Native states Taptee north to the banks of the Chmnbul; Holkars dominions, capital Indore, much intersected by those of Scindia, which bound them on the north; and Rajpootana, consisting of a great number of states, which, though individually small, have a large aggregate area, and reach from Scindia's dominions west to the frontiers of Scinde. In the south-west of the same portion of the country, are the Guicowar's territories, capital Baroda, and the rajahship of Cutch, capital Bhooj. In the Deccan, or soutliern and maritime portion of India, the most extensive native states are — the Nizam's dominions, capital Hyderabad, area 95,337 square miles, by for the largest territory imder any single native chief, consisting of a compact and central portion of the peninsular plateau, bounded north by the Vindhya range, south by the Krishna, east and north-east by the Godavery, and west by an indefinite line near the last slopes of the Western Ghauts; Mysore, the country of the famous Hyder Ali and Tippoo Saib, capital Seringa patam, area 30,886 square miles, consisting of a lofty table-land within the angle which is formed by the junction of the Eastern and Western Ghauts; and Travancore, capital Trivandrum, area 4722 square miles, forming the south-west portion of the extremity of the peninsula.
The three presidencies The whole of the native states and the Portuguese and French possessions have an area of 631,470 square miles, and a population of 49,074,527. The whole of the remainder—area 824,232 square miles, population 130,897,195—is British territory, which has the seat of its government at Calcutta, the capital of all India, and is comprehended in the presidencies of Bengal, Madras, and Bombay.
Bengal presidency The presidency of Bengal—area 517,839 miles, population 38,883,337—includes all the British territories witiiin the basins of the Indus and Ganges, with exception of Scinde. It also includes Assam and the annexed territories of the Burmese, and the province of Cuttack, extending south to Ganjam, on the east coast of the Deccan, where it bounds with what are called the Northern Circars, belonging to Madras. Being by far the largest and most populous of the three, the presidency of Bengal is subdivided into Bengal proper and the North-western Provinces, each having its own lieutenant-governor. The line of demarcation between them is nearly in the direction of the meridian of 84°, the whole of the presidency east of that line belonging to the one, and all west of it to the other. Strictly speaking, the North-western Provinces include only the six great divisions of Benares, Allahabad, Agra, Rohilcund, Meerut, and Delhi. The Punjab and Oude are thus left out, because, though they are doubtless destined to be formally incorporated with this subdivision, they are still, in consequence of their recent acquisition, under a separate administration.
Madras presidency The presidency of Madras—area 132,090 square miles, population 22,437,297—bounds with that of Bengal, near lat 18° and continues south, along the east and south-east coast of the peninsula to Cape Comorin, with no interruption, except from the interposed French districts of Pondicherry and Carricall. At Cape Comorin, it is cut off from the sea by the interjected native states of
