1833.) Population of the City of Murshedabad. 567 
The above shews that the earthquake was much more severe to the 
north and east of the valley than here; and that even within the 
valley it was much more violent to the east of Kathmandé than at 
the capital itself, or other places to the west of it. The town of Bhat 
gaon is not more than eight miles in a straight line from Kathmandi, 
and even there its violence must have greatly exceeded what it was at 
the latter place. To account for the immense disproportion in the loss 
of life and property at both places, something may be allowed for the 
more frail state of the buildings at Bhat gaon ; but this is not sufficient, 
and this circumstance must be considered as inexplicable as most 
others attending this fearful phenomenon. The brahmans of Nipal 
say (and it is believed with truth) that the occurrence of a more vio- 
lent earthquake than this is recorded in their histories. It was 
about 600 years ago, and then the cities of Mangah, Patan, and innu- 
merable towns were utterly destroyed and thousands of their inhabi- 
tants killed* ; the modern capital Kathmanda did not then exist. 
III.—Census of the Population of the City and District of Murshedabad, 
taken in 1829. 
To the five or six accurate estimates which we possess of the popu- 
lation of the cities of India, we are happy to be able now to add one 
of Murshedabad, both city and district, which we owe to the private 
or ex-official industry of Mr. H. V. Harnorn, while magistrate of that 
zillah in 1829. The detailed statements accompanying this officer’s 
letter to the Government will be published without doubt in the Trans- 
actions of the Asiatic Society, to which body they have besn trans- 
ferred : we proceed however, as on former occasions, to offer an abridg- 
ed analysis of the tables, that the readers of the JournaL may be in 
possession of all the accurate statistical knowledge of India furnished 
from authentic data. How easy would it be for every officer in charge 
* The Jyotishis say that the planets Jupiter and Saturn were at the occurrence 
of this present one in the same situation as when the above destructive one hap- 
pened. From this greater mischief was for many days after the 26th hourly ex- 
pected, and many lucky moments were fixed upon by the said astrologers for the 
catastrophe ; but all fortunately have come to nought, and although slight shocks 
continued to recur until about the 15th instant, no addition has been made to the 
effects of the one great paroxysm of the 26th. 
