Every person who has held the office of Chautariya, Karyi, and Serdar, continues to enjoy the title for life; and, whenever a man is appointed to one of these dignities, all his brothers assume the title.
Military officers, named Serdars, frequently are appointed to command over different portions of the country, and, wherever they are, have a jurisdiction in all matters over the Subahs. In particular, their criminal jurisdiction is much more extensive, as they can condemn to capital punishment, without any reference to the court, while the Subah requires an order from thence before he can punish any criminal. Still more are the Subahs under the authority of the higher officers of state, the Chautariyas and Karyis, when any of these eight great officers of state are deputed in command to the provinces. The Serdars who visit the provinces do not always belong to the four great officers of this title, who with the four Chautariyas and four Karyis compose the great council of twelve, which assists the Raja to govern the nation. These great Serdars, like the other great officers of state, are occasionally deputed on high commands; but some Serdars, such as I have before mentioned, are, in general, stationary in different parts of the country, and have authority over all the Subahs and civil officers in their vicinity, although they are properly military men, for such are the only persons, Brahmans excepted, who are considered as entitled to any weight in the state. The Serdar in command at Vijaypur, I understand, receives 7000 rupees a-year, but out of this he pays his establishment. It is to these persons that communications from our provincial officers should be made, as the Subahs are considered as inferior characters.
There are thirty-six families of Gorkhalis, who should hold all the principal offices of government, and, in fact, have always held the greater part of them. A fuller detail of the condition and privileges of these families than I procured may be found in Colonel Kirkpatrick’s account. { 110} They are divided into three gradations, and the highest, consisting of six houses, are considered as having an exclusive right to the office of Karyi. When I was at Kathmandu, in 1802, by far the most powerful of these six houses were the Pangres and Viswanaths.