputana. Jains are numerous in both. Abu is a settlement on the mountain of that name, and is the summer quarters of the Rajputana Government. 246 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA >- V^ w , t ^ I < <^" -5 1 t^\ E- J5 u u I'ig. 69. Rajputaiia .uid Central ludia in rclicl. CENTRAL INDIA. 441. Central India is composed of a group of Native States which like those of Rajputana are united under one PoHtical Officer styled " Agent to the Governor-General." In all there are 148 Princes and Chiefs included in the Agency, but as 12 of these have no territories, Central India may be said to consist of 136 States. Most of these are of no great size, and many of the smaller ones are in a sense subordinate to one or other of the larger States, to which they pay an annual tribute. The following table shows the area and population of the principal States of the Agency. Name. GWALIOR Indore Bhopal Rewah Orchha Panna Dhar Area in sq. miles ■ 25,041 • 9,500 . 6,859 . 13,000 2,080 • 2,492 • 1,775 Population (1901) 2,933,000 851,000 666,000 1,327,000 322.000 193,000 142,115 The total area of the Agency is 77,400 square miles and the population 8J millions. 442. The numerous States thus united do not in any sense form a natural division, and are constituted a political unit under the Supreme Government mainly because they all came under British protection and control about the same time, after the final overthrow of the Maratha power in 1 8 18. The Agency is divided into two parts by the southern tongue of the Province of Agra, which stretches southwards till it meets the northern boundary of the Central Provinces. The western part is the larger. It lies between the Central Provinces and Rajputana, and includes the more important States of Gwalior, Indore, and Bhopal, each of which consists of numerous separate terri- tories. The eastern part includes the larger States of 248 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA Rewah, Orchha, and Panna, and the numerous small States of Bundelkhand. 443. People. In race the people of Central India are very mixed. There are numerous Rajputs wlio are of tolerably pure Aryan blood, and still more Marathas who are Scytho-Dravidians, the Scythic element predominating. There are also about a million and a half Bhils and Gonds, primitive Dravidian races who speak Dravidian dialects of Iny/isk Ni/.-s ]{ail^-ays <3 so 100 no Jirnad, Oaugc - .. i n ■ j_^.ij g 1 L I ■ 2fo- rrow Oa uye -— -^-^-^-^ Fig. 70. Central India. their own, and to whose ancestors in pre-historic times the whole of East Central India probably belonged. The Bhilalas are of mixed Rajput and Bhil descent. The rest of the people are also mainly of Dravidian extraction. Of the total poj^ulation, about 7 millions are Hindus, and the rest cliicfl}- Animists, Muhammadans, and Jains. Dialects of Western Hindi aiv .sjx)kcn by about 4J millions, Eastern Hindi and RajasthanI by about t\ millions each, and various Bhil dialects by over a quarter of a million. CENTRAL INDIA 249 444. Surface. The eastern part of the Satpura Range forms the southern boundary of the western half of the Agency. In height these hills average only about 2,300 feet, but one peak is over 3,000. North of this lies a portion of the beautiful valley of the Narbada, and further north the Vindhya Mountains run from east to west for a distance of 250 miles. These are still lower than the Satpuras, only at one point exceeding 2,500 feet, but their southern slopes toward the Narbada are sharp. North of the Vindhyas UNITED PROVINCES . ' Tcut of IvAurc P » Vart of PojuiXL CENTRAL INDIA Shiwirhq tkn Ltwrier SUdls ■ Fig. 71. Central India, sliowing tlie chief States. stretches the fertile Malwa Plateau, which has an elevation varying from 1,250 to 2,000 feet and slopes gradually to the north, so that the entire drainage is to the Chambal or the Jumna. The western boundary of the plateau where it descends to the plains is often termed the Malwa Ghats, but the Ghats do not rise above the average level of the plateau itself. The Kaimur Range, hardly anywhere exceeding 2,000 feet, crosses the centre of the eastern section of the Agency, sloping sharply to the valley of the 250 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA Son in the south, and more gently to the valley of the Ganges in the north. In the extreme south of the eastern section the greatest elevation is reached, Mount Amar- kantak, 3,495 feet in height, being just on the boundary line between the Central Provinces and Central India. 445. Climate and rainfall. The rainfall is ample, both in the eastern and western sections, especially in the former, and it occurs chiefly in the summer months. The monsoon current passes up the valley of the Narbada, shedding its moisture as it goes, but giving a heavier watering to Bundelkhand than it does to Malwa. The northern parts of the Agency around the city of Gwalior are much drier than the southern, and are within the region of precarious rainfall. The temperature over the whole of Central India is high in the summer, particu- larly to the north, but in the winter it is cool and pleasant. 446. Rivers. For more than 100 miles the Narbada flows through the south-western portion of the Agency, and for 150 miles further up it forms the boundary between Central India and the Central Provinces, but it drains only a narrow strip south of the Vindhyas. With this exception the whole drainage of the Agency is northward to the Chambal and the Jumna along the gentle slopes of the plateau. The chief tributaries of the Chambal are the Kali Sindh in the west, and the Parbati a little further east. The Chambal itself rises in the Vindhyas, as also does the Mahi further west. The Mahi flows at first northward, then bending round finds its way to the Gulf of Cambay. In the eastern part of the Agency the river Son, rising on the slopes of Mt. Amarkantak, flows northward to the Kaimur Range, which it skirts along the south and so passes into the United Provinces. North of the Kaimurs the drainage is to the Jumna and Ganges, the Betwa with its tributary the Dhasan, the Sunar or Ken, and tlie Tons, all flowing in a north- westerly direction from the southern hills. 447. Soil and Natural Products. The soil of the Malwa plateau consists chiefly of the rich black cotton-soil charac- teristic of the north-west Deccan, and the hills arc composed CENTRAL INDIA 25I ol abrupt masses of basaltic rock. In the north and east archasan rocks and sandstones prevail, which yield a lighter and more porous soil through which the water quickly drains. The western portion of the Agency is, therefore, much more fertile than the eastern. On the Malwa plateau much opium is grown, also tobacco, cotton, millets and sugar-cane. Wheat is grown in the drier districts both east and west, and is chiefly a cold- weather crop. In the south of Rewah, in the eastern portion of the Agency, coal is found and is successfully worked at Umaria. The largest coal-fields of India stretch south-east from Umaria towards the valley of the Mahanadi, and eastwards along the valley of the Damodar. 448. Communications. A branch of the Bengal-Nagpur line from Bilaspur to Katni runs through the south-eastern part of the Agency tapping the Umaria coal-fields, and is continued westwards to Kotah on the Chambal. The Fast Indian Railway from Jubbulpore runs north through Bundelkliand to Allahabad, crossing the line from Bilaspur at Katnl. The Indian Midland Railway runs southward from Agra to Jhansi, passing the town of Gwalior, whence three small branches radiate. The same line runs through the south-west of the Agency, giving Gwalior direct con- nection with Bhopal, Ujjain, and Rutlam. From Ujjain a narrow-gauge line, a branch of the Rajputana-Malwa Railway, runs to Indore and Mhow, and is continued north- ward by Rutlam and Neemuch to Ajmere. The rivers are of little use as means of communication, being roaring torrents in the rainy season and at other times almost dry. The roads are specially good, more than four-fifths of their total length being well metalled. The great trunk road from Bombay to Agra runs through the western part of the Agency, passing the cities of Indore and Gwalior. 449. Gwalior, a Maratha State under Sindhia, is the largest of the Central India States. It includes numerous detached districts between the Chambal and the Narbada, peopled mainly by Marathas, Rajputs, and Jats. The founder of the Sindhia family was Ranoji Sindhia, the slipper-bearer of the Peshwa, who died about 1750. This 252 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA CENTRAL INDIA 253 Maratha dynasty acquired extensive territories in Central India, but they were greatly reduced after the Maratha forces had been repeatedly defeated by the British. A British Resident now resides at the Court of Sindhia. The capital is Gwalior. or Lashkar, in the north. The fort and palace of Gwalior are built on a flat-topped basaltic rock 450 feet high, and a mile and a half long. The fort is of great antiquity, and has had a remarkable history, having been again and again besieged and taken. It can be approached only on one side of the rock, the other sides being almost precipitous. In the south is Ujjain, near which are the ruins of ancient Ujjain, a sacred city of the Hindus, and once the capital of Malwa. Ujjain was the first meridian of Hindu geographers, and the year 57 B.C., in which its celebrated king Vikramaditya began his reign, forms a Hindu era. Bhilsa, to the east, on the borders of Bhopal, has some interesting Buddhist remains in its neighbourhood, and is noted for its tobacco ; Neemuch, in the west, is a British military station. 450. Indore, under Holkar, is also a Maratha State, consisting of detached districts on both sides of the Narbada. Bhils are numerous in some of the hilly parts. The founder of the Holkar family was a ryot, born in 1603, who became one of the most distinguished of the Maratha Chiefs. Indore, the capital, lies north of the Vindhya Hills, and is the headquarters of the Agent to the Governor-General and of the British Resident at Holkar's Court. Mhow, a British military station, is near Indore. 451. Bhopal, north of the Narbada, is under a Pathan dynasty. The state was founded by an Afghan adventurer in the days of Aurungzebe, and is somewhat smaller than Indore both in area and population. The rulers of Bhopal had naturally no fondness for the Marathas, at whose hands they suffered much, and all through the Maratha wars they were steadfast allies of the British. The capital is Bhopal, near the Betwa, a walled town on a hill 1,700 feet high. 452. Rewah, is a Baghel Rajput State in the eastern section of the Agency. It lies south of Allahabad, rising in successive terraces from the valley of the Ganges. The 254 GliOGRArHV OF INDIA higher lands are fertile and produce large crops of wheat, pulses and barley, with a little cotton. Rewah is rich both in forests and coal. The Umaria coal-field is in the south, and tlie mines arc worked witli consiS23,I2I . . 8,305 . 745,757 • • 5.369 • 861,833 • • 7,403 • 477,848 6,004 1,041,067 4,010 535,027 . . 6,879 . 932,090 .. 4,i6S . 766,129 .. 6,172 . 721,407 • 5,433 • 695,765 .. 3,612 . 550,148 .. 4,460 . 492,258 HYDERABAD 267 475. At Secunderabad, the northern suburb of the capital, is the British cantonment. Bolaram, a few miles south, is the headquarters of the Nizam's army. Aurunga- bad, in the north-west, is the second town in size. It has a population of about 30,000. Aurungzebc was particularly- attached to this city, and here is the tomb of his favourite wife. North of Aurungabad are Ellora and Ajanta, famous for their sculptured cave-temples. Jalna, east of Aurunga- bad, is a military station. HYDERABAD BoiutcLxries 'if Dtvisjotis -■ J'o^uxJmj'ccs of Districts Erujlcsh. MiZtlS Fig. 77. Districts of Hyderabad. The numbers coincide with those of the list. 476. Bidar, north-west of Hyderabad, and Gulburga (or Kulburga), on the G.I. P. Railway, were capitals of the Bahmini kingdom. Kalyan, west of Bidar, was the Chalukya capital. Warangal, north-east of Hyderabad, was the capital of the Hindu kingdom of Telingana, or Andra. Golconda, near Hyderabad, has a strong fortress, it was once noted for its trade in diamonds. 268 GEOGRAPHY OK INDIA Thau ako Engliih T\dil{S ISO too R ail ■^ a ys Broad Gauge , tiarrom CauQ€ ^ Fig. yb. Bombay. For Sind see map on page 337. THE BOMBAY PRESIDENCY. 477. The Province (or Presidency) of Bombay includes a long strip of territory, averaging 150 miles wide, along the west coast of India and nearly the whole of Sind. It extends through about 15° of latitude, from the southern point of the Punjab southward to where the State of Mysore approaches most nearly to the sea. From this point the whole western coast northwards to Cape Monze is included in the Province, with the exception of small Portuguese possessions at Goa and Diu. The Province is bounded on the north by Baluchistan and Rajputana, on the east by Hyderabad and the States of Central India, on the south by Mysore, and on the west by the Arabian Sea and Baluchistan. Including the Native States it covers an area of nearly 189,000 square miles, and has a population of 25J millions. 478. History. The Island of Bombay formed part of the dowry of Catherine of Braganza, wife of Charles II, and was given by him to the East India Company in 1668. Long before this the officers of the East India Company at Surat had set covetous eyes upon it, and had even offered to purchase it from the Portuguese. Bombay consisted at one time of seven small islands, but the creeks have silted up and much of the shore has been artificially reclaimed. In 1782 the neighbouring islands of Salsette, etc., were obtained from the Maratha ruler. The District of Surat was annexed by the British on the death of the Nawab in 1800. The Gujarat territories round the Gulf of Cambay were secured in 1805, and all the southern Districts (save North Kanara, which was received later from Madras) fell to the British on the downfall of the Peshwa's power in 18 18. Sind was conquered in 1843. 