The Indian Empire

Its People, History and Products

W.W. Hunter

• Publisher: Taylor & Francis
• Year: 2013
• Print ISBN: 9780415865715
• eBook ISBN: 9781136383083
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Ethnic Studies
• Index: Social Sciences

This Volume VII of eleven in a series on India: History, Economy and Society. Originally published in 1886, this book presents an account of India and its people, condensed from statistical surveys that initially were 128 volumes and 60, 000 pages. Further shrunk into twelve volumes as the he Imperial Gazetteer of India, this single volume has the essence of the whole.

THE INDIAN EMPIRE

CHAPTER I.

PHYSICAL ASPECTS.

General outline.

INDIA forms a great irregular triangle, stretching southwards from Mid-Asia into the sea. Its northern base rests upon the Himálayan ranges ; the chief part of its western side is washed by the Arabian Sea, and the chief part of its eastern side by the Bay of Bengal. It extends from the eighth to the thirty-fifth degree of north latitude; that is to say, from the hottest regions of the equator to far within the temperate zone. The capital, Calcutta, lies in 881/2° E. long. ; so that when the sun sets at six o’clock there, it is just past mid-day in England.

Dimensions.

The length of India from north to south, and its greatest breadth from east to west, are both about 1900 miles ; but the triangle tapers with a pear-shaped curve to a point at Cape Comorin, its southern extremity. To this compact dominion the English have added, under the name of British Burma, the strip, of country on the eastern shore of the Bay of Bengal. The whole territory thus described contains close on millions of square miles, and over 256 millions of inhabitants. India, therefore, has an area and a population about equal to the area and population of the whole of Europe, less Russia. Its people more than double Gibbon’s estimate of 120 millions for all the races and nations which obeyed Imperial Rome.

Origin of the word ‘India.’

This vast Asiatic peninsula has, from a very ancient period, been known to the external world by one form or other of the name which it still bears. The early Indians did not themselves recognise any single designation for their numerous and diverse races ; their nearest approach to a common appellation for India being Bhárata-varsha, the land of the Bháratas, a noble warrior tribe which came from the north. But this term, although afterwards generalized, applied only to the basins of the Indus and. the Ganges, and strictly speaking to only a part of them. The Indus river formed the first great landmark of nature which arrested the march of the peoples of Central Asia as they descended upon the plains of the Punjab. That mighty river impressed itself on the imagination of the ancient world. To the early comers from the high-lying camping grounds of inner Asia, it seemed a vast expanse of waters.

Sanskrit, Zend, and Greek forms.

They called it in Sanskrit by the word which they gave to the ocean itself, Sindhus (from the root syand, ‘to flow’) : a name afterwards applied to the ocean-god (Varuna). The term extended itself to the country around the river, and in its plural form, Sindhavas, to the inhabitants thereof. The ancient Persians, softening the initial sibilant to an aspirate, called it Hendu in the Zend language : the Greeks, again softening the initial by omitting the aspirate altogether, derived from it their Indikos and Indos. These forms closely correspond to the ancient Persian word Idhus, which is used in the inscriptions of Darius for the dwellers on the Indus. But the native Indian form (Sindhus) was known to the Greeks, as is proved by the Sinthos of the Periplus Maris Erythraei, and by the distinct statement of Pliny, ‘Indus incolis Sindus annellatns’ Virgil savs. ‘India mittit ebur.’

Buddhist derivation of ‘In-tu.’

The eastern nations of Asia, like the western races of Europe, derived their name for India from the great river of the Punjab. The Buddhist pilgrims from China, during the first seven centuries of our era, usually travelled landward to Hindustán, skirting round the Himálayas, and entering the holy land of their faith by the north-western frontier of India. One of the most celebrated of these pious travellers, Hiuen Tsiang (629–645 A.D.), states that India ‘was anciently called Shin-tu, also Hien-tau ; but now, according to the right pronunciation, it is called In-tu.’ This word in Chinese means the moon ; and the cradle-land of Buddhism derived its name, according to the good pilgrim, from its superior glory in the spiritual firmament, sicut luna inter minora sidera. ‘Though there be torches by night and the shining of the stars,’ he says, ‘how different from the bright (cool) moon ! Just so the bright connected light of holy men and sages, guiding the world as the shining of the moon, have made this country eminent, and so it is called In-tu.’² Notwithstanding the pious philology of the pilgrim, the great river of the Punjab is, of course, the origin of the Chinese name.

