Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition/Dehra Dún

DEHRA DÚN, a district of British India in the Mecrut (Mirat) division of the lieutenant-governorship of the North- Western Provinces, lies between 29 57 and 30 59 N. lat, and 77 37 15" and 78 22 45" E. long. It com prises the valley (dun) of Dehra, together with the hills division (jiaryand) of Jaunsar Bawar, which runs from S.E. to X.W. of it, on the north. The district is bounded on the N. by the native state of Tehri or Garhwal, on the E. by British Garhwal, on the S. by the Siwalik hills, which separate it from Saharanpur district, and on the W. by the hill states of Sirmur, Jubol, and Taranch. The valley (the Dun) has an area of about 673 square miles, and forms a parallelogram 45 miles from X.W. to S.E. and 15 miles broad. It is well wooded, undulating, and intersected by streams. On the N.E. the horizon is bounded by the Mussooree (M an.su ri) or lower range of the Himalayas, and on the S. by the Siwalik hills. The Himala} T as in the north of the district attain a height of between 7000 and 8000 feet, one peak reaching an elevation of 8565 feet; the highest point of the Siwalik range is 3041 above sea-level. The principal passes through the Siwalik hills are the Timli pass, leading to the military station of Chakrata, and the Mohand pass leading to the sanatoriums of Mussooree and Laudaur. The Ganges bounds the Dehra valley on the E. ; the Jumna bounds it on the W. From a point about midway between the two rivers, and near the town of Dehra, runs a ridge which forms the vater-shed of the valley. To the west of this ridge, the water collects to form the Asan, a tributary of the Jumna ; whilst to the east the Suswa receives the drainage and flows into the Ganges. To the east the valley is characterized by swamps and forests, but to the west the natural depressions freely carry off the surface drainage. Along the central ridge, the water- level lies at a great depth from the surface (228 feet), but it rises gradually as the country declines towards the great rivers. To meet the demand for water five canals have been constructed, and are fed by the hill streams. These canals have a total length of 67 miles, irrigate about 10,734 acres, and yield a net annual revenue of about 2300. Jaunsar Bawar, north of the valley, comprises a triangular hilly tract, situated between the Tons and Jumna rivers near their point of confluence, and has an area of about 343 square miles. It is covered with forests of deodars, firs, cypresses, and oaks. The agricultural products consist of rice, mandua (Eleusine corocana), oil seeds, millets, vegetables, and garden crops, such as potatoes, turmeric, red pepper, <fcc. The method of cultivation in the valley does not differ from that adopted in the plains ; but in Jaunsar, the khil or jum system of cultivation is largely practised. This consists in clearing and burning the undergrowth on the steep banks of ravines and hills, and in sprinkling the seed, chiefly millets, over the ashes. The process yields a good crop for about two years, when the sits is abandoned. The principal industries are tea planting and cultivation, rhea cultivation, and recently silk cultivation. The area under tea in 1872 was 2024 acres, yielding an out-turn of 297,828 ft, valued at 17,486. The total revenue derived from Dehra district (exclusive of forests) in 1872-73 amounted to 19,169. Since 1872 the Dehra valley has been subject to the ordinary laws of other settled districts ; but in the hilly division of Jaunsar a less formal code is better suited to the people, and this tract is still " non-regulation." The fiscal arrangements of Jaunsar are also peculiar. The tract is divided into khats, each presided over by a say ana, or head-man. The sayanas engage with the Government for the payment of the land revenue, and exercise police and civil jurisdiction in their respective khats ; whilst a committee of sayanas, subject to the control of the British Superintendent of Dehra Dun, de cide graver disputes affecting one or more khats. Education is progressing rapidly in the Dehra valley. Schools have also been established in Jaunsar. Mussooree has Protestant diocesan schools for European boys and girls ; and similar institutions are managed by Roman Catholic priests for members of that faith. It likewise forms the head-quarters of an active American mission. There is little crime in the district, and in Jaunsdr no regular police are found necessary. The principal places in the district are Dehra, Mussooree, v/ith the military sanatarium of Landaur, and the military station of Chakrata. Dehra town is the civil head-quarters of the district, and is constituted a municipality. It con tained (1872) a total population of about 7000 souls, (5000 Hindus, and 2000 Mahometans). The municipal income is mainly derived from a house tax. Dehra is the head quarters of the 2d Gurkha regiment, and of the Great Trigonometrical Survey. The hill station of Mussooree is a favourite summer resort. Its population varies according to the season of the year. During the winter months it is almost entirely deserted. Landaur, the military depot for European convalescents, is really a portion of Mussooree. Chakrata is a hill station for a British regiment of infantry. The census of 1872 returned the population of the entire district at 116,953 souls, of whom 102,814 were Hindus, 12,427 Mussul mans, 3061 Europeans, 191 Eurasians, and 460 native Christians. The Binhmans numbered 10,279, Rajputs or military caste 33,125, Baniyas or traders 2664. The Brahmans and Rajputs chiefly belong to the spurious hill clans bearing these names. The Mahometan population consists principally of Pathans and Shaikhs.