BHEELS OF THE SATPOORA RANGE.
possessed by the people at large; and it is very possible that the wild Bheels were much more numerous then than now. In 1824, 1825, and 1826, Khandesh was much disturbed by them, and they were not only depredators in and about the Vindhyas and Satpooras, but in the hills which lie between Aurungabad and Khandesh. Regular forces were sent against them, but with no effect; and the Bheels turned the efforts of the sepoys into ridicule by robbing camps at night, cutting off stragglers, plundering baggage, cattle, and the like, with persistence. They seemed ubiquitous, yet were never seen. Attempts were then made to settle them on waste lands which they selected themselves, but this too had a sorry result. They killed and ate the bullocks, goats, and cows given to them; they sold the the grain given for seed for liquor, and eventually broke away in defiance. It was then that James Outram, Adjutant of the 23rd Bombay Native Infantry, conceived the project of raising men among them, to form a disciplined police. He knew many of the naiks or leaders, from his constant hunting tours, and he set to work steadily and effectively. He went among them alone, gained their confidence and affection, and, in process of time—a few months—succeeded in forming, with a few men of his own corps, the nucleus of a company. He feasted them, gave them liquor in abundance, was witness to their savage debauchery into which they often relapsed; but their savagery could not withstand the admirable perseverance of the young leader they now followed, and the wildest Bheels became regular soldiers, were drilled and disciplined, and led to the apprehension of their own brethren when the public peace was disturbed. Outram’s Bheels grew famous; and he himself became so noble, so distinguished, that any one who ever knew him now rejoices that he had had that privilege. The example of the Khandesh Bheel corps was followed in other places, and thus it happens that the Bheels’ control is effected by themselves.
We are not aware that the Bheels have any distinct language of their own; what they speak is a mixture of Mahratta, Hindee, Hindoostanee, and Guzerattee, derived from the provinces in which they reside. No doubt, investigation of original words, of which there are traces, would lead to the allotment to them of their real place in aboriginal tribal classes of India—perhaps the Tamulian.
