Page:A revised and enlarged account of the Bobbili zemindari.djvu/17

Rh by the haughtiest observances, insomuch that the breath of a different religion, and even of the meaner Indians, requires ablution." The men of this race are, as a rule, well-built and of a warlike disposition. They are proverbially haughty, so much so that they are not known to serve any but the chiefs of their own caste. Most of them are very backward in education and full of prejudices. They are very daring and reckless of life when their feelings are hurt, or when anything happens to offend their notions of respect. The gallantry shown by Rajah Ranga-Rao and his followers, who consisted of Velama Doras and Desastulu (Talagas), in the memorable siege of Bobbili in 1758, made such a deep impression on the Hindus that it has been commemorated in ballads which are sung to this day by wandering minstrels in many parts of the Presidency. A Prabandha called "Ranga Raya Charitra" (History of Ranga-Rao) contains a description of the battle of Bobbili.