1900] Annual Address. 29 



As thy gore falls in drops, 



So may the grains of rice form. 



***** 



demon of the refuse heap, 



demon of the dung-hill, 



Go you to sleep, go you to sleep. 



For twenty years sleep thou, 



O demon of the refuse heap ; 



For twelve years sleep thou, 



O demon of the dung-hill. 



Keep illness away, keep fever away, 



To you will I sacrifice a beautiful buffalo. 



Do not touch the children 



Be as one dead, O earth- god ; 



Do not touch the little ones 



O earth -god, deaf, unheeding earth -god. 

 It is an excellent illustration of that singular system of depart- 

 mental bogeydom which people have now agred to call by the not very 

 suitable name of animism, that the demons of the refuse-heap and the 

 dung-hill should be entreated by sacrifice to keep illness and fevei^ 

 away. On this Mr. Friend- Pereira observes in a note, "It is remark- 

 able that the Kandhs know that filth and decaying refuse are the 

 principal factors in causing epidemic diseases. And yet their villages 

 are anything but clean." But suiely the Kandhs do not know anything 

 of the kind. If they did they migltt perhaps remove their dung-hills. 

 As it is the}' doubtless regard them as the homes of the fever demon 

 whom they would naturallj^ be reluctant to disturb, and it is the demon 

 and not the dirt that in their view^ causes the fever. Having offered 

 a suitable sacrifice they have done their part and must leave the rest 

 to the heads of the fever dt^partment. That is the theory of the thing, 

 and the practice too among most wild people that I know of. But I 

 hope Mr. Friend- Pereira will inquiie further. It looks as if he wei^e 

 on the track of veiy interesting discoveries. 



I must permit myself one more extract which desciibes the 

 administration of the Kandh country by Captain Campbell (Kaibon 

 Sahib) in 1886-42 and Captain Macpherson (Mokodella Sahib) who 

 succeeded him in 184*2 and was the first agent for the suppression of 

 human sacrifice and female infanticide under Act XXI. of 1845. 



At the time of the great Kaibon Saheb's coming the country was 



in daikness ; it was enveloped in mist. 

 And how was the country enveloped in mist r — there was murder 

 and bloodshed ; conflagration of villages ; destruction of rice and 

 crops. 



