MANUAL OF THE NtLAGIRI DISTRICT. 301 



but ttey held that to carry out the Supreme Government's wishes CHAP. XII. 

 it would still be necessary to legislate, as the Madras Govern- r^^t 

 nient did not intend the Commandant to 'exercise so high civil History. 

 power as indicated by the Supreme Government. They were 

 urged to reconsider their views, but they adhered to their decision, 

 and finally forwarded to Government a draft Act for adoption, 

 which runs as follows : — 



" I. It is hereby enacted that it shall be competent to the Governor Draft Act. 

 in Council of Fort St. George to vest in a separate officer, either 

 civil or military, the powers of Collector and Magistrate under the 

 Eegulations of that Presidency, and of a Justice of the Peace upon 

 the Nilagiri Hills, within such local limits as may be assigned by an 

 order iu Council, together with the special jurisdiction in civil 

 suits described in the following section of this Act. 



"II. The officer appointed under the provisions of this Act shall 

 have exclusive authority to try and determine, in conformity with the 

 rules prescribed for the proceedings of the Courts of Udalut generally, 

 but as regards vakeels agreeably to the rules prescribed by clauses 

 second and third, Section XIV, Regulation VI of 1816, or refer to 

 arbitration under the rules prescribed by Regulation XXI of 1802 

 suits against any persons upon the Nilagiri Hills, those described in 

 Article VII, Regulation V, 1827, not excepted, for personal property 

 to an amount not exceeding four hundred rupees. The decisions of 

 arbitrators shall be final, but an appeal within thirty days under the 

 rules in force regarding appeals shall lie from all decrees of the said 

 officer in suits exceeding twenty rupees, to the auxiliary court at Coimba- 

 tore, from whose decrees a special appeal shall be admissible by the 

 Zillah Court of Salem under the provisions in force regarding special 

 appeals." 



Lord Auckland, however, continued obdurate. His government Legislation 

 would not admit the necessity o£ special legislation on the grounds ^°^">^y j 

 urged by the Sudr, that the establishment of a special tribunal 

 on the Nilagiris would, under existing regulations, " materially 

 affect the rights, persons and property of the inhabitants," unless 

 the court established differed from the ordinary tribunals, but 

 they could not see why a court of ordinary jurisdiction should 

 not be established there ; nor would they admit that the popula- 

 tions of the Nilagiris were worse off in the matter of civil courts 

 than other parts of this Pi-esidency, and therefore there was no 

 reason for giving peculiar relief to persons who labored under 

 no peculiar hardship. At the same time judicial reforms were 

 promised to the people of the Nilagiris in common with the 

 people of other districts. 



Thus ended the first effort of the Madras Government to 

 give a more complete form of administration to the Nilagiris. 

 Thirty years and more were to pass before the district was 

 to achieve independence and a constitution which in some 



