The ‘ Kols” of Chota-Nagpore. 179 
the common people ranges from 10 to 12 rupees. These disagreeable 
preliminaries having been arranged, the bridegroom and a large party 
of his friends of both sexes enter with much singing and dancing and 
sham fighting the village of the bride, where they meet the bride’s 
party and are hospitably entertained. 
The bride and bridegroom are ngw well anointed with turmeric, and 
bathed, and then taken and wedded, not to each other, but to two 
trees! The bride to a Mowa tree, the bridegroom to a Mango. They 
are made to touch the tree with ‘ seendoor,”’ (red lead), and then to 
clasp it in their arms. On returning, they are placed standing face to 
face, the gil on a curry stone over a ploughshare supported on 
sheaves of corn or grass. The bridegroom stands ungallantly treading 
on his bride’s toes, and in this position touches her forehead with the 
red lead ; she touches his forehead in the same manner. The bride’s 
maids then, after some preliminary splashing and sprinkling, pour 
a jar of water over the head of each: this necessitates a change of 
raiment, and apparently concludes the ceremony, as the young couple 
going inside to change, do not appear again till the cock-crowing 
announces the dawn or its approach. At the first crow the bride’s maids, 
who with the young men have been merrily keeping it up all night 
with the song and dance, burst into the nuptial chamber and bring 
forth the blushing bride and her bashful lord; and then they all go 
down to the river or to a tank to bathe, and parties of boys and girls 
form sides under the leadership of the bride and bridegroom, and pelt 
each other with clods of earth. The bridegroom next takes a water 
vessel and conceals it in the stream or water for the bride to find. 
She then conceals it from him, and when he has found it, she takes it up 
filled with water and places it on her head. She lifts her arm to 
support the pitcher, and the bridegroom, standing behind her with his 
bow strung, and the hand that grasps it lightly resting on her 
shoulder, discharges an arrow from the pretty loophole thus formed 
into the path before her, The girl walks on to where the arrow falls, 
and with head erect and still bearing the pitcher of water, she picks 
it up with her foot, takes it into her hand, and restores it to her 
husband with a graceful obeisance. She thus shews that she’ can 
adroitly perform her domestic duties and knows her duty to her lord 
and master, whilst he, on his part, in discharging an arrow to clear 
