~Bahawalpur~ is by far the largest of the Panjab States. But the greater part of it is at present desert, and the population, except in the river tract, is very sparse. Bahawalpur stretches from Ferozepore on the north to the Sindh border. It has a river frontage exceeding 300 miles on the Sutlej, Panjnad, and Indus. The cultivated area in 1903-4 was 1451 square miles, and of this 83 p.c. was irrigated and 10 p.c. flooded. The rainfall is only five inches and the climate is very hot. South and east of the rivers is a tract of low land known as the "Sindh," which widens out to the south. It is partly flooded and partly irrigated by inundation canals with the help of wells. Palm groves are a conspicuous feature in the Sindh. Behind it is a great stretch of strong loam or "_pat_," narrow in the south, but widening out in the north. It is bounded on the south-east by a wide depression known as the Hakra, probably at one time the bed of the Sutlej. At present little cultivation is possible in the _pat_, but there is some hope that a canal taking out on the right bank of the Sutlej in Ferozepore may bring the water of that river back to it. South of the Hakra is a huge tract of sand and sand dunes, known as the Rohi or Cholistan, which is part of the Rajputana desert. There are three _nizamats_, Minchinabad in the north, Bahawalpur in the middle, and Khanpur in the south. The capital, Bahawalpur, is close to the bridge at Adamwahan by which the N.W. Railway crosses the Sutlej. The ruling family belongs to the Abbasi Daudpotra clan, and came originally from Sindh. Sadik Muhammad Khan, who received the title of Nawab from Nadir Shah, when he invaded the Derajat in 1739, may be considered the real founder of the State. The Nawab Muhummad Bahawal Khan III, threatened with invasion by Maharaja Ranjit Singh, made a treaty with the British Government in 1833. He was our faithful ally in the first Afghan War, and gave valuable help against Diwan Mulraj in 1848. The next three reigns extending from 1852 to 1866 were brief and troubled. Nawab Sadik Muhummad Khan IV, who succeeded in 1866, was a young child, and for the next thirteen years the State was managed by Captain Minchin and Captain L. H. Grey as Superintendents. The young Nawab was installed in 1879, and henceforth ruled with the help of a Council. In the Afghan War of 1879-1880 Bahawalpur did very useful service. The Nawab died in 1899. A short minority followed during which Colonel L. H. Grey again became Superintendent. The young Nawab, Muhammad Bahawal Khan V, had but a brief reign. He was succeeded by the present Chief, Nawab Sadik Muhummad Khan V, a child of eight or nine years. The State is managed by a Council aided by the advice of the political Agent. From 1903 to 1913, the Agent for the Phulkian States was in charge, but a separate Agent has recently been appointed for Bahawalpur and Faridkot. An efficient camel corps is maintained for imperial service.