Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 13.djvu/572

548 J A L J A M lasted from the 1st to the 3d century of our ern. In course of time the eastern portion fell under the power of the Chandels, while the western districts, including that of Jahiun, were ruled by the Kachhwahas, a Rajput clan. These seem to have held most of the district until the invasion of the Bundelns in the 14th century. But the town of Kalpi on the Jumna was conquered for the j.rinces of Ghor as early as 1196. Early in the 14th century the Buudelas occupied the greater part of Jahiun, and even succeeded in holding the fortified post of Kalpi. That important possession was soon recovered by the Musalmans, and passed under the sway of the Mughal emperors. Akbar s governors at Kalpi maintained a nominal authority over the surrounding district ; and the native princes were in a state of chronic revolt, which culminated in the war of independence under Chhatar Sal. On the outbreak of his rebellion in 1671 he occupied a large province to the south of the Jumna. Setting out from this basis, and assisted by the Marhattas, lie reduced the whole of Bundelkhand. On his death he bequeathed one-third of his dominions to his Marhatta allies, who displayed their usual alacrity in occupying their new territory, and before long succeeded in quietly annexing the whole of Bundelkhand. Under Marhatta rule the country was a prey to constant anarchy and intestine strife. To this period must be traced the origin of all the poverty and desolation which are still conspicuous throughout the district. In 1806 Kalpi was made over to the British, and in 1840, on the death of Nanii Gobind Eds, his possessions lapsed to them also. Various interchanges of territory took place, and in 1856 the present boundaries were substantially settled. During the whole period of British rule before the mutiny, Jahiun only recovered its prosperity by very slow degrees. When the news of the rising at Cawnpur reached Kalpi, the men of the 53d native infantry deserted their officers, and in June the Jhansi mutineers reached the district, and began their murder of Europeans. The natives everywhere revelled in the licence of plunder and murder which the mutiny had spread through all Bundelkhand, and it was not till September 1858 that the rebels were finally defeated. Since the mutiny the condition of Jahiun seems to have been steadily but slowly improving. JALATJN, a decayed town in the above district, and tlie former capital of a native state, is situated in 26 8 32" N. lat., 79 22 24" E. long. It occupies a large area, and contains a considerable number of good houses, and a ruined fort. The position is low, and swamps surrounding the town engender cholera and malarious fever, for which reason the headquarters of the district have been fixed at Ural. The population in 1872 was 10,197, 8824 Hindus and 1373 Mahometans. jALNA, or JAULNA, a town in Hyderabad state, southern India, 19 50 30" N. lat., and 75 56 E long., 240 miles north-west of SikandarAb&d (Secunderabad), 38 east of Aurangabdd, and 210 miles north-east of Bombay. It has a British cantonment, situated on a gentle declivity, at an elevation of 1652 feet above the sea, in an arid tract of country; the lines were built in 1827. Two miles south west of Jiilna is the old town of the same name, once the seat of a flourishing trade, but now rapidly decaying. *. jALPAlGURi, or JULPIGOREE, a British district of India, forming the north-eastern part of the Rajshahf Kuch Behar division, under the lieutenant-governor of Bengal, and lying between 26 35" and 26 59 30" N. lat., and between 88 22 40" and 89 55 20" E. long. It consists of an irregularly shaped tract south of Bhutdn and north of the state of Kuch Behar and Rangpur district, with an area (1875) of 290,464 square miles. The district j divides into a " regulation " tract, lying towards the south west, and a strip of country, about 22 miles in width, running along the foot of the Himalayas, and known as the Western Dw;irs. The former i.s a continuous expanse of level paddy fields, only broken by groves of bamboos, palms, and fruit-trees. The Western Dw.irs are, for the most part, overgrown with grassy jungle, the secure home of large game, and are everywhere traversed by hill torrents, which, on the higher slopes, lose themselves beneath the sandy soil. The frontier towards Bhutan is formed by the Sinchula mountain range, some peaks of which attain an elevation of 6000 feet. It is thickly wooded from base to summit. The principal rivers, pro ceeding from west to east, are the Mahdnanda, KaratoyA, Tist;i, JYildhaka, Duduya, Mujnai, Torsha, Kaljaui, Raidhak, and Sankos. The most