The term Hindustan is derived from the modern Persian form (Hind), and properly applies only to the Punjab and the central basin of the Ganges. It is reproduced, however, with a wider signification in the title of the Queen-Empress, Kaisar-i-Hind, the Ciesar, Kaiser, Czar, or Sovereign-paramount of India,

Kaisar-i-Hind.

India is shut off from the rest of Asia on the north by a vast mountainous region, known in the aggregate as the Himálayas. Among their southern ranges lie the Independent States of Bhután and Nepál : the great table-land of Tibet stretches northward behind : the Native Principality of Kashmír occupies their western corner. At this north-western angle of India (in lat. 36° N., long. 75° E.), an allied mountain system branches southwards. Its lofty offshoots separate India on the west, by the well-marked ranges of the Safed Koh and the Suláimán, from Afghánistán; and by a southern continuation of lower hills (the Hálas, etc.) from Baluchistán. The southernmost part of the western land frontier of India is the river Hab ; and the boundary ends with Cape Monze, at the mouth of its estuary, in lat. 24° 50’ N., long. 66° 43’ E. Still proceeding southwards, India is bounded along the west and south-west by the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean. Turning northwards from its southern extremity at Cape Comorin (lat. 8° 4’ 20” N., long. 77° 35’ 35” E.), the Bay of Bengal forms the main part of its eastern boundary.

Boundaries,

on the north,

and northwest ;

on the west ;

on the east.

Burmese boundary.

But in the north-east, as in the north-west, India has again a land frontier. The Himálayan ranges at their north-eastern angle (in about lat. 28° N., long. 97° E.) throw off long spurs and chains to the southward. These spurs separate the British Provinces of Assam and Eastern Bengal from Independent Burma. They are known successively as the Abar, Nágá, Patkoi, and Bárel ranges. Turning almost due south in lat. 25°, they culminate in the Blue Mountain, 7100 feet, in lat. 22° 37’ N., long. 93° 10’ E. ; and then stretch southwards undei the name of the Arakan Yomas, separating British Burma from Independent Burma, until they again rise into the great mountain of Myin-matin (4700 feet), in 19J degrees of north latitude. Up to this point, the eastern hill frontier runs in a southerly direction, and follows, generally speaking, the watershed which divides the river systems of Bengal and British Burma (namely, the Brahmaputra, Meghná, Kuladan, etc.) from the Irawadi basin in Independent Burma. But fron: near the base of the Myin-matin Mountain, the British frontiei stretches almost due east in a geographical line, which divideí the lower Districts and delta of the Irawadi in British Burma, from the middle and upper Districts of that river in Independent Burma. Proceeding south-eastwards from the delta of the Irawadi, a confused succession of little explored ranges separates the British Province of Tenasserim from the Native Kingdom of Siam. The boundary line runs down to Point Victoria at the extremity of Tenasserim (lat. 9° 59’ N., long. 98° 32’ E.), following the direction of the watershed between the rivers of the British territory on the west and of Siam on the east.

Tenasserim boundary.

Physical aspects.

The three Regions of India.

The Empire included within these boundaries is rich in varieties of scenery and climate, from the highest mountains in the world, to vast river deltas raised only a few inches above the level of the sea. It forms a continent rather than a country. But if we could look down on the whole from a balloon, we should find that India consists of three separate and well-defined tracts. The first includes the lofty Himálaya Mountains, which shut it out from the rest of Asia, and which, although for the most part beyond the British frontier, form a most important factor in the physical geography of Northern India. The second region stretches southwards from the base of the Himálayas, and comprises the plains of the great rivers which issue from them. The third region slopes upward again from the southern edge of the river plains, and consists of a high three-sided table-land, buttressed by the Vindhya Mountains on the north, and by the Eastern and Western Gháts which run down the coast on either side of India, till they meet at a point near Cape Comorin. The interior three-sided table-land, thus enclosed, is dotted with peaks and ranges, broken by river valleys, and interspersed by broad level uplands. It comprises the southern half of the peninsula.

