Hanthawaddy
This article has been extracted from THE IMPERIAL GAZETTEER OF INDIA , 1908. OXFORD, AT THE CLARENDON PRESS. |
Note: National, provincial and district boundaries have changed considerably since 1908. Typically, old states, ‘divisions’ and districts have been broken into smaller units, and many tahsils upgraded to districts. Some units have since been renamed. Therefore, this article is being posted mainly for its historical value.
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Hanthawaddy
Physical aspects
District in the Pegu Division of Lower Burma, lying between 16° 19' and 17 47' N. and 95° 45' and 96° 45' E., with an area of 3,023 square miles. It is bounded on the north by Tharrawaddy District ; on the east by Pegu District ; and on the west by Ma-ubin and Pyapon. The southern boundary stretches along the Gulf of Martaban between the mouths of the Sittang and the To, or China Bakir, rivers. In the centre and completely surrounded by it is the separate District of Rangoon City, in which the District offices are situated. The Cocos and Preparis Islands in the Bay of Bengal form part of the District.
Hanthawaddy is a vast deltaic plain stretching up from the sea, broken only by spurs of the Pegu Yoma, which separates the northern portion of the District from Pegu. The spurs con- aso^cts tinue as undulating ground through the Insein
subdivision, and rise slightly near Rangoon, where the summit of a small hill has been levelled to form the platform of the Shwedagon pagoda. The range appears again on the opposite side of the Pegu river at Syriam, and is finally lost in the rocks in the Hmawwun stream just opposite the village of Kyauktan. A similar ridge of high land runs from Twante to Kungyangon in the west of the District. The highest point in the Yoma has an altitude of 2,000 feet. Here the hills are clothed with fine evergreen forests, and the scenery is bold and interesting. Farther south the high land is covered with fruit gardens and, near Rangoon, is being much sought after for house sites. Excluding this portion of the District, the scenery is tame and monotonous, consisting of rice cultivation and swamp relieved by scrub jungle, and along the sea-coast and the numerous water-ways by mangrove and inferior forest growth interspersed with dani planta- tions. The coast-line is low, and at the ebb shows large dismal stretches of mud.
The main stream is the Hlaing (known farTher north as the Myitmaka), which enters the District at its northern end and runs southwards through its entire length. The Hlaing, which is navigable by native craft through the whole of its course within the limits of the District, is joined in the neighbourhood of Rangoon by the Pegu river and the Pazundaung stream from the north-east and north, and thence flows southwards under the name of the Rangoon river into the Gulf of Martaban, The District is further intersected by numerous tidal creeks, all navigable by country boats and many by river steamers. 'J'he most important of these are the Thatkutpin or Bassein creek, which connects the Rangoon river with the To, and thus with the main stream of the Irrawaddy ; the Panhlaing, which during the rains, when the water is high, takes the place of the Bassein creek as the most direct route to the Irrawaddy ; the Bawle river, which divides Hantha- waddy from the adjoining District of Ma-ubin ; and the Hmawwun, which taps the rich rice-fields of the Kyauktan subdivision.
The plains of the delta are composed of homogeneous post-Tertiary alluvium resting on a bed of water-worn gravel, which is often found at a depth of less than 250 feet and is a good water-bearing stratum. Along the skirts of the Pegu Yoma a broad bed of sandy deposit occurs ; and laterite, which is largely used for road-metalling, is found in many of the lower hills, mixed with red alluvial clay. Occasionally partially rolled pieces of fossil wood are met with. The Yoma itself is formed of beds of the Pegu group, of miocene age.
The coast-line is fringed with dense low mangrove jungle, covered regularly by the tide, and characterized specially by species of Bruguiera and RhizopJwra. Behind these forests and along the borders of the tidal channels are the tidal forests, the most character- istic trees of which are Sonneratia apetala and Avicennia totnentosa. These forests average 40 to 50 feet in height, and have a thick shrubby growth, similar to that of the mangrove forests. Nipa fruticans and Pandamts foetidus form dense bushes, and Fhociiix paliidosa is very common. Creepers and climbers abound, including Acanthus vo/i/l>i7is, Flagellaria i/idica, &:c. Behind this zone are either open evergreen troi)ical or low deciduous forests. Among the former are found Darashorea siellata, Pentace biirma/uiica, Albizzia Ii/cida, Lagerstroemia toiiientosa, and Dillenia parviflora^ and many varieties of shrubs and climbers. The low deciduous forests contain Dillenia pulcherrima, Sliorea leiicobotrya, Pentacme siai/ietisis, Melanorrhoea usitata, Xylia dolabriforinis, Lagerstroeniia macrocarpa, Albizzia lucida, and Strychnos Nux-vomica. The undergrowth is usually composed of scanty andro- pogonous grasses. The savannah forests are distinguished by the great growth of elephant-grasses, among which the trees grow u]) apart from one another ; they include Butea frondosa, Ficiis Jistitlosa, Terminalia creJiata, Dalbergia ail/rata, Dalbergia purpurea, Lagerstroeniia Flos Reginae, and Strychnos Nux-vomica.
