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or become arable land, whose foil is chiefly compofed of brick daft. The principal ruins are a mofque lined with black marble, elaborately wrought; and two gates of the citadel, which are strikingly grand and lofty. These fabricks and fome few others, appear to owe their duration to the nature of their materials, which are less marketable, and more difficult to separate, than those of the ordinary brick buildings; which have been, and continue to be, an article of merchandize; and are tranfported to Moorfhedabad, Mauldah, and other places, for the purpose of building. These bricks are of the most folid texture of any I ever faw; and have preferved the fharpness of their edges, and fmoothness of their furfaces, through a series of ages. The fituation of Gour was highly convenient for the capital of Bengal and Bahar, as united under one government: being nearly centrical with respect to the populous parts of thofe provinces; and near the junction of the principal rivers that compofe that extraordinary inland navigation, for which those provinces are famed : and moreover, secured by the Ganges and other rivers, on the only quarter from which Bengal. has any cause for apprehenfion.

Tandah, Tanrah, or Tarrah, which was for a fhort time in the reign of Shere Shaw, in about 1540, the capital of Bengal, and became the established capital under Acbar in about 1580, is fituated very near to the fite of Gour, on the road leading from it to Rajemal. There is little remaining of this place, fave the rampart; nor do we know for certain when it was deserted. In 1659, it was the capital of Bengal, when that foubah was reduced under Aurungzebe: and Rajemal, Dacca, and Moorfhedabad, appear to have succeffively become the capital, after Tanda.

• Called fometimes Chawafpour Tanda, from the original name of the district in which it was fituated.

Pundua,

Pundua, or Purruah, mentioned as a royal refidence in Bengal, in the year 1353 *, is about 7 miles to the north of Mauldah, and 10 from the nearest part of Gour. Many of its ruins yet remain; particularly the Addeenah mofque, and the pavement of a very long street, which lies in the line of the road leading from Mauldah to Dinagepour.

Satgong, or Satagong, now an inconfiderable village on a small creek of the Hoogly river, about 4 miles to the north weft of Hoogly, was, in 1566, and probably later, a large trading city, in which the European traders had their factories in Bengal. At that time Satgong river was capable of bearing fmall veffels; and, I fufpect, that its then course, after paffing Satgong, was by way of Adaumpour, Omptah, and Tamlook; and that the river called the old Ganges, was a part of its courfe, and received that name whilft the circumftance of the change was fresh in the memory of the people. The appearance of the country between Satgong and Tamlook, countenances fuch an opinion.

Sonergong, or Sunnergaum, was a large city, and the provincial capital of the eastern divifion of Bengal, before Dacca was built ; but it is dwindled to a village. It is fituated on one of the branches of the Burrampooter, about 13 miles fouth east from Dacca; and was famous for a manufacture of fine cotton cloths.

Dawe ift. 349.

SECT.

SECTION III

The Tract occupied by the Course of the River INDUS and its principal Branches: with the adjacent Countries on the South and Eaft, as far as the River PUDDAR, and the City of AGRA.

T

HIS part comprehends in general the foubahs of Cabul, Lahore (or Panjab) Moultan, Sindy, Agimere, and the western parts of Agra and Delhi: and is about 700 B. miles in length from north west to south east; and from 350 to 750 in breadth. It is bounded on the east, by the mountains of Little Thibet, and Sewalick, and by an imaginary line drawn from Hurdwar to Agra; on the fouth, by the river Puddar; on the weft, by the Arabian sea, and Perfia; and on the north, by the mountains called HindooKo, which feparate Cabul from Bucharia in Tartary.

Delhi, the capital of Hindooftan in latter ages, is 40 computed coffes to the north west of Ramgaut, a point ascertained by the Bengal furvey and its latitude, according to Claud Boudier, is 28° 37'. This Data places Delhi in 77° 45′ east longitude, which is only 5 minutes different from Claud Boudier's observation (77° 40′) Beyond Delhi, weftwards, we launch, as it were, into a wide ocean, in which we have no points determined mathematically, by which we can ascertain the length and direction of the route; except the computed distances between places, and fome latitudes and longitudes, taken with little precifion, if we may judge by a comparison of fome of the obfervations from the fame catalogue, with those

We first hear of Delhi as the capital of Hindooftan about the year 1200. It is fuppofed to have been founded by Delu, about 300 years before our Æra. It should be written Debly.

taken

taken by Europeans. For inftance, the latitude of Jionpour and Burhanpour are from 21 to 25 miles too far north, in the Ayeneh Acbaree; Oude, 35 too far north; and Delhi, 22 too far fouth. We have therefore little reafon to fuppofe that any of the others are much nearer the truth; nor have we any rule to guess on which fide the error lies. The longitudes are ftill more vague; as for inftance:

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Here the medium of the difference is 12 minutes too little, in

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In these places, altho' the longitudes in the map are not determined with precifion, we may ftill perceive that the Ayeneh Acbaree is much out. The difference on a medium here is 11' in each degree too much. From fuch kind of materials, nothing very accurate can be expected: and therefore I have never had recourfe to them but in a very few cafes, where every other species of information has failed.

The first point beyond Delhi which I have any kind of data for fixing the position of, is Lahore, a capital city in the Panjab *, and. formerly a royal refidence. This place is faid by Tavernier to be

* Panjab, or the country of the five rivers, is a natural divifion of the country contained between the 5 eaftern branches of the Indus.

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191 coffes from Delhi; and by a MS. itinerary (of John Steel, dated 1614) 189. The medium, 190 coffes, taken at 42 to the degree, is 271 G. miles. Its latitude in the Ayeneh Acbaree, is 31° 50′, in another Indian table 31° and in a Latin MS. itinerary, dated 1662, 30° 30′ * The medium of these three accounts is about 31°7', but I have placed it in 31° 14', as that position accords best with my idea of the distance between it and Moultan; and with respect to its longitude, it is determined by the aforefaid distance of 271 G. miles from Delhi, to be in 73° 33'

Lahore is a very important point to be settled, as it regulates the pofitions of all the places between it and the Indus: and therefore we have reason to regret that we have not better authority for. fixing it. The Ayeneh Acbaree places it 1 degree 4 minutes to the weft of its affumed pofition, which could not be the case, even if its whole distance from Delhi was in longitude. The fituation of Sirhind, which is nearly midway between Delhi and Lahore, is regulated by a MS. itinerary. It is a very ancient city, and lies near the confines of Lahore.

The country in general on the north, fouth, and weft of Delhi, to the frontiers of Lahore, Moultan, and Agimere, is described from various MSS. and memorandums: but it would be very tedious, and of little ufe, to enumerate every particular that has been taken from them, or to quote my authority for fo doing.

I am not perfectly clear concerning the courfe of the Caggar river (called Kebker by D'Anville, and apparently the ancient Hefidrus). That branch of it which runs by Tanafferai, or Tannafar, is mentioned by Ferishta under the name of Surfutty. We must be content to remain in ignorance concerning both this, and many other particulars of Indian geography; and fatisfy ourselves with having the fituations of places that are the most interesting, either from

It should be obferved, that all the latitudes in this itinerary are too far fouth. The latitude of Agra is fet down at 26° 45', tho' its true latitude is 27° 15'. And Moultan in 29° 32, and Tatta in 24° 20'; which places are commonly taken at 29° 52', and 24° 40'.

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