BOMBAY
BOMBAY, a Presidency and Governorship of British India, consisting partly of British districts, and partly of native states under the protection of Her Majesty’s Indian Government. This territory extends from 28° 32' to 13° 65' N. lat., and from 66° 43' to 76° 20' E. long.; and is bounded on the N. by Beluchistan, the Panj Ab, and the native states of Rajputana; on the E. by the native state of Indor, the Central Provinces, West Berar, and the Nizam’s dominions; on the S. by Madras and Mysor; and on the W. by the Arabian Sea. Area, including Sindh, 188,195 square miles, viz., 124,943 British, and 63,252 under Native rule. Population, 25,624,696 souls, viz., British districts, 16,352,623; Native states, 9,272,073. Bombay Presidency comprises three British divisions or commissionerships, the northern, the southern, and the Sindh divisions, with the following 24 districts :—Bombay, Ahmadabad, KairA, Panch Mahals, Broach, Surat, TanιιA, KolabA, Khandesh, Nasik, Ahmadnagar, Belg Am, KanarA, Dharwar, Kaladgi, PûnA, Ratnagiri, SatarA, Sholapur, Upper Sindh Frontier, Karachi, Haidar Ab Ad, Shikarpur, and Thar Parkar. The Native states are under the supervision of British political officers, and are divided into 16 agencies, viz., Baroda, Kachh, Kathiawar, KairA, Surat, Sholâpur, SatarA, Kolhapur, South Marhattâ Country, Rewakanta, Mahikanta, Pahlanpur, Sawantwari, TannA, KolabA, and Dharwar. The Presidency also includes the Portuguese possessions of Daman, Diu, and Goa.
Physical Aspects. —The Bombay Presidency consists of a long strip of land along the Indian Ocean from the south of the Panjab to the north of Mysor, from 25° to 14° 3' N. lat. The coast is rock-bound and difficult of access; and though it contains several bays forming fair-weather ports for vessels engaged in the coasting trade, Bombay, Karachi in Sindh, and Karwar alone have harbours sufficiently landlocked to protect shipping during the prevalence of the south-west monsoon. The coast-line is regular and little broken, save by the Gulfs of Kambay and Kachh, between which lies the peninsula of Kathiawar.
Mountains.— Speaking generally, a range of hills, known as the Western Ghats (ghauts), runs down the coast, at places rising in splendid bluffs and precipices from the water’s edge, at others retreating inland, and leaving a flat fertile strip of 5 to 50 miles between their base and the sea. In the north of the Presidency on the right bank of the Indus, the HA1A mountains, a continuation of the great Sulaiman range, separate British India from the dominions of the Khan of Khelat. Leaving Sindh, and passing by the ridges of low sand hills,—the leading feature of the desert east of the Indus,—and the isolated hills of Kachh and Kathiawar, which form geologically the western extremity of the Aravali range, the first extensive mountain range is that separating Gujarat from the states of Central India. The rugged and mountainous country south of the Tapti forms the northern extremity of the. Sahyadri or Western Ghats. This great range of hills, sometimes overhanging the ocean, and generally running parallel to it at a distance nowhere exceeding 50 miles, with an average elevation of about 1800 feet, contains individual peaks rising to more than double that height. They stretch southwards for upwards of 500 miles, with a breadth of 10 to 20 miles. The western declivity is abrupt, the land at the base of the hills being but slightly raised above the level of the sea. As is usually the case with the trap formation, they descend to the plains in terraces with abrupt fronts. The landward slope is in many places very gentle, the crest of the range being sometimes but slightly raised above the level of the plateau of the Dakhin. Their best-known elevation is Mahabaleshwar, 4800 feet high, a fine plateau, 37 miles from Pûna, covered with rich vegetation, and used by the Bombay Government as its summer retreat and sanitarium. In the neighbourhood of the Sahyadri hills, particularly towards the northern extremity of the range, the country is rugged and broken, containing isolated peaks, masses of rock, and spurs, which, running eastward, form watersheds for the great rivers of the Dakhin. The Satpura hills separate the valley of the Tapti from the valley of the NarbadA, and the district of Khandesh from the territories of Indor. The Satmala or Ajanta hills, which are rather the northern slope of the plateau than a distinct range of hills, separate Khandesh from the Nizam’s dominions.
Plains.— The more level parts of Bombay consist of five well-demarcated tracts—Sindh, Gujarat, the Konkan, the Dakhin or Deccan, and the Karnatic. Sindh, or the lower valley of the Indus, is very flat, with but scanty vegetation, and depending for productiveness entirely on irrigation. Gujarat, except on its northern parts, consists of rich, highly cultivated alluvial plains, watered by the Tapti and NarbadA, but not much subject to inundation. The Konkan lies between the Western Ghats and the sea. It is a rugged and difficult country, intersected by creeks, and abounding in isolated peaks and detached ranges of hills. The plains of the Dakhin and Khandesh are watered by large rivers, but as the rainfall is uncertain, they are generally, during the greater part of the year, bleak and devoid of vegetation. The Karnatic plain, or the country south of the River KrishnA, consists of extensive tracts of black or cotton soil in a high state of cultivation.
