LIBRARY 
 

 
 
 
 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON, 
 
 BY 
 
 LIEUT. DE BUTTS. 
 
 " Wherein of antres vast, and DESERTS IDLE, 
 Rough quarries, rocks, and hills whose heads touch heaven, 
 It was my hint to speak." 
 
 LONDON: 
 WM. H. ALLEN AND CO., 
 
 7, LEADENHALL STREET. 
 1841. 
 
IOAN STACK 
 
 Printed by J. L. Cox and Softs, 75, Great Queen Street, 
 Lincoln's Inn Fields. 
 
PEEFACE. 
 
 FROM Delhi to Cape Comorin, from the 
 banks of the Indus to those of the Brah- 
 maputra, every part of our vast Indian ter- 
 ritories has furnished an unfailing theme for 
 descriptive writers ; yet, strange to say, the 
 beautiful and romantic Island of Ceylon, 
 although almost touching, and, " if ancient 
 tales say true," formerly forming a continu- 
 ation of, the peninsula of Hindustan, has 
 hitherto remained enveloped in comparative 
 obscurity. It is true, indeed, that histories 
 of the island are not wanting; but lighter 
 works, giving those minute details of scenes 
 and impressions which, though interesting to 
 a 2 
 
VI PREFACE. 
 
 the general reader, are infinitely beneath the 
 dignity of history, are nowhere to be foniid. 
 It is after reflecting upon this hiatus in light 
 Oriental literature, that the author has ven- 
 tured to submit the following " Rambles 
 in Ceylon" to the reader, in the hope that 
 they may in some measure tend to obviate 
 the unmerited indifference generally enter- 
 tained towards that interesting and impor- 
 tant colony. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Ancient name of Ceylon Its former obscurity Causes 
 of this Conquest of the Dutch Possessions by the 
 British, and subsequent submission of the ;vhole 
 Island First view of the Ceylon Coast Its 
 picturesque aspect Canoes of Ceylon Arrival 
 at Colombo Description of the Fort of Co- 
 lombo , Page 1 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Effects of heat on Griffins Attacks of musquitoes 
 Prefer new-comers Such preference, though flatter- 
 ing, not in this case agreeable Merits of coffee in 
 the cool of the morning Aurora versus Hesperus- 
 Critique on the Portuguese in Ceylon Ditto on the 
 Dutch residents Horse-racing in the East Voyage 
 to Trincomalee Temple of Ramiseram Arrival at 
 Trincomalee .....Page 19 
 
Vlll CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Insalubrity of Trincomalee Elephant shooting Oc- 
 casional accidents at that amusement Such ac- 
 cidents any thing but amusing Narrow escape 
 from an elephant Rogue elephants Tusked ele- 
 phants, alias Tuskers Elephant kraals Fortifica- 
 tions of Trincomalee Candelay Lake Hot Wells of 
 Cannia Page 45 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Point de Galle Its advantages as a Steam Depot 
 Palanquins versus Coaches Anecdote of a Maldive 
 Chief Palace of Mount Lavinia Sir Edward 
 Barnes Curries of Ceylon Aripoo Pearl Fishery 
 Island of Manar Paumban Passage Improvements 
 therein Page 80 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 The Kandian provinces Coaches in Ceylon Novel 
 mode of propelling coach-horses Captain Dawson's 
 monument Peradinia Bridge River Mahavila- 
 ganga Flood of 1834 Kandian agriculture Ap- 
 pearance of Kandy Page 106 
 
CONTENTS. ix 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Kandy -r- Kandian palaces and temples Boodhoo - 
 Boodhaical religion The Mahawanse Kandian 
 women Requisites in female beauty A Kandian 
 belle The Rhodias The Veddah tribe Anec- 
 dote regarding them Observations on the Ved- 
 dahs Page 123 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Climate of Kandy Kandian Pavilion Military can- 
 tonments Kandian rebellion Doombera Plains- 
 Massacre of Major Davie's detachment Korne- 
 galle Tunnel Kandian troops- Guerilla warfare 
 suited to the Kandian country Abattis Kandian 
 artillery Page 153 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Newera Ellia Gampola Ceylon hotels or rest- 
 houses Pusilava Coffee-planting in Ceylon 
 Shadists and Anti-Shadists Coffee estates Sup- 
 ply of labour not equal to the demand Suggestions 
 thereon Page 173 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Forest of Pusilava Valley of Cotamalie Cataracts 
 of Rambodde Ceylon Snakes Ceylonese fable re- 
 garding the Cobra- di- Cap ello and the Tic Polonga 
 Sanctity of the Cobra, and character Tic Po- 
 longa The Pimbera, or Rock Snake Ceylon 
 Leeches Page 190 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Pass of Rambodde Caffre soldiers Caffre women 
 Their dances and mode of courtship Scenery of 
 Newera Ellia Pedrotallagalla Its elevation above 
 the sea View from its summit Reflections on the 
 Sublime and Beautiful, and Breakfast Page 202 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 Maturatta District Horton Plains Their recent dis- 
 covery Chetahs or Ceylon tigers Road to Badulla 
 View of Ouva Wilson Plains Ceylon Hunting 
 Club Elephant herds Mode of tracking them 
 Maximum height of elephants Page 221 
 
CONTENTS. XI 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Adam's Peak Tradition concerning Adam The Kalu 
 Ganga Scenery around Adam's Peak Anarajah- 
 poora Ski Maha Bodi Tree Its supposed sanctity 
 and eternal duration Ruins of the Sowamahapaaya 
 Dagobas Compared with the Pyramids of Egypt 
 Decline of Ceylon Attributable to the ruin of the 
 Roman Empire Page 232 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 Summary of Ceylon history Natural advantages 
 of the island, and moderate temperature Principal 
 rivers in Ceylon Want of roads System of Rajah 
 Carrier Its advantages and disadvantages Cin- 
 namon garden Revision of export duties The 
 advantages of free trade illustrated Concluding 
 observations Page 249 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Colonial Government Executive and Legislative Coun- 
 cils Civil Service of Ceylon Its defects Supreme 
 Court Clerical establishments Ceylon missionaries 
 The Island Press Troops in Ceylon Their sta- 
 
Xll CONTENTS. 
 
 tions and numerical force Ceylon Rifle Regiment- 
 Contrast between the Anglo-Indians and the Anglo- 
 CingaleseAttributable to various causes Departure 
 from Ceylon ...Page 271 
 
 APPENDIX Page 293 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Ancient name of Ceylon Its former obscurity Causes 
 of this Conquest of the Dutch Possessions by the 
 British, and subsequent submission of the whole 
 Island First view of the Ceylon Coast Its pic- 
 turesque aspect Canoes of Ceylon Arrival at 
 Colombo Description of the Fort of Colombo. 
 
 CEYLON was, in the olden time, known by 
 the name of Serendib. In the enchanting 
 " Arabian Nights," frequent mention is made 
 of the island, as the theatre of many of the 
 gorgeous scenes that are so splendidly de- 
 picted in those eastern tales. Serendib has 
 ever been a terra incognita, and, therefore, a 
 land of story and romance. 
 
 More than three hundred years have 
 B 
 
2 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 elapsed since the Portuguese first visited 
 Ceylon, and their subsequent settlement on 
 its western shores ; but neither the enter- 
 prising colonists of that nation, nor their 
 successors, the Dutch, ever succeeded in 
 their various attempts to establish a perma- 
 nent station within the country occupied by 
 the savage and independent aborigines, whose 
 territories comprised the whole of that ele- 
 vated region in the interior now denominated 
 the Kandian province, together with the flat 
 country extending northward to Anurajah- 
 poora, the ancient capital of the Kandian 
 dynasty. The European colonists were only 
 able to retain possession of the coast, and of 
 a belt of land encircling the island, varying 
 from twenty to thirty miles in breadth. This, 
 after many severe contests with the natives, 
 was secured to the Dutch by treaties, which 
 were, however, violated whenever the in- 
 terests of either of the contending parties 
 prompted them so to do. These constant 
 feuds had the effect of keeping up a spirit of 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 3 
 
 hostility, and the Dutch were regarded with 
 such suspicion and enmity, as to render it 
 dangerous for them to traverse the interior 
 of the island with a view of discovering the 
 resources of the country, and dispelling the 
 mist of obscurity in which, from time imme- 
 morial, the inland provinces had been en- 
 veloped. Other causes co-operated to pre- 
 vent the European invaders from obtaining 
 much insight into the character and resources 
 of the island. The early colonists were, 
 generally speaking, rapacious and illiterate ; 
 adventurers, whose chief aim was immediate 
 gain, wherewith to quit an unhealthy and 
 inhospitable shore. Such men were little 
 likely to encounter imminent risk amidst 
 inimical savages and pestilential swamps, in 
 an attempt to throw light on a subject that 
 had hitherto baffled inquiry. Thus the chief, 
 if not the only, knowledge of the interior of 
 Ceylon was derived from the hasty notes of 
 military officers, during the occasional incur- 
 sions made by the Dutch into the Kandian 
 
 B2 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 territory. These, however, were few and 
 scanty, and chiefly dwelt on the physical 
 sufferings of the troops in their painful 
 marches through the deadly jungles which 
 overspread the island. Harassed by a vigi- 
 lant enemy, and oppressed by the climate 
 and the want of supplies, the writers seem 
 to have had little leisure, and still less in- 
 clination, to observe the character and na- 
 tural advantages of the country through 
 which they advanced. 
 
 On the surrender of the Dutch posses- 
 sions to the British, in 1796, this state of 
 topographical ignorance still continued to 
 exist for several years. The fame of British 
 conquest on the Indian main had penetrated 
 even into the recesses of the Kandian jungles, 
 and, although they rejoiced at the uncere- 
 monious expulsion of their ancient enemies, 
 the dwellers therein could not but feel 
 alarmed at the near approach of a power, 
 compared to which the Dutch were utterly 
 insignificant. In the hope of overpowering 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 5 
 
 the British, before their hold of the country 
 was yet strengthened by time, and their 
 troops inured to the climate, the Kandian 
 monarch prepared to open hostilities against 
 them. The war thus forced on the British 
 was waged with various success, and ter- 
 minated without any cession on either side ; 
 but the numerous casualties caused by the 
 insalubrious climate would probably have 
 deterred the new invaders from a second 
 attempt to penetrate into the interior with 
 a military force. Fortune, however, be- 
 friended them ; and the kingdom that had 
 retained its independence against the re- 
 peated efforts of three European powers, 
 finally succumbed to the influence of internal 
 dissension. 
 
 The Kandian government was a pure des- 
 potism, and the sovereigns who successively 
 ruled were generally unsparing in the ex- 
 ercise of their unbounded prerogative, and 
 cruel in the execution of their judicial sen- 
 tences. Cruelty and dissimulation appear 
 
O RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 to have ever been the prominent charac- 
 teristics of the Kandian people, who were 
 accustomed to witness with indifference the 
 most horrid tortures inflicted with the sanc- 
 tion of law. But the ferocity of Sree 
 Wikreme Rajah Singha, who was the reign- 
 ing monarch in 1815, so far surpassed that 
 of his most tyrannical predecessors, as to 
 cause general disaffection and secret cabals 
 for the purpose of deposing him. The chief 
 adigar (a title which would seem to corre- 
 spond with that of viceroy) took advantage 
 of the rising discontent to declare against 
 his sovereign, and, conscious of his own weak- 
 ness, called upon the British for support and 
 the aid of a military force. Such a favour- 
 able conjuncture was eagerly seized upon, 
 and a strong detachment accordingly ad- 
 vanced to the assistance of the rebellious 
 vassal, which, with little difficulty, secured 
 the capital, and the person of the king. 
 This eastern Caligula was forthwith des- 
 patched to the fortress of Vellore, on the 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 7 
 
 Indian continent, where he remained " in 
 durance vile" during the rest of his life. 
 
 A secure footing in the centre of the 
 island having been thus established, every 
 precaution that could tend to secure its per- 
 manence was adopted. Nor did they prove 
 unnecessary; for the Kandians, when their 
 civil animosities began to subside, discovered 
 the fatal error they had committed by in- 
 voking the aid of interested auxiliaries. 
 Before the British power in the interior had 
 existed for two years, the native chieftains 
 put their hostile designs into execution, and 
 roused their countrymen to arms. But the 
 peaceable occupation of the capital and sur- 
 rounding country, even for the brief period 
 of two years, gave the new rulers over the 
 Kandian territory advantages that had never 
 been enjoyed by the Dutch or Portuguese. 
 To this circumstance must in some measure 
 be attributed the complete success that 
 attended the British operations in the war 
 that now raged throughout the island, the 
 
8 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 inmost recesses of which were everywhere 
 penetrated by the victorious European 
 troops. 
 
 The rebellion, or, to speak more correctly, 
 the war of independence, was at length uni- 
 versally quelled, and the hostile feelings of 
 the natives, which gave rise to it, gradually 
 subsided. 
 
 Since the termination of this outbreak, no 
 insurrection of importance has taken place, 
 and there is now no part of India where the 
 population is more pacifically inclined than 
 that of Ceylon. Thus, from the most persever- 
 ing and indomitable foes that Europeans have 
 encountered in the East, the natives of the 
 Kandian country have become the most tran- 
 quil and contented subjects that Britain con- 
 trols in her Oriental possessions. 
 
 Having thus briefly glanced at the history 
 of Ceylon, or rather of the kingdom, that, 
 until lately, existed in the heart of the island, 
 and occupied its fairest provinces, the reader 
 will probably feel the more interested in con- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 templating the present position and prospects 
 of this thriving colony, which the writer, 
 whose professional duties led him to reside 
 in Ceylon from 1836 until the close of the 
 past year, will endeavour to sketch in the 
 course of the following papers. During his 
 stay, he visited the principal places in the 
 island, and as detailed accounts of them are 
 not to be found in any work on British India, 
 a general description of them will not, it is 
 presumed, be considered superfluous or unin- 
 teresting. Dispensing, therefore, with the 
 somewhat threadbare subject of a voyage to 
 India by the Cape route, the numerous ac- 
 counts of which have nearly palled the public 
 appetite, he will at once plunge in mediae 
 res, and commence with his first view of the 
 shores of Ceylon. 
 
 Ships from Europe bound for Ceylon usu- 
 ally make the land in the vicinity of Dondra 
 Head, the most southern point of the island, 
 where the inland country is hilly and the 
 coast particularly bold. Nothing regarding 
 
10 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 India is, perhaps, more generally known in 
 Europe than the tameness and uniformity 
 that characterize the long line of the coast 
 of Hindustan; but the southern, and more 
 particularly the south-eastern coast of Ceylon 
 is the converse of this. Instead of a low 
 sandy shore, fringed with coco-nut trees and 
 palmyras, " few and far between," which our 
 previously-conceived ideas of eastern scenery 
 had led us to anticipate, we beheld thickly- 
 wooded hills, rising abruptly from the water's 
 edge, and a country clad in an universal 
 green, only varied by the occasional appear- 
 ance of some bold and naked rock, while far 
 in the distance loomed Adam's Peak, tower- 
 ing over the comparatively low mountains 
 that surround it. 
 
 The whole of the southern coast of Cey- 
 lon, when viewed from the sea, is highly 
 picturesque and romantic. Nature appears 
 to have delighted in forming this part of the 
 island into a seeming chaos of hill and dale. 
 The rocky summits of the mountains are 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 11 
 
 thrown into the most fantastic shapes. Im- 
 pregnable castles, with innumerable turrets, 
 bartizans, and " coignes of vantage," appear 
 to frown defiance. As the spectator sails 
 along the coast, these rocky combinations 
 fade away, and are replaced by others equally 
 curious and striking. 
 
 In the interior of India, there are doubt- 
 less many scenes of nature rivalling, or, per- 
 haps, surpassing the magnificence of the 
 most romantic provinces of Ceylon ; but the 
 bold and wild coast of the island stands un- 
 rivalled by any part of the Indian peninsula. 
 This description of the Ceylon coast must, 
 however, be understood only to apply to that 
 portion of it most remote from the Indian 
 continent. As the adjacent shores approach, 
 they seem also to approximate in their gene- 
 ral features and aspect, until, in the vicinity 
 of Jaffna, on the northern coast, the distinc- 
 tion is reduced to nothing more than the 
 greater appearance of wood on the island 
 than on the main land. 
 
