120 REVEXUE SURVEYS. 



of Bengal, which has been hitherto one of the most urgent prelimi- 

 nary desiderata for acquiring a thorough knowledge of the resources 

 of the country, and thus minimizing the devastations of famine.* 



The Dearah Survey, on the 4-inch scale, in the districts of 

 Faridpur and Bakarganj was continued and brought to a close 

 in the year 1876-77, the operations lying mainly adjacent to the 

 Megua river, where the country consisted partly of heavy jungle 

 and partly of densely populated tracts with bamboo, betel, and 

 cocoa-nut groves, and innumerable tanks. One of the principal 

 objects of the survey was to fix and render permanent the village 

 boundary trijunctions on and adjoining the large sand-banks and 

 islands, and 536 of these were so fixed during the season. The 

 weather throughout was unusually wet and stormy, and as the 

 country under survey consisted of sand-banks and islands intersected 

 by immense rivers, the crossing of these in small country boats is 

 a matter of no small risk. Captain Samuells, who was in charge, 

 stated that the zemindars obstructed the survey as much as they 

 could by refusing to attend or point out their boundaries until 

 summoned to do so. The process of summoning caused a delay of 

 15 days, when an agent would be sent to attend, who either pointed 

 out a wrong boundary or professed entire ignorance and finally 

 told the surveyor to put down any boundary he pleased. 



It was arranged that the party should undertake, during the 

 following season, the topographical survey of district Saharanpur, 

 one of the 21 districts of the North-West Provinces, of which most 

 of the records were destroyed in the Mutiny. The scale of survey 

 was to be two instead of four inches to a mile. Village boundaries 

 were to be omitted, but pargana\ and ihana\ boundaries were to be 

 surveyed and mapped. 



In 1888-89 no fewer than seven parties and one detachment were 

 altogether employed on cadastral surveys. Of these six continued 

 the operations of the previous year in the Bilaspur district of the 



* Compare the paper on Indian Agriculture, read by Mr. C. It. Markham, C.B., before 

 the Societj of Arts, on the -1st May lf-7"> : — " When we tinJ the cultivators well off in 

 " one district, depressed by poverty and want in another, or on the verge of starva- 

 •• lion in :: third, we may feel sure that these differences are to a great extent due to 

 '• want of exact knowledge on the part of the rulers." And Mr. Mark ham goes on 10 

 point out very clearly that a cadastral survey is the only satisfactory basis for acquiring 

 such knowledge. 



t Subdivision of a district for revenue purposes. 



1 Subdivision of n district for police purposes. 



