VIZAGAPATAM.
the unmarried girls to sleep in, and proffers his suit to the maiden of his affections. About two months before Dasara each village naik (headman) has a hole about eight feet square and nine feet deep dug in his village and roofed with logs and mud so arranged as to leave one small opening. In this all the unmarried girls of the village have to sleep. Any youth desirous of matrimony joins them there at night and next morning leaves his brass bracelet with the girl of his choice. The pair afterwards go together to the girl's people and explain matters and then, with the relatives on both sides, repair to the jungle,where a fire is lit and the girl takes a hot brand and applies; it to the boy's posteriors. If he cries out 'Yam! Yam!' in pain, the girl refuses him, but if he makes no sound the couple are considered to be man and wife. The girl of course takes care not to hold the brand too close to a youth she likes, and this system has the advantage of giving both parties a choice in the matter.
The Dombus, Dombos or Dombs number 51,000 and are the beggars, weavers, musicians and Pariahs of the Agency. They speak Uriya, but differ altogether in appearance both from other Uriyas and from the hill folk, and whence they originally came is not obvious. They seem to be closely akin to the Pános of Ganjám. Though almost the lowest caste in the country (the Ghási horsekeepers and Chitra Ghási brass-smiths are even deeper down in the social scale) they have succeeded by dubious means in acquiring much influence. Their superior intelligence enables them to lead the Khonds by the nose, their talent for cattle-theft (see p. 204) makes them not only hated but feared, their supposed powers over devils and witches result in their being consulted when troubles appear, and their skill in weaving and petty trading is rendering them well-to-do. Some of them are cultivators.All the native Christians of the Agency are recruited from this caste.
The Dombus seem to consist of six subdivisions; namely; Mirigáni and Kobbiriya, who live round Kótapád and with whom the others will neither dine nor intermarry; Odiya (Uriya), who are commonest round Pottangi, Koraput and Jeypore; Sódabisiya,from the Lakshmipuram side; Andiniya, who are also found near Kótapád; and Mándiri, who live chiefly round Rámagiri and Malkanagiri. The last four dine together and intermarry. These subdivisions are again split into totemistic septs, of which the Odiyas possess as many as ten.
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