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SIND

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Originally appearing in Volume V25, Page 143 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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SIND , a former See also:

province of See also:India, now a See also:division of the Bombay See also:presidency. It is the most northerly portion of the presidency, lying between 23° 35' and 28° 29' N. and between 66° 40' and 91° ro' E., having an See also:area of 53,116 sq. m. and a See also:population (1901) of 3,410,223. It includes the six districts of See also:Karachi, See also:Hyderabad, Thar and Parkar, See also:Larkhana, See also:Sukkur and Upper Sind Frontier, together with the native See also:state of See also:Khairpur. It differs widely in See also:physical features and See also:climate, no less than in the See also:language, See also:dress and customs of the See also:people, from the See also:rest of the presidency, from which it is cut off by the deserts or the See also:sea. It is bounded on the N. by See also:Baluchistan and the See also:Punjab; on the E. by the See also:desert tracts of W. See also:Rajputana; on the S. by the Runn of See also:Cutch and the See also:Indian Ocean; and on the W. by Baluchistan. Physical features.—Sind proper, or the central alluvial See also:plain watered by the See also:Indus, lies between the See also:Kohistan or hilly See also:country that rises to the Kirthar range on the Baluchistan border, and the Registan or Thar desert that stretches E. into Rajputana. The Kohistan in years of See also:good rainfall yields abundant See also:fodder for See also:cattle and camels, and supports a scanty tillage on the See also:banks of the See also:hill streams or nais, one of which, named the Hab, forms the boundary between Sind and Baluchistan. Central Sind lies on both banks of the Indus, which flows S. in a See also:bed that has been raised by the See also:deposit of silt above the surrounding country. Except where its bed is confined by rocks, as at Sukkur, Rohri and along the edge of the Kohistan from Lakhi to Jhirak, the See also:river constantly changes its course, especially in the See also:delta, the See also:head of which is now opposite Shahbandar. Central Sind depends on the yearly inundation of the Iridus, which begins to rise in See also:March and reaches its highest point about the See also:middle of See also:August. The See also:water is distributed by a very See also:ancient See also:system of canals, which has been greatly improved and extended since the See also:British See also:conquest.

The See also:

soil is a plastic See also:clay desposited by the river. The See also:great See also:geographical feature in Sind is the See also:lower Indus, which passes through the entire length of the country, first in a S.W. direction, then turning somewhat to the E., then returning to a See also:line more directly S., and finally inclining to the W., to seek an outlet at the sea. The distant line of mountains between Sukkur and Schwan, the steep pass overhanging the water at Lakhi, and the hill country below Sehwan give a distinctive See also:character to the right See also:bank. Sind has been aptly likened to See also:Egypt. If the one depends for See also:life and fertility on the See also:Nile, so does the other on the Indus. The cities and towns are not so readily to be compared. Hyderabad, notwithstanding its remarkable fortress and handsome tombs, can scarcely See also:vie in See also:interest as a native See also:capital with See also:Cairo; nor can Karachi, as a Europeanized capital, be said to have attained the celebrity of See also:Alexandria. The province contains many monuments of archaeological and architectural interest. Owing to the deficiency of See also:rain, the continuance of hot See also:weather in Sind is exceptional. Lying between two monsoons, it just escapes the See also:influence of both. The S.W. See also:monsoon stops See also:short at Lakhpat in Cutch, the N.W. monsoon at Karachi, and even here the See also:annual rainfall is not reckoned at more than 6 or 8 in. At times there is no rain for two or three years, while at others there is a whole See also:season's rainfall in one or two days.

The See also:

