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to Nowgong station; with Captain Phillips, Officiating Deputy Commissioner to Kachar, discussing boundary between Naga Hills and Nowgong |
| note: |
inaccurate spelling in the original text |
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16th March, Thursday. Leaving my camp standing at Deboka I rode into the Station of Nowgong, over a capital road with good bridges almost the whole way - distance 24 miles. |
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17th March, Friday. Accompanied Captain Phillips the Officiating Deputy Commissioner to Kachar and had a long consultation regarding our mutual boundary which ended finally concerning the opinion that there was one and only one really good natural boundary to be found and that was to hold to the Kopili and Jamuna Rivers, the very boundary in fact which I believe formerly existed between Nowgong and Assaloo, and it seems strange to me why it should not have been adhered to when the Naga Hills District was originally formed. The whole of the small tract of country lying between the Jamuna and Kopili now belonging to Nowgong only contains 8 villages paying a total revenue of less than Rs.4,000 so that Nowgong would be no great loser by the transfer. Whereas to the Ryots themselves it would be a considerable gain for every man. One I spoke to on the subject expressed his hope that the two rivers might be made the boundary stating that there was no "thikana" at all about the "simana" as it was at present and indeed one or two men went so far as to say that the boundary was in the habit of moving itself occasionally, the fact being that it is absurd to [6] attempt to lay down "semi-circular lines" through dense jungle cultivated here and there by Migratory tribes of Cacharies and Mikirs, and there can be no doubt but that each Mouzadar is in the habit of "following" up so to say his ryots and the consequence is that the unfortunate ryot with the present undefined and I might almost say undefinable boundary often runs a chance of having to pay a double assessment. However as I propose shortly to address Mr. Commissioner again on this subject, I need say no more at present. |
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18th March, Saturday. Receiving a pressing and very kind invitation from Mr. Henderson to break my march to Doboka and spend the day with him. I rode out today to Huganbari - distance about 12 miles. |
