Gazette Of The United States, & Philadelphia Daily Advertiser

INDIA.

From the MADRAS COURIER.

Mr. EDITOR,

The enclosed account of the people who live on the mountains that form the boundary of the Circars, having been communicated to me by a friend, you will oblige me by inserting it in your weekly paper, in hopes of inducing gentlemen farther to investigate so interesting a subject, as there cannot be a doubt that similar public advantages may be made to result from an attention to such people here, as have arisen from the philanthropy of Cleveland in Bengal.

I am, Sir,
Your very obedient servant,
JAS. ANDERSON.

Fort St. George,
May 19th, 1795.

THE range of mountains inland of the five northern Circars, is inhabited by a class of men who differ from the natives in the circumjacent low country, in their appearance, religion, manners, and language. This class of men, generally denominated Conds, or hill people, is branched out into six tribes, named the Condowar, Lowrawar, Condulwar, Contulwar, Pudmawar, and Budcondawar. All their six tribes, or families, are to be found on the hills inland of Vizagapatnam and Ganjam, but only the two first on the Barampore hills. They all have nearly the same language and customs, and live solely on the summit and sides of the mountains, from which they come down to the villages below, on the Shandy, or weekly market days, bringing small grain, dye-stuffs, and other articles which they exchange for cotton cloth, cutlery, &c.

The Conds are squat and muscular. their colour is dark, their features very harsh, and their language guttural. They go entirely naked excepting a bit of cloth about their loins. Their women sometimes cover their breasts as well as their loins, and a single piece of coarse cloth suffices for both purposes.

They are unacquainted with the use of letters, and no Bramins frequent or dwell with them. They are extremely superstitious, and have among them priests and priestesses, who are a sort of conjurors. They call the former Punnoo and the latter Deannee. They perform none of the ablutions so common to the other oriental casts. In point of manners they are almost as rude and wild as elk and bear, their fellow inhabitants of the hills.

Every village elects a head man, who adjusts all matter of dispute among his constituents, who are in a perfect equality. They acknowledge scarcely any obedience to the Zemindars of the low country, who think it their interest to cajole the head men to visit them, on which occasions they give them trifling presents and abundance of pariah arrack, of which liquor, and of buffalo flesh, the Conds are excessively fond. They are in general a simple, and very inoffensive race, but have ideas of both property and independence. They will not allow the trees growing on their hills to be cut down without their sanction, both which and their assistance to drag and roll the felled wood, are readily purchased by a very small sum.

When prevailed on by insurgent zemindars to take a part in their quarrels, they are a mischievous enemy, as they sally from the hills during the night, into the plains below, fire the villages, and destroy or carry off the grain and cattle. All pursuits of them among the hills is fruitless, as they ascend the heights with amazing speed from their perfect knowledge of the declivities and ascents, and can without risk to themselves either elude or assail their pursuers. Every Cond is armed with a large hooked knife, with which he cuts down bamboos and trees, or beheads the unhappy captive. They use slings, and bows and arrows, and where the situation is favourable, they have large stones ready placed to roll down on their assailants.

These notices were afforded by a Jungum (a religious mendicant,) of Barampore. His information was taken down in Persian by a moonshee, from whose manuscript the above is translated.