132 



Note on CO tain Mounds of 



At a laterdate Lieutenant Newbold write's " I am told by Cavelly 

 Venkata Lachmiah, President of the Madras Hindu Literary Society, 

 that, during bis thirty years career with the late Col. Mackenzie, he 

 met with a few similar mounds in Mysore — viz, two in the Chittledroog 

 country, called Budigunta and Budibelta — There is also a capital 

 in Mysore named Budiha'l, and in Sundah is found a place on the 

 frontier of Nugger called Buditippa. 



"These mounds consist of burnt scoriee of a similar description to the 

 specimens already forwarded to the Society; some are however of a 

 lightish brown and harder in substance, and are supposed to be of 

 greater antiquity than the white variety. 



** The various traditions attached to these localities are that the 

 ashes are those of the funeral piles of heroes, and other remarkable 

 persons of antiquity ; and some of religious sacrifice, performed by 

 the celebrated holy Rishis in their hermitages, 



" The Pundits of the Madras Hindu Literary Society are of opinion, 

 that the local legend of the mound nearBeliary, is incorrect, as, accord- 

 ing to the Mahabhdr at, the residence of the Racsdsa Edimbaasoorah was 

 in a lofty forest, between Benares and the Paimchah country, and that 

 he never visited this part of India." 



Lieutenant Newbold sent specimens of this scoriaceous substance, 

 with a description of the locality, to the Asiatic Society of Bengal, 

 also; as appears by theu J our nal iov October 1836, wherein the account 

 is introduced under the title of Note on the occurrence of Volcanic Scorics 

 •In the Southern Peninsula. It seems more than doubtful whether a 

 volcanic origin can be claimed for this mound 5 and as for the supposi- 

 tion of the calcarious substance being fossil remains, it is still more 

 wide of the truth. The latter surmise could arise only from the tradi- 

 tion of the Hindus of these hillocks being formed by the accumulation 

 of a giant's bones. I am not going to attempt a settlement of the 

 weighty question as to whether the doughty Edimbausoorah performed 

 his feats near Bellary or at Benares : my business is only with the 

 physical character of the rock, and I shall take no further notice 

 of the Hindu legend, than to make the passing remark that the cir- 

 cumstance of such strange traditions having been attached to these 

 mounds by the natives, seems to indicate that they really are some- 

 thing extraordinary, whether they be natural productions, or artificially 

 produced by the calcination of calcarious matter. The resemblance of 

 this substance to bone is sufficient to give room for the natives (who 



