Toda and phonograph.Toda and phonograph.At the census, 1901, 453 male and 354 female Todas were returned. In a note on the proportion of the sexes among the Todas, Mr. R. C. Punnett states50that “all who have studied the Todas are agreed upon the frequency of the practice (of infanticide) in earlier times. Marshall, writing in 1872, refers to the large amount of female infanticide in former years, but expresses his conviction that the practice had by that time died out. Marshall’s evidence is that of native assurance only. Dr. Rivers, who received the same assurance, is disinclined to place much confidence innative veracity with reference to this point, and, in view of the lack of encouragement which the practice receives from the Indian Government, this is not altogether surprising. The supposition of female infanticide, by accounting for the great disproportion in the numbers of the sexes, brings the Todas into harmony with what is known of the rest of mankind.” In summarising his conclusions, Mr. Punnett notes that:—(1) Among the Todas, males predominate greatly over females.(2) This preponderance is doubtless due to the practice of female infanticide, which is probably still to some extent prevalent.(3) The numerical preponderance of the males has been steadily sinking during recent years, owing probably to the check which foreign intercourse has imposed upon female infanticide.In connection with the death ceremonies of the Todas, Dr. Rivers notes that “soon after death the body is burnt, and the general name for the ceremony on this occasion is etvainolkedr, the first day funeral. After an interval, which may vary greatly in length, a second ceremony is performed, connected with certain relics of the deceased which have been preserved from the first occasion. The Toda name for this second funeral ceremony is marvainolkedr, the second day funeral, or ‘again which day funeral.’ The funeral ceremonies are open to all, and visitors are often invited by the Todas. In consequence, the funeral rites are better known, and have been more frequently described than any other features of Toda ceremonial. Like nearly every institution of the Todas, however, they have become known to Europeans under their Badaga names. The first funeral is called by the Badagas hase kedu, the fresh or greenfuneral, and the term ‘green funeral’ has not only become the generally recognised name among the European inhabitants of the Nilgiri hills, but has been widely adopted in anthropological literature. The second funeral is called by the Badagas bara kedu, the ‘dry funeral,’ and this term also has been generally adopted.” The various forms of the funeral ceremonies are discussed in detail by Dr. Rivers, and it must suffice to describe those at which we have been present as eye-witnesses.I had the opportunity of witnessing the second funeral of a woman who had died from smallpox two months previously. On arrival at a mand on the open downs about five miles from Ootacamund, we were conducted by a Toda guide to the margin of a dense shola, where we found two groups seated apart, consisting of (a) women, girls, and brown-haired female babies, round a camp fire; (b) men, boys, and male babies, carried, with marked signs of paternal affection, by their fathers. In a few minutes a murmuring sound commenced in the centre of the female group. Working themselves up to the necessary pitch, some of the women (near relatives of the deceased) commenced to cry freely, and the wailing and lachrymation gradually spread round the circle, until all, except little girls and babies who were too young to be affected, were weeping and mourning, some for fashion, others from genuine grief. In carrying out the orthodox form of mourning, the women first had a good cry to themselves, and then, as their emotions became more intense, went round the circle, selecting partners with whom to share companionship in grief. Gradually the group resolved itself into couplets of mourners, each pair with their heads in contact, and giving expression to their emotions in unison. Beforeseparating to select a new partner, each couple saluted by bowing the head, and raising thereto the feet of the other, covered by the putkūli. [I have seen women rapidly recover from the outward manifestations of grief, and clamour for money.] From time to time the company of mourners was reinforced by late arrivals from distant mands, and, as each detachment, now of men and now of women, came in view across the open downs, one could not fail to be reminded of the gathering of the clans on some Highland moor. The resemblance was heightened by the distant sound as of pipers, produced by the Kota band (with two police constables in attendance), composed of four Kotas, who made a weird noise with drums and flutes as they drew near the scene of action. The band, on arrival, took up a position close to the mourning women. As each detachment arrived, the women, recognising their relatives, came forward and saluted them in the manner customary among Todas by falling at their feet, and placing first the right and then the left foot on their head. Shortly after the arrival of the band, signals were exchanged, by waving of putkūlis, between the assembled throng and a small detachment of men some distance off. A general move was made, and animpromptuprocession formed, with men in front, band in the middle, and women bringing up the rear. A halt was made opposite a narrow gap leading into the shola; men and women sat apart as before; and the band walked round, discoursing unsweet music. A party of girls went off to bring fire from the spot just vacated for use in the coming ceremonial, but recourse was finally had to a box of matches lent by one of our party. At this stage we noticed a woman go up to the eldest son of the deceased, who was seated apart from theother men, and would not be comforted in spite of her efforts to console him. On receipt of a summons from within the shola, the assembled Toda men and ourselves swarmed into it by a narrow track leading to a small clear space round a big tree, from a hole cut at the base of which an elderly Toda produced a piece of the skull of the dead woman, wrapped round with long tresses of her hair. It now became the men’s turn to exhibit active signs of grief, and all of one accord commenced to weep and mourn. Amid the scene of lamentation, the hair was slowly unwrapt from off the skull, and burned in an iron ladle, from which a smell as of incense arose. A bamboo pot of ghī was produced, with which the skull was reverently anointed, and placed in a cloth spread on the ground. To this relic of the deceased the throng of men, amid a scene of wild excitement, made obeisance by kneeling down before it, and touching it with their foreheads. The females were not permitted to witness this stage of the proceedings, with the exception of one or two near relatives of the departed one, who supported themselves sobbing against the tree. The ceremonial concluded, the fragment of skull, wrapt in the cloth, was carried into the open, where, as men and boys had previously done, women and girls made obeisance to it. A procession was then again formed, and marched on until a place was reached, where were two stone-walled kraals, large and small. Around the former the men, and within the latter the women, took up their position, the men engaging in chit-chat, and the women in mourning, which after a time ceased, and they too engaged in conversation. A party of men, carrying the skull, still in the cloth, set out for a neighbouring shola, where a kēdu of several other dead Todas was being celebrated; and a longpause ensued, broken eventually by the arrival of the other funeral party, the men advancing in several lines, with arms linked, and crying out U, hah! U, hah, hah! in regular time. This party brought with it pieces of the skulls of a woman and two men, which were placed, wrapt in cloths, on the ground, saluted, and mourned over by the assembled multitude. At this stage a small party of Kotas arrived, and took up their position on a neighbouring hill, waiting, vulture-like, for the carcase of the buffalo which was shortly to be slain. Several young men now went off across the hill in search of buffaloes, and speedily re-appeared, driving five buffaloes before them with sticks. As soon as the beasts approached a swampy marsh at the foot of the hill on which the expectant crowd of men was gathered together, two young men of athletic build, throwing off their putkūlis, made a rush down the hill, and tried to seize one of the buffaloes by the horns, with the result that one of them was promptly thrown. The buffalo escaping, one of the remaining four was quickly caught by the horns, and, with arms interlocked, the men brought it down on its knees, amid a general scuffle. In spite of marked objection and strenuous resistance on the part of the animal—a barren cow—it was, by means of sticks freely applied, slowly dragged up the hill, preceded by the Kota band, and with a Toda youth pulling at its tail. Arrived at the open space between the kraals, the buffalo, by this time thoroughly exasperated, and with blood pouring from its nostrils, had a cloth put on its back, and was despatched by a blow on the poll with an axe deftly wielded by a young and muscular man. On this occasion no one was badly hurt by the sacrificial cow, though one man was seen washing his legs in the swamp after the preliminary struggle withthe beast. But Colonel Ross-King narrates how he saw a man receive a dangerous wound in the neck from a thrust of the horn, which ripped open a wide gash from the collar-bone to the ear. With the death of the buffalo, the last scene, which terminated the strange rites, commenced; men, women, and children pressing forward and jostling one another in their eagerness to salute the dead beast by placing their hands between its horns, and weeping and mourning in pairs; the facial expression of grief being mimicked when tears refused to flow spontaneously.The ceremonial connected with the final burning of the relics and burial of the ashes at the stone circle (azaram) are described in detail by Dr. Rivers.A few days after the ceremony just described, I was invited to be present at the funeral of a young girl who had died of smallpox five days previously. I proceeded accordingly to the scene of the recent ceremony, and there, in company with a small gathering of Todas from the neighbouring mands, awaited the arrival of the funeral cortége, the approach of which was announced by the advancing strains of Kota music. Slowly the procession came over the brow of the hill; the corpse, covered by a cloth, on a rude ladder-like bier, borne on the shoulders of four men, followed by two Kota musicians; the mother carried hidden within a sack; relatives and men carrying bags of rice and jaggery, and bundles of wood of the kiaz tree (Eugenia Arnottiana) for the funeral pyre. Arrived opposite a small hut, which had been specially built for the ceremonial, the corpse was removed from the bier, laid on the ground, face upwards, outside the hut, and saluted by men, women, and children, with the same manifestations of grief as on the previous occasion. Soon the men moved away to a short distance, and engagedin quiet conversation, leaving the females to continue mourning round the corpse, interrupted from time to time by the arrival of detachments from distant mands, whose first duty was to salute the dead body. Meanwhile a near female relative of the dead child was busily engaged inside the hut, collecting together in a basket small measures of rice, jaggery, sago, honey-comb, and the girl’s simple toys, which were subsequently to be burned with the corpse. The mourning ceasing after a time, the corpse was placed inside the hut, and followed by the near relatives, who there continued to weep over it. A detachment of men and boys, who had set out in search of the buffaloes which were to be sacrificed, now returned driving before them three cows, which escaped from their pursuers to rejoin the main herd. A long pause ensued, and, after a very prolonged drive, three more cows were guided into a marshy swamp, where one of them was caught by the horns, and dragged reluctantly, but with little show of fight, to the strains of Kota drum and flute, in front of the hut, where it was promptly despatched by a blow on the poll. The corpse was now brought from within the hut, and placed, face upwards, with its feet resting on the forehead of the buffalo, whose neck was decorated with a silver chain, such as is worn by Todas round the loins, as no bell was available, and the horns were smeared with butter. Then followed frantic manifestations of grief, amid which the unhappy mother fainted. Mourning over, the corpse was made to go through a form of ceremony, resembling that which is performed during pregnancy with the first child. A small boy, three years old, was selected from among the relatives of the dead girl, and taken by his father in search of a certain grass (Andropogon Schœnanthus) and a twig of a shrub(Sophora glauca), which were brought to the spot where the corpse was lying. The mother of the dead child then withdrew one of its hands from the putkūli, and the boy placed the grass and twig in the hand, and limes, plantains, rice, jaggery, honey-comb, and butter in the pocket of the putkūli, which was then stitched with needle and thread in a circular pattern. The boy’s father then took off his son’s putkūli, and replaced it so as to cover him from head to foot. Thus covered, the boy remained outside the hut till the morning of the morrow, watched through the night by near relatives of himself and his dead bride. [On the occasion of the funeral of an unmarried lad, a girl is in like manner selected, covered with her putkūli from head to foot, and a metal vessel filled with jaggery, rice, etc., to be subsequently burnt on the funeral pyre, placed for a short time within the folds of the putkūli. Thus covered, the girl remains till next morning, watched through the dreary hours of the night by relatives. The same ceremony is performed over the corpse of a married woman who has not borne children, the husband acting as such for the last time, in the vain hope that the woman may produce issue in heaven.] The corpse was borne away to the burning-ground within the shola, and, after removal of some of the hair by the mother of the newly wedded boy, burned, with face upwards, amid the music of the Kota band, the groans of the assembled crowd squatting on the ground, and the genuine grief of the nearest relatives. The burning concluded, a portion of the skull was removed from the ashes, and handed over to the recently made mother-in-law of the dead girl, and wrapped up with the hair in the bark of the tūd tree (Meliosma pungens). A second buffalo, which, properly speaking, should have been slain beforethe corpse was burnt, was then sacrificed, and rice and jaggery were distributed among the crowd, which dispersed, leaving behind the youthful widower and his custodians, who, after daybreak, partook of a meal of rice, and returned to their mands; the boy’s mother taking with her the skull and hair to her mand, where it would remain until the celebration of the second funeral. No attention is paid to the ashes after cremation, and they are left to be scattered by the winds.A further opportunity offered itself to be present at the funeral of an elderly woman on the open downs not far from Paikāra, in connection with which certain details possess some interest. The corpse was, at the time of our arrival, laid out on a rude bier within an improvised arbour covered with leaves and open at each end, and tended by some of the female relatives. At some little distance, a conclave of Toda men, who rose of one accord to greet us, was squatting in a circle, among whom were many venerable white-turbaned elders of the tribe, protected from the scorching sun by palm-leaf umbrellas. Amid much joking, and speech-making by the veterans, it was decided that, as the eldest son of the deceased woman was dead, leaving a widow, this daughter-in-law should be united to the second son, and that they should live together as man and wife. On the announcement of the decision, the bridegroom-elect saluted the principal Todas present by placing his head on their feet, which were sometimes concealed within the ample folds of the putkūli. At the funeral of a married woman, three ceremonies must, I was told, be performed, if possible, by a daughter or daughter-in-law, viz.:—(1) Tying a leafy branch of the tiviri shrub (Atylosia Candolleana) in the putkūli of the corpse;(2) Tying balls of thread and cowry shells on the arm of the corpse, just above the elbow;(3) Setting fire to the funeral pyre, which was, on the present occasion, done by lighting a rag fed with ghī with a match.The buffalo capture took place amid the usual excitement, and with freedom from accident; and, later in the day, the stalwart buffalo catchers turned up at the travellers’ bungalow for apourboirein return, as they said, for treating us to a good fight. The beasts selected for sacrifice were a full-grown cow and a young calf. As they were dragged near to the corpse, now removed from the arbour, butter was smeared over the horns, and a bell tied round the neck. The bell was subsequently removed by Kotas, in whose custody, it was said, it was to remain till the next day funeral. The death-blow, or rather series of blows, having been delivered with the butt end of an axe, the feet of the corpse were placed at the mouth of the buffalo. In the case of a male corpse, the right hand is made to clasp the horns. [It is recorded by Dr. Rivers that, at the funeral of a male, men dance after the buffalo is killed. In the dancing a tall pole, called tadri or tadrsi, decorated with cowry shells, is used.] The customary mourning in couples concluded, the corpse, clad in four cloths, was carried on the stretcher to a clear space in the neighbouring shola, and placed by the side of the funeral pyre, which had been rapidly piled up. The innermost cloth was black in colour, and similar to that worn by a palol. Next to it came a putkūli decorated with blue and red embroidery, outside which again was a plain white cloth covered over by a red cotton cloth of European manufacture. Seated by the side of the pyre, near to which I was courteously invited to take a seat on the stump of a rhododendron,was an elderly relative of the dead woman, who, while watching the ceremonial, was placidly engaged in the manufacture of a holly walking-stick with the aid of a glass scraper. The proceedings were watched on behalf of Government by a forest guard, and a police constable who, with marked affectation, held his handkerchief to his nose throughout the ceremonial. The corpse was decorated with brass rings, and within the putkūli were stowed jaggery, a scroll of paper adorned with cowry shells, snuff and tobacco, cocoanuts, biscuits, various kinds of grain, ghī, honey, and a tin-framed looking-glass. A long purse, containing a silver Japanese yen and an Arcot rupee of the East India Company, was tied up in the putkūli close to the feet. These preliminaries concluded, the corpse was hoisted up, and swung three times over the now burning pyre, above which a mimic bier, made of slender twigs, was held. The body was then stripped of its jewelry, and a lock of hair cut off by the daughter-in-law for preservation, together with a fragment of the skull. I was told that, when the corpse is swung over the pyre, the dead person goes to amnodr (the world of the dead). In this connection, Dr. Rivers writes that “it would seem as if this ceremony of swinging the body over the fire was directly connected with the removal of the objects of value. The swinging over the fire would be symbolic of its destruction by fire; and this symbolic burning has the great advantage that the objects of value are not consumed, and are available for use another time. This is probably the real explanation of the ceremony, but it is not the explanation given by the Todas themselves. They say that long ago, about 400 years, a man supposed to be dead was put on the funeral pyre, and, revived by the heat, he was found to be alive, and was able to walk away from the funeral place. In consequenceof this, the rule was made that the body should always be swung three times over the fire before it is finally placed thereon.” [Colonel Marshall narrates the story that a Toda who had revived from what was thought his death-bed, has been observed parading about, very proud and distinguished looking, wearing the finery with which he had been bedecked for his own funeral, and which he would be permitted to carry till he really departed this life.] As soon as the pyre was fairly ablaze, the mourners, with the exception of some of the female relatives, left the shōla, and the men, congregating on the summit of a neighbouring hill, invoked their god. Four men, seized, apparently in imitation of the Kota Dēvādi, with divine frenzy, began to shiver and gesticulate wildly, while running blindly to and fro with closed eyes and shaking fists. They then began to talk in Malayālam, and offer an explanation of an extraordinary phenomenon, which had appeared in the form of a gigantic figure, which disappeared as suddenly as it appeared. At the annual ceremony of walking through fire (hot ashes) in that year, two factions arose owing to some dissension, and two sets of ashes were used. This seems to have annoyed the gods, and those concerned were threatened with speedy ruin. But the whole story was very vague. The possession by some Todas of a smattering of Malayālam is explained by the fact that, when grazing their buffaloes on the northern and western slopes of the Nīlgiris, they come in contact with Malayālam-speaking people from the neighbouring Malabar district.At the funeral of a man (a leper), the corpse was placed in front of the entrance to a circle of loose stones about a yard and a half in diameter, which had been specially constructed for the occasion. Just before the buffalo sacrifice, a man of the Paiki clan standing nearthe head of the corpse, dug a hole in the ground with a cane, and asked a Kenna who was standing on the other side, “Puzhut, Kenna,”51shall I throw the earth?—three times. To which the Kenna, answering, replied “Puzhut”—throw the earth—thrice. The Paiki then threw some earth three times over the corpse, and three times into the miniature kraal. It is suggested by Dr. Rivers that the circle was made to do duty for a buffalo pen, as the funeral was held at a place where there was no tu (pen), from the entrance of which earth could be dug up.Several examples of laments relating to the virtues and life of the deceased, which are sung or recited in the course of the funeral ceremonies, are given by Dr. Rivers. On the occasion of the reproduction of a lament in my phonograph, two young women were seen to be crying bitterly. The selection of the particular lament was unfortunate, as it had been sung at their father’s funeral. The reproduction of the recitation of a dead person’s sins at a Badaga funeral quickly restored them to a state of cheerfulness.The following petition to the Collector of the Nilgiris on the subject of buffalo sacrifice may be quoted as a sign of the times, when the Todas employ petition-writers to express their grievances:—“According to our religious custom for the long period, we are bringing forward of our killing buffaloes without any irregular way. But, in last year, when the late Collector came to see the said place, by that he ordered to the Todas first not to keep the buffaloes without feeding in the kraal, and second he ordered to kill each for every day, and to clear away the buffaloes, and not to keep the buffaloes without food.We did our work according to his orders, and this excellent order was an ample one. Now this ——, a chief of the Todas, son of ——, a deceased Toda, the above man joined with the moniagar of —— village, joined together, and, dealing with bribes, now they arose against us, and doing this great troubles on us, and also, by this great trouble, one day Mr. —— came for shooting snapes (snipe) by that side. By chance one grazing buffalo came to him, push him by his horns very forcely, and wounded him on his leg. By the help of another gentleman who came with him he escaped, or he would have die at the moment. Now the said moniagar and —— joined together, want to finish the funeral to his late father on the 18th instant. For this purpose they are going to shut the buffaloes without food in the kraal on the 18th instant at 10 o’clock. They are going to kill the buffaloes on the 19th instant at 4 o’clock in the evening. But this is a great sin against god. But we beg your honour this way. That is, let them leave the buffaloes in the grazing place, and ask them to catch and kill them at the same moment. And also your honour cannot ordered them to keep them in the kraal without food. And, if they will desire to kill the buffaloes in this way, these buffaloes will come on us, and also on the other peoples one who, coming to see funs on those day, will kill them all by his anxious. And so we the Todas begs your honour to enquire them before the 18th, the said funeral ceremony commencing, and not to grant the above orders to them.”A Whit Monday at Paikāra was given up to an exhibition of sports and games, whereof the most exciting and interesting was a burlesque representation of a Toda funeral by boys and girls. A Toda, who wasfond of his little joke, applied the term pacchai kēdu (green funeral) to the corpses of the flies entrapped by a viscous catch’em-alive-oh on the bungalow table. To the mock funeral rites arrived a party of youths, as from a distant mand, and crying out U, hah, in shrill mimicry of their elders. The lad who was to play the leading part of sacrificial buffalo, stripping off his putkūli, disappeared from sight over the brow of a low hillock. Above this eminence his bent and uplifted upper extremities shortly appeared as representatives of the buffalo horns. At sight thereof, there was a wild rush of small boys to catch him, and a mimic struggle took place, while the buffalo was dragged, amid good-tempered scuffling, kicks, and shouting, to the spot where the corpse should have been. This spot was, in the absence of a pseudo-dead body or stage dummy, indicated by a group of little girls, who had sat chatting together till the boy-beast arrived, when they touched foreheads, and went, with due solemnity, through the orthodox observance of mourning in couples. The buffalo was slain by a smart tap on the back of the head with a cloth, which did duty for an axe. As soon as the convulsive movements and twitchings of the death struggle were over, the buffalo, without waiting for an encore, retired behind the hillock once more, in order that the rough and tumble fight, which was evidently the chief charm of the game, might be repeated. The buffalo boy later on came in second in a flat race, and he was last seen protecting us from a mischievous-looking member of his herd, which was grazing on the main-road. Toda buffaloes, it may be noted, are not at all popular with members of the Ootacamund Hunt, as both horses and riders from time to time receive injuries from their horns, when they come in collision.While the funeral game was in progress, the men showed off their prowess at a game (eln),52corresponding to the English tip-cat, which is epidemic at a certain season in the London bye-streets. It is played with a bat like a broomstick, and a cylindrical piece of wood pointed at both ends. The latter is propped up against a stone, and struck with the bat. As it flies off the stone, it is hit to a distance with the bat, and caught (or missed) by the out fields.At the Muttanād mand, we were treated to a further exhibition of games. In one of these, called narthpimi, a flat slab of stone is supported horizontally on two other slabs fixed perpendicularly in the ground so as to form a narrow tunnel, through which a man can just manage to wriggle his body with difficulty. Two men take part in the game, one stationing himself at a distance of about thirty yards, the other about sixty yards from the tunnel. The front man, throwing off his mantle, runs as hard as he can to the tunnel, pursued by the ‘scratch’ man, whose object is to touch the other man’s feet before he has squeezed himself through the tunnel. Another sport, which we witnessed, consists of trial of strength with a heavy globular stone, the object being to raise it up to the shoulder; but a strong, well-built-man—he who was entrusted with slaying the funeral buffalo—failed to raise it higher than the pit of the stomach, though straining his muscles in the attempt. A splendidly made veteran assured me that, when young and lusty, he was able to accomplish the feat, and spoke sadly of degeneration in the physique of the younger members of the tribe.Mr. Breeks mentions that the Todas play a game resembling puss-in-the-corner, called kāriālapimi, whichwas not included in the programme of sports got up for our benefit. Dr. Rivers writes that “the Todas, and especially the children, often play with mimic representations of objects from practical life. Near the villages I have seen small artificial buffalo-pens and fireplaces made by the children in sport.” I have, on several occasions, come across young children playing with long and short pieces of twigs representing buffaloes and their calves, and going solemnly through the various incidents in the daily life of these animals. Todas, both old and young, may constantly be seen twisting flexible twigs into representations of buffaloes’ heads and horns.Of Toda songs, the following have been collected:—Sunshine is increasing. Mist is fast gathering. Rain may come. Thunder roars. Clouds are gathering.Rain is pouring. Wind and rain have combined.Oh, powerful god, may everything prosper!May charity increase!May the buffaloes become pregnant!See that the buffaloes have calves.See that the barren women have children.Go and tell this to the god of the land.Keygamor, Eygamor (names of buffaloes).Evening is approaching. The buffaloes are coming.The calves also have returned.The buffaloes are saluted.The dairy-man beats the calves with his stick.Milk has been offered to the bell.It is growing dark.This is a buffalo with beautiful horns.A buffalo stupidly given away by the Badaga.A buffalo brought to the Kāndal mand.Innerovya (name of buffalo).Like this buffalo there is no other.Parkūr (name of a Toda).Like him there is no man.The sun is shining. The wind is blowing.Rain is coming. The trees are in flower.Tears are falling. The nose is burning.He is coming, holding up his umbrella.He is coming, wearing a good body-cloth.He is coming, wearing a good under-cloth.He (the palol) is coming, wearing a black cloth.He is coming, holding his walking-stick of palai wood.I have a god. What is to become of me?I am inclined to cry, my heart being heavy.Oh, my child! Do not cry. It is still crying.Thuree. Thuree. See. Be quiet.A robust bullbuffalo. Ach! Ach!A big buffalo not intended for killing. Ach! Ach!Is leading the cow buffalo. Ah! Ah!Two or three men are driving it. Ah! Ah!Song in honour of the arrival of the Maharāni-Regent of Mysore at Ootacamund.All we Todas go to her house, and dance before her.She gives us fifteen rupees.She comes near our women, and talks to them.She gives cloths to us.Next day we take milk, eight bottles in the morning, four in the evening.Month by month she pays us for our milk.She goes back to Mysore, and, when she goes, we stand in a row before her.She gives us presents; cloths and three rupees.The women cut their hair, and stand before her.Marriage Song.Boys and girls are singing.Much money are they spending.To the girl her father is giving five buffaloes.The husband tells his wife that she must curl her hair.If her hair is curled, all the people will rejoice.The buffalo is slain, and now we must all dance.Why are not more people here? More should come.My buffalo is big, very big.Go quickly and catch it.The Todas are all there. They are standing in a row.Who will run, and catch the buffalo first?To him will a present of five rupees be given.I will go and catch it first.The Todas are all fighting.The Todas are all feasting.People give them rice.The buffalo is coming. Two men run to catch it by the neck.Ten men collect the buffaloes. They pen them in a kraal.At one o’clock we take our food.The buffalo is running, and I hit it on the back with a stick.It swerves aside, but I drive it back to the path.Night comes, and we all dance.Next morning at ten o’clock we bring out the buffalo, and slay it.At four in the morning we wrap rice and grain in a white cloth, and burn it.At eleven we cut the hair of the boys and girls.At four in the morning the priest goes to the temple (dairy).He lights the lamp.At eight he milks his buffaloes.He puts on no cloth.He places butter and ghī before the god.Then he grazes his buffaloes, and eats his food.Then he puts on his cloth.At three in the afternoon he goes again to the temple.He kindles a fire, and lights the lamp.He puts milk in a chatty, and churns it into butter with a cane.He mixes water with the butter-milk, and gives it to the women to drink.He alone may sleep in the temple.At four in the morning he lets out the buffaloes to graze.At seven he milks them.The woman’s house is down the hill.The priest must not go in unto the woman.He may not marry.When he is twenty, he may not enter the temple.Another is made priest in his stead.The religious institutions of the Todas, including the elaborate dairy ritual, and their religion, are described in full detail by Dr. Rivers. The Todas have been to some extent influenced by Hinduism, and some visit the temples at Nanjengōd in Mysore, Karamadai in the Coimbatore district, and other shrines, whereat they worship, present votive offerings, and pray for offspring,etc. Writing in 1872, Mr. Breeks remarked that “about Ootacamund, a few Todas have latterly begun to imitate the religious practices of their native neighbours. Occasionally children’s foreheads are marked with the Siva spot, and my particular friend Kinniaven, after an absence of some days, returned with a shaven head from a visit to the temple of Siva at Nanjengudi.” A man who came to my laboratory had his hair hanging down in long tails reaching below his shoulders. He had, he said, let it grow long because his wife, though married five years, had borne no child. A child had, however, recently been born, and, as soon as the second funeral of a relation had been performed, he was going to sacrifice his locks as a thank-offering at the Nanjengōd temple. The following extracts from my notes will serve to illustrate the practice of marking (in some instances apparently for beauty’s sake) and shaving as carried out at the present day.(1) Man, aged 28. Has just performed a ceremony at the ti mand. White curved line painted across forehead, and dots below outer ends thereof, on glabella, and outside orbits. Smeared with white across chest, over outer side of upper arms and left nipple, across knuckles and lower end of left ulna, and on lobes of ears.(2) Man, aged 21. Painted on forehead as above. Smeared over chest and upper eye lids.(3) Man, aged 35. White spot painted on forehead.(4) Man, aged 30. Hair of head and beard cut short owing to death of grandfather.(5) Boy, aged 12. Shock head of hair, cut very short all over owing to death of grandfather.(6) Girl, aged 8. Hair shaved on top, back and sides of head, and in median strip from vertex to forehead.(7) Boy, aged 6. White spot painted between eyebrows. Hair shaved on top and sides of head, and in median strip from vertex to forehead. Hair brought forward in fringe over forehead on either side of median strip, and hanging down back of neck.(8) Male child, aged 18 months. White spot painted between eyebrows. Shaved on top and sides of head.Todupuzha Vellāla.—For the following note, I am indebted to Mr. N. Subramani Aiyar. Besides the Nanchinād Vellālas, there are, in Travancore, two sections of the Vellāla caste, inhabiting the mountainous Todupuzha tāluk. These are the Tenkanchi and Kumbakōnam Vellālas. The former are known by the popular name of Anjuttilkar, or the five hundred, and the latter are designated Munnutilkar, or the three hundred, in reference to the number of families which originally settled in the taluk. Like the Nanchinād Vellālas, they take the title of Pillai, and, in special cases, the honorific prefix Kanakku.The Tenkanchi Vellālas appear to have dwelt originally in the Tenkāsi taluk of the Tinnevelly district, and to have emigrated, as the legend goes, on account of the demand of a Vaduka ruler for the hand of a member of their community in marriage. The Vadakkumkur Rājas were ruling over Todupuzha at the time of their migration, and afforded them a safe asylum. The Kumbakōnam Vellālas believe that they emigrated to Travancore about the commencement of the Malabar era from Kumbakōnam in the Tanjore district. Both divisions speak Malayālam, but there are clear indications in their speech that their mother-tongue was once Tamil, and they always use that language in their ceremonial writings. The Anjuttilkar women haveadopted the dress and ornaments of the Nāyars. Both sections wear the tuft of hair in front, but the Munnutilkar women do not tie the hair on the left side like the Nāyars and Anjuttilkars, but behind like the Pāndi Vellālas. Nor do the Anjuttilkar women wear a white dress like the Tenkanchis, but a coloured cloth, sixteen cubits in length, in orthodox Tamil fashion. Again, while the Tenkanchi women largely resort to the todu and other Nāyar ornaments, the Kumbakōnam women are more conservative, and wear only the pampadam and melidu, though they sometimes wear jewels, such as the nāgapata tāli for the neck. Both sections are Saivites, in the sense that they abstain from flesh and fish.Their principal occupation is agriculture. They worship the two mountain deities Bhadrakāli and Durgā. In the Kirikkot muri of the Karikkodpropertythere is a temple dedicated to Siva or Unnamalanathar, with a large amount of property attached to it. This belongs to the Tenkanchi Vellālas, and a Malayālam Brāhman performs the priestly functions. The Kumbakōnam Vellālas have their own temples, such as the Ankalamma koil, Annamala matam, Vīrabhadran koil, etc., and worship, besides the principal gods of the Hindu pantheon, such minor deities as Vīrabhadran, Karuppan, Bhairavan, Māriamman, and Muttaramman. The priests of both sections are East Coast Brāhmans, who live in the Todupuzha tāluk. As their profession is regarded by other Brāhmans as degrading, they, especially in the case of the Kumbakōnam Vellālas, perform their duties stealthily. The headman of the Kumbakōnam section lives in the Periyakulam tāluk of the Madura district, and, by his order, an image of Siva is worshipped at their homes.Divorce is not permitted on any ground, and, in ancient days, widow remarriage was forbidden. There is a legend that a woman of this caste, who was a friend of the daughter of a certain Vadakkumkur Rājah, was so aggrieved at the news of her newly married husband’s death that, at her intercession, the Rājah issued a proclamation permitting the remarriage of widows. If no husband has been found for a girl before she reaches puberty, certain propitiatory rites have to be performed, at which one of her female relations represents her. On the fourth day of the marriage ceremony, the bride and bridegroom, before they bathe, rub each other’s bodies with oil, and, going to a large caldron containing water, throw a gold and silver ring into it, and pick them out three times. Inheritance of both sections is from father to son (makkathāyam). A sambandham alliance does not confer any rite of inheritance.The names of both sections are such as are unknown among Nāyars,e.g., Sivalingam, Arunāchalam, Chidambaram, Arumukham. The Tenkanchis are considered to be higher in the social scale than the Kumbakōnam section, as they observe only twelve days’ death pollution, whereas the latter are under pollution for sixteen days. The Tenkanchis may enter the temple, and, like Nāyars, stand on the left side of the inner shrine, whereas the Kumbakōnam Vellālas may proceed only as far as the balikkalpura, or out-house of the temple, and not enter the nalambalam. Again, butter-milk is freely received by Brāhmans from the Tenkanchis, but not from members of the Kumbakōnam section. While Pāndi Vellālas will not receive food from the Tenkanchis, or give their daughters in marriage to them, the latter will not intermarry with the Nānchinād Vellālas.Togata.—The Togatas are Telugu weavers, most numerous in the Cuddapah district, who manufacture the coarsest kind of cotton cloths, such as are worn by the poorer classes. They are generally Vaishnavites, wear the sacred thread, and have for their priests Vaishnava Brāhmans or Sātānis. They eat flesh, and their widows are allowed to remarry. Writing concerning the Togatas in 1807, Buchanan states53that “widows cannot marry again, but are not expected to kill themselves. The Panchanga, or village astrologer, attends at births, marriages, funerals, at the ceremonies performed in honour of their deceased parents, and at the building of a new house, and on each occasion gets a fee of one fanam, or eight pence. On other occasions, when a weaver wants to pray, he calls in a Satanana, who reads something in an unknown language, and gives the votary some holy water, which he consecrates by pouring it on the head of a small image that he carries about for the purpose.”As regards their origin, some Togatas claim to be sons of Chaudēsvari, who threw some rice on to the fire, from which sprang a host of warriors, whose descendants they are. Others give Pūppandaja Rishi as the name of their ancestor. Concerning Chaudēsvari, Mr. Francis writes as follows.54“Connected with the margosa tree (Melia Azadirachta) is the worship of Chaudēsvari, the goddess of the Togata caste of weavers. She is supposed to reside in margosa trees, and either the tree itself, or a stone representing the goddess and placed at its foot, is worshipped by the Togatas at certain seasons, such as the Telugu New Year Day. Apparently the other weaver castes take no share in the ceremonies. They consist largely of animal sacrifices. Nevertheless, aparticular class of Brāhmans, called Nandavarīkula Brāhmans, take a prominent part in the festival. This name Nandavarīkula is derived from the village of Nandavaram in Kurnool, and doubtless many stories are prevalent there about this sub-division. The account given at Tadpatri, where they are fairly numerous, is as follows. Once upon a time, a king from Southern India went on a pilgrimage with his wife to Benares. While there, he unwittingly incurred a nameless but heinous pollution. Horrified, he applied to some Brāhmans there to purify him, promising them half his kingdom in return. They asked for some tangible record of this promise, and the king called upon the goddess Chaudēsvari, who had a temple near by, to witness his oath. The purification was effected, and he departed home. Later on the Brāhmans came south, and asked for the fulfilment of his promise. The king declared that he could not remember having made any such undertaking. The Brāhmans accordingly went to Benares, and asked Chaudēsvari to come south, and bear witness to the king’s oaths. She agreed, on the usual condition that they should go in front, and not look back at her as she came. As happens in other stories of the same kind, they are said to have broken the condition. At Nandavaram they looked back, and the goddess instantly stopped, and remained immoveable. A temple was built for her there, and the Brāhmans remained in the south, and still take part in the worship of Chaudēsvari which the Togatas inaugurate, even though she is not one of the Hindu pantheon, and delights in animal sacrifice. At Tadpatri other castes besides the Togatas help at the festival.”Though Chaudēsvari is the patron god of the Togatas, they also worship Poleramma, Ellamma, Kotamma, and other minor deities.The original occupation of the Togatas is said to have been dyeing, but, at the present day, owing to the depression in the hand-loom weaving industry, a large number have taken to cultivation.Like many other Telugu castes, they have exogamous septs, of which the following are examples:—Pātha, old.Kambhapu, pillar.Nīli, indigo.Madaka, plough.Bana, pot.Jīlakara, cummin seed.Annam, food.Mékala, goat.Gōpalam, alms.Sāmanthi,Chrysanthemum indicum.Gurram, horse.Perumāl, a god.Bandāri, treasurer?Gudditi.Pūjāris (priests) for temple worship are always elected from the Perumāl sept, and caste messengers from the Bandāri sept, if they are represented in a settlement. Torches are generally carried, at processions, by men of the Gudditi sept. Members of the Gurram sept are not allowed to ride on horseback.The panchāyat (village council) system is in vogue, but, in some places, a headman is selected, as occasion requires. In their marriage and funeral ceremonies, the Togatas closely follow the Telugu standard Purānic form of ceremonial. The dead are buried in a recumbent posture. On the last day of the death rites, the Sātāni gives arrack (liquor) to the Togatas, as to the Padma Sālēs, in lieu of holy water (thirtham).Tohala.