In the Yoma, elephants, bison, tsine or hsaing {Bos sondaicus), and various kinds of deer are common ; rhinoceros are rare. There are indications that tigers and leopards are increasing in consecjuence of the disarmament of the country, and their frecjuent appearance near Rangoon and The raihvay has lately caused annoyance. The hsh-eating monkey and The short-nosed crocodile arc at times seen along the tidal creeks.
The climate is moist and depressing, but on the whole not un- healthy. From the middle of March until the rains break in May the heat is excessive : and at the end of the rains, in September and October, the nights are oppressive, and the days often muggy and trying. December and January are cool and pleasant, the average minimum being about 60°. The southern portion of the District is cooled by the sea-breeze, and the maximum temperature, which varies between 83° and 95°, increases in the north towards the drier zone of Tharravvaddy.
The average annual rainfall at the recording stations is as follows : 94 inches at Insein, 98 inches at Rangoon, and 119 inches at Kyauktan. The rain\' season lasts, as elsewhere, from May to October inclusive ; a spell of two or three days' rain in early spring is not uncommon, and is a source of great inconvenience to the cultivators, whose grain at this time is usually on the unprotected threshing-floors.
The country to the west of the Hlaing river is subject to inundation, especially in the north of the District. There were floods disastrous to cultivation in 1877, which have recurred in a smaller degree on several occasions. Abnormally high spring-tides, when the wind is in the south, sometimes damage the rice-fields bordering the sea. The District is, however, safe from famine, as the water-supply, although [)oor in many places in the dry season, is seldom seriously deficient.
History
The name Hanthawaddy is derived from lianilia or hinfha (the Brahmani goose) and 7ii'adi, Pali for 'river.' Legend has it that in the south of the District in prehistoric days only the hill upon which the Shwedagon pagoda now .stands was above sea-level, and that it once afforded a resting-place for a (iautama, who, in a previous incarnation, had been caught in the shape of a hintha in a storm in the neighbourhood of the eminence. In early historic days Hanthawaddy, like the rest of the country lying round the Gulf of Martaban, formed part of the kingdom of the Takings. Shortly after the close of the sixteenth century, when the 'ialaings had for the time been subjugated by the Burmans, and when the Toungoo dynasty reigned in the old Talaing capital of Pegu, Syriam, in Hanthawaddy District, was one of the earliest European trading stations in Burma. The only remains of this early settlement which now exist are the fragments of the old city walls and the ruins of the church built outside the old town of Syriam in 1750 by the Vicar Apostolic of Ava and Pegu. 'J'hese are now preserved by Oovernmenl. Ilanlhawaddy passed, with the rest of the province of Pegu, under Hiitish dominion at the close of the second Jkirmese Wds. It was separated from Rangoon and made into a separate District in 1879. In 1883 it was split up into two on the creation of Pegu District, and in 1895 its limits were enlarged by the addition of the Kyauktan subdivision. With the expansion of Rangoon, various alterations of the boundary between the city and Hanthawaddy have been rendered necessary. The last revision was made in 1903.
There are several important pagodas. The Kyaikkauk pagoda is built on the low hills on the left bank of the Rangoon river 4 miles south of Syriam, It is said to have been erected to enshrine two hairs of Gautama ; later, a bone of Gautama's forehead and one of his teeth were presented to the shrine. The Kyaikkasan pagoda lies about 3 miles north-east of the Shwedagon in Rangoon, and is of the same period as that at Kyaikkauk. The Shwesandaw, near Twante, is the most sacred of the local Taking pagodas. It was built as a shrine for two of Gautama's hairs, to which four more hairs were subsequently added. Other sacred edifices of importance are the Kyaukwaing pagoda, 2 miles east of Thamaing railway station ; and the Kyaikkalo pagoda, 14 miles north of Rangoon.
