330 MANUAL OF THE NILAaiRI DISTRICT. 



CHAP. XIII, of the cantonment during Mr. S. R. Lushington's administration 

 PART I. had brought the land question of the Ootacamand settlement into 

 Revenue prominent notice early in that Governor's reign, and rendered it 

 History, absolutely necessary that the position of Government in regard to 

 such lands should be definitely settled. Each house-owner had 

 endeavoured to secure as much as possible of the lands adjoining 

 that on which his house stood^ and to this day there are several 

 instances in which owners of house properties have no documen- 

 tary title to portions of their estates. 

 Eeatrictions Early in 1828 the subject had engaged the attention of Govern- 

 on purchases jj^gjiti and reports had been called for. but before full information 

 of land from ' J^ ' 



Tddaa. was received as to the number and extent of these properties 



and the terms on which they were held, the Government, in 

 November of this year, deemed it proper to limit the space to be 

 allotted to each dwelling-house, exclusive of the site of the build- 

 ing and outhouses, to two cawnies, and directed that all ground 

 held in excess of this area, which might have been enclosed or 

 appropriated without permission from Government, should be 

 resumed and incorporated tvith Circar land. Proprietors of houses 

 already built, and persons desiring to build, were required, the 

 former within three months, and the latter before beginning a 

 building, to take out Government grants '* in the usual form for 

 the authorized extent of ground for each house, such grants being 

 subject to the fees levied on the issue of similar instruments at 

 the Presidency.'' The same order reserved all land between 

 Stonehouse and the Willow Bund south of the lake for pubHc 

 buildings. 

 Todas'olaims A few days after the issue of this order the Government dealt 

 admitted ^"^^^ ^^® Toda claims, ^ which had been strongly urged by Mr. 

 Sullivan. The Board of Revenue had hesitated to admit the 

 property rights of the Todas, and held that such rights as they 

 possessed did not stand in the way of Government allotting lands 

 for building and other purposes ; but the Government declined to 

 enter into a discussion on the alleged property rights of the Todas, 

 but adopted the terms observed by Mr. Sullivan in purchasing 

 their privileges from the Todas as a sufficient guide for regulating 

 the payment by other individuals " of compensation " for the 

 usufruct of the land which the Todas had hitherto enjoyed. The 

 decision was that each occupant should pay to the Todas as 

 *' compensation "16 cantarai fanams for each bullah, being sixteen 

 times the assessment paid by the Todas for pasture land, and four 

 times the lowest rate for cultivated lands in the plateau ; and in 

 addition to this the Government required the occupant to pay to 

 the Circar, from the date of the grant, ** quit-rent at the rate 



1 E. M. C, 14th November 1828. 



