reports. Their language is Tamil, which has long been formed into a written language-they write their books and letters with an iron style on palm-leaves. They possess authors on almost all sciences and are experts in many trades and handicrafts.” These sentences taken from the original papers by the author praise the Tamils, their language and their accomplishments. In the same book, the author quotes Ziegenbalg’s own words which read most Christians in Europe suppose the Malabarians to be a very barbarous people, but his arises from the Europeans who have been amongst them not understanding their language, so that they have not been able to read their books, but have drawn their conclusions from outward appearances”. Ziegenbalg himself was in the initial stages misled to this conclusion but later acquaintance with them showed him that, “The Malabarians discussed the same philosophical subjects as the savants of Europe and that they had a regular written law, wherein all theological subjects were treated of and demonstrated”. This is candid appreciation of a foreigner. This revelation led him to wish to be tutored about the local religion from their writings. He realised and not without surprise that the “Malabarians” had only one supreme God despite their worship of myraid of Gods. The Portuguese came next. They were of mixed birth-children of European fathers and native mothers. They spoke a corrupt form of Portuguese and frequently adopted the European mode of dressing. The third group is the Mohammedans called Moors from os Muoros. The Moors filled important posts. Usually they were very rich.

The last group is the Christian group, which was the Roman Catholic Native congregation, but nothing definite is known about its progress.

The missionaries, Zeigenbalg and his companion who lived in the town's poorest part were ostracised by the Europeans. Though they had the King’s seal of authority, they could not gain a better footing. They were treated as spies of the Danish King sent to probe into their private lives. To their disgusting horror the missionaries discovered the demoralised state of many