1837.] 



An Account of the Tribe of Mhadeo Kolies, 



251 



eupied their present habitations for many ages; for we find that 

 Ferishtah, the Mahomedan historian of the Dukhun, mentions that 

 Ahmud Nizam Shaw, the first king of Ahmudnuggur, employed a body 

 of Kolies in his army, and when Ahmud's grandson, Hoo&ain Nazam 

 Shaw, retreated into the hills near Joonere in 156*2, at the period his 

 capital was attacked by the confederated Mahomedans and Hindoos, 

 he was joined there by Sabajee one of the Koly naiks. 



There is a popular tradition among the people in this part of the 

 country, that the Gursees were the original inhabitants of the Dukhun, 

 and that they were displaced from the hilly tract of the country by the 

 race of Goullies or cow-herds. These Goullies it is said, subsequently 

 rebelled against their lawful prince, who detached an army that con- 

 tinued unceasing in their exertions until they exterminated the entire 

 race of Goullies 5 and it is concluded that the very few who escaped the 

 sanguinary measures that had been carried on against them, were 

 adopted ultimately by the Kolies into their tribe and founded the Kool 

 that bears their name. Be this as it may, there is no family in exist* 

 ence of the original name, but there are two (not very numerous) clans 

 who are the descendants of the Goully Kool : namely, the Damsahs 

 and Waghmoriahs. The Poriah family of the Kuddum Kool, and the 

 Patkooilah clan of the Aghassy Kool, are considered to be the descen- 

 dants of the Gursees, 



With regard to the overthrow of the Goullies and Gursees, the Koly 

 traditions say that these > people, having been in open rebellion and 

 plundering the country, an army from the northward advanced through 

 Kandeish by the Kassarbary ghaut to subdue them, but that the rebels 

 having assembled near Kassarbary, they attacked and put to flight the 

 royal army. The king of the country, greatly incensed at this discom- 

 fiture of his army, held out prospects of high reward to the person that 

 would head an army which would inflict condign punishment upon the 

 rebels j the country being wild and unhealthy none of the officers in the 

 pay of government would offer their services for this duty ; but a man 

 named Sonejy Gopall, said to have been an inhabitant of the 

 Mahratta territory, volunteered his services. An army was then 

 employed under Sonejy who appears to have been joined and ably sup- 

 ported by an active and intelligent Koly named Wunkojee Kokata, 

 whose name and exploits are quite familiar to the Kolies of the present 

 day. The Goullies who had resided in the hilly tract of country were 

 attacked and completely exterminated ; and Sonejy Gopall was reward- 

 ed by being appointed Desmook of fourteen hundred villages ; and the 

 Koly Kokata* was presented with the Mokassa dues of the same number 

 of villages, but as the country previously occupied by the Goullies along 



* The descendants of Wunkojee Kokata are now in possession of some right at Joonere ; 

 they have always taken a great share and interest in the Koly transactions,, 0 



