According to the census of 1901, of the 294 millions of people in all India, 2311⁄2 millions are in British territory, and 6211⁄2 millions under feudatory rule.

In the densely crowded British territories, after all deductions for new acquisitions have been made, the returns of the 1901 census show an increase of 2.5 per cent. during the ten years.1

This means a gross increase of 7 millions during ten years, which is a small increase compared with the 29 millions in the previous ten years.

Although the goverment of India was transferred from the East India Company to the Queen in 1858, it was not until 1877 that the late Queen Victoria formally assuined the title of Kaisar-i-Hind, or EMPRESS OF INDIA.

INDIA.

INDIA PROPER or HINDUSTAN extends from the Himalaya Mountains on the north to Cape Comorin in the south, and from the Sulaiman Mountains on the west to the head of the Bay of Bengal in the east.

"From Peshawar, the northern frontier station, to Cape Comorin, the distance is 1,900 miles, and the same distance separates Karachi, the port of Sind, from Sadiya, the frontier post on the eastern border of Assam.

BOUNDARIES: India is bounded by the Himalaya Mountains on the north; by Burma and the Bay of Bengal on the east; and by Afghanistan, Baluchistan, and the Arabian Sea on the west. To the south it terminates in Cape Comorin, a conspicuous headland which fronts the waters of the Indian Ocean.

In shape, India Proper is triangular, the vast range of the Himalayas forming the base, the Malabar and Coromandel Coasts the sides, and Cape Comorin the apex. It is worthy of notice that the boundaries of India are, for the most part, formed by strongly-marked natural features. Thus the Hala and the Sulaiman Mountains on the north-west, the Himalayas on the north, and the Naga, Khasia, and Tipperah Hills on the east, form an almost continuous "wall," enclosing the continental portion of India. The strictly peninsular portion south of the Tropic of Cancer is bounded on its eastern and western sides by the sea. The political importance of a naturally strong frontier, instead of merely artificial boundaries, is evidently very great, especially when an immense territory like India is held by a distant foreign power.

EXTENT: India Proper embraces an area of over 11⁄2 million square miles, a magnitude 13 times greater than that of the British Islands, and which exceeds by more than 27 times the area of England and Wales.

If we include Kashmir, with an area estimated at 80,900 square miles, Upper Burma at 87,435, Manipur at 8,coo and the British Shan States at 68,165 square miles, the total area of British India may be taken at 1,766,517 square miles, of which a million square miles are under British, and the rest under native administration.

1. The increase between 1881 and 1891 was last decade is owing to the great scarcity which The small increase during the prevailed during that period. 11.2 per cent

COASTS: The coasts of India are, on the whole, regular and unbroken, deficient in good harbours, and so exposed and surfbeaten as to be in many parts extremely dangerous to approach. The length of the coast-line is about 3,600 miles, equivalent to one mile of coast to every 416 square miles of area.

Various portions of the Indian coasts are distinguished by special names, such as the Orissa Coast, between the mouths of the Hugli and Lake Chilka; the Golkonda Coast, between Lake Chilka and the Kistna; the Coromandel Coast, between the Kistna and Cape Comorin; and the Malabar Coast, between Cape Comorin and Goa.

Of the few hadlands on the coast of India, the principal are Cape Comorin, the most southerly point of the peninsula, Cape Monze (near Karachi) and Diu Head (south of Gujarat) on the west coast, and Points Calimere and Palmyras on the east coast.

The chief In.ets are the Gulf of Cutch or Kach, leading into the Rann of Cutch (a vast salt marsh, flooded only during the rainy season), and the Gulf of Cambay, on the west coast; and, on the south, the Gulf of Manaar, divided from Palk Strait by the remarkable ridge of sandstone known as Adam's Bridge, between Ceylon and the mainland.

ISLANDS: The principal islands are Ceylon, near the south-east coast; Bombay and Salsette, close inshore on the west coast; the Laccadives and Maldives, off the south-west coast; and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, in the Bay of Bengal, to the south of Lower Burma.

Ceylon, a large island lying to the south-east of India, is not under the Government of India, but forms a distinct Colony, under the authority of the British Crown.

The groups of the Laccadive and Maldive Islands lie in the Indian Ocean, to the south-west of the Indian Peninsula. The Laccadives are surrounded by coral reefs, and the Maldive Islands are wholly composed of coral, and scarcely rise above the level of the surrounding waters. The coco-nut is the chief article of produce of these Islands.

In the Andaman Islands, in the eastern part of the Bay of Bengal, the chief settlement is PORT BLAIR, on Great Andaman Island.

The Nicobar Islands lie to the south-east of the Andaman Islands, and consist of two large islands and several smaller ones.