average temperature of the summer months rises to 95° F., and the See also:winter average is 6o°, the summer maximum being 120° and the winter minimum 28°. The temperature on the sea-See also:coast is much more equable than elsewhere. In See also:northern Sind we find See also:frost in winter, while both here and in Lower Sind the summer See also:heat is extreme and prolonged. This great heat, combined with the poisonous exhalations from the pools See also:left after the annual inundation and the decaying See also:vegetable deposits, produces See also:fever and See also:ague, to which even the natives fall a See also:prey. See also:Agriculture.—The See also:salt of the delta is the only See also:mineral product of commercial importance. See also:Timber and See also:fuel are supplied chiefly by the babul (See also:Acacia arabica), bahan (Populus euphratica), See also:kandi (Prosopis spicigera) and See also:iron See also:wood (Tocoma undulate), and See also:fruit by the date, See also:mango and See also:pomegranate. The See also:chief rabi or See also:spring crops, sown from August to See also:October and reaped from See also:February to See also:April, are See also:wheat, See also:barley, See also:gram, oilseeds and vegetables. The chief winteror kharif crops, sown from May to See also:July and reaped from October to See also:December, are the millets (bajri and juar), See also:rice, urad (Phaseolus radiatus), mung (Phaseolus mungo), See also:cotton and See also:indigo. Efforts are being made to introduce the See also:long-stapled See also:Egyptian cotton. Agri-culture is almost entirely dependent upon See also:irrigation from the Indus. Manufactures.—Among the chief manufactures may be mentioned See also:gold, See also:silver, and See also:silk embroideries, carpets, cloths, lacquered See also:ware, See also:horse-trappings and other See also:leather-See also:work, See also:paper, pottery, tiles, swords and matchlocks, and the boxes and other articles of inlaid work introduced from See also:Shiraz. See also:Lac work, a widely extended See also:industry in India, is also in See also:vogue in Sind.

Variously coloured lac is laid in See also:

succession on the boxes while turning on the See also:lathe, and the See also:design is then cut through the different See also:colours. Hyderabad was long famous for its silks and cottons, silver and gold work and lacquered ornaments, and the See also:district could once boast of skilled workmen in arms and See also:armour; but these old See also:industries are now on the decline. In the cloths called sudi, silk is See also:woven with the striped cotton—a practice possibly due to the large See also:Mahommedan population of the country, as no Moslem may See also:wear a garment of pure silk. Chundari, or knotting, is another method of decorating cotton and silk goods. The See also:extension of cotton cultivation in Sind has caused a brisk development in ginning factories of See also:recent years. The Sind cotton-printers are the most skilful and tasteful in the Bombay presidency. Cotton carpets, rugs, horse-cloths, towels and napkins are manufactured at the gaols. Woollen See also:saddle-cloths, blankets and felts are also made. Sind produces the best pottery of India. The See also:art was introduced or See also:developed by the Mahommedans, whose rulers gave it every encouragement. Magnificent tombs and mosques, now in ruins, testify to the skill of the ancient potters. Leather is worked in a variety of articles, such as saddle-covers for camels and horses, shoes, leggings and accoutrements.

In 1904 two new See also:

flour and rice-cleaning See also:mills were started at Sukkur. See also:Trade.—The trade of Sind is carried on through Karachi with See also:foreign countries, and across the See also:land frontier with See also:Afghanistan, Baluchistan and See also:Seistan. Karachi is the great See also:port for the See also:grain trade of all N. India, and is also the great strategic military port for the N.W. frontier. The chief articles of import are cotton and woollen goods, iron and See also:steel, mineral oil, See also:sugar, See also:tea and machinery; while the chief exports are wheat and other grains, cotton, See also:wool, oilseeds, hides and skins, and bones. On the land frontier the chief articles of import are horses, ponies, mules, See also:sheep and goats, woollen and cotton piece-goods, wheat, gram and See also:pulse, rice, fruits and nuts, provisions, stores, leather, See also:ghee, raw wool, silver, assafoetida, drugs, hides, See also:fish, seeds, manufactured silk, spices and See also:tobacco; while the exports are cotton twist and See also:yarn, piece-goods, leather, metals, See also:coal and See also:coke, wheat, husked rice, liquors, ghee, sugar, tea, tobacco, wool and silver. See also:Fauna.—The last See also:tiger in Sind was shot about 1885. Among other See also:wild animals are the hyaena, the gurkhar or wild See also:ass'(in the S. of the Thar and Parkar district), the See also:wolf, See also:jackal, See also:fox, wild hog, See also:antelope, pharho or hog See also:deer, See also:hares and porcupines. Of birds of prey, the See also:vulture and several varieties of See also:falcon may be mentioned. The See also:flamingo, See also:pelican, See also:stork, See also:crane and Egyptian See also:ibis frequent the shores of the delta. Besides these there are the ubara (See also:bustard) or tiler, the See also:rock-See also:grouse, See also:quail, See also:partridge and various kinds of parrots. Waterfowl are plentiful; in the See also:cold season the lakes or dhandhs are covered with wild geese, kulang, ducks, See also:teal, See also:curlew and See also:snipe.