270 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 479. Surface. I'roni the river Tapti the Western Ghats or Sahyadri Mountains run southward. Near tlic river they arc 70 miles from the sea, but towards the south the distance grows less till in the most southerly district of the l^rovince they approach the coast. Between the mountain summits and the sea arc the districts known as the Konkan, including the steep slopes of the hills and a narnnv coastal plain. Inland from the mountains is the western part of the Deccan plateau, to which the hills slope gently, and which seldom falls to a lower level than 2,000 feet above the sea. The whole of this part of the province is well watered and fertile. On the western slopes of the hills the rainfall is very heavy, but it decreases rapidly to the east, and more slowly to the north. North of the Tapti the province includes the southern slopes of the Satpuras, which divide the Tapti and Narbada basins, ami north of the Narbada the gentle western slopes of the Vindhyas. Running from this point to the north-west are the low Malwa Ghats, which form the boundary between Bombay and Central India. 480. From these hills the province stretches awaj' to the north-west and the amount of rainfall rapidly declines. Over the great peninsula of Kathiawar and north-westwards to Malwa it is still fairly sufticient, being usually between 20 and 40 inches a year. But Cutch and the whole of Sind receive much less. The greater part of Sind has less than 10 inches, and a considerable area less than 5 inches. The result of this is that, though much of the soil of Sind is naturally good, the province is thinly peopled and com- paratively barren. It depends upon the Indus for its water. All along the course of the river tlicre are inunda- tion canals which carry the flood waters for many miles. Wherever the land can be thus watered it is found exceed- ingly productive and yields hea\y crops. But the greater part of Sind is too far from the river to be reached by inun dation canals, and is therefore barren. The District of Thar and Parkar, lying north of the great salt swamp called the Rann of Cutch forms the soutliern portion of the Indian Desert. ayt BOMBAY PREST I I I Fig. 79. Bombay and bind in relief. 272 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 481. Rivers. The Indus Hows from north to south of Sind, but receives no tributaries in this part of its course. Its bed is higher than the surrounding plain, and destructive floods sometimes result from the bursting of its banks. The high level of the river, however, makes irrigation by inundation canals all the easier (Pt. I. §146). Canals of this kind, which have been constructed at an exceedingly low cost, give fairly efficient protection to about 350 sq. miles on both sides of the river. Such canals do not provide a perennial supply of water, but they nevertheless suffice to convert wide tracts of barren desert into smiling cornfields. 482. The Sabarmati and the Mahi flow southward from the Malwa Ghats to the Gulf of Cambay. The Narbada runs but a short part of its course through Bombay. It has a broad sandy estuary. The Tapti flows through the province for the last 200 miles of its course, watering the broad, low plateau of Khandesh. In the southern portion of the province the rivers flowing to the west are short and swift. On the east the basins of the Godavari and Kistna extend from the TaptI basin to the extreme south of the province. The Sina and the Bhima, both of which rise in the Western Ghats, are the chief tributaries of the Kistna. 483. Climate and rainfall. The abundant rainfall in the south of the province keeps the temperature fairly even. In the Konkan it is warm and moist all the year, oppressive in the hotter months but pleasant in winter. At the other side of the hills the difference between winter and summer temperature is greater, and in the Deccan districts tlic winter is exceedingly bracing and healthy. As the rainfall decreases towards the north-west the variation of tempera- ture between summer and winter and between day and night increases till, in the north of the Province, it is very great. In Sind the summer days are unendurably hot, the thermometer in the shade often rising to 125° F., and the winter nights are intensely cold. There is sometimes a drop of 50° between day and night. 484. Soil and Products. In Sind the soil is alluvial, and in most parts sandy. From the Rann of Cutch and north Kathiawar north-westward to the Aravallis is a broad BOMBAY 273 stretch of crystalline rock, which yields a light and porous soil similar to much on the eastern side of the peninsula. Round the Gulf of Cambay and in the valley of the Narbada alluvial deposits prevail. With these exceptions almost the whole of Bombay proper as far southwards as Dharwar, including the greater part of Kathiawar, is on the Deccan Trap, which yields the rich, black, water-holding, " cotton soil." Cotton is grown in abundance chiefly in the northern district of Khandesh and the southern district of Dharwar, but also in all the other Districts and vStates. Rice is grown in the western Districts along the coast, where the coconut also abounds. Wheat is the chief crop in the drier districts of Sind. The millets and pulses are largely grown east of the Ghats. Bombay has no mineral wealth. 485. Communications. Two lines of the Great Indian Peninsula Railway run from the city of Bombay, one north- east to Jubbulpore crossing the mountains at the Thai Ghat, and the other south-east to Poona and Raichur crossing by the Bor Ghat. A loop line unites these two from Manmad to Dhond, passing the ancient city of Ahmad - nagar. The southern part of the province is served by the Southern Maratha Railway, of which two lines run south, one from Poona and the other from Hotgi. These are united in the south by another line of the same system running from Goa right across the peninsula to Bezwada on the East Coast line. From Hubli on this line another main line of the Southern Maratha Railway runs south- eastward into the Mysore State. Northward from Bombay the Bombay and Baroda Railway runs along the coast via Surat and Broach to Baroda and Ahmadabad. From Surat the Tapti Valley Line unites this with the northern line of the G.I. P. at Jalgaon. There arc numerous small lines in Kathiawar which are linked up with the Rajputana- Malwa Railway running through Rajputana to Agra and Delhi. The Indus Valley Line of the North Western system runs southwards from the Punjab along the left bank of the river as far as Rohri, and then, crossing the river at the Sukkur Bridge, continues on both banks as far as Hydera- T -274 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA bad, then on the right bank alone to Karachi. From near the Sukkur Bridge the Sind-Pishin Railway branches off to Quetta and the Afghan frontier. The province is well supplied with roads, but of inland waterways it has none save the Indus. 486. People. The inhabitants of the province are chiefly of Scytho-Dravidian race. Hindus greatly pre- dominate in Bombay proper, and Muhammadans in Sind. There are nearly a quarter of a million Jains in the province, also about 75,000 Parsls, who were driven from Persia by the Muhammadan invasions in the 7th century. The Parsis form the most active and energetic business men in the city of Bombay. SindhI in the north-west, Gujarati round the Gulf of Cambay, Marathi southwards to Sholapur, and Kanarese still further south are the principal languages spoken. As in all other provinces of India, agriculture is the main occupation of the people. But the city and neighbourhood of Bombay has become a great manufactur- ing centre. 487. Administrative Divisions. The British territory in the Province of Bombay is divided into 25 Districts (or 26 it the City of Bombay be considered a District in itself) which are grouped into 4 Divisions : — Area in Population Divisions and Districls. sq. miles (I 901) Sind Division — Karat lii .. 11.970 • 446,513 Hyderabad . . 8,291 . 989,030 Larkana .. 5,091 . 656,083 Sukkur • • 5.403 • 5-^3.345 Thar and Parkar .. 13,690 . 363.S94 Upper Sind Frontier. . .. 2,621 . ^32,045 Nopthern Division — Ahmadabad . . .. 3,Si6 . 795,967 Broach .. 1,467 . 291,763 Kaira . . •• 1,595 • 716,332 Pancli Mahals 1,606 261,020 Surat . . .. 1.653 • 637.017 Thana •• 3.573 • S",433 275 Fig, 80. The Districts aad States of Bombay. Ttie numbers coincide with those of the list. 276 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 6,586 837,695 4.544 957.728 5,497 469.654 3.850 816.504 5-349 995.330 4.825 • 1,146,559 4.541 720,977 4.^49 993,976 5.669 735,435 4,602 1,113,298 3,945 454,490 2,131 605,566 3,998 1,167,927 22 977.822 Central Division — Ahmadnagar . . East KhUndcsh West Khandcsh Nasik . . Poena . . Satara Sholapiir Southern Division — Bslgaum Bijapur Dharwar Kanara Kolaba Ratnagiri Bombay City (1906) 488. Chief Towns. Bombay is the second city in British India in population, and is steadily and rapidly growing. At the census of 1901 its population was returned at 776,000, but according to a special census taken in IQ06 it was 977,000. It stands upon a small island which is now connected with the larger island of Salsette to the north, which in its turn is connected with the mainland. The city may tlius be said to stand upon an artificial pro- montory which encloses what is by very far the finest and most commodious natural harbour in India. Its safe and excellent accommodation for shipping of any size, and the fact that, with the single exception of Karachi, it is the nearest Indian port to Europe, gives Bombay an advantage over every other Indian seaport, especially now that the Ghat.s, which in olden days cut it of? from the interior, have been surmounted by railways. Being the nearest seaport of any size to the chief cotton-growing Districts, Bombay is the great cotton-port of India. During the last half century a vast steam cotton industry has also sprung up in the city and neighbourhood, which now gives employ- ment to 130,000 people. During the same period the foreign trade of the port has increased nearly sevenfold — from 8^ millions sterling to 57 millions. BOMBAY 277 489. Bombay is now a great and wealthy city, and its improvement in every respect has kept pace with the growth of its commerce. It has now an abundant and excellent water supply, and an efficient drainage system, and its modern streets are broad and well kept. In the size and architectural beauty of many of its public buildings it stands first among the cities of India, whilst in its educa- tional institutions, hospitals, public parks and museums, no other city surpasses it. Bombay has direct railway Fig. Si. The Victoria Railway Station, Bombay. communication with all the great cities of India. It is 1,400 miles from Calcutta by rail and 800 miles from Madras. 490. Ahmadabad, on the Sabarmati, was once the Muliammadan capital of Gujarat, and is the third city in the Bombay Presidency. Broach, on the Narbada, is an ancient seaport. It has a considerable cotton trade, but the silting up of the shallow estuary of the river interferes 27^ GEOGRAPHY OK INDIA with shipping. At Surat, on the Tapti, the first English factory in India was estabUshed in 1O12. For many years Surat was the great centre of trade on the western coast and the chief port of India. Its trade has now almost departed. All the ports on the Gulf of Cambay arc being gradually cut off from the sea by the silting up of the Gulf, which is due not only to the solid matter brought down by the rivers but still more to the sand washed into the gulf by the monsoon currents. Cambay, at the head of the Gulf, was once a flourishing port, but is now an inland I'ig. 82. Cave of Elcphanta. Monolithic carvings. town. Elephanta, a small island in Bombay harbour, and Salsette to the north, contain sculptured cave-temples of great beauty. 491. Nasik, a place of pilgrimage about 100 miles north- west of Bombay, is situated near the source of the Godavari. There are some cave temples of Buddhist origin in the neighbourhood. Ahmadnagar, on the Sina, is a walled city which was once the capital of a Muhammadan kingdom. Poona is a large military station and was the last capital of the Pcshwa. To the north-west is Mahabaleshwar, a sanatorium 4.500 feet above sea-level. Mahabaieshwar is BOMBAY 279 the chief summer residence of the Governor of Bombay except during the rains, when he moves to Poona. Dharwar, in the south, is noted for its cotton, and is connected by rail \vith Bellary. Hubli, a railway junction near Dharwar, has a large cotton trade. 492. Karachi, a seaport west of the Indus with a good harbour (Pt. I. § 64) and a rapidly growing trade, is the largest town in Sind. It has railway connection with north India and is the chief seaport for the Punjab trade. Almost all the Indian export of wheat is from this port. The trade of Karachi has increased three-fold during the last TO years, and now amounts to about iS milhons sterling a year. Hyderabad, near the Indus, was formerly the capital of the Amirs. Native States in Bombay. 493. The Bombay Presidency has a larger number of Native States than any other Province, but many of them are very small. Exclusive of Baroda, which is under the Supreme Government, their total area is over 65,000 square miles, or more than half the size of the British territory, and their population is about 7 millions. 494. Khairfur, in the north-east of Sind, is the largest of these States and has an area of 6,000 square miles and a population of 200,000. Khairpur is ruled by descendants of the Amirs of Sind. It is a hot and almost rainless region, but the soil is fertile wherever it is well watered. Of late years numerous canals have been cut from the Indus and the prosperity of the State has greatly increased. The chief town, Khairpur, is not far from the Indus. 