Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 15.djvu/202

Rh 184 M A D M A D particularly during the war of 1812-15. He had never been a partisan in politics, and was averse to forcing his views upon others, except in so far as he could do so by impartial arguments. In argument, he was not satisfied with generalities ; his reasoning went to the foundation of principles to the minutest details, sometimes almost pain fully so. His analysis of the arguments was powerful and searching. In this he resembled Hamilton : but his con clusions were reached through a laborious process of induc tion, whilst those of Hamilton seemed more the result of intuition. Madison, moreover, lacked Hamilton s boldness of conception and courage in assuming the responsibility of his theories. The difference between them was the difference between great talent and genius. Madison served two terms as president, and in 1817 retired to Montpellier, his country seat in Virginia. For nearly twenty years thereafter he was engaged in agricultural pursuits, but was ever interested in literature and politics. To the time of his death he continued to be consulted by statesmen as an oracle on all constitutional questions. In character he was mild and conciliatory ; and, whether in power or in opposition, he never lost the friendship or confidence of his political opponents. His death occurred on the 28th of June 1836. His Letters and Writings, in 4 vols., were published by order of Congress in 1865. The Madison Papers, a report of debates during the Congress of the Confederation, and reports of debates in the Federal Convention, were also published by order of Congress. The History of the Life and Times of Madison, by William C. Rives, in 3 vols., comes down only to 1794. MADRAS, a presidency of British India, occupying, with its dependencies, the entire south of the Indian peninsula, and washed on the east by the Bay of Bengal and on the west by the Indian Ocean. The north boundary is extremely irregular. On the extreme north-east is the Bengal province of Orissa ; then the wild highlands of the Central Provinces ; next the dominions of the nizam of Hyderabad ; and lastly, on the north-west, the Bombay districts of DhArwar and North Kanara. The extreme length from north-east to south-west is about 950 miles, and the breadth 450 miles ; the area of the British districts (1879) is 138,856 square miles, and the population in 1871 was 31,672,613. The iive native states attached to Madras Travancore, Cochin, Puducottah, Banganapalli, and Sandiir have an additional area of 9818 square miles, and a population of 3,289,392, making a grand total area of 148,674 square miles, with a population of 34,962,005. General Aspect. From a physical point of view, the Madras presidency may be roughly divided into three tracts (1) the long and broad east coast, (2) the shorter and narrower west coast, and (3) the high interior table-land. These divisions are determined by the great mountain ranges of the Eastern and Western Ghats. The Eastern Ghats form a continuation of the confused hill system of ChutiA Nagpur. They run in a south-west direction through almost the entire length of Madras until they lose themselves in the Nilgiris, and there join the Western Ghats. Their average height is only 1500 feet, and for the most part they leave a broad expanse of low land between their base and the sea ; their line is pierced by three great rivers the Godavari, Kistna, and Kaveri (Cauvery). The Western Ghats stretch continuously along the shore of the Indian Ocean. Rising steeply at a distance of from 30 to 50 miles from the coast, they catch almost the whole rain fall of the monsoon ; and within Madras territory not a single stream breaks through their barrier. Some of the peaks attain an elevation of more than 5000 feet. Between these two ranges lies the central table-land, with an eleva tion of from 1000 to 3000 feet, which includes the whole of Mysore, and extends over about half a dozen districts of Madras. The three principal rivers above-mentioned, each having a large tributary system, all rise in the Western Ghats, and run across the peninsula in a south-east direction into the Bay of Bengal. In the upper parts of their course they drain rather than water the country through which they flow, and are comparatively valueless either for navigation or for irrigation ; but before reaching the sea they spread over alluvial deltas. Other but smaller rivers of the same character are the North and South Pennar or Ponniyar, Palar, Vaigai, Yellar, and Tarnbraparni. The two main hill systems have been already described (see GH^TS, vol. x. p. 559). The Nilgiris, which join these, culminate in Dodabetta (8640 feet), the loftiest peak in southern India. There are, besides, many outlying spurs and tangled masses of hills, of which the Shevaroys, Ana- malais, and the Palnis are the most important. The principal lake in the presidency is that of Pulicat on the east coast, which is 33 miles from north to south, and forms an important means of communication between Madras city and the north districts. On the west coast are a remarkable series of backwaters or lagoons, fringing the seaboard of Kanara, Malabar, and Travancore. The largest is the backwater of Cochin, which extends for a distance of 120 miles from north to south. The mineral wealth of the province is as yet undeveloped. Iron of excellent quality has been smelted by native smiths in many localities from time immemorial ; but attempts to work the beds after European methods have hitherto proved unsuccessful. Carboniferous sandstone extends across the Godavari valley as far as Ellore, but the coal has been found to be of inferior quality. Scientific researches have proved the existence of gold in the Nilgiris, in suf ficient quantity to render outlay on it profitable ; and several companies, representing a large amount of capital, have been formed for working the mines. Among other minerals may be mentioned manganese in the Nilgiris and Bellary ; copper and lead ores in many parts of the Eastern Ghats ; antimony and silver ; and corundum in the valley of the Kaveri. Garnets are abundant in the sandstone of the Northern Circars, and diamonds of moderate value are found in the same region. Stone and gravel quarries are very numerous. The Forest Department of Madras was first organized in 1856, and it is estimated that forests cover a total area of more than 5000 square miles, the whole of which is under conservancy rules. For supplying fuel to the railways an area of about 160,000 acres is strictly conserved. In the remaining forests, after supplying local wants, timber is either sold direct by the department, or licences are granted to wood-cutters. The more valuable timber-trees comprise teak, ebony, rosewood, sandal-wood, and redwood. The Government plantations cover an area of 9000 acres. The trees thus artificially reared are teak, sandal-wood, Casuarina, and Eucalyptus. The finest teak plantation (over 3000 acres) is near Beypur in Malabar. At Mudumalli there are plantations of both teak and sandal- wood ; and the Eucalyptus or Australian gum-tree now grows on the Nilgiris in magnificent clumps. The total value of timber and wood exported was 95,801 in 1875-76, and 122,413 in 1880-81. The wild animals are those for the most part common to the rest of India. Those deserving mention are the elephant, bison, sambur, and ibex of the &quot;Western Ghats and the Nilgiris. Bison are also found in the hill tracts of the Northern Circars. In Travancore state the black variety of leopard is not uncommon. In 1880-81 182 persons and 11,628 cattle were returned as killed by wild beasts. The number of persons killed by snake-bites in 1880 was 928. The elephant is now protected by law from indiscriminate destruction. The agricultural re turns for 1880-81 report the number of buffaloes as