Population
The population of the District at the last four enumerations was : (1872) 186,967, (1881) 296,026, (1891) 396,887, and (1901) 484,811. The distribution according to townships in 1901 is shown in the following table : —
Note.— The Thongwa township was constituted after the Census of 1901.
Up to 1891 the rate of increase, chiefly owing to immigration from India, averaged about 100,000 for each decade. During the last decade progress has been rather slower, but there has been a total gain of 22 per cent. Hanthawaddy has now more inhabitants than any District in the Province, and is one of the most thickly populated. Despite its density, it contains but one town (Insein) of over 5,000 inhabitants, and only five villages of o\er 2,000. The po[HiIation is thus almost wholly rural. There were 10,000 immigrants from India residing in the District in ikSqi and 43,800 in 1901, three-fourths of whom were Madrasis. Buddhism is the religion of the great majority of the inhabitants ; but after Rangoon City Hanthawaddy has the largest number of Hindus (39,500) of any District in the Province, and its total of Musalmans is lower only than those of Akyab, Rangoon, Amherst, and Mandalay. The Hindus are for the most part agricultural labourers and coolies from Madras. Burmese is the language ordinarily spoken. Practically all the persons returned as Karens at the enumeration speak the Karen language ; but of the Shans only about half, and of the Takings only a minute proportion, have retained their own vernacular. Of Indian languages, Tamil and Telugu are the most widely spoken.
The majority of the inhabitants are Burmans, but in 1901 the Karens numbered 44,100, the Talaings 32,700, and the Shans 15,400. The number of Chinese is large. Nearly 70 per cent, of the total population are engaged in or dependent on agriculture.
There are 7,440 Christians, nearly half of whom are Baptists, natives numbering 6,840. The Christian missions have their head-quarters in Rangoon ; but there is an important branch of the American Baptist Mission at Insein, and several schools of this mission and of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel are maintained in the large villages.
Agriculture
The two southern subdivisions, Twante and Kyauktan, are prac- tically deltaic islands, and, excluding a ridge known as the Kondan running from Syriam to Kyauktan, and a similar formation between Twante and Kungyangon, con- sist in the main of flat plains of alluvial soil in which the rice is ordinarily sown broadcast and not transplanted. The same may be said of the western portion of the Insein subdivision as far north as Hmawbi, beyond which the creeks lose their tidal character, and such streams as exist have separate sources in the Pegu Yoma. In this portion of the District the rice is almost always transplanted. In many places large tracts are subject to inundation, but the floods appear to be becoming less destructive and the precarious area more circum- scribed.
The Kondan portion, although suitable for fruit cultivation on its lower slopes, is in the main covered with scrub jungle, and, beyond a small area in which the Shans cut taung)>as, is of little value except for bamboo plantations. It is only on and near this high land, which cannot be used for rice, that miscellaneous crops and garden produce are cultivated, although in the immediate vicinity of Rangoon the people are beginning to cultivate vegetables after the rice is reaped, by means of irrigation from unbricked wells. The rainfall, which may be roughly taken to average loo inches per annum, is usually timely, and it is only in the extreme north of the District that partial damage to crops from unseasonable rainfall is in any way marked. There is, however, as has already been noted, an almost yearly loss of rice caused by rain in the early spring, when the cultivators, with their national carelessness, leave the grain unprotected on their threshing- floors.
The best rice in Burma is said to come from Pyawbwe in the Twante subdivision, and from an agricultural point of view the District may be viewed as a huge paddy-field producing a better average yield than any other part of Burma. No other crop is of any general impor- tance ; but the fruit and vegetable gardens, which extend along the Kondan from Rangoon to Insein, and supply the Rangoon market with pineapples, mangoes, jack-fruit, marian plums, betel-nuts, and other fruits and vegetables, may be noticed. The area cultivated in 1891 was 1,473 square miles. The main agricultural statistics for 1903-4 are given below, in square miles : —
The area under garden crops in 1903-4 was 55 square miles, mostly in the Insein and Twante townships, while 3,000 acres were planted with the dani palm.
The area under rice increases yearly ; but good waste land is becom- ing exhausted except in the Taikkyi township, where large tracts to the east of the railway are still available for cultivation, and in the extreme south, where certain fuel reserves have lately been thrown open and island formations occur. The average size of a holding is large. At the revision settlement it was found to be over 40 acres. Comparatively little is done to improve the quality of the crops by systematic methods. No applications have been recently made by the cultivators for loans under the Agriculturists' Loans Act, but advances under the Act have been made from time to time in the past.