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a small class of Oriya hill cultivators and petty traders in the Ganjam Agency.Tolagari.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a sub-caste of Mutrācha. In the North Arcot Manual the Tolagaris are described as a smallcultivating caste, who were formerly hunters, like the Pālayakkārans.Tolar(Wolf).—An exogamous sept of Halēpaik. The equivalent Tolana occurs as a sept of Mogēr.Tōlkollan.—The Tōlkollans or Tōlans (skin people) are summed up in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as “leather workers and dyers, and also gymnasts and teachers of gymnastics. They are also called Vatti Kurup, Chāya Kurup, and Vil Kurup. Their title is Kurup.” The Tōlkollans are stated55to be “blacksmiths by caste, who abandoned their hereditary trade for leather work, and they are chiefly employed by Māppillas. One peculiar custom in this caste is that two or more brothers may have one wife in common. Only those in good circumstances indulge in the luxury of a private wife. The following information furnished by Mr. S. Vaidyanadha Aiyar, the headmaster of the School of Commerce, Calicut, gives some information regarding leather work in Malabar:—(a) Boots and shoes of country make and English pattern.(b) Harness making.(c) Native shoes (ceruppu). These are of the special pattern peculiar to Malabar, and are largely used by all classes of the Hindu and Māppilla communities. The Arabs who visit this coast once a year purchase a considerable number to take back with them. The price of a pair varies from Rs. 1–8–0 to Rs. 5. Those with ornamental gold lace work cost from Rs. 10 to Rs. 50. These shoes are generally used by well-to-do Māppillas. White of egg is used to give a creaking sound to the shoes. This work is mainly done by Thōlperunkollansand Māppillas, and the latter show more skill in finish and ornamental work.(d) Knife sheaths. Almost every Nāyar, Tiyan and Māppilla carries a knife about a foot in length, and there is a demand for leather sheaths. These are made by Pānans as well as by Thōlperunkollans and Māppillas.(e) Leather baskets are also made, and are largely used as receptacles for carrying pepper, paddy (rice), and other grain.(f) Winnowing fans are made of leather, and are used in pepper and paddy yards, etc.(g) Muttu ceruppu (clogs) are leather shoes with wooden soles. These are largely used during the rainy season.”Tollakkādan(one with a big hole in the lobes of his ears).—Taken, at the census, 1901, as a sub-caste of Shānān, as those returning the name, who are vendors of husked rice in Madras, used the Shānān title Nādān. The equivalent Tollakādu was returned as a sub-division of Konga Vellāla.Tōl Mēstri.—A sub-division of Semmān.Tondamān.—It is stated, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, that the Tondamāns are “also called Sunnāmbukkāran (q.v.), a Tamil caste of lime (chunam) burners found only in the Tinnevelly district. They are said to be a branch of the Kallans who migrated to Tinnevelly from Pudukkōttai, or the Tondamān’s country. Its members are now drummers and pipers as well as lime-burners. Brāhmans are their purōhits, but they are not allowed to go into Hindu temples. They will eat in the houses of Maravans. Their title is Sōlagan.” It is noted, in the same report, that the Semmān caste “has two sub-divisions,Tondamānand Tōl-mēstri, and men of the former take wives from the latter, but menof the latter may not marry girls of the former.” Tondamān is the family name of the Rāja of Pudukkōttai, a Native State surrounded by the British districts of Tanjore, Madura, and Trichinopoly. The Rāja is the head of the Kallan caste. Copper coins, called amman kāsu, are current only within the State, and their greatest distribution is during Navarātri or Dusserah, when they are issued to the people with a dole of rice every day during the nine days of the festival. They bear on one side the word “Vijaya,” meaning victory, or more probably having reference to our faithful ally Vijaya Ragunātha Tondamān, in whose reign they were first struck, it is said in 1761, after the surrender of Pondicherry to the British.Tondamandalam.—The name of a sub-division of Vellāla, derived from Tondanādu, the ancient Pallava country.Tonti.—The Tontis are said to be cotton-weavers of Bengal, who have settled in Ganjam.56The name denotes threadmen, and the weaving of rough white cloths is the traditional occupation of the caste. All Tontis belong to a single gōtra named after Kāsyapa, one of the seven important rishis, and the priest of Parasurāma. Various bamsams or exogamous septs, the names of some of which occur also as titles, exist,e.g., Biswālo, Dasso, Pālo, Bono, Chondo, Parimaniko, Korono, Bēhara, and Mahāpātro. The marriage and death ceremonies conform to the standard Oriya type. On the fourth day of the marriage rites, a Bhondāri (barber) is presented with some beaten rice and sugar-candy in a new earthen pot. These are sold to those who have assembled, and the proceeds go to the Bhondāri.The corpse of a dead person is washed at the burning ground, instead of, in accordance with the common custom among other castes, at the house.Toppa Tāli.—A name applied to certain Vāniyans in the North Arcot district, owing to the peculiar tāli (marriage badge) which married women wear.Torai.—A title of various Oriya castes.Toreya.—The Toreyas are a Canarese class, living chiefly in the Tamil districts of Coimbatore and Salem. They are said to have been originally fishermen and palanquin bearers, and the name is derived from turai, a river ghāt. Most of them are now cultivators, especially of the betel vine (Piper betle). Those whom I examined at Coimbatore were earning their living as betel and sugar-cane cultivators, vendors of tobacco, bakers, cloth merchants, contractors, petty traders, and police constables.By the Coimbatore Toreyas, the following endogamous divisions were returned:—Elai, leaf. Betel cultivators.Chunam, lime. Lime burners.Gāzul, glass bangle. The Toreya caste is said to have originated from the bangles of Machyagandhi or Gandhavati, the daughter of a fisherman on the Jumna. She was married to king Shantanu of Hastinapūr, who was one of the ancestors of the heroes of the Mahābhārata.Many exogamous septs exist among the Toreyas, of which the following are examples:—Belli, silver. May not wear silver toe-rings.Nāga, snake. The members of the sept, at times of marriage, worship ant-hills, which are the home of snakes.Alwar or Garuda.Chinnam, gold.Kansugaje, small bronze bells, tied to the legs when dancing.Urukathi, a kind of knife.Vajjira, diamond.Vasishta, a Hindu saint.Mogila, clouds.Onne (Pterocarpus Marsupium). Do not mark their foreheads with the juice from the trunk of this tree.Kuzhal, the flute played by shepherd boys and snake charmers. If the sound thereof is heard during a meal, what remains of the food should be thrown away.Rākshasa, a giant. Do not celebrate the Dīpāvali festival in honour of the victory over, and death of, a rākshasa.Erumai, buffalo.The headman of the caste is called Ejaman, who has under him an officer entitled Dalavayi. The caste messenger bears the name of Kondikar. These three offices are hereditary. The Ejaman presides at council meetings which are held at the temple of the caste. The eldest member of each family is entitled to a seat on the council. Those who come late to a meeting thereof prostrate themselves before the assembly. Witnesses before the council have to take an oath, which is administered by the Kondikar. He makes the witness stand within a circle drawn on the ground, and makes him repeat the formula “Before God and the elders assembled, with the sky above and the earth beneath, I will state only the truth.” The Kondikar then takes up a pinch of earth, and puts it on the head of the witness. For merely threatening to beat a person with shoes, the offender has to feed twenty-five castemen. If he takes the shoes in his hands he must feed fifty, and, if heactually resorts to beating with them, he has to feed a hundred men. In addition, the culprit has to pay a small fine, and both parties have to be purified at the temple. A similar punishment is enforced for beating, or threatening to beat with a broom. For adultery the guilty person is excommunicated, and is admitted back into the caste only after the death of one of the parties concerned. He then has to feed a large number of castemen, or pay a money fine, and, prostrating himself before the assembly, he is beaten with a tamarind switch. He further makes obeisance to the Ejaman, and washes his feet. The Ejaman then purifies him by a small piece of burning camphor in his mouth.When a married girl reaches puberty, she is taken to her father’s house, and her husband constructs a hut with branches ofFicus glomerata. On the last day of her confinement therein, the hut is pulled down, and the girl sets fire to it. The house is purified, and the female relations go to the houses of the Ejaman and caste people, and invite them to be present at a ceremonial. A small quantity of turmeric paste is stuck on the doors of the houses of all who are invited. The relations and members of the caste carry betel, and other articles, on trays in procession through the streets. The girl is seated on a plank, and the trays are placed in front of her. Rice flour, fruits, betel, etc., are tied in her cloth, and she is taken into the house. In the case of an unmarried girl, the hut is built by her maternal uncle.Marriage is always celebrated at the house of the bridegroom, as there is a legend that a Rājah belonging to the Toreya caste had a son, who was taken to the house of his bride elect, and there murdered. Thebridegroom’s father and relations go to the house of the bride, and make presents of money, cloths, ornaments, etc. They also have to make obeisance to, and feed five married women sumptuously. Pandals (booths) are constructed at the houses of both the bride and bridegroom. Five married women go, on behalf of each of the contracting parties, to their houses, and pound rice there. On the second day, five such women fetch water from a tank, and bathe the bride and bridegroom respectively. The ten women then go to the potter’s house, and bring five decorated pots. Three of these are taken to a tank, and filled with water. On the following day, the bridegroom and his sister take the two remaining pots to the tank, and fill them with water. The five pots are placed in the pandal, and represent the household gods. The relations of the bridegroom take twelve kinds of ornaments, a new cloth, flowers, etc., to the house of the Ejaman, and go with him to the bride’s house. She is then bathed, and decked with finery. A Brāhman does pūja (worship) and ties on her forehead a mandaikettu or bashingham (chaplet) made of gold leaf or tinsel. She is then carried in procession to the house of the bridegroom. Meanwhile, the Brāhman ties a mandaikettu on the forehead of the bridegroom, who puts on the sacred thread, and sits within the pandal, holding a katar (dagger) in his hand, and closed in by a screen. The bride goes thrice round this screen, and the Brāhman does pūja and gives advice (upadēsam) to the couple. The screen is then lowered slightly, and the bride and bridegroom garland each other. The bride’s parents place a few gingelly (Sesamum) seeds in the hand of the bridegroom, and pour water thereon, saying that their daughter belongs to him, and telling him to take care of her. The tāli, after being blessed by thoseassembled, is given by the Brāhman to the bridegroom, who ties it on the bride’s neck. The screen is then removed, and the couple sit side by side. The sacred fire is lighted, their hands are linked together, and the ends of their cloths tied together. They then leave the pandal, and, placing their feet on a grindstone, look at the pole-star (Arundati). Entering the pandal once more, they sit therein, and the elders bless them by throwing rice coloured with turmeric over their heads. On the fourth day, they again sit within the pandal, and cooked rice, coloured white, red, yellow, green, and black, on five trays, and nine lighted wicks on a tray are waved before them. Five married men and women, holding a string, stand round them in a circle, within which is the bride’s brother with a twig of pīpal (Ficus religiosa). The bridegroom places his hands together, and small rice cakes are placed on the head, shoulders, bend of the elbows and knees, and between the fingers of the couple. They are then bathed, and, taking betel in their hands, bow to the four corners of the earth. The bridegroom makes a nāmam (Vaishnavite sect mark), or places vibhūti (sacred ashes) on the twelve posts of the pandal, and the bride places a little cooked rice and water before each post, to which camphor is burnt, and pūja done. They then start for the bride’s house, but the bride’s sister meets them at the entrance thereto, and will not allow them to go in until she has extracted a promise that their child shall marry hers. The bride proceeds to a tank, sowing some paddy (rice) on the way thither, and brings back a pot of water, with which she washes her husband’s hands and feet. Husband and wife then feed each other with a small quantity of rice and milk. Their hands are then cleaned, and the bride’s brother puts a gold ring on the finger of the bridegroom.A tray with betel leaves and areca nuts is brought, and the bridegroom ties three handfuls thereof in his cloth. The newly married couple then worship at the temple. On the fifth day, they carry the earthen pots to a river, and, on their return, five married women are worshipped and fed. Five men have to come forward as sureties for the good behaviour of the couple, and declare before those assembled that they will hold themselves responsible for it. In the evening the pair go to the bride’s house, and rub oil over each other’s head before bathing in turmeric water. On the following day they repair to the house of the bridegroom.The corpse of a dead Toreya is placed in a pandal constructed of cocoanut leaves and stems of the milk-hedge (Euphorbia Tirucalli). Sect marks are placed on the foreheads of the corpse and the widow. The son of the deceased dons the sacred thread. The funeral ceremonies resemble, in many particulars, those of the Oddēs. A mound is piled up over the grave. A Paraiyan places a small twig of the arka plant (Calotropis gigantea) in three corners of the grave, leaving out the north-east corner, and the son puts a small coin on each twig. As he goes round the grave with a water-pot and fire-brand, his maternal uncle, who stands at the head of the grave, makes holes in the pot. On the third, fifth, seventh, or ninth day, the widow, dressed in new cloths, and bedecked with ornaments and flowers, is taken to the burial-ground, with offerings of milk, ghī (clarified butter), tender cocoanut, sandal, camphor, etc. Five small stones, smeared with turmeric and lime, are set up at the head of the grave, and worshipped. The widow goes thrice round the grave, and seats herself near the head thereof. Her brother holds up her arms, and one of her husband’s malerelations breaks her bangles. She breaks, and throws her tāli on the grave, with the flowers which adorn her. Her ornaments are removed, and she is covered with a cloth, and taken to a river, where she is rubbed with cow-dung and bathed. The son and other relatives go to the temple with butter and other articles. A Brāhman does pūja, and shuts the doors of the temple. The son, with his back to the temple, throws a little butter on the doors, which are then opened by the Brāhman. This is done thrice. On the seventh day, pollution is removed by sprinkling holy water, and the caste people are fed. A widow remains in seclusion (gōsha) for three months. Srādh (memorial ceremony) is performed.The Toreyas worship both Siva and Vishnu, but consider Ayodhya Rāman as their special deity, and sacrifice sheep and fowls to Koriamma.Toreya.—A sub-division of the Badagas of the Nīlgiris.Tōta(garden).—Recorded as a sub-division of cultivating Balijas, and an exogamous sept of Bōya, Chenchu, Vāda Balija (or Mila), Mutrācha and Bonthuk Savara. The equivalent Tōta occurs as an exogamous sept of Kāpu and Yānādi. Tōta Dēvaru, or garden god, is the name of an exogamous sept of the Tigala gardeners and cultivators.Tōtakūra(Amarantus gangeticus).—An exogamous sept of Kamma.Toththala or Tottadi.—A sub-division of Velama.Tōti.—The Tōti or Totti is one of the village communal servants. The name has been derived from tondu, to dig, or tott, to go round, as the Tōti is the purveyor of news, and has to summon people to appear before the village council. The functions of this useful person tothe community have been summed up as follows by a district official.57“This individual has all the dirty work of the village allotted to him. He is of the lowest caste, and hence makes no scruple of doing any manner of work that he may be called upon to perform. The removal and sepulture of unclaimed dead bodies, the cleansing of choultries, rest-houses and the like, where travellers carrying infectious diseases might have halted, and other gruesome duties are entrusted to him. In spite of all this, theTōtiis one of the most trusted of the humbler servants of the village community. Considering his humble status and emoluments, which average between Rs. 3 and Rs. 4 a month, his honesty with regard to pecuniary matters is wonderful. He may be trusted with untold wealth, as is often done when he is the sole custodian of the revenue collections of his village to the tune of several thousands at a time, when on their way from the collecting officers to the Government Treasury.” Testimony is borne to the industry of the Tōti in the proverb that if you work like a Tōti, you can enjoy the comforts of a king.In the Madras Census Report, 1891, Tōti is returned as a sub-division of Chakkiliyan. The Tōti of Mysore is defined by Mr. L. Rice58as a menial among the village servants, a deputy talāri, who is employed to watch the crops from the growing crop to the granary.Odiya Tōti is a Tamil synonym for Oriya Haddis employed as scavengers in municipalities in the Tamil country.Tottiyan.—In the Census Report, 1901, Mr. W. Francis writes that the Tottiyans are “Telugucultivators. The Tottiyans or Kambalattāns of the Tanjore district are, however, said to be vagrants, and to live by pig-breeding, snake-charming, and begging. So are the sub-division called Kāttu Tottiyans in Tinnevelly. The headman among the Tinnevelly Tottiyans is called the Mandai Periadanakkāran or Sērvaikāran. Their marriages are not celebrated in their houses, but in pandals (booths) of green leaves erected for the purpose on the village common. However wealthy the couple may be, the only grain which they may eat at the wedding festivities is either cumbu (Pennisetum typhoideum) or horse-gram (Dolichos biflorus). The patron deities of the caste are Jakkamma and Bommakka, two women who committed sati. The morality of their women is loose. The custom of marrying boys to their paternal aunt’s or maternal uncle’s daughter, however old she may be, also obtains, and in such cases the bridegroom’s father is said to take upon himself the duty of begetting children to his own son. Divorce is easy, and remarriage is freely allowed. They offer rice and arrack (alcoholic liquor) to their ancestors. The Kāttu Tottiyans will eat jackals, rats, and the leavings of other people. Tottiya women will not eat in the houses of Brāhmans, but no explanation of this is forthcoming. The men wear silver anklets on both legs, and also a bracelet upon one of the upper arms, both of which practices are uncommon, while the women wear bangles only on the left arm, instead of on both as usual. Some of the Zamindars in Madura belong to this caste. The caste title is Nāyakkan.” At the census, 1901, Kudulukkāran was returned as a sub-caste of the Tottiyans in Madura and Tinnevelly. The Urumikkāran, meaning those who play on the drum called urumi, are said to be Tottiyans in Madura and Paraiyans elsewhere.
Toda and phonograph.Toda and phonograph.At the census, 1901, 453 male and 354 female Todas were returned. In a note on the proportion of the sexes among the Todas, Mr. R. C. Punnett states50that “all who have studied the Todas are agreed upon the frequency of the practice (of infanticide) in earlier times. Marshall, writing in 1872, refers to the large amount of female infanticide in former years, but expresses his conviction that the practice had by that time died out. Marshall’s evidence is that of native assurance only. Dr. Rivers, who received the same assurance, is disinclined to place much confidence innative veracity with reference to this point, and, in view of the lack of encouragement which the practice receives from the Indian Government, this is not altogether surprising. The supposition of female infanticide, by accounting for the great disproportion in the numbers of the sexes, brings the Todas into harmony with what is known of the rest of mankind.” In summarising his conclusions, Mr. Punnett notes that:—(1) Among the Todas, males predominate greatly over females.(2) This preponderance is doubtless due to the practice of female infanticide, which is probably still to some extent prevalent.(3) The numerical preponderance of the males has been steadily sinking during recent years, owing probably to the check which foreign intercourse has imposed upon female infanticide.In connection with the death ceremonies of the Todas, Dr. Rivers notes that “soon after death the body is burnt, and the general name for the ceremony on this occasion is etvainolkedr, the first day funeral. After an interval, which may vary greatly in length, a second ceremony is performed, connected with certain relics of the deceased which have been preserved from the first occasion. The Toda name for this second funeral ceremony is marvainolkedr, the second day funeral, or ‘again which day funeral.’ The funeral ceremonies are open to all, and visitors are often invited by the Todas. In consequence, the funeral rites are better known, and have been more frequently described than any other features of Toda ceremonial. Like nearly every institution of the Todas, however, they have become known to Europeans under their Badaga names. The first funeral is called by the Badagas hase kedu, the fresh or greenfuneral, and the term ‘green funeral’ has not only become the generally recognised name among the European inhabitants of the Nilgiri hills, but has been widely adopted in anthropological literature. The second funeral is called by the Badagas bara kedu, the ‘dry funeral,’ and this term also has been generally adopted.” The various forms of the funeral ceremonies are discussed in detail by Dr. Rivers, and it must suffice to describe those at which we have been present as eye-witnesses.I had the opportunity of witnessing the second funeral of a woman who had died from smallpox two months previously. On arrival at a mand on the open downs about five miles from Ootacamund, we were conducted by a Toda guide to the margin of a dense shola, where we found two groups seated apart, consisting of (a) women, girls, and brown-haired female babies, round a camp fire; (b) men, boys, and male babies, carried, with marked signs of paternal affection, by their fathers. In a few minutes a murmuring sound commenced in the centre of the female group. Working themselves up to the necessary pitch, some of the women (near relatives of the deceased) commenced to cry freely, and the wailing and lachrymation gradually spread round the circle, until all, except little girls and babies who were too young to be affected, were weeping and mourning, some for fashion, others from genuine grief. In carrying out the orthodox form of mourning, the women first had a good cry to themselves, and then, as their emotions became more intense, went round the circle, selecting partners with whom to share companionship in grief. Gradually the group resolved itself into couplets of mourners, each pair with their heads in contact, and giving expression to their emotions in unison. Beforeseparating to select a new partner, each couple saluted by bowing the head, and raising thereto the feet of the other, covered by the putkūli. [I have seen women rapidly recover from the outward manifestations of grief, and clamour for money.] From time to time the company of mourners was reinforced by late arrivals from distant mands, and, as each detachment, now of men and now of women, came in view across the open downs, one could not fail to be reminded of the gathering of the clans on some Highland moor. The resemblance was heightened by the distant sound as of pipers, produced by the Kota band (with two police constables in attendance), composed of four Kotas, who made a weird noise with drums and flutes as they drew near the scene of action. The band, on arrival, took up a position close to the mourning women. As each detachment arrived, the women, recognising their relatives, came forward and saluted them in the manner customary among Todas by falling at their feet, and placing first the right and then the left foot on their head. Shortly after the arrival of the band, signals were exchanged, by waving of putkūlis, between the assembled throng and a small detachment of men some distance off. A general move was made, and animpromptuprocession formed, with men in front, band in the middle, and women bringing up the rear. A halt was made opposite a narrow gap leading into the shola; men and women sat apart as before; and the band walked round, discoursing unsweet music. A party of girls went off to bring fire from the spot just vacated for use in the coming ceremonial, but recourse was finally had to a box of matches lent by one of our party. At this stage we noticed a woman go up to the eldest son of the deceased, who was seated apart from theother men, and would not be comforted in spite of her efforts to console him. On receipt of a summons from within the shola, the assembled Toda men and ourselves swarmed into it by a narrow track leading to a small clear space round a big tree, from a hole cut at the base of which an elderly Toda produced a piece of the skull of the dead woman, wrapped round with long tresses of her hair. It now became the men’s turn to exhibit active signs of grief, and all of one accord commenced to weep and mourn. Amid the scene of lamentation, the hair was slowly unwrapt from off the skull, and burned in an iron ladle, from which a smell as of incense arose. A bamboo pot of ghī was produced, with which the skull was reverently anointed, and placed in a cloth spread on the ground. To this relic of the deceased the throng of men, amid a scene of wild excitement, made obeisance by kneeling down before it, and touching it with their foreheads. The females were not permitted to witness this stage of the proceedings, with the exception of one or two near relatives of the departed one, who supported themselves sobbing against the tree. The ceremonial concluded, the fragment of skull, wrapt in the cloth, was carried into the open, where, as men and boys had previously done, women and girls made obeisance to it. A procession was then again formed, and marched on until a place was reached, where were two stone-walled kraals, large and small. Around the former the men, and within the latter the women, took up their position, the men engaging in chit-chat, and the women in mourning, which after a time ceased, and they too engaged in conversation. A party of men, carrying the skull, still in the cloth, set out for a neighbouring shola, where a kēdu of several other dead Todas was being celebrated; and a longpause ensued, broken eventually by the arrival of the other funeral party, the men advancing in several lines, with arms linked, and crying out U, hah! U, hah, hah! in regular time. This party brought with it pieces of the skulls of a woman and two men, which were placed, wrapt in cloths, on the ground, saluted, and mourned over by the assembled multitude. At this stage a small party of Kotas arrived, and took up their position on a neighbouring hill, waiting, vulture-like, for the carcase of the buffalo which was shortly to be slain. Several young men now went off across the hill in search of buffaloes, and speedily re-appeared, driving five buffaloes before them with sticks. As soon as the beasts approached a swampy marsh at the foot of the hill on which the expectant crowd of men was gathered together, two young men of athletic build, throwing off their putkūlis, made a rush down the hill, and tried to seize one of the buffaloes by the horns, with the result that one of them was promptly thrown. The buffalo escaping, one of the remaining four was quickly caught by the horns, and, with arms interlocked, the men brought it down on its knees, amid a general scuffle. In spite of marked objection and strenuous resistance on the part of the animal—a barren cow—it was, by means of sticks freely applied, slowly dragged up the hill, preceded by the Kota band, and with a Toda youth pulling at its tail. Arrived at the open space between the kraals, the buffalo, by this time thoroughly exasperated, and with blood pouring from its nostrils, had a cloth put on its back, and was despatched by a blow on the poll with an axe deftly wielded by a young and muscular man. On this occasion no one was badly hurt by the sacrificial cow, though one man was seen washing his legs in the swamp after the preliminary struggle withthe beast. But Colonel Ross-King narrates how he saw a man receive a dangerous wound in the neck from a thrust of the horn, which ripped open a wide gash from the collar-bone to the ear. With the death of the buffalo, the last scene, which terminated the strange rites, commenced; men, women, and children pressing forward and jostling one another in their eagerness to salute the dead beast by placing their hands between its horns, and weeping and mourning in pairs; the facial expression of grief being mimicked when tears refused to flow spontaneously.The ceremonial connected with the final burning of the relics and burial of the ashes at the stone circle (azaram) are described in detail by Dr. Rivers.A few days after the ceremony just described, I was invited to be present at the funeral of a young girl who had died of smallpox five days previously. I proceeded accordingly to the scene of the recent ceremony, and there, in company with a small gathering of Todas from the neighbouring mands, awaited the arrival of the funeral cortége, the approach of which was announced by the advancing strains of Kota music. Slowly the procession came over the brow of the hill; the corpse, covered by a cloth, on a rude ladder-like bier, borne on the shoulders of four men, followed by two Kota musicians; the mother carried hidden within a sack; relatives and men carrying bags of rice and jaggery, and bundles of wood of the kiaz tree (Eugenia Arnottiana) for the funeral pyre. Arrived opposite a small hut, which had been specially built for the ceremonial, the corpse was removed from the bier, laid on the ground, face upwards, outside the hut, and saluted by men, women, and children, with the same manifestations of grief as on the previous occasion. Soon the men moved away to a short distance, and engagedin quiet conversation, leaving the females to continue mourning round the corpse, interrupted from time to time by the arrival of detachments from distant mands, whose first duty was to salute the dead body. Meanwhile a near female relative of the dead child was busily engaged inside the hut, collecting together in a basket small measures of rice, jaggery, sago, honey-comb, and the girl’s simple toys, which were subsequently to be burned with the corpse. The mourning ceasing after a time, the corpse was placed inside the hut, and followed by the near relatives, who there continued to weep over it. A detachment of men and boys, who had set out in search of the buffaloes which were to be sacrificed, now returned driving before them three cows, which escaped from their pursuers to rejoin the main herd. A long pause ensued, and, after a very prolonged drive, three more cows were guided into a marshy swamp, where one of them was caught by the horns, and dragged reluctantly, but with little show of fight, to the strains of Kota drum and flute, in front of the hut, where it was promptly despatched by a blow on the poll. The corpse was now brought from within the hut, and placed, face upwards, with its feet resting on the forehead of the buffalo, whose neck was decorated with a silver chain, such as is worn by Todas round the loins, as no bell was available, and the horns were smeared with butter. Then followed frantic manifestations of grief, amid which the unhappy mother fainted. Mourning over, the corpse was made to go through a form of ceremony, resembling that which is performed during pregnancy with the first child. A small boy, three years old, was selected from among the relatives of the dead girl, and taken by his father in search of a certain grass (Andropogon Schœnanthus) and a twig of a shrub(Sophora glauca), which were brought to the spot where the corpse was lying. The mother of the dead child then withdrew one of its hands from the putkūli, and the boy placed the grass and twig in the hand, and limes, plantains, rice, jaggery, honey-comb, and butter in the pocket of the putkūli, which was then stitched with needle and thread in a circular pattern. The boy’s father then took off his son’s putkūli, and replaced it so as to cover him from head to foot. Thus covered, the boy remained outside the hut till the morning of the morrow, watched through the night by near relatives of himself and his dead bride. [On the occasion of the funeral of an unmarried lad, a girl is in like manner selected, covered with her putkūli from head to foot, and a metal vessel filled with jaggery, rice, etc., to be subsequently burnt on the funeral pyre, placed for a short time within the folds of the putkūli. Thus covered, the girl remains till next morning, watched through the dreary hours of the night by relatives. The same ceremony is performed over the corpse of a married woman who has not borne children, the husband acting as such for the last time, in the vain hope that the woman may produce issue in heaven.] The corpse was borne away to the burning-ground within the shola, and, after removal of some of the hair by the mother of the newly wedded boy, burned, with face upwards, amid the music of the Kota band, the groans of the assembled crowd squatting on the ground, and the genuine grief of the nearest relatives. The burning concluded, a portion of the skull was removed from the ashes, and handed over to the recently made mother-in-law of the dead girl, and wrapped up with the hair in the bark of the tūd tree (Meliosma pungens). A second buffalo, which, properly speaking, should have been slain beforethe corpse was burnt, was then sacrificed, and rice and jaggery were distributed among the crowd, which dispersed, leaving behind the youthful widower and his custodians, who, after daybreak, partook of a meal of rice, and returned to their mands; the boy’s mother taking with her the skull and hair to her mand, where it would remain until the celebration of the second funeral. No attention is paid to the ashes after cremation, and they are left to be scattered by the winds.A further opportunity offered itself to be present at the funeral of an elderly woman on the open downs not far from Paikāra, in connection with which certain details possess some interest. The corpse was, at the time of our arrival, laid out on a rude bier within an improvised arbour covered with leaves and open at each end, and tended by some of the female relatives. At some little distance, a conclave of Toda men, who rose of one accord to greet us, was squatting in a circle, among whom were many venerable white-turbaned elders of the tribe, protected from the scorching sun by palm-leaf umbrellas. Amid much joking, and speech-making by the veterans, it was decided that, as the eldest son of the deceased woman was dead, leaving a widow, this daughter-in-law should be united to the second son, and that they should live together as man and wife. On the announcement of the decision, the bridegroom-elect saluted the principal Todas present by placing his head on their feet, which were sometimes concealed within the ample folds of the putkūli. At the funeral of a married woman, three ceremonies must, I was told, be performed, if possible, by a daughter or daughter-in-law, viz.:—(1) Tying a leafy branch of the tiviri shrub (Atylosia Candolleana) in the putkūli of the corpse;(2) Tying balls of thread and cowry shells on the arm of the corpse, just above the elbow;(3) Setting fire to the funeral pyre, which was, on the present occasion, done by lighting a rag fed with ghī with a match.The buffalo capture took place amid the usual excitement, and with freedom from accident; and, later in the day, the stalwart buffalo catchers turned up at the travellers’ bungalow for apourboirein return, as they said, for treating us to a good fight. The beasts selected for sacrifice were a full-grown cow and a young calf. As they were dragged near to the corpse, now removed from the arbour, butter was smeared over the horns, and a bell tied round the neck. The bell was subsequently removed by Kotas, in whose custody, it was said, it was to remain till the next day funeral. The death-blow, or rather series of blows, having been delivered with the butt end of an axe, the feet of the corpse were placed at the mouth of the buffalo. In the case of a male corpse, the right hand is made to clasp the horns. [It is recorded by Dr. Rivers that, at the funeral of a male, men dance after the buffalo is killed. In the dancing a tall pole, called tadri or tadrsi, decorated with cowry shells, is used.] The customary mourning in couples concluded, the corpse, clad in four cloths, was carried on the stretcher to a clear space in the neighbouring shola, and placed by the side of the funeral pyre, which had been rapidly piled up. The innermost cloth was black in colour, and similar to that worn by a palol. Next to it came a putkūli decorated with blue and red embroidery, outside which again was a plain white cloth covered over by a red cotton cloth of European manufacture. Seated by the side of the pyre, near to which I was courteously invited to take a seat on the stump of a rhododendron,was an elderly relative of the dead woman, who, while watching the ceremonial, was placidly engaged in the manufacture of a holly walking-stick with the aid of a glass scraper. The proceedings were watched on behalf of Government by a forest guard, and a police constable who, with marked affectation, held his handkerchief to his nose throughout the ceremonial. The corpse was decorated with brass rings, and within the putkūli were stowed jaggery, a scroll of paper adorned with cowry shells, snuff and tobacco, cocoanuts, biscuits, various kinds of grain, ghī, honey, and a tin-framed looking-glass. A long purse, containing a silver Japanese yen and an Arcot rupee of the East India Company, was tied up in the putkūli close to the feet. These preliminaries concluded, the corpse was hoisted up, and swung three times over the now burning pyre, above which a mimic bier, made of slender twigs, was held. The body was then stripped of its jewelry, and a lock of hair cut off by the daughter-in-law for preservation, together with a fragment of the skull. I was told that, when the corpse is swung over the pyre, the dead person goes to amnodr (the world of the dead). In this connection, Dr. Rivers writes that “it would seem as if this ceremony of swinging the body over the fire was directly connected with the removal of the objects of value. The swinging over the fire would be symbolic of its destruction by fire; and this symbolic burning has the great advantage that the objects of value are not consumed, and are available for use another time. This is probably the real explanation of the ceremony, but it is not the explanation given by the Todas themselves. They say that long ago, about 400 years, a man supposed to be dead was put on the funeral pyre, and, revived by the heat, he was found to be alive, and was able to walk away from the funeral place. In consequenceof this, the rule was made that the body should always be swung three times over the fire before it is finally placed thereon.” [Colonel Marshall narrates the story that a Toda who had revived from what was thought his death-bed, has been observed parading about, very proud and distinguished looking, wearing the finery with which he had been bedecked for his own funeral, and which he would be permitted to carry till he really departed this life.] As soon as the pyre was fairly ablaze, the mourners, with the exception of some of the female relatives, left the shōla, and the men, congregating on the summit of a neighbouring hill, invoked their god. Four men, seized, apparently in imitation of the Kota Dēvādi, with divine frenzy, began to shiver and gesticulate wildly, while running blindly to and fro with closed eyes and shaking fists. They then began to talk in Malayālam, and offer an explanation of an extraordinary phenomenon, which had appeared in the form of a gigantic figure, which disappeared as suddenly as it appeared. At the annual ceremony of walking through fire (hot ashes) in that year, two factions arose owing to some dissension, and two sets of ashes were used. This seems to have annoyed the gods, and those concerned were threatened with speedy ruin. But the whole story was very vague. The possession by some Todas of a smattering of Malayālam is explained by the fact that, when grazing their buffaloes on the northern and western slopes of the Nīlgiris, they come in contact with Malayālam-speaking people from the neighbouring Malabar district.At the funeral of a man (a leper), the corpse was placed in front of the entrance to a circle of loose stones about a yard and a half in diameter, which had been specially constructed for the occasion. Just before the buffalo sacrifice, a man of the Paiki clan standing nearthe head of the corpse, dug a hole in the ground with a cane, and asked a Kenna who was standing on the other side, “Puzhut, Kenna,”51shall I throw the earth?