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Other large distilling centres are Cherrapunji, with forty-seven stills; Jowai, with thirty-one stills; Laitkynsew, with fifty-four stills; Nongwar, thirty-one stills; and Rangthang, thirty-seven stills. From what has been stated above some idea may be gathered how very large the number of stills in the Khasi and Jaintia Hills is.
The descendants of the three men above-mentioned possess a genealogical table, showing their descent from the original three founders of the sengs. They claim a large tract of country lying to the south and south-east of the Laitkynsew plateau, containing not only orange gardens, but also valuable lime quarries.
The various gardens are distinguishable by means of boundary stones or stone cairns, by prominent trees on the boundary lines, or by natural boundaries such as streams. In the Wár country to the West of Cherra, notably the country between the heights of Laitkynsew and the plains, considerable portions of the hill-sides are the property of communities known as sengs.
Roberts's collections would fill a book; so I have selected only a few of what I consider typical tales. At the instance of Sir Charles Lyall, I have given the Khasi and English side by side. The stories will speak for themselves, but I add a few explanatory notes. The water-fall of Ka Likai is a magnificent cascade in the rainy season; it can best be viewed from the heights of Laitkynsew.
The three ancestors are said to have owned a large tract of land, and they had as their abode the village of Laitmawria close to Laitkynsew; but owing to an epidemic, or some such cause, they deserted the village of Laitmawria and went with their families to live in some of the surrounding Wár villages, viz. in Tyrna, Nongkroh, Nongwar, Mastoh, and Mawlong.
Its stream flows from a certain river from the village of Rangjirteh and passes by the village of Nongriat. The fall can be seen distinctly from the village of Laitkynsew. What a beautiful fall it is when viewed in the autumn. It is also a very high fall. There was in olden days in the village of Rangjirteh a woman called Ka Likai. She was a poor woman who had a husband.
A seng may be defined as a collection of families sprung from some common ancestress or ancestor. As an instance of these sengs I may describe the community known as the lai seng which owns land in the neighbourhood of Laitkynsew, the area owned being known as the "ri lai seng," or land of the three clans.
The water-fall is situated close to the village of Nongriat, which is approached by a succession of stone steps from the village of Tyrna, just below the Charrapunji Laitkynsew bridle-path. "Dingiei," which is mentioned in the second tale, is the high hill to be seen on the right-hand side of the Shillong-Cherrapunji road soon after leaving Shillong.
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