Toreya.--The Toreyas are a Canarese class, living chiefly in the Tamil districts of Coimbatore and Salem. They are said to have been originally fishermen and palanquin bearers, and the name is derived from turai, a river ghat. Most of them are now cultivators, especially of the betel vine (Piper betle). Those whom I examined at Coimbatore were earning their living as betel and sugar-cane cultivators, vendors of tobacco, bakers, cloth merchants, contractors, petty traders, and police constables. By the Coimbatore Toreyas, the following endogamous divisions were returned:-- Elai, leaf. Betel cultivators. Chunam, lime. Lime burners. Gazul, glass bangle. The Toreya caste is said to have originated from the bangles of Machyagandhi or Gandhavati, the daughter of a fisherman on the Jumna. She was married to king Shantanu of Hastinapur, who was one of the ancestors of the heroes of the Mahabharata. Many exogamous septs exist among the Toreyas, of which the following are examples:-- Belli, silver. May not wear silver toe-rings. Naga, snake. The members of the sept, at times of marriage, worship ant-hills, which are the home of snakes. Alwar or Garuda. Chinnam, gold. Kansugaje, small bronze bells, tied to the legs when dancing. Urukathi, a kind of knife. Vajjira, diamond. Vasishta, a Hindu saint. Mogila, clouds. Onne (Pterocarpus Marsupium). Do not mark their foreheads with the juice from the trunk of this tree. Kuzhal, the flute played by shepherd boys and snake charmers. If the sound thereof is heard during a meal, what remains of the food should be thrown away. Rakshasa, a giant. Do not celebrate the Dipavali festival in honour of the victory over, and death of, a rakshasa. Erumai, buffalo.