—three times. To which the Kenna, answering, replied “Puzhut”—throw the earth—thrice. The Paiki then threw some earth three times over the corpse, and three times into the miniature kraal. It is suggested by Dr. Rivers that the circle was made to do duty for a buffalo pen, as the funeral was held at a place where there was no tu (pen), from the entrance of which earth could be dug up.Several examples of laments relating to the virtues and life of the deceased, which are sung or recited in the course of the funeral ceremonies, are given by Dr. Rivers. On the occasion of the reproduction of a lament in my phonograph, two young women were seen to be crying bitterly. The selection of the particular lament was unfortunate, as it had been sung at their father’s funeral. The reproduction of the recitation of a dead person’s sins at a Badaga funeral quickly restored them to a state of cheerfulness.The following petition to the Collector of the Nilgiris on the subject of buffalo sacrifice may be quoted as a sign of the times, when the Todas employ petition-writers to express their grievances:—“According to our religious custom for the long period, we are bringing forward of our killing buffaloes without any irregular way. But, in last year, when the late Collector came to see the said place, by that he ordered to the Todas first not to keep the buffaloes without feeding in the kraal, and second he ordered to kill each for every day, and to clear away the buffaloes, and not to keep the buffaloes without food.We did our work according to his orders, and this excellent order was an ample one. Now this ——, a chief of the Todas, son of ——, a deceased Toda, the above man joined with the moniagar of —— village, joined together, and, dealing with bribes, now they arose against us, and doing this great troubles on us, and also, by this great trouble, one day Mr. —— came for shooting snapes (snipe) by that side. By chance one grazing buffalo came to him, push him by his horns very forcely, and wounded him on his leg. By the help of another gentleman who came with him he escaped, or he would have die at the moment. Now the said moniagar and —— joined together, want to finish the funeral to his late father on the 18th instant. For this purpose they are going to shut the buffaloes without food in the kraal on the 18th instant at 10 o’clock. They are going to kill the buffaloes on the 19th instant at 4 o’clock in the evening. But this is a great sin against god. But we beg your honour this way. That is, let them leave the buffaloes in the grazing place, and ask them to catch and kill them at the same moment. And also your honour cannot ordered them to keep them in the kraal without food. And, if they will desire to kill the buffaloes in this way, these buffaloes will come on us, and also on the other peoples one who, coming to see funs on those day, will kill them all by his anxious. And so we the Todas begs your honour to enquire them before the 18th, the said funeral ceremony commencing, and not to grant the above orders to them.”A Whit Monday at Paikāra was given up to an exhibition of sports and games, whereof the most exciting and interesting was a burlesque representation of a Toda funeral by boys and girls. A Toda, who wasfond of his little joke, applied the term pacchai kēdu (green funeral) to the corpses of the flies entrapped by a viscous catch’em-alive-oh on the bungalow table. To the mock funeral rites arrived a party of youths, as from a distant mand, and crying out U, hah, in shrill mimicry of their elders. The lad who was to play the leading part of sacrificial buffalo, stripping off his putkūli, disappeared from sight over the brow of a low hillock. Above this eminence his bent and uplifted upper extremities shortly appeared as representatives of the buffalo horns. At sight thereof, there was a wild rush of small boys to catch him, and a mimic struggle took place, while the buffalo was dragged, amid good-tempered scuffling, kicks, and shouting, to the spot where the corpse should have been. This spot was, in the absence of a pseudo-dead body or stage dummy, indicated by a group of little girls, who had sat chatting together till the boy-beast arrived, when they touched foreheads, and went, with due solemnity, through the orthodox observance of mourning in couples. The buffalo was slain by a smart tap on the back of the head with a cloth, which did duty for an axe. As soon as the convulsive movements and twitchings of the death struggle were over, the buffalo, without waiting for an encore, retired behind the hillock once more, in order that the rough and tumble fight, which was evidently the chief charm of the game, might be repeated. The buffalo boy later on came in second in a flat race, and he was last seen protecting us from a mischievous-looking member of his herd, which was grazing on the main-road. Toda buffaloes, it may be noted, are not at all popular with members of the Ootacamund Hunt, as both horses and riders from time to time receive injuries from their horns, when they come in collision.While the funeral game was in progress, the men showed off their prowess at a game (eln),52corresponding to the English tip-cat, which is epidemic at a certain season in the London bye-streets. It is played with a bat like a broomstick, and a cylindrical piece of wood pointed at both ends. The latter is propped up against a stone, and struck with the bat. As it flies off the stone, it is hit to a distance with the bat, and caught (or missed) by the out fields.At the Muttanād mand, we were treated to a further exhibition of games. In one of these, called narthpimi, a flat slab of stone is supported horizontally on two other slabs fixed perpendicularly in the ground so as to form a narrow tunnel, through which a man can just manage to wriggle his body with difficulty. Two men take part in the game, one stationing himself at a distance of about thirty yards, the other about sixty yards from the tunnel. The front man, throwing off his mantle, runs as hard as he can to the tunnel, pursued by the ‘scratch’ man, whose object is to touch the other man’s feet before he has squeezed himself through the tunnel. Another sport, which we witnessed, consists of trial of strength with a heavy globular stone, the object being to raise it up to the shoulder; but a strong, well-built-man—he who was entrusted with slaying the funeral buffalo—failed to raise it higher than the pit of the stomach, though straining his muscles in the attempt. A splendidly made veteran assured me that, when young and lusty, he was able to accomplish the feat, and spoke sadly of degeneration in the physique of the younger members of the tribe.Mr. Breeks mentions that the Todas play a game resembling puss-in-the-corner, called kāriālapimi, whichwas not included in the programme of sports got up for our benefit. Dr. Rivers writes that “the Todas, and especially the children, often play with mimic representations of objects from practical life. Near the villages I have seen small artificial buffalo-pens and fireplaces made by the children in sport.” I have, on several occasions, come across young children playing with long and short pieces of twigs representing buffaloes and their calves, and going solemnly through the various incidents in the daily life of these animals. Todas, both old and young, may constantly be seen twisting flexible twigs into representations of buffaloes’ heads and horns.Of Toda songs, the following have been collected:—Sunshine is increasing. Mist is fast gathering. Rain may come. Thunder roars. Clouds are gathering.Rain is pouring. Wind and rain have combined.Oh, powerful god, may everything prosper!May charity increase!May the buffaloes become pregnant!See that the buffaloes have calves.See that the barren women have children.Go and tell this to the god of the land.Keygamor, Eygamor (names of buffaloes).Evening is approaching. The buffaloes are coming.The calves also have returned.The buffaloes are saluted.The dairy-man beats the calves with his stick.Milk has been offered to the bell.It is growing dark.This is a buffalo with beautiful horns.A buffalo stupidly given away by the Badaga.A buffalo brought to the Kāndal mand.Innerovya (name of buffalo).Like this buffalo there is no other.Parkūr (name of a Toda).Like him there is no man.The sun is shining. The wind is blowing.Rain is coming. The trees are in flower.Tears are falling. The nose is burning.He is coming, holding up his umbrella.He is coming, wearing a good body-cloth.He is coming, wearing a good under-cloth.He (the palol) is coming, wearing a black cloth.He is coming, holding his walking-stick of palai wood.I have a god. What is to become of me?I am inclined to cry, my heart being heavy.Oh, my child! Do not cry. It is still crying.Thuree. Thuree. See. Be quiet.A robust bullbuffalo. Ach! Ach!A big buffalo not intended for killing. Ach! Ach!Is leading the cow buffalo. Ah! Ah!Two or three men are driving it. Ah! Ah!Song in honour of the arrival of the Maharāni-Regent of Mysore at Ootacamund.All we Todas go to her house, and dance before her.She gives us fifteen rupees.She comes near our women, and talks to them.She gives cloths to us.Next day we take milk, eight bottles in the morning, four in the evening.Month by month she pays us for our milk.She goes back to Mysore, and, when she goes, we stand in a row before her.She gives us presents; cloths and three rupees.The women cut their hair, and stand before her.Marriage Song.Boys and girls are singing.Much money are they spending.To the girl her father is giving five buffaloes.The husband tells his wife that she must curl her hair.If her hair is curled, all the people will rejoice.The buffalo is slain, and now we must all dance.Why are not more people here? More should come.My buffalo is big, very big.Go quickly and catch it.The Todas are all there. They are standing in a row.Who will run, and catch the buffalo first?To him will a present of five rupees be given.I will go and catch it first.The Todas are all fighting.The Todas are all feasting.People give them rice.The buffalo is coming. Two men run to catch it by the neck.Ten men collect the buffaloes. They pen them in a kraal.At one o’clock we take our food.The buffalo is running, and I hit it on the back with a stick.It swerves aside, but I drive it back to the path.Night comes, and we all dance.Next morning at ten o’clock we bring out the buffalo, and slay it.At four in the morning we wrap rice and grain in a white cloth, and burn it.At eleven we cut the hair of the boys and girls.At four in the morning the priest goes to the temple (dairy).He lights the lamp.At eight he milks his buffaloes.He puts on no cloth.He places butter and ghī before the god.Then he grazes his buffaloes, and eats his food.Then he puts on his cloth.At three in the afternoon he goes again to the temple.He kindles a fire, and lights the lamp.He puts milk in a chatty, and churns it into butter with a cane.He mixes water with the butter-milk, and gives it to the women to drink.He alone may sleep in the temple.At four in the morning he lets out the buffaloes to graze.At seven he milks them.The woman’s house is down the hill.The priest must not go in unto the woman.He may not marry.When he is twenty, he may not enter the temple.Another is made priest in his stead.The religious institutions of the Todas, including the elaborate dairy ritual, and their religion, are described in full detail by Dr. Rivers. The Todas have been to some extent influenced by Hinduism, and some visit the temples at Nanjengōd in Mysore, Karamadai in the Coimbatore district, and other shrines, whereat they worship, present votive offerings, and pray for offspring,etc. Writing in 1872, Mr. Breeks remarked that “about Ootacamund, a few Todas have latterly begun to imitate the religious practices of their native neighbours. Occasionally children’s foreheads are marked with the Siva spot, and my particular friend Kinniaven, after an absence of some days, returned with a shaven head from a visit to the temple of Siva at Nanjengudi.” A man who came to my laboratory had his hair hanging down in long tails reaching below his shoulders. He had, he said, let it grow long because his wife, though married five years, had borne no child. A child had, however, recently been born, and, as soon as the second funeral of a relation had been performed, he was going to sacrifice his locks as a thank-offering at the Nanjengōd temple. The following extracts from my notes will serve to illustrate the practice of marking (in some instances apparently for beauty’s sake) and shaving as carried out at the present day.(1) Man, aged 28. Has just performed a ceremony at the ti mand. White curved line painted across forehead, and dots below outer ends thereof, on glabella, and outside orbits. Smeared with white across chest, over outer side of upper arms and left nipple, across knuckles and lower end of left ulna, and on lobes of ears.(2) Man, aged 21. Painted on forehead as above. Smeared over chest and upper eye lids.(3) Man, aged 35. White spot painted on forehead.(4) Man, aged 30. Hair of head and beard cut short owing to death of grandfather.(5) Boy, aged 12. Shock head of hair, cut very short all over owing to death of grandfather.(6) Girl, aged 8. Hair shaved on top, back and sides of head, and in median strip from vertex to forehead.(7) Boy, aged 6. White spot painted between eyebrows. Hair shaved on top and sides of head, and in median strip from vertex to forehead. Hair brought forward in fringe over forehead on either side of median strip, and hanging down back of neck.(8) Male child, aged 18 months. White spot painted between eyebrows. Shaved on top and sides of head.Todupuzha Vellāla.—For the following note, I am indebted to Mr. N. Subramani Aiyar. Besides the Nanchinād Vellālas, there are, in Travancore, two sections of the Vellāla caste, inhabiting the mountainous Todupuzha tāluk. These are the Tenkanchi and Kumbakōnam Vellālas. The former are known by the popular name of Anjuttilkar, or the five hundred, and the latter are designated Munnutilkar, or the three hundred, in reference to the number of families which originally settled in the taluk. Like the Nanchinād Vellālas, they take the title of Pillai, and, in special cases, the honorific prefix Kanakku.The Tenkanchi Vellālas appear to have dwelt originally in the Tenkāsi taluk of the Tinnevelly district, and to have emigrated, as the legend goes, on account of the demand of a Vaduka ruler for the hand of a member of their community in marriage. The Vadakkumkur Rājas were ruling over Todupuzha at the time of their migration, and afforded them a safe asylum. The Kumbakōnam Vellālas believe that they emigrated to Travancore about the commencement of the Malabar era from Kumbakōnam in the Tanjore district. Both divisions speak Malayālam, but there are clear indications in their speech that their mother-tongue was once Tamil, and they always use that language in their ceremonial writings. The Anjuttilkar women haveadopted the dress and ornaments of the Nāyars. Both sections wear the tuft of hair in front, but the Munnutilkar women do not tie the hair on the left side like the Nāyars and Anjuttilkars, but behind like the Pāndi Vellālas. Nor do the Anjuttilkar women wear a white dress like the Tenkanchis, but a coloured cloth, sixteen cubits in length, in orthodox Tamil fashion. Again, while the Tenkanchi women largely resort to the todu and other Nāyar ornaments, the Kumbakōnam women are more conservative, and wear only the pampadam and melidu, though they sometimes wear jewels, such as the nāgapata tāli for the neck. Both sections are Saivites, in the sense that they abstain from flesh and fish.Their principal occupation is agriculture. They worship the two mountain deities Bhadrakāli and Durgā. In the Kirikkot muri of the Karikkodpropertythere is a temple dedicated to Siva or Unnamalanathar, with a large amount of property attached to it. This belongs to the Tenkanchi Vellālas, and a Malayālam Brāhman performs the priestly functions. The Kumbakōnam Vellālas have their own temples, such as the Ankalamma koil, Annamala matam, Vīrabhadran koil, etc., and worship, besides the principal gods of the Hindu pantheon, such minor deities as Vīrabhadran, Karuppan, Bhairavan, Māriamman, and Muttaramman. The priests of both sections are East Coast Brāhmans, who live in the Todupuzha tāluk. As their profession is regarded by other Brāhmans as degrading, they, especially in the case of the Kumbakōnam Vellālas, perform their duties stealthily. The headman of the Kumbakōnam section lives in the Periyakulam tāluk of the Madura district, and, by his order, an image of Siva is worshipped at their homes.Divorce is not permitted on any ground, and, in ancient days, widow remarriage was forbidden. There is a legend that a woman of this caste, who was a friend of the daughter of a certain Vadakkumkur Rājah, was so aggrieved at the news of her newly married husband’s death that, at her intercession, the Rājah issued a proclamation permitting the remarriage of widows. If no husband has been found for a girl before she reaches puberty, certain propitiatory rites have to be performed, at which one of her female relations represents her. On the fourth day of the marriage ceremony, the bride and bridegroom, before they bathe, rub each other’s bodies with oil, and, going to a large caldron containing water, throw a gold and silver ring into it, and pick them out three times. Inheritance of both sections is from father to son (makkathāyam). A sambandham alliance does not confer any rite of inheritance.The names of both sections are such as are unknown among Nāyars,e.g., Sivalingam, Arunāchalam, Chidambaram, Arumukham. The Tenkanchis are considered to be higher in the social scale than the Kumbakōnam section, as they observe only twelve days’ death pollution, whereas the latter are under pollution for sixteen days. The Tenkanchis may enter the temple, and, like Nāyars, stand on the left side of the inner shrine, whereas the Kumbakōnam Vellālas may proceed only as far as the balikkalpura, or out-house of the temple, and not enter the nalambalam. Again, butter-milk is freely received by Brāhmans from the Tenkanchis, but not from members of the Kumbakōnam section. While Pāndi Vellālas will not receive food from the Tenkanchis, or give their daughters in marriage to them, the latter will not intermarry with the Nānchinād Vellālas.Togata.—The Togatas are Telugu weavers, most numerous in the Cuddapah district, who manufacture the coarsest kind of cotton cloths, such as are worn by the poorer classes. They are generally Vaishnavites, wear the sacred thread, and have for their priests Vaishnava Brāhmans or Sātānis. They eat flesh, and their widows are allowed to remarry. Writing concerning the Togatas in 1807, Buchanan states53that “widows cannot marry again, but are not expected to kill themselves. The Panchanga, or village astrologer, attends at births, marriages, funerals, at the ceremonies performed in honour of their deceased parents, and at the building of a new house, and on each occasion gets a fee of one fanam, or eight pence. On other occasions, when a weaver wants to pray, he calls in a Satanana, who reads something in an unknown language, and gives the votary some holy water, which he consecrates by pouring it on the head of a small image that he carries about for the purpose.”As regards their origin, some Togatas claim to be sons of Chaudēsvari, who threw some rice on to the fire, from which sprang a host of warriors, whose descendants they are. Others give Pūppandaja Rishi as the name of their ancestor. Concerning Chaudēsvari, Mr. Francis writes as follows.54“Connected with the margosa tree (Melia Azadirachta) is the worship of Chaudēsvari, the goddess of the Togata caste of weavers. She is supposed to reside in margosa trees, and either the tree itself, or a stone representing the goddess and placed at its foot, is worshipped by the Togatas at certain seasons, such as the Telugu New Year Day. Apparently the other weaver castes take no share in the ceremonies. They consist largely of animal sacrifices. Nevertheless, aparticular class of Brāhmans, called Nandavarīkula Brāhmans, take a prominent part in the festival. This name Nandavarīkula is derived from the village of Nandavaram in Kurnool, and doubtless many stories are prevalent there about this sub-division. The account given at Tadpatri, where they are fairly numerous, is as follows. Once upon a time, a king from Southern India went on a pilgrimage with his wife to Benares. While there, he unwittingly incurred a nameless but heinous pollution. Horrified, he applied to some Brāhmans there to purify him, promising them half his kingdom in return. They asked for some tangible record of this promise, and the king called upon the goddess Chaudēsvari, who had a temple near by, to witness his oath. The purification was effected, and he departed home. Later on the Brāhmans came south, and asked for the fulfilment of his promise. The king declared that he could not remember having made any such undertaking. The Brāhmans accordingly went to Benares, and asked Chaudēsvari to come south, and bear witness to the king’s oaths. She agreed, on the usual condition that they should go in front, and not look back at her as she came. As happens in other stories of the same kind, they are said to have broken the condition. At Nandavaram they looked back, and the goddess instantly stopped, and remained immoveable. A temple was built for her there, and the Brāhmans remained in the south, and still take part in the worship of Chaudēsvari which the Togatas inaugurate, even though she is not one of the Hindu pantheon, and delights in animal sacrifice. At Tadpatri other castes besides the Togatas help at the festival.”Though Chaudēsvari is the patron god of the Togatas, they also worship Poleramma, Ellamma, Kotamma, and other minor deities.The original occupation of the Togatas is said to have been dyeing, but, at the present day, owing to the depression in the hand-loom weaving industry, a large number have taken to cultivation.Like many other Telugu castes, they have exogamous septs, of which the following are examples:—Pātha, old.Kambhapu, pillar.Nīli, indigo.Madaka, plough.Bana, pot.Jīlakara, cummin seed.Annam, food.Mékala, goat.Gōpalam, alms.Sāmanthi,Chrysanthemum indicum.Gurram, horse.Perumāl, a god.Bandāri, treasurer?Gudditi.Pūjāris (priests) for temple worship are always elected from the Perumāl sept, and caste messengers from the Bandāri sept, if they are represented in a settlement. Torches are generally carried, at processions, by men of the Gudditi sept. Members of the Gurram sept are not allowed to ride on horseback.The panchāyat (village council) system is in vogue, but, in some places, a headman is selected, as occasion requires. In their marriage and funeral ceremonies, the Togatas closely follow the Telugu standard Purānic form of ceremonial. The dead are buried in a recumbent posture. On the last day of the death rites, the Sātāni gives arrack (liquor) to the Togatas, as to the Padma Sālēs, in lieu of holy water (thirtham).Tohala.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a small class of Oriya hill cultivators and petty traders in the Ganjam Agency.Tolagari.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a sub-caste of Mutrācha. In the North Arcot Manual the Tolagaris are described as a smallcultivating caste, who were formerly hunters, like the Pālayakkārans.Tolar(Wolf).—An exogamous sept of Halēpaik. The equivalent Tolana occurs as a sept of Mogēr.Tōlkollan.—The Tōlkollans or Tōlans (skin people) are summed up in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as “leather workers and dyers, and also gymnasts and teachers of gymnastics. They are also called Vatti Kurup, Chāya Kurup, and Vil Kurup. Their title is Kurup.” The Tōlkollans are stated55to be “blacksmiths by caste, who abandoned their hereditary trade for leather work, and they are chiefly employed by Māppillas. One peculiar custom in this caste is that two or more brothers may have one wife in common. Only those in good circumstances indulge in the luxury of a private wife. The following information furnished by Mr. S. Vaidyanadha Aiyar, the headmaster of the School of Commerce, Calicut, gives some information regarding leather work in Malabar:—(a) Boots and shoes of country make and English pattern.(b) Harness making.(c) Native shoes (ceruppu). These are of the special pattern peculiar to Malabar, and are largely used by all classes of the Hindu and Māppilla communities. The Arabs who visit this coast once a year purchase a considerable number to take back with them. The price of a pair varies from Rs. 1–8–0 to Rs. 5. Those with ornamental gold lace work cost from Rs. 10 to Rs. 50. These shoes are generally used by well-to-do Māppillas. White of egg is used to give a creaking sound to the shoes. This work is mainly done by Thōlperunkollansand Māppillas, and the latter show more skill in finish and ornamental work.(d) Knife sheaths. Almost every Nāyar, Tiyan and Māppilla carries a knife about a foot in length, and there is a demand for leather sheaths. These are made by Pānans as well as by Thōlperunkollans and Māppillas.(e) Leather baskets are also made, and are largely used as receptacles for carrying pepper, paddy (rice), and other grain.(f) Winnowing fans are made of leather, and are used in pepper and paddy yards, etc.(g) Muttu ceruppu (clogs) are leather shoes with wooden soles. These are largely used during the rainy season.”Tollakkādan(one with a big hole in the lobes of his ears).—Taken, at the census, 1901, as a sub-caste of Shānān, as those returning the name, who are vendors of husked rice in Madras, used the Shānān title Nādān. The equivalent Tollakādu was returned as a sub-division of Konga Vellāla.Tōl Mēstri.—A sub-division of Semmān.Tondamān.—It is stated, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, that the Tondamāns are “also called Sunnāmbukkāran (q.v.), a Tamil caste of lime (chunam) burners found only in the Tinnevelly district. They are said to be a branch of the Kallans who migrated to Tinnevelly from Pudukkōttai, or the Tondamān’s country. Its members are now drummers and pipers as well as lime-burners. Brāhmans are their purōhits, but they are not allowed to go into Hindu temples. They will eat in the houses of Maravans. Their title is Sōlagan.” It is noted, in the same report, that the Semmān caste “has two sub-divisions,Tondamānand Tōl-mēstri, and men of the former take wives from the latter, but menof the latter may not marry girls of the former.” Tondamān is the family name of the Rāja of Pudukkōttai, a Native State surrounded by the British districts of Tanjore, Madura, and Trichinopoly. The Rāja is the head of the Kallan caste. Copper coins, called amman kāsu, are current only within the State, and their greatest distribution is during Navarātri or Dusserah, when they are issued to the people with a dole of rice every day during the nine days of the festival. They bear on one side the word “Vijaya,” meaning victory, or more probably having reference to our faithful ally Vijaya Ragunātha Tondamān, in whose reign they were first struck, it is said in 1761, after the surrender of Pondicherry to the British.Tondamandalam.—The name of a sub-division of Vellāla, derived from Tondanādu, the ancient Pallava country.Tonti.—The Tontis are said to be cotton-weavers of Bengal, who have settled in Ganjam.56The name denotes threadmen, and the weaving of rough white cloths is the traditional occupation of the caste. All Tontis belong to a single gōtra named after Kāsyapa, one of the seven important rishis, and the priest of Parasurāma. Various bamsams or exogamous septs, the names of some of which occur also as titles, exist,e.g., Biswālo, Dasso, Pālo, Bono, Chondo, Parimaniko, Korono, Bēhara, and Mahāpātro. The marriage and death ceremonies conform to the standard Oriya type. On the fourth day of the marriage rites, a Bhondāri (barber) is presented with some beaten rice and sugar-candy in a new earthen pot. These are sold to those who have assembled, and the proceeds go to the Bhondāri.The corpse of a dead person is washed at the burning ground, instead of, in accordance with the common custom among other castes, at the house.Toppa Tāli.—A name applied to certain Vāniyans in the North Arcot district, owing to the peculiar tāli (marriage badge) which married women wear.Torai.—A title of various Oriya castes.Toreya.—The Toreyas are a Canarese class, living chiefly in the Tamil districts of Coimbatore and Salem. They are said to have been originally fishermen and palanquin bearers, and the name is derived from turai, a river ghāt. Most of them are now cultivators, especially of the betel vine (Piper betle). Those whom I examined at Coimbatore were earning their living as betel and sugar-cane cultivators, vendors of tobacco, bakers, cloth merchants, contractors, petty traders, and police constables.By the Coimbatore Toreyas, the following endogamous divisions were returned:—Elai, leaf. Betel cultivators.Chunam, lime. Lime burners.Gāzul, glass bangle. The Toreya caste is said to have originated from the bangles of Machyagandhi or Gandhavati, the daughter of a fisherman on the Jumna. She was married to king Shantanu of Hastinapūr, who was one of the ancestors of the heroes of the Mahābhārata.Many exogamous septs exist among the Toreyas, of which the following are examples:—Belli, silver. May not wear silver toe-rings.Nāga, snake. The members of the sept, at times of marriage, worship ant-hills, which are the home of snakes.Alwar or Garuda.Chinnam, gold.Kansugaje, small bronze bells, tied to the legs when dancing.Urukathi, a kind of knife.Vajjira, diamond.Vasishta, a Hindu saint.Mogila, clouds.Onne (Pterocarpus Marsupium). Do not mark their foreheads with the juice from the trunk of this tree.Kuzhal, the flute played by shepherd boys and snake charmers. If the sound thereof is heard during a meal, what remains of the food should be thrown away.Rākshasa, a giant. Do not celebrate the Dīpāvali festival in honour of the victory over, and death of, a rākshasa.Erumai, buffalo.The headman of the caste is called Ejaman, who has under him an officer entitled Dalavayi. The caste messenger bears the name of Kondikar. These three offices are hereditary. The Ejaman presides at council meetings which are held at the temple of the caste. The eldest member of each family is entitled to a seat on the council. Those who come late to a meeting thereof prostrate themselves before the assembly. Witnesses before the council have to take an oath, which is administered by the Kondikar. He makes the witness stand within a circle drawn on the ground, and makes him repeat the formula “Before God and the elders assembled, with the sky above and the earth beneath, I will state only the truth.” The Kondikar then takes up a pinch of earth, and puts it on the head of the witness. For merely threatening to beat a person with shoes, the offender has to feed twenty-five castemen. If he takes the shoes in his hands he must feed fifty, and, if heactually resorts to beating with them, he has to feed a hundred men. In addition, the culprit has to pay a small fine, and both parties have to be purified at the temple. A similar punishment is enforced for beating, or threatening to beat with a broom. For adultery the guilty person is excommunicated, and is admitted back into the caste only after the death of one of the parties concerned. He then has to feed a large number of castemen, or pay a money fine, and, prostrating himself before the assembly, he is beaten with a tamarind switch. He further makes obeisance to the Ejaman, and washes his feet. The Ejaman then purifies him by a small piece of burning camphor in his mouth.When a married girl reaches puberty, she is taken to her father’s house, and her husband constructs a hut with branches ofFicus glomerata. On the last day of her confinement therein, the hut is pulled down, and the girl sets fire to it. The house is purified, and the female relations go to the houses of the Ejaman and caste people, and invite them to be present at a ceremonial. A small quantity of turmeric paste is stuck on the doors of the houses of all who are invited. The relations and members of the caste carry betel, and other articles, on trays in procession through the streets. The girl is seated on a plank, and the trays are placed in front of her. Rice flour, fruits, betel, etc., are tied in her cloth, and she is taken into the house. In the case of an unmarried girl, the hut is built by her maternal uncle.Marriage is always celebrated at the house of the bridegroom, as there is a legend that a Rājah belonging to the Toreya caste had a son, who was taken to the house of his bride elect, and there murdered. Thebridegroom’s father and relations go to the house of the bride, and make presents of money, cloths, ornaments, etc. They also have to make obeisance to, and feed five married women sumptuously. Pandals (booths) are constructed at the houses of both the bride and bridegroom. Five married women go, on behalf of each of the contracting parties, to their houses, and pound rice there. On the second day, five such women fetch water from a tank, and bathe the bride and bridegroom respectively. The ten women then go to the potter’s house, and bring five decorated pots. Three of these are taken to a tank, and filled with water. On the following day, the bridegroom and his sister take the two remaining pots to the tank, and fill them with water. The five pots are placed in the pandal, and represent the household gods. The relations of the bridegroom take twelve kinds of ornaments, a new cloth, flowers, etc., to the house of the Ejaman, and go with him to the bride’s house. She is then bathed, and decked with finery. A Brāhman does pūja (worship) and ties on her forehead a mandaikettu or bashingham (chaplet) made of gold leaf or tinsel. She is then carried in procession to the house of the bridegroom. Meanwhile, the Brāhman ties a mandaikettu on the forehead of the bridegroom, who puts on the sacred thread, and sits within the pandal, holding a katar (dagger) in his hand, and closed in by a screen. The bride goes thrice round this screen, and the Brāhman does pūja and gives advice (upadēsam) to the couple. The screen is then lowered slightly, and the bride and bridegroom garland each other. The bride’s parents place a few gingelly (Sesamum) seeds in the hand of the bridegroom, and pour water thereon, saying that their daughter belongs to him, and telling him to take care of her. The tāli, after being blessed by thoseassembled, is given by the Brāhman to the bridegroom, who ties it on the bride’s neck. The screen is then removed, and the couple sit side by side. The sacred fire is lighted, their hands are linked together, and the ends of their cloths tied together. They then leave the pandal, and, placing their feet on a grindstone, look at the pole-star (Arundati). Entering the pandal once more, they sit therein, and the elders bless them by throwing rice coloured with turmeric over their heads. On the fourth day, they again sit within the pandal, and cooked rice, coloured white, red, yellow, green, and black, on five trays, and nine lighted wicks on a tray are waved before them. Five married men and women, holding a string, stand round them in a circle, within which is the bride’s brother with a twig of pīpal (Ficus religiosa). The bridegroom places his hands together, and small rice cakes are placed on the head, shoulders, bend of the elbows and knees, and between the fingers of the couple. They are then bathed, and, taking betel in their hands, bow to the four corners of the earth. The bridegroom makes a nāmam (Vaishnavite sect mark), or places vibhūti (sacred ashes) on the twelve posts of the pandal, and the bride places a little cooked rice and water before each post, to which camphor is burnt, and pūja done. They then start for the bride’s house, but the bride’s sister meets them at the entrance thereto, and will not allow them to go in until she has extracted a promise that their child shall marry hers. The bride proceeds to a tank, sowing some paddy (rice) on the way thither, and brings back a pot of water, with which she washes her husband’s hands and feet. Husband and wife then feed each other with a small quantity of rice and milk. Their hands are then cleaned, and the bride’s brother puts a gold ring on the finger of the bridegroom.A tray with betel leaves and areca nuts is brought, and the bridegroom ties three handfuls thereof in his cloth. The newly married couple then worship at the temple. On the fifth day, they carry the earthen pots to a river, and, on their return, five married women are worshipped and fed. Five men have to come forward as sureties for the good behaviour of the couple, and declare before those assembled that they will hold themselves responsible for it. In the evening the pair go to the bride’s house, and rub oil over each other’s head before bathing in turmeric water. On the following day they repair to the house of the bridegroom.The corpse of a dead Toreya is placed in a pandal constructed of cocoanut leaves and stems of the milk-hedge (Euphorbia Tirucalli). Sect marks are placed on the foreheads of the corpse and the widow. The son of the deceased dons the sacred thread. The funeral ceremonies resemble, in many particulars, those of the Oddēs. A mound is piled up over the grave. A Paraiyan places a small twig of the arka plant (Calotropis gigantea) in three corners of the grave, leaving out the north-east corner, and the son puts a small coin on each twig. As he goes round the grave with a water-pot and fire-brand, his maternal uncle, who stands at the head of the grave, makes holes in the pot. On the third, fifth, seventh, or ninth day, the widow, dressed in new cloths, and bedecked with ornaments and flowers, is taken to the burial-ground, with offerings of milk, ghī (clarified butter), tender cocoanut, sandal, camphor, etc. Five small stones, smeared with turmeric and lime, are set up at the head of the grave, and worshipped. The widow goes thrice round the grave, and seats herself near the head thereof. Her brother holds up her arms, and one of her husband’s malerelations breaks her bangles. She breaks, and throws her tāli on the grave, with the flowers which adorn her. Her ornaments are removed, and she is covered with a cloth, and taken to a river, where she is rubbed with cow-dung and bathed. The son and other relatives go to the temple with butter and other articles. A Brāhman does pūja, and shuts the doors of the temple. The son, with his back to the temple, throws a little butter on the doors, which are then opened by the Brāhman. This is done thrice. On the seventh day, pollution is removed by sprinkling holy water, and the caste people are fed. A widow remains in seclusion (gōsha) for three months. Srādh (memorial ceremony) is performed.The Toreyas worship both Siva and Vishnu, but consider Ayodhya Rāman as their special deity, and sacrifice sheep and fowls to Koriamma.Toreya.—A sub-division of the Badagas of the Nīlgiris.Tōta(garden).—Recorded as a sub-division of cultivating Balijas, and an exogamous sept of Bōya, Chenchu, Vāda Balija (or Mila), Mutrācha and Bonthuk Savara. The equivalent Tōta occurs as an exogamous sept of Kāpu and Yānādi. Tōta Dēvaru, or garden god, is the name of an exogamous sept of the Tigala gardeners and cultivators.Tōtakūra(Amarantus gangeticus).—An exogamous sept of Kamma.Toththala or Tottadi.—A sub-division of Velama.Tōti.—The Tōti or Totti is one of the village communal servants. The name has been derived from tondu, to dig, or tott, to go round, as the Tōti is the purveyor of news, and has to summon people to appear before the village council. The functions of this useful person tothe community have been summed up as follows by a district official.57“This individual has all the dirty work of the village allotted to him. He is of the lowest caste, and hence makes no scruple of doing any manner of work that he may be called upon to perform. The removal and sepulture of unclaimed dead bodies, the cleansing of choultries, rest-houses and the like, where travellers carrying infectious diseases might have halted, and other gruesome duties are entrusted to him. In spite of all this, theTōtiis one of the most trusted of the humbler servants of the village community. Considering his humble status and emoluments, which average between Rs. 3 and Rs. 4 a month, his honesty with regard to pecuniary matters is wonderful. He may be trusted with untold wealth, as is often done when he is the sole custodian of the revenue collections of his village to the tune of several thousands at a time, when on their way from the collecting officers to the Government Treasury.” Testimony is borne to the industry of the Tōti in the proverb that if you work like a Tōti, you can enjoy the comforts of a king.In the Madras Census Report, 1891, Tōti is returned as a sub-division of Chakkiliyan. The Tōti of Mysore is defined by Mr. L. Rice58as a menial among the village servants, a deputy talāri, who is employed to watch the crops from the growing crop to the granary.Odiya Tōti is a Tamil synonym for Oriya Haddis employed as scavengers in municipalities in the Tamil country.Tottiyan.—In the Census Report, 1901, Mr. W. Francis writes that the Tottiyans are “Telugucultivators. The Tottiyans or Kambalattāns of the Tanjore district are, however, said to be vagrants, and to live by pig-breeding, snake-charming, and begging. So are the sub-division called Kāttu Tottiyans in Tinnevelly. The headman among the Tinnevelly Tottiyans is called the Mandai Periadanakkāran or Sērvaikāran. Their marriages are not celebrated in their houses, but in pandals (booths) of green leaves erected for the purpose on the village common. However wealthy the couple may be, the only grain which they may eat at the wedding festivities is either cumbu (Pennisetum typhoideum) or horse-gram (Dolichos biflorus). The patron deities of the caste are Jakkamma and Bommakka, two women who committed sati. The morality of their women is loose. The custom of marrying boys to their paternal aunt’s or maternal uncle’s daughter, however old she may be, also obtains, and in such cases the bridegroom’s father is said to take upon himself the duty of begetting children to his own son. Divorce is easy, and remarriage is freely allowed. They offer rice and arrack (alcoholic liquor) to their ancestors. The Kāttu Tottiyans will eat jackals, rats, and the leavings of other people. Tottiya women will not eat in the houses of Brāhmans, but no explanation of this is forthcoming. The men wear silver anklets on both legs, and also a bracelet upon one of the upper arms, both of which practices are uncommon, while the women wear bangles only on the left arm, instead of on both as usual. Some of the Zamindars in Madura belong to this caste. The caste title is Nāyakkan.” At the census, 1901, Kudulukkāran was returned as a sub-caste of the Tottiyans in Madura and Tinnevelly. The Urumikkāran, meaning those who play on the drum called urumi, are said to be Tottiyans in Madura and Paraiyans elsewhere.