Among other animals to be noted are scorpions, lizards, centipedes and many See also:

snakes. The domestic animals include camels (one-humped), buffaloes, sheep and goats, horses and asses (small but See also:hardy), mules and bullocks. Of fish there are, on the sea-coast, sharks, saw-fish, rays and skate; See also:cod, See also:sir, cavalho, red-snapper, gassir, begti, dangara and See also:buru abound. A See also:kind of sardine also frequents the coast. In the Indus, the finest flavoured and most plentiful fish is the pals., generally identified with the hilsa of the See also:Ganges. Dambhro (See also:Labeo rohita) and See also:mullet, morako (Cirrhina mrigala), gandan (Notopterus kapirat), khago or catfish (Rita buchanani), popri (Barbus See also:saran), shaker, jerkho and singhari (Macrones aor) are also found. See also:Otter, turtle and See also:porpoise are frequently met with; so too are long-snouted crocodiles and water-snakes. Forests.—The area of reserved See also:forest in Sind is 1065 sq. m. The forests are situated for the most See also:part on the banks of the Indus, and extend S. from near Rohri to the middle delta. They are narrow strips of land, from 2 to 3 M. in length, and ranging from 2 furlongs to 2 m. in breadth. The largest are between 9000 and 10,000 acres in area, but are subject to diminution owing to the encroachments of the stream. The wood is principally babul (Acacia arabica), bahan (Populus euphratica) and kandi (Prosopis spicigera).

The tali (Dalbergia Sissoo) grows to some extent in Upper Sind; the iron-wood See also:

tree (Tocoma undulata) is found near the hills in the Mehar districts. There are, besides, the nine (Melia Azadirachta), the pipal (Ficus religiosa), the See also:beer (Zizyphus Jujuba). The delta has no forests, but its shores abound with See also:mangrove trees. Of trees introduced are the See also:tamarind (Tamarindus indica), several Australian wattle trees, the water-See also:chestnut (Trapa natans), the aula (Emblica officinalis), the bahera (Terminalia Bellerica), the carob tree (Ceratonia Siliqua), the See also:China See also:tallow (Stillingia sebifera), the See also:bel (Aegle Marmelos) and the manah (Bassia latifolia). There is a specially organized forest See also:department. Irrigation.—The Indus at its source is 16,000 ft. above sea-level. At See also:Attock it'is still 2000 ft. above the sea. It is, therefore, a rapid river, which brings down a great quantity of silt from the mountains and deposits it in the Sind valley. The bed of the river is always rising, and has to be constantly watched to prevent its overflowing its banks, while the quantity of silt that the water contains makes it very valuable to the See also:cultivator. The inundation canals of the Indus have, therefore, been carried to a high degree of perfection, though the water of the river cannot be fully utilized until the proposed barrage is constructed at Sukkur. The chief of the existing canals are: on the right bank of the Indus, the Desert, Undarwah, Begari, Mahiwah, Sukkur, Ghar, Sattah, Sind and Western See also:Nara canals; and on the left bank the Eastern Nara, Hiral, Jamrao; Dad, Nasrat, Fuleli and Hasanali canals. Within the area watered by these canals all vegetation is luxuriant; but beyond the reach of the silt-laden See also:waters the dry and hardened ground is almost See also:bare.

See also:

