BRITISH INDIA AND THE EAST INDIES
These countries are in tropical latitudes and in the main are regions of
great productivity. A few native states that have resisted annexation
and conquest excepted, almost the entire area is divided among Great
Britain, Holland, and France.
[Illustration: INDIA]
=British India.=--The Empire of India comprises an area half as large as
the United States, situated on the southern slope of Asia. It covers the
same latitude as the span between the Venezuelan coast and the Ohio
River; from the Indus to the Siam frontier the distance is about two
thousand miles. It includes also settlements in the Malay peninsula.
Excepting the plateau of the Dekkan, and the slopes of the Himalayan
ranges, most of the surface consists of plains and low, rolling land
covered with a great depth of soil. Through these rich lands flow four
large rivers--the Indus, Ganges, Brahmaputra, and Irawadi, which afford
a great deal of internal communication. The Himalaya Mountains on the
north and the Hindu Kush on the northwest practically shut off
communication from the northward, so that all communication in this
direction is concentrated at Khaibar and Bolan Passes, the most
important gateways by land approach.
British India is one of the most populous regions of the world; the
average population per square mile is about one hundred and eighty, a
density considerably greater than that of New York State. The entire
population is about three times that of the United States. Nearly all
the food-stuffs grown are required for home consumption; indeed, dry
years are apt to be followed by a shortage of food-stuffs. Years ago
famines followed any considerable deficiency of crops, but since the
completion of the admirable railway systems the necessary food-stuffs
are quickly shipped to the district where the shortage occurs.
The Hindus constitute about three-fourths of the population. Along the
northern border there are many peoples of Afghan and Turkic descent; in
Burma there is a considerable admixture of Mongol blood. An elaborate
system of social castes imposed by the teachings of Brahmanism has made
the introduction of western methods of education and civilization
somewhat difficult to carry out. The educational system of the
dominating Brahmanic caste, although of a very high order, does not fit
the people to cope with the commercialism of western civilization.
Five-sevenths of the population are engaged in agricultural labor. Rice,
wheat, millet, meat, and sugar are the chief food-crops. Of these, rice
and wheat[78] only are exported; the others are required for home
consumption.
The articles grown for export are jute, cotton, opium, oil-yielding
seeds, tea, and opium. No meat is exported, but hides form a large item
of foreign trade.
The jute is used in the manufacture of rugs and grain-sacks. It is
cultivated mainly in the delta-lands of the Ganges-Brahmaputra. A
considerable part of the product is now manufactured in India and in
China; some is also shipped to California, to be made into wheat-sacks;
perhaps the larger part is sent to Dundee, Scotland, where it is woven
into textile fabrics. The choicest product is used to mix with silk
fibre, or is employed in the manufacture of rugs and coverings.
Cotton cultivation is rapidly taking first rank among the industries of
India, for which the conditions of soil, climate, and market are
admirably adapted. India stands second in cotton-growing, and the area
of production is gradually increasing. Most of the crop is exported to
Europe for manufacture, although there is an increasing amount sold to
Japan. Great Britain is the largest purchaser, and the cotton goods
manufactured at Manchester are reshipped in large quantities to India.
Owing to the low wages paid for labor both in the fields and the mills,
cotton manufacture is a rapidly growing industry in India. In many cases
the yarn is manufactured in India and then sent to China to be made into
coarse cloth. Some of the mills are equipped with machinery made in the
United States.
Tea has become one of the most important crops of India. It is grown
mainly in Ceylon and Assam, and is said to have grown wild in the latter
state. The quality of Indian tea is regarded as superior to the Chinese
product, and Indian teas have therefore very largely supplanted those of
China, in British consumption.
Silk cultivation and manufacture have been growing rapidly in the past
few years; a considerable part of the product is "tussar," or wild silk.
The silk rugs of India are not equalled anywhere else in the world. Wool
is a product of the mountain-regions, but is almost wholly used in the
manufacture of rugs and coverings.
The British occupation of India is commercial rather than political.
India furnishes a most valuable market for British manufactures; it
supplies the British people with a large amount of raw material for
manufacture. The general government is administrative only so far as the
construction of railways, irrigating canals, and harbors, and the
organization of financial affairs are concerned.
There are about two hundred and fifty native states included within the
territory of British India. In addition to the native ruler, a British
governor or magistrate carries out the administrative features of the
British Government. For administrative purposes most of the native
states are grouped into eight provinces, or "presidencies."
=Bengal.=--The states of Bengal, mainly in the valley of the Ganges River,
produce most of the rice and wheat. _Calcutta_, the capital of the
empire, is a comparatively young city. The Hugli at this point is
navigable both for ocean and river craft. The situation of the city is
much like that of New York, and it is therefore finely adapted for
commerce. Railways extending from the various food-producing districts
and from other centres of commerce converge at Calcutta. The city is not
only the centre of administration, but the chief focus of commerce and
finance as well.
=Bombay.=--Bombay includes a number of states bordering on the Arabian
Sea. The city of _Bombay_ is built on an island of the same name. Its
situation on the west coast makes it the most convenient port for the
European trade that passes through the Suez Canal. The opening of the
route gave Bombay a tremendous growth, and it is destined to become a
great commercial factor in Indian Ocean trade. It is also a great
manufacturing centre for cotton textiles. _Ahmedabad_, an important
military station, is also an important centre of cotton manufacture and
wheat-trade.
=Sind.=--The native state Sind includes the greater part of the basin of
the Indus. Its importance is military and strategic rather than
commercial. The ability of Great Britain to hold India depends very
largely on British control of the Indus Valley and the passes leading
from it. The Sind-Pishin Railway traverses the Indus Valley from Karachi
to Peshawur. _Haidarabad_, one of the largest cities of India, is the
centre of an agricultural district. _Karachi_, the port near the mouth
of the Indus, next to Khaibar Pass, is the most important strategic
point of India, and one that the Russians for more than a century have
been trying to possess.
