the Garrow Hills. 29 



Their religion appears to approximate to that of the Hindus: they 

 worfhip Mah adeva ; and at Baunjattn, apafs in the hills, they worfhip the 

 fun and moon. To afcertain which of the two they are to worfhip upon any 

 particular occasion, their prieft takes a cup of water and fome wheat : firft 

 calling the name of the fun, he drops a grain into the water; if it finks, they 

 then are to worfhip the fun ; mould it not fink, they then would drop ano- 

 ther grain in the name of the moon, and fo en till one of the grains fink. All 

 religious ceremonies are preceded by a fieri fice to their God of a bull, goat, 

 hog, cock, or dog; in cafes of illnefs, they offer up a facrifice in pro- 

 portion to the fuppofed fatality of the diftemper, w : ith which they are af- 

 flicted ; as they imagine medicine will have no effect, unlefs the Deity 

 interfere in their favor, and that a facrifice is requifite, to procure fuch in-- 

 terpofitionv 



The facrifice is made before an altar conftrti&ed as follows : two 

 Bamboos are erected ftripped of all their branches and leaves, except at the 

 extremity of the main ftem, which is left: a flick is fixed near the top- 

 of each, to which is tied, at each end, a double firing, reaching to two ■■ 

 fide bamboos about two feet out of the ground with the- tops fplifr, fo as to 

 make a kind of crown ; between' the firings are placed bits- of flicks of 

 about a foot in height, at the diflance of a foot from each other, or more, in 

 proportion to- the height/ of the bamboos. The crofs flicks thus form a 

 fquare, with the perpendicular firings; and in every other fquare, crofs 

 firings are tied, beginning with the top fquare : round the bamboos a fpace 

 of fix or eight feet fquare is cleared, and covered with red earth, and in 

 front, at the diflance of about fix or more feet, a fquare of two feet is 

 cleared, in the centre of which a frnall pit is dug, and fpread oVer with 

 .red earth; at fome diflance from the altar,, on ike fid© ncaieft the hills,. 



