IN THE MADRAS PRESIDENCY. 27 



extent and tenure of these forests. It is not stated whether the 

 required information was sought from the collector of Malabar. 

 The Government are of opinion, that the authoritative determi- 

 nation of these tenures is an important preliminary towards the 

 establishment of any system of conservancy in the forests ; and 

 they understand that a report on the subject is now about to be 

 submitted to them by the Board of Eevenue with especial refer- 

 ence to Wainad. 



11. In the same paragraph of the report, DrCleghorn also alludes 

 to a subject (before noticed in the correspondence* respecting 

 the Mysore and Malabar boundary dispute), which demands im- 

 mediate and careful attention. He states that the authorities at 

 Astagram and Coorg, and the commissariat officer at Hunsur, all 

 drew his attention to the terrible waste of teak which occurs in 

 the disputed tract, " the timber being carted out in large quan- 

 tities by three roads, under the plea of passes from two Devas- 

 thanams, the limits of whose Inam land I have no means of as- 

 certaining." 



If these Devasthanams are in the Company's territory, there 

 would be no difficulty in prohibiting all cutting until the Dhar- 

 makarta of the pagodas showed title ; and if this was deemed 

 good, measures might be taken to prevent rigidly any cutting, 

 except within the limits assigned. But adverting to the scanty 

 means of supervision in these remote regions possessed by Dr 

 Cleghorn, the Government doubt whether it would be found prac- 

 ticable to confine the felling within proper bounds ; the better 

 course would be to prohibit any such felling by the pagoda people ; 

 and to fix an equivalent in money to the value of the timber, 

 which inquiry may show they have a right to. If the Devastha- 

 nams are found to be within the Mysore territory, a communica- 

 tion of the views of Government will be made to Sir Mark Oub- 

 bon. The arrangement of the disputed boundary is now before 

 Government. When the difficulty is solved, the Government will 

 be prepared to consider the proposition jyf the Conservator as 

 to an officer being specially appointed to that tract of country. 



* From the Com. of Mysore, 16th January and 16th February 1858 ; 

 from the Conservator of Forests, 23d January 1858 ; and from the Sec. 

 Board of Eevenue, 1st April 1858. Ex. Min. Con., 3d May 1858, No. 564. 