First Region—The Himálayas.

The first of the three regions is the Himálaya Mountains and their offshoots to the southward. The Himálayas—literally, the ‘Abode of Snow,’ from the Sanskrit hima, frost (Latin, hiems, winter), and álaya, a house—consist of a system of stupendous ranges, the loftiest in the world. They are the Emodus or Imaus of the Greek geographers, and extend in the shape of a scimitar, with its edge facing southwards, for a distance of 1500 miles along the northern frontier of India. At the north-eastern angle of that frontier, the Dihang river, the connecting link between the Tsan-pu (Sangpu) of Tibet and the Brahmaputra of Assam, bursts through the main axis 3f the Himálayas. At the opposite or north-western angle, the Indus in like manner pierces the Himálayas, and turns southwards on its course through the Punjab. The Himálayas, like the Kuen-luen chain, the Tián-shan, and the Hindu Kush, converge towards the Pamír table-land—that central knot whence the great mountain systems of Asia radiate. With the Kuen-luen the Himálayas have a closer connection, as these two mighty ranges form respectively the northern and southern buttresses of the lofty Tibetan plateau. The Himálayas project east and west beyond the Indian frontier. Their total length is about 1750 miles, and their breadth from north to south from 150 to 250 miles.³

The double Himálayan Wall and Trough beyond.

Regarded merely as a natural irontier separating India from the Tibetan plateau, the Himálayas may be described as a double mountain wall running nearly east and west, with a trough or series of deep valleys beyond. The southernmost of the two walls rises steeply from the plains of India to 20,000 feet, or nearly 4 miles, in height. It culminates in KANCHANJANGA, 28,176 feet, and MOUNT EVEREST, 29,002 feet, the latter being the loftiest measured peak in the world. This outer or southern wall of the Himálayas subsides on the northward into a series of dips or uplands, reported to be 13,000 feet above the level of the sea, beyond which rises the second or inner range of Himálayan peaks. The double Himálayan wall thus formed, then descends into a great trough or line of valleys, in which the Sutlej, the Indus, and the mighty Tsan-pu (Sangpu) gather their waters.

The Sutlej and the Indus flow westwards, and pierce through the Western Himálayas by separate passes into the Punjab. The Tsan-pu, after a long unexplored course eastwards along the valley of the same name in Tibet, finds its way through the Dihang gorge of the Eastern Himálayas into Assam, where it takes its final name of the Brahmaputra. On the north of the river trough, beyond the double Himálayan wall, rise the Karakoram and Gangri mountains, which form the immediate escarpment of the Tibetan table-land. Behind the Gangris, on the north, the lake-studded plateau of Tibet spreads itself out at a height averaging 15,000 feet. Broadly speaking, the double Himálayan wall rests upon the low-lying plains of India, and descends northward into a river trough beyond which rises the Tibetan plateau. Vast glaciers, one of which is known to be 60 miles in length, slowly move their masses of ice downwards to the valleys. The higher ranges between India and Tibet are crowned with eternal snow. They rise in a region of unbroken silence, like gigantic frosted fortresses one above the other, till their white towers are lost in the sky.

Himálayan passes.

This wild region is in many parts impenetrable to man, and nowhere yields a passage for a modern army. It should be mentioned, however, that the Chinese outposts extend as far as a point only 6000 feet above the Gangetic plain, north of Khatmandu. Indeed, Chinese armies have seriously threatened Khatmandu itself ; and Sir David Ochterlony’s advance from the plains of Bengal to that city in 1816 is a matter of history. Ancient and well-known trade routes exist, by means of which merchandise from the Punjab finds its way over heights of 18,000 feet into Eastern Túrkistán and Tibet. The Mustagh (Snowy Mount), the Karakoram (Black Mount), and the Chang-chenmo are among the most famous of these passes.

Offshoots of the Himálayas ; on east ;

The Himálayas not only form a double wall along the north of India, but at both their eastern and western extremities send out ranges to the southwards, which protect India’s northeastern and north-western frontiers. On the north-east, those offshoots, under the name of the Nágá and Patkoi mountains, etc., form a barrier between the civilised British Districts and the wild tribes of Upper Burma. The southern continuations of these ranges, known as the Yomas, separate British from Independent Burma, and are crossed by passes, the most historic of which, the An or Aeng, rises to 4517 feet, with gradients of 472 feet to the mile.

and west.

