[1] Published in the _Bibliotheca Indica_, Calcutta, 1888.
[2] These two, and the other two mentioned above, form vols. i. and
ii. of his _Jaina Sutras_, published in the _Sacred Books of the
East_ (1884, 1895).
[3] The _Hatthi Gumpha_ and three other inscriptions at Cuttack
(Leyden, 1885); _Sravana Belgola_ inscriptions (Bangalore, 1889);
_Vienna Oriental Journal_, vols. ii.-v.; _Epigraphia Indica_, vols.
i-vii.
JAIPUR, or JEYPORE, a city and native state of India in the Rajputana
agency. The city is a prosperous place of comparatively recent date. It
derives its name from the famous Maharaja Jai Singh II., who founded it
in 1728. It is built of pink stucco in imitation of sandstone, and is
remarkable for the width and regularity of its streets. It is the only
city in India that is laid out in rectangular blocks, and it is divided
by cross streets into six equal portions. The main streets are 111 ft.
wide and are paved, while the city is lighted by gas. The regularity of
plan, and the straight streets with the houses all built after the same
pattern, deprive Jaipur of the charm of the East, while the painted mud
walls of the houses give it the meretricious air of stage scenery. The
huge palace of the maharaja stands in the centre of the city. Another
noteworthy building is Jai Singh's observatory. The chief industries are
in metals and marble, which are fostered by a school of art, founded in
1868. There is also a wealthy and enterprising community of native
bankers. The city has three colleges and several hospitals. Pop. (1901),
160,167. The ancient capital of Jaipur was Amber.
The STATE OF JAIPUR, which takes its name from the city, has a total
area of 15,579 sq. m. Pop. (1901), 2,658,666, showing a decrease of 6%
in the decade. The estimated revenue is £430,000, and the tribute
£27,000. The centre of the state is a sandy and barren plain 1,600 ft.
above sea-level, bounded on the E. by ranges of hills running north and
south. On the N. and W. it is bounded by a broken chain of hills, an
offshoot of the Aravalli mountains, beyond which lies the sandy desert
of Rajputana. The soil is generally sandy. The hills are more or less
covered with jungle trees, of no value except for fuel. Towards the S.
and E. the soil becomes more fertile. Salt is largely manufactured and
exported from the Sambhar lake, which is worked by the government of
India under an arrangement with the states of Jaipur and Jodhpur. It
yields salt of a very high quality. The state is traversed by the
Rajputana railway, with branches to Agra and Delhi.
The maharaja of Jaipur belongs to the Kachwaha clan of Rajputs, claiming
descent from Rama, king of Ajodhya. The state is said to have been
founded about 1128 by Dhula Rai, from Gwalior, who with his Kachwahas is
said to have absorbed or driven out the petty chiefs. The Jaipur house
furnished to the Moguls some of their most distinguished generals. Among
them were Man Singh, who fought in Orissa and Assam; Jai Singh,
commonly known by his imperial title of Mirza Raja, whose name appears
in all the wars of Aurangzeb in the Deccan; and Jai Singh II., or Sawai
Jai Singh, the famous mathematician and astronomer, and the founder of
Jaipur city. Towards the end of the 18th century the Jats of Bharatpur
and the chief of Alwar each annexed a portion of the territory of
Jaipur. By the end of the century the state was in great confusion,
distracted by internal broils and impoverished by the exactions of the
Mahrattas. The disputes between the chiefs of Jaipur and Jodhpur had
brought both states to the verge of ruin, and Amir Khan with the
Pindaris was exhausting the country. By a treaty in 1818 the protection
of the British was extended to Jaipur and an annual tribute fixed. In
1835 there was a serious disturbance in the city, after which the
British government took measures to insist upon order and to reform the
administration as well as to support its effective action; and the state
has gradually become well-governed and prosperous. During the Mutiny of
1857 the maharaja assisted the British in every way that lay in his
power. Maharaja Madho Singh, G.C.S.I., G.C.V.O., was born in 1861, and
succeeded in 1882. He is distinguished for his enlightened
administration and his patronage of art. He was one of the princes who
visited England at the time of King Edward's coronation in 1902. It was
he who started and endowed with a donation of 15 lakhs, afterwards
increased to 20 lakhs, of rupees (£133,000) the "Indian People's Famine
Fund." The Jaipur imperial service transport corps saw service in the
Chitral and Tirah campaigns.
JAISALMER, or JEYSULMERE, a town and native state of India in the
Rajputana agency. The town stands on a ridge of yellowish sandstone,
crowned by a fort, which contains the palace and several ornate Jain
temples. Many of the houses and temples are finely sculptured. Pop.
(1901), 7137. The area of the state is 16,062 sq. m. In 1901 the
population was 73,370, showing a decrease of 37% in ten years, as a
consequence of famine. The estimated revenue is about £6000; there is no
tribute. Jaisalmer is almost entirely a sandy waste, forming a part of
the great Indian desert. The general aspect of the country is that of an
interminable sea of sandhills, of all shapes and sizes, some rising to a
height of 150 ft. Those in the west are covered with _phog_ bushes,
those in the east with tufts of long grass. Water is scarce, and
generally brackish; the average depth of the wells is said to be about
250 ft. There are no perennial streams, and only one small river, the
Kakni, which, after flowing a distance of 28 m., spreads over a large
surface of flat ground, and forms a lake or _jhil_ called the Bhuj-Jhil.
The climate is dry and healthy. Throughout Jaisalmer only rain-crops,
such as _bajra_, _joar_, _moth_, _til_, &c., are grown; spring crops of
wheat, barley, &c., are very rare. Owing to the scant rainfall,
irrigation is almost unknown.
The main part of the population lead a wandering life, grazing their
flocks and herds. Large herds of camels, horned cattle, sheep and
goats are kept. The principal trade is in wool, _ghi_, camels, cattle
and sheep. The chief imports are grain, sugar, foreign cloth,
piece-goods, &c. Education is at a low ebb. Jain priests are the chief
schoolmasters, and their teaching is elementary. The ruler of
Jaisalmer is styled _maharawal_. The state suffered from famine in
1897, 1900 and other years, to such an extent that it has had to incur
a heavy debt for extraordinary expenditure. There are no railways.
