Page:The Tamils Eighteen Hundred Years Ago.djvu/129

 CHAPTER IX.

From the foregoing brief history of the three kings and their subordinate chiefs it will be seen that they were frequently at war with each other and that their subjects lived in the midst of wars and wars’ alarms. It may well be asked therefore how it was possible for the arts of peace to flourish under such conditions. The answer is simple. It was only the men, trained to the profession of arms, who engaged in war, while the rest of the people resided within walled towns, and followed unmolested their different callings. The poorer classes who lived in villages remote from the capital towns were exposed to frequent attacks from the neighbouring chiefs and suffered terrible hardships. Their cattle were carried away, their houses were burnt down and they were driven out of the village or slaughtered if they offered the least resistance. The large population of the great cities such as Madura, Karur and Kavirippaddinaai enjoyed however almost perfect immunity from the horrors of war. The inhabitants of most of the important towns, which were strongly fortified, were likewise secure from the evils attending an occupation by a hostile army. It was in these fortified towns-that trade and manufactures were carried on to the mutual advantage of the artisans and the public. Caravans of merchants travelled from town to town escorted by soldiers. The principal thoroughfares in the interior of the country were guarded by the king’s soldiers and tolls were levied on these highways. The system of Government, which was far from despotic, also conduced to the public welfare.

The head of the Government was a hereditary monarch. His power was restricted by five councils, who were known as the “Five Great Assemblies.” They consisted of the representatives of the people, priests, physicians, astrologers or augurs and ministers. The council of representatives safe-guarded the rights and privileges of the people: the priests directed all religious ceremonies: