n 



<r in the Courts* In the Northern Districts, the low caste 

 <if Malabars, instead of swallowing the Ganges water, take 

 s * off one of their cloths, and step over it as the mode of 

 ? imprecation. I never heard of this ceremony of pros- 

 tration, nor indeed do I ever remember a witness of the 

 " Rhodiyan caste, being examined before me." At the 

 present time a Rhodiya comes into court and gives his evi- 

 dence after the usual form of affirmation in the same way 

 as any other witness. This form of affirmation is repeated 

 By every witness who is not a Christian and renders him 

 liable, in case of falsehood, to the consequences of perjury. 

 It's moral value, however, must be admitted to be almost 

 infinitessimal. About forty years ago a system was adopt- 

 ed whereby Buddhist Priests or Kapuralas, and Moorish 

 Priests were employed in some of the Courts to adminis- 

 ter oaths to witnesses in accordance with the rites of their 

 respective religions* But either in consequence of the 

 failure of this plan to secure veracity, or from some odium 

 iheologicumy it was soon afterwards abandoned. 



Cordiner mentions (vol. I. 262) a somewhat similar 

 Ceremony which we believe is now wholly obsolete : " one 

 Si day while the Supreme Court of Judicature was sitting at 

 " Batticaloa, 1 had an opportunity of seeing the ceremony of 

 administering an oath to a Ceylon Brahmin. The 

 et sacred book, written on palm leaves, lies on a small 

 <s oblong table, carefully wrapped up, bound round with 

 " a long cord, and covered over with several folds of 

 " coloured muslin. The table has six turned legs and is 

 f placed upon the head of a young boy, behind whom an 

 <fr older Brahmin stands, holding the two legs of the table 

 n which are nearest to him, one in each hand; afterwards 



