164 On tin- Boksas of Bijnour. [No. 3, 



these forests, The plant of Which this is the root is the Dioscored 

 balbifera, L. (D. versicolor Wall ; Hehnia, K until) which is common 

 in the Sub-Siwalik belt as well as in the Himalaya to some distance 

 inward. It is of the same genns as the West Indian yam, and as the 

 ratdlu which is cultivated for its tubers in most parts of India. The 

 tubers of various other wild Dioscoreas are eaten in different parts 

 of this country, and Buchanan Hamilton mentions one, with a similar 

 native name gength, as being largely consumed by the savage Bhars 

 (Tharoos f) of the Groruckpore jungles. The plant is a graceful 

 climber having large handsome, heart-shaped leaves, and with little 

 bulbs (whence the specific name) in the axils of the leaf stalks. The 

 Boksas say the plant is always produced from these bulbs rather than 

 from seed, and as the tubers examined had exactly the same kind of 

 markings on them as the former, this is probably for the most part 

 the case. The tubers themselves are found at varying distances, from 

 a few inches to several feet, under the surface of the ground. The 

 plant is luxuriant from the commencement of the rains in June, till 

 about March, after which, as the stem dies away, there is no clue by 

 which to find the tubers, so that, for at least three months of the year, 

 they are seldom if at all dug. The Boksas declare that the githi 

 will ii< it keep for more than a few days, after which it dries up or gets 

 rotten, but. from various circumstances, it seems not unlikely that this 

 was merely given as an excuse for their having none stored up. 



These tuhers weigh from an ounce to (it is stated) five or six 

 pounds, averaging perhaps a pound. For cooking, they are peeled and 

 cut into phanks (slices), which are put into an earthen vessel with 

 water and ashes, the latter being added in order to remove the excessive 

 bitterness of the raw tuber. They are then cooked over a slow fire for 

 from six to ten hours, generally in the night-time, and are afterwards 

 washed before being eaten. An adult, it is said, will get through from 

 two or four pounds at a sitting, using as a relish flesh (hahya) or 

 pulse. 



The Boksas themselves assert that they always prefer the cereals 

 as food when they can get them, and that it is only necessity which 

 drives them to eat the githi. They say the latter merely acts as 

 pet-boja and has no strength (kuivat) in it, and in the more prosperous 

 villages it is never consumed except in time of famine. In some of 



