[Illustration: Geological Map]
The deposits of the Indo-Gangetic plain are of modern date and the
formation of the depression which they fill is almost certainly
connected with the elevation of the Himalayas. Both movements are
probably still going on. The alluvial deposits prove depression in
quite recent geological times; and within the Himalayan region
earthquakes are still common, whilst in Peninsular India they are
rare.
_Peninsular India._--The oldest rocks of this region consist of
gneiss, granite and other crystalline rocks. They cover a large area
in Bengal and Madras and extend into Ceylon; and they are found also
in Bundelkhand and in Gujarat. Upon them rest the unfossiliferous
strata known to Indian geologists as the Transition and Vindhyan
series. The Transition rocks are often violently folded and are
frequently converted into schists. In the south, where they are known
as the Dharwar series, they form long and narrow bands running from
north-north-west to south-south-east across the ancient gneiss; and it
is interesting to note that all the quartz-reefs which contain gold in
paying quantities occur in the Dharwar series. The Transition rocks
are of great but unknown age. The Vindhyan rocks which succeed them
are also of ancient date. But long before the earliest Vindhyan rocks
were laid down the Transition rocks had been altered and contorted.
Occasionally the Vindhyan beds themselves are strongly folded, as in
the east of the Cuddapah basin; but this was the last folding of any
violence which has occurred in the Peninsula. In more recent times
there have been local disturbances, and large faults have in places
been formed; but the greater part of the Peninsula rocks are only
slightly disturbed. The Vindhyan series is generally sharply marked
off from older rocks; but in the Godavari valley there is no
well-defined line between them and the Transition rocks. The Vindhyan
beds are divided into two groups. The lower, with an estimated
thickness of only 2000 ft., or slightly more, cover a large
area--extending, with but little change of character, from the Sone
valley in one direction to Cuddapah, and in a diverging line to near
Bijapur--in each case a distance of over 700 m. The upper Vindhyans
cover a much smaller area, but attain a thickness of about 12,000 ft.
The Vindhyans are well-stratified beds of sandstone and shale, with
some limestones. As yet they have yielded no trace of fossils, and
their exact age is consequently unknown. They are however certainly
Pre-Permian, and it is most probable that they belong to the early
part of the Palaeozoic era. The total absence of fossils is a
remarkable fact, and one for which it is difficult to account, as the
beds are for the most part quite unaltered. Even if they are entirely
of freshwater origin, we should expect that some traces of life from
the waters or neighbouring land would be found.
The Gondwana series is in many respects the most interesting and
important series of the Indian Peninsula. The beds are almost entirely
of freshwater origin. Many subdivisions have been made, but here we
need only note the main division into two great groups: Lower
Gondwanas, 13,000 ft. thick; Upper Gondwanas, 11,000 ft. thick. The
series is mainly confined to the area of country between the Nerbudda
and the Sone on the north, and the Kistna on the south; but the
western part of this region is in great part covered by newer beds.
The lowest Gondwanas are very constant in character, wherever they are
found; the upper members of the lower division show more variation,
and this divergence of character in different districts becomes more
marked in the Upper Gondwana series. Disturbances have occurred in the
lower series before the formation of the upper.
The Gondwana beds contain fossils which are of very great interest. In
large part these consist of plants which grew near the margins of the
old rivers, and which were carried down by floods, and deposited in
the alluvial plains, deltas and estuarine areas of the old Gondwana
period. The plants of the Lower Gondwanas consist chiefly of acrogens
(_Equisetaceae_ and ferns) and gymnogens (cycads and conifers), the
former being the more abundant. The same classes of plants occur in
the Upper Gondwanas; but there the proportions are reversed, the
conifers, and still more the cycads, being more numerous than the
ferns, whilst the _Equisetaceae_ are but sparingly found. But even
within the limits of the Lower Gondwana series there are great
diversities of vegetation, three distinct floras occurring in the
three great divisions of that formation. In many respects the flora of
the highest of these three divisions (the Panchet group) is more
nearly related to that of the Upper Gondwanas than it is to the other
Lower Gondwana floras. Although during the Gondwana period the flora
of India differed greatly from that of Europe, it was strikingly
similar to the contemporaneous floras of South America, South Africa
and Australia. It is somewhat remarkable that this characteristically
southern flora, known as the Glossopteris Flora (from the name of one
of the most characteristic genera), has also been found in the north
of Russia.
One of the most interesting facts in the history of the Gondwana
series is the occurrence near the base (in the Talchir group) of large
striated boulders in a fine mud or silt, the boulders in one place
resting upon rock (of Vindhyan age) which is also striated. These beds
are the result of ice-action, and it is interesting to note that a
similar boulder bed is associated with the Glossopteris-bearing
deposits of Australia, South Africa and probably South America.
The Damuda series, the middle division of the Lower Gondwanas, is the
chief source of coal in Peninsular India, yielding more of that
mineral than all other formations taken together. The Karharbari group
is the only other coal-bearing formation of any value. The Damudas are
8400 ft. thick in the Raniganj coal-field, and about 10,000 ft. thick
in the Satpura basin. They consist of three divisions; coal occurs in
the upper and lower, ironstone (without coal) in the middle division.
The Raniganj coal-field is the most important in India. It covers an
area of about 500 sq. m. and is traversed by the Damuda river, along
which run the road from Calcutta to Benares and the East Indian
railway. From its situation and importance this coal-field is better
known than any other in India. The upper or Raniganj series (stated by
the Geological Survey to be 5000 ft. thick) contains eleven seams,
having a total thickness of 120 ft., in the eastern district, and
thirteen seams, 100 ft. thick, in the western district. The average
thickness of the seams worked is from 12 to 18 ft., but occasionally a
seam attains a great thickness--20 to 80 ft. The lower or Barakar
series (2000 ft. thick) contains four seams, of a total thickness of
69 ft. Compared with English coals those of this coal-field are of but
poor quality; they contain much ash, and are generally non-coking. The
seams of the lower series are the best, and some of these at
Sanktoria, near the Barakar river, are fairly good for coke and gas.