The agricultural stock is for the most part of the ordinary Burmese breed. Indian cattle imported from Calcutta are, however, becoming not uncommon. This is especially noticeable along the railway, where large settlements of natives of India are employed in supplying milk to Rangoon. Kine are more numerous than buffaloes. The area reserved for grazing purposes is 109,000 acres, and it is only where natives of India are breeding large herds of cattle for milking that any real difficulty in feeding the live-stock exists.
Beyond the ordinary system of field embankments and the garden cultivation effected by means of unbricked wells near Rangoon, there is no regular irrigation in Hanthawaddy. A large reservoir has recently been constructed at Hlawga, 15 miles north of Rangoon, from which the water-supply of that city is drawn, and there are many village tanks of local importance. The fisheries of the District lie for the most part on the west, towards the Irrawaddy delta ; they are all either in the beds of streams or in shallow depressions filled by the overflow from the waterways. Of the former kind there are 58 and of the latter 41. The largest fisheries are the East and West Gayetlami in the Twante township.
Forests
The area of 'reserved' forest in 1904 was 394 square miles, and of ' unclassed ' forests about 245 square miles. The latter are rapidly diminishing, as cultivation extends and clearances are made by excessive cutting for fiiel for Rangoon. The hill forests cover the western slopes of the Yoma, and include large tracts of evergreen forests, in which teak and pyingado (Xylia dolabri- formis) are found. Past records extending back to 1857 show that these forests were once very rich in teak ; but much of this valuable timber has been extracted, and they now compare unfavourably with the forests on the eastern slopes of the same range in Pegu District. The plain forests consist of non-tidal and tidal growths. The former extend from the foot of the Yoma on undulating land, and are almost wholly in the Insein subdivision. Characteristic trees are chiefly deciduous, but evergreen forest is found along some of the streams.
In the moister localities pyinma {Lagers/roonia Flos Reginae) and kanyiniii {Dipterocarpris iaevis) are the principal trees, and elsewhere teak, pyingado {Xylia dolabriformis\ and in {Dipferocarpus tuherculatiis). The teak is usually of poor quality, and much of the pyingado was used up for sleepers when the railway to Prome was being made. Large portions of the tidal forests have been reserved for fuel, but many rights in these Reserves exist, and they have been largely cut over. They are now not capable of supplying the demands of Rangoon, which must in future look to the plain forests in the Insein subdivision for the immense quantity of wood required for domestic purposes and brickmaking. There are 2,767 acres of teak i)lantations, dating from 1868. In T900 a plantation of 30 acres of Para rubber trees was made near Rangoon, but its growth is not promising. The forest receipts in 1 90 1 amounted to Rs. 71,155, including Rs. 35,799 from firewood and charcoal. In 1904 they were nearly Rs. 1,15,000. Lateritc and pottery clay are produced, hut otherwise the mineral resources are unimportant. Laterite, whii-h is largely used for road- nietalling, is distributed along the Kondans, and is extracted by manual labour, Indian coolies being usually employed at a wage of 8 annas or more a day. The cost per 100 cubic feet delivered in Rangoon is Rs. 14, but the price varies with the cost of carriage. The annual out-turn is estimated at 23,000 tons. Ordinary alluvial clay is exten- sively excavated for brickmaking, and at Twante a superior kind is found, suitable for pottery.
Trade and Communication
Cotton-weaving on a small scale is carried on everywhere, but the people are gradually giving up their own hand-made cloth for European goods, which can now be bought in all the large villages. Silk-weaving as a local industry has almost communications, entirely disappeared. Salt is manufiictured at Tan- manaing in the Kungyangon township from sea-water, which is boiled in cauldrons after being passed over successive drying pans. The out-turn paying duty in 1903 was 46,600 cwt., which was almost entirely used locally in preserving fish in the shape of fish-paste {ngapi). Pots for salt-boiling are made in Kungyangon. At Twante large water and oil jars, often standing 4 feet high, and commonly known as Pegu jars, are made. They are glazed with a mixture of rice water and galena. Coarse mats used for packing are woven from bamboo in the Twante subdivision, and a finer kind for domestic use in parts of the Insein subdivision. Wood-chopping and other das, sickles, axes, and other ironwork for local use are made in many of the larger villages.