12 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 With the view of benefiting by the land- 
 wind, that usually prevails at night even 
 when the most perfect calms are experienced 
 during the day, we kept close to the western 
 shore of the island, which we were thus en- 
 abled closely to reconnoitre. At the close 
 of day, a ripple on the face of the placid 
 deep announced the coming of the hoped- 
 for breeze. A few hours' sailing with this 
 constant yet light zephyr brought us within 
 sight of the Colombo light-house. 
 
 When day broke, we found ourselves 
 within a few miles of the fort of Colombo, 
 and in the midst of a fleet of Ceylon canoes, 
 which are of a very peculiar construction, 
 not met with elsewhere in India. By means 
 of a floating log of wood, termed an outrig- 
 ger, and attached to the canoes by slightly 
 arched spars of ten or twelve feet in length, 
 which project at right angles from the gun- 
 wales of the boats, the frail vessels are pre- 
 vented from capsizing ; and so safe are they 
 thus rendered, that they live in a heavy sea, 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 13 
 
 and rarely meet with any serious accident. 
 They carry one large sail, which, even with 
 the lightest breath of air, propels the slight 
 skiff over the water at a surprising rate. 
 These craft came off in great numbers to the 
 ship with fruit, fish, and bread. The pine- 
 apples, which were sold for a fan am (l^d.), 
 were eagerly purchased by the new-comers 
 from England, to whom the price demanded 
 seemed marvellous. With the exception of 
 the delicious pine-apple, there are few fruits 
 in the island worthy of mention. The land 
 of the East is generally associated with a 
 profusion of fruit, but those who arrive with 
 such an impression are invariably' disap- 
 pointed. Thanks to the eternal summer 
 of Ceylon, the best fruits, the pine-apple, 
 the plaintain, the pummelow, or shadock, 
 as it is called in the West-Indies, are 
 always procurable ; but whether on ac- 
 count of their abundance and consequent 
 familiarity, or of their generally indifferent 
 flavour, they are little relished by Euro- 
 
14 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 pean residents, and frequently leave the table 
 untouched. 
 
 Before noon, on the 7th of March, 1836, 
 we came to anchor in the roads of Colombo. 
 The roadstead is much exposed to the vio- 
 lence of the south-west monsoon, but from 
 October to March, inclusive, the sea on the 
 western shores of Ceylon is " unrippled as 
 glass may be." Large ships usually anchor 
 nearly a mile from the land ; but there is 
 sufficient water for the coasting craft imme- 
 diately under the guns of the fort, which 
 stands on a projecting tongue of land, and 
 has a fine appearance when viewed from the 
 sea. No time was lost in effecting a landing. 
 None, save those who have doubled the Cape, 
 can appreciate the luxury of treading on terra 
 firma, after a four months' imprisonment on 
 board ship. On such an occasion, the most 
 phlegmatic share in the general excitement, 
 and cheerfulness usurps the place of the pre- 
 vious ennui, which, towards the close of a 
 long voyage, usually reigns in all its terrors. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 15 
 
 Here no surf rolls eternally, as at Madras 
 and the adjacent coast, nor are "moving 
 accidents by flood" chronicled as having 
 often occurred in the harbour of Colombo. 
 Without any adventure, we accordingly 
 made our way to the landing-place, and 
 from thence to our respective abodes. Hos- 
 pitality is said to be the virtue most culti- 
 vated in India, and it is certainly true that 
 more attention is shewn to strangers in our 
 Eastern possessions, than they would expe- 
 rience in their native land. Many causes 
 combine to produce this effect. In India 
 there are no inns, or places of public accom- 
 modation worthy of that name ; the wayfarer 
 is thus thrown on the commiseration of a 
 sympathizing public, who feel bound not to 
 allow the absence of " mine host " to be felt 
 as an inconvenience by the traveller. The 
 monotony of country stations in India is an 
 additional inducement to the exercise of 
 hospitality ; the presence of a stranger is 
 an excellent excuse for a " gathering " at 
 
16 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 the house where he is located. The scan- 
 dal of the Mofussil is exchanged for the 
 gossip of the Carnatic, and the guest thus 
 repays the attentions of his entertainer. In 
 this respect, Colombo forms no exception to 
 the customs of India. The party, of which 
 I was an unit, speedily found themselves 
 domiciled in the houses of sundry good 
 Samaritans. A large proportion of the 
 European residents at Colombo live without 
 the walls of the fort, in which the tempera- 
 ture is much higher than in the less confined 
 suburbs that extend on either side of the 
 works along the sea-shore. All public offices 
 and the principal buildings are, however, 
 within the fort, which is, therefore, the great 
 resort " where merchants most do congre- 
 gate." The streets, as in the generality of 
 military works, run at right angles with each 
 other, and are sufficiently wide and well 
 ventilated. A great portion of the space 
 within the enceinte of the fort is occupied by 
 the residence of the governor, or, as it is 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 17 
 
 usually termed, " the Queen's House." This 
 building is long and straggling, but redeems 
 the general character of the surrounding 
 houses, which are, for the most part, insig- 
 nificant in appearance, and at once destroy 
 the illusive anticipations of Oriental luxury 
 that a griffin is apt to cherish. 
 
 The fortress of Colombo owes its strength 
 rather to nature than art. It is an irre- 
 gular octagon, having five of its fronts 
 washed by the sea, and the remainder to- 
 wards the land covered by an extensive 
 sheet of water, generally denominated the 
 Colombo Lake, to which lofty appellation 
 it is, however, scarcely entitled. Thus the 
 works are nearly insulated, and can be ap- 
 proached by a besieging force only at the 
 points where the narrow strips of ground, 
 that intervene between the sea and the lake, 
 connect the fort with the adjacent country. 
 The Portuguese commenced, and the Dutch 
 completed and improved, the fortification, 
 which is per se highly respectable ; but, as 
 
18 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 before observed, its chief strength consists 
 in the deep and broad watery barrier with 
 which nature has encircled the whole of the 
 enceinte. In short, the fort of Colombo is 
 infinitely superior to any other military 
 work in Ceylon, and in India is second only 
 to Fort William at Calcutta. Like that 
 celebrated fortification, it glories no longer 
 in the honourable appellation of a virgin 
 fortress, the Dutch having yielded it on the 
 first summons of the British, in 1796. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 19 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Effects of heat on Griffins Attacks of musquitoes 
 Prefer new-comers Such preference, though flatter- 
 ing, not in this case agreeable Merits of coffee in 
 the cool of the morning Aurora versus Hesperus 
 Critique on the Portuguese in Ceylon Ditto on the 
 Dutch residents Horse-racing in the East Voyage 
 to Trincomalee Temple of Ramiseram Arrival at 
 Trincomalee. 
 
 To a new-comer from Europe, the burn- 
 ing heat of the noon-tide sun in India is 
 perhaps less oppressive than to old residents 
 in tropical climes. It has more effect on 
 his constitution, and exposure to the .sun is 
 more likely to injure the health of the 
 recruit than that of the veteran. But the 
 actual sense of lassitude and exhaustion is 
 far more sensibly felt by those who have 
 long resided in debilitating climates than by 
 men who, freteh from their native land, bring 
 
20 RAMBLES IN CEYLOX. 
 
 greater physical powers to contend with the 
 eternal heat. Like Antaeus in his combat 
 with Hercules, the European derives from 
 his mother earth a supply of strength, which 
 requires an occasional renewal to compen- 
 sate for the constant drain of a perennial 
 summer. 
 
 But whatever may be the comparative 
 daily sufferings of Europeans long resident 
 in India, and of those recently arrived, there 
 can be no question as to the greater misery 
 of the new-comers during the still and sultry 
 nights of the tropics. A fresh importation 
 from England is a god-send to the villainous 
 musquitoes, whose annoyance is one of the 
 greatest of the minor ills of life in warm 
 latitudes. The bite of a musquito is not 
 painful, and might be borne without repining 
 by any person blessed with a tolerable stock 
 of Christian resignation, were it not that the 
 buzzing of the insect, previous to its attack, 
 induces a feverish restlessness, that most 
 effectually murders sleep. If the reader 
 
EAMBLES IN CEYLON. 21 
 
 calls to mind the unpleasant feeling which 
 the near approach of a wasp creates, he will 
 easily imagine the nervous anxiety that is 
 experienced by a griffin* when he is first 
 aroused by the buzzing salutations of the 
 musquito. The first few nights in the East 
 are, in this manner, rendered so wretched, 
 that the sufferer, on rising at day-break, 
 feels half-inclined to exclaim with Clarence : 
 
 " I would not pass another such a night 
 Though 'twere to buy a world of happy days." 
 
 It has long been, and long may it con- 
 tinue to be, customary in Ceylon to take a 
 cup of coffee in the morning, as a prelimi- 
 nary to dressing. After a sleepless night, 
 coffee is a delightful restorative. As you 
 quaff the delicious beverage, all reminiscen- 
 ces of your nightly miseries, the musquitoes, 
 fade away, and, as if you had partaken of 
 the waters of Lethe, you rise like a giant 
 refreshed, and sally forth to enjoy the cool- 
 
 * A term applied to all Europeans lately arrived in 
 India. 
 
22 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 ness of the morning air ere the rays of the 
 sun become oppressive. The hour after the 
 dawn of day, above all others, is the most 
 delightful in the Eastern world. The 
 ground is cooled by the long absence of the 
 sun's rays from its surface, and the tempera- 
 ture of the air until seven o'clock is suffi- 
 ciently agreeable and exhilarating. All the 
 world take advantage of this short interval 
 of time, and are to be seen at the v favourite 
 lounge of the station. The twilight may be 
 preferred in more temperate regions, but in 
 the tropics the dawn is more salubrious and 
 refreshing. Hesperus may be invoked in 
 Europe, but in Asia the votaries of Aurora 
 will ever predominate. 
 
 There are several rides in the vicinity of 
 Colombo, of which the most fashionable and 
 agreeable are those through the cinnamon 
 gardens. The term " garden " is, in this case, 
 a misnomer, for there is nothing in the mode 
 of planting and arranging the cinnamon trees 
 to realize the ideas conveyed by the word ; 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 23 
 
 the cinnamon shrub is, on the contrary, of 
 an unprepossessing appearance. The plan- 
 tations of this valuable spice in the vicinity 
 of Colombo are very extensive, and more 
 valuable than any others in the island. The 
 trees are not allowed to exceed the height 
 of eight or nine feet, as, after attaining a 
 greater altitude, they degenerate in value. 
 The popular phrase of " the spicy groves of 
 Araby the blest" is, as far as Ceylon is con- 
 cerned, a poetic illusion. The strong and 
 delicious scent arising from the cinnamon 
 tree exists only in Oriental fable ; little or 
 no smell is perceptible, except during the 
 cutting season, when a slight odour is emitted 
 from the lately-cut branches ; but as this is 
 only to be detected by one in their imme- 
 diate vicinity, the tale concerning the spicy 
 breezes that are inhaled off the coast of 
 Ceylon, which has appeared in some works 
 generally deserving of credit, savours some- 
 what of the marvellous. 
 
 The Pettah, or Black Town, of Colombo, 
 
24 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 is densely populated by natives, in whose 
 features may be observed every possible 
 variety between those of the fair European 
 and the sable negro. This variety of colour 
 and countenance only exists in the neigh- 
 bourhood of large European stations, where 
 the Dutch, and more particularly the Portu- 
 guese, have intermarried with the natives. 
 The descendants of the Portuguese colonists 
 are, almost without exception, degenerate 
 in the extreme. Not the remotest trace of 
 the spirit and enterprise that led their fore- 
 fathers, the bold navigators of the sixteenth 
 century, to these distant shores, is observable 
 in their posterity now resident in Ceylon. 
 To this general observation there are, of 
 course, honourable exceptions ; but the moral 
 and physical degeneracy of the Indo-Portu- 
 guese is, nevertheless, proverbial. 
 
 The Dutch, who are still numerous in 
 the scene of their former conquest, afford a 
 striking contrast to the fallen Lusitanians, 
 with whom they rarely, if ever, associate. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 25 
 
 In their deportment towards that unhappy 
 race, they seem to have imbibed from the 
 Spaniards the idea of immeasurable superi- 
 ority which is expressed in Childe Harold : 
 
 " Full well the Spanish hind the difference doth know 
 'Twixt him and Lusian slave, the lowest of the low." 
 
 In no respect are they changed. Honest 
 and industrious, they obtain universal re- 
 spect. This wide dissimilarity may in some 
 measure be attributed to the cold and phleg- 
 matic character of their nation, which recoils 
 from that familiarity and intercourse with 
 the natives which have proved so injurious to 
 the Portuguese. The Dutch have ever been 
 severe and despotic in the government of 
 their colonies. To rule by the influence of 
 fear appears to have been the sole aim and 
 principal maxim of their colonial policy. 
 Their predecessors in Ceylon, the Portuguese, 
 adopted a less stern mode of government, 
 and admitted the natives of rank into their 
 armies and colonial legislatures. They were 
 repaid by treachery, which deprived them of 
 
26 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 the flower of their troops, and eventually of 
 the island. Warned by their fate, their 
 conquerors went into the opposite extreme, 
 and their tyranny rivalled that of the 
 Spaniards towards the unhappy aborigines 
 of the New World. To steer between 
 these political rocks, upon which the Portu- 
 guese and Dutch have respectively struck, 
 has been the study of the British Govern- 
 ment, and it may safely be affirmed that 
 this policy is already reaping its deserved 
 reward, in the affections and respect of the 
 Cingalese. 
 
 The suburbs or Pettah of Colombo extend 
 three or four miles from the fort, and are 
 inhabited by at least fifty thousand people. 
 The surrounding country is generally flat, 
 but the landscape, although possessing none 
 of- the wild grandeur that characterizes the 
 interior provinces, is redeemed from insi- 
 pidity by the pleasing appearance of the 
 lake, which, though of insignificant breadth, 
 is of considerable length. A few pleasure- 
 
EAMBLES IN CEYLON. 27 
 
 boats, skimming over its surface, add to the 
 animation of the scene, and afford the means 
 of enjoying aquatic excursions, which, above 
 all others, are the most delightful recreation 
 in the tropics. 
 
 In Ceylon scenery, the absence of water 
 frequently detracts from the beauty of the 
 landscape, which, being usually clad with the 
 foliage of the tropics, requires some relief to 
 its uniformity. There are not, as in more 
 populous lands, any villages, rustic farms, or 
 cultivated fields, which animate, and, as it 
 were, clothe the face of nature. In the 
 wild and unpeopled regions of the island, 
 the eye of the tourist feasts only on the 
 glories of nature, unaided by the works of 
 art and the labours of man. Although the 
 contemplation of the vast, silent, and imper- 
 vious forests, that cover the greater portion 
 of Ceylon, never fails to interest the lover of 
 scenery, he yet feels that the presence of a 
 brawling mountain torrent or of an expanse 
 of water is necessary to perfect the most 
 c2 
 
28 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 romantic prospect that can be afforded by a 
 savage country. 
 
 The favourite promenade of the colonists 
 is a strip of ground, called the Galle Face, 
 and forming part of the glacis of the fort. 
 It is inclosed between the sea and the lake, 
 to which favourable circumstance of locality 
 is owing the preference shewn it, and it 
 extends nearly a mile along the sea-shore. 
 Being tolerably level, the Galle Face has 
 been selected as a race-course. Racing in the 
 East is generally prolonged for several days, 
 as the interval of the brief tropical twilights 
 necessarily limits the number of races during 
 an evening to two, or at most three. This 
 national amusement is kept up at several of 
 the principal stations in India, and although 
 Anglo-Indian races are not to be compared 
 with those of England in most points, they 
 yet have some peculiar merits. The riders, 
 without exception, are gentlemen ; arid a 
 spirit of fairness, and the absence of all 
 trickery, are the natural consequences. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 29 
 
 Colombo is the head-quarter station of 
 two British infantry regiments. The other 
 European corps in the island are quartered 
 at Kandy, and in Fort Frederick, at Trinco- 
 malee. The regiment to which I belonged 
 being stationed at the latter place at the 
 period of my arrival, my stay at Colombo 
 on first landing was limited to a few days ; 
 and before the zest of novelty had worn off, 
 I was again on the deep, en route for Trinco- 
 malee. The name of this station is, perhaps, 
 more familiar to European ears than any 
 other place in Ceylon. Its splendid harbour 
 has obtained for Trincomalee a celebrity to 
 which it can lay but few other claims, for it 
 is not a favourite quarter on account of its 
 acknowledged insalubrity, and of its isolation 
 from the rest of the island, with which the 
 chief communication is carried on by sea. 
 There are, indeed, roads leading to both 
 Jaffna and Kandy, but these afford so few 
 conveniences to the traveller, and that to 
 the latter place is so unhealthy, that, except 
 
30 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 in urgent cases, the circuitous and tedious 
 voyage by sea is chosen in preference to the 
 direct but insalubrious route by land. 
 
