18S8.] 



Report on the MacJienzie Manuscripts, 



309 



this place) if there was any emblem of Siva nearj who pointed them to 

 one under a tree, and disappeared. Considering this as an apparition 

 of Siva^ they chanted ten stanzas concerning the place, which are in 

 existence down to the present time. As the Chola king adorned and 

 endowed this fane, there may be an inscription \ but it is reported to 

 be in recondite Tamil. They further say that directly under the view 

 of the bullock of Siva very much wealth is buried. There certainly is 

 some wealth concealed. If well examined it would be found : it would 

 not be needful to that end to damage the walls or structure of the tem- 

 ple ; but only to remove the flooring \ no other damage would accrue 

 to the temple. 



Section 5. An account of the ancient gold products of Callatur, and 

 notice of the history of that place. 



Anciently this was the second fortress of the Curumhar chieftains. 

 After they had been destroyed by Adondai Chacraverti, the fort was 

 in the hands of ten persons, who rode in palankeens, from among the 

 Kondai-Katla Vellazhar, They were subordinates to the Raja, and 

 regulated the country. A poor Purohita brahman came to the fane 

 of Tiruval-isvarer and bought a piece of ground at Callatur : the god 

 afterwards personally appeared to him, and instructed him to give the 

 god notice when he ploughed and sowed the said field. He did so, 

 when the god came on his Vahana, and after sowing a handful of 

 seed disappeared. The other corn was sown by the brahman. The 

 corn sprung up luxuriantly ; while corn sown by other people was 

 very weak. The brahman's corn grew higher than a man could reach, 

 but without earing I to bis great grief, A Vellazhan passing by, being 

 struck by the singular appearance of the corn, plucked a stalk, and 

 opening it at the top, found an incipient ear of gold ; in conseq:uence 

 of which he enticed the Brahman to an exchange of products, ratified 

 by a writing. A long time after the corn threw out ears, and the 

 surface presented a golden colour. The rayer of that time, named 

 Hari Hart Raysr, hearing of the circumstance, came himself with an 

 army, and having it reaped, distributed the gold, in the usual proportion 

 of corn, to the cultivator, the proprietor, and the king ; the product was 

 beaten out on a brick-floor prepared for the purpose. Such a floor is 

 named Callam, hence the town came to be called Pon-Velainta Callatur 

 or the village where gold grew as cor7i. Remains of the brick-floor 

 we still to be seen j and the circumstance is traceable in other names 



