HILLS NEAR RA'j AMAHALL. yg 



bitants of the same town, were always settled by the 

 Maungy and his officers : the first of them in rank is 

 the Cutival (who \s the chief's deputy) next the Pho- 

 jedar, and lastly the Jemmadars, who have a certain 

 number of men under their authority, to inspect the 

 conduct of the inhabitants, and report it to the Pho- 

 jedar -, to these, old and experienced men were added, 

 and usually called in to assist, when the subject of 

 litigation was of importance : at present, none but 

 trifling disputes are settled by those officers; for 

 murder and all capital crimes, the delinquents are 

 brought to Bha gal pore or Raj amah all, to be tried by 

 an assembly of the chiefs, agreeably to the engage- 

 ments entered into by Mr. Cleveland with the head 

 Maungies* Though the Maungies of all the villages 

 also assemble on these occasions, none but the -S r- 

 dar Maungies, or chiefs of tuppahs, and their Naibs, 

 or deputies, sit in judgment. On passing sentence, it 

 is customary for them to ask the inferior Maungies, if 

 the decree be not just. Should these question it, ano- 

 ther examination takes place, when the decision may 

 be the same or amended. 



I have been present at several of these trials: The 

 forms observed, were first to swear in the judges ac- 

 cording to their faith : this being peculiar, their va- 

 rious ways of taking an oath may not be thought 

 unworthy of description. The hill-word Deebe?z, is 

 an oath. There is no particular officer for administer- 

 ing oaths ; any person may do it. The form in general 

 use at these trials, is, for a mountaineer to put a lit- 

 tle salt on the blade of a Tukpar, or scimitar, whea 



he 



