Page:The Imperial Gazetteer of India - Volume 2 (2nd edition).pdf/255

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BELLARY. Agriculture.

— Of the —

245 3,574,504 were

total area (3,762,286 acres),

in

1881-82 returned as assessed; 40,154 acres for the first crop, and 1941 for the second, total, 42,095 acres, were cultivated under irrigation and 1,365,639 were cultivated without irrigation total cultivated area, I, 407,734 acres. The cultivable area not under cultivation was returned at 2,087,995 acres; pasture and forest lands, 98,347 acres; and barren

—





or waste lands, 170,524 acres: total uncultivated area, 2,356,866 acres.

Of the total area, 815,300 acres are held in indm, or revenue free. The cultivated area is officially divided into wet and dry lands. Dry’ land is that in which there is no artificial irrigation. The chief ‘

‘

’

’

‘

crops are cholam, rdgi, and korra, and on these depends the food

supply of the masses.

Wet

‘

’

lands, or those artificially irrigated, are

On

almost exclusively devoted to rice and sugar-cane. lands

are

tobacco,

cocoa-nut,

raised

chillies,

betel

leaf,

turmeric, vegetables,

dry land, the regar, or

‘

black cotton

and

areca-nut,

plantains,

Cotton

fruits.

soil,’

other

being the

is

‘

dry

’

wheat,

grown on

always pre-

soil

on the red ferruginous or grey calcareous soils being on the average only 25 per cent, of that on the black soil. A fair crop would be 240 lbs. of uncleaned, or 60 lbs. of cleaned, cotton. Exotic varieties of cotton (Hinganghat, New Orleans, Sea Island, etc.) have been tried, and have hitherto failed. The total area under the various crops is thus estimated grain crops, 1,117,878 acres; orchard and garden produce, 9881; tobacco, 4061 hemp and other drugs, 1237; condiments and spices, 6759; sugar-cane, 8448; sugar palms, etc., 2161 oil-seeds, 50,512; cotton, 205,895; indigo, 323; jute, 715; flax and other fibres, 664 acres. Manure, wherever obtainable, is applied, and ferred, the out-turn

—



the use of green foliage for this purpose, in universal.

No

‘

wet

’

lands,

is

almost

regular rotation of crops obtains, but the principle that

two exhausting crops should not be sown successively on the same field is everywhere recognised. According to the statistics of 1881-82, there were in the District II, 757 buffaloes,

120,883 bullocks, 49,560 cows, 9022 donkeys, 89,566 694 horses, 2218 ponies, 112 mules, 77 camels,

goats, 169,122 sheep,

The prices 13,764 pigs, 56 boats, 13,264 carts, and 58,983 ploughs. of produce ruling in the District at the end of 1881-82, per maund of

—

80 lbs., were for from 2S. to 4s. 9d. and for cotton, 7s.



tO;£^io a pair



An

6s.

for salt,

The

3d.; for wheat, 4s. 4^d. 8s-.;

The

for sugar, 26s. 6d.

6s. to 7s. each.

agricultural



for other grains,

for linseed, 6s. 3d.;

all

i6s.

Buffaloes, though cheaper,

implements correspond

those in use in Europe, but are

in character

of the most primitive kind.

improvement, however, has been remarked of

Thus



price of field bullocks ranges from

and of sheep,

are seldom used. to

rice,

late in

many

points.

the old cart with solid wheels of stone or w'ood, the axle revolving

with the wheel,

is

giving place to open wheels, wuth

tire,

spokes,

and