^.l^ THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES REMARKS OF THE PRESS ON INDIAN RAILWAYS. BY AN OLD INDIAN POSTMASTER. " AilEn's Ixdian Mail," August nth, 1846. " In regard to the great line to connect the seat of government witli the extreme north-west, the author's opinions are peculiar." The " Indian News," February 22nd, 1848. " The best testimony of the sound- ness of the 'Old Postmaster's' views is, that, in the settlement of Indian Railways, as far as it has recently taken place, not a few of his opinions have been followed by those in au- thority." "The Times," 19th November, 1851. "The line (in Bengal) seems to have been adopted, which was origi- nally recommended by Mr. W. P. Andrew." The "Morning Chronicle," November 20th, 1851. " By recent accounts from India, we observe that the Howrah termi- nus, indicated by Mr. Andrew to save bridging the Hooghly, had been adopted." The " Observer," November 23rd, 1851. Indian Railways. " It is not a little remarkable, on reviewuig the past and present posi- tion of Indian railways, to perceive that the views of a private individual have prevailed against, and finally overthrown, the plans of the Indian Eailvvay Commission. " The Government and people of India are therefore indebted to the ' Old Indian Postmaster,' who has thus saved them from prosecuting a design which would have led to disastrous afid humihating results." " The Economist," December \Zth, 1851. " We see with some satisfaction, that the views propounded as to forming railways in India, by Mr. W. P. Andrew, imder the cognomen of an ' Old Indian Postmaster,' and which were long ago recommended in our journal, find favour in India, and are likely to be adopted." The " Britannia," December IZth, 185L " It is announced, we see, by the 'Friend of India,' received by the last mail, ' That the Court of Direc- tors had decided for tlie adoption of the line proposed by Major Kennedy from the coUiei-ies to Rajmahal, and thence up the valley of the Ganges,' which is exactly the scheme origi- nally propounded and advocated by the 'Old Indian Postmaster,' (Mr. W. P. Andi-ew) in 1846, some two or three years before Major Kennedy went to India, and to whom exclu- sively the merit is due of having pointed out the erroneous views of the East Indian Railway Company, and adopted by the India Govern- ment Railway Commission. Had the authorities acted upon Mr. Andrew's views, a large and useless expendi- ture of time and money would have been saved; and it is admitted on all hands that this gentleman ' has saved railway enterprise in India from a great and lamentable failure.' " The Morning Herald," tember lUh, 1852. Sep- " Mr. Andrew is well known as the author of a valuable work pub- lished some years since by Mr. Pel- ham Richardson, under the noni de guerre of an ' Old Indian Post- master,' by which public and official notice was mainly, if not first, di- rected to the great subject of railway communications in India." r • "'"■''"' m THE SCINDE RAILWAY AND ITS RELATIONS TO THE EUPHEATES VALLEY, AND OTHER ROUTES TO INDIA, mitf) inustratibc iftlnps, Statistical tables, Sec. FROM OFFICIAl S0TJECE8. BY W. p. ANDREW, ESQ., CHAIRMAN OF THE SCINDE RAILWAY COMPANY, Author of "Indian Railways and their Prohahle Results, bj/ An Old Indian Fostmaster" "Railways in Bengal,^^ " Is India to have Railways ?" Sfc, " Heretofore, and until very recently, every recruit that joined liis corps from England — every invalid that was sent buck shattered to his home, was obliged to travel tlie long, slow, weary track to Calcutta, ho-.\ever distant the station at which he was placed. Within the last two years, the establishment of steam communication regularly on the Indus has enabled the (.overnment greatly to lessen this evil. This dispatch of recruits by IJumbay to Kurrachee for that large portion of the Bengal army that is stationed to ihe westward of the Juuuia, and the conveyance of the invalids of the same portion of the army from Ferozepore to the sea, have been a vast improvement."— .M^inw^f by the Governor -General of India, 1853. " Indeed these two essentials, viz,, the Railroad and the Steamers, may be said with truth to be the crying wants of the Punjaub in the Department of Public Worlis. "These provided, the commerce and produce of these territories will be turned to their due course, viz,, the Indus and its feeders and to their natural outlet, viz., the Port of Kur. rachee. " For the Railroad, the face of the Doab offers an unusual equality of surface. " If carried out, they (the railway and steamers) would effect more for the development of the resources of these territories than any other work, or number of works that could be devised." — The Chief Commissioner of the Punjaub to the Government of India, 18S5. LONDON : Wm. H. ALLEN & CO., 7, LEADEN HALL STREET. 1956. W. LEWIS AND SOX, PRINTERS. 21, FINCH LANE, CORNHILL. ov "The sea stages of the present route to India, excUisive of the trip across the Channel, are two ; one from Marseilles or Trieste to Alexandria ; and the other from Suez to (Kurrachee) Bombay, or Calcutta. These stages constitute by far the longest part of the journey, being 5075 miles, performed by steam.ers ; from ■which an average speed of some ten miles an hour is all that can be expected. The longer again of these two stages is that from Suez to Hindostan, as it includes a circuit round two sides of the triangular territory of Arabia. The first object, therefore, is to get rid of the detour by Aden ; and this is to be done by carrying the passengers to the mouths of the Oroutes, instead of the mouths of the Nile, and forwarding them across the Turkish territory to Bussorah, at the head of the Persian Gulf. The railroad req^uired for this purpose would run along the Euphrates Valley, and its length would not exceed 900 miles ; whereas, its completion would reduce the distance from London to Calcutta by more than one-half, — by twenty days in fact out of thirty-nine !" — The Times. " There is scarcely one important article of tropical production "which is consumed in this country, either as the raw material of our manufactures, or as articles of daily use, for the production of which India is not as well or better adapted than any other country ; while its dense and industrious population would seem to offer an illimitable demand for our manufactures. Nor are there opposed to these national and flattering elements of com- merce any fiscal restrictions to counteract their beneiicial results." — The Economist. "It is to India that the chief enterprise of British commerce and civilisation should be directed by an intelligent legislature.'' — Blackivood s Marjazine. EQUIVALENTS IN INDIAN AND ENGLISH CURRENCY, 12 Pie = 1 Anna = lid. 16 Annas = 1 Enpee = 2s. 100,000 Rupees = 1 Lac = £10,000. 100 Lacs = 1 Crore = £1,000,000. EQUIVALENTS IN INDIAN AND ENGLISH WEIGHTS. 80 Tolas = 1 Seer = 2 lbs. 40 Seers = 1 Maund = 80 lbs. 28 Maunds = 2240 lbs. = 1 ton. TABLE OF CONTENTS. PAci; I. The Scinde Railway and its relations to the Eu- phrates Valley and other Routes to India . . 7 Immediate objects contemplated — Contract with East India Company — Profitable character of the Line — Har- bour and Port of Km-rachee— The Indus and its Steamers — Trade of Kurrachee, the Indus, &c. — Value of the Trade of Scinde — Value of Staple Exports— Local Au- thorities' Opinion of Line — PubUc Advantages of Line — Act of Incorporation — Kurrachee the Gate of Central Asia — Punjaub requires connexion with Natural Port — Lord Dalhousie's Ophiiou as to the Political Importance of Improved Transit by Indus Valley — Geographical Ad- vantages of Kurrachee — Eailways in connection with Steamers — Same kind of Improved Transit alike appli- cable to the Valley of the Indus and to that of the Ganges — Wants of Commerce — Railway ft-om Mooltan to Lahore and Umritsu' — Punjaub and Provmces drained by the Indus — Amoimt of Mihtary Force, &c. — Supply of Etiropean Goods — Transit of European Goods to Central Asia — Trade of India with Central Asia — Grants of Land ; effect of — Europf^an Agency — Dii'ect Steam Communication between Kurrachee and Suez — The Euphrates Valley Eoute to India — A new Field for British Capital and Enterprise— Fibrous Sub- stances—Cotton — Wool — Linseed and Flax — Wheat — gait — Progressive Improvement of Scinde — Kurrachee the European Port of Incha — Junction at Kurrachee of European and Indian Telegraphs — Identity of Interests of Punjaub and Scinde — Expected Development of Re- sources and Revenue of India — Mutual Dependence of our Western and Eastern Empires — Prestige in Asia essential to Power. II. Letter from H. B. E. Frere, Esq., Commissioner in Scinde to Mr. Hardy Wells, Civil Engineer in Scinde . (i5 III. Letter from the Commissioner in Scinde to the Right Hon. Lord Viscount Falkland, Governor and Pre- sident in Comicil, Bombay ^'^ IV. Letter from the Superintending Engineer to the Commissioner in Scinde ''7 V. Report from Lieutenant W. Chapman, Bombay Engi- neers, on Special Duty in Scinde, to the Super- intending Engineer • • ^^ VL Letter from the Forest Ranger in Scinde, to Lieut Chapman ^1 VII. Statement of Imports and Exports of various places in Scinde, also, the Tonnage employed in convey- ing ^lerchandizc. and the amount of Freight paid thereon, from IstMnv. 1«.tL to Ist Ai>ril. \^'r2. . 03 PAGU Vlll. Statement, showing tlie Number of Troops, Stores, and Passengers, conveyed by the different Steamers and Flats of the Indus Flotilla, between Kun-a- cliee and Mooltan, and vice versa, between the 1st February, 1848, and 80th April, 1853 . . . 94 IX. Return of Traffic at various places, from June, 185'2, to May, 1853 inclusive, compiled from the Monthly Pietmiis, furnished by the Police Authorities . . 95 X. Roll of the Merchants residing in Kurrachee, show- ing the amount of Merchandize transported by them, during the year 1852, from Kurrachee up Country, Weight and appi'oximate Value of each Load, and the number of Camels and Tattoos used for the Carriage thereof 90 XI. Estimate of the average Load carried by Camels and Tattoos, and approximate Value of each Load . . 98 XII. Letter from Deputy Collector of Customs, Kurrachee, to Lieutenant Chapman 99 XIII. Abstract of Shipping for 1852-53 (of the Port of Kurrachee) . . , 102 XIV. Letter from Deputy Collector of Customs, Kurrachee, to Lieutenant Chapman 103 XV. Tabular view of the Returns of the Custom House, Kurrachee, for the official years, 1847-43, 1850-51, and 1851-52, with a contrasted Statement of the Increase and Decrease in Exports for 1850-51, and 1851-52 105 XVI. Statement, showing the number of Ti'oops conveyed by the different Steamers and Flats of the Indus Flotilla, between Kurrachee and Mooltan, and vice versa, between the 1st February, 1848, and 30th April, 1853 ; also, the number that marched from Kurrachee to Sukkur, and vice versa . . .107 XVII. Prices Cm-rent in the Districts (Scinde) during the Week ending 20th June, 1853 ..... 108 XVIII. Letter from Superintending Engineer, Railway De- partment, to H. E. Goldsmid, Esq., Secretary to the Government of Bombay 109 XIX. Proceedings of a Public Meeting at Kurrachee on tlie 28tli August, 1854, for promoting Railways in Scinde 110 XX. Letter from Lieut. -General the Right Hon. Sir Henry Pottinger, Bart., G C.B., to W. P. Andrew, Esq!^, Chainnan of the Scinde Railway Company . . .121 XXI. Letter from Sir James C. Melvill, K.C.B., to the Chairman of the Scinde Railway Company . . 122 Vll r.\oi: XXII. Letter from the Chairman of the Scmde Railway Corapany to the Secretary of the H. E. I. Company 134 XXIII. Letter from the Chairman of the Scinde Railway Company to the Right Honourable the Governor of Bombay . . - 126 XXIV. Letter from the Governor of Bombay to the Chair- man of the Scinde Railway Company . . . .127 XXV. Table of Quantity and Value of Tropical Productions imported into England .128 XXVI. Prices Current in Scinde during the week ending 25th August, 1854 130 XXVII. Prices Current in Scinde during the month of September, 1855 131 XXVIII. Prices Current in the Chief Stations in the Pvm- jaub and TransTndus and Cis-Sutlej Territories, for the month of October, 1855 133 XXIX. Rates of Passage and Freight by the Steamers on the Indus ] 33 XXX. Trade on the Indus 142 XXXI. Return shewing the Number of Boats arriving at and departing from the Bunders (landing places), on the Indus in 1853, 54 and 55 148 XXXII. Abstract Quarterly Register of Boats and Cargoes proceeding up and down the Indus, for the first Quarter of 1855 and 56 J47 XXXIII. Letter from the Commissioner in Sciude to the Governor of Bombay (Increase of Road Traffic) . 149 XXXIV. Traffic along the Roads of Scinde, in 1852, 53 and 54 150 XXXV. Progressive Increase in the Trade of the Province of Scinde under British Rule 155 XXXVI. Conditions of Grants of Land for Tea Cultivation 157 XXXVII. Soumeeanee; as it was and is KiO XXXVIII. Report of a Meeting for direct Steam Csmmu- nication between Kurrachee and Suez, held at Kurrachee, 4th September, 1855 105 XXXIX Memoir on the Euphrates Valley Route to India, by W P. Andrew, Esq 200 XL. Traffic between JMediterranean and Euphrates . 212 XLI. Approximate Estimate of Population and Traffic of Euphrates Valley 215 XLII. Report of the Gerant of the European and Indian Telegraph Company 217 XLIII. Report of Proceedings of First Annual General Meeting of Scinde Railway Company, held on the 18th Februarv, 1856 223 NOTE. An influential body of English merchants and manufacturers sent a memorial to Lord Claren- don on the eve of his departure to the Peace Congress at Paris, praying that in the arrange- ments about to be entered into, due regard should be had to the securing new outlets for the products of British manufacturing science and skill. Those who are interested in the extension of British commerce should turn their eyes to the once rich, but now forgotten plains of the Euphrates and Tigris, and the great countries drained by the Indus and its tributaries, and learn the wants, the capabilities, and the resources of those vast, inter- esting, and most important regions. The author has, as on former occasions, to express his acknowledgments to the Government Authori- ties for the ready access to official papers. Mr. Frere, the Commissioner of Scinde, especially has favoured him with valuable data as to the trade of Scinde and the Indus, at once authentic and recent, and not otherwise obtainable. General Chesney, several officers of the Euphrates Expedition, and more recent travellers in Eastern countries have also placed him under obligation. K J. P %1^ ^^^-^^^^ W"l^^ L tu/r Jtat/miy r,tir,d. ^»\ UO.Mili H: I'.Jnttmv (rtintn Mvltun ^.>' i.-'^' THE SCIJ^fDE RAILWAY, AND ITS RELATIONS TO THE EUPHRATES VALLEY AND OTHEE ROUTES TO INDIA. IMMEDIATE OBJECTS CONTEMPLATED.— The Scinde Railway Company was established to introduce railways into the province of Scinde, — the first section com- mencing at the port of Kui'raclieej and proceeding to a point on the Indus in the vicinity of Hydrabad. This line about 110 miles in length, will place Kurrachee, the only seaport of Scinde, in communication with the In- dus, the great commercial artery of the countries on our north-west frontier, at a point where the river becomes free from the intricacies, dangers and delays of the naviga- tion of the Delta. The great political and commercial advantages which may be fairly expected from this undertaking are clearly set forth in the despatches of the Commissioner of Scinde and the reports of the Engineer officers in the service of the Honourable East India Company, who have made a preliminary survey of tlie line. (Vide pp. 65, 74, 77, 81.) CONTRACT WITH EAST INDIA COMPANY.— The effect of the contract between the Honourable East India Company and the Scinde Railway Company i.s, that the East India Company guarantee a minimum rate of interest on the capital of 5 per cent, per annum for 99 years. The Honourable East India Company grant a lease of the land necessary for the railway and works for ninety-nine A 2 years, free of charge. On the opening of the line, all net profits exceeding the rate of interest guaranteed are to be divided — one half of the sin'plus is to go to the share- holders, and the other half to the East India Company, in liquidation of the interest they have advanced. When this interest is repaid, the entire surplus profit goes to the shareholders. The East India Company reserve a right to regulate the trains and fares ; and as soon as the dividend exceeds 10 per cent., to lower the fares, but not so as to reduce the profit below that rate. The East India Com- pany also reserve power, after the first twenty-five or fifty years, to purchase the line at a price equal to the average market value of the shares for the three preceding years. On the other hand, the railway Company have the power, at any time after the line has been three months in work, to require the East India Company to take it off their hands at six months' notice, and repay them the capital expended. PROFITABLE CHARACTER OF THE LINE. — Irrespective of the guarantee, this enterprise possesses, in the opinion of those personally acquainted with Scinde and its resources, a highly remunerative character : — 1st. From the country, presenting a series of firm and level plains, it is admirably adapted for the construction of a railway. (Vide pp. 75, 78, 81, 120.) 2nd. From the line being of moderate length and complete in itself, having an important town at either terminns, (Kurrachee, the lower terminus, the present seat of Government, being the only sea-port for many hundred miles, and Ilydrabad, the upper terminus, the former capital, being still the chief entrepot for the inland trade of the jjrovince.) thus of necessity forming the most important portion of any system of railways, or other form of transit, which shall follow the course of the Valley of the Indus or its tributaries. (Vide pp. 69, 82.) 3rd. From the actual existence of a paying goods traffic all the year round, which, in the opinion of the late Deputy Collector of Kurrachee, will have doubled its present value, aud of a passenger traffic which will have increased tenfold, before a railway can be in operation. (Vide pp. 80, 104, 116.) HARBOUR AND PORT OF KURRACHEE.— Kurrachee is the only land-locked harbour on the coast between Bombay and the Red Sea ; it is on the sea coast of the Indus valley, and is the nearest safe port to the Persian Gulf. This port is perfectly safe and easy of access for large ships during the height of the south-west monsoon. During the last year the following ships, among others, entered the harbour of Kurrachee : — From London. Tons. Dec. 1, Marion, 684, 18 ft. 6 in. draught. Nov. 23, Norwood, 850, 15 ft. in. Oct. 19, El Dorado, 841, 21 ft. in. Sept. 24, James Gibb, 813, 21 ft. 6 in. /Aug. 12, Marmion, 388, 16 ft. 3 in. » 6, Kenilworth, 582, 16 ft. 6 in. SO July 30, Granger, 878 19 ft. 6 in. )> '} Sir James, 646, „ 26, Alex. Wise, 295, 15 ft. Oin. o o 2 Saxon, 526, 15 ft. 2 in. )} }} Tamar, 556, 17 ft. 10 in. ^ June 30, Semiramis,* large steamc L". ^ „ 14, Agamemnon, 756, 16 ft. (Vide 3 hi. pp. 121, 1G5, 17-1.) * I'Vom Bombay. 4 THE INDUS AND ITS STEAMERS. — From Mooltan in the Pimjaub to Kotree (port of Hydi'abad), a distance of 570 miles of permanently open naviga- tion, the steamer best adapted for this portion of the Indus cannot get out and round by sea to Kurrachee, nor thread the narrow channels of the Delta. If the troops and stores could be landed at Kurrachee and con- veyed by railway to Kotree, a large saving would, accord- ing to the officer in charge of the Indus flotilla, accrue to the state on that service, while steam boats of improved construction could be employed for the inland navigation from Kotree to Mooltan. At present, large quantities of stores, particularly porter, obliged to be sent by country boats, are found to be worthless on reaching the Punjaub, the voyage of 800 miles from Kurrachee to Mooltan lasting five months. During the last season, the cost of transport of government stores by country boats was about £150,000. By the railway, stores would be delivered in one day at Kotree on board steamers, which in a week might deliver them in the Punjaub. This railway would exert a powerful influence in pro- moting the development of the trade of the Indus vaUey. The annual losses are very large, from the accidents which take place in threading the narrow channels of the Delta. Major Preedy, the Collector of Lower Scinde, states, that " if one or two boats only out of a batch of six or so were lost, it is considered a good venture.'' TRADE OF KURRACHEE, THE INDUS, &c.— In the port of Kurrachee, the average of the shipping is from 90,000 to 100,000 tons yearly, of which about 40,000 tons were, last year, square-rigged vessels. (Vide pp. 100, 104.^ The following is the return for boats which run the whole distance from Kurrachee to Sukkur : — 1851-2 1,284,920 maunds = 45,890 tons. 1852-3 1,565,120 „ = 55,500 „ 1853-4 1,624,740 „ = 58,026 „ 1854-5 1,681,720 „ = 60,060 „ The return of the number of boats passing any one station below Sukkur would be much higher than the above. The number of laden steamers passing Hydrabad and Kotree is 170 in the year, with a tonnage of 1,190,000 maunds, or 42,500 tons. The Government receipts for goods and passengers car- ried in the river steamers have been — 1852-3, (the first year of the ex- Gross Net. periment,) „ Rs. 50,273 Rs. 43,291 1853-4, „ „ 59,865 49,277 1854-5, „ „ 67,981 60,554 The returns of camel traffic leaving Kurrachee are not complete, — but, assuming one half of the amounts ascer- tainable as being intended for the Indus, the total is 112,000 maunds, or 4,000 tons. The post-office outlay on the line is £2,4^00 per annum. From the recent orders transmitted to India, that the Government stores for the Punjaub and neighbouring ter- ritories should be sent from Bombay, up the line of the Indus, instead of as heretofore from Calcutta, up the Gangetic valley, a great increase of the above-shewn traffic must ensue, and a revenue, at railway rates, derived, which would give a large return on the capital of the Company. The preceding figures convey but a moderate idea of the amount of tonnage which would come upon the railway. The increase of the import and export trade is still continuing, especially in the exports of the staple products of the valley. VALUE OF THE SEABORNE TRADE OF SCINDE. Year Imports. Exports. Total. £ £ £ 1843-4 121,150 1.010 122,160 1844-5 217,700 9,300 227,000 1845-6 312,900 40,500 353,400 1846-7 293.400 49,300 342,700 1847-8 287,872 154,730 442,600 1848-9 344,715 107.133 451,849 1849-50 419,352 114,378 533,731 1850-51 425,831 196,461 622,293 1851-52 489,220 244.122 733.343 1852-53 535,690 376,337 800,000 1853-54 900.000 1854-55 1,000,000 * VALTTE OF STAPLE EXPORTS. 1847-8. 1851-52. 1852-53. ceut.in5jears. £ £ £ Wool .... 18.159 75.716 160.000 800 Indigo . . . 2,825 21,595 24.000 750 Saltpetre . . . 8 4.323 9,600 12,000 Ghee .... 726 9,616 18,300 2,400 Piece Goods ") Silk & Cotton] 1,288 3,921 4,750 260 Every increase in facility and safety of transport will give fresh impulse to all native products. The export of wool, corn, oil seeds, saltpetre,t and indigo, madder, and * I have not exact returns of the total value of the Sea Trade for 1853-4 and 1854-.'j, but the latter was over a million sterling. t The following shows the growth of the saltpetre export trade from Scinde : — 1847-48 Maunds 33 48-49 49-50 50-51 51-52 52-53 53-54 Cwt. 426 6,052 6,822 13,949 25,066 other dye stuffs, is capable of almost iiidefiuite exten- sion. Besides the European and native troops, European travellers and native traders will, it is believed, largely avail themselves of the Indus Valley line of transit, when relieved of the obstructions of the Delta. From the large number of passengers proceeding from the Punjaub and Upper India to Europe, and vice versa, there can be little doubt but that a direct steam communi- cation will soon be established between Kurrachee, and Aden and Suez — this route being actually the shortest, while it is the safest from the prevailing direction of the periodical winds. (Vide pp. 71, 165.) The pilgrims from the countries on our North-west Border en route to Mecca, and other holy cities, would supply traffic to the railway, and increase the intercourse already established between Kurrachee and the ports of the Persian Gulf. LOCAL AUTHOBITIES^ OPINION OF LINE.— The Line was preliminarily examined by that late dis- tinguished officer. Lieutenant Chapman, of the Bombay Engineers, who reports it to present the greatest possible facilities for the construction of a railway, with the very best gradients (in fact nearly level), and at a low rate of cost. Colonel Turner, the Superintending Engineer in Scinde, Mr. Frere, the Commissioner of the Province, and Lord Elphinstone, the Governor of Bombay, all concur in desiring the early completion of the Line, which is now in the hands of the Scinde Railway Company's en- gineers; and the requisite material for a portion of the permanent way is now in the course of shipment from this country for Kurrachee. (Vide pp. 65, 74, 77, 81, 127.) PUBLIC ADVANTAGES OF LINE. — The public advantages to ])e derived from tliis Company's exertions may be tlius recapitulated, viz. : — By the construction of a Railway from Kurracliee to the Indus — 1st. Greatly increased facilities will be afforded for the lauding and conveyance of troops intended for any part of the Punjaub, and neighbouring terri- tories. (Vide pp. 118, 190.) 2nd. A sum, estimated at £50,000 per annum at least, will be saved to government in the transport of stores. 3rd. Improvements, to the extent of nearly j£10,000 per annum, may be effected in the Indus Flotilla service, without any increased charges on the finances of the province. 4th. A very large sum would be annually saved to the country in freight alone, besides the saving in loss and damage to goods, which in itself would be a very large item. 5th. Sources of trade would be opened which at pre- sent are not in action. It is believed that, in accomplishing these objects, a very large profit will result to the Company. ACT OF INCORPORATION. — An Act of Parlia- ment during the last Session, limiting the liability of the shareholders to the amount of their subscriptions, and conferring the necessary powers, has been obtained, with the concurrence of the authorities. KURRACIIEE THE GATE OF CENTRAL ASIA. — "From the Sutlej to the Oxus, whoever wishes to commu- nicate with any place beyond the sea, must pass through Kurrachee. It occupies a position scarcely less favourable to commerce than that of Alexandria." The port is protected from the sea and bad weather by Munorah, a bluff rocky headland, projecting south east- 9 ward from the mainland, and lea\iug a space of about tv^o miles between the extreme point and the coast to the east. The harbour is spacious, extending about five miles northward from ISIunorah Point, and about the same distance from the town, on the eastern shore, to the extreme western point. "Km-rachee is a position of very great importance, whether regarded in a commercial, a political, or a military point of view. In a commercial point of view, it may be defined the gate of central Asia, and is likely to become to India what Liverpool is to England. "It has been officially reported that accommodation exists for the reception within the harbour, at the same time, of tAventy ships of 800 tons (and any number of smaller craft). "The climate of Kurrachee is cool in proportion to its latitude ; and under British auspices, the toAvn must speedily become a most important place. Lat. 24°, 51", long. 67«, 2^* Its value was manifested and tested during the recent campaigns on the Sutlej. It became the grand depot whence our field forces were suppUed with all the munitions of war. Thousands upon thousands of tons of military stores were imported into its harbour. The population of Kurrachee is about 30,000, and is rapidly increasing ; and boats, as well as laboui', in the harbour are abundant and cheap. KuiTachee then is not only the natural port of Scinde, but also of the Punjaub and central Asia; and the Scinde Railway, which connects it with permanently deep water in the Indus at Hydrabad, is only the first link in that chain of improved communication which must, at no distant period, connect Peshawer, on the borders of Afighanistan, with the sea. * Thornton's Gazetteer. 10 PUNJAUB REQUIRES CONNEXION WITH NATURAL PORT.— The resources of the Pimjaub, with its 1 3,000^000 of inhabitants, have lain dormant for the want of an outlet ; the surplus produce of tlie country has had no market sufficiently remunerative, owing to the ex- pensive and defective inland transit, and the absence of European agency. It is evident, that the demands of the State, and the wants of the inhabitants on the banks of the Indus and its tributaries, require the development, with as little delay as possible, of a comprehensive system of improved transit from Lahore and Umritsir, by the vaUey of the Indus, to Kurrachee. LORD DALHOUSIE'S OPINION AS TO THE POLITICAL IMPORTANCE OF IMPROVED TRAN- SIT BY INDUS VALLEY.— Lord Dalhousie, in his celebrated Minute on- railways in India, dated 20th April, 1853, makes the following suggestions : — " I attach no great value to the connexion by railway of the several capitals and seats of government, considered merely as such. But it appears to be of the first import- ance to connect the several Presidencies by a line of rail, each Avith the other, and to unite Hindostan and the districts to the north-west with the western ports in the Peninsula. " Whatever strength there may be in the arguments by which a general line through Hindostan has been urged on political grounds, they bear as strongly in favour of a junction line with the Presidency of Bombay. The military power of the government of India would be incalculably advanced thereby.- The Presidency of Bom- bay may be said to have no foreign fr'ontier, except in Scinde. " Heretofore, and until very recently, every recruit that joined his corps from England — every invalid that was sent 11 back shattered to his home, was ohliyed to travel the long, slow, tveary track to Calcutta, however distant the station at which he was jylaced. Within the last two years, the establishment of steam communication regularly on the Indus has enabled the Government greatly to lessen this evil. The dispatch of recruits by Bombay to Kurrachee for that large portion of the Bengal army that is stationed to the westward of the Jumna, and the conveyance of the invalids of the same portion of the army from Ferozepore to the sea, have been a vast improvement. Furthermore, I hope before long, to see the cost of the conveyance of troops to India reduced by still another step, and the time occupied upon the voyage equally curtailed, by obtain- ing permission to convey them across the Isthmus of Suez. "When Hindostan is connected by rail to the western coast of India, the conveyance by rail across Egypt will, I venture to hope, remove any objection which might be felt there to the passage of foreign troops; while, if the per- mission should be granted, a corps might leave England after the heat of summer was over, and might be quartered before Christmas upon the banks of the Sutlej, without any exposure in its way, and with four months before it of the finest climate mider the smi ; so that the men would enter the first heats of India with constitutions \igorous and un- impaired by the accident of voyage or march." When the Governor General penned the above, the merits of Kurrachee had not been ascertained ; and in August last, little more than two years after the date of the Minute, we find the Commissioner in the Province of Scinde, pre- siding at a public meeting at Kurrachee, ginning the follow- ing character of its port : — GEOGRAPHICAL ADVANTAGES OF KURRA- CHEE. — " The idea of a direct communication between 12 Kurrachec and Suez was no new one ; it had been mooted by the late Sii" C. Napier, very shortly after the conquest of the Province, and it ^ould in fact suggest itself to almost any one who considered the physical configm-ation of this part of the continent of Asia. A glance at the outline map hung up in the room (which was taken from a parliamentary Blue Book very recently published), Avould show the meeting that from Aden to Bombay the direct distance Avas 1640 miles ; while from Aden to Kiu'rachee the distance was but 1435 miles, making a saving of 205 miles — but this was during the fair weather. In the south-west monsoon, the distance to be run from Bombay to Aden was 2170 miles, which would make a difference in favour of the passage from Kurrachec to Aden of 745 miles, Avhenever the passage could be made direct. There appeared reason to suppose that the cases would be very rare, in which the direct pas- sage along the Arabian coast would be impracticable ; and even if a vessel from Kurrachec were obliged to deviate from the straight com'se, the difference would still be many hundred miles in her favom', as compared with a vessel going from Bombay. The advantages of Bombay, as re- garded geographical position, were well known, and there- fore a knowledge of these facts was sufficient to show the superior geographical position of Kurrachee as the port of communication with Suez, and for all pai'ts of India which were as near, or nearer to Kurrachee than they were to Bombay. " Colonel Turner instituted a series of very careful expe- riments by boring, and showed most conclusively that there was not a particle of rock anywhere on the bar ; that the whole Avas composed, to considerable depth, of soft sand. The establishment of this fact of course remoAcd one prin- cipal ground of the fear which mariners before had — of approaching or touching on the bar. 13 " But the principal share of the credit of practically prov • ing the absence of any clanger in entering the port, was due to Lieut. Leeds, the port officer, who with great sldll and judgment, and on his own responsibility, piloted in ships of considerable biirthen, and had practically shown that this might be safely done, even without any aid from steamers. The result was, that during the monsoon just closed, four large steamers from Bombay and Aden, and eight sailing vessels of from 300 to 878 tons, had come in and gone out, and with one exception, it had never been found necessary to wait even a single day for any particular tide. And it must be further remembered, that each of these eight sail- ing vessels was towed in and towed out of the harbour by a steamer (the Victoria) , which, no later than last year, was employed in conveying passengers at the most crowded season between Bombay and Suez. " Facts like these prove beyond a possibility of doubt, that there ivas no difficulty uhattver in getting vessels, even of a considerable size, into and out of Kurrachee harbour during the south-west monsoon, the most unfavourable pe- riod of the year.'' (See pp. 66, 166). Brigadier Parr, commanding at Kurrachee, stated, on the occasion before referred to, that, "by the facilities for rapid connnunicution with Suez and Mooltan, Avhich were glanced at in the Eeport, and which the statements they had heard showed to be strictly within the limits of what was possible, and he hoped practical at no distant date, it would positively take less time to mo\ c a brigade from Southampton to the Punjaub, than it would at present take to move the Kur- rachee brigade from this camp to Mooltan ; in other words, yon might have Southampton, instead of Kurrachee, the base of your operations for any campaigns in the Punjaub, or any countries beyond it. This facility appeared to him, as a military man, to afford advantages so enormous, that 14 he was sure the meeting would excuse his dilating on the other aspects of the scheme." (Vide p. 190.) RAILWAYS, IN CONNECTION WITH STEAM- ERS. — So far back as 1846, I suggested that railroads should be introduced into Bengal, in connexion with river navigation, so that the new mode of transit should, instead of superseding, co-operate with the old — at all events in the first instance; and the same views and arguments are as applicable to the Indus as to the Ganges. '' Our opinion remains unchanged, notwithstanding that the Railway Commissioners have enunciated propositions, and proposed projects in exact accordance with the \iews entertained by the East Indian, or Mirzapore Railway Company ; but which they have failed to demonstrate, not even supplying the requisite data, on which to found the demonstration of the plans and propositions proposed and enunciated by themselves — we say that our opinion re- mains unchanged, as to the impolicy of commencing the rail-road system by an attempt to supersede the river navi- gation, where it is comparatively free from obstruction, and is always available for steam navigation, as is the case between Rajmahl and Allahabad. The former is situated at the head of the Delta of the Ganges, and the latter at the confluence of the Ganges and Jumna, the distance between the two towns, by the river route, being 500 miles. But should a line he determined on for this portion of the country, an extension of the Rajmahl line up the Ganc/etic valley to Mirzapore and Allahabad, would have many advantages over the direct route indicated hy the East Indian, or 3Hrzapore Railway Company . These advan- tages we shall notice in detail when we come to review the report of the Railway Commission. It may, however, he mentioned now, that although the actual, or lineal, distance hetween Calcutta and Mirzapore hy the valley of the 15 Qangcs, would he 100 iniles longer' than by the direct rovte, yet taking the difference of gradients into account {assistant ■power being required on the latter, and pro rata to the power required so is the distance) the gain in time by the direct line, would not be more than three or four hours, which would be too trivial to be an element hi any calcu- lation of the comparative merits of the two lines, in a country, where time occupied in travelling is estimated by months instead of hours.''* SAME KIND OF IMPROVED TRANSIT ALIKE APPLICABLE TO THE VALLEY OF THE INDUS AND TO THAT OF THE GANGES.— Turning from tbe valley of tne Gauges to that of the Indus and its tributaries, I woiJd recommend precisely the same mode of introducing improved transit, substituting Hydrabad for Rajmahal, and !Mooltan for Allahabad. The rail from Kurrachee to Hydrabad will, as formerly explained, avoid the dangers and delays of the Delta, and debouche on a point of the river above which there is permanently open navigation for 570 miles, to Mooltan. WANTS OF COMMERCE.— To improve the means of communication, is the primary duty of every govern- ment. The steamers at present on the Indus are ill adapted to the peculiar requirements of that river, and are quite inadequate to meet the pressing demands for passage and freight. Goods frequently remain months at Kurrachee and Mooltan from the want of the means * Indian Railways, by An Old Indian Postmaster. 