Toda and phonograph.Toda and phonograph.At the census, 1901, 453 male and 354 female Todas were returned. In a note on the proportion of the sexes among the Todas, Mr. R. C. Punnett states50that “all who have studied the Todas are agreed upon the frequency of the practice (of infanticide) in earlier times. Marshall, writing in 1872, refers to the large amount of female infanticide in former years, but expresses his conviction that the practice had by that time died out. Marshall’s evidence is that of native assurance only. Dr. Rivers, who received the same assurance, is disinclined to place much confidence innative veracity with reference to this point, and, in view of the lack of encouragement which the practice receives from the Indian Government, this is not altogether surprising. The supposition of female infanticide, by accounting for the great disproportion in the numbers of the sexes, brings the Todas into harmony with what is known of the rest of mankind.” In summarising his conclusions, Mr. Punnett notes that:—(1) Among the Todas, males predominate greatly over females.(2) This preponderance is doubtless due to the practice of female infanticide, which is probably still to some extent prevalent.(3) The numerical preponderance of the males has been steadily sinking during recent years, owing probably to the check which foreign intercourse has imposed upon female infanticide.In connection with the death ceremonies of the Todas, Dr. Rivers notes that “soon after death the body is burnt, and the general name for the ceremony on this occasion is etvainolkedr, the first day funeral. After an interval, which may vary greatly in length, a second ceremony is performed, connected with certain relics of the deceased which have been preserved from the first occasion. The Toda name for this second funeral ceremony is marvainolkedr, the second day funeral, or ‘again which day funeral.’ The funeral ceremonies are open to all, and visitors are often invited by the Todas. In consequence, the funeral rites are better known, and have been more frequently described than any other features of Toda ceremonial. Like nearly every institution of the Todas, however, they have become known to Europeans under their Badaga names. The first funeral is called by the Badagas hase kedu, the fresh or greenfuneral, and the term ‘green funeral’ has not only become the generally recognised name among the European inhabitants of the Nilgiri hills, but has been widely adopted in anthropological literature. The second funeral is called by the Badagas bara kedu, the ‘dry funeral,’ and this term also has been generally adopted.” The various forms of the funeral ceremonies are discussed in detail by Dr. Rivers, and it must suffice to describe those at which we have been present as eye-witnesses.I had the opportunity of witnessing the second funeral of a woman who had died from smallpox two months previously. On arrival at a mand on the open downs about five miles from Ootacamund, we were conducted by a Toda guide to the margin of a dense shola, where we found two groups seated apart, consisting of (a) women, girls, and brown-haired female babies, round a camp fire; (b) men, boys, and male babies, carried, with marked signs of paternal affection, by their fathers. In a few minutes a murmuring sound commenced in the centre of the female group. Working themselves up to the necessary pitch, some of the women (near relatives of the deceased) commenced to cry freely, and the wailing and lachrymation gradually spread round the circle, until all, except little girls and babies who were too young to be affected, were weeping and mourning, some for fashion, others from genuine grief. In carrying out the orthodox form of mourning, the women first had a good cry to themselves, and then, as their emotions became more intense, went round the circle, selecting partners with whom to share companionship in grief. Gradually the group resolved itself into couplets of mourners, each pair with their heads in contact, and giving expression to their emotions in unison. Beforeseparating to select a new partner, each couple saluted by bowing the head, and raising thereto the feet of the other, covered by the putkūli. [I have seen women rapidly recover from the outward manifestations of grief, and clamour for money.] From time to time the company of mourners was reinforced by late arrivals from distant mands, and, as each detachment, now of men and now of women, came in view across the open downs, one could not fail to be reminded of the gathering of the clans on some Highland moor. The resemblance was heightened by the distant sound as of pipers, produced by the Kota band (with two police constables in attendance), composed of four Kotas, who made a weird noise with drums and flutes as they drew near the scene of action. The band, on arrival, took up a position close to the mourning women. As each detachment arrived, the women, recognising their relatives, came forward and saluted them in the manner customary among Todas by falling at their feet, and placing first the right and then the left foot on their head. Shortly after the arrival of the band, signals were exchanged, by waving of putkūlis, between the assembled throng and a small detachment of men some distance off. A general move was made, and animpromptuprocession formed, with men in front, band in the middle, and women bringing up the rear. A halt was made opposite a narrow gap leading into the shola; men and women sat apart as before; and the band walked round, discoursing unsweet music. A party of girls went off to bring fire from the spot just vacated for use in the coming ceremonial, but recourse was finally had to a box of matches lent by one of our party. At this stage we noticed a woman go up to the eldest son of the deceased, who was seated apart from theother men, and would not be comforted in spite of her efforts to console him. On receipt of a summons from within the shola, the assembled Toda men and ourselves swarmed into it by a narrow track leading to a small clear space round a big tree, from a hole cut at the base of which an elderly Toda produced a piece of the skull of the dead woman, wrapped round with long tresses of her hair. It now became the men’s turn to exhibit active signs of grief, and all of one accord commenced to weep and mourn. Amid the scene of lamentation, the hair was slowly unwrapt from off the skull, and burned in an iron ladle, from which a smell as of incense arose. A bamboo pot of ghī was produced, with which the skull was reverently anointed, and placed in a cloth spread on the ground. To this relic of the deceased the throng of men, amid a scene of wild excitement, made obeisance by kneeling down before it, and touching it with their foreheads. The females were not permitted to witness this stage of the proceedings, with the exception of one or two near relatives of the departed one, who supported themselves sobbing against the tree. The ceremonial concluded, the fragment of skull, wrapt in the cloth, was carried into the open, where, as men and boys had previously done, women and girls made obeisance to it. A procession was then again formed, and marched on until a place was reached, where were two stone-walled kraals, large and small. Around the former the men, and within the latter the women, took up their position, the men engaging in chit-chat, and the women in mourning, which after a time ceased, and they too engaged in conversation. A party of men, carrying the skull, still in the cloth, set out for a neighbouring shola, where a kēdu of several other dead Todas was being celebrated; and a longpause ensued, broken eventually by the arrival of the other funeral party, the men advancing in several lines, with arms linked, and crying out U, hah! U, hah, hah! in regular time. This party brought with it pieces of the skulls of a woman and two men, which were placed, wrapt in cloths, on the ground, saluted, and mourned over by the assembled multitude. At this stage a small party of Kotas arrived, and took up their position on a neighbouring hill, waiting, vulture-like, for the carcase of the buffalo which was shortly to be slain. Several young men now went off across the hill in search of buffaloes, and speedily re-appeared, driving five buffaloes before them with sticks. As soon as the beasts approached a swampy marsh at the foot of the hill on which the expectant crowd of men was gathered together, two young men of athletic build, throwing off their putkūlis, made a rush down the hill, and tried to seize one of the buffaloes by the horns, with the result that one of them was promptly thrown. The buffalo escaping, one of the remaining four was quickly caught by the horns, and, with arms interlocked, the men brought it down on its knees, amid a general scuffle. In spite of marked objection and strenuous resistance on the part of the animal—a barren cow—it was, by means of sticks freely applied, slowly dragged up the hill, preceded by the Kota band, and with a Toda youth pulling at its tail. Arrived at the open space between the kraals, the buffalo, by this time thoroughly exasperated, and with blood pouring from its nostrils, had a cloth put on its back, and was despatched by a blow on the poll with an axe deftly wielded by a young and muscular man. On this occasion no one was badly hurt by the sacrificial cow, though one man was seen washing his legs in the swamp after the preliminary struggle withthe beast. But Colonel Ross-King narrates how he saw a man receive a dangerous wound in the neck from a thrust of the horn, which ripped open a wide gash from the collar-bone to the ear. With the death of the buffalo, the last scene, which terminated the strange rites, commenced; men, women, and children pressing forward and jostling one another in their eagerness to salute the dead beast by placing their hands between its horns, and weeping and mourning in pairs; the facial expression of grief being mimicked when tears refused to flow spontaneously.The ceremonial connected with the final burning of the relics and burial of the ashes at the stone circle (azaram) are described in detail by Dr. Rivers.A few days after the ceremony just described, I was invited to be present at the funeral of a young girl who had died of smallpox five days previously. I proceeded accordingly to the scene of the recent ceremony, and there, in company with a small gathering of Todas from the neighbouring mands, awaited the arrival of the funeral cortége, the approach of which was announced by the advancing strains of Kota music. Slowly the procession came over the brow of the hill; the corpse, covered by a cloth, on a rude ladder-like bier, borne on the shoulders of four men, followed by two Kota musicians; the mother carried hidden within a sack; relatives and men carrying bags of rice and jaggery, and bundles of wood of the kiaz tree (Eugenia Arnottiana) for the funeral pyre. Arrived opposite a small hut, which had been specially built for the ceremonial, the corpse was removed from the bier, laid on the ground, face upwards, outside the hut, and saluted by men, women, and children, with the same manifestations of grief as on the previous occasion. Soon the men moved away to a short distance, and engagedin quiet conversation, leaving the females to continue mourning round the corpse, interrupted from time to time by the arrival of detachments from distant mands, whose first duty was to salute the dead body. Meanwhile a near female relative of the dead child was busily engaged inside the hut, collecting together in a basket small measures of rice, jaggery, sago, honey-comb, and the girl’s simple toys, which were subsequently to be burned with the corpse. The mourning ceasing after a time, the corpse was placed inside the hut, and followed by the near relatives, who there continued to weep over it. A detachment of men and boys, who had set out in search of the buffaloes which were to be sacrificed, now returned driving before them three cows, which escaped from their pursuers to rejoin the main herd. A long pause ensued, and, after a very prolonged drive, three more cows were guided into a marshy swamp, where one of them was caught by the horns, and dragged reluctantly, but with little show of fight, to the strains of Kota drum and flute, in front of the hut, where it was promptly despatched by a blow on the poll. The corpse was now brought from within the hut, and placed, face upwards, with its feet resting on the forehead of the buffalo, whose neck was decorated with a silver chain, such as is worn by Todas round the loins, as no bell was available, and the horns were smeared with butter. Then followed frantic manifestations of grief, amid which the unhappy mother fainted. Mourning over, the corpse was made to go through a form of ceremony, resembling that which is performed during pregnancy with the first child. A small boy, three years old, was selected from among the relatives of the dead girl, and taken by his father in search of a certain grass (Andropogon Schœnanthus) and a twig of a shrub(Sophora glauca), which were brought to the spot where the corpse was lying. The mother of the dead child then withdrew one of its hands from the putkūli, and the boy placed the grass and twig in the hand, and limes, plantains, rice, jaggery, honey-comb, and butter in the pocket of the putkūli, which was then stitched with needle and thread in a circular pattern. The boy’s father then took off his son’s putkūli, and replaced it so as to cover him from head to foot. Thus covered, the boy remained outside the hut till the morning of the morrow, watched through the night by near relatives of himself and his dead bride. [On the occasion of the funeral of an unmarried lad, a girl is in like manner selected, covered with her putkūli from head to foot, and a metal vessel filled with jaggery, rice, etc., to be subsequently burnt on the funeral pyre, placed for a short time within the folds of the putkūli. Thus covered, the girl remains till next morning, watched through the dreary hours of the night by relatives. The same ceremony is performed over the corpse of a married woman who has not borne children, the husband acting as such for the last time, in the vain hope that the woman may produce issue in heaven.] The corpse was borne away to the burning-ground within the shola, and, after removal of some of the hair by the mother of the newly wedded boy, burned, with face upwards, amid the music of the Kota band, the groans of the assembled crowd squatting on the ground, and the genuine grief of the nearest relatives. The burning concluded, a portion of the skull was removed from the ashes, and handed over to the recently made mother-in-law of the dead girl, and wrapped up with the hair in the bark of the tūd tree (Meliosma pungens). A second buffalo, which, properly speaking, should have been slain beforethe corpse was burnt, was then sacrificed, and rice and jaggery were distributed among the crowd, which dispersed, leaving behind the youthful widower and his custodians, who, after daybreak, partook of a meal of rice, and returned to their mands; the boy’s mother taking with her the skull and hair to her mand, where it would remain until the celebration of the second funeral. No attention is paid to the ashes after cremation, and they are left to be scattered by the winds.A further opportunity offered itself to be present at the funeral of an elderly woman on the open downs not far from Paikāra, in connection with which certain details possess some interest. The corpse was, at the time of our arrival, laid out on a rude bier within an improvised arbour covered with leaves and open at each end, and tended by some of the female relatives. At some little distance, a conclave of Toda men, who rose of one accord to greet us, was squatting in a circle, among whom were many venerable white-turbaned elders of the tribe, protected from the scorching sun by palm-leaf umbrellas. Amid much joking, and speech-making by the veterans, it was decided that, as the eldest son of the deceased woman was dead, leaving a widow, this daughter-in-law should be united to the second son, and that they should live together as man and wife. On the announcement of the decision, the bridegroom-elect saluted the principal Todas present by placing his head on their feet, which were sometimes concealed within the ample folds of the putkūli. At the funeral of a married woman, three ceremonies must, I was told, be performed, if possible, by a daughter or daughter-in-law, viz.:—(1) Tying a leafy branch of the tiviri shrub (Atylosia Candolleana) in the putkūli of the corpse;(2) Tying balls of thread and cowry shells on the arm of the corpse, just above the elbow;(3) Setting fire to the funeral pyre, which was, on the present occasion, done by lighting a rag fed with ghī with a match.The buffalo capture took place amid the usual excitement, and with freedom from accident; and, later in the day, the stalwart buffalo catchers turned up at the travellers’ bungalow for apourboirein return, as they said, for treating us to a good fight. The beasts selected for sacrifice were a full-grown cow and a young calf. As they were dragged near to the corpse, now removed from the arbour, butter was smeared over the horns, and a bell tied round the neck. The bell was subsequently removed by Kotas, in whose custody, it was said, it was to remain till the next day funeral. The death-blow, or rather series of blows, having been delivered with the butt end of an axe, the feet of the corpse were placed at the mouth of the buffalo. In the case of a male corpse, the right hand is made to clasp the horns. [It is recorded by Dr. Rivers that, at the funeral of a male, men dance after the buffalo is killed. In the dancing a tall pole, called tadri or tadrsi, decorated with cowry shells, is used.] The customary mourning in couples concluded, the corpse, clad in four cloths, was carried on the stretcher to a clear space in the neighbouring shola, and placed by the side of the funeral pyre, which had been rapidly piled up. The innermost cloth was black in colour, and similar to that worn by a palol. Next to it came a putkūli decorated with blue and red embroidery, outside which again was a plain white cloth covered over by a red cotton cloth of European manufacture. Seated by the side of the pyre, near to which I was courteously invited to take a seat on the stump of a rhododendron,was an elderly relative of the dead woman, who, while watching the ceremonial, was placidly engaged in the manufacture of a holly walking-stick with the aid of a glass scraper. The proceedings were watched on behalf of Government by a forest guard, and a police constable who, with marked affectation, held his handkerchief to his nose throughout the ceremonial. The corpse was decorated with brass rings, and within the putkūli were stowed jaggery, a scroll of paper adorned with cowry shells, snuff and tobacco, cocoanuts, biscuits, various kinds of grain, ghī, honey, and a tin-framed looking-glass. A long purse, containing a silver Japanese yen and an Arcot rupee of the East India Company, was tied up in the putkūli close to the feet. These preliminaries concluded, the corpse was hoisted up, and swung three times over the now burning pyre, above which a mimic bier, made of slender twigs, was held. The body was then stripped of its jewelry, and a lock of hair cut off by the daughter-in-law for preservation, together with a fragment of the skull. I was told that, when the corpse is swung over the pyre, the dead person goes to amnodr (the world of the dead). In this connection, Dr. Rivers writes that “it would seem as if this ceremony of swinging the body over the fire was directly connected with the removal of the objects of value. The swinging over the fire would be symbolic of its destruction by fire; and this symbolic burning has the great advantage that the objects of value are not consumed, and are available for use another time. This is probably the real explanation of the ceremony, but it is not the explanation given by the Todas themselves. They say that long ago, about 400 years, a man supposed to be dead was put on the funeral pyre, and, revived by the heat, he was found to be alive, and was able to walk away from the funeral place. In consequenceof this, the rule was made that the body should always be swung three times over the fire before it is finally placed thereon.” [Colonel Marshall narrates the story that a Toda who had revived from what was thought his death-bed, has been observed parading about, very proud and distinguished looking, wearing the finery with which he had been bedecked for his own funeral, and which he would be permitted to carry till he really departed this life.] As soon as the pyre was fairly ablaze, the mourners, with the exception of some of the female relatives, left the shōla, and the men, congregating on the summit of a neighbouring hill, invoked their god. Four men, seized, apparently in imitation of the Kota Dēvādi, with divine frenzy, began to shiver and gesticulate wildly, while running blindly to and fro with closed eyes and shaking fists. They then began to talk in Malayālam, and offer an explanation of an extraordinary phenomenon, which had appeared in the form of a gigantic figure, which disappeared as suddenly as it appeared. At the annual ceremony of walking through fire (hot ashes) in that year, two factions arose owing to some dissension, and two sets of ashes were used. This seems to have annoyed the gods, and those concerned were threatened with speedy ruin. But the whole story was very vague. The possession by some Todas of a smattering of Malayālam is explained by the fact that, when grazing their buffaloes on the northern and western slopes of the Nīlgiris, they come in contact with Malayālam-speaking people from the neighbouring Malabar district.At the funeral of a man (a leper), the corpse was placed in front of the entrance to a circle of loose stones about a yard and a half in diameter, which had been specially constructed for the occasion. Just before the buffalo sacrifice, a man of the Paiki clan standing nearthe head of the corpse, dug a hole in the ground with a cane, and asked a Kenna who was standing on the other side, “Puzhut, Kenna,”51shall I throw the earth?—three times. To which the Kenna, answering, replied “Puzhut”—throw the earth—thrice. The Paiki then threw some earth three times over the corpse, and three times into the miniature kraal. It is suggested by Dr. Rivers that the circle was made to do duty for a buffalo pen, as the funeral was held at a place where there was no tu (pen), from the entrance of which earth could be dug up.Several examples of laments relating to the virtues and life of the deceased, which are sung or recited in the course of the funeral ceremonies, are given by Dr. Rivers. On the occasion of the reproduction of a lament in my phonograph, two young women were seen to be crying bitterly. The selection of the particular lament was unfortunate, as it had been sung at their father’s funeral. The reproduction of the recitation of a dead person’s sins at a Badaga funeral quickly restored them to a state of cheerfulness.The following petition to the Collector of the Nilgiris on the subject of buffalo sacrifice may be quoted as a sign of the times, when the Todas employ petition-writers to express their grievances:—“According to our religious custom for the long period, we are bringing forward of our killing buffaloes without any irregular way. But, in last year, when the late Collector came to see the said place, by that he ordered to the Todas first not to keep the buffaloes without feeding in the kraal, and second he ordered to kill each for every day, and to clear away the buffaloes, and not to keep the buffaloes without food.We did our work according to his orders, and this excellent order was an ample one. Now this ——, a chief of the Todas, son of ——, a deceased Toda, the above man joined with the moniagar of —— village, joined together, and, dealing with bribes, now they arose against us, and doing this great troubles on us, and also, by this great trouble, one day Mr. —— came for shooting snapes (snipe) by that side. By chance one grazing buffalo came to him, push him by his horns very forcely, and wounded him on his leg. By the help of another gentleman who came with him he escaped, or he would have die at the moment. Now the said moniagar and —— joined together, want to finish the funeral to his late father on the 18th instant. For this purpose they are going to shut the buffaloes without food in the kraal on the 18th instant at 10 o’clock. They are going to kill the buffaloes on the 19th instant at 4 o’clock in the evening. But this is a great sin against god. But we beg your honour this way. That is, let them leave the buffaloes in the grazing place, and ask them to catch and kill them at the same moment. And also your honour cannot ordered them to keep them in the kraal without food. And, if they will desire to kill the buffaloes in this way, these buffaloes will come on us, and also on the other peoples one who, coming to see funs on those day, will kill them all by his anxious. And so we the Todas begs your honour to enquire them before the 18th, the said funeral ceremony commencing, and not to grant the above orders to them.”A Whit Monday at Paikāra was given up to an exhibition of sports and games, whereof the most exciting and interesting was a burlesque representation of a Toda funeral by boys and girls. A Toda, who wasfond of his little joke, applied the term pacchai kēdu (green funeral) to the corpses of the flies entrapped by a viscous catch’em-alive-oh on the bungalow table. To the mock funeral rites arrived a party of youths, as from a distant mand, and crying out U, hah, in shrill mimicry of their elders. The lad who was to play the leading part of sacrificial buffalo, stripping off his putkūli, disappeared from sight over the brow of a low hillock. Above this eminence his bent and uplifted upper extremities shortly appeared as representatives of the buffalo horns. At sight thereof, there was a wild rush of small boys to catch him, and a mimic struggle took place, while the buffalo was dragged, amid good-tempered scuffling, kicks, and shouting, to the spot where the corpse should have been. This spot was, in the absence of a pseudo-dead body or stage dummy, indicated by a group of little girls, who had sat chatting together till the boy-beast arrived, when they touched foreheads, and went, with due solemnity, through the orthodox observance of mourning in couples. The buffalo was slain by a smart tap on the back of the head with a cloth, which did duty for an axe. As soon as the convulsive movements and twitchings of the death struggle were over, the buffalo, without waiting for an encore, retired behind the hillock once more, in order that the rough and tumble fight, which was evidently the chief charm of the game, might be repeated. The buffalo boy later on came in second in a flat race, and he was last seen protecting us from a mischievous-looking member of his herd, which was grazing on the main-road. Toda buffaloes, it may be noted, are not at all popular with members of the Ootacamund Hunt, as both horses and riders from time to time receive injuries from their horns, when they come in collision.While the funeral game was in progress, the men showed off their prowess at a game (eln),52corresponding to the English tip-cat, which is epidemic at a certain season in the London bye-streets. It is played with a bat like a broomstick, and a cylindrical piece of wood pointed at both ends. The latter is propped up against a stone, and struck with the bat. As it flies off the stone, it is hit to a distance with the bat, and caught (or missed) by the out fields.At the Muttanād mand, we were treated to a further exhibition of games. In one of these, called narthpimi, a flat slab of stone is supported horizontally on two other slabs fixed perpendicularly in the ground so as to form a narrow tunnel, through which a man can just manage to wriggle his body with difficulty. Two men take part in the game, one stationing himself at a distance of about thirty yards, the other about sixty yards from the tunnel. The front man, throwing off his mantle, runs as hard as he can to the tunnel, pursued by the ‘scratch’ man, whose object is to touch the other man’s feet before he has squeezed himself through the tunnel. Another sport, which we witnessed, consists of trial of strength with a heavy globular stone, the object being to raise it up to the shoulder; but a strong, well-built-man—he who was entrusted with slaying the funeral buffalo—failed to raise it higher than the pit of the stomach, though straining his muscles in the attempt. A splendidly made veteran assured me that, when young and lusty, he was able to accomplish the feat, and spoke sadly of degeneration in the physique of the younger members of the tribe.Mr. Breeks mentions that the Todas play a game resembling puss-in-the-corner, called kāriālapimi, whichwas not included in the programme of sports got up for our benefit. Dr. Rivers writes that “the Todas, and especially the children, often play with mimic representations of objects from practical life. Near the villages I have seen small artificial buffalo-pens and fireplaces made by the children in sport.” I have, on several occasions, come across young children playing with long and short pieces of twigs representing buffaloes and their calves, and going solemnly through the various incidents in the daily life of these animals. Todas, both old and young, may constantly be seen twisting flexible twigs into representations of buffaloes’ heads and horns.Of Toda songs, the following have been collected:—Sunshine is increasing. Mist is fast gathering. Rain may come. Thunder roars. Clouds are gathering.Rain is pouring. Wind and rain have combined.Oh, powerful god, may everything prosper!May charity increase!May the buffaloes become pregnant!See that the buffaloes have calves.See that the barren women have children.Go and tell this to the god of the land.Keygamor, Eygamor (names of buffaloes).Evening is approaching. The buffaloes are coming.The calves also have returned.The buffaloes are saluted.The dairy-man beats the calves with his stick.Milk has been offered to the bell.It is growing dark.This is a buffalo with beautiful horns.A buffalo stupidly given away by the Badaga.A buffalo brought to the Kāndal mand.Innerovya (name of buffalo).Like this buffalo there is no other.Parkūr (name of a Toda).Like him there is no man.The sun is shining. The wind is blowing.Rain is coming. The trees are in flower.Tears are falling. The nose is burning.He is coming, holding up his umbrella.He is coming, wearing a good body-cloth.He is coming, wearing a good under-cloth.He (the palol) is coming, wearing a black cloth.He is coming, holding his walking-stick of palai wood.I have a god. What is to become of me?I am inclined to cry, my heart being heavy.Oh, my child! Do not cry. It is still crying.Thuree. Thuree. See. Be quiet.A robust bullbuffalo. Ach! Ach!A big buffalo not intended for killing. Ach! Ach!Is leading the cow buffalo. Ah! Ah!Two or three men are driving it. Ah! Ah!Song in honour of the arrival of the Maharāni-Regent of Mysore at Ootacamund.All we Todas go to her house, and dance before her.She gives us fifteen rupees.She comes near our women, and talks to them.She gives cloths to us.Next day we take milk, eight bottles in the morning, four in the evening.Month by month she pays us for our milk.She goes back to Mysore, and, when she goes, we stand in a row before her.She gives us presents; cloths and three rupees.The women cut their hair, and stand before her.Marriage Song.Boys and girls are singing.Much money are they spending.To the girl her father is giving five buffaloes.The husband tells his wife that she must curl her hair.If her hair is curled, all the people will rejoice.The buffalo is slain, and now we must all dance.Why are not more people here? More should come.My buffalo is big, very big.Go quickly and catch it.The Todas are all there. They are standing in a row.Who will run, and catch the buffalo first?To him will a present of five rupees be given.I will go and catch it first.The Todas are all fighting.The Todas are all feasting.People give them rice.The buffalo is coming. Two men run to catch it by the neck.Ten men collect the buffaloes. They pen them in a kraal.At one o’clock we take our food.The buffalo is running, and I hit it on the back with a stick.It swerves aside, but I drive it back to the path.Night comes, and we all dance.Next morning at ten o’clock we bring out the buffalo, and slay it.At four in the morning we wrap rice and grain in a white cloth, and burn it.At eleven we cut the hair of the boys and girls.At four in the morning the priest goes to the temple (dairy).He lights the lamp.At eight he milks his buffaloes.He puts on no cloth.He places butter and ghī before the god.Then he grazes his buffaloes, and eats his food.Then he puts on his cloth.At three in the afternoon he goes again to the temple.He kindles a fire, and lights the lamp.He puts milk in a chatty, and churns it into butter with a cane.He mixes water with the butter-milk, and gives it to the women to drink.He alone may sleep in the temple.At four in the morning he lets out the buffaloes to graze.At seven he milks them.The woman’s house is down the hill.The priest must not go in unto the woman.He may not marry.When he is twenty, he may not enter the temple.Another is made priest in his stead.The religious institutions of the Todas, including the elaborate dairy ritual, and their religion, are described in full detail by Dr. Rivers. The Todas have been to some extent influenced by Hinduism, and some visit the temples at Nanjengōd in Mysore, Karamadai in the Coimbatore district, and other shrines, whereat they worship, present votive offerings, and pray for offspring,etc. Writing in 1872, Mr. Breeks remarked that “about Ootacamund, a few Todas have latterly begun to imitate the religious practices of their native neighbours. Occasionally children’s foreheads are marked with the Siva spot, and my particular friend Kinniaven, after an absence of some days, returned with a shaven head from a visit to the temple of Siva at Nanjengudi.” A man who came to my laboratory had his hair hanging down in long tails reaching below his shoulders. He had, he said, let it grow long because his wife, though married five years, had borne no child. A child had, however, recently been born, and, as soon as the second funeral of a relation had been performed, he was going to sacrifice his locks as a thank-offering at the Nanjengōd temple. The following extracts from my notes will serve to illustrate the practice of marking (in some instances apparently for beauty’s sake) and shaving as carried out at the present day.