 The small coasting vessels that constantly 
 ply between Colombo and Trincomalee are, 
 by reason of their trifling draught of water, 
 enabled to choose between the voyage by 
 way of Point Pedro and that by DondraHead, 
 the extreme northern and southern points of 
 the island. Their choice is regulated by the 
 monsoons, which alternately prevail from the 
 north-east and south-west. The former com- 
 mences about October, and continues until 
 the -end of March or the beginning of April. 
 With the exception of a short interval of 
 calms at the equinoxes, the south-west mon- 
 soon blows steadily, and frequently with 
 great violence, during the remainder of the 
 year. 
 
 As, at the period of my departure from 
 Colombo, the monsoon was from the north- 
 east, the route by way of Point Pedro, which 
 leads through the intricate and shallow pas- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 31 
 
 sage of the Paumban, was preferred. In 
 the vicinity of Paumban the navigation is 
 impeded by a ledge of rocks, which, running 
 nearly due east, extends across the narrow 
 sea between the island and the Indian main. 
 In March, 1836, there were barely five feet 
 of water over the rocky barrier. The country 
 craft were accordingly compelled to unload 
 their cargoes until their draught was suffi- 
 ciently reduced to allow of their navigating 
 the passage. The Madras Government, in 
 concert with that of Ceylon, have since that 
 period undertaken to remove this great na- 
 tural obstacle to the coast navigation. 
 
 The uncertain winds and calms, which pre- 
 vail during the few weeks that intervene be- 
 tween the expiration and commencement of 
 the alternate monsoons, render the voyage 
 from Colombo to Trincomalee at those periods 
 of the year tedious and of long continuance. 
 These seasons of calms occur in April and 
 September, which are, consequently, the 
 most oppressive months in the year. Whilst 
 
32 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 the slightest breath of air is felt, a very high 
 temperature is endurable ; but when the 
 breeze dies away, the same atmosphere be- 
 comes intolerable. The thermometer indi- 
 cates the actual intensity of heat, but is no 
 test of the degree in which that heat affects 
 the sensations of those exposed to its in- 
 fluence. This truth is fully appreciated by 
 every dweller in the tropics, who has expe- 
 rienced the oppressive feelings produced by 
 the constant lulls that take place, when the 
 violence of the one monsoon is expended, 
 and is not yet succeeded by that of the 
 other. 
 
 The tedium of a voyage performed under 
 such circumstances was broken by occasional 
 glimpses of the Coromandel coast, and of the 
 numerous and wooded islets that are thickly 
 scattered in the narrow strait which separates 
 Ceylon from the Indian continent. That 
 part of the coast of Hindustan immediately 
 opposite Ceylon is extremely monotonous 
 and tame. A long line of sand, with here 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 33 
 
 and there a low prickly shrub (mimosa) are 
 all that meet the eye, upon which this first 
 view of the Indian main-land makes any 
 thing but a favourable impression. In this 
 vicinity, the only object of interest to the 
 traveller is the celebrated temple of Ramise- 
 ram, which, like the tomb of Mahomet, 
 attracts pilgrims to its shrines from far dis- 
 tant shores. It stands on a small oblong 
 island, which bears its name, and is about 
 seven miles in length, and nearly half as 
 broad. The natives have a tradition, that 
 the isle of Ramiseram was in other days con- 
 nected by land with both Hindustan and 
 Ceylon. The rocky ledge extending across 
 the interval of sea between Manar and Ram- 
 nad, at the points where the shores of the 
 island and of the continent most nearly ap- 
 proach each other, is, in the opinion of the 
 wise men of the East, the remaining vestige 
 of this ancient isthmus. This opinion is 
 strengthened by the frequent occurrence of 
 islands and sandbanks on the line of the sup- 
 c3 
 
34 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 posed communication ; but however this may 
 be with regard to Ceylon, the former con- 
 nection of the isle of Ramiseram with the 
 Indian continent is generally admitted. The 
 intervening expanse of sea is not considerable, 
 and its entire width is occupied by a well- 
 defined line of rocks, by means of which the 
 natives are enabled to punt their canoes and 
 fishing-boats from the main land to the 
 island. On either side of this chain of rocks, 
 and at immediately opposite points, roads 
 paved with large flat stones approach the 
 edge of the water, and seem to indicate that 
 the space now covered by the sea was for- 
 merly traversed by this artificial work, which 
 must have required considerable labour and 
 time in its construction. Such, at least, is 
 the belief of the natives, who further assert, 
 that the object of this ground communication 
 was to facilitate the annual transit of the car 
 of Juggernaut from the temples of Ramise- 
 ram to those of Madura, a place in southern 
 India. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 35 
 
 The principal landing-place is at a point 
 of the island, distant nearly six miles from 
 the temple. As you ride along on one of 
 the numerous ponies or tatties provided for 
 the use of the pilgrims, you see on every side 
 innumerable minor temples and sacred tanks, 
 which, for the most part, are in a good state 
 of preservation, and in many instances worthy 
 of notice. Every object seems to announce 
 that the spot whereon you stand is holy 
 ground : the road constructed for religious 
 purposes the troops of pilgrims who, on 
 foot and on horseback, wend their way to 
 the far-famed temple the numerous edifices 
 consecrated to religion and, above all, the 
 multitude of priests in their flowing white 
 robes, and with the emblems of their high 
 caste and sacred calling marked on their 
 foreheads, impress the most frivolous mind 
 with feelings of veneration, and cause the 
 proud European to look with more respect 
 than is his wont on the way-worn victims of 
 superstition that surround him. This feeling 
 
36 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 is further increased by the first view of the 
 temple, as in solemn grandeur its ponderous 
 and ornamented front appears towering above 
 the petty village at its base. The sacred 
 building is inclosed by a lofty wall, which 
 bars all egress or ingress save by two grand 
 entrances on the eastern and western sides. 
 Vastness, that necessary adjunct to magni- 
 ficence, is not wanting here. - The external 
 aspect of the immense pile does not belie its 
 high reputation, or disappoint the anticipa- 
 tions of the traveller ; but although the ex- 
 terior of the temple, particularly on the wes- 
 tern side, has an imposing appearance, the 
 curiosity of the visitor to behold its interior 
 seldom allows him to linger long without its 
 holy precincts. 
 
 After making a cursory survey of the out- 
 ward appearance of the edifice, the party 
 that accompanied the writer entered by the 
 eastern gate. We found the interior space 
 divided by long narrow passages, which, 
 cutting each other at right angles, form 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 37 
 
 large squares and rectangles. These are 
 occupied either by tanks of holy water or 
 some small and isolated sacred building. 
 The pilgrims descend into the tanks, which 
 may be compared to so many pools of Be- 
 thesda, by means of broad flights of stone 
 steps, that are constructed on every side of 
 the squares, and give a noble effect to these 
 baths. Numbers of devotees were perform- 
 ing their ablutions, which, after their toil- 
 some journey over the sandy plains of the 
 Carnatic, must have proved as beneficial to 
 their bodies as to their souls. The Orien- 
 tal mode of bathing, it may be observed en 
 passant, differs materially from the custom 
 of Europeans. Instead of plunging into the 
 water, the native of the East is usually pas- 
 sive during the operation of bathing, which 
 is performed for him by another individual, 
 who repeatedly pours the contents of an 
 earthen jar upon the head of the bather. 
 In the absence of a chatty, as this globular 
 earthen vessel so universal in India is 
 
38 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 termed, the natives adopt a system of duck- 
 ing themselves under water several times in 
 rapid succession, until the body is sufficiently 
 cooled and refreshed by repeated immer- 
 sions. The loud splashing of water and the 
 constant hum of conversation amongst the 
 bathers of Ramiseram would disturb the 
 devotions of men less engrossed by religious 
 meditation than the pilgrims who constantly 
 crowd the surrounding places of worship. 
 
 The minor temples, which fill up the 
 intervening spaces between these sacred 
 tanks, are generally uniform and simple in 
 appearance. They are for the most part 
 crowned by long tapering spires, which pro- 
 duce a pleasing and peculiar effect. The 
 long galleries connecting these domes arrest 
 the attention chiefly on account of the enor- 
 mous slabs of stone employed in their con- 
 struction, and the numerous gigantic images 
 and statues that line their entire length. 
 The statues are those of Vishnu, Siva, and 
 of various other Hindu gods, who are repre- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 39 
 
 sented either in a recumbent or standing 
 attitude, but for the most part in the latter 
 position. 
 
 To a critical eye, some of these figures 
 would doubtless appear sufficiently gro- 
 tesque. Byron's description of Newstead 
 Abbey may give an idea of the tout ensemble 
 of the interior appearance of the temple. 
 
 " Huge halls, long galleries, spacious chambers, joined 
 By no quite lawful marriage of the arts, 
 
 Might shock a connoisseur ; but when combined, 
 Formed a whole, which, irregular in parts, 
 
 Yet left a grand impression on the mind 
 
 At least of those whose eyes are in their hearts." 
 
 A large portion of the interior space is cut 
 off from the rest of the edifice. Into this 
 sanctified place, the European unbeliever is 
 not permitted to enter ; but from within the 
 sound of music constantly arises, and ever 
 and anon the dark eyes of the vestal virgins, 
 who form the choir, glance beneath the 
 raised tapestry. 
 
 No entreaties or bribes could induce the 
 flinty janitor who guarded the portals of this 
 
40 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 terrestrial paradise to allow the foot of an 
 infidel to pollute the apartments occupied 
 by these dusky beauties. 'Nothing respect- 
 ing this interesting part of the temple could 
 be discovered by our party, who, though 
 baffled in their attempt to reconnoitre the 
 innermost penetralia of the sacred pile, 
 were, nevertheless, highly gratified, and 
 more than repaid for their arduous march 
 over the sandy island under a burning sun. 
 
 This visit to Ramiseram relieved the 
 monotony of our voyage to Trincomalee, 
 which, in a miserable country craft, was 
 uninteresting and tedious. After leaving 
 the sacred site of Ramiseram, nothing is to 
 be seen on the savage coast of Ceylon until 
 you arrive at Jaffnapatam, the chief military 
 post and civil agency in the north of the 
 island. The coast in this vicinity has none 
 of the bold features that characterize the 
 southern shores of Ceylon, nor does the face 
 of the inland country, which is flat and 
 tame, redeem the unpleasing aspect of the 
 
RAMBLES Ifo CEYLON. 41 
 
 sandy and level coast. But, in the eyes of 
 the political economist, Jaffna has more 
 sterling merits than those that belong to 
 scenery. Art has here atoned for the ab- 
 sence of the beauties of nature, and the 
 smiling fields, fertile lands, and excellent 
 roads, that everywhere meet the eye, in- 
 demnify the spectator for the absence of 
 those wild and uncultivated scenes, which 
 are by far too common in a land as yet but 
 partially reclaimed by the hand of man. 
 
 In its high cultivation and fertile plains, 
 this place rather partakes of the character- 
 istics of the neighbouring continent than of 
 those of the island within the limits of which 
 it is comprised. It is chiefly peopled by 
 emigrants from Hindustan, as are many of 
 the villages on the northern coast of Ceylon. 
 Many Dutch families of respectability, at- 
 tracted by the salubrity of the climate and 
 the fertility of the soil, have selected the 
 vicinity of Jaffna as a residence, to which 
 circumstance may, in a great degree, be 
 
42 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 attributed the superior industry and intelli- 
 gence that mark the inhabitants of the town 
 and neighbouring country. The English 
 society is confined to two or three officers of 
 the small garrison, and a few gentlemen of 
 the civil service. The military occupy a 
 fort, built by the Dutch, and in a good state 
 of repair. Like the town in general, the 
 works are kept in order with a most fasti- 
 dious attention to neatness of appearance. 
 In this respect the fort deserves praise ; but 
 as a military work, it is unworthy of notice. 
 After weathering Point Pedro, the most 
 northern extremity of the island, the north- 
 east monsoon, which had hitherto been ad- 
 verse> speedily wafted us to our destination. 
 The coast between Jaffna and Trincomalee 
 is nearly uninhabited, and covered with 
 dense jungle, which, however, is occasionally 
 diversified by wide and beautiful plains, 
 where the wild pig, the deer, and the buffalo 
 are to be met with in vast herds. Of these 
 plains, that of Cutchivelly, from its vicinity 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 43 
 
 to Trincomalee, is much frequented by the 
 sportsmen of that station, who, ever and 
 anon, commit fearful havoc amongst the 
 wild and savage denizens of the surround- 
 ing woods. 
 
 These openings in the pathless forest are 
 rarely visible from the sea. A long line of 
 cocoa-nut trees fringes the edge of the jungle, 
 and conceals the inland country. The high 
 rocky promontory on which the fort of 
 Trincomalee, or, as it is usually termed, 
 Fort Frederick, stands, agreeably relieves 
 the uniformity of this part of the coast. 
 The flag-staff being on the highest point of 
 the elevated ground, inclosed within the 
 walls of the fort, is visible from the sea at a 
 considerable distance. Immediately under, 
 and commanded by, the guns of the fortress, 
 is an anchorage for small craft, which, how- 
 ever, is exposed to the north-east, and only 
 frequented during the prevalence of the 
 south-west monsoon. The small bay con- 
 taining this anchorage is partly formed by 
 
44 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 the projecting peninsula inclosed within the 
 works of Fort Frederick, which, towards the 
 sea, is rendered impregnable by the perpen- 
 dicular and lofty rocks that skirt the whole 
 of that portion of the enceinte which is 
 washed by the waters of the bay. The 
 frowning heights, crowned with redoubts, 
 and bristling with artillery, impress the spec- 
 tator with an idea of their military strength, 
 if not of impregnability; which, however, 
 a closer inspection speedily and completely 
 removes. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 45 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 Insalubrity of Trincomalee Elephant shooting Occa- 
 sional accidents at that amusement Such accidents 
 any thing but amusing Narrow escape from an ele- 
 phant Rogue elephants Tusked elephants, alias 
 Tuskers. Elephant kraals Fortifications of Trinco- 
 malee Candelay Lake Hot Wells of Cannia. 
 
 THE houses in the fort of Trincomalee are 
 exclusively occupied by the military. The 
 officers' quarters are at the base of the high 
 ground, already spoken of, and on that ac- 
 count more salubrious than the buildings 
 that crown the heights. In India, the sum- 
 mits of hills are proverbially unhealthy, as 
 they get the benefit of the malaria arising 
 from the low country around them, which 
 continues to envelope them long after the 
 valleys are freed from its presence. This 
 fact appears to have escaped the attention 
 
46 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 of the authorities who sanctioned the build- 
 ing of barracks on the hilly ground within 
 the walls of Fort Frederick. In conse- 
 quence of this violation of all sanitary rules, 
 Trincomalee has always formed an excep- 
 tion to the general salubrity of the military 
 stations in Ceylon. When the writer re- 
 sided there, the mortality among the Euro- 
 pean troops was little less than that of the 
 West-Indies, which is usually estimated at 
 twelve per cent, annually. Yet there were 
 at that time few or no cases of cholera ; a 
 disease which appears more rarely in Ceylon 
 than on the Indian continent. Fevers and 
 dysentery, the maladies chiefly incidental to 
 tropical climes, were the principal causes of 
 the mortality. Neither the officers of the 
 garrison, nor the civilians resident in the 
 immediate vicinity of the fort, suffered in pro- 
 portion. No casualty from sickness occurred 
 amongst them. This medical enigma can 
 only be solved by attributing superior salu- 
 brity to sites on level ground ; for although 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 47 
 
 exposure to night air, and the want of the 
 luxuries which are so indispensable in the 
 East, usually cause a greater mortality 
 among the European troops in India than 
 among those of their countrymen moving in 
 a higher sphere of society, the wide distinc- 
 tion observable at Trincomalee cannot be 
 accounted for by these general causes. 
 