2nd ed., 1846. As the Bengal Line is at this moment exciting great attention, both in India and in this country, I may remark that the Gangelic Valley Line is now being constructed by the East Indian Railway Company, as above publicly recommended by me ten years ago, and subsequently in a Report, the original of which is at the Board of Control. IG of transport on tlie Indus ; and notwithstanding that the home Government have ordered out from this country several additional steamers^ of a superior description to the present flotilla^ the residents in Scinde and the Punjaub are desirous that the impetus which private enterprise alone can impart, should be brought to bear on the navigation of the inland waters of the Indus, in connexion with the railway and direct steam communication between KuiTachee and Suez. I am assured, on the best authority, that " The steamers ordered out by the Court of Directors will do no more than replace those now on the river, which are old and worn out. They will add little to the available accommo- dation for goods. " I have been,^' says the same authority, " repeatedly assured by the government agents for the river steamers, that they every month reject twice as much freight as the steamers are able to carry ; and that this freight is applied for with a knowledge on the part of shippers, that the chance of its being taken is very small. " Of course, if there were ample accommodation, the applications would be much more numerous. "The Government river steamers on the Indus never take native second class passengers for hire. This Avould of course be a source of great profit to any private com- pany, as the natives are most anxious to avail themselves of steamers whenever they can. "/ have known instances of goods at Kuruachke in- tended for the Punjaub being sent hack to Bombay, with a vietv of being fonvarded by the Peninsula and Oriental Company's boats, via Galle and Calcutta, and so up the Ganges to the Punjaub, because there appeared no hope of tonnage being available for them in the Indus river steamers for several months to come." 17 RAILWAY FROM MOOLTAN TO LAHORE AND UMRITSIR. — The navigation above Mooltan is tedious and precarious, from the want of water, the tortuous course of some of the rivers and other causes, except to small steam- ers and country boats of light di'aught. The country, how- ever, between Mooltan, Lahore, and Umritsir, is singularly favourable for a railway, being almost level throughout, and having no rivers of any magnitude to cross. In brief, then, it is my opinion that the line of rails from KmTachee to Hydrabad, and another line of rails from Mooltan to Lahore and Umritsir, co-operating with fleets of river steamers, of improved construction, such as those, for example, recommended by Mr. John Bourne, from Hydrabad to Mooltan, would at once be the most judicious, the easiest, the least costly, the soonest con- structed, and in every other point of view, the most ad- vantageous mode of introducing the railway system into the Valley of the Indus and its tributaries. The local authorities, especially Mr. Frere, the Commis- sioner in Scinde, Colonel Turner, Superintending Engineer of the Province, Sir John Lawrence, the. Chief Commis- sioner of the Punjaub, Colonel Glasfurd, late Executive Engineer at Lahore, Major Hamilton, late Commissioner at Mooltan, and Mr. Edgeworth, the Commissioner of the trans-Sutlej States, corroborate the above views, which the writer has long entertained. The last-mentioned gentleman expresses himself as follows : — "But the main and only permanent improvement vnll be the formation of a railway from either Umritsir or Lahore to Mooltan, " With regard to the commimication below Mooltan, the main point is, increased accommodation for travellers and greater comfort in the boats, which are at present peculiarly ill-suited for the purpose. B 18 " The proposed Scinde Railway will do almost all that is required for the lower communication. " For the conveyance of goods, the present steam accom- modation is utterly insufficient. " In fine, I may express my fervent hope that the pro- posed measure may be carried out, [i. e., direct steam com- munication between Kurrachee and Suez,) as I am con- vinced it will be one of very great importance to the im- provement of these provinces.'' The Chief Commissioner of the Punjaub, in a recent dispatch to the Government of India^ makes the following forcible remarks : — " Indeed, these tivo essentials, viz., the railroad and the steamers, may he said with truth to he the crying wants of the Punjauh in the department of puhlic loorks. Thesepro- vided, the commerce and produce of these territories will he turned to their due course, viz., the Indus and its feeders, and to their natural outlet, viz., the Port of Kurrachee. " For the railroad the face of the Doab offers an mmsual equality of surface, while it possesses few or none of the requisite resom-ces for metalhng a road. For the rivers, it were preferable, instead of improving the navigable stream, to concentrate all efforts on the provision of powerful steamers of the smallest possible draught. The Chief Commissioner, while deprecating any general extension of the public works department in the Punjaub for the present, would yet beg most earnestly to press these cardinal objects on the attention of the Government. He believes that, if caiTied out, they would effect more for the development of the resources of those territories than any other work, or number of works, that could be devised. " He (the Chief Commissioner) would suggest that, if possible, private enterprise be directed to the Umritsir, Lahore and Mooltan Railway. It is understood that 19 possibly the Scinde Railway Company may be disposed to extend their line northwards. " PUNJAUB AND PROVINCES DRAINED BY THE INDUS. — The provinces on the Indus and its tributaries are eut off from India by the Great Desert^ and camiot naturally eommunicate with the sea by any other route than by the valley of the Indus. Of eourse, goods do find their w^ay to the Punjaub, through Calcutta and Bom- bay^ but they have to follow round-about and unnatural routes ; and if they can be supplied through the direct and natural channel_, the benefit to the provinces so supplied will be felt even at Calcutta and Bombay, far more tlian the loss of any traffic which may leave those ports, to pursue a luore direct and cheaper route. What are the resources of the Punjaub, North-west Pro- vinces, and Scinde, which, under the improved facilities of communication suggested, are calculated to feed and main- tain independent steam communication between Kurrachee and Suez? AMOUNT OF MILITARY FORCE, &c.— SUPPLY OF EUROPEAN GOODS.— The military force of these provinces, going no further east than Umballa, numbers upwards of 70,000 men, more than 15,000 of whom are Europeans. This is independent of officers, which, allow- ing for absentees, cannot fall short of 2,000, without taking into account their wives and children, besides the covenanted and uneovenanted civil servants and their families, which must make the total European population of these provinces little short of 20,000. The large supplies of overland goods which the army we have alluded to must annually consume, would, doubt- less, form a considerable item in the receipts of the pro- posed undertaking. We have no means of forming an estimate of the probable consumption of such goods; but 20 some idea of their extent may be obtained from a statement of Colonel Jacob, the Political Superintendent of the Upper Scinde frontier, and Commandant of the Scinde Irregular Horse ; that about fifty camel loads, or 24,0001bs., is about the average annual supply of Em'opean goods required by the regiments he commands ; and which, were the proposed steam communication established, could be forwarded to him with much greater ease and celerity. If, then, this be the annual consumption of overland borne goods of two native regiments, 1,600 strong, what must be the consumption of an army of 70,000, of which above 15,000 are Europeans, besides civilians, women, and children? TRANSIT OF EUROPEAN GOODS TO CENTRAL ASIA. — A proper system of transit, once established through Scinde and the Punjaub, a few enterprising Eu- ropean merchants at Kurrachee would soon afford a medium for extensive shipments from the Punjaub and proAdnces to the north-west of Dellii, and the distribution of our manu- factures to the remote parts of central Asia finding cus- tomers along the valleys of Affghanistan as far as Herat, and in Balkh, Khiva and Bokhara. I will now point for a moment to the extensive provinces of Central Asia, which are now our near neigh- bours, and explain briefly how those important and com- paratively far advanced countries have been supplied with merchandize, and have disposed of produce since the course of the Indus was comparatively closed to commerce by the exactions of the native princes. To follow the de- scription the reader must refer to a large map of Asia. First, he will find to the north-cast of our fi'ontier, in the imme- diate vicinity, the celebrated valley of Cashmere, inhabited by a people renowned for their great skill and ingenuity. Beyond that lies Thibet, famous for its fine goat wool, and the manufacture of yarn for the shawls Moven in Cashmere. 31 To the west and south-west we find the Affghan territory, with the large to\\Tis of Cabul, Ghizni, Kandahar, and Herat the Gate of India ; in the same direction, the northern provinces of Persia. In a north-westerly direc- tion we find the extensive and fertile countries of Tiu'kestan and Bokhara, with the large central towns of Balkh, Khiva, and Bokhara; and, at a great distance westerly, we find the Caspian Sea. The commerce of this vast territory is now carried on by so circuitous and expensive a route, that it will be easy to restore it to the ancient and natural channel of the Indus, and by that means how much it is likely to be increased, now that it is freed by the supremacy of England from the political obstructions and exorbitant demands of the tiu-bulent and semi-barbarous states on its banks may be readily conceived. " In former times the Indus was the great highway of commerce between India and Central Asia ; but upon the dismemberment of the empire of the Great Mogul, the river fell under the power of a midtitudc of petty chiefs, whose exactions gradually extinguished the traffic. One consequence of this revolution was, that Cabul, Bokhara, and Persia, instead of being supplied from India with manufactured goods, as had previously been the case, received most of their supplies from Russia, which, from the facilities of conveyance afibrded by the Volga, running into the Caspian Sea, was enabled to come into the markets of the East upon eligible terms. These advantages possessed by Uussia have, it is understood, been latterly augmented by the establishment of steam-vessels upon the Volga and the Caspian; and the Russian are now. supplant- ing the English manufactures in the Punjaub, and even threatening to do so in the north-west provinces of Bengal.''* * Indian River Navigation, by John Bourne, C. E. o/> " The imports into Central Asia consist of European manufactures of every description : — Calicoes, long cloths, chintzes, muslins, and other kinds of cotton goods, broad cloths, velvets, nankeens, gold-thread, copper, and brass wares of all descriptions, cutlery, and jewellery, and, in fact, of almost every article which compose British exports, and including considerable quantities of refined sugar. At present, (besides the valley of the Indus,) there are three routes by which these imports are received : — 1st. By the Persian Gulf, through Persia ; 2nd. By the caravans from Smyrna and the ports in the Levant ; and 3rd. chiefly, and by far in the largest proportion, through Russia. Let us trace the route from the latter, as bemg the chief source. Goods either manufactured in, or imported into Russia from England, France, and Germany, many of them purchased at the gi'cat German fairs, after paying very liigh transit duties, are shipped at some point on the Volga, and conveyed by steam-boats down that river to the head of the Caspian Sea. They are then conveyed the whole length of that sea by other steam-boats established thereon to Balfrush, where they are again landed. From that point they are conveyed by the eastern caravans by the high road through Sari to Bustum. At this point one road diverges in a north-easterly direction to Bokhara, Khiva, and Ballch. Another road continues onward in an easterly course to Herat thence to Candahar, and so on to Ghizni and Cabul; from whence Peshawur, Attock, Lahore and all the country of the Punjaub and Cashmere have partly been supplied."* " The imports of Cabul are indigo, cotton, sugar, calicoes, muslins and shawls; and the exports are horses, the madder of Ghizni and Candahar, and fi-esh and dried fruits. The chief carriers of the trade are the Lohance merchants, f a * The Economist. + Lohanee Merchants. — The following is an extract from a 23 pastoral race of Affghans, who occupy the country eastward from Ghizni to the Indus. The Lohanee caravan usually recent letter from Mr. H. B. E. Frere:— " These men are the great carriers of the Affghan trade. They have their homes ahout Guzni, where they spend the summer. Since the trade via Tatta and the Indus was extinguished in the latter end of the last century, these people have supplied themselves with seaborne goods via Calcutta. They descend the passes before they are blocked up by snow, between Guzni and the Indus, in vast caravans of eight or ten thousand souls ^the whole tribe moving bodily — men, women, children and cattle — their goods being on camels and ponies. Arrived in the Derajat, they leave the aged men, women and children in black felt tents, with their flocks and herds in the rich pastures bordering on the Indus, while the able-bodied men push across the Punjaub with their goods for sale either in that province or on the banks of the Ganges. The lead- ing merchants precede the main body on dromedaries, taking with them a few samples, letters of credit, &c. &c , make their purchases at Delhi, Agra, Allahabad, Cawnpoor, Mirzapoor, and even Calcutta, and return with them express — collect their families and flocks, and force their way up the passes. Their numbers generally enable them to compound with the tribes of the mountains for a reasonable amount of blackmail, but they have sometimes to fight their way. I have heard of the wife of an eminent merchant of this tribe, whose husband had been detamed longer than he expected at Delhi, ofiering the " Kaffila- bashee " (head of the caravan) demurrage at the rate of 10,000 rupees a day, to defer the upward march of the caravan, and enable her hus- band to rejoin, as she knew that if left behind he would be unable to follow them through the passes, except at great risk to his life and the property he might have with him. " Last year, the first of this tribe came down to Kurrachee, and told me that they would soon all come that way ; that they had no idea of its comparative shortness and other facihties. When I met them, they had shipped the wool they had brought down from Guzni on board river boats at Dhera Ismael Khan, and were taking their unladen camels down to Kurrachee, expecting there to find return loads, with which they would go back to Aflghanistan. " The fact that the merchants who carry on this trade have turned their attention to Kurrachee as a substitute for Calcutta, seems to me a point of much importance." 24 reaches Cabul about the beginning of June; and after the merchants have disposed of their goods they prosecute their journey onward to Bokhara. The imports which Bokhara receives from India arc the same as those received by Cabul. About 2000 camel-loads of goods reach Cabul from India yearly, and about half this quantity is trans- mitted to Turkestan. " The imports into Bokhara from Russia are — white cloths, muslins, chintzes, broadcloths, velvets, brocade, nankeen, gold thread, cochineal, refined sugar, honey, furs, locks, iron, iron pots, wire, copper and brass, leather, paper, needles, iirferior cutlery and jewellery, hardware, and a variety of other small articles. English broadcloth is much prized in Bokhara, but none reaches that comitry, except through Russia or Persia; from which countries, although its transmission is subject to heavy imposts, it can be brought at a cheaper rate than fi'om India, in consequence of the expense of the land-carriage through Affghanistan, which, however, the opening of the Indus would in a great measure supersede. " Besides the Russian and Indian trade, Bokhara carries on a considerable traffic with China, by way of Cashgar and Yarkund. The imports to Bokhara, from China, arc — China ware, musk, bullion, and tea. Of the latter article there are nine hundred and fifty horse-loads, or two hundred thousand pounds, transmitted annually, although the diffi- culties of the roads, and the long land-carriage through Thibet, necessarily much enhance the price. A horse-load of tAvo hundred and fifty pounds costs sixty tillas in Yarkund, and sells for one hundred tillas in Bokhara. It is entirely green tea which is carried to Turkestan, and the best comes from a place in China called Turklit, and is packed in small boxes of Banca tin, from whence it is called Banca tea. The sugar-candy of China is also imported into Turkestan, 25 but being a comparatively cumbrous article, it cauiiot be carried by the same route as the tea, but is conveyed from China to Bombay, from thence up the Persian Gulf, and on by land to Teheran : from thence a large quantity is carried across the Caspian to the Bay of Balkhan, from whence it is carried to Khiva,* and a small quantity is also carried by way of ]\Ieshcd. It is ob\ious, that if the Indus were available for commerce, it uould afford a much easier route for the produce of China to Khiva and Bokhara, than either the route through Thibet, or the route through Persia ; and many of the commodities which find their way into Central Asia through circuitous routes, would neces- sarily take the route of the Indus, so soon as that channel of communication was properly opened up. "The principal exports of Bokhara are silk, wool, and lamb-skins. The silk is chiefly produced on the banks of the Oxus, where the mulberry grows in the most luxuriant * " Khiva, of the site of which Major Abbott gives a new determina- tion, placing it in latitude 41° 20", and longitude 60°, is the modern capital of the kingdom of Khaurasm, the ancient Chorasmin. On the north-west this is separated from the district of Orenburg by a belt of steppe inhabited by Kirghese Cossacks, or as Captain Abbott chooses to call thera, Kuss-auks, whose Chief is a nominal tributary of the Russian government — an allegiance, probably, secured mainly by the market which his people find at Samara for the skins that their flocks produce. On the west, Khaurasm is bounded by the Caspian Sea, on the south west by Persia and Herat, on the south-east by Bokhara, and on the north-east by Kokann. Taken roughly, its area extends about 800 miles from north to south, and 600 from east to west, and it entirely separates Russia from Bokhara, and consequently commands the line of traffic between those two places." Merv, the principal town of the district of Yoollataun, is an extremely important position, as the trade between Bokhara and Persia, and also that between Khiva and Alfghanistan passes through it, and con- temptible as its present appearance is, it might, with judicious care, rapidly rise into wealth and consequence. 26 manner, and nearly all the inhabitants are engaged in rearing the silk-worm dui'ing the summer months. The lamb-skins of Bokhara are renowned throughout the East, and are only procurable at Karahool, a small district lying between Bokhai-a and the Oxus. These skins are chiefly carried to Persia ; but the risks of the transport are great, in consequence of the misettled condition of the tribes between the two countries. From these causes it is not possible to negotiate a bill between Meshed and Bokhara, and the cost of transport is very high, " The manufactures of Russia find ready access into Persia by the Caspian ; but Tabreez and Teheran also receive Russian goods by way of Tiflis and the Caucasus. Latterly a route has been opened for English goods into the northern parts of Persia by way of Treljizonde, from which much benefit has accrued — the southern districts being supphed with English goods from Bushire, on the Persian Gulf. To the north-west of Bushire the Karoon, a large and navigable river, ascends into the heart of Persia; and, under suitable an-angements, goods might be carried by this route to witliin a comparatively short distance of Ispahan." * TRADE OF INDIA WITH CENTRAL ASIA.— Goods brought to Attok, on the Indus, by steamer and rail, may be placed in the Cabul, Ghizni, Candahar, Herat, Balkh and Bokhara markets, at a much less cost than by the expensive caravan route from Novogorod and the Volga. There is a great trade in silk between Bokhara and the Punjaub. The trade of India, with central Asia, amounts to about one million sterling. One portion of this seeks egress and ingress on the borders of Scinde, and the remainder passes * Indian River Navigation, by John Bourne, G.E. 27 through the Punjaub. By the former route the trade is can-icd on by means of the Indus^ and by camels, horses, mules, and more recently by carts ; by the latter route it is carried on by multitudes of camels, mules and ponies which are used in the transit instead of wheel carriages. A string of camels, numbering five thousand, occasionally comes from Bokhara to Dhera Ismael Khan, on the Indus. The mer- chants travel armed, and are accompanied by their families, and the caravan constitutes as it were a moveable bazaar. Silks and wools, groceries and spices, fm's from Russia, and gold with the Bokhara stamp, although extracted from the Ural INIountains, dyes, books, cloths and metals are the wares they carry. Arrived at Dhera- Ismael- Khan, the families and baggage are deposited, and the merchants severally start, with their trains and merchandise, for the south. About 20,000 camels are employed in this trade, exclusive of ponies and mules. A large number of armed retainers accompany the caravans, besides 8,000 servants.* The import trade carried on in this truly primitive fashion, cost for transit from 6d. to Is. Qd. per ton per mile, and ^'^amomited on the average of the five years, ending 1849 to— Article. Country of Produce. Value. Raw silk Bokhara, Khorasan Rs. 2,80,000 Wools Hills north of Cabul, Ghuzni 12,000 ^ - C Affghanistan, Herat and Bok- P^otions I hara, Persia and Khorasan 85,000 Dried fruits Cabul, Jellalabad and Kandahar 91,000 Red dye Kandahar 1,20,000 Iron Mines west of Bunoo 33,500 Alum Kalabagh 22,000 Carried forward Rs. 6,43,500 Vide Note, page 23, supra. 28 Brought forward lis. 0,43,500 T3 r, .^ ( Aft'ffhanistan, except pomegra- KaAv fruits ^J nates from Kandahar 22,000 Horse cloths D.-Ismael-Khan 12,000 Gold Bokhara 3,00,000 Horses Affghanistan and Persia 1,50,000 Light articles 30,000 Total 11,57,500 Add specie payments 6,00,000 Grand total Rs. 17,57,000 "The word which we have translated hy the American equivalent ' notions, * includes, gum-arabic, rose leaves, assafoetida, yelloiv amber, medicines, sulphur, liquorice, antimony, dyes, and a variety of groceries, spices, and all that is pleasant — and unpleasant — to taste and smell. The phrase ' light articles ' covers a variety as miscellaneous as the stock-in-trade of a marine store dealer, or a shop in the Calcutta China bazaar. It includes Persian silks, Russia leather, Russia chintzes, pet animals, great coats, Ispahan and Damascus blades, fans, punkahs, ermine and sable fui's;"* in fact anything and every tiling not absolutely necessary. " Silk, it will be perceived, is, with one excep- tion, the most important item. Of the whole quantity imported, one-half is consigned to a single house at Uni- ritsir, and a moiety of the remainder to a second. The latter, moreover, the house of Tukht Mull, imports half the wool. The raw fruits are confined chiefly to Jewan Singh of the same place, and we may remai'k generally, that although the trade is widely scattered, the greater portion ahke of merchandise and profits remains in exceedingly few hands. The traders are generally ' Kabulecs,^ ' Lohanees,' * Friend of India. 29 and ' Puraclias/ the two latter being natives of Daman and Attock. The Purachas are remarkable for their branch establishments. They maintain them throughout the Pun- jaub at Umritsir, Mooltan, and Hooshearpore, in Behar, in Moorshedabad, and at Radhanagore. The only caravans apparently which reach Calcutta are those which convey the articles under the head ' notions/ "* The export trade during the same period amounted on the average to — Place. Value. "Shawls Cashmere (Rs.) 6,50,000 Loaf sugar Jullundur 50,000 Rough sugar (goor) Barce and Rechna Doab 8,000 Indigo Mooltan and Upper India 1,57,000 Coarse native cloth Punjaub 3,54,000 Piece goods Manchester 3,80,000 Notions Europe 45,000 Total 16,44,000 " The ' notions ' again include hardware, glass, cutlery, camphor, cloves, cinnamon, sandal wood, verdigris, quick- silver, tea, and everything with which Sheffield can tempt the taste of semi-barbarian tribes.^f The amounts of exports and imports through the Punjaub, was only £340,000 ; but it has increased since the estimates were made, and there is little doubt but that it, taken in con- junction with that traversing the provmce of Scinde, approaches nearly a million sterling. The appearance of bullion amongst the imports, shows that the balance of trade is in favour of India, and the trade being in every item susceptible of considerable extension is well worth the * Friend of India. f Ibid. 30 attention of Manchester and Yorkshire. English chintzes and broadcloths are greatly esteemed in central Asia; and broadcloth of light texture, such as lady's cloth, at moderate rates, -vrould meet with a ready and extensive sale. "We have already mentioned the many products which Central Asia has to give in exchange ! but there is one very important one which appears to have been almost entu'ely overlooked, and which is capable of great extension — we mean sheeps' wool. All the countries bordering on the Indus, and especially those to the west, contain very ex- tensive pastoral districts, where wool is produced in gi'eat abundance. The rapid increase in the supply of wool to this country from that territoiy during the last few years, even under all the disadvantages which have existed, and the great cost of transit and re-shipment from the ports on the coast to Bombay and thence to England, is the best proof of what may fairly be expected with the facilities now for the first time about to be offered. Little as India is noticed as a source for fflie supply of wool, the quantity now imported is as large as our whole Australian colonies produced as lately as 1836. In 1833, the quantity of sheeps' wool imported from India was but 3,721 lbs ; in 1841 it had risen to about 3,008,000 lbs.'' " But it is quite essential to its success that du'ect com- munication between this country and Kurrachee should be established as early as possible, and there can be no doubt that private interest and competition will soon lead to such arrangements. According to the most recent accounts from India, it appears that some American trading ships have already availed themselves of the new facilities afforded by the improvement of Km-rachee as a port. A direct communication between the Indus and this country will be of even more importance as respects the importation of the raw productions of Asia, than the export of the 31 more expensive and less bulky articles of British manu- facture/'* Our trade with India, important as it is, is only to he regarded as in its infancy. In 1834 it was scarcely £-4,000,000 in value, while it now amounts to nearly £20,000,000. Holding as we do the Indus from Cashmere to the sea we have a power which, if "well understood, and wisely improved, puts us in possession of the key to the whole commerce of Central Asia ; which cannot be pursued with- out adding to the prosperity and productiveness of our new teri'ltories.^'i- The Indus debouching into the plains, separates the Himalayah range from the Hindoo Koosh, and after re- ceiving the Punjaub rivers and other tributaries, flows through many mouths into the Arabian Sea. The Indus and its affluents being now subject to us, it becomes our duty to re-open to the world this ancient highway of nations. The resources of modem science judiciously applied to this line of communication woidd at once not only be of inestimable benefit to our ovm pro- vinces, but would loosen the political hold which Russia possesses over Central Asia by her commercial relations with that country. It remains for private enterprise to occupy tins mag- nificent field for commerce and civilization. The transit duties being abolished and all fiscal restric- tions removed, and the energetic and tm-l)ulent races of the vaUey of the Indus having been reduced to peaceful cultivators of the soil, the life and property of the trader are as safe as in this country, and the advent of the steam engine, that herald of commerce, enlightenment and peace, * The Economist. f Ibid. 32 is alone wanting to enable enterprise to take possession of a field which has been hitherto to the British merchant almost hermetically sealed, and " with the facilities which will be afforded to the traders of Cabul, and those who supply the extensive markets of Khiva and Bokhara ; and, lastly, with the impetus that will be given to the coasting trade of the Persian Gulf, by the establishment of Kur- rachee as a great emporium of British commerce, it is not difficult to foresee that in a few years it must become one of the most extensive and lucrative markets in our Eastern possessions."* The importance of completing trunk lines is apparent. The railway from Lahore and Umritsir to Mooltan, once in operation, the rivers of the Punjaub, covered with the smaller boats of the country, will act as feeders of the railway, which will become the highway of an extended commerce; while the river steamers from Mooltan to Hydrabad, and the railway from Hydrabad to Kurrachee will give a continuous steam communication to the natural port of the valley of the Indus. GRANTS OF LAND, EFFECT OF.— Grants of land, on conditions similar to those recently conceded for tea cultivation in the province of Kumaon, (page 157) would rapidly extend in the country of the five rivers, the cultivation of cotton, wheat, tea, flax,t hemp, and the mulberry. (Vide p. 157.) * The Economist, t Linseed. — Eleven hundred bags of Punjaub linseed were sold at Kurrachee on the 26th September last. The average price was 4rs. 8a. a maund. Seven hundred bags, not yet arrived, were sold at 4r8. 10a., and an offer to sell all that might arrive before October, brought 4rs. 5a. a maund. A quantity of Scinde linseed was also sold at 4r8. Ca. a maund. These prices are extremely profitable to the growers. 33 EUROPEAN AGENCY.— Land obtaiiiahle, and the means of transit establislicd, manufactories of indigo, salt, saltpetre, silk, and produce marts will spring up under the direction of European agency) while the inexhaustible supply of iron ore, and other mineral wealth, lying dor- mant on the very surface of the soil, Avill be accessible and appreciated and cease to be a reproach. Transport to the sea once provided, the borax, from the far lake of Mansoreewar, will no longer seek a market eastward; and the more useful articles of the looms of Cash- mere will form part of the exports from beyond the Sutlej, while the export of wool, the great staple of the valley of the Indus, Avould be incalculably increased. DIRECT STEAM COMMUNICATION BETWEEN KURRACHEE AND SUEZ. — Steam transit in the Valley of the Indus once fairly established, the overland route, turning from the Nile to the Euphrates, Aleppo and Seleucia, will supersede Cairo and Alexandria. With a rail from Seleucia, by way of Aleppo to Bussorah, and a steam service across to Kurrachee, our mails will reach that port in fifteen days, and Anth the aid of improved steamers and the rail, passengers and goods will reach Lahore in a tenth part of the time now occupied. But years arc required to establish and perfect such a comprehensive arrangement ; and as it is of the utmost importance to this comitry to have the existing route kept up as an alternative line of communication with the empire in the east, it is of primary urgency to give effect to the wishes of the Commis- sioners and other authorities of Scinde and the Punjaub, as well as the inhabitants generally, that the countries bordering on the Indus should be brought nearer Europe, by estab- lishing a direct steam communication lietwccn Kurrachce and Suez. Kurrachce, from its geographical position, must become the European port of India. It is 205 miles neaivr c 34 Aden than Bombay is to Aden ; and daring the prevalence of the south-west monsoon, it is \drtually 745 miles nearer Aden than Bombay is to Aden. The present distinguished Commissioner of Scinde has manifested a great interest in obtaining a dnect steam communication between Kurrachee and Aden and Suez. He has repeatedly urged his ^dews on the attention of Government, and has collected data on the subject from the Punjaub and north-west provinces which, we believe, will afford a guarantee that if this project is undertaken by a private company, and supported liberally by the local Government, it bids fair to become a safe and remunerative enterprise. " It is well kuown,'^ observes a Kurrachee paper, " that the passenger traffic alone from the north-west provinces via the Indus to Kurrachee, has increased four hundi'ed fold dm'ing the past year, and the goods traffic has expanded itself in a still larger ratio. The expenses which passengers from up-comitryare put to,Avlio prefer the Bombay to the Calcutta homeward route, are enormous. Their tem- porary sojourn here whilst waiting for a Bombay steamer, their passage-money hence to the presidency, and their de- tention there, frequently cost them as much, or nearly so, as their overland journey . Now, all these delays, inconveniences, and heavj'^ charges would at once be done away with by the establishment of regular and direct communication with Aden or Suez, say once a month ; and the natural result of this arrangement would be, that for one passenger that now comes down the Indus on the way to Europe, there would be twenty who would gladly patronise the new route. Again, it is not unreasonable to expect that Government woidd pay any private company who might undertake this enterprise, a handsome sum annually for the conveyance of the mails to and from Scinde, the Punjaub, and north- west provinces. The parcels and light goods would Hke- wise help to swell the retm-ns ; and altogether we think 35 tliere can be little doubt that such a company, properly managed, would be a paying concern, and a safe investment for capital/' Were a direct steam communication between Kui'rachee and Suez once established, at moderate rates, numerous Moslem pilgrims and merchants from the banks of the Indus, Central Asia, and the Persian Gulf, would take ad- advantage of this route to Aasit the holy cities, of ]\Iecca and ]Medma, especially Mecca, "the grand mart of the Moslem world, or the meeting-place of nations." We know that thousands of pilgrims annually resort thither from the Persian Gidf; some travelling across Arabia, others in native craft to Bombay, and thence by boat and steamers to Aden and Suez. Were a company to take up the Kurrachee and Suez line, it might be so arranged, either that the Suez steamers should touch at INIuscat and embark pilgrims thence, which would not perhaps entail more than a day's delay; or a branch steamer might ply between the Persian Gulf and Kurrachee as a feeder of the Suez steamer ; and there is a considei'able ti'affic in merchandize carried on between the ports in the Persian Gulf, Muscat and Kurrachee. This steamer could also carry the Persian Gulf mail; and, ^dewing the present aspect of the political horizon, would it not be a matter of the highest importance to have a regular communi- cation with the Gulf, upon which we could always depend ? The thousands of pilgrims who for foiu- months in the year pass througli Egypt to embark at Suez for Arabia, would gladly exchange the prolonged misery which they endure in the wretched vessels of the country for permission to couch on the deck of an English steamer. According to an authority long resident in the East, "The heterogeneous mass of pilgrims (passing through Egypt) is composed of people of all classes, colours, and costumes. One sees among them not only the natives of 36 countries contiguous to Egypt, but also a large proportion of Central Asians from Bokhara, Persia, Circassia, Turkey, and the Crimea, who prefer this route by Avay of Constan- tinople to the difficult, expensive, and dangerous caravan line through the Desert from Damascus and Bagdad. The West sends us Moors, Algerines, and Tunisians ; and inner Africa a mass of sable Takrouri and others from Bornu, the Sudan, Ghedamah near the Niger, and Jabarti from the Habash."* (p. 165). THE EUPHRATES VALLEY ROUTE TO INDIA. — " The Indian government contributes £70,000 a year towards the charges of an extended commiuiication with India and China, and the intercom^se with England, by way of Egypt, is now regular and rapid. The prejudices, and even the imperial considerations, which favoured the old circuitous communication by way of the Cape of Good Hope, have given way before the irresistible desire for rapid locomotion and intercoiu'se with all parts of the Avorld. This influence is still exerting itself with full force. As soon as the war vrith Russia is over, and Turkey becomes settled down into a state of peace, and is gradually brought within the range of European enterprise, improvements, and civilisation, we are satisfied that the desire to secure the shortest route to India will be revived in full force, and that eventually we shall penetrate through Asia Minor to the Persian Gulf, so as to jnake that mighty river once more, as in ancient times, a highway to the commerce of the East. If any one had predicted three years ago, that an English railway would be constructed from Balak- lava to Sebastopol, the notion would have been quite derided. It is, indeed, far more probable that this genera- tion will not pass away before a railway is perfected, so as * '•Pilgrimage to El Medina and Mecca," by Lieut. R F. Burton and Mr. Levick's " Notes on Suez and the Suezians." 37 to unite the Euphi-ates at some accessible point with the Mediterranean^ and thereby shorten and render still more easy the overland commmiication with the East^ tlirough the Persian Gulf."* A glance at a map will demonstrate the commercial and geographical advantages of the position of Kurrachee, both in relation to the existing route by Egypt and the lied Sea, as well as to that bj the Euphrates Valley and Per- sian Gulf, proposed by that eminent authority General Chesney and advocated by the late Dr. James Bowen Thompson. This latter truly excellent and talented gentleman died lately at Constantinople, after having devoted many years to the advocacy of the Euphrates valley route, and with his latest breath he urged the early and energetic prosecution of the design. The route from Europe via Suez and Kurrachee to Lahore is about 2,700 miles shorter than the route via Suez and Calcutta to Lahore; and by the opening of the Euphrates Valley Route, the distance will be reduced in all by 3,594 miles, viz. ; — Miles. London to Lahore, via Trieste, Suez, Aden and Calcutta 9,015 London to Lahore, via Trieste, Suez, Aden and Kurrachee - G,908 London to Lahore, via Trieste, Seleucia, the Euphrates Valley and Kurrachee - - 6,02 If * Madras Athenaeum, t London to Lahore, via Trieste, Aden and Calcutta. Miles. .Miles London to Trieste . . . 1,593 Trieste to Aden . . . 3,000 Aden to Calcutta . . . 3,789 Calcutia to Lahore . . 1,233 9,615 38 Independently of the foregoing considerations^ the vakie of the line of intercourse proposed to be established from the northern coast of Svi'ia to the Euphrates^ and thence to Bussorah and the Persian Gidf, will appear still greater when vre estimate it as combined with the commercial importance which the fom* great rivers of western Asia must add to it. In this respect, General Chesney obser\-es, that " the elevated plateau, which extends from the base of ^Mormt Ai'arat into northern Armenia, Km^dhistan, and part of Asia ^Nlinor, contains the sources of four noble rivers, ha^-ing their estuaries in three different seas; and thus, from Armenia, as from the centre of a great continent, gi\'ing an easy communication to the nations of Em-ope and Asia/^ A reference to General Chesney^s map will shew, " that by following the Kizil-Irmak through Asia ^Nlinor, we reach the Black Sea ; from whence there are iidets into Kussia, Austria, Turkey, &c. In the same way, the A/as, by terminating in the Caspian, opens several routes towards Great Tartary, as well as towards the rest of Central Asia and China; while the Tigris and Euphrates, with their numerous ramifications, aflPord abimdant means of commu- London to Lahore, via Trieste, Aden and Kurrachee : — London to Trieste . . 1,593 Trieste to Aden . . . 3,000 Aden to Kurrachee . .1,435 Kurrachee to Lahore . . 880 6,908 London to Lahore, via Seleucia, Euphrates, Bussora and Kurra- chee : — London to Trieste . . 1,593 Trieste to Seleucia . . 1,600 Seleucia to Bussora (Air Line 660) 1,008 Bussora to Kurrachee . . 940 Kurrachee to Lahore . . SSO 6,0-21 39 nicating with Persia, Iudia_, Arabia, aud the continent of Africa."* With these regions, an extensive commercial traffic is maintained to this day, through the medium of very large and numerous caravans, which, fi'om a very early period, have provided the countries traversed by those four rivers with the produce and merchandise of Eastern Africa, and fui'nished the latter with those of Asiatic and Em'opean origin. (Vide p. 200.) A NEW FIELD FOR BRITISH CAPITAL AND ENTERPRISE. — A correspondent from Mooltan writes: — " It is a matter of surprise to not a few here that British capitalists have not ere now been attracted to this quarter of the globe. The Mooltan district presents a field for enterprise which is enjoyed by but few of the districts in the Punjaub. The countiy is intersected by canals and water-cuts, and is almost entirely iudepeudent of the periodical rains. The soil is rich and fertile. There is a vast ai'ea of cultui'able land lying waste — the lease of which could be obtained on very favourable tenns. The banks of the rivers are fi'inged with luxuiiant cvd- tivation. Indigo and cotton are extensively grown, par- ticularly in Shoojabad, where the absence of cultivation is a feature unknown in the landscape of that portion of the district. The whole pergmia presents an unbroken scene of perpetual verdure. The district must have been, at no remote period, in a very prosperous condition for the ruins of ancient towns and villages are to be met with everywhere, while the vestiges of numerous canals indicate that agriculture was the chief means of sub- sistence of a generation now passed away." FIBROUS SUBSTANCES.