888 A few Notes on the subject of [No. 155. 



central government in Kumaon, and the state records, such as they 

 were, became scattered among the various kamdars, to whom they had 

 been officially entrusted ; and who only preserved such portions of 

 them as might tend to prove their own importance, or that of their 

 several families. During the troubles consequent on the Ghoorka 

 invasion in the year 1790 a.d., the regular traces of past times be- 

 came more and more obliterated ; and when the last relics of the 

 Chund Rajahs abandoned their native hills, and took refuge at Kil- 

 poory in the plains, nearly the only place where they still possessed 

 any thing like a property in the land, they took down with them no 

 weighty burden of state records, and left but few behind. Afterwards 

 at Roodurpoor, one chief scene of their exile, a fire occurred, which is 

 stated to have consumed many family documents ; while at Almora 

 any dufter or record office that existed, may be supposed to have 

 commenced its collections only from the accession of the Ghoor- 

 khalee Government. Under these circumstances, it is not a matter of 

 wonder, that neither the British authorities in the hills, deriving their 

 information from kanoongoes, and other usual depositaries of such 

 knowledge, nor, the descendants of the Hill Rajahs in the persons of 

 Sheo Raj Sing above named, or his cousin of the elder branch Per- 

 taub Sing, now residing at Almora as pensioner of the English Govern- 

 ment, should be able to furnish exact data, for an historic nar- 

 rative. 



2. Using such means as I have in my power, I proceed to draw a 

 Turaee during the Ku- short and rough sketch of the successive revolu- 



Dynasty, d Chund °Dy- ti° ns to which the country has been subjected, 

 nasty, &c. &c. an( ^ whenever possible, of its successive condi- 



tions, in the hope, that such a description, however imperfect, may be 

 found if not useful as evidence, at least acceptable as part of a picture, 

 at a time when the attention of those in authority has been strongly 

 drawn to the present state of the tract described. 



3. The dynasty called Kuttoora is the earliest known to have reign- 



ed in Kumaon. The Rajahs of its line are said 

 Kuttoora Dynasty. /.,«•« 



to have been of the Sooruj-Bunsee origin, and 



they have been clothed by the imagination of the paharees with almost 



divine attributes, while the extension of their authority to Delhie and 



Kanouj in the plains, and from Mundee to Siccim in the hills, is con- 



