Note 53 — V (continued 2)

In an excellent summary of the Vellālas53 Mr. W. Francis writes as follows. “By general consent, the first place in social esteem among the Tamil Sūdra castes is awarded to them. To give detailed descriptions of the varying customs of a caste which numbers, as this does, over two and a quarter millions, and is found all over the Presidency, is unnecessary, but the internal construction of the caste, its self-contained and distinct sub-divisions, and the methods by which its numbers are enhanced by accretions from other castes, are so typical of the corresponding characteristics of the Madras castes, that it seems to be worth while to set them out shortly.