Kavuthiyan.--The Kavuthiyans are described as follows in the Gazetteer of Malabar. "They are barbers who serve the Tiyans and lower castes; they are also sometimes given the title Kurup. Their females act as midwives. There seem to be several sections, distinguished by the affix of the name of the castes which they serve, as for instance Tacchakavuthiyan or Tacchakurup, and Kanisakavuthiyan, appropriated to the service of the Asaris and Kanisans respectively; while the barbers who serve the Izhuvans are known both as Aduttons, Vattis, or Izhuva Kavuthiyans. But whether all these should be regarded as offshoots of one main barber caste, or as degraded sections of the castes which they serve, the Kavuthiyans proper being only barbers to the Tiyans, it is difficult to determine. The fact that the Naviyan or Kavuthiyan section of the Veluttedans, as well as the Kavuthiyan section of the Mukkuvans, are admittedly but degraded sections of these castes, makes the second the more probable view. It is also to be noticed that the Kavuthiyans, in the north at least, follow marumakkattayam (inheritance in the female line), while the Taccha and Kanisa Kavuthiyans follow the other principle of descent." Kayalan.--The Kayalans are Tamil-speaking Muhammadans, closely allied to the Marakkayars and living at Kayalpatnam in Tinnevelly. Many of them have settled as merchants in Madras, and sell glass beads, cowry shells, dolls from Tirupati, toys, etc. Some are money-lenders to the lower classes, and others travel about from village to village selling, for cash or credit rates, cloths, brass vessels, and other articles. They are sometimes called Arumasaththukadankarar, or six months' debt people, as this is the time usually allowed for payment. At Kayalpatnam, a Kayalan husband is expected to live in his father-in-law's house, and, in connection with this custom, the following legend is narrated. The chiefman of the town gave his daughter in marriage to a man living in an adjacent village. One evening, she went to fetch water from a tank, and, on her way back, trod on a cobra. She could not move her foot, lest she should be bitten, so she stood where she was, with her water-pot on her head, till she was discovered by her father on the following morning. He killed the snake with the kitti (tweezers) and knife which he had with him, and told the girl to go with him to his house. She, however, refused to do so, and went to her husband's house, from which she was subsequently taken to that of her father. The kitti is an instrument of torture, consisting of two sticks tied together at one end, between which the fingers were placed as in a lemon squeezer. With this instrument, the fingers were gradually bent backwards towards the back of the hand, until the sufferer, no longer able to endure the excruciating pain, yielded to the demands made on him to make confession of guilt.