Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 1.djvu/469

Rh A J A A J M 433 sprang a flower, as at the death of Hyacinthus, which bore the initial letter of his name. In later times the people of Xovum Ilium believed him to have been wronged by the decision, and told how, when Ulysses had been shipwrecked, the armour of Achilles was wafted by the tide upon the shore near the tomb of Ajax. (A. s. M.) AJAX OILEUS, or the LESSER AJAX, was a son of the King of Locri, whose subjects he led before Troy, contribut ing a contingent of forty ships. In boldness he was in the first rank among the Greeks there, equal to make a stand against Hector, and swift of foot next to Achilles. But, com pared with the other leaders, he is impatient and overbear ing. Like the Telamonian Ajax, he appears as an enemy of Ulysses, and as the victim of Athena s vengeance. It was due to her influence -that he, known for his speed, lost the race with Ulysses at the games in honour of Patroclus (Iliad, xxiii. 754-784); and again it was through her that on his return homeward his ship was wrecked upon the mythical Gyraaan rock (Odyssey, iv. 499). As it stands in later story, he had drawn down Athena s anger by his assault upon Cassandra at the image of the goddess. Ulysses charged him with this offence, and demanded that he should be stoned. But, according to another version of the legend, he had only carried her off to his tent without any harm, when Agamemnon took her from him, and spread a report that Athena would destroy the whole army unless Ajax were slain; upon which, thinking of the unjust verdict given against his namesake, he went to sea in a frail vessel and perished. The news was received in the camp with grief, a funeral pile was erected on the ship which had conveyed him to Troy, sacrifice was offered, and when the evening wind came on, the burning ship was cut adrift. (A. s. M.) AJEHO, or A-SHE-HOH, also called ALCHUKU, a consider able and rapidly increasing city of Manchuria, 30 miles south of the river Soongari, and about 120 north of Kirin. It is advantageously situated on the slopes of a gentle descent leading to the river. The country around is very fertile, producing in abundance various kinds of grain, besides pulse and opium. The population of the district consists entirely of Chinese immigrants, who are engaged in the reclamation and cultivation of the soil, which is given to them at a nominal price. A large trade is done in the town ; and although the shops are of mean appearance, quantities of porcelain and other ornamental articles ex posed for sale indicate its growing wealth. The population is about 40,000, and includes a considerable number of Mahometans. AJMIR, a district and town of British India, in Rajpu- tana. The DISTRICT lies between 25 43 and 26 42 N. lat., and 74 22 and 75 33 E. long., measuring 80 miles in length from north to south, by 50 miles in breadth, and comprising an area of 2057 square miles. It is bounded on the E. by the states of Krishnagar and Jaipur, on the S. by Mewar, on the W. by the British district of Mairwara, and on the N.W. by the state of Jodhpur. The population in 1865 was returned at 426,268; of whom 363,539, or 85 per cent., were Hindus, and the remainder chiefly Mahometans. The eastern portion of the district is generally flat, broken only by gentle undulations, but the north and north-western parts are intersected by the great ARAVALLI range (q.v.) Many of the valleys in this region are mere sandy deserts, with an occasional oasis of cultivation, but there are also some very fertile tracts ; among these is the plain on which lies the town of Ajmir. This valley, however, is not only fortunate in possessing a noble artificial lake, but is protected by the massive walls of the N ag-pdthar range or Serpent rock, which forms a barrier against the sand. The only hills in the district are the Aravalli range and its offshoots. Ajmfr is almost totally devoid of rivers, the Bands being the only stream which can be dignified with that name, and it only touches the south-eastern boundary of the district so as to irrigate the Pargana of Samur. Four small streams the Sagar- matf, Saraswatf, Kharl, and Dai also intersect the dis trict. In the dry weather they are little more than brooks. The Sagar-mati and Saraswatf unite at Gobindgarh, the united waters flowing on under the name of the Lunf (or salt water) river. There are two first-class roads in Ajmir, viz., one from Ajmfr city to Gangwana, and thence through the Krishnagarh and Jaipur states to Agra; and another from the city to the cantonment station of Nasirabdd, a distance of 14 miles. There is also a second-class road from Ajmfr to Naya Nagar, a distance of 36 miles, besides sixteen third-class tracks connecting the principal towns and villages with the city. The principal products of the district are wheat, barley, rice, sugar-cane, peas, bajra, maize, til (oil-seed), tobacco, and cotton. With the excep tion of woollen blankets, turbans, &c., manufactures can be scarcely said to exist in Ajmir. Salt is made in a rude method at Rdmsur, from the saline exudations of the soil, to the extent of 3000 cwt. per annum. After supplying local wants, the surplus is exported towards Malwa and Sagar. The principal trade is in wool, cotton, opium, printed cloths, and tobacco. A large quantity of cotton is exported to Naya Nagar, in Mairwara district, whence it finds its way into the Bombay market. Oil is also a pro fitable article of trade. The domestic animals are sheep, horses, bullocks, camels, and goats. Cattle, and especially bullocks, are much valued, but are very scarce, owing partly to the want of sufficient pasturage and partly to frequent droughts. When these occur, the cattle are sent away to the neighbouring states, where better pasture can be pro cured, and very few find their way back. The imperial revenue obtained from the district in 1867 amounted to 61,791, 8s., exclusive of local funds raised by a road, tank, and postal cess. The tenures of the agricultural village communities in Ajmir are of a very simple and uniform kind. They all belong to the type known as &quot;imperfect patidari,&quot; by which the better descriptions of land are held in severally by each member of the proprietary body. Each member is responsible for the amount of revenue allotted on his holding; but in event of the default of any shareholder, the whole community is collectively liable for the total sum. The inferior and waste lands remain the property of the whole village, and the income derived from them is credited to the common account. The cultivators are nearly all proprietors of the land they till. A large portion of Ajmir district is parcelled out into estates, varying in size from a single village to a large pargand (or fiscal division). These estates are held by Rajput chiefs, some of whom descend from the original ruling families, while others owe their position to force or to the favour of the reigning power. They have all been confirmed in their estates by the British on payment of a fixed annual quit rent. Three towns are returned as containing a popu lation of upwards of 5000 inhabitants in 1867 viz., Ajmir city (the capital and the only municipality in the district), population 34,763 ; Kekri, 6357 ; and Pisangun, 5055. There is also a military cantonment at Nasirabad, the garrison of which in 1867 consisted of a battery of European artillery, a European infantry regiment, a squadron of native cavalry, and a regiment of native infantry. In 1867 there were eighteen government schools in the district, attended by 647 pupils, and a government college at Ajmir city attended by 320 students. Besides these there were three mission schools for boys and one for girls in Ajmir city, and eight others in its neigh bourhood. The average attendance at the mission schools amounted to 347. AJM/R CITY, the capital of Ajmfr district, is situated in a picturesque and fertile valley surrounded by mountains, in 26 29 N. lat. and 74 43 E. long. The town is partly built on the lower slope of the Taragarh hill, and is surrounded by a stone wall with five handsome gates. To the north of the city is a large artificial lake called the Anasagar, whence the water supply of the place is derived The town is clean, and possesses several handsome streets, the dwellings of the better classes being large and well built. The population in 1867 numbered 34,763, about I.