495. CuTCH is a long semicircular peninsula to the north of the Gulf of Cutch, and separated from Sind by the broad salt swamp called the Great Rann. The inhabitants of Cutch are Musalmans and Hindus in about equal proportions. The head of the Government is called the Rao, under whom there are about 200 Chiefs. The principal town is Bhiij, near the centre ; on the coast is Mandavi, a small seaport. In 1819, Bhiij was nearly destroyed by an earthquake. 28o GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 496. Baroda, under the Gaikwar, is the most important of the Gujarat States. It consists of four separate terri- tories with a total area of more than 8,000 square miles and a population of 2 millions. The State is under a wise and enlightened ruler, and great progress has been made of recent years, especially in the extension of railways and the promotion of education. Among the States and Pro- vinces of India it is the only one in which the experiment of free education has been made. Baroda is only geographi- cally in Bombay. Politically it is in direct relation with the Supreme Government and has a British Resident accredited to its court. Baroda, the capital, east of the Gulf ot Cambay, has a population of over 100,000. It is not a great commercial centre, but has a State Library, a well-equipped College, and numerous handsome public buildings. Deesa, a military station, is north of Baroda. Camb.w, now much decayed, near the mouth of the Mahi, is under a Nawab. 497. There are many small States in the peninsula of Kathiawar some of which are tributary' to the (iaikwar of Baroda and some to the British. Among the Kathiawar Princes are some of the most enlightened Native Rulers in India. They have done much for the development of their territories by a wise imitation of British methods and the promotion of railways and education. The Peninsula is traversed by the Bhaunagar-Gondal-Junagarh-Porbandar Railway, constructed at the expense of the Xative Govern- ments. The chief towns in Kathiawar are Rajkot, near the centre ; Bhaunagar, in the east ; with Porbandar, a seaport, and Dwarka, a place of pilgrimage, in the west. 498. There are also several Native States and Jagirs in the IMaratha country. Two of the most important are KoLHAPUR, south-east of Ratnagiri and Savantvadi, north of Goa. Janjir.\ is a small State south of Bombay, imder a Nawab who is a Sidi. or Abyssinian, by descent. A large number of other small States are grouped together in the Palanpur, Mahi Kantha and Rewa Kantha Political Agencies. MADRAS. 499. The Province (or Presidhncy) of Madras occu- pies the southern portion of peninsular India, and includes the entire coast southward from Lake Chilka on the east, round Cape Comorin, and northward on the west to the southern boundary of Bombay. Its total area (including Native States) is 151,700 square miles, and its population over 42J millions. 500. History. In extent and boundaries Madras has changed but little since 1801. The sandy, low-lying tract upon which the city of Madras now stands, was obtained from the Raja of Chandragiri in 1639. A fort was soon erected, and in 1633 it was made a Presidency under the title of the Presidency of Fort St. George. But for over a century it was closely hemmed in by native territory. In 1763 the surrounding District of Chingleput, then called the Jagir, was ceded by the Nawab of Arcot. Two years later the Northern Circars (including almost the whole of the five modern Districts north of Nellore), which had been taken from the French in 1759, were formally ceded to the British by the Emperor. 501. In 1792, after the first war with Tipu Sultan (known as the Third Mysore War) the Districts of Malabar and Salem were taken. The Fourth Mysore War ended in 1799, with the fall of Seringapatam and the death of Tipu, and was followed by the partition of his territories. The British took the southern and western portions, which now form the Districts of Coimbatore and Kanara, and to the Nizam was given an extensive tract in the north bordering on his own dominions. The rest was restored to the old Hindu dynasty. At the same time the Raja of the small Maratha Kingdom of Tanjore yielded his territories 282 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA T.ngJt'-'i: >.'iZfs Fig. 83. Madras, Hyderabad, and Mysore. MADRAS 283 to the British in return for a pension. The following year the Nizam entered into a subsidiary alliance with the British, ceding to them in return for protection the whole of his recent acquisitions. Thus the greater part of the present Districts of Bellary, Anantapur, Kurnul and Cuddapah, (which to this day are known as " the Ceded Disti'icts ") were added to the Presidency. 502. For some years previous to this the Nawab of the Cirnatic had resided in the city of Madras under British protection, leaving the administration of his territories in their hands. In 1799 it was discovered that he had been in correspondence with Tipij. He was therefore compeUed to resign all claim to his territories and accept a pension. In 1 80 1 the whole of the Carnatic was formally annexed to the Presidency of Madras, which thus became very much what it is to-day. The territories of the Nawab of Kurnul were annexed to the Presidency in 1839. Tranquebar was purchased from the Danes in 1S45, and in 1862 the West Coast District of North Kanara was transferred to Boinbay. 503. Surface. Madras takes in almost the whole of the Eastern Ghats and a considerable portion of the Deccan Plateau. In the south it includes the Nilgiris, where the Eastern and Western Ghats draw together, and the Palghat Gap, which separates them from the Anamalais and gives easy communication between the eastern and western parts of the province. North of the Gap the highest peak of the Nilgiris, Dodabetta, attains an elevation of 8,760 feet, and is exceeded only by Anaimudi in the Anamalais, south of the Gap, which reaches 8,850 feet, and is the highest point south of the Sulaimans. The Palnis are a long eastern spur of the Anamalais. The Shevaroy Hills are a detached group south-west of Madras, which may be regarded as the southern spurs of the Eastern Ghats. They are separated from the eastern spurs of the Nilgiris by the valley of the Cauvery. South of the Anamalais and Palnis the Car- damom Hills run south almost to Cape Comorin, forming the boundary between the Native State of Travancore on the west and the British districts on the east. The Eastern Ghats are known by different names in different parts, the 284 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA chief being the Nallamalai Hills, south of the bend of the Kistna. None of them are over 4,000 feet in height till north of the Godavari, when they approach considerably nearer the sea and in several places rise to nearly 5,000 feet. From the Godavari southward to Cape Comorin the coastal plain is broad, elsewhere it is narrower, but all along the east coast it is much broader than on the west. 504. Rivers. The Godavari and Kistna 'Pt. I. §§ 55-6) flow through ^ladras for only the last few miles of their course, but they bring down an immense volume of water and are of great importance. The Cauvery runs the greater part of its course in Madras. It rises on the plateau and by its numerous tributaries drains the southern half of the Mysore State. After descending to the plains it receives the Bhavani and the Noyil from the Nilgiris and the Amaravati from the Palnis. At Trichinopoly it divides into two main arms which carry its waters to the Bay of Bengal. The northern and larger of these is known as the Coleroon. Smaller rivers are the Northern Penner, which drains by its numerous tributaries the northern part of the Mysore plateau and enters the Bay o? Bengal at Xellore ; the Pilar and the Southern Penner, which also come down from the plateau and discliargc into the Bay near Sadras and Cuddalorc respectively ; the Vellar, a little further south ; and the Vaigai, the Vaipar and the Tambraparni, which rise in the southern mountains and flow into the Palk Straits and the Gulf of Manar. Most of these rivers are liable to serious floods. The heav^' monsoon rainfall drains away with great rapidity from the rocky plateau and the rivers rise with great suddenness, and often overflow their banks and submerge the country for many miles. The rivers do not tend to change their channels, however, but when the flood subsides fall back into their old beds. 505, Climate and Rainfall. The temperature is fairly high all the year round. The day temperature along the coast varies from 75° to 95° F., and the difference between day and night is very slight. In the interior both daily and sea.sonal ranges are greater. The west coast is not so hot in summer as the east on account of tlie heavy rains MADRAS 285 14^ ^ V',**. / ^ -A -r ■^v \^ MADRAS PRESY HAIDARABAD,ETc Fig. 84. Madras, Mysore, Hyderabad and Berar in relief. 286 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA which then prevail. The south-west winds, which bring refreshment to the west of the peninsula, reach the eastern districts as hot and dry land winds. The cast coast receives its chief watering in October and November when the north- east monsoon blows in force. Along both coasts the rain- fall is usually plentiful. The western districts, however, owing to the influence of the Ghats, receive a much heavier fall than the eastern, the annual average being 130 inches against 50 inches on the east. Inland the fall is much less as well as more precarious, and in the northern districts of the plateau it is very scanty, varying from 17 inches in Anantapur to 30 inches in Cuddapah. 506. Soil and irrigation. The rich, black, water-holding soil, known as the cotton soil, is not largely met with in Madras, save in the north-western Districts. The greater part of the province, as well as the State of Mysore, the south-eastern Districts of Hyderabad, and a large part of the Central Provinces, is a region of crystalline archaean rock, the softer volcanic rock which yields the black soil of the north-west Deccan being almost imknown. Most of the soil is, therefore, sandy and porous, and except along the alluvial coast strip the water quickly drains away, and the land is soon dry even after the heaviest rain. There is almost everywhere, therefore, a constant need for irrigation. Vast systems of canals distribute the waters of the Godavari, Kistna, Cauverj'' and North Penner over their deltas. More than 7,000 miles of canals, large and small, water 5,000 square miles of land, converting tracts once dry and barren into rich and fertile rice fields. 507. Still more important,however, is the irrigation carried on from tanks in which the rain, which would otherwise run to waste, is stored for use in the dry season. There are over 60,000 artificial tanks in the province, var>-ing in size from mere ponds to vast lakes. In some cases the smaller rivers hardly find their way to the sea at all, their flood waters being run off into tanks along their whole course. Almost all the smaller tanks are ancient, having been con- structed long before the British occupation. Irrigation from wells is also of great importance, and is common MADRAS 287 through the province. About 2,000,000 acres of agricul- tural land in the Province is entirely dependent upon irriga- tion from wells. Such wells are private works, but the Government encourages their construction by advancing the requisite funds whenever necessary. Over 15,000 new wells have thus been dug in the last 10 years. 508. Natural Products. Rice is grown in the river deltas, along the coastal strip, and wherever water is plentiful. Outside Bengal, Tanjore is the greatest rice- producing district in India. In the drier districts millets, especially cholum and cumbu are very largely grown, as also are pulses. In the whole province millets and pulses usually cover twice as much land as rice. Oil-seeds and sugar-cane are also extensively grown. Cotton is a crop of increasing value, only Berar and Bombay exceeding Madras in the amount of cotton produced. The Indigo plant was at one time a crop of great importance, but owing to the competition of artificial indigo it now covers a comparatively small area. Tobacco is largely grown in Madura and the Godavari Delta, the produce of the latter being known as Lanka tobacco. Coffee and tea, and, to a decreasing extent, cinchona are grown on the Nilgiris and the Western Ghats. The coconut is common every- where along the coast. 509. The province of Madras has no great mineral wealth. Iron of remarkable purity is abundant near Salem and elsewhere, but owing to tlie scarcity of fuel and lime it cannot be worked successfully on any large scale. Along the coast salt is obtained from sea- water by solar evaporation. Manganese ore is found in great quantities in the Vizagapatam District and is mined at Vizianagram. About 60,000 tons a year are shipped to Europe, where it is used in the manufacture of steel. Mica is found in many parts, and is extensively mined in Nellore, where the mines give employment to over 6,000 people Crude saltpetre is obtained in Coimbatore and Trichi- nopoly. 510. People. The population of the province is almost entirely Dravidian. Telugu is spoken in the north-east, 288 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA Tamil in the south-east, Kanarese in tlic north-west, and Malayalam in the south-west. There are a few primitive tribes on the hills who also speak Dravidian dialects. Tulu is a cultivated language of the same family spoken in South Kanara. The great majority of the people are Hindus, but about 2j millions are Mtihammadans, and 2 millions Christians. Education is more widespread in Madras than in anv otiicr province of the Empire save Burma. 