There are seven rice-mills in the District, almost all just outside Rangoon City, or within easy reach of it by water. Their annual out- turn is estimated at 64,000 tons, which all goes to the Rangoon market for export. Near the Pugyi and Palon railway stations are two small saw-mills supplying the local market, and at Insein are the workshops of the Burma Railways Company, which employ 2,500 men. The Burma Oil Company's refinery at Syriam is the most important fact(jry in the District, employing a staff of 22 Europeans and 3,150 natives. The crude oil is brought down in tank-steamer flats from Upper Burma, and is refined by the process known as continuous distillation. It is then stored in large steel tanks, and pumped through a 5-mile pipe- line to the tank-steamers belonging to the company in the Rangoon river. It is also shipped in smaller (quantities in tins and casks.
The trade of the District centres in Rangoon, but there are markets at Twante, Thongwa, Paukkon, and elsewhere. Excluding teak and other forest i)roduce, extracted under the supervision of Government, rice may be regarded as composing the entire export. The grain is bought up by brokers of the large Rangoon firms at local centres all over the District, and is brought lo the mills by boat or rail. Tiie
vol.. xiii. I) use of large barges of European pattern, manned by natives of India, and often towed by small launches, is becoming general on the tidal creeks, and the number of Burmese craft in these waters is decreasing. Beyond this, the only export trade is the daily supply of the Rangoon market with fuel, milk, fruit, vegetables, and a little live-stock, princi- pally pigs. 'I'he greater part of the fuel is brought in logs by boat from the tidal forests, but a considerable amount of charcoal is manufactured in The Taikkyi township, and comes into Rangoon by rail. The jjrincipal imports are piece-goods, salt, oil, sugar, hardware, oilman's stores, gunny-bags, rope, and miscellaneous goods. These are all obtained from the Rangoon markets, and are retailed in the local bazars and shops by Burmese, Chinese, and Indian traders.
Within the District there are 70 miles of railway, nearly 200 miles of metalled roads, and 30 miles of fair-weather cart-roads. Of these the Rangoon-Prome trunk road, the Dala-Twante road, and some branch roads (in all, 109 miles) are maintained from Provincial funds, and the remainder from the District cess fund. The Insein subdivision is served by the Rangoon-Prome railway, which runs through it from south to north for a distance of 60 mile.s, and the south-east corner by the Rangoon-Mandalay line, which leaves the District 3 miles to the north of Togyaungale railway station. The main water-communications are the Hlaing river, which runs almost parallel to the railway on the west, and has numerous tributaries, the Twante C.^nal, and the Bawle, Panhlaing, and other creeks connecting the Hlaing with the eastern mouth of the Irrawaddy.
Except for the roads from Kyauktan to Syriani and 'I'habyegan, and from Twante to Dala and Kungyangon, the Twante and Kyauktan subdivisions depend almost entirely on water carriage. The Twante Canal shortens the distance by the Kanaungto creek between Rangoon and the To river, and, although shallow, is much used by small river steamers and boats, being the quickest route from Rangoon to the main stream of the Irrawaddy. A small drainage canal at Kayan, in the north of the Kyauktan subdivision, is navigable by boats in the rains. The Irrawaddy Flotilla Company has a daily service of steamers from Rangoon to Thongwa \ia Kyauktan, and from Rangoon to Twante through the canal. Launches run daily from Rangoon up the Pegu river to Kamamat, and down the Rangoon river to villages in the Kungyangon township. A regular service is maintained on the Hlaing, where, in the rains, launches ply as far north as Sanyvve in Tharrawaddy District. A steam ferry plies several times daily between Syrian! and Rangoon, and there are boat ferries on all the chief lines of communication.
Administration
The District is divided into three subdivisions : In.sein, comprising the Taikki and insein townsliips ; Kyauktan, comprising the Kyauktan, Thabyegan, and Thongwa townships : and Twante, comprising the Twante and Kungvangon town- . ships. 1 hey are under the usual executive orticers,
assisted by 799 village headmen (361 of whom have no part in the collection of revenue), but there still remain twenty-three of the old revenue circles under circle tJiugyis. Of the headmen, 7 have special criminal and 28 civil powers under the \'illage Act. The head-quarters are at Rangoon, where the Deputy-Commissioner is assisted by a treasury ofificer and an akiimviin (in charge of the revenue), 'i'he land records staff consists of a superintendent, 8 inspectors, and 106 sur- veyors, the District being under supplementary survey. The excise staff is under a superintendent, subject to the control of the Deputy- Commissioner. The District forms a Public Works division, with three subdivisions conterminous with the civil subdivisions. It is likewise co-extensive with the Rangoon Forest division.
