October 10, 1884.] 



SCIENCE. 



361 



which it includes. Kashmir, controlled by 

 England, is not included in the report. 



The Punjab, with its feudatory states, covers 

 an area of 142,449 square miles, with a popu- 

 lation of 22,712,120. One-fourth of the Mus- 

 alman, one-twentieth of the Hindu, and eleven-: 

 twelfths of the Sikh subjects of England, and 

 one-eleventh of the total population of the 

 Indian empire, are in the Punjab. This region 

 was in the path of all the early migrations and 

 expeditions into the Indian peninsula, and 

 presents a fruitful field for the students of his- 

 toiy, of languages, and of sociolog} 7 . 



Here are found the primitive forms of reli- 

 gion and of social customs, in near proximity 

 to recent growths and modifications, while the 

 intermediate steps are well represented. The 

 early growth of property in land is well illus- 

 trated in the western part, while village com- 

 munities are represented as typically perfect in 

 the eastern part. 



Abstract 1 includes the rainfall by tracts ; 

 and in notes appended, the general condition 

 of the people, and the liability to famine, are 

 indicated. The rainfall ranges from a mini- 

 mum of an inch in the thinty populated west- 

 ern grazing-plains, to a maximum of a hundred 

 and twenty-six inches in the Himalayan tract, 

 where the moisture of the winds is precipitated 

 by the mountains. A portion of the plains 

 east of the meridian of Lahore (near 74°) 

 yields good crops without irrigation, but is 

 liable to disastrous failures that do not befall 

 irrigated lands. It is the granary of the Pun- 

 jab, and has flourishing trade and manufac- 

 tures. 



Mr. Ibbetson says that all books with which 

 he is acquainted 



''fail utterly and entirely in conveying to the reader 

 the faintest idea of the religions which they describe, 

 as actually practised by their million followers in the 

 villages of the country. The books on Hinduism, 

 for instance, describe Hinduism as it ought to be, 

 Hinduism as it was, perhaps Hinduism as it now is 

 among the Pandits and educated Brahmans of the 

 holy cities; but they do not describe Hinduism as it 

 is in the daily life of the great mass of the popula- 

 tion." 



Recognizing his own knowledge as defective, 

 he aims to point out where the esoteric doc- 

 trines may be found described for the various 

 faiths in their purity, and, with these as a basis, 

 to show how little the} T appear in the daily be- 

 lief and practice of the Punjab peasant, and 

 to indicate what that belief and that practice 

 are. 



The Musalmans are about one-half of the 

 population ; the Hindus, about three-sevenths ; 

 the Sikhs, about one-thirteenth ; Jains, 42,678 ; 



Christians, 33,699; Buddhists, 3,251; and 

 others in small numbers. The classifications 

 of religions are unsatisfactor} 7 , in part from 

 the unwillingness of the better part of those 

 who profess a religion to acknowledge as of 

 their creed the degraded classes who profess 

 it, and partly from the difficulty of defining 

 Hinduism in particular. No one is a Sikh by 

 birth. Professed Christians, Jains, and Buddh- 

 ists have a measurabl}- defined position. Ma- 

 hometanism approximates distinctiveness, but 

 Hinduism is confusing. It is regarded as the 

 outcome and expression of the character of 

 its followers, rather than as an element in- 

 fluencing that character. In this census the 

 Hindu was regarded as the normal faith of 

 those not otherwise classified. 



" Socially, the characteristic of the Hindu is 

 quiet, contented thrift." The Sikhs are more 

 independent, brave, and manly than the Hin- 

 dus. The Punjab villager, converted to Ma- 

 hometanism, is invariably filled with false pride 

 and conceit, and tends to become extravagant, 

 unthrifty, and discontented. 



There are few large towns in the Punjab, 

 and any attempt to identify the subdivisions 

 by reference to a general map would be unsat- 

 isfactor} 7 . 



Caste is ver} T fully treated, and will be no- 

 ticed at another time. 



Brahmanism is given as the distinguishing 

 feature of Hinduism, which early degenerated 

 from a religion into a " sacerdotalism with 

 Brahmans as its Levites, the vitality of which 

 is preserved by the social institution of caste, 

 and which may include all shades and diversi- 

 ties of religion native to India as distinct 

 from the foreign importations of Christianity 

 and Islam, and from the later outgrowths of 

 Buddhism, . . . Sikhism, . . . andJainism." 

 The dead are worshipped. Superstitious ob- 

 servances are general. On the western fron- 

 tier, Hindus are lax in ceremonial and caste 

 observances. Hindu sects are innumerable, 

 and liable to be returned as religions. 



Sikhism is given as founded by Baba Nanak 

 A.D. 1469-1539. Nanak did not attack the 

 teachings of others, but added something high- 

 er, teaching that salvation came through 

 repentance and a pure and righteous life. 

 During his life, gentleness was predominant 

 among his followers ; but some of his succes- 

 sors becoming involved in politics, a Mahom- 

 etan persecution arose against them, and a spirit 

 of revenge was roused, emphasizing a martial 

 spirit, especially under a guru, or leader, known 

 as Govind Singh, A.D. 1675-1708. Among 

 the formalities of the Sikhs was a baptismal 