— The demand for flax, * Expedition to Euphrates and Tigris by Colonel, now Major- General, Chesney, R.A., F.R.S., &c., &c. 40 hemp, silk, cotton, and hair is now hecoming so great that the market camiot be supplied with a sufficieney of these raw materials to keep our large manufaetories in full opera- tion, and India is noAv looked to as the country whence these supplies must be derived. COTTON. — A recent correspondent of an Indian paper says : — " In April last (1855), I brought to England a small quantity of cotton (the raw material) grown from accli- mated American cotton seed in a district on the banks of the river Jhelum ; this specimen I had shown to several cotton spinners in Manchester. They pronounced it to be the finest specimen of cotton they had seen grown in India, even directly from American seed^ and to be worth from 6^d. to 6|-d. per lb. " Along the banks of our Punjaub rivers lie tracts of land admirably situated for the growth of cotton. It only requires steady encouragement on the part of the local Government, trouble and perseverance on the part of the district officer, to cover those lands with cotton of the finest quahty. " The cotton that could thus be grown might, with ease and at trifling cost, be conveyed in country boats, (imtil we have, as we ought to have, steamers on those rivers) down the Indus to Kurrachee, and there shipped for England. " Kurrachee is a port of great importance ; but, like many things of great importance, not heeded or taken advantage of. The one article, cotton, if properly culti- vated in the Punjaub and in Scinde, would afford export freight for a vast number of ships visiting Kurrachee, while Government stores for the Punjaub, private property and merchandize would afford endless import freight, to say nothing of the great number of passengers who would avail themselves of that route. ''^ 41 According to a Sciude paper — '* Any one located on the banks of the river Indus might observe fleets of boats coming doAvn the river in tlie winter months, all laden with cotton/' The cotton brought to Scinde and shipped at Sukkur comes across the Jaysuhnere Desert from Rajpootana, and is either consumed in Scinde or exported to Affghanistan. WOOL. — The western presidency yields her millions of tons annually of this article of commerce (wool), and she is indebted for it chiefly to the countries which are in greater proximity to Km-rachee than to Bombay. " Why, there- fore, (says a Kurrachee paper) should we not avail our- selves of the advantages of our position, and establish a direct commercial communication with England ? " There existed one drawback to this before, which was the circumstance of no European vessels calling here likely to receive cargo. The example set us by the Court of Directors, in making Scinde the highway for troops for the far north-west, should, however, remove this difficulty. The Punjaubee, Affghan, and Patan merchants woidd, we are certain, be glad to avail themselves of the opportunity of shipping their wool at Kurrachee, and thereby avoid a sea trip to Bombay ; but the first step towards overcoming the present apathy, must be the establishment of a screw company,* or perhaps, more appropriately, a working com- pany, of people who will undertake and guarantee the screwing of the wool ; and our ships, which bring us annually cargoes of human beings, for the service of their country in India, may receive in return cargoes of wool and other raw produce, for the use and the benefit of our bretlu-en at home." * This has been accomplished, in some degree, by private enter- prise, and screws for cotton and wool are about being provided for Mooltan and Kurrachee by the liberality of the East India Company. 42 LINSEED AND FLAX.— "One consequence of the war with Russia tvlQ be^ to make us, to a great extent, in- dependent of many of her staple exports. In the case of oil seeds, the trade with Calcutta has been so greatly develoj)ed, as to render seeds one of the most important features in our trade with that port ; and om' East Indian possessions bid fair, at no distant period, to supply the entire consumption of this country.'^* Major Hollings, Deputy Commissioner of Shahpore, in the Punjaub, observes : — " Dm^ing the past season my atten- tion has been directed to the cultivation of linseed and the preparation of flax — subjects which have been taken up by the Financial Commissioner, Mr. McLeod, Avitli a view to the exportation of these products to the markets in England. The position of the Punjaub is peculiarly favorable for the development of commerce, and there are in it soils and climates suitable for the production of every kind of fruit and vegetable. TMien the mineral resources are better knowTi, it will be found that the Punjaub contains un- limited supplies of those valuable manures which chemistry has lately introduced to agriculture." " ^Tien intelligence reached us," says the Bombay Times, "that war had been declared by our Queen against the Emperor of Russia, Mr. Frere, the Commissioner of Scinde, and his friends here, began to consider how they could assist our manufacturers and their territory by supplying us with raw material usually heretofore received from Russia. If we were only able to take their goods during hostilities, it might be a profitless transaction for Scinde to supply part of the vacuum caused by war ; but one use of this quarrel is to compel a thorough search of our own resources, and one loss to Russia from its existence wiU be the employment of other lands to grow those staples that * Messrs. Laing and Campbell's Annual Circular for 1856. 43 it has hitherto suppHed. Two productions of Russia which we buy in large quantities may be profitably grown in Northern India. Wheat is the first, and probably the more important of these articles. Flax is the second staple of Russia referred to in the preceding sentences, and which the friends of Scinde expect it to supply. Egypt is a somewhat similar country, and the flax of the Egyptians must have been of high quality thousands of years since ; for their fine linen was, at that distance of time, in high reputation. We have, therefore, no reason to doubt the capabilities of Scinde to produce fine flax. The value of the staple in a great measure depends upon its quality. Very few articles present an equally long range of quota- tions. It has been sold at £30, and it has brought .£140 per ton. The average price in this country is higher, how- ever, than that of cotton ; and therefore no great difficulty will arise regarding the freight, although the construction of railways, or the improvement of the Indus, is still an im- portant essential to a great flax trade from Northern India.^' Some 5,000 maunds of linseed have been recently sold in Lahore at two rupees a maund. This is a price which amply repays the cultivator, and the demand is likely to continue. The seed was intended for Kurrachee and Bom- bay, to be exported to England, where prices were then ranging about equal to seven rupees a maund. The Bombay Telegraph and Courier, 5th October last has the following statement, from a correspondent, regarding the sale of the seed scut down to Scinde to be disposed of: — " We have now the pleasure to wait on you with the result of the first sale of Punjaub linseed, which took place yesterday, when 1,200 bags were submitted for com- petition in lots of 25 bags each, and sold at prices varying from rs. 4 to 4 13-16th per maund of 80 lbs. 44 " After this a lot of 40 mauiids of Scinde linseed was put up, which realized rs. 4 8-6th per maund, and another batch of 84 packages, in six different lots, which realized rs. 4 8-6th to 4 12-6th per maund. " Shortly afterwards a batch of 700 bags of Punjaub linseed, now on its way from Mooltan, was sold to arrive at rs. 4 10-1 6th per maund. After which the whole of the remaining quantity of the Punjaub linseed, estimated at 7,000 or 8,000 maunds, was offered for sale to arrive. The bidders at first showed some hesitation in offering for the quantity in consequence of the uncertainty as to the time of delivery, when it was agreed that the whole quantity that may arrive before the end of October becomes the property of the purchaser. With this stipulation, the lot was knocked down at 4 8-16th per maund." WHEAT. — " Till within the last two years, we had but a few isolated cases of this article being imported from India, and, from various causes, these importations gave no encou- ragement to importers to continue them. Several thousand quarters imported in 1854, however, have induced further shipments ; and about 60,000 qrs. were shipped at Calcutta for England during the last year, from January to the 22nd of November. The article being little known, the importers found it difficult to sell for arrival on satisfactory terms till November last, when sales on c. f. and i. terms commenced to be made; and since then to the present time upwards of 40,000 qrs. have been sold. The highest price paid for good qualities of soft wheats was 705. c. f. and i., on terms considered equal to 80*. delivered; and this was when the price of good white English wheat was 855. per qr. The lowest price since the decline in the corn market has been 62s., c. f. and i., for hard wheat. We are informed that some few thousand quarters are now on the way from Bombay (no doubt Punjaub wheat, which is 45 the best grown in India) ; and, from the samples shown, wc estimate the value of the hard at about the same as Spanish hard, and the soft the same as good soft English. Some quantity of the Calcutta wheat has lately arrived, and most of it in excellent condition, and its present value on the spot is 6Ss. to 72s. per quarter of 504 lbs/'* With an immense wheat country at its back, Kurrachee can at present export no wheat. Scinde has almost bovmd- less means for the production of wheat, and could, without difficulty, and at a moderate price, supply the entire con- sumption of Great Britain and Ireland. In these days, when the price of the quartern loaf is a serious matter for consideration to all housekeepers, and a terror to the poor, the opening of such a source of supply is like the finding of concealed treasure. At present, the capabilities of produc- tion are useless from the want of means of transport. Colonel Turner, Superintending Engineer in Scinde, observes that — *' In travelling through the country after the inundation of 1851, I found at a place called Naree, a fcAv miles above Sehwan, stocks of Government grain of three successive years : — the excessive inundation of that year had swamped it, and it was utterly spoiled, fit only for manure. At first I imagined the Kardar must be to blame, but on en- quiry, I learned that there had been repeated attempts to sell it by auction, but that no one would buy it, because the cost of conveying it to a market would render it an un- pro/itable speculation." (Vide pp. 78, 119.) Major Preedy on this head remarks, "that as the proposed Railway was to be constructed entirely in his coUectorate, he considered it his duty to bear tes- timony to the great commercial advantages likely to be gained by it, in the transport of large quantities • Messrs. Laing and Campbell's Annual Circular for 1856. 46 of grain of all descriptions, wliicli are produced in such luxuriance in Upper and Middle Scinde. Tlie quantity of grain which might he exported from Kurrachee, was im- mense; Avhen Sir C. Napier was here — in the year of the Irish famine, he offered to have ready 11,000 tons of grain at Kurrachee for transmission, and such a quantity might and could have been spared without interfering with tlie consumption of the country. The cost of carriage now was so great as actually to prohibit grain as an export. The price of wheat and grain was at Shikarpore and Hydrabad, just one half its price in Kurrachee, the navigation of the Indus rendering attempts to bring grain down as an ex- port very hazardous. Major Preedy instanced a case where out of seven boats laden with grain which started from Kotree, but one arrived in Kurrachee, the other six being lost; if one or two boats only out of a batch of six or so were lost, it was generally considered a good venture. He looked, therefore, upon the grain transport alone to give a large return — a return far exceeding what Lieut. Chapman had allowed towards the profits of a railroad in Scinde.'^ (Vide p. 120.) SALT. — Salt, of the purest quality, is formed naturally on the coasts of Scinde, and the Indian system of taxing salt is not extended to that province. The immense trade which might be carried on in this article was pointed out eight or ten years ago, by Lieut, (now Major) Burke, of the Bombay Engineers, who published a small pamphlet, giving an account of the vast and practically- inexhaustible deposit whence the supply might be derived. But no notice was taken of the fact b}^ mercantile men till January 1855, when the captain of a vessel going round to Cal- cutta in ballast took a cargo. The venture was so succes- ful that it has since been repeated. The duty paid on 47 import of Scinde salt into Calcutta for the portion of the year up to August 1855, was Rs. 30,000. A Company was formed at Kurrachee last year, for the purpose of exporting Scinde salt to Calcutta. Its opera- tions have not been very extensive, but so far they ap- pear to have been successful. From information, supplied by the Bombay Government, we learn that about half a lakh of maunds of Kurrachee salt have been exported to Calcutta by the Company since December 1854, and that, " though previously unknown there, it has commanded prices beyond the prices obtained for Bombay salt, which, next to Liver- pool and foreign Europe salt, had heretofore stood in the highest favour in the Calcutta market." But according to the Scinde Commissioner : — " There is one cause which retards the development of this trade, that is the apparent ignorance, in the mercantile circles in England, that we have such an article as salt in the province, though some pains had been taken last year to give the fact publicity through the medium of the Prospectus of the Salt Company." PROGRESSIVE IMPROVEMENT OF SCINDE. — " Mr. Frere is leading the Mvay," says the Friend of India, " in an enterprise Avhich, if successful, will do more for his capital even than his own energy. Km-rachee, from its position on the Indus, is the natural port of Central Asia. From the Sutlej to the Oxus whoever wishes to communi- cate with any place beyond the sea, must pass through Kurrachee. It occupies a position scarcely less favourable to commerce than that of Alexandria." "The produce which ought to float down the Scindian Nile must cither be carried overland, at an expense which sucks away all profit, or incur imminent risk of destruction. With an immense wheat country at its back, Kurrachee can export no wheat. At Sehwan, the wheat of three years, tens of thousands of maunds, rotted away under the eyes of Major Turner, for 48 want of tlie means of transport. The trade is already too large for the flotilla/' " The difficulties of the Indus commence at a place called Jm'ruck. Above that point, the river will bear steamers of any reasonable burden, and from its rocky bed is exempt from the incessant changes which harass Lieutenant Gar- forth in the Iloogly. From thence to Kurrachee, over a country which presents few natural difficulties, a railway of one hundred and ten miles, three-fourths of our Ranee- gunge line, would bring goods and passengers to the Kur* rachee harbour/' " It is this scheine which Mr. Frerc, on the 28th August (1854), explained to a meeting of all the respectable inha- bitants of Kurrachee. The prominent and energetic part taken by Mr. Frere in the matter is highly to his credit, but it is unnecessary for us to write his eulogium. He is un- derstood both in Scinde and in India^ and we prefer to support the undertaking in which he has displayed so com- mendable an interest." Scinde is happy in her rulers. The head of the govern- ment of the province (now in this coimtry) is identified with enlightenment and progress ; and Mr. Frcre's good deeds are worthily emulated by Colonel Jacob, of the famous Scinde Horse, now acting as Commissioner in his absence. The latter officer established himself about nine years ago, on the frontier of the Desert between the Indus and the Bolan Pass, at a village which had then three small shops and a well, protected from the Desert plunderers by a small fort. He has now a town on the same spot with about 7000 inhabitants, exclusive of those belonging to the garrison ; and the country has, by his judicious measures, and by the digging of a canal from the Indus, been ren- dered so quiet that the Desert, for twelve miles from Jacobabad, has become a sheet of cultivation, and life and property are more secure than in most parts of India. 49 The predatory tribes of Scinde now cultivate the arts of peace ; its language has been reduced to a definite shape ; its hitherto oppressed inhabitants, who, not many- years ago, trembled to touch the white man's money, have not only become reconciled to the British mode of govern- ment, but have quietly submitted to all the imposts and taxes levied upon them for the internal improvement of the country. Wells, tanks, roads, bridges, bunds and canals, have all been, and are now being, constructed, to develop more fully the latent and long neglected resources of the land. Such of its products as have already been conveyed to the continent of India, or to the home market, have met with a ready and remunerative sale. The de- mand, in fact, is greater than the supply ; and the district officers are now engaged in fostering, encouraging, and urging on the cultivation of those staples, which can be raised at so little cost, from the peculiar soil of the province, and which are likely to realise such handsome returns to the producer. The means for the transport of these productions to other parts of the world will soon be, as it were, at the door. The number of English vessels chartered for Kurrachee is yearly increasing ; and with the improve- ments now in progress, we may expect a large augmenta- tion to the trade of the port. KURRACHEE, THE EUROPEAN PORT OF IN- DIA. — To be the nearest point to Europe of all our Indian possessions, is important in many points of \'icw, l)ut more especially with reference to " the Euphrates Valley route -,' and when the electric wire shall have connected Kurrachee with the Punjaub (already, there is reason to believe, de- cided upon by the Supreme Government), and the pro- posed communication established with Em-ope, the ad- vantage will be great, of being the first to disseminate the political and commercial intelligence of Europe to the most distant parts of oui- Indian possessions. 50 Hitherto beyond the pale of the electric chain that spans the empire, Kurrachee is destined, ere long, to be- come the chief seat of the telegraph in India. (Vide p. 218.) JUNCTION AT KURRACHEE OF EUROPEAN AND INDIAN TELEGRAPHS.— Mr. John W. Brett, the inventor and projector of submarine telegraphs, so far back as 1845, proposed to the late Sir Robert Peel to connect England with India by the telegraphic wire. The importance of Scinde and its port will become really apparent when Mr. Brett has placed England and India in daily communication, by passing his electric wire, already in the Island of Sardinia, on to ISIalta, Egypt, and by the Red Sea (or rather by the Orontes, the Euphrates, and the Persian Gulf) to Kurrachee; thus uniting the European and Indian systems of telegraph in one magic circle. This would establish a real and practical bond of sympathy and identity of interests between this country and her most valuable and magnificent dependency, — place in the hands of Government over 100,000,000 of our distant fellow subjects, a power of supervision and con- trol hitherto unknown, — giving at the same time to the ship- owner and merchant a means of imparting and receiving information of inestimable value — to dissevered families a bond which will at once re -unite them — to the inhabitants of two empires widely apart a mode of inter- communication which would enable them to meet, as it were, face to face — in a word, the telegraph between England and India will be at once the pledge and the instrument of good and vigorous government, and of moral and material progress. (Vide p. 217). IDENTITY OF INTERESTS OF PUNJAUB AND SCINDE. — Mr. Frere has done good service to the latest acquisitions of the British Crown in these parts, by advo- cating independent steam communication with Suez, rails 51 in Scinde aud the Piinjaub, and the electric telegraph. Whatever may be the official and technical difficulties in the way, sooner or later they must be overcome ; there- fore the sooner the better. Judging by the past administration of the Punjaub, we feel convinced that the authorities want no spur to induce movement in matters so important and interesting. The Punjaub may soon be united by the closest adminis- trative ties to Scinde. Not so to the Agra presidency; and therefore it should be an additional incentive in these eminently practical questions that, as the fortunes of the Punjaub are concerned, so its influence should be legitimately exercised by its Government, to secure objects advantageous alike to both Provinces. " The two provinces (Scinde and the Punjaub) have been inseparably connected by the hand which made them. They have been connected also, by the fortunes of the great empire -to which both belong. They are tJie pro- vinces of the Indus, as Bengal and Bchar are the provinces of the Ganges. They constitute one section of the empire, and are separated from every other part of it by rivers, mountains, the sea, or broad belts of sandy desert. Their commercial interests are inseparably united. Both must ultimately depend upon the traffic of the mighty river, which is the artery fed by the five veins of the Punjaub. " Both depend for their communication with the external world upon one and the same port. The Punjaub has no outlet towards the north, but an imperfect outlet towards the west, and a long, difficult, and expensive, though open outlet towards the east. This river system, which is already equal in magnitude, and may be equal in value to that of the Ganges, should be under one government, and improved on one system, devised by a single mind. Would the Government place Bengal under one authoritv, and the 53 Ilooghly, from Cutwa downwards, under the commissioner of Pegu? Yet that is exactly what we have done with our north-west possessions. Our Danube has its mouth occupied, not by enemies, it is true, but by alhes, owing allegiance to a different authority. (Vide p. 168.) " Again, the physical, political, and social characteristics of the two countries are identically the same. Physically, the districts of Mooltan, Dhera Ghazee Khan, and Khan- gurh might be districts of Scinde. The soil is the same, the products are the same, the people are the same. Poli- tically, both have the same disadvantages, and the same military necessities. Both have a turbulent frontier to be guarded, which is identical in character from one end to the other, and which should be arranged on one principle^ and be obedient to one head. The vast chain of military forts which stretch along the Scindian and Punjabee fron- tiers, depend upon each other, and should alike for military effectiveness and economy depend upon one head. Both have populations whom it is necessary to disarm and overawe, and in both an enormous military force requires an energetic central administration. The system, too, of the Punjaub, would suit the pro\ance of Scinde better than that of Bombay. It is less regular, and better adapted to the fierce passions and uncontrolled habits of a wild Mo- hammedan people. The revenue settlement, too, is more in consonance with the ancient ideas of the population. The administration would be infinitely cheaper; for, with a slight re-distribution of force in the Punjaub, much of the military expenditure of Scinde might be removed ; — while, after two years of expense, the customs' receipts of Kur- rachee, as the foreign entrepot of Central Asia and the Punjaub, would totally remove the deficit. Of course, with the improvement, the pressure on the more fertile province would be removed, ^nd the strong counter argu- 53 ment with which we commenced our article becomes of none effect. Scinde and the Punjauh^ then, we submit, shoukl be united/^ " It (the union) would strengthen, not root up, the system already successful ; and on every other ground it is indis- pensable. The presidency would be the second of the great divisions of British India. The immense triangle, broadest between Kiirrachee and Peshawur, and tapering almost to a point below Mooltan, would cover an area of 130,000 square miles.* This vast area is occupied by a popu- lation of nearly twenty-five millions, thus : — Punjaub, by census 13,000,000 States under control, including Cis-Sutlej chiefs, and Cashmere 8,000,000 Scinde (probably) 2,000,000 States under Scinde (at a guess) . . . 1,000,000 Populations of Presidency . . . 24,000,000 " The revenue, unimproved, would be two-and-a-half mil- lions. The surplus is far more than adequate to the neces- sities of Scinde, and Lord Dalhousie would thus have re- deemed the consequences of the act of Sir C. Napier. Amid this population, all warlike, is stationed a great irregular force, which must be directly subject to the civil authority, and is apt to be jealous of a mere commissioner. The flower of the European and native army is there also, and occasionally even with these the weight of high official dignity is imperatively required. Our most dangerous foreign relations, with Central Asia and Dost Mahomed, ■\vith the Beloochees and Daoodpootras, and with the innu- merable warrior chieftams of the highlands, must be con- ducted at Lahore. Whoever may be the final authority, every * Great Britain covers 53,000 square miles. 54 word of the Commissioner reverberates among the hills, every blunder is bitterly resented in Cabul." * EXPECTED DEVELOPMENT OF RESOURCES AND REVENUE OF INDIA.— To make roads is the first duty of every Government ; but the wars in India have unhappily succeeded each oth(;r M-ith such brief intermittent periods of peace, that this essential to good government has not been sufficiently attended to. Steam navigation, the railway system, the electric telegraph, free commerce, and a more enlightened and liberal system of government at home and in India, have now opened a new era in its history. Yet what is now recommended by those who ought to know better? 'Withdraw all expenditure on public works not necessary for repairs, and let the revenue resume its normal condition; and be carefid not to undertake any more liabilities to complete your railways now in progress to make them useful and productive.^ That is, destroy the profit within your grasp, be careful not to make any more by making India prosperous, and you will see how flou- rishing the revenue will again become. Allusion has been made to the expediency of the Government promoting some project for working the iron mines to supply the railways now in course of completion. At the Great Exhibition of 1851, the quality of the Indian iron attracted marked attention, and its steel has been always celebrated for its quality. It is desirable to detach the natives from the almost universal pursuit of agriculture and to induce them to prosecute the mechanical arts. In the latter part of 1854 the Indian authorities sent to India, on my recommendation, a commission of mining engineers and smelters to aid Lieutenant Colonel Henry Drummond in his important mineralogical researches * Friend of India. 55 in tlie provinces of Kumaon and Gurhwal, and it is grati- fying to find a public announcement to the eficct that Colonel Drummond laid the foundation of the first blast furnace in Northern India on the 22nd of November last, and that the Himalayan u'on works are progressing ra- pidly, and in three months it is hoped the furnaces may be at work. The locality chosen is easy of access, surrounded with enormous surface deposits of ore of the finest quality, with abundance of fuel, lime, clay, fire-bricks, and water- power close at hand. India has now a fair prospect of manufacturing her own iron ; we shall hear no more, we hope, of iron suspension bridges sent out from this country to span rivers and ra\ines, whose sides are composed of a far superior ore to that from which the bridge itself was made. In a state of peace and with perfect freedom of trade with all parts of the world, it becomes a comparatively easy task for the Indian Government to promote inland commu- nication and navigation, so as to render inter-communica- tion of all parts of the continent easy and complete. India is not only a self-supporting, — it is a precious possession. It furnishes honourable and lucrative employment in its military and civil services to a vast number of the gentry of England; its commerce enriches our merchants and employs our artisans. All that it needs is a Goverimient at once wise and energetic to develop its resources, which are beUeved to be boundless. In this way our trade with India would advance with a still more gigantic stride into the inmost recesses of that lethargic land, carrying in its train the arts, the sciences, and the civilisation of the west for the elevation and enlightenment of a patient and loyal people. " When the spirit of enterprise still shows so feebly in India; when the employment of English capital on a great scale within the interior of this country is so rare ; 56 and when there is such good reason to anticipate the best eflPects from its profitable investment in any one branch of Indian undertakings, by the encouragement that would thereby be given to its introduction through many other and various channels;— I submit, that it would be impolitic for the Honourable Court to put aside the several associa- tions that are now presenting themselves to compete for the advantage of supplying India with that which she much needs ; in order that it may itself undertake these vast works, on no stronger ground than the assumption (which, after all, is only an assumption), that some little time and money would be saved ; — I submit, on the contrary, that all the money and time which the Honourable Board may contemplate being able to save thereby, would be well ex- pended in securing the introduction at this time, of a large amount of English capital and English energy, so as to encourage, by the successful issue which I anticipate for these railway undertakings, a more extensive employment of similar capital, and similar efforts hereafter, in connec- tion with the products and the trade of India/^* These facts ought to be considered in conjunction with the important fact, that the Government of India is, to speak generally, landlord of the soil, and sinks money therefore in public works, not merely for the hope of a general benefit accruing from increased prosperity, but with the certainty of a direct immediate return upon the money spent. "Lord Dalhousie is reported to have said that he went to India not to elevate England by foreign conquest, but to elevate and enrich both England and India by sending home cotton; it were 'a solecism of power to think to command the end, and yet not to endure the means,'t * Minute by Lord Dalhousie, dated 20th April, 1853. t Bacon's Essays of Empire. 57 to accomplish this great object he must have railroads; then — and not till then — will the supply of the raw material of the greatest of the staple manufactures of this country be placed upon a firm basis, and the energy and skill of Europe come fairly into contact with the inex- haustible resources of a soil which has for ages, repaid, with three harvests in the year, the most rude and inefficient husbandry. Then will our commercial and manufacturing greatness be placed beyond the caprice of a jealous rival, himself dependant on the labour of his slaves; but even with America well affected, and the reverence of the lash unimpaired, the premature advent of a frost or a visitation of a grub to the cotton fields of New Orleans might at any moment be fatal to us ! " * MUTUAL DEPENDENCE OF OUR WESTERN AND EASTERN EMPIRES.— PRESTIGE IN ASIA ESSENTIAL TO POWER.— There never was a crisis in the history of this country when the public mind was more keenly aUve to the necessity of developing the territorial value of India, and of approximating, by a rapid means of communication, the distant limits of that vast empire. At this moment, all who are alive to the inestimable importance of British India, knowing as they do that its possession is essential to the grandeur and prosperity, if not to the very existence of this country, have watched with painful interest the varying fortunes of the campaign against the Russians in Asia, The events of this cam- paign are fraught with results of immeasurably greater import to us than to our allies. They have no great Indian empire, and Asia Minor is not the route to any of their possessions. Between the outer limits of Asia Minor and the borders of the golden peninsula of India, as weU as within the bounds of the peninsula itself, * IndiaaRailways, by an Old Indian Postmaster. 3rd edition, 1848. the rulers and tribes accustomed to the dominion of the sword yield a scant allegiance to a sovereign they have ceased to dread, and little respect to a neighbom' whose might is not superior to their own. Much is being done to enlighten and advance the people of India and develop the latent resources of that country ; but, as yet, we hold with a mailed hand our empke in the East. It is dangerous to let our subject populations or our unsettled neighbours think that we have an equal in the field, much more a superior, and that superior, Russia, so long and so notoriously a candidate for their suffrages. In these days, the connection between e^'cnts in the East and in the West is far better understood than it \^"as at the beginning of the present century, and news travels infinitely faster ; but even at the beginning of the present century, we may remember that it was the superiority of the arms of France in Europe that induced Tippoo to rise against us, and led to the contest with him which ended in the taking of Seringapatam. Indeed, there is no one who really knows India that is not aware how greatly even the extremities of our empire there are agitated by the slightest appearance of a reverse in any quarter, so sensitive is the bond by which those vast subject populations are held. We did not relish the idea of the Czar at Stamboul, and we may find his influence not quite agreeable at Tehran ; neither must we close our eyes to the fact, that Persia is insidiously and perseveringly advancing her outposts both in Central Asia and along the line of the sea-board of the Gidf of Oman. She has already taken Herat, formerly regarded as the key of India, fi'om the Aff'ghans, and has wi'ested Bunder Abbass in the Persian Gulf from the Imam of Muscat.* Had the British minister at the Persian * In the beginning of December, 1854, the seaport town of Bunder Abbass, belonging to the Imam of Muscat and governed by his son, 59 court been under the immediate orders of the Governor General of India, the Shah would speedily have recoiled before the remonstrances of an authority backed by 300,000 men. We do not fear a Russian invasion of India, but we must guard our prestige of invincibihty with the treacherous and semi-barbarous courts of Asia, as the best means of protecting our Indian dominions from the dire effects of internal commotions, and from the hostile incursions of the turbulent and warlike tribes on oiu* north-west frontier. While the ancient seat of empire of the Caesars in the East is in the hands of the soldiers of the West, and Avhile British enterprise is surely, though gradually, adding the Sultan's empire to the area of its wide exertions, his dominion in Asia Minor, and our name in the East, have received a shock by the capitulation of Kars. "We owe India a victory in Asia/' we owe it a Adctory that shall efface fi'om the standards of Russia the record of our heroic misfortunes at Kars. But now that the Temple of Janus is closed for a season, let us stamp on Asia the impress of our genius and our power ; — let us render the invasion of Asia Minor by Russia for ever impossible, by throwing open to the world, by the irresistible power of steam, the rich and forgotten plains of the Euphrates and Tigris — the once-famed granaries of the East, and subduing to Industry their wild inhabitants. was attacked by a force of about 12,000 Persian horsemen with two mortars and six guns. For two days and nights a heavy fire of shot and shells was kept upon the fort, and the garrison, about 1,700 strong, finding this too hot for them on the third day, saUied out under com- mand of the young prince, and met them at the gates. A battle of several hours ensued, when the Arabs, seeing that they were over- powered by numbers, betook themselves to their boats and found refuge on board a Muscat man-of-war at anchor outside. A large proportion of the garrison had been either killed or wounded. 60 This would be a greater triumph than the re-capture of Kars, and at once a colossal and enduring monument of our science and enlightenment, as well as of our energy and might as a people. The Indian army has not only fought the battles of England in India and Central Asia, but the sepoy of Bengal and Madras has crossed bayonets with the best soldiers of Europe, in Java and the Mauritius, while their brethren of Bombay marched to oppose the same gallant enemy in Egypt. Notwithstanding this, our tried and magnificent army in India has been practically ignored in the late war. There is now in India an army of nearly 300,000 men at the disposal of this country, apart from 31,000 sub- sidiary troops and contingents from Native States. In that army, there are about 26,000 Europeans belonging to the Queen's service, including cavalry and infantry of the line; and 15,000 European troops in the Com- pany's service, of every arm except cavalry, and 240,465 native troops. This last figure includes 233,699 exclusively native troops, together with 3,644 European commissioned officers, and 3,122 European warrant and non-commis- sioned officers and rank and file. The numlDcr of the com- missioned officers of the Queen's troops amounts to 588. The police corps regularly organised consists of 24,015 native commissioned and non-commissioned officers and privates, and 35 commissioned European officers. Large and costly as this army may be, it might easily be in- creased, especially from the warlike tribes lately added to our dominion. Here, then, is a reserve, and an ample reserve, well organised, officered, and generally with some experience of war. How could it be said that we had no reserve ? Of this immense force, 40,000 are British soldiers. Of the rest, the irregular native cavalry is just the force we most required in the late war, and could not supply from 61 home. Here then is everything that wc have ascribed to Russia. " AH former empires that ever pretended to hold distant countries in subjection made a fair exchange of armies, so that while Italians were holding Britain, or Numidia, or Dacia, Britons, Numidians, and Dacians were stationed in Italy, and even supplying candidates to the imperial pm'ple. Whatever the final results, the Roman empire would not have lasted ten years without that interchange."* Russia carried on the war with forces drawn from the heart and extremities of Asia, as well as from the most northern shores of Europe ; and when we tallc thoughtlessly of her overpowering population, it is these distant regions that we are unconsciously thinking of. " Our case is the same as Russia's, only we have not got the sense to see it, and shall not see it till our eyes have been opened and our wits quickened by a succession of disasters." f The mutual dependence of our Western and Eastern em- pires was clearly pointed out many years ago in these words : " In case our enemies should prove sufficiently powerful to press us hard either in Europe or Asia, it would be a matter of inestimable importance to have it in oiu" power to trans- port our military forces from Europe to Asia, and from Asia to Europe, with the greatest possible celerity, as the exigences of war may demand. A rapid means of com- municating between India and Malta, both by means of the Red Sea and of the Persian Gulf, through Egypt and through Syria, would multiply tenfold the resources of Britain, and secure the defences of our possessions from Canada to llong Kong. Indeed, England, with her small standing army, with her population not . trained and dis- ciplined to defend their own territory against uivadcrs, and * The Times. t Hj"!- 62 with ministers who neglect lier navy, can never be duly secured against the sudden attacks of her rivals and enemies, until she can impose some restraint on their ambition, by having it in her power to array the sepoy on the shores of the Mediterranean, and the Highlander of Scotland and the gallant sons of Erin on the banks of the Indus and the Ganges, with a deg-ree of speed which no other power can equal. The small amount of our military force, in comparison with the enormous extent of our empire, must be counterbalanced by abundant means of commimication and extraordinary rapidity of transport." * Russia, aware of the mistake she committed in going to war with imperfect means of transit, is, with our money, about connectmg the shores of the Caspian, the Black Sea, and the Baltic, -ndth the heart of the empire by means of railways communicating with her navigable rivers. In America, ten miles of railway are on the average opened every day for the accommodation of the regular traffic of the country. And shall we, while enriching with railways Russia, America, France, Italy and Austria, forget what is due to India with her boundless resources and vast population ? It is evident that to have the benefit of even the moral weight of our magnificent and well-appointed army in India, on the great events which are now in progress, and of the consequent changes which must necessarily flow from them, that we must have, above all things, increased facilities for moving troops and stores upwards or downwards along the line of the Indus, as well as up the Persian Gulf, or to the Red Sea, as circumstances might render necessary. While these pages are passing through the press, the * On the Communications between Europe and India, by George Finlay, Esq., 1847. 