The majority of the inhabitants are Bhatti Rajputs, who take their
name from an ancestor named Bhatti, renowned as a warrior when the
tribe were located in the Punjab. Shortly after this the clan was
driven southwards, and found a refuge in the Indian desert, which was
thenceforth its home. Deoraj, a famous prince of the Bhatti family, is
esteemed the real founder of the present Jaisalmer dynasty, and with
him the title of _rawal_ commenced. In 1156 Jaisal, the sixth in
succession from Deoraj, founded the fort and city of Jaisalmer, and
made it his capital. In 1294 the Bhattis so enraged the emperor
Ala-ud-din that his army captured and sacked the fort and city of
Jaisalmer, so that for some time it was quite deserted. After this
there is nothing to record till the time of Rawal Sabal Singh, whose
reign marks an epoch in Bhatti history in that he acknowledged the
supremacy of the Mogul emperor Shah Jahan. The Jaisalmer princes had
now arrived at the height of their power, but from this time till the
accession of Rawal Mulraj in 1762 the fortunes of the state rapidly
declined, and most of its outlying provinces were lost. In 1818 Mulraj
entered into political relations with the British. Maharawal
Salivahan, born in 1887, succeeded to the chief ship in 1891.
JAJCE (pronounced _Yaïtse_), a town of Bosnia, situated on the Pliva and
Vrbas rivers, and at the terminus of a branch railway from Serajevo, 62
m. S.E. Pop. (1895), about 4000. Jajce occupies a conical hill,
overlooking one of the finest waterfalls in Europe, where the Pliva
rushes down into the Vrbas, 100 ft. below. The 14th century citadel
which crowns this hill is said to have been built for Hrvoje, duke of
Spalato, on the model of the Castel del' Uovo at Naples; but the
resemblance is very slight, and although both _jajce_ and _uovo_ signify
"an egg," the town probably derives its name from the shape of the hill.
The ruined church of St Luke, said by legend to be the Evangelist's
burial place, has a fine Italian belfry, and dates from the 15th
century. Jezero, 5 m. W. of Jajce, contains the Turkish fort of
Djöl-Hissar, or "the Lake-Fort." In this neighbourhood a line of
waterfalls and meres, formed by the Pliva, stretches for several miles,
enclosed by steep rocks and forest-clad mountains. The power supplied by
the main fall, at Jajce, is used for industrial purposes, but the beauty
of the town remains unimpaired.
From 1463 to 1528 Jajce was the principal outwork of eastern Christendom
against the Turks. Venice contributed money for its defence, and Hungary
provided armies; while the pope entreated all Christian monarchs to
avert its fall. In 1463 Mahomet II. had seized more than 75 Bosnian
fortresses, including Jajce itself; and the last independent king of
Bosnia, Stephen Tomasevic, had been beheaded, or, according to one
tradition, flayed alive, before the walls of Jajce, on a spot still
called _Kraljeva Polje_, the "King's Field." His coffin and skeleton are
still displayed in St Luke's Church. The Hungarians, under King Matthias
I., came to the rescue, and reconquered the greater part of Bosnia
during the same year; and, although Mahomet returned in 1464, he was
again defeated at Jajce, and compelled to flee before another Hungarian
advance. In 1467 Hungarian bans, or military governors, were appointed
to rule in north-west Bosnia, and in 1472 Matthias appointed Nicolaus
Ujlaki king of the country, with Jajce for his capital. This kingdom
lasted, in fact, for 59 years; but, after the death of Ujlaki, in 1492,
its rulers only bore the title of _ban_, and of _vojvod_. In 1500 the
Turks, under Bajazet II., were crushed at Jajce by the Hungarians under
John Corvinus; and several other attacks were repelled between 1520 and
1526. But in 1526 the Hungarian power was destroyed at Mohács; and in
1528 Jajce was forced to surrender.
See Bräss, "Jajce, die alte Königstadt Bosniens," in _Deutsche geog.
Blätter_, pp. 71-85 (Bremen, 1899).
JAJPUR, or JAJPORE, a town of British India, in Cuttack district,
Bengal, situated on the right bank of the Baitarani river. Pop. (1901),
12,111. It was the capital of Orissa under the Kesari dynasty until the
11th century, when it was superseded by Cuttack. In Jajpur are numerous
ruins of temples, sculptures, &c., and a large and beautiful sun pillar.
JAKOB, LUDWIG HEINRICH VON (1759-1827), German economist, was born at
Wettin on the 26th of February 1759. In 1777 he entered the university
of Halle. In 1780 he was appointed teacher at the gymnasium, and in 1791
professor of philosophy at the university. The suppression of the
university of Halle having been decreed by Napoleon, Jakob betook
himself to Russia, where in 1807 he was appointed professor of political
economy at Kharkoff, and in 1809 a member of the government commission
to inquire into the finances of the empire. In the following year he
became president of the commission for the revision of criminal law, and
he at the same time obtained an important office in the finance
department, with the rank of counsellor of state; but in 1816 he
returned to Halle to occupy the chair of political economy. He died at
Lauchstädt on the 22nd of July 1827.
Shortly after his first appointment to a professorship in Halle Jakob
had begun to turn his attention rather to the practical than the
speculative side of philosophy, and in 1805 he published at Halle
_Lehrbuch der Nationalökonomie_, in which he was the first to
advocate in Germany the necessity of a distinct science dealing
specially with the subject of national wealth. His principal other
works are _Grundriss der allgemeinen Logik_ (Halle, 1788); _Grundsätze
der Polizeigesetzgebung und Polizeianstalten_ (Leipzig, 1809);
_Einleitung in das Studium der Staatswissenschaften_ (Halle, 1819);
_Entwurf eines Criminalgesetzbuchs für das russische Reich_ (Halle,
1818) and _Staatsfinanzwissenschaft_ (2 vols., Halle, 1821).
JAKOVA (also written DIAKOVA, GYAKOVO and GJAKOVICA), a town of Albania,
European Turkey, in the vilayet of Kossovo; on the river Erenik, a
right-hand tributary of the White Drin. Pop. (1905) about 12,000. Jakova
is the chief town of the Alpine region which extends from the
Montenegrin frontier to the Drin and White Drin. This region has never
been thoroughly explored, or brought under effective Turkish rule, on
account of the inaccessible character of its mountains and forests, and
the lawlessness of its inhabitants--a group of two Roman Catholic and
three Moslem tribes, known collectively as the Malsia Jakovs, whose
official representative resides in Jakova.
