ABSTRACT
Eruvellipet is a Tamil village, but the Reddi families there continued to use Telugu in their own homes, though Tamil is near enough akin for them to learn it without difficulty. The village with its inhabitants seemed full of peace, carrying on its labours tranquilly, without any apparent hurry or worry. Rice-growing was the chief concern, occupying nearly half of the 1,139 acres which comprised the village area, out of which only 722 acres were officially reckoned as cultivable. This village also had its deities and its temples. One was a brick and tiled dwelling for Desamma or Mariyattal, as the goddess of smallpox, to whom trees were sacred whose leaves had reputed medicinal value. The other temple consisted of a delightful open glade, sacred to Aiyanar, the special protector of all the untouchable castes among the Tamils, who rides at night in the air round the village, driving away the evil spirits which otherwise might plague it.
