chapter I

propose to consider various problems connected with population, of biological as well as of sociological interest. The data derived from the genealogies are here of distinct service, though, for reasons already considered, their value is not so great as in the investigation of social regulations.

Records of the numbers of the Todas have been taken at various times, beginning with what must have been a very rough estimate made by Keys [190] in 1812, in which the number of the Todas or Thothavurs was placed at 179. In 1821, Ward [191] estimated the numbers of men and women at 140 and 82 respectively, of whom the great majority lived in the Todanad district of the hills.

Hough [192] in 1825 found the population to consist of 145 men, 100 women, 45 boys, and 36 girls, altogether 326.

In 1838, Birch [193] gives the population as consisting of 294 men and 184 women, amounting to 478, but elsewhere in his paper he says that the number of the Todas was computed at about 800.

In 1847, Ouchterlony [194] found the number of the Todas to be 337, made up of 86 adult males, 87 male children, 70 adult females, and 94 female children. The proportion of males to females is only 173 to 164, showing a very much smaller preponderance of males than in any other estimate before or since.

In 1856, Grigg [195] gives 185 males and 131 females, altogether 316.

In 1866, Grigg gives the population as 704. If the estimates of this year and that of 1856 were correct, it would show that the population had more than doubled in ten years. It is evident that the census of 1866 is the first which gives anything approaching an accurate record of the Toda population. Even in this year there is one obvious source of error, for it would seem that those living at the foot of the hills, near Gudalur were not included, and probably twenty or thirty, if not more, would have to be added on this account.

For the census of 1871 the records are conflicting. On p. 29 of the Manual, Grigg gives the numbers as 693, 405 males and 288 females. On p. 187 he gives instead of these numbers 376 males and 263 females, making a total of 639. Breeks gives the latter numbers and also a revised result which brings out the total population as 683. This figure, or the earlier of Grigg’s figures, evidently approximates to the correct population, which shows a slight falling off as compared with five years earlier.

In the census of 1881, the numbers would appear to have continued to diminish, the population being put at only 675; 382 males and 293 females.

In 1891, the number had risen to 736; 424 males and 312 females.

In the census of 1901, which was taken with especial care to record all the Todas, there were found to be 451 males and 354 females, making together 805.

The population as recorded in my genealogical tables compiled in 1902 was only 736; 419 males and 317 females. My numbers fall far short of those of the census taken a year previously. As I have already pointed out, my genealogies are untrustworthy as a record of the young children of the community now living, and it is possible also that I have omitted a certain number of women. The excess of men over women is distinctly greater in my figures than in the census of 1901, and this may be due to the fact that I failed to hear of a certain number of widows or unmarried women or girls. If so, it is probable that these defects are in the genealogies of the Teivaliol, and it is in them that the excess of men is greatest.

The earlier records of the population are certainly far below the mark. Captain Harkness, writing in 1832, estimates the attendance at a funeral at 300 men, nearly half that number of women, and about as many boys and girls. Those seen by Harkness may not have been all Todas, since Badagas and Kotas undoubtedly attend Toda funerals, but we may safely call this a total attendance of 500, which would show that the records of Hough in 1825 and of Birch in 1838 are far below the mark, and that Birch’s rough estimate of 800 is probably far more nearly correct, and may even have been too small.

The records have probably been fairly complete since 1866, and if so, they show a falling off in population from this date till the 1881 census. It is, however, possible that the gradual increase in numbers during recent censuses has been due to the greater care taken at each succeeding census. Unsatisfactory as the records are, they seem to point to a diminution of population about the middle of the last century, which ceased between 1880 and 1890, since which time the population has probably increased.

Mr. R. C. Punnett [196] has analysed the data furnished by my genealogical records to ascertain the average size of the Toda family. He divided the families recorded in the genealogies into four groups: (A) those where the eldest child would in 1903 be over 90 years of age; (B) those where he would be between 60 and 90; (C) and (D) those where he would be between 30 and 60 and between 0 and 30 respectively. He has recorded the results for Tartharol and Teivaliol separately in the following table.

