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PLACES

DAHOLI.

DAPURI.

Da'puri, a village of 730 people in Haveli, on a roughly semi-circular plot of land surrounded by the windings of the Mula, on the left bank of the river, lies on the Bombay-Poona road two miles north of Kirkee and six miles north of Poona. The chief objects of interest at Dapuri are several bungalows and gardens on the Pavna a tributary of the Mula, the first bungalow built about 1820 by Captain afterwards Colonel Ford, C. B. at a cost of about £11,000(Rs.1,10,000). Captain Ford had long been the assistant of Sir Barry Close, the Poona Resident, and, in 1812, by his interest was appointed to raise and command a brigade of troops, disciplined after the English fashion for Bajirav Peshwa. The new levies were not cantoned at Dapuri till 1817. On the 5th of November of that year, in spite of the Peshwa's threats, the brigade joined Colonel Burr's army and took a prominent part in the battle of Kirkee. [Details are given below under Poona Objects, Kirkee.] It was the declared intention of Bajirav to spare Major Ford if he had succeeded. [Major Ford was a great favourite of the Peshwa. There is a romantic story of an understanding between Major Ford and Moro Dikshit the Peshwa's general. Moro Dikshit knew that they must take different sides in the battle of Kirkee and that probably one of them would die. An agreement was made, as proposed by Major Ford, that the survivor should maintain the family of the deceased. Moro Dikshit fell and Major Ford is said to have kept his word. Grant Duff's Marathas, 650-651.]

During his residence at Dapuri Major Ford was very hospitable. His house was open to all strangers and his table was maintained in a princely style. He was a liberal supporter of charities and was perhaps as greatly beloved and respected by the natives as any European who ever visited India. Soon after the victory of Kirkee Major Ford, who had attained his Lieutenant-Colonelcy, was attacked with fever and died in Bombay. His beautiful residence was bought for Government by Sir John Malcolm in 1828 at £1000 (Its. 10,000), and was used for the rainy season (June-October) residence of the Governor till 1865 when the new Government House at Ganeshkhind was completed. [Murray's Bombay Handbook, 182.] The buildings, now all out of repair, consist of a large main bungalow the old Government House, with reception rooms and a ball room eighty feet long, [Lady Falkland gives an interesting account of a Government House ball in this room about 1850. Chow Chow,I.228.] a bungalow with bed rooms, an office bungalow on the river side, a set of quarters for aides-de-camp and officers of the bodyguard, and two bungalows for the Garden Superintendent and head gardener. Besides the bungalows there are large horse and cattle stables, servants' lines, and store rooms built at a cost of above £50,000 (Its. 5 lakhs). Of the total 71 ½ acres of land eleven acres are unarable, 12½ are occupied by buildings, and forty-eight acres formed the botanical gardens which Sir John Malcolm established about 1828 at a yearly cost of £360 (Rs. 3600) to introduce useful exotics. The gardens were at first under Mr. Williamson who soon died and was succeeded by Dr. Lash and Dr. Gibson. Dr. Gibson established, in connection with the botanical gardens, nurseries at Hivre Nirgori and Shivner' fort in Juunar. The chief experiments were in the cultivation of foreign cottons, coffee, tea, tobacco, Mauritius sugarcane, the mulberry, the cochineal insect, culinary vegetables, and fruit trees. During the American war (1863-1865) Government sold the estate by auction and Government house was removed to Ganeshkhind where new botanical gardens were made. The auction realized £21,000 (Rs. 2,40,000) and the property went to a company of three partners two Europeans and a native who managed it apparently more as a private residence than for profit until they became bankrupts, and mortgaged the estate to Messrs. Fell and Co. of Poona. The mortgage appears to have been foreclosed and, in 1874-75, the estate was sold to a Parsi gentleman Mr. Mervanji Shot for £3500 (Rs. 35,000) who spent £700 (Rs. 7000) in repairs to the bungalows. All the bungalows are now unoccupied, as the situation, about a mile from Kirkee railway station and 400 yards from the railway, makes it inconvenient for private residence. The last owner was a minor, and during his minority many of the best and most valuable trees have been cut down for £200 (Rs. 2000) leaving now a mango grove and a large number of exotic and indigenous trees. The land, which the owner held free of all rent and charges even of balutas to the village servants, had been leased yearly for about £35 (Rs. 350; including the produce of fruit trees" but subject to a monthly charge of 16s. (Rs. 8) for a watchman. The estate has been bought by Messrs. Meakin & Co. who intend to establish a brewery here. [Mr. E. C. Ozanne. C. S.; Mr. J. G. Moore, C. S.]