38 LAND REVENUE. 



according to the puttali, or lease, wliicli he 

 holds from Government. Sir Charles Kapier 

 sanctioned loans to cultivators for seed grain. 

 This is a most important measure, if judiciously 

 carried out, to save them from the extortions of 

 the village Bunyah, Even the Ameers sanc- 

 tioned the issue of seed from their own stores, 

 to be repaid by an equal quantity at harvest- 

 time, when the cultivator or zemindar has re- 

 course to the Bunyah for tuccavee advances; 

 such are made in cash or grain. If the former, 

 the interest is generally at the rate of 3^ or 

 4 per cent, monthly; if the latter, a kharwar 

 and a half is repaid for every kharwar ad- 

 vanced on the produce. These Bunyahs are 

 the vermin who destroy the cultivators through- 

 out India. In the Government territory the 

 bulk of land revenue is assessed and realized 

 at rates not exceeding one-third of the gross 

 produce. This, however, is far too high for 

 the people to live in any degree of comfort, 

 more especially as they have to borrow in most 

 cases from the Bunyahs, to carry on their 

 cultivation, and those extortioners exact enor- 

 mous rates of interest. Kates are sometimes 

 fixed with reference to peculiar circumstances 