The best coal in India is in the small coal-field at Karharbari. The
beds there are lower in the series than those of the Raniganj field;
they belong to the upper part of the Talchir group, the lowest of the
Gondwana series. The coal-bearing beds cover an area of only about 11
sq. m.; there are three seams, varying from 9 to 33 ft. thick. The
lowest seam is the best, and this is as good as English steam coal.
This coal-field, now largely worked, is the property of the East
Indian railway, which is thus supplied with fuel at a cheaper rate
than any other railway in the world. Indian coal usually contains
phosphoric acid, which greatly lessens its value for iron-smelting.
The Damuda series, which, as we have seen, is the chief source of coal
in India, is also one of the most important sources of iron. The ore
occurs in the middle division, coal in the highest and lowest. The ore
is partly a clay ironstone, like that occurring in the Coal-measures
of England, partly an oxide of iron or haematite, and it generally
contains phosphorus. Excellent iron-ore occurs in the crystalline
rocks south of the Damuda river as also in many other parts of India.
Laterite (see below) is sometimes used as ore. It is very earthy and
of a low percentage; but it contains only a comparatively small
proportion of phosphorus.
The want of limestone for flux, within easy reach, is generally a
great drawback as regards iron-smelting in India. _Kankar_ or _ghutin_
(concretionary carbonate of lime) is collected for this purpose from
the river-beds and alluvial deposits. It sometimes contains as much as
70% of carbonate of lime; but generally the amount is much less and
the fluxing value proportionally diminished. The real difficulty in
India is to find the ore, the fuel, and the flux in sufficiently close
proximity to yield a profit.
Contemporaneously with the formation of the upper part of the Gondwana
series marine deposits of Jurassic age were laid down in Cutch.
Cretaceous beds of marine origin are also found in Cutch, Kathiawar
and the Nerbudda valley on the northern margin of the Peninsula, and
near Pondicherry and Trichinopoly on its south-eastern margin. There
is a striking difference between the Cretaceous faunas of the two
areas, the fossils from the north being closely allied to those of
Europe, while those of the south (Pondicherry and Trichinopoly) are
very different and are much more nearly related to those from the
Cretaceous of Natal. It is now very generally believed that in
Jurassic and Cretaceous times a great land-mass stretched from South
Africa through Madagascar to India, and that the Cretaceous deposits
of Cutch, &c., were laid down upon its northern shore, and those of
Pondicherry and Trichinopoly upon its southern shore. The land
probably extended as far as Assam, for the Cretaceous fossils of Assam
are similar to those of the south.
The enormous mass of basaltic rock known as the Deccan Trap is of
great importance in the geological structure of the Indian Peninsula.
It now covers about 200,000 sq. m., and formerly extended over a much
wider area. Where thickest, the traps are at least 6000 ft. thick.
They form some of the most striking physical features of the
Peninsula, many of the most prominent hill ranges having been carved
out of the basaltic flows. The great volcanic outbursts which produced
this trap commenced in the Cretaceous period and lasted on into the
Eocene period.
Laterite is a ferruginous and argillaceous rock, varying from 30 to
200 ft. thick, which often occurs over the trap area and also over the
gneiss. As a rule it makes rather barren land; it is highly porous,
and the rain rapidly sinks into it. Laterite may be roughly divided
into two kinds, high-level and low-level laterites. It has usually
been formed by the decomposition _in situ_ of the rock on which it
rests, but it is often broken up and re-deposited elsewhere.
_Meteorology._
The great peninsula of India, with its lofty mountain ranges behind
and its extensive seaboard exposed to the first violence of the winds
of two oceans, forms an exceptionally valuable and interesting field
for the study of meteorological phenomena.
Himalayas.
From the gorge of the Indus to that of the Brahmaputra, a distance of
1400 m., the Himalayas form an unbroken watershed, the northern flank
of which is drained by the upper valleys of these two rivers; while
the Sutlej, starting from the southern foot of the Kailas Peak, breaks
through the watershed, dividing it into two very unequal portions,
that to the north-west being the smaller. The average elevation of the
Himalaya crest may be taken at not less than 19,000 ft., and therefore
equal to the height of the lower half of the atmosphere; and indeed
few of the passes are under 16,000 or 17,000 ft. Across this mountain
barrier there appears to be a constant flow of air, more active in the
day-time than at night, northwards to the arid plateau of Tibet. There
is no reason to believe that any transfer of air takes place across
the Himalayas in a southerly direction, unless indeed in those most
elevated regions of the atmosphere which lie beyond the range of
observation; but a nocturnal flow of cooled air, from the southern
slopes, is felt as a strong wind where the rivers debouch on the
plains, more especially in the early morning hours; and this probably
contributes in some degree to lower the mean temperature of that belt
of the plains which fringes the mountain zone.
Indus plain.
At the foot of the great mountain barrier, and separating it from the
more ancient land which now forms the highlands of the peninsula, a
broad plain, for the most part alluvial, stretches from sea to sea. On
the west, in the dry region, this is occupied partly by the alluvial
deposits of the Indus and its tributaries and the saline swamps of
Cutch, partly by the rolling sands and rocky surface of the desert of
Jaisalmer and Bikaner, and the more fertile tracts to the eastward
watered by the Luni. Over the greater part of this region rain is of
rare occurrence; and not infrequently more than a year passes without
a drop falling on the parched surface. On its eastern margin, however,
in the neighbourhood of the Aravalli hills, and again in the northern
Punjab, rain is more frequent, occurring both in the south-west
monsoon and also at the opposite season in the cold weather. As far
south as Sirsa and Multan the average rainfall does not much exceed 7
in.
Gangetic plain.