511. Industries. Madras differs from Bengal and Bombay in having no conspicuous manufacturing indus- tries. More than two-thirds of the people are directly engaged in agriculture. The ordinary hand-manufactures of India, pottery, weaving, brass work, etc., are common in many parts, but most of them are declining. The Northern Circars used to be famed for their fine muslins, and though these are still produced, the output is trifling compared to what it once was. Tanjore and Trichinopoly are still noted for their ornamental gold and silver work. Trichinopoly and Dindigul are also famed for cheroots and cigars. 512. Communications. The province is well supplied with roads, and owing to the ease with which stone is obtained, more than three-fourths of the entire length are metalled. Madras contains almost as great a length of ■metalled roads as all the other British provinces put together. Its river waterways are of little importance owing to the variable volume of the streams. In the dry weather most of them shrink to mere rivulets meandering over a wide bed of sand, while in the rainy season the}' are rushing torrents which carry all before them. ^^Tlerever the waters are held up by anicuts there is a certain amount of boat traffic, and small steamers have been tried, though without much success, on a part of the Godavari. The Buckingham Canal runs along the east coast, uniting the Godavari and the Palar, and brings large quantities of produce from both north and south to Madras. 513. Three lines of railway branch from Madras. The East Coast Railway runs nortli to Calcutta, meeting at Bezwada the Southern Maratha line which crosses tlic MADRAS 289 peninsula from Goa, and the Nizam's State Railway, which runs from Wadi Junction via Hj^derabad and Warangal. The Madras Railway runs inland, and at Arconum divides into northern and southern arms. The former runs in a north- westerly direction, crossing the Southern Maratha line at Guntakul and uniting with the Great Indian Peninsula Railway at Raichiir. This is the great mail route between Madras and Bombay. The southern arm runs south-west through the Palghat Gap to the west coast, and then northward along the coast to Mangalore. From Jalarpet a branch-line runs north-west to Bangalore ; from Podanur another to Mettupalaiyam at the foot of the Nilgiris, whence a hill railway ascends to Ootacamund ; and from Shoranur, beyond the Gap, a narrow-gauge line runs south to Cochin. 514. The South Indian Railway runs south to Tuticorin, forming, in conjunction with daily steamers across the Gulf of Manar to Colombo, the chief line of communication between India and Ceylon. Branches of this line run to Pondicherry and Negapatam on the East Coast, to Erode Junction on the Madras Railway, and from Manyachi across the Cardamom Hills to Quilon. The East Coast and Madras Railways are broad gauge lines, the South Indian, like the Southern Maratha, is of the metre gauge. 515. Foreign Commerce. Although the Province of Madras has a long sea-board and a large number of small ports, its foreign commerce is small, amounting only to about 9 per cent, of the total foreign trade of India. This is largely due to the fact that the ports are all poor. None of them give any shelter for shipping in bad weather, and at many of them the .sea is so shallow that vessels have to anchor a long way out. The larger ocean-going steamers, therefore, touch at no port along the coast save Madras itself, and comparatively few of them there. Much of the produce of the province finds its way to Calcutta and Bombay, where shipping facilities are greater. Further, Madras has no great manufactures, or large staple produce which it can readily sell, so that however good the ports were their trade could not be large. But though the foreign commerce of Madras is small it is steadily increasing, and u 290 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA the ratio of increase is not much behind that of the more favoured provinces. In 1896—7 the total foreign trade of India was nearly 130 milHons sterUng, of which the Province of Madras had 12 millions. In 1906-7 the total for India was nearly 190 millions, and Madras had 17^ millions. The exports of the Province consist chiefly of hides, cotton, indigo, rice, oil-seeds and sugar. The imports are chiefly cotton fabrics, metals and machinery, spices and liquors. MADRAS .sn MYSORE /;..,. „,/„r/,, „f Stnt.-s Hourularirs vt Dislrti.ts ■■— Fig. 85. The Districts of Madras and Mysore. Tlic nuiubors coincide with those of the list. MADRAS 291 516. Administrative Divisions. The Presidency of Madras is divided into 23 Districts. The " Division," as a group of Districts under a Commissioner, is not a part of the administrative machinery of Madras. The Districts are independent one of another and each is directly sub- ordinate to the Provincial Government. The classification of the Districts below is therefore not based on any adminis- trative relationship, but simply on geographical juxta- position. A rea in Population Name of District. sq. miles (1901) East Coast Districts — I. Ganjam .. 8,372 . 2,010,256 2. Vizagapatam .. 17,222 • 2,933,650 3. Godavari . . • • 5,634 • • 1,445,961 4. Kistna . • 5.899 • • 1,744,138 ' 5. Guntur • • 5.733 . • 1,490,635 6. Nellore • • 7.965 . . 1,272,815 Deccan Districts — 7. Cuddapah . . .. 8,723 . 1,291,267 8. Kurnul •• 7,578 • 872,055 9. Bellary •• 5,714 • 947,214 10. Anantapur . . •• 5,557 ■ 788,254 Southern Districts — II. Madras City 27 . 509,346 12. Chingleput • . 3,079 . 1,312,122 13. North Arcot . . 7,386 . 2,207,712 14. Salem • • 7,553 . • 2,204,974 15. Coimbatore.. . . 7,860 . • 2,201,752 16. South Arcot •• 5,217 • , 2,349,894 17. Tanjore .. 3,710 . . 2,245,029 18. Trichinopoly •• 3,632 . • 1,444,770 19. Madura .. 8,701 . 2,831,280 20. Tinnevelly . . .. 5,389 . • 2,059,007 West Coast Districts — 21. Nilgiris 957 • 111,437 22. Malabar • • 5,795 . . 2,800,555 23. South Kanara . . 4,025 . • 1,134,713 292 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 517. Chief Towns. .Madras (510,000), the capital ol the Presidency and the largest city in south India, is situated on a low sandy coast. It has no natural beauty whatever, nor docs its position give it any command of trade. Never- theless it is a fairly prosperous city, and possesses many beautiful public buildings. It covers an unusually large area (nearly 30 square miles) and the public buildings and European residences are not crowded together as in Cal- 'A' -i"-&?i;::C? Fig. 86. Monolith Temple at Mahabalipuram. cutta and Bombay. It has an excellent water supply, and, in spite of its high temperature, is one of the healthiest cities in India. Madras is defended by Fort St. George, from which the Presidency' derives its official name. A harbour has been constructed at great cost, but it gives no shelter in bad weather. The city is 770 miles from Calcutta by sea and nearly Soo miles from Bombay by rail. MADRAS 293 518. Thirty miles to the north of Madras is the PuHcat Lake, a shallow backwater. Here, at the little town of Pulicat, the Dutch made their first settlement in India. The backwater gives no harbour, however, for anything but small boats, and the town is now decayed. Another Dutch settlement was at Sadras on a similar, though smaller, backwater, south of Madras. Near Sadras is Mahabali- Fig. 87. Temple at Madura. puram, or the Seven Pagodas, famous for its exceedingly beautiful monolith temples. 519. Conjeevaram, the ancient capital of the Chola Kingdom, is a great place of pilgrimage and has a fine temple. It is a large and prosperous town and is now served by the branch of the South Indian Railway from Chingleput to Arconum. Trichinopoly, at the head of the delta of the Cauvery, is an ancient city, and till 294 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA the census of 1901 was, in population, the second city in Ihe Province. Madura now exceeds it. Tricliinopoly is a military station, and is noted for its jewellery and cheroots. One of the most remarkable features of the town is its celebrated rock, which rises abruptly in the heart of the fort to a height of about 270 feet. It is ascended by a partially covered stairway cut in the rock, and half way up and on the summit are small temples con- taining ancient and beautiful sculptures. Srirangam, on an Fig. 88. Entrance to the Pagoda, Conjecvaram. island of the Cauvery, near Trichinopoly, contains the largest temple in India. 520. Madura, on the Vaigai, is a still more ancient city. It was the capital of the Pandyas, and in more recent times of the Naik Kings Tirumal Naik, who reigned in the middle of the 17th century, greatly beautified the city and his palace, now the District Court, is one of the most perfect buildings in South India. The city contains MADRAS 295 several beautiful temples, and the "Hall of a Thousand Pillars " is unequalled in India. 521. Tanjore, on a branch of the Cauvery, a flourishing town at the head of a rich agricultural district, was the capital- of a small Maratha kingdom. The town contains the Raja's palace and some large temples. Rajahmundry is an important town on the Godavari, near the point where its waters divide. The East Coast Railway here crosses the river by a bridge almost two miles in length. At Fig. 8g. Trichinopoly Rock. Dowlaishweram, a little lower down, a very fine anicat crosses the river. Ootacamund and Coonoor, on the Nilgiris, Yercaud on the Shevaroys, and Kodaikanal on the Palnis are all favourite hill stations. Ootacamund is the summer seat of the Government, and has a large population. 522. After Madras the chief seaports are Vizagapatam, Cocanada and Masulipatam, north of Madras, Negapatam. south of Madras, Tuticorin on the Gulf of Manilr, and 2gC) GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA Calicut on the west coast. There are many other smaller ports, hut they arc all alike in offering no shelter whatever to shipping. Cocanada, near the northern mouth of the Godavari, is connected with the East Coast Railway by a short branch line. Its population and trade are rapidly growing. Masulipatam was the first English settlement on the east coast, and dates from 1620. From Negapatam large quantities of rice are shipped to Ceylon. From Tuticorin the cotton grown in the southern districts is shipped. But the chief trade of the port is with Colombo by a steamer which runs daily in connection with the South Indian Railway service. Calicut was the first place in India visited by the Portuguese under Vasco da Gama, who anchored there in 1498. The products of the coconut are its chief exports. Native States in Madras. 523. TRAVANCORE. the chief Native State in political relation with Madras, is bounded on the north by Cochin and on the west and south by the sea, while on the north- east and east the Western Ghats separate it from the Province of Madras. It has thus well-defined natural boundaries, and the mountains form a strong rampart on the land side. As at present constituted the State may be said to date from the early years of the iSth centur}-. During the struggle with Haidar Ali its ruler was a faithful ally of the British. Travancore has been under British protection since 1788, and it is now one of the best ruled and most progressive Native States of the Empire. 524. Physical Features. Travancore has been called " The Garden of India," both for the rich variety of its scenery and its great fertility. Magnificent forests clothe the mountain sides, and as the rainfall is very abundant and occurs chiefly in the early summer months, a dry heat is unknown, and a multitude of short mountain streams MADRAS 297 water the rich lowlands. The forests yield much valuable timber, especially teak, ebony, white cedar and sandal-wood. Along the coast large areas are devoted to the cultivation of the coconut. Rice is also grown, though the amount raised does not suffice to supply the needs of the dense population. Cardamoms, cofjee and tea are grown on the hills. The State has no very important mineral products, though plumbago of excellent quality is now obtained in two or three places. 525. Area and Population. The total area of the State is slightly over 7,000 square miles, of which more than a third is forest. The population, which is rapidly increasing, was nearly three millions in 1901. Slightly over two-thirds were Hindus and nearly a quarter Christians. The pro- portion of Christians to total population is higher th'an in any other part of India, owing to the fact that both the Syrian and Roman Churches have been settled in the State for many centuries. Only about one-seventh of the Chris- tians are Protestants. In education Travancore is ahead of all the other States and Provinces of India save Burma, nearly 13 per cent, of the population being able to read and write. 526. Communications and Commerce. Travancore is well supplied with roads. The Cochin-Shoranur Railway (a branch of the line from Madras to Calicut) enters the State from the north, and the Tinnevelly-Quilon Railway, which crosses the Ghats, connects Quilon with the South Indian? Railway in the east of the peninsula. A valuable means of internal communication is provided by a wonder- ful series of backwaters which run along the coast and are protected from the sea by broad sand-banks. These backwaters are united by canals, and so give a continuous waterway for over 200 miles. The trade of Travancore has more than doubled during the last quarter of a century. The chief exports are the products of the coconut, coir, copra and oil, teak wood, cardamoms, pepper and tea. 527. Chief Towns. Trivandrum, the capital, is a hand- some town of about 60,000 inhabitants. It is the seat of the Government, and has a high court, a well-equipped 298 GKOr.RAniV OF INDIA college, a school of art. an observatory, and several hospitals. Alleppey and Quilon are seaports, but neither of them has any protection for shipping of large size. 528. Cochin is a flourishing little State lying to the north of Travancore and to the south of the British District of Malabar, with an area of 1,300 square miles, and a popu- Fig. 90. A Ryot's House in Cochin. lation of over Soo.ooo. In physical features it closely resembles Travancore. It is extremely fertile, and some of its taluks are among the most densely peopled parts of India. Like Travancore, Cochin contains a large percentage of Christians, chiefly Syrians and Roman Catholics. It has also a very ancient and interesting colony of Jews. Ernaku- 1am, the capital, is near the British town of Cochin. MYSORE 299 529. PuDUKKOTTAi is a small State surrounded by the Madras Districts of Trichinopoly, Tan j ore, and Madura. It has an area of about 1,100 square miles and a population of 380,000. Its ruler is known as the Tondiman Raja. The capital, Pudukkottai, is a town of 20,000 inhabitants. MYSORE. 