63 shadow of coming events in tlie East is deepening and ex- tending, and it becomes more emphatically the duty of this country to make their army in India, by proper means of transit, not only sufficient for the internal peace of that country, but that some portion of it should also by the same means, be made available wherever and whenever the welfare or the honour of the paramount state might demand its service. There never was put forward a greater fallacy, or an error more likely to be mischievous, than "that the Turkish question was of no importance in an Indian point of view." The grand problem, now in course of solution in Turkey, must aifect in its results, whatever they may be, in the most immediate and powerful manner, our power and prosperity in India. Every act in the grand drama of the war, has elicited either the apprehension or the applause of the nations of the East.* In the mosques of Bokhara, five thousand Moolahs • " Dera Ismael Khan (on the Upper Indus) has not been far behind Lahore in celebrating the fall of Sebastopol. The official news was received with the greatest enthusiasm by all classes, and the inhabitants resolved to have illuminations, fireworks, &c. The bazaars of the city were brilliantly illuminated ; every shroff, or wealthy shopkeeper, displaying from 1,000 to 1,200 lamps before his shop, and all other shopkeepers from 200 to 300 lamps." — Lahore Chronicle. On the 3rd cf December last, the day appointed by the Governor-General for a general thanksgiving on account of the Fall of Sebastopol, the great Parsee community, (of which Sir Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy is so justly regarded as the leader and orna- ment) spontaneously assembled in the Town Hall at Bombay, and Dosabhoy Framjee read a lecture detailing tha events of the war, and the successes of the Allied Forces. He then proceeded to enlarge on the blessings which the British rule secures to the natives of India; and concluded his address by offering, on behalf of his crowded audience, the first public prayer to Almighty God ever uttered by a Parsee in his native tongue; for the ordinary rehgious services 64 prayed daily for the success of the Sultan of Room^ and "the name of Mouravicjf is probably now repeated Avith awe by the Persian and Affghan." The Eastern shepherd, in his solitude, pondered over, and the warrior in his fastness, watched with kindling eye the varying fortunes of the field, while every incident of the campaign, whether in Europe or Asia, has been minutely discussed, and will be well remembered in the bazaars throughout the length and breadth of India. of the Parsees are still performed in the Pehlevi, their ancient language, which in the course of ages has become quite unintelligible to all but the very learned. He prayed "that the shadow of the Almighty might rest wherever the British rule extends, and that its moral influence might be established over a still greater portion of the globe ; that God would bless their Sovereign, and give success to her armies: that his own brethren might live, as they now do, in perfect security, and be ever impressed with a grateful sense of the blessings they enjoy under the benign rule of their gracious Queen." Tlie address was received with enthusiasm by the meeting, which signified its hearty acquiescence in the concluding prayer. The event marks an era in the annals of India. Instances are not wanting of sovereigns who have enjoyed an extensive popularity among the varied races of Hindostan ; but her history furnishes no parallel example of a whole people thus rising above the prejudices of ages, and in a way so opposed to their usual apathetic movements in political matters, convening a large public assembly, to give spontaneous expression to their belief in the superiority of British rule, and in the power of its protection, while they invoked the Divine aid for the success of its arms. The novelty and gravity of such a meeting as has been just described cannot fail to make a wide impression throughout Asia, most favourable to the British character. — From a Memoir of Sir Jamesetjee Jejeebhoy, by T. W. Ramsay, Esq., late Commissioner of Revenue, Bombay. 63 From tlie Commissioner in Scinde to Mr. Hardy Wells, Civil E)i(/ineer in Scinde. Dear Sir, I HAVE the pleasure to return the papers you forwarded for ray perusal, relative to a proposed Company for improving the Harbour of this Port (Kurrachee), and connecting it by Railway with the Indus. I will briefly state the reasons which induce me to con. sider the scheme a most feasible and promising one. A glance at the map shows that the coast of Scinde is the natural outlet for all the Commerce of the valley of the Indus and its tributaries^ as well as of the frontier countries to the north and west — Cashmere, Affghanistan, and the countries of Central Asia still further inland. Hemmed in between the deserts of Mekran on the west, and the " Thur," or great sandy desert, which extends from near Ferozepore to Cutch on the east, the traffic of the countries above-named, naturally converges to the coast of Scinde as to the mouth of a funneh The region to which the trade in question belongs will bear no unfavorable comparison as regards extent, popula- tion, and variety of productions with the tract, the com- merce of which seeks the line of the Ganges, and centres at Calcutta. Though it must be borne in mind that the trade on the one line is in its infancy, that on the other has been developed through a long scries of years. On the coast of Scinde there is but one port, Kurrachee, and there is no other which can be compared with it as a Harbour for several hundred miles, cast or west. 13 GO The Indus has never, during the last century, be;"n navigable for sea-going ships of any size; hence the river traffic is transferred, either at the mouth of the river, or at Kurrachee, into sea-going coasters, -which convey it to Bombay and other ports of India, as well as to Arabia, Persia, &c. Two obstacles were supposed to exist to Kurrachee becoming a harbour for direct intercourse with England and other distant countries. The Harbour was supposed to be inaccessible to large vessels, and it was believed that it was not safe during the south-west monsoon. While these two drawbacks were supposed to exist, Kurrachee could of course only rank as a harbour for coasting traders, and an outport of Bombay. But during the past years both these obstacles have been practically and conclusively proved to be imaginary. Three sailing vessels direct from England, the largest of 800 tons old measurement, have visited the port and come in and out without difficulty, one of them in the begin- ning of August, when the south-west monsoon was blow- ing as strongly as at any time during the season ; all the commanders of these ships expressed themselves as equally surprised and pleased at the ease with which they made and entered the harbour, and with its excellence when they were inside. The Honorable Company's steamers, Queen and Auckland, made three experimental trips, 20th June, coming in and out at the dates noted in the ^^'• margiu, and the ease and safety with which ^ ' y , 3rd August. this was effected, showed conclusively that ^^j^ Au-^ust. the Harbour is accessible to vessels of very 6th August, considerable tonnage throughout the year, including the monsoon.* * Since the foreffoin^ «,,„^ so >-> n a2 •a ca -a c £ "o ^-HCO^ooc;io CTi to o ,_ r-, r-l I-. 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A camel load varies from seven to eight maunds ; the merchants pay for eight maunds. It is optional with the Jhutts to use one or more animals for this load. The value of a camel load of goods belonging to a Km% rachee merchant is averaged as low as Rs. 125, which is attributable to many of the loads consisting of grocery, cocoa-nuts, and dates, the maximum value of the loads being Rs. 130, minimum Rs. 12 : the most valuable loads consist of sugar-candy. The Shikarpore merchants' loads are much more valu- able, consisting chiefly of silks and fine cloth, the maximum value of such being Rs. 800, minimum Rs. 300, average value Rs. 500. The load of a tattoo is three maunds, valued at Rs. 200 per load, and is thus highly priced, as it consists of valu- able silks and fine cloth. From information obtained from various individuals, it is calculated that last year the Kurrachee merchants for- warded Rs. 9,27,950 worth of merchandize. The Shikarpore merchants, or their agents residing in Kurrachee, Rs. 3,30,000 worth, the Tatta merchants Rs. 2,8G,000. The amount of the Kojahs' has not been ascertained, as also of one of Shikarpore, Sett Narraindoss, but the amount of merchandize transported up country by these parties is supposed to be about one lakh. It is estimated that one lakh of goods is transported away by various people who do not reside permanently in Kurrachee, but come in to hire out their camels at the 99 opening of the season. The above account gives a total of Rs. 1 7,43,950 worth of goods transported from Kurrachee bunder. I feel pretty sure that this falls far short of the actual amount that was transported; but from a great dislike on the part of the merchants to disclose the amount of their business, from a foolish dread that the inquiry is only a forerunner of some kind of limitation, it was im- possible to gain very accurate information on this subject. {Signed) E. P. ARTHUR, Officiating Captain of Police. Kurrachee, \Oth October, 1853. From Deputy Collector of Customs, Kurrachee, to Lieutenant Chapman, Engineers, on Special Duty, Scinde, Kurrachee. (EXTEACTS.) There can be no doubt as to the benefits which must accrue to the province should a line of railway be carried out between Kurrachee and any point on the river. At present, the traffic is conducted partly by camels between Sehwan, Kotree and Kurrachee, and in part by the river doondas, which navigate the tidal channels at all seasons of the year : both are most tedious, and far from inexpen- sive, owing to the waste of time, more especially in the case of doondas, as also to the serious losses which occasionally occur, owing to the foundering of these unwieldy craft. In rainy weather, laden camels are unable to travel, so that the road line may be considered closed should a wet season occur. 100 As my duty extends to the registry of the external trade only, I am able to say nothing positive with regard to the internal traffic by land. One point, however, I. am satisfied of — that is, that the whole of the trade which now finds its way by the direct line to Sehwan, to Kotree, and to Tatta, and by doondas and other cargo boats by the tidal channels, will all enter the railroad. The external trade of Scinde has steadily increased at the rate of 20 per cent, per annum for several years past : this may form an index, though but a faint one, to the future progress of the province. "We have already commenced a direct traffic with England, and once we are able to export produce to the mother country, Kurrachee will command the trade of Mekran, of Eastern Arabia, and of the Persian Gulf. I may also add that the Indus, though nominally open to commerce since Lord Ellenborough's proclamation after the conquest of the country in 1843, yet was virtually sealed up to the beginning of last year, when river dues were finally abolished : we may therefore expect that the raw produce of the Punjaub and the North-west Provinces will now find its way continuously and uninterruptedly by the line of the Indus, in exchange for the manufactures of Europe — a trade which has already received considerable impetus from the establishment of the regular monthly steamer between Mooltan and Kurrachee. And here I must not forget to mention the important fact, that the Indus is now the highway for troops and military stores to the Punjaub and Upper India. During the present year, 6,000 casks of ale and porter alone passed through Kurrachee, and as much more is hourly expected. All this is conveyed in carts from Kemaree to Ghizree, a distance of six miles, where it is shipped in country boats, many of •\vhich will spend the greater part of a month in the salt- 101 water creeks before they get to the Indus. The cost of all these operations has yet to be ascertained, but were the projected railway in existence, there cannot remain a doubt, that not only a considerable saving would be made in carriage, but that the article itself would have every chance of reaching the Indus in good order and condition, a point which, under present arrangements, must be con- sidered doubtful. I have, in conclusion, to regret that I am unable to furnish you with more precise information on the various subjects touched on by you. The tables which accompany this are, — l^if. The last Trade Ueport of External Commerce.* 2nd. An Abstract of Shipping for 1852-53, with re- marks thereon. 3rd. Statement of the River Traffic for 1851-52, and 1852-53, as registered at Khettie. I have the honour to be, Sir, Your most obedient Servant, (Signed) J. MACLEOD. Deputy Collector of Customs. Kurrachee Custom House, 19//i October, 1853. * Vide Appendix to Lieutenant Chapman's Report, printed for Bombay Government. t^ O CO «0 00 (N Ci »0 O CO CO ojcooTO'^cooococ^ --ho ■— I at>— coCi'oC'C-'— 1 lO'^ Ci o ** »• #»#■•> p2-f '-' r-,r-,r-,C^COC^'OI "3 1 ^ CO — ' 1 lO 0* 1 t- 1 OCO'OOOC-JCOOlCi C2CI5 Igo I H > 0»0 C-Cs(-^C^Tj CO a 1— lOO) -*l Ph o •* •> »■ Ch «r H <^ lO -^ 1 O 1 P a, a > -^ 1 <^ 1 •OCOO;Or*( CO CO c\( r'. z !-< O I --H 1 c -' ' 1 1 • Cn) . C3 . . . . . \ ^oi 1 CO 1 c rs S 00 . CO . , . . o ^ I o : . : . H . ci ■ . . • CO M i = 1,; • • ^« c^ 1:1 1. o o 1 cf oi < Ph |l^ > dC5 • CO • • • • O) - " CO ^ .^ ... •O r-l 1 CO 1 a • CO . 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CU a> 03 i3 H-1 o ^' -^ >^ f^ CM < 103 From these statements, (says INIr. Macleod,) it will he observed, that the amouut of tonnage entered inwards in 1852-53 amounted to, sa}'', 48,000 tons, exclusive of the provincial coasting trade ; and that the outgoing tonnage was 45,000 tons. It would not, however, be correct to assume these figures as the amount or weight of our internal traffic, or rather as the weight of the traffic passing between Kur- rachee and the upper country by the line of the proposed railway. To estimate this traffic, we must exclude from the above figures, 1st, the consumption at Kurrachee, Khettie, and the neighbouring places; 2nd, the imports and exports across our western frontier : and 3rd, an allowance should be made for the partial lading of vessels. The balance may then be taken as the probable amount of traffic which passed upwards and dov/nwards. PORT?. Arrivals. Tonnnpe of Mer- chandize ^s regis, tered. Deduct Allow. ance as above. Probable Amount passed upwards by Land et River Departures. fonnat;e of Mer- .liandizo as regis- tered. Deduct Allow- ance as above, Ke-ex- porls. Probable Amount li ought down by Land & River. Bombay . . . Concan Cutch Goa and Demaun Guzerat Malabar Arabian & Persian Gulfs Mekran 25,9.35 1,775 10,529 411 2,377 2,924 3,166 832 G,935 1,775 7,529 411 2,177 1,424 1,166 432 19,000 3,00*0 " 200 1,500 2,000 400 33,446 6,730 333 982 907 1,611 1,421 8,446 2,730 183 682 907 811 721 25,000 4,66o 150 300 800 700 Tons .'47,949 I 21,849 26,100 45,430 14,480 30,950 As the internal traffic of the province has not been registered, the above is the only data that can be offered for a railway statistic. This department has not the means of estimating the village to village traffic, nor the 104 number of passengers passing upwards and downwards, both of wbicb form important items in railway business. 27/e commerce of the j^ort has been jjroffressi/iff during the past few years at the rate of 20 per cent, per annum, and there is every reason to expect a continuance of the jjrogressive ratio. The residents in the Punjanb have shoivn a desire to jjrocurc their supplies by the Indus, in preference to the Vine of the Ganges, and in a few years their desire will in all probability be gratified to the fullest extent. An extensive Affghan trader, who has had dealings with Calcutta for years, having tried the Bombay mai^ket during the two past seasons, has given the latter the preference. Others ivill follow his example. These prospects of the Scinde trade lead me to believe, that by the time a railway shall be laid down, and be prepared for action, our com- merce WILL IIAA^E DOUBLED ITS PRESENT VALUE, AND THE PASSENGER TRAFPIC BE TEN TIMES AS MUC^ AS IT IS AT PRESENT. {Signed) J. MACLEOD, Deputy Collector of Customs. Kurrachee Custom House, \Qth October, 1853. c rt o -^ o» ift ^ "* -M ai • O OD M . . VO . . . © CO i. 'o l-]->J< ^_^ CO..O.. • • «^ © =■ '• I I : I I ; I ; I : ; '^ ; : r ; ; t ; ^^ i i • I «^ -f 3 ^ -H CO V "* p'' « CD t^COMC^iOinjTs— lOinO i— lOOOOO eOO 0000 ■* tA '*■ >N| • •^ O^ODCOC^TrC^lO-— IOC5 F— (Mc^lr-i-O t^O ©1—1 CM to ^ "•- c;0_ •'-l'-l'<»'W_-*l--^-^in-OOXiCsOCtMO •a>>-i .OeO-^O^COl^>Oi— lOtoOCO . 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Ph r-t rH d a.' o ~"o~ ^ ) O o o o ; ; t r-i rH ^■^ r~t T^ • o V ^_, rH O O O ' CO rH O rH O O o> 00 o * * !Z Cd to i^ O O <=■ <=> <=> o c o o O O O o o to ■* rH rH 00 t^ o 00 o •* o • o iH rH f~i r-t y-^ r^ Q S = rH O d c 1^ rH * OOOOOCOOOOOOOO CQOO© I I I I "T.t>.- 4-^ M ^ ec O'«r^oooo ooc;o=>cooc>ooc C000000000000000009 I I COM |«^to-v I I^O-v: oo I o o I I ^ ifl t>*o a> I I C*! C^ « ,_ « rtCM^^^^OS M O -^ CO o — -^ooo o=;oo [to^eo — lO^ looooo I I 5. ° : c3 - . • e ^ i^ f> -£3 to idmnnhers sold for 0).e Company s \c\e corresponding to this sum has been Shikakpoor. Frontier Dist. I » MJs. Srs. Tolas. 3 I 2 3 u 16 16 25 21 4 3 15 1 27 29 1 8 6 5 2 12 12 2 5 30 7 20 11 2 4 4 36 14 5 40 40 60 64 60 60 32 40 TO 50 20 CO 20 40 Srs. Tolas. 16 20 17 16 11 28 21 4 (^ 9 13 67 27 70 60 53.1 8 27 O" 53^ 13 53 i I 2 33 22 53i, 28 27" 70 8 29 47 40 27 6 2 4 1 3 20 53 i^ 6 53i 2 27 8 4 60 3 33 27 3 53i 100 Bundles. 40 2 4 4 4 11 11 5 67 3^ 8 13i 27 27i PRICES CURRENT IN SCINDE. List of Articles in the Markelt ofShikarpore and FronlierDutricts, showiitg the rvtail (/uan/ifiiv and > Rupee, during the month of September, 1H55. Tlic weights and prices entered are in the Indian standard and currency. Weights— 180 Grs. Troy, 1 Tola: 80 Tolas, 1 Seer; 40 Seers, 1 Maund.* Where the cost of n single article, sold hy number, exceeded One Rupee, the fraction of the article corresponding Id fur Oi.e Cu,npaii,j„ Fbostibe Dist. Rice, of sorts .. SHiHiurooB. Fro TiEK Disr. MJ, 5r.. roln. "'•■ S'- T.i».. 16 40 Md.. a,.. ™.,. Almonds, in shell . per Rupee 4 50 4 53 10 20 Ainharee .... „ 32 „ Flour ... „ 13 67 Beef 20 12 TeelSccd 16 n 17 27 Betel Nut ... 3 3 27 Tcor 16 „ Leaf ... Sixty-four. „ Dall 11 11 Bhang 8 5 27 Wheat, of sorts 3 25 40 28 Brass ware, of sorts 64 46| „ Flour . . 21 21 70 Cardamums ... 28 26 WulfBcansJ, of sorts „ Catlia (Catechu) . 2 13) Gum ,. 4 00 4 CO Chillies .... 5 40 5 27' Gunpowder (Country) ,. 3 2 53.! Chnuam, fine . . ,, 3 1 25 27 Hay ..... „ 8 27 Cinnamon . , . ,, 64 70 Indigo .... ►, 64 53i Cloves .... 2 30 1 60i Jagrec .... „ 15 13 53J Cocoa nuts, whole . „ 30 Twenty-eight. Mace , 1 CO 33 shelled 4 4 20 Maithee Seeds . . „ 27 22 53i Cotton, cleaned „ 4 3 40 Milk 29 60 26 27 Dates, of sorts . . 20 15 53J Mowra, Spirit ,, I 70 Eggs . . . 100 Eighty. Mutton .... „ 8 8 Firewood 12 32 27 Nutmegs 32 29 Fowls . . Nine. Oil Sweet, of sorts . 6 40 6 47 Gauja . . 16 „ Cocoa nut . . ,, 2 40 Garlic . . 23 17 „ ofTeel ... 5 4 27 Ghee . . . 3 3 12 „ Linseed (Couutrv) ,. 2 70 1 Ginger, green „ Castor . . . ' ., 3 „ dry . I14{ 0{ 21 : 1 Mauiid, or 80 II r 135 Rates of Passage and for Freight by the Steamers on the River Indus. The Right Honourable the Governor in Council is pleased to direct the publication, for general information, of the following Revised Regulations for the conveyance of Passengers and Freight by the Steamers on the river Indus : — or PASSAGE. 1. All applications for passage at Kurrachee, Kotree, Sukkur, and Mooltan, must be made to the Government freight agents at those stations, and at other places to the master commanding the vessel, who will register the names of all persons applying. It is to be understood, that any applicant may be rejected without cause being assigned j but a report of the objection must be made to the captain of the flotilla. 2. The distance between Kurrachee and Mooltan is assumed to be eight hundred miles, and the distance be- tween the stations, as follows . — Kurrachee, and the Beacon at the mouth of Miles. Keddywarree . . . . . .100 Beacon and Tatta ...... 60 Tatta and Hydrabad or Kotree ... 70 Hydrabad and Sehwan ..... 100 Sehwan and Larkhana Bunder . . . 110 " Larkhana Bunder and Sukkur ... 60 Sukkur and Chachur or Mittenkote . .160 Chachur and Bukkree ..... 60 Bukkree and Mooltan ..... 80 Total Miles 800 136 3. Passengers are designated first and second class. First class mess at tlie master's table, and are accom- modated abaft. Second class berth forward, and are not entitled to walk abaft the funnel. 4. First class passengers will be charged the following sums as table money : — Per Diem. Lady or gentleman .... Rs. 400 Children under 12 years . . . 2 Do. under 6 years, who do not come come to the public table . . .10 Do. under 1 year .... Free. For the above sums the passengers are provided with a plain substantial table, not including wine, spirits, or beer, which, if provided by the commander, are charged at regulated prices, according to a list exhibited in the dining cabin. 5. Second class passengers may provide their own food ; or, if Europeans, can mess with the warrant officers or engineers, on paying Rs. 2 per diem. 6. Christian servants, not providing their own food, will be charged one rupee ; Mussulman servants, three annas per diem. Hindoos provide their own food. 7. All passengers who are not unwell are expected to take their meals at the public table. 8. In addition to the table money, first class passengers will be charged the following sums for accommodation, viz., — a cabin, 4 annas ; a saloon berth, 3 annas ; and a deck berth, 2 annas per mile ; or, for the passage be- tween Kurrachee and Mooltan : — Up. Down (two-thirds) Cabin . . . Rs. 200 133 5 Saloon ... 150 100 Deck ... 100 G6 11 137 Deck passengers sleep and dress on deck, but have the use of the saloon during the day. 9. Second class passengers pay half an anna per mile ; children not in arms, three pies. 10. The charge for passage down river is two-thirds the upward rates. 11. A cabin is not to be appropriated to more than Two ladies. One gentleman. One lady and two children. Three children. 12. When two ladies occupy one cabin, deck passage for one will be charged, in addition to that for the cabin. 13. Ladies, and children under six years of age, must take a cabin passage. 14. Children, above the age of six years, taking a deck berth, will be charged one anna per mile. 15. Each first class passenger is allowed one servant free; all extra servants are charged as second class, viz., half an anna per mile. 16. Three children occupying a cabin will be allowed one servant free. 17. First class passengers are allowed half-a-ton, or 25 cubic feet of baggage ; children, 4 cwt. 18. Second class passengers, one roll of bedding and a box, solid contents not exceeding 5 cubic feet ; children, one roll of bedding. 19. Cabin passengers may put all their baggage into their cabins if they please; saloon and deck passengers are allowed to keep one box and bag above. The rest of their baggage will be kept in an appropriate place, to which they will be allowed occasional access. 20. Passage money, and a deposit of Rs. 4 per day for the estimated term of the voyage, must be paid on engag- 138 iug a passage ; and auy surplus of table money will be re- turned, or an additional charge be made by the commander, as the voyage may fall short of, or exceed the time, for which the deposit was calculated. Half the passage-money and half the table-money become forfeited, by persons who relinquish a passage after having engaged it. 21. Cabins will be allotted to ladies and children, in preference to gentlemen. 22. Cabins or saloon berths engaged in Kurrachee or Mooltan, for however short a distance, will be charged two-thirds of the rate between those two places : but if the chance be taken of a cabin or saloon berth being vacant, the charge will only be for the distance it is occu- pied. Thus, a cabin or saloon berth being retained in Kurrachee to Hydrabad in a vessel proceeding to Mooltan will be charged for 533 miles, but if the chance be taken of one being unengaged, the charge will only be for 230 miles, the estimated distance between Kurrachee and Hy- drabad. OF FREIGHT. 1. All applications for freight must be made by letter to the Government freight agents, or, at places Avhere there is no agent, to the officer in charge of the steamer, describing the goods to be despatched, and the weight or measurement, when tonnage will be assigned according to the order in which the several applications are regis- tered. 2. Goods intended for shipment must be sent to the agent^s office between the hours of ten and four (Sundays, Christmas Day, and Good Friday excepted,) accompanied by a note stating the name of the shipper, the number and mark of the package, to whom and where consigned, the cubical measurement, or weight, and value of each package. 139 3. Goods or packages will not be received on board unless they are addressed to a resident at the station where they are to be delivered from the steamer, and the direction must be distinctly made on something not liable to be destroyed by vermin, and which may not be easily obliterated. 4. Any package with a direction written on a card, or made with ink on a tin box, is liable to be rejected. 5. Goods not applied for by the consignee, on board the boat during her stay at the station where consigned, will be put into a godown, and an additional charge of two annas per package made for rent ; and where there is no godown, they will be carried on and charged with addi- tional freight, unless addressed to the freight agent, in which case they will be delivered to him. 6. It must be understood, however, that although all persons are at liberty to consign their goods to the Go- vernment freight agent at any station where there is one, the Government is not responsible for such agent, nor for the safety of the goods after delivery to the consignee, or to his order, whether such consignee be the Government agent or any other person. 7. Government will not be responsible for any damage or loss which may occur from accident to the vessel, or other cause not traceable to negligence or mismanage- ment. 8. Parties who ship goods must do so between day- light and sunset, and have all their goods on board by 2 p. M. the day before the vessel starts. Commanders of steamers will on no account discharge or receive goods after dark. 9. Freight on all packages conveyed up river (excepting treasure) which do not exceed (29) twentj^-nine lbs. per cubic foot, will be charged by the cubic foot at the rate 140 of (2|) two and a quarter annas per cubic foot for every (100) hundred miles: but those exceeding (29) twenty- nine lbs. per cubic foot will be charged for by the pound weight, at the rate of (5) five annas per maund of (80) eighty pounds for every (100) hundred miles From Kurrachee. P( ?r Cubic Ft. Per Maund of 80 lbs. To Beacon Rs. 2 3 Rs. 5 ToTatta . 3 7 8 To Hydrabad or Kotree 5 2 11 6 To Sehwan 7 8 1 6 To Larkhana 9 11 1 6 To Sukkm- 11 3 1 9 To Chachur or Mittenkote 14 10 2 1 To Bukkree 10 2 2 4* To Mooltan 1 2 2 8 10. Freight on goods conveyed down river is one- fourth (quarter) of the upward rate. 11. No package, however small, will be conveyed for a less sum than one rupee, and all charges for freight must be paid on the delivery of the goods to the agent, and in cases where there is no agent, to the commander of the vessel, before they are received on board. 12. Freight on Carriages. On an empty carriage or barouche. landaulet, britzka, palanquin Carriage, or phaeton, for every 100 miles up or down river Rs. 10 On an empty buggy 5 Do. palanquin 2 Do. tonjolin 1 8 ]3. Agricultural implements, machinery planks, tim- ber, furniture, and other weighty articles of the kind 141 carried as deck cargo only, and at the risk of the shippers from damage or wet or other causes from being carried on deck, two-thirds of the present rates. 14. Sheep, dogs, or goats -will be conveyed at the rate of one rupee each for every 100 miles up or down river ; this is exclusive of the keeper, who will be charged a second class passage, and of food, which the shippers must supply. Freight on Specie, or Bullion. 15. Specie, or bullion will be conveyed up or down river at the rate of one anna and a half per cent, for every 100 miles, and whenever the distance exceeds the even hundred, freight will be charged for the even hundred next following. Thus, from Kurrachee to Hydrabad is 230 miles, the charge will be made for 300 miles. 16. Freight on copper coin will be charged at the up- river rate of weightable goods, whether conveyed up or down river. 17. Bills of lading, in duplicate, will be granted to shippers of specie, or bullion, Avhich will only be delivered to the party presenting one of them ; and should no ap- plication be made for the delivery of the treasure during the stay of the vessel at any station, it will be carried on and freight charged for the additional distance it may be conveyed. 18. As it may be expected that the steam vessels will proceed down the river quicker than the Dak, during the period of the inundation, which will prevent bills of lading being received in time if forwarded by post after ship- ment of the treasure, the following plan may be adopted for ensuring its delivery to a duly authorised person. 19. The individual intending to ship treasure may send an order per post to his correspondent some days pre\dous to the departure of the vessel, the order being 142 ■written on half a piece of paper, the other half of which is to be given to the commander, with an order upon it, signed by the shipper, authorising the delivering of the treasure to the person who shall produce the order Avritten on the corresponding half piece which has been forwarded by post. 20. The boats will make the following stoppage at the different stations during daylight, in cases where there may be parties or stores awaiting conveyance : — At Tatta .... Three hours. At Kotree .... Four hours. At Sehwan .... Two hours. At Larkhana . . . One hour. At Sukkur . . . Four hours. At Mittenkote . . . Two hoiu-s. At Bukkree . . . Two hours. 21 The commanders are instructed never to wait for passengers, either those who merely go ashore at a station, and are proceeding further on, or those who intend to embark there. 22. In cases where the scantiness of the water in any of the rivers may be the means of preventing the steamers from attaining some of the higher stations for delivery at which packages have been received on board, it is to be understood that all goods and packages (treasure excepted) laden on boats so arrested in their progress are, at the expense of Government, conveyed to the stations at which they should have been delivered by the boat, and are free of every additional charge to the shippers or con- signers, who, with regard to expense of conveyance, are placed in precisely the same situation they would have been in had the boats been enabled to reach their desti- nation. Should any person, having goods on board, any of the boats so arrested in their progress, desire delivery of such goods at any station short of that to which they 143 were to have been conveyed, they will be entitled to a refund of such proportion of freight paid on such goods as may be in excess of the freight that would have been levied upon such goods, had they originally been shipped for delivery at the station at which they may, under the above circumstances, have been delivered. 23. Treasure laden on a boat whose progress is ar- rested will be retained on board until the boat is enabled to proceed to her destination, unless the consignees hold- ing the bill of lading of such treasure may require its delivery, giving a full acquittance for the treasure, and receiving such diflFerence of freight as may have been paid in excess of what Avould have been charged for convey- ance of such treasure to the place of its delivery. 24. Except on occasions of public emergency, the Government vessels appointed to maintain the regular communication between Kurrachee and Mooltan shall so far be reserved exclusively for private passengers and merchandize, that svich private passengers and merchan- dize shall invariably have the preference, and thereafter any vacant tonnage which may be left shall be available for Government stores or passengers. 25. Steamers will leave Kun-achee for Mooltan on the 24th, and the latter place for Kurrachee on the 26th of every month. 26. Should the day fixed for the steamers to leave Mooltan and Kurrachee fall on a Sunday, the vessel will be despatched on the previous day. R. Etherset, Captain I. N. Commanding Indus Fotilla. By order of the Right Honorable the Governor in Council, T. M AUG HAN, Lieutenant Colonel, Secretary to Government. Bombay Castle, \f)th, March, 1854. 144 TRADE ON THE INDUS. The following letter was addressed to Government by the Commissioner in Scinde, with accompaniment, being abstracts of the registers kept on the river Indus, showing the number and tonnage of boats which passed certain stations during the years 1853-54 and 1854-55 : — My Lord, "VYith reference to my letter of the 26th July, 1853, I have the honour to forward abstracts of the registers kept on the river Indus, showing the number and tonnage of the boats which passed certain stations during the two years, 1853-54 and 1854-55. 2. From a comparison of these returns with those which are already before Government, it will be seen that the river trade is steadily increasing. The total maundage of laden boats registered as passing was — In 1851-52 . . . 64,24,000 Mauuds. „ 1852-53 . . .' 78,25,000 „ 1853-54 . . . 81,23,700 „ 1854-55 . . . 84,08,600 which, divided by 5 (the number of points of registry) gives the following as the maundage for the whole distance from Kurrachee to Sukkur : — In 1851-52 . . . 12,84,920 Maunds. „ 1852-53 . . . 15,65,120 „ 1853,54 . . . 16,24,740 „ 1854-55 . . . 16,81,720 The points which were noted in the memorandum ac- 145 companying my former letter, as observable in tbe retui-ns of 1851-52 and 1853-53, are still remarkable in the re- turns now forwarded, viz., that the river-trade has a ten- dency to converge at Hydrabad, where the principal lines of east and west traffic strike the river ; that a very large portion of the trade between Hydrabad and Kurrachee goes overland ; that the proportion of laden to unladen boats is increasing, indicating that the inequality between the upward and downward trade is diminishing ; or in other words, that boats more generally find cargoes, both up and down, than they did formerly. There is also a steadily-progressing increase of steamer traffic. I have the honor to be, &c., (Signed) H. B. E. Frere. Com.missio7ier in Seinde. 24^th July, 1855. Resolution of Government : — Copies to be sent to the Chamber of Commerce, Government of India, and Hon- ourable Court. .o o 20 m •aSB8J0'»Q •asB9Joni •9SE8.1J8(J •9SB3aonj •uapBiUfi •aapcq aap'Binfi •napB'j •uapBiuQ ;c5 o Q O O 0000 „; o o o o -a "-^ •*_ "3^ i-^ 2 5 c4 ?4' c-i OT ^' ^ --o CM in .2500 •5 ^ O — ' lO 2 - ^' » t^' o rt o as -r t^ S c4 -; -^ -J « 3 o o o •c -H 00 t^ '^ S l^„ O in o_ ^2z jj j^ O Tf< ro t-^T" CO —I o s o o I- o o o 00 lO CO CW CO L-3 -f o o o -* o o o'co o -r —I CO CO OS 00 00 00 00 o" 00 co" o O lO t>» Tf o o o 00 00 Oi 05 CO CO tt in •^ r- ^^ CO in cc -H in ao "oToo ooTT" — . t^ -H (M CO (N GO-fXCO Cn — . ^ — oco in'^ (MfO C5 S 88 00 o o CI —I —I inco— 'O lOco Qoo O") CO 'M -^ 00 o ;o rf — o ■ry in 'aaprinfi i2 (OT— '-^t^ OCJi oot^ OiCMiMcji r^oo 000 — — iin(M coco -Hco I>J iM in CO ■uapuq ^ t^ O — ■ 'K 'T OJ O 00 t^ O !M -~ o in t^ — ' (M t^ CT> in o CO in in CO 00 O t^ £So 3 uapEiiifi OOOODCD OC» (M-M OOOCOCO — .— < -^lO CO (M CO C<3 I— 1 (M t^ 03 00 00 I^ GO in CO 00 !M 00 r^ •uape-j 00 in CO — 00 CDCJ5 -H-r-i'CO QCM Oi :Z> 1— ti— l!MCO C^CO -^(M 00 ro (35 —> -r l>. CO C^ CD CO i» CD — < r- CD (>•«>. -^ CO <-^-J •a3pB[nf][ CC 00 »in o (M (M •jBg ino -qllM SJOUIE9JS •napcq CO CD -H CO CO in (35 1^ —ICM (M -r (35 t^ (M CO CO <35 t^ CO CO in -* —• ; :-r 00 CD CO •aapBiufi in •* 00 CC t^ t^ ^ in CO ^0 fM — l(M I^— . . •aap^q •napBiufi I CO -c^ . - •uapeq oj S5 COCDOCD CD— I OTOO OCD CD— I O~i00 CDl-~ CO(M.J^( iM F^ CD -:y (M ^^ _< in in in lO 0*0 in in n. . ^„ ^. -, _, ^^ „ . ao CO 00 CO 0000 0000 0000 O0(X)l»(X>(3OX) Mithunkote,Sth Avgust, 1855 u oT oT 4> u s o .-^ a 0!3 6 -2 i £1 3 ^ c» c^-^O Pi s °-s I. s. o H M. S. a; cc o 02 a a> o JO o o M. S. C. M. S. M. S. C. No. No. No. 84 1,100 30 271 20 2 49 35 . 4 29 7,59G 11 2 21 20 1 24 12 57 400 88 29,8,697 1 2 293 1 26 12 106 435 gned"* S. Graham, Assistant Comtnissioner. The Lahore Chronicle, September 8, 1855. AliSTRACT QllAIlTERLY RliGISTER OF BOATS AND CARGOES I'UOCEEDING UP AND DOWN THE INDUS, FOR THE FIRST QUARTER OF 18SJ-185G. Mith>inAotr. KlkJv^al, 1855 |B 1 ARTICEES OF MERCHANDIZE. «1 = .; o _ \ jj 1 &'i-i ■VcS i [ "S « . s N jll 1 z m 1 1 1 E .2 O S i 1 Cotton. Goor. J 1 ■ f 1 1 1 1 i a 1 1 i 1 S 1 1 1 A 1 M. S. 1 M. S. 1 ■s e M. S, .ilJ 1 a 1 Vs 1" 3 Z n •M. S. C. M. S M. S. M. S.l M, S M. S. M. S M. S. M. S. M. S. M. 8 M. S. M. S. No. M. S. M. S. M. S. M. S. M. S. M. S. M. S. M. S M. S. M. S. M. S. M. S. M. S. M. S. C. M. S M. S. C. No. No. No. ] North to . . ■253 fia,214 20 6,834 5 437 C 14306 25 522 [ 6,377 3,552 35 1,741 l'l2.190 2.815 10 5,1.50 20 1 690 20 122 13 82 20 43 0[ 30 4,637 20 8 0, 9 20 4 20 C 5,348 m [ 84 1,100 30 271 20 2 49 35 . South. ( 1 Ftom 1 South to 155 33,402 11 14 941 (i 118 183 ( 445 C 2,C26 14 30 16 2C 20 C 5 12 ( 15 I 1,26,825 311 36 135 238 14 81 2t 202 20414 5,877 lb 440 I( 13,695 20 f 4 2S 7,596 11 2 21 2C 1 24 12 57 400 North. J ! Total . . 408 102,616 31 14,7,775 5 155 16/489 25 967 (1 9,003 3,567 30 1,757 21 12,210 0I2.82O lo|5,162 20 15 696 20 1.20,825 434 9 217 20 238 14 43 ol 30 4,719 210 .'0414 5.8S6 36 4 20 440 10 13,095 20 5,348 850 88 29 8,697 1 2 293 1 26 12 106 435 Maunds — Seers— Chnttacks. l_True Copy) J. Nicholson, 0^ ComniUsioner and Super intem/enf. (Signed^ S. Grauam, Asaiitoiit Commiaaioner. The Lahore Chronicle, September 8. 185 c 149 From the Commissioner in Scinde to tlie Governor OF Bombay, dated 3rd August, 1855. My Lord, For some years past, advantage has been taken of police stations along frequented lines of road to keep registers of the traffic passing. These returns are, of course, often more or less incomplete; but the error is almost invariably on one side, viz., that of understatement, and is not probably greater, on the long run, in one place than another, so that the returns are by no means unsafe statistical records. The enclosed abstracts of them are therefore submitted to Government, and should they be considered of sufficient interest, similar returns shall be transmitted annually. The general increase of cart traffic where anything has been done to improve the roads, and the great increase of traffic on the roads cleared and bridged by jNIajor John Jacob, and by the Collector of Shikarpoor and his deputies, especially Lieutenant Ford, are noticeable and very gratifying facts dcducible from thesereturns. A sketch of the places mentioned in the return is enclosed, I have, &c. (Signed) H. B. E. FRERE, Commissioner in Scinde. Mil 5 = « fe S y 5- ». 2 ^ ^^ J c * -. •5- o c cs n: i £ : = ■S " 5 *;■ -J .5 o B re s ^ ^ 3 - „ ffl .. oj 5 2< 5 " « -H f - »-^ o-r "^"^ u a ^ -p [ 5 ^ "" o = " 6 = f ^" b£o lu^ti: ( ■5- 3-^ * o j; (If) a; — !> rt (i> D ^ te ;i M -M CO ^ CJ '^ J- *J ** O 3 m 1( o ^ 5 rt-^ 5 2 .2 2° CO O **^ ho 18 I re o 2 ^lU 5i| •uauio^ f^; t. 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CO to o 00 (M -^ O 4J « tn 1 . iO i« eo f— ( I^SSg 00 o *^ tc = ca s 3 C Q (U f~i a> V "S ^c2 ■" C2 CS PS 05 • OS CO C>1 coo o -- t-^ O ^ OS S ^ 13 •r o 1.0 ^ o CO ^2; O CO ►2,-0 ■is *^ 08 CO in i-^ OS "O *"* "^ "^ «>. -v oCcT-r 00 ^ CO eo ^ lO in -j< OS O " -. CO -* in ^ in O CO GO -^ «>. 00 00 ^ cT* ''^ CO "M l->. ^_--o «>. CO TJ<_CM__ ^ S| 00 C(D^ i-TtC -qT-jT »-H^r^ in 1-- rH 1-1 CM c« O •— Z^. Ci CO l^ O CO ex; o c3 3^ cc o c» ^ '^ in OS CM CO CO C0__ 00^ ^ CO ■^ OS o ■* c ^-> j-i -^ cT co"^ -I- 00 in -H l>. CO o rt o «^ iH ^ CM S ^ -T "^ • OS l^ Cl TO O O CM O CO '-co O ■^ t» -* O CO CO O —1 CM 5 S-S^ CS O CO CO in 00 r- O O Q-S s rfo rt" CO ^ •^ t^ in OS >— in — ' «3 O CO -o 00 -^ CO «>. 00 o a> CO C^ OS -H CO I-I t^ in o -f CO -q^ ■* (N o_co r-< J>. u o 1.0 in" r-T CM (M CO CO M* t^ K CO -o O 0-. CO o^~ 0> CO OS — en «0 00 o ca in in ■* o in "T^ eo -* i-n_ TP OS in o 1-1^ in a 00 oo' TjT i-H O rHin o"— " ctf 00 CM f-H f-H o r-l OS CO 00 OS —1 C rJ CO OS («' C-. c^ c^ ■-< OJ C-. —1 r- CO "t^ .n eo 00 -T)< OS in -H oo_ os^ M CO m 1^ f-H cm" CO i-H CM CM CO -* "CM^CO^'T)!^ CM CO T)< CM CO -^ •JT33,^ in o in in in in in o 'O in in m OO 00 00 OO 00 00 00 OO 00 GO OO 00 .— 1 — « F-^ — < ^^ F-J ■— « ^^ ^^ ^H — — o , . ° H £ S 2 ^ s 2-6 2 ■- s per annum. 