The alluvial plain of the Punjab passes into that of the Gangetic
valley without visible interruption. Up or down this plain, at
opposite seasons, sweep the monsoon winds, in a direction at right
angles to that of their nominal course; and thus vapour which has been
brought by winds from the Bay of Bengal is discharged as snow and rain
on the peaks and hillsides of the Western Himalayas. Nearly the whole
surface is under cultivation, and it ranks among the most productive
as well as the most densely populated regions of the world. The
rainfall diminishes from 100 in. in the south-east corner of the
Gangetic delta to less than 30 in. at Agra and Delhi, and there is an
average difference of from 15 to 25 in. between the northern and
southern borders of the plain.
Eastern Bengal.
Eastward from the Bengal delta, two alluvial plains stretch up between
the hills which connect the Himalayan system with that of the Burmese
peninsula. The first, or the valley of Assam and the Brahmaputra, is
long and narrow, bordered on the north by the Himalayas, on the south
by the lower plateau of the Garo, Khasi and Naga hills. The other,
short and broad, and in great part occupied by swamps and _jhils_,
separates the Garo, Khasi and Naga hills from those of Tippera and the
Lushai country. The climate of these plains is damp and equable, and
the rainfall is prolonged and generally heavy, especially on the
southern slopes of the hills. A meteorological peculiarity of some
interest has been noticed, more especially at the stations of Sibsagar
and Silchar, viz. the great range of the diurnal variation of
barometric pressure during the afternoon hours,--which is the more
striking, since at Rurki, Lahore, and other stations near the foot of
the Western Himalayas this range is less than in the open plains.
Central table-land.
The highlands of the peninsula, which are cut off from the encircling
ranges by the broad Indo-Gangetic plain, are divided into two unequal
parts by an almost continuous chain of hills running across the
country from west by south to east by north, just south of the Tropic
of Cancer. This chain may be regarded as a single geographical
feature, forming one of the principal watersheds of the peninsula, the
waters to the north draining chiefly into the Nerbudda and the Ganges,
those to the south into the Tapti, the Mahanadi, the Godavari and some
smaller streams. In a meteorological point of view it is of
considerable importance. Together with the two parallel valleys of the
Nerbudda and Tapti, which drain the flanks of its western half, it
gives, at opposite seasons of the year, a decided easterly and
westerly direction to the winds of this part of India, and condenses a
tolerably copious rainfall during the south-west monsoon.
Separated from this chain by the valley of the Nerbudda on the west,
and that of the Sone on the east, the plateau of Malwa and Baghelkhand
occupies the space intervening between these valleys and the Gangetic
plain. On the western edge of the plateau are the Aravalli hills,
which run from near Ahmedabad up to the neighbourhood of Delhi, and
include one hill, Mount Abu, over 5000 ft. in height. This range
exerts an important influence on the direction of the wind, and also
on the rainfall. At Ajmer, an old meteorological station at the
eastern foot of the range, the wind is predominantly south-west, and
there and at Mount Abu the south-west monsoon rains are a regularly
recurrent phenomenon,--which can hardly be said of the region of
scanty and uncertain rainfall that extends from the western foot of
the range and merges in the Bikaner desert.
Southern plateau.
The peninsula south of the Satpura range consists chiefly of the
triangular plateau of the Deccan, terminating abruptly on the west in
the Sahyadri range (Western Ghats), and shelving to the east (Eastern
Ghats). This plateau is swept by the south-west monsoon, but not until
it has surmounted the western barrier of the Ghats; and hence the
rainfall is, as a rule, light at Poona and places similarly situated
under the lee of the range, and but moderate over the more easterly
parts of the plateau. The rains, however, are prolonged some three or
four weeks later than in tracts to the north of the Satpuras, since
they are also brought by the easterly winds which blow from the Bay of
Bengal in October and the early part of November, when the recurved
southerly wind ceases to blow up the Gangetic valley, and sets towards
the south-east coast.
Southern India.
At the junction of the Eastern and Western Ghats rises the bold
triangular plateau of the Nilgiris, and to the south of them come the
Anamalais, the Palnis, and the hills of Travancore. These ranges are
separated from the Nilgiris by a broad depression or pass known as the
Palghat Gap, some 25 m. wide, the highest point of which is only 1500
ft. above the sea. This gap affords a passage to the winds which
elsewhere are barred by the hills of the Ghat chain. The country to
the east of the gap receives the rainfall of the south-west monsoon;
and during the north-east monsoon ships passing Beypur meet with a
stronger wind from the land than is felt elsewhere on the Malabar
coast. In the strip of low country that fringes the peninsula below
the Ghats the rainfall is heavy and the climate warm and damp, the
vegetation being dense and characteristically tropical, and the steep
slopes of the Ghats, where they have not been artificially cleared,
thickly clothed with forest.
Burma.
In Lower Burma the western face of the Arakan Yoma hills, like that of
the Western Ghats in India, is exposed to the full force of the
south-western monsoon, and receives a very heavy rainfall. At Sandoway
this amounts to an annual mean of 212 in. It diminishes to the
northwards, but even at Chittagong it is over 104 in. annually.
The country around Mandalay, as well as the hill country to the north,
has suffered from severe earthquakes, one of which destroyed Ava in
1839. The general meridional direction of the ranges and valleys
determines the direction of the prevailing surface winds, this being,
however, subject to many local modifications. But it would appear that
throughout the year there is, with but slight interruption, a steady
upper current from the south-west, such as has been already noticed
over the Himalayas. The rainfall in the lower part of the Irrawaddy
valley, viz. the delta and the neighbouring part of the province of
Pegu, is very heavy; and the climate is mild and equable at all
seasons. But higher up the valley, and especially north of Pegu, the
country is drier, and is characterized by a less luxuriant vegetation
and a retarded and more scanty rainfall.
Climate.