Rivers.— The chief river of Western India is the Indus, which enters the Presidency from the north of Sindh, and flowing south in a tortuous course, falls into the Arabian Sea by several mouths, such as the Ghizri creek, Khudi creek, Pitiani creek, Sisa creek, Hajamri creek, Vatho creek, Mall creek, Wari creek, Bhitiara creek, Sir creek, and Khori creek. In the dry season the bed varies at different places from 480 to 1600 yards. The flood season begins in March and continues till September, the average depth of the river rising from 9 to 24 feet, and the velocity of the current increasing from 3 to 7 miles an hour. Next to the Indus comes the NarbadA. Rising in the Central Provinces,' and traversing the dominions of Holkar, the Narbada enters the Presidency at the north-western extremity of the Khandesh district, flows eastward, and after a course of 700 miles from its source, falls into the Gulf of Kambay, forming near its mouth the alluvial plain of Broach, one of the richest districts of Bombay. For about 100 miles from the sea the Narbada is at all seasons navigable by small boats, and during the rains by vessels of from 30 to 50 tons burden. The Tapti enters the Presidency a few miles south of the town of Burhanpur, a station on the Great Indian Peninsula Railway, flows eastward through the district of Khandesh, the native state of Rewakanta, and the district of Surat, and falls into the Gulf of Kambay, a few miles west of the town of Surat. The Tapti drains about 250 miles of country, and is, in a commercial point of view, the most useful of the Gujarat rivers. Besides these there are many minor streams. The Banas and the Saraswati take their rise in the Aravali hills, and flowing eastward through the native state of Pahlanpur, fall into the Rann of Kachh. The Sabarmati and the Mahi rise in the Mahikanta hills, and flowing southwards, drain the districts of Northern Gujarat, and fall into the sea near the head of the Gulf of Kambay. The streams which, rising in the Sáhyádri range, or Western Gháts, flow westward into the Arabian Sea, are of little importance. During the rains they are formidable torrents, but with the return of the fair weather they dwindle away, and during the hot season, with a few exceptions, they almost dry up. Clear and rapid as they descend the hills, on reaching the lowlands of the Konkan they become muddy and brackish creeks. The Kanarese rivers have a larger body of water and a more regular flow than the streams of the Konkan. One of them, the Sheráwatí, forcing its way through the western ridge of the Gháts, plunges from the high to the low country by a succession of falls, the principal of which is 890 feet in height. The Sáhyádri, or Western Gháts, also throw off to the eastward the two principal rivers of the Madras Presidency, the Godávarí and the Krishná. These rivers collect countless tributary streams, some of them of considerable size, and drain the entire plain of the Dakhín as they pass eastward towards the Bay of Bengal.
Lakes.— The Manchar Lake is situated on the right bank of the Indus. During inundations it attains a length of 20 miles, and a breadth of 10, covering a total area estimated at 180 square miles. But the most peculiar lacustrine feature of the Presidency is the Rann or Lake of Kachh (Cutch), which, according to the season of the year, is a salt marsh, an inland lake, or an arm of the sea. Its area is estimated at 8000 square miles. It forms the western boundary of the province of Gujarát, and when flooded during the rains, unites the Gulfs of Kachh (Cutch) and Kambay, and converts the territory of Kachh into an island. In the dry season the soil is impregnated with salt, the surface in some places being moist and muddy, and in others, like a dry river bed or sea-beach, strewn with gravel or shingle. The Rann is now used as the great source of salt supply for the whole Presidency. Its present condition is probably the result of some natural convulsion. But whether the Rann is an arm of the sea from which the waters have receded, or an inland lake whose seaward barrier has been swept away, still remains a matter of discussion.
Climate.— Great varieties of climate are met with in the Presidency. In its extreme dryness and heat, combined with the aridity of a sandy soil, Upper Sindh resembles the sultry deserts of Africa. The mean maximum temperature at Haidarábád, in Lower Sindh, during the six hottest months of the year, is 98° 5' in the shade, and the water of the Indus reaches blood heat; in Upper Sindh it is even hotter, and the thermometer has been known to register 130° in the shade. In Kachh and in Gujarát the heat, though less, is still very great. The Konkan is hot and moist, the fall of rain during the monsoon sometimes approaching 300 inches. The table-land of the Dakhín above the Gháts, on the contrary, has an agreeable climate except in the hot months, as has also the southern Marhattâ country; and in the hills of Mahábaleshwar, Singarh, and other detached heights, Europeans may go out at all hours with impunity. Bombay Island itself, though in general cooled by the sea breeze, is oppressively hot during May and October. The south-west monsoon generally sets in about the first week in June, and pours down volumes of rain along the coast. From June to October travelling is difficult and unpleasant, except in Sindh, where the monsoon rains exert little influence.