530. Mysore lies west of Madras, in the southern angle of the plateau of the Deccan. It has an area of 29,400 square miles. Next to Hyderabad it is the most populous Native State in India, having a total population of about 5 1 millions. The people are for the most part of Dravidian race except in the north-west, where they are Scytho- Dravidians, More than five millions are Hindus, over a quarter of a million Muhammadans, and the rest Christians, Aniniists, or Jains. The principal language is Kanarese, though Marathi is spoken in the north-west. 531. History. Mysore is an ancient Hindu kingdom. In 1759 Haidar Ali, a Muhammadan adventurer, who had been made Commander-in-Chief of the Ariny of the Maha- raja, usurped the authority, dispossessed his master, and carved out for himself a dominion in the south of the Deccan much larger than the present Mysore State. In 1769 he had become powerful enough to threaten the English at Madras. In 1782 Haidar died and was succeeded by his son Tipii, who was slain at the capture of Seringa- patam in 1799. The English then restored the ancient 300 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA VVodcyar family. In 1831, owing to the misgovernment of the Maharaja, the Government of India took the State into their own hands, and it was administered by British officers till 1881, when it was once more handed over to Native Government. Mysore has direct political relations with the Supreme Government, and the Viceroy is repre- sented by a Resident at the Court of the Maharaja. 532. Surface and drainage. As the Ecistem and Western I'ig. 91. A Village Street in Mysore. Ghats converge towards the south of the peninsula they both become higher and open out into a broad and elevated table-land, which is bounded on the south and west by hills of considerable elevation, but has no definite mountain ramparts on the east. Mysore occupies this high plateau. The whole of the State, with the exception of a few small parts in the north, is over 2,000 feet in height, and more than a third of it is over 3,000 feet. The more elevated districts of the plateau are in the east and west, but a ridge of slighter elevation, narrowing towanls the centre, stretches almost continuously across the State from north-east to MYSORE 301 west, forming the watershed. The drainage of the north and north-west portion is to the Kistna, the rivers Tunga and Bhadra from the western districts uniting to form the Tungabhadra, which is joined further on by the Hugri from the northern districts. The Palar and the Southern Penner drain a small part of the east. But the main drainage of the plateau is to the Cauvery, which rises in the Western Ghats and flows south-eastwards through the southern portion of the State. On its way it is joined by numerous tributaries from both sides. 533. Climate and Products. The elevation of the plateau makes Mysore much cooler than the surrounding plains. The rainfall is not heavy save along the mountains in the south and west. Elsewhere it averages from 26 to 35 inches a year. The plateau is composed almost entirely of ancient crystalline rock, and the soil is therefore generally light and sandy and in need of irrigation. The streams, however, are numerous, and their water is extensively used for agricultural purposes. There are numerous canals from the tributaries of the Kistna which carry the water for many miles. Mysore has also, like Madras, a large number of tanks. Cotton is grown in a few of the northern districts, rice and sugar-cane in the river valleys, and ragi almost everywhere. There are a few coffee and cinchona plantations on the hills in the west and south-west. From the forests a certain amount of teak is obtained, as well as sandalwood. The last is a government monopoly. At Kolar, in the east, there is a rich gold field, and large quantities of the metal are obtained. 534. Communications. The Madras Railway runs from Jalarpet to Bangalore, with a small branch to the Kolar gold-fields. The Southern Maratha Railway from Poona and Goa enters the State from the north-west and runs to Bangalore, whence another line of the same system runs northward to Dharmaveram and Guntakal. The Mysore State Railway unites Bangalore with the City of Mysore and runs on to Nanjangud. Excellent trunk roads branch out from Bangalore in all directions. 302 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA For administrative purposes Mysore is divided into eight Districts, as shown in Figure 45 : — Name of District. 1. Shimoga 2. Chitalchug 3. Kadur 4. Tumkur 5. Hassan 6. Mysore 7. Bangalore 8. Kolar A rea in Population sq. miles {1901) 4,025 . 531,736 4,022 498,795 2,813 • 362,752 4,158 . 679,162 2,647 • 568,919 5,469 • . 1,295,172 3,092 . 879,263 3,180 . 723.600 aj 11 i^JSk.i^XkMli S^M^S^lw^iVfcfc, •*;;:;,>ic Fig. 92. The Maharaja's Palace, Bangalore. 535. Chief Towns. Bangalore (160,000) towards the east is the chief town of the State. It is more than 3,000 feet high and enjoys a salubrious and excellent climate. It is the headquarters of the Government, and contains some fine public offices and a handsome palace. It is also a British Military station, and the Cantonment is British territory. To the east lies Kolar, the birthplace of Haidar Ali, now noted for its gold. Mysore, in the south, is the chief residence of the Maharaja. Seringapatam, northward on an island in the BURMA 303 Cauvery, was the capital of the Haidar family. Tipu was killed at the storming of Seringapatam by the British in 1799. The town is now almost deserted on account of its unhealthiness. 536. ' CooRG is a small British territory to the west, with an area of t,6oo square miles, and a population of 180,000. It is very mountainous. Coffee and cardamoms are the most important products. The chief town is Merkara. The Resident of Mysore is also Commissioner of Coorg. BURMA. 537. Burma, the largest of the Provinces of the Indian Empire, lies outside of India proper. It occupies the western part of the Indo-Chinese Peninsula, taking in the whole of the coast-line from the southern point of Eastern Bengal to Point Victoria on the Isthmus of Kra. On the north-west it adjoins the hilly districts of Eastern Bengal and Assam and the Native State of Manipur, and on the east it is bounded mainly by China in the north, and Siam in the south. The total area of the province is 236,000 square miles, and the population is about loj millions. 538. History. The dominions of the native govern- ment of Burma were originally much more extensive than the present British Province. The King was very despotic, being absolute master of the lives and property of his subjects. In 1824 the reigning monarch declared war against the British, and prepared golden chains to bind the Governor-General of India. The English troops advanced to Yandabo, within 45 miles of the capital, and the Burmese were compelled to make peace by the sacrifice of Assam, Arakan and the Tenasserim Provinces. In 1852 304 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA hostilities again broke out, and Pegu was annexed. To secure the peace of India, Theebaw, King of Upper Burma, was deposed in 1885, and the country became a Province of the Indian Empire. A Legislative Council was granted in 1897. 539. Surface. Burma consists of ranges of hills running roughly north and south and separated by long and usually narrow valleys. At the east of the Plateau of Tibet the mountain chains, which up to that point run chiefly east and west, bend round to the south almost in a series of con- centric arcs, turning the Brahmaputra into the valley of Assam. From that point they run mainlj' in a southerly direction. Three main chains can be traced. That nearest the river bends round a little to the west, and under various names forms the eastern frontier of India proper as far as Chittagong. It then continues as the Arakan Yoma at a short distance from the coast and in ever diminishing altitudes as far south as Cape Negrais, where it dips under the water to reappear in the Andaman Isles. This range forms the western boundary of the basin of the Irrawaddy. The eastern boundary of the basin is formed by a similar range, which widens out in the centre into the Shan and Karenni plateaux, and then, narrowing to the south, falls to the level of the plains near the angle of the Gulf of Martaban. Between these two ranges there is a minor range of lower elevation and broken in the centre. The northern half divides the basin of the Irrawaddy proper from that of its great tributary the Chindwin, and the southern half, called the Pegu Yoma, forms the western boundary of the small basin of the Sittang. The third and most easterly of the main chains attains to greater elevation than either of the others and runs southward for nearly twice the distance. It forms the eastern boundary of the narrow basin of the Sal win, and runs without a break to the Isthmus of Kra. 540. Coast Line. The coast of Burma contrasts strongly with that of peninsular India, being ever^'where rocky except where the rivers have built up their deltas. Like all rocky coasts it is fringed with innumerable islands. 305 Razhxcui/s (Ifco-row Guuufe) . Fig. 93. Burma. 306 GEOGRAPHY OF IN'OrA most of which are very small. Off the Arakan coast in the north are the larger islands of Ramri .mil Cheduba. On the Tcnasserim coast in the south is the Mergui Archipelago. Further out to sea, and stretching in a line from Cape Negrais to Sumatra are the Preparis, the Cocos, the Anda- mans and the Nicobars, the tops of a submarine ridge enclosing a deep sea. 541. Rivers. The Irrawaddy is the great river of Burma. It rises in the mountains east of the bend of the Brahma- putra and flows south to the Gulf of Martaban. Being snow-fed it is always a river of great volume, and being free from rapids except in its upper course it is navigable for 800 miles from its mouth. The chief towns of Burma are upon its banks and it still forms the great highway of commerce from the interior to the coast. One of the finest fleets of river steamers in the world ply upon it, going as far north as Bhamo near the Chinese frontier. The chief tributary of the Irrawaddy is the Chindwin, which drains the eastern slopes of the frontier hills of Eastern Bengal and Assam, and after flowing through a broad and rich valley unites with the Irrawaddy below Mandalay. From the east the Irrawaddy receives numerous minor tributaries the largest of which are the Shweli which drains the hills east of Bhamo, and the Myit-nge which comes down from the Shan Plateau and joins the Irrawaddy near Mandalay. At its mouth the Irrawaddy forms a vast delta, and on its two chief channels stand the ports of Rangoon and Bassein. 542. The Salwin is a longer river than the Irrawaddy and brings down more water, but it is hemmed in by mountains and has numerous rocky rapids, so that it is navigable only in short reaches. It rises in Tibet and flows southward to the Gulf of Martaban. The Sittang is a smaller river whose basin is enclosed by the basins of the Irrawaddy and the Salwin. It flows southward to the Gulf through a broad and level plain, which forms a vast rice field. Like the Salwin the Sittang is useless for navigation, though from different causes. It is shallow in many parts, its mouth is blocked by a huge sand bar, and it is subject to a severe tidal bore. BURMA 307 Fig. 94. Burma in relief. 3o8 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA 543. People. The people of Burma belong mainly to the Mongolian family. There are many allied tribes and races who are classed together as Tibeto-Burmans. They are not pure Mongols, like the Chinese, but in physical characteristics seem half way between the Chinese and the Malays. In the hills are numerous wild tribes, the chief of whom are the Kachins in the north, the Shans in the Fig. 95, A gnnip of K.i irhuto. by 1\ Kiic-r, R.w^ broad plateau south-east of Mandalay, and the Karens further south. In some respects, and especially in education, the Burmese are ahead of all the natives of India, but tliey have little enterprise or initiative. They are a hospitable, easy, and pleasure-loving people. Buddhism is the prevail- ing religion. The chief languages are Burmese and Karen. BURMA 309 544. Climate and Rainfall. Almost the whole of Burma receives an abundant rainfall, and along the coasts and north of the Gulf of Martaban it is very heavy. In the interior there is a drier area consisting of an oval tract running for 100 miles north and south of Mandalay along the valleys of the Irrawaddy and Chindwin. This tract is almost surrounded by hills which shut off much of the monsoon rain, and the total fall is only about 30 inches a year. But most of the plains of Burma are hot and humid. A Burmese Paddy Boat, Rangoon. 545. Natural Products. Rice is the chief crop ; cotton, tobacco, pulses, and millets are also grown. Far. more rice is produced than the country needs, and it therefore forms the main article of export. In the forests, especially on the mountains confining the Salwin, much excellent teak is obtained. It is floated down the Salwin in rafts, and is exported chiefly from Moulmein. Iron ore and petroleum are plentiful. Iron is little worked but the production of kerosene oil is now sufficient to supply nearly three-fourths 310 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA of tlic Indian dcniancl. The chief petroleum fields are along the Irrawaddy Valley and on the Arakan coast. Tin is obtained in Tcnasscrim. A fine while marble is found near Mandalay from which images arc cut. There are famous ruby and jade mines in the north. 