Within the boundaries of India almost any extreme of climate that is
known to the tropics or the temperate zone can be found. It is
influenced from outside by two adjoining areas. On the north, the
Himalaya range and the plateau of Afghanistan shut it off from the
climate of central Asia, and give it a continental climate, the
characteristics of which are the prevalence of land winds, great
dryness of the air, large diurnal range of temperature, and little or
no precipitation. On the south the ocean gives it an oceanic climate,
the chief features of which are great uniformity of temperature, small
diurnal range of temperature, great dampness of the air, and more or
less frequent rain. The continental type of weather prevails over
almost the whole of India from December to May, and the oceanic type
from June to November, thus giving rise to the two great divisions of
the year, the dry season or north-east monsoon, and the rainy season
or south-west monsoon. India thus becomes the type of a tropical
monsoon climate. For the origin of the monsoon currents and their
distribution see MONSOON.
The two monsoon periods are divided by the change of temperature, due
to solar action upon the earth's surface, into two separate seasons;
and thus the Indian year may be divided into four seasons: the cold
season, including the months of January and February; the hot season,
comprising the months of March, April and May; the south-west monsoon
period, including the months of June, July, August, September and
October; and the retreating monsoon period, including the months of
November and December. The temperature is nearly constant in southern
India the whole year round, but in northern India, where the extremes
of both heat and cold are greatest, the variation is very large.
The cold weather.
In the cold season the mean temperature averages about 30° lower in
the Punjab than in southern India. In the Punjab, the United
Provinces, and northern India generally the climate resembles that of
the Riviera with a brilliant cloudless sky and cool dry weather. This
is the time for the tourist to visit India. In south India it is
warmer on the west coast than on the east, and the maximum temperature
is found round the headwaters of the Kistna. Calcutta, Bombay and
Madras all possess the equable climate that is induced by proximity to
the sea, but Calcutta enjoys a cold season which is not to be found in
the other presidency towns, while the hot season is more unendurable
there.
The hot weather.
The hot season begins officially in the Punjab on the 15th of March,
and from that date there is a steady rise in the temperature, induced
by the fiery rays of the sun upon the baking earth, until the break of
the rains in June. During this season the interior of the peninsula
and northern India is greatly heated; and the contrast of temperature
is not between northern and southern India, but between the interior
of India and the coast districts and adjacent seas. The greater part
of the Deccan and the Central Provinces are included within the
hottest area, though in May the highest temperatures are found in
Upper Sind, north-west Rajputana, and south-west Punjab. At Jacobabad
the thermometer sometimes rises to 125° in the shade.
The monsoon period.
The south-west monsoon currents usually set in during the first
fortnight of June on the Bombay and Bengal coasts, and give more or
less general rain in every part of India during the next three months.
But the distribution of the rainfall is very uneven. On the face of
the Western Ghats, and on the Khasi hills, overlooking the Bay of
Bengal, where the mountains catch the masses of vapour as it rises off
the sea, the rainfall is enormous. At Cherrapunji in the Khasi hills
it averages upwards of 500 in. a year. The Bombay monsoon, after
surmounting the Ghats, blows across the peninsula as a west and
sometimes in places a north-west wind; but it leaves with very little
rain a strip 100 to 200 m. in width in the western Deccan parallel
with the Ghats, and it is this part of the Deccan, together with the
Mysore table-land and the Carnatic, that is most subject to drought.
Similarly the Bengal monsoon passes by the Coromandel coast and the
Carnatic with an occasional shower, taking a larger volume to
Masulipatam and Orissa, and abundant rain to Bengal, Assam and Cachar.
The same current also supplies with rain the broad band across India,
which includes the Satpura range, Chota Nagpur, the greater part of
the Central Provinces and Central India, Orissa and Bengal. Rainfall
rapidly diminishes to the north-west from that belt. A branch of the
Bombay current blows pretty steadily through Rajputana to the Punjab,
carrying some rain to the latter province. But the greater part of
north-west India is served as a rule by cyclonic storms between the
two currents. In September the force of the monsoon begins rapidly to
decline, and after about the middle of the month it ceases to carry
rain to the greater part of north-western India. In its rear springs
up a gentle steady north-east wind, which gradually extends over the
Bay of Bengal, and is known as the north-east monsoon. A wind similar
in character, but rather more easterly in direction, simultaneously
takes possession of the Arabian Sea. The months of November and
December form a transition period between the monsoon and the cold
season. The most unhealthy period of the year follows immediately
after the rains, when malaria is prevalent, especially in northern
India.
_Flora._
Unlike many other large geographical areas, India is remarkable for
having no distinctive botanical features peculiar to itself. It
differs conspicuously in this respect from such countries as Australia
or South Africa. Its vegetation is in point of fact of a composite
character, and is constituted by the meeting and more or less blending
of adjoining floras,--those of Persia and the south-eastern
Mediterranean area to the north-west, of Siberia to the north, of
China to the east, and of Malaya to the south-east. Regarded broadly,
four tolerably distinct types present themselves.
Himalayas.
1. The upper levels of the Himalayas slope northwards gradually to the
Tibetan uplands, over which the Siberian temperate vegetation ranges.
This is part of the great temperate flora which, with locally
individualized species, but often with identical genera, ranges over
the whole of the temperate zone of the northern hemisphere. In the
western Himalayas this upland flora is marked by a strong admixture of
European species, such as the columbine (_Aquilegia_) and hawthorn
(_Crataegus Oxyacantha_). These disappear rapidly eastward, and are
scarcely found beyond Kumaon. The base of the Himalayas is occupied by
a narrow belt forming an extreme north-western extension of the
Malayan type described below. Above that there is a rich temperate
flora which in the eastern chain may be regarded as forming an
extension of that of northern China, gradually assuming westwards more
and more of a European type. _Magnolia_, _Aucuba_, _Abelia_ and
_Skimmia_ may be mentioned as examples of Chinese genera found in the
eastern Himalayas, and the tea-tree grows wild in Assam. The same
coniferous trees are common to both parts of the range. _Pinus
longifolia_ extends to the Hindu-Kush; _P. excelsa_ is found
universally except in Sikkim, and has its European analogue in _P.