 Were it not that this station has obtained 
 a character of extreme insalubrity, there are 
 advantages belonging to the place that 
 would render it a quarter rather popular 
 than otherwise. To the lover of aquatic 
 excursions, the noble harbour to which Trin- 
 comalee gives its name unites all the charms 
 that the most fastidious could require. 
 Within its broad expanse are many romantic 
 islets, on one of which a bungalow has been 
 built by the officers of the squadron in the 
 East-Indies, of which Trincomalee is the 
 head-quarter station. The bungalow is the 
 favourite resort of the officers of the men-of- 
 war lying in the harbour, and also of parties 
 
48 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 of pleasure from the garrison and the station. 
 A more delightful spot than the island on 
 which the building stands could scarcely be 
 found even in the romantic land of Ceylon. 
 The house itself, and the garden attached to 
 it, are in keeping with the character of the 
 surrounding scenery. With the exception 
 of the ground in the immediate vicinity of 
 this sylvan villa, the island is unreclaimed 
 from its state of nature, and teems with all 
 the rich and luxuriant vegetation peculiar 
 to the tropics. Through the tangled laby- 
 rinth of jungle, a narrow path has been 
 opened to the summit of a lofty hill that 
 crowns the isle, and is the highest ground in 
 the neighbourhood of Trincomalee. With 
 great difficulty, a heavy gun has been 
 dragged to this point, whence a fine and 
 very extensive view of the harbour and sur- 
 rounding country may be obtained. 
 
 The circumference of the harbour may be 
 about nine or ten miles, and when thus 
 viewed from an elevated position, the large 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 49 
 
 and placid sheet of water, with its numerous 
 indents the wooded isles that seem to float 
 on its surface the men-of-war lying motion- 
 less at their anchorage and the rich and 
 tropical aspect of the forests that cover the 
 whole of the inland country form a land- 
 scape, in surveying which the eye never 
 tires, and which must be seen to be appre- 
 ciated. 
 
 The other islands that stud the surface of 
 this liquid mirror are generally smaller than 
 that already described, and being for the 
 most part clad with dense and almost im- 
 pervious jungle, are uninhabited, and rarely 
 visited. Here and there on the surrounding 
 shore may be seen a native hut, but these 
 are few, and, being hidden by the trees 
 around them, are hardly distinguishable from 
 any distance. The general appearance of 
 the country is, therefore, that of a wild and 
 unpeopled land, and this adds much to the 
 peculiar charm and fascination of the scene. 
 
 This station entirely owes its importance 
 D 
 
50 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 to the harbour, for the country in the vici- 
 nity is extremely poor and unproductive; 
 the population chiefly subsisting by fishing. 
 But such a port as that of Trincomalee 
 Avould redeem the character of the most 
 valueless island ; and in India, where no 
 harbour worthy of the name is to be found 
 between Bombay, on the western coast, and 
 Calcutta, on the eastern, the value of a port 
 centrically situated, as that of Trincomalee, 
 is infinitely great. It has, indeed, been said 
 that, at the close of the late war, Ceylon, as 
 well as Java, would have been restored to 
 its former possessors, the Dutch, had it not 
 been for the paramount importance so justly 
 attached to this harbour, which is equally 
 secure against the violence of the wind, and, 
 as far as natural defences can avail, the in- 
 sults of an enemy. 
 
 The entrance is between two projecting 
 head-lands, which approach within seven 
 hundred yards of each other, leaving barely 
 sufficient width to allow of the ingress and 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 51 
 
 egress of large line-of-battle ships. Fortu- 
 nately, the entrance faces the south-east, so 
 that the anchorage is perfectly secured from 
 the influence of the prevailing winds ; and 
 when all the ports on the Coromandel coast 
 are abandoned on account of their insecurity, 
 this fine harbour affords a sure and constant 
 refuge, which can be approached during the 
 prevalence of either monsoon. 
 
 In the vicinity of Trincomalee, abundance 
 of game, from the lordly elephant down- 
 wards, is to be found ; and this, in the opi- 
 nion of many, more than counterbalances 
 the disadvantages under which the station 
 labours on account of its unhealthiness and 
 complete isolation from the rest of the 
 colony. Deer and elk are often shot within 
 a mile of the fort ; and within an hour's ride 
 every kind of animal that exists on the 
 island may be met with. Elephants, how- 
 ever, are rarely encountered in the imme- 
 diate neighbourhood of the town, but within 
 a few miles they frequently congregate in 
 
 D2 
 
52 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 large herds. As these leviathans of the 
 earth abound more in Ceylon, than in any 
 other part of the world, an account of the 
 battues formed for their destruction may 
 prove interesting, even to those who have 
 long resided in India, for in no part of the 
 Indian continent is elephant-shooting re- 
 garded as in Ceylon an every-day and ordi- 
 nary amusement. 
 
 Many Anglo-Indians, indeed, are sceptical 
 as to the fact of a single bullet being suffi- 
 cient to deprive an elephant of life, and are 
 much inclined to doubt the truth of the 
 accounts of elephant-shooting in Ceylon, 
 which occasionally reach them through the 
 medium of their public journals. Some of 
 these infidels are wont to assimilate in their 
 darkened minds the deeds of arms done by 
 the sportsmen of Ceylon with those per- 
 formed by one Falstaff against certain men 
 in buckram. If, then, the facility with 
 which an elephant may be killed astonishes 
 the dwellers in the Carnatic, although so 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 53 
 
 near the scene of action, it can, perhaps, be 
 scarcely expected that implicit credence 
 will be yielded to the ipse dixit of an un- 
 known writer by the British public ; but as 
 the facts are notorious to all who have 
 visited the island, I will, even at the risk of 
 being considered a romancer, " a round un- 
 varnished tale deliver " touching the feats of 
 arms performed against the monsters of the 
 jungles of Ceylon. 
 
 In all parts of the island elephant? are 
 met with, but in the south-eastern provinces 
 they chiefly abound. The face of the coun- 
 try in that direction is less covered with 
 jungle than any other part of Ceylon, and 
 the elephants come forth from the recesses 
 of the forest into the large grass plains that 
 frequently occur. Here is the usual ren- 
 dezvous of sportsmen in search of elephants. 
 Each individual of the party, who are seldom 
 less numerous than three or four, provides 
 himself with, at least, two double-barrelled 
 guns, the bore of which is, or ought to be, 
 
54 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 made to throw two-ounce balls. Some 
 sporting authorities consider this large cali- 
 bre unnecessary, and assert that a common 
 musket-bullet, if well directed, will answer 
 every purpose. But it is generally thought 
 unsafe to trust to any but the heaviest metal, 
 because a heavy ball, even should it not 
 prove fatal, has the effect of staggering and 
 disconcerting an elephant, and of thus af- 
 fording time for a second discharge. 
 
 On perceiving a herd, the party and their 
 numerous native attendants endeavour by 
 shouting to irritate some individual to turn 
 and charge them. This plan is usually at- 
 tended with success. Some one of the ele- 
 phants, provoked by the loud and insulting 
 cries* of his persecutors, quits his fellows, 
 and rushes towards the pursuers, who are 
 always on foot, and somewhat dispersed, so 
 as to effectually support each other by a 
 
 * " Da ! da f" is the usual cry of the natives on these 
 occasions. The word corresponds with John Bull's 
 " get out!" 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 55 
 
 flanking fire. The sportsman allows the 
 charging brute to approach within a dozen 
 yards, and then, aiming at that peculiar and 
 deep depression of the skull which is observ- 
 able immediately above the point where the 
 upper surface of the trunk meets the head, 
 delivers his fire. If the ball takes effect at 
 the spot thus selected, it pierces the brain, 
 which is easily reached through the honey- 
 combed and thin bony substance in this part 
 of the skull, and death instantaneously ensues. 
 But should the bullet strike wide of this sin- 
 gular scoop in the forehead, the second bar- 
 rel is immediately discharged, and the chances 
 are, that the elephant either falls, or, blinded 
 with the smoke, and furious with pain, sheers 
 off without injuring his antagonist, or wildly 
 rushes past him. In this latter case, the 
 rest of the party pour in a converging volley, 
 which rarely fails to bring down the enraged 
 and now impotent monster, whose dying 
 agonies are speedily terminated by some 
 humane bullet. 
 
56 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 First-rate shots, however, seldom require 
 the co-operation of their companions in arms. 
 In the generality of cases, the advancing 
 monster, pierced by a single bullet, falls dead 
 at their feet ; but it occasionally happens, 
 that the elephant raises his trunk above his 
 head in such a manner as to render it diffi- 
 cult, if not impossible, to aim at any vital 
 spot. When this occurs, there is no alterna- 
 tive but to fire at this uplifted trunk, and 
 under cover of the smoke to avoid his charge. 
 When thus foiled by his wary enemy, the 
 elephant vents his rage on the first object, 
 animate or inanimate, that attracts his atten- 
 tion. Many native servants and bystanders 
 have in this manner fallen victims to the in- 
 furiated animal, when thus excited by Euro- 
 pean sportsmen. 
 
 The defective sight of the elephant, how- 
 ever, gives to his human foes an advantage 
 that almost invariably secures their escape. 
 Whether it be from this cause, or from his 
 natural timidity, it is certain that his charge 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 57 
 
 rarely, if ever, proves fatal to any individual. 
 During the last ten years, only two Euro- 
 peans have lost their lives in these encoun- 
 ters. One of them, Major Haddock, of H.M. 
 97th regiment, attempting to dodge an ele- 
 phant round a small patch of jungle, ran right 
 into the jaws of the monster that he was en- 
 deavouring to avoid, and was immediately 
 trampled to death. The other instance 
 occurred more recently, and the particulars 
 are more generally known. 
 
 Mr. Wallett, a gentleman engaged in the 
 civil service of the island, having heard of a 
 tusker,* went out, accompanied only by a 
 native servant, to shoot him. From the 
 rather confused statement of this native, it 
 appears that his first ball merely grazed the 
 elephant, who, in no degree checked, still 
 
 * An elephant with full- grown tusks is thus denomi- 
 nated. It is believed that the animal is subject to a 
 disease which peculiarly affects the tusks, and causes 
 their decay. The frequent occurrence of tusks shed in 
 the jungle would seem to support this theory, which, 
 however, requires further confirmation. 
 D3 
 
58 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 continued his onward career. Mr. W. again 
 attempted to fire, but his second barrel, from 
 some unknown cause, did not explode, and 
 having no time to reload or escape, he re- 
 mained at the mercy of his gigantic enemy, 
 who passed his tusks through the body of the 
 unfortunate young man, and mangled his 
 remains in a shocking manner. 
 
 These are the only instances of the triumph 
 of brute force over the skill of man, and it 
 is highly probable that the latter casualty 
 would not have occurred if another sports- 
 man had been present. Many have, how- 
 ever, been within an ace of destruction. Of 
 these hair-breadth escapes, one that befel 
 two officers, who had pledged themselves to 
 avenge the last-mentioned catastrophe, is 
 particularly worthy of mention. 
 
 Lieuts. G. and S., of the 90th Light In- 
 fantry and 18th Royal Irish regiment, who 
 had undertaken the pious duty of revenging 
 the death of Mr. Wallet t, were no novices in 
 elephantine warfare. The former officer, in 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 59 
 
 particular, was considered one of the best 
 elephant shots that had ever appeared in the 
 island. It was, therefore, confidently antici- 
 pated that the murdering tusker would ere 
 long depart this life, and that the triumph 
 of his assailants would be equally easy and 
 glorious. The elephant, however, having 
 discovered his powers of destruction, had no 
 intention of descending to the infernal re- 
 gions without a struggle. The success of his 
 last engagement had, apparently, convinced 
 him of the fallacy of the maxim, laid down by 
 the conqueror of modern Europe, " That, in 
 war, moral force is to physical strength as 
 three to one." On the approach of his hew 
 enemies, he accordingly regarded them with 
 the utmost sang-froid, and quietly advanced 
 towards them. The scene of this second com- 
 bat was the same as that of the former. Ele- 
 phants, if undisturbed, frequently remain for 
 weeks in the vicinity of some favourite spot, 
 which unites the two principal objects of their 
 ambition good forage and abundance of 
 
60 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 water. In the present case, the tusker had 
 doubtless reconnoitred the ground with a 
 military eye, or perhaps, not pretending to 
 greater intelligence than the human race, 
 imagined that the site of his conquest was, 
 somehow or other, connected with his good 
 star, for he made no attempt to decamp 
 from the place during the time that inter- 
 vened between Mr. W.'s death and the ap- 
 pearance of his avengers. Having arrived 
 within a few paces of their object, the sports- 
 men fired, but without any considerable ef- 
 fect. One of the bullets, however, struck 
 the right eye of the tusker, and by this for- 
 tuitous circumstance the life of one of the 
 officers was saved. Weakened by loss of 
 blood, the elephant fell just as he had over- 
 taken this gentleman, and in the act of falling 
 broke down some bamboo trees, which, strik- 
 ing his intended victim, effectually prevented 
 him from making his escape. Fortunately, 
 he was on the right or blind side of the mon- 
 ster, who did not immediately discover the 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 61 
 
 near vicinity of his assailant. At length he 
 got his solitary optic to bear upon him, and 
 was about to give him the coup-de-grace 
 without further loss of time, when Lieut. S. 
 having reloaded, again approached, and by a 
 well-timed and fatal shot, rescued his friend 
 from his perilous position.* 
 
 When, as in this case, an elephant is found 
 alone, he is far more dangerous than when 
 in the society of a herd. On this account, a 
 solitary individual is usually termed a " rogue 
 elephant." The natives are of opinion that 
 these " rogues" have been expelled from the 
 society of their kind for some high misde- 
 meanour, and to this cause their peculiar 
 ferocity is attributable. Certain it is, that 
 there is no exception to this remark regard- 
 ing the " rogues," and whatever may be the 
 
 * Although the centre of the forehead is the favourite, 
 it is not the only point selected by sportsmen for plant- 
 ing a mortal blow. When the left side of the animal is 
 presented, his heart may be reached by a bullet when- 
 ever the left fore-leg is moved forward in the act of 
 walking. 
 
62 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 original cause of their taste for solitude, it is 
 highly probable that the violence done to the 
 gregarious habits that characterize their spe- 
 cies has the effect of producing in them sul- 
 lenness, and its concomitant, ferocity. 
 
 Some sportsmen, satiated with the glories 
 of this sylvan warfare, will not deign to do 
 battle with any save tusked elephants. The 
 tusks form a noble ornament in the houses 
 of these gentlemen, some of whom have a 
 dozen pairs adorning their apartments. Heads 
 of elephants, being more common than tusks, 
 which are extremely rare and valuable even 
 in Ceylon, are everywhere to be seen, and, 
 when tastefully disposed around the large 
 verandahs so universal in the East, have a 
 noble and imposing effect. 
 
 When it is found inconvenient to remove 
 the head by way of trophy, the tail is cut off 
 and carefully preserved, as the tails in the 
 possession of a sportsman form the best 
 memoranda of the number of his triumphs. 
 An officer resident at Badulla, in the south- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 63 
 
 eastern district, where, as already observed, 
 these huge denizens of the forest are most 
 numerous, has within the last few years 
 slaughtered more than five hundred ele- 
 phants, and, to satisfy the incredulous, is 
 able to produce that number of caudal tro- 
 phies. 
 
 Kraals are occasionally ordered by the 
 Ceylon Government for the purpose of cap- 
 turing elephants, with the view of employing 
 them in the transport of heavy weights, go- 
 vernment stores, &c. The mode of entrap- 
 ping elephants has been so often described 
 as to be familiar to all. A circular cordon 
 of peasants is formed around some point 
 selected in one of the districts where the 
 game most abounds. The natives employed 
 gradually converge towards the central spot 
 thus chosen, and drive all before them. 
 Little difficulty is experienced in the cap- 
 ture of the elephant, who, while in a state 
 of nature, does not manifest that sagacity 
 which is so apparent in the animal when 
 
64 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 domesticated; and which has, in the estima- 
 tion of some, obtained for him pre-eminence 
 even over the king of beasts. Female ele 4 - 
 phants, previously tamed, inveigle the wild 
 and confused brutes within the prepared 
 snare, and time and starvation complete the 
 work of subjugation. When the prisoner 
 appears subdued by the influence of hunger 
 and ill-treatment, he is led forth in charge of 
 two of the female syrens whose sweet voices 
 had in the first instance allured him within 
 the fatal enclosure. These fair monsters no 
 longer regard the captive as their lover, but, 
 on the contrary, unmercifully belabour him 
 if he presume to remind them of their quon- 
 dam affection. The unhappy victim of fe- 
 male blandishments, half-starved and nearly 
 beaten to death, is generally but too happy 
 to purchase the favour of his persecutors by 
 quietly submitting to the yoke. 
 