Forests.— Bombay Presidency possesses two great classes of forests—those of the hills and those of the alluvial plains. The hill forests are scattered over a wide area, extending from 23° to 14° N. lat. Most of them lie among the Sáhyádri hills or Western Gháts. The alluvial forests lie in Sindh, on or close to the banks of the Indus, and extend over an area of 550 square miles. The principal timber trees in the forests arc—teak; blackwood of two varieties (Dalbergia Sisu and Dalbergia latifolia), Dalbergia ujain∙ ensis, Pterocarpus Marsupium, Terminalia glabra, Acacia arabica, Acacia Catechu, Nauclea cordifolia, Nauclea parvifolia, Bidelia spinosa, H ardwickia binata, Juga xylocarpa, Populus euphratica, and Tamarix indica. The forests contain many trees which, on account of their fruits, nuts, or berries, are valuable, irrespective of the quality of their timber. Among these are the mango (Mang fera indica) ; the jack (Artocarpus integrifolia), Zizyphus Jujuba, Ae gle Marmelos, Terminalia Chebula, Calophyllum Inophyllum, Bassia latifolia, and Pongamia glabra. The jungle tribes collect gum from several varieties of trees, and in Sindh the Forest Department derives a small revenue from lac. The palms of the Presidency consist of cocoa-nut, date, palmyra, and areca catechu.
Geology.— Geologically the Bombay Presidency is divided into two tracts: the north-western part, consisting of Sindh, Kachh (Cutch), and Gujarát; and the south-western, comprising the Marhattá country. Undulating sandy plains, with scattered craggy hills, are found in Gujarát; the immense alluvial flats to the north being, for the most part, deserts of blown sand, and the fertile country consisting of a belt along the borders of the sea. In Sindh, the country, except on the banks of the Indus, or where reclaimed by irrigation, is an arid tract of gravel and sand, from which rise steep scarps of limestone ranges. The rocks of Gujarát, Kachh, and Sindh, are only partially represented in the more southern peninsula, and are continuous with the formations found in Persia and Arabia. In the Marhattá country the greater portion of the surface is composed of nearly horizontal strata of basalt and similar rocks.
Population. —The census of 1872 returns the total area of the Presidency, including Sindh, at 188,195 square miles, and the total population at 25,624,696 souls. Details, however, are only available for the British part of the Presidency, which contains an area of 124,943 square miles, and a total population of 16,352,623 souls. The average density of population in the British districts is 131 persons per square mile, but it varies from a maximum of 29,291 ∙13 in Bombay city to 14∙20 in Thar and Párkar. Total number of houses in the British districts, 2,164,338; and average number of persons per house, 4∙99. Of the total population of the British portion, 12,440,659, or 76∙08 per cent., are Hindus; 2,847,756, or 17∙4 pel cent., Muhammadans; 192,245, or 1T7 per cent., Buddhists; 106,133, or 0∙65 per cent., Christians; 67,115, or 0∙41 per cent., Pársís; 603,836, or 3∙69 per cent., aborigines; and 94,879, or 0∙58 per cent., of unspecified religion or nationality. The males number 8,547,100, or 52 per cent. of the population; the females, 7,805,523, or 48 per cent. The percentage of the total number of children under twelve years of age is 31∙65. The Hindus are most numerous in Satára, and fewest in the Upper Sindh Frontier district. The Muhammadans form nearly the whole population of Sindh, and are least numerous in the Pánch Mahals. Except in Sindh, the Buddhists are widely scattered throughout the whole Presidency. The Christians are chiefly confined to Bombay city, Tánná, the Indo-Portuguese possessions, and the larger cantonments, such as Púna. The British districts of the Presidency contain upwards of 26,800 villages, and 175 towns of upwards of 5000 inhabitants. Besides Bombay city, there are 213 municipalities established under Act 26 of 1850, Of these, 4 have an income of over £10,000; 27 of over £1000; 22 of over £500; 94 of over £100; and 66 of under £100. Exclusive of the town of Bombay, the total municipal revenue realised in 1872-73 amounted to £198,857. Average rate of municipal taxation, 2s. 1½d. per head of the town population. The principal sources of municipal revenue are the octroi duties, house tax, and wheel tax Agricultural Products. —The staple crops are as follows :—Joár {Sorghum vulgare) and bâjrâ {Holcus spicatus) are the staple food grains in the Dakhin and Khândesh. Rice is the chief product of the Konkan. Wheat, generally grown in the northern part of the Presidency, but specially in Sindh and Gujarât, is exported to Europe in large quantities from Karachi, and on a smaller scale from Bombay. Barley is principally grown in the northern parts of the Presidency. Nâchani {Eleusine coracana) and Kodrâ {Paspalum scrobiculatunι), inferior grains grown on the hill sides, furnish food to the Kulis, Bhils, Wâralis, and other aboriginal tribes. Of the pulses the most important