A History of South India from Prehistoric Times to the Fall of Vijayanagar c18.30

c18.30

It is not possible to give a detailed account of the conditions of internal transport. There was as little scope then (as now) for the use of natural waterways for the carriage of merchandise in the interior, and there is no evidence that canals were made for any purpose other than irrigating agricultural lands. Roads are mentioned in inscriptions from all parts of the country, and to maintain them, great and small, in good repair was part of the duty of local authorities, the villagers being generally expected to give their labour free. The breadth of a main road was about twenty-four feet; but there were also tracks, only slightly better than foot-paths, which were apparently impassable for wheeled traffic. There was regular coastal shipping. Up-country, merchandise was carried in carts, on the heads or shoulders of men (kāvaḍis), and on the backs of animals. The roads were not always safe and brigandage increased in unsettled times. Soon after the battle of Rakshasi-Tangadi, Caesar Frederick was detained in Vijayanagar for seven months ‘until the ways were clear of thieves, which at that time ranged up and down’.