Peuce_, found in the mountains of Greece. _Abies smithiana_ extends
into Afghanistan; _Abies webbiana_ forms dense forests at altitudes of
8000 to 12,000 ft., and ranges from Bhutan to Kashmir; several
junipers and the common yew (_Taxus baccata_) also occur. The deodar
(_Cedrus Deodara_), which is indigenous to the mountains of
Afghanistan and the north-west Himalaya, is nearly allied to the
Atlantic cedar and to the cedar of Lebanon, a form of which is found
in Cyprus. A notable further instance of the connexion of the western
Himalayan flora with that of Europe is the holm oak (_Quercus Ilex_),
which is characteristic of the Mediterranean region.
North-west.
2. The north-western area is best marked in Sind and the Punjab, where
the climate is very dry (the rainfall averaging less than 15 in.), and
where the soil, though fertile, is wholly dependent on irrigation for
its cultivation. The flora is a poor one in number of species, and is
essentially identical with that of Persia, southern Arabia and Egypt.
The low scattered jungle contains such characteristic species as
_Capparis aphylla_, _Acacia arabica_ (babul), _Populus euphratica_
(the "willows" of Ps. cxxxvii. 2), _Salvadora persica_ (erroneously
identified by Royle with the mustard of Matt. xiii. 31), tamarisk,
_Zizyphus_, _Lotus_, &c. The dry flora extends somewhat in a
south-east direction, and then blends insensibly with that of the
western peninsula; some species representing it are found in the upper
Gangetic plain, and a few are widely distributed in dry parts of the
country.
Assam and Malayan peninsula.
3. For the Malayan area, which Sir Joseph Hooker describes as forming
"the bulk of the flora of the perennially humid regions of India, as
of the whole Malayan peninsula, Upper Assam valley, the Khasi
mountains, the forests of the base of the Himalaya from the
Brahmaputra to Nepal, of the Malabar coast, and of Ceylon," see ASSAM,
CEYLON and MALAY PENINSULA.
Western India.
4. The western India type is difficult to characterize, and is in many
respects intermediate between the two just preceding. It occupies a
comparatively dry area, with a rainfall under 75 in. In respect to
positive affinities, Sir Joseph Hooker pointed out some relations with
the flora of tropical Africa as evidenced by the prevalence of such
genera as _Grewia_ and _Impatiens_, and the absence, common to both
countries, of oaks and pines which abound in the Malayan archipelago.
The annual vegetation which springs up in the rainy season includes
numerous genera, such as _Sida_ and _Indigofera_, which are largely
represented both in Africa and Hindustan. Palms also in both countries
are scanty, the most notable in southern India being the wild date
(_Phoenix sylvestris_); _Borassus_ and the coco-nut are cultivated.
The forests, though occasionally very dense, as in the Western Ghats,
are usually drier and more open than those of the Malayan type, and
are often scrubby. The most important timber trees are the _tún_
(_Cedrela Toona_), _sál_ (_Shorea robusta_), the present area of which
forms two belts separated by the Gangetic plain; satin wood
(_Chloroxylon Swietenia_), common in the drier parts of the peninsula;
sandal-wood, especially characteristic of Mysore; iron-wood (_Mesua
ferrea_), and teak (_Tectona grandis_).
_Fauna._
Lion.
_Mammals._--First among the wild animals of India must be mentioned
the lion (_Felis leo_), which is known to have been not uncommon
within historical times in Hindustan proper and the Punjab. At present
the lion is confined to the Gir, or rocky hill-desert and forest of
Kathiawar. A peculiar variety is there found, marked by the absence of
a mane; but whether this variety deserves to be classed as a distinct
species, naturalists have not yet determined. These lions at one time
were almost extinct, but after being preserved since about 1890 by the
Nawab of Junagarh, they have once more become comparatively plentiful.
A good lion, measures from 9 to 9½ ft. in length.
Tiger.
The characteristic beast of prey in India is the tiger (_F. tigris_),
which is found in every part of the country, from the slopes of the
Himalayas to the Sundarbans swamps. The average length of a tiger from
nose to tip of tail is 9 ft. to 10 ft. for tigers, and 8 ft. to 9 ft.
for tigresses, but a tiger of 12 ft. 4 in. has been shot. The advance
of cultivation, even more than the incessant attacks of sportsmen, has
gradually caused the tiger to become a rare animal in large tracts of
country; but it is scarcely probable that he will ever be exterminated
from India. The malarious _tarái_ fringing the Himalayas, the
uninhabitable swamps of the Gangetic delta, and the wide jungles of
the central plateau are at present the chief home of the tiger. His
favourite food appears to be deer, antelope and wild hog. When these
abound he will disregard domestic cattle. Indeed, the natives are
disposed to consider him as in some sort their protector, as he saves
their crops from destruction by the wild animals on which he feeds.
But when once he develops a taste for human blood, then the slaughter
he works becomes truly formidable. The confirmed man-eater, which is
generally an old beast, disabled from overtaking his usual prey, seems
to accumulate his tale of victims in sheer cruelty rather than for
food. A single tiger is known to have killed 108 people in the course
of three years. Another killed an average of about 80 persons per
annum. A third caused thirteen villages to be abandoned, and 250 sq.
m. of land to be thrown out of cultivation. A fourth, in 1869, killed
127 people, and stopped a public road for many weeks, until the
opportune arrival of an English sportsman, who at last killed him.
Such cases are, of course, exceptional, and generally refer to a
period long past, but they explain and justify the superstitious awe
with which the tiger is regarded by the natives. The favourite mode of
shooting the tiger is from the back of elephants, or from elevated
platforms (_macháns_) of boughs in the jungle. In Central India they
are shot on foot. In Assam they are sometimes speared from boats, and
in the Himalayas they are said to be ensnared by bird-lime. Rewards
are given by government to native _shikáris_ for the heads of tigers,
varying in time and place according to the need. In 1903 the number of
persons killed by tigers in the whole of India was 866, while forty
years previously 700 people were said to be killed annually in Bengal
alone.
