These two volumes of The Geography of British India deal, the detail India political Geography of 1880s with that of the colonies and countries within its political system more briefly. The book summarises the results of the Geological and Meteorological Surveys; the diamond, gold, and coal treasures are carefully described. A detailed Index has been given for the names of all the places, some 5200 in number. The volume may, practically, be found by the traveler to be a Guide-book in the best form. The Index and Map of Provinces, in districts, should make it the most handy Gazetteer, as well as a full and an accurate work of reference. The book is thus primarily intended for the Student of schools and Colleges, University, Military, and Civil Service studies for enhancing their knowledge with facts.
George Smith came to India as the Principal, Doveton College, Calcutta, a school for Eurasian pupils. After five years he became editor of the Calcutta Review and the Friend of India. His interest in Indian society and Anglo-Indian relations led to his later being appointed as a Companion of the Order of the Indian Empire by Queen Victoria. Returning to Scotland in 1875, he became secretary of the foreign mission committee of the Free Church of Scotland in 1870, a post he held for more than 30 years. He became a senior statesman in the Scottish churches and was influential in encouraging a wider interest in and support for mission. He also wrote widely on historical and geographic topics, and his books of missionary biography (e.g., Carey, Duff, Martyn and Van der Kemp) were popular in the late nineteenth century.