70 miles of the fea. General Jofeph Smith remarks, that the Kiftna was fordable both above and below the conflux of the Beemah river, in the month of March: and that a few miles below the mouth of the Beemah, its bed was 600 yards wide,, and exhibited an uncommon appearance, from the number and diverfity of the rocks in it. The Kiftna and Godavery rivers, however remote at their fountains, approach within 80 miles of each other, in the lower parts of their course; and form an extenfive tract of country, compofed of rich vegetable mould, fuch as is ufually found at the mouths of large rivers. Here we behold, on a finaller feale, the fame economy that is obfervable in the agency of the Nile and Ganges, in forming the DELTAS of Egypt and Bengal; by means of the finer particles of earth, that are fwept down by thofe vaft rivers, and their branches, in a courfe of more than 2000 miles. Thofe who have been on the spot, and reafon from analogy, in this cafe, will readily fuppofe that the whole, or the greatest part of the tract, included between Samulcotta and Pettapolly (about 150 miles in length along the fea fhore, and from 40 to 50 wide) is in reality, a gift of the two rivers, Godavery and Kistna. The fame appearances indeed, may be obferved at the mouths of the Cattack and Tanjore rivers; but the two rivers in queftion, by draining a much greater extent of country (that is, from the 15th to the 21st degree of latitude) have collected materials for a greater quantity of new land. Within this new formed land, and about midway between the Godavery and Kiftna, the foil forms a hollow fpace; which in its lowest part, is a lake at all feafons; and in all the other parts, an extensive inundation, during the feafon of the periodical rains; being then a lake of 40 or 50 miles in extent. This is called the Colair lake; and its origin may be referred to the fame cause, as that which produces the lakes and moraffes of the Egyptian and Bengal deltas: which is, that the depofition of mud by the two rivers (or the two branches of one river) at the time when they they overflow, is greateft near the banks: for the farther the inundation flows from the margin of the river, the more of its earthy particles will be depofited in its way; and the lefs will remain for the diftant parts; which therefore cannot be filled up to the level of the ground, nearest the bank of the river and thus the ground will acquire the form of an inclined plane, from each river bank towards the interior part of the country, where a hollow space will be left but it may be expected that when the rivers have raised their banks, and the adjacent country, to the greatest possible height, which is that of the periodical flood (and the ground can be raised no higher) the fubfequent inundations will find their way into the hollow fpace, from the lower part of the river; and will gradually fill up with mud, the part of the lake that lies towards the fource of it: and as the new land continues to encroach upon the sea, the lake will travel downwards in the fame proportion.. For the natural courfe of things, is, that when the new lands that are thefurtheft removed from the fea, are raised as high as the agency. of the waters will admit, that portion of the mud that cannot be depofited above, is carried lower down to raife other lands; or to lay the foundation of new land, further out: and thus the regular. declivity of the channel is preserved. All lands fubject to inundations, muft continue to rife; because the water of the inundation depofits, at least, fome portion of the earthy particles fufpended in it: but there must be a certain point of elevation, beyond which no delta or river bank, can rife; for each fucceffive point in the course of a river, must be lower than the preceding one. As to the Nile, its banks will admit of being raifed, throughout the whole Said, as well as lower Egypt; the cataracts being so much. elevated above the lower part of the river: and Egypt alfo differs in another particular, from India, in that no rain falls there to wash away the light parts of the foil into the river, before the inundation: whereas, the heavy rains of Bengal, previous to the inundation, muft reduce the level of the elevated grounds, and contribute partly towards filling up the hollows; and no fmall proportion of what is depofited in one feafon, will be carried lower down, or into the fea. So that the progress of raising the lands, must have been more rapid in Egypt than in any of the moister regions. It appears to me that the gentlemen who have lately reasoned fo ingeniously on the increase of the delta of the Nile, have omitted a circumstance of confiderable moment, as it refpects the length of the periods required to form given quantities of new land in; or to elevate the old to a certain degree. We never fail to remark on a survey of the naked fummits of mountains, that the rain has in a course of ages, washed away the earth that covered them: or in other words, that there is a progreffive motion of the finer particles of earth, from the mountains, towards the vallies. Admitting this to be true, and that the ftores of fine earth are not inexhauftible; the longer the