Leopard.
The leopard or panther (_F. pardus_) is far more common than the tiger
in all parts of India, and at least equally destructive to life and
property. The greatest length of the leopard is about 7 ft. 6 in. A
black variety, as beautiful as it is rare, is sometimes found in the
extreme south of the peninsula, and also in Java.
The cheetah or hunting leopard (_Cynaelurus jubatus_) must be
carefully distinguished from the leopard proper. This animal appears
to be a native only of the Deccan, where it is trained for hunting the
antelope. In some respects it approaches the dog more nearly than the
cat tribe. Its limbs are long, its hair rough, and its claws blunt and
only partially retractile. The speed with which it bounds upon its
prey, when loosed from the cart, exceeds the swiftness of any other
mammal. If it misses its first attack, it scarcely ever attempts to
follow, but returns to its master. Among other species of the family
_Felidae_ found in India may be mentioned the ounce or snow leopard
(_F. uncia_), the clouded leopard (_F. nebulosa_), the marbled cat
(_F. marmorata_), the jungle cat (_F. chaus_), and the viverrine cat
(_F. viverrina_).
Wolf tribe.
Wolves (_Canis lupus_) abound throughout the open country, but are
rare in the wooded districts. Their favourite prey is sheep, but they
are also said to run down antelopes and hares, or rather catch them by
lying in ambush. Instances of their attacking man are not uncommon,
and the story of Romulus and Remus has had its counterpart in India
within comparatively recent times. The Indian wolf has a dingy
reddish-white fur, some of the hairs being tipped with black. By some
naturalists it is regarded as a distinct species, under the name of
_Canis pallipes_. Three distinct varieties, the white, the red and the
black wolf, are found in the Tibetan Himalayas. The Indian fox
(_Vulpes bengalensis_) is comparatively rare, but the jackal (_C.
aureus_) abounds everywhere, making night hideous by its
never-to-be-forgotten yells. The jackal, and not the fox, is usually
the animal hunted by the packs of hounds occasionally kept by
Europeans.
Dog.
The wild dog, or dhole (_Cyon_), is found in all the wilder jungles of
India, including Assam and Lower Burma. Its characteristic is that it
hunts in packs, sometimes containing thirty dogs, and does not give
tongue. When once a pack of wild dogs has put up any animal, that
animal's doom is sealed. They do not leave it for days, and finally
bring it to bay, or run it down exhausted. A peculiar variety of wild
dog exists in the Karen hills of Burma, thus described from a specimen
in confinement. It was black and white, as hairy as a skye-terrier,
and as large as a medium-sized spaniel. It had an invariable habit of
digging a hole in the ground, into which it crawled backwards,
remaining there all day with only its nose and ferrety eyes visible.
Among other dogs of India are the pariah, which is merely a mongrel,
run wild and half starved; the poligar dog, an immense creature
peculiar to the south; the greyhound, used for coursing; and the
mastiff of Tibet and Bhutan. The striped hyaena (_Hyaena striata_) is
common, being found wherever the wolf is absent. Like the wolf, it is
very destructive both to the flocks and to children.
Bear.
Of bears, the common black or sloth bear (_Melursus ursinus_) is
common throughout India wherever rocky hills and forests occur. It is
distinguished by a white horse-shoe mark on its breast. Its food
consists of ants, honey and fruit. When disturbed it will attack man,
and it is a dangerous antagonist, for it always strikes at the face.
The Himalayan or Tibetan sun bear (_Ursus torquatus_) is found along
the north, from the Punjab to Assam. During the summer it remains high
up in the mountains, near the limit of snow, but in the winter it
descends to 5000 ft. and even lower. Its congener, the Malayan sun
bear (_U. malayanus_), is found in Lower Burma.
Elephant.
The elephant (_Elephas indicus_) is found in many parts of India,
though not in the north-west. Contrary to what might be anticipated
from its size and from the habits of its African cousin, the Indian
elephant is now, at any rate, an inhabitant, not of the plains, but of
the hills; and even on the hills it is usually found among the higher
ridges and plateaus, and not in the valleys. From the peninsula of
India the elephant has been gradually exterminated, being only found
now in the primeval forests of Coorg, Mysore and Travancore, and in
the tributary state of Orissa. It still exists in places along the
_tarái_ or submontane fringe of the Himalayas. The main source of
supply at the present time is the confused mass of hills which forms
the north-east boundary of British India, from Assam to Burma. Two
varieties are there distinguished, the _gunda_ or tusker, and the
_makna_ or _hine_, which has no tusks. The reports of the height of
the elephant, like those of its intelligence, seem to be exaggerated.
The maximum is probably 12 ft. If hunted, the elephant must be
attacked on foot, and the sport is therefore dangerous, especially as
the animal has but few parts vulnerable to a bullet. The regular mode
of catching elephants is by means of a _keddah_, or gigantic stockade,
into which a wild herd is driven, then starved into submission, and
tamed by animals already domesticated. The practice of capturing them
in pitfalls is discouraged as cruel and wasteful. Elephants now form a
government monopoly everywhere in India. The shooting of them is
prohibited, except when they become dangerous to man or destructive to
the crops; and the right of capturing them is only leased out upon
conditions. A special law, under the title of "The Elephants
Preservation Act" (No. VI. of 1879), regulates this licensing system.
Whoever kills, captures or injures an elephant, or attempts to do so,
without a licence, is punishable by a fine of 500 rupees for the first
offence; and a similar fine, together with six months' imprisonment,
for a second offence. Though the supply is decreasing, elephants
continue to be in great demand. Their chief use is in the timber trade
and for government transport. They are also bought up by native chiefs
at high prices for purposes of ostentation.