 The sportsman will readily understand 
 and appreciate the feelings of those who, 
 allured by the abundant sport in the vici- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 65 
 
 nity of Trincomalee, and by the occasional 
 visits of elephants to the neighbourhood, pre- 
 fer the station to any other in the island, not- 
 withstanding its acknowledged insalubrity 
 and eternal heat. Nor is abundance of 
 game the only recommendation possessed by 
 this isolated quarter. The constant arrival 
 of the men-of-war on the Indian station 
 serves to dispel ennui, and furnishes a never- 
 failing resource to those who keep boats, 
 and are thus enabled to board approaching 
 vessels. 
 
 At Trincomalee, the officers of the navy 
 form a considerable, though a fluctuating, 
 proportion of the society. The flag-ship 
 generally remains there for several months 
 in the year, and six or seven pendants may 
 occasionally be seen within the noble har- 
 bour. From their more constant stay at 
 the station, the officers of the admiral's ship 
 may be almost considered as part of its per- 
 manent society. They generally give the 
 preference to Trincomalee over Bombay, on 
 
66 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 account of the great proximity of the an- 
 chorage at the former place to the houses of 
 the residents. At the one station, men-of- 
 war and other large ships anchor at a con- 
 siderable distance from the haunts of civi- 
 lized society; at the other, the waters of 
 the harbour wash the walls of the admiral's 
 house, and some of the other principal resi- 
 dences. 
 
 This building is situate on a slight emi- 
 nence, and is the most delightful residence 
 in the place. From its elevation, it enjoys 
 both the land and sea breezes, and com- 
 mands a view of the harbour and the open 
 sea. It contains a few splendid rooms, to 
 which the other apartments have, in some 
 degree, been sacrificed. The ground in- 
 closed around the house, part of which has 
 been converted into an excellent kitchen 
 garden, may contain about seven acres. 
 The other residences in the station are for 
 the most part in or near the fort, which is 
 separated from the native town and exterior 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 67 
 
 buildings by an extensive natural glacis, 
 which covers the whole of the land front. 
 
 The peninsula, upon which the fort stands, 
 presents, towards the sea, a considerable 
 front. Its width, however, gradually lessens 
 as it approaches the narrow isthmus which 
 connects it with the adjacent country. At 
 this point only is the fort attackable, for the 
 precipitous character of the rocks that com- 
 pletely surround the remainder of the en- 
 ceinte is such, as almost to render the work 
 of art superfluous. The attention and care 
 of the Dutch, who constructed this and 
 most of the other fortifications in the island, 
 have therefore been turned to the defence 
 of the isthmus, the breadth of which barely 
 exceeds two hundred yards. Across this 
 connected tongue of land have been con- 
 structed two bastions and a connecting cur- 
 tain. In their front there is something re- 
 sembling an earthen demilune, and some 
 faint trace of an ancient covered way may 
 be also detected ; but these have nearly dis- 
 
68 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 appeared, and the unscreened walls of the 
 bastions may now, from the exterior ground, 
 be seen to their bases ; their ditches being 
 in many places filled up, no obstacle what- 
 ever is before them. This work may have 
 answered the purpose of the Dutch, who 
 anticipated no attacks save those of the 
 natives. But the economy that neglects 
 the military defence of a place of such vital 
 importance to our interests as Trincomalee 
 is more than questionable. It may, perhaps, 
 be said of Ceylon, as the Highlanders of 
 Argyle were wont to say of their isolated 
 country, " It's a far cry to Lochow." Never- 
 theless, the island may be reached by an 
 enterprising European enemy, who, if aware 
 of the strong natural position of Trinco- 
 malee, and its present neglected state, might 
 cause England to repent the paltry and ab- 
 surd saving which had deprived her of the 
 first port in the eastern seas, where good 
 harbours are singularly scarce. 
 
 Were an enemy in possession of Trinco- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 69 
 
 malee, who diligently improved its strong 
 natural defences, his fleet within the har- 
 bour might securely defy any naval force 
 that should venture to approach, for no 
 hostile squadron could dare to sail through 
 the narrow strait* by which the port is 
 entered, if the surrounding grounds were 
 judiciously covered with batteries. At pre- 
 sent, the only military work defending the 
 harbour is a small irregular field-fort, which 
 crowns one of the head-lands between which 
 the entrance is compressed. The hill on 
 which it stands rises almost perpendicularly 
 from the edge of the water, above the level 
 of which the guns in the fort are elevated 
 more than two hundred and fifty feet. From 
 this lofty eminence they cannot see any ob- 
 ject on the surface of the waters that wash 
 the base of the rugged and precipitous 
 
 * The breadth of the entrance to the harbour is not 
 more than seven hundred yards, but the depth of water 
 is so considerable, that the largest ships may approach 
 close to either shore. 
 
70 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 height whereon " these vile guns" are placed 
 in battery. Such a fort is but little, if at 
 all, better than none. It is, perhaps, worse 
 than useless, for its existence probably has 
 some effect in preventing the construction 
 of more powerful batteries, which, if judi- 
 ciously placed on less elevated ground, would 
 annihilate any shipping that might attempt 
 to force the entrance. 
 
 No harbour can afford greater natural 
 facilities for defence than that of Trinco- 
 malee ; and it would, perhaps, be difficult to 
 point out a port in the possession of an Eu- 
 ropean power, the military capabilities of 
 which are so completely unaided by art. 
 The principal fort already described has 
 been constructed without reference to the 
 protection of the harbour, from the nearest 
 point of which it is distant nearly two miles. 
 To command the unimportant anchorage 
 under its guns, and to form, at a trifling ex- 
 pense, a place d'armes sufficiently formidable 
 to awe the native population, appear to have 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 71 
 
 been the objects contemplated in its con- 
 struction. The Dutch navy in the East 
 were not of sufficient importance to demand 
 the vigilant care of their government. Their 
 neglect of the defence of the harbour is thus 
 easily accounted for; but with the change 
 of rulers circumstances have materially al- 
 tered. That the port of Trincomalee is 
 of such importance as to demand attention 
 and watchful care from the nation to which 
 it now belongs, is a political truism that can 
 scarcely be disputed. 
 
 Before quitting the subject of Trinco- 
 malee, the hot wells in its vicinity and the 
 celebrated lake of Candelay demand cursory 
 notice ; the one as an artificial work, inter- 
 esting to the antiquary and the political 
 economist ; the other as a natural curiosity. 
 
 The Lake of Candelay, or, as it is com- 
 monly termed, the Candelay Water, is, in 
 the opinion of connoisseurs, the most beau- 
 tiful lake in Ceylon. It is, indeed, pass- 
 ing fair, and, being enveloped on all sides 
 
72 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 by lofty hills, it will bear inspection from 
 several points. This is more than can be 
 said of many of the lakes, which are usually 
 tame at the lower extremities. But it is the 
 peculiar honour of the waters of Candelay, 
 that, in their case, the ground everywhere 
 ascends from their edge with nearly equal 
 degrees of boldness. 
 
 It is, perhaps, a mistake to seek for ele- 
 vations from whence lakes may at a glance 
 be seen in their length, breadth, and, it may 
 be added, in their nakedness. Viewed from 
 those lofty points to which guide-books are 
 so fond of recommending tourists, lakes ap- 
 pear to shrink within themselves, and their 
 real dimensions and proportions are so for- 
 cibly impressed on the mind, that the imagi- 
 nation, on which some place so much reli- 
 ance, cannot again invest them with the 
 attributes of grandeur. For the imagination, 
 even of the most fanciful, has its assigned 
 limits, beyond which it cannot pass. It may 
 add much, but it cannot altogether create. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 73 
 
 Greatness of expanse, it may be said, is not 
 absolutely necessary for the formation of 
 perfect lake-scenery ; and it has been justly 
 remarked that the proper characteristics of 
 a lake may be lost by too great an expansion 
 of its waters. Thus the Lake of Ontario, and 
 the Lakes Superior and Erie, in the New 
 World, from their immense extent, approx- 
 imate to the character of inland seas, and, as 
 such, do not participate in those charms pe- 
 culiar to the scenery of lakes. But for the 
 attainment of perfect beauty, it is indispens- 
 ably necessary that a lake should cover with 
 its waters the whole, or nearly the whole, of 
 the basin which it occupies. Now this the 
 lakes in Ceylon rarely, if ever, do. Between 
 them and the surrounding mountains there is 
 usually an interval of plain which effectually 
 mars the fair perspective, and reduces their 
 apparent magnitude. To avoid this unsightly 
 object between the mountains and the margin 
 of the lakes, I hereby counsel and advise 
 every good and true Anglo-Cingalese, who 
 E 
 
74 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 values his peace of mind, and maintains 
 the honour of the colony, to view the island 
 lakes from their banks, and to shun a 
 
 bird's-eye prospect, as he would a Tic 
 
 Polonga. 
 
 The Candelay lake is situate within thirty 
 miles of Trincomalee, in an extensive and 
 broad valley, around which the ground 
 gradually ascends towards the distant hills 
 that envelop it. In the centre of the valley, 
 a long causeway, principally made of masses 
 of rock, has been constructed to retain the 
 waters that from every side pour into the 
 space inclosed within the circumjacent hills 
 and the artificial dam thus formed. During 
 the rainy season, when the lake attains its 
 greatest elevation, the area of ground, over 
 which the inundation extends, may be com- 
 puted at fifteen square miles. This work of 
 art, and others of nearly equally gigantic 
 proportions in the island, sufficiently indicate 
 that, at some remote period, Ceylon was a 
 densely populated country, and under a 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 75 
 
 government sufficiently enlightened to ap- 
 preciate, and firm to enforce, the execution 
 of an undertaking which, to men ignorant 
 of mechanical powers, must have been an 
 Herculean operation ; for, such is the capri- 
 cious nature of the mountain-streams in this 
 tropical island, where heavy rain frequently 
 falls, without intermission, for many succes- 
 sive days, that no common barrier would 
 suffice to resist the great and sudden pres- 
 sure that must be sustained on such occa- 
 sions. Aware of this peculiarity in the 
 character of their rivers, the Cingalese built 
 the retaining wall that supports the waters 
 of the lake of Candelay with such solidity 
 and massiveness, as to defy the utmost fury 
 of the mountain-torrents. Nearly the whole 
 of its extent is formed with vast hewn masses 
 of rock, to move which, by sheer physical 
 force, must have required the united labour 
 of thousands. 
 
 In more favoured lands, the object to be 
 gained would by no means compensate for 
 
 E2 
 
76 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 the toil and time requisite for the damming 
 of a valley by a causeway two miles in ex- 
 tent ; but in Ceylon, nature, although boun- 
 tiful in all other respects, is alternately 
 lavish and chary of the element whereon the 
 labours of agriculture mainly depend. In 
 the eastern provinces, incessant rains are 
 succeeded by long-continued droughts, dur- 
 ing which the fiery rays of the sun suck up 
 the innumerable rills that, in the wet season, 
 spread over the face of the country. The 
 largest rivers in this part of the island then 
 subside into petty rivulets ; and there being 
 no natural lakes or large sheets of water, the 
 necessity of supplying the want of these by 
 the labours of art becomes apparent. Hence 
 the Cingalese have, from the earliest periods, 
 been attentive to the formation of artificial 
 reservoirs, wherever they could be advantage- 
 ously constructed ; and the lakes of Candelay, 
 Minere, Bawaly, and many others of less note, 
 attest the energy and perseverance of the 
 ancient islanders in such constructions. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 77 
 
 When beholding these indications of a 
 numerous and intelligent population, an in- 
 quiry as to the causes of their diminution 
 naturally suggests itself to the mind of the 
 spectator. This formerly populous province 
 is now a desert in all but the name ; a few 
 scattered huts, buried in the recesses of the 
 jungle, are all that remain of the numerous 
 and crowded towns that must have formerly 
 stood in the neighbourhood of the Candelay 
 and Minere lakes. The average population 
 of this province is now estimated at no more 
 than 11.40 to the square mile. The natives 
 account for this decrease in their numbers 
 by vague traditions of intestine wars, that 
 are supposed to have raged prior to the 
 arrival of the Portuguese in the sixteenth 
 century. 
 
 Their early European conquerors may 
 have imported some diseases that until then 
 had been confined to Europe, and have thus 
 given rise to that extreme mortality which 
 has depopulated the island. The decrease 
 
78 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 cannot be traced to causes similar to those 
 which wasted the aborigines of the Western 
 hemisphere, when they fell under the iron 
 rule of the Spaniard. The Portuguese have 
 never been characterized as severe in the 
 treatment of their colonies, nor had they the 
 same temptations as those which led the 
 conquerors of the New World to tarnish the 
 lustre of their glory by their unparalleled 
 cruelties. 
 
 Between Candelay and Trincomalee, and 
 within an hour's ride from the latter place, 
 are the Hot-wells of Cannia. The adjacent 
 country abounds in quartz, and is covered 
 with large trees, which here usurp the place 
 of dense jungle. There are seven wells, the 
 depth of which varies from 2^ to 5 feet. 
 The whole of these are inclosed within a 
 brick wall, built by the natives, the dimen- 
 sions of which are 36 feet by 18. Although 
 so near to each other, their temperature is 
 by no means equal, the greatest heat being 
 105 Fahrenheit, and the least not more 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 79 
 
 than 86. Dr. Davy and other writers have 
 adopted the opinion, that this great differ- 
 ence is owing to the larger supply of water 
 which flows into the wells of the greater 
 temperature. The subterraneous supply is 
 irregular, and indicated by the creation of 
 air bubbles every five or six seconds. The 
 springs have the reputation of being benefi- 
 cial in cutaneous disorders ; but, when ana- 
 lyzed, nothing except azote and a small 
 quantity of carbonic acid gas is discoverable 
 in their waters. 
 
 In their immediate vicinity stands a tem- 
 ple consecrated to the Hindu god of wisdom, 
 Ganesa, under whose especial care the wells 
 are supposed to be. The natives, accord- 
 ingly, regard them with veneration, and the 
 wayfarer rarely passes the spot without ren- 
 dering homage to the deity who is supposed 
 to sanctify it by his constant presence. 
 
80 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Point de Galle Its advantages as a Steam Depot- 
 Palanquins versus Coaches Anecdote of a Maldive 
 Chief Palace of Mount Lavinia Sir Edward Barnes 
 Curries of Ceylon Aripoo Pearl Fishery Island of 
 Manar Paumban Passage Improvements therein. 
 
 THE garrison of Trincomalee usually detach 
 two companies to Point de Galle, a place 
 which, having (on account of its central 
 position with reference to the presidencies 
 of Calcutta and Bombay, and to the port of 
 Aden, at the mouth of the Red Sea) been 
 generally recommended as a steam dep6t, is 
 likely to become more familiar to the British 
 public, and of much greater importance than 
 has hitherto been its lot, even in its most 
 prosperous days. 
 
 During the late war, Galle was the ren- 
 dezvous of the homeward-bound Indiamen, 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 81 
 
 which began to assemble in the course of 
 December, and usually sailed in January, 
 under the convoy of a frigate. The con- 
 course of the numerous passengers during 
 this interval raised the place from its pris- 
 tine obscurity to its present importance. 
 Its geographical position has preserved the 
 port from any considerable decline, and the 
 attention of the Ceylon Government has, of 
 late years, been attracted to a station which 
 is likely to be brought into near and con- 
 stant communication with the mother coun- 
 try, and, consequently, to become a point 
 from which infinite and immediate advan- 
 tages will arise to the colony. 
 
