MANUAL OP THE NILAGIRI DISTRICT. 313 



heads o£ the villages. Subsequently the lands were assessed by the CHAP. XIII. 

 Collector according to a fixed scale, which provided twelve grades revenue 

 of assessment for dry and four for wet and garden lands. Topes History. 

 of fruit trees were assessed separately. In fixing the grades the 

 general character of the taluk or neighbourhood was taken 

 into account. This survey and the subsequent settlement affected 

 the land revenue considerably, but to relieve the people from any 

 temporary inconvenience caused by the change it was provided 

 that ' all diminution of the former rates were to be remitted to 

 the inhabitants, but all augmentations above one-tenth of the 

 actual assessment were to be divided among the two or three 

 first years after the survey, instead of being demanded in the 

 first.'^ The result was that the revenue for Fasli 1211 showed a 

 decrease on that of the preceding year of 7,224 star pagodas, 

 though the ultimate increase was estimated at 30,426 star 

 pagodas. The estimate was more than realized. 



' See letter from Board of Reyenue to Lord Clive, 18th November 1802. 



40 



