1193. Its internal government, however, was handed over to
its ancient rulers upon the payment of a heavy tribute to the
conquerors. It then remained feudatory to Delhi till 1365,
when it was captured by the ruler of Mewar. In 1509 the place
became a source of Contention between the chiefs of Mewar and
Marwar, and was ultimately Conquered in 1532 by the latter
prince, who in his turn in 1559 had to give way before the emperor
Akbar. It continued in the hands of the Moguls, with occasional
revolts, till 1770, when it was ceded to the Mahrattas, from
which time up to 1818 the unhappy district was the scene of
a continual struggle, being seized at different times by the
Mewar and Marwar rajas, from whom it was as often retaken by
the Mahrattas. In 1818 the latter ceded it to the British
in return for a payment of 50,000 rupees. Since then the
country has enjoyed unbroken peace and a stable government.
The modern city is an important station on the Rajputana
railway, 615 m. from BOmbay and 275 m. from Delhi, with a
branch running due south to the Great Indian Peninsula main
line. The city is well laid out with wide streets and handsome
houses. The city trade chiefly consists of salt and opium.
The former is inlported in large quantities from the Sambar
lake and Ramsur. Oil-making is also a profitable branch of
trade. Cotton cloths are manufactured to some extent, for
the dyeing Of which the city has attained a high reputation2
The educational institutions include the Majo Rajkumar
college, opened in 1875, for training the sons of the nobles of
Rajputana, on the lines of an English public school. Population
(1901) 73,839, showing an increase of 10% in the decade.
The DISTRICT OF AJMERE, which forms the largest part of
the province of Ajmere-Merwara, has an area of 2069 sq.
m. The eastern portion of the district is generally flat,
broken only by gentle undulations, but the western parts, from
north-west to south-west, are intersected by the great Aravalli
range. Many of the valleys in this region are mere sandy
deserts, with an occasional oasis of cultivation, but there
are also some very fertile tracts; among these is the plain
on which lies the town of Ajmere. This valley, however, is
not only fortunate in possessing a noble artificial lake, but
is protected by the massive walls of the Nagpathar range or
Serpent rock, which forms a harrier against the sand. The
only hills in the district are the Aravalli range and its
offshoots. Ajmere is almost totally devoid of rivers, the Banas
being the only stream which can be dignified with that name,
and it only touches the south-eastern boundary of the district
so as to irrigate the pargana of Samur. Four small streams
---the Sagarmati, Saraswati, Khari and Dai-also intersect the
district. In the dry weather they are little more than brooks.
The population in 1901 was 7453, showing a decrease of 13% in the
decade. Besides the city of Ajmere, the district contains the
military station of Nasirabad, with a population of 22,494.
AJMERE-MERWARA, a division or petty province of British
India, in Rajputana, consisting of the two districts of
Ajmere and Merwara, separated from each other and isolated
amid native states. The administration is in the hands of a
commissioner, subordinate to the governor-general's agent for
Rajputana. The capital is Ajmere city. The area is 2710 sq.
m. The plateau, on whose centre stands the town of Ajmere,
may be considered as the highest point in the plains of
Hindustan; from the circle of hills which hem it in, the
country slopes away on every side---towards river valleys on
the east, south, west and towards the desert region on the
north. The Aravalli range is the distinguishing feature of the
district. The range of hills which runs between Ajmere and
Nasirabad marks the watershed of the continent of India.
The rain which falls on one side drains into the Chambal,
and so into the Bay of Bengal; that which falls on the other
side into the Luni, which discharges itself into the Runn of
Cutch. The province is on the border of what may be called
the arid ``zone''; it is the debatable land between the
north-eastern and south-western monsoons, and beyond the
influence of either. The south-west monsoon sweeps up the
Nerbudda valley from Bombay and crossing the tableland at
Neemuch gives copious supplies to Malwa, Jhalawar and Kotah
and the countries which lie in the course of the Chambal
river. The clouds which strike Kathiawar and Cutch are
deprived of a great deal of their moisture by the hills in those
countries, and the greater part of the remainder is deposited
on Mount Abu and the higher slopes of the Aravalli mountains,
leaving but little for Merwara, where the hills are lower,
and still less for Ajmere. It is only when the monsoon is in
considerable force that Merwara gets a plentiful supply from
it. The north-eastern monsoon sweeps up the valley of the
Ganges from the Bay of Bengal and waters the northern part of
Rajputana, but hardly penetrates farther west than the longitude
of Ajmere. On the varying strength of these two monsoons
the rainfall of the district depends. The agriculturist
in Ajmere-Merwara can never rely upon two good harvests in
succession. A province subject to such conditions can hardly
be free from famine or scarcity for any length of time;
accordingly it was visited by two famines, one of unprecedented
severity, and one scarcity, in the decade 1891-1901. In
June 1900 the number of persons in receipt of relief was
143,000, being more than one fourth of the total population.
In 1901 the population was 476,912, showing a decrease of 12%
in the decade, due to the results of famine. Among Hindus,
the Rajputs are land-holders, and the Jats and Gujars are
cultivators. The Jains are traders and money-lenders.