Of the Bombay Group, the principal islands are Bombay, Salsette, Colaba, and Elephanta, the latter being especially famous for its temples and idols excavated in the solid rock. The island of Bombay, near the southern extremity of which lies the town of BOMBAY, is connected with Salsette by an artificial causeway.

NATURAL FEATURES: The more noticeable of the great natural features of India are the vast range of the Himalayas, the loftiest mountains in the world, on the north, whose exterior ranges rise abruptly from the Great Plain of Hindustan, which is watered

1. For an account of Ceylon see page 374.

2. Here Lord Mayo, the Viceroy of India, was assassinated by a convict in 1872.

by the Indus and the Ganges. The peninsular portion of India, to the south of this plain, forms a series of tablelands, crossed transversely by several considerable chains, and buttressed on the east and west by the Ghats, between which and the sea is a narrow plain. The highlands of Central and Southern India are everywhere seamed by irregular valleys and drained by numerous rivers.

India thus embraces two great divisions: the north, which is an extensive lowland plain; and the centre and south, which form a plateau, bordered by mountains of moderate altitude. The plain of Northern India is specially distinguished as Hindustan, a name which is also commonly given to the whole country; the centre and south constitute a region known as the Deccan.

MOUNTAINS: The chief mountain-chains of India are the Himalayas, the Western and Eastern Ghats, the Aravalli Hills, the Vindhya and the Satpura Mountains, and the Nilgiri Hills. The Himalayas are by far the most important, and they include the highest elevations on the surface of the globe.

The Himalaya Mountains extend for 1,500 miles in a well-defined line along the northern border of India, dividing that country from the tableland of Tibet. Like other great mountain-ranges, the Himalayas consist of several parallel ranges. The outer range, bordering on the great plain of India, rises abruptly to a height of 3,000 or 4,000 feet. The inner chains gradually increase in elevation and culminate in the main ridge containing the lofty summits of Gaurisankar or Mount Everest, 29,002 feet above the sea, the highest mountain in the world; Kanchinjan a, 28,177 feet; and Dhaulagiri, 26,825 feet. All the higher parts of the Himalayas are covered with perpetual snow. The passes over the Himalayas are lofty and extremely difficult. The best known passes are the Karakoram Pass (18,550 feet), and the Mustagh, leading from Kashmir into Eastern Turkestan; and the Seylub Pass, leading into Tibet. All the loftier valleys are filled with vast glaciers, from which the great rivers of India derive a never-failing supply. The lofty Karakoram Range, on the northern frontier of Kashmir, contains Mount Godwin-Austen (28,250 feet)— the second highest elevation on the globe. The Karakoram Mountains are separated from the Himalayas by the valley of the Upper Indus,

The Western Ghats extend along the Malabar Coast of India. Their highest summits do not exceed 8,000 feet. A succession of detached portions of high ground, which extends along the eastern side of the peninsula, is called the Eastern Ghats. These have an average height of about 1,500 feet.

The Aravalli Hills lie along the western border of the tableland of Malwa, between the basins of the Ganges and the Lower Indus. The average elevation is inconsiderable, but Mount Abu rises to a height of 5,000 feet above the sea. Farther south is Girna, 3,000 feet high.

The Vindhya Mountains lie in the direction of east and west, along the north side of the peninsular portion of India. Their height is moderate, seldom exceeding 3,000 feet. The Satpura Mountains run almost parallel to the Vindhya range for 200 miles, between the Narbada and the Tapti. These mountains are prolonged eastward, almost to the banks of the Ganges, as the Rajmahal Hills, one peak of which, Mount Parisnath, reaches a height of 4.530 feet. Still farther east, beyond the Brahmaputra, are the minor Gare and the Khasia Hills. Between these and the coast are the Tipperah Hius.

The Nilgiri Hills form a connecting link between the Eastern and the Western Ghats, and rise abruptly from the remarkable valley or gap" of Palghat, which extends right across the peninsula, The highest point is Mount Dodabetla, 8,760 feet. To the south of the "gap" are the Anamalai Hills, culminating in Anamudi, 8,837 feet high-the highest mountain in India south of the Himalayas. To the south-east lie the Palni Hills, and further south the Cardamon Hills.

TABLELANDS: India contains two important tablelands, one in the north and a far larger one in the south.

The Northern Tableland, or the Plateau of Malwa and Bundelkhand, is in Central India, and is bounded on the north-west by the Aravalli Hills, and on the south by the Vindhya Mountains.

The Southern Tableland, or the Deccan, occupies nearly the whole of peninsular India, and is bounded on the east and west by the Eastern and the Western Ghats, and on the north by the Vindhya and the Satpura Mountains and the valleys of the Narbada and the Tapti.

PLAINS: The Great Plain of Northern India extends across the country between the northern tableland and the Himalayas. Its south-eastern slope, towards the Bay of Bengal, is drained by the Ganges, and its south-western slope by the Indus; hence its division into the "Plain of the Ganges" and the "Plain of the Indus."

