﻿THE 
  EPICENTRAL 
  TRACT. 
  l6f 
  

  

  there 
  are 
  certain 
  facts 
  which 
  point 
  to 
  the 
  conclusion 
  that 
  such 
  have 
  

   taken 
  place. 
  

  

  All 
  down 
  the 
  course 
  of 
  the 
  Brahmaputra 
  the 
  floods 
  of 
  1897 
  were 
  

   more 
  extensive 
  and 
  rose 
  higher 
  than 
  they 
  had 
  been 
  known 
  to 
  do 
  

   before, 
  but 
  nowhere 
  were 
  they 
  so 
  long 
  continued 
  and 
  so 
  disastrous 
  

   as 
  in 
  the 
  Borpeta 
  subdivision. 
  Not 
  only 
  were 
  the 
  floods 
  severe 
  

   during 
  the 
  wet 
  weather, 
  but 
  even 
  after 
  the 
  dry 
  weather 
  had 
  set 
  in, 
  and 
  

   the 
  rivers 
  fallen 
  to 
  their 
  lowest 
  level, 
  large 
  tracts 
  of 
  country, 
  usually 
  

   dry, 
  remained 
  under 
  water. 
  It 
  is 
  not 
  to 
  be 
  wondered 
  at 
  that 
  this 
  

   unusual 
  flooding 
  was 
  attributed 
  to 
  subsidence 
  of 
  the 
  land, 
  but 
  though, 
  

   as 
  will 
  be 
  seen, 
  there 
  seems 
  good 
  reason 
  to 
  suppose 
  that 
  subsidences 
  

   and 
  elevations 
  of 
  deep 
  seated 
  origin 
  took 
  place, 
  the 
  greater 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  

   unusual 
  flooding 
  must 
  be 
  attributed 
  to 
  the 
  superficial 
  changes 
  de- 
  

   scribed 
  in 
  Chapter 
  VII, 
  which 
  were 
  produced 
  by 
  the 
  earthquake. 
  

  

  The 
  regions 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  floods 
  were 
  worst 
  are, 
  it 
  must 
  be 
  noticed, 
  

   those 
  where 
  the 
  filling 
  up 
  of 
  river 
  channels, 
  and 
  the 
  shaking 
  down 
  of 
  

   the 
  high 
  river 
  banks, 
  was 
  most 
  marked. 
  The 
  effect 
  of 
  these 
  changes 
  

   was 
  threefold. 
  First, 
  the 
  subsidence 
  of 
  the 
  high 
  land 
  bordering 
  the 
  

   river 
  channels, 
  caused 
  it 
  to 
  sink 
  below 
  flood 
  level 
  and, 
  apart 
  from 
  

   anything 
  else, 
  these 
  lands, 
  which 
  are 
  ordinarily 
  left 
  dry, 
  were 
  sub- 
  

   merged 
  in 
  1897. 
  Secondly, 
  the 
  sinking 
  of 
  this 
  barrier 
  along 
  the 
  

   river 
  channel 
  allowed 
  its 
  waters 
  to 
  spread 
  more 
  freely 
  over 
  the 
  

   low 
  land 
  away 
  from 
  the 
  river. 
  Thirdly, 
  and 
  this 
  was 
  the 
  most 
  im- 
  

   portant, 
  the 
  raising 
  of 
  the 
  beds 
  of 
  the 
  drainage 
  channels 
  blocked 
  the 
  

   usual 
  means 
  of 
  escape 
  of 
  the 
  greater 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  flood 
  waters, 
  and 
  

   necessitated 
  their 
  spreading 
  over 
  the 
  land. 
  

  

  To 
  these 
  three 
  causes 
  the 
  greater 
  part, 
  if 
  not 
  the 
  whole, 
  of 
  the 
  

   unusual 
  floods 
  must 
  be 
  attributed. 
  To 
  them 
  is 
  due 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  the 
  

   resthouse 
  at 
  Mankarchar, 
  which 
  stands 
  above 
  ordinary 
  flood 
  level, 
  

   was 
  submerged, 
  with 
  a 
  depth 
  of 
  3 
  feet 
  of 
  water 
  over 
  the 
  floor, 
  and 
  

   that 
  the 
  floods 
  extended 
  over 
  vast 
  tracts 
  of 
  land, 
  which 
  had 
  not 
  been 
  

   submerged 
  before, 
  in 
  Sylhet, 
  to 
  the 
  west 
  of 
  the 
  Garo 
  Hills 
  and 
  in 
  

   'Goalpara 
  and 
  Borpeta. 
  

  

  M 
  ( 
  l6l 
  ) 
  

  

  