are gram {Cicer arietinum), tùr {Cajanus indictis), kulti {Dolichos biflorus), and mug {Phaseolus Mungo). Principal oil-seeds: til {Sesamum orientale), mustard, castor-oil, safflower, and linseed. Of fibres the most important are cotton, Dakhlni hemp {Hibiscus cannabinus), and san or tâg {Crotolaria juncea). Much has been done of late years to improve the cotton of the Presidency. American varieties have been introduced with much advantage in the Dhârwâr collectorate and other parts of the southern Marhattâ country. In Khândesh the indigenous plant from which one of the 2owest classes of cotton in the Bombay market takes its name, has been almost entirely superseded by the superior Hinganghât variety. Miscellaneous crops :—Sugar-cane, requiring a rich soil and a perennial water supply, and only grown in favoured localities, red pepper, potatoes, turmeric, and tobacco. In 1871-72, 3,379,937 acres were under cotton cultivation; in 1872-73 the area increased to 3,715,945 acres. The total out-turn was 260,444 candies (560 β>) in 1872-73, against 221,144 in 1871-72. A legislative enactment has been passed to prevent adulteration of cotton, and in 1872-73, 24 persons were convicted under it. In 1872-73, 2281 steam cotton gιnf were at work with 158 steam presses. Two model farms have been established in the Presidency—one at Hâlâ, near Haidarâbâd, in Sindh, and the other in Khândesh. Experiments have been instituted in the cultivation of fibres and tobacco. Large quantities of Carolina rice seed were distributed over the country, but the results hitherto cannot be deemed to have been successful. The same may be said of the endeavours which have been made to propagate the cinchona tree near Mahâbaleshwar. Acreage under principal crops—Joâr, 6,552,385 acres; bajrâ, 4,560,271; rice, 2,009,115; wheat, 1,322,835; and pulses, 1,167,809 acres. The land system of the Presidency is complicated, each province having a variety of tenures of its own. But the most important, and by far the most universal, is the survey tenure created by the British administration, which gives a right of occupancy to the holder on condition of his paying the Government demand.
Public Works and Railways. —In 1872-73 the sum of £1,180,000 was expended on account of Public Works in the Bombay Presidency; and the allotment under this head tends annually to increase. In the same year there were five railways open—1. The Great Indian Peninsula Railway: total miles open, 1278; total capital invested, £25,569,568; total receipts during the year, £1,872,826; working expenses, £1,203,200; net profit, £669,626. 2. The Bombay, Baroda, and Central India Railway: miles open, 389; capital invested, £8,418,202; receipts, £564,931; working expenses, £338,786; net profit, £226,145. 3. The Khâmgâon State Railway: miles open,
8; capital invested, £48,530; receipts, £1241; working expenses, £562; net profit, £679. 4. The Amrâoti Rail way: miles open, 5 j; capital invested, £43,730; receipts, £2302; working expenses, £1241; net profit, £1061. 5.
The Sindh section of the Sindh Panjâb and Dehli Railway: miles open, 106; capital invested, £2,646,106; receipts, £157,100; working expenses, £118,934; net profit, £38,166. Total miles open of the above five railways, 1786|; total capital invested, £36,726,136; total receipts in 1872, £2,598,400; total working expenses, £1,662,723; total net profit, £980,667. Besides these, the following railways are either in progress or about to be undertaken: —(1), State line, Southern Marhattâ country; (2), Native State line, Virâwal, Junâgarh, and Dhorâji; (3), Pâtri Branch (State line, light rail); (4), Anand and Dâkor Branch; (5), Migângâon and Dhaboi Railway; (6), Wardhâ to Hinganghât and Warorâ: (7), Wadi to Haidarâbâd; (8), Khandwâ to Indor. In 1872-73 the Bombay Telegraph Department had 4406 miles of wire in operation.
Post-Offices. —In 1872-73, 447 post-offices were distributed over the Presidency; total mileage of postal lines, 10,208 miles; total number of letters, parcels, &c., despatched and received, 17,601,982.
Mines and Quarries. —The Presidency of Bombay though deficient in mineral wealth, is abundantly supplied with stores of stone fitted for building and road-making purposes. At Teagar, in the Dhârwâr district, iron-ore is mined and smelted, but the scarcity of fuel prevents operations being conducted on an extensive scale. There are also large slate quarries in Dhârwâr. Mândargé hill is quarried extensively for stone, the right of working it being annually sold by public auction. In Belgâm district are quarries, from which building stones, stone bricks, or oblong quadrangular blocks of soft rock are obtained in abundance. Limestone is also found in the river beds of this district. There are a few trap and laterite quarries in the Ratnâgiri district. The trap stone is used for tank and well building, and for the plinths of houses; the laterite is used for housebuilding. Near Karâchi are five quarries containing a species of limestone, largely used in buildings in that town.
