-108 



Topographical Report on the Neilgherries. 



[July 



set of teeth (it is said) has appeared after that period. The habits of 

 the other castes, particularly the excessive use of opium, prevent their 

 atlaining to any great age. 



When smallpox prevails in any of the tribes, those who have had 

 the disease attend ori those who are infected. Rice and water are all 

 that is given. Should a case terminate fatally the body is burned, 

 and after one month the bones are taken out and the usual ceremonies 

 of their respective caste are performed, as if the deceased had then died 

 of any other illness. 



The Todar's God, called in their language Treathavur, is the one 

 worshipped when the smallpox breaks out. 



When they are apprehensive of a failure of rain in the monsoon, 

 the whole of the tribes join in worshipping their God, called Keerah, for 

 success in elk hunting, and if fortunate they return home rejoicing in 

 the hope that there will be a sufficiency of it; but if the chase proves 

 unsuccessful, they despair of any rain falling that season. 



Of wild animals on the hills there are several kinds. The royal 

 tiger, the cheetah, the wild-dog and jackal, all of which may be con- 

 sidered beasts of prey. The three first have been scared away from 

 the residences of Europeans, and their vicinity, but they are found in 

 the distant woods and ravines. The last grows bolder on acquaintance. 

 The wild-dogs hunt their prey in packs, and are fierce. A small ani- 

 mal, resembling the lynx, has been seen, and also some large cats. There 

 are of deer kind, the large elk, which is as tall as a horse. The mun- 

 jak, or jungle sheep, as it is popularly called. The chamois, or an ani- 

 mal more closely resembling it than any other known species, and, 

 lastly, the spotted deer. Hares also are numerous, and are larger and 

 much finer in fur and flesh than those of the low country. The birds 

 are of different kinds. The largest are the vulture, a black eagle, three 

 or four species of kites and falcons, owls of the largest kind, whose 

 plumage is of tawny brown, eyes brilliant amber, and head possessing 

 egrets. The jungle-fowl, a species of gullies approaches the pheasant 

 more than ihe domestic fow^l, both in plumage and figure ; the hen of 

 this species is decidedly like the hen of game or fighting fowl in Europe. 



In the cold months, or from December to March, there are wood- 

 cocks and snipes in abundance, which migrate afterwards. The green 

 plover also is found in the marshes, and abundance of quails in every 

 thicket. Of the smaller birds there are many kinds, the most remark- 

 able of which is the blackbird {Tardus Merula), distinguished by his 

 song ; the bulbul, the averdevat, the bee-eater, the hoopoo, a large kind 

 of martin, and abundance of crows. 