 With the view of adding to the wealth 
 and population of Point de Galle, an in- 
 crease of the garrison has for some time 
 been in contemplation, and additional bar- 
 racks have been built for the proposed aug- 
 mentation. The military and most of the 
 civilians of the station live within the walls 
 of the fort, which is of an oblong form, and 
 
 E3 
 
82 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 as capacious as that of Colombo. Like that 
 fortress, a great portion of the enceinte is 
 bathed by the sea; but here the compa- 
 rison ceases, for the works at Galle are com- 
 pletely commanded by some elevated ground 
 in their immediate vicinity, and thus ren- 
 dered of little real strength. The residences 
 of both the civilians and military are, for the 
 most part, cooler and more agreeably situ- 
 ated than those in Colombo. The climate 
 is considered particularly good, and the pro- 
 jecting tongue of land, on which the town is 
 built, is refreshed by the alternate monsoons, 
 either of which, as far as Galle is concerned, 
 is a sea breeze. The south-west monsoon 
 is, however, that to which the port' is chiefly 
 exposed. During the prevalence of this 
 wind, a heavy sea breaks upon the southern 
 shores of the island, and a rapid current 
 from the westward frequently sets ships to 
 leeward of the harbour, in which case they 
 are obliged to cross the line for the purpose 
 of again standing to the west. This incon- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 83 
 
 venience would probably be experienced by 
 any except the most powerful steamers, and 
 even to them, the rush of water round this 
 most southern extremity of British India 
 would, from May to the end of September, 
 prove the most formidable obstacle to the 
 proposed steam-communication between Cal- 
 cutta and Egypt. 
 
 Some authorities are of opinion that Trin- 
 comalee would, by reason of its excellent 
 and ever tranquil harbour, be a better point 
 for a steam dep6t than Point de Galle, the 
 chief recommendation of which is its centric 
 position on the proposed line of route. This, 
 however, is not the only advantage possessed 
 by that port ; it is within seventy miles of 
 the capital of the island, with which it com- 
 municates by an excellent road, and, to 
 passengers destined for Ceylon, would thus 
 be a far more desirable station than Trin- 
 comalee, which, as has already been observed, 
 is completely isolated from the rest of the 
 colony. 
 
84 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 The road which connects Trincomalee 
 with the interior provinces and Colombo is 
 at all times unhealthy, and, during the rainy 
 season, often impassable on account of the 
 swollen torrents that intersect it. The ex- 
 tent of this inferior description of road be- 
 tween Colombo and Trincomalee is about 
 one hundred and ten niiles, but the entire 
 distance between those places is more than 
 one hundred and eighty ; so that in this re- 
 spect Galle is a much superior station for a 
 steam depot to Trincomalee. Were there 
 any decided advantages to be gained by 
 selecting the latter port, the convenience of 
 the passengers to Ceylon, who form but a 
 small proportion to those for Madras and 
 Calcutta, would of course be of little weight ; 
 but, by the choice of Trincomalee, the 
 dwellers in the Carnatic and the provinces 
 of Bengal would gain nothing to counter- 
 balance the inconvenience that must in that 
 case be sustained by their island neighbours. 
 Even at Galle, the space between the mouth 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 85 
 
 of the Red Sea and Calcutta is unequally 
 divided. This disparity would be consi- 
 derably increased by changing the dep6t to 
 Trincomalee, from which place the distance 
 to Calcutta is barely a thousand miles, 
 whereas that to Aden exceeds three thou- 
 sand. These are the chief advantages of 
 this station, considered as a dep6t for 
 steamers. As the proprietors of the steam- 
 vessels on the proposed Cape route, as well 
 as those from the Red Sea, will undoubtedly 
 make Point de Galle one of their dep6ts, 
 the place cannot, under such auspicious cir- 
 cumstances, fail to rise rapidly in impor- 
 tance, and probably will, at no distant day, 
 outrival the present seat of the island go- 
 vernment. 
 
 The facility of communication between, 
 this port and Colombo will, in the event of 
 the adoption of the comprehensive scheme, 
 induce many Anglo-Indians to avail them- 
 selves of the opportunity thus afforded of 
 visiting the capital and interior of the island. 
 
86 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 Under the auspices of Mr. Stewart M'Kenzie, 
 the present governor, a coach between Galle 
 and Colombo has been established, and per- 
 forms the journey (seventy-two miles) in 
 twelve hours a rate of travelling which, 
 although it will not bear comparison with 
 that usual in England, is much more rapid 
 than the most expeditious dak travelling in 
 India. If the island be, in some respects, 
 less advanced in the march of improvement 
 than the Indian main, it has at all events 
 set a praiseworthy example in the substitu- 
 tion of coaches for those abominable con- 
 veyances palanquins, which universally flou- 
 rish throughout India. Thrice in the week, 
 coaches leave Colombo for both Galle and 
 Kandy, from whence they return on the 
 alternate days. These towns are equally 
 distant from the capital, but the latter sta- 
 tion being in the elevated regions of the 
 interior, the journey thither, over an undu- 
 lating and constantly ascending road, re- 
 quires more time than is occupied by the 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 87 
 
 trip from Galle to Colombo, and vice versa. 
 The whole extent of the Galle road runs paral- 
 lel to, and near, the line of the coast ; so that, 
 during the westerly monsoon, the traveller, 
 refreshed by its constant breeze, regards the 
 journey rather as an agreeable drive than as 
 an arduous undertaking, which palanquin 
 travelling, under the most favourable cir- 
 cumstances, most assuredly is. Palanquins 
 have been included in the list of Eastern 
 luxuries, but few, if any, who have experi- 
 enced the ennui and annoyance of being 
 borne, at the slow rate of four miles an 
 hour, on the shoulders of noisy Indian 
 bearers, will admit that they are other than 
 a necessary evil, which, in the absence of 
 more commodious conveyances, must be en- 
 dured as one of the ills peculiar to Indian 
 life. As such, they must continue to be 
 tolerated wherever the interval between the 
 large stations, scattered throughout India, is 
 so great, and the number of passengers so 
 uncertain, as to render abortive any attempt 
 
88 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 to establish a preferable and regular mode of 
 conveyance. But that coaches may be more 
 universally established in India than they 
 are at present, is " a consummation devoutly 
 to be wished." Those in Ceylon have al- 
 ready excited much attention on the con- 
 tinent, and some efforts towards starting a 
 coach between Madras and Bangalore were 
 recently made. The project, or the pro- 
 jectors, however, failed, and the good exam- 
 ple of the Anglo-Cingalese has hitherto been 
 lost upon their fellow-countrymen over the 
 water. 
 
 Point de Galle is celebrated for the talent 
 displayed by its inhabitants in the workman- 
 ship of dressing-cases, work-boxes, and all 
 kinds of jewellery. Homeward-bound Anglo- 
 Indians will gladly seize the opportunity, 
 which a day's delay at this port will afford 
 them, to purchase some of the elegant and 
 curious boxes and other articles constantly 
 exposed for sale in the bazaars, and about 
 the fort of Galle. They are generally made 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 89 
 
 of calamander wood, which is daily becom- 
 ing more scarce, and consequently valuable. 
 Their interior is usually subdivided into 
 numerous and ornamental compartments, 
 each of which is of a wood different from 
 that used in any other. Thus each box 
 affords in itself specimens of the most ad- 
 mired and valued kinds of wood in the 
 forests of Ceylon. Calamander, ebony, satin, 
 allemoneal, and jackwood, with various 
 others, are all employed in these mosaic-like 
 boxes. The natives of the Galle district, 
 who are the makers of these work-boxes, 
 are among the most intelligent people in 
 the island ; and it is observable that the 
 whole of the country extending from Galle 
 to Colombo is inhabited by a far more 
 civilized race than that which occupies 
 the interior of Ceylon, or than the coast- 
 ing population on its northern and eastern 
 shores. 
 
 Twice in the course of a year, an embassy 
 from the Maldive Islands arrives at Galle to 
 
90 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 render homage to the British Government. 
 Those numerous isles, which are included 
 under the general name of Maldive, and, in 
 the seventy-third degree of east longitude, 
 extend from 8 north to the equatorial line, 
 are under the dominion of one potentate, 
 who, by the aid of viceroys in such of the 
 isles as are inhabited, rules over the entire 
 archipelago. The inhabitants of the Mal- 
 dives are a simple, contented, and almost ex- 
 clusively a seafaring people. In their boats, 
 which live in the heaviest seas, they venture 
 to trade with the Malabar coast and Ceylon, 
 within the dependencies of which island they 
 are included. Their mercantile transactions 
 are characterized by a spirit of fairness un- 
 usual among the crafty natives of the East. 
 In conversing with them, Europeans are 
 generally struck with their extreme simpli- 
 city and freedom from guile the result of 
 their sequestered life and general occupa- 
 tions. A friend of the writer, who was en- 
 deavouring to keep up a conversation with 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 91 
 
 xme of the chiefs of the half-yearly embassy, 
 jestingly remarked, in the absence of other 
 topics, that there was a rumour of an ap- 
 proaching war between Great Britain and 
 the Maldives. The aged chieftain, not 
 doubting the assertion of his veracious in- 
 formant, started up, and earnestly begged 
 that he would contradict so unfounded and 
 injurious a report ; " for," added the am- 
 bassador, in a confidential whisper, " the 
 King of the Maldives is plenty Afraid of the 
 King of England." 
 
 Between Galle and Colombo nothing de- 
 manding particular notice occurs, until the 
 traveller arrives at Mount Lavinia, one of 
 the residences of the Governor of Ceylon, 
 distant seven miles from Colombo. This 
 building was erected under the superintend- 
 ence of the late Sir Edward Barnes, who 
 was particularly partial to the delightful 
 spot on which it stands. The house is 
 situate on a gentle eminence, which, pro- 
 jecting somewhat into the sea, partakes of 
 
92 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 the character of a headland. When Co- 
 lombo is approached from the sea, it is the 
 first object that meets the eye, and is there- 
 fore noted by navigators frequenting the port 
 as a conspicuous landmark. The surround- 
 ing grounds are extremely English in ap- 
 pearance, and unite in a high degree the 
 charms of luxuriant nature with those that 
 are produced by art. If the edifice have a 
 fault, it consists in a too rigid adherence to 
 the style of buildings in England, which, 
 being adapted for a colder clime, cannot be 
 good models for the construction of houses 
 under the vertical sun of the tropics. In 
 this respect the Pavilion at Kandy, also built 
 during the government of Sir E. Barnes, is 
 infinitely superior to Mount Lavinia; but, 
 notwithstanding this objection, there are few, 
 if any, residences on the island preferable to 
 this. The murmur of the sea, as it gently 
 ripples on 
 
 The short, smooth space of yellow sand 
 Between it and the greener land ; 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 93 
 
 the never-failing breeze which reaches this 
 spot when less favoured sites feel not the 
 influence of its breath ; and, above all, the 
 romantic and pleasing aspect of the place 
 and adjacent country, form a whole which 
 merits the appellation of an Oriental Ely- 
 sium. 
 
 Here I would offer a humble tribute to 
 the memory of Sir Edward Barnes, a name 
 deservedly dear to the natives of Ceylon. 
 Time has not rendered them oblivious of 
 that eminent and estimable man, who alike 
 won their affections and commanded their 
 respect and admiration. At different periods, 
 Sir Edward was governor of the island for 
 eleven years, during which innumerable and 
 important improvements were planned and 
 carried into effect. Among these, the con- 
 struction of the road from Colombo to 
 Kandy, and from thence to Newera Ellia, 
 stands pre-eminent. To the latter place, 
 the distance from Colombo is more than 
 one hundred miles, the whole extent of 
 
94 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 which, at the period in question, was a 
 savage wilderness, covered with dense and 
 unhealthy jungles. When to this it is added, 
 that the plains of Newera Ellia are upwards 
 of six thousand feet above the level of the 
 Lake of Colombo, and that the surface of 
 the intervening country is wild and rugged 
 in the extreme, the task of forming a good 
 carriage-road under such circumstances will 
 be admitted as truly arduous. 
 
 From the side of Galle the approach 
 to Colombo is through an extensive and 
 densely populated suburb, along the sea- 
 shore. Great numbers of the natives in this 
 vicinity are fishermen, who gain an easy and 
 certain livelihood by their vocation. The 
 supply, although great, is scarcely equal to 
 the demand, as the poorer classes live almost 
 exclusively on the inferior kinds of fish, pre- 
 pared in curries. The curry of the native of 
 Ceylon is widely different from that of the 
 Hindu. The abundance of cocoa-nuts in 
 Ceylon enables the islander to make the 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 95 
 
 white contents of that fruit a principal in- 
 gredient in the composition of his curry. 
 Saffron is also freely introduced into the 
 curry of Ceylon, so that its appearance and 
 flavour bear no more resemblance to that 
 usually prepared in India, than to the imita- 
 tions of this Eastern dish which are occa- 
 sionally, but vainly, attempted in England : 
 connoisseurs generally give the preference to 
 the dark and more fiery Indian curries, but 
 most of the European residents in Ceylon 
 prefer that peculiar to the land of their 
 adoption. 
 
 The industrious fishermen of Colombo, 
 who form a large proportion of its suburban 
 population, complain bitterly of a regulation, 
 which certainly does appear preposterous, 
 and at variance with those prudential consi- 
 derations that would labour to avert even 
 the possibility of infectious disease. They 
 are compelled to bring their fish to certain 
 market-places, where only they are per- 
 mitted to dispose of them. The injustice 
 
96 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 and absurdity of such a regulation are self- 
 evident, for, not to speak of the loss of valu- 
 able time, the more delicate fish are by no 
 means improved by the journey from the 
 beach to the market under the burning sun 
 
 o 
 
 of the tropics. The object of this singular 
 and arbitrary law is to collect the Govern- 
 ment dues, which are levied in proportion 
 to the value of the finny spoil, thus making 
 a direct tax upon the enterprise and skill 
 of the fisherman. 
 
 After passing Colombo, the coast road, 
 which completely encircles the island, be- 
 comes less interesting, and the features of 
 the country, as they approach its northern 
 extremity, become tame and monotonous. 
 The petty towns on this part of the western 
 coast* are chiefly inhabited by a population 
 engaged in fishing and the collection of salt, 
 
 * In each of these towns are to be found the ruins of 
 ancient forts, built by the Dutch, who, conscious of 
 their unpopularity, always secured themselves against 
 any sudden attack by works sufficiently strong to repel 
 the utmost efforts of the natives. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 97 
 
 of which there are large depdts in the islan d 
 of Calpentyn -and at Putlam. 
 
 No place worthy of mention occurs be- 
 tween Colombo and Jaffna, except Aripoo, 
 opposite which are numerous and valuable 
 oyster-beds, that yield a considerable, but 
 an uncertain, annual revenue to the Govern- 
 ment of Ceylon. They are fished in the 
 months of March and April, and in some 
 years the pearls found within the oysters 
 have added to the island revenue the sum 
 of 40,000. The average soundings over 
 the principal banks are six fathoms. A 
 large number of divers are employed, the 
 most expert of whom have, by long practice, 
 rendered themselves capable of remaining 
 beneath the surface of the water more than 
 a minute. The numbers of the divers deter 
 the numerous sharks that hover around from 
 making an attack upon these amphibious 
 beings, who, however, will not descend to 
 the " slimy bottom of the deep" unless pro- 
 fessed charmers of sharks are engaged to 
 F 
 

 98 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 ward off the assaults of these ravenous mon- 
 sters. The Ceylon Government, finding that 
 without the voice of the charmer nothing 
 will induce the diver fearlessly to seek the 
 ocean treasures, pay a large sum to secure 
 the services of one of those Eastern magi- 
 cians. When brought on shore, the oysters 
 are sold by public auction to the highest 
 bidder. As it is impossible to judge from 
 the external appearance of an oyster-shell of 
 the value of the pearls contained within it, 
 this auction becomes a description of lottery, 
 in which some fortunate holders realize large 
 sums, and others, on the contrary, lose their 
 little all. 
 