546. Communications. Railways now run from Ran- goon and Bassein to Prome, 300 miles up the Irrawaddy, and round the head of the Gulf of Pegu and Moulmein. But the principal line runs northward along the rich valley of the Sittang to Mandalay, and onward at the other side of the river to Myitkyina almost on the northern frontier. From Mandalay a branch runs through the Shan States on the east, and on the other side of the river a shorter branch to Monywa on the Chindwin. In all nearly 1,400 miles of railway are now open. The heavier through traffic is, however, still largely by river. There are few good metalled roads in Burma. One has been constructed from Bhamo to the Chinese frontier and (by request of the Chinese Government) 50 miles beyond it, along which an increasing traffic is carried on with Yun-nan. 547 Administrative Divisions. The Divisions and Dis- tricts of Burma are as follows : — Divisions and Districts A tea in Population Arakan Division — sq. miles (1901) I. Akyab .. 5,136 . 481,666 2. Northern Arakan . . •• 5.233 • 20,682 3. Kyankpyur •• 4.3S7 ■ 168,827 4. Sandoway . . .. 3,784 . 90,927 Pegu Division — 3. Rangoon Town I . 234,881 6. Hanthawaddy . . 3,023 . 484,811 7. Tharrawaddy .. 2,851 . 395,570 8. Pegu .. 4,276 . 339.572 9. Prome .. 2,915 . 305. S04 Irrawaddy Division — 10. liasscin .. 4,127 . 301,427 II. Myaungniya . . 2,663 • 278,119 12. Ma-ubin 1,641 283,122 13. Henzada . . 2,870 . 484,558 14. Pyapon .. 2,137 • 226,443 3" Fig. 97. Districts and Chief States of Burma. 312 GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA Tennasserim Division- 15. Toungoo 16. Sahvln 17- Thaton 18. Amherst 19. Tavoy 20. Mergui Minbu Division — 21. Thayetmyo. . 22. Pakokku . . 23- Minbu 24. Magwe Mandalay Division— 25- Mandalay . . 26. Bhamo 27. INIyitkj'ina . . 28. Katha 29. Ruby Mines Sagaing Division — 30. Shwcbo 31- Sagaing 32. Lower Chindwin 33- Upper Chindwin Meiktila Division — 34- Kyauk.se . . 35- iMeiktila . . 36. Yamcthin . . 37- Myingyan . 6,172 2,666 5.079 7,062 5,308 9,789 4.750 6,210 3.299 2,913 2,117 4,146 10,640 6,994 5,476 5,634 1,862 3,480 19,062 1,274 2,183 4,25s 3.137 279,315 37,837 343,510 300,173 109,979 88,744 239,706 356,489 233,377 246,708 366,507 79,515 67,399 176,223 87,694 286,891 282,658 276,383 154,551 141,253 252,305 243,197 356,052 548. Native States. Of the numerous native States in Burma all arc now practically included in British territory save Karenni. They are as follows : — Northern Shan States Southern Shan States Chin Hills Pakokku Chin Hills . . Karenni States 14,594 •• 321,090 t3.32i . . 816,354 >S,(KlO 87,189 2,250 13,116 3,130 .. 45.973 liUKMA 313 549. Chief Towns. Rangoon (233,000) on the eastern branch of the Irrawaddy has a large trade, and is the third port of the Empire. The trade of Rangoon has developed rapidly of recent years and its exports are now considerably more than twice as large as those of Madras. The other ports are Moulmein, near the mouth of the Salwin, the centre of the timber trade : Bassein on the western branch of the Irrawaddy ; Akyab on the Arakan coast, near the mouth of the Kuladan river and Mergui in Tenasserim. Fig. 98. The Incomparable Pagoda, Maiidalay. These ports are all comparatively small and their trade is chiefly coastal . Seven-eighths of the foreign trade of Burma passes through Rangoon. Mandalay, the last capital of the native kingdom, is a new city on the Irrawaddy. Anara- pura and Ava, former capitals, now deserted, are in the neighbourhood. Bhamo, in the north, is the seat of the overland trade with China. Prome is a flourishing trading town on the Irrawaddy connected with Rangoon by rail. Toungoo and Thayetmyo are military stations, the former on the Sittang and the latter on the Irrawaddy near the northern frontier. 314 GKOGRAPHY OF INDIA 550. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands, though geo- graphically belonging to Burma, form a separate adminis- tration under a Chief Commissioner. The Andamans consist of three large islands and nearly 200 small ones, with a total area of about 2,500 square miles. They are hilly, and have numerous excellent harbours. The rainfall is heavy and the hills are covered with valuable forests. A large convict settlement is maintained on the islands. The native inhabitants are of a low Negrito race. The Nicobars have an area of about 630 square miles. They arc similar in most respects to the Andamans, but are peopled by a Malay race. Port Blair, on South Andaman, is the seat of the Government. The meteorological observa- tions taken on the Andamans are of great importance as they give the earliest and most reliable storm warnings. On this account Port Blair has recently been connected by wireless telegraphy with Burma. FOREIGN POSSESSIONS IN INDIA 551, The French Territories in India are Pondicherry and Karikal, on the coast of the Carnatic ; Mahe, on the Malabar coast ; Yanaon on the Godavari Delta, and Chandernagore, on the river Hooghly. They contain less than 200 square miles, and about 285,000 inhabitants. Pondicherrs' is the residence of the Governor. It is a small place, with but little trade. 552. The Portuguese Possessions consist of the small district of Goa, Daman north of Bombay, and the island of Diu on the coast of the Kathiawar Peninsula. Goa was once the splendid capital of the Portuguese dominions in the east, but is now in ruins. Panjim, or New Goa, has been built nearer the sea. Marmagao, the port of Goa, has the best harbour on the west coast south of Bombay. It is now served by a branch of the Southern Maratha Rail- way, and its trade is growing. APPENDIX LIST OF THE PRINCIPAL NATIVE STATES OF INDIA With the Title and Caste or Race of their Rulers, their Area and Population, and the Province or Agency to which they belong. [N.B. No Stale is hicluded in this list unless it has either an area of over i,ooo sq. miles or a population of at least 200,000. There are nearly 600 smaller States.] State. Alwar Bahawalpur Baroda Banswara Barwani , . Bastar Baud . . Bharatpur Bhaunagar Bhopal Bhor . . Bhutan Bikaner Bonai BUNDI. . Chamba Area in sq. miles. 3. 141 15,000 8,099 1,946 1,178 13,062 1,264 1,982 2,868 6,902 1,491 20,000 (estimate) 23,311 1,296 2,220 3,216 Population, 1901. 828,487 720,877 1,952,692 165,360 76,136 306.501 88,250 626,665 412,664 665,961 137.268 250,000 (estimate) 584,627 38,277 171,227 127,834 Title and Caste of Ruler. Maharaja. Rajput Nawab, Daudputra Maharaja, Maratha Maharawal, Rajput Rana, Rajput Raja, Rajput Raja, Rajput Maharaja, J at Thakur Sahib, Rajput Nawab Begam, Path an Pant Sachiv, Brahman Deb Raja Bhotia Maharaja, Rajput Raja, Bhuiya Maharao Raja, Rajput Raja, Rajput In political relation with Rajputana Punjab Brit. Resident, Govt. India Rajputana Central India Central Provs. Orissa Rajputana Bombay Central India Bombay Pol. Agent, Gov. India Rajputana Orissa Rajputana Punjab 3i^> GEOGRAPHY OF INDIA State. Area in I sq. miles. Population, 1901. Title and Ca-.le of Ruler. Ill ixjlilii^al relation with Chhatarpur Cochin CoochBehak CUTCH. . Datia . . Dhar . . Dhenkanal Dholpur . . Dhran- gadhra dungarpur Gangpur . . GONDAL GWALIOR . . HillTippera HSIPAW Hyderabad Idar . . Indore Jaipur Jaisalmer J ASH IT R I.IlS 1,362 1,307 7,616 911 1.775 1.463 1. 156 1.447 I 2.518 i 1,024 24.927 4,086 ' 5.086 82,698 1,669 9.500 , 15.579 16,062 156,139 812,025 566,974 488,022 200,759 142,115 273,662 270,973 70,880 100,103 238,896 162,859 2,921,290 173.325 104,700 11,141,142 168.557 850,690 2.658,666 73.370 132,114 Raja, Bundcla Ponwar Raja, Kshattriya Maharaja, Kshattriya Maharao, Rajput Maharaja, Rajput Raja, Ponwar JMaratha Raja, Kshattriya Maharaja Rana, J at Raj Sahib, Rajput Maharawal, Rajput Raja, Kshattriya Thakur Sahib, Rajput Maharaja, Maratha Raja, Kshattriya Sawbwa, Shan. Buddhist Nizam, Turk, Sunni Muham- madan Maharaja, Rajput Maharaja, Maratha Maharaja, Rajput Maharawal, Rajput Raja, Maratha Central India Madras Bengal Bombay Central India Central India Orissa Raj pu tana Bombay Rajputana Orissa Bombay Brit. Resident Central India Eastern Ben- gal and Assam Burma Brit. Resident, Govt. India Bombay Central India Brit. Resident, Rajputana Rajputana Central Pro vs. APPENDIX 317 Area in Population, Title and Caste In political State. sq. miles. igoi. of Ruler. relation with Jhabua 1,136 80,889 Raja, Rajput Central India JiND . . 1.259 282,003 Raja, J at, Sikh Punjab JODHPUR 34.963 1,935.565 Maharaja, Rajputana (Marwar) Rajput JUNAGARH . . 3,284 395,428 Nawab, Pathan Bombay Kalat 71.593 372,531 Khan or Wall, Brahui Baluchistan Ranker 1,429 103.536 Raja, Rajput Central Provs. Kapurthala 630 314.351 Raja, Ahlu- walia Sikh Punjab Karauli . . 1,242 156,786 Maharaja, Rajput Rajputana Kashmir and 80,900 2,905,578 Maharaja, Brit. Resident, Jammu Rajput Govt. India Kengtung. . 12,000 190,698 Sawbwa, Shan, Buddhist Burma Keonjhar . . 3,096 285,758 Raja, Rajput Orissa Khairpur . . 6,050 199,313 Mir, Baloch Bombay Kolhapur . . 2.855 gio,oii Maharaja, Kshattriya Bombay Korea 1,631 35,113 Raja, Rajput Central Provs. KOTAH 5.684 544,879 Maharao, Rajput Rajputana Las Bela . . 6,441 56,109 Jam, Arab Baluchistan Mandi 1,200 174,045 Raja Rajput Punjab Manipur . . 8,456 284,465 Raja, Kshattriya Eastern Bengal and Assam Mayurbhanj 4.243 610,383 Raja, Kshattriya Eastern Bengal and Assam Mongnai . . 2.717 44.252 Sawbwa, Slian, Buddhist Burma Mysore 29.444 5.539,399 Maharaja, Kshattriya Brit. Resident Govt. India Nabha 928 297,949 Raja, Jat Sikh Punjab Navanagar 3.791 336,779 Jam, Rajput Bombay Nepal. . 54,000 4,000,000 Maharaja, Brit. Resident, (estimate) (estimate) Rajput Govt. India Orchha 2,080 321.634 Maharaja, Rajput Central India 3tR GEOGRAPHY OF IN'DIA .\ii_;i in I'opulatiou. Title and Caste III political sq. miles. 1901, of Kuler. Diwan, Pathan relation with PaLANI'UK . . 3.177 222,627 Bombay Panna 2,492 192,986 Maharaja, Rajput Central India Patiala 5.412 1.596,692 Maharaja, Jat, Sikh Punjab PUDUK- 1,100 380,440 Raja, Kallar Madras kottai Radhanpur 1,150 61,548 Nawab, Pathan Bombay Raigarh . . 1,486 174,929 Raja, (iond Central Provs. Rajpipla . . I. .5 14 II7.T75 Maharana, Rajput Bombay Rewah 13,000 1.327,385 Maharaja, Rajput Central India Sangli 1,112 226.128 Thakur, Maratha Bombay Rampur 899 533,212 Nawab, Pathan United Provs. Savantvadi 925 217,732 Sar Desai, Maratha Bombay SiKKIM 2,818 59.014 Maharaja, Tibetan Pol. Agent. Govt. India SiRMUR 1,198 135.6S7 Raja, Rajput Punjab SlROHI 1,964 154544 Maharao, Rajput Rajputana SURGUJA 6,089 351.01 1 Raja, Rajput Central Provs. Tehri 4,180 268,885 Raja, (Garhwal) Ksl.attriya United Provs. TONK . . . . 2.553 273,201 Nawab, Pathan Rajputana Travancore 7,091 2,952.157 Maharaja, Ksliattri3'a Brit. Resident, Madras Udaipur , . 1,052 45.395 Raja, Rajput Central Provs. Udaipur 12,691 1,018,805 Maharana, Brit. Resident, (Mcwar) Kfijliut Rajputana Ind ex The names of Provinces and States are printed in small capitals, e.g. Ack a, Alwar. The following abbreviations are used : — .'\pr., Appendix ; ;•., river ; t., town ; nit., mountain ; isl., island. The numbers refer to Paragraphs Abbottabad, /., 41S. Abu, mt., 29 ; t., 440. Adilabad Dist., 470. Afghanistan, Trade with, 251- Agra Dist., 382 ; t., 386, Carpets of, 213. Agra Canal closed to traffic, 233. Agr.\ and Oudh, Differ- ences in the adminis- tration of, 371. Ahmadabad Dist., 487 ; t., 490 ; Cotton manu- factures of, 210. Ahmadnagar Dist., 487 ; /., 491. Ajaigarh, t., 453. Ajanta, /., 475. Ajanta Range, 468. Ajmere, t., 440. Ajmer-Merwara, 433, 440 ; Administration of, 275. Ajodhya (or Ayodhyi), t., 116 ; Ruins of, 389. Akola Dist., 460 ; t., 462. Akyab Dist., 547 ; ^, 549 ; Port of, 75. Alai Mts., II. Alaknanda, r., 46. Aligarh Dist., 382 ; t., 388. Alipore, t., 337. Aliwal, t., 405. Allahabad Dist., 382 ; t., 116, 383. AUeppey, /., 527. Almora Dist., 382. Altyn Tagh Mts., 11. Alwar, 433 ; App. Amarkantak, Nit., 444 ; Plateau, 456. Amarapura, t., 549. Amaravati, r., 504. Amherst Dist., 547 ; /., 75. Amraoti Dist., 460 ; t., 462. Amritsar Dist., 401 ; t., 117, 404 ; Ivory work of, 217. Anaimudi, mt., 503. Anamallai Mts., 32, 503. Anantapur Dist., 506. Angul Dist., 331. I Andaman Islands, 25, 78, 540, 550 ; Adminis- tration of, 275. Arakan annexed, 267. Arakan Yoma, 25, 539. Aravalli Hills, 29, 435 ; Antiquity of, i6. Argentina, Trade with, 250. Army of India, Size and cost, 296 ; Command of, 297. Ami Muslins, 210. Arrah, t., 339. .\rialkhan, r., 43. .•\ryans. The, 103-109. Aryan languages, 123 ; more prevalent than Aryan blood, 121. Aryo - Dra vidian Type, The, 108. Ass, The Wild, 192. Assam, Conquest of, 267, 310, 344 ; People, 108 ; Language, 124, 349 ; Rainfall, 97 ; Minerals, 351 ; Coalfields in, 176 ; Cultivation of rubber in, 154 ; of tea, 168 ; Silk manufac- tures, 214. Assam-Bengal Railway, 352- Attock Dist., 401 ; /., 406. Aurungabad Dist., 473 ; t., 475- Australia, Trade with, 250. Austria - Hungary, Trade with, 250. Ava, I., 549. Azamgarh Dist., 382. Baba NANAK.the founder of Sikhism, 133. Backwaters of the S.-W. Coast, 68, 234. Badrinath, mt., 374. Bahawalpur, 408, App.; /., 408. Baitarani, r., 318. Bakarganj Dist., 353. Balaghat Dist.,460 ; Hiils, 468. Balasore Dist., 331. Ballia Dist., 382. Baloch language, The, 123. Baliaghata Shipping Canal, 233. BALtrciiiSTAN, 426-432 ; Natural features, 427 ; Temperature, 81 ; Not a part of India proper, 3 ; Administration, 275; People, 108, 430. Bamboo, The, 154. Banda Dist., 382 ; Ceded to British, 370. Bangalore Dist., 534 ; /., 535 ; Carpet, Manu- facture of, 213. Bankipore, t., 339. Bankura Dist., 331. Bannu Dist., 413. Banswara, 433 ; App. Bara Lacha Pass, 13. Barak, r., 345, 347. Bareilly Dist., 382 ; t., 387. Bari Doab, 394. Barisal, t., 355. Barley, Culture of, 160. Baroda, 493, 496, App. ; /., 496. Barogil Pass, 22. Baronga, isl., 78. Barrackpore, t., 337. Barvvani, App. Bassein Dist., 547 ; t., 549 ; Port of, 75. Bastar, 463, 464, App. Basti Dist., 382. Baud, App. Beas, r., 40, 394 ; Treaty of, 309. Belgaum Dist., 487. Belgium, Trade with, 250. Bellary Dist., 516 ; Ceded by the Nizam, 262. Benares Dist. ,382 ; Ceded, 309, 370 ; /., 115, 385 ; Brass work of, 215 ; Ivory work, 217. Bengal, 307-342 ; Con- quest of, 257, 308 Ad- ministrative Divisions, 331 , Physical features, 313, 316 ; People, 108, 320-322 ; Communica- tions, 328-330 ; Natu- 320 INDEX The numbers refer to Paragraphs r.il rrcKlucts, 325; Co.il mines, 171), 325 ; Iron raiiu-s, 180, 325 ; Maiiu- f.icturts of Jute, 212 ; Silk, 214 ; Iron, 180 ; Exports and Imports, 327. Rcnpal-Nagpur Rly., 328, 448, 457. 