Manufactures. —The indigenous manufactures of the country have rapidly declined since the influx of Manchester goods. But cotton weaving is still carried on upon a small scale in every village of any importance. Dyeing is practised in most places where fresh water is procurable. Printed cotton goods are manufactured in all the large towns of Gujarât, and the further the locality is removed from the direct influence of railways the better the work is. This is owing to the competition of European cotton goods, which are sold much cheaper, and are more brilliant in colour, although less strong and durable, than the native manufactures. Most of the lower classes still wear homespun and woven goods; but the cotton-mills erected in Bombay, Broach, and in other parts of the Presidency, have introduced threads and cloths, which are readily bought up, and upon which the native workmen display their taste and skill. The cloths manufactured for the Marhattâ castes are of various kinds. Some are all cotton, or cotton and silk, some cotton silk with metallic threads, some silk with gold or silver thread. Ahmadâbâd, Yeolâ, Ahmadnagar, Mâligâon, Nâsik, Pùnâ, and Dhârwâr, are ail celebrated for their cotton goods. Carpets, rugs, horsecloths, towels, napkins, <fcc,, made of cotton, are manufactured throughout the Presidency. Ahmadnagar has an ancient reputation for the strength and durability of its carpets; Khândesh and Dhârwâr for druggets, rugs, and bullock cloths. A new future has lately been opened to manufacturing energy by the introduction of machinery from England. The ancient products of the Presidency, above named, are chiefly household industries. But large steam mills are now rapidly springing up in Bombay city, Broach, Surat, and other stations on the railway lines, especially in the cotton districts. Several of these employ over 1500 hands; one is reported to have nearly double that number; and the low rates of wage, with the natural aptitude of the native for textile work, enables the Bombay mill-owners to compete with the Lancashire manufacturers, notwithstanding the heavy cost of importing machinery and of European supervision. Several of the mills have a capital of some hundreds of thousands sterling invested in them; and their superior reputation for turning out unglazed and genuine goods has almost driven the lower qualities of Manchester fabrics from the market. In 1873 fifteen mills were at work in the town and island of Bombay, and five in other parts of the Presidency. Most of them have both spindles and looms, and their yarn and piece goods find a ready market. In Ahmadâbâd, Surat, Yeolâ, Nâsik, and Bombay, considerable quantities of silk goods are made, the silk being imported from China either in the cocoon or in skeins. Gold and silver thread enter largely into the manufacture of silk and cotton fabrics. The lcinkhdb (kincob), the richest kind produced, is either gold thread and silk, or silver, gold, and silk. Embroidery in silk cloth and cotton, and in gold, silver, and silk thread, is carried on to some extent in Haidarâbâd, in Sindh, principally for European markets. Fibres are used for the manufacture of paper in Ahmadâbâd, Baroda, Surat, Nâsik, Bombay, and Kolhâpur. Mats, beds, &c., are manufactured from cocoa-nut fibre. Leather is worked into a variety of articles throughout the Presidency. The manufactures of minor importance consist of pottery, brass, and copper utensils, cutlery, and agricultural implements, gold and silver ornaments, carved wood, ivory work, &c.
Trade. —The total value of the external trade of the Presidency for 1872-73 was as follows:—Bombay Port —imports, £17,388,953; exports, £19,117,081; re-exports, £5,140,924; total, £41,646,958. Minor ports—imports, £395,238; exports, £729,028; re exports, £13,368; total, £1,137,634. Sindh ports—imports, £1,677,399; exports, £1,991,556; total, £3,668,955. Aden—imports, £1,407,102; exports, £834,087; total, £2,241,189. Total of the Presidency — imports, £20,868,692; exports, £22,671,752; re-exports, £5,154,292; total, £48,694,736. In the same year 5314 ships, having a tonnage of 902,157 tons, cleared from Bombay harbour, and 5208 ships, of 161,907 tons, from the minor ports. Principal articles of commerce—cotton, cotton piece-goods, wool and woollen piece goods, machines and machinery, oils, tea, wines and spirits, metals, coal, candles, jute and gunny cloths, apparel, sugar and sugar-candy, twist, hides and skins, grain and pulse, bullion, Ac. In 1872-73 upwards of 55,300 tons of cotton were imported into Bombay in the shape of Manchester goods, and 143,017 tons of raw cotton exported from it.
Revenue and Expenditure. —The total revenue of the Presidency for the year 1872-73 amounted to £9,980,043, and the expenditure to £8,027,040. The principal heads of revenue are as follows:—Land revenue, £3,751,050; tributes and contributions from native states, £92,337; forests, £114,640, excise, £418,746· assessed taxes, £110,098; customs, £667,825; salt, £885,013; opium, £2,614,897; stamps, £527,382; law and justice, £29,677; marine, £64,475; interest, £103,209. The settlement of the land revenue is usually made for thirty years. A revision of the thirty years’ settlement of Poona, Nâsik, and Sholâpur districts, is now (1874) in progress.
