Current Tamil speech and custom divide the landless labouring Paraiyans into padiyal and kuliyal. The padiyal is definitely and hereditarily attached to some land-holding family in the Hindu grama. He can work for no one else, and cannot change masters. His privilege is that in times of drought and famine his master must support him. The kuliyal is a mere day labourer, only employed, and therefore only receiving pay (kuli) when required. He has no claim for maintenance in seasons of scarcity, and, though no man's serf, is worse off than the padiyal. Three communal servants, the grave-digger (Vettiyan), watchman (Talaiyari), and scavenger (Toti) are all Paraiyans. The Vettiyan officiates when a corpse is buried or burned. Hence the proverb against meddling in what ought to be left to some one else:--"Let the Vettiyan and the corpse struggle together." The Rev. H. Jensen notes [64] in connection with this proverb that "when fire is applied to the pyre at the burning-ground, it sometimes happens that the muscles of the corpse contract in such a fashion that the body moves, and the grave-digger has to beat it down into the fire. It looks as if the two were engaged in a struggle. But no one else should interfere. The grave-digger knows his own work best." It is noted by Mr. H. A. Stuart [65] that "among the lower class of Vellam Paraiyans, who are the village totis, the following legend is current, accounting for the perquisites which they get for performing the menial work of the village. When Adi Sesha was supporting the earth, he became weary, and prayed to Siva for assistance. Siva ordered a Paraiyan to beat upon his drum, and cry 'Let the ripe decay.' The Paraiyan enquired what should be his reward, and was granted the following privileges, viz., mankuli (reward for burning corpses), san tuni (a span cloth), vaykkarisi (the rice in the corpse's mouth), pinda soru (morsel of boiled rice), and suttu kuli (fee for bringing firewood). This seemed to the Paraiya very little, and so, to increase the death-rate and consequently his perquisites, he cried 'Let the ripe and the unripe decay.' The swami (god) remonstrated with him, for the result of his cry was that children and the middle-aged among men died. The man pleaded poverty, and was given four additional privileges, viz., a merkal to measure grain, a rod to measure the ground, a scythe to cut grass, and the privilege of carrying the karagam-pot when annually running over the village boundary. All the above privileges still belong to the village vettis, who receive fees for performing the duties referred to in the legend."