Hanthawaddy forms }xirt of the Hanthawaddy .Sessions division, and sessions cases are tried by the Divisional Judge. The District (civil) court is presided over by a whole-time District Judge. One civil township judge tries the cases in the three township courts in the Kyauktan subdivision. 'Hie other townships each have a special civil township judge. The township judges at Insein, Kyauktan, and Twante exercise .Small Cause (\)urt jurisdiction within these three towns.
The criminal work is heavy : antl two additional magistrates are employed, one (regularly) at Insein, and one (occasionally) at Kyauktan, to try cases during the open season, when the subdivisional and township officers (who ordinarily perform the magisterial work of their charges) are on tour. These officers have no territorial juris- diction proper, but cases are transferred to them for trial by the District and subdivisional magistrates. The statistics of crime fluctuate year by year. Jioat-robberies and dacoities were once very prevalent in the delta, but of late years these forms of crime have been less common, and housebreaking appears to have taken their place. Similarly, cattle-theft, for which Insein was once notorious, is now not particularly prevalent, although still far from extinct. The numerous waterways make smuggling easy, and offences against the opium and excise laws show little signs of falling off.
Numerous territorial changes in Hanthawaddy District make it exceedingly difficult to trace the growth of the revenue derived from land. The first regular settlement commenced in 1879-80, in what is now the Kyauktan subdivision, and was completed in 1884 with the settlement of a part of the Insein subdivision ; but it was not until 1895, when the Kyauktan subdivision was transferred to Hanthawaddy, that the District as now cc)nstituted was formed. Since 1897 the settlement of all tluee .subdivisions has been revised, and the present settlements will expire in 1910-1.
At the time of annexation the principal taxes (excluding customs collected at Rangoon) of Rangoon District were capitation, land (per yoke of oxen), fisheries, and salt taxes. These imposts were continued by the British Government, but at fixed rates per acre for land, the old assessment being quite arbitrary. Many grants under the liberal waste-land grant rules of 1865 have been made. Thirty-nine of these grants in different stages of assessment exist (from the minimum rate of 4 annas per acre to the maximum of Rs. 1-8 per acre when the land becomes permanently settled), covering an area of 37,346 acres. The largest of these are a grant of over 4,000 acres in the Twante circle, and the Tawkayan grant of 2,500 acres in the Kungyangon township. The Cocos and Preparis Islands are leased under special arrangements for the collection of coco-nuts and fibre. The highest assessments on first-class rice land are Rs. 4-8 per acre in part of the Kungyangon township, Rs. 4-4 in certain portions of the Kyauktan subdivision, and Rs. 4 on land to the east of the railway in the Insein subdivision. On second-class soil the minimum rate is Rs. 1-4. The average assessment for rice land may be taken at about Rs. 3-8. Garden land is assessed at from Rs. 1-4 to Rs. 6-0 an acre. Dani pays Rs. 5 an acre, and betel-vine from Rs. 7-8 to Rs. 10.
Accurate statistics of revenue for the years prior to 1 890-1 are not available. The following are the figures from 1 890-1 onwards, in thousands of rupees : —
'J'hc total revenue for 1903-4 includes 4-8 lakhs from capitation tax
and 1-8 lakhs from fisheries.
The District cess fund is administered by the Deputy-Commissioner for the construction and maintenance of roads and the provision of other local needs. It is provided mainly by a levy of 10 per cent, on the total land revenue; and in 1903-4 the income was Rs. 4,12,000 and The expenditure Rs. 4,43,000, mainly devoted to public works (Rs. 2,52,000). There are no municipalities. Insein was declared a 'notified area' in the early part of 1903, and a committee has been formed.
