parties, these four, with the head man, form what
is called a _punchayiet_, or council of five, in fact, a jury. They
examine the witnesses, and each party to the suit conducts his own
case. The whole village not unfrequently attends to hear what goes on.
In a mere caste or private quarrel, only the friends of the parties
will attend. Every case is tried in public, and all the inhabitants of
the village can hear the proceedings if they wish. Respectable
inhabitants can remark on the proceedings, make suggestions, and give
an opinion. Public feeling is thus pretty accurately gauged and
tested, and the _punchayiet_ agree among themselves on the verdict. To
the honour of their character for fair play be it said, that the
decision of a _punchayiet_ is generally correct, and is very seldom
appealed against. Our complicated system of law, with its delays, its
technicalities, its uncertainties, and above all its expense, its
stamp duties, its court fees, its bribes to native underlings, and the
innumerable vexations attendant on the administration of justice in
our revenue and criminal courts, are repugnant to the villager of
Hindostan. They are very litigious, and believe in our desire to give
them justice and protection to life and property; but our courts are
far too costly, our machinery of justice is far too intricate and
complicated for a people like the Hindoos. 'Justice within the gate'
is what they want. It is quite enough admission of the reality of our
rule--that we are the paramount power--that they submit a case to us
at all; and all impediments in the way of their getting cheap and
speedy justice should be done away with. A codification of existing
laws, a sweeping away of one half the forms and technicalities that at
present bewilder the applicant for justice, and altogether a less
legal and more equitable procedure, having a due regard to efficiency
and the conservation of Imperial interests, should be the aim of our
Indian rulers. More especially should this be the case in rural
districts where large interests are concerned, where cases involve
delicate points of law. Our present courts, divested of their hungry
crowd of middlemen and retainers, are right enough; but I would like
to see rural courts for petty cases established, presided over by
leading natives, planters, merchants, and men of probity, which would
in a measure supplement the _punchayiet_ system, which would be easy
of access, cheap in their proc