liAUXSTAl'l.K. 



I1AUH. 



several time* enlarged without much attention being pud to it* 

 original character. Of Uio four chapels mentioned by Lelaud two have 

 disappeared. Of the two which remain, one in now uaed for the 

 Grammar school ; the other a* a warehouse. Two churches have been 

 recently erected : one for the new parUh of St. Mary Magdalene 

 constituted by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners ; the other, erected at 

 the sole cost of the Rev. I. I. Scott, has had the district of the Holy 

 Trinity assigned to it by the bishop of the diocese. Trinity church 

 contains 1200 sittings, of which 400 are fitv. There are places of 

 worship for \Vesleyau Methodists and Independents, and three chapels 

 fur Baptists. 



A Grammar school was kept in very early timea in the parish ohurch 

 of Barnstaple by one of the priests of the chantry of St. Nicholas. 

 The present Grammar school was founded in 1046 by Uichard 

 Ferris, who endowed it with a rent-charge of 102. per annum. Since 

 that time it has only received an addition of 4/. per annum, being the 

 interest of 100/. given by the Rev. John Wright in 1760. The master 

 is appointed by the corporation, who have the privilege of nominating 

 one boy to the school. The number of scholars in 1851 was 

 about 30. Bishop Jewel and the poet Gay were educated at thin 

 school About the year 1710 a Charity or Blue-Coat school for 

 teaching English was founded and endowed, in which 50 boys and 30 

 girls are clothed and educated. A handsome new school-house has 

 been lately erected for this charity near the North walk. There is 

 also a National school for 100 children, founded in 1813, and 

 supported by subscriptions. 



There are almshouses on three different foundations, which together 

 provide for 28 poor persons. An infirmary called the North Devon 

 Infirmary was erected in 1824, and has been since enlarged. A 

 dispensary was established in 1832. There are alno n mechanics 

 institute and a horticultural society. Among the principal buildings 

 nut enumerated above are the guildhall, erected in 1826 ; the prison 

 and bridewell ; the theatre, a neat and convenient building of recent 

 erection ; and the assembly rooms. 



The market, which is held on Friday, is the great market of North 

 Devon : it luw generally an abundant supply of provisions, and a large 

 quantity of corn is sold. The fairs are on tin- I'rid.iy l>efore April 

 21st, September 19tb, and the second Friday in December. The fair 

 in September, which is the principal, is remarkable for the sale of 

 cattle of the North-Devon breed ; on that day the town is almost 

 filled with them. The fair is said to last three days, but it is generally 

 continued to the end of the week in which it may occur. The first 

 two days are devoted to business, the remainder to pleasure. A few 

 years ago, when the red deer were more plentiful in the neighbour- 

 hood than they now are, a stag hunt was added to the other 

 attractions of the town during the fair week, and it was resorted to 

 at that time by the principal families in the county. On the north 

 side of the town is an excellent public promenade by the river side, 

 calledjNorth Walk. The neighbourhood affords a great variety of very 

 beautiful walks. 



(Cainden's Britannia.; Risdon's Cltorographical Surrey of Devon ; 

 Lysous's Mayna Britannia ; Jtoutc Book of Devon ; Communication 

 from BanutapU.) 



r.AKNSTAl'I.E, U.S. [MASSACHUSETTS.] 



BARO'ACH, a pergunnah, or district, in western Hindustan, in the 

 province of Gujarat, situated principally between 21 and 22 N. lat., 

 and between 72 30' and 73 20' E. long. It is bounded on the west 

 by the Gulf of Cam bay. The town of Baroach is 221 miles N. from 

 Bombay, and 805 miles W. by 8. from Calcutta. 



This district was conquered from the Mahrattas by the East India 

 Company in 1781, but in the following year it was ceded to Madhajee 

 Scindia, a Mahratta chief. In 1803 it again became subject to the 

 company under the provisions of a treaty of peace concluded with 

 Dowlut Rao Scindia, and it has since remained in the possession of 

 the British. 



Baroach is one of the most populous and best cultivated districts 

 on the western coast of India ; it contains 391 villages, the inhabitants 

 of which are generally in a prosperous condition. Cotton in 

 the chief article! of production. Including the inhabitants .if th.- 

 principal town, Baroach, or Broach, the population of the district is 

 estimated at about 1 60,000, nearly three-fourths of whom are Hindoos, 

 and the remainder Mohammedans. 



The city of Banxick, which is the capital of the district, is situated 

 in 21* 46' X. lat, 73 14' E. long. It occupies a spot of high ground 

 on the banks of the Nerbmldah Itiver, 25 miles from iU entrance into 

 the Gulf of Cambay. The city is of considerable extent, but a large 

 part of it is now in ruins. It was a place of great trade in tin- tim- 

 of the Emperor Akbar, to whom it surrendered in -1572. T. 

 buddah, in this part of its course, is 2 miles wide but very shallow, 

 so that only vessels of small burden can come up to the town. Th- 

 river abounds with fish, among which are excellent carp. The heat 

 of the town is often very intense, and the climate is not considered 

 healthy. 



