116 Report on the District of Azimgurh. [Feb. 



been exercised most tyrannically, and yet so strong is the force of habit 

 and custom, that often as the power of the Zemindar is still abused, 

 it is very rarely that they are brought into Court to answer for their 

 misconduct. 



95th. The foundation on which the right of the Zemindar now 

 avowedly rests, is that of pecuniary obligation. He expends capital in 

 locating the cultivator in the village, he builds his house, feeds him till 

 the harvest time, supplies him with seed, grain, and implements 

 of husbandry. On all these, an exorbitant interest is charged, and in 

 consideration of the pecuniary obligation thus incurred, the services of 

 the man are exacted. Hence the connexion is rather personal than re- 

 sulting from the tenure of the land, and various circumstances support 

 this view. In mortgages those rights are seldom, if ever, transferred ; 

 in private sales very rarely, unless specified ; in public sales by autho- 

 rity for arrears of revenue, never. Hence an auction purchaser never 

 acquires any rights over the tenants at will of a former Zemindar, 

 and thus the Zemindar always struggles to include all such cultiva- 

 tion under the term of his Seer. In the partition of an estate, each 

 Puttee keeps its own Ryots, and sometimes the most violent disputes 

 exist as to the right to certain Ryots. 



96th. An instance may go far towards exemplifying these customs. 

 In the partition of a village in Nizamabad, held by Rajpoots a dis- 

 pute arose regarding the right to an Aheer. Each party claimed the 

 man as his own Assamee, and wished his name to be inserted in the 

 list of his own Puttee. Both claimants, and the man himself came 

 forward. The facts of the case were admitted by all. A's ancestors 

 had first located the man in the village, given him his house, sup- 

 ported him, and for a long time retained his services — such as the 

 first day's ploughing of the season, the first day's use of his bullocks 

 in the Sugar Mill, the usual petty offerings of grain, molasses, &c. 

 To improve his cultivation the man had dug a well, for which pur- 

 pose he borrowed money from a Mahajun. A, was in reduced cir- 

 cumstances, and could not pay the debt. The creditor pressed for 

 payment, and at last B came forward, paid the debt, and subsequently 

 claimed the services of the man, who now left his former house, and 

 resided in one assigned him by B. The man himself, apparently a 

 respectable and sensible cultivator, never thought of denying the ob- 

 ligations of his situation, but said that on A's inability to support him 

 his services were transferred to B. The matter was referred to several 

 respectable Zemindars, who were present, and they unanimously and 

 at once decided that A's right was indefeasible, except by his own 

 transfer to B, and that the Aheer was consequently still bound to 