Statistics of Protection. —The military strength of the Bombay Presidency consists of 1250 European commissioned officers, 11,067 European non-commissioned officers and rank and file, 27,002 Native commissioned and noncommissioned officers and rank and file; total, 39,319. The whole are under the control of a separate commanderin-chief for Bombay. Ten ships constitute the strength of the Bombay marine. The regular police of Bombay consisted in 1872-73 of 18,166 officers and men, maintained at a total cost of £305,810; the average being 1 man to every 6 ’ 8 square miles of the area, and to 900 of the population.
Education. —The University of Bombay, established in 1857, is a body corporate, consisting of a chancellor, vice-chancellor, and fellows. The Governor of Bombay is ex-officio chancellor. The Educational Department is under a director of public instruction, who is responsible for the administration of the department in accordance with the general educational policy of the state. In 1872-73 the number of schools and colleges aided by the state or under its inspection was as follows :—7 colleges, attended by 544 pupils; 4 professional schools, with 275 pupils; 41 high schools, 7167 pupils; 176 middle class schools, 16,612 pupils; 3595 lower class schools for boys, 182,147 pupils; 253 lower class schools for girls, 10,885 pupils; 12 normal schools, 602 pupils; total, 4088 schools, 218,466 pupils. The total cost for the schools was £285,650, of which the state contributed £99,600; the balance being obtained from school fees, local contributions, private endowments, Ac.
History. —The territories now comprising the Presidency of Bombay formed in ancient times several separate Hindu kingdoms, among which Mahârâshthra, Gujarâshthra, Sindhu, were the most important. As in other parts of India, the great majority of the people are Hindus, with more recent accretions of Muhammadans, and a sprinkling of hill-tribes practising non-Hindu rites, and representing the pre-Aryan races. The first Muhammadan invasion of which we have authentic accounts is that of Mahmùd of Ghazni, who, in 1024 a.d., invaded Gujarât with a large army, destroyed the national Hindu idol of Somnâth, and carried away an immense booty. Muhammad Ghori also invaded Gujarât, and left a garrison in its capital. But it was not till after the Musalmân power was firmly established in Northern India that the Muhammadan sovereigns of Dehli attempted the conquest of the south. In 1294 the Emperor Alâ-ud-din first invaded the Dakhin (Deccan), and in 1297 he conquered Gujarât. In 1312 the Muhammadan arms were triumphant through the Marhattâ country; and seven years later the whole of Malabar fell a prey to the invaders. In the middle of the 14th century the weakness of the Dehli sovereigns tempted the governors of provinces to revolt against their distant master, and to form independent kingdoms. In this way the Bâhmini kingdom was established in the Dakhin, and embraced a part of the Bombay Presidency. Ahmadnagar and Gujarât also became the seats of a new kingdom. In 1573 Akbar conquered Gujarât and reannexed it to the empire, and in 1601 he effected the reconquest of Ahmadnagar and Khândesh. From this time the country was never tranquil, and Ahmadnagar became the focus of constant rebellions. During the latter part of the 17th century the Marhattâs rose into power, and almost every part of the country now comprising the Presidency of Bombay fell under their sway.
As early as 1532 a.d. the island of Bombay was occupied by the Portuguese. The Dutch and English made an unsuccessful attempt to gain possession of the island in 1627, and in 1653 proposals were suggested for its purchase from the Portuguese. In 1661 it was ceded to the English Crown, as part of the dower of the Infanta Catherina on her marriage with Charles II. So lightly was the acquisition esteemed in England, and so unsuccessful was the administration of the Crown officers, that in 1668 Bombay was transferred to the East India Company for an annual payment of £10. The population at that time did not exceed 10,000 souls, and so unhealthy was the climate, that three years were regarded as the average duration of the life of its European inhabitants. At the time of the transfer, powers for its defence and for the administration of justice were also conferred; a European regiment was enrolled; and the fortifications erected proved sufficient to deter the Dutch from their intended attack in 1673. In 1687 Bombay was placed at the head of all the Company’s possessions in India; but in 1753 the Government of Bombay became subordinate to that of Calcutta. The first English settlement in the Bombay Presidency was in 1618, when the East India Company established a factory at Surat, protected by a charter obtained from the Emperor Jahângir. After the termination of the second Marhattâ war in 1803, the East India Company obtained the districts of Surat, Broach, Kairâ, &c.; and on the overthrow of the Peshwâ in 1813, they annexed Pùnâ, Ahmadnagar, Nâsik, Sholâpur, Belgâm, Kâladgi, Dhârwâr, &c. Sindh was conquered in 1843, and became a part of the British empire. The native states under the supervision of the Government of Bombay are divided, historically and geographically, into two main groups. The northern or Gujarât group includes the territories of the Gaikwâr, with the smaller states which form the administrative divisions of Kachh, Pâhlanpur, Rewâ Kânta, and Mâhi Kânta. These territories, with the exception of Kachh (Cutch), have an historical connection, as being the allies or tributaries of the Gaikwâr in 1805, when final engagements were concluded between that prince and the British Government. The southern or Marhattâ group includes Kolhâpur, Akalkot, Sâwantwâri, and the Sâtârâ and southern Marhattâ Jâgfrs, and has an historical bond of union in the friendship they showed to the British in their final struggle with the power of the Peshwâ in 1818. The remaining territories may conveniently be divided into a small cluster of independent zamindâris, situated in the wild and hilly tracts at the northern extremity of the Sâhyâdri range, and certain principalities which, from their history or geographical position, are to some extent isolated from the rest of the Presidency.
