Multan

Multan, or Mooltan, a district and its capital in the Punjab, British India. The former lies between the rivers Sutlej and Chenab, with an area of 5,880 square miles. Along the river banks stretches a fertile strip which under careful irrigation yields heavy crops of sugar, indigo, cereals, and foodstuffs, but through the interior runs a high, barren ridge - the Bar - valueless except for pasturing here and there flocks of sheep. The climate is peculiarly hot and dusty, and the rainfall slight. Mohammedans form the majority of the population, the Jiit tribes of the rural districts being very uncivilised. The British conquered the country in 1849 from Mulraj, a nominal vassal of Ranjit Singh.