The Imperial Gazetteer of India

Abstract

THE completion of the census in 1901 necessitated a revised issue of “The Imperial Gazetteer of India,” of which two editions had already appeared, both compled by the late Sir W. Hunter. Hunter, while in charge of the statistical department, had gained considerable knowledge of the country and its people, and in one subject, the history of the British occupation, was a competent authority. It is true that he inclined to overestimate the importance of his labours, and that he failed to give due credit to the district authorities who provided the raw material on which his compilation was based. At the same time he performed an invaluable service in popularising India for European readers. It became clear, however, that the Gazetteer was beyond the capacity of any single man, and that it was necessary to divide the subjects among a body of specialists. In the present issue, which will be nearly double the size of the last edition, little remains of Hunter's work except the final historical chapter.

The Imperial Gazetteer of India.

The Indian Empire, Vol. i., Descriptive. New edition: Pp. xxxi + 568. (Oxford: The Clarendon Press, 1907.) Price 6s. net.