29. In Mirzapur another name for the Hela sub-caste is said to be Mâlwar, which the members say is derived from their profession of keeping hogs. They may possibly be akin to the Mâl of Bengal.
30. Lastly, Sir H. M. Elliot names the Bhangi sections (gotra) as Baniwâl, Bilpurwâr, Tânk, Gahlot, Kholi, Gagra, Sarohi, Chandâliya, Sirsawâl, and Siriyâr. Some of these are the names of Râjput septs; others are apparently taken from the place of their origin. It has as yet been found impossible to identify the exact part of the country in which these sections prevail.
Traditions of origin. 31. Beyond the legends already given in connection with Lâl Beg, the Bhangis do not appear to have any very distinct traditions of their history. The Lâl Begis of Benares undertake occasional pilgrimages to Amritsar, which they consider to be their home. The Bhangis of Mirzapur refer their origin to Jaunpur. They make occasional visits to the village of Surhurpur, where they worship at the tomb of a Muhammadan Faqîr named Makhdûm Shâh. On the other hand, the [[275]]Hindu Helas make pilgrimages to the temple of Kâlika Mâi, in the village of Lokhari, in the Bânda District. They attend a special fair held in honour of the goddess on the thirtieth day of Chait, at which, as at the shrine of the goddess Vindhyabâsini Devi at Bindhâchal, they have the ceremonial shaving of their sons performed, and offer pigs, goats, rams, and a libation of spirits. They have also a preference for arranging marriages, and taking their barbers from this place, which they regard as their original home. The Benares Lâl Begis all collect at what is called the Panchâyat Akhâra sacred to Guru Nânak, near the Sivâla Ghât, in the city, for the decision of all social matters. There is, lastly, the Gada Pahâri at Chunâr, to which reference has been already made, which is a well-known resort for the Bhangis of the eastern part of the Province.
Tribal council and caste discipline. 32. The Bhangis have a most elaborately organised tribal council. Thus, the Lâl Begis of Benares, to follow Mr. Greeven’s account again, have a semi-military organisation modelled on that of the British Cantonment in which they are employed. Their headman is known as Brigadier Jamadâr, whose office, though in theory elective, is in practice hereditary, so long as the requirements are fulfilled. These are chiefly: on election to provide two dinners for the whole sub-caste, sweetmeats, to the value of fourteen rupees, to be distributed among them, and two turbans to each president as below described. Within the sub-caste the administrative unit is the “company” (bera), of which in Benares there are eight, viz., the Sadar, or those employed by private residents in Cantonments; the Kâlê Paltan, who serve the Bengal Infantry; the Lâl Kurti, or “Red Coats,” who are employed by the British Infantry; the Teshan, or those employed at the three Railway Stations of Cantonment, Râjghât, and Mughal Sarâi; the Shahr, or those employed in the City; the Râmnagar, who take their name from the residence of the Mahârâja of Benares, whom they serve; the Kothiwâl or “Bungalow men,” who serve residents in the Civil Lines; and lastly, the Genereli, who are the survivors of the sweepers who were employed at headquarters when Benares was commanded by a General of Division. Under the Brigadier each “company” has four officers (sardâr) as follows:—The Jamadâr or President, the Munsif or Spokesman, the Treasurer or Chaudhari, and the Nâib or Summoner. As with the Brigadier, these offices, though supposed to be elective, are practically hereditary, provided that the candidate can afford to [[276]]present one dinner to the whole sub-caste, and one turban to each of the Presidents. Under these officers every member of the company is designated a private soldier (sipâhi); and out of these a ministerial officer is appointed under the title of the messenger (piyâda).
