Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1899 American Edition.djvu/472

 128 THE BRITISH EMPIRE: — INDIA AND DEPENDENCIES The Governors of Madras and Bombay and the four Lieutenant-Governors each have legislative councils of their own, councils having been constituted for the Punjab and Burma in 1898. Although all the provinces are under the control of the Government ot India, they enjoy much administrative independence varying with their importance. Each province is usually broken into divisions under Commissioners, and then divided into districts, which form the units of administration. At the head of each district is an executive officer (collector- magistrate, or deputy-commissioner), who has entire control of the district, and is responsible to the governor of the province. Subordinate to the magis- trate (in most districts) there are a joint magistrate, an assistant-magistrate, and one or more deputy-collectors and other officials. In some cases the magistrate -collector is also judge, while in others the two functions are separate. There are about 245 of such districts in British India. In the accompanying census tables, Bombay, Madras, Calcutta, Rangoon, and Aden, have each been reckoned as a District ; bringing the total to 250. India, in its widest sense, includes British India and the Native States ; the former is under the direct control in all respects of British officials. The control which the Supreme Government exercises over the Native States varies in degree ; but they are all governed by the native princes, ministers or councils with the help and under the advice of a resi- dent, or agent, in political charge either of a single State or a group of States. The chiefs have no right to make war or peace, or to send ambassadors to each other or to external States ; they are not permitted to maintain a military force above a certain specified limit ; no European is allowed to reside at any of their courts without special sanction ; and the Supreme Government can exercise the right of dethronement in case of misgovernment. Within these limits the more important chiefs possess sovereign authority in their own territories. Some of them are required to pay an annual tribute ; with others this is nominal, or not demanded. Local Government. There were, in March 1897, 754 municipal towns, with a population of 15,729,458. The municipal bodies have the care of the roads, water supply, drains, markets, and sanitation ; tbey impose taxes, enact bye-laws, make im- provements, and spend money, but the sanction of the Provincial Government is necessary in each case before new taxes can be levied or new bye-laws can be brought into force. By the Local Self-Government Acts of 1882-84, the elective principle has been extended, in a large or small measure, all over India. In all larger towns, and in many of the smaller towns, the majority of members of committees are elected by the ratepayers, everywhere the majority of town committees consists of natives, and in many committees all the members are natives. For raral tracts, except in Burma and Coorg, there are district and local boards, which are in charge of roads, district schools, and hospitals. Area and Population. I. Progress and Present Position of the Population. The following synoptical table gives the estimated population and area in square miles for six successive decennial periods. The population is in millions and two decimals.