JAKUNS, an aboriginal race of the Malay Peninsula. They have become much
mixed with other tribes, and are found throughout the south of the
peninsula and along the coasts. The purest types are straight-haired,
exhibit marked Mongolian characteristics and are closely related to the
Malays. They are probably a branch of the Pre-Malays, the "savage
Malays" of A. R. Wallace. They are divided into two groups: (1) Jakuns
of the jungle, (2) Jakuns of the sea or Orang Laut. The latter set of
tribes now comprise the remnants of the pirates or "sea-gipsies" of the
Malaccan straits. The Jakuns, who must be studied in conjunction with
the other aboriginal peoples of the Malay Peninsula, the Semangs and the
Sakais, are not so dwarfish as those. The head is round; the skin varies
from olive-brown to dark copper; the face is flat and the lower jaw
square. The nose is thick and short, with wide, open nostrils. The
cheekbones are high and well marked. The hair has a blue-black tint,
eyes are black and the beard is scanty. The Jakuns live a wild forest
life, and in general habits much resemble the Sakai, being but little in
advance of the latter in social conditions except where they come into
close contact with the Malay peoples.
JALALABAD, or JELLALABAD, a town and province of Afghanistan. The town
lies at a height of 1950 ft. in a plain on the south side of the Kabul
river, 96 m. from Kabul and 76 from Peshawar. Estimated pop., 4000.
Between it and Peshawar intervenes the Khyber Pass, and between it and
Kabul the passes of Jagdalak, Khurd Kabul, &c. The site was chosen by
the emperor Baber, and he laid out some gardens here; but the town
itself was built by his grandson Akbar in A.D. 1560. It resembles the
city of Kabul on a smaller scale, and has one central bazaar, the
streets generally being very narrow. The most notable episode in the
history of the place is the famous defence by Sir Robert Sale during the
first Afghan war, when he held the town from November 1841 to April
1842. On its evacuation in 1842 General Pollock destroyed the defences,
but they were rebuilt in 1878. The town is now fortified, surrounded by
a high wall with bastions and loopholes. The province of Jalalabad is
about 80 m. in length by 35 in width, and includes the large district of
Laghman north of the Kabul river, as well as that on the south called
Ningrahar. The climate of Jalalabad is similar to that of Peshawar. As a
strategical centre Jalalabad is one of the most important positions in
Afghanistan, for it dominates the entrances to the Laghman and the Kunar
valleys; commanding routes to Chitral or India north of the Khyber, as
well as the Kabul-Peshawar road.
JALAP, a cathartic drug consisting of the tuberous roots of _Ipomaea
Purga_, a convolvulaceous plant growing on the eastern declivities of
the Mexican Andes at an elevation of 5000 to 8000 ft. above the level of
the sea, more especially about the neighbourhood of Chiconquiaco, and
near San Salvador on the eastern slope of the Cofre de Perote. Jalap has
been known in Europe since the beginning of the 17th century, and
derives its name from the city of Jalapa in Mexico, near which it grows,
but its botanical source was not accurately determined until 1829, when
Dr. J. R. Coxe of Philadelphia published a description and coloured
figure taken from living plants sent him two years previously from
Mexico. The jalap plant has slender herbaceous twining stems, with
alternately placed heart-shaped pointed leaves and salver-shaped deep
purplish-pink flowers. The underground stems are slender and creeping;
their vertical roots enlarge and form turnip-shaped tubers. The roots
are dug up in Mexico throughout the year, and are suspended to dry in a
net over the hearth of the Indians' huts, and hence acquire a smoky
odour. The large tubers are often gashed to cause them to dry more
quickly. In their form they vary from spindle-shaped to ovoid or
globular, and in size from a pigeon's egg to a man's fist. Externally
they are brown and marked with small transverse paler scars, and
internally they present a dirty white resinous or starchy fracture. The
ordinary drug is distinguished in commerce as Vera Cruz jalap, from the
name of the port whence it is shipped.
[Illustration: Jalap (_Ipomaea Purga_); about half natural size.]
Jalap has been cultivated for many years in India, chiefly at
Ootacamund, and grows there as easily as a yam, often producing clusters
of tubers weighing over 9 lb.; but these, as they differ in appearance
from the commercial article, have not as yet obtained a place in the
English market. They are found, however, to be rich in resin, containing
18%. In Jamaica also the plant has been grown, at first amongst the
cinchona trees, but more recently in new ground, as it was found to
exhaust the soil.
Besides Mexican or Vera Cruz jalap, a drug called Tampico jalap has been
imported for some years in considerable quantity. It has a much more
shrivelled appearance and paler colour than ordinary jalap, and lacks
the small transverse scars present in the true drug. This kind of jalap,
the Purga de Sierra Gorda of the Mexicans, was traced by Hanbury to
_Ipomaea simulans_. It grows in Mexico along the mountain range of the
Sierra Gorda in the neighbourhood of San Luis de la Paz, from which
district it is carried down to Tampico, whence it is exported. A third
variety of jalap known as woody jalap, male jalap, or Orizaba root, or
by the Mexicans as Purgo macho, is derived from _Ipomaea orizabensis_, a
plant of Orizaba. The root occurs in fibrous pieces, which are usually
rectangular blocks of irregular shape, 2 in. or more in diameter, and
are evidently portions of a large root. It is only occasionally met with
in commerce.
The dose of jalap is from five to twenty grains, the British
Pharmacopeia directing that it must contain from 9 to 11% of the resin,
which is given in doses of two to five grains. One preparation of this
drug is in common use, the _Pulvis Jalapae Compositus_, which consists
of 5 parts of jalap, 9 of cream of tartar, and 1 of ginger. The dose is
from 20 grains to a drachm. It is best given in the maximum dose which
causes the minimum of irritation.
The chief constituents of jalap resin are two glucosides--_convolvulin_
and _jalapin_--sugar, starch and gum. Convolvulin constitutes nearly
20% of the resin. It is insoluble in ether, and is more active than
jalapin. It is not used separately in medicine. Jalapin is present in
about the same proportions. It dissolves readily in ether, and has a
soft resinous consistence. It may be given in half-grain doses. It is
the active principle of the allied drug _scammony_. According to Mayer,
the formula of convolvulin is C34H50O16, and that of jalapin C31H50O16.
Jalap is a typical hydragogue purgative, causing the excretion of more
fluid than scammony, but producing less stimulation of the muscular
wall of the bowel. For both reasons it is preferable to scammony. It
was shown by Professor Rutherford at Edinburgh to be a powerful
secretory cholagogue, an action possessed by few hydragogue purgatives.
The stimulation of the liver is said to depend upon the solution of the
resin by the intestinal secretion. The drug is largely employed in
cases of Bright's disease and dropsy from any cause, being especially
useful when the liver shares in the general venous congestion. It is
not much used in ordinary constipation.