33. At a meeting of the council a private may, with much respect, interrupt proceedings to direct attention to anything irregular. On the conclusion of the evidence, the three inferior officers in each company confer together until they arrive at a unanimous decision, which, through their spokesman, they submit to their President. When each President is unanimous with his assistants, he confers with the Presidents of the other companies, and when all eight Presidents are unanimous they confer with the Brigadier, who, if he agrees with them, delivers the final decision. In case of disagreement, the disputed question must be argued out, or further evidence adduced, until the disagreement is removed. Mr. Greeven adds:—“As there is no record or evidence of judgment, it may well be inquired how it is possible, except by accident, ever to obtain a unanimous decision amongst thirty-three human beings. In point of fact, however, the issues are of so simple a character and, therefore, so fully within the compass of the private soldiers, that public opinion is very powerful, and, as in cases of dead-lock, oaths are administered to the dissentient officers, the practical result follows that where an officer, in spite of an oath, persists in blocking the decision of a dispute by a corrupt, or perverse, or even unpopular verdict, he is liable to be dismissed from his office, or even expelled from the brotherhood. The subordinate officers decide according to the verdict of the private soldiers, and a President rarely persists in opposition to his subordinate officers, while the Brigadier accepts the opinion of the Presidents almost as a formality.”
34. When any dispute arises, the aggrieved party, depositing a process-fee (talabâna) of a rupee-and-a-quarter, addresses his summoner, who, in company with the Treasurer, and through the medium of the spokesman, refers the matter to the President. Unless the question is so trivial that it can be settled without caste punishments, the President fixes a time and place, of which notice is given through the messenger, to the summoners of the other seven companies. Within each company the messenger, who is remunerated with one-and-a-quarter annas out of the process-fee, carries round the notice to each private soldier. [[277]]
35. Only worthy members of the caste are allowed to sit on the tribal matting and smoke the tribal pipe (huqqa). The proceedings begin with the spreading of the matting, and the pipe is passed round. The members sit in three lines, and in the following order of precedence:—The Brigadier Jamadâr, each batch of four officers of the eight companies arranged as follows,—the President to the right, next the spokesman, treasurer, and summoner, and behind them all private soldiers. Each party to the dispute, in charge of the messenger of his company, is cross-questioned individually by the eight spokesmen, who then proceed to examine the witnesses adduced by the litigants, and any persons acquainted with the facts of the case.
36. The punishments inflicted by the council are of three kinds,—fines (dând); compulsory dinners (bhog, khâna); and outcasting (kujât karna). Non-compliance with an order of fine or entertainment is followed by expulsion. Fines are always multiples of one-and-a-quarter, which is a lucky number. The formal method of outcasting consists in seating the culprit on the ground and drawing the tribal mat over his head, from which the turban is removed. The messengers of the eight companies inflict a few taps with slippers and birch brooms from above. It is alleged that unfaithful women were formerly tied naked to trees and flogged with birch brooms, but that, owing to the fatal results that occasionally followed such punishment, as in the case of the five kicks among Chamârs, and a scourging with a clothes line, which used to prevail among Dhobis, the caste has now found it expedient to abandon such practices.
37. When an outcast is re-admitted on submission, whether by paying a fine or giving a dinner, he is seated apart from the tribal mat, and does penance (tauba, tobah) by holding his ears and confessing his offence. A new huqqa, which he supplies, is carried round by the messenger, and a few whiffs are taken by the clansmen in the following order.—The Bather, the Brigadier, the eight Presidents, the eight spokesmen, the eight summoners, and the private soldiers. The messenger repeats to the culprit the order of the council, and informs him that should he again offend his punishment will be doubled. With this warning he hands him the huqqa, after smoking which the culprit is admitted to the carpet, and all is forgotten in a banquet at his expense.
38. The officials and procedure of the councils of the other sub-castes [[278]]are very similar. Thus in Benares the Ghâzipuri Râwats have a President (Chaudhari), a messenger or Chharibardâr, who announces the dates and purposes of the council meetings, and receives two annas for his trouble. The Shaikhs have a Chaudhari or President, a Sardâr or his assistant, a Qâzimdâr, whose functions are similar to those of the Chharibardâr. The Helas have two officials, the Chaudhari and the Piyâda or Chharibardâr. In the Shaikh council all the officials at the time of their appointment have to give a dinner to the members of their council. The Chaudhari and Sardâr are invested with turbans as a sign of office. The Qâzimbardâr receives a whip (kora), a mat (tât), and a jug and bowl (lota, katora) when he is invested with office. In the Hela council the Chaudhari receives a turban, but is not obliged to give a dinner. The rule among the Ghâzipuri Râwats is the same.