Page:Castes and tribes of southern India, Volume 5.djvu/532

PALLAN times they were the slaves of the Vellālans, and regarded by them merely as chattels, and that they were brought by the Vellālans into the Pāndya-mandala." Some Pallans say that they are, like the Kallans, of the lineage of Indra, and that their brides wear a wreath of flowers in token thereof. They consider themselves superior to Paraiyans and Chakkiliyans, as they do not eat beef. It is stated in the Manual of Tanjore (1883) that the "Pallan and Paraiya are rival castes, each claiming superiority over the other; and a deadly and never-ending conflict in the matter of caste privileges exists between them. They are prædial labourers, and are employed exclusively in the cultivation of paddy (rice) lands. Their women are considered to be particularly skilled in planting and weeding, and, in most parts of the delta, they alone are employed in those operations. The Palla women expose their body above the waist — a distinctive mark of their primitive condition of slavery, of which, however, no trace now exists." It is noted by Mr. G. T. Mackenzie * that "in the first quarter of the nineteenth century, the female converts to Christianity in the extreme south ventured, contrary to the old rules for the lower castes, to clothe themselves above the waist. This innovation was made the occasion for threats, violence, and a series of disturbances. Similar disturbances arose from the same cause nearly thirty years later, and, in 1859, Sir Charles Trevelyan, Governor of Madras, interfered, and granted permission to the women of lower caste to wear a cloth over the breasts and shoulders." In connection with disputes between the right-hand and left-hand factions, it is stated † that "whatever the