important is the TistA, which forms a valuable means of water communication. The Government forest reserves in the Western Dw;irs cover a total area of 342 "54 square miles. Lime is quarried in the lower Bhutan hills. During the last few years tea-planting has been introduced, with every prospect of success. The parliamentary abstract of 1878 gives a population of 41S,66f>. The returns from the Dwars were not drawn up in the form adopted for Bengal generally. The remaining part has a population of 327,985 (169,288 males and 158,697 females), comprising 25 Europeans, 7 Eurasians, 8 Chinese, 144 Nepalis, 553 aborigines, 148,043 semi-Hinduized aborigines, 32,155 Hindus according to caste, 2070 Hindus not recognizing caste, and 144,980 Mahometans. The great bulk of the population belongs to the semi-Hinduized tribe known as Koch or Kajbansi, which numbers 137,135, and is ascertained to form as much as two-thirds of the total inhabitants in the Western Dw.irs. Kice is the staple crop in all parts of the district. Mustard seed is extensively grown ; cotton is the staple of the Dwtirs, jute and tobacco of the regulation tract. Irrigation is common in the Western Dwars. There is still some spare land uncultivated in the regulation tract ; and in the Western Dwars it has been estimated that about three-fourths of the land now waste is capable of cultivation. Of late years trade has been stimulated by the demand for agricultural produce from the south, and by the institutions of fairs on the Bhutan frontier. The chief exports are jute, tobacco, timber, and rice ; the chief imports are piece- goods, salt, and betel-nuts. Education encounters great difficulties in Jalpaiguri, because the people are not gathered into villages, each family living in its own sequestered homestead. In 1875 the number of schools was 153, with 3263 pupils. The climate in the vicinity of Jalpaiguri town does not materially differ from that common to northern Bengal, except that the rainfall is heavier, and during the cold months fogs and mists are of daily occurrence. The average annual rainfall is over 100 inches ; the average temperature is 76 D Fahr. The climate of the Western Dwars is markedly different ; the hot weather disappears altogether, and the rains last continu ously from April to October. The average annual rainfall at Bax;i is 280 inches ; the temperature averages 74 Fahr. The principal diseases are malarious fevers, splenitis, enlargement of the liver, diarrhoea, dysentery, and goitre. Of late years some very fatal outbreaks of cholera have occurred. The district of Jalpaiguri first came into existence in 1869, when the Titalyii subdivision of Rangpur was incorporated with the Western Dwars, and erected into an independent revenue unit. The permanently settled portion of Jalpaiguri has no history of its own, apart from the parent district of Kangpur. The Western Dwars became British territory as the result of the war with Bhutan in 1864-65. The newly acquired territory was immediately formed into the two districts of the Eastern and Western Dwars, the former of which has since been incorporated with the Assam district of Goalpara. The remainder, with the exception of a subdivision, was formed into the new district of Jalpaiguri with the addition of a portion taken from the unwieldy jurisdiction of Kangpur. Cultiva tion is now rapidly extending throughout the Dwars ; and it i.s believed that the population has been doubled during the ten years that have elapsed since British annexation. From motives ot precaution, a regiment of native infantry is stationed in permanent cantonments at the hill pass of Baxa. JALPAIGURI, the administrative head-quarters of the above district, is situated on the west bank of the Tishi, in 26 32 20" N. lat., 88 45 38" E. long. This town has only risen into importance since the creation of the district in 1869, since which date its population has doubled. The population is estimated at between 4000 and 5000, including the regiment of native infantry in the canton ments, which lie south of the civil station. JAM. See JAMS AND JELLIES, p. 564. JAMAICA, an island lying between the Caribbean Plat Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, and about 80 miles to the VII southward of the eastern extremity of the island of Cuba, vithin 17 40 and 18 30 N. lat., and 76 10 to 78 30 W. long. It is the largest island of the British West Indies, being 135 (or, as sometimes stated, 144) miles in length and 21 i to 49 miles in breadth. Its area is about 4200 square miles, or, as stated in the Report of the Geolo gical Survey, 3250 square miles. Within its government are comprised the three small islands called the Caymanas,