THE DELTA OF THE KRISHNA RIVER 49

made, every peasant silently prays for peace and plenty
in the coming year.

The rural evenings in these regions are calm and
restful. Somewhere a peasant sings on his way home;

c^ewhere, a band of villagers entone a chorus; along the
canals fires in the freight boats are lighted and, if the
moon rises early, the boatman's song lends charm to the
pale, white bulging sails that glide softly over the
canals fed by the waters of the Krishna and G-odavari.