K O O ] 
the conftant ftate of alarm in which they live, not only 
from the quarrels of the rajahs with each other, but alfo 
from the hoftile feuds of the different tribes; not except¬ 
ing thofe who are attached to the fame rajah._ Depreda¬ 
tions on each other’s property, and the not giving up of 
fuch refugees as may fly from one parah to another, are 
the molt frequent caufes of quarrel, when they carry on a 
tnoft deftruftive petty warfare, in which the feveral tribes 
are more or lefs involved, according as the principals are 
more or lefs connected among them. 
They always endeavour to furprife their enemy, in pre¬ 
ference to engaging him in open combat, however confi¬ 
dent of fuperiority they may be. With that view, when 
on any hoftile excurfion, they never kindle a fire, but 
carry with them a fuificiency of ready-drefled provifions 
to ferve during the probable term of their abfence ; they 
march in the night, proceeding with the greatelt expedi¬ 
tion, and obferving the molt profound filence; when day 
overtakes them, they halt, and lie concealed in a kind of 
hammock, which they fallen among the branches of the 
loftieft trees, fo that they cannot be perceived by any per- 
fon pafiing underneath. From this circumftance ot am- 
bufcade the idea has originated of their living in trees 
initead of houfes. When they have, in this manner, ap¬ 
proached their enemy unperceived, they generally make 
their attack about the dawn, and commence it with a great 
jhout, and linking of their fpears againft their fhields. 
If they are fuccefsful in their onfet, they leldom fpare ei¬ 
ther age or fex; at times, however, they make captives of 
the children, and often adopt them into their families, 
when they have none of their own ; and the only flaves 
among them are the captives thus taken. 
The Kookies are often attacked by the Banjoogees, 
who, though not fo numerous a race of people, yet from 
being all united under one rajah, always prevail, and ex- 
aft an annual tribute of fait from the two Kookie rajahs, 
Thandon and Mankene, who, from having a greater in- 
tercourfe with the Choomeeas, receive a larger lupply of 
this article from the plains below than their more remote 
neighbours. Salt is in the higheft eftimation among them 
all; whenever they fend any mefl'age of confequence to 
each other, they always put in the hand of the bearer of 
it a frnall quantity of ialt, to be delivered with the meffage, 
as expreftive of its importance. Next to perfonal valour, 
the accompiilhment molt elteemed in a warrior is fupe- 
rior addrefs in dealing ; and, if a thief can convey undil- 
covered to his own houfe his neighbour’s property, it 
cannot afterwards be claimed ; nor, if detefled in the aft, 
is he otherwife puniflied than by expofure to the ridicule 
of the parah, and being obliged to reftore what lie may 
have laid hold of. 
The Kookies, like all favage people, are of a mod vin¬ 
dictive difpofition ; blood mud always be filed for blood. 
If a tiger even kills any of them near a parah, the whole 
tribe is up in arms, and goes in purfuit of the animal; 
when, if he is killed; the family of the deceafed gives a 
feaft of his flefii, in revenge of his having killed their re¬ 
lation. And, fliould the tribe fail to deflroy the tiger in 
this firft general purfuit of him, the family of the deceafed 
mud dill continue the chace ; for, until they have killed ei¬ 
ther this or fome other tiger, and have given a feaft of his 
flelli, they are in difgrace in the parah, and not affociated 
w ith by the reft of theinhabitants. A more linking inftance 
itill of this revengeful fpirit of retaliation is, that, if a man 
fliould happen to be killed by an accidental fall from a 
tree, all his relations affemble, and cut it down ; and, how¬ 
ever large it may be, they reduce it to chips, which they 
fcatter in the winds, for having, as they fay, been the 
caufe of the death of their brother. 
In cultivating the ground, and in every other domeftic 
occupation, the female fex bears the weight of the labour, 
and no rank exempts them from it; the wife of the chief, 
and the wife of his vaffal, work alike in the fame field. 
