y. A few native states that have resisted annexation
and conquest excepted, almost the entire area is divided among Great
Britain, Holland, and France.

[Illustration: INDIA]

=British India.=--The Empire of India comprises an area half as large as
the United States, situated on the southern slope of Asia. It covers the
same latitude as the span between the Venezuelan coast and the Ohio
River; from the Indus to the Siam frontier the distance is about two
thousand miles. It includes also settlements in the Malay peninsula.

Excepting the plateau of the Dekkan, and the slopes of the Himalayan
ranges, most of the surface consists of plains and low, rolling land
covered with a great depth of soil. Through these rich lands flow four
large rivers--the Indus, Ganges, Brahmaputra, and Irawadi, which afford
a great deal of internal communication. The Himalaya Mountains on the
north and the Hindu Kush on the northwest practically shut off
communication from the northward, so that all communication in this
direction is concentrated at Khaibar and Bolan Passes, the most
important gateways by land approach.

British India is one of the most populous regions of the world; the
average population per square mile is about one hundred and eighty, a
density considerably greater than that of New York State. The entire
population is about three times that of the United States. Nearly all
the food-stuffs grown are required for home consumption; indeed, dry
years are apt to be followed by a shortage of food-stuffs. Years ago
famines followed any considerable deficiency of crops, but since the
completion of the admirable railway systems the necessary food-stuffs
are quickly shipped to the district where the shortage occurs.

The Hindus constitute about three-fourths of the population. Along the
northern border there are many peoples of Afghan and Turkic descent; in
Burma there is a considerable admixture of Mongol blood. An elaborate
system of social castes imposed by the teachings of Brahmanism has made
the introduction of western methods of education and civilization
somewhat difficult to carry out. The educational system of the
dominating Brahmanic caste, although of a very high order, does not fit
the people to cope with the commercialism of western civilization.

Five-sevenths of the population are engaged in agricultural labor. Rice,
wheat, millet, meat, and sugar are the chief food-crops. Of these, rice
and wheat[78] only are expo