 Twelve miles to the north of Aripoo is 
 the island of Manar, which, 'stretching away 
 to the westward, approaches the Indian 
 coast more nearly than any other part of 
 Ceylon. Manar itself is a wretched cluster 
 of huts, but from its vicinity to the conti- 
 nent, and its harbour, which, though shallow, 
 is completely sheltered, it is a place of some 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 99 
 
 commercial importance. The road between 
 it and Aripoo traverses a wide open plain, 
 which forms a relief to the uniformity of 
 the eternal jungle, that, wherever the hand 
 of man has not cleared the ground, meets, 
 and by its constant presence palls upon, the 
 eye. The islet, on which the hovels of 
 Manar stand, is separated from the main 
 land by an indent of the sea, nearly two 
 miles in breadth, but so shallow as to render 
 it easy for the palanquin-bearers to carry 
 over their live cargo without the aid of a 
 boat. In this sequestered and barren site 
 there is an appearance of desolation and an 
 absence of animation, that startle the tra- 
 veller, and cause him to hasten his departure 
 from a spot, than which it is impossible to 
 conceive one more dismal and wretched. 
 At this place, so fertile in dreary associa- 
 tions, the only object that appeared to me at 
 all worthy of notice is a fort, upon the con- 
 struction of which the Dutch appeared to 
 have bestowed more care than was their 
 F 2 
 
100 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 wont in the generality of the numerous 
 works erected by them on various parts of 
 the island coast. In this isolated spot they 
 probably thought it necessary to maintain 
 a strong garrison, to facilitate the land com- 
 munication between Colombo and Jaffna- 
 patam, and also to guard against the not 
 improbable event of an hostile visit from 
 their European neighbours over the water. 
 The fort is now used as a salt dep6t, and 
 garrisoned by a few invalids. 
 
 From the western extremity of the island 
 of Manar to Ramnad, which is the nearest 
 point on the continental shore, the distance 
 is fifty miles ; but the intervening space is 
 so choked up with innumerable islets, rocks, 
 and sand-banks, as to prevent vessels, even 
 of the lightest draught of water, from pass- 
 ing the long and uninterrupted obstruction 
 thus formed between the Gulf of Manar and 
 Palk's Passage, as the seas on either side of 
 this natural barrier are called, that to the 
 southward being known as the Manar Gulf, 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 101 
 
 and the confined strait to the northward as 
 Palk's Passage. To form, through this 
 combination of obstacles, a channel suffi- 
 ciently deep for the purposes of the coasting 
 craft, the average draught of which is about 
 eight feet, has for a considerable period been 
 a desideratum with both the Governments 
 of Madras and Ceylon ; but it was not until 
 1836 that any decided measures were taken 
 for the improvement of the shallow passage, 
 which, from time immemorial, had existed 
 near Paumban, a small village on the sacred 
 isle of Ramiseram, and, in default of a 
 better, had always be.en the line of commu- 
 nication frequented by the coasters. At 
 this point, the rocky bar is more than four 
 hundred yards wide, but an irregular and 
 winding channel, of five feet in average 
 depth, extended throughout its entire 
 breadth. On arriving at either extremity 
 of this narrow and difficult passage, the 
 coasters were in the habit of unloading, in 
 order to lessen their draught of water. 
 
102 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 Even with this precaution, much injury was 
 sustained, and delay caused, by their taking 
 the ground an occurrence which, in those 
 days, was the rule, not the exception. The 
 detention arising from this vexatious impe- 
 diment frequently exceeded two or three 
 days. 
 
 The first operations of the Madras engi- 
 neer officers, who are employed on this ser- 
 vice, were directed to the formation of a 
 line of channel as nearly straight as circum- 
 stances would allow. The rock, which is of 
 a soft and porous nature, easily yields to the 
 operations of the miner. The masses, de- 
 tached by blasting, are brought up by 
 divers, great numbers of whom have been 
 constantly employed, and deposited on rafts, 
 placed for their reception. In this manner, 
 without the aid of machinery, the quantity 
 of rock brought to the surface during the 
 day has often amounted to one hundred tons. 
 The transparency of the water over these 
 rocks has hitherto considerably lessened the 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 103 
 
 difficulties of the undertaking. The de- 
 struction effected by an explosion can, 
 almost immediately, be perceived through 
 nine feet of water, which is the uniform 
 depth now obtained throughout the whole 
 extent of the channel. The breadth of the 
 passage is also increased to one hundred 
 feet, and indicated by buoys, so that the 
 country craft can now sail through this once 
 formidable impediment without any delay 
 whatever, or requiring the assistance of the 
 pilots, who are the only class that complain 
 of this great improvement in the navigation 
 of the strait that divides Ceylon from the 
 Indian main. 
 
 A party of the Madras sappers and miners 
 are still employed on this service, and it is 
 in contemplation to increase the depth of 
 the channel to twelve or fourteen feet. 
 The vast advantages that would undoubtedly 
 result to Ceylon if vessels of this draught 
 were enabled to trade direct between the 
 island and the numerous places on the 
 
104 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 Coromondal coast, south of Madras, are 
 self-evident; and as additional facility of 
 communication has ever been found to in- 
 crease the previous intercourse, it may be 
 fairly presumed that this political axiom 
 would be illustrated in the case now in 
 question. 
 
 Although Ceylon is the principal gainer 
 by the clearing of the Paumban Passage, 
 the island Government has not contributed 
 its quota towards the expenses of the under- 
 taking, which have been solely incurred by 
 the Madras presidency. It is, however, 
 said that the Government of Madras de- 
 clined the co-operation of that of Ceylon, 
 which offered to bear a moiety of the total 
 expense, including the services of the mili- 
 tary artificers and others employed. While, 
 therefore, no want of energy is attributable 
 to the authorities of Ceylon, justice de- 
 mands that all the credit arising from the 
 planning and successful issue of this ardu- 
 ous undertaking should be rendered to that 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 105 
 
 Government which directed its execution 
 and defrayed the attendant expenses, and to 
 those officers of engineers under whose able 
 and unwearied supervision the operations 
 have been so successfully carried on. 
 
106 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 The Kandian provinces Coaches in Ceylon Novel 
 mode of propelling coach-horses Captain Dawson's 
 monument Peradinia Bridge River Mahavilaganga 
 Flood of 1834 Kandian agriculture Appear- 
 ance of Kandy. 
 
 THE only portion of Ceylon of which full 
 details have hitherto been given is the belt 
 of territory near its shores, that has for ages 
 been in the possession of Europeans. But 
 he, whose knowledge of this romantic isle is 
 confined to its coast, will scarcely conceive 
 the extreme grandeur of its interior pro- 
 vinces, in which nearly all the interest that 
 attaches to Ceylon is centred. The elevated 
 table-land of the Kandian provinces is raised 
 nearly two thousand feet above the level of 
 the sea, and enjoys a temperature that unites 
 all the advantages of an Asiatic clime with 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 107 
 
 those peculiar to Europe. From this lofty 
 region numerous shoots arise, and attain 
 elevations varying from two to six thousand 
 feet. These various degrees of loftiness 
 enable the agricultural and commercial spe- 
 culator to avail himself of the different tem- 
 peratures that are thus produced. 
 
 Experience has proved that, in Ceylon, 
 lands elevated three thousand feet above the 
 sea are, cceteris paribus, the most favourably 
 situated for the culture of the coffee tree. 
 A greater elevation, or, in other words, a 
 lower temperature, is found requisite for the 
 production of the fruits and vegetables of 
 Europe. In the plains of Newera Ellia these 
 are cultivated without difficulty, and attain 
 the highest perfection; but the peculiar 
 keenness of the mountain air of that station 
 is found to be extremely inimical to the 
 growth of the staple productions of the 
 island. 
 
 Between Colombo and Kandy, as before 
 observed, a coach has for some years been 
 
108 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 established. To invalids recommended to 
 exchange the sultry air of the low country 
 for the more bracing climate of the Kandian 
 provinces, the advantages of such a rapid, 
 and at the same time agreeable, means of 
 communication, are incalculable. The jour- 
 ney is in this manner performed in twelve 
 hours, one of which is allowed for break- 
 fasting, bathing, &c., at the half-way house. 
 Dak travelling is not only more expensive, 
 but slower than the progress of the Ceylon 
 coaches. I know not how these matters 
 are arranged in India, where palanquins, and 
 every thing connected with them, have at- 
 tained the acm6 of perfection ; but in Cey- 
 lon, the expense of journeying dak by pa- 
 lanquins would greatly surpass that of the 
 coaches, and the time required for this trip 
 would be about twenty hours. Thus the 
 proprietors of the coaches that run from 
 Colombo to Kandy and Point de Galle are 
 well aware that their demand, though some- 
 what exorbitant, must, in the absence of 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 109 
 
 cheaper and more expeditious means of con- 
 veyance, be complied with. 
 
 At five A.M. these coaches start from Co- 
 lombo to their respective destinations, and 
 thus accomplish a third of the journey in the 
 cool of the morning. The half-way house is 
 reached about eleven A.M., when the pas- 
 sengers alight, bathe, and breakfast. For 
 these agreeable occupations an hour is al- 
 lowed, which is not more than necessary for 
 the due performance of Oriental ablutions, 
 and the satisfactory discussion of an Anglo- 
 Indian dejeuner. After quitting this hotel, 
 or rest-house, you begin to ascend the lower 
 range of the Kandian hills ; and the country, 
 which has hitherto retained a flat or slightly 
 undulating appearance, becomes at every 
 step more romantic and wild. 
 
 When the Kandy coach was first esta- 
 blished, the funds of the proprietors did not 
 admit of the purchase of good or even toler- 
 able cattle. The discarded hack, the cask 
 trooper, and, in short, all four-footed ani- 
 
110 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 mals, however vile or vicious, that could be 
 picked up at a cheap rate, found favour in 
 the eyes of the coach proprietors, and were 
 accordingly enlisted in their service. Grand 
 equestrian exhibitions were frequently en- 
 joyed by the passengers of those days. Some 
 of the steeds would go, while others, on the 
 contrary, adopted a different policy, and 
 stood fast. In the latter case, the most 
 approved mode was to attach a long rope to 
 one of the fore legs of the refractory charger, 
 and, having beat up for volunteers amongst 
 the natives, to haul away upon the same ; 
 while one party thus engaged the enemy in 
 front, another detachment vexed his rear 
 with such missiles and weapons as happened 
 to be at hand. The grand object of getting 
 him under weigh was in this manner gene- 
 rally attained. Finding " the pressure from 
 without" altogether insupportable, the un- 
 happy beast usually exchanged his passive 
 resistance for an active attempt to upset the 
 coach. Luckily, there are no elections in 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. Ill 
 
 Ceylon, or party purposes, as in the case of 
 the voters famed in Pickwickian annals, 
 might have converted the Kandy coaches 
 into deadly engines of destruction against 
 political opponents. But, as it happens that 
 the absence of electioneering in the land of 
 the East prevents such wholesale butchery, 
 history does not record any loss of life as 
 the finale of any of the scenes above de- 
 scribed. Philanthropists will rejoice to hear 
 that, in Ceylon, no young and interesting 
 widow has ever, from these causes, been 
 " left lamenting," and that these dangers 
 may now be said to belong to other days. 
 
 The writer has been thus diffuse on the 
 subject of Ceylon coaches, partly because he 
 considers that their substitution for palan- 
 quins in India, wherever such change may 
 be practicable, is highly desirable, and partly 
 on account of the desire of the Anglo-Indian 
 community, expressed in their public jour- 
 nals, to learn somewhat of those convey- 
 ances, with a view to their ultimate adop- 
 
112 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 tion. Although a resident in Ceylon, where 
 palanquins are at a discount, he, at different 
 periods, travelled over a great extent of 
 country in them, and is thus enabled to 
 speak from experience as to the many and 
 various ills peculiar to those locomotive 
 coffins. None save those who have tra- 
 versed some hundreds of miles in a palan- 
 quin can, perhaps, fully appreciate the ennui 
 and discomfort of that luxury ; and it is per- 
 mitted to all to do " the state some service" 
 by recommending what may appear mani- 
 fest improvements. 
 
 There are few, if any, objects in Ceylon 
 which more forcibly recall England and 
 English associations to the mind of the 
 Anglo-Cingalese* than the road between 
 Colombo and Mahahaine, the half-way hotel 
 
 * By this appellation I respectfully beg to designate 
 the European dwellers in Ceylon, in contradistinction to 
 the term Anglo-Indian, whose genus is confined within 
 the shores of Hindoostan, and with whom the Anglo- 
 Cingalese hath little or nothing in common. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON*. 113 
 
 on the Kandy road. After passing the 
 latter station, it traverses an Alpine region, 
 the features of which are strikingly dissi- 
 milar to the fair level aspect of England; 
 but in the lower country, the extensive 
 green fields and gently undulating surface 
 of the ground, when viewed in conjunction 
 with the avenue-like road, bear a strong 
 resemblance to the scenes of home. 
 
 It is in the near vicinity of Kandy that 
 the elevation of that place above Colombo is 
 principally obtained. After winding through 
 the minor passes at the foot of the hills, 
 some of which are extremely beautiful, the 
 road commences to ascend the grand pass of 
 Cadaganava. The length of the road from 
 the foot to the summit of the pass is some- 
 what more than three miles. About a quar- 
 ter of a mile from Captain Dawson's monu- 
 ment, which stands near the head of the 
 mountain-gorge, may be enjoyed a magni- 
 ficent view of the country stretching towards 
 Colombo. Far as the eye can reach, the 
 
114 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 road, winding through the wilderness of 
 jungle, is distinguishable ; and this indica- 
 tion of the presence of civilized man affords 
 a striking contrast to the wildness of the 
 mountain scenery around. The more you 
 gaze on the wild landscape, the more you 
 feel inclined to appreciate at its true value 
 the enterprise and labour necessary for the 
 formation of a carriage-road through these 
 " deserts idle," and to rejoice that a monu- 
 ment commemorative of the abilities and 
 exertions of its constructor marks the scene 
 of their display. This erection, which is 
 about one hundred and thirty feet in height, 
 may be ascended by means of a spiral stair- 
 case in the interior. From its summit may 
 be seen a considerable extent of country, and 
 travellers seldom pass without ascending to 
 reconnoitre. An inscription on the pedestal 
 tells the purpose for which it was raised. 
 The purport of it is, that the English society 
 of Ceylon, to mark their admiration of the 
 professional talents of Captain Dawson, of 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 115 
 
 the Royal Engineers, raised the monument 
 on the spot where his unwearied efforts led 
 to his lamented and untimely decease, which 
 deprived the service to which he belonged of 
 one of its most valuable members. 
 
 At Paradinia, a village four miles from 
 Kandy, the Colombo road meets the river 
 Mahavilaganga, across which a single-arched 
 bridge has been thrown by Colonel Fraser, 
 the deputy quarter-master general to the 
 forces in Ceylon. The breadth of the stream 
 is here somewhat contracted, and, by the aid 
 of projecting buttresses, the span of the arch 
 has been reduced to two hundred and five 
 feet. The bridge is entirely built of the 
 beautiful satin a wood almost peculiar to 
 the forests of Ceylon, where it grows in 
 great abundance. The arch is composed of 
 four treble ribs,* the interval between which 
 
 * The sum of the depths of the ribs, together with 
 the intervals between them, amounts to eight feet. The 
 average length of the beams employed in the construc- 
 tion of the bridge is sixteen feet. 
 
116 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 is five feet. Every beam used in the con- 
 struction of the bridge is so inserted as to 
 admit of removal without endangering the 
 safety of the fabric. This is of the utmost 
 value in a tropical clime, where wood is 
 found to decay much more rapidly than in 
 lower temperatures. 
 
 The Kandians, relying on their ancient 
 tales and legends, had formed an opinion 
 that the bridging of the " Great River," 
 which the word Mahavilaganga imports, was 
 impracticable. With this persuasion, they 
 were in the habit of daily assembling to gaze 
 on the gradual progress of the work, and 
 laugh to scorn the vain and impotent labours 
 of the pale faces; but when, to their amaze- 
 ment, the bridge was found to stand without 
 the supporting framework, their admiration 
 knew no bounds, and they looked with fear 
 and wonder on the Europeans who had 
 brought to a successful termination an un- 
 dertaking considered by them beyond the 
 power of man. The upholders of the ancient 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 117 
 
 Kandian dynasty have, however, little cause 
 to congratulate themselves on the construc- 
 tion of a bridge which, although eminently 
 useful to them in their civil occupations, is 
 at the same time a military communication 
 that greatly tends to secure the perma- 
 nent domination of the English over their 
 romantic and, until of late, independent 
 country. 
 
