454 THE LACCADIVES AND THE WEST COAST. 
Remembering the evidences collected at Vingorla, I was anxious 
to visit this sand bank, hoping to find a clew on the spot to the 
birds that breed there. But unfortunately nothing was to be 
seen; the sand swept by the monsoon winds was as smooth and 
clean as if no “ Booby fair’ had ever been held there. 
Then we came on to Cowratee, a fine island belonging to the 
Cannanore Rajah. It is of the usual type, with a fair lagoon, 
which, however, appears to have only one entrance which we 
did not like to attempt on the strength of our not-very-reliable 
chart, the more so as the whole reef seemed enveloped in a 
frightful surf. However, a canoe soon came out, a most 
loquacious and amusing individual joined us, ascertained our 
draught, and piloted us in through a perfect snow-storm of surf 
in perfect safety. The island contains about 1,000 people, who 
seem to be a good deal better off than the inhabitants of any 
of ourislands. The soil perhaps is better, and then for some 
years they have, I believe, refused to pay the Rajah anything. 
He owns a number of trees in the islands, and these he leases 
at half-produce rents to some of the islanders. Even these, as 
far as I could understand, never really paid a fair share of the 
produce, while the rest never now pay him anything. Ofcourse 
therefore they are better off than in our islands, where there is 
a coir monopoly, and where the people in this way have to pay 
the cost of the administration; but, per contra, there is 
no administration at all in the Cannanore Islands, a very 
anarchical state of affairs prevails, and the people expressed 
great anxiety to be brought direct under British rule. I 
believe there is some prospect of this being done, but when 
the people do get King Stork, I venture to predict that 
it will not be long before they bitterly regret the good old 
days of King Log. The fact is, that throughout these islands, 
what these people want is to pay nothing to nobody, do what 
they like, and have cargoes of rice sent them gratis and for 
love when times are hard and their usual supplies fail. Of 
course British government and native non-government alike 
fail to fulfil these Utopian visions. It is the same everywhere. 
Go where you will in native states and the people long for and 
descant on the blessings of British rule. But I have never 
yet seen any part of the country which had been 50 years 
under that rule, where the people did not believe that they 
would prefer to revert to native rulers. Both systems have 
their evils and advantages, and so far as the comfort of the 
masses is concerned, Iam unorthodox enough to believe that 
there is little on the whole to choose between the two. But 
the people are like children, and always fancy that what they 
have not got is better than what they have. 