There are three lighthouses in the District — the China Bakir, Eastern Grove, and Table Island, 'llie China Bakir is an iron-framed structure, standing on the edge of the fiats at the end c^f the China Bakir or To river in 16' 17' N. and 96° ri' E. It was lighted originally in 1869, and was dismantled and erected in its present position on steel piles in 1901. The lighthouse shows a dioptric white light of the first order, fixed and flashing. The focal plane of the light is 74 feet above water-level. The Eastern Grove lighthouse stands on the east of the entrance to the Rangoon river, in 16° 30' N. and 96' 23° E. It shows an occulting dioptric white light of the third order, visible at 15 miles in clear weather. The focal plane of the light is 93 feet above high- water level. The structure is of iron, braced on screw piles. The lighthouse was first lighted in 1869 and was altered in 1881. The old light w^as converted into an occulting light and exhibited on May 9, 1896. The Table Island lighthouse stands on the summit of the south-west end of Table Island, 2 miles from the Great Cocos Island, in 14° 11' N. and 93° 21" E. It shows a dioptric fixed white light of the first order, visible at 20 miles in clear weather. The focal plane of the light is 195 feet above high-water level. The structure is a cast-iron circular tower, painted with alternate red and white bands. The lighthouse was lighted in 1867. There is a signalling station (marked by an obelisk) at Elephant Point, west of the entrance to the Rangoon river.
The forts guarding the Rangoon river and some of the submarine defences are within the District ; they are garrisoned from Rangoon. Insein is an important centre of the Burma Railways Volunteer Corps.
The civil police force consists of 5 inspectors, 66 head constables and sergeants, and 426 men, under a District Superintendent, with 3 Assistant Superintendents stationed at Insein, Kyauktan, and Twante, the head-quarters of the three police and judicial subdivisions. There are 21 police stations, 9 of which are in the Insein, 5 in the Kyauktan, and 7 in the Twante subdivision. Three officers and 187 men of the Rangoon military police battalion are attached to the District.
The centraljail at Insein on the west of the railway is the largest prison in Ihirma, and has accommodation for 2,464 prisoners. It is in charge of a Superintendent, who has under him a staff of 2 Hos[)ital Assistants, 12 jailors, and 67 warders. The principal jail manufactures are cotton-winding, carpentry and carving, cane and bamboo work, blanket and coir-making, and blacksmith's work. The articles pro- duced are supplied to various Government departments, and may be purchased by the general pul)lic. The average jail population is 1,810 convicted and 21 under-trial ])risoners. There is a reformatory school at Insein, which was moved there from Paungde in 1896, and now has accommodation for 200 boys. There were 82 boys in the school on January i, 1904, who were employed in gardening, tin and cane-work, weaving, and carpentry. I'he staff consists of a super- intendent three schoolmasters, and two trade inspectors. The rcniovcil of this building is under consideration, as il is considered that its proxiniity to the jail is objectionable.
The standard of education is foirly high. The proportion of literate males in 1901 was over 4H per cent., and of females 11 per cent., the latter being higher than in any other District of the l*rovince. For both sexes together the prcjportion is 32 per cent. In 1903-4 there were 3 special, 17 secondary, 397 primary, and 382 elementary (l)rivate) schools, with 19,749 pupils (16,231 males and 3,518 females), as compared with 8,888 in 1890 t and 19,092 in 1900-1. Higher education is largely dependent on the schools in Rangoon. The Burman schools show steady improvement, but the Karen seminaries, although increasing in numbers, remain of an inferior type. There has been a decrease in Tamil and other Indian schools. The only notable educational institution is the Government School of Engineering at Insein, which was establi.shed in 1894 to train Burmans for the Public Works department. Several scholarships are tenable in the school, and one appointment as overseer and five as sub-overseers in the Public ^Vorks department are presented annually by Government. There is a Survey school at Insein. The total expenditure on education in 1903 4 was Rs. 59,900, of which Rs. 16,800 was contributed from Provincial funds and Rs. 37,800 frcmi the District cess fund. The receipts from fees amounted to Rs. 5,300.
Hanthawaddy is for medical purposes in charge of the Civil Surgeon, Rangoon, and the people of the District for the most part use the Rangoon hospital. 'I'here are, however, three other hospitals with 53 beds, in which 900 in-patients and 18,898 out-patients were treated in 1903, and 339 operations were performed. The income of the hospitals comes mostly from Local funds, which contributed Rs. 7,600 in 1903, while the railway gave Rs. 3,400 to the Insein hospital.
Vaccination is nowhere compulsory, and progress has been retarded by the popular practice of inoculation. In all 2,830 persons were successfully vaccinated in 1903-4, or only 6 per 1,000 of the popu- lation.
[Captain M. Lloyd, Rangoon District Gazetteer (1S68) : R. G. McKerron, Sett/eiiieiit Reports (1900, 1901, and 1902).]