Railways.—Sind is traversed by the See also:North-Western railway, which follows the Indus from the Punjab to the sea at Karachi. The Indus is twice bridged: at Rohri where the See also:main line crosses the river and a See also:branch goes off to See also:Quetta; and at See also:Kotri, opposite Hyderabad, whence a narrow-See also:gauge line was opened into Rajputana in 19oo, and another branch runs S. to Budin in the delta. A chord line connects Hyderabad with Rohri, to evade the erosion of the Indus, giving an alternative route from Karachi to Quetta and the N.W. frontier. One of the main purposes of the Indus valley line is the strategic See also:defence of that frontier. Population.—The great See also:majority of the inhabitants of Sind are of See also:Hindu descent, converted to See also:Islam. They speak a language of their own, which is akin to that of the Punjab, though retaining many archaic peculiarities. Mahommedans, who See also:form more than three-fourths of the See also:total, may be divided into Sindis proper and naturalized Sindis. The Sindi proper is a descendant of the See also:original Hindu. In See also:sect he is a Suni, though the Talpur mirs adopted the Shiah persuasion. There is, as a See also:rule, no distinction of See also:caste, except that followers of certain vocations —such as weavers, leather-workers, sweepers, huntsmen—are considered See also:low and vile. The six different classes of naturalized Sindis are—the four families of the Saiyids (the Bokhari, Mathari, Shirazi and Laghari); the Afghans; the Baluchis; the slaves or Sidis—originally Africans; the Memans; and the Khwajas. More than See also:half of the See also:Hindus are Lohanas, originally traders, who have almost monopolised See also:government service and the professions.

Brahmans are few and uninfluential. Sikhs are numerous. See also:

Administration.—Sind is administered as a non-regulation province, under a See also:commissioner, who resides at Karachi. The highest See also:court, See also:independent of the High Court at Bombay, is that of the judicial commissioner, consisting of three See also:judges, one of whom must be a See also:barrister specially qualified to See also:deal with See also:mercantile cases. The Karachi See also:brigade, forming part of the Quetta or See also:fourth division of the See also:Southern See also:army, is distributed in cantonments at Karachi, Hyderabad and See also:Jacobabad. See also:History.—Sind has a history of its own, distinct from the rest of India. In the See also:early centuries of the See also:Christian era it was ruled by a Buddhist See also:dynasty, with capitals at Alor and Brahmanabad. It was the first part of the See also:peninsula to be invaded by the Mahommedans, under Mahommed See also:bin Kasim, a See also:general of the See also:caliph, in 711. The invasion was by sea, from the mouth of the Indus; and for nearly three centuries Sind remained nominally subject to the Arab caliphs. Though conquered by Mahmud of See also:Ghazni in the course of his raids into India, Sind long preserved a semi-See also:independence under two See also:local dynasties, the Sumras and the Sammas, both of See also:Rajput descent but Mahommedans in See also:religion. The latter had their capital at See also:Tatta, in the delta of the Indus, which continued to be a seaport until the 18th See also:century. The Sammas were followed by the Arghuns, of foreign origin, and the Arghuns by the short-lived Turkhan dynasty.

It was not till the See also:

time of See also:Akbar, who had himself been See also:born at -See also:Umarkot in Sind, that the province was regularly incorporated in the See also:Delhi See also:empire. When that empire See also:broke up on the See also:death of See also:Aurangzeb, local dynasties again arose. The first of these was the Kalhoras, who were succeeded by the Talpurs, of Baluch descent, who were ruling under the See also:title of Mirs, with their capital at Hyderabad, when the British first entered into See also:close relations with the country. The See also:East India See also:Company had established a factory at Tatta in 1758; but the Talpur mfrs. were never friendly to trade, and the factory was withdrawn in 1775. In 183o See also:Alexander Burneswas permitted to pass up the Indus on his way to the court of Ranjit Singh at See also:Lahore, and two years later See also:Henry See also:Pottinger concluded a commercial treaty with the mirs. It was, however, the expedition to Afghanistan in 1838 for the restoration of Shah Shuja that forced on matters. The British army under Sir See also:John See also:Keane marched through Sind, and the mirs were compelled to accept a treaty by which they paid a See also:tribute to Shah Shuja. surrendered the fort of Bukkur to the British, and allowed a See also:steam flotilla to navigate the Indus. The crisis did not arrive till 1842, when Sir See also:Charles See also:Napier arrived in Sind and fresh terms were imposed on the mirs. The Baluch army resented this loss of independence, and attacked the residency near Hyderabad, which was bravely defended by See also:Outram. Then followed the decisive See also:battle of See also:Meeanee and the See also:annexation of Sind. A course of See also:wise, See also:firm and kindly administration inaugurated by Sir Charles Napier himself, and continued by Sir Bartle See also:Frere, Sir W. Merewether and later commissioners, has since made the province peaceful and prosperous.

See H. M. See also:

Birdwood, The Province of Sind (Society of Arts, 1903) ; and Sir See also:Richard See also:Burton, Scinde (1851).

End of Article: SIND

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