5th. The following are the prescribed conditions of clear- ance : — 158 At tlie close of the 5th year from the date of grant, a twentieth part of the assessable area ; at the close of the 10th year, one-fifth of the assessable area; at the close of the 15th year, half of the assessable area; and at the close of the last year, three-fourths of the assessable area is to be cleared, and well stocked with tea plants. 6th. In the twenty-first year, on the fulfilment of the above conditions, the proprietary right in the grant, and the right of engagement with Government, shall vest in the grantee, his heirs, executors or assigns under the conditions generally applicable to the owners of estates in Kumaon ; and the rate of assessment on the lands in the grant, in whatever manner cultivated, shall never exceed the average rate on grain-crops in lands in the same locality. 7th. — On failure of payment of the prescribed assess- ment in any year, or of any of the above conditions, (the fact of which failure shall, after local enquiry conducted by the Senior Assistant Commissioner, be finally determined by the Sudder Board of Revenue,) the entire grant shall be liable to resumption, at the discretion of the Govern- ment, with exception to the portion of the assessable area which may be bona fide under tea cultivation, and to a fiu'ther portion of land, which shall be allowed in perpe- tuity, free of assessment, to the extent of one-fourth of such cultivated area. The portions, so exempted, vrill remain in the possession of the grantee, subject to the usual rates and rules of assessment in the district. 8th. — Grantees shall be bound to erect boundary pillars at convenient points round the circuit of a grant, within six months from its date, failing which, such piUars will be put up by the Government ofiicers, and the cost thereof shall be recoverable from the grantee, in the same manner as the regulated rate of assessment. Oth. — No claim to the right and interest in a grant o)i 159 any transfer by the original grantee will be recognised as validj unless on registry of the transferee in the office of the Senior Assistant Commissioner. 10th. — So long as Government establishments for the experimental growth and manufacture of tea shall be main- tained in the proAince, supplies of seeds and plants will be given gratis to grantees, on application to the Superinten- dent, Botanical Gardens, North Western Provinces, as far as may be in his power. By order of the Honourable the Lieutenant-Governor, North Western Pro\dnces. (Signed) W. MUIR, Secy, to the Govt., N. W. P. IGO SoNMEEANEE : OS it wtts, anil is. luformation of a trustwortliy character regarding Son- meeanee appeared desirable from the statements which were made sometime ago in the public papers as to the success of the trade opened by the Americans in domestics with this place, and the injurious effect that this success was thought likely to produce on the progress of British commerce in that part of the world. Sonmeeanee, pro- perly Soumeeanee, in Beloochistan, is a fishing station, with a bad harbour, on the shore of the Arabian Sea, about 50 miles to the west of Kurrachee, latitude 24° 27', longi- tude Q>Q>° 39', It consists of about 250 huts built of mat- ting or mud, each adorned with a turret for ventilation, has a population of about 1,000 inhabitants, and is dig- nified, by English gazetteers, into a small town. Son- meeanee and the neighbouring territory rejoice in a lam, or chief, who holds his dusty principality under the Khan of Kelat, the right trusty friend and ally of the British. The following notes on the port and commerce of Son- meeanee may be relied upon as conveying the latest and most authentic information, collected on the spot by a late lamented and able uncovenanted civil servant of the East India Company, and who died before their transmis- sion to Government. The notes which Ave transcribe convey an important lesson as to what enterprise and energy may accomplish. " Soumeeanee has gradually sunk in importance since the British occupied Kurrachee. The first serious blow it received was in the diversion of the Affghan trade in the time of Sir Charles Napier ; this was mainly caused by 161 the exertions of Khan Mahomed Mingul, the chief of Wudd, and the faciUties which presented themselves at Kurrachee in accommodation, and ready freight for goods to Bombay, decided the traders in preferring Km-rachee as their port of export. A second blow was inflicted when interportal duties were abolished; as goods arriving in Bombay or any other British port from a British pos- session were admitted duty free — though this made a difference of but three per cent, in favour of Kurrachee over Soumeeanee, it had its effect ; and that it was the more felt as the Customs^ forms on dutiable goods are strictly carried into operation in Bombay, The third and finish- ing stroke was the abolition of frontier customs in Scinde. Every man now who has produce takes it to Kurrachee, as there he not only finds a good market, but he is better able to invest his money in return goods suited to the people of Lus. To all these must be added the difficulties under which traders labour, where there is no settled government. The Jam's man of business is paid rupees ten per mensem {Luckee-sir) , he collects the revenue which is mainly derived from the Custoi^s, and he is also the head of the police — if such an establishment can be said to exist. There are a few sepoys, never exceeding four in number, who receive rations but no pay, and to their agency is attributed all the robberies which occur and which have of late, owing to the unsettled state of the country, been very numerous. He has another duty, that of supplying the Jam's sepoys and other retainers with food during their stay in the town, whenever business in- duces them to visit it. As they have no money and he has no state resources, the merchants are indented on, with a promise of reimbursement, for food for themselves and their horses. The customs levied on imports and also on exports at Soumeeance is three per cent, on value : the 16,2 vessels' manifest or the mercliants' advices being produced, no other formality is thought of, and there is nothing like an examination to test the correctness of these documents — this is so far to the advantage of commerce. " According to Lieutenant Pottinger, Soumeeanee was plundered and burned to the ground by the Joasmee pirates in 1808. It was recovering when he visited it in 1811, it then contained 250 huts, and had, for its appearance of poverty, a considerable trade ; it must have fluctuated considerably since then. It is not to appearance of one-half the im- portance it was in 1844. According to the best accounts that can be obtained, the revenue of the town from all sources in 1838 was between E-s.40 and 45,000, it fell to Rs. 15,000 in 1844-45, and at the present date the receipts for the year do not exceed Ils.4 or 5,000. The vessels belonging to the port of Soumeeanee are The Futtay Shaee of .... 250 Candies. Sullamut Savoy .... 175 „ Meerapooree 250 „ Aorsee 150 „ Putton . .• 60 Wachera 40 „ Looto 50 „ Sullamut Savoy (2nd) . . 175 „ Ashrafee 175 „ Do. (2nd) 60 " All these vessels are sailed under the British flag and possess British registers. There is not much employment for them just now : the ports with which a traffic is kept up are Bombay, Muskat, Mandavie, and Kurrachee. The first seven boats belong to Hemraj, a Hindoo merchant, who has been ruined through his transactions with the Jam, and is now at Kurrachee where he will in all pro- bability settle. The next belongs to Sett Katin, a Kojaha 163 merchant, the next following to Rungoo, a Banian ; the next to Versee, and the last Dingee to Khemchund Bubhoo. "SouMEEANEE FisHERY. — There are Rachuns of the largest size and ten or twelve Buttels. The Koolee popu- lation amount to about one hundred men and boys of sufficient age to enable their taking a place in the boats — the mode of fishery is precisely that under adoption in Kurrachee. The fins of the sharks are sent to Bombay for the China market as are also the maws (as they are called) of the seal. The rawus which afford the maws on the coast of Scinde and Kutch, are not found here. The flesh of the shark is salted for the Bombay market, and the smaller fish is consumed in the town, or carried off in a salted state by the inhabitants of the surrounding coun- tries. The fishermen pay the Government ten fish in the every hundred they catch — they have no other direct tax- ation, and have but one cause of complaint which is that they cannot find sale for all they catch, for which they believe themselves to be far worse off than their brothers of Kurrachee. "There are now of inhabited houses, and which are here considered permanent — that is, Built of mud 145 Of Jopras or mat houses 107 252 "Which, at four persons to a house, will give the number of inhabitants 1,008. There are 100 of uninhabited houses in the town, the owners of which have emigrated, and 106 ruins of tenements, the destruction of which must be attributable to the same cause. All, or nearly all, these people who once inhabited these houses have taken up 164 their residence in Kiu'rachee. The present population of Soumeeanee is computed as follows : — Kojalias 250 Banians 342 Koolees 250 Labourers, dyers, and artificers . . 200 1,042 "The Jam at times \dsits the place when his attention is devoted to the Avives of his Hindoo subjects, and to the extraction of money from the Banians and other mer- chants. Since the late disturbance he has drawn in ready money; first a sum of Rs.500 then Rs.300, and but a few days back he sent an order on his kardar for Rs. 1,000. This sum the people declined to give, but made a contri- bution to the extent of between Rs.300 and 400, Avhich has not yet been dispatched, for this he has promised a remission of taxes, and will perhaps grant it. "Under such circumstances it is not a matter of surprise that the town should be in a ruinous condition, that the revenue should so seriously diminish. Soumeeanee w^ill fall yet lower in condition as Kurrachee gathers strength, the traffic now carried on with Bombay will be superseded by one with Kurrachee and that by land in lieu of by water.'^ 105 Proceedings of a Public Meeting at Kurachee, on the 4:1 h September, 1855, for promoting Direct Steam Communication between Kurrachee and Suez. Pursuant to notice, a Meeting of tlie residents of Kur- rachee was held at the Collector's, Kutcherry, on Tuesday, the 4th September, at 4 o'clock, p.m., to consider the sub- ject of "Direct Steam Communication between Kurrachee and Suez." Among the company assembled were, H. B. E. Frere, Esq. Commissioner ; Brigadier Parr ; Colonels Tur- ner, Creagh and.Hobson; J. Gibbs, Esq., Assistant Com- missioner; M. J. M. Stewart, Assistant Commissioner; Majors Steuart, Grimes and Hogg ; Captains Gibbard, Pirie, Marston, Dansey, Ashburner, Dunsterville, Moylc, Tennant, Muter, Evans, Leeds, I.N., Merewether, Pelly, ]\Iacdonnell and Gayer ; Drs. Rooke, Cameron and Costell ; Messrs. Dalzell, Cole, Elander, Mahcr, Vary, Ingle, Wells, Newnham, Barnett, Woodhouse, Amos, Mclver, ]\Icikle- john, McClumpha, Hewett, INI.P. Tuback, Pegler, Nicker, &c., &c., &c. The Commissioner liaving been called to tlie chair, stated that he would preface their proceedings by a l)rief account of the progress of tlie question, the consideration of which had brought them together that day. The idea of a direct communication between Kurrachee and Suez was no new one, it had been mooted by the late Sir C. Napier, very shortly after the conquest of the i)ro- vince, and it would in fact suggest itself to almost any one who considered the physical configuration of this part of the continent of Asia ; a glance at the outline map hung up in the room (which was taken from a Parliamentary ]66 Blue Book very recently published), ^vould show the Meet- ing that from Aden to Bombay the direct distance was 1640 miles, while from Aden to Km'rachee the distance was but 1435 miles, making a saving of 205 miles, but this was during the fair weather; in the south-west monsoon the distance to be run from Bombay to Aden was 2170 miles, which would make a difference in favoiu' of the passage from Kurrachee to Aden of 745 miles, whenever the passage coidd be made direct; there appeared reason to suppose that the cases would be very rare in which the dii'ect pas- sage along the Arabian coast would be impracticable, and even if a vessel from Kurrachee were obliged to de\iate from the straight course, the difference would still be many hundred miles in her favour, as compared vdth a vessel going from Bombay. The advantages of Bombay as re- garded geographical position, were well known, and there- fore a knowledge of these facts was sufficient to show the superior geographical position of Kurrachee as the port of communication with Suez, and for all parts of India which were as near, or nearer to Kurrachee than they were to Bombay. But there were several serious obstacles which had hitherto rendered it impossible to take advantage of this excellent geographical position. Jst. There was the want, or supposed want of a good port at Kurrachee ; many now in this room can recollect that when little more than three years ago Mr. Hardy Wells published a pamphlet, to point out that even in its present state the harbour of Kurrachee was an excellent one for ships of considerable burthen, and that it was manifestly capable of very great improvement, his remarks met with almost universal ridicule ; this, however, did not deter Mr. Wells from stating what he believed was the truth., and the result has proved he was right. The next step towards 167 establishing this fact was taken by Colonel Turner ; it would be remembered that the bar of Kurrachee Harbour was for a long time supposed to be composed of rock, and numerous plans were demised for removing it by blasting. Colonel Turner instituted a series of very careful experiments by boring, and showed most conclusively that there was not a particle of rock any where on the bar, that the whole was composed to a considerable depth of soft sand ; the estab- lishment of this fact of course removed one principal ground of the fear which mariners before had of approaching or touching on the bar. But the principal share of the credit of practically proving the absence of any danger in entering the port, was due to Lieut. Leeds, the Port Officer, who with great skill and judgment, and on his OAvn responsibility, piloted in ships of considerable burthen, and had practically shown that this might be safely done, even without any aid from steamers. The result was that during the monsoon just closed, four large steamers from Bombay and Aden, and eight sailing vessels of from 300 to 878 tons had come in, and gone out, and with one exception, it had never been found necessary to wait even a single day for any particular tide ; and it must be fm-ther remembered, that each of these eight sailing vessels was towed in and towed out of tlie harbour by a steamer (the " Victoria,") which no later than last year was employed in conveying passengers at the most crowded season between Bombay and Suez. " Facts like these prove beyond a possibility of dovibt that there was no difficulty whatever in getting vessels, even of considerable size, into and out of Kurraeliee hai'bour, during the south-west monsoon, the most unfavom-ablc period of the year. " 2nd, A second very serious obstacle was the want of charts of a large portion of the Aral)ian coast. This coast 168 had ]3ecu surveyed by Lieutenant Grieves, I.N,, wlio has had a large share in the surveys of all the coast from the Gulf of Cambay round to Cape Gardafui; but the charts had not been published, and the want of any chart of course added greatly to the hazard of a voyage along the Arabian coast. This want has now been supplied, the charts have been published, and have lately been sent out by the Court of Directors. The consequences of the removal of this obstacle were almost immediately apparent, the want of them had for many years delayed a trial of what is called the north-western passage from Bombay dm-ing the south- west monsoon. It had been long ago suggested by Captain Haines, and subsequently by the late Captain James Yomig and Lieutenant Fergusson, of the Indian Navy, and others, that instead of a long detour to the south, steamers from Bombay should stand to the nortli-Avest towards the Arabian coast, and thus make a much shorter passage to Aden. But without charts of the Arabian coast it was dangerous to attempt this passage. No sooner, however, were the charts published than the passage was tried, and has been twice successfully performed, dm-ing the late monsoon, by the steamers of the P. and O. Company. " 3rd. A third very serious obstacle was the want of a good communication with the Punjaub. We were charged in Scinde with a tendency to over-estimate the importance of om- province ; but we must remember that Scinde forms, as it were, but the spout of the fimnel, of Avhich the vast province of the Punjaub forms the larger, and by far the more important portion. That Kiu'rachee is in fact the port of the Punjaub, and that unless we have a good com- munication with the Punjaub, the best possible port at Km-rachec would be of but comparatively small value. The province of Scinde contains somewhere under two millions of inhabitants, Avliile the late census showed that the 169 Punjaub territories contained a population of more than thirteen millions. This number, though it may not appear great by the side of the hundred millions of India, will appear more important if we reflect that it is more than half what the population of the United States was in 1850, and nearly half the population of the United Kingdom in the same year. For all these fifteen millions living, culti- vating and trading on the banks of the Indus and its tribu- taries, Kurrachee is the natural port, and it is through Kurrachee that they would naturally communicate with all places beyond sea. Evidently, then, good communication with the Punjaub is of the utmost importance to Km^rachee as a port, and matters seem now in a fair way to make this communication aU that could be desired. In tlie first place good postal communication has l)een secured, thanks to the exertions of Mr. Coffey and of Mr. Nicker, and those who have assisted them in the work, the postal communication between Kurrachee and Mooltan has been greatly improved. A speed of nine and ten miles in the hour, and sometimes more, including stoppages, has been steadily maintained for the last two years along the whole Une of 612 miles, and both in speed and regularity it is now equal to any in India. The improvement in steamer transit on tlic Indus has also been as rapid and as great. It is little more than three years since Captain Ethersey, to whom this improve- ment is mainly due, obtained leave to try the experiment of sending one boat in each month to Mooltan and back, with passengers and mcrcliandizc. The experiment made, under every disadvantage, has been most successful. I firul that the net receipts of this one steamer, per month, were in — Rs. 1852-53 13,291 1853-54 49,277 1854-55 00,554 170 Tlie quantity of merchandise ofTered for shipment is often two or three times as much as the steamers can carry, and I am happy to be able to state that tlie Court of Directors, in compHance with a sugj^estion of Captain Ethersey^s, have ordered out four steamers and four flats for this particular service. ' But the greatest improvement in the communication with the Punjaub will be the railway. Mr. Hardy Wells, Avho projected it, has now got some of his staff of civil engineers among us actually at work. The Bill for incor- ]ioi'atiug the Company has passed the Imperial Parhamcnt, the capital has been subscriljed, and the undertaking may therefore be safely regarded as having passed its embryo stage, and there is now no room for reasonable doubt that we may shortly see the work actually in progress, and before many seasons arc over be able to travel from Kurrachee to the Indus, ^l^hich has always been one of the worst portions of the whole line of communication between Kurrachee and the Punjaub. Nor is it any chimerical hope that we may, ere long, see this Railway yet further extended. There is one portion in particular, between Umritsir and Mooltan, wliich would be of the greatest value. There are, I believe, no engineering difficulties whatever on the line ; and, starting from Umrit- sir, with its 130,000 inhabitants, and passing Lahore, wdth its 80,000, to Mooltan, with its 22,000, it would prove a most important portion of the whole line of communication. These three great obstacles, the supposed want of a good port at Kurrachee, the want of good charts of the Arabian coast, and the deficiency in good means of communication with the Punjaub, having been removed, or being in course of removal, the time seems noAV come for taking advantage of the excellent geographical position of Kurrachee, as a port for direct communication with Suez. 171 I will now briefly state the circumstances which have led to a proposition for establishing such a communication, wdiich will form the more particular subject of consideration for this meeting. About two years ago, a Mr. Coffey, the Post Master in Scinde, proposed that, in lieu of the present postal contract with the Bombay Steam Navigation Company, to run a steamer three times a month to Bombay ; contracts should be invited to run a steamer twice a month, to meet the English mail at Aden. This proposition having been laid before Mr. Riddell, the Director General of post offices, he stated his opinion, that " there can be no question that the opening of a direct steam communication between Egypt, Scinde, and the Punjaub, would greatly benefit, and it would do much to hasten the investment of foreign capital in the two latter countries." He doubted, however, whether under existing circumstances, it would be worth while to open a communication merely so far as Aden, where pas- sengers w'ould only have a chance of a berth in an over- crowded steamer, with the risk of detention at a bad and expensive hotel, and the certainty of very high charges for very inferior accommodation, from Aden to Suez. lie con- sidered, however, that if the Bombay Steam Navigation Company would undertake to send a steamer, four or five times in the season, the whole distance from KiuTachee to Suez, " they would perform a very important ser\'icc to the European residents in Scinde, the Punjaub, and the upper portion of the north-west provinces, and might fau'ly claim such a bonus from Government as would ensure a moderate return for the capital expended." Mr. Riddell estimated that, at the \cry kuist, 250 pas- sengers might be expected from the Punjaub and north- west provinces, and an equal number from England aud Europe; and that other sources of im^omc, sucli as native 172 pilgrims, and freight for overland ])arcels and packets, might be looked for. Government forwarded Mr. RiddelFs letter, with instruc- tions that I should obtain data on which to form an opinion, whether the periodical despatch from Bombay of a packet steamer for Suez, calling at Kurrachee for mails, passengers and parcels from Scinde and the north-west provinces, would be remunerative to a private company, or such an advantage to the public, that Government could reasonably undertake the expense. Upon the receipt of this letter, a series of questions was addressed to the various government authorities; and, by the aid of the governments of the Punjaub and north-west provinces, a great mass of information was collected from those provinces, and from Scinde. The replies to the queries were then forwarded to a com- mittee, composed of Lieut. Leeds, I.N., the port officer (who was well acquainted with the peculiarities of the port, which he had been one of the first to open to square-rigged vessels, and who had been for many years employed on the southern coast of Arabia), Mr. Dalzell, the Deputy Collector of Customs, and Mr. Mclver, a mercantile gentleman, esta- blished for some years at Kurrachee, who, from their re- spective positions, were well able to form a judgment of the bearings of the question. They have drawn up a very able Report, which I purpose requesting Mr. Dalzell to read to the meeting. My reasons for doing so, before submitting it to Government, are, that I feel sm'c Government would wish to know the opinion of the public on the subject, as well as the views of the able government officers who have been consulted; but more especially because I consider it peculiarly desirable that the statements made should be discussed and sifted. Such dis- cussions always lead to a subject being better understood ; 173 and if there are any incorrect or over-drawn statements, no persons are better able to detect and correct them than the present meeting, composed of gentlemen who are intimately acquainted with all the local bearings of the case. The Em-opean inhabitants of Scinde are, for the most part. Government servants, and are very wisely debarred, by the orders of Government, from taking any part, except as shareholders, in a commercial company. Hence, we must depend on capitalists in other quarters, for all the agency required to get up and work such a company ; and to such parties at a distance your assistance, but above all, your criticism, on the facts and opinions laid before you, may be most valuable ; and I trust therefore, that any discussions which may arise on this Ecport, will be as full and unre- strained, and above all, as critical as possible. I have only to add, that there is nothing in any of the projects alluded to, which can be construed into an attempt at rivalry with any other part of India. The provinces on the Indus and its tributaries are cut off from India by the Great Desert, and cannot naturally communicate with the sea by any other route than this. Of course, goods do find their w^ay to the Punjaub, through Calcutta and Bombay; but they have to follow round-about and unnatm-al routes. And if they can be supplied through the direct and natural chan- nel, the benefit to the provinces so supplied will be felt even at Calcutta and Bombay, far more than the loss of any traffic which may leave those ports, to pursue a more direct and cheaper route. It is said, that for every house 1)uilt in Liverpool, Glasgow, and Bristol, you have one built in Lon- don ; and I have no doubt that, for every ship we may have in Kiirrachce, you Avdl find one additional in the harl)om's of Bombay and Calcutta. Of the local efiects of improved communication with Suez, it would be quite supcriluous to speak. Independent of its eft'ect upon commerce, it comes 174 home to the feelings of every one of us ; for there is no one who does not hope at some time to ^isit England^ and who is not interested in the speedy transmission of the overland mails. But the question is, I think, one of national im- portance. If we look to Europe, we find a large army of 40,000 men fed, and supplied in an enemy's country, at a distance of many thousand miles from their home; and hetter fed, better clothed, and better supplied than any such army ever was in England itself. And how is it that this army is able to hold its position in the Crimea ? Why, in the first instance, it is owing to the indomitable courage of our soldiers and sailors ; but in the second, and in no small degree, to the vast and unequalled resources of our Engbsh mercantile steam navy. And I firmly believe that every additional steamer we have in India, is an additional secu- rity for the stability of our empire, and for the many bless- ings which I believe that empu'e secm'es to India. Mr. Dalzell then read the Report of the Steam Com- mittee as follows : — REPORT Fro7n the Steam Committee, composed of the Port Officer, the Deputy Collector of Customs, and Dan.M'Iver, Esq. Kurrachee. To H. B. E. Frere, Esq., Commissioner in Scinde. Sir, — We have the honour to acknowledge vour letter, No. 2164, dated 28th ultimo, forwarding a file of correspondence on the subject of a proposal emanating from the Director-General of Post Ofl&ces, to run a Government Steamer once a month, as an experiment from Bombay to Suez, touching at Kurrachee and Aden en route ; and appointing us a Committee to sift, condense, 175 and wliere necessary, add to the information whirh has been collected, with a view, in the tirst place, to furnish Government and the Director-General with data on which to judge of the prac- ticability of the scheme. In forming an estimate of the probable success of such a com- munication, the chief question for consideration that presents it- self is, have the internal communications of the country arrived at such a stage of improvement a^ to justify the expectation that the proposed enterprise would meet with that measure of encourage- ment necessary to its existence ; or, are we still so far behiiid Calcutta, iu respect of our communications, that the facilities and conveniences which that route affords more than counterbalance the advantages, in point of distance, offered by the Indus route ; which, as it is the most direct, is naturally the channel of outlet, as well for commerce as for the homeward bound from the Pun- jaub and north-west provinces ; and from Umballa as a centre, even by the circuitous route of Lahore and Mooltan, the distance is 50 miles nearer to Kurrachee than to Calcutta; and by the route of the Sutlej, navigable for steamers of light draft throughout the year from Ferozepore, distant from Umballa 125 miles; Kurrachee is 150 miles nearer Umballa than Umballa is to Calcutta. Nothwithstanding these natural advantages, it is clear from the correspondence submitted to us, that improved facilities in our internal communications are indispensable, if we would desire to render Kurrachee the point of embarkation to Europe for all pas- sengers from the Punjaub and north- west provinces, who, in choosing a route homeward, were not influenced by personal mo- tives, altogether independent of either the route, the mode of conveyance, of expense, or of time. We are, nevertheless, of opinion, from the data before us, that, even under existing circum-^tances, sufficient encouragement would follow the proposed undertaking, to justify Government in at once experimentally incurring the expense. The opening up of such a communication could hardly fail to prove of the utmost advantage to the interests of the Punjaub, north-west provinces, and Scinde, by encouraging the introduction of foreign capital, so essential to the better development of their resources; and to i-endcr Ivm'rachee the omporinm of hw own 176 commerce, by removing one of the greatest impediments to her progress, — the necessity of resorting to a market 500 miles distant. This can only be effected by British agency and capital ; and nothing, we think, would tend more to facilitate their intro- duction, than the proposed steam communication with Suez. We are especially sanguine that, when it shall become known throughout the Punjaub and north-west provinces, that passengers can embark at Kurrachee for Suez, without the necessity of changing steamers at Aden, many would adopt the route, as well for the saving of time that would be gained, as the expense and inconvenience that would be saved. From Calcutta to Suez the charge for passage by the P. and 0. Company's steamers is Rupees 900, whilst the charge from Bom- bay to Suez, which should be also the charge from KuiTachee to Suez, is only Ptupees 650. By adopting the Kurrachee route then, a saving of £25 would be effected, besides a proportionate saving for children and servants, and the sea voyage lessened by eight or nine days; both material considerations, which we think would go far to outweigh the greater facilities of the Calcutta land route. If, under present circumstances, we find that from 60 to 80 travellers annually leave the Punjaub and north-west provinces to proceed homewards via Bombay ; involving expense of passage thither ; hotel charges at both places, and change of steamers at Aden, and possible detention there ; it is surely not unreasonable to expect that, with the removal of these disadvantages by a steamer running direct from Kurrachee to Suez, that number would be considerably increased, even in the existing state of our inland communications ; and when these shall have been improved by the completion of the Piailvvay about to be constructed between Kurrachee and Hydrabad, — a greater number and better descrip- tion of steamers on the Indus— two we believe are now on the way from England — the road from Mooltan to Lahore metalled, which is, we believe, about to be undertaken, and a steamer on the Sutlej to Ferozepore, long in contemplation, we cannot see Avliy any other than the Indus route should be adopted by all travellers from Peshawur to the gates of Delhi. From the returns of the authorities in the Punjaub and north- west provinces, which are not quite complete, we find, that the 177 probable number of passengers who would avail themselves of the proposed route to Europe, would be monthly as follows : — 1st Class Passengers from 12 to 13 2nd ditto ditto 8 to 10 Children 10 to 12 European Servants . . 2 to 3 Native ditto . . 7 to 8 and that, with improved communications, these numbers might probably be doubled. With these results before us, we are of opinion that the pro- posed undertaking would be successful ; and, as many of the im- provements and facilities which have been suggested, as the sure means of enlarging these results, are, some in com'se of progress, and others in contemplation, we coincide with the generally ex- pressed opinion of the aforesaid authorities that, when these shall have been carried out, Kurrachee will become the point of em- barkation to Egypt, not only for all passengers from the Punjaub, north-west provinces and Scinde ; but, were the route to be rendered the shortest practically as it is physically, for mails and parcels also. We have deemed it desirable to make a few extracts from the correspondence of the authorities in the Punjaub, the north-west provinces and Scinde. These will be found in the Appendix (A) to this letter, — they express the sentiments generally of all to whom the question of the proposed steam communication had been submitted. We are not aware upon what data their estimate of passengers has been formed ; but we think it v\ill be interesting and useful to enquire, — what are the resources of the Punjaub, north-west provinces and Scinde, which, under the improved facilities of com- munication suggested, are calculated to feed and maintain inde- pendent steam communication between Kurrachee and Suez ? The military force of these provinces, going no further east than Umballa, numbers upwards of 70,000 men, more than 15,000 of which are Europeans. This is independent of officers, which, allowing for absentees, cannot fall short of 2000. Sup- posing every fourth officer to be a married man, and two the ave- rage number of children to each; we should then have 2500 adults and 1000 children ; add to these the covenanted and un- 178 covenanted civil list, strictly Europeans, say 400 ; and an equal number of private residents, out of a mixed European and Anglo- Indian population of about 1000, scattered throughout the pro- vinces, who may be supposed to be bound to England by the ties of home and country, and that these also are married men, and have children in the proportion given above ; the total European population who, it may be conceded, would at some period or other revisit their native land, probably all as first class passengers, would be 3,500 adults, and 1,400 children. This is independent of second class passengers, who might probably number 500 more. Assuming that each adult, on an average, revisited Europe once in every eight years (and we believe this will be found an under-estimate), and that every child were to be sent home on attaining the age of five years ; the number of passengers who might be expected monthly, to take the route to Europe rid Kur- rachee, under improved communications, would stand thus : — • 1st Class Passengers .... 36 2nd ditto . . .5 Children 23 European Servants .... 4 probably Native ditto .... 10 do. The monthly receipts from these sources, according to the Bombay rate of passage money, deducting five children as of under age, and consequently free, would amount to rupees 33,900. Were even half this sum to be realized monthly from passengers, we think it would hold out sufficient encouragement to any com- pany to undertake the proposed line. The Austrian Lloyd's Company might, with advantage, connect it with their Mediter- ranean line of steamers ; and that it would eventually become more than remunerative, we hardly entertain a doubt. The large supplies of overland goods which the large force we have alluded to must annually consume, would, doubtless, form a considerable item in the receipts of the proposed undertaking. We have no means of forming an estimate of the probable con- sumption of such goods ; but some idea of their extent may be formed from a statement of Major Jacob, the Political Superin- tendent of the Upper Scinde frontier, and Commandant of the Scinde Irregular Horse ; that about fifty camel loads, or 24,000 lbs. , is about the average annual supply of Europe goods required by the 179 regiments he commands ; and which, were tho pro]3osed steam communication estabUslied, conM be forwarded to him by tliat opportunity. If then, this be the annual consumption of overland-borne goods of two native regiments, 1 ,600 strong ; what must be the consump- tion of an army of 70,000, of which above 15,000 are Europeans ? Hitherto, overland goods for the Punjaub and north-west pro- vinces have, for the most part, taken the Calcutta route, owing in a great measure to the suspension, during the monsoon, of steam communication between Bombay and Kurrachee, as well as to the inadequacy of the river steamers on the Indus, set aside by Govern- ment for the public convenience to supply the increasing demand for freight. For, notwithstanding the many drawbacks with which our commerce is surrounded, the trade of the province has, within the last five years, increased seventy-three per cent ; from which goods for up-country despatch have frequently lain in the agents' hands for two, and even three, months after freight had been paid, waiting an opportunity to ship them. But the chief of these impediments to our progress would cease with the introduction of the proposed steam communication with Suez, which would assuredly divert to the more legitimate chaii- nel of the Indus a large portion of the overland traffic, which now finds its way into the Punjaub and north-west provinces by the circuitous route of Calcutta. On the above, and kindred subjects, we have a lettei* before us from a respectable Jiouse of agency in Bombay, which will be found in Appendix (B) We might, of our own personal knowledge, multiply instances of delay and disappointment such as ai-e therein represented ; but those detailed in the letter referred to will suffice to show much we stand in need of improvement in our river communications ; and how absolutely necessary it is for the interests of commerce and the public, that the communication between Bombay and Kurrachee should be uninterrupted throughout the year. In discussing the advantages of the proposed steam communi- cation, we would not overlook the fact of Kurrachee being more than 200 miles nearer Suez than Bombay is to Suez ; and that, whilst the Bombay steamers have to contend witli the difTiculty of the monsoon, the Kurrachee steamer, as slie would be able to 180 run for a considerable distance out of its influence, would have comparatively less monsoon to struggle against ; so that, inde- pendent of the shorter distance, she could make the passage to Suez, during the monsoon season, in less time than the Bombay steamer could, and with undeniably greater comfort to passengers. On this subject, an interesting memoi'anda will be found in Ap- pendix (C). Neither should we omit to notice a source of considerable profit that would pi'obably arise from the conveyance of Mahomedan pilgrims to and from the holy shrines in the Red Sea. We know that thousands of pilgi'ims annually resort thither from the Persian Gulf ; some travelling across Arabia, others in native craft to Bombay, and thence by boat and steamers to Aden and Suez. Were a company to take up the Kurrachee and Suez line, it might be so arranged, either that the Suez steamers should touch at Muscat and embark pilgrims thence, which would not perhaps entail more than a day's delay ; or a branch steamer might ply between the Persian Gulf and Kurrachee, as a feeder of the Suez steamer ; and there is a considerable traffic in merchandize carried on between the ports in the Persian Gulf, Muscat, and Kurrachee. This steamer could also carry the Persian Gulf mail; and, viewing the present aspect of the political horizon, woult it not be a matter of the highest importance to have a regular communication with the Gulf, upon which we could always depend '? To be the nearest point from Europe of all our Indian posses- sions, is important in many points of view. And when the elec- tric wire shall have connected Kurrachee with the Punjaub (as sooner or later it must do), and the proposed communication esta- blished, the satisfaction will be ours, of being the first to dissemi- nate the political and commercial intelligence of Europe to the most distant parts of our Indian possessions. Before opening the proposed communication we would suggest^ that three months' notice be given to the public in the most pro- minent possible manner. That a day be fixed, and adhered to, when the steamer will leave Bombay and Kurrachee ; and, to avoid the change of steamers at Aden, some Bombay passengers would probably prefer taking the Kurrachee route. That the nature and extent of accommodation and amount of passage money. 