DACCA Jelalpore, an extensive and rich district in the eastern quarter of the province of Bengal, situated principally between the twenty-third and twenty-fourth degrees of north latitude. It is bounded on the north by Mymunsingh, on the south by Tipperah and Backergunge, on the east by Tipperah, and on the west by Rajshahy and Jessore. Prior to the arrangement adopted in 1800, by which this province was separated from the Backergunge jurisdiction, it was one of the largest and most valuable in Bengal, stretching as far south as the sea, and reaching north to the Garrow Mountains. The country is divided into a great number of valuable zemindaries or estate^, and is extremely productive in rice, being esteemed the granary of Bengal. It is intersected by the Ganges and Brahmaputra, two of the largest rivers in the world, which, with their branches crossing the country in all directions, form a complete inland navigation, every town and village having its canal or river, and the general mode of travelling or conveying goods being by water. By the confluence of these two great rivers rushing impetuously to the sea, great changes are often made in the boundaries of estates, the river encroaching on some parts and abandoning others. Hence it almost invariably happens that as much is gained on one side as is lost on the other by the operation of the current and the opposing tides; whilst repeated overflowings, with rich deposits of mould washed down by the stream, give extraordinary fertility to the extensive inundated borders of the river. But notwithstanding this advantage, there is no district in Bengal where there is a greater quantity of waste land, the whole of which is claimed by individuals who, though they do not cultivate it themselves, always exact a recompense for the use of it from others. Rice is the great staple product of the land, of which the abundance and cheapness is extraordinary, being sold in years of plenty at the rate of 640 lbs. per rupee. Its other productions are betel nut; a species of cotton necessary to form the stripes of the finest muslins, for which the city of Dacca has long been celebrated; and also tobacco.

This province is distinguished for its various and extensive fabrics of cotton. It has manufactures of plain as well as flowered, striped, or chequered muslins; and the beautiful fabrics of Dacca surpass in fineness the produce of any other country. Yet the natives assert that the art has fallen off, and that when the Mogul court was in full splendour, pieces were made so fine that they could only be woven under water, and when spread on the grass could scarcely be distinguished from the morning dew. But the demand for these finer muslins has now fallen off so much, that many of the families who possess by hereditary instruction the art of making these fabrics, have desisted, on account of the difficulty which they experience in finding a market for them. In many parts of India the native fabrics are rivalled by the manufactures of Britain, which being chiefly the produce of machinery, can, after bearing the expense of a long voyage, be sold cheaper in India than the produce of domestic industry. Dimities of various kinds and patterns, and cloths resembling diaper and damask linen, are also made. The export of all these articles has, however, greatly decreased. This country is entirely alluvial, and in the rainy season is mostly overflowed, exhibiting the appearance of an inland sea, with towns and villages rising out of the water. The principal towns of this district are Dacca, Narraingunge, Sunergong, and Rajanagur. During the Mahommedan government this district was ruled by a deputy of the nabob, called the naib nazim. The last person who held the office was Jessarut Khan, who having been ordered by Cossim Ali Khan in the year 1763 to put all the English at Dacca to death, very humanely sent them under the protection of a trusty guard [7:7:581]to Calcutta, for which service he afterward? received a pension, which was continued to his descendants. The population is estimated at about one million, the majority of whom are Mahommedans.

Dacca, the capital of the above district, a large city, and for eighty years the capital of Bengal, of which it is still the third city in point of extent and population. It is situated beyond the principal stream of the Ganges, on the northern bank of a very large branch of that river, called the Boor Gunga, or Old Ganges, at the distance of a hundred miles from the mouth of the Ganges, or four, hundred by the winding course of the river. Its position is admirably well adapted for inland trade, as the river which flows past it communicates with all the other inland navigations by a direct course. Dacca succeeded to Sunergong as the provincial capital of the eastern quarter of Bengal. The present town covers a great deal of ground, extending, if the suburbs be .included, six miles along the banks of the river, though it is not of proportional breadth. The houses of the wealthy are built of brick, but there are many thatched houses, with very narrow and crooked streets; the bazars are only tiled or thatched; and as every vacant spot is covered with trees, the town looks from a distance like a grove. The ancient citadel was situated on the western side of the town; but it is now in ruins, great part of the wall having been washed away by the river. An extensive and magnificent palace, built by Azim Ushaun, Aurungzebe’s grandson, who resided here towards the end of the seventeenth century, is also in ruins.

In Dacca and the vicinity are manufactured the most beautiful muslins, which are exported to all quarters of the world, and which have been long famed for their delicacy and beauty. The same violent heats do not prevail here as in Benares, Patna, and other places in Bahar. This is owing to the low lying situation of the surrounding country, which is always covered with verdure, even during the dry months. The unhealthy season is in autumn, from the 20th of August to the 10th of October, when the rivers and the inundation are subsiding. During the remainder of the year the city and its vicinity is salubrious and pleasant, though the climate is more relaxing than that of the northern or western provinces.

Dacca is comparatively a modern city, its name not being mentioned in the Ayeen Acberry In 1608 the seat of government was removed from Rajemul to the city of Dacca; and in compliment to the reigning emperor, Jehangire, its name was changed to Jehangire Nuggur. During the Mogul government, a large establishment of war and state boats, consisting of 768 armed cruizers, was maintained at Dacca, for the purpose of defending the country against the Mughs and the people of Assam, and occasionally to add splendour to the ceremonies of religion or the parade of the court. For the support of this marine the land revenue of several districts was assigned, amounting to about L.45,000 per annum; the gunners belonging to it were principally Portuguese, of whose descendants a number still reside in the town and neighbourhood.

The houses of Dacca being formed of combustible materials, it suffers frequently by conflagrations, which, when they break out, as they do once or twice a year, spread rapidly. The inhabitants look with the utmost indifference on the destruction of their habitations, and throwing the few valuables which they possess into earthen pots sunk in the floor, they easily procure mats, thatch, and bamboos, which are abundant, and soon replace their houses in their former condition. There was formerly at Dacca one of those curious and enormously large guns which were to be seen in the Deccan and in the south of India, which weighed 64,814 pounds, and which would have required a ball weighing 465 pounds. This city still continues very populous; the number of its inhabitants exceeds 150,000, of whom more than one half are followers of Mahommed. It is the head-quarters of the court of circuit for the eastern division of Bengal. Travelling distance from Delhi 1107 miles. Long. 90. 17. E. Lat. 23. 42. N.