465- BenKal and N.-VV. Rly., 328, 381. Bengali language. The, 124. Berar, taken from Raja of Nagpur and given to the Nizam, 455 ; Leased to Brit. Govt., 467. Bhanrer Range, mis., 456. Bhavani, r., 504. Bhils, The, 105. Bhilsa, /., 44g. Bhiraa, r., 56, 469, 482. Bhir Dist., 473. Bhopal, 441, 451, App. ; t., 451. Bhor, App. Bhuj, t., 495. Bhutan, 366, 368, App. Bhutan War, 344. Bidar Dist., 473 ; t., 476. Bihar acquired by the British, 257 ; t., 339 ; People of, 108 ; Opium Cultivation in, 170. Bihari language, The,i24. Bijapur Dist., 487. Bijnor Dist., 382. BiKANER, 433, App. ; /., 440. Bilaspur Dist., 460. Botul Dist., 460. Betwa, r., 376. 446. Bezwada, /., 372. Bhadra, r., 56, 532. Bhagalpur Dist., 331 ; /., 339- Bhagirathi, r., (Garhwal), 46. Bhagirathi, r., (Bengal), 48, 318. Bhamo Dist., 547, 549. Bharatpur, 433, App. Bhandara Dist., 460. Bhatgaon, t., 365. Bhaunagar, 407, •■^pp. Bhaunagar-Goudal-J una- garh-Porbandar Rail- way, 497. Bhirbhum Dist., 331. Bhubancswar, t., 340. Birds of India, 195, 196. Black cotton soil, charac- ter of, 140. Bl.irk I loir. Tragedy of the, 257, 332. Bogra Dist., 353. Bolan I'ass, 23, 117, 431. Bolaram, /., 475. Bombay, 477-498 ; Ad- ministrative Divisions, 487 ; Histor>' of, 478 ; Climate and Rainfall, 483 ; Soil and Pro- ducts, 484 ; Commu- nications, 485 ; People and languages, 486 ; Government of, 273 ; The greatest cotton- growing Province, 174 ; Salt factories of, 184 ; Silk-mills of, 214 ; Ex- ports of, 249 ; Native States in, 493. Bombay, island of, 77, 478. Bombay, /., 488 ; Com- parison with Calcutta, 334 ; The great centre of Cotton Manufacture, 211 ; Harbour, 67-68 ; port, 236. Bombay, Baroda and Central Indian Rail- way, 226, 381, 485. BONAI, .App. Bor Pass, Road across, 220. Brahmani, r., 318. Brahmaputra, r., 38, 43, 346. Brahui. language. The, 122. Brahuis, The, 105. British Baluchistan, 431 ; Govt, of, 275. British Empire in India, Growth of, 264. Broach Dist., 487 ; /., 66, 490. Buckingham Canal, 234, 512- Budaun Dist., 382. Buddhism, 131. Bulandsh.ahr Dist. Buldana Dist., 460 Bundila Rajputs, 453. Buiulilkhand, 453. BuNDi, 433, App. Burdwan Dist., 331 ; .Ac- quired by the British, 2.58, 307 ; t., 338. Burhanpur, /., 461. Burma, .S37-5.'ii ; Coast- line of, 540 ; Rivers, 50- 62 ; Noia part of India proper,,3i: .Annexation 382. of, 267 ; Histor\', 538 ; Govenmii-nt, 274 ; Ad- ministrative Divisions, 547 ; Climate and Rain- fall, 96, 544 ; Natural Proflucts, 544 ; Next to B<-nKal as a Rice- producing Province, 1 56 ; .Minerals, 1 76, 187, 190 ; People, 108, 537 ; Languages, 543 ; Railways of, 546 ; Na- tive States, 548. Burmese War, First, 310. BussAHiR, 410. Buxar, /., 339 ; Battle of, 25S, 308, 370. Cachar Dist., 353. Cachar Valley, 344. Calcutta, /., 332-337 ; Comparison with Bom- bay, 334 ; the Premier Port of India, 73, 236 ; sacked by the Nawab of Murshidabad, 257 ; Exports of, 249. Calicut, /., 522. Cambay, 496 ; /., 490 ; Trade of, 117 ; Gulf of, silting up, 64-66. Cardamom Hills, 32, 503. Camatic, The, annexed, 262, 502. Cauver>', r., 57, 504, 542. Cawnpore Dist., 382 ; /.. 387. " Ceded Districts," The, 501. Central India, 441-453 ; Area and Population, 441 ; Climate and rain- fall, 445 ; Communica- tions, 446 ; People of, 108, 443 ; Rivers, 446 ; Soil and natural pro- ducts, 157, 447. Central Provinces,454- 465 ; Histon-, 455 ; Government of, 275 ; .Administrative Divi- sions, 460 ; Surface and drainage, 456 ; Area and population, 454 ; Climate .and pnxlucls, 457 ; P.oplc, 108,469 ; Communications, 457. Ceylon, geographically a Part of India, 4 ; Coast of, 70-1 ; Trade with, 250- Chamalhari, ml., 12, 367. Chaman, t., 431. 321 The numbers refer to Paragraphs Chamba, 410, App. Chambal, r., 47, 376, 435, 446. Champaran Dist., 331. Chanda Dist., 460 ; i., 461. Chandemagore, t., 338, 551- Chandpur, t., 352. Chang Bhakar, 463. Cheduba, isl., 78, 540. Chenab, r., 40, 394, 422. Cherrapunji, Rainfall at, 97- Chhatarpur, 453, App. ; t; 453- ChhattisgarhPlateau,456. Chhindwara Dist., 460. Chilianwala, t., 406. Chile, Trade with, 250. Chin Hill States, 548. China, Trade with, 250. Chindwin, r., 59, 60, 541. Chingleput Dist., 516; ceded, 500. Chinsura, /., 338. Chitaldrug Dist., 534. Chitral, Agency of, 411 ; r., 39- Chittagong Dist., 353 ; ceded, 344 ; Exports of, 249 ; /., 355- Chittagong Hill Tracts, 345. 353- , . , Chota Nagpur, physical features, 313 ; Rainfall, 95 ; People, 108 ; sub- ject to famines, 317 ; Coalfields in, 176. Christianity in India, Growth of, 134. Chupra, t., 339. Civil Administration of India, Cost of, 295. Coal, 175-8, 325. 351, 457. 470. Cocanada, t., 522. Cochin, 528, App. Cochin-Shoranur Rail- way, 526. Coco 'Isles, 25, 78, 540. Coconut Palm, The, 162. Coffee, Cultivation and export of, 167. Coimbatore Dist., 516; annexed, 501. Coleroon, r., 57, 504. Colombo, Port of, 70 ; Importance of, as a junction, 239. Collector, The, or Deputy Commissioner, Func- tions of, 276. Communication, Foreign lines of, 237-8. Comorin, Cape, 69. Conjeevaram, /., 519. CoocH Behar, 341, App. Coonoor, /., 521. CoORO, 536 ; Govern- ment of, 275 ; Coffee cultivation in, 167. Cotton, Efforts to im- prove quality of, 174 ; Export of, raw and manufactured, 211,246, 249. Cotton Manufactures,209- 211. Cotton Piece Goods, Im- ports of, 246. CuTCH, 193, 480, 495, App. Cutch, Gulf of, 6, 66. Cuddapah Dist., 516 ; ceded by the Nizam, 262. Currency, The Indian, 298-301. Customs Duties, 285. Cuttack Dist., 331 ; taken from the Raja of Nag- pur, 264, 309 ; t., 349 ; Silver-work of, 215. Cyclones in the Bay of Bengal, loi. Dacca Dist., 353 ; t., 344, 354 ; Silver-work, 215. Dalhousie, Lord, his plans for roads and railways, 221-224. Dalhousie, t., 404. Daman, 552. Damodar, r., 318. Damodar Valley Coal Fields, 325. Damoh Dist., 460. Darbhanga Dist., 331 ; ; Coiiiniiinications, 352. Eastern Bengal Railway, 226, 328, 352. Eastern Cdiats, 33, 503 ; Antiquity of, 16 ; once connected with the Himalayas, 17. Eastern Hindi language. The, 124. Edwardesabad, /., 418. Elephanta, is/., 77, 490. Ellichpur, t., 462. Ellora, /., 475. Eraakulam, t., 528. Etawah Dist., 382. Etah Dist., 382. Ethnographic Survey, 102. Ethnologs- of India, Sir W. \V. Hunter's views, 105-7. Everest, Mt., 12. Exchange, Government loss on, 300. Excise Duties, 284. Export duty on rice, 286. False Point, 340. Famine Administration, 294. Faridkot, 410. I Faridpur Dist., 353. • Farrukhabad Dist., 382. \ Fatehpur Dist., 382. I Fatehpur Sikri, /., 386. Ferozepur Dist., 401. Feudatorj' States, Origin of, 260. Firozshah, /., 405. First Burmese War, 267, 310, 344. First Sikh War, 392. Fish Curing, 203. Foreign Commerce, 246. Foreign Comnmnications, 236-9. Foreign Possessions in India, 551-2. Forests, Influence on rain- fall, 1 5 1-5. Forest Department, Crea- tion and work of, 152. Fort St. George, 500. Fort William, 333. France, Trade with, 250. French East-lnd.Co., 256. French Territories in India, 351. Irmitier Trade of India, 251- Fyzabad, /., 388. Gandak, r., 48, 318, 361. Ganges, r., 45-49. 3i8, 376. Ganges Canals, 144 ; Traffic on, 233. Gancpvr, App. Ganjam Dist., 516. Gantak, /., 369. (iarhwal Dist., 309, 381. Garo Hills, 345. Gasherbrum, ml., 421. Gauhati, /., 352, 356. Gaur, ruins of, 355. Gaurisankar, ph.. 12. Gautama Buddha, 131. Gawilgarh, /., 462. Gaya Dist., 331 ; /., 339. Germany, Trade with, 250. Ghazipur Dist., 382 ; ceded, 309, 370 ; /.,385. Gilgit, /., 425 ; r., 39, 120. Giridhi, Coal mines of, 177. S^.")- Goa, 552 ; t., 68 ; Trade of, 117. Goalanda, t., 355. Goalpara Dist., 353. Gobindpur, /., 332. Godavari Dist., 516 ; r., 55, 469, 482, 504 ; Steam service on, 234. Godwin-Austen, Mt., 12. Gogra, r.. 38, 48, 361. 375. Golconda, t., 472, 476. Gold in India, 181-182. Gomal Pass, 23, 117. Gomal, r., 39, 414. Gond language, The, 122. GONDAL, App. Gonds, The, 459. 464. Gorakhpur Dist., 382. Gosai Than, pk.. 12. Govenior-Gfiieral, First appointment of, 268 ; powers of, 271. Ciovindgarh, /.. 404. Grand Trunk Road, 220. Gt. Indian Peninsula Railway, 225, 381, 458, 472. 48.'>. 513- Great Rann of Cutch, 66. Gujrat Dist., 406 ; /., 401. Gujarati language. The, 124. Gujranwala Dist., 401. Gulburga Dist., 473 ; /., 476. Gumti, f., 18, 376. (lUiilur Dist., 51O. Gurdaspur Dist., 401. Gurgaon Dist., 401. Gurkhas, The, 363 ; war with, 309. GWALIOR, 441, 449, App. Hamirpur Dist., 370, 382. Hanthawaddy Dist., 547. Haidar .Ali, Wars with, 262. Hardoi Dist., 382. Hnrdwar, /., 144, 388. Haniai, r., 431. Hassan Dist., 534. Hazara Dist., 413. Hazaribagh Dist., 331 ; t., 340 ; Mica found, 325- Helmand, basin of, 18. Hcnzada Dist., 547. Hill Tippera, 345, 357, App Himalayas, The, mts., in, 191, 192 ; not a water- shed, 15 ; Drainage of, 17 ; People of. 108. Himalayan Passes, 13. Hindi language. The, 459 Hindu Ku?h, mts., 11, 19. Hindustani language. The, 126. Hinduism, its elasticity, •29. Hinganghat, (., 461. Hissar Dist., 401. Hong Kong, Trade with, 250. Hooghly Dist., 331 ; /., 252. 338; r., 48, 73. 318, ^34. Hoshangabad Dist.. 460. Hoshiarpur Dist., 401. Hrwrah Dist., 331 ; /.. 337- I Heipaw, .App. I Hubli, /., 491. , Hugri, f., 532. I Husain Sasar tank, 474. Hyderabad, 466, 476, Appendix : Historj . 467 ; Administrative Divisions, 473 ; Cli- mate and products, 470 ; Communications, 472 ; People of, 108 ; City, 474, 492. Hyderabad and Godavari Railway, 472. Idar, .-Vpp. Imperial Service Troops, 297. 323 The numbers refer to Paragraphs Iraphal, or Manipur, /., 357- Income Tax, 287. India Council, Constitu- tion of, 270 ; India Councils Act, 1861, 268. Indian Desert, 100. Indian Midland Railway, 448, 458. Indigo, declining cultiva- tion of, 173. Indo - An'an languages, 123-4. Indo - Chinese languages, 128. Indo - Gangetic Plain, 26, 27. Indore, 441, 450, App. ; t; 450- Indravati, r., 55, 464. Indus, r., 38-42, 394, 422, 481. Indus Valley Railway, 485. Inner Indo-Aiyan lan- guages, 124. Intermediate Indo-Aryan languages, 124. Internal Trade of India, 244-245. Internalwater\vays,233-5. Inundation Canals, 146. Iran, Plateau of, 18, 427. Irano-.'^ryan languages, 123. Irrawaddy, r., 59, 60, 541 ; Steam service on, 235- Irrigation, 142-150 ; Cost of, and income from, 150. Iskardo (or Skardo), t., 425- Islamabad, /., 425. Islands of India, 76-8. Italy, Trade with, 250. Jagannath, Temple of, 340- Jagdalpur, t., 464. jailep-la Pass, 13. Jats, The, 106, 109. Jaintia Hills, 345. Jainism, 132. Jaipur, 433, App. ; /., 440. Jaisalmer, 433, App. Jalangi, r., 318. Jalaun Dist., 382. Jalpaiguri Dist., 353. Jalna, /., 475. James and Mary Sands, 73. 334- Jammu, i., 425. Janjira, 498. Japan, Trade with, 250. Jashpur, 463, 465, App. Jaunpur Dist., 382. Java, Trade with, 250. Jessore Dist., 331. Jetch Doab, 394. Jews in India, 135. Jhabua, App. Jhang Dist., 401. ' Jhansi Dist., 382 ; /., 388. Jhelum Dist., 401 ; r.,40, 145. 394. 422. JiND, 410, App. JODHPUR (MaRWAR), 433, App. ; t., 440. Jubbulpore Dist., 460 ; t., 458, 461. J udicial Administration of India, 279. Jullundur Dist., 401 ; t., 117, 404. Jullundur Doab, 394. Jumna, r., 38, 47, 144, 376. Junagarh, App. Jute, 175 ; Export of, 246 ; Manufactures, 212, 326. Kabul, r., 39, 414. Kachhi, 428. Kachin Hills, 25. Kadur Dist., 534. Kaimur Range, 344, 456. Kaira Dist., 387. Kalat, 432, App. ; t., 432- Kali, )•., 376. Kali Sindh, r., 446. Kaludan, r., 75. Kalyan, t., 476. Kampti, /., 461. Kamrup Dist., 354. Kanauj, t., 116, 389. Kanara annexed, 501. Kanarese language. The, 122. Kangra Dist., 401 ; t., 404. Kanker, 465, App. Kapurthala, 410, App. Karachi, /., 190, 487 ; harbour, 64-5, 236. Karakorum Mts., 11. Karakorum Pass, 13, 421. Karauli, 433, App. Karen language, The, 128. Karenni Hills, 25, 539, 548. Karikal, /., 551. Karimnagar Dist., 473. Kamal Dist., 401. Kamaphuli, r., 355. Kasai, r., 318. Kashmir and Jammu, 419-425, App. ; His- tory, 420 ; Physical Characteristics, 421 ; People, 108, 422 ; Cli- mate and Productions, 424 ; Manufactures, 213. Kashmiri language. The, 124. Kasimbazar, i.,-338. Katha Dist., 547. Kathiawar, 140, 480, 497. Katni, t., 458. Ken, r., 376. Kengtung, App. Keonjhar, App. Khyber Pass, 23, 117. Khairagarh, 465. Khairpur, 494, App. Khamgaon, /., 462. Khamti Hills, 345. Khasi Hills, 25, 345. Khasi and Jaintia Hills Dist., 353. Khasi States, 357. Khatmandu, Valley of, 362 ; /., 365. Kheri Dist., 382. Khirthar Mts., 19, 428. Khulna Dist., 331. Kidderpore, /., 336. Kinchinjunga Mt., 12. Kistna Dist., 516. Kistna, r., 56, 469, 482, 504- Kodaikanal, t., 521. Kohat Dist., 413 ; /•, 418 ; r., 414 ; Salt hills of, 186, 414. Kolaba Dist., 487. Kolar Dist., 535 ". '•. 535 ; Goldfields of, 182. 533- Kolarian languages, 122. Kolas, The, 105. KOLHAPUR, 498, App. Kols, The, 105. Konkan, The, 479. Korea, 463, 465, App. KOTAH, 433, App. Kunar (or Chitral), /•., 39, 414- Kuram Dist., 413 ; Pass, 23 ; *•■• 39. 414- Kurnul Dist., 516 ; ceded by the Nizam, 262. Kurukh language. The, 122. 324 INDEX The numbers refer to Paragraphs Kusi, r., 48, 318, 361. Kwon Lull Aits., 11, 14. Kyankpyur Dist., 547. Kyankse Dist., 547. Laccadivcs, isls., 16, 77. Ladakh Ranyc, 11. 