The Gateways of India.

On the opposite or north-western frontier of India, the mountainous offshoots run down the entire length of the British boundaries from the Himálayas to the sea. As they proceed southwards, their best marked ranges are in turn known as the Safed Koh, the Suláimán, and the Hála mountains. These massive barriers have peaks of great height, culminating in the Takht-i-Suláimán, or Throne of Solomon, 11,317 feet above the level of the sea. But, as already mentioned, the mountain wall is pierced at the corner where it strikes southwards from the Himálayas by an opening through which the Indus river flows into India. An adjacent opening, the KHAIBAR PASS (3400 feet above sea-level, amid neighbouring heights rising to 6800 feet), with the Kuram Pass on the south of it, the Gwalari Pass near Dera Ismáil Khán, the Tál Pass debouching near Dera Ghází Khán, and the famous Bolán Pass (5800 feet at top), still farther south, furnish the gateways between India and Afghánistán. The Hála, Brahui, and Pab mountains form the southern hilly offshoots between India and Baluchistán ; but they have a much less elevation than the Safed Koh or the Suláimán.

Himálayan water-supply.

Himálayan rainfall.

The Himálayas, while thus standing as a rampart and strong defence around the northern frontier of India, collect and store up water for the tropical plains below. Throughout the summer, vast quantities of water are exhaled from the Indian Ocean. This moisture gathers into vapour, and is borne northward by the monsoon or regular wind, which sets in from the south in the month of June. The monsoon carries the water-laden clouds northwards across India, and thus produces the ‘rainy season,’ on which agriculture so critically depends. But large quantities of the moisture do not condense or fall as rain in passing over the hot plains. This vast residue is eventually clashed against the Himálayas. Their lofty double walls stop its farther progress northwards, and it either descends in rain on their outer slopes, or is frozen into snow in its attempt to cross their inner heights. Very little gets beyond them ; so that while the southern spurs of the Himálayas receive the largest measured rainfall in the world, and pour it down to the Indian rivers, the great plateau of Tibet on the north of the double Himálayan wall gets scarcely any rainfall.

At Cherra-Púnjí, where the monsoon first strikes the hills in Assam, 489 inches of rain, according to returns for 25 years ending 1881, fall annually. In one year (1861) as many as 805 inches were reported, of which 366 inches fell in the single month of July. While, therefore, the yearly rainfall in London is about 2 feet, and that of the plains of India from 1 to 6 feet, the rainfall at Cherra-Piinji is 40 feet, a depth more than is required to float the l...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title page
• Copyright page
• Table of Contents
• Chapter I. Physical Aspects
• Chapter II. The Population of India
• Chapter III. The Non-Aryan Races
• Chapter IV. The Aryans in Ancient India
• Chapter V. Buddhism (543 B.C. to 1000 A.D.).
• Chapter VI. The Greeks in India (327 to 161 B.C.).
• Chapter VII. Scythic Inroads into India (126? B.C. to 544 A.D.).
• Chapter VIII. Rise of Hinduism (750 to 1520 A.D.).
• Chapter IX. Christianity in India (Circa 100 to 1881 A.D.).
• Chapter X. Early Muhammadan Rulers (711 to 1526 A.D.).
• Chapter XI. The Mughal Empire (1526 TO 1761 A.D.).
• Chapter XII. The Maratha Power (1634 to 18l8 A.D.).
• Chapter XIII. The Indian Vernaculars and Their Literature.
• Chapter XIV. Early European Settlements (1498 to 18th Century A.D.).
• Chapter XV. History of British Rule (1757 to 1885).
• Chapter XVI. British Administration of India.
• Chapter XVII. Agriculture and Products.
• Chapter XVIII. Means of Communication.
• Chapter XIX. Commerce and Trade.
• Chapter XX. Arts and Manufactures.
• Chapter XXI. Mines and Minerals.
• Chapter XXII. Geology.
• Chapter XXIII. Meteorology.
• Chapter XXIV. Zoology and Botany.
• Chapter XXV. Vital Statistics.
• Appendices
• Index