JALAPA, XALAPA, or HALAPA, a city of the state of Vera Cruz, Mexico, 70
m. by rail N.W. of the port of Vera Cruz. Pop. (1900), 20,388. It is
picturesquely situated on the slopes of the sierra which separates the
central plateau from the _tierra caliente_ of the Gulf Coast, at an
elevation of 4300 ft., and with the Cofre de Perote behind it rising to
a height of 13,419 ft. Its climate is cool and healthy and the town is
frequented in the hot season by the wealthier residents of Vera Cruz.
The city is well built, in the old Spanish style. Among its public
buildings are a fine old church, a Franciscan convent founded by Cortez
in 1556, and three hospitals, one of which, that of San Juan de Dios,
dates from colonial times. The neighbouring valleys and slopes are
fertile, and in the forests of this region is found the plant (jalap),
which takes its name from the place. Jalapa was for a time the capital
of the state, but its political and commercial importance has declined
since the opening of the railway between Vera Cruz and the city of
Mexico. It manufactures pottery and leather.
JALAUN, a town and district of British India, in the Allahabad division
of the United Provinces. Pop. of town (1901), 8573. Formerly it was the
residence of a Mahratta governor, but never the headquarters of the
district, which are at Orai.
The DISTRICT OF JALAUN has an area of 1477 sq. m. It lies entirely
within the level plain of Bundelkhand, north of the hill country, and is
almost surrounded by the Jumna and its tributaries the Betwa and Pahuj.
The central region thus enclosed is a dead level of cultivated land,
almost destitute of trees, and sparsely dotted with villages. The
southern portion presents almost one unbroken sheet of cultivation. The
boundary rivers form the only interesting feature in Jalaun. The river
Non flows through the centre of the district, which it drains by
innumerable small ravines instead of watering. Jalaun has suffered much
from the noxious _kans_ grass, owing to the spread of which many
villages have been abandoned and their lands thrown out of cultivation.
Pop. (1901), 399,726, showing an increase of 1%. The two largest towns
are Kunch (15,888), and Kalpi (10,139). The district is traversed by the
line of the Indian Midland railway from Jhansi to Cawnpore. A small part
of it is watered by the Betwa canal. Grain, oil-seeds, cotton and _ghi_
are exported.
In early times Jalaun seems to have been the home of two Rajput clans,
the Chandels in the east and the Kachwahas in the west. The town of
Kalpi on the Jumna was conquered for the princes of Ghor as early as
1196. Early in the 14th century the Bundelas occupied the greater part
of Jalaun, and even succeeded in holding the fortified post of Kalpi.
That important possession was soon recovered by the Mussulmans, and
passed under the sway of the Mogul emperors. Akbar's governors at Kalpi
maintained a nominal authority over the surrounding district; and the
Bundela chiefs 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 Mahrattas, he
reduced the whole of Bundelkhand. On his death he bequeathed one-third
of his dominions to his Mahratta allies, who before long succeeded in
annexing the whole of Bundelkhand. Under Mahratta rule the country was a
prey to constant anarchy and intestine strife. To this period must be
traced the origin of 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 Nana Gobind Ras, his possessions
lapsed to them also. Various interchanges of territory took place, and
in 1856 the present boundaries were substantially settled. Jalaun had a
bad reputation during the Mutiny. When the news of the rising at
Cawnpore reached Kalpi, the men of the 53rd native infantry deserted
their officers, and in June the Jhansi mutineers reached the district,
and began their murder of Europeans. The inhabitants 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.
JALISCO, XALISCO, or GUADALAJARA, a Pacific coast state of Mexico, of
very irregular shape, bounded, beginning on the N., by the territory of
Tepic and the states of Durango, Zacatecas, Aguas Calientes, Guanajuato,
Michoacán, and Colima. Pop. (1900), 1,153,891. Area, 31,846 sq. m.
Jalisco is traversed from N.N.W. to S.S.E. by the Sierra Madre, locally
known as the Sierra de Nayarit and Sierra de Jalisco, which divides the
state into a low heavily forested coastal plain and a high plateau
region, part of the great Anáhuac table-land, with an average elevation
of about 5000 ft., broken by spurs and flanking ranges of moderate
height. The sierra region is largely volcanic and earthquakes are
frequent; in the S. are the active volcanoes of Colima (12,750 ft.) and
the Nevado de Colima (14,363 ft.). The _tierra caliente_ zone of the
coast is tropical, humid, and unfavourable to Europeans, while the
inland plateaus vary from subtropical to temperate and are generally
drier and healthful. The greater part of the state is drained by the Rio
Grande de Lerma (called the Santiago on its lower course) and its
tributaries, chief of which is the Rio Verde. Lakes are numerous; the
largest are the Chapala, about 80 m. long by 10 to 35 m. wide, which is
considered one of the most beautiful inland sheets of water in Mexico,
the Sayula and the Magdalena, noted for their abundance of fish. The
agricultural products of Jalisco include Indian corn, wheat and beans on
the uplands, and sugar-cane, cotton, rice, indigo and tobacco in the
warmer districts. Rubber and palm oil are natural forest products of the
coastal zone. Stock-raising is an important occupation in some of the
more elevated districts. The mineral resources include silver, gold,
cinnabar, copper, bismuth, and various precious stones. There are
reduction works of the old-fashioned type and some manufactures,
including cotton and woollen goods, pottery, refined sugar and leather.
The commercial activities of the state contribute much to its
prosperity. There is a large percentage of Indians and mestizos in the
population. The capital is Guadalajara, and other important towns with
their populations in 1900 (unless otherwise stated) are: Zapotlanejo
(20,275), 21 m. E. by N. of Guadalajara; Ciudad Guzmán (17,374 in 1895),
60 m. N.E. of Colima; Lagos (14,716 in 1895), a mining town 100 m.
E.N.E. of Guadalajara on the Mexican Central railway; Tamazula (8783 in
1895); Sayula (7883); Autlán (7715); Teocaltiche (8881); Ameca (7212 in
1895), in a fertile agricultural region on the western slopes of the
sierras; Cocula (7090 in 1895); and Zacoalco (6516). Jalisco was first
invaded by the Spaniards about 1526 and was soon afterwards conquered by
Nuño de Guzman. It once formed part of the reyno of Nueva Galicia, which
also included Aguas Calientes and Zacatecas. In 1889 its area was much
reduced by a subdivision of its coastal zone, which was set apart as the
territory of Tepic.
JALNA, or JAULNA, a town in Hyderabad state, India, on the Godavari
branch of the Nizam's railway, and 210 m. N.E. of Bombay. Pop. (1901),
20,270. Until 1903 it was a cantonment of the Hyderabad contingent,
originally established in 1827. Its gardens produce fruit, which is
largely exported. On the opposite bank of the river Kundlika is the
trading town of Kadirabad; pop. (1901), 11,159.