Group. Tartharol. Teivaliol. No. of Average size ♂s per No. of Average size ♂s per families. of family. 100 ♀s. families. of family. 100 ♀s.

A 9 3·0 [4·2] 237·5 4 4·5 [6·0] 200 B 49 4·1 [5·0] 159·7 21 3·8 [5·4] 259 C 87 3·3 [3·7] 131·4 40 3·8 [5·0] 202 D 104 2·5 [2·8] 129·2 45 2·3 [2·9] 171

The figures in square brackets give the average size of the family for each generation, making allowance for cases of female infanticide, which we shall see presently to be a Toda custom which is almost certainly diminishing in frequency.

The conclusion Mr. Punnett draws from this table is that there has been a marked decrease in fertility during the period covered by the genealogies.

The defects in my record as regards young children make any conclusions about the last generation very inconclusive, but since the record for very young children is certainly defective, and since many families now existing will certainly increase in size, it is probable that any progressive decrease in the size of a family has now been arrested, and the details of the genealogical record would therefore agree with the Census Reports in showing the presence of a distinct tendency of the Toda population to increase.

None of the previous records have given any indication of the numbers of the two chief divisions of the Toda people. According to my genealogical records, there were living, in 1902, 528 Tartharol and 208 Teivaliol. The defects in my record are probably somewhat greater for the Teivaliol than for the Tartharol, but any difference there may be is certainly not great, and I think we may conclude that, though these figures are not accurate, they represent approximately the true proportion of the numbers of the two divisions. It is quite certain that the Tartharol are more than twice as numerous as the Teivaliol. Mr. Punnett’s table does not show any great difference between the two divisions in the average size of the family, so that the proportion between the numbers of the two divisions has probably not altered during the period covered by the genealogical record. It is probable that the Teivaliol have always or for a very long time been the smaller division.

The Census Reports and the genealogical record then agree in pointing to a diminution of the Toda population about the middle of last century which has now ceased, the probability being that the Todas are increasing slightly in numbers.

There can be little doubt that any decrease in the Toda population about the middle of last century was the direct result of the changes brought about by the advent of Europeans to the Nilgiri Hills. The adverse influences which came into the lives of the Todas probably owe their origin to the large immigration of native servants and to the development of the bazaar. Though Europeans first began to come to the Nilgiri Hills about 1820, it was not till twenty or thirty years later that they arrived in any considerable numbers, so that it was probably the middle of the century before the injurious influences made their effects felt to any great effect.

The especial influences injurious to fertility have probably been syphilis and sexual immorality, for the Todas do not appear to have fallen to any very great extent under the influence of alcohol or opium. They certainly take both, and especially after the market day at the Ootacamund bazaar, I have seen Todas obviously under the influence of drink; but I believe this to have been only an influence of minor importance on the health of the people. Syphilis, on the other hand, has undoubtedly affected them to a considerable extent. At the present time its ravages are not very obvious, though, without looking for it especially, I saw several examples of its effects. There can be little doubt, however, that it has been a potent factor in the past. In a note in a book by A. C. Burnell, [197] it is mentioned that in 1871 thirty-one Todas were treated at Ootacamund for venereal disease, and of these thirty were syphilitic. This means that in one year over 4 per cent. of the total Toda population were treated for syphilis at one place, and we may be fairly confident that all those suffering from the disease did not apply for treatment.

Another factor working towards the diminution of the population has probably been sexual immorality. I shall have to return to this subject again later, and must be content here to point out that the Toda women have a very bad reputation, though perhaps their laxity is not as great as is usually supposed. Still, there can be little doubt that the women of some villages are extremely immoral, and it is probable that this has distinctly tended to produce sterility.

If the diminution in the size of the Toda family is due to these adverse influences, it should be found to be greatest in those sections of the Toda community which have been most subject to these influences. The best way of throwing light on this question is to compare the fertility of the different clans of the Tartharol. Some of these, such as Nòdrs, Pan, Taradr, and Kanòdrs, either live in outlying parts of the hills or are sufficiently remote from the chief centres of the European population not to have been influenced very greatly.

