Page:The Imperial Gazetteer of India - Volume 2 (2nd edition).pdf/319

 BENGAL. caste into the sold hats or topis flowers

and ornaments

and

Silk

.

saltpetre.

—The

worn by Europeans, and into

for native ceremonies.

manufactures of Bengal calling sugar,

309

The two

production of

Among

artificial

the important

for special notice are indigo, tea, silk,

first

silk

have already been mentioned.

has long been an important industry.

In the days of the East India Company, numerous large filatures, managed by the Company, did a valuable trade. The ruins of some of these may still be met with, and on the sites of others are seen new filatures belonging to the firms which succeeded to the Company’s trade. The industry, once so flourishing, has, however, for some time

been in a declining state. The extensive importation of silk from Japan and China into Europe since the opening of the Suez Canal, and the abundant yield of recent seasons in Italy, have contributed mainly to this falling off. But the quality of Bengal silk is also reported to have deteriorated. The annual value of the silk produce of Bengal is from half a million to

million sterling; average of ten years, 1867 to about I million. In 1882, the value of the raw silk exported 1877, from all India was only 14 1,7 00, together with ;j^25o,535 worth of silk-goods

total,



—The

Stigar

.

under ;^4oo,ooo

sterling.

cultivation of the date-tree

and the manufacture of date

sugar are extensively carried on in Jessor, and in parts of Nadiya, the

Twenty-four Pargan 4 s, and Faridpur.

The

business for the cultivators.

about ^160,000, almost entirely, however, for average yearly exports by sea from Bengal

Jessor District alone

is

inland consumption.

The

do not exceed Saltpetre

.

a popular and profitable

It is

value of the sugar exported from

5 0,000.

—Saltpetre

is

refined in the northern Districts of the Patna

all branches of industry in India, its manubased on a system of advances. The large houses of business contract generally with middlemen, who again give advances to the village nuniyds, a poor and hardy race of labourers. These men rent

Division in Behar.

facture

Like

is

small patches of saliferous

soil,

collect the earth into

large

shallow

them and drain off the water, wfith the saline matter in it, into earthen vessels, and then boil and strain the liquor. The crude saltpetre thus manufactured is sold to the refiners, by whom is prepared the saltpetre of commerce. The value of the annual out-turn is about ^400,000. Steam-mills The most remarkable manufacturing feature of the pans, puddle

.

present Calcutta,

time

— is

the great

of steam

mills

development, in for

the

the

neighbourhood of

spinning and weaving of cotton

and jute in establishments of a European character under European There were in 1882, 20 large jute factories in and management. around Calcutta; and the tall smoking chimneys recall associations of the manufacturing cities of Europe.

It is

estimated that the annual