JALPAIGURI, or JULPIGOREE, a town and district of British India, in the
Rajshahi division of Eastern Bengal and Assam. The town is on the right
bank of the river Tista, with a station on the Eastern Bengal railway
about 300 m. due N. of Calcutta. Pop. (1901), 9708. It is the
headquarters of the commissioner of the division.
The DISTRICT OF JALPAIGURI (organized in 1869) occupies an irregularly
shaped tract south of Darjeeling and Bhutan and north of the state of
Kuch Behar. It includes the Western Dwars, annexed from Bhutan after the
war of 1864-1865. Area, 2,962 sq. m. Pop. (1901), 787,380, an increase
of 16% in the decade. The district is divided into a "regulation" tract,
lying towards the south-west, and a strip of country, about 22 m. in
width, running along the foot of the Himalayas, and known as the Western
Dwars. The former is a continuous expanse of level paddy fields, only
broken by groves of bamboos, palms, and fruit-trees. The frontier
towards Bhutan is formed by the Sinchula mountain range, some peaks of
which attain an elevation of 6000 ft. It is thickly wooded from base to
summit. The principal rivers, proceeding from west to east, are the
Mahananda, Karatoya, Tista, Jaldhaka, Duduya, Mujnai, Tursa, Kaljani,
Raidak, and Sankos. The most important is the Tista, which forms a
valuable means of water communication. Lime is quarried in the lower
Bhutan hills. The Western Dwars are the principal centre of tea
cultivation in Eastern Bengal. The other portion of the district
produces jute. Jalpaiguri is traversed by the main line of the Eastern
Bengal railway to Darjeeling. It is also served by the Bengal Dwars
railway.
JAMAICA, the largest island in the British West Indies. It lies about 80
m. S. of the eastern extremity of Cuba, between 17° 43´ and 18° 32´ N.
and 76° 10´ and 78° 20´ W., is 144 m. long, 50 m. in extreme breadth,
and has an area of 4207 sq. m. The coast-line has the form of a turtle,
the mountain ridges representing the back. A mountainous backbone runs
through the island from E. to W., throwing off a number of subsidiary
ridges, mostly in a north-westerly or south-easterly direction. In the
east this range is more distinctly marked, forming the Blue Mountains,
with cloud-capped peaks and numerous bifurcating branches. They trend W.
by N., and are crossed by five passes at altitudes varying from 3000 to
4000 ft. They culminate in Blue Mountain Peak (7360 ft.), after which
the heights gradually decrease until the range is merged into the hills
of the western plateau. Two-thirds of the island are occupied by this
limestone plateau, a region of great beauty broken by innumerable hills,
valleys and sink-holes, and covered with luxuriant vegetation. The
uplands usually terminate in steep slopes or bluffs, separated from the
sea, in most cases, by a strip of level land. On the south coast,
especially, the plains are often large, the Liguanea plain, on which
Kingston stands, having an area of 200 sq. m. Upwards of a hundred
rivers and streams find their way to the sea, besides the numerous
tributaries which issue from every ravine in the mountains. These
streams for the most part are not navigable, and in times of flood they
become devastating torrents. In the parish of Portland, the Rio Grande
receives all the smaller tributaries from the west. In St Thomas in the
east the main range is drained by the Plantain Garden river, the
tributaries of which form deep ravines and narrow gorges. The valley of
the Plantain Garden expands into a picturesque and fertile plain. The
Black river flows through a level country, and is navigable by small
craft for about 30 m. The Salt river and the Cabaritta, also in the
south, are navigable by barges. Other rivers of the south are the Rio
Cobre (on which are irrigation works for the sugar and fruit
plantations), the Yallahs and the Rio Minho; in the north are the Martha
Brae, the White river, the Great Spanish river, and the Rio Grande.
Vestiges of intermittent volcanic action occur, and there are several
medicinal springs. Jamaica has 16 harbours, the chief of which are Port
Morant, Kingston, Old Harbour, Montego Bay, Falmouth, St Ann's Bay, Port
Maria and Port Antonio.
_Geology._--The greater part of Jamaica is covered by Tertiary
deposits, but in the Blue Mountain and some of the other ranges the
older rocks rise to the surface. The foundation of the island is
formed by a series of stratified shales and conglomerates, with tuffs
and other volcanic rocks and occasional bands of marine limestone. The
limestones contain Upper Cretaceous fossils, and the whole series has
been strongly folded. Upon this foundation rests unconformably a
series of marls and limestones of Eocene and early Oligocene age. Some
of the limestones are made of Foraminifera, together with Radiolaria,
and indicate a subsidence to abyssal depths. Nevertheless, the higher
peaks of the island still remained above the sea. Towards the middle
of the Oligocene period, mountain folding took place on an extensive
scale, and the island was raised far above its present level and was
probably connected with the rest of the Greater Antilles and perhaps
with the mainland also. At the same time plutonic rocks of various
kinds were intruded into the deposits already formed, and in some
cases produced considerable metamorphism. During the Miocene and
Pliocene periods the island again sank, but never to the depths which
it reached in the Eocene period. The deposits formed were
shallow-water conglomerates, marls and limestones, with mollusca,
brachiopoda, corals, &c. Finally, a series of successive elevations of
small amount, less than 500 ft. in the aggregate, raised the island to
its present level. The terraces which mark the successive stages in
this elevation are well shown in Montego Bay and elsewhere. The
remarkable depressions of the Cockpit country and the closed basin of
the Hector river are similar in origin to swallow-holes, and were
formed by the solution of a limestone layer resting upon insoluble
rocks. The island produces a great variety of marbles, porphyrites,
granite and ochres. Traces of gold have been found associated with
some of the oxidized copper ores (blue and green carbonates) in the
Clarendon mines. Copper ores are widely diffused but are very
expensive to work; as are the lead and cobalt which are also found.
Manganese iron ores and a form of arsenic occur.
_Climate._--The climate is one of the island's chief attractions. Near
the coast it is warm and humid, but that of the uplands is delightfully
mild and equable. At Kingston the temperature ranges from 70.7° to 87.8°
F., and this is generally the average of all the low-lying coast land.