Within the latter is comprehended the fertile Punjab, the Great Indian Desert (or Thar), and the Rann of Cutch. In the north of the plain of the Ganges is the malarious swamp called the "Tarai;" with this exception, the plain is fertile and productive, supporting an exceptionally dense population. The East and West Coast Plains lie between the Ghats and the sea; the eastern is much wider and more fertile than the western, the extreme breadth of which nowhere exceeds 50 miles.

RIVERS: The rivers of India are naturally divisible into two great sections, namely, those draining the south-eastern slope into the Bay of Bengal, and those draining the south-western counterslope into the Arabian Sea.

The principal rivers are the Brahmaputra, Ganges, Mahanadi, Godavari, Kistna, and Cauveri, draining the south-eastern slope into the Bay of Bengal; the Indus, Narbada, and Tapti, draining the south-western counter-slope into the Arabian Sea.

The BRAHMAPUTRA (1,680 miles) rises in the vast glaciers on the northern slopes of the Himalayas, and flows east for several hundred miles, but turns south through Assam, and unites in its lower course with the eastern outlet of the Ganges.

The GANGES rises on the southern slope of the Himalayas, and, after a south-eastern course of 1,500 miles through the great plain, finally enters the Bay of Bengal by numerous channels, of which the Hugli, on which stands CALCUTTA, the capital of India, is the most important. The Ganges is navi. gable for the largest vessels to CHANDARNAGAR, while light steamers can go up to CAWNPUR, and thence by canal to HARDWAR, more than 1,300 miles

above its mouth. The chief tributaries are the Jumna and the Son on the right, and the Gumti, Gogra, Gundak, and Kusi on the left bank.

The Mahanadi, though notorious for its destructive floods, is yet navigable by boats for 400 miles. Its length is 520 miles, and the area of its basin is 70,000 square miles. Its extensive delta formed the old province of Cuttack.

The Godavari rises in the Western Ghats, not far from the Gulf of Cambay, and flows south-east for 900 miles, entering the Bay of Bengal by two large channels. The navigation of this river is impeded by several rapids.

The Kistna also rises on the eastern slopes of the Western Ghats, and has a rapid and unnavigable course of 800 miles.

The Cauveri rises in the Western Ghats and enters the eastern coast-plain by two magnificent falls, of which the upper is 370, and the lower 460, feet high. It enters the sea by two branches, which enclose a delta 80 miles long. The south-eastern branch, the Colerun, is extensively used for irrigation.

Of the minor streams that flow into the Bay of Bengal the principal are the Bramini, between the Mahanadi and the Ganges; the North Pennar and South Pennar, and the Palar, all of which rise in the hills of Mysore.

The INDUS (1,800 miles) rises in the tableland of Tibet, and flows first north. west through Kashmir, and then south through the Punjab and Sind, entering the Arabian Sea by numerous mouths. About 470 miles above the sea it is joined by a stream called the Panj-nad, which brings the collected waters of five tributary rivers. The district through which these rivers flow is called the Punjab, that is, the country of the five rivers. The names of these are the Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Bias, and Sutlej. The Indus is navigable from its mouths near KARACHI to its confluence with the Kabul River at ATTOCK, 900 miles from the sea.

The Narbada rises in the highlands of Central India, and flows west between the Vindhya and the Satpura Mountains, into the Gulf of Cambay. It is 800 miles long, and is throughout rapid and unnavigable.

The Tapti rises in the Satpura Mountains, and flows west through the valley formed by them and the northern edge of the Deccan, Both the Narbada and the Tapti are subject to sudden and destructive floods.

Of the smaller streams draining the south-western slope the chief are the Luni. which rises in the Aravalli Hills and flows into the Rann of Cutch; and the Mahi, which rises in the tableland of Malwa and enters the Gulf of Cambay

LAKES: The lakes of India are small and unimportant.

Among these are the Chilka and Palicat Lagoons on the east coast; the Lagoons of the Malabar coast; Lake Kolar, formed by the expansion of the Kistna and the Godavari; and Lake Wular, similarly formed by the Jhelum, in Kashmir.

CLIMATE: The climate of India is hot, excepting only in the higher mountain-regions, where a cool temperature results from elevation above the sea. These elevated districts are, accordingly, much resorted to in the hot season.1

1. The chet hill stations, or simatoriums, which | enervating, that there is a regular exodus, even of are resorted to by Europeans during the hot season, are Sena, in the Him duyan hils, near the banks the Subsej: Darling, on the borders of Sikkim, Oracamund, or Ut kamund,in the Nilgiri HBS e heat of the Indian summer is so intense and

Government Departments, from Calcutta. Bombay, and Madras to the hills, and the editor of this work has, more than once, received an intimation that certain matters would be attended to "next cold weather."