he wedding
ceremony like those of other girls. In some localities Andh women
detected in a criminal intimacy even with men of such impure castes
as the Mahars and Mangs have been readmitted into the community. A
substantial fine is imposed on a woman detected in adultery according
to her means and spent on a feast to the caste. All the members thus
have a personal interest in the detection and punishment of such
offences. The dead are usually buried, and water and sugar are placed
in a dying man's mouth instead of the sacred objects used by Hindus;
nor are the dying urged to call on Rama. The dead are buried with
the head to the south, in opposition to the Hindu custom. The Andhs
will eat the flesh of fowls and pigs, and even cats, rats and snakes
in some localities, though the more civilised have abjured these
latter. They are very fond of pork, and drink liquor, and will take
food from Kunbis, Malis and Kolis, but not from Gonds. They have
a caste _panchayat_ or committee, with a headman called Mohtaria,
and two officers known as Phopatia and Dukria. When a caste offence
is committed the Dukria goes to call the offender, and is given the
earthen pots used at the penalty-feast, while the Phopatia receives
a new piece of cloth. The Mohtaria or headman goes from village to
village to decide cases, and gets a share of the fine. The caste are
_shikaris_ or hunters, and cultivators. They catch antelope, hares,
pig and nilgai in their nets, and kill them with sticks and stones,
and they dam up streams and net fish. Birds are not caught. Generally,
the customs of the Andhs clearly point to an aboriginal origin, but
they are rapidly being Hinduised, and in some tracts can scarcely be
distinguished from Kunbis.

They have Marathi names; and though only one name is given at birth,
Mr. Slaney notes that this is frequently changed for some pet name,
and as often as not a man goes regularly by some name other than his
real one.

Arakh

_Arakh._--A small caste of cultivators and labourers found
principally in the Chanda District and Berar and scattered over other
localities. The Arakhs are considered to be an offshoot of the Pasi or
Bahelia caste of hunters and fowlers. Mr. Crooke [32] writes of them:
"All their traditions connect them with the Pasis and Parasurama, the
sixth Avatara of Vishnu. One story runs that Parasurama was bathing
in the sea, when a leech bit his foot and caused it to bleed. He
divided the blood int