VIZAGAPATAM.
lakhs; and jute, indigo and myrabolams for between 2 and 3 lakhs each.
The trade carried by road is not registered at all, and the rail-borne traffic is lumped in the returns with that of Ganjám. It is therefore impossible to speak with certainty of the course or extent of either.
Excepting manganese and jute (which are exported by sea from Vizagapatam and Bimlipatam respectively, and so appear in the statistics of sea-borne trade), the cotton fabrics of Rázám, Siripuram and Pondúru (which are sent by rail to Ganjám, Cuttack and Calcutta), those of Nakkapalli and Páyakaraopéta (which go to Gódávari), the jaggery of Anakápalle (which is mostly exported to the Sámalkót distillery) and the tobacco and chillies of Chípurupalle taluk (which are sent to Ganjám and Cuttack), the chief items in the exports by road and rail from the plain taluks are the surplus stocks of the ordinary agricultural staples raised within them; while the principal imports are those necessaries of life which the district does not itself produce, such as kerosine, European piece-goods, sugar, and iron and other metals.
The trade with the Agency, however, is of a less ordinary description, since with its higher elevation and extensive jungles that country produces a number of articles which cannot be grown on the lower ground, and on the other hand its isolated position necessitates the export to it of many goods which are common enough in the plain taluks.
The chief exports from the Agency are its surplus grain (paddy, ragi, cholam, cambu, and red, green and black gram); the oil-seeds, gingelly, niger and mustard; saffron, turmeric, garlic and arrowroot; tamarind, soap-nut, ginger and 'long pepper'; honey and wax; horns, hides and skins; dammar and lac; marking-nut, myrabolams and other tanning barks; and kamela powder (obtained from the seed-vessels of the tree Mallotus philippinensis) and other dyes. The imports to the Agency include salt and salt-fish; chillies, tobacco and onion ; jaggery, kerosine;cocoanuts, cotton twist and piece-goods; beads, bangles and coral; metals and metal utensils and jewellery.
In the plain taluks, the greater part of the trade is in the hands of the Kómati caste. Kápus, Balijas and some Pattu Sáles and Dévángas take a smaller share, while in the bigger towns are a few Márváris who assist in financing operations. The numerous weekly markets take a prominent part, as elsewhere, in collecting produce for export and in distributing imports to
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