181 which should be the same as the charge from Bombay to Suez, be also publicly amiounced ; that the commuuicatiou on the Indus be twice a month up and doAvn ; and if a steamer were available once a month to and from Ferezopore, so arranged as to meet the Mooltan steamer at Sukkur, we have no doubt it would be greatly availed of by passengers, as well as for merchandize. We have the honor to be &c., &c., (Signed) Rowley W. Leeds, Lt. I.N., Port Ojjicer. P. M. Dalzell, Depif, Collector Customs. Dan. McIver. Kurrachee, 3rd Aricjust. 1855. APPENDIX A. The Chief Commissioner of the Punjaub is of opinion that the proposed scheme would prove successful. Gr. C. Barnes, Esq., Commissioner, Cis-Sutlej, states : — Before Kurrachee can compete with the Calcutta route, there must be a good metalled road to Mooltan. There must be better steamers from Mooltan to Kurrachee, and there should be a rail- road or good metalled road between Tatta and Kurrachee. The Bungalows must be increased in number and in convcniencies, and the hotel at Kurrachee must provide superior accommodation. So soon as these impediments on the route are removed, the stream of passengers and traffic will naturally follow the direct route ; and so long as the improvement is delayed, Calcutta will be preferred. At present, the Calcutta route is so much easier, that only a few passengers venture down the Indus from the Cis- Sutlej States : whereas, if the facilities of communication were placed on a level with the route to Calcutta, all passengers and letters from Peshawur to Kurnal would travel down by Muoltan to Kuri'achee. The Indus is one of the noblest streams of Ilindostan. A 182 steamei' might come up as far as Ferozepore on the Sutlej. The land route, via Mooltan, might be made as good as the trnnk road. There is no doubt that, if a proper fleet of steamers were kept on the river (Indus), and the road between Lahore and Mooltau metalled, all the passengers from the Punjaub would gladly go to Kurrachee and take their passage in the Bombay steamer that is to go direct to Suez. M. P. Edgeworth, Esq., Commissioner^ Trans-Sutlej, says : — The most importantquery is, regarding the improvements in the communication with Kurrachee. This subject divides itself into two parts : that between the upper stations and IMooltan, and from Mooltan to Kuri'achee. At present, the only communication is by an unme tailed road, branching from near Googaira to Ferozepore and Lahore respect- ively ; and the only means of travelling on it are — 1st, marching readily accomplished by the aid of travellers' rooms in the Serais, without tents — 2nd, by mail or express cart, a mode of conveyance well suited for strong persons but quite inapplicable to invalids — 3rd, Palki Garri, lately established, involving great cruelty to the horses on the heavy roads — 4th, Palki dak, almost imprac- ticable, as there are no regular bearers along the road. To improve existing modes of conveyance, some simple im- provements, capable of immediate adoption, may be proposed, light-covered two-w4ieeled cars, or a Hansom cab, might be very advantageously introduced, high wheels being the main point to be insisted on for the unmetalled road. A conveyance of this kind would be possible for a lady to travel in. The post office has lately established a bullock train on the road ; but to render it efficient, it will be necessary to metal the heaviest portions of the road. The several rivers afford a commodious way of travelling to Mooltan during the flood season, from May to October ; and the long talked of introduction of steamers up the Jhelum is an indis- pensable part of the improvement to communication. But the main and only permanent improvement will be, the formation of a railway from either Uraritsir or Lahore to JMooltan. With regard to the communication below Mooltan, the main 183 point is, increased acconiniodation for travellers and greater com- fort iu the boats, which are at present peculiarly ill-suited for the purpose. The proposed Scinde Railway will do almost all that is required for the lower communication. For the conveyance of goods, the present steam accommodation is utterly insufl&cient. In fine, I may express my fervent hope, that the proposed measure may be carried out, as I am convinced it will be one of veiy great importance to the improvement of these pi-ovinccs. Ed. Thornton, Esq., Commissioner, Jhelum Division, states : — Of the several questions put by Mr. Frere, the only one I am able to reply to is the second. Upon this point, my opinion is, that a railroad from Kurrachee to the Punjaub, and steamers from Mooltan upwards, are required, and should be provided as soon as possible. Major J. E. Hollings, Deputy Commissioner, Sliahpore, says : — Everyone who writes regularly to Europe would take advantage of the shortest route, which that by Kurrachee would certainly be, when the dak arrangements and roads in the Punjaub and Scinde become, as they soon will be, as good as any in India. I am convinced that, in less than six months after the first steamer has gone from Kurrachee to Aden, it will be found that the passengers and freight will be more than sufficient to justify a direct communication from Kurrachee, which will make Scinde and the Punjaub indej^endent of Jiombay. G. Patan, Esq., Post Master General, north-west pro- vinces, states : — It appears to me, that the post masters have rather under esti- mated the number of passengers who would proceed by the steamer from Kurrachee. A truck and carriage dak, as well as a bullock train, being now established between Lahore and jNIooltan, I see little reason for travellers, to and from the Punjaub and Europe, taking any other route tlian that via Kurrachee. M 181. So soon as the road from Umballa to Lahore is metalled, and a carriage dak is established, travellers from Simla and adjacent hill stations, including Umballa, Loodianah, and Ferozepore, may be expected to prefer the route to Europe via Kurrachee, to that via Calcutta. It seems advisable, and I have already recommended, that the Scinde Camel train should be amalgamated with the bullock train between Mooltan and Lahore, so that the transmission of light packages may be facilitated to and from the Punjaub. The Post Master of Mooltan, if appointed steam agent there, and also agent for the Scinde camel train, would tend to induce the public of the Punjaub to have all light goods to and from Europe conveyed via Kurrachee. The Chief Commissioner of Lahore, in reply to tlie question of what additional means and appliances appear desirable to facilitate the commmiication between Lahore and Kurrachee, states : — A railroad to Mooltan, and if the difficvilties which attend the navigation between that city and Kurrachee be insuperable, a good metalled road along the course of the Indus is wanted. If these facilities existed, an immense increase of traffic and travelling would result from the Punjaub to Bombay, via Mooltan and Kurrachee. K. McIvER, Esq., merchant, of Mooltan, states, in reply to the question above : — Additional steamers to keep up the communication three or four times, and with more suitable accommodation for passengers than those running at present afford. As to the number and class, I cannot speak with any degree of certainty, but I have little doubt that the number would greatly increase ; as not only expense, but so much time and distance would be saved, especially to residents in the north-west provinces and the Punjaub, who would take this route in preference to that via Calcutta and Bombay. Lieut. F. W. Hopkins, I.N., freight agent, Mooltan^ states also in answer to the questions above : — That the steamer conveying passengers be fitted up with at 185 least six cabins, and larger than in the steamers Chenauh or Jhelum, now on the Mooltan line ; to be higlier between decks than the two vessels mentioned, and to have 80 horse power ; not to tow or flat a cargo boat ; the steamer to leave Mooltan in time to allow of passengers being at Kurrachee three or four daj-s previous to the date of the steamer leaving for Suez, which would enable sick officers to appear before the medical board, that they might be allowed to proceed on at once. The Deputy Commissioner of Jliung — Would suggest a railway to Mooltan. Thinks the traffic in goods would be indefinitely increased ; but does not think that it would affect passengers from his division more than 5 per cent. Major John Jacob^ Political Superintendent, Upper Seinde frontier, states : — That the completion of the great road through Seinde, from the frontier to the sea, would facilitate the communication. All supplies wliatever for the Seinde Irregular Horse from Eng- land could be conveyed by the proposed communication, if the steamers would bi'ing them. These supplies are considerable^ amounting to about fifty camel loads per annum. APPENDIX B. The importance of a regular steam communication between Bombay and Kurrachee during the monsoon season, and the se- curing thereby an uninterrupted transit for goods to all parts of Upper Seinde and the Punjaub, cannot, in a business point of view, to ourselves and our constituents in those parts, be easily overrated. At present, the entire suspension of steam communication, in as far as regards the traffic for goods from the end of May till September, owing to the vessels of the Jiombay Steam Navigation Company ceasing to ply during this period, virtually closes Seinde as a route to the Punjaub for these important months of the year. The consequence of this is, that we have packages for Seinde i8G und tbe Punjaub, many of which contain gootls received from London overland, to direct order, in our possession for nearly three months, before au opportunity offers for their transmission. Such delay, of course, neutralizes in a great measure all the advantages which constituents should derive from the overland route, to avail of which they incur great expense; for, when a package, in tlie circumstances above mentioned, takes five months in the transit from London to ]\Iooltan, when, with certain and regular steam communication between Bombay and Kurrachee, less than half that time would suffice, it is- very obvious in such cases, that constituents incur all this extra cost of the overland without reaping any of its benefits. Our correspondents, Messrs. Smith, Elder and Co., of London, who send a large number of packages for the Punjaub by each overland steamer, during the months of May, June, and July, despatch the greater portion of these direct to Calcutta, that there may be no delay with the packages while en route to their ultimate destination. The whole of these packages would, in other circum- stances, be received at Bombay, for despatch via Kurrachee, as the most direct and least expensive route to the Puujaub, were the communication regular and certain all the year round. During the monsoon season of the last two years, steamers were occasionally despatched by Government to Kurrachee, which to a certain extent were, no doubt, a public benefit, especially in this respect, in having demonstrated that there was no real diffi- culty in keeping the communication open during the monsoon, more than at any other season, with suitable steamers. In other respects, the advantages that might have been deiived from these trips were not realized for two reasons. First, the uncertainty as to their despatch at all ; and Secondly, their not receiving cargo for transmission on payment of a stipulated rate of freight, or on any condition whatever. When Government steamers are de- spatched to Kurrachee, the only means of sending packages by them, is througli the medium of the post office, Bhangy — a method of communication only available for small packages, and quite inadequate to the public requirements ; while otherwise, practically, it becomes almost prohibitory, from enormous cost of transit, On the announcement of the despatch of a Government steamer. 187 we are necessitated to avail of the post office steam Bhangj-, for the transmission of such packages as can be forwarded according to the post office regulations, in many instances opening large packages, and having them repacked in such a manner as will pennit of their being forwarded by this, the only means of trans- mission open to us. Tlie cost, however, of sending packages of any size in this manner beyond Kurrachee is so great, that constituents, with much reason, complain of it. The following is an extract from a letter just received from a constituejit in Upper Scinde, to whom we have occasion to make numerous despatches " Send me no more packages by Bhangy Dak, the chai'ges being about tenfold the articles so transmitted." And this is only a specimen of many complaints of a similar character. There is, however, one most serious drawback to the many advantages of Scinde as a highway to the Punjaub ; and until it is remedied, or put on a vastly improved footing to what pertains at pi'esent, must preclude this route from possessing that value and importance to residents in the Punjaub, and being of that benefit to the province itself which its natural advantages seem to indi- cate ; — we refer to the very great delay that so commonly occurs in the transmission of packages by the river steamers from Kur- rachee to Mooltan. This is a matter that has been long a source of no little vexa- tion and annoyance to ourselves and our constituents. Complaints pour in with most unpleasant frequency upon us, from correspond- ents at the various stations in the Punjaub, with reference to these delays ; and it is not a little provoking, that representations of this kind should come before us so often, while we are so utterly unable to find any remedy for them. We may cite one or two instances which will serve as illustration of the delays that cause so much dissatisfaction. On the IGth January last, we despatched to Kurrachee, for further transmission, a case, to the address of ]\Jajor Nicholson, Deputy Commissioner, Bunnoo, and another to the same address by the first steamer hence in February. Instructions were given to our agent at Kurrachee, on each occasion, that the packages should be forwarded by the first opportunity, and we of course duly advised ^Jajor Is'icholsun to 188 this effect. To our astonishment and regret, we received a letter a short time since from the Major, dated 1st ult., in which he informs us, that at the date he wrote, neither of these packages had come to hand ; and on referring to our agent, at Kurrachee, for explanation, we learn that they w-ere not despatched from that place till the end of April. A large package, containing a piano, was forwarded by us in October last, by steamer to Kurrachee, for transmission to an officer at Sealkote, who incurring the expense of having the package sent from Bombay, by steamer, to insure, if possible, its receipt by Christmas. Yet it was not despatched from Kurrachee till the 24th February, having thus lain there for a longer period than it took to bring it from London to Bombay, by a long sea voyage round the Cape. The explanation given by our agent, in reference to the above and similar cases, is invariably to the effect that the packages are detained in the Godowns of the agent of the river steamers, after freight has been paid upon them, where they remain for weeks and months, before they are despatched to Mooltan, in consequence of the means of transit being inadequate for the traffic which offers for the steamers. The packages of a small size, which we have been in the habit of forwarding under cover to the Postmaster Kurrachee, for further transmission by the camel train, have been uniformly despatched witli promptitude and I'egularity. We have evidence before us almost daily in the usual course of business, of a rapidly increasing connection between this part of India and the Punjaub, notwithstanding all existing drawbacks, and in our humble opinion little else is required, besides a regular steam communication between Bombay and Kurrachee, and an improved means of transit in Scinde to make this the principal route for every description of traffic between Europe and the Punjaub. As regards these requirements, and with reference to Scinde, with a camel train for goods already established, and a railway in progress, there seems only a better management of the river steamers wanting to make it in a very short time all that can be desired ; and with respect to a regular steam com- munication between Bombay and Kurrachee throughout the year^ w'jen the subject comes before the Government for its earnest 189 consideration, tlie eviJence of its necessity and desirableness, must, we humbly think, become so apparent, that we may confi- dently hope the present monsoon will be the last in which the existing arrangements shall be permitted to remain. APPENDIX C. 1. — The distance a steamer has to travel from Bombay to Aden, in the south-west monsoon, is 1950 miles. This is what is called making the southern passage, going down to about 8o N. which is short as steamers have as yet been able to cut it. 2. — The direct distance from Bombay to Aden is 16-10 miles S., 77 W. Do. do. from Kurrachee to Aden 1435 miles S., 60 W. Do. do. from Point de Galle to Aden, 2121 miles N., 79 W. 3. — The distance a steamer would have to go out of her course, if she had to call at Muscat, when running from Kurrachee to Aden, would be 240 miles. 4. — The currents set on the Arabian coast with the wind generally. There are exceptions now and then, but the rule is that in the S.W. monsoon the currents are strong to the N.E., and in the N.E. monsoon to the S.W. 5. — Kegarding steamers running from this to Aden in the south-west monsoon, I do not think that they could go direct. There would be times when they might do so, but it could not be reckoned on. The coast of Arabia, from Ras-el-Had for 700 miles in the direction of Aden, would be a dangerous part for a steamer passing. The wind and sea comes a good deal from the southward, and so sets nearly into the coast. Therefore, were an accident to happen to the machinery on this boisterous part, it would be doubtful if she could clear the land, and the water is so deep close in that a vessel cannot anchor. The way to make the south-west passage from here to Aden would be to staiul on direct as long as you could make good way, and then go down south on the starboard tack until you get into S" N. latitude ; then go about, and you would be making a far better passage than the steamers from Bombay do, because you would avoid 180 iiiiles of 190 the monsoon, and when it becomes necessary to stand to the southward, you would most probably be 500 miles to windward (or to the westward) of Bombay. This passage would always be certain, and would be accomplished in eleven days on the average, with the steamers that the^H. E. I. Company possess at present. (Signed) R. W. Leeds, Lieut. I.N., Port Officer. True Copies. (Signed) R. W. Leeds, Port Officer. P. M. Dalzell, Deputy Collector of Customs. D. McIvER. Brigadier Parr, Commanding at Kurracliee (in the absence of Brigadier General Wilson, K.H., Commanding the Scinde Division of the Army, who was prevented attending through illness), then rose to move the 1st reso- lution : — He stated that the excellent report they had just heard read, joined with the Chairman's opening address, had left him but little to say on the subject, He might, however, be allowed, as a military man, to look at the question principally in a military point of view, and in so doing he could not but be struck by the fact, that if the facilities for rapid communication with Suez and Mooltan, which were glanced at in the report, and which the statements they had heard showed to be strictly within the limits of what was possible, and he hoped practical, at no distant date it would positively take less time to move a brigade from South- ampton to the Punjaub than it would at present take to move the Kurracliee Brigade from this camp to Mooltan. In other words you might have Southampton, instead of Kurracliee, the base of your operations for any campaigns in the Punjaub or any countries beyond it. This facility appeared to him, as a military man, to afford advantages so enormous, that he was sure the meeting would excuse his dilating on the other aspects of the scheme, and he would content himself with reading the resolution placed in his hands. " That this meeting having heard the report just read, and recognising the truth of such facts therein stated as the public 191 here has the means of knowing, generally concurs in the conclu- sions at 'which the Committee have arrived." [Carried unani- mously.] This resolution was seconded by Major Stewart, Acting Collector and Magistrate of Kurrachee. Lieutenant- Colonel Turner, Superintending Engineer, Scinde Division, in rising to move the second resolution — Stated that he participated with his friend, Brigadier Parr, in the feeling that it was difl&cult to add any thing of importance to the very complete and detailed statements they had already lis- tened to. It appeared to him that the success of any endeavours to carry out any scheme of steam communication between Kur- rachee and Suez, must depend upon two considerations. 1st. — Does any physical difficulty exist? 2nd. — Is the scheme one which will be commercially profitable ? With regard to the first he considered it had been conclusively proved that there was no physical difficulty whatever to prevent steamers running regulai'ly between this and Suez. The opinion of Lieutenant Leeds on this point appeared to him conclusive. It has been practically shown that the Victoria, which had but just been taken off the Suez and Bombay line, had been stationed at Kurrachee during the whole monsoon, and had never on any day found the slighest difficulty in entering or leaving the harbour, and for the rest of the voyage it was clear no physical difficulty existed. With regard to the second point, whether the scheme woidd be commercially profitable or not, he would state his opinion that the case contained in the report was far more favourable than he had imagined could be made out. When he first read the report a few days ago, very carefully, he examined it well, and came to the conclusion that it was not only a very ftivourable but a very fair and reasonable statement. It is clear, however, that to ensure the success of such a scheme, it is very requisite that we should have between Kurrachee and Mooltan — 1st, an improve- ment of the communication between Kurrachee and the river. This would be effected by the railway, which we hope soon to see in progress. Qndly, we must have an improvement of the com- 192 munioation on the river, and 3rdly, we must have an improve- ment of the communication between Mooltan and Lahore. These seemed to him the only requisites to insure the success of such a scheme as had been proposed ; and he thought it would be right in recommending the scheme to Government, that these points should be brought prominently to their notice. Colonel Turner concluded by moving the second reso- lution, viz. : — " That the Chairman be requested to convey to Government a respectful expression of the hope entertained by this Meeting, that any well-devised scheme for establishing direct communica- tion with Suez will receive the favourable consideration and active support of Government." [Carried unanimously.] This resolution was seconded by Captain Dunsterville, Judicial Deputy Magistrate. Mr. GiBBS, Assistant Commissioner, in moving tbe tliird resolution, viz. : — " That it is the opinion of this Meeting that the interruption of steam communication between this port and Bombay, during the south-west monsoon, is a very serious obstruction to the increasing traffic between Bombay, Scinde and the Punjaub, and that the absence of any physical difficulty having been con- clusively shown by the experience of two seasons, this meeting trusts that Government will, in any renewal of the present postal contract, provide for keeping open the communication at least twice in the month, during the south-west monsoon," spoke as follows : — When I came into the room, I intended merely to lay before this meeting some plans of steamers suited to the proposed line, and give a few observations on the expense of working them, founded on some information kindly furnished me by a gentleman well known in Western India for his energy, and the successful result of every speculation he has been engaged on. When the subject of direct steam communication between this port and Aden or Suez was first proposed, I wrote to the gentle- man I just now alluded to, and asked him for any information he might be able to give me on the subject, and he after a little 193 delay most kindly furnished me with the plans I now produce, together with the memorandum, the abstract of which I will now give. The plan of the steamer is that of the second of three descriptions, considered by the well-known firm of Messrs. Scott Russell, the orginators of the wave-line theory, to be well suited for the i)roposed work. The three descriptions are of screw- vessels. No. 1 — of 700 tons, 160 horse-power, consuming 10 to 15 cwt. of coal per hour, with a rate in fair weather of 10 knots ; length, 190 feet; beam, 28 feet; depth, 18 feet; cost, £23,100. No, 2 — of 800 tons, 200 horse-power, consuming 15 to 20 cwt. coal, with a speed of 1 1 to 12 knots ; 22 feet longer than No. I ; cost £28,000. No. 3 — of 900 tons, 200 horse-power, consumption the same as No. 2, with a speed of 12 to 13 knots; 13 feet longer than No. 2, cost £32,400 From a sketch estimate, imperfect I dare say, it would appear that the working of the second of the above vessels would cost, including coal, when at an average 25 rupees per ton, about 30;000 rupees for two. months, during which period three voyages might be accomplished, that is, either between Kurrachee and Suez and one return trip, or vice versa, one trip to Sv;ez and two I'etums, making three voyages there and back in four months, at the cost of 60,000 rupees. The length of time which the voyage to Suez would take would be fourteen days, including one day's detention at Aden. The vessels would carry coal sufficient to prevent coaling at Suez being necessary. The depots, there, fore, would be at this port and Aden only. The fittings up of the vessel are, I believe, of the best descrip- tion ; and the plans have been prepared, after mature considera- tion as to the requirements of the climate, &c. The accommo' dation shown is for 50 first-class and 10 second-class passengers. The prices include everything but plate, linen, &c. Two vessels could be delivered in eiglit months ready for sea, and the engines of Messrs. Scott Russell are constructed so as to be as economical as possible in their consumption of coal. With these observa- tions I will lay the plans, &c., on the table, and move the resolu- tion entrusted to my charge. 194. Mr. H. Wells, Resident Engineer to the Scincle Rail- way Company^ in seconding the above resolution, said : — Mr. Chairman and Gentlemen. — I rise to second the resolu- tion proposed by Mr. Gibbs. It is my lionest behef that the first great pubhc work that should be constructed in this province is a railway right through it. Of the necessity for this there can be no doubt, when you remember the words of the able report you have heard read ; and let me refer to some of the opinions therein expressed, not opinions by persons like myself interested in the Scinde railway and its future extension, but the opinions of the officers of the Government. I find Mr. Thornton, Com- missioner, Jhelum Di\dsion, says : — " Upon this point my opinion is, that a railroad from Kurrachee to the Punjaub should be provided as soon as possible." I find the Commissioner of Lahore recommending, in reply to a question as to what additional means and appliances appear desirable to facilitate the communication between Lahore and Kiu*rachee : — " A railroad from Kurrachee to Mooltan." The Deputy Commissioner of Jhung " would suggest a railroad to Mooltan." But that is not sufficient, we must go beyond Mooltan. And here is my authority for saying so. I find Mr. Edgeworth, Com- missioner Trans-Sutlej, stathig: — " But the main cvid only ])ernianent improveme^it will be the formation of a railroad from either Umritsir or Lahore to Mooltan^ It is within my knowledge that a petition has been presented to the Commissioner, praying the Court of Directors to extend the line of railway to the important city of Hyderabad. This petition, I believe, was signed by every European in that place, and most of the principal natives. I believe, on still more important public grounds, the Government will support the extension of the Scinde Railway. We have been addressed to- day by the gallant Brigadier commanding at this station, and he has told us of the value of quick locomotion for carrying on military operations. Sir, every one present knows when we have an opinion from that distinguished officer, we have the opinion 195 of a practical soldier. (Loud cheers.) The Govenimeiit of India above all pride themselves upon the perfection of their military arrangements, and it is owing to the belief that there is a disposition on the part of those in authority to press forward works likely to lead to great results, that I have come here to-day to ask you to have confidence in the great public company I have the honour to represent. I now come to another subject, one most intimately connected with direct steam communication between this port and Suez. I mean the improvement of the Harbour of Kurrachee. There are very few parts of the world I have not visited, and I have observed that at all ports where improvements had been carried out, that they have led to the natural and gradual increase of the trade of those ports, and I will adduce an instance to bear out what I say. There is Batavia, the capital of Java, the result of continued impi'ovements has been that, while in 1820, the value of exjiorts was 11,000,000 florins, in 1836 it was 38,000,000, and m 1840 it was 53,000,000. Having given many other illustrations^ Mr. Wells continued : — I now proceed to the resolution I have seconded, and I think it incumbent on us to represent the advantages which will follow uninterrupted steam communication between this port and Bombay, the stoppage of which is so seriously complained of by mercantile men in the Presidency. One firm writes : — " At present the entire suspension of steam commiuiication in as far as regards the traffic for goods from the end of May till September, owing to the vessels of the Bombay Steam Company ceasing to ply during this period, virtually closes Scinde as a route to the Punjaub for these impo]tant mouths of the year." This is beyond a doubt a great drawback to trade, and so long as it is our fate to be dependant for our su['plies upon the capitalists of Bombay, we keep open the communication through- out the year. I cannot help, upon an occasion like this, asking you to remem'ber the state in which we received our mails during this monsoon. We never get thoroughly angry in Scinde, but our patience was certainly tried, and we have some reason I think to complain, when we luiow that the steamer that might have 190 been employed was cither laying idle in Bombay, or being used as a pleasure yacht to dodge in and out of the Bombay harbour. There is another matter that I should certainly like to mention, and I know some present will sympathize with my remarks. I allude to the benefit the plying steamers will be to persons suffering from illness, and this does materially concern the Government. We may have direct steam communication between this place and Suez (and I will speak on that subject presently), but officers are suddenly ordered to Bombay and Poona, and to such steamers will be a convenience ; and I do hope the Govern- ment will confer on us this boon, considering that we are trying to do something for ourselves. Gentlemen, I now come to the principal object of this meeting, that of promoting, as much as we can, direct steam communica- tion between this port and Suez. I heartily concur in that proposition, and I am happy to be able to inform you, that those whose confidence I highly value know that 1 have in my posses- sion facts connected with it, which enables me to tell you that the prospect of our getting direct steamers between Kurrachee and Suez looms brightly in the distance. I believe, gentlemen, this agitation will have another effect, it will attract attention to another route — I mean up the Persian Gulf. We all remember the aide articles contained in the Times, in reference to direct communication between London and Calcutta, and I find the subject again brought forward by the Morniru/ Chronicle, in the following article : — " The Indian government contributes .£70,000 a }'ear towards the charges of an extended communication with India and China, and the intercourse with England, by way of Egypt, is now regular and rapid. The prejudices, and even the Imperial con- siderations, which favoured the old circuitous communication by way of the Cape of Good Hope, have given way before the irresis- tible desire for rapid locomotion and intercourse with all parts of the world. This induence is still exerting itself with full force. As soon as the war with Russia is over, and Turkey becomes settled down into a state of peace, and is gradually brought within the range of European enterprise, improvements and civilisation, we are satisfied that the desire to secure the shortest route to India will l>o I'cvived in full force, and that eventually we shall penetrate 197 through Asia Mmor to the Persian Gulf," "and make that mighty river, the Euphi'ates, once more, as in ancient times, a highway to the commerce of the East. If any one had predicted, three years ago, that an Enghsh railway ■would be constructed from Balaklava to Sebastopol, the notion would have been quite derided. It is, indeed, far more probable that this generation will not pass away before a railway is perfected, so as to unite the Euphrates at some accessible point with the Mediterranean, and thereby shorten and render still more easy the overland com- munication with the East through the Persian Gulf." I believe the Persian Gulf is destined to become the highway from Kurrachee to London, and that at no very distant date." Sir, I have now brought to a conclusion the observations I have considered it my duty to make. I have endeavoured to show that the Scinde railway should be extended without delay ; I have shown the advantage of improving the harbour of KuiTa- chee ; I have seconded a resolution to keep up uninterruptedly our communication with Bombay, and I have told you that I am working for the accomplishment of the object of this meeting. Gentlemen, there is one other great public work that P must not omit to mention, it is that which is to give a shock to supersti- tion, that which is to overthrow barbarism, and that which seems destined to link the whole world together as one united family — the electric telegraph. (Loud cheers.) Mr. W. Meiklejohn, as representative for the mercan- tile firm of Messrs. Treacher & Co., in supporting this resolution — Made some exceedingly practical observations on the inconveni- ence and loss which the merchants and community suffered from the suspension of communication between KuiTachee and Bombay during the monsoon. He showed, that large supplies of goods for the Scinde market usually arrived at the presidency at the beginning of the wet season ; and, from the want of transit to this port, they were detained during the monsoon in Bombay, and deteriorated very much in value, if not wholly desti'oyed, from the damp climate of that place in those months. The consequence of this was, that these goods had to be sent to anotlier marjvct, and 198 the public in Scinde suffered, by having to pay an enhanced price for many articles which they were necessitated to purchase, often an inferior quality. He believed that the trading community of this place would warmly support any movement that might be made for increasing the means of coumunication ; and he was clearly of opinion, from his lengthened experience of this province, that the project which had been laid before the meeting would realize the most sanguine expectations that had been entertained regarding it. Mr. McIvER then, rose and proposed the 4th Resolution, viz. : — That this meeting learns with great satisfaction, that measures are being taken to increase the number of steamers on the river Indus, and would express the conviction of the meeting that such increase in the means of communication by I'iver steamers is es- sentially necessary to the full development of commerce with the Punjaub. [Carried unanimously] Mr. M. J. M. Stewart^ Assistant Commissioner^ in seconding the above resolution, offered the following obser- vations : — Gentlemen, — The resolution which I have been asked to second expresses the satisfaction of the meeting, that measures are being taken to increase the number of steamers on the Indus, and the conviction in which I hope all present unite, that such increase is necessary for the full development of the river traffic. No doubt the railway from Kurrachee to Mooltan will answer for troops, passengers, and light goods ; but for the conveyance of heavy goods, the Indus must always be the great highway. Per- mit me here to read a passage in the Friend of India, received this morning, which needs no fui'ther comment. " The same journal [Hurkarii] reports, that so great is now the demand for steam freight to the upper provinces, that the river navigation companies have not the means of satisfying it. Their warehouses are glutted, and shippers offer two and four annas a foot additional for space. The Indian General Steam Navigation Company in- tends to put two new steamers on the river, and its rival, two new cargo boats. Both companies are pi'ospering, and there 199 seems little doubt that the internal navigation has at last become a profitable speculation in private hands. The returns, which tho chairman has read, of the net receipts to Government for the last three years from the Mooltan steamei's, show what a field is open for a private company, worked with the energy and economy which are unattainable by a government. That the river traffic is increasing to a great extent, notwithstanding the establishment of the camel train and improvement of roads, is shown by the following abstracts of the returns of boats passing up and down river. These retui'ns were kept at Sukkur, Hydrabad and Tatta, and the average of the three places shows the aggregate tonnage of the boats passing both ways — mds. mds. In 1851 52 laden . . 12,65,000 Unladen . . 8,29,300 1854-55 „ . . 10,18,600 „ . . 6,08,600 Showing an increase in three years of 3,43,600 maunds, or about 25 per cent; and while in 1851-52 the proportion of laden boats to unladen was as three to two, it is now nearly three to one, from which it is evident, that boats find cargoes now with great facility, and that the traffic is falling into regular and recognised channels. I consider that the improvement and extension of the river steam flotilla is one among the most important measures, to en- sure the development of the commerce of northern India. A vote of thanks having been tendered to the Chairman, the meeting was dissolved. 