At Cinchona, 4907 ft. above the sea, it varies from 57.5° to 68.5°. The
vapours from the rivers and the ocean produce in the upper regions
clouds saturated with moisture which induce vegetation belonging to a
colder climate. During the rainy seasons there is such an accumulation
of these vapours as to cause a general coolness and occasion sudden
heavy showers, and sometimes destructive floods. The rainy seasons, in
May and October, last for about three weeks, although, as a rule no
month is quite without rain. The fall varies greatly; while the annual
average for the island is 66.3 in., at Kingston it is 32.6 in., at
Cinchona 105.5 in., and at some places in the north-east it exceeds 200
in. The climate of the Santa Cruz Mountains is extremely favourable to
sufferers from tubercular and rheumatic diseases. Excepting near
morasses and lagoons, the island is very healthy, and yellow fever, once
prevalent, now rarely occurs. In the early part of the 19th century,
hurricanes often devastated Jamaica, but now, though they pass to the
N.E. and S.W. with comparative frequency, they rarely strike the island
itself.
_Flora._--The flora is remarkable, showing types from North, Central,
and South America, with a few European forms, besides the common
plants found everywhere in the tropics. Of flowering plants there are
2180 distinct species, and of ferns 450 species, several of both being
indigenous. The largeness of these numbers may be to some extent
accounted for by differences of altitude, temperature and humidity.
There are many beautiful flowers, such as the aloe, the yucca, the
datura, the mountain pride and the _Victoria regia_; and the cactus
tribe is well represented. The Sensitive Plant grows in pastures, and
orchids in the woods. There are forest trees fit for every purpose;
including the ballata, rosewood, satinwood, mahogany, lignum vitae,
lancewood and ebony. The logwood and fustic are exported for dyeing.
There are also the Jamaica cedar, and the silk cotton tree (_Ceiba
Bombax_). Pimento (peculiar to Jamaica) is indigenous, and furnishes
the allspice. The bamboo, coffee and cocoa are well known. Several
species of palm abound,--the macaw, the fan palm, screw palm, and
palmetto royal. There are plantations of coconut palm. The other
noticeable trees and plants are the mango, the breadfruit tree, the
papaw, the lacebark tree, and the guava. The _Palma Christi_, from
which castor oil is made, is a very abundant annual. English
vegetables grow in the hills, and the plains produce plantains, cocoa,
yams, cassava, ochra, beans, pease, ginger and arrowroot. Maize and
guinea-corn are cultivated, and the guinea-grass, accidentally
introduced in 1750, is very valuable for horses and cattle,--so much
so that pen-keeping or cattle farming is a highly profitable
occupation. Among the principal fruits are the orange, shaddock, lime,
grape or cluster fruit, pine-apple, mango, banana, grapes, melons,
avocado pear, breadfruit, and tamarind.
_Fauna._--There are fourteen sorts of _lampyridae_ or fireflies,
besides the _elateridae_ or lantern beetles. There are no venomous
serpents, but numerous harmless snakes and lizards exist. The
land-crab is considered a table delicacy, and the land-turtle also is
eaten. The scorpion and centipede, though poisonous, are not very
dangerous. Ants, sandflies and mosquitoes swarm in the lowlands. There
are twenty different song-birds, and forty-three varieties of birds
are presumed to be peculiar to the island. The sea and the rivers
swarm with fish. Turtles abound, and the seal, the manatee and the
crocodile are sometimes found. The coral reefs, with their varied
polyps and anemones, the numerous alcyonarians and diverse
coral-dwelling animals are readily accessible to the student, and the
island is also celebrated for the number of species of its
land-shells.
_People._--The population of the island was estimated in 1905 at
806,690. Jamaica is rich in traces of its former Arawâk inhabitants.
Aboriginal petaloid celts and other implements, flattened skulls and
vessels are common, and images are sometimes found in the large
limestone caverns of the island. The present inhabitants, of whom only
2% are white, include Maroons, the descendants of the slaves of the
Spaniards who fled into the interior when the island was captured by the
British; descendants of imported African slaves; mixed race of British
and African blood; coolies from India; a few Chinese, and the British
officials and white settlers. The Maroons live by themselves and are few
in number, while the half-castes enter into trade and sometimes into the
professions. The number of white inhabitants other than British is very
small. A negro peasant population is encouraged, with a view to its
being a support to the industries of the island; but, in many cases a
field negro will not work for his employer more than four days a week.
He may till his own plot of ground on one of the other days or not, as
the spirit moves him, but four days' work a week will keep him easily.
He has little or no care for the future. He has probably squatted on
someone's land, and has no rent to pay. Clothes he need hardly buy, fuel
he needs only for cooking, and food is ready to his hand for the
picking. Unfortunately a widespread indulgence in predial larceny is a
great hindrance to agriculture as well as to moral progress. But that
habits of thrift are being inculcated is shown by the steady increase in
the accounts in the government savings banks. That gross superstition is
still prevalent is shown by the cases of _obeah_ or witchcraft that come
before the courts from time to time. Another indication of the status of
the negro may be found in the fact that more than 60% of the births are
illegitimate, a percentage that shows an unfortunate tendency to
increase rather than diminish.
The capital, Kingston, stands on the south-east coast, and near it is
the town of Port Royal. Spanish Town (pop. 5019), the former capital,
is in the parish of St Catherine, Middlesex, 11¾ m. by rail west of
Kingston. Since the removal of the seat of government to Kingston, the
town has gradually sunk in importance. In the cathedral many of the
governors of the island are buried. A marble statue of Rodney
commemorates his victory over the count de Grasse off Dominica in
1782. Montego Bay (pop. 4803), on the north-west coast, is the second
town on the island, and is also a favourite bathing resort. Port
Antonio (1784) lies between two secure harbours on the north-east, and
owes its prosperity mainly to the development of the trade in fruit,
for which it is the chief place of shipment.
_Industries._--Agricultural enterprise falls into two
classes--planting and pen-keeping, i.e. the breeding of horses, mules,
cattle and sheep. The chief products are bananas, oranges, coffee,
sugar, rum, logwood, cocoa, pimento, ginger, coco-nuts, limes,
nutmegs, pineapples, tobacco, grape-fruit and mangoes. There is a
board of agriculture, with an experimental station at Hope; there is
also an agricultural society with 26 branches throughout the colony.
Bee-keeping is a growing industry, especially among the peasants. The
land as a rule is divided into small holdings, the vast majority
consisting of five acres and less. The manufactures are few. In
addition to the sugar and coffee estates and cigar factories, there
are tanneries, distilleries, breweries, electric light and gas works,
ironfoundries, potteries and factories for the production of coconut
oil, essential oils, ice, matches and mineral waters. There is an
important establishment at Spanish Town for the production of logwood
extract. The exports, more than half of which go to the United States,
mostly comprise fruit, sugar and rum. The United States also
contributes the majority of the imports. More than half the revenue of
the colony is derived from import duties, the remainder is furnished
by excise, stamps and licences. With the exception of that of the
parish boards, there is no direct taxation.