(1) Man, aged 28. Has just performed a ceremony at the ti mand. White curved line painted across forehead, and dots below outer ends thereof, on glabella, and outside orbits. Smeared with white across chest, over outer side of upper arms and left nipple, across knuckles and lower end of left ulna, and on lobes of ears.(2) Man, aged 21. Painted on forehead as above. Smeared over chest and upper eye lids.(3) Man, aged 35. White spot painted on forehead.(4) Man, aged 30. Hair of head and beard cut short owing to death of grandfather.(5) Boy, aged 12. Shock head of hair, cut very short all over owing to death of grandfather.(6) Girl, aged 8. Hair shaved on top, back and sides of head, and in median strip from vertex to forehead.(7) Boy, aged 6. White spot painted between eyebrows. Hair shaved on top and sides of head, and in median strip from vertex to forehead. Hair brought forward in fringe over forehead on either side of median strip, and hanging down back of neck.(8) Male child, aged 18 months. White spot painted between eyebrows. Shaved on top and sides of head.Todupuzha Vellāla.—For the following note, I am indebted to Mr. N. Subramani Aiyar. Besides the Nanchinād Vellālas, there are, in Travancore, two sections of the Vellāla caste, inhabiting the mountainous Todupuzha tāluk. These are the Tenkanchi and Kumbakōnam Vellālas. The former are known by the popular name of Anjuttilkar, or the five hundred, and the latter are designated Munnutilkar, or the three hundred, in reference to the number of families which originally settled in the taluk. Like the Nanchinād Vellālas, they take the title of Pillai, and, in special cases, the honorific prefix Kanakku.The Tenkanchi Vellālas appear to have dwelt originally in the Tenkāsi taluk of the Tinnevelly district, and to have emigrated, as the legend goes, on account of the demand of a Vaduka ruler for the hand of a member of their community in marriage. The Vadakkumkur Rājas were ruling over Todupuzha at the time of their migration, and afforded them a safe asylum. The Kumbakōnam Vellālas believe that they emigrated to Travancore about the commencement of the Malabar era from Kumbakōnam in the Tanjore district. Both divisions speak Malayālam, but there are clear indications in their speech that their mother-tongue was once Tamil, and they always use that language in their ceremonial writings. The Anjuttilkar women haveadopted the dress and ornaments of the Nāyars. Both sections wear the tuft of hair in front, but the Munnutilkar women do not tie the hair on the left side like the Nāyars and Anjuttilkars, but behind like the Pāndi Vellālas. Nor do the Anjuttilkar women wear a white dress like the Tenkanchis, but a coloured cloth, sixteen cubits in length, in orthodox Tamil fashion. Again, while the Tenkanchi women largely resort to the todu and other Nāyar ornaments, the Kumbakōnam women are more conservative, and wear only the pampadam and melidu, though they sometimes wear jewels, such as the nāgapata tāli for the neck. Both sections are Saivites, in the sense that they abstain from flesh and fish.Their principal occupation is agriculture. They worship the two mountain deities Bhadrakāli and Durgā. In the Kirikkot muri of the Karikkodpropertythere is a temple dedicated to Siva or Unnamalanathar, with a large amount of property attached to it. This belongs to the Tenkanchi Vellālas, and a Malayālam Brāhman performs the priestly functions. The Kumbakōnam Vellālas have their own temples, such as the Ankalamma koil, Annamala matam, Vīrabhadran koil, etc., and worship, besides the principal gods of the Hindu pantheon, such minor deities as Vīrabhadran, Karuppan, Bhairavan, Māriamman, and Muttaramman. The priests of both sections are East Coast Brāhmans, who live in the Todupuzha tāluk. As their profession is regarded by other Brāhmans as degrading, they, especially in the case of the Kumbakōnam Vellālas, perform their duties stealthily. The headman of the Kumbakōnam section lives in the Periyakulam tāluk of the Madura district, and, by his order, an image of Siva is worshipped at their homes.Divorce is not permitted on any ground, and, in ancient days, widow remarriage was forbidden. There is a legend that a woman of this caste, who was a friend of the daughter of a certain Vadakkumkur Rājah, was so aggrieved at the news of her newly married husband’s death that, at her intercession, the Rājah issued a proclamation permitting the remarriage of widows. If no husband has been found for a girl before she reaches puberty, certain propitiatory rites have to be performed, at which one of her female relations represents her. On the fourth day of the marriage ceremony, the bride and bridegroom, before they bathe, rub each other’s bodies with oil, and, going to a large caldron containing water, throw a gold and silver ring into it, and pick them out three times. Inheritance of both sections is from father to son (makkathāyam). A sambandham alliance does not confer any rite of inheritance.The names of both sections are such as are unknown among Nāyars,e.g., Sivalingam, Arunāchalam, Chidambaram, Arumukham. The Tenkanchis are considered to be higher in the social scale than the Kumbakōnam section, as they observe only twelve days’ death pollution, whereas the latter are under pollution for sixteen days. The Tenkanchis may enter the temple, and, like Nāyars, stand on the left side of the inner shrine, whereas the Kumbakōnam Vellālas may proceed only as far as the balikkalpura, or out-house of the temple, and not enter the nalambalam. Again, butter-milk is freely received by Brāhmans from the Tenkanchis, but not from members of the Kumbakōnam section. While Pāndi Vellālas will not receive food from the Tenkanchis, or give their daughters in marriage to them, the latter will not intermarry with the Nānchinād Vellālas.Togata.—The Togatas are Telugu weavers, most numerous in the Cuddapah district, who manufacture the coarsest kind of cotton cloths, such as are worn by the poorer classes. They are generally Vaishnavites, wear the sacred thread, and have for their priests Vaishnava Brāhmans or Sātānis. They eat flesh, and their widows are allowed to remarry. Writing concerning the Togatas in 1807, Buchanan states53that “widows cannot marry again, but are not expected to kill themselves. The Panchanga, or village astrologer, attends at births, marriages, funerals, at the ceremonies performed in honour of their deceased parents, and at the building of a new house, and on each occasion gets a fee of one fanam, or eight pence. On other occasions, when a weaver wants to pray, he calls in a Satanana, who reads something in an unknown language, and gives the votary some holy water, which he consecrates by pouring it on the head of a small image that he carries about for the purpose.”As regards their origin, some Togatas claim to be sons of Chaudēsvari, who threw some rice on to the fire, from which sprang a host of warriors, whose descendants they are. Others give Pūppandaja Rishi as the name of their ancestor. Concerning Chaudēsvari, Mr. Francis writes as follows.54“Connected with the margosa tree (Melia Azadirachta) is the worship of Chaudēsvari, the goddess of the Togata caste of weavers. She is supposed to reside in margosa trees, and either the tree itself, or a stone representing the goddess and placed at its foot, is worshipped by the Togatas at certain seasons, such as the Telugu New Year Day. Apparently the other weaver castes take no share in the ceremonies. They consist largely of animal sacrifices. Nevertheless, aparticular class of Brāhmans, called Nandavarīkula Brāhmans, take a prominent part in the festival. This name Nandavarīkula is derived from the village of Nandavaram in Kurnool, and doubtless many stories are prevalent there about this sub-division. The account given at Tadpatri, where they are fairly numerous, is as follows. Once upon a time, a king from Southern India went on a pilgrimage with his wife to Benares. While there, he unwittingly incurred a nameless but heinous pollution. Horrified, he applied to some Brāhmans there to purify him, promising them half his kingdom in return. They asked for some tangible record of this promise, and the king called upon the goddess Chaudēsvari, who had a temple near by, to witness his oath. The purification was effected, and he departed home. Later on the Brāhmans came south, and asked for the fulfilment of his promise. The king declared that he could not remember having made any such undertaking. The Brāhmans accordingly went to Benares, and asked Chaudēsvari to come south, and bear witness to the king’s oaths. She agreed, on the usual condition that they should go in front, and not look back at her as she came. As happens in other stories of the same kind, they are said to have broken the condition. At Nandavaram they looked back, and the goddess instantly stopped, and remained immoveable. A temple was built for her there, and the Brāhmans remained in the south, and still take part in the worship of Chaudēsvari which the Togatas inaugurate, even though she is not one of the Hindu pantheon, and delights in animal sacrifice. At Tadpatri other castes besides the Togatas help at the festival.”Though Chaudēsvari is the patron god of the Togatas, they also worship Poleramma, Ellamma, Kotamma, and other minor deities.The original occupation of the Togatas is said to have been dyeing, but, at the present day, owing to the depression in the hand-loom weaving industry, a large number have taken to cultivation.Like many other Telugu castes, they have exogamous septs, of which the following are examples:—Pātha, old.Kambhapu, pillar.Nīli, indigo.Madaka, plough.Bana, pot.Jīlakara, cummin seed.Annam, food.Mékala, goat.Gōpalam, alms.Sāmanthi,Chrysanthemum indicum.Gurram, horse.Perumāl, a god.Bandāri, treasurer?Gudditi.Pūjāris (priests) for temple worship are always elected from the Perumāl sept, and caste messengers from the Bandāri sept, if they are represented in a settlement. Torches are generally carried, at processions, by men of the Gudditi sept. Members of the Gurram sept are not allowed to ride on horseback.The panchāyat (village council) system is in vogue, but, in some places, a headman is selected, as occasion requires. In their marriage and funeral ceremonies, the Togatas closely follow the Telugu standard Purānic form of ceremonial. The dead are buried in a recumbent posture. On the last day of the death rites, the Sātāni gives arrack (liquor) to the Togatas, as to the Padma Sālēs, in lieu of holy water (thirtham).Tohala.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a small class of Oriya hill cultivators and petty traders in the Ganjam Agency.Tolagari.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a sub-caste of Mutrācha. In the North Arcot Manual the Tolagaris are described as a smallcultivating caste, who were formerly hunters, like the Pālayakkārans.Tolar(Wolf).—An exogamous sept of Halēpaik. The equivalent Tolana occurs as a sept of Mogēr.Tōlkollan.—The Tōlkollans or Tōlans (skin people) are summed up in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as “leather workers and dyers, and also gymnasts and teachers of gymnastics. They are also called Vatti Kurup, Chāya Kurup, and Vil Kurup. Their title is Kurup.” The Tōlkollans are stated55to be “blacksmiths by caste, who abandoned their hereditary trade for leather work, and they are chiefly employed by Māppillas. One peculiar custom in this caste is that two or more brothers may have one wife in common. Only those in good circumstances indulge in the luxury of a private wife. The following information furnished by Mr. S. Vaidyanadha Aiyar, the headmaster of the School of Commerce, Calicut, gives some information regarding leather work in Malabar:—(a) Boots and shoes of country make and English pattern.(b) Harness making.(c) Native shoes (ceruppu). These are of the special pattern peculiar to Malabar, and are largely used by all classes of the Hindu and Māppilla communities. The Arabs who visit this coast once a year purchase a considerable number to take back with them. The price of a pair varies from Rs. 1–8–0 to Rs. 5. Those with ornamental gold lace work cost from Rs. 10 to Rs. 50. These shoes are generally used by well-to-do Māppillas. White of egg is used to give a creaking sound to the shoes. This work is mainly done by Thōlperunkollansand Māppillas, and the latter show more skill in finish and ornamental work.(d) Knife sheaths. Almost every Nāyar, Tiyan and Māppilla carries a knife about a foot in length, and there is a demand for leather sheaths. These are made by Pānans as well as by Thōlperunkollans and Māppillas.(e) Leather baskets are also made, and are largely used as receptacles for carrying pepper, paddy (rice), and other grain.(f) Winnowing fans are made of leather, and are used in pepper and paddy yards, etc.(g) Muttu ceruppu (clogs) are leather shoes with wooden soles. These are largely used during the rainy season.”Tollakkādan(one with a big hole in the lobes of his ears).—Taken, at the census, 1901, as a sub-caste of Shānān, as those returning the name, who are vendors of husked rice in Madras, used the Shānān title Nādān. The equivalent Tollakādu was returned as a sub-division of Konga Vellāla.Tōl Mēstri.—A sub-division of Semmān.Tondamān.—It is stated, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, that the Tondamāns are “also called Sunnāmbukkāran (q.v.), a Tamil caste of lime (chunam) burners found only in the Tinnevelly district. They are said to be a branch of the Kallans who migrated to Tinnevelly from Pudukkōttai, or the Tondamān’s country. Its members are now drummers and pipers as well as lime-burners. Brāhmans are their purōhits, but they are not allowed to go into Hindu temples. They will eat in the houses of Maravans. Their title is Sōlagan.” It is noted, in the same report, that the Semmān caste “has two sub-divisions,Tondamānand Tōl-mēstri, and men of the former take wives from the latter, but menof the latter may not marry girls of the former.” Tondamān is the family name of the Rāja of Pudukkōttai, a Native State surrounded by the British districts of Tanjore, Madura, and Trichinopoly. The Rāja is the head of the Kallan caste. Copper coins, called amman kāsu, are current only within the State, and their greatest distribution is during Navarātri or Dusserah, when they are issued to the people with a dole of rice every day during the nine days of the festival. They bear on one side the word “Vijaya,” meaning victory, or more probably having reference to our faithful ally Vijaya Ragunātha Tondamān, in whose reign they were first struck, it is said in 1761, after the surrender of Pondicherry to the British.Tondamandalam.—The name of a sub-division of Vellāla, derived from Tondanādu, the ancient Pallava country.Tonti.—The Tontis are said to be cotton-weavers of Bengal, who have settled in Ganjam.56The name denotes threadmen, and the weaving of rough white cloths is the traditional occupation of the caste. All Tontis belong to a single gōtra named after Kāsyapa, one of the seven important rishis, and the priest of Parasurāma. Various bamsams or exogamous septs, the names of some of which occur also as titles, exist,e.g., Biswālo, Dasso, Pālo, Bono, Chondo, Parimaniko, Korono, Bēhara, and Mahāpātro. The marriage and death ceremonies conform to the standard Oriya type. On the fourth day of the marriage rites, a Bhondāri (barber) is presented with some beaten rice and sugar-candy in a new earthen pot. These are sold to those who have assembled, and the proceeds go to the Bhondāri.The corpse of a dead person is washed at the burning ground, instead of, in accordance with the common custom among other castes, at the house.Toppa Tāli.—A name applied to certain Vāniyans in the North Arcot district, owing to the peculiar tāli (marriage badge) which married women wear.Torai.—A title of various Oriya castes.Toreya.—The Toreyas are a Canarese class, living chiefly in the Tamil districts of Coimbatore and Salem. They are said to have been originally fishermen and palanquin bearers, and the name is derived from turai, a river ghāt. Most of them are now cultivators, especially of the betel vine (Piper betle). Those whom I examined at Coimbatore were earning their living as betel and sugar-cane cultivators, vendors of tobacco, bakers, cloth merchants, contractors, petty traders, and police constables.By the Coimbatore Toreyas, the following endogamous divisions were returned:—Elai, leaf. Betel cultivators.Chunam, lime. Lime burners.Gāzul, glass bangle. The Toreya caste is said to have originated from the bangles of Machyagandhi or Gandhavati, the daughter of a fisherman on the Jumna. She was married to king Shantanu of Hastinapūr, who was one of the ancestors of the heroes of the Mahābhārata.Many exogamous septs exist among the Toreyas, of which the following are examples:—Belli, silver. May not wear silver toe-rings.Nāga, snake. The members of the sept, at times of marriage, worship ant-hills, which are the home of snakes.Alwar or Garuda.Chinnam, gold.Kansugaje, small bronze bells, tied to the legs when dancing.Urukathi, a kind of knife.Vajjira, diamond.Vasishta, a Hindu saint.Mogila, clouds.Onne (Pterocarpus Marsupium). Do not mark their foreheads with the juice from the trunk of this tree.Kuzhal, the flute played by shepherd boys and snake charmers. If the sound thereof is heard during a meal, what remains of the food should be thrown away.Rākshasa, a giant. Do not celebrate the Dīpāvali festival in honour of the victory over, and death of, a rākshasa.Erumai, buffalo.The headman of the caste is called Ejaman, who has under him an officer entitled Dalavayi. The caste messenger bears the name of Kondikar. These three offices are hereditary. The Ejaman presides at council meetings which are held at the temple of the caste. The eldest member of each family is entitled to a seat on the council. Those who come late to a meeting thereof prostrate themselves before the assembly. Witnesses before the council have to take an oath, which is administered by the Kondikar. He makes the witness stand within a circle drawn on the ground, and makes him repeat the formula “Before God and the elders assembled, with the sky above and the earth beneath, I will state only the truth.” The Kondikar then takes up a pinch of earth, and puts it on the head of the witness. For merely threatening to beat a person with shoes, the offender has to feed twenty-five castemen. If he takes the shoes in his hands he must feed fifty, and, if heactually resorts to beating with them, he has to feed a hundred men. In addition, the culprit has to pay a small fine, and both parties have to be purified at the temple. A similar punishment is enforced for beating, or threatening to beat with a broom. For adultery the guilty person is excommunicated, and is admitted back into the caste only after the death of one of the parties concerned. He then has to feed a large number of castemen, or pay a money fine, and, prostrating himself before the assembly, he is beaten with a tamarind switch. He further makes obeisance to the Ejaman, and washes his feet. The Ejaman then purifies him by a small piece of burning camphor in his mouth.When a married girl reaches puberty, she is taken to her father’s house, and her husband constructs a hut with branches ofFicus glomerata. On the last day of her confinement therein, the hut is pulled down, and the girl sets fire to it. The house is purified, and the female relations go to the houses of the Ejaman and caste people, and invite them to be present at a ceremonial. A small quantity of turmeric paste is stuck on the doors of the houses of all who are invited. The relations and members of the caste carry betel, and other articles, on trays in procession through the streets. The girl is seated on a plank, and the trays are placed in front of her. Rice flour, fruits, betel, etc., are tied in her cloth, and she is taken into the house. In the case of an unmarried girl, the hut is built by her maternal uncle.Marriage is always celebrated at the house of the bridegroom, as there is a legend that a Rājah belonging to the Toreya caste had a son, who was taken to the house of his bride elect, and there murdered. Thebridegroom’s father and relations go to the house of the bride, and make presents of money, cloths, ornaments, etc. They also have to make obeisance to, and feed five married women sumptuously. Pandals (booths) are constructed at the houses of both the bride and bridegroom. Five married women go, on behalf of each of the contracting parties, to their houses, and pound rice there. On the second day, five such women fetch water from a tank, and bathe the bride and bridegroom respectively. The ten women then go to the potter’s house, and bring five decorated pots. Three of these are taken to a tank, and filled with water. On the following day, the bridegroom and his sister take the two remaining pots to the tank, and fill them with water. The five pots are placed in the pandal, and represent the household gods. The relations of the bridegroom take twelve kinds of ornaments, a new cloth, flowers, etc., to the house of the Ejaman, and go with him to the bride’s house. She is then bathed, and decked with finery. A Brāhman does pūja (worship) and ties on her forehead a mandaikettu or bashingham (chaplet) made of gold leaf or tinsel. She is then carried in procession to the house of the bridegroom. Meanwhile, the Brāhman ties a mandaikettu on the forehead of the bridegroom, who puts on the sacred thread, and sits within the pandal, holding a katar (dagger) in his hand, and closed in by a screen. The bride goes thrice round this screen, and the Brāhman does pūja and gives advice (upadēsam) to the couple. The screen is then lowered slightly, and the bride and bridegroom garland each other. The bride’s parents place a few gingelly (Sesamum) seeds in the hand of the bridegroom, and pour water thereon, saying that their daughter belongs to him, and telling him to take care of her. The tāli, after being blessed by thoseassembled, is given by the Brāhman to the bridegroom, who ties it on the bride’s neck. The screen is then removed, and the couple sit side by side. The sacred fire is lighted, their hands are linked together, and the ends of their cloths tied together. They then leave the pandal, and, placing their feet on a grindstone, look at the pole-star (Arundati). Entering the pandal once more, they sit therein, and the elders bless them by throwing rice coloured with turmeric over their heads. On the fourth day, they again sit within the pandal, and cooked rice, coloured white, red, yellow, green, and black, on five trays, and nine lighted wicks on a tray are waved before them. Five married men and women, holding a string, stand round them in a circle, within which is the bride’s brother with a twig of pīpal (Ficus religiosa). The bridegroom places his hands together, and small rice cakes are placed on the head, shoulders, bend of the elbows and knees, and between the fingers of the couple. They are then bathed, and, taking betel in their hands, bow to the four corners of the earth. The bridegroom makes a nāmam (Vaishnavite sect mark), or places vibhūti (sacred ashes) on the twelve posts of the pandal, and the bride places a little cooked rice and water before each post, to which camphor is burnt, and pūja done. They then start for the bride’s house, but the bride’s sister meets them at the entrance thereto, and will not allow them to go in until she has extracted a promise that their child shall marry hers. The bride proceeds to a tank, sowing some paddy (rice) on the way thither, and brings back a pot of water, with which she washes her husband’s hands and feet. Husband and wife then feed each other with a small quantity of rice and milk. Their hands are then cleaned, and the bride’s brother puts a gold ring on the finger of the bridegroom.A tray with betel leaves and areca nuts is brought, and the bridegroom ties three handfuls thereof in his cloth. The newly married couple then worship at the temple. On the fifth day, they carry the earthen pots to a river, and, on their return, five married women are worshipped and fed. Five men have to come forward as sureties for the good behaviour of the couple, and declare before those assembled that they will hold themselves responsible for it. In the evening the pair go to the bride’s house, and rub oil over each other’s head before bathing in turmeric water. On the following day they repair to the house of the bridegroom.The corpse of a dead Toreya is placed in a pandal constructed of cocoanut leaves and stems of the milk-hedge (Euphorbia Tirucalli). Sect marks are placed on the foreheads of the corpse and the widow. The son of the deceased dons the sacred thread. The funeral ceremonies resemble, in many particulars, those of the Oddēs. A mound is piled up over the grave. A Paraiyan places a small twig of the arka plant (Calotropis gigantea) in three corners of the grave, leaving out the north-east corner, and the son puts a small coin on each twig. As he goes round the grave with a water-pot and fire-brand, his maternal uncle, who stands at the head of the grave, makes holes in the pot. On the third, fifth, seventh, or ninth day, the widow, dressed in new cloths, and bedecked with ornaments and flowers, is taken to the burial-ground, with offerings of milk, ghī (clarified butter), tender cocoanut, sandal, camphor, etc. Five small stones, smeared with turmeric and lime, are set up at the head of the grave, and worshipped. The widow goes thrice round the grave, and seats herself near the head thereof. Her brother holds up her arms, and one of her husband’s malerelations breaks her bangles. She breaks, and throws her tāli on the grave, with the flowers which adorn her. Her ornaments are removed, and she is covered with a cloth, and taken to a river, where she is rubbed with cow-dung and bathed. The son and other relatives go to the temple with butter and other articles. A Brāhman does pūja, and shuts the doors of the temple. The son, with his back to the temple, throws a little butter on the doors, which are then opened by the Brāhman. This is done thrice. On the seventh day, pollution is removed by sprinkling holy water, and the caste people are fed. A widow remains in seclusion (gōsha) for three months. Srādh (memorial ceremony) is performed.The Toreyas worship both Siva and Vishnu, but consider Ayodhya Rāman as their special deity, and sacrifice sheep and fowls to Koriamma.Toreya.—A sub-division of the Badagas of the Nīlgiris.Tōta(garden).—Recorded as a sub-division of cultivating Balijas, and an exogamous sept of Bōya, Chenchu, Vāda Balija (or Mila), Mutrācha and Bonthuk Savara. The equivalent Tōta occurs as an exogamous sept of Kāpu and Yānādi. Tōta Dēvaru, or garden god, is the name of an exogamous sept of the Tigala gardeners and cultivators.Tōtakūra(Amarantus gangeticus).—An exogamous sept of Kamma.Toththala or Tottadi.—A sub-division of Velama.Tōti.—The Tōti or Totti is one of the village communal servants. The name has been derived from tondu, to dig, or tott, to go round, as the Tōti is the purveyor of news, and has to summon people to appear before the village council. The functions of this useful person tothe community have been summed up as follows by a district official.57“This individual has all the dirty work of the village allotted to him. He is of the lowest caste, and hence makes no scruple of doing any manner of work that he may be called upon to perform. The removal and sepulture of unclaimed dead bodies, the cleansing of choultries, rest-houses and the like, where travellers carrying infectious diseases might have halted, and other gruesome duties are entrusted to him. In spite of all this, theTōtiis one of the most trusted of the humbler servants of the village community. Considering his humble status and emoluments, which average between Rs. 3 and Rs. 4 a month, his honesty with regard to pecuniary matters is wonderful. He may be trusted with untold wealth, as is often done when he is the sole custodian of the revenue collections of his village to the tune of several thousands at a time, when on their way from the collecting officers to the Government Treasury.” Testimony is borne to the industry of the Tōti in the proverb that if you work like a Tōti, you can enjoy the comforts of a king.In the Madras Census Report, 1891, Tōti is returned as a sub-division of Chakkiliyan. The Tōti of Mysore is defined by Mr. L. Rice58as a menial among the village servants, a deputy talāri, who is employed to watch the crops from the growing crop to the granary.Odiya Tōti is a Tamil synonym for Oriya Haddis employed as scavengers in municipalities in the Tamil country.Tottiyan.—In the Census Report, 1901, Mr. W. Francis writes that the Tottiyans are “Telugucultivators. The Tottiyans or Kambalattāns of the Tanjore district are, however, said to be vagrants, and to live by pig-breeding, snake-charming, and begging. So are the sub-division called Kāttu Tottiyans in Tinnevelly. The headman among the Tinnevelly Tottiyans is called the Mandai Periadanakkāran or Sērvaikāran. Their marriages are not celebrated in their houses, but in pandals (booths) of green leaves erected for the purpose on the village common. However wealthy the couple may be, the only grain which they may eat at the wedding festivities is either cumbu (Pennisetum typhoideum) or horse-gram (Dolichos biflorus). The patron deities of the caste are Jakkamma and Bommakka, two women who committed sati. The morality of their women is loose. The custom of marrying boys to their paternal aunt’s or maternal uncle’s daughter, however old she may be, also obtains, and in such cases the bridegroom’s father is said to take upon himself the duty of begetting children to his own son. Divorce is easy, and remarriage is freely allowed. They offer rice and arrack (alcoholic liquor) to their ancestors. The Kāttu Tottiyans will eat jackals, rats, and the leavings of other people. Tottiya women will not eat in the houses of Brāhmans, but no explanation of this is forthcoming. The men wear silver anklets on both legs, and also a bracelet upon one of the upper arms, both of which practices are uncommon, while the women wear bangles only on the left arm, instead of on both as usual. Some of the Zamindars in Madura belong to this caste. The caste title is Nāyakkan.” At the census, 1901, Kudulukkāran was returned as a sub-caste of the Tottiyans in Madura and Tinnevelly. The Urumikkāran, meaning those who play on the drum called urumi, are said to be Tottiyans in Madura and Paraiyans elsewhere.
