a snake accidentally,
he places a piece of new yarn on his head, praying for forgiveness,
and deposits the body on an anthill, where snakes are supposed to
live. If a man of the goat sept eats goat's flesh, it is thought that
he will become blind at once. A Parja will not touch the body of his
totem-animal when dead, and if he sees any one killing or teasing it
when alive, he will go away out of sight. It is said that a man of the
Kachhim sept once found a tortoise while on a journey, and leaving it
undisturbed, passed on. When the tortoise died it was reborn in the
man's belly and troubled him greatly, and since then every Parja is
liable to be afflicted in the same way in the side of the abdomen,
the disease which is produced being in fact enlarged spleen. The
tortoise told the man that as he had left it lying by the road, and
had not devoted it to any useful purpose, he was afflicted in this
way. Consequently, when a man of the Kachhim sept finds a tortoise
nowadays, he gives it to somebody else who can cut it up. The story
is interesting as a legend of the origin of spleen, but has apparently
been invented as an excuse for killing the sacred animal.

3. Kinship and marriage

Marriage is prohibited in theory between members of the same sept. But
as the number of septs is rather small, the rule is not adhered to,
and members of the same sept are permitted to marry so long as they
do not come from the same village; the original rule of exogamy being
perhaps thus exemplified. The proposal for a match is made by the
boy's father, who first offers a cup of liquor to the girl's father
in the bazar, and subsequently explains his errand. If the girl's
father, after consulting with his family, disapproves of the match,
he returns an equal quantity of liquor to the boy's father in token
of his decision. The girl is usually consulted, and asked if she
would like to marry her suitor, but not much regard is had to her
opinion. If she dislikes him, however, she usually runs away from him
after a short interlude of married life. If a girl becomes pregnant
with a caste-fellow before marriage, he is required to take her,
and give to the family the presents which he would make to them on
a regular marriage. The man can subsequently be properly married to
some other woman, but the girl cannot be married at all. If a girl
is seduced by a man outside the caste, she is made over to him. It
is essential for a man to be properly ma