The chief village of the Kars clan is situated close to Ootacamund and has suffered greatly from its neighbours, but many of the villages of the clan are more remote, so that the clan may be put down as one

## partly influenced. The people of Päm and Nidrsi, on the other hand, are

more influenced than any other of the Toda clans, as is shown by the alterations in their villages and the neglect of the ritual of their religion. The villages of the Pämol are, or were, near to Wellington Barracks, and it is certainly the most degenerated of all the Toda clans. The following table, taken from Mr. Punnett’s paper, shows the average size of the family in each case, and though the figures are somewhat irregular, they bear out the view that sterility is greater the more the people have come into contact with Europeans and their followers.

Name of clan. No. of No. of Average size Average size families. offspring. of family. of family for group.

Nòdrs } 14 54 3·84 } 3·59 Pan } (uninfluenced) 8 21 2·37 } Taradr } 9 43 4·77 } Kanòdrs } 11 33 3·00 }

Kars (partly influenced) 25 76 3·04 3·04

Päm } (much influenced) 10 22 2·20 } 2·60 Nidrsi } 10 30 3·00 }

PROPORTION OF THE SEXES

The records of the Toda population in the past all show an excess of men over women, and with the exception of the record of Ouchterlony, which is certainly untrustworthy, the excess is considerable. In view of their untrustworthiness no importance can be attached to the records taken earlier than that of 1866, and in the report for that year I have been unable to ascertain the proportions of the sexes. In 1871 there were 140·6 men for every 100 women; in 1881, 130·4 for every 100; in 1891, 135·9, and in the census of 1901, 127·4 men for every 100 women. My figures, derived from the genealogical record, give for 1902, 132·2 men for every 100 women, a proportion distinctly greater than that of the census, which suggests that it is in the female portion of the community that my records are most defective.

In the table on p. 474 taken from Mr. Punnett’s paper, it is seen that the data derived from the genealogical record agree with those of the Census Reports in showing on the whole a progressive decrease in the excess of men over women. The number of families in the first group is too small to give them much importance, but for the three succeeding generations of the Tartharol, the numbers of males for every 100 females are 159·7, 131·4, and 129·2, while for the Teivaliol the figures are 259, 202, and 171 respectively.

The Census Reports and the genealogical record thus agree in showing a progressive diminution in the excess of men over women.

There can be little doubt as to the cause of this. All accounts of the Todas agree in attributing to them the practice of female infanticide, though, at the present time, the Todas are very chary of acknowledging the existence of the practice. They deny it absolutely for the present, and they are reluctant to speak about it for the past.

I do not think that there is the slightest doubt that it was at one time very prevalent, and that it has greatly diminished in frequency, but that it is still practised to some extent. The chance remarks of children to my interpreter, Samuel, had shown him that the practice is still followed occasionally, and I think it far from unlikely that it is even now not a very rare occurrence.

In Mr. Punnett’s table, it will be seen that the genealogical data show that the excess of men is far greater in the Teivaliol than in the Tartharol, and the excess in the former is so great as to leave little doubt that the practice is still followed in this division not infrequently. If this is so, it is probably due to the fact that the Teivaliol chiefly inhabit the more outlying parts of the hills, so that, on the whole, they have been less affected than the Tartharol by the various influences which have come into the lives of the Todas. An accessory factor may have been the priestly functions of the Teivalioi, which have probably tended to make them more conservative.

Previous writers on the Todas have differed considerably in their accounts of the method of infanticide, and I regret very much that I cannot contribute any facts towards the settlement of the question. The subject was one about which the Todas talked so unwillingly that I made no great endeavours to arrive at the truth. A method which has been commonly attributed to the Todas is that of placing the infant at the gate of the buffalo-pen before this is opened in the morning, the herd rushing out and trampling on the child. Another less likely method has been said to be that the infant is drowned in buffalo milk.

The most probable account is that given to Marshall [198] by an aged Toda, who stated that the child is suffocated by an old woman, who receives a fee of four annas, and that the child is then buried, which, as we have seen, is the method of disposing of the bodies of still-born children.

