The bulk of them call themselves Goundans." In the Salem Manual, the Vellala is described as "frugal and saving to the extreme; his hard-working wife knows no finery, and the Vellalichi, (Vellala woman) willingly wears for the whole year the one blue cloth, which is all that the domestic economy of the house allows her. If she gets wet, it must dry on her; and, if she would wash her sole garment, half is unwrapped to be operated upon, which in its turn relieves the other half, that is then and there similarly hammered against some stone by the side of the village tank (pond), or on the bank of the neighbouring stream. Their food is the cheapest of the 'dry' grains which they happen to cultivate that year, and not even the village feasts can draw the money out of a Vellalar's clutches. It is all expended on his land, if the policy of the revenue administration of the country be liberal, and the acts of Government such as to give confidence to the ryots or husbandmen; otherwise their hoarded gains are buried. The new moon, or some high holiday, may perhaps see the head of the house enjoy a platter of rice and a little meat, but such extravagance is rare." The Vellalas are summed up by 'A Native,' [136] as being "found in almost every station of life, from the labourer in the fields to the petty zamindar (landholder); from the owner of plantations to the cooly who works at coffee-picking; from the Deputy Collector to the peon in his office." It is recorded, in the Census Report, 1871, that a Vellala had passed the M.A. degree examination of the Madras University. The occupations of the Vellalas whom I examined in Madras were as follows:-- Cart-driver. Bricklayer. Cooly. Varnisher. Painter. Watchman. Cultivator. Gardener. Compositor. Railway fireman. Peon. Student. In an excellent summary of the Vellalas [137] Mr. W. Francis writes as follows. "By general consent, the first place in social esteem among the Tamil Sudra 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.