rivers continue to run, the less quantity of earth they muft carry away with them: and therefore, the increase of the deltas, and other alluvions of capital rivers, must have been more rapid in early periods of the world's age, than now. After this long digreffion, it would be unpardonable in me to omit an account of a plan propofed by my ingenious friend Mr. John Sulivan: which was, to open a communication at all feasons, between the Colair lake and its parent rivers, with a view to the improvement of the adjacent lands (which form a part of the Circars) and of the inland navigation. It appears that an imperfect channel already exifts, between the lake and the Godavery river; as well as the traces of an unfinished one, towards the Kiftna: and which this gentleman, with great appearance of probability, imputes to a like defign having been formed by the natives, in early times. This scheme, which appears to be practicable on eafy terms, has never been adopted: the propofal was made early in 1779 and for the particulars, I fhall refer to the tract itself, which also contains much information on other subjects. Το To return to the subject of the Memoir. The Beemah river is known to be a principal branch of the Kiftna, coming from the NW, and joining it near Edghir. It rifes in the mountains, on the north of Poonah, probably not far from the fources of the Godavery; and paffes within 30 miles of the eaft fide of Poonah, where it is named Bewrah, as well as Beemah; and is also esteemed a facred river. General Smith croffed this river, when accompany→ ing the Nizam from Hydrabad towards Myfore, in 1766; about 10 miles above its junction with the Kistna, where it was fordable. The Vifiapour river is a branch of the Beemah, and is named Mandouah, by Mandefloe. The mountains named the Gauts, Gattes, or INDIAN APPENINE, and which extend from Cape Comorin to the Tapty, or Surat river; occupy, of course, a part of the tract, whofe conftruction is difcuffed in this fection: but I fhall referve a general account of the Gauts, for the next section;. which treats of the peninfula in general, and of the Gauts, as included in it. This celebrated ridge does not terminate in a point or promontory, when. it approaches the Tapty; but departing from its meridional course, bends castward, in a wavy line, parallel to the river; and is afterwards lost among the hills, in the neighbourhood of Burhanpour. In its courfe along the Tapty, it forms feveral paffes, or defcents, (that is, Gauts, according to the original import of the word, which means a landing place) towards that river; whence the country into which the paffes defcend, was originally named Candeifh, or the low country. It would appear, that the ridge abates of its great height, after paffing the parallel of Baffeen, northward; for Mr. Farmer, in his way from Poonah towards Naderbar, obferved. that the paffes had all a defcent northward; forming as it were, a series of steps, until he landed in Candeifh. He was then a hostage with Madajee Sindia; who at that time led the grand Mahratta army into Guzerat, against General Goddard. A a 2 The The country inclosed by this bend of the Gauts, is named Baglana, or Bocklana; and extends the whole way from the Tapty river to Poonah. It is mountainous, of courfe; and contains in it, many strong fortreffes. Among thefe, were Rairee and Jeneahgur, the ftrong holds of Sevagee, in the laft century: but I cannot trace out their pofitions. It is furprifing, confidering how long the English have had fettlements at Bombay and Surat, that there should be no map, or other record, defcriptive of the geography of Baglana; or of any part of the tract between Bombay and Aurungabad. The routes of M. Anquetil du Perron, and of Mr. Farmer, together with Mr. Smith's line, have defcribed the roads leading from Poonah to Noopour, and Burhanpour: but all on the weft of these lines, is a blank, for an extent of 100 miles in width, and 150 in length: even the pofition of Naffick-Trimuck, a celebrated place of Hindoo worship, on the NE of Baffeen, is not well known; and M. Anquetil du Perron's account of its position, in refpect of some points in his route from Poonah to Surat, is not fatisfactory. It is fituated near the fprings of the Godavery; and they must be on the caft fide of the Gauts, and nearly on a parallel with Bahbelgong. Some general information refpecting the fituation of the Teek forefts, and of the extent of the British conquefts in 1780 and 1781, along the western foot of the Gauts, between Baffeen and Surat, was obligingly communicated by Mr. Hunter of the East India Direction; and by Mr. Holmes. The Teek forefts, from whence the marine yard at Bombay is furnished with that excellent fpecies of fhip timber, lie along the western fide of the Gaut mountains, and other contiguous ridges of hills, on the north, and north-east of Baffeen the numerous rivulets that defcend from them, affording water carriage for the timber. I cannot clofe this account without remarking the unpardonable negligence we are guilty of, in delaying to build Teck fhips of war for the use of the Indian seas. They might be freighted home, without the ceremony of regular equip |
