Highly active in excavating and restoring the temples and palaces , Curzon also did more than any of his predecessors , adding 9,000 km ( 5,500 miles ) of new railway lines , working to modernize farming with an agricultural research institute , and building an irrigation system that would become a model for Asia and Africa .
Curzon did less than any of the rulers before him , especially in the areas of agriculture , excavation , and railway building .