Dacca

Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)

a city of Bengal, in the division and district of the same name, 150 miles N. E. of Calcutta; on the N. bank of the Buriganga; occupies an area of 8 square miles, and consists of a dull esplanade and one long street meeting at right angles, with a complementary network of narrow, crooked lanes. Its posi- ✓tion commands the principal waterways of the delta, and it thus enjoys singular facilities in the way of inland navigation. On this account it was chosen, about 1610, as the seat of the Mohammedan government of Bengal, which rank it retained, except exc during an interval of 20 years, until 1704. The suburbs extended 15 miles N., where mosques and brick buildings are still found buried in thick jungle. In the 18th century it became widely celebrated for the delicate texture of its muslins, and in connection with this manufacture the French and the Dutch, as well as the English, had extensive establishments in the place. After 1817, however, the annual value of the trade declined, and the aspect of the city changed with the disastrous decay of its staple industry. Since 1872 the fortunes of Dacca have somewhat brightened; the general development of trade throughout the presidency has brought back a share of its former prosperity, and the opening of the Dacca and Maiincreased the transit trade. Besides the Dacca College (1835), there are many good schools, and a fine hospital; in 1878 a system of water-works was opened, and the sanitary condition has since improved. Pop. about 125,000.