EAST INDIES. This geographical term is used to distinguish the tropical countries in the eastern parts of the world, from the West Indies, com posed of the islands lying in the tropics between North and South America. The term is used by the 13ritish, the Dutch, French, Portuguese, and Spaniards, to indicate their respective territorial possessions in the East. The West Indies belong principally to Great Britain, but to possess the East Indies has been an object of ambition to western races from prior to historic times. The first great inroad of strangers into what is now British India, was that of tho Eastern Aryans, about 3000 to 1500 years before Christ, who now form the brahmanical tribes of British India, —intellectual men, but without territorial posses sions. Semiramis, 1200, moved with a great army, and entered India from the N.W., but was defeated and driven back with great slaughter. Alexander of Macedon approached India from a similar N.W. route, but he stopped short in the Panjab2 moved southwards along the right bank of the river Indus, and then crossed the I taluchistan desert to Babylon, where he died. Many Scythic ram+, of whom, however, little is known, appear to have advanced in India to the neighbourhood of Gujerat, in the early centurie.s of the Christian era. rig, Arab khalifs who eueeeeded Mahomed, Mahomedans from Ghazni, from the vicinity of the Oxus, and from Persia, obtained posaession of great parts of the country now designated British India, the British being the present rulers over much of the lands which previous conquerors obtained.
The Dutch East Indies, or, a.s that nation calls it, Nederlandsch Indie, Netherlands India, are com prised in the great islands of the Eastern Archi pelago from Sumatra eastwards. They are the rulers or paramount power of five-sixths of the whole Eastern Archipelago.
The Spanish East Indies are chiefly the Philip pine Archipelago. The chief town of Manilla was founded in A.D. 1581, and they have continued in undisturbed possession ever since.
The Portuguese, who of all the Europeans were earliest in the field of conquest, now hold only 1086 square miles in the small settlements at Goa, Daman, Diu, and 3facao.
The French, who in the 18th century strove for supremacy with the British, now hold Pondicherry, 3Iahe, Chandernagar, Karikal, and Yanaon, with Annam in Further India.
The Danes, until early in the 19th century, had small patches of territory at Serampur, Negapatam, and Chinsmah. There are many Rajput, Hindu, and 3fahomedan rulers in British India. Ceylon is a British colony, and Burma, Siarn, Aeheen, and other states are under independent rulers. See British India ; India.