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as have not received thefe ceremonies, and diftributes holy water. He then inquiresinto matters of contention, or tranfgreffions againft the rules of call ; and havingfettled, or punilhed thefe, hears his difciples and other learned men difpute on theolo-gical fubjefts. This is the grand field for acquiring reputation among the Brahmans.Thefe deputations are faid to be very fimilar to thofe which were common amongthe doftors of the Romilh church feven or eight hundred years ago ; and in fa£t aftrong refemblance will be found between the prelent ftate of Hindu knowledge, andthat which then prevailed in Europe .
The contributions for the fupport of the Guru are made chiefly by the rich Brah-mans, efpecially by the Lokika. Small donations offered by a Sudra would berejected with fcorn, as being proper only for the Brahman who performs ceremoniesfor him ; but fhould a Sudra offer a thoufand or two thoufand pagodas it would bereceived. As the Guru is fuppofed to be entirely weaned from the pleafures of. theworld, the whole of thefe contributions ought,to be expended in charity, that. is.to fay, in the fupport of buildings and men dedicated to the honour or fervice ■of the gods.
At Paligonda, the river Palar is confiderably diminifhed in fize, from what it is atArcot ; but at this feafon its channel is occupied entirely by dry fand. The people,however, procure water from it, by digging canals in the fand fix or feven feet deep.Thele canals tranfverfe the channel diagonally, and collect a gentle ftream of purewater about a foot deep, .and fix feet wide ; this by other canals is conveyed throughthe country to water the fields, and renders: the valley of Vellore one of the finefttrafts in the Carnatic .
2d May.—In the morning I went fifteen miles to Satghadam. Tfirft croffed thePalar, and proceeded up its northern bank till I came to the Camundala. Followingthe courfe of this river, I came to Gurietum, a. pretty large town, about five milesN. N. W. from Paligonda. Part of it is on either fide of the river, and that on theeaftern fide is guarded by a mud fort. Soon after, I turned towards the left from theCamundala, and entered a narrow valley leading weft. So far was a fine valley,,like that near Vellore , and well watered by canals, cut from the Palar and Camun-dala. 'Phis laft river has water in many parts of its channel; but at this feafon, itdoes not afford in any place a quantity fufficieni to form a ftream on the furface.The narrow valley, by which I proceed, is watered in its lower part by a refervoir.The head of the valley rifes confiderably, and confifts chiefly of dry fields ; towardsthe upper end fome is barren land full of granite. The hills approaching here, aftone wall, with a gateway, marks the boundary of Satghadam.. On the north thisgate is commanded by a naked rocky hill, irregularly fortified by various walls andcaftles, after the country fafhion. Thefe are called Satghadam, the Decany pronun- -ciation of Satghur, or the feven caftles. The Malabar, or Tamul name of the placeis Elamulla Durgam. The village under the hill, or the petta, is furrounded by awall, and is pretty confiderable in point of fpace, but it is ruinous. The diftriftbelonging to it is extenfive and fertile. It is furrounded on all fides by graniterocks ; and in the rainy feafon, the water of three torrents falls from it into the Palarnear Amboor. The principal cultivation in it, however, is that of dry grains, withfome fruit gardens, for which it is celebrated.
The Nabob has here an extenfive garden, which he lets to fome Armenians at:Madras- The fruit, efpecially the oranges, are reckoned the beft in the Carnatic , andthe choiceft are fent to the Nabob, and to other perfons of diftin&ion. . This gardenIs a large piece of ground, thickly planted , with a variety of fruit trees; and to the
roots, a