_Communications._--In 1900 an Imperial Direct West India Line of
steamers was started by Elder, Dempster & Co., to encourage the fruit
trade with England; it had a subsidy of £40,000, contributed jointly
by the Imperial and Jamaican governments. Two steamers go round the
island once a week, calling at the principal ports, the circuit
occupying about 120 hours. A number of sailing "droghers" also ply
from port to port. Jamaica has a number of good roads and bridle
paths; the main roads, controlled by the public works department,
encircle the island, with several branches from north to south. The
parochial roads are maintained by the parish boards. A railway
traverses the island from Kingston in the south-east to Montego Bay in
the north-west, and also branches to Port Antonio and to Ewarton.
Jamaica is included in the Postal Union and in the Imperial penny
post, and there is a weekly mail service to and from England by the
Royal Mail Line, but mails are also carried by other companies. The
island is connected by cable with the United States via Cuba, and with
Halifax, Nova Scotia via Bermuda.
[Illustration: Map of Jamaica.]
There is a government savings bank at Kingston with branches
throughout the island, and there are also branches of the Colonial
Bank of London and the Bank of Nova Scotia. The coins in circulation
are British gold and silver, but not bronze, instead of which local
nickel is used. United States gold passes as currency. English weights
and measures are used.
_Administration, &c._--The island is divided into three counties, Surrey
in the east, Middlesex in the centre, and Cornwall in the west, and each
of these is subdivided into five parishes. The parish is the unit of
local government, and has jurisdiction over roads, markets, sanitation,
poor relief and waterworks. The management is vested in a parish board,
the members of which are elected. The chairman or custos is appointed by
the governor. The island is administered by a governor, who bears the
old Spanish title of captain-general, assisted by a legislative council
of five _ex officio_ members, not more than ten nominated members, and
fourteen members elected on a limited suffrage. There is also a privy
council of three _ex officio_ and not more than eight nominated members.
There is an Imperial garrison of about 2000 officers and men, with
headquarters at Newcastle, consisting of Royal Engineers, Royal
Artillery, infantry and four companies of the West India Regiment. There
is a naval station at Port Royal, and the entrance to its harbour is
strongly fortified. In addition there is a militia of infantry and
artillery, about 800 strong.
Previous to 1870 the Church of England was established in Jamaica, but
in that year a disestablishment act was passed which provided for
gradual disendowment. It is still the most numerous body, and is
presided over by the bishop of Jamaica, who is also archbishop of the
West Indies. The Baptists, Wesleyans, Presbyterians, Moravians and
Roman Catholics are all represented; there is a Jewish synagogue at
Kingston, and the Salvation Army has a branch on the island. The Church
of England maintains many schools, a theological college, a deaconesses'
home and an orphanage. The Baptists have a theological college; and the
Roman Catholics support a training college for teachers, two industrial
schools and two orphanages. Elementary education is in private hands,
but fostered, since 1867, by government grants; it is free but not
compulsory, although the governor has the right to compel the attendance
of all children from 6 to 14 years of age in such towns and districts as
he may designate. The teachers in these schools are for the most part
trained in the government-aided training colleges of the various
denominations. For higher education there are the University College and
high school at Hope near Kingston, Potsdam School in St Elizabeth, the
Mico School and Wolmer's Free School in Kingston, founded (for boys and
girls) in 1729, the Montego Bay secondary school, and numerous other
endowed and self-supporting establishments. The Cambridge Local
Examinations have been held regularly since 1882.
_History._--Jamaica was discovered by Columbus on the 3rd of May 1494.
Though he called it Santiago, it has always been known by its Indian
name Jaymaca, "the island of springs," modernized in form and
pronunciation into Jamaica. Excepting that in 1505 Columbus once put in
for shelter, the island remained unvisited until 1509, when Diego, the
discoverer's son, sent Don Juan d'Esquivel to take possession, and
thenceforward it passed under Spanish rule. Sant' Iago de la Vega, or
Spanish Town, which remained the capital of the island until 1872, was
founded in 1523. Sir Anthony Shirley, a British admiral, attacked the
island in 1596, and plundered and burned the capital, but did not follow
up his victory. Upon his retirement the Spaniards restored their capital
and were unmolested until 1635, when the island was again raided by the
British under Colonel Jackson. The period of the Spanish occupation is
mainly memorable for the annihilation of the gentle and peaceful Arawâk
Indian inhabitants; Don Pedro d'Esquivel was one of their cruellest
oppressors. The whole island was divided among eight noble Spanish
families, who discouraged immigration to such an extent that when
Jamaica was taken by the British the white and slave population together
did not exceed 3000. Under the vigorous foreign policy of Cromwell an
attempt was made to crush the Spanish power in the West Indies, and an
expedition under Admirals Penn and Venables succeeded in capturing and
holding Jamaica in 1655. The Spanish were entirely expelled in 1658.
Their slaves then took to the mountains, and down to the end of the 18th
century the disaffection of these Maroons, as they were called, caused
constant trouble. Jamaica continued to be governed by military authority
until 1661, when Colonel D'Oyley was appointed captain-general and
governor-in-chief with an executive council, and a constitution was
introduced resembling that of England. He was succeeded in the next year
by Lord Windsor, under whom a legislative council was established.
Jamaica soon became the chief resort of the buccaneers, who not
infrequently united the characters of merchant or planter with that of
pirate or privateer. By the Treaty of Madrid, 1670, the British title to
the island was recognized, and the buccaneers were suppressed. The Royal
African Company was formed in 1672 with a monopoly of the slave trade,
and from this time Jamaica was one of the greatest slave marts in the
world. The sugar-industry was introduced about this period, the first
pot of sugar being sent to London in 1673. An attempt was made in 1678
to saddle the island with a yearly tribute to the Crown and to restrict
the free legislature. The privileges of the legislative assembly,
however, were restored in 1682; but not till 46 years later was the
question of revenue settled by a compromise by which Jamaica undertook
to settle £8000 (an amount afterwards commuted to £6000) per annum on
the Crown, provided that English statute laws were made binding in
Jamaica.
During these years of political struggle the colony was thrice afflicted
by nature. A great earthquake occurred in 1692, when the chief part of
the town of Port Royal, built on a shelving bank of sand, slipped into
the sea. Two dreadful hurricanes devastated the island in 1712 and 1722,
the second of which did so much damage that the seat of commerce had to
be transferred from Port Royal to Kingston.