Toda and phonograph.Toda and phonograph.At the census, 1901, 453 male and 354 female Todas were returned. In a note on the proportion of the sexes among the Todas, Mr. R. C. Punnett states50that “all who have studied the Todas are agreed upon the frequency of the practice (of infanticide) in earlier times. Marshall, writing in 1872, refers to the large amount of female infanticide in former years, but expresses his conviction that the practice had by that time died out. Marshall’s evidence is that of native assurance only. Dr. Rivers, who received the same assurance, is disinclined to place much confidence innative veracity with reference to this point, and, in view of the lack of encouragement which the practice receives from the Indian Government, this is not altogether surprising. The supposition of female infanticide, by accounting for the great disproportion in the numbers of the sexes, brings the Todas into harmony with what is known of the rest of mankind.” In summarising his conclusions, Mr. Punnett notes that:—(1) Among the Todas, males predominate greatly over females.(2) This preponderance is doubtless due to the practice of female infanticide, which is probably still to some extent prevalent.(3) The numerical preponderance of the males has been steadily sinking during recent years, owing probably to the check which foreign intercourse has imposed upon female infanticide.In connection with the death ceremonies of the Todas, Dr. Rivers notes that “soon after death the body is burnt, and the general name for the ceremony on this occasion is etvainolkedr, the first day funeral. After an interval, which may vary greatly in length, a second ceremony is performed, connected with certain relics of the deceased which have been preserved from the first occasion. The Toda name for this second funeral ceremony is marvainolkedr, the second day funeral, or ‘again which day funeral.’ The funeral ceremonies are open to all, and visitors are often invited by the Todas. In consequence, the funeral rites are better known, and have been more frequently described than any other features of Toda ceremonial. Like nearly every institution of the Todas, however, they have become known to Europeans under their Badaga names. The first funeral is called by the Badagas hase kedu, the fresh or greenfuneral, and the term ‘green funeral’ has not only become the generally recognised name among the European inhabitants of the Nilgiri hills, but has been widely adopted in anthropological literature. The second funeral is called by the Badagas bara kedu, the ‘dry funeral,’ and this term also has been generally adopted.” The various forms of the funeral ceremonies are discussed in detail by Dr. Rivers, and it must suffice to describe those at which we have been present as eye-witnesses.I had the opportunity of witnessing the second funeral of a woman who had died from smallpox two months previously. On arrival at a mand on the open downs about five miles from Ootacamund, we were conducted by a Toda guide to the margin of a dense shola, where we found two groups seated apart, consisting of (a) women, girls, and brown-haired female babies, round a camp fire; (b) men, boys, and male babies, carried, with marked signs of paternal affection, by their fathers. In a few minutes a murmuring sound commenced in the centre of the female group. Working themselves up to the necessary pitch, some of the women (near relatives of the deceased) commenced to cry freely, and the wailing and lachrymation gradually spread round the circle, until all, except little girls and babies who were too young to be affected, were weeping and mourning, some for fashion, others from genuine grief. In carrying out the orthodox form of mourning, the women first had a good cry to themselves, and then, as their emotions became more intense, went round the circle, selecting partners with whom to share companionship in grief. Gradually the group resolved itself into couplets of mourners, each pair with their heads in contact, and giving expression to their emotions in unison. Beforeseparating to select a new partner, each couple saluted by bowing the head, and raising thereto the feet of the other, covered by the putkūli. [I have seen women rapidly recover from the outward manifestations of grief, and clamour for money.] From time to time the company of mourners was reinforced by late arrivals from distant mands, and, as each detachment, now of men and now of women, came in view across the open downs, one could not fail to be reminded of the gathering of the clans on some Highland moor. The resemblance was heightened by the distant sound as of pipers, produced by the Kota band (with two police constables in attendance), composed of four Kotas, who made a weird noise with drums and flutes as they drew near the scene of action. The band, on arrival, took up a position close to the mourning women. As each detachment arrived, the women, recognising their relatives, came forward and saluted them in the manner customary among Todas by falling at their feet, and placing first the right and then the left foot on their head. Shortly after the arrival of the band, signals were exchanged, by waving of putkūlis, between the assembled throng and a small detachment of men some distance off. A general move was made, and animpromptuprocession formed, with men in front, band in the middle, and women bringing up the rear. A halt was made opposite a narrow gap leading into the shola; men and women sat apart as before; and the band walked round, discoursing unsweet music. A party of girls went off to bring fire from the spot just vacated for use in the coming ceremonial, but recourse was finally had to a box of matches lent by one of our party. At this stage we noticed a woman go up to the eldest son of the deceased, who was seated apart from theother men, and would not be comforted in spite of her efforts to console him. On receipt of a summons from within the shola, the assembled Toda men and ourselves swarmed into it by a narrow track leading to a small clear space round a big tree, from a hole cut at the base of which an elderly Toda produced a piece of the skull of the dead woman, wrapped round with long tresses of her hair. It now became the men’s turn to exhibit active signs of grief, and all of one accord commenced to weep and mourn. Amid the scene of lamentation, the hair was slowly unwrapt from off the skull, and burned in an iron ladle, from which a smell as of incense arose. A bamboo pot of ghī was produced, with which the skull was reverently anointed, and placed in a cloth spread on the ground. To this relic of the deceased the throng of men, amid a scene of wild excitement, made obeisance by kneeling down before it, and touching it with their foreheads. The females were not permitted to witness this stage of the proceedings, with the exception of one or two near relatives of the departed one, who supported themselves sobbing against the tree. The ceremonial concluded, the fragment of skull, wrapt in the cloth, was carried into the open, where, as men and boys had previously done, women and girls made obeisance to it. A procession was then again formed, and marched on until a place was reached, where were two stone-walled kraals, large and small. Around the former the men, and within the latter the women, took up their position, the men engaging in chit-chat, and the women in mourning, which after a time ceased, and they too engaged in conversation. A party of men, carrying the skull, still in the cloth, set out for a neighbouring shola, where a kēdu of several other dead Todas was being celebrated; and a longpause ensued, broken eventually by the arrival of the other funeral party, the men advancing in several lines, with arms linked, and crying out U, hah! U, hah, hah! in regular time. This party brought with it pieces of the skulls of a woman and two men, which were placed, wrapt in cloths, on the ground, saluted, and mourned over by the assembled multitude. At this stage a small party of Kotas arrived, and took up their position on a neighbouring hill, waiting, vulture-like, for the carcase of the buffalo which was shortly to be slain. Several young men now went off across the hill in search of buffaloes, and speedily re-appeared, driving five buffaloes before them with sticks. As soon as the beasts approached a swampy marsh at the foot of the hill on which the expectant crowd of men was gathered together, two young men of athletic build, throwing off their putkūlis, made a rush down the hill, and tried to seize one of the buffaloes by the horns, with the result that one of them was promptly thrown. The buffalo escaping, one of the remaining four was quickly caught by the horns, and, with arms interlocked, the men brought it down on its knees, amid a general scuffle. In spite of marked objection and strenuous resistance on the part of the animal—a barren cow—it was, by means of sticks freely applied, slowly dragged up the hill, preceded by the Kota band, and with a Toda youth pulling at its tail. Arrived at the open space between the kraals, the buffalo, by this time thoroughly exasperated, and with blood pouring from its nostrils, had a cloth put on its back, and was despatched by a blow on the poll with an axe deftly wielded by a young and muscular man. On this occasion no one was badly hurt by the sacrificial cow, though one man was seen washing his legs in the swamp after the preliminary struggle withthe beast. But Colonel Ross-King narrates how he saw a man receive a dangerous wound in the neck from a thrust of the horn, which ripped open a wide gash from the collar-bone to the ear. With the death of the buffalo, the last scene, which terminated the strange rites, commenced; men, women, and children pressing forward and jostling one another in their eagerness to salute the dead beast by placing their hands between its horns, and weeping and mourning in pairs; the facial expression of grief being mimicked when tears refused to flow spontaneously.The ceremonial connected with the final burning of the relics and burial of the ashes at the stone circle (azaram) are described in detail by Dr. Rivers.A few days after the ceremony just described, I was invited to be present at the funeral of a young girl who had died of smallpox five days previously. I proceeded accordingly to the scene of the recent ceremony, and there, in company with a small gathering of Todas from the neighbouring mands, awaited the arrival of the funeral cortége, the approach of which was announced by the advancing strains of Kota music. Slowly the procession came over the brow of the hill; the corpse, covered by a cloth, on a rude ladder-like bier, borne on the shoulders of four men, followed by two Kota musicians; the mother carried hidden within a sack; relatives and men carrying bags of rice and jaggery, and bundles of wood of the kiaz tree (Eugenia Arnottiana) for the funeral pyre. Arrived opposite a small hut, which had been specially built for the ceremonial, the corpse was removed from the bier, laid on the ground, face upwards, outside the hut, and saluted by men, women, and children, with the same manifestations of grief as on the previous occasion. Soon the men moved away to a short distance, and engagedin quiet conversation, leaving the females to continue mourning round the corpse, interrupted from time to time by the arrival of detachments from distant mands, whose first duty was to salute the dead body. Meanwhile a near female relative of the dead child was busily engaged inside the hut, collecting together in a basket small measures of rice, jaggery, sago, honey-comb, and the girl’s simple toys, which were subsequently to be burned with the corpse. The mourning ceasing after a time, the corpse was placed inside the hut, and followed by the near relatives, who there continued to weep over it. A detachment of men and boys, who had set out in search of the buffaloes which were to be sacrificed, now returned driving before them three cows, which escaped from their pursuers to rejoin the main herd. A long pause ensued, and, after a very prolonged drive, three more cows were guided into a marshy swamp, where one of them was caught by the horns, and dragged reluctantly, but with little show of fight, to the strains of Kota drum and flute, in front of the hut, where it was promptly despatched by a blow on the poll. The corpse was now brought from within the hut, and placed, face upwards, with its feet resting on the forehead of the buffalo, whose neck was decorated with a silver chain, such as is worn by Todas round the loins, as no bell was available, and the horns were smeared with butter. Then followed frantic manifestations of grief, amid which the unhappy mother fainted. Mourning over, the corpse was made to go through a form of ceremony, resembling that which is performed during pregnancy with the first child. A small boy, three years old, was selected from among the relatives of the dead girl, and taken by his father in search of a certain grass (Andropogon Schœnanthus) and a twig of a shrub(Sophora glauca), which were brought to the spot where the corpse was lying. The mother of the dead child then withdrew one of its hands from the putkūli, and the boy placed the grass and twig in the hand, and limes, plantains, rice, jaggery, honey-comb, and butter in the pocket of the putkūli, which was then stitched with needle and thread in a circular pattern. The boy’s father then took off his son’s putkūli, and replaced it so as to cover him from head to foot. Thus covered, the boy remained outside the hut till the morning of the morrow, watched through the night by near relatives of himself and his dead bride. [On the occasion of the funeral of an unmarried lad, a girl is in like manner selected, covered with her putkūli from head to foot, and a metal vessel filled with jaggery, rice, etc., to be subsequently burnt on the funeral pyre, placed for a short time within the folds of the putkūli. Thus covered, the girl remains till next morning, watched through the dreary hours of the night by relatives. The same ceremony is performed over the corpse of a married woman who has not borne children, the husband acting as such for the last time, in the vain hope that the woman may produce issue in heaven.] The corpse was borne away to the burning-ground within the shola, and, after removal of some of the hair by the mother of the newly wedded boy, burned, with face upwards, amid the music of the Kota band, the groans of the assembled crowd squatting on the ground, and the genuine grief of the nearest relatives. The burning concluded, a portion of the skull was removed from the ashes, and handed over to the recently made mother-in-law of the dead girl, and wrapped up with the hair in the bark of the tūd tree (Meliosma pungens). A second buffalo, which, properly speaking, should have been slain beforethe corpse was burnt, was then sacrificed, and rice and jaggery were distributed among the crowd, which dispersed, leaving behind the youthful widower and his custodians, who, after daybreak, partook of a meal of rice, and returned to their mands; the boy’s mother taking with her the skull and hair to her mand, where it would remain until the celebration of the second funeral. No attention is paid to the ashes after cremation, and they are left to be scattered by the winds.A further opportunity offered itself to be present at the funeral of an elderly woman on the open downs not far from Paikāra, in connection with which certain details possess some interest. The corpse was, at the time of our arrival, laid out on a rude bier within an improvised arbour covered with leaves and open at each end, and tended by some of the female relatives. At some little distance, a conclave of Toda men, who rose of one accord to greet us, was squatting in a circle, among whom were many venerable white-turbaned elders of the tribe, protected from the scorching sun by palm-leaf umbrellas. Amid much joking, and speech-making by the veterans, it was decided that, as the eldest son of the deceased woman was dead, leaving a widow, this daughter-in-law should be united to the second son, and that they should live together as man and wife. On the announcement of the decision, the bridegroom-elect saluted the principal Todas present by placing his head on their feet, which were sometimes concealed within the ample folds of the putkūli. At the funeral of a married woman, three ceremonies must, I was told, be performed, if possible, by a daughter or daughter-in-law, viz.:—(1) Tying a leafy branch of the tiviri shrub (Atylosia Candolleana) in the putkūli of the corpse;(2) Tying balls of thread and cowry shells on the arm of the corpse, just above the elbow;(3) Setting fire to the funeral pyre, which was, on the present occasion, done by lighting a rag fed with ghī with a match.The buffalo capture took place amid the usual excitement, and with freedom from accident; and, later in the day, the stalwart buffalo catchers turned up at the travellers’ bungalow for apourboirein return, as they said, for treating us to a good fight. The beasts selected for sacrifice were a full-grown cow and a young calf. As they were dragged near to the corpse, now removed from the arbour, butter was smeared over the horns, and a bell tied round the neck. The bell was subsequently removed by Kotas, in whose custody, it was said, it was to remain till the next day funeral. The death-blow, or rather series of blows, having been delivered with the butt end of an axe, the feet of the corpse were placed at the mouth of the buffalo. In the case of a male corpse, the right hand is made to clasp the horns. [It is recorded by Dr. Rivers that, at the funeral of a male, men dance after the buffalo is killed. In the dancing a tall pole, called tadri or tadrsi, decorated with cowry shells, is used.] The customary mourning in couples concluded, the corpse, clad in four cloths, was carried on the stretcher to a clear space in the neighbouring shola, and placed by the side of the funeral pyre, which had been rapidly piled up. The innermost cloth was black in colour, and similar to that worn by a palol. Next to it came a putkūli decorated with blue and red embroidery, outside which again was a plain white cloth covered over by a red cotton cloth of European manufacture. Seated by the side of the pyre, near to which I was courteously invited to take a seat on the stump of a rhododendron,was an elderly relative of the dead woman, who, while watching the ceremonial, was placidly engaged in the manufacture of a holly walking-stick with the aid of a glass scraper. The proceedings were watched on behalf of Government by a forest guard, and a police constable who, with marked affectation, held his handkerchief to his nose throughout the ceremonial. The corpse was decorated with brass rings, and within the putkūli were stowed jaggery, a scroll of paper adorned with cowry shells, snuff and tobacco, cocoanuts, biscuits, various kinds of grain, ghī, honey, and a tin-framed looking-glass. A long purse, containing a silver Japanese yen and an Arcot rupee of the East India Company, was tied up in the putkūli close to the feet. These preliminaries concluded, the corpse was hoisted up, and swung three times over the now burning pyre, above which a mimic bier, made of slender twigs, was held. The body was then stripped of its jewelry, and a lock of hair cut off by the daughter-in-law for preservation, together with a fragment of the skull. I was told that, when the corpse is swung over the pyre, the dead person goes to amnodr (the world of the dead). In this connection, Dr. Rivers writes that “it would seem as if this ceremony of swinging the body over the fire was directly connected with the removal of the objects of value. The swinging over the fire would be symbolic of its destruction by fire; and this symbolic burning has the great advantage that the objects of value are not consumed, and are available for use another time. This is probably the real explanation of the ceremony, but it is not the explanation given by the Todas themselves. They say that long ago, about 400 years, a man supposed to be dead was put on the funeral pyre, and, revived by the heat, he was found to be alive, and was able to walk away from the funeral place. In consequenceof this, the rule was made that the body should always be swung three times over the fire before it is finally placed thereon.” [Colonel Marshall narrates the story that a Toda who had revived from what was thought his death-bed, has been observed parading about, very proud and distinguished looking, wearing the finery with which he had been bedecked for his own funeral, and which he would be permitted to carry till he really departed this life.] As soon as the pyre was fairly ablaze, the mourners, with the exception of some of the female relatives, left the shōla, and the men, congregating on the summit of a neighbouring hill, invoked their god. Four men, seized, apparently in imitation of the Kota Dēvādi, with divine frenzy, began to shiver and gesticulate wildly, while running blindly to and fro with closed eyes and shaking fists. They then began to talk in Malayālam, and offer an explanation of an extraordinary phenomenon, which had appeared in the form of a gigantic figure, which disappeared as suddenly as it appeared. At the annual ceremony of walking through fire (hot ashes) in that year, two factions arose owing to some dissension, and two sets of ashes were used. This seems to have annoyed the gods, and those concerned were threatened with speedy ruin. But the whole story was very vague. The possession by some Todas of a smattering of Malayālam is explained by the fact that, when grazing their buffaloes on the northern and western slopes of the Nīlgiris, they come in contact with Malayālam-speaking people from the neighbouring Malabar district.At the funeral of a man (a leper), the corpse was placed in front of the entrance to a circle of loose stones about a yard and a half in diameter, which had been specially constructed for the occasion. Just before the buffalo sacrifice, a man of the Paiki clan standing nearthe head of the corpse, dug a hole in the ground with a cane, and asked a Kenna who was standing on the other side, “Puzhut, Kenna,”51shall I throw the earth?—three times. To which the Kenna, answering, replied “Puzhut”—throw the earth—thrice. The Paiki then threw some earth three times over the corpse, and three times into the miniature kraal. It is suggested by Dr. Rivers that the circle was made to do duty for a buffalo pen, as the funeral was held at a place where there was no tu (pen), from the entrance of which earth could be dug up.Several examples of laments relating to the virtues and life of the deceased, which are sung or recited in the course of the funeral ceremonies, are given by Dr. Rivers. On the occasion of the reproduction of a lament in my phonograph, two young women were seen to be crying bitterly. The selection of the particular lament was unfortunate, as it had been sung at their father’s funeral. The reproduction of the recitation of a dead person’s sins at a Badaga funeral quickly restored them to a state of cheerfulness.The following petition to the Collector of the Nilgiris on the subject of buffalo sacrifice may be quoted as a sign of the times, when the Todas employ petition-writers to express their grievances:—“According to our religious custom for the long period, we are bringing forward of our killing buffaloes without any irregular way. But, in last year, when the late Collector came to see the said place, by that he ordered to the Todas first not to keep the buffaloes without feeding in the kraal, and second he ordered to kill each for every day, and to clear away the buffaloes, and not to keep the buffaloes without food.We did our work according to his orders, and this excellent order was an ample one. Now this ——, a chief of the Todas, son of ——, a deceased Toda, the above man joined with the moniagar of —— village, joined together, and, dealing with bribes, now they arose against us, and doing this great troubles on us, and also, by this great trouble, one day Mr. —— came for shooting snapes (snipe) by that side. By chance one grazing buffalo came to him, push him by his horns very forcely, and wounded him on his leg. By the help of another gentleman who came with him he escaped, or he would have die at the moment. Now the said moniagar and —— joined together, want to finish the funeral to his late father on the 18th instant. For this purpose they are going to shut the buffaloes without food in the kraal on the 18th instant at 10 o’clock. They are going to kill the buffaloes on the 19th instant at 4 o’clock in the evening. But this is a great sin against god. But we beg your honour this way. That is, let them leave the buffaloes in the grazing place, and ask them to catch and kill them at the same moment. And also your honour cannot ordered them to keep them in the kraal without food. And, if they will desire to kill the buffaloes in this way, these buffaloes will come on us, and also on the other peoples one who, coming to see funs on those day, will kill them all by his anxious. And so we the Todas begs your honour to enquire them before the 18th, the said funeral ceremony commencing, and not to grant the above orders to them.”A Whit Monday at Paikāra was given up to an exhibition of sports and games, whereof the most exciting and interesting was a burlesque representation of a Toda funeral by boys and girls. A Toda, who wasfond of his little joke, applied the term pacchai kēdu (green funeral) to the corpses of the flies entrapped by a viscous catch’em-alive-oh on the bungalow table. To the mock funeral rites arrived a party of youths, as from a distant mand, and crying out U, hah, in shrill mimicry of their elders. The lad who was to play the leading part of sacrificial buffalo, stripping off his putkūli, disappeared from sight over the brow of a low hillock. Above this eminence his bent and uplifted upper extremities shortly appeared as representatives of the buffalo horns. At sight thereof, there was a wild rush of small boys to catch him, and a mimic struggle took place, while the buffalo was dragged, amid good-tempered scuffling, kicks, and shouting, to the spot where the corpse should have been. This spot was, in the absence of a pseudo-dead body or stage dummy, indicated by a group of little girls, who had sat chatting together till the boy-beast arrived, when they touched foreheads, and went, with due solemnity, through the orthodox observance of mourning in couples. The buffalo was slain by a smart tap on the back of the head with a cloth, which did duty for an axe. As soon as the convulsive movements and twitchings of the death struggle were over, the buffalo, without waiting for an encore, retired behind the hillock once more, in order that the rough and tumble fight, which was evidently the chief charm of the game, might be repeated. The buffalo boy later on came in second in a flat race, and he was last seen protecting us from a mischievous-looking member of his herd, which was grazing on the main-road. Toda buffaloes, it may be noted, are not at all popular with members of the Ootacamund Hunt, as both horses and riders from time to time receive injuries from their horns, when they come in collision.While the funeral game was in progress, the men showed off their prowess at a game (eln),52corresponding to the English tip-cat, which is epidemic at a certain season in the London bye-streets. It is played with a bat like a broomstick, and a cylindrical piece of wood pointed at both ends. The latter is propped up against a stone, and struck with the bat. As it flies off the stone, it is hit to a distance with the bat, and caught (or missed) by the out fields.At the Muttanād mand, we were treated to a further exhibition of games. In one of these, called narthpimi, a flat slab of stone is supported horizontally on two other slabs fixed perpendicularly in the ground so as to form a narrow tunnel, through which a man can just manage to wriggle his body with difficulty. Two men take part in the game, one stationing himself at a distance of about thirty yards, the other about sixty yards from the tunnel. The front man, throwing off his mantle, runs as hard as he can to the tunnel, pursued by the ‘scratch’ man, whose object is to touch the other man’s feet before he has squeezed himself through the tunnel. Another sport, which we witnessed, consists of trial of strength with a heavy globular stone, the object being to raise it up to the shoulder; but a strong, well-built-man—he who was entrusted with slaying the funeral buffalo—failed to raise it higher than the pit of the stomach, though straining his muscles in the attempt. A splendidly made veteran assured me that, when young and lusty, he was able to accomplish the feat, and spoke sadly of degeneration in the physique of the younger members of the tribe.Mr. Breeks mentions that the Todas play a game resembling puss-in-the-corner, called kāriālapimi, whichwas not included in the programme of sports got up for our benefit. Dr. Rivers writes that “the Todas, and especially the children, often play with mimic representations of objects from practical life. Near the villages I have seen small artificial buffalo-pens and fireplaces made by the children in sport.” I have, on several occasions, come across young children playing with long and short pieces of twigs representing buffaloes and their calves, and going solemnly through the various incidents in the daily life of these animals. Todas, both old and young, may constantly be seen twisting flexible twigs into representations of buffaloes’ heads and horns.Of Toda songs, the following have been collected:—Sunshine is increasing. Mist is fast gathering. Rain may come. Thunder roars. Clouds are gathering.Rain is pouring. Wind and rain have combined.Oh, powerful god, may everything prosper!May charity increase!May the buffaloes become pregnant!See that the buffaloes have calves.See that the barren women have children.Go and tell this to the god of the land.Keygamor, Eygamor (names of buffaloes).Evening is approaching. The buffaloes are coming.The calves also have returned.The buffaloes are saluted.The dairy-man beats the calves with his stick.Milk has been offered to the bell.It is growing dark.This is a buffalo with beautiful horns.A buffalo stupidly given away by the Badaga.A buffalo brought to the Kāndal mand.Innerovya (name of buffalo).Like this buffalo there is no other.Parkūr (name of a Toda).Like him there is no man.The sun is shining. The wind is blowing.Rain is coming. The trees are in flower.Tears are falling. The nose is burning.He is coming, holding up his umbrella.He is coming, wearing a good body-cloth.He is coming, wearing a good under-cloth.He (the palol) is coming, wearing a black cloth.He is coming, holding his walking-stick of palai wood.I have a god. What is to become of me?I am inclined to cry, my heart being heavy.Oh, my child! Do not cry. It is still crying.Thuree. Thuree. See. Be quiet.A robust bullbuffalo. Ach! Ach!A big buffalo not intended for killing. Ach! Ach!Is leading the cow buffalo. Ah! Ah!Two or three men are driving it. Ah! Ah!Song in honour of the arrival of the Maharāni-Regent of Mysore at Ootacamund.All we Todas go to her house, and dance before her.She gives us fifteen rupees.She comes near our women, and talks to them.She gives cloths to us.Next day we take milk, eight bottles in the morning, four in the evening.Month by month she pays us for our milk.She goes back to Mysore, and, when she goes, we stand in a row before her.She gives us presents; cloths and three rupees.The women cut their hair, and stand before her.Marriage Song.Boys and girls are singing.Much money are they spending.To the girl her father is giving five buffaloes.The husband tells his wife that she must curl her hair.If her hair is curled, all the people will rejoice.The buffalo is slain, and now we must all dance.Why are not more people here? More should come.My buffalo is big, very big.Go quickly and catch it.The Todas are all there. They are standing in a row.Who will run, and catch the buffalo first?To him will a present of five rupees be given.I will go and catch it first.The Todas are all fighting.The Todas are all feasting.People give them rice.The buffalo is coming. Two men run to catch it by the neck.Ten men collect the buffaloes. They pen them in a kraal.At one o’clock we take our food.The buffalo is running, and I hit it on the back with a stick.It swerves aside, but I drive it back to the path.Night comes, and we all dance.Next morning at ten o’clock we bring out the buffalo, and slay it.At four in the morning we wrap rice and grain in a white cloth, and burn it.At eleven we cut the hair of the boys and girls.At four in the morning the priest goes to the temple (dairy).He lights the lamp.At eight he milks his buffaloes.He puts on no cloth.He places butter and ghī before the god.Then he grazes his buffaloes, and eats his food.Then he puts on his cloth.At three in the afternoon he goes again to the temple.He kindles a fire, and lights the lamp.He puts milk in a chatty, and churns it into butter with a cane.He mixes water with the butter-milk, and gives it to the women to drink.He alone may sleep in the temple.At four in the morning he lets out the buffaloes to graze.At seven he milks them.The woman’s house is down the hill.The priest must not go in unto the woman.He may not marry.When he is twenty, he may not enter the temple.Another is made priest in his stead.The religious institutions of the Todas, including the elaborate dairy ritual, and their religion, are described in full detail by Dr. Rivers. The Todas have been to some extent influenced by Hinduism, and some visit the temples at Nanjengōd in Mysore, Karamadai in the Coimbatore district, and other shrines, whereat they worship, present votive offerings, and pray for offspring,etc. Writing in 1872, Mr. Breeks remarked that “about Ootacamund, a few Todas have latterly begun to imitate the religious practices of their native neighbours. Occasionally children’s foreheads are marked with the Siva spot, and my particular friend Kinniaven, after an absence of some days, returned with a shaven head from a visit to the temple of Siva at Nanjengudi.” A man who came to my laboratory had his hair hanging down in long tails reaching below his shoulders. He had, he said, let it grow long because his wife, though married five years, had borne no child. A child had, however, recently been born, and, as soon as the second funeral of a relation had been performed, he was going to sacrifice his locks as a thank-offering at the Nanjengōd temple. The following extracts from my notes will serve to illustrate the practice of marking (in some instances apparently for beauty’s sake) and shaving as carried out at the present day.(1) Man, aged 28. Has just performed a ceremony at the ti mand. White curved line painted across forehead, and dots below outer ends thereof, on glabella, and outside orbits. Smeared with white across chest, over outer side of upper arms and left nipple, across knuckles and lower end of left ulna, and on lobes of ears.(2) Man, aged 21. Painted on forehead as above. Smeared over chest and upper eye lids.(3) Man, aged 35. White spot painted on forehead.(4) Man, aged 30. Hair of head and beard cut short owing to death of grandfather.(5) Boy, aged 12. Shock head of hair, cut very short all over owing to death of grandfather.(6) Girl, aged 8. Hair shaved on top, back and sides of head, and in median strip from vertex to forehead.(7) Boy, aged 6. White spot painted between eyebrows. Hair shaved on top and sides of head, and in median strip from vertex to forehead. Hair brought forward in fringe over forehead on either side of median strip, and hanging down back of neck.(8) Male child, aged 18 months. White spot painted between eyebrows. Shaved on top and sides of head.Todupuzha Vellāla.—For the following note, I am indebted to Mr. N. Subramani Aiyar. Besides the Nanchinād Vellālas, there are, in Travancore, two sections of the Vellāla caste, inhabiting the mountainous Todupuzha tāluk. These are the Tenkanchi and Kumbakōnam Vellālas. The former are known by the popular name of Anjuttilkar, or the five hundred, and the latter are designated Munnutilkar, or the three hundred, in reference to the number of families which originally settled in the taluk. Like the Nanchinād Vellālas, they take the title of Pillai, and, in special cases, the honorific prefix Kanakku.The Tenkanchi Vellālas appear to have dwelt originally in the Tenkāsi taluk of the Tinnevelly district, and to have emigrated, as the legend goes, on account of the demand of a Vaduka ruler for the hand of a member of their community in marriage. The Vadakkumkur Rājas were ruling over Todupuzha at the time of their migration, and afforded them a safe asylum. The Kumbakōnam Vellālas believe that they emigrated to Travancore about the commencement of the Malabar era from Kumbakōnam in the Tanjore district. Both divisions speak Malayālam, but there are clear indications in their speech that their mother-tongue was once Tamil, and they always use that language in their ceremonial writings. The Anjuttilkar women haveadopted the dress and ornaments of the Nāyars. Both sections wear the tuft of hair in front, but the Munnutilkar women do not tie the hair on the left side like the Nāyars and Anjuttilkars, but behind like the Pāndi Vellālas. Nor do the Anjuttilkar women wear a white dress like the Tenkanchis, but a coloured cloth, sixteen cubits in length, in orthodox Tamil fashion. Again, while the Tenkanchi women largely resort to the todu and other Nāyar ornaments, the Kumbakōnam women are more conservative, and wear only the pampadam and melidu, though they sometimes wear jewels, such as the nāgapata tāli for the neck. Both sections are Saivites, in the sense that they abstain from flesh and fish.Their principal occupation is agriculture. They worship the two mountain deities Bhadrakāli and Durgā. In the Kirikkot muri of the Karikkodpropertythere is a temple dedicated to Siva or Unnamalanathar, with a large amount of property attached to it. This belongs to the Tenkanchi Vellālas, and a Malayālam Brāhman performs the priestly functions. The Kumbakōnam Vellālas have their own temples, such as the Ankalamma koil, Annamala matam, Vīrabhadran koil, etc., and worship, besides the principal gods of the Hindu pantheon, such minor deities as Vīrabhadran, Karuppan, Bhairavan, Māriamman, and Muttaramman. The priests of both sections are East Coast Brāhmans, who live in the Todupuzha tāluk. As their profession is regarded by other Brāhmans as degrading, they, especially in the case of the Kumbakōnam Vellālas, perform their duties stealthily. The headman of the Kumbakōnam section lives in the Periyakulam tāluk of the Madura district, and, by his order, an image of Siva is worshipped at their homes.Divorce is not permitted on any ground, and, in ancient days, widow remarriage was forbidden. There is a legend that a woman of this caste, who was a friend of the daughter of a certain Vadakkumkur Rājah, was so aggrieved at the news of her newly married husband’s death that, at her intercession, the Rājah issued a proclamation permitting the remarriage of widows. If no husband has been found for a girl before she reaches puberty, certain propitiatory rites have to be performed, at which one of her female relations represents her. On the fourth day of the marriage ceremony, the bride and bridegroom, before they bathe, rub each other’s bodies with oil, and, going to a large caldron containing water, throw a gold and silver ring into it, and pick them out three times. Inheritance of both sections is from father to son (makkathāyam). A sambandham alliance does not confer any rite of inheritance.The names of both sections are such as are unknown among Nāyars,e.g., Sivalingam, Arunāchalam, Chidambaram, Arumukham. The Tenkanchis are considered to be higher in the social scale than the Kumbakōnam section, as they observe only twelve days’ death pollution, whereas the latter are under pollution for sixteen days. The Tenkanchis may enter the temple, and, like Nāyars, stand on the left side of the inner shrine, whereas the Kumbakōnam Vellālas may proceed only as far as the balikkalpura, or out-house of the temple, and not enter the nalambalam. Again, butter-milk is freely received by Brāhmans from the Tenkanchis, but not from members of the Kumbakōnam section. While Pāndi Vellālas will not receive food from the Tenkanchis, or give their daughters in marriage to them, the latter will not intermarry with the Nānchinād Vellālas.Togata.—The Togatas are Telugu weavers, most numerous in the Cuddapah district, who manufacture the coarsest kind of cotton cloths, such as are worn by the poorer classes. They are generally Vaishnavites, wear the sacred thread, and have for their priests Vaishnava Brāhmans or Sātānis. They eat flesh, and their widows are allowed to remarry. Writing concerning the Togatas in 1807, Buchanan states53that “widows cannot marry again, but are not expected to kill themselves. The Panchanga, or village astrologer, attends at births, marriages, funerals, at the ceremonies performed in honour of their deceased parents, and at the building of a new house, and on each occasion gets a fee of one fanam, or eight pence. On other occasions, when a weaver wants to pray, he calls in a Satanana, who reads something in an unknown language, and gives the votary some holy water, which he consecrates by pouring it on the head of a small image that he carries about for the purpose.”As regards their origin, some Togatas claim to be sons of Chaudēsvari, who threw some rice on to the fire, from which sprang a host of warriors, whose descendants they are. Others give Pūppandaja Rishi as the name of their ancestor. Concerning Chaudēsvari, Mr. Francis writes as follows.54“Connected with the margosa tree (Melia Azadirachta) is the worship of Chaudēsvari, the goddess of the Togata caste of weavers. She is supposed to reside in margosa trees, and either the tree itself, or a stone representing the goddess and placed at its foot, is worshipped by the Togatas at certain seasons, such as the Telugu New Year Day. Apparently the other weaver castes take no share in the ceremonies. They consist largely of animal sacrifices. Nevertheless, aparticular class of Brāhmans, called Nandavarīkula Brāhmans, take a prominent part in the festival. This name Nandavarīkula is derived from the village of Nandavaram in Kurnool, and doubtless many stories are prevalent there about this sub-division. The account given at Tadpatri, where they are fairly numerous, is as follows. Once upon a time, a king from Southern India went on a pilgrimage with his wife to Benares. While there, he unwittingly incurred a nameless but heinous pollution. Horrified, he applied to some Brāhmans there to purify him, promising them half his kingdom in return. They asked for some tangible record of this promise, and the king called upon the goddess Chaudēsvari, who had a temple near by, to witness his oath. The purification was effected, and he departed home. Later on the Brāhmans came south, and asked for the fulfilment of his promise. The king declared that he could not remember having made any such undertaking. The Brāhmans accordingly went to Benares, and asked Chaudēsvari to come south, and bear witness to the king’s oaths. She agreed, on the usual condition that they should go in front, and not look back at her as she came. As happens in other stories of the same kind, they are said to have broken the condition. At Nandavaram they looked back, and the goddess instantly stopped, and remained immoveable. A temple was built for her there, and the Brāhmans remained in the south, and still take part in the worship of Chaudēsvari which the Togatas inaugurate, even though she is not one of the Hindu pantheon, and delights in animal sacrifice. At Tadpatri other castes besides the Togatas help at the festival.”Though Chaudēsvari is the patron god of the Togatas, they also worship Poleramma, Ellamma, Kotamma, and other minor deities.The original occupation of the Togatas is said to have been dyeing, but, at the present day, owing to the depression in the hand-loom weaving industry, a large number have taken to cultivation.Like many other Telugu castes, they have exogamous septs, of which the following are examples:—Pātha, old.Kambhapu, pillar.Nīli, indigo.Madaka, plough.Bana, pot.Jīlakara, cummin seed.Annam, food.Mékala, goat.Gōpalam, alms.Sāmanthi,Chrysanthemum indicum.Gurram, horse.Perumāl, a god.Bandāri, treasurer?Gudditi.Pūjāris (priests) for temple worship are always elected from the Perumāl sept, and caste messengers from the Bandāri sept, if they are represented in a settlement. Torches are generally carried, at processions, by men of the Gudditi sept. Members of the Gurram sept are not allowed to ride on horseback.The panchāyat (village council) system is in vogue, but, in some places, a headman is selected, as occasion requires. In their marriage and funeral ceremonies, the Togatas closely follow the Telugu standard Purānic form of ceremonial. The dead are buried in a recumbent posture. On the last day of the death rites, the Sātāni gives arrack (liquor) to the Togatas, as to the Padma Sālēs, in lieu of holy water (thirtham).Tohala.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a small class of Oriya hill cultivators and petty traders in the Ganjam Agency.Tolagari.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a sub-caste of Mutrācha. In the North Arcot Manual the Tolagaris are described as a smallcultivating caste, who were formerly hunters, like the Pālayakkārans.Tolar(Wolf).—An exogamous sept of Halēpaik. The equivalent Tolana occurs as a sept of Mogēr.Tōlkollan.—The Tōlkollans or Tōlans (skin people) are summed up in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as “leather workers and dyers, and also gymnasts and teachers of gymnastics. They are also called Vatti Kurup, Chāya Kurup, and Vil Kurup. Their title is Kurup.” The Tōlkollans are stated55to be “blacksmiths by caste, who abandoned their hereditary trade for leather work, and they are chiefly employed by Māppillas. One peculiar custom in this caste is that two or more brothers may have one wife in common. Only those in good circumstances indulge in the luxury of a private wife. The following information furnished by Mr. S. Vaidyanadha Aiyar, the headmaster of the School of Commerce, Calicut, gives some information regarding leather work in Malabar:—(a) Boots and shoes of country make and English pattern.(b) Harness making.(c) Native shoes (ceruppu). These are of the special pattern peculiar to Malabar, and are largely used by all classes of the Hindu and Māppilla communities. The Arabs who visit this coast once a year purchase a considerable number to take back with them. The price of a pair varies from Rs. 1–8–0 to Rs. 5. Those with ornamental gold lace work cost from Rs. 10 to Rs. 50. These shoes are generally used by well-to-do Māppillas. White of egg is used to give a creaking sound to the shoes. This work is mainly done by Thōlperunkollansand Māppillas, and the latter show more skill in finish and ornamental work.