Rhinoceros.
Of the rhinoceros, three distinct varieties are enumerated, two with a
single and one with a double horn. The most familiar is the
_Rhinoceros unicornis_, commonly found in the Brahmaputra valley. It
has but one horn, and is covered with massive folds of naked skin. It
sometimes attains a height of 6 ft.; its horn, which is much prized by
the natives for medicinal purposes, seldom exceeds 14 in. in length.
It frequents swampy, shady spots, and wallows in mud like a pig. The
traditional antipathy of the rhinoceros to the elephant seems to be
mythical. The Javan rhinoceros (_R. sondaicus_) is found in the
Sundarbans and also in Burma. It also has but one horn, and mainly
differs from the foregoing in being smaller, and having less prominent
"shields." The Sumatran rhinoceros (_R. sumatrensis_) is found from
Chittagong southwards through Burma. It has two horns and a bristly
coat.
Wild hog.
The wild hog (_Sus cristatus_) is well known as affording the most
exciting sport in the world--"pig-sticking." It frequents cultivated
situations, and is the most mischievous enemy of the villager. A rare
animal, called the pigmy hog (_S. salvanius_), exists in the _tarái_
of Nepal and Sikkim, and has been shot in Assam. Its height is only 10
in., and its weight does not exceed 12 lb.
Wild ass.
The wild ass (_Equus hemionus_) is confined to the sandy deserts of
Sind and Cutch, where, from its speed and timidity, it is almost
unapproachable.
Sheep and goats.
Many wild species of the sheep and goat tribe are to be found in the
Himalayan ranges. The _Ovis ammon_ and _O. poli_ are Tibetan rather
than Indian species. The _urial_ and the _shapu_ are kindred species
of wild sheep (_Ovis vignei_), found respectively in Ladakh and the
Suleiman range. The former comes down to 2000 ft. above the sea, the
latter is never seen at altitudes lower than 12,000 ft. The _barhal_,
or blue wild sheep (_O. nahura_), and the _markhor_ and _tahr_ (both
wild goats), also inhabit the Himalayas. A variety of the ibex is also
found there, as well as in the highest ranges of southern India. The
_sarau_ (_Nemorhaedus bubalinus_), allied to the chamois, has a wide
range in the mountains of the north, from the Himalayas to Assam and
Burma.
Antelopes.
The antelope tribe is represented by comparatively few species, as
compared with the great number peculiar to Africa. The antelope proper
(_Antilope_), the "black buck" of sportsmen, is very generally
distributed. Its special habitat is salt plains, as on the coast-line
of Gujarat and Orissa, where herds of fifty does may be seen,
accompanied by a single buck. The doe is of a light fawn colour and
has no horns. The colour of the buck is a deep brown-black above,
sharply marked off from the white of the belly. His spiral horns,
twisted for three or four turns like a corkscrew, often reach the
length of 30 in. The flesh is dry and unsavoury, but is permitted meat
for Hindus, even of the Brahman caste. The _nílgai_, or blue cow
(_Boselaephus tragocamelus_) is also widely distributed, but specially
abounds in Hindustan Proper and Gujarat. As with the antelope, the
male alone has the dark-blue colour. The _nílgai_ is held peculiarly
sacred by Hindus, from its fancied kinship to the cow, and on this
account its destructive inroads upon the crops are tolerated. The
four-horned antelope (_Tetracerus quadricornis_) and the gazelle
(_Gazella bennetti_), the chinkara or "ravine deer" of sportsmen, are
also found in India.
Deer.
The king of the deer tribe is the _sámbhar_ or _jarau_ (_Cervus
unicolor_), erroneously called "elk" by sportsmen. It is found on the
forest-clad hills in all parts of the country. It is of a deep-brown
colour, with hair on its neck almost like a mane; and it stands nearly
5 ft. high, with spreading antlers nearly 3 ft. in length. Next in
size is the swamp deer or _bara-singha_, signifying "twelve points"
(_C. duvauceli_), which is common in Lower Bengal and Assam. The
_chitál_ or spotted deer (_C. axis_) is generally admitted to be the
most beautiful inhabitant of the Indian jungles. Other species include
the hog deer (_C. porcinus_), the barking deer or muntjac (_Cervulus
muntjac_), and the chevrotain or mouse deer (_Tragulus meminna_). The
musk deer (_Moschus moschiferus_) is confined to Tibet.
Bison.
Buffalo.
The ox tribe is represented in India by some of its noblest species.
The _gaur_ (_Bos gaurus_), the "bison" of sportsmen, is found in all
the hill jungles of the country, in the Western Ghats, in Central
India, in Assam, and in Burma. This animal sometimes attains the
height of 20 hands (close on 7 ft.), measuring from the hump above the
shoulder. Its short curved horns and skull are enormously massive. Its
colour is dark chestnut, or coffee-brown. From the difficult nature of
its habitat, and from the ferocity with which it charges an enemy, the
pursuit of the bison is no less dangerous and no less exciting than
that of the tiger or the elephant. Akin to the gaur, though not
identical, are the _gayál_ or _mithun_ (_B. frontalis_), confined to
the hills of the north-east frontier, where it is domesticated for
sacrificial purposes by the aboriginal tribes, and the _tsine_ or
_banting_ (_B. sondaicus_), found in Burma. The wild buffalo (_Bos
bubalus_) differs from the tame buffalo only in being larger and more
fierce. The finest specimens come from Assam and Burma. The horns of
the bull are thicker than those of the cow, but the horns of the cow
are larger. A head has been known to measure 13 ft. 6 in. in
circumference, and 6 ft. 6 in. between the tips. The greatest height
is 6 ft. The colour is a slaty black; the hide is immensely thick,
with scanty hairs. Alone perhaps of all wild animals in India, the
buffalo will charge unprovoked. Even tame buffaloes seem to have an
inveterate dislike to Europeans.