Administration. —The Government of Bombay is administered by a Governor in Council, the latter consisting of the Governor as president, two ordinary civil members, and, as a rule, the commander-in-chief of the Bombay army. These are the executive members of Government. For making laws there is a legislative council, consisting of the Governor and his Executive Council, with certain other persons, not fewer than four or more than eight in number, nominated by the Governor to be members of council for legislative purposes only, and intended to represent the non-official European and Native communities. Each of the members of the Executive CounciΓhas in his charge one or two departments of the Government; and each department has a secretary, an under-secretary, and an assistant secretary, with a numerous staff of clerks. The political administration of the native states is under the superintendence of British agents placed at the principal native courts; their position varies in different states according to the relations in which the principalities stand with the paramount power. The administration of justice throughout the regulation districts of the Presidency is conducted by a High Court at Bombay, cohsisting of a Chief Justice and seven Puisne judges, along with district and assistant judges throughout the districts of the Presidency. The revenue administration of the regulation districts is carried on by two revenue commissioners, seventeen collectors, twenty assistant collectors, and a varying number of supernumerary assistants. (w. w. h.) Bombay City and Island.
The Island of Bombay, with an area slightly in excess of 22 square miles, is situated in 18° 53' 54" N. lat., and 72° 52' E. long. It consists of a plain about 11 miles long by 3 broad, flanked by two parallel lines of low hills. A neck of land stretching towards the south-west forms the harbour on its eastern side, sheltering it from the force of the open sea, and enclosing an expanse of water from 5 to 7 miles wide. At the south-west of the island, Back Bay, a shallow basin rather more than 2 miles in breadth, runs inland for about 3 miles between the extreme points of the two ranges of hills. On a slightly raised strip of land between the head of Back Bay and the harbour is situated the fort, the nucleus of the city of Bombay. From this point the land slopes westward towards the central plain, a low lying tract, which before the construction of the embankment known as the Hornby Velard, used at high tide to be submerged by the sea. To the north and east, although causeways and railway embankments have now shut out the sea, a large area of salt-marsh land still remains subject to inundation.
In the foregoing article on the Bombay Presidency it is explained that Bombay Island passed to the English Crown as part of the dower of the Infanta Catherina, on her marriage with Charles II., and that although the new acquisition was at first despised, it rose in 1687 to the chief importance in the East India Company’s possessions. In the next century it declined before the growth of Calcutta, and sank into a subordinate settlement. The present century has again witnessed a revolution in its fortunes. Its splendid harbour and comparative nearness to the Suez Canal, with the system of railways which now connect Bombay with the other Presidencies, have marked out for it a career scarcely second, if at all second in commercial importance, to that of Calcutta itself. The sudden demand for Indian cotton, which resulted from the American war, gave an unprecedented rapidity to its development. The cotton of Gujarât, Dhârwâr, and other parts of Bombay, is much superior to the Bengal fibre. Several years of brilliant prosperity culminated in 1866-67 in a financial crisis, that left the commerce of Bombay in a shattered state. Depending as it does chiefly on the one article of cotton, along with some export of grain and the Government opium, the trade of Bombay rests on a narrower basis than that of Calcutta, which in years of misfortune has a large variety of staples to fall back upon, such as tea, indigo, jute, rice, hides, oil-seeds, &c. Moreover, Bombay has only the costly railway communication with the interior parts of India, while Calcutta commands the confluence of two of the greatest river systems in the world, the Brahmaputra and the Ganges. Nevertheless, Bombay is pressing close upon Calcutta as the commercial capital of India. Its imports are about as great, and its exports not very far short. In 1871-72 its total trade was £50,384,929 against a total of £54,136,829 in Calcutta. In that year the Bombay imports were 22⅜ millions sterling; the exports, 23 J millions, and the re-exports, 4∣ millions: total, 50∣ millions sterling.
