May 1861.] 



Report on Bastar. 



21 



wondered at, that its progress both morally and physically, as 

 considered in relation to the amount and character of its cultiva- 

 tion, has been even more retarded than the district to which it is 

 attached, whose peculiarities as compared with the other parts of 

 the Province have already been noticed. I entered the Bustar de- 

 pendency after my tour in Kakeir by the Shawah Talook, and 

 proceeding south east towards Jugdulpore traversed the centre of 

 the entire Khalsa portion, as far as Duntewarah where it ends, all 

 to the south of that being Zemindary. I was enabled therefore 

 to form I believe a pretty accurate idea of the general appearance 

 and condition of the dependency, independent of information re- 

 ceived on enquiry from others. Nothing could be more at vari- 

 ance with the account rendered to Sir R. Jenkins, and the univer- 

 sally circulated opinion even at this day. The general surface of 

 the country is undulating, inclining to plain (as shown by the 

 sluggishness of the streams) except where broken by an occasion- 

 al fange of hills, which is seldom and at distant intervals, but 

 where occurring mostly of considerable height and abrupt vol- 

 canic formation. The soil is, with apparently little variation a rich 

 alluvial bed of some depth overlying a stratum of clay slate, and 

 is of a light, friable and exceedingly fertile nature, as shewn when 

 cleared of jungle by the bearing of nearly all crops without distinc- 

 tions and without any attention to the supply of water. The natural 

 wood covering the face of the country also bears a great similari- 

 ty throughout, principally consisting of the " Serai" which I imagine 

 to be the " Sal" or Shorea robusta, which grows in large quanti- 

 ties over a great extent of country. It is easily felled however, and 

 the ground cleared by the process mentioned in para 5 of my 

 letter as per margin, called " Dabee", which con- 

 April 3 18 56^ sists in burning tne wood on tne ground, attain- 

 ing the double purpose of clearing and fertiliz- 

 ing. Notwithstanding all these facilities the amount of cultivation 

 does not bear the proportion of one to fifteen of surface, though 

 it would be difficult to point out any country possessing more 

 natural advantages. 



5. The former capital of Bustar was a town 

 Towns. . , , 



oi the same name, situated about 4 coss to the 



north of the town Jugdulpore, where the Rajah at present resides 