The situation of Baroach corresponds exactly to that of Barygaza, 

 or Barngaza, which signifies the ' water of wealth.' The ancient history 

 ft this place is given in Dr. Vincent's ' Commentary <>n th.- Ptriplus 

 of the Erythraean Sea.' At the epoch to which the ' I'eripliu ' belongs 

 the city of Barygaza was a very considerable emporium of commerce, 



receiving aero* the Balaghaut Mountains, from the city of Tagara 

 (the modem DowluUbad), gems, spices, silk stuffs, and other | 

 tions of the interior of ! \portation to Egypt and thence to 



Rome. It imported in it-turn Italian, Greek, and Arabian wines, gold 

 and silver, and other metals, together with glass, " girdles or sashes of 

 curious texture," and some other European productions. The danger- 

 ous character of the bore, or tide, in the Gulf of Cambay was noticed 

 in the ' Periplus.' The modern Baroach maintains a cousid. 

 trade with Bombay and Stunt, to which places it sends cotton, grain, 

 and seeds. This traffic is carried on by means of boats which draw 

 but little water, and which are impelled by Urge lateen sails. 



An hospital for animals is maintained within 

 able sums ore contributed for this purpo.- itants. 



(Rennell's Memoir; Mill's Jirituii India; Vincent's I'crijiltu ; 

 Robertson's India ; Parliamentary Paper*.) 



BAHO'DA, an important city and district in the province of Gujerat, 

 in western Hindustan. The district lies between 21" and 

 73 and 74 E. long. It includes an area of 4399 square miles, with ;. 

 population of 325,526. The city is the capital and residence of the 

 Mahratta chief, known as the Guicowor, a family name which i i 

 has come to be considered as a kind of title. Baroda, which is situated 

 in 22 21' N. lat, 73 15' E. long., is mentioned by Abul Fad as 

 having been a large and wealthy town during the reign of Auruugzebc; 

 and Sir J. Malcolm, who visited it in 1830, says it was " 

 richest cities, in point of commercial and moneyed capital, in India." 



Baroda is a fortified town, but the fortifications ore not strong. 

 Some of the streets are wide, and the houses, which are lofty and 

 chiefly built of wood, " have rows along the streets, something like 

 those of Chester." (Heber.) The population is probably at > 



The only bridge in the province of Gujerat is thrown over the i k\ ,T 

 Viswomitra, a short distance from the city of Baroda. The streams 

 of the province are crossed either in ferry-boats or on a light platform 

 made buoyant by means of empty earthen pots. 



The assumption of sovereign power on the part of the l.uii-owor 

 family took place early in the 18th century, when 1'illiijee (imcowar 

 raised himself from a subordinate situation to a chieftainship. A 

 treaty of amity was entered into by the East India Company with 

 r'uttoh Sing Guicowor in 1780 ; but little or no intercourse ensued 

 between the two governments until 1802, when Aiiuud Rao Guicowar 

 applied to Mr. Duncan, the governor of Bombay, for assistance to put 

 down the rebellion of Mulhar Rao, a member of his family. Various 

 arrangements made in that year, in 1805, in 1S17, and in l.-J", 

 tended to secure the Guicowar government, under a kind of protec- 

 tion from the British; but in 1828 the company pl;> ques- 

 tration portions of the Guicowar' s territory to discluuy 

 tions for which the company hod made itMll ill for liini. 

 After five or six years, difficulties arose in providing for the payments 

 of the debts, which have been since satisfactorily arranged, and the 

 income of the Guicowar is now estimated at 800.000/. a year. The 

 military strength of Baroda includes a British sui roe of 

 4000 infantry, two regiments of cavalry, and one company of Km 

 artillery; with the Guicowar' s contingent of 3000 cavalry, anil the 

 Gujerat irregular horse, both of which ore paid for by the Gui< 

 There is also a police force of 4000 men. 



The greater part of the population is composed of Bheels and 

 Coolies. There are besides a few Mohammedans, 1 1 

 and Rajpoots. The Bheels chiefly iuhabit the wilder parts of the 

 territory. The Coolies form more than one-half of the entire 

 lat ion. These two tribes are supposed to have been or 

 same people, and to have been the aborigines of Gujerat 

 principal employment is agriculture. They live under the authority 

 of their own chiefs, and arc of turbulent habits. 



(Ktatitlicat Paptn on tlte A fain of India, 1853.) 



BAROUSSK. [TvufeNfcES, BASSES.] 



BARQUICIMK'TO, the capital of the province of Ba< 

 in the republic of Venezuela, occupies a healthy sit < Lu-h 



plain, in 9 50' N. hit, 69 20' W. long., distant 120 miles \\ 

 from Caracas. The city was founded by the Spaniards in 

 The neighbourhood is very fertile, and the plains, valleys, and hills 

 afford a great variety of products and fine pastures for cattle. In the 

 valleys most of the productions of the tropics are mi.-i I. particularly 

 coffee of excellent quality. The town was formerly well built, with 

 straight and wide streets : it had a handsome parish church, .'tie 1 

 was a rich Franciscan convent, and an hospital in v.ln.-l, the ],....,- 

 were indifferently accommodated and badly fed. 

 earthquake of 1812 it contained a population of 15,000 persons ; hut, 

 after that great calamity scarcely a house was left standing, and it is 

 said that 1500 of the inhabitants were buried in the ruins. Th,, 

 present town has been built since that period with the materials 

 which abound in every direction : the population, with the en 

 ha* been estimated at 12,000, which would imply that the place is 

 gradually recovering from the effects of the earthquake. 



BAKU. [Unix, BAS.] 



BARK, or MAURA, a petty kingdom of Western Africa, at the 

 mouth of the Gambia, extending 18 leagues along its northern 

 with a breadth of 14 leagues, and containing an area of ab 

 square leagues. Tlu's and some neighbouring kingdoms on the i , 

 were founded by Amari-Sonko, a Mandingo warrior, apparently for 