Rat tribe.
The rat and mouse family is only too numerous. Conspicuous in it is
the loathsome bandicoot (_Nesocia bandicota_), which sometimes
measures 2 ft. in length, including its tail, and weighs 3 lb. It
burrows under houses, and is very destructive to plants, fruit and
even poultry. More interesting is the tree mouse (_Vandeleusia_),
about 7 in. long, which makes its nest in palms and bamboos. The field
rats (_Mus mettada_) occasionally multiply so exceedingly as to
diminish the out-turn of the local harvest, and to require special
measures for their destruction.
Birds.
_Birds._--The ornithology of India, though it is not considered so
rich in specimens of gorgeous and variegated plumage as that of other
tropical regions, contains many splendid and curious varieties. Some
are clothed in nature's gay attire, others distinguished by strength,
size and fierceness. The parrot tribe is the most remarkable for
beauty. Among birds of prey, four vultures are found, including the
common scavengers (_Gyps indicus_ and _G. bengalensis_). The eagles
comprise many species, but none to surpass the golden eagle of Europe.
Of falcons, there are the peregrine (_F. peregrinus_), the _shain_
(_F. peregrinator_), and the _lagar_ (_F. jugger_), which are all
trained by the natives for hawking; of hawks, the _shikara_ (_Astur
badius_), the goshawk (_A. palumbarius_), and the sparrow-hawk
(_Accipiter nisus_). Kingfishers of various kinds and herons are
sought for their plumage. No bird is more popular with natives than
the _maina_ (_Acridotheres tristis_), a member of the starling family,
which lives contentedly in a cage, and can be taught to pronounce
words, especially the name of the god Rama. Water-fowl are especially
numerous. Of game-birds, the floriken (_Sypheotis aurita_) is valued
as much for its rarity as for the delicacy of its flesh. Snipe
(_Gallinago coelestis_) abound at certain seasons, in such numbers
that one gun has been known to make a bag of one hundred brace in a
day. Pigeons, partridges, quail, plover, duck, teal, sheldrake,
widgeon--all of many varieties--complete the list of small game. The
red jungle fowl (_Gallus ferrugineus_), supposed to be the ancestor of
our own poultry, is not good eating; and the same may be said of the
peacock (_Pavo cristatus_), except when young. The pheasant does not
occur in India Proper, though a white variety is found in Burma.
Reptiles.
_Reptiles._--The serpent tribe in India is numerous; they swarm in all
the gardens, and intrude into the dwellings of the inhabitants,
especially in the rainy season. Most are comparatively harmless, but
the bite of others is speedily fatal. The cobra di capello (_Naia
tripudians_)--the name given to it by the Portuguese, from the
appearance of a hood which it produces by the expanded skin about the
neck--is the most dreaded. It seldom exceeds 3 or 4 ft. in length, and
is about 1¼ in. thick, with a small head, covered on the forepart with
large smooth scales; it is of a pale brown colour above, and the belly
is of a bluish-white tinged with pale brown or yellow. The Russelian
snake (_Vipera russellii_), about 4 ft. in length, is of a pale
yellowish-brown, beautifully variegated with large oval spots of deep
brown, with a white edging. Its bite is extremely fatal. Itinerant
showmen carry about these serpents, and cause them to assume a dancing
motion for the amusement of the spectators. They also give out that
they render snakes harmless by the use of charms or music,--in reality
it is by extracting the venomous fangs. But, judging from the frequent
accidents which occur, they sometimes dispense with this precaution.
All the salt-water snakes in India are poisonous, while the freshwater
forms are wholly innocuous.
The other reptiles include two species of crocodile (_C. porosus_ and
_C. palustris_) and the ghariyal (_Gavialis gangeticus_). These are
more ugly in appearance than destructive to human life. Scorpions also
abound.
Fishes.
_Fishes._--All the waters of India--the sea, the rivers and the
tanks--swarm with a great variety of fishes, which are caught in every
conceivable way, and furnish a considerable proportion of the food of
the poorer classes. They are eaten fresh, or as nearly fresh as may
be, for the art of curing them is not generally practised, owing to
the exigencies of the salt monopoly. In Burma the favourite relish of
_nga-pi_ is prepared from fish; and at Goalanda, at the junction of
the Brahmaputra with the Ganges, and along the Madras coast many
establishments exist for salting fish in bond. The indiscriminate
slaughter of fry, and the obstacles opposed by irrigation dams to
breeding fish, are said to be causing a sensible diminution in the
supply in certain rivers. Measures of conservancy have been suggested,
but their execution would be almost impracticable. Among Indian
fishes, the _Cyprinidae_ or carp family and the _Siluridae_ or
cat-fishes are best represented. From the angler's point of view, by
far the finest fish is the _mahseer_ (_Barbustor_), found in all hill
streams, whether in Assam, the Punjab or the South. One has been
caught weighing 60 lb., which gave play for more than seven hours.
Though called the salmon of India, the _mahseer_ is really a species
of barbel. One of the richest and most delicious of Indian fishes is
the _hilsa_ (_Clupea ilisha_), which tastes and looks like a fat white
salmon. But the enhanced price of fish and the decreased supply
throughout the country are matters of grave concern both to the
government and the people.
_Insects._--The insect tribes in India may be truly said to be
innumerable. The heat and the rains give incredible activity to
noxious or troublesome insects, and to others of a more showy class,
whose large wings surpass in brilliancy the most splendid colours of
art. Mosquitoes are innumerable, and moths and ants of the most
destructive kind, as well as others equally noxious and disagreeable.
Amongst those which are useful are the bee, the silk-worm, and the
insect that produces lac. Clouds of locusts occasionally appear, which
leave no trace of green behind them, and give the country over which
they pass the appearance of a desert. Their size is about that of a
man's finger, and their colour reddish. They are swept north by the
wind till they strike upon the outer ranges of the Himalayas.