| OCR Text |
Show 0 I AN ODD INDIAN BELIEF. Tradition Connected With the Division Into Castes. According to tho tradition of ono of tho tribes of India, tho sun crcatcit a man and a woman nt tho beginning of tlmo and this cotiplo had twolvu children. When they had all come to an ago to shift for themselves the. sun divided them Into pairs and placed food of nil klndB before them. Or tholr choice depended tho Into of the!) descendants. Those who took vego tables only beenmo tho ancestors o tho highest casto ot all, tho Urah mans, while tho Santnls, the lowcsl of nil enstes, spring from thoso whe choso pigs. Tho Kols tleclaro that they, are descended from thoso who took bullocks' flush nnd to the sustaining power of tho food ot their cholco tho j.arkn, or lighting Kols, nttrlbute their strength and flno physique. When thoso latter nt tho beginning of tho last century first met English troops thoy wore quickly Impressed with tho fighting powers of tho strangers, stran-gers, nnd, finding that they, too, atu bullocks' flosh, tho Kols paid them the grent compliment of assigning them tho snmo pair of nncestors as tho Kols. Hut by tho time cloven pairs had chosen their shnro of tho tool provided thero wns nothing loft for tho tinfortunato twelfth couple, nnd thoy had to beg food from tho others who had fared better. From this unlucky un-lucky pair spring tho Ghnsls, who do not work, but support themselves on tho charity nnd lenvlngs of otlicrs. |
