The Tamil people, who inhabit this part of India, are an exceedingly black and ugly race, and the Brahmins are the only people who have any pretensions whatever to fair skins. On the whole the peasantry in the country between the Neilgherry and Pulney hills appeared to be tolerably well off, and the country was well cultivated, considering the unpropitious climate and poor soil. As is well known, the people in this part of India hold their land by what is called the _ryotwarry_ tenure, which is a settlement for the land assessment with each individual ryot or cultivator, without the intervention of any zemindar or renter. The land is made over to the actual cultivator, who is regarded by the Government as the proprietor of the soil, and the arrangement for the payment of land-tax is made directly with him, while he receives assistance by remissions of assessment in unfavourable seasons, and cannot be ejected so long as he pays his dues. The land is classified as irrigated and un-irrigated, and then according to its different degrees of fertility; and this settlement is permanent so long as the land remains in the same condition. The Collector of each district makes an annual tour of inspection, called _jummabundy_, to ascertain the extent to which the Government demand ought to be reduced, owing to particular circumstances of season; but in ordinary times the duty of collection is intrusted to the Tahsildars or native officials, and their subordinates the Sheristadars. These officials, who visited me in the villages through which I passed, appeared intelligent respectable men, and all the younger ones talked English fluently. Sir Thomas Munro, who was Governor of Madras from 1818 to 1827, established the _ryotwarry_ system, and since his time the conditions on which the ryots hold their land have been made lighter and more advantageous. In 1837 it was enacted that there should be no increase of land-tax on account of the growth of more valuable crops; in 1852 it was ordered that no ryot should pay an additional tax on account of improvements made by himself, causing an increased value;[432] and, during Lord Harris's administration, considerable reductions were made in the land-assessment in nearly all the Madras collectorates. These reductions, independent of the boon conferred on the people, have been attended by the most successful results, in an increasing revenue, and in the extension of the area of cultivation over lands which were formerly waste.