The aboriginal tribe of Mers are divided between Hindus and
Mahommedans. The chief crops are millet, wheat, cotton and
oil-seeds. There are several factories for spinning and pressing
cotton, the chief trading centres being Beawar and Kekri.
AJODHYA, an ancient city of India, the prehistoric capital of
Oudh, in the Fyzabad district of the United Provinces. It is
situated on the right bank of the Gogra. In the present day
the old city has almost entirely disappeared, and its site
is marked only by a heap of ruins; but in remote antiquity
Ajodhya was one of the largest and most magnificent of Indian
cities. It is said to have covered an area of 96 m., and
was the capital of the kingdom of Kosala, the court of the
great king Dasaratha, the fifty-sixth monarch of the Solar
line in descent from Raja Manu. The opening chapters of the
Ramayana recount the magnificence of the city, the glories
of the monarch and the virtues, wealth and loyalty of his
people. Dasaratha was the father of Rama Chandra, the hero
of the epic. A period of Buddhist supremacy followed the
death of the last king of the Solar dynasty. On the revival
of Brahmanism Ajodhya was restored by King Vikramaditya
(c. 57 B.C..) Kosala is also famous as the early home
of Buddhism, and of the kindred religion of Jainism, and
claims to be the birthplace of the founders of both these
faiths. The Chinese traveller, Hsuan Tsang, in the 7th
century, found 20 Buddhist temples with 3000 monks at
Ajodhya among a large Brahmanical population. The modern
town of Ajodhya contains 96 Hindu temples and 36 Mussulman
mosques. Little local trade is carried on, but the great fair
of Ramnami held every year is attended by about 500,000 people.
AKABA, GULF OF, the Sinus Aelaniticus of antiquity,
the eastern of the two divisions into which the Red Sea
bifurcates near its northern extremity. It penetrates into
Arabia Petraea in a N.N.E. direction, from 28 deg. to 29 deg. 32'
N., a distance of 100 m., and its breadth varies from 12 to 17
m. The entrance is contracted by Tiran and other islands,
so that the passage is rendered somewhat difficult; and its
navigation is dangerous on account of the numerous coral
reefs, and the sudden squalls which sweep down from the
adjacent mountains, many of which rise perpendicularly to a
height of 2000 ft. The gulf is a continuation southward of
the Jordan-'Araba depression. Raised beaches on the coast
show that there has been a considerable elevation of the
sea-bed. The only well-sheltered harbour is that of Dahab
(the Golden Port) on its western shore, about 33 m. from
the entrance and 29 m. E. of Mount Sinai. Near the head of
the gulf is Jeziret Faraun (medieval Graye), a rocky islet
with the ruins of a castle built by Baldwin I. (c. 1115).
About 2 1/2 m. from the head of the gulf and on its eastern
side is the TOMN OF AKABA, with a picturesque medieval
castle, built for the protection of pilgrims on there way
from Egypt to Mecca. In the neighbourhood are extensive
groves of date palms, and there is an ample supply of good
water. Akaba is of considerable historical interest and of
great antiquity, being the Elath or Eloth of the Bible, and
one of the ports whence Solomon's fleet sailed to Ophir.
By the Romans, who made it a military post, it was called
Aelana. It continued to be the seat of great commercial
activity under the early Moslem caliphs, who corrupted
the name to Haila or Ailat. In the 10th century an Arab
geographer described it as the great port of Palestine and
the emporium of the Hejaz. In the 12th century the town
suffered at the hands of Saladin and thereafter fell into
decay. In 1841 the town was recognized by Turkey, together
with the Sinai peninsula, as part of Egypt. At that time
Egyptian pilgrims frequented Akaba in large numbers. In 1892,
on the accession of the khedive Abbas II., Turkey resumed
possession of Akaba, the Egyptian pilgrims having deserted
the land route to Mecca in favour of a sea passage. In 1906
the construction was begun of a branch line joining Akaba to
the Mecca railway and thus giving through communication with
Beirut. Early in the same year the Turks occupied Taba, a
village at the mouth of a small stream g m. by land W. by
S. of Akaba, near which is the site, not identified, of the
Ezion-Geber of Scripture, another of the ports whence the
argosies of the Israelites saileffi. Taba being on the Egyptian
side of the frontier, Great Britain intervened on behalf of
Egypt, and in May 1906 secured the withdrawal of the Turks.
AKA HILLS, a tract of country on the north-east frontier of
India, occupied by an independent tribe called the Akas.
It lies north of the Darrang district of Eastern Bengal and
Assam, and is bounded on the east by the Daphla Hills and on
the west by independent Bhutia tribes. The Aka country is very
difficult of access, the direct road from the plains leading
along the precipitous channel of the Bhareli river, which
divides the Aka from the Daphla country. The Akas are a brave
people, and the men are strong and well-made. Their reputation
as raiders is sufficiently shown in the division of the tribe
into two clans, the Hazari-khoas or ``eaters of a thousand
hearths,'' and the Kapah-chors or ``thieves that lurk in the
cotton fields.'' In the early years of British occupation,
about 1820, they gave much trouble; and in 1883 they broke out
once more into their old habits. They raided into the British
district of Darrang and carried off several native forest
officers as hostages. An expedition was sent against them
under General Sale Hill with 860 troops, which was completely
successful. All its objects were satisfactorily accomplished,