(d) Knife sheaths. Almost every Nāyar, Tiyan and Māppilla carries a knife about a foot in length, and there is a demand for leather sheaths. These are made by Pānans as well as by Thōlperunkollans and Māppillas.(e) Leather baskets are also made, and are largely used as receptacles for carrying pepper, paddy (rice), and other grain.(f) Winnowing fans are made of leather, and are used in pepper and paddy yards, etc.(g) Muttu ceruppu (clogs) are leather shoes with wooden soles. These are largely used during the rainy season.”Tollakkādan(one with a big hole in the lobes of his ears).—Taken, at the census, 1901, as a sub-caste of Shānān, as those returning the name, who are vendors of husked rice in Madras, used the Shānān title Nādān. The equivalent Tollakādu was returned as a sub-division of Konga Vellāla.Tōl Mēstri.—A sub-division of Semmān.Tondamān.—It is stated, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, that the Tondamāns are “also called Sunnāmbukkāran (q.v.), a Tamil caste of lime (chunam) burners found only in the Tinnevelly district. They are said to be a branch of the Kallans who migrated to Tinnevelly from Pudukkōttai, or the Tondamān’s country. Its members are now drummers and pipers as well as lime-burners. Brāhmans are their purōhits, but they are not allowed to go into Hindu temples. They will eat in the houses of Maravans. Their title is Sōlagan.” It is noted, in the same report, that the Semmān caste “has two sub-divisions,Tondamānand Tōl-mēstri, and men of the former take wives from the latter, but menof the latter may not marry girls of the former.” Tondamān is the family name of the Rāja of Pudukkōttai, a Native State surrounded by the British districts of Tanjore, Madura, and Trichinopoly. The Rāja is the head of the Kallan caste. Copper coins, called amman kāsu, are current only within the State, and their greatest distribution is during Navarātri or Dusserah, when they are issued to the people with a dole of rice every day during the nine days of the festival. They bear on one side the word “Vijaya,” meaning victory, or more probably having reference to our faithful ally Vijaya Ragunātha Tondamān, in whose reign they were first struck, it is said in 1761, after the surrender of Pondicherry to the British.Tondamandalam.—The name of a sub-division of Vellāla, derived from Tondanādu, the ancient Pallava country.Tonti.—The Tontis are said to be cotton-weavers of Bengal, who have settled in Ganjam.56The name denotes threadmen, and the weaving of rough white cloths is the traditional occupation of the caste. All Tontis belong to a single gōtra named after Kāsyapa, one of the seven important rishis, and the priest of Parasurāma. Various bamsams or exogamous septs, the names of some of which occur also as titles, exist,e.g., Biswālo, Dasso, Pālo, Bono, Chondo, Parimaniko, Korono, Bēhara, and Mahāpātro. The marriage and death ceremonies conform to the standard Oriya type. On the fourth day of the marriage rites, a Bhondāri (barber) is presented with some beaten rice and sugar-candy in a new earthen pot. These are sold to those who have assembled, and the proceeds go to the Bhondāri.The corpse of a dead person is washed at the burning ground, instead of, in accordance with the common custom among other castes, at the house.Toppa Tāli.—A name applied to certain Vāniyans in the North Arcot district, owing to the peculiar tāli (marriage badge) which married women wear.Torai.—A title of various Oriya castes.Toreya.—The Toreyas are a Canarese class, living chiefly in the Tamil districts of Coimbatore and Salem. They are said to have been originally fishermen and palanquin bearers, and the name is derived from turai, a river ghāt. Most of them are now cultivators, especially of the betel vine (Piper betle). Those whom I examined at Coimbatore were earning their living as betel and sugar-cane cultivators, vendors of tobacco, bakers, cloth merchants, contractors, petty traders, and police constables.By the Coimbatore Toreyas, the following endogamous divisions were returned:—Elai, leaf. Betel cultivators.Chunam, lime. Lime burners.Gāzul, glass bangle. The Toreya caste is said to have originated from the bangles of Machyagandhi or Gandhavati, the daughter of a fisherman on the Jumna. She was married to king Shantanu of Hastinapūr, who was one of the ancestors of the heroes of the Mahābhārata.Many exogamous septs exist among the Toreyas, of which the following are examples:—Belli, silver. May not wear silver toe-rings.Nāga, snake. The members of the sept, at times of marriage, worship ant-hills, which are the home of snakes.Alwar or Garuda.Chinnam, gold.Kansugaje, small bronze bells, tied to the legs when dancing.Urukathi, a kind of knife.Vajjira, diamond.Vasishta, a Hindu saint.Mogila, clouds.Onne (Pterocarpus Marsupium). Do not mark their foreheads with the juice from the trunk of this tree.Kuzhal, the flute played by shepherd boys and snake charmers. If the sound thereof is heard during a meal, what remains of the food should be thrown away.Rākshasa, a giant. Do not celebrate the Dīpāvali festival in honour of the victory over, and death of, a rākshasa.Erumai, buffalo.The headman of the caste is called Ejaman, who has under him an officer entitled Dalavayi. The caste messenger bears the name of Kondikar. These three offices are hereditary. The Ejaman presides at council meetings which are held at the temple of the caste. The eldest member of each family is entitled to a seat on the council. Those who come late to a meeting thereof prostrate themselves before the assembly. Witnesses before the council have to take an oath, which is administered by the Kondikar. He makes the witness stand within a circle drawn on the ground, and makes him repeat the formula “Before God and the elders assembled, with the sky above and the earth beneath, I will state only the truth.” The Kondikar then takes up a pinch of earth, and puts it on the head of the witness. For merely threatening to beat a person with shoes, the offender has to feed twenty-five castemen. If he takes the shoes in his hands he must feed fifty, and, if heactually resorts to beating with them, he has to feed a hundred men. In addition, the culprit has to pay a small fine, and both parties have to be purified at the temple. A similar punishment is enforced for beating, or threatening to beat with a broom. For adultery the guilty person is excommunicated, and is admitted back into the caste only after the death of one of the parties concerned. He then has to feed a large number of castemen, or pay a money fine, and, prostrating himself before the assembly, he is beaten with a tamarind switch. He further makes obeisance to the Ejaman, and washes his feet. The Ejaman then purifies him by a small piece of burning camphor in his mouth.When a married girl reaches puberty, she is taken to her father’s house, and her husband constructs a hut with branches ofFicus glomerata. On the last day of her confinement therein, the hut is pulled down, and the girl sets fire to it. The house is purified, and the female relations go to the houses of the Ejaman and caste people, and invite them to be present at a ceremonial. A small quantity of turmeric paste is stuck on the doors of the houses of all who are invited. The relations and members of the caste carry betel, and other articles, on trays in procession through the streets. The girl is seated on a plank, and the trays are placed in front of her. Rice flour, fruits, betel, etc., are tied in her cloth, and she is taken into the house. In the case of an unmarried girl, the hut is built by her maternal uncle.Marriage is always celebrated at the house of the bridegroom, as there is a legend that a Rājah belonging to the Toreya caste had a son, who was taken to the house of his bride elect, and there murdered. Thebridegroom’s father and relations go to the house of the bride, and make presents of money, cloths, ornaments, etc. They also have to make obeisance to, and feed five married women sumptuously. Pandals (booths) are constructed at the houses of both the bride and bridegroom. Five married women go, on behalf of each of the contracting parties, to their houses, and pound rice there. On the second day, five such women fetch water from a tank, and bathe the bride and bridegroom respectively. The ten women then go to the potter’s house, and bring five decorated pots. Three of these are taken to a tank, and filled with water. On the following day, the bridegroom and his sister take the two remaining pots to the tank, and fill them with water. The five pots are placed in the pandal, and represent the household gods. The relations of the bridegroom take twelve kinds of ornaments, a new cloth, flowers, etc., to the house of the Ejaman, and go with him to the bride’s house. She is then bathed, and decked with finery. A Brāhman does pūja (worship) and ties on her forehead a mandaikettu or bashingham (chaplet) made of gold leaf or tinsel. She is then carried in procession to the house of the bridegroom. Meanwhile, the Brāhman ties a mandaikettu on the forehead of the bridegroom, who puts on the sacred thread, and sits within the pandal, holding a katar (dagger) in his hand, and closed in by a screen. The bride goes thrice round this screen, and the Brāhman does pūja and gives advice (upadēsam) to the couple. The screen is then lowered slightly, and the bride and bridegroom garland each other. The bride’s parents place a few gingelly (Sesamum) seeds in the hand of the bridegroom, and pour water thereon, saying that their daughter belongs to him, and telling him to take care of her. The tāli, after being blessed by thoseassembled, is given by the Brāhman to the bridegroom, who ties it on the bride’s neck. The screen is then removed, and the couple sit side by side. The sacred fire is lighted, their hands are linked together, and the ends of their cloths tied together. They then leave the pandal, and, placing their feet on a grindstone, look at the pole-star (Arundati). Entering the pandal once more, they sit therein, and the elders bless them by throwing rice coloured with turmeric over their heads. On the fourth day, they again sit within the pandal, and cooked rice, coloured white, red, yellow, green, and black, on five trays, and nine lighted wicks on a tray are waved before them. Five married men and women, holding a string, stand round them in a circle, within which is the bride’s brother with a twig of pīpal (Ficus religiosa). The bridegroom places his hands together, and small rice cakes are placed on the head, shoulders, bend of the elbows and knees, and between the fingers of the couple. They are then bathed, and, taking betel in their hands, bow to the four corners of the earth. The bridegroom makes a nāmam (Vaishnavite sect mark), or places vibhūti (sacred ashes) on the twelve posts of the pandal, and the bride places a little cooked rice and water before each post, to which camphor is burnt, and pūja done. They then start for the bride’s house, but the bride’s sister meets them at the entrance thereto, and will not allow them to go in until she has extracted a promise that their child shall marry hers. The bride proceeds to a tank, sowing some paddy (rice) on the way thither, and brings back a pot of water, with which she washes her husband’s hands and feet. Husband and wife then feed each other with a small quantity of rice and milk. Their hands are then cleaned, and the bride’s brother puts a gold ring on the finger of the bridegroom.A tray with betel leaves and areca nuts is brought, and the bridegroom ties three handfuls thereof in his cloth. The newly married couple then worship at the temple. On the fifth day, they carry the earthen pots to a river, and, on their return, five married women are worshipped and fed. Five men have to come forward as sureties for the good behaviour of the couple, and declare before those assembled that they will hold themselves responsible for it. In the evening the pair go to the bride’s house, and rub oil over each other’s head before bathing in turmeric water. On the following day they repair to the house of the bridegroom.The corpse of a dead Toreya is placed in a pandal constructed of cocoanut leaves and stems of the milk-hedge (Euphorbia Tirucalli). Sect marks are placed on the foreheads of the corpse and the widow. The son of the deceased dons the sacred thread. The funeral ceremonies resemble, in many particulars, those of the Oddēs. A mound is piled up over the grave. A Paraiyan places a small twig of the arka plant (Calotropis gigantea) in three corners of the grave, leaving out the north-east corner, and the son puts a small coin on each twig. As he goes round the grave with a water-pot and fire-brand, his maternal uncle, who stands at the head of the grave, makes holes in the pot. On the third, fifth, seventh, or ninth day, the widow, dressed in new cloths, and bedecked with ornaments and flowers, is taken to the burial-ground, with offerings of milk, ghī (clarified butter), tender cocoanut, sandal, camphor, etc. Five small stones, smeared with turmeric and lime, are set up at the head of the grave, and worshipped. The widow goes thrice round the grave, and seats herself near the head thereof. Her brother holds up her arms, and one of her husband’s malerelations breaks her bangles. She breaks, and throws her tāli on the grave, with the flowers which adorn her. Her ornaments are removed, and she is covered with a cloth, and taken to a river, where she is rubbed with cow-dung and bathed. The son and other relatives go to the temple with butter and other articles. A Brāhman does pūja, and shuts the doors of the temple. The son, with his back to the temple, throws a little butter on the doors, which are then opened by the Brāhman. This is done thrice. On the seventh day, pollution is removed by sprinkling holy water, and the caste people are fed. A widow remains in seclusion (gōsha) for three months. Srādh (memorial ceremony) is performed.The Toreyas worship both Siva and Vishnu, but consider Ayodhya Rāman as their special deity, and sacrifice sheep and fowls to Koriamma.Toreya.—A sub-division of the Badagas of the Nīlgiris.Tōta(garden).—Recorded as a sub-division of cultivating Balijas, and an exogamous sept of Bōya, Chenchu, Vāda Balija (or Mila), Mutrācha and Bonthuk Savara. The equivalent Tōta occurs as an exogamous sept of Kāpu and Yānādi. Tōta Dēvaru, or garden god, is the name of an exogamous sept of the Tigala gardeners and cultivators.Tōtakūra(Amarantus gangeticus).—An exogamous sept of Kamma.Toththala or Tottadi.—A sub-division of Velama.Tōti.—The Tōti or Totti is one of the village communal servants. The name has been derived from tondu, to dig, or tott, to go round, as the Tōti is the purveyor of news, and has to summon people to appear before the village council. The functions of this useful person tothe community have been summed up as follows by a district official.57“This individual has all the dirty work of the village allotted to him. He is of the lowest caste, and hence makes no scruple of doing any manner of work that he may be called upon to perform. The removal and sepulture of unclaimed dead bodies, the cleansing of choultries, rest-houses and the like, where travellers carrying infectious diseases might have halted, and other gruesome duties are entrusted to him. In spite of all this, theTōtiis one of the most trusted of the humbler servants of the village community. Considering his humble status and emoluments, which average between Rs. 3 and Rs. 4 a month, his honesty with regard to pecuniary matters is wonderful. He may be trusted with untold wealth, as is often done when he is the sole custodian of the revenue collections of his village to the tune of several thousands at a time, when on their way from the collecting officers to the Government Treasury.” Testimony is borne to the industry of the Tōti in the proverb that if you work like a Tōti, you can enjoy the comforts of a king.In the Madras Census Report, 1891, Tōti is returned as a sub-division of Chakkiliyan. The Tōti of Mysore is defined by Mr. L. Rice58as a menial among the village servants, a deputy talāri, who is employed to watch the crops from the growing crop to the granary.Odiya Tōti is a Tamil synonym for Oriya Haddis employed as scavengers in municipalities in the Tamil country.Tottiyan.—In the Census Report, 1901, Mr. W. Francis writes that the Tottiyans are “Telugucultivators. The Tottiyans or Kambalattāns of the Tanjore district are, however, said to be vagrants, and to live by pig-breeding, snake-charming, and begging. So are the sub-division called Kāttu Tottiyans in Tinnevelly. The headman among the Tinnevelly Tottiyans is called the Mandai Periadanakkāran or Sērvaikāran. Their marriages are not celebrated in their houses, but in pandals (booths) of green leaves erected for the purpose on the village common. However wealthy the couple may be, the only grain which they may eat at the wedding festivities is either cumbu (Pennisetum typhoideum) or horse-gram (Dolichos biflorus). The patron deities of the caste are Jakkamma and Bommakka, two women who committed sati. The morality of their women is loose. The custom of marrying boys to their paternal aunt’s or maternal uncle’s daughter, however old she may be, also obtains, and in such cases the bridegroom’s father is said to take upon himself the duty of begetting children to his own son. Divorce is easy, and remarriage is freely allowed. They offer rice and arrack (alcoholic liquor) to their ancestors. The Kāttu Tottiyans will eat jackals, rats, and the leavings of other people. Tottiya women will not eat in the houses of Brāhmans, but no explanation of this is forthcoming. The men wear silver anklets on both legs, and also a bracelet upon one of the upper arms, both of which practices are uncommon, while the women wear bangles only on the left arm, instead of on both as usual. Some of the Zamindars in Madura belong to this caste. The caste title is Nāyakkan.” At the census, 1901, Kudulukkāran was returned as a sub-caste of the Tottiyans in Madura and Tinnevelly. The Urumikkāran, meaning those who play on the drum called urumi, are said to be Tottiyans in Madura and Paraiyans elsewhere.
Toda and phonograph.Toda and phonograph.
Toda and phonograph.
At the census, 1901, 453 male and 354 female Todas were returned. In a note on the proportion of the sexes among the Todas, Mr. R. C. Punnett states50that “all who have studied the Todas are agreed upon the frequency of the practice (of infanticide) in earlier times. Marshall, writing in 1872, refers to the large amount of female infanticide in former years, but expresses his conviction that the practice had by that time died out. Marshall’s evidence is that of native assurance only. Dr. Rivers, who received the same assurance, is disinclined to place much confidence innative veracity with reference to this point, and, in view of the lack of encouragement which the practice receives from the Indian Government, this is not altogether surprising. The supposition of female infanticide, by accounting for the great disproportion in the numbers of the sexes, brings the Todas into harmony with what is known of the rest of mankind.” In summarising his conclusions, Mr. Punnett notes that:—
(1) Among the Todas, males predominate greatly over females.
(2) This preponderance is doubtless due to the practice of female infanticide, which is probably still to some extent prevalent.
(3) The numerical preponderance of the males has been steadily sinking during recent years, owing probably to the check which foreign intercourse has imposed upon female infanticide.
In connection with the death ceremonies of the Todas, Dr. Rivers notes that “soon after death the body is burnt, and the general name for the ceremony on this occasion is etvainolkedr, the first day funeral. After an interval, which may vary greatly in length, a second ceremony is performed, connected with certain relics of the deceased which have been preserved from the first occasion. The Toda name for this second funeral ceremony is marvainolkedr, the second day funeral, or ‘again which day funeral.’ The funeral ceremonies are open to all, and visitors are often invited by the Todas. In consequence, the funeral rites are better known, and have been more frequently described than any other features of Toda ceremonial. Like nearly every institution of the Todas, however, they have become known to Europeans under their Badaga names. The first funeral is called by the Badagas hase kedu, the fresh or greenfuneral, and the term ‘green funeral’ has not only become the generally recognised name among the European inhabitants of the Nilgiri hills, but has been widely adopted in anthropological literature. The second funeral is called by the Badagas bara kedu, the ‘dry funeral,’ and this term also has been generally adopted.” The various forms of the funeral ceremonies are discussed in detail by Dr. Rivers, and it must suffice to describe those at which we have been present as eye-witnesses.
I had the opportunity of witnessing the second funeral of a woman who had died from smallpox two months previously. On arrival at a mand on the open downs about five miles from Ootacamund, we were conducted by a Toda guide to the margin of a dense shola, where we found two groups seated apart, consisting of (a) women, girls, and brown-haired female babies, round a camp fire; (b) men, boys, and male babies, carried, with marked signs of paternal affection, by their fathers. In a few minutes a murmuring sound commenced in the centre of the female group. Working themselves up to the necessary pitch, some of the women (near relatives of the deceased) commenced to cry freely, and the wailing and lachrymation gradually spread round the circle, until all, except little girls and babies who were too young to be affected, were weeping and mourning, some for fashion, others from genuine grief. In carrying out the orthodox form of mourning, the women first had a good cry to themselves, and then, as their emotions became more intense, went round the circle, selecting partners with whom to share companionship in grief. Gradually the group resolved itself into couplets of mourners, each pair with their heads in contact, and giving expression to their emotions in unison. Beforeseparating to select a new partner, each couple saluted by bowing the head, and raising thereto the feet of the other, covered by the putkūli. [I have seen women rapidly recover from the outward manifestations of grief, and clamour for money.] From time to time the company of mourners was reinforced by late arrivals from distant mands, and, as each detachment, now of men and now of women, came in view across the open downs, one could not fail to be reminded of the gathering of the clans on some Highland moor. The resemblance was heightened by the distant sound as of pipers, produced by the Kota band (with two police constables in attendance), composed of four Kotas, who made a weird noise with drums and flutes as they drew near the scene of action. The band, on arrival, took up a position close to the mourning women. As each detachment arrived, the women, recognising their relatives, came forward and saluted them in the manner customary among Todas by falling at their feet, and placing first the right and then the left foot on their head. Shortly after the arrival of the band, signals were exchanged, by waving of putkūlis, between the assembled throng and a small detachment of men some distance off. A general move was made, and animpromptuprocession formed, with men in front, band in the middle, and women bringing up the rear. A halt was made opposite a narrow gap leading into the shola; men and women sat apart as before; and the band walked round, discoursing unsweet music. A party of girls went off to bring fire from the spot just vacated for use in the coming ceremonial, but recourse was finally had to a box of matches lent by one of our party. At this stage we noticed a woman go up to the eldest son of the deceased, who was seated apart from theother men, and would not be comforted in spite of her efforts to console him. On receipt of a summons from within the shola, the assembled Toda men and ourselves swarmed into it by a narrow track leading to a small clear space round a big tree, from a hole cut at the base of which an elderly Toda produced a piece of the skull of the dead woman, wrapped round with long tresses of her hair. It now became the men’s turn to exhibit active signs of grief, and all of one accord commenced to weep and mourn. Amid the scene of lamentation, the hair was slowly unwrapt from off the skull, and burned in an iron ladle, from which a smell as of incense arose. A bamboo pot of ghī was produced, with which the skull was reverently anointed, and placed in a cloth spread on the ground. To this relic of the deceased the throng of men, amid a scene of wild excitement, made obeisance by kneeling down before it, and touching it with their foreheads. The females were not permitted to witness this stage of the proceedings, with the exception of one or two near relatives of the departed one, who supported themselves sobbing against the tree. The ceremonial concluded, the fragment of skull, wrapt in the cloth, was carried into the open, where, as men and boys had previously done, women and girls made obeisance to it. A procession was then again formed, and marched on until a place was reached, where were two stone-walled kraals, large and small. Around the former the men, and within the latter the women, took up their position, the men engaging in chit-chat, and the women in mourning, which after a time ceased, and they too engaged in conversation. A party of men, carrying the skull, still in the cloth, set out for a neighbouring shola, where a kēdu of several other dead Todas was being celebrated; and a longpause ensued, broken eventually by the arrival of the other funeral party, the men advancing in several lines, with arms linked, and crying out U, hah! U, hah, hah! in regular time. This party brought with it pieces of the skulls of a woman and two men, which were placed, wrapt in cloths, on the ground, saluted, and mourned over by the assembled multitude. At this stage a small party of Kotas arrived, and took up their position on a neighbouring hill, waiting, vulture-like, for the carcase of the buffalo which was shortly to be slain. Several young men now went off across the hill in search of buffaloes, and speedily re-appeared, driving five buffaloes before them with sticks. As soon as the beasts approached a swampy marsh at the foot of the hill on which the expectant crowd of men was gathered together, two young men of athletic build, throwing off their putkūlis, made a rush down the hill, and tried to seize one of the buffaloes by the horns, with the result that one of them was promptly thrown. The buffalo escaping, one of the remaining four was quickly caught by the horns, and, with arms interlocked, the men brought it down on its knees, amid a general scuffle. In spite of marked objection and strenuous resistance on the part of the animal—a barren cow—it was, by means of sticks freely applied, slowly dragged up the hill, preceded by the Kota band, and with a Toda youth pulling at its tail. Arrived at the open space between the kraals, the buffalo, by this time thoroughly exasperated, and with blood pouring from its nostrils, had a cloth put on its back, and was despatched by a blow on the poll with an axe deftly wielded by a young and muscular man. On this occasion no one was badly hurt by the sacrificial cow, though one man was seen washing his legs in the swamp after the preliminary struggle withthe beast. But Colonel Ross-King narrates how he saw a man receive a dangerous wound in the neck from a thrust of the horn, which ripped open a wide gash from the collar-bone to the ear. With the death of the buffalo, the last scene, which terminated the strange rites, commenced; men, women, and children pressing forward and jostling one another in their eagerness to salute the dead beast by placing their hands between its horns, and weeping and mourning in pairs; the facial expression of grief being mimicked when tears refused to flow spontaneously.
The ceremonial connected with the final burning of the relics and burial of the ashes at the stone circle (azaram) are described in detail by Dr. Rivers.
A few days after the ceremony just described, I was invited to be present at the funeral of a young girl who had died of smallpox five days previously. I proceeded accordingly to the scene of the recent ceremony, and there, in company with a small gathering of Todas from the neighbouring mands, awaited the arrival of the funeral cortége, the approach of which was announced by the advancing strains of Kota music. Slowly the procession came over the brow of the hill; the corpse, covered by a cloth, on a rude ladder-like bier, borne on the shoulders of four men, followed by two Kota musicians; the mother carried hidden within a sack; relatives and men carrying bags of rice and jaggery, and bundles of wood of the kiaz tree (Eugenia Arnottiana) for the funeral pyre. Arrived opposite a small hut, which had been specially built for the ceremonial, the corpse was removed from the bier, laid on the ground, face upwards, outside the hut, and saluted by men, women, and children, with the same manifestations of grief as on the previous occasion. Soon the men moved away to a short distance, and engagedin quiet conversation, leaving the females to continue mourning round the corpse, interrupted from time to time by the arrival of detachments from distant mands, whose first duty was to salute the dead body. Meanwhile a near female relative of the dead child was busily engaged inside the hut, collecting together in a basket small measures of rice, jaggery, sago, honey-comb, and the girl’s simple toys, which were subsequently to be burned with the corpse. The mourning ceasing after a time, the corpse was placed inside the hut, and followed by the near relatives, who there continued to weep over it. A detachment of men and boys, who had set out in search of the buffaloes which were to be sacrificed, now returned driving before them three cows, which escaped from their pursuers to rejoin the main herd. A long pause ensued, and, after a very prolonged drive, three more cows were guided into a marshy swamp, where one of them was caught by the horns, and dragged reluctantly, but with little show of fight, to the strains of Kota drum and flute, in front of the hut, where it was promptly despatched by a blow on the poll. The corpse was now brought from within the hut, and placed, face upwards, with its feet resting on the forehead of the buffalo, whose neck was decorated with a silver chain, such as is worn by Todas round the loins, as no bell was available, and the horns were smeared with butter. Then followed frantic manifestations of grief, amid which the unhappy mother fainted. Mourning over, the corpse was made to go through a form of ceremony, resembling that which is performed during pregnancy with the first child. A small boy, three years old, was selected from among the relatives of the dead girl, and taken by his father in search of a certain grass (Andropogon Schœnanthus) and a twig of a shrub(Sophora glauca), which were brought to the spot where the corpse was lying. The mother of the dead child then withdrew one of its hands from the putkūli, and the boy placed the grass and twig in the hand, and limes, plantains, rice, jaggery, honey-comb, and butter in the pocket of the putkūli, which was then stitched with needle and thread in a circular pattern. The boy’s father then took off his son’s putkūli, and replaced it so as to cover him from head to foot. Thus covered, the boy remained outside the hut till the morning of the morrow, watched through the night by near relatives of himself and his dead bride. [On the occasion of the funeral of an unmarried lad, a girl is in like manner selected, covered with her putkūli from head to foot, and a metal vessel filled with jaggery, rice, etc., to be subsequently burnt on the funeral pyre, placed for a short time within the folds of the putkūli. Thus covered, the girl remains till next morning, watched through the dreary hours of the night by relatives. The same ceremony is performed over the corpse of a married woman who has not borne children, the husband acting as such for the last time, in the vain hope that the woman may produce issue in heaven.] The corpse was borne away to the burning-ground within the shola, and, after removal of some of the hair by the mother of the newly wedded boy, burned, with face upwards, amid the music of the Kota band, the groans of the assembled crowd squatting on the ground, and the genuine grief of the nearest relatives. The burning concluded, a portion of the skull was removed from the ashes, and handed over to the recently made mother-in-law of the dead girl, and wrapped up with the hair in the bark of the tūd tree (Meliosma pungens). A second buffalo, which, properly speaking, should have been slain beforethe corpse was burnt, was then sacrificed, and rice and jaggery were distributed among the crowd, which dispersed, leaving behind the youthful widower and his custodians, who, after daybreak, partook of a meal of rice, and returned to their mands; the boy’s mother taking with her the skull and hair to her mand, where it would remain until the celebration of the second funeral. No attention is paid to the ashes after cremation, and they are left to be scattered by the winds.
A further opportunity offered itself to be present at the funeral of an elderly woman on the open downs not far from Paikāra, in connection with which certain details possess some interest. The corpse was, at the time of our arrival, laid out on a rude bier within an improvised arbour covered with leaves and open at each end, and tended by some of the female relatives. At some little distance, a conclave of Toda men, who rose of one accord to greet us, was squatting in a circle, among whom were many venerable white-turbaned elders of the tribe, protected from the scorching sun by palm-leaf umbrellas. Amid much joking, and speech-making by the veterans, it was decided that, as the eldest son of the deceased woman was dead, leaving a widow, this daughter-in-law should be united to the second son, and that they should live together as man and wife. On the announcement of the decision, the bridegroom-elect saluted the principal Todas present by placing his head on their feet, which were sometimes concealed within the ample folds of the putkūli. At the funeral of a married woman, three ceremonies must, I was told, be performed, if possible, by a daughter or daughter-in-law, viz.:—
(1) Tying a leafy branch of the tiviri shrub (Atylosia Candolleana) in the putkūli of the corpse;
(2) Tying balls of thread and cowry shells on the arm of the corpse, just above the elbow;
(3) Setting fire to the funeral pyre, which was, on the present occasion, done by lighting a rag fed with ghī with a match.
The buffalo capture took place amid the usual excitement, and with freedom from accident; and, later in the day, the stalwart buffalo catchers turned up at the travellers’ bungalow for apourboirein return, as they said, for treating us to a good fight. The beasts selected for sacrifice were a full-grown cow and a young calf. As they were dragged near to the corpse, now removed from the arbour, butter was smeared over the horns, and a bell tied round the neck. The bell was subsequently removed by Kotas, in whose custody, it was said, it was to remain till the next day funeral. The death-blow, or rather series of blows, having been delivered with the butt end of an axe, the feet of the corpse were placed at the mouth of the buffalo. In the case of a male corpse, the right hand is made to clasp the horns. [It is recorded by Dr. Rivers that, at the funeral of a male, men dance after the buffalo is killed. In the dancing a tall pole, called tadri or tadrsi, decorated with cowry shells, is used.] The customary mourning in couples concluded, the corpse, clad in four cloths, was carried on the stretcher to a clear space in the neighbouring shola, and placed by the side of the funeral pyre, which had been rapidly piled up. The innermost cloth was black in colour, and similar to that worn by a palol. Next to it came a putkūli decorated with blue and red embroidery, outside which again was a plain white cloth covered over by a red cotton cloth of European manufacture. Seated by the side of the pyre, near to which I was courteously invited to take a seat on the stump of a rhododendron,was an elderly relative of the dead woman, who, while watching the ceremonial, was placidly engaged in the manufacture of a holly walking-stick with the aid of a glass scraper. The proceedings were watched on behalf of Government by a forest guard, and a police constable who, with marked affectation, held his handkerchief to his nose throughout the ceremonial. The corpse was decorated with brass rings, and within the putkūli were stowed jaggery, a scroll of paper adorned with cowry shells, snuff and tobacco, cocoanuts, biscuits, various kinds of grain, ghī, honey, and a tin-framed looking-glass. A long purse, containing a silver Japanese yen and an Arcot rupee of the East India Company, was tied up in the putkūli close to the feet. These preliminaries concluded, the corpse was hoisted up, and swung three times over the now burning pyre, above which a mimic bier, made of slender twigs, was held. The body was then stripped of its jewelry, and a lock of hair cut off by the daughter-in-law for preservation, together with a fragment of the skull. I was told that, when the corpse is swung over the pyre, the dead person goes to amnodr (the world of the dead). In this connection, Dr. Rivers writes that “it would seem as if this ceremony of swinging the body over the fire was directly connected with the removal of the objects of value. The swinging over the fire would be symbolic of its destruction by fire; and this symbolic burning has the great advantage that the objects of value are not consumed, and are available for use another time. This is probably the real explanation of the ceremony, but it is not the explanation given by the Todas themselves. They say that long ago, about 400 years, a man supposed to be dead was put on the funeral pyre, and, revived by the heat, he was found to be alive, and was able to walk away from the funeral place. In consequenceof this, the rule was made that the body should always be swung three times over the fire before it is finally placed thereon.” [Colonel Marshall narrates the story that a Toda who had revived from what was thought his death-bed, has been observed parading about, very proud and distinguished looking, wearing the finery with which he had been bedecked for his own funeral, and which he would be permitted to carry till he really departed this life.] As soon as the pyre was fairly ablaze, the mourners, with the exception of some of the female relatives, left the shōla, and the men, congregating on the summit of a neighbouring hill, invoked their god. Four men, seized, apparently in imitation of the Kota Dēvādi, with divine frenzy, began to shiver and gesticulate wildly, while running blindly to and fro with closed eyes and shaking fists. They then began to talk in Malayālam, and offer an explanation of an extraordinary phenomenon, which had appeared in the form of a gigantic figure, which disappeared as suddenly as it appeared. At the annual ceremony of walking through fire (hot ashes) in that year, two factions arose owing to some dissension, and two sets of ashes were used. This seems to have annoyed the gods, and those concerned were threatened with speedy ruin. But the whole story was very vague. The possession by some Todas of a smattering of Malayālam is explained by the fact that, when grazing their buffaloes on the northern and western slopes of the Nīlgiris, they come in contact with Malayālam-speaking people from the neighbouring Malabar district.
At the funeral of a man (a leper), the corpse was placed in front of the entrance to a circle of loose stones about a yard and a half in diameter, which had been specially constructed for the occasion. Just before the buffalo sacrifice, a man of the Paiki clan standing nearthe head of the corpse, dug a hole in the ground with a cane, and asked a Kenna who was standing on the other side, “Puzhut, Kenna,”51shall I throw the earth?—three times. To which the Kenna, answering, replied “Puzhut”—throw the earth—thrice. The Paiki then threw some earth three times over the corpse, and three times into the miniature kraal. It is suggested by Dr. Rivers that the circle was made to do duty for a buffalo pen, as the funeral was held at a place where there was no tu (pen), from the entrance of which earth could be dug up.
Several examples of laments relating to the virtues and life of the deceased, which are sung or recited in the course of the funeral ceremonies, are given by Dr. Rivers. On the occasion of the reproduction of a lament in my phonograph, two young women were seen to be crying bitterly. The selection of the particular lament was unfortunate, as it had been sung at their father’s funeral. The reproduction of the recitation of a dead person’s sins at a Badaga funeral quickly restored them to a state of cheerfulness.
The following petition to the Collector of the Nilgiris on the subject of buffalo sacrifice may be quoted as a sign of the times, when the Todas employ petition-writers to express their grievances:—
“According to our religious custom for the long period, we are bringing forward of our killing buffaloes without any irregular way. But, in last year, when the late Collector came to see the said place, by that he ordered to the Todas first not to keep the buffaloes without feeding in the kraal, and second he ordered to kill each for every day, and to clear away the buffaloes, and not to keep the buffaloes without food.We did our work according to his orders, and this excellent order was an ample one. Now this ——, a chief of the Todas, son of ——, a deceased Toda, the above man joined with the moniagar of —— village, joined together, and, dealing with bribes, now they arose against us, and doing this great troubles on us, and also, by this great trouble, one day Mr. —— came for shooting snapes (snipe) by that side. By chance one grazing buffalo came to him, push him by his horns very forcely, and wounded him on his leg. By the help of another gentleman who came with him he escaped, or he would have die at the moment. Now the said moniagar and —— joined together, want to finish the funeral to his late father on the 18th instant. For this purpose they are going to shut the buffaloes without food in the kraal on the 18th instant at 10 o’clock. They are going to kill the buffaloes on the 19th instant at 4 o’clock in the evening. But this is a great sin against god. But we beg your honour this way. That is, let them leave the buffaloes in the grazing place, and ask them to catch and kill them at the same moment. And also your honour cannot ordered them to keep them in the kraal without food. And, if they will desire to kill the buffaloes in this way, these buffaloes will come on us, and also on the other peoples one who, coming to see funs on those day, will kill them all by his anxious. And so we the Todas begs your honour to enquire them before the 18th, the said funeral ceremony commencing, and not to grant the above orders to them.”
A Whit Monday at Paikāra was given up to an exhibition of sports and games, whereof the most exciting and interesting was a burlesque representation of a Toda funeral by boys and girls. A Toda, who wasfond of his little joke, applied the term pacchai kēdu (green funeral) to the corpses of the flies entrapped by a viscous catch’em-alive-oh on the bungalow table. To the mock funeral rites arrived a party of youths, as from a distant mand, and crying out U, hah, in shrill mimicry of their elders. The lad who was to play the leading part of sacrificial buffalo, stripping off his putkūli, disappeared from sight over the brow of a low hillock. Above this eminence his bent and uplifted upper extremities shortly appeared as representatives of the buffalo horns. At sight thereof, there was a wild rush of small boys to catch him, and a mimic struggle took place, while the buffalo was dragged, amid good-tempered scuffling, kicks, and shouting, to the spot where the corpse should have been. This spot was, in the absence of a pseudo-dead body or stage dummy, indicated by a group of little girls, who had sat chatting together till the boy-beast arrived, when they touched foreheads, and went, with due solemnity, through the orthodox observance of mourning in couples. The buffalo was slain by a smart tap on the back of the head with a cloth, which did duty for an axe. As soon as the convulsive movements and twitchings of the death struggle were over, the buffalo, without waiting for an encore, retired behind the hillock once more, in order that the rough and tumble fight, which was evidently the chief charm of the game, might be repeated. The buffalo boy later on came in second in a flat race, and he was last seen protecting us from a mischievous-looking member of his herd, which was grazing on the main-road. Toda buffaloes, it may be noted, are not at all popular with members of the Ootacamund Hunt, as both horses and riders from time to time receive injuries from their horns, when they come in collision.
While the funeral game was in progress, the men showed off their prowess at a game (eln),52corresponding to the English tip-cat, which is epidemic at a certain season in the London bye-streets. It is played with a bat like a broomstick, and a cylindrical piece of wood pointed at both ends. The latter is propped up against a stone, and struck with the bat. As it flies off the stone, it is hit to a distance with the bat, and caught (or missed) by the out fields.
At the Muttanād mand, we were treated to a further exhibition of games. In one of these, called narthpimi, a flat slab of stone is supported horizontally on two other slabs fixed perpendicularly in the ground so as to form a narrow tunnel, through which a man can just manage to wriggle his body with difficulty. Two men take part in the game, one stationing himself at a distance of about thirty yards, the other about sixty yards from the tunnel. The front man, throwing off his mantle, runs as hard as he can to the tunnel, pursued by the ‘scratch’ man, whose object is to touch the other man’s feet before he has squeezed himself through the tunnel. Another sport, which we witnessed, consists of trial of strength with a heavy globular stone, the object being to raise it up to the shoulder; but a strong, well-built-man—he who was entrusted with slaying the funeral buffalo—failed to raise it higher than the pit of the stomach, though straining his muscles in the attempt. A splendidly made veteran assured me that, when young and lusty, he was able to accomplish the feat, and spoke sadly of degeneration in the physique of the younger members of the tribe.
