Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 12.djvu/871

845 I N D I N D 845 alum. Hence indium chloride is usually represented by the formula In. 2 Cl 6, the formula of aluminium chloride being AloCl 6. V. and C. Meyer have recently found, however, that the density of its vapour at a bright red heat corresponds with the formula InCl.j, indicating that indium is a triad and not a tetrad like aluminium and iron. Aluminium and iron (ferric) chloride boil readily at a temperature below that at which sulphur or mercury boil, but indium chloride does not volatilize in the vapour of perchlorodiphenyl, which boils considerably above 440 C., and only slowly sublimes in the vapour of phosphorus pentasulphide (b.p. 530). It evaporates by no means rapidly at a dull red heat, but is momentarily converted into vapour at a bright red heat, furnishing a gas which behaves normally. It is noteworthy that aluminium chloride decomposes entirely at a temperature very little above that at which it gasifies. The issue raised by the Meyers observation is of considerable theoretical interest, and the subject demands further investigation. INDORE, or the Territories of the Maharaja of Holkar, is one of the principal native states in India, under the Central India Agency. The name of the state is taken from that of the capital Indore, 22 42 N. lat., 75 54 E. long. The territory consists of many isolated tracts ; but since 1861 arrangements have been made to concentrate the state as much as possible, and lands which were formerly held by Holkar in Ahmednagar district and in the Deccan have been exchanged for districts and pdrgdnds bordering on the Nerbudda (Narbada) river and the tract in which Indore town is situated. The area of the whole of Holkar s territories is estimated at 8075 square miles. Of these districts, those situated to the north are drained by the river Chambal and its feeders, those to the south by the Nerbudda. The tracts are fertile, producing in abundance excellent wheat and other grains, pulse, sugar-cane, cotton, and opium. The poppy is so generally cultivated that, when in bloom, it gives the country the appearance of a vast garden. Tobacco is also grown to a great extent, and is of admirable quality. The great Vindhya range traverses the southern division of Holkar s dominions, in a direction from east to west, a small portion of the territory lying to the north of the mountains, but by much the larger part to the south. The latter is a portion of the valley of the Nerbudda, and is bounded on the south by the Satpura mountains. Basalt and other volcanic formations predominate in both ranges, although there is also much sandstone. The Nerbudda traverses Indore from east to west ; and the valley at Mandlesar, in the central part of the district, is between 600 and 700 feet above the sea. The general appearance of the country is that of an undulating valley intersected by low rocky ranges, in some parts thickly clothed with stunted jungle, which also covers considerable tracts in the plains. The forests of the state form two belts, the southern and the northern. The former, which is con sidered unhealthy, borders on the Satpura range, and the latter, a healthy tract, on the Viridhya hills. From its inter-tropical position, the climate of Indore is sultry, the thermometer ranging from 60 to 90 Fahr. in the house. For some months from the close of the periodical rains, malaria is so deadly in the jungles that no European ventures into them. Besides the ruling tribe of Marhattas, the population comprises many other classes of Hindus, a few Mahome tans, and a considerable number of Gonds and Bhils. The Vindhya and Satpura ranges are peculiarly the country of the Bhils, who are considered to have been the earliest occupiers of the soil. This race is one of the wildest in India, its people living for the most part on vegetables and game, or on the plunder of their more civilized neighbours. They have, however, of late years been brought into more peaceful habits of life. The population of Holkar s territories was estimated in 1875 at 635,450. The revenue in 1875-76 amounted to 459,800, and the disbursements to 405,100. The number of schools in 1876 was 77, attended by 3235 pupils, costing the state 3000. The principal educational establishment is the Rajkumar college, for the education of the sons of the chiefs and nobles of Central India. The institution is maintained by the British Government, and is located within the grounds assigned for the purposes of the &quot; Residency.&quot; The governor-general s agent for Central India has his headquarters at Indore town. A branch line from the Great Indian Peninsula Railway, known as the Holkar State Railway, runs from Khandwa junction to Indore. The principal engineering works are the ascent of the Vindhya range and the bridge over the Nerbudda river. From Indore the line is taken up by the Neemuch Railway through part of Sindhia s dominions, connecting Indore with Nasirabad, and finally with Delhi and Agra. The chief means of communication are the Bombay and Agra Trunk Road, which runs through Indore, with branches at Mhow and Dhar, &c. ; another road, 80 miles in length, joins Indore with Khandwa, crossing the Nerbudda by ferry. There are cotton mills at work in the state, which have proved a regular source of income, as they turn out cloth for which there is a ready market. In 1878 the number of spindles was 10,000. Indore city contains a charitable and leper s hospital, and a dispensary. Cholera frequently prevails. History. The founder of this dynasty was Malhar RAo, the son of a shepherd, who lived in the village of Hoi, in the Deccan, whence he derived the surname of Holkar, the adjunct &quot; kae,&quot; &quot; kar,&quot; or &quot;kur&quot; signifying inhabitant. Disdaining his father s occupation, he enlisted in a troop of horse ; his rise was rapid, and he eventually became one of the most distinguished leaders in the first Marhatta in vasion of northern India, and obtained many possessions north of the Nerbudda and about Indore by grant from the peshwa. At his death he was succeeded by his grand son Malli Rao, who died shortly after his accession. Alia Bai, the mother of Malli Rao, then took the management of affairs, and appointed as commander of her army Malhar Tukaji Holkar, a chief of the same tribe as, but in no way related to, Malhar Rao. Alia Bai died in 1795, and was not long survived by Tukaji Rao, after whose death the power of the house of Holkar was nearly extinguished by family quarrels and the dissensions which distracted the Marhatta confederacy at the close of the last century. The fortunes of the family were, however, restored by Jeswant Rao, an illegitimate son of Tukaji Holkar, who, after a signal reverse from the army of Sindhia, employed European officers to introduce their discipline into his army, and in 1802 defeated the united forces of Sindhia and the peshwa at the battle of Poona. Twice Holkar attacked British territory, but was totally routed, and finally was forced to sign a treaty on the banks of the Bids, by which he was stripped of many of his conquests. He died insane in 1811, and was succeeded by his son Malhar Rao, during whose minority the state was torn by the most violent dissensions, and overrun by Pindaris. The army mutinied, and British intervention became necessary to restore the government. Malhar Rao dying in 1833 without issue, his wife and mother adopted Martaud Rao Holkar as his successor. He was summarily deposed by Hari Rao, a cousin of Malhar Rao, whose accession was welcomed by the troops. His rule was a tissue of intrigue and disorder. He died in 1843, and his adopted son, who succeeded him, died in a few months, leaving no heir. The .succession was declared to rest with