200 Memoir on the Euphrates Valley Route to India. By W. P. Andrew. The proposition is to connect the Mediterranean and the Persian Gulf by a railway from the ancient port of Seleucia by Antioch and Aleppo, to Ja'ber Castle on the Euphrates, of eighty miles in length, and afterwards from thence by Hit, and other towns, to Bagdad, and on to Kurnah, at the confluence of the Euphrates and Tigris, or Bussorah, at the head of the Persian Gulf. Thence by steamers; communication will be established with all parts of India. The country through w^hich it is proposed to carry the railway, was by command of his majesty William IV. examined and surveyed, with the view to the introduction of improved means of transit by that distinguished officer, Major-General Chesney, R.A., F.R.S., who reports that there are no serious difficulties to contend with ; and subsequent scientific investigations under Captain Lynch, C.B., and Commander Campbell, both of the Indian Navy, have confirmed the accuracy of General Chesney's opinion. The talented and lamented Dr. James Bowen Thompson was so strongly impressed with the greatness of the objects contemplated by General Chesney's mission, that he spent many years in the East collecting data to prove the practicability and importance of the Euphrates Valley Route to India. Dr. Thompson having obtained for the project the favourable consideration of her Majesty's government, the Sublime Porte and the British Ambassador at Constan- tinople, died lately at that capital while pressing its claims upon the attention of the British and Turkish cabinets. It is only proposed at present to execute the first 201 section, about eighty miles of railroad, from the ancient port of Selcucia in the Mediterranean, to Ja'ber Castle on the Euphrates; below which point, the navigation of the river is permanently open for steamers of light draught and the boats of the country for 715 miles to Bussorah, at the head of the Persian Gulf. Mr. Laird has undertaken to furnish steamers to navi- gate the Euphrates, capable of carrying a large amount of merchandize and passengers, at a speed of twelve knots an hour when loaded, and with a draft of two feet. A steam route being thus established between the Mediterranean Sea and the Persian Gulf, the shortest and most rapid means of communication between the capitals and emporia of the West and East would be at once open for political and commercial purposes. It being intended to co-operate with the river and make it available for commerce, by removing natural obstructions, and intro- ducing steamers of improved construction, and to super- sede it by the railway only when circumstances appear to demand it, the future sections of the Line Avill be gradually carried down the valley of the Euphrates, from the right bank opposite Ja'ber Castle to Phumsah, the ancient Tha- pascus. Crossing into Mesopotomia at this suitable place, the railway will be carried along the valley by Anah and Hit to the environs of Bagdad; and thence by Babylon and Hillah to the confluence of the Euphrates and Tigris at Kurnah, where there is sufficient depth of water for the largest steamers; or to Bussorah, thirty-seven miles nearer tlie head of the Persian Gulf, where an extensive trade is already established, and where there is ample accommoda- tion for square-rigged ships of large burden. The grand impediment to the improvement of the Sultan's dominions is the want of the means of inter- communication, and no line wouhl promote more effec- 20^ tually tlieii" good government, and prosperity than that which would lay open to the energy and capital of the emigrant and merchant of the West the expansive and fertile plains of the Tigris and the Euphrates. To England, the possession of an alternative short route to India is of inestimable value, and more especially when the actual lineal distance will be reduced by about a thousand miles, and where rich fields are offered to the genius of her statesmen, and the enterprise of her mer- chants, by giving back to commerce, through the civilizing influence of steam, " countries, the cradle of the human race, and the theatre of the most important events in the Jewish, Pagan and early Christian histories." * The traffic by the existing route of the Red Sea must always be confined to steam navigation, being impeded by rocky islands, coral reefs and the nature of the prevailing winds, whereas in the Persian Gulf, there are no physical obstructions whatever to its free navigation. '•' The substitution of land carriage for water carriage, or rather, the substitution of overland cuts for long sea circuits," is, as The Times stated in a leading article some little time ago, " the one simple principle of the present undertaking." The importance of the Euphrates as a second and more expeditious route to our Indian possessions is daily forcing itself upon the public mind, and as the whole of Northern India and Central Asia, from the banks of the Oxus to the gates of Delhi, will shortly have an outlet to the sea by the Scinde Railway from Kurrachee to Hydrabad, and along the valley of the Indus, such a route would seem to become imperative. "The sea stages of the present route to India," according * Expedition to the Euphrates and Tigris, by Major-General Chesney, R A., D.C.L., F.R.S., F.R.G S. 203 to The Times, in the leading article before referred to, " exelusive of tlie trip across tlie Channel^ are two : one from Marseilles or Trieste to Alexandria ; and the other from Suez to (Kun-achee) Bombay, or Calcutta. These stages constitute by far the longest part of the journey, being 5,075 miles performed by steamers ; fi-om which an average speed of some ten miles an hour is all that can be expected. The longer again of these two stages is that from Suez to Hindostan, as it includes a circuit round two sides of the triangular tenitory of Arabia, The first object, therefore, is to get rid of the detour by Aden ; and this is to be done by carrying the passengers to the mouths of the Orontes, instead of the mouths of the Nile, and forwarding them across the Tui'kish temtory to Bussorah, at the head of the Persian Gulf. The railroad required for this purpose would run along the Euphrates Valley, and its length would not exceed 900 miles;* whereas, its completion would reduce the distance from London to Calcutta by more than one-half, — by twenty days, in fact, out of thirty-nine ! This project, it is conceived, could be accomplished in five years' time ; and the route would then lie through Ostend, Trieste, by the Mediterranean Sea, to the Orontes, thence to Bussorah, and by the Persian Gulf to Bombay (or rather to Kur- rachee), where it would meet the Indian railroads now actually commenced, and by that time completed to Cal- cutta (and north-west Provinces). We have thus got rid of the Red Sea circuit, and substituted a land route for 900 miles of the distance. There remains now the straight run from Bussorah to Bombay (or Kurrachee), and the circuitous reach from Trieste to the Orontes, to be commuted for the facilities of direct railway transit by land." * From sea to sea by railway, according to Gen. Chesney, 6G0 miles. 204 ^ith reference to the above, a letter from Pesth, in a recent number of the Auysburg Gazette, says: — "A com- pany of rich landowners of Hungary proposes to prolong the railway from Vienna to Raab as far as Belgrade, in Servia, and has already made the necessary applications on the subject to the authorities. An Anglo-French com- pany has undertaken, on the other hand, to construct a line from Constantinople to Belgrade, and has engaged for it 120 French workmen, who, Avith their families, are to take up their residence in Roumelia. This double line will place the capital of the Ottoman Empire in dii'ect communication with Austria, Germany, and all Europe. The works are to be commenced simultaneously at the two extremities, Raab and Constantinople. By the arrangements now proposed, India would be reached in fifteen days, or about half the time now occupied, viz. — Miles. Days. Hours. London to Trieste by rail, and from thence by steamer to Seleucia Seleucia to Jabber Castle by railway Ja'ber Castle to Bussorah by steamer Bussorah to Kurrachee by steamer . The advantages of the port of Seleucia were placed before Government by Captain, now Major General Chesncy, in 1832, (see pp. 63 and 64 of Euphrates Re- ports), and were subsequently advocated by that competent authority. Captain Allen, E..N. According to the latter officer it is capable of being made one of the finest harbours in the world. Both these officers considered that fr'om £20,000 to £30,000 would be sufficient to clear out the greater pai't of the ancient basin, and repair the massive 8 6 80 3 935 3 3 910 3 14 12 205 works of the Romans, many portions of which require merely to be relieved from the mud deposited upon them. The importance of Seleucia will become apparent, when it is borne in mind, that there is no other port for commerce along the whole coast of Syria better than the open road- stead of Beyrout, or the pestilental harbour of Alexandretta. Seleucia is not only capable of being made a most efficient port, but, by a small additional outlay, the existing great Mole might be extended so as to form a harbour of refuge, large enough to protect at one time the entire mercantile naAy of England. Antioch is eighteen miles from Seleucia, and stands in the Valley of the Orontes, which here forms a fertile plain. From the beauty of the scenery, the abundance and the cheapness of the necessaries of life, and the salubrity of the climate, arrangements are in contemplation for Sanataria and other establishments, for the benefit of invalids, espe- cially Indian officers and their families. Aleppo is forty-two miles from Antioch, contains a population of about 90,000, is one of the most opulent and best built cities in Syria, and the chief emporium for the trade of the country. Jabber Castle, thirty-nine* miles distant from Aleppo, is on the Euphrates, and offers every facility for the construc- tion of docks. " The Euphrates gives a water communication with Syria, Asia Minor, and Asia Major, (tlicir central parts,) also the South of Persia and Kurdistan." " The Pachalic of Bagdad produces (and the greater part along the Euphrates), wheat, barley, Indian corn, rice, millet, honey, dates in great quantity, and other fruits, wine (from Kerkook and the banks of the Tigris,) cotton, some silk, tobacco, gall-nuts, and wool in great quantity, * By railway, the entire distance from Seleucia to Ja'ber Castle is estimated at SO miles. 206 from the different Arab tribes, each of which has extensive flocks ; also ambergris, sal ammoniac, leather, buffalo hides, oil of naphtha, bitumen, salt petre, salt, borax, and glass, made at Bagdad; where are manufactured coarse coloured cottons, and fine handkerchiefs of silk and cotton for the Arabs. " Bagdad was the centre of a considerable caravan com- merce previous to the late disturbances, when it sent annually even as far as Erzeroum, 2,000 mule loads of pearls, silk, cotton, stuffs, shawls, coffee, gall-nuts, indigo, &c., and still more to Mosul, Diarbekir, Orfa, &c., and to Aleppo even at this moment, from 3 to 6,000 animals yearly; but 80 years ago, this number was said to be 50,000. " Bagdad from its matchless situation, would, with the slightest fostering care, become a grand centre of English, Arab, Persian and Eastern commerce; and nothing is wanting to distribute it widely, and increase it greatly but the establishment of steam. "The imports to Bagdad are from the Persian Gulf : pearls and fish. "From Persia, Silk, woollens (coarse), saffron, sulphur, nitre, dried fruits, shawls of Cashmere, Kerman and Yesd: stuffs, cotton, gum-rahabat, fur skins, tobacco and pipe sticks. " From India: Muslins, porcelain, indigo from Bengal, Guzerat, and Lahore ; cottons, pepper, spices, cinnamon, nutmegs, Java and other sugars; musk, cardamoms, cotton and silk from the coast of Coromandel, aloes, camphor, &c. " From Turkey : Soap, cotton, linen, silks, embroidered stuffs, opium, and copper, about 450 tons annually. " From Arabia : Incense, myrrh, galbanum, resins, gums and other precious drugs, also Mocha coffee, in 207 quantity across the Peninsula, to go on to Constantinople and elsewhere. " From Europe, Egypt, &c. : (A part across the Desert from Damascus, but chiefly by way of Aleppo.) Bagdad receives cotton twist, grey cloths, and prints, grey-calicos, long-cloths, Greek-stripes, power loom sheetings, jaconets, cotton handkerchiefs, (all English,) fine French or German cloths; cutlery, lead, tin, and St. Domingo coffee, also indigo and cochineal, velvets, satins, taffetas, mercury and drugs. " The chief outlets from Bagdad as a depot are to Con- stantinople : — Cashmere shawls, aloes, ambergris, musk, pearls, coffee, tobacco, spices, pipe sticks, and Indian mus- lins. "To Syria and Anatolia : Are forwarded silk, tobacco, shawls, gall nuts, coffee, stuffs, and drugs. " To Persia : Diamonds, rubies, emeralds, pearls, European stuffs, brought over the desert from Aleppo and Damascus : also Aleppo cloths, coral, paper, jewellery, cochineal and indigo. "To Arabia and India: Silver, gold, copper, dates, horses, and oil of naphtha for painting. " Thus it appears that imports continue to a considera- ble extent notwithstanding all the difficulties and distance by which they are transported with caravans, and as there are pretty ample returns, it is evident that if ever the noble stream should be used instead of a caravan transport, there will be an increase and cousumption proportionate to the comparative cheapness of the supplies, and the great facilities offered for placing depots, by water, at every convenient spot : this done, a few years will most likely see the Arab's wants increased to something like those of other people ; and in making larger purchases, they will discover how to reimburse the expense, l)y cultivating cotton, grain,wool,&c.,more extensively than they now do." 208 " It is wortliy of the consideration of government, •svhctlier the proposed attempt should not be made, not only ■with a view to Mesopotamia chiefly, but the trade of Persia, now carried from Bushire to Erzeroura, more than 2,000 miles; whereas by attending to Erzeroum as one great centre, dependent on Trebizond and the inlets of the Euphrates and Karoon, we shall increase it prodigiously ; and command the profits, which if neglected will flow into the coff"ers at Tiflis : where they are building extensive manufactories expressly to force goods into Persia, and attract its trade towards Russia." " With this Power and her persevering endeavours to grasp at commerce, we can also compete, as regards Persia, by another line, viz., that of the Indus." * The official returns of the existing commerce of Meso- potamia demonstrate that there is a prodigious and most promising field for investment. In the statistics of the ancient and modern commerce of these countries, contained in the second volume of General Chesney^s work on the Eupkrates Expedition, will be found ample materials for the satisfaction of our merchants, as to a certain, rapid and extensive increase of trade.f The trade of Turkey-in-Europe, Asia Minor, Mesopo- tamia, and all along the proposed line to Bussorah, is of great importance, and only requires a ready means of transit for its rapid development. The success of the English and Austrian Steam Companies on the line be- tween Constantinople, Smyrna, and the coast of Syria and Egypt, is a strong proof that the resources of these countries merely require an outlet. The Mahommedans * Report of Captain Chesney in 1832, addressed to Sir Stratford Canning, G.C.B., Ambassador at Constantinople. t Pp. 674 — 636 Vol. II. of the Expedition to Euphrates and Tigris by General Chesney. 209 are now quite alive to the importance of rapid locomotion — be it by railway or steamers. The tedious mode of transit by caravan is nearly at an end, wlienever a quick mode of transport is available. * It is computed that 100;,000 pilgrims pass yearly along the route of the Euplu'atcs or Tigris to visit Bagdad and other Holy Cities. The comparison of the imports and exports of the ancient trade, with these countries, is very striking, and the more modern statistics of our trading with the East during, and subsequent to, the existence of the Levant Company, arc equally important, and should be sufficient to satisfy us as to the value of the great field open to our commercial enterprise. These countries are rich in minerals, but have as yet been only partially explored with a view to their develop- ment. The importance of this line will be still more apparent, when it is estimated in conjunction with the commercial advantages to be derived from the four great rivers of Western Asia. " The elevated plateau which extends from the base of Mount Ararat into Northern Armenia, Khur- distan and part of Asia Minor, contains the sources of four noble rivers, having their estuaries in three different seas ; and thus from Armenia as from the centre of a great con- tinent, giving an easy communication to the nations of Europe and Asia." A reference to General Chesney's map will show, " that by following the Kizil Irmak through Asia Minor, we reach the Black Sea, from whence there are inlets to Russia, Austria, Turkey, &c. In the same wa}'^, the Aras, by terminating in the Caspian, opens several routes towards Great Tartary, as well as towards the rest of Central Asia and China : while the Tigris and * M.S. Notes of Lectures delivered Ijefore the Imperial Academy of Vienna, by Dr. J. B. Thompson. 210 Euphrates, vvitli their luiincrous ramifications, afford abutul- ant means of communicating with Persia, India, Arabia and the Continent of Africa," * and offer channels for a very extended consumption of British manufactures. This enterpi'ise possesses in the opinion of those person- ally acquainted with the country and its resources all the elements of a highly remunerative character. 1st. — From the country presenting great facilities for the construction of a railway, being a succession of exten- sive plains traversed by low hills, between Antioch and Aleppo, and from Aleppo to Jabber Castle, a distance of 39 miles, a perfect level. 2nd. — From the neighbouring mines of Marasli, having supplied iron in abundance to the Euphrates expedition, they would provide all required for the railway ; an inex- haustible supply of timber of the finest quality for building purposes, sleepers, &c., being obtainable from the forests near the old Port (Seleucia) and Scanderoon : and from there being also large quarries of stone on different parts of the line, with an abundant supply of bitumen, timber, and coal for fuel. 3rd. — From the first section of the line being of moderate length, and complete in itself, having a port in the Mediterranean at one end, and a terminus on the Euphrates at the other, below which the navigation is per- manently open. 4th. — From the line from Seleucia to Jabber Castle, forming of necessity the most important portion of any system of improved transit, which shall follow the course of the valley of the Euphrates, or the plains of the Tigris. 5th. — From the clearly proved statistical returns of the former trade and commerce of the country, its vast natural resoi;rces and manufactures, and the extensive transit * \o\. I. of Expedition to the Euphrates and 'I'igris. 211 trade which was formerly carried on between China, India, Persia, Armenia, and Arabia with Europe, and especially with Great Britain, which has been greatly diminished by the policy of Russia, but which would speedily be rc^dved> and from the conviction that the commerce of Great Britain with Central Asia, China, &c., instead of seeking, as at present, a costly and circuitous route by the Volga and the Caspian, would return to its natiu-al and most ancient channel. From the paramount and acknowledged importance of this route to the good government and prosperity of the Sultanas Asiatic dominions, those more immediately in- terested have every hope, from the negotiations noAV pending, of obtaining from the Sublime Porte such terms as will enable them to raise the necessary capital; and, from the obvious political and commercial importance of this, the most direct route to our Indian possessions, they have reason to believe that they will receive from Her Majesty's Government that countenance and co- operation, which is essential to the canying out, ^^ith success, a means of communication which would diminish, by many hundred miles, the distance between this country and its empire in the East. NoTF.— A great gap in the Austrian railroad system is about to be filled up. On the 8th inst. the Austrian emperor granted to Ernest Merk, his consul at Hamburg, and to H. D. Linheim, merchant, a privilege to construct a railroad from Vienna to Linz, and thence to the Bavarian frontier near Salzburg, on the one side, and to the I'avarian frontier near Passau on the other. The railroad, which is as important for Bavaria and Souihern Ger- many as it is for Austria, will bear the name of " the Empress Elizabeth Railroad " The length of the railroad, from Vienna to Salzburg, is 43 German miles (about 212 English), and from Linz to Passau 12 German miles (59 English). The period granted for the con- struction of the wh(jle railroad is five years. The plans for the line from Vienna to Salzburg are almost completed. The State, which makes the grant for '.0 years, guarantees 5 2-10 per cent, for interest and amortization of the shares. The grantees intend to form a joint stork company with a capital of 65,(100,000 florins; and it is probable that the Austrian Credit Bank will be concerned in the undertaking. 'I'ho Vienna Salzburg Kailroad vtill, of course, be continued to Munich, and an uninterrupted railway communication will be opened between the Atlantic and the Adriatic, and travellers will hardly be more than 36 hours on the road between Vienna and Paris. The new railroad will, however, bo of inti- niiely more importance to the mercantile than to the travelling worlfl, and this is why far more attention is paid by foreigners to this than to any other Austrian railroad. It is foreseen that l/m great mercantile road betwetn Paris ami Vienna must soun extend to the coasts of t/ic Black Sea and to the capital of th» eatt (Constantinople!. A most careful calculation shows that there is a movement o/ 2,li00.0()0 travellers and I6.0O(!,0llO cti'i. of goods in the valley of the Danube i7i the course of the i/eur, and a total receipt aj' 8,f 00,000 flnrins. This revenue alone would give a clear dividend of S'f /er cent, on the capital, after all expenses had been deducted. O 213 [Since the preceding Memoir was in type, tlie following interesting letter, regarding the existing traffic between the Mediterranean and Euphrates, has been leceived.] From John Kennedy, Esq , Aleppo to W. P. Andrew, Esq. Aleppo, 12th February, 1856. Dear Sir, I have tlie pleasure to acknowledge tlie receipt of your esteemed letter of the 10th ult., to hand on the 5th inst., the contents of which I duly note. I have not yet quite finished the account of the trade and navigation of the North of Syria, as I am obliged to collect the information from my correspondents in different places, there being no regular accounts kept by the Custom House or any other Government authority. I have now, hoM^ever, managed to collect nearly all the necessary details, which I am now engaged in arranging. And as I expect to leave this for England in ten or twelve days hence, I will have much pleasure in handing you over all the papers on my arrival in London, which I expect will be about the end of March. I feel the greatest interest in the success of the scheme for opening up the Euphrates Valley, which will be of immense importance to this country, and cannot fail to be remunerative, as the trade of the North of Syria is increasing rapidly; and what it may amount to with regular and cheap communication with the coast is hardly possible to be calculated, as the Railway will pass through a large extent of country with as rich a soil as is to be found in any part of the globe, and now lying utterly waste for want of any means of disposing of the produce. 213 The enclosed paper Avill show you au approximate calculation of the trade of Alexandretta during the past year, and enable you to form some idea of what might be the amount of business done^ were the resources of the country properly' drawn out by means of easy communi- cation. At present there are no roads adapted to wheel carriages whatever in this country, and the only means of transporting goods is by camels. Expecting the pleasure of seeing you soon in London, I remain, &c., &c., (Signed) John Kennedy. Note of goods imported into Alexandretta from tJie United Kingdom during the year 1855, iii 55 vessels. 20,480 Bales, Manufactures, per bale, £20 0=£409,600 878 Barrels, Sugar, per barrel, 5 0= 4,390 534 Bags, Coifce, per bag, 4 10= 2,403 325 „ PepperandPimento, perbag, 3 10= 1,137 10 97 Cases, Cochineal, per case, 30 0= 2,910 48 „ Indigo, per case, 100 0= 4,800 1,231 Barrels, Drysalteries, per barrel, 3 0= 3,693 5,252 Packages, Sundries, 3 0= 15,756 £444,689 10 The above is a correct list of imports from the United Kingdom. I have no means of ascertaining the French, Italian, and coasting trade, but calculate from the best information I can get, that the trade with England, in imports, is fully one-third of the whole. This will make the value of imports last year to exceed one and a quarter million pounds sterling. 214 Approxiniatue note of goods exported from Akxandretta in 1855. 120,000 Quarters, Wheat, £2 0= £240,000 50,000 „ Barley, 1 5= 62,500 25,000 „ Millet, 1 5= 31,250 5,000 Tons, Sesame Seed, 12 0= 60,000 750 „ Galls, 70 0= 52,500 1,000 „ Cotton, 30 0= 30,000 2,000 „ Wool, 40 0= 80,000 Flour, 150,000 Allow for Madder Root, Scammony, Yellow Berries, Gums, Boxwood, &c 100,000 £806,250 Allow for Coasting Trade 233,750 £1,040,000 Say, total value of exports, one million pounds sterling, perhaps rather more, as I have calculated some items perhaps less than actually exported. Large amounts of specie are also exported in groups, and no allowance is made above for cocoons, reeled silk, and olive oil, which are exported largely. There are still some of the articles named on the previous page about which I have not yet procured reliable information. These rough notes may give some idea of the trade ; and tables as correct as possible will be made out for the years 1852, 53, 54, and 55. (Signed) John Kennedy. PS. — Mr. Kennedy states in another letter of recent date that : — " I bought some two or three months ago, a quantity of wheat in a district two or three days' journey to the interior of Aleppo for which I paid equal to 9s. a quarter, and carriage to the coast alone cost me upwards of 17s. 6d a quarter. This item of expense being nearly double the first cost." 215 J= -^ c -=• >. •-• & s^ ^ ^ *3 bH o >> n ^t .'^ &, l>S Ph ^ s s (D o C3 ^ « S Tl s w, % a OS t« CO g ^ 2-5^ a OS — ^ ^ e^- p-.:!^ ^ S > S C4 o o ^ "^1 8 >. o ea 2 s ^=3 4J 3 u JO? o "■ -t^ ;^ u '2 "2-3 — ^ ss ";; r- ^C = 'a -2 -TS - ^ 5 rt S « % [5 .2 '^ i'H o H O ^:^e5§ O C3 ^■^ = J -:;; o V ^ S6 3 o o o o © o o o ^ C.^ _H CJ — -f- c3 .2 i=> ^^ 5^ 000 coo 000 W rt r-1 000 000 O O C5 O O o o 4.0 r-j o o o o o >n o o o o «-2 b M ^ o r- o *" ^ C " - o =: ,1-1 a; QJ *^ m I— I i-H rH o^ o e» iM -2 ':;l 0000 © © © © © 0000 © © 0000 © 000 •>. (M in nH 10 «-- (M CO 00 «^ ■* l-- ■>) CO (M 00 t>. : .SirB.>ii.\iiM:v i; jHi'ilttnrituraui-ilmliiiu ditdxic (irloiiriijili (iimunim LONDON to'KURACHEE, T K A L I A 1 J ,,.....,4' ji^,.-_ il'Al.rrTTA TO Al'K'rK ALIA o u THE MEDITERRANEAN & INDIAN ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH COMPANY. ESTABLISHED IN 1853. Jbr completing an Electric Telegraph communication from England to India, via France, Sardinia, and the Mediterranean {crossing the Isthmus of Suez), tvith a Branch from Malta to the Ionian Islands and Constantinople, under the support and encouragement of the Allied Poioers. CAPITAL of the Lines Completed, £300,000, IN 30,000 SHARES OF £10 EACH, PAYABLE TO BEARER. CONCESSIONS, WITH EXCLUSIVE PRIVILEGES, FOR FIFTY YEARS. A Minimum Interest, at the rate ofh per cent, per Annum, guaranteed for the same period hy the French and Sardinian Governments. Isonorary Birfctors m ©nglantj. HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS THE DUKE OF CAMBRIDGE, K.G. HIS GRACE THE DUKE OF HAMILTON AND BRANDON, KG. HIS EXCELLENCY THE COUNT F. DE PERSIGNY, Ambassador France. HIS EXCELLENCY THE MARQUIS D'AZEGLIO, Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of Sardinia. ■ConorartJ Directors in J^rancc. HIS IMPERIAL HIGHNESS THE PRINCE NAPOLEON BUONAPARTE. HIS EXCELLENCY THE COUNT DE MORNY, Prisident of the Corps Legislatif. HIS EXCELLENCY THE COUNT COLONNA WALEWSKI, Minister of Foreign Affairs. HIS EXCELLENCY THE RIGHT HONORABLE LORD CO^YLEy, Ambassador of Great Britain. HIS EXCELLENCY M. DROUYN DE LHUYS, late Minister of Foreign Affairs. ■Bonorart) Birrctors in SafUtnia. HIS ROYAL HIGHNESS THE PRINCE OF CARIGNAN. HIS EXCELLENCY COUNT C. DE CAVOUR, President of the Council of Ministers, &c., &c. HIS EXCELLENCY COMM. P. PALEOCAPA, Minister of Public Works. HIS EXCELLENCY GENERAL DA BORMIDA, late Minister of Foreign Affairs. HIS EXCELLENCY THE DUKE DE GRAMMONT, Envoy E.xtraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiarv from the liniperor of the French. HIS EXCELLENCY SIR JAMES'HUDSON, K.C.B., Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiarv of Great Britain. HIS EXCELLENCY THE MARQUIS MASSIMO D'AZEGLIO. Gr rant— JOHN W. BRETT. ©fficcs : In London — 117, Bishopsgate Strkkt Within. In Paris —83, Rue Richelieu. J. W. DE LA MORE, Secretary. JAMES POWER, Sf^cretary. In Turin— Bank of Messrs. Pavia, Travi, & Co. (J. PAVIA) 218 The telegraph lines completed extend nearly 800 miles across the Mediterranean, opening at present via France, about 1800 miles of the direct line of communication between England and India. The extension to India from this point, via Malta and Alexandria (passing the Isthmus of Suez) and the Red Sea to India, it is calculated might be completed within two years; and the branch, via Malta, to Corfu, to unite the line with Constantinople, now being established in this du'cction, under the auspices of the French Government,) may be completed in a few months from this date. REPORT To the Shareholders of the Mediterranean Company. Gentlemen, It is with the liveliest satisfaction that I do myself the honour to inform you, that the French Government has, in the most liberal manner, given us an additional grant of £1800 per annum, thereby raising the minimum guaranteed interest of the whole capital (£300,000) to 5 per cent. It is unnecessary for me to say that so important a boon, which has no precedent, has not been obtained without exertion on my part. But these exertions have been cheer- fully given, in return for the confidence wliich you have been pleased to repose in me. I have also much pleasure in laying before you the present position of our works. Our lines have been in active and successful operation to Cagliari, above 600 miles across the Mediterranean since the 15th April last, and the messages transmitted have abeady far exceeded the number originally anticipated. The remaining portion of our present lines will be completed within a few weeks. 219 as the third cable, 162 miles in length, is now on board the " Result/' at Greenwich, and will leave tliis country in a few days. This important complement of our line will unite the southernmost point of Sardinia with Algiers, when the guarantee of 5 per cent, interest from the French Govern- ment will come into force, as is already the case Avith the Sardinian 5 per cent. It is well known, that when this line Avas originally projected, it was announced as the commencement of a continuous line of telegraphic communication from London {via Malta and Alexandria) to India and Australia, and there is no doubt, that the grandeur of the objects then contemplated, and their public utility, maiidy acquired for it the support which has ensured its success. The Mediterranean cable is the largest and strongest which has yet been laid down. It consists of six electric wires tliroughout, weighing eight tons per mile, or over 2,000 tons. The land lines also contain six distinct wires throughout the islands ; two wires will secure to the French and Sardinian Governments a telegraphic commu- nication with their respective dependencies, and the remaining wires will be ample for all the telegraphic com- munication of the English Government, the East India Company, and the public. It is most gratifying to me to be able to state, that I have been recently assured in the strongest manner by the French and Sardinian Governments, that they are ready to unite with the English Government in affording us every assistance and support in realising to the full extent, the important enterprise originally contemplated, and from which profits far exceeding the joint Government gua- rantee may be reasonably expected. But when we bear in mind the gracious and continuous 220 patronage wc liavc received from H. M. the Emperor of the French^ from the first commencement of the suhmarine telcgi-aph, and the liberality of the French and Sardinian Governments, it is surely not presumptuous or unreason- able to ask for similar terms from the Government of this great empire, and from the Honorable East India Com- pany, in order that this country may have the benefit of telegrapliic communication with India, and eventually with the important and distant colony of Australia. The completion already of 3,000 miles of telegraph tlu'oughout the Continent of India ready to unite in com- munication with our line, and the unparalleled expansion of trade in Australia consequent upon the discovery of the gold fields, seem to furnish irresistible arguments on com- mercial gromids for completing the intermediate portions of tlie chain, and as a question of first rate political interest, it is enough to remark, that if the EngHsh Government had possessed last year a submarine telegraph to Malta, more money would have been saved to tliis country than it would cost to construct the whole of the proposed lines. WTiilst engaged in the construction of the jMediterranean Electric Telegraph, I have repeatedly ofiered to the British Government to carry out this line to Malta on equitable terms, but although I have invariably received from the dif- ferent ministers, to whom such proposals were submitted, the most kind and courteous consideration, the financial assistance so essential to a project of such manifest public utility, has not yet been granted. Having been the first in the field, with a similar ofier to the late lamented Sir Robert Peel, so far back as the year 1845, and having now completed a very important section of the East Indian Line, I believe it will be generally allowed that I am entitled to a preference from the English Government, and East India Company, and it will be my 221 endeavour to carry out the project in a substantial and per- manent manner which cannot fail to add largely to the profits of the Mediterranean Telegraph Company, and be satisfactory to the several Governments. Owing to the exclusive privileges which we already possess for a period of fifty years, no other line to INIalta, the Ionian Islands, Egypt and India, can be constructed, which ofters the same advantages and security to this coun- try as the Mediterranean line. The development of this line will be exclusively under the protection and on the ter- ritories of the Western Powers, and totally independent of Austria, Naples, and the Austro-Italian Duchies. The intimate Alliance subsisting between England, France and Sardinia, will give great facilities for all traffic over those portions of the chain which belong to the respective nations, and by skilful arrangements, for which I have paved the way, an unbroken Telegraphic communication may be secured from London to Calcutta. Having now obtained a vantage ground, which naturally forms the basis of extended operations interesting and valuable to the whole commercial world, the time has come for proposing to you the conversion of our " Societe en commandite,^' either into a " Societe anonymc," or a Com- pany imder the new Act of Parliament, with the new of enlarging and perfecting the constitution of our Company, Advantage can be taken of this operation to define the mode of issuing stock for the construction of the extension lines upon such terms, and with such privileges, as may result fi'om the negociations now pending. Express provi- sion will of course ])e made that no existing right or privi- lege now possessed by the Shareholders shall be compromised in the slightest degree by any participation which may, from time to time, be oficred to them in any new advantages or concessions which I mav be able to obtain. 222 At the approaching General Meeting to be held iu Paiis,, formal resolutions for this purpose will be submitted to you, and in carr^-ing out the ai'rangements, I have the satisfaction of knowing that I shall receive the enlightened counsel and assistance of the " Conseil de Surveillance." In conclusion, Gentlemen, I will only remai'k, that when you subscribed your Capital of £300,000 you were assm'ed of interest at the rate of 4 fr. 40 ct. per cent, per annimi. The expense of laying down the cable has been much in- creased by the derangement in trade, manufactm'C and shippiag; consequent upon the war, but your Capital re- mains fixed at the original sum, whilst your guaranteed interest has been raised to 5 per cent, per annum. In the interval, many circumstances have occurred to render more imperative, and to hasten on the communica- tion with the Eastern ATorld, and this, once accomphshed, by om' united efibrts, it is obvious that the dividends upon your stock will rise to a much higher figure. I have the honom' to remain, Gextlemex, Yom' obedient Servant, JOHN ^Y. BEETT, Gtrant. 26th Julij, 1855. THE SCINDE RAILWAY COMPANY. m : freskin |ouse, (01i) Iroair street, €\ii BOARD OF DIRECTORS. Ci^atrman. W. P. ANDREW, Esq. (26, Montague Square.) TEx ©fRcio IB (rector. SIE JAMES C. MELVILL, E.C.B. SIR HERBERT MADDOCK, M.P., late Deputy. Governor, Bengal. J. EDMUND ANDERDON, Esq., Du-ector of the Bank of London. FRANCIS HORSLEY ROBINSON, Esq., late Senior Member, Board of Revenue, North-west Provinces. THOMAS WILLIAMS, Esq., Grove End Road, Regent's Park. ^utoitors. » ALEXANDER MACKENZIE,Esq. | HARRY BORRADAILE, Esq., Director of the Oi-iental Bank j Late Bombay Civil Service. Corporation. j lEngincer. T. A. YARROW, Esq. 33anfefrs. Solicitors. Messrs. SMITH, PAYNE, and j Messrs. MARTEN, THOMAS and SMITHS. I HOLLAMS. Sccrctanj. THOMAS BURNELL, Esq. 225 Report of the Directors of the Scinde Railway Company to the Proprietors, submitted at tlie First Annual General Meeting, held on the 18th day of February, 1856, at the Offices of the Company, Gresham House, Old Broad Street, City. The Directors have much satisfaction in meeting their shareholders for the first time, and congratulate them upon the position the Company has attained in so short a period after its formation. In the early part of last year, the capital was promptly subscribed for, and in June, a provisional agreement was entered into with the Honourable East India Company, by which 5 per cent, was to be guaranteed on £500,000 of capital, on condition that 25 per cent, of that amount was paid into the treasmy of the East India Company, within two months after the passing of the Bill for Incorporating the Company, and another payment of a similar amount within two months after the first payment. The Directors feel highly gratified in being able to report to the proprietors, that the whole of the preliminary expenses, including parliamentary charges, for obtaining the Act of Parliament for the Incorporation of the Com- pany and all law expenses, including the deed of settle- ment, up to 31st December last, amount to the sum of J3,244 Os. 5d. The charges for the establishment in India have not yet been received, and consequently are not included in the financial statement, but the Directors hope to be able to 22G bring tliem before the proprietors at the next half-yearly meeting. On the 2nd July, the Bill for Incorporating the Com- pany, received the royal assent. On the 31st of May, the sum of £128,945 10s. was paid into the treasury of the East India Company, on the 30th June £46,234 1 6s., and on the 31st July £72,058 4s., amounting to £247,238 10s., being nearly 50 per cent, of the guaranteed capital, and £122,238 10s. in excess of the first instalment. Subsequently £18,376 was paid into the treasury of the East India Company, making the total amount to the credit of the Company to this date £265,614 10s., upon which 5 per cent, accrues, and warrants have been issued for the interest due December 1855. The contract was duh'- executed between the East India Company and this Company on the 4th January last, under the terms of which, interest at the rate of 5 per cent, per annum on the capital, is payable half yearly in the months of January and July. The Directors have secured the services of gentlemen of experience and ability, to fill the important offices in India, of agent and resident engineer ; both gentlemen are now in Scinde, and they are aided by a competent staff of engineers and other assistants. The line from Kurrachee to Hydrabad having been surveyed and reported upon by order of the Bombay Government, by the late Lieutenant Chapman, an able engineer officer, and approved of by Lieutenant-Colonel Turner, the Superintending Engineer of the Province and other authorities, the Directors expect shortly to hear that the exact course of the line has been finally settled. From the unusually favourable nature of the country to be traversed, it being a series of firm, hard, and level plains, 227 little exposed to inundation, the Directors anticipate a rapid progress and early completion of this the most im- portant portion of the line of communication along the Valley of the Indus. Materials for permanent way for thirty miles of railway have been contracted for, a large portion of which is now in course of shipment. As the success of the railway would be greatly affected by the capability of the Port of Kurrachee at its lower extremity, and by the existence of an efficient agency on the Indus for the conveyance of passengers and goods to and from the railway, these two points may be briefly glanced at. Mr, M'Leod the late Deputy Collector of Customs at Kurrachee in October, 1853, stated " that the commerce of the port has been progressing during the past few years at the rate of 30 per cent, per annum, and there is every reason to expect a continuance of the progressive ratio."' " These prospects of the Scinde trade, lead me to believe that by the time a railway shall be laid down and be pre- pared for action, our commerce will have doubled its pre- sent value, and the passenger traffic be ten times as much as it is at present," — and it is satisfactory to add that the existing state of the trade of Kurrachee is in accordance with these statements and views. That distinguished gentleman Mr. Frere, now at the head of the Government of Scinde, remarked (while pre- siding at a public meeting at Kurrachee in September last, for promoting direct steam communication between Km'- rachee and Suez,) that "Colonel Turner (the Superintend- ing Engineer of the Province,) instituted a series of very careful experiments by boring, and showed most conclusively that there was not a particle of rock anywhere on tlic bai", that the whole was composed to a considerable depth of 228 soft sand ; the establisliment of this fact of course remoA'ed one principal gi'ound of the fear which mariners before had of approaching or touching on the bar. " But the principal share of the credit of practically proving the absence of any danger in entering the port, was due to Lieutenant Leeds the port officer, who with great skill and judgment, and on his own responsibility, piloted in ships of considerable bm'dcn, and had practically shown that this might be safely done even without any aid from steamers. The result was, that during the monsoon just closed, four large steamers from Bombay and Aden, and eight sailing vessels of from 300 to 878 tons had come in and gone out, and Avith one exception, it had never been found necessary to wait even a single day for any particular tide. " Facts like these prove beyond a possibility of doubt that there loas no difficulty tvhatever in getting vessels even of considerable size into and out of Kurrachee Harbour, during the south-west monsoon, the most unfavourable period of the year." For the last three years there has been a regular com- munication established between Kurrachee and Mooltan, a distance of 800 miles, by government steamers : and to meet in some degree the increasing traffic, four boats, with accommodation flats, are being constructed in this coimtry, by order of the East India Company to be added to the existing steam flotilla on the Lidus. The importance of the route by the Indus is becoming more and more apparent for the conveyance of passengers, troops, goods produce, and government stores. The militaiy supplies for the Punjaub, which were for- merly sent from Calcutta by the valley of the Ganges, are now sent from Bombay by the valley of the Indus. This year L5,000 hogsheads of porter and ale for the troops iu 229 the Punjaulj and neighbouring territory are being sent by the government to Kurraehee for transmission by the Indus. Appended to this report is a statement of accounts fiom the formation of the Company to the 31st December last, which, along with the books of the Company, have been duly submitted for audit to the auditors of the Company, and have been also examined by the Accountants' Depart- ment of the East India Company. In accordance with the provisions of the deed of settle- ment, the following Directors retire from office at this meeting. W. P. ANDREW, Esq., and THOMAS WILLIAMS, Esq. These gentlemen being eligible for re-election, offer themselves accordingly. W. P. ANDREW, Chairman.. ' 2S0 «« X ■:< c o X o -z. 1— 1 O O OJ C5 o o O Oi C5 C5 -<# o o O CO C31 >0 rH t^ O C5 O r-H -rjf — I .S p: C/2 2 a ii • S «i s !