There is little reason to connect the practice of female infanticide among the Todas with any deficiency in the necessaries for existence. It seems clear that at one time the Todas supplemented their food of milk with berries, roots, &c., but it is improbable that they were ever in such straits for food that they would have resorted to infanticide on this account. Marshall’s informant ascribed infanticide to the poverty of his people, but this was probably said in order to excuse the practice.

In an earlier part of this chapter we saw that there is evidence of a former diminution of the Toda population. At the same time we see that there is evidence of a diminution of the practice of female infanticide, which would, of course, tend to increase the population. It would thus seem that there have existed among the Todas, during the last fifty years, certain factors tending to diminish the population and one factor tending to increase it. We may conclude that, but for the diminution of infanticide, the falling off in numbers would have been greater, and that the tendency to increase which seems at present to exist may be due, wholly or in part, to the diminution of infanticide.

There is one indication that female infanticide has almost entirely ceased during the last five years, and even that there may now be an excess of female births. In the table of ages given on page 469, it will be seen that the pedigrees record more girls than boys of five years and under. There is no reason why my record of such young children should have been more defective for one sex than for the other, and the proportion here may be approximately correct.

TWINS

Twins are called ömumokh and it is the custom to kill one of them, even when both are boys. If they should be girls, it is probable that both would be killed, or, at any rate, would have been killed in the past.

There is one case of twins in the genealogies. Iraveli, the wife of Kwötuli and Nudriki (8), gave birth to twins about twelve years ago. Both were boys, and I was first told that one had died shortly after birth, but later inquiries made it almost certain that the boy had been killed. Some time after the birth of the twins, one of the buffaloes of Kwötuli and Nudriki is said to have had a calf with one body, two heads, and four legs. The buffalo died before the calf was born, and the monstrosity was found by the Kotas, to whom the body was given. It was generally expected that something would happen to Kwötuli or Nudriki, but they have since been very prosperous.

THE DETERMINATION OF AGE

This is a suitable place to say a word about the method I adopted to ascertain the ages of the Todas. Like all people at a low stage of culture, the Todas are very uncertain about their ages, though their knowledge is more accurate than that of many peoples. Every Toda knows, however, whether he is older or younger than another, this fact determining the names and salutations they give to one another, as we shall see in the next chapter. A few of the younger men seemed to have accurate knowledge of their ages, and building up on this basis, and with a knowledge of the relative ages of the different members of the community, it became possible to arrive at estimates which probably do not deviate very widely from the correct ages; even in the case of the older people, I do not believe that my estimated ages are likely to be more than five years out in any case. As already mentioned (see p. 416), the Todas make use, in the estimation of age, of their belief in the eighteen-year period of a flower, and the ages so estimated in a few cases agreed fairly with those arrived at in other ways.

Among those now alive, it seemed that the usual time which separates the birth of two children of the same mother is about three years, and I have taken this time as the rule in estimating the ages of all those whose names are included in the genealogies. Similarly, so far as I could tell, women begin to bear children when about eighteen to twenty years of age.

The ages of the four groups given in the table on p. 474 were calculated on the assumptions that a woman had her first child when twenty years old, and that the interval between the births of two children was three years.

The oldest Toda now living is Kiugi (57). He looks an extremely old man, and is said by the Todas to be nearly a hundred years of age. There is evidence which makes it probable that he is at least eighty or ninety. Kòrs, the father of Kiugi, performed the pursütpimi ceremony before the birth of Teitchi (52) (see p. 564). Teitchi’s grandson, Kuriolv, is now about fifty-four years of age. When Kòrs gave the bow and arrow he may have been only a young boy, and if we assume that he was fifteen years old, that Teitchi and Pareivan had their first children when twenty years old, and that the interval between the birth of Pilzink and that of Pareivan was six years, it would make the age of Kòrs, if he were still alive, 115. If Kiugi was born when his father was twenty years old, it would make his age ninety-five. If, on the other hand, we assume that Kòrs gave the bow and arrow when only ten years of age, and that he did not have his first child till he was thirty, it would make Kiugi’s age eighty. Kiugi’s eldest child, if alive, would now probably be about sixty, and this supports the view that the lowest possible estimate of Kiugi’s age is eighty, and he is not improbably a good deal older.

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