They dig fmall holes, at certain diltances, and into each 
jiole they throw a handful of different feeds they intend 
,Vpi.. XI. No. Soi, 
ilES. 8,57 
to rear, which are all jumbled together in a bafkct flung 
over the Ihoulder; the feeds are then covered with earth, 
and left to their fate; when in due time, according to 
their, various natures, the plants fpring up, ripen, and are 
reaped in fuccefiion ; rice, Indian corn, and the muftard- 
plant, are thus l'een in the fame field. Of rice they have 
a great variety, and two or three kinds peculiar to the 
hills; of the gourd and cucumber plants they have feveral 
kinds ; and turmeric, yams, and tobacco, they cultivate ; 
but the latter they have in fmall quantity, though very 
fond of it. In their forefts they have abundance of ho¬ 
ney, but are ignorant of the method of feparating it from 
the wax of the comb. ( Their domeftic animals are gyals, 
.goats, hogs, dog?, and fowls; and of thefe the gyal is by 
much the molt valued, both on account of its milk and 
its flelh. As already mentioned, it is a fpecies of cow 
peculiar to thefe hills, where it is met in its wild ftate ; 
in fliape it refembles the heavy ftrong make of the wild 
buffalo, but has much fliorter horns; its colour is brown, 
acquiring a lighter (hade towards the belly, which, as 
well as the legs, is often white; its milk is nearly as rich 
as the cream of common cow milk, and its flefii conlti- 
tutes the firft luxury at a Kookie feaft, and is never 
given except on very extraordinary occafions. The goats 
are larger, and more hairy, than thofe of the plains. In 
the other animals there is nothing peculiar. Nolwith- 
itanding that the Kookies have fuch a number of differ¬ 
ent articles of food, yet a fcarcity of provifions frequently 
prevails among the tribes, when thofe upon a friendly 
footing always afiift each other; and whatever may have 
been thus amicably given is rigidly repaid, in more fa¬ 
vourable times, by the tribe which received it. A fcar¬ 
city may be occasioned either by the irregularity of the 
feafon, in a failure or excefs of the periodical rains; or 
elle by the incurfions of enemies, who never fail to lay 
wafte and deflroy, if they can, every thing to be found 
without the parah. And the parah itl'elf, in a fatally-un¬ 
guarded hour, is often defiroyed alfo, when the heiplefs 
furvivors, if any, of luch a calamity, are. thrown upon the 
humanity of their neighbouring friends. 
The Kookies have but one wife; they may however 
keep as many concubines as they pleafe. Adultery may 
be puniflied with inliant death by either of the injured 
parties, if the guilty are caught by them in the fait ; it 
may otherwife be coinpromiled by a fine of gyals, as the 
chief may determine. The frailty of a concubine is always 
compromiled in this way, without difgrace to the parties. 
Fornication is puniflied in no other manner than by ob¬ 
liging the parties to marry, unlefs the man may have ufed 
violence, in which cafe he is puniflied, generally with 
death, either by the chief or by the relations of the in¬ 
jured female. Marriage is never confummated among 
them before the age of puberty. When a young man has 
fixed his^ffeftions upon a young woman, either of his 
own or of fome neighbouring parah, his father vifits her 
father, and demands her in marriage for his fon ; her fa¬ 
ther, on this, inquires what are the merits of the young 
man to entitle him to her favour, and how many can he 
afford to entertain at the wedding feaft ; to which the fa¬ 
ther ot the young man replies, that his fon is a brave war¬ 
rior, a good hunter, and an expert thief; for that he can 
produce fo many heads of the enemies he has flain, and 
of the game he has killed; that in his houfe are fuch and 
fuch llolen goods, and that he can feaft fo many (men¬ 
tioning the number) at his marriage. On hearing this, 
the father of the girl either goes himfelf, or fends fome 
confidential friend, to afcertain the faffs ; which if he finds 
to be as dated, he confents to the marriage, and it is ce¬ 
lebrated by a feaft, given by him to the bridegroom, and 
all their mutual friends. At night the bride is led by her 
liufband from her father’s houie to his own, where he 
next day entertains the company of the preceding day, 
which is more or lefs numerous, according to the connec¬ 
tions and circumftances of the parties. When a chief 
marries, the whole parah is entertained by him ; and, 
io I fliould 