Mr. Breeks mentions that the Todas play a game resembling puss-in-the-corner, called kāriālapimi, whichwas not included in the programme of sports got up for our benefit. Dr. Rivers writes that “the Todas, and especially the children, often play with mimic representations of objects from practical life. Near the villages I have seen small artificial buffalo-pens and fireplaces made by the children in sport.” I have, on several occasions, come across young children playing with long and short pieces of twigs representing buffaloes and their calves, and going solemnly through the various incidents in the daily life of these animals. Todas, both old and young, may constantly be seen twisting flexible twigs into representations of buffaloes’ heads and horns.
Of Toda songs, the following have been collected:—
Sunshine is increasing. Mist is fast gathering. Rain may come. Thunder roars. Clouds are gathering.Rain is pouring. Wind and rain have combined.Oh, powerful god, may everything prosper!May charity increase!May the buffaloes become pregnant!See that the buffaloes have calves.See that the barren women have children.Go and tell this to the god of the land.Keygamor, Eygamor (names of buffaloes).Evening is approaching. The buffaloes are coming.The calves also have returned.The buffaloes are saluted.The dairy-man beats the calves with his stick.Milk has been offered to the bell.It is growing dark.This is a buffalo with beautiful horns.A buffalo stupidly given away by the Badaga.A buffalo brought to the Kāndal mand.Innerovya (name of buffalo).Like this buffalo there is no other.Parkūr (name of a Toda).Like him there is no man.The sun is shining. The wind is blowing.Rain is coming. The trees are in flower.Tears are falling. The nose is burning.He is coming, holding up his umbrella.He is coming, wearing a good body-cloth.He is coming, wearing a good under-cloth.He (the palol) is coming, wearing a black cloth.He is coming, holding his walking-stick of palai wood.I have a god. What is to become of me?I am inclined to cry, my heart being heavy.Oh, my child! Do not cry. It is still crying.Thuree. Thuree. See. Be quiet.A robust bullbuffalo. Ach! Ach!A big buffalo not intended for killing. Ach! Ach!Is leading the cow buffalo. Ah! Ah!Two or three men are driving it. Ah! Ah!
Sunshine is increasing. Mist is fast gathering. Rain may come. Thunder roars. Clouds are gathering.
Rain is pouring. Wind and rain have combined.
Oh, powerful god, may everything prosper!
May charity increase!
May the buffaloes become pregnant!
See that the buffaloes have calves.
See that the barren women have children.
Go and tell this to the god of the land.
Keygamor, Eygamor (names of buffaloes).
Evening is approaching. The buffaloes are coming.
The calves also have returned.
The buffaloes are saluted.
The dairy-man beats the calves with his stick.
Milk has been offered to the bell.
It is growing dark.
This is a buffalo with beautiful horns.
A buffalo stupidly given away by the Badaga.
A buffalo brought to the Kāndal mand.
Innerovya (name of buffalo).
Like this buffalo there is no other.
Parkūr (name of a Toda).
Like him there is no man.
The sun is shining. The wind is blowing.
Rain is coming. The trees are in flower.
Tears are falling. The nose is burning.
He is coming, holding up his umbrella.
He is coming, wearing a good body-cloth.
He is coming, wearing a good under-cloth.
He (the palol) is coming, wearing a black cloth.
He is coming, holding his walking-stick of palai wood.
I have a god. What is to become of me?
I am inclined to cry, my heart being heavy.
Oh, my child! Do not cry. It is still crying.
Thuree. Thuree. See. Be quiet.
A robust bullbuffalo. Ach! Ach!
A big buffalo not intended for killing. Ach! Ach!
Is leading the cow buffalo. Ah! Ah!
Two or three men are driving it. Ah! Ah!
Song in honour of the arrival of the Maharāni-Regent of Mysore at Ootacamund.
All we Todas go to her house, and dance before her.She gives us fifteen rupees.She comes near our women, and talks to them.She gives cloths to us.Next day we take milk, eight bottles in the morning, four in the evening.Month by month she pays us for our milk.She goes back to Mysore, and, when she goes, we stand in a row before her.She gives us presents; cloths and three rupees.The women cut their hair, and stand before her.
All we Todas go to her house, and dance before her.
She gives us fifteen rupees.
She comes near our women, and talks to them.
She gives cloths to us.
Next day we take milk, eight bottles in the morning, four in the evening.
Month by month she pays us for our milk.
She goes back to Mysore, and, when she goes, we stand in a row before her.
She gives us presents; cloths and three rupees.
The women cut their hair, and stand before her.
Marriage Song.
Boys and girls are singing.Much money are they spending.To the girl her father is giving five buffaloes.The husband tells his wife that she must curl her hair.If her hair is curled, all the people will rejoice.The buffalo is slain, and now we must all dance.Why are not more people here? More should come.My buffalo is big, very big.Go quickly and catch it.The Todas are all there. They are standing in a row.Who will run, and catch the buffalo first?To him will a present of five rupees be given.I will go and catch it first.The Todas are all fighting.The Todas are all feasting.People give them rice.The buffalo is coming. Two men run to catch it by the neck.Ten men collect the buffaloes. They pen them in a kraal.At one o’clock we take our food.The buffalo is running, and I hit it on the back with a stick.It swerves aside, but I drive it back to the path.Night comes, and we all dance.Next morning at ten o’clock we bring out the buffalo, and slay it.At four in the morning we wrap rice and grain in a white cloth, and burn it.At eleven we cut the hair of the boys and girls.At four in the morning the priest goes to the temple (dairy).He lights the lamp.At eight he milks his buffaloes.He puts on no cloth.He places butter and ghī before the god.Then he grazes his buffaloes, and eats his food.Then he puts on his cloth.At three in the afternoon he goes again to the temple.He kindles a fire, and lights the lamp.He puts milk in a chatty, and churns it into butter with a cane.He mixes water with the butter-milk, and gives it to the women to drink.He alone may sleep in the temple.At four in the morning he lets out the buffaloes to graze.At seven he milks them.The woman’s house is down the hill.The priest must not go in unto the woman.He may not marry.When he is twenty, he may not enter the temple.Another is made priest in his stead.
Boys and girls are singing.
Much money are they spending.
To the girl her father is giving five buffaloes.
The husband tells his wife that she must curl her hair.
If her hair is curled, all the people will rejoice.
The buffalo is slain, and now we must all dance.
Why are not more people here? More should come.
My buffalo is big, very big.
Go quickly and catch it.
The Todas are all there. They are standing in a row.
Who will run, and catch the buffalo first?
To him will a present of five rupees be given.
I will go and catch it first.
The Todas are all fighting.
The Todas are all feasting.
People give them rice.
The buffalo is coming. Two men run to catch it by the neck.
Ten men collect the buffaloes. They pen them in a kraal.
At one o’clock we take our food.
The buffalo is running, and I hit it on the back with a stick.
It swerves aside, but I drive it back to the path.
Night comes, and we all dance.
Next morning at ten o’clock we bring out the buffalo, and slay it.
At four in the morning we wrap rice and grain in a white cloth, and burn it.
At eleven we cut the hair of the boys and girls.
At four in the morning the priest goes to the temple (dairy).
He lights the lamp.
At eight he milks his buffaloes.
He puts on no cloth.
He places butter and ghī before the god.
Then he grazes his buffaloes, and eats his food.
Then he puts on his cloth.
At three in the afternoon he goes again to the temple.
He kindles a fire, and lights the lamp.
He puts milk in a chatty, and churns it into butter with a cane.
He mixes water with the butter-milk, and gives it to the women to drink.
He alone may sleep in the temple.
At four in the morning he lets out the buffaloes to graze.
At seven he milks them.
The woman’s house is down the hill.
The priest must not go in unto the woman.
He may not marry.
When he is twenty, he may not enter the temple.
Another is made priest in his stead.
The religious institutions of the Todas, including the elaborate dairy ritual, and their religion, are described in full detail by Dr. Rivers. The Todas have been to some extent influenced by Hinduism, and some visit the temples at Nanjengōd in Mysore, Karamadai in the Coimbatore district, and other shrines, whereat they worship, present votive offerings, and pray for offspring,etc. Writing in 1872, Mr. Breeks remarked that “about Ootacamund, a few Todas have latterly begun to imitate the religious practices of their native neighbours. Occasionally children’s foreheads are marked with the Siva spot, and my particular friend Kinniaven, after an absence of some days, returned with a shaven head from a visit to the temple of Siva at Nanjengudi.” A man who came to my laboratory had his hair hanging down in long tails reaching below his shoulders. He had, he said, let it grow long because his wife, though married five years, had borne no child. A child had, however, recently been born, and, as soon as the second funeral of a relation had been performed, he was going to sacrifice his locks as a thank-offering at the Nanjengōd temple. The following extracts from my notes will serve to illustrate the practice of marking (in some instances apparently for beauty’s sake) and shaving as carried out at the present day.
(1) Man, aged 28. Has just performed a ceremony at the ti mand. White curved line painted across forehead, and dots below outer ends thereof, on glabella, and outside orbits. Smeared with white across chest, over outer side of upper arms and left nipple, across knuckles and lower end of left ulna, and on lobes of ears.
(2) Man, aged 21. Painted on forehead as above. Smeared over chest and upper eye lids.
(3) Man, aged 35. White spot painted on forehead.
(4) Man, aged 30. Hair of head and beard cut short owing to death of grandfather.
(5) Boy, aged 12. Shock head of hair, cut very short all over owing to death of grandfather.
(6) Girl, aged 8. Hair shaved on top, back and sides of head, and in median strip from vertex to forehead.
(7) Boy, aged 6. White spot painted between eyebrows. Hair shaved on top and sides of head, and in median strip from vertex to forehead. Hair brought forward in fringe over forehead on either side of median strip, and hanging down back of neck.
(8) Male child, aged 18 months. White spot painted between eyebrows. Shaved on top and sides of head.
Todupuzha Vellāla.—For the following note, I am indebted to Mr. N. Subramani Aiyar. Besides the Nanchinād Vellālas, there are, in Travancore, two sections of the Vellāla caste, inhabiting the mountainous Todupuzha tāluk. These are the Tenkanchi and Kumbakōnam Vellālas. The former are known by the popular name of Anjuttilkar, or the five hundred, and the latter are designated Munnutilkar, or the three hundred, in reference to the number of families which originally settled in the taluk. Like the Nanchinād Vellālas, they take the title of Pillai, and, in special cases, the honorific prefix Kanakku.
The Tenkanchi Vellālas appear to have dwelt originally in the Tenkāsi taluk of the Tinnevelly district, and to have emigrated, as the legend goes, on account of the demand of a Vaduka ruler for the hand of a member of their community in marriage. The Vadakkumkur Rājas were ruling over Todupuzha at the time of their migration, and afforded them a safe asylum. The Kumbakōnam Vellālas believe that they emigrated to Travancore about the commencement of the Malabar era from Kumbakōnam in the Tanjore district. Both divisions speak Malayālam, but there are clear indications in their speech that their mother-tongue was once Tamil, and they always use that language in their ceremonial writings. The Anjuttilkar women haveadopted the dress and ornaments of the Nāyars. Both sections wear the tuft of hair in front, but the Munnutilkar women do not tie the hair on the left side like the Nāyars and Anjuttilkars, but behind like the Pāndi Vellālas. Nor do the Anjuttilkar women wear a white dress like the Tenkanchis, but a coloured cloth, sixteen cubits in length, in orthodox Tamil fashion. Again, while the Tenkanchi women largely resort to the todu and other Nāyar ornaments, the Kumbakōnam women are more conservative, and wear only the pampadam and melidu, though they sometimes wear jewels, such as the nāgapata tāli for the neck. Both sections are Saivites, in the sense that they abstain from flesh and fish.
Their principal occupation is agriculture. They worship the two mountain deities Bhadrakāli and Durgā. In the Kirikkot muri of the Karikkodpropertythere is a temple dedicated to Siva or Unnamalanathar, with a large amount of property attached to it. This belongs to the Tenkanchi Vellālas, and a Malayālam Brāhman performs the priestly functions. The Kumbakōnam Vellālas have their own temples, such as the Ankalamma koil, Annamala matam, Vīrabhadran koil, etc., and worship, besides the principal gods of the Hindu pantheon, such minor deities as Vīrabhadran, Karuppan, Bhairavan, Māriamman, and Muttaramman. The priests of both sections are East Coast Brāhmans, who live in the Todupuzha tāluk. As their profession is regarded by other Brāhmans as degrading, they, especially in the case of the Kumbakōnam Vellālas, perform their duties stealthily. The headman of the Kumbakōnam section lives in the Periyakulam tāluk of the Madura district, and, by his order, an image of Siva is worshipped at their homes.
Divorce is not permitted on any ground, and, in ancient days, widow remarriage was forbidden. There is a legend that a woman of this caste, who was a friend of the daughter of a certain Vadakkumkur Rājah, was so aggrieved at the news of her newly married husband’s death that, at her intercession, the Rājah issued a proclamation permitting the remarriage of widows. If no husband has been found for a girl before she reaches puberty, certain propitiatory rites have to be performed, at which one of her female relations represents her. On the fourth day of the marriage ceremony, the bride and bridegroom, before they bathe, rub each other’s bodies with oil, and, going to a large caldron containing water, throw a gold and silver ring into it, and pick them out three times. Inheritance of both sections is from father to son (makkathāyam). A sambandham alliance does not confer any rite of inheritance.
The names of both sections are such as are unknown among Nāyars,e.g., Sivalingam, Arunāchalam, Chidambaram, Arumukham. The Tenkanchis are considered to be higher in the social scale than the Kumbakōnam section, as they observe only twelve days’ death pollution, whereas the latter are under pollution for sixteen days. The Tenkanchis may enter the temple, and, like Nāyars, stand on the left side of the inner shrine, whereas the Kumbakōnam Vellālas may proceed only as far as the balikkalpura, or out-house of the temple, and not enter the nalambalam. Again, butter-milk is freely received by Brāhmans from the Tenkanchis, but not from members of the Kumbakōnam section. While Pāndi Vellālas will not receive food from the Tenkanchis, or give their daughters in marriage to them, the latter will not intermarry with the Nānchinād Vellālas.
Togata.—The Togatas are Telugu weavers, most numerous in the Cuddapah district, who manufacture the coarsest kind of cotton cloths, such as are worn by the poorer classes. They are generally Vaishnavites, wear the sacred thread, and have for their priests Vaishnava Brāhmans or Sātānis. They eat flesh, and their widows are allowed to remarry. Writing concerning the Togatas in 1807, Buchanan states53that “widows cannot marry again, but are not expected to kill themselves. The Panchanga, or village astrologer, attends at births, marriages, funerals, at the ceremonies performed in honour of their deceased parents, and at the building of a new house, and on each occasion gets a fee of one fanam, or eight pence. On other occasions, when a weaver wants to pray, he calls in a Satanana, who reads something in an unknown language, and gives the votary some holy water, which he consecrates by pouring it on the head of a small image that he carries about for the purpose.”
As regards their origin, some Togatas claim to be sons of Chaudēsvari, who threw some rice on to the fire, from which sprang a host of warriors, whose descendants they are. Others give Pūppandaja Rishi as the name of their ancestor. Concerning Chaudēsvari, Mr. Francis writes as follows.54“Connected with the margosa tree (Melia Azadirachta) is the worship of Chaudēsvari, the goddess of the Togata caste of weavers. She is supposed to reside in margosa trees, and either the tree itself, or a stone representing the goddess and placed at its foot, is worshipped by the Togatas at certain seasons, such as the Telugu New Year Day. Apparently the other weaver castes take no share in the ceremonies. They consist largely of animal sacrifices. Nevertheless, aparticular class of Brāhmans, called Nandavarīkula Brāhmans, take a prominent part in the festival. This name Nandavarīkula is derived from the village of Nandavaram in Kurnool, and doubtless many stories are prevalent there about this sub-division. The account given at Tadpatri, where they are fairly numerous, is as follows. Once upon a time, a king from Southern India went on a pilgrimage with his wife to Benares. While there, he unwittingly incurred a nameless but heinous pollution. Horrified, he applied to some Brāhmans there to purify him, promising them half his kingdom in return. They asked for some tangible record of this promise, and the king called upon the goddess Chaudēsvari, who had a temple near by, to witness his oath. The purification was effected, and he departed home. Later on the Brāhmans came south, and asked for the fulfilment of his promise. The king declared that he could not remember having made any such undertaking. The Brāhmans accordingly went to Benares, and asked Chaudēsvari to come south, and bear witness to the king’s oaths. She agreed, on the usual condition that they should go in front, and not look back at her as she came. As happens in other stories of the same kind, they are said to have broken the condition. At Nandavaram they looked back, and the goddess instantly stopped, and remained immoveable. A temple was built for her there, and the Brāhmans remained in the south, and still take part in the worship of Chaudēsvari which the Togatas inaugurate, even though she is not one of the Hindu pantheon, and delights in animal sacrifice. At Tadpatri other castes besides the Togatas help at the festival.”
Though Chaudēsvari is the patron god of the Togatas, they also worship Poleramma, Ellamma, Kotamma, and other minor deities.
The original occupation of the Togatas is said to have been dyeing, but, at the present day, owing to the depression in the hand-loom weaving industry, a large number have taken to cultivation.
Like many other Telugu castes, they have exogamous septs, of which the following are examples:—
Pūjāris (priests) for temple worship are always elected from the Perumāl sept, and caste messengers from the Bandāri sept, if they are represented in a settlement. Torches are generally carried, at processions, by men of the Gudditi sept. Members of the Gurram sept are not allowed to ride on horseback.
The panchāyat (village council) system is in vogue, but, in some places, a headman is selected, as occasion requires. In their marriage and funeral ceremonies, the Togatas closely follow the Telugu standard Purānic form of ceremonial. The dead are buried in a recumbent posture. On the last day of the death rites, the Sātāni gives arrack (liquor) to the Togatas, as to the Padma Sālēs, in lieu of holy water (thirtham).
Tohala.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a small class of Oriya hill cultivators and petty traders in the Ganjam Agency.
Tolagari.—Recorded, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as a sub-caste of Mutrācha. In the North Arcot Manual the Tolagaris are described as a smallcultivating caste, who were formerly hunters, like the Pālayakkārans.
Tolar(Wolf).—An exogamous sept of Halēpaik. The equivalent Tolana occurs as a sept of Mogēr.
Tōlkollan.—The Tōlkollans or Tōlans (skin people) are summed up in the Madras Census Report, 1901, as “leather workers and dyers, and also gymnasts and teachers of gymnastics. They are also called Vatti Kurup, Chāya Kurup, and Vil Kurup. Their title is Kurup.” The Tōlkollans are stated55to be “blacksmiths by caste, who abandoned their hereditary trade for leather work, and they are chiefly employed by Māppillas. One peculiar custom in this caste is that two or more brothers may have one wife in common. Only those in good circumstances indulge in the luxury of a private wife. The following information furnished by Mr. S. Vaidyanadha Aiyar, the headmaster of the School of Commerce, Calicut, gives some information regarding leather work in Malabar:—
(a) Boots and shoes of country make and English pattern.
(b) Harness making.
(c) Native shoes (ceruppu). These are of the special pattern peculiar to Malabar, and are largely used by all classes of the Hindu and Māppilla communities. The Arabs who visit this coast once a year purchase a considerable number to take back with them. The price of a pair varies from Rs. 1–8–0 to Rs. 5. Those with ornamental gold lace work cost from Rs. 10 to Rs. 50. These shoes are generally used by well-to-do Māppillas. White of egg is used to give a creaking sound to the shoes. This work is mainly done by Thōlperunkollansand Māppillas, and the latter show more skill in finish and ornamental work.
(d) Knife sheaths. Almost every Nāyar, Tiyan and Māppilla carries a knife about a foot in length, and there is a demand for leather sheaths. These are made by Pānans as well as by Thōlperunkollans and Māppillas.
(e) Leather baskets are also made, and are largely used as receptacles for carrying pepper, paddy (rice), and other grain.
(f) Winnowing fans are made of leather, and are used in pepper and paddy yards, etc.
(g) Muttu ceruppu (clogs) are leather shoes with wooden soles. These are largely used during the rainy season.”
Tollakkādan(one with a big hole in the lobes of his ears).—Taken, at the census, 1901, as a sub-caste of Shānān, as those returning the name, who are vendors of husked rice in Madras, used the Shānān title Nādān. The equivalent Tollakādu was returned as a sub-division of Konga Vellāla.
Tōl Mēstri.—A sub-division of Semmān.
Tondamān.—It is stated, in the Madras Census Report, 1901, that the Tondamāns are “also called Sunnāmbukkāran (q.v.), a Tamil caste of lime (chunam) burners found only in the Tinnevelly district. They are said to be a branch of the Kallans who migrated to Tinnevelly from Pudukkōttai, or the Tondamān’s country. Its members are now drummers and pipers as well as lime-burners. Brāhmans are their purōhits, but they are not allowed to go into Hindu temples. They will eat in the houses of Maravans. Their title is Sōlagan.” It is noted, in the same report, that the Semmān caste “has two sub-divisions,Tondamānand Tōl-mēstri, and men of the former take wives from the latter, but menof the latter may not marry girls of the former.” Tondamān is the family name of the Rāja of Pudukkōttai, a Native State surrounded by the British districts of Tanjore, Madura, and Trichinopoly. The Rāja is the head of the Kallan caste. Copper coins, called amman kāsu, are current only within the State, and their greatest distribution is during Navarātri or Dusserah, when they are issued to the people with a dole of rice every day during the nine days of the festival. They bear on one side the word “Vijaya,” meaning victory, or more probably having reference to our faithful ally Vijaya Ragunātha Tondamān, in whose reign they were first struck, it is said in 1761, after the surrender of Pondicherry to the British.
Tondamandalam.—The name of a sub-division of Vellāla, derived from Tondanādu, the ancient Pallava country.
Tonti.—The Tontis are said to be cotton-weavers of Bengal, who have settled in Ganjam.56The name denotes threadmen, and the weaving of rough white cloths is the traditional occupation of the caste. All Tontis belong to a single gōtra named after Kāsyapa, one of the seven important rishis, and the priest of Parasurāma. Various bamsams or exogamous septs, the names of some of which occur also as titles, exist,e.g., Biswālo, Dasso, Pālo, Bono, Chondo, Parimaniko, Korono, Bēhara, and Mahāpātro. The marriage and death ceremonies conform to the standard Oriya type. On the fourth day of the marriage rites, a Bhondāri (barber) is presented with some beaten rice and sugar-candy in a new earthen pot. These are sold to those who have assembled, and the proceeds go to the Bhondāri.The corpse of a dead person is washed at the burning ground, instead of, in accordance with the common custom among other castes, at the house.
Toppa Tāli.—A name applied to certain Vāniyans in the North Arcot district, owing to the peculiar tāli (marriage badge) which married women wear.
Torai.—A title of various Oriya castes.
Toreya.—The Toreyas are a Canarese class, living chiefly in the Tamil districts of Coimbatore and Salem. They are said to have been originally fishermen and palanquin bearers, and the name is derived from turai, a river ghāt. Most of them are now cultivators, especially of the betel vine (Piper betle). Those whom I examined at Coimbatore were earning their living as betel and sugar-cane cultivators, vendors of tobacco, bakers, cloth merchants, contractors, petty traders, and police constables.
By the Coimbatore Toreyas, the following endogamous divisions were returned:—
Many exogamous septs exist among the Toreyas, of which the following are examples:—
Onne (Pterocarpus Marsupium). Do not mark their foreheads with the juice from the trunk of this tree.
Kuzhal, the flute played by shepherd boys and snake charmers. If the sound thereof is heard during a meal, what remains of the food should be thrown away.
Rākshasa, a giant. Do not celebrate the Dīpāvali festival in honour of the victory over, and death of, a rākshasa.
Erumai, buffalo.
The headman of the caste is called Ejaman, who has under him an officer entitled Dalavayi. The caste messenger bears the name of Kondikar. These three offices are hereditary. The Ejaman presides at council meetings which are held at the temple of the caste. The eldest member of each family is entitled to a seat on the council. Those who come late to a meeting thereof prostrate themselves before the assembly. Witnesses before the council have to take an oath, which is administered by the Kondikar. He makes the witness stand within a circle drawn on the ground, and makes him repeat the formula “Before God and the elders assembled, with the sky above and the earth beneath, I will state only the truth.” The Kondikar then takes up a pinch of earth, and puts it on the head of the witness. For merely threatening to beat a person with shoes, the offender has to feed twenty-five castemen. If he takes the shoes in his hands he must feed fifty, and, if heactually resorts to beating with them, he has to feed a hundred men. In addition, the culprit has to pay a small fine, and both parties have to be purified at the temple. A similar punishment is enforced for beating, or threatening to beat with a broom. For adultery the guilty person is excommunicated, and is admitted back into the caste only after the death of one of the parties concerned. He then has to feed a large number of castemen, or pay a money fine, and, prostrating himself before the assembly, he is beaten with a tamarind switch. He further makes obeisance to the Ejaman, and washes his feet. The Ejaman then purifies him by a small piece of burning camphor in his mouth.
When a married girl reaches puberty, she is taken to her father’s house, and her husband constructs a hut with branches ofFicus glomerata. On the last day of her confinement therein, the hut is pulled down, and the girl sets fire to it. The house is purified, and the female relations go to the houses of the Ejaman and caste people, and invite them to be present at a ceremonial. A small quantity of turmeric paste is stuck on the doors of the houses of all who are invited. The relations and members of the caste carry betel, and other articles, on trays in procession through the streets. The girl is seated on a plank, and the trays are placed in front of her. Rice flour, fruits, betel, etc., are tied in her cloth, and she is taken into the house. In the case of an unmarried girl, the hut is built by her maternal uncle.
Marriage is always celebrated at the house of the bridegroom, as there is a legend that a Rājah belonging to the Toreya caste had a son, who was taken to the house of his bride elect, and there murdered. Thebridegroom’s father and relations go to the house of the bride, and make presents of money, cloths, ornaments, etc. They also have to make obeisance to, and feed five married women sumptuously. Pandals (booths) are constructed at the houses of both the bride and bridegroom. Five married women go, on behalf of each of the contracting parties, to their houses, and pound rice there. On the second day, five such women fetch water from a tank, and bathe the bride and bridegroom respectively. The ten women then go to the potter’s house, and bring five decorated pots. Three of these are taken to a tank, and filled with water. On the following day, the bridegroom and his sister take the two remaining pots to the tank, and fill them with water. The five pots are placed in the pandal, and represent the household gods. The relations of the bridegroom take twelve kinds of ornaments, a new cloth, flowers, etc., to the house of the Ejaman, and go with him to the bride’s house. She is then bathed, and decked with finery. A Brāhman does pūja (worship) and ties on her forehead a mandaikettu or bashingham (chaplet) made of gold leaf or tinsel. She is then carried in procession to the house of the bridegroom. Meanwhile, the Brāhman ties a mandaikettu on the forehead of the bridegroom, who puts on the sacred thread, and sits within the pandal, holding a katar (dagger) in his hand, and closed in by a screen. The bride goes thrice round this screen, and the Brāhman does pūja and gives advice (upadēsam) to the couple. The screen is then lowered slightly, and the bride and bridegroom garland each other. The bride’s parents place a few gingelly (Sesamum) seeds in the hand of the bridegroom, and pour water thereon, saying that their daughter belongs to him, and telling him to take care of her. The tāli, after being blessed by thoseassembled, is given by the Brāhman to the bridegroom, who ties it on the bride’s neck. The screen is then removed, and the couple sit side by side. The sacred fire is lighted, their hands are linked together, and the ends of their cloths tied together. They then leave the pandal, and, placing their feet on a grindstone, look at the pole-star (Arundati). Entering the pandal once more, they sit therein, and the elders bless them by throwing rice coloured with turmeric over their heads. On the fourth day, they again sit within the pandal, and cooked rice, coloured white, red, yellow, green, and black, on five trays, and nine lighted wicks on a tray are waved before them. Five married men and women, holding a string, stand round them in a circle, within which is the bride’s brother with a twig of pīpal (Ficus religiosa). The bridegroom places his hands together, and small rice cakes are placed on the head, shoulders, bend of the elbows and knees, and between the fingers of the couple. They are then bathed, and, taking betel in their hands, bow to the four corners of the earth. The bridegroom makes a nāmam (Vaishnavite sect mark), or places vibhūti (sacred ashes) on the twelve posts of the pandal, and the bride places a little cooked rice and water before each post, to which camphor is burnt, and pūja done. They then start for the bride’s house, but the bride’s sister meets them at the entrance thereto, and will not allow them to go in until she has extracted a promise that their child shall marry hers. The bride proceeds to a tank, sowing some paddy (rice) on the way thither, and brings back a pot of water, with which she washes her husband’s hands and feet. Husband and wife then feed each other with a small quantity of rice and milk. Their hands are then cleaned, and the bride’s brother puts a gold ring on the finger of the bridegroom.A tray with betel leaves and areca nuts is brought, and the bridegroom ties three handfuls thereof in his cloth. The newly married couple then worship at the temple. On the fifth day, they carry the earthen pots to a river, and, on their return, five married women are worshipped and fed. Five men have to come forward as sureties for the good behaviour of the couple, and declare before those assembled that they will hold themselves responsible for it. In the evening the pair go to the bride’s house, and rub oil over each other’s head before bathing in turmeric water. On the following day they repair to the house of the bridegroom.
The corpse of a dead Toreya is placed in a pandal constructed of cocoanut leaves and stems of the milk-hedge (Euphorbia Tirucalli). Sect marks are placed on the foreheads of the corpse and the widow. The son of the deceased dons the sacred thread. The funeral ceremonies resemble, in many particulars, those of the Oddēs. A mound is piled up over the grave. A Paraiyan places a small twig of the arka plant (Calotropis gigantea) in three corners of the grave, leaving out the north-east corner, and the son puts a small coin on each twig. As he goes round the grave with a water-pot and fire-brand, his maternal uncle, who stands at the head of the grave, makes holes in the pot. On the third, fifth, seventh, or ninth day, the widow, dressed in new cloths, and bedecked with ornaments and flowers, is taken to the burial-ground, with offerings of milk, ghī (clarified butter), tender cocoanut, sandal, camphor, etc. Five small stones, smeared with turmeric and lime, are set up at the head of the grave, and worshipped. The widow goes thrice round the grave, and seats herself near the head thereof. Her brother holds up her arms, and one of her husband’s malerelations breaks her bangles. She breaks, and throws her tāli on the grave, with the flowers which adorn her. Her ornaments are removed, and she is covered with a cloth, and taken to a river, where she is rubbed with cow-dung and bathed. The son and other relatives go to the temple with butter and other articles. A Brāhman does pūja, and shuts the doors of the temple. The son, with his back to the temple, throws a little butter on the doors, which are then opened by the Brāhman. This is done thrice. On the seventh day, pollution is removed by sprinkling holy water, and the caste people are fed. A widow remains in seclusion (gōsha) for three months. Srādh (memorial ceremony) is performed.
The Toreyas worship both Siva and Vishnu, but consider Ayodhya Rāman as their special deity, and sacrifice sheep and fowls to Koriamma.
Toreya.—A sub-division of the Badagas of the Nīlgiris.
Tōta(garden).—Recorded as a sub-division of cultivating Balijas, and an exogamous sept of Bōya, Chenchu, Vāda Balija (or Mila), Mutrācha and Bonthuk Savara. The equivalent Tōta occurs as an exogamous sept of Kāpu and Yānādi. Tōta Dēvaru, or garden god, is the name of an exogamous sept of the Tigala gardeners and cultivators.
Tōtakūra(Amarantus gangeticus).—An exogamous sept of Kamma.
Toththala or Tottadi.—A sub-division of Velama.
Tōti.—The Tōti or Totti is one of the village communal servants. The name has been derived from tondu, to dig, or tott, to go round, as the Tōti is the purveyor of news, and has to summon people to appear before the village council. The functions of this useful person tothe community have been summed up as follows by a district official.57“This individual has all the dirty work of the village allotted to him. He is of the lowest caste, and hence makes no scruple of doing any manner of work that he may be called upon to perform. The removal and sepulture of unclaimed dead bodies, the cleansing of choultries, rest-houses and the like, where travellers carrying infectious diseases might have halted, and other gruesome duties are entrusted to him. In spite of all this, theTōtiis one of the most trusted of the humbler servants of the village community. Considering his humble status and emoluments, which average between Rs. 3 and Rs. 4 a month, his honesty with regard to pecuniary matters is wonderful. He may be trusted with untold wealth, as is often done when he is the sole custodian of the revenue collections of his village to the tune of several thousands at a time, when on their way from the collecting officers to the Government Treasury.” Testimony is borne to the industry of the Tōti in the proverb that if you work like a Tōti, you can enjoy the comforts of a king.
In the Madras Census Report, 1891, Tōti is returned as a sub-division of Chakkiliyan. The Tōti of Mysore is defined by Mr. L. Rice58as a menial among the village servants, a deputy talāri, who is employed to watch the crops from the growing crop to the granary.
Odiya Tōti is a Tamil synonym for Oriya Haddis employed as scavengers in municipalities in the Tamil country.
Tottiyan.—In the Census Report, 1901, Mr. W. Francis writes that the Tottiyans are “Telugucultivators. The Tottiyans or Kambalattāns of the Tanjore district are, however, said to be vagrants, and to live by pig-breeding, snake-charming, and begging. So are the sub-division called Kāttu Tottiyans in Tinnevelly. The headman among the Tinnevelly Tottiyans is called the Mandai Periadanakkāran or Sērvaikāran. Their marriages are not celebrated in their houses, but in pandals (booths) of green leaves erected for the purpose on the village common. However wealthy the couple may be, the only grain which they may eat at the wedding festivities is either cumbu (Pennisetum typhoideum) or horse-gram (Dolichos biflorus). The patron deities of the caste are Jakkamma and Bommakka, two women who committed sati. The morality of their women is loose. The custom of marrying boys to their paternal aunt’s or maternal uncle’s daughter, however old she may be, also obtains, and in such cases the bridegroom’s father is said to take upon himself the duty of begetting children to his own son. Divorce is easy, and remarriage is freely allowed. They offer rice and arrack (alcoholic liquor) to their ancestors. The Kāttu Tottiyans will eat jackals, rats, and the leavings of other people. Tottiya women will not eat in the houses of Brāhmans, but no explanation of this is forthcoming. The men wear silver anklets on both legs, and also a bracelet upon one of the upper arms, both of which practices are uncommon, while the women wear bangles only on the left arm, instead of on both as usual. Some of the Zamindars in Madura belong to this caste. The caste title is Nāyakkan.” At the census, 1901, Kudulukkāran was returned as a sub-caste of the Tottiyans in Madura and Tinnevelly. The Urumikkāran, meaning those who play on the drum called urumi, are said to be Tottiyans in Madura and Paraiyans elsewhere.