421. Lahore Dist., 401 ; /., 402. LahoJa languages, The, 124. Lakhimpur Dist., 353. Lakhisarai, /., 339. Land Revenue, The, 288 ; Assessment of, 289 ; Settlements, 290 ; under the Mughals, 288, 290. Landour, t., 374. Larkana Dist.. 487. Las Bela, 426, App. Ledo, ^, 352. Leh, /., 425. Linguistic Survey of Indin, 124. Local Boards, 222, 277. Local Government in India, 277-278. Lower Burin.i, Rice Cul- tivation in, 156. Lower Chonab Canal, '45. Lower Chmdwm Dist., 547. Lower Ganges Canal, 378. Lucknow Dist., 382 ; /., 116, 384. Ludhiana Dist , 401 ; /., 404. Luni, r., 4S.S. Lushai Hills, 25, 353. Lyallpur Dist., 401. Madhumati, r., 48, 318. Madura Dist., 516 ; /., 520. Madras, 499-528 ; His- tory, 500 ; Adminis- trative Divisions, 516 ; Climate, 505 : People, 108, sio ; Conununi- cations. 512 ; Natural Products, 508 ; Foreign Commerce, 249, 515 ; Native Slates in, 523. Madras City and Dist., 516 ; Port of, 72, 236 ; Factorv founded, 252 ; taken by the French, 256. Madras Railway, 225, 472, .S13. .S.?4- Magwe Dist., 547. Mahabali'shwar, /., 49I. Mahabalipuram (or Seven Pagodas), 518. Mahadeo Hills, 29, 456. Mahanadi, r., 54, 318, 456. Mahbuhnagar Dist., 473. Mah^, /., 551. Mahi, r.. 446, 482. Maui Kantha Agency, 498. Maikal Range, The, 29, 456. Mainpuri Dist., 382. Makum, /., 356 ; Coal Mines, 178 ; Petroleum Wells, 187. Malabar Dist.. 516 ; taken by the British, 262. Malakand Pass, 22. Malayalam language.Thc, 122. Malda Dist., 353 ; (., 355. Maldives, isls., 16, 77. Malwa Ghats, 479. Malwa Opium, 170. Malwa, Plateau of, 435. Manar, Gulf of, 69 ; is!., 77- Manasarowar, Lake, 38, 40, 374- Manbhum Dist., 331. Mandalay Dist., 547 ; I., 549- Mandavi, /., 495. Mandi, 4in, App. Mandla Dist., 460. Manipur, 357, App. Manjira, r., 55, 468. Manufactures : Cotton, 211; J ute, 212; Wool- len, 213 : Silk, 214 ; Steam flour mills, 218 ; Metal work, 215 : Pot- ten.', 216 : Ivor>-, etc.. 217 ; Paper, 218 ; Sugar, 218. Marathi language. The, 124, 459. Mannagao, /., 552. Martaban, Gulf of, 539. Mashkaf. r.. 431. Mashkel Hamun, 427. Masulipatani. /., 213. 252, 522 ; swept by a stomi wave, loi. Ma-ubin Dist., 547. Mairitius, Trade with, 250. Mavi;rbhanj, .^pp. Meaii-Meer, /., 402. Medak Dist.. 473. Meenit Dist.. 382; «., 388. Meghna. r., 43, 74. 347- Meiktila Dist., 547. .\Iergui Archipelago, 78, 540. Mergui Dist., 547 ; /., 75, 549- Merkara, /., 536. Mhow, /., 450. Mianwali Dist., 401. MidnaporeCanal,Thc,3i9. Midnapore Dist., 258, 307. Ml- Mikir Hills, 345. Minbu Dist., 547. Mir Alani tank, 474. Mir/.apur Dist., 382 ; /., 385. carpet manufac- tures of, 213. Mohpani coal minc-s, 177. Monghyr Dist., 331 ; <., 339-' MONGSAI, App. Monsoons, The, 89-93. Montgomery Dist., 401. .Moradabad Dist., 382. Moulmein, /., 75, 549. Mudki, /.. 405. Mutla, r.. 73. Multan Dist., 40J ; /., 117. 406. Munda Sub- Family of languages. 122. Mimicipalities,277 ; Reve- nue and Expenditure of. 278. Murshidabad Dist., 331 ; '•. 254. 338. Musi, r.. 469. Mussouri. /., 374. Mutla. r., 337. Muttra Dist".. 382 ; ^.,389. Muzaffargarh Dist., 401. Muzaflarpur Dist., 331 ; '•. 339- Muzaffamaggar Dist. .382. Muztagh or Karakorum .Mts.. II, 421. Muztagh Pass, 13. Myaunginya Dist., 547. Mying>-an Dist., 547. Myit-nge, r.. 60, 541. Myitkyina Dist., 547. Mymensingh Dist., 353. Mysore, 530-5, .^pp. ; Histon.'. 531 ; Climate, 533 ; People and lan- guage, 530 ; Products, 533 ; Coift'e cultivation in, 167 ; liold mines in, 182 ; Railways, 534 ; MN-sore State Railways, 534- 325 The numbers refer to Paragraphs Nabha, 410, App. Nadia Dist., 331 ; t., 338 Naga Hills Dist., 353. Nagpur Dist., 460 ; t. 461. Naini Tal Dist., 382 ; t. 374- Nalgonda Dist., 473. Nallamalai Hills, 469, 503 Nanda Devi, mt., 12, 374 Nanda Kot, mt., 374. Nander Dist., 473. Nandcaon, 465. Nanga Parbat, mt., 12. Narayaiiganj, /., 354. Narbada, r., 51, 446, 482. Narbada Dist. annexed, 265. Nari Pass, 431. Narsinghpur Dist., 460. Nasik Dist., 487 ; t., 491. Nasirabad, /., 354, 440. Native States, relation of, to Supreme Govern- ment, 280, 303-305. Navanagar, Append. Neemuch, t., 449. Negapatam, /., 522. Nellore Dist., 516. Nepal, 359, App. ; His- tory, 360 ; Climate,362 ; Natural Products, 362 ; People, 108, 363; Trade with, 251. Nicobar Isles, 25, 78, 540, 55"- Nilgiri Hills, 32, 503 ; Dist., 516. Nimar Dist., 460. Niti Pass, 13. Nizamabad Dist., 473. Nizam's State Railway, 472, 513- Noakhali Dist., 353 ; t., 355- No-la Pass, 13. North Arcot Dist., 516. North Kanara Dist.trans- ferred to Bombay, 502. North-Western Fron- tier Province, 411- 418 ; Administrative Divisions, 413 ; Cli- mate and Products, 415 ; People and Lan- guages, 108, 417. North Western Railway, 381. 399- Northern Arakan Dist., 547- Northern Circars, taken from the French, 257, 262, 500. Northern Penner, r., 504. Northern Shan States, 548. Nowgong Dist., 353. Noyil, r., 504. Oil-seeds, Cultivation of, 164 ; E.xport of, 246. Ootacamund, t., 113, 521. Opium, 169 ; Regulations respecting growth of, 170 ; Areas of cultiva- tion, 324 ; Export of, 246 ; Revenue from, 291. Oraon language,Thc, 122. Orchha, 441, 453, App. Oriya language. The, 124, 459- Orissa, Physical features, 314 ; People, 108 ; subject to famines, 317. Osmanabad Dist., 473. Oudh, History of, 263. Oudh and Rohilkhand Railway, 226, 381. Outer Indo-Ar>'an lan- guages, 124. Pabna Dist., 353. Pachmarhi Hills, The, 456- Padma, r., 43, 48. Pahari language. The, 124. Painganga, ;-., 35, 469. Pakokku Chin Hills States, 548. Pakokku Dist., 547. Palamau Dist.. 331. Palanpur, App. Palanpur Agency, 498. Palar, r., 504, 532. Palghat Gap, 31, 503. Palk Straits, 69. Pakii Hills, 32, 166, 503. Pamban Passage, 69. Pamir Plateau, 11. Panakha, t., 367. Panch Mahals Dist., 487. Panchayats, 277. Pangong Lake, 13. Panipat, (., 103, 405. Pamjim, or New Goa, t., 552. Panjkora, r., 39, 414. Panjnad, r., 40, 394. Panna, 441, 453, App. Paper Manufactures,2i8. Parang-la Pass, 13. Parasnath Mt., 314. Parbati, r , 446. I Parbhani Dist., 473. Parbhatiya, the language of the Gurkhas, 363. Parsees, The, 135, 486. Pashto language. The, 123. Patan, t., 363. Pathankot, /., 102, 404. Patiala, 409 ; App. Patkai Hills, 25. Patna Dist., 331 ; t., 339. Pegu anne.\ed, 267 ; Dis- trict, 547. Pegu Yoma, 25, 539. Periyar Project, The, '49- ^ , Permanent Settlement, The, 290. Peshawar Dist., 413 ; t., 117, 418. Petroleum Wells, 187. Pilibhit Dist., 382. Pishin Dist., 431. Pitt's India Act (1784), 268. Plassey, Battle of, 307, 332. Pondicherr>', t., 551. Poona Dist., 487 ; t., 116, 491. Population, Distribution of, 110-117 ; Propor- tion of living in towns, III ; Density of, 119 1 20 ; Relation to rain- fall, 118. Porbandar, t., 497. Port Blair, /., 550. Port Canning, ^, 73, 337. Portuguese Possessions, 552. Postal Service of India, 240-1 ; Income from, 291. Poung-loung Range, 25. Pranhita, r., 55, 456, 469. Preparis Islands, 78, 540. Prome Dist., 547 ; t., 549- Public Expenditure 01 India, 292-297. Public Works Dept., Or- ganized, 221. Pudda, f; 43, 48. PUDUKKOTTAI, 529, App. Puhcat, /., 518. Punjab, The, 391-410 ; Annexed, 266 ; His- tory of, 392 ; Adminis- trative Divisions, 401 ; Climate and Rainfall, 395 ; Irrigation in, 145.397; Natural Pro- ducts, 398 ; Wheat 326 INDEX The numbers refer to Paragraphs Cultivation, 157 ; Salt Hills of, 183 ; Pcopli-, 108, 400 ; Communi- cations, 399 : Native States in, 407. Punjabi language, The, 124. Purali, f.. Delta of, 428. Puri Dist. 331 ; /., 115, 340. Puma, r., 52, 469. Pumea Dist., 331. Pyapon Dist., 547. Quetta, I., 431. Quilon, /., 527 Radhanpur, App. Rac Barcli Dist., 382. Raichur Dist., 473. Raichur Doab, The, 468. Raigarh, 465, App. Railways in India, 225- 231 ; Income from, 291. Rainfall of India, 94- 100 ; its influence on population, 119. Raipur Dist., 460 ; /., 461. Rajamundry, /., 521. Rajasthani language, The, 124, 400 Rajkot. t., 497. Raipipla, App. Rajputasa, 43^-440 ; Histon,-, 434 ; Climate and Products, 436 ; People, 108, 438 ; Salt lakes of, 183 ; Lan- guages, 438. Rajputana-Mahva Rail- way, 448, 485. Rajputs, The, 106, 109. RakasTal, /., 40. Ranx'swaram, isl.. 69, 77. RaniKanga, r., 46, 476. Rampvr, 490, App. Ramri, isl., 78, 540. Ranchi Dist., 331 ; /., 340- Rangoon, /., 75, 249. 547. 549- Rangpur Dist., 3113. Raniganj. /., 177, i8o, 335. 338. Ranjit Singh, 302. Rann of Cutch, 66, 480. Ratnagiri Dist., 487. Rapti, r., 48, 376. Ravi, r., 40, 145, 394. Rawalpindi Dist., 401 ; /., 406. Ri-tliiia I>o.ib. 394. Regulating Act, The (■77^). 2f>8. Religions of India, 129- Rewa Kantiia Agency, The, 498. Satpura Mts., 29, 444, 456, 478. Saugor Dist., 455, 460 ; /., 461. Saugor Island, 77. Savage Island, 78. Sava.vtvadi, 498, App. Rewah, 441, 452, App. I Second Burmese War, Rice, Cultivation and 1 The, 267. consumption of, 156; I Second Sikh War, 392. Export of. 246, 249. I Roads, Construction of, i 220-223. ' I Rohtak Dist., 401. Royal Titles .Act (1876), ; I ^f>9- I I Ruby Mines in Burma, 190. ; I Ruby Mines Dist., 547. Rupee, Decline in value I oi, 299. ; Rupnaravan, r., 73. ! Rurki, /.,' 388. Rvotwari Land Tenure, ■^89. i Sabamiati, r., 482. Sadiya, /., 354, 356. Sadras, /., 518. 1 Safed Koh Mts.. 19, 412. ; Sagaing Dist.. 547. ' Saharanpur Di^t., 382 I /., 388. I Sahebghat, /., 352. Sahyadri .Mountains, 31. Salem Dist., 516. Salsette, isl., 67, 77, 478, 400. Salt Range.The, 186, 393. Salt, Sources of, 183- i86 ; Imports of, 183. Salt Tax. The, 283. Salwin Dist., 547 ; r., 59, 62, 23s, 542. Sambalpur Dist., 331 ; /., 341- Sambhar Lake, 18^, 185, 437- Sandalwood, a Ciovern- ment monopoly in My- sore, 533. Sandarbans. The. 73, 74 ; Swept by a stonn wave, 101. Sandip, isl.. 77. Sandoway Dist., 547. Sasgli, .App. Santal Parganas Dist., 33«- Santhals. The, 105. 1 Saran Dist., 331. 1 Sarda, r., 48, 376. Satara Dist.. 487. I Secretary- of State for India, Powers of, 270. Secrole, t., 385. Secunderabad, /., 475. Secundra, /., 386. Seonath, r., 54, 456. Seoni Dist., 460. Scrampore, /., 338. Seringapatam, v., 57, 116, 535- Shabazpur, isl., 77. Shahabad Dist., 331. Shahpur Dist., 401 ; /., 117. Shajahanpur Dist., 382. Shan language. The, 128. Shevaroy Hills, The. 33, 503. Shimoga Dist., 534. Shikarpur, /.. 117. Sholapur Dist., 487. Shwebo Dist., 547. Shweli. r.. 541. Sialkot l>ist.. 401. SiAM, Trade with, 251. Sibi Dist.. 431. Sibsagar Dist., 353 ; /., 356. Sigauli, Treaty of, 370. Sikh Wars, The, 266. SiKKIM, 369, App. Silchar, /., 3.S6. Simla Dist., 401 ; (., 113, 405. Sina, r.. 482. SisD. 480 ; Conquest of, 266. Sind-Pishin Railway, 431.485- Sind, Punjab and Delhi Railway, 226. Sind Sagar Doab, 394. Singareni. /., 469 ; Coal mines of. 177. Sindhi language, Tlie, 124. Singhbhum Dist., 331. SiRMfR. .App. SiROHI. 4^H. .App. Sitab.ildi Ridge, 461. Sitapur Dist., 382. Sittang, r., 59, 61, 235, 54 i. 327 The numbers refer to Paragraphs Sivasamundram, iil., 57. Siwalik Hills, 374 ; Geo- logical character of, 17. Sobraon, t., 405. Son, r., 48, 318, 376, 446. South Arcot Dist., 516. Soutli Indian Railway, 226, 514. South Kaiiara Dist., 516. Southern Maratha Rail- way, 472, 485, 513,534- Soutliem Penncr, r., 504, 532. Southern Shan States, 548. Srinagar, t., 425. Srirangam, is!., 57 ; /., 519- Straits Settlements, Trade with, 250. Subanrekha, r., 318. Suez Canal, Effect of on Indian Trade, 236, 334. Sugar, Growth of, 165 ; Manufacture of, 218. Sukkur Dist., 487 ; /., 42. Sulaiman Mountains, 19, 192,427. Sunar (or Ken), r., 446. Surat Dist., 487 ; /., 66, 188 ; First British Factorj' founded at, 252. SURGUJA, 463, 465, App. Surma, r., 345, 347. Sutlej, r., 38, 40, 393. Swat, Agency of, 411 ; »-■, 39. 414- Sylhet Dist., 345, 353 ; /., 356. Syrian Christians, 134. Taj Mahal, 386. Takht-i-Sulaiman , pk., 19- Taluk Boards, 277. Tambrapami, r., 504. Tanen-Taung-Gyi Mts., 25- Tanjore Dist., 501, 516 ; t; 521. Tapti, r., 52, 482. Tapti Valley Railway, 485- Tavoy Dist., 547 ; t., 75. Thai Pass, 220. Thana Dist., 487. Thaneswar, t., 405. Thar, or Indian Desert, 396. Thar and Parkar Dist., 487. Tharrawaddy Dist., 547. Thaton Dist., 547. Thayetmvo Dist., 547 ; t; 549- Tian Shan Mts., 11. Tibetan Plateau, 14, :6, 85. Tibeto-Burman races, 104, Tidal Canal, Balasore, ■233- Tinnevelly Dist., 519. Tinnevelly-Quilon Rail- way, 526. Tippera Dist., 353. Tirhut Railway, 339. Tea, Cultivation of, 166, 351 ; Export of, 246. Tehri (CIarhwal), 390 ; App. Telegraph Service, In- land, 242 ; Foreign, 243- Telugu language, The, 122. Tenasseri.m annexed, 2f,7. Tenasserim Yoma, 25 Terai, The, 362, 375. Tobacco, Growth of, 171. Tochi, )•., 39, 414 ; Agenc}', 411. Tochi Pass, 23. ToNK, 433, App. Tons, r., 376, 446. Toungoo i3ist., 547 ; /., 549- Trade with foreign coun- tries, 250. Tranqucbar, Purchase of, 502. Trans- Alai Mts., 11. Trans-Himalaya Mts.. 15 Travancore, 523-7 App. ; Physical fea- tures, 524 ; Communi- cationiS and Commerce 526 ; Cardamoms, £ Government Mono poly, 168. Trichinopoly Dist., 516 t., 519. Trisul, ;;;/., 374. Trivandrum. /., 527. Trombay, isl.. yy. Tulu language. The, 122. Tumkur Dist., 534. Tumlong, (., 369. Tunga, r., 56, 532. Tungabhadra, r., 56, 469, 532- Tuticorin, port, 69, 522. Twentv-fouj- Parganas Dist'., 331. Udaipur, 463, 465, App. Udaipur (Mewar), 433, App. ; t., 440. Ujjain, /., 449. Umaria Coal mine, 102, 441. 452. Umballa Dist., 401 ; t., 405. Unao Dist., 382. United Kingdom, Trade with, 250. United Provinces, 370- 383 ; Administrative Divisions, 382 His- tory, 370 ; Climate, 377 ; Natural Produc- tions, 378 ; People, 108, 380 ; Communi- cations, 381 ; Native States in, 390. United States, Trade with, 250. Upper Burma annexed, 267. Upper Chindwin Dist., 547- Upper Ganges Canal, 144. 378. Upper Sind Frontier Dist., 487. Urdu (or Western Hindi) language. The, 126, 400. Vaigai, r., 504. Vellar, r., 504. Village Unions, 277. Vindliya Hills, 29, 444, 456. Vizagapatam Dist., 516 ; t; 522. Wadi, t., 472. Wainganga, r., 55, 456, 469. Wana, Agency of, 411. Wandiwash, Battle of, 256. Warangal Dist., 473 ; /., 472, 476. Wardha Dist., 460 ; r., 53. 456, 469- Warora Coalfields, 177, 458, 461. West Khandesh Dist., 487. Weaving Industry of India, 210. Western Ghats, 31, 479. Western Hindi language. The, 124. Western Jumna Canal, Traffic on, 233. 328 INDEX The numbers refer to Paragraphs Wheat, area under culli- vation, 157 ; Export of, 246, 249. Wind, Diurnal Change of, 83. Woollen Manufactures, 204, 213. Uulnr Lake, 421. VVynaad, Gold mines in, Yamethin Dist Vanaon, /., 551. Veolmal Dist., 460 547. \ercau