The only prominent event in the history of the island during the later
years of the 18th century, was the threatened invasion by the French and
Spanish in 1782, but Jamaica was saved by the victory of Rodney and Hood
off Dominica. The last attempt at invasion was made in 1806, when the
French were defeated by Admiral Duckworth. When the slave trade was
abolished the island was at the zenith of its prosperity; sugar, coffee,
cocoa, pimento, ginger and indigo were being produced in large
quantities, and it was the dépôt of a very lucrative trade with the
Spanish main. The anti-slavery agitation in Great Britain found its echo
in the island, and in 1832 the negroes revolted, believing that
emancipation had been granted. They killed a number of whites and
destroyed a large amount of valuable property. Two years later the
Emancipation Act was passed, and, subject to a short term of
apprenticeship, the slaves were free. Emancipation left the planters in
a pitiable condition financially. The British government awarded them
compensation at the rate of £19 per slave, the market value of slaves at
the time being £35, but most of this compensation went into the hands of
the planters' creditors. They were left with over-worked estates, a poor
market and a scarcity of labour. Nor was this the end of their
misfortunes. During the slavery times the British government had
protected the planter by imposing a heavy differential duty on foreign
sugar; but on the introduction of free trade the price of sugar fell by
one-half and reduced the profits of the already impoverished planter.
Many estates, already heavily mortgaged, were abandoned, and the trade
of the island was at a standstill. Differences between the executive,
the legislature, and the home government, as to the means of retrenching
the public expenditure, created much bitterness. Although some slight
improvement marked the administration of Sir Charles Metcalfe and the
earl of Elgin, when coolie immigration was introduced to supply the
scarcity and irregularity of labour and the railway was opened, the
improvement was not permanent. In 1865 Edward John Eyre became governor.
Financial affairs were at their lowest ebb and the colonial treasury
showed a deficit of £80,000. To meet this difficulty new taxes were
imposed and discontent was rife among the negroes. Dr Underhill, the
secretary of a Baptist organization known as the British Union, wrote to
the colonial secretary in London, pointing out the state of affairs.
This letter became public in Jamaica, and in the opinion of the governor
added in no small measure to the popular excitement. On the 11th of
October 1865 the negroes rose at Morant Bay and murdered the custos and
most of the white inhabitants. The slight encounter which followed
filled the island with terror, and there is no doubt that many excesses
were committed on both sides. The assembly passed an act by which
martial law was proclaimed, and the legislature passed an act abrogating
the constitution.
The action of Governor Eyre, though generally approved throughout the
West Indies, caused much controversy in England, and he was recalled. A
prosecution was instituted against him, resulting in an elaborate
exposition of martial law by Chief Justice Cockburn, but the jury threw
out the bill and Eyre was discharged. He was succeeded in the government
of Jamaica by Sir Henry Storks, and under the crown colony system of
government the state of the island made slow but steady progress. In
1868 the first fruit shipment took place from Port Antonio, the
immigration of coolies was revived, and cinchona planting was
introduced. The method of government was changed in 1884, when a new
constitution, slightly modified in 1895, was granted to the island.
In the afternoon of the 14th of January 1907 a terrible earthquake
visited Kingston. Almost every building in the capital and in Port
Royal, and many in St Andrews, were destroyed or seriously injured. The
loss of life was variously estimated, but probably exceeded one
thousand. Among those killed was Sir James Fergusson, 6th baronet (b.
1832). The principal shock was followed by many more of slighter
intensity during the ensuing fortnight and later. On the 17th of January
assistance was brought by three American war-ships under Rear-Admiral
Davis, who however withdrew them on the 19th, owing to a
misunderstanding with the governor of the island, Sir Alexander
Swettenham, on the subject of the landing of marines from the vessels
with a view to preserving order. The incident caused considerable
sensation, and led to Sir A. Swettenham's resignation in the following
March, Sir Sydney Olivier, K.C.M.G., being appointed governor. Order was
speedily restored; but the destructive effect of the earthquake was a
severe check to the prosperity of the island.
See Bryan Edwards, _History of the West Indies_ (London, 1809, and
appendix, 1819); P. H. Gosse, _Journal of a Naturalist in Jamaica_
(London, 1851) and _Birds of Jamaica_ (1847); _Jamaica Handbook_
(London, annual); Bacon and Aaron, _New Jamaica_ (1890); W. P.
Livingstone, _Black Jamaica_ (London, 1900), F. Cundall, _Bibliotheca
Jamaicensis_. (Kingston, 1895), and _Studies in Jamaica History_
(1900); W. J. Gardner, _History of Jamaica_ (New York, 1909). For
geology, see R. T. Hill, "The Geology and Physical Geography of
Jamaica," _Bull. Mus. Com. Zool. Harvard_, xxxiv. (1899).
JAMAICA, formerly a village of Queens county, Long Island, New York,
U.S.A., but after the 1st of January 1898 a part of the borough of
Queens, New York City. Pop. (1890) 5361. It is served by the Long Island
railroad, the lines of which from Brooklyn and Manhattan meet here and
then separate to serve the different regions of the island.[1] King's
Park (about 10 acres) comprises the estate of John Alsop King
(1788-1867), governor of New York in 1857-1859, from whose heirs in 1897
the land was purchased by the village trustees. In South Jamaica there
is a race track, at which meetings are held in the spring and autumn.
The headquarters of the Queens Borough Department of Public Works and
Police are in the Jamaica town-hall, and Jamaica is the seat of a city
training school for teachers (until 1905 one of the New York State
normal schools). For two guns, a coat, and a quantity of powder and
lead, several New Englanders obtained from the Indians a deed for a
tract of land here in September 1655. In March 1657 they received
permission from Governor Stuyvesant to found a town, which was chartered
in 1660 and was named Rustdorp by Stuyvesant, but the English called it
Jamaica; it was rechartered in 1666, 1686 and 1788. The village was
incorporated in 1814 and reincorporated in 1855. In 1665 it was made the
seat of justice of the north riding; in 1683-1788 it was the shire town
of Queens county. With Hempstead, Gravesend, Newtown and Flushing, also
towns of New England origin and type, Jamaica was early disaffected
towards the provincial government of New York. In 1669 these towns
complained that they had no representation in a popular assembly, and in
1670 they protested against taxation without representation. The
founders of Jamaica were mostly Presbyterians, and they organized one of
the first Presbyterian churches in America. At the beginning of the War
of Independence Jamaica was under the control of Loyalists; after the
defeat of the Americans in the battle of Long Island (27th August 1776)
it was occupied by the British; and until the end of the war it was the
headquarters of General Oliver Delancey, who had command of all Long
Island.