They
are part of the village servants, and paid by the village community,
After a severe hail-storm took place in the district of Narsinghpur,
of which I had the civil charge in 1823, the office of "garpagri" was
restored to several villages in which it had ceased for several
generations. They are all Brahmans, and take advantage of such
calamities to impress the people with an opinion of their usefulness.
The "bhumkas" are all Gonds, or people of the woods, who worship
their own Lares and Penates' (_Ramaseeana_, Introduction, p. 13.
note).
5. Very often the Government of the country know nothing of these
tenures; the local authorities allowed them to continue as a
perquisite of their own. The holders were willing to pay them a good
share of the rent, assured that they would be resumed if reported by
the local authorities to the Government. These authorities consented
to take a moderate share of the rent, assured that they should get
little or nothing if the lands were resumed. [W. H. S.] 'Rent' here
means 'land-revenue'. Of course, under modern British administration
the particulars of all tenures are known and recorded in great
detail,
6.
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