^ a « ^ p=i P oT 9 » u •*^ aj CD !- a= <» kT SC e ^ LJ tD C CS W '^ '^ din g J -JS C3 (D H ^ 05 .9 -^ rS ca C bi ■r5 ^ ^P a Sors S CO PI Pi l-H CM ^^ ^ « ^ 2 o o H ^ S HH Si Pi to — ' g >» «rt ^^ -4—' ^ ^ « P! ii o 0^ ^•^ CO _o pq 00 <£ -^ ox II 11 ta PI ^ *-• +^ +-. CO <^ T^ ^ 05 n:3 s 1 N 1 if tS w ^ S '^ -'^ >^ <\A^ %>A ^- s a WQ 1 13 CO 03 CO gg • rH mo > pm O 03 <1M cp A -i-> r^:: o 13 09 ^ 5» ^r- '? v^ t» ^ ^ -?, s P! P) o I' o ?^ P! tn *^ S O) iJ «»i c^ <1 o o xn ^ "^ 'T3 •— < pq s .g P^ .1 03 X ^§1 o3 c3 CO t/2 1^; %i O p^ffi^ t^ o rQ n o 'tS A o ■a 231 Proceedings of the First Annual General Meeting OF THE Shareholders^ held February 18tli, 1856. The first annual general meeting of the Scincle Railway Company was held on Monday, the 18th of February, at their offices, Gresham House, Old Broad -street, in the City of London; W. P. Andrew, Esq., Chairman of the Board of Directors, presiding. Mr. BuRNELL (the secretary), having read the advertise- ment convening the meeting, the seal of the companj'', was affixed by the chairman to the register of shareholders. The report of the directors, which had already been cir- culated amongst the proprietors, was taken as read. The Chairman then said — I will, if you will allow me, make a few remarks; and, in the first place, I beg leave to observe, in reference to the expenditure which has been incurred in the prosecution of our undertaking, that although our actual expenditure has been small, yet that all our liabilities are not included in the amount. I think it just to state this, because Ave have a large staff in India, and of course, we are not able to include cur- rent liabilities. I should also state, that the law charges are not included in the balance-sheet, but the total amount to the 31st December is ascertained. I have scarcely ever seen a lawyer's bill without a feeling of indignation; but I cannot say we have any reason to complain in this particular instance, inasmuch as the wbole of the account, including nil the fees, the Act of Incorporation, the Deed of Settlement, and other 232 charges, does not exceed £1,200 [hear, hear.] I con- sider this so honourable to your legal advisers, that I should be disposed to say something more on this subject, but that I am anxious to spare the blushes of a learned gentleman who is present at this meeting [liear, hear.] But though our expenditure has been limited, yet at the same time, I beg to assure you that we have been far from idle, and, consequently, that your liabilities have increased in proportion to our activity. At the present moment we have, in course of shipment, a large quantity of permanent way material, all of w^hich we have been enabled to contract for at very fair and reasonable piices. The Directors have alluded in their report to the capa- bilities of the port and harbour of Kurrachee, but as the port does not form a part of the undertaking in which we are engaged the paragraph regarding it in the report was a short one. But the fact is, that the successful prose- cution of the railway, and the prospects of its future useful- ness to the coT\ntry and profit to the shareholders, are so inti- mately dependent upon the development of the capabilities of the port, that I think it highly desu'able that some additional information should be laid before you, I should apologise for these remarks, but the subject is one so interesting tons, and upon which it is so desirable that the mercantile interest should be fidly informed, that 1 am sure you will excuse me for laying before you some facts connected with the port [hear, hear] . During the most mifavourable period of the south-western monsoons — I have now before me a statement of Mr. Bartle Frere, the distinguished Commis- sioner of the province, which shows that — during the months of June, July, and August, 1853, and in the fol- lowing year, many vessels, some of them of 800 tons burthen, and drawing 16|- feet of vrater, entered and left the port without any accident or impediment whatever 233 [liear^ hear]. Another objection which has been raised against the port was, that there is a bar at the entrance of the harbour. I don't know whether those who make the objection are acquainted with the fact, that Lieutenant- Colonel Turner, the Superintending Engineer of Scindc, has made a report upon the bar, that it consists of soft sand, and that the action of the water, caused by the increasing traffic of the harbour, is gradually effecting a diminution of the obstruction. At the same time it ought to be publicly known, that the East India Company lias sent out two steam dredging machines for the purpose of cleansing and improving the harbour, and no doubt is entertained by professional men, that twenty feet of Avater will be permanently secured [hear, hear] . I should also draw attention to the fact, that the harbour is what is called land-locked, and is well marked and defined at one extremity by a bold headland, known as Munora Point. As I before remarked, 1 think these facts are of so much interest, that they ought to be generally known amongst the merchants of this country [hear, hear] . Having said so much about the port of Kurrachee, I will proceed, Avith your permission, to make a few obser- vations in reference to the railway undertaking which we have in hand. The credit of this design is due to jNIr. H. B. E. Ercre, the Commissioner of Scinde, whose zeal on this and all other subjects connected with the improve- ment of the province under his government is well known. The preliminary survey of the line was made by order of the Bombay Government by the late Lieutenant W. Chapman, a very able officer of the Bomliay Engineers, Avho, having collected much valuable information contained in the report I hold in my hand, had his promising career cut sliort while engaged in prosecuting this design, and I was invited by the authorities to carry it out. It was taken up hy my col- 234 leagues and myself euergetieally, and as an undertaking- to the success of which we attached the utmost importance. We look upon the construction of the present line, not simply as a line from Kurrachee to Hydrabad, but as the first link in the chain idtimately destined to open up the Puujaub and Central Asia, by relie\dng commerce of the dangerous intricacies of the Delta, and otherwise extending gi'adually improved means of communication. At the present time, I have returns sho>ving that such is the danger attend- ing the navigation, that in descending the river, one or two boats are lost out of seven. But it is not the naAigation of the Delta alone which is detrimental to commerce, as the class of boats which are useful for one part of the navigation, are totally unfit for another. Thus, those boats wdiich are fitted for the navigation of the Upper Indus are totally useless to thread the narrow windings of the Delta, and these again are entirely unsuited for sea navigation, being miable to face the ocean swell from want of depth. The idea which we entertain of the best means of giving facilities of improved transit to the districts of the Punjaub and Upper India is, to provide steam navigation where the river is economically available, and to complete the com- munication by the laying down of lines of railway. The Scinde Railway is the first link in the great chain of communication between the only harbour on the north- western coast of India and the Punjaub and neighbouring territories. We now propose to carry our line to Hydra- bad, Avhich is near the point on the Indus at which deep water na\'igation may be said to commence, and when the navigation again becomes defective, we may use the railway again. I desire, in short, to bring practically into operation the system of railway communication in India, which I advo- cated in 18 16, in reference to -the construction of railways 235 iu anotherpart of thelndianErapire, — the Bengal presidency — namely, to make use of the navigation of rivers where practicable, and as it were, to supplement, where water transit becomes defective, the grand natural highways Avhich Providence has made for the use of man by the assistance of the railway [hear] . Great objections have been raised in this country to this mode, inasmuch as according to the ideas of those accustomed to our rapid mode of travelling in Europe, it appears a waste of time and labour, in a journey of something like 1,000 miles, to subject goods to so many operations of transhipment. But it should be borne in mind that in England we are accustomed to travel at the rate of 300 and 400 miles a day, whereas, in India, we think ourselves fortunate if we can accomplish ten or twelve miles, either by land or water conveyance. In fact, the argument based on the value of labour and time, as we estimate them in this country, falls to the ground. When the natives of India begin to appreciate the value of time and labour, as we do, then, no doubt there will be demand for the laying down of trunk lines, and the question of capital outlay will not enter so largely into the calculation as it does at present Qiear, hear] . I have alluded to the undertaking in hand, more parti- cularly in reference to India. I Avill now direct your atten- tion to the position of the port of Kurrachee, as a Euro- pean port. It is the nearest port to Aden by 200 miles, and dui'ing the south-western monsoon it is really 700 miles nearer than Bombay is to Aden. This position will confer upon it an incalculable value when the short route to India shall be accomplished by the valley of the Euphrates, and so by the valley of the Indus, the distance between Europe, the Punjaub and Upper India will be shortened by more than 1,000 miles [hear, hear]. And in the ultimate accomplishment of this, the dream of the statesman and the philosopher, no 236 doubt can be entertained, for the obstacles which oppose it are not physical, but the result of political causes. It will be satisfactory to the meeting to learn that the East India Company have put on two steamers between Kurrachee and Aden and Suez, with a view of ascertaining, in some measure, the public demand for the opening up of that route, and in the results of the experiment, I need scai'cely say that the greatest interest is felt by this company. I have to apologise for detaining you at such length, and have now the honour to move the adoption of the report and accounts. Sir Herbert Maddock seconded the resolution, and in doing so expressed his confidence that the preliminaries having been overcome, there was every reason to anticipate an early completion of their line [hear, hear]. As the chairman had stated, the Scinde Railway was but a short link in the chain of communication between the coast and Upper India. It was but a railway 110 miles in length, and it might appear to those unacquainted with the sub- ject, that this was but a small contribution to the accom- plishment of the through communication, but he would remind, them, that, at the distance of 110 miles, they arrived at a noble river, as capable of navigation as the rivers of America ; and they would observe, that the coiu-se of that river opened up a communication with a population of thirty-two millions in the Punjaub and Central Asia. Eut^ not only at the remote end of their line had they a population larger than that of the United Kingdom, but throughout their whole course there was an established traffic, of inestimable value, which must be highly remune- rative to a trunk line of 110 miles in length. Their Chairman had alluded to the possible carrying out of a system of railway communication throughout; and he, for his own part, would confess that he should not be surprised at the speedy accoinplishment by the Scinde 237 Railway Company of a railway projected from Lahore and Umritsir to Hydrahad [hear, hear] . As to the capabilities of the port of Km-raclice, he would take that opportunity of confirming the remarks of the Chairman. It had been proved that, during the monsoons, there was plenty of water for vessels of from 700 to 800 tons burthen. The bar of soft sand would be cut away by the operations which were being conducted by the East India Company ; and he had no hesitation in stating his convictions, that, with the improvements in progress, the port of Kurrachee would become even more accessible than the port at Calcutta [hear, hear] . In answer to questions. The Chairman stated that the strictest regularity had been observed in all the transactions of the Company, that the two instalments constituting the required 50 per cent, of the guaranteed capital had been paid into the treasiu-y of the East India House before they were due, and the con- tract with the Honourable East India Company, was on the table, open to the inspection of the proprietors. A Proprietor wished to know, in how short a time it was likely that the line would be completed ? The Chairman said, he thought about a couple of years; but, as Mr. Yarrow, the Engineer of the Company was present, he should prefer that an explanation should be given by that gentleman. Mr. Yarroav said, the line might be completed to Hy- drabad within three years from the actual commencement of operations. He would take the opportunity of stating, for the information of the proprietors that the details con- nected with the rolling stock of this and all the Indian railways had been settled in a conference between Mr. Stephenson, INIr. Rendcl, Colonel Kennedy and himself, and thus perfect uniformity would be cnsiu'cd. 238 A Proprietor said, he would venture to suggest that it would be very desirable for the Directors to keep in view the closing of the capital account. He mentioned this, since an extension had been spoken of. The Chairman said, he should be very glad indeed to close the capital account. It would, no doubt, be a very profitable operation [a laugh] . That was a matter which must be submitted to the proprietors before any step could be taken. Another Provrietor wished to know if an option would be given to proprietors desirous of paying up their calls in advance. The Chairman said, so soon as there was any prospect of the Company wanting more money, arrangements would be made to meet the convenience of the general body of shareholders. It was scarcely possible to state precisely when another call would be required. A Proprietor said, he should be glad to hear the views of the Directors on the subject of fuel for locomotives; whether they proposed to use coal or coke. The Chairman said, he believed at present it was in contemplation to use wood ; but his friend on his left. Sir Herbert Maddock, had assured them that before the line would be ready for working there would be an ample means of supply of coal from Bengal. Sir Herbert Maddock said, he was interested in some collieries in the Presidency of Bengal which produced excellent coal for cokeing. There was, as of course was well known, an excellent variety of coal in that Presidency, but not all producing good coke. Experiments were now, however, in active progress, and he had no doubt whatever, from the reports which he had received, that a supply would be obtained of a very superior quality. The colliery to which he referred was in the Baneegunge district. 239 The Chairman then put the resolution for the adoption of the report and accounts, which was carried unanimously. The Chairman submitted a resolution for reducing the Directors of the Company from ten to five. In the Act authorising the incorporation of the Company, the number of Directors was ten, but in obedience to a suggestion in which they concurred, it was proposed that the number should be reduced to five, of which three should form a quorum- He said the suggestion came from an authority to which they must all bow (a laugh) ; and, in short, he believed they had very little choice in the matter. Sir Herbert Maddock seconded the resolution. The resolution was then put and carried. Sir Herbert Maddock then proposed the re-election, as Directors, of the Chairman and of Mr. Williams. In doing so, he took occasion to observe that Mr. Andrew might be regarded as the father of the present system of railways now established in India (hear, hear). By his contributions to the public press in this coimtry, as well as by the pamphlets which he had published, in connection with the subject, he had enforced the adoption of a judi- cious and comprehensive plan of railways in India. It was well known, that he was the original promoter of the proposed line fi'om Allahabad to Delhi ; and in the pam- phlets which he published in connection with that under- taking, he elucidated the grand principles which had subsequently been adopted, according to his recommen- dation, in carrying the East India Railway to Rajhmahal. The idea of Mr. Andrew was, that the two sections of line should be carried from C'alcutta to Rajhmahal, and from Allahabad to Delhi, with steamers of improved construction between Rajhmahal and Allahabad. His great services were fully appreciated beyond the limits of his own pro- l)rietary, and to them he was quite sure that the admirable 240 manner in wliicli their affairs had been brought up to their present position, the raising of their capital at a eritical time, together with the general judicious management of their affairs, were facts too well appreciated by the proprie- tors to render it necessary for him to say more, in intro- ducing the name of Mr. Andrew for re-election (hear, hear) . Mr. Williams was also well kno-^ai as a director of the Great Western Railway Company, and as an able and honourable gentleman ; and he had much pleasure in pro- posing his name in company with that of his friend Mr. Andrew. The motion was seconded by Mr. Francis Horsley Robinson (who conemTcd entirely in the observations of Sir Herbert Maddock) and carried unanimously. The Chairman returned thanks on behalf of Mr. Wil- liams and himself for the confidence thus expressed by the proprietors and for the handsome terms in which his ser- vices were alluded to. Messrs. Mackenzie and Borradaile were then elected auditors, the chairman observing that the character and position of both these gentlemen rendered any observation unnecessary. Upon the motion of Mr. T. W. Ramsay, a vote of thanks was carried by acclamation to the Chairman and Directors, for the energy and economy they have evinced, and their general attention to the interests of the proprietors, and a further special vote to Mr. Andrew, for his coiu'teous and able conduct in the chair. Mr. Andrew acknowledged the compliment. Mr. Nicholson said, before the proprietors separated, he was anxious to make a few observations, in reference to a subject which had been brought before their notice that day, in coimection with the imdertaking they had in hand. He should not have obtruded upon the business of the meet- 241 ing; but that ha^^ng been disposed of, he desired to say a few words — in the first place, because he was a sharehohler ; and, in the second place, as a proprietor, having the very greatest confidence in the future success of the undertaking. He believed there was the prospect of very considerable profit — second, of course, only to one [a laugh.] No doubt, the traffic of the Indus, Avith the population of thii'ty-two millions — whilst we had but thirty millions in the United Kingdom — was a large source from which the traffic of a terminal line, of only 110 miles in length, could be derived. Therefore the undertaking was likely to pay. But he thought the question of fuel for their engines was a subject of no inconsiderable importance. No doubt, at Bombay, the supply of wood now was cheaper than of coal or coke. And he believed that experiments had been successfully tried upon a mixed fuel of coal, wood, and coke. He was glad to hear that the coal in the Damooda Valley had been satisfactorily tested; but all coal was not good for cokeing, and perhaps when the experiments have been sufficiently carried out, they might find, at a greater depth, a good cokeing coal ; that is to say, a good coke for loco- motive pm'poscs. He (Mr. Nicholson) had also obtained a good coal from the neighbourhood of the Nerbudda river, to which they were aware it was the intention of the Great Indian Peninsula Railway Company to extend their operations as soon as practicable ; and, from the expe- riments which had been made upon the coal, his opinion was, that the fuel for the locomotives of the Scinde Railway would probably be furnished by the collieries of tlic Ner- budda at an earlier period than from the mineral district of the Raneegunge. The business of the meeting being completed, the ])yo- prietors separated. REMARKS OF THE PRESS WORKS ON INDIAN RAILWAYS. BY W. P. ANDREW, Esq. Indian Railways, and their pro- bable Results. By an Old Indian Postmaster. (Second Edition, 1846.) Third Edition. T. C. Newby : Pelham Richardson, Cornhill. 1848. From " Allen's Indian Mail," Auffust 13th, 1846. " In regard to the great line to connect the seat of government with the extreme north-west, the author's opinions arc pccuhar, "Hewould construct the northern part of the line before the southern, arguing that the Ganges, as far as it is navigable, supplies the means of commmiication ; and that it is where this accommodation ceases, that a railroad is more especially wanted." From " The Times," C% Article, 22nd October, 1846. " It (Indian Railways) contains a great quantity of information." From " The Times," Citi/ Article, 19th November, 1851. " The line (in Bengal) seems to have been adopted, which was origi- nally recommended by Mr. W. P. Andrew." From the " Moenino Herald," Leading Article, November IWi, 1846. " We have little doubt that tlic pre- ference given to the Mirzaporc Line by the Railway Commissioners, will be confirmed by the Supreme Govern- ment and the Court of Directors ; for we can scarcely imagine that those bodies will participate in tlio ' Old Postmaster's ' weakness in favour of the intermediate river trip from Rnjmahal to Allahabad, on tlie way from the Presidency to the north-west frontier." From the " MoENlNa Heeald," September IMh, 1852, Citi/ Article. " Mr. Andrew is well known as the author of a valuable work pub- lished some years since by Mr. Pel- ham Richardson, under the nom de guerre of an ' Old Indian Post- master,' by which pubHe and ofEcial notice was mainly, if not first, di- rected to the great subject of railway communications in India, and its immense import, not alone to the accelerated development of the pro- digious resources of that vast empire, but to its safety and conservation." From "The Economist," 2Qth February^ 1848, " Our author is for trusting the formation of the roads with some ju- dicious guidance, to private specula- tion. He makes the following state- ment, illustrating the folly of govern- ment undertaking such examples, by the case of Philadelphia : — PEITATE OR PUBLIC MANAaEMBNT. " ' Three propositions suggest themselves as to the policy to be adopted, and agencies tobeemployed, in the formation of railways in a new country. " ' Ist. That they be, with certam restrictions and provisions, left to unfettered and unaided private en- terprise, as has been hitherto the case in this country. " '2nd. That the government itself should project and define a great and comprehensive system, as well as execute and work the lines most appai'ently conducive to the common weal, as in Belgium. " ' 3rd. That the government should grant concessions or leases of various sections, or particular pro- jects, to private companies, on such terms as might be mutually advanta- geous ; the latter to have the execu- tion of the works, and the manage- ment of the traffic of the lines, under the direct supervision and control of officers appointed by the govern- ment, as has been practised in France, and more recently in Bel- gium. " ' Judging from the confusion which has arisen in this country, by giving the reins to speculative en- terprise, the crude and angular man- ner in which railways were com- menced in France, and the harmo- nious and beneficent manner in which the Belgium system has resulted, there appears to be little doubt but that it is the most efiective and rapid mode of introducing railways into a countiy. " 'We would, however, from finan- cial considerations, deviate so far from this example, as to give, after defining the line, the concession to a private Company; for Belgium had to borrow money at five per cent, to make railroads, which did not. 3 till very lately, yield more thau two and a-half per cent. And Pennsyl- vania, which in 182A was bitten with the improvement mania, 'believed, and truly, that a system of inland communication by means of canals and railroads, would tend to increase her prosperity. She believed that the annual income of these public works would not only pay the inte- rest on the first cost, but would leave a liberal overplus for public purposes. What was the result ? " ' The state, after having spent millions, wisely gave away the works in an unfinished condition to com- panies of private individuals, on con- dition that tliey would finish them. In addition to this the favouritism and peculation inseparable from Go- vernment patronage and expenditure served to swell the costs of these works to a most disastrous extent. The consequence was, that m 1841 or 1842 the state was forty millions in debt. " 'State lines canneitherbe worked with the same economy, nor can they have imparted to them that impulse which the spirit of private enterprise alone can give. "To follow our author through all his calculations, would be to tran- scribe a large part of his book j and we shall only say, that he is of opi- nion that by eschewing the orna- mental, and improving on the Ame- rican system, we might effect an extensive railway devclopement in India, at a much less cost, and bet- ter adapted to the rough work it would be subjected to, than of transporting a ' Birmingham,' or a ' Great Western,' with all its gran- deur and complicated arrangement, into Hindostan. In that there is much wisdom. " In his book altogether, there is much information, and whoever is interested in the subject of railways in India should consult it." From " The Economist," Decem- ber \^th, 1851. "We see with some satisfaction, that the views propounded as to forming railways in India, by Mr. W. P. Andrew, under the cognomen of an ' Old Indian Postmaster,' and which were long ago recommended in our journal, find favour in India, and are hkely to be adopted." From the " Obseetee," February \Wi, 1848. " The third edition of a work on Railways is a fact in literature, al- most unprecedented, and one which speaks trumpet-tongued for the value of the publication. " The Old Indian Postmaster has added an immense mass of informa- tion to this edition of his book ; which, now that it may be said to be as complete as human hands can make it, is of inestimable account, in reference to the great subject of Indian Railways. The author de- votes some s])ace at the conmicncc- ment of the work to defend his opinions ; but that they needed no defi'iicc, is proved by the exhaustion of two editions of his work. "Their trutli is the best defence they can have ; and that is so ob- vious that ' those who ruu may read.' In fact there has not been such a valuable contribution to the civilization of India, as this work on Indian Railways, since the era of its absor])tion into the dominions of her Majesty. Every one interested in Indian railways will, of course, possess it ; whde every general reader should, as a matter of information, make himself master of its contents." From the " Obseevee," November 2^rd, 1851. Indian Railways. " It is not a little remarkable, on reviewing the past and present posi- tion of Indian railways, to perceive that the views of a private individual have prevailed against, and finally overthrown, the plans of the Indian Railway Commission, (composed of a civil engineer, sent at a great ex- pense from this counti-y, aided by two talented oiTiccrs of the Hon. East India Company's engineers,) approved of by the governor-general, the India House, and Cannon-row authorities, and applauded by the press. When we had occasion to review Mr. W. P. Andrew's various publications on Indian railways, as they issued from the press, we were amongst the first to call public at- tention to the originality and sound- ness of the views communicated, and it now appears that the result will prove a signal vindication of the correctness of those impressions. "Indeed, the Railway Companies in Bengal and Bombay that have obtained concessions are carrying out the views of 'the Old Indian Postmaster' to the letter, so far as the limited capital at tlicir disposal will allow them ; and it may be pre- dicted that whenever a concession is given for a railway in Madras, it will be for the line that writer so strongly advocated, viz., to Arcot, the ojilv short line in India which, in his opinion, woidd prove com- mercially remunerative." " Of the Railway Commission, Mr. Andrew in 1846, wrote thus : — ' It might have been hoped that the Railway Commissioners would have cleared the way to a satisfactory de- cision on this subject (the introduc- tionof the railway system into India), with an authority derivable from the soundness of the views enunciated, the variety of new and interesting data, the prestige of office, and ac- knowledged ability. But their re- port, beyond giving an official sanc- tion to railroads in general, sheds no new light on the question at issue. Instructed to suggest some feasible hne of moderate compass, the prin- cipal portion of their report is de- voted to recommending the adop- tion of a railroad of four hundred and fifty miles in length, through the most difficult, most unproduc- tive, and most desolate portion of a country, elsewhere easy, fertile, and densely peopled. " ' That j)lan of commencing im- proved transit, which would only supersede the river navigation where it was most defective, and co-operate with it where it was always available, i.e., a railroad from Calcutta to. deep water in the Ganges at Rajmahal is clearly the one that should be adopted ; from tliis point river steam- ers to Allahabad, at the confluence of the Jumna and Ganges, where deep water ceases, and a railroad from Allahabad to Delhi and the Sutlej.' " The arrival of the last mail from India brought the following infor- mation on the subject: — 'The How- rah terminus indicated by Mr. An- drew, to save bridging the Hooghly, had been adopted, and a section of the line as far as Pandooah is either in progress or under contract. The Railway Company have advertised for contracts for a further section, viz., from Pandooah to Raneegunge. " There cannot now be a reason- able doubt that the line will be carried ultimately to Rajmahal. "Had the plans of the Railway CommisBioners been adliered to, the East India Railway Company would now be bridging the Hooghly, with its banks ever trembling or in loco- motion, or building a bridge over the Soane as great in aU its duncn- sions as the Blackwall Railway, after searching diligently for its founda- tions 'below an unknown depth of sand. " The Government and people of India are therefore indebted to the •Old Indian Postmaster,' who has thus saved them from prosecuting a design that coidd only have led to disastrous and humiliating results, which would have been felt both in India and this country." From the "Indian News," Felruary 22nd, 1848. " The best testimony of the sound- ness of the 'Old Postmaster's' views is, that, in the settlement of Indian Railways, as far as it has recently taken place, not a few of his opinions have been followed by those in au- thority. We know of no work on the subject which can be compared with it whether as regards the local knowledge possessed by the vrriter — the judicious application of that knowledge, or as an exposition of the advantages which must result from improved modes of transit u\ the East, both to native industry and the requirements of British commerce." From the "Indian News," 22nd May, 1850. "The sum guaranteed, viz., £1,000,000 is not sufficient for the construction of a line that will yield any return. The Une from Calcutta to Mirzapore, the proposed termi- nus of the East Indian Une is 450 miles, the estimated cost of which is £16,000 per mile, i.e., 7,000,000. "Besides, it is a fact which can- not be refuted, that a line com- mencing at Calcutta must debouclie on the Ganges, before any benefit can accrue, either to the Govern- ment, the commerce of India, or to the people. " These facts, as clear as they are indisputable, were promulgated four years ago, in a work on Indian Railways, by Mr. Andrew, and re- iterated in a letter adcb-essed by him to Sir J, Law Lushington, in 1848. Subsequent experience proves their correctness." From the " Mobning Chronicle," May 2\st, 1850. " The opinion in Calcutta appears to be, that it is useless to attempt any experiment unless a capital of £2,000,000 is subscribed, as no rail- way in Lower India can possiblv be made to pay that does not debouche on the Ganges. The rail must be carried, in the first place, to Raj- mahal, which is 200 miles from Cal- cutta. This was clearly explained by Mr. W. P. Andrew five years ago in his work on Indian railways; and the opinions of the old post- master appear now to be fully con- firmed by the experience of those on the spot." From the " Morning Chronicle," November 20th, 1851. " Indian railways. — Wehave more than once predicted that the views propounded, several years ago, by Mr. W. P. Andrew, would be those that the Indian authorities would finally adopt, in preference to the plan recommended by the Indian Railway Commission. Mr. Andrew's project was to connect Calcutta (or, rather, Howrah) on the opposite bank of the Iloogliley, with the main Ganges at Rajmahal, the lowest practical point. " This railway would be about 200 miles in length, and would save, for eiglit months in the year, 530 miles of dangerous and difiicidl navigation through the Soonderbunds. " Tlie plan of the Railway Com- mission was to connect Calcutta with Mirzapore, on the main Ganges. Tliis would be 450 miles of railway tlirougii ;i (lilliciilt country, aud dc- Loiicliing on the Ganges at a point where the commerce was neither so great nor so impeded as lower down. By recent accounts from India, we observe that the Ilowrah terminus, indicated by Mr. Andrew to save bridging the Hooghly, had been adopted, and that section of the line as far as Padooah, was cither in pro- gress, or under contract ; and by the last mad, we observe that the rail- way company have advertized for contracts for a fm-ther section, viz., from Paudooah to Raneegunge. There cannot now be a reasonable doubt but that the line wUl be car- ried ultimately to Eajmahal." From the "Beitannia," December IZth, 1851. "It is annovmced, we see, by the ' Friend of India,' received by the last mail, 'That the Court of Direc- tors had decided for the adoption of the line proposed by Ma.jor Kennedy from the collieries to Kajmahal, and thence up the valley of the Ganges,' which is exactly the scheme origi- nally propounded and advocated by the ' old Indian postmaster,' Mr. W. P. Andrew) in 1846, some two or three years before Major Kennedy went to India, and to whom exclu- sively the merit is due of having pointed out the erroneous views of the East Indian Eadway Company, and adopted by the India Govern- ment Eadway Commission. Had the authorities acted upon Mr. Andrew's views, a large and useless expendi- ture of time and money would have been saved ; and it is admitted on all hands, that this gentleman ' has saved railway enterprise in India from a great and lamentable failure,' which would have reduced India to a state of more hopeless apathy and irretrievable desolation than ever ; famine and pestilence would have resumed their periodic reign, the happiness and prosperity of the people w^ould have been retarded for ages, and England's independence of America for the supply of raw mate- rial for the greatest of her staple manufactm-es, been more remote than ever." Is India to have Railways ? Or, Fallacies of an East Indian Mer- chant Exposed in a Letter to Lieut.-General Sir J. L. Lush- INGTON, G.C B., Chairman of the Hon East India Company, by An East India Officer. W. H. Allen and Co., Leaden- hall Street, 1S48. From the " Obseetee," November 17th, 1848. "This is a bold and able expo- sure of the system of Indian Rail- ways, as proposed to the public in this country, and an unanswerable vindication of the good faith of the India House authorities. " The writer is a man evidently well versed on his subject, which he treats in a manner that exhausts the whole question, and leaves nothing to be desired. " The India Company owe him much as a volunteer champion in a matter wherein their integrity was more than suspected : he has cer- tainly carried them through trium- phantly. This pamphlet will be perused with deep interest. From "Allen's Indian Mail," January hth, 1849. " This pamphlet, which is a most unmerciful exposure of the proceed- ings of the Directors of the East India Eadway Company, inflicts a lacerating castigation upon their advocate, 'An East India Merchant,' whose ' Letter to Lord John Russell,' noticed in the ' Mail ' of Nov. 2nd, the ' East India OfKcer ' considers as * the semi-official manifesto ' of the East Indian Railway Company, on behalf of the Directors and em- ployes. " It is lamentable to find that an undertaking, which, under proper management, might have been made one of the pioneers of great local improvement in India, has been so misconducted ; and the public owe thanks to the " East India Officer " who has exposed the real causes of 80 miserable a failure." Railways in Bengal: being the Substance of a Report addressed to Sir A. Galloway, K.C.B , by W. P. Andrew, Esq. JFrom the " Colo.vial and Asiatic Review," Julj/ 1852. " The following paper (Railways in Bengal,) giving, in a condensed form, the published opinions of the writer, was, at the request of the late Sir A. Galloway, K.C.B., submitted to him when Chairman of the East India Company in 1819, and for- warded by him to the Board of Con- trol, who considered it sufficiently important to retain posssesion of the original. The East India Railway Company being about to apply for additional capital, to enable it to carry out the view-s contained in this report, in place of those propounded by its own promoters and founders, and recommended by the Indian • Railway Commissioners, the docu- ment comes before the public at this moment invested with additional in- terest and authority." UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY Los Angeles This book is DUE on the last date stamped below. ^Y 71979 I PSD 2343 9/77 ^.r. / iiiiiiiiiiiiiniii 3 1158 00461 0241 UC SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY AA 001 108 834 1 i: '\