UNITED PRO VINCES 133
the Districts of Garhwal, Almora, Dehra Dun, and Naini Tal (in part),
with the Native State of Tehri, its area being nearly ig,ooo square
miles. The outer ranges of hills rise quickly from the submontane
tracts to a height of 7,000 or 8,ooo feet, and on these are situated
the hill stations of Naini Tal and Mussoorie, and several small can-
tonments. A little farther in the interior is a second range, after
passing which the elevation increases till heights of 1o,ooo and 1r,ooo
feet are attained. Beyond, but still south of the great central axis of
the Himalayas, tower the huge peaks of Trisul or the `trident' moun-
tain (23,382 feet) ; Nanda Devi (25,661 feet), the highest mountain
in British dominions ; and Nanda Kot (22,538 feet). On the west
Dehra Dun District lies partly between the Himalayas and the Siwaliks
for 45 miles, extending up the slopes of both ranges. These moun-
tainous regions, which nowhere assume the comparative level of a
plateau, include some of the wildest and most magnificent country
in the whole range of the Himalayas, and among their snow-clad peaks
the sacred streams of the Ganges and Jumna take their rise. Many
famous temples and, places of pilgrimages line the upper course of
the Ganges, and thousands of pious Hindus from all parts of India
annually visit the holy source.
The submontane tract between the Ganges and the Sarda river
has three distinct portions. Immediately below the hills lies a strip
of land, 20 miles wide in the west and gradually becoming narrower
in the east, called the Bhabar', into which the torrents rushing
down from the steep slopes sink and are lost, except during the rainy
season, beneath a mass of boulders and gravel. Wells are almost
unknown, and cultivation is carried on by means of small canals.
A large portion of the Bhabar is covered with forests, the home of
tigers and wild elephants, while other game abounds. Below the
Bhabar is a wider strip of land called the tarai, a damp and marshy
tract, covered for. the most part with thick jungle and tall grass. In
both the tarai and the Bhabar the population is largely migratory,
cultivators coming in from the adjacent Districts in the plains to
the tarai, and from the hills to the Bhabar, and departing after
cutting their crops. Only the Tharus and allied tribes, who seem
fever-proof, can stand the pestilential climate of the tarai throughout
the year.
Other Districts in the plains partake of the nature of the tarai,
especially in their northern portions. The rainfall is heavy and streams
are numerous, while the spring-level is high. Saharanpur lies below
the Siwaliks ; while Bijnor, the Rampur State, Bareilly, and Pilibhit
border on the tarai, and Kheri, Bahraich, Gonda, Basti, and Gorakhpur
run up to the Nepal frontier. The whole of this tract is a sloping
The word means ` porous.'
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