=Punjab.=--The states of the Punjab are mainly at the upper part of the
Indus. _Amritsar_ is an important centre for the manufacture of silk
rugs and carpets. A large number of these are sold in the United States
at prices varying from two hundred to six thousand dollars. The designs
for these textiles are often made in New York. _Peshawur_ is important
chiefly as a military station.
=Burma.=--British Burma includes the basin of the Irawadi River. The
uplands are wheat-fields; the lowlands produce rice. _Mandalay_ is a
river-port and commercial centre. _Rangoon_ is the seaport, with a
considerable ship-building industry that results from the teak forests.
Although the Irawadi is navigable for light craft, railways along the
valley have become a necessity; these centre at Rangoon.
The province of Madras is one of the most densely peopled parts of
India. The chief commercial products are cotton and teak-wood. _Madras_,
its commercial centre, has a very heavy foreign trade in hides, spices,
and cotton. The cotton manufactures are extensive. A yarn-dyed cotton
cloth, now imitated both in Europe and the United States, has made the
name famous.
=Kashmir.=--The native state Kashmir, situated high on the slopes of the
Karakorum Mountains, is known chiefly for the "Cashmere" shawls made
there. The shawls are hand-woven and represent the highest style of the
weaver's art. The best require many years each in the making; they
command prices varying from five hundred to five thousand dollars. This
industry centres at _Srinagar_.
=Other British States.=--The Straits Settlements are so called because
they face the Straits of Malacca. They include several colonies, chief
of which are Singapore, Penang, and Malacca. The Straits ports are free
from export and import duties, a regulation designed to encourage the
concentration of Malaysian products there--in other words, to encourage
a transit trade.
The policy has proved a wise one, and the trade at the three
ports--_Singapore_, _Penang_, and _Malacca_--aggregates about six
hundred million dollars yearly. About two-thirds of this sum represents
the business of Singapore. Tin constitutes about half the exports, a
large share going to the United States. Spices, rubber, gutta-percha,
tapioca, and rattan constitute the remaining trade. Rice, cotton cloth,
and opium are the imports.
The Federated Malay States, situated in the Malay peninsula, and the
northern part of Borneo are also British possessions. Their trade and
products are similar to the rest of the Malaysian possessions.
=Dutch East India.=--The Dutch possessions include nearly all the islands
of the Malay Archipelago and the western part of New Guinea. Of these,
Java and Sumatra are the most important. They are divided into
"residencies," and the administering officers exercise control over the
various plantations. In addition, there are numerous private
plantations. The colonial administration is admirable.
Cane-sugar, coffee, rice, indigo, pepper, tobacco, and tea are the chief
products. The sugar industry has been somewhat crippled by the
beet-sugar product of Europe. Java and Sumatra coffees are in demand all
over Europe and the United States. Sumatra wrappers for cigars find also
a ready market wherever cigars are manufactured. The cultivation of
cinchona, or Peruvian bark, has proved successful, and this substance is
becoming an important export. The islands of Banka and Billiton (with
Riouw) yield a very large part of the world's supply of tin, much of
which goes finally to the United States. The mother-country profits by
the trade of these islands in two ways: the Dutch merchants are
practically middlemen who create and manage the commerce; the Dutch
Government receives an import tax of six per cent., and a small export
tax on nearly all articles except sugar. _Batavia_ is the focal point of
the commerce.
=Siam.=--This kingdom is chiefly important as a buffer state between
French and British India, and little by little has been pared by these
nations until practically nothing but the basin of the Menam River
remains. The administration of the state is progressive, and much of the
resources have been developed in the last few years.
Rice and teak are the leading products. The rice is cultivated by
native laborers--much of it by enforced labor--and is sold to Hongkong,
British India, and the more northerly states. It is collected by Chinese
middlemen, and by them sold to British and German exporters. The
teak-wood business is managed by British firms. The logs are cut by
natives, hauled to the Menam River, and floated to Bangkok; there they
are squared and sent to European markets. Pepper and preserved fish are
also exported. The Menam River is the chief trade-route, and _Bangkok_,
at its mouth, is the focal point of trade.
=French India.=--The French control the region south of China, called
French Indo-China, together with various areas in the peninsula of
Hindustan; of these Pondicheri and Karical are the most important.
Indo-China includes the basin of Mekong River, and rice is the staple
product. The most productive rice-fields are the delta-lands of the
Mekong, formerly known as Cochin-China.
From these lands more than half a million tons of rice are exported, the
product being sold mainly at Hongkong and Singapore. Pepper is also an
export of considerable value. France, China, and the Philippine Islands
are the final destination of the rice export. The imports are mainly
textiles, machinery, and coal-oil from the United States. The machinery
pertains chiefly to the manufactures of cotton and silk textiles. On
account of cheaply mined coal, there is a considerable growth of this
industry. _Saigon_ is the business centre and port at which the Chinese
middlemen meet the European merchants and forwarders.
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
What have been the chief effects of the British occupation of these
countries, so far as the natives are concerned?
What is the position of Khaibar Pass with respect to the commerce of
India?
How has the building of the Sind-Pishin Railway strengthened British
occupation of India?
Singapore and Batavia are the two great focal points of trade in the
East India Islands. At the former all trade is absolutely free; at the
latter there is both an import and an export tax. What are the
advantages of each policy?
From the Abstract of Statistics find the trade of the United States with
these countries.
FOR COLLATERAL READING AND REFERENCE
From a cyclopædia, preferably the Encyclopædia Britannica, read the
following topics:
Caste
Lord Clive
Rattan
Pepper