In natural scenery and in the sanitary advantages of its position Bombay ranks first among the cities of India. The Bombay Island, or, as it ought to be more correctly called, the Bombay Peninsula, is now connected with the mainland by the railway causeways. It stands out from a coast ennobled by lofty mountains, and its harbour is studded by rocky islands and precipices, whose peaks rise to a great height. The approach from the sea discloses one of the finest panoramas in the world,—the only European analogy being the Bay of Naples. The town itself consists of well-built and unusually handsome native bâzârs, and of spacious streets devoted to European commerce. In the native bâzâr the houses rise three or four stories in height, with elaborately carved pillars and front work. Some of the European hotels and commercial buildings are on the American scale, and have no rival in any°other city of India. The private houses of the European residents lie apart alike from the native and from the mercantile quarters of the town. As a rule, each is built in a large garden or compound; and although the style of architecture is less imposing than that of the stately residences in Calcutta, it is well suited to the climate, and has a beauty and comfort of its own. The favourite suburb is Malabar hill, a high ridge running out into the sea, and terraced to the top by handsome houses, which command one of the finest views in the world. To the right of this ridge, looking towards the sea, runs another suburb known as Breach Candy, built close upon the beach and within the refreshing sound of the waves. To the left of Malabar hill the island forms a spacious bay, with a promontory at the other side, which marks the site of the old Bombay Fort. The fort is now a mere garrison, with small pretensions to defensive capabilities. Its walls are demolished, and its area is chiefly devoted to mercantile buildings. Further round the island, beyond the fort, is Mazagon Bay, commanding the harbour, and the centre of maritime activity. The defences of the port consist chiefly m ironclad “Monitors” anchored off the town, with one or two fortified islands, and the guns which still line a portion of the old fort walls that have been left standing towards the sea. The census of 1872 disclosed a population of 644,405 souls; of whom 408,680, or 63∙42 per cent., arθ Hmdns; 138,815, or 2154 per cent., Muhammadans; 44,091, or 6∙84 per cent., Pârsfs; 15,121, Buddhists and Jams; 34,705, or 5 ’ 39 per cent., European, African,
Eurasian, and Native Christians, with 2993 classified under the head of “others.” Dyeing, tanning, and working in metals may be noticed as specially active trades, but the most progressive and important industry is the manufacture of yarn and cotton cloth. In 1873 there were 5 steam spinning and weaving mills in Bombay, giving employment to about 11,000 hands. In these factories 380,000 spindles and 5000 looms were at work. A considerable section of the population is supported by the cultivation of cocoa-nut trees and the preparation of intoxicating drinks from the juice of the different species of palm. Rice is the chief agricultural product, but many varieties of garden vegetables are profitably cultivated. Of these the most common are onions, “bhendis” (Abelmoschus esculentus'), and gourds of different sorts. The imperial revenue from the town and island of Bombay is derived from two sources, —the one supervised by the collector of Bombay, the other by the commissioner of customs. The total receipts for the past year, under the first head, amounted to £148,287, of which £23,131 was derived from land, £17,250 from excise, and £107,906 from stamps. The total amount collected by the commissioner of customs was £3,252,714, of which the customs yielded £609,630, and the export duty on opium £2,643,084. Owing to the difficulty of procuring colonists in the early days of the settlement, the land is generally held on easy terms,—the payment to Government being in most cases of the nature of a quit rent, free from enhancement or resettlement as long as the land is used for cultivation only. Of the whole area, 13 miles are returned as cultivated, and 9 as unculturable. During the year 1872 there were 101 schools in Bombay, attended by 11,351 scholars, or 1 to every 56 of the entire population. The total strength of the local police force in 1872 was 1402, or 1 policemanto every 459 inhabitants. Of the entire number, 1124 are municipal, and 278 Government police. Of the former, 35 are European, and 13 are mounted. Native police. The Government police are employed on harbour duty and as guards for Government offices. Eight of them are Europeans.
Municipal Statistics. —The limits of the Bombay municipality extend over the whole of the island of Bombay, including, as stated above, a population of 644,405 souls. The total municipal revenue for the year 1873 amounted to £314,645, of which £223,041 was raised by taxation, £59,958 on account of services rendered, and £31,646 from municipal property and miscellaneous receipts. The following are the main items under the head of taxation proper:—House rate, £73,587; police rate, £24,189; lighting rate, £21,179; wheel taxes, £23,197; tobacco and liquor duty and licenses, £28,690; town duties, £45,200; and additional rates from Port Trust, £4000. Under the head, Service rendered, are included the Halalkar cess and the water rate, yielding respectively £20,392 and £39,566. The returns under the third head are chiefly receipts from the Crawford markets. The total expenditure was £312,208. Of this amount £25,325 was spent on general supervision, £36,041 in supporting the police and fire brigade. Under the head of public health, £87,574 was spent, and £84,835 on public works. The interest and sinking fund on the police debt consumed £74,496. The incidence of municipal taxation per head of the population is 6s. 9d. It is estimated that the gross annual income of the city is about 855 lakhs of rupees, or upwards of 8⅜ millions sterling, on which sum the municipal taxation proper amounts to about 2 ’ 57 per cent., and the total municipal income and expenditure to about 3 ’ 64 per cent. The municipal debt at present amounts to about £790,000, or nearly 2∣ years’ income. (w. w. h.)
