The Imperial Gazetteer of India (1909 Edition)/General Preface
GENERAL PREFACE
The first edition of The Imperial Gazetteer of India was published in nine volumes in 1881. A second edition, augmented to fourteen volumes, was issued in the years 1885–7. A revised form of the article on India, greatly enlarged and with statistics brought up to date, appeared as an independent volume in 1893, under the title of 'The Indian Empire: Its Peoples, History, and Products'. All of these were edited by the late Sir William Wilson Hunter, K.C.S.I., who formed the original plan of the work as far back as 1869, when he was first entrusted with the duty of organizing a statistical survey of the country, and who wrote most of 'The Indian Empire' in its final form with his own hand. His untimely death in 1900 has deprived the present edition of the advantages of his ripe experience and literary skill.
The second edition having for some time passed out of print, it was resolved by the Government of India that a new edition should be prepared in connexion with the Census of 1901. The changes, however, that have been introduced, both in the general scheme and in the methods of compilation, may justify its being considered as a new work rather than a new edition. The bulk will be raised from fourteen to twenty-six volumes, including a companion Atlas; and the single volume of The Indian Empire has been expanded into four volumes, including a four volumes, entitled respectively 'Descriptive,' 'Historical,' 'Economic,' and 'Administrative.' Moreover, while the main work will be arranged as before in alphabetical order, it is intended to issue in India, for official and local use, a parallel series, in which the several articles relating to each Province or large group of States will be collected together in separate volumes. No less considerable are the changes that have been made in methods of compilation, Apart from the Historical volume and a few other chapters of 'The Indian Empire,' the whole of the work has been written by officials in India under orders of the Indian Government; and every page has been submitted to the criticism of the several Administrations or Departments concerned.
The task of editorial supervision has been shared between India and England. In India the first outlines were drawn up in consultation with Sir Herbert Risley, K.C.I.E., at the time when he was Census Commissioner. On his nomination to be Secretary in the Home Department, Mr. W. S. Meyer, C.I.E., was appointed editor for India; and to him are due the detailed regulations under which the greater part of the work has been executed, the general scheme of the Atlas, and the primary revision of most of the chapters dealing with India as a whole. When he, in turn, was promoted to be Secretary in the Finance Department, he was succeeded by Mr. R. Burn, who has carried out the primary revision of most of the other volumes, and otherwise completed the work that had to be done in India.[1] The editor in England throughout has been Mr. J. S. Cotton, who was closely associated with Sir W. W. Hunter in both the former editions. On him, in subordination to a committee appointed by the Secretary of State, has rested the responsibility for the final form of the work, and the duty of seeing the whole through the press.
The volumes of 'The Indian Empire' have been entirely rewritten, with the exception of the history of the British period, where the personal impress of Sir W. W., Hunter's knowledge and style is preserved. The principle adopted was to entrust each subject to an author best qualified to deal with it either by special study or official experience. The names of the authors are usually appended to their chapters; but in other cases the text, as finally approved, can be regarded only as a composite production based largely upon their contributions, and their names are then recorded elsewhere. This course has been found necessary in order to maintain the character of official authority that attaches to the work.
The articles that make up the body of the Gazetteer have likewise been rewritten, for the most part by officials who had already acquired local experience as Census Superintendents of their Provinces or States in 1901. A list of their names will be found prefixed to the first volume of the Gazetteer proper. As in the previous editions, the articles are based on materials collected by District officers and officials of Native States, supplemented by special contributions from experts. More detailed acknowledgements will be found in the prefaces to the volumes of the Provincial Gazetteers. It may here be mentioned that, since the last edition was compiled, Upper Burma and Baluchistān have both been included within the Empire, and two new Provinces have been constituted, while much more accurate information is now available for the Native States generally.
To come to details. Comparative statistics are usually given for the three Census years, 1881, 1891, and 1901; but in most cases later figures for 1903–4 have been added. The most recent administrative changes have been incorporated or referred to in footnotes, so far as possible. No novelties have been introduced in the way of spelling, the usage now generally adopted in India having been followed, even where this usage cannot be considered satisfactory or consistent. The only important change is the substitution of the mark of length (¯) for the accent (´) over long vowels. Some hints for guidance in pronunciation are given in an Introductory Note, prefixed to each volume. Another Introductory Note supplies a brief explanation of the monetary system and the weights and measures used in India, for it has not been found practicable to convert these uniformly into their English equivalents.
In the present volume, being the Descriptive volume of 'The Indian Empire,' chapters i, ii, iv, v, vii, viii, ix, and x have been written by the authors whose names are subscribed to them. Dr. Blanford died before he was able to revise his proofs. Of the other chapters, that on Meteorology is based upon materials contributed by Sir John Eliot, K.C.I.E., and that on Ethnology and Caste has been abridged from Sir H. Risley's chapter in the Report on the Census of India for 1901. The Index has been compiled by Mr. J. W. Browne.
- ↑ The Indian editors desire to acknowledge specially the services of Mr. V. Krishna Menon, their head clerk.