 In ordinary cases, the crown of the arch 
 of the Paradinia Bridge is elevated sixty- 
 seven feet above the level of the Mahavila- 
 ganga ; but this stream, in common with all 
 others which have their sources in the Al- 
 pine regions of the interior, is liable to ex- 
 treme fluctuations during the rainy season. 
 In 1834, immense damage was sustained 
 in consequence of the overflowing of the 
 " Great River," after a long continuance of 
 heavy and incessant rain. The effects of 
 the flood were indeed awful. The waters 
 of the Mahavilaganga rose to within seven 
 feet of the lofty Paradinia Bridge (sixty feet 
 
118 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 above their ordinary level), and sweeping 
 over the adjacent country, laid waste a large 
 extent of fertile and cultivated land. Fields, 
 that with great toil had been reclaimed from 
 the jungle, were at one " fell swoop" re- 
 stored to their pristine state. Every insig- 
 nificant rill swelled into a fearful torrent, 
 and bearing down trees, rocks, and soil in 
 its irresistible course, changed the fair and 
 fertile valleys through which it raged into a 
 desolate wilderness. Nor was inanimate na- 
 ture the only sufferer by this tremendous 
 visitation. The Mahavilaganga was choked 
 with a multitude of the beasts of the forest. 
 The wild pig, the deer, with a variety of 
 smaller game, were to be seen floating on the 
 broad bosom of the foaming river, and even 
 the strength of the monarch of the woods 
 availed him not in that fearful hour, for, ever 
 and anon the huge and bloated body of an 
 elephant came sweeping down " the angry 
 flood," giving to the dwellers in the low 
 country, who beheld the floating Leviathan, 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 119 
 
 the fullest intimation of the " wreck of 
 matter" in the Kandian provinces. 
 
 While on the subject of Ceylon rivers, it 
 may not 'be out of place to remark, that the 
 rapidity with which the petty rivulets that 
 water the interior provinces swell after much 
 rain is so great, as to baffle all calculation. 
 In a few minutes, these mountain rills vary 
 in depth five or six feet. They subside 
 in nearly as short a space of time. The 
 innumerable though trifling streams which 
 feed the principal channels in the valleys 
 may account for this; but persons unac- 
 quainted with the capricious character of 
 these mountain rivers are often astounded 
 at finding the dry ravine of the morning 
 metamorphosed before the evening into a 
 rapid and dangerous torrent. 
 
 After passing Paradinia, the vicinity of 
 Kandy, or, as the natives call it, " Maha- 
 neura," is indicated by the more cultivated 
 aspect of the country. Every spot of ground 
 is turned to profit by the industry of the 
 
120 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 Kandians, whose forte lies in agriculture, 
 and who are perfectly au fait in the art of 
 irrigation an art peculiarly requisite for 
 the due culture of this undulating country, 
 where an acre of level ground is rarely if 
 ever met with. The numerous terraces in 
 which the paddy-lands or rice-fields are 
 found immediately arrest attention, from 
 their novel and pleasing appearance. These 
 terraces are small patches of level ground, 
 which are artificially formed in every valley, 
 where the ascent of the ground will admit 
 of their introduction. Viewed from a dis- 
 tance, they resemble gigantic steps up the 
 mountain side. The advantages of this sys- 
 tem are obvious. Every foot of land thus 
 becomes available for the culture of rice, 
 which staple production of the tropics will 
 flourish only on level sites, it being abso- 
 lutely necessary to lay paddy-lands under 
 water for a certain period. By the Kan- 
 dian method of forming a valley into a suc- 
 cession of terraces, each of these is in its 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 121 
 
 turn watered by the minute rills that trickle 
 down every fissure in the rugged mountains 
 around. 
 
 On approaching the former capital of the 
 Kanclian dynasty from the side of Colombo, 
 the lake, embosomed within encircling moun- 
 tains that on every side rise to elevations 
 varying from four hundred to two thousand 
 feet, is the first object which meets the eye 
 of the traveller. The impression thus pro- 
 duced is highly favourable, and is by no 
 means diminished on a nearer approach. 
 The bungalows and villas that stud the mar- 
 gin of the lake give an animated appearance 
 to the landscape, and relieve the stern gran- 
 deur of the rugged heights which " repose 
 on their shadows" in the waters that bathe 
 their feet. 
 
 The coach, in which the reader has some- 
 what tardily travelled from Colombo, tra- 
 verses the small town of Kandy, and de- 
 posits the wayfarer, if a stranger in the land, 
 at an hotel that has for some time been 
 
 G 
 
122 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 established in this happy valley for the espe- 
 cial benefit of invalids and others, who, 
 allured by its high reputation, pay a flying 
 visit to the place ; but the merits and de- 
 merits of this favourite station are not to be 
 so lightly treated, and the wearied reader 
 will doubtless appreciate the advantages of 
 a momentary pause, after having effected a 
 lodgment in the heart of the Kandian terri- 
 tory. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 123 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 Kandy Kandian palaces and temples Boodhoo 
 Boodhaical religion The Maliawanse Kandian 
 women Requisites in female beauty A Kandian 
 
 belle The Rhodias The Veddah tribe Anecdote 
 
 \ 
 
 regarding them Observations on the Veddahs. 
 
 THE basin in which Kandy, or Mahanenra 
 (the great city), stands, is of an oval form, 
 about four miles in length by two in breadth, 
 the town being at the further and wider ex- 
 tremity. Its entire length is intersected by 
 a mountain stream, which, after feeding the 
 artificial lake of Kandy, divides the valley 
 into two nearly equal parts, and pours itself 
 into the Mahavilaganga. Like the happy 
 valley of Rasselas, it is bounded on every 
 side by lofty and apparently inaccessible 
 heights. It has, however, three communi- 
 cations with the external world. The roads 
 
 G2 
 
124 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 to Colombo, Trincomalee, and Badulla, a 
 military post of some importance, radiate 
 from this common centre. That leading to 
 Newera Ellia branches off from the Colombo 
 road in the vicinity of Paradinia. Without 
 the cordon of mountains, which encircle and 
 isolate the valley, flows the deep and rapid 
 Mahavilaganga, and, as if to make security 
 doubly sure, that river, after passing the 
 bridge at Paradinia, forms a deep loop, near 
 the extremity of which the town of Kandy 
 is situated. 
 
 Whether the Kandian monarch, in select- 
 ing the site of his capital, was influenced by 
 the apparent strength of these localities, I 
 know not. Certain it is, that he would 
 have shewn the better part of valour had he 
 chosen some spot more remote from the 
 stronghold of his European enemies, who, 
 being within seven days' march of " the 
 great city," occasionally made known their 
 proximity by unceremonious visits. When- 
 ever hostilities broke out between the Kan- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 125 
 
 dians and the Dutch, the sacking of the city 
 of the former usually opened the ball. The 
 repetition of these hostile visits must at 
 length have become disagreeable to both 
 parties, as the Kandians, according to the 
 approved mode of warfare amongst all moun- 
 taineers, past, present, and to come, never 
 remained to do the honours to their unin- 
 vited guests, but betook themselves to the 
 inaccessible fastnesses in the recesses of their 
 impervious forests. In these cases, famine 
 and disease did the work of the sword. 
 After a few weeks' occupation of the de- 
 serted town, the Dutch, thinned in numbers, 
 and weakened by the privations inseparable 
 from warfare in such a difficult arid inhos- 
 pitable country, retired from the scene of 
 their barren triumph. 
 
 The beauty and fertility of the surround- 
 ing country probably compensated for the 
 annoyance of such disagreeable neighbours. 
 Its salubrity, which is partly owing to the 
 vicinity of the lake, is quite unrivalled in 
 
126 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 this land of rank vegetation, and its con- 
 comitant malaria. Kandy has, in truth, 
 altered the unfavourable impression that 
 formerly obtained regarding the insalubri- 
 ous climate of the interior provinces of 
 Ceylon. The extreme mortality of Euro- 
 pean troops stationed within these provinces 
 was at one period truly appalling. In some 
 instances, British detachments, consisting of 
 one or two companies, entirely melted away. 
 The 51st and 65th regiments are mentioned 
 as having been nearly annihilated by the 
 pestilential climate to which they were ex- 
 posed in the short and disastrous campaign 
 of 1803. The causes which operated such 
 baneful results are probably in some mea- 
 sure diminished, but can scarcely be con- 
 sidered as no longer in existence. The un- 
 healthy localities, which formerly proved " the 
 white man's grave," are now unoccupied by 
 European troops, who are for the most part 
 concentrated in the cantonments of Kandy, 
 and in the healthful plains of Newera Ellia. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 127 
 
 The principal lions at Kandy are the tem- 
 ples consecrated to Boodhoo and the minor 
 gods. His late majesty's palace is still in 
 existence, but, having been improved and 
 modernized by Europeans, presents an ap- 
 pearance totally different from that which, 
 in the palmy days of royalty, was wont to 
 dazzle the eyes of the natives. An octa- 
 gonal building, flanking the palais royal, and 
 a deep moat in its front, convey the idea of 
 a castellated place of strength. The other 
 extremity is terminated by a range of 
 apartments, wherein the secluded ladies 
 of the royal harem concealed their charms 
 from all save their liege lord and sove- 
 reign. In front of the harem, the sun 
 and all the stars of the firmament are 
 carved in stone, and produce an extremely 
 striking and Oriental effect. You enter 
 the edifice through a massive and rather 
 grand archway. After ascending two or 
 three flights of stone steps, and passing 
 through sundry antechambers, you reach 
 
128 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 the place where once stood the hall of 
 audience. 
 
 Some mischievous utilitarians have me- 
 tamorphosed this hall, which was no doubt 
 a very grand affair in its day, into a non- 
 descript building, which performs double 
 duiy as a criminal court and as a chapel. 
 The judges' desk, in the opinion of the pro- 
 fane, makes an admirable pulpit ; but this 
 introduction of the money-changers into the 
 temples is justly considered by the clerical 
 establishment of Ceylon as a grievous and 
 crying evil. 
 
 Truth compels me to admit that the ro- 
 mantic feeling, with which the antiquary 
 wanders over this " sometime" palace, is 
 greatly abated by the presence of many 
 similar anomalies. The Pateripooa, as the 
 octagonal building above mentioned was for- 
 merly denominated, is now degraded into a 
 military prison, and the boudoir of " the 
 bride of the sun and sister of the moon," 
 into a powder-magazine. Under these un- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 129 
 
 favourable circumstances, a matter-of-fact 
 person would, perhaps, view the quondam 
 abode of royalty with indifference ; but those 
 who are gifted with a small share of ima- 
 gination are rarely disappointed. 
 
 Temples are profusely scattered over the 
 island, but in the good town of Kandy 
 do they chiefly abound. The priests of 
 Ceylon, like those of Melrose, are said to 
 have 
 
 " Made good kail 
 On Fridays, when they fasted." 
 
 Their voice was omnipotent in the Kandiari 
 cabinet ; peace or war was decided by the 
 fiat of these secular and ecclesiastical mas- 
 ters and pastors. None of their countrymen 
 more cordially detest the British rule, which 
 has inflicted a "heavy blow and great dis- 
 couragement" on these meddling prelates. 
 They still hover near the scene of their for- 
 mer glories, where the sacred edifices of the 
 Delada Malegawa, the Malwatt, and Asig- 
 nie Wihemes, afford them shelter. Of these, 
 
 G3 
 
130 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 the first is the most celebrated. It contains 
 the tooth of Boodhoo, the tutelar deity of 
 the island. 
 
 A tradition somewhat similar to that 
 which, in the thirteenth century, obtained 
 among the Scotch concerning the stone 
 at Scone, belongs to this sacred relic. It 
 is regarded by the Kandians as the palla- 
 dium of their liberties, and until the English 
 succeeded in capturing it, their dominion 
 over the country was insecure. Resistance 
 to the fortunate possessors of this inestimable 
 tooth is, in the opinion of all devout Bood- 
 hists, utterly vain and impotent. This im- 
 pression materially aided us in effecting the 
 subjugation of the inland provinces, and 
 checks the open display of any lurking dis- 
 affection that may exist among the priests 
 and their adherents. 
 
 Europeans are rarely permitted to behold 
 this outward and visible sign of the favour 
 of Boodhoo. It is deposited in a small 
 golden case, the exterior of which is com- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 131 
 
 pletely covered with precious stones and 
 pearls of immense value. This is fitted into 
 a similar, but somewhat larger, case, called a 
 karandua. There are five of these karan- 
 duas, four of which are in this manner suc- 
 cessively imbedded. 
 
 From the temples of Kandy to the reli- 
 gious tenets professed therein the transition 
 is natural. In Ceylon, the religion of the 
 great bulk of the people is that inculcated 
 by Boodhoo. Boodhists deny the existence 
 of an eternal and almighty Being. They 
 believe that the world was never other than 
 at present, and that it will thus continue for 
 ever. After death, the Boodhists imagine 
 that mankind assume the forms of the in- 
 ferior animals, and transmigrate for many 
 centuries, until annihilation relieves them 
 from this state of constant transition. Far 
 from regarding the idea of annihilation with 
 horror, the Boodhist looks forward to this 
 " sinking into nought " as the termination 
 of his worldly toils, which are curtailed or 
 
132 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 protracted according to the degree of favour 
 he may find in the eyes of the deity he 
 adores. 
 
 This extraordinary religion has spread 
 over an immense portion of Asia. It ap- 
 pears to have had its origin in the remote 
 countries watered by the Brahmaputra and 
 its tributaries, and from thence to have 
 extended over China, Japan, and the Bur- 
 mese empire. In such widely scattered re- 
 gions, the Boodhaical system has undergone 
 numerous modifications of minor importance, 
 but its leading features are always distin- 
 guishable, and in no material degree altered. 
 It is believed to exist in its greatest purity 
 in the great peninsula comprising the king- 
 doms of Ava and Siam. In those countries 
 devotion is rendered exclusively to Boodhoo, 
 but in the Chinese empire and in Ceylon 
 the gods Vidrun, Kattragam, Samen, and 
 Pitia, share with Boodhoo in the adoration 
 of the people. In truth, the latter deities, 
 having immediate control over all worldly 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 133 
 
 affairs, are often besought with a fervour 
 unknown to those who exclusively worship 
 Boodhoo, whose power cannot affect the 
 present weal or woe of his followers, but 
 only extends to their happiness in a future 
 state. The passing ills of this life are 
 shunned by the more general devotees with 
 a degree of anxiety that is rarely expe- 
 rienced with regard to those more terrible 
 calamities, which only appear in the dis- 
 tance, and through the medium of an un- 
 certain and ill-defined futurity. 
 
 It were easy to dilate on the Boodhaical 
 system and its founder, who is supposed to 
 have flourished about six hundred years 
 before the commencement of the Christian 
 era. Such a topic is, however, at variance 
 with the design of this work, which is 
 intended only for the eye of the general 
 reader, who will doubtless be satisfied with 
 the brief sketch already presented. To 
 those lovers of Oriental lore who would 
 fain explore the mysteries of Boodhism, and 
 
134 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 trace its influence in the history of Ceylon, 
 I beg to recommend a perusal of the Maha 
 Wan.se, a Cingalese historical document, 
 which has been translated by Mr. Tumour, 
 a gentleman now holding a high civil ap- 
 pointment in the island, whose great talents 
 and unwearied assiduity have been success- 
 fully exerted in penetrating the tangled 
 labyrinth of commingled truth and fiction, 
 which, in the lapse of ages, has wound itself 
 round this ancient and interesting record. 
 
 Women take no prominent part in the 
 ceremonies of Boodhaical worship. The 
 European infidel, who anticipates the happi- 
 ness of meeting the Cingalese fair at the 
 temples of the ungallant votaries of Bood- 
 hoo, will generally encounter disappoint- 
 ment. The voice of the charmer is in these 
 sacred edifices dispensed with, and in its 
 stead, the sound of barbaric horns and drums 
 clangs discordantly on the offended ear. The 
 clamour arising from Kandian temples can 
 be fully appreciated only by those who have 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 135 
 
 had the misfortune of residing within hear- 
 ing of their " dreadful revelry." Each drum 
 seems to beat without the slightest regard 
 to time, and in utter defiance of all the laws 
 of melody. The monotonous din thus pro- 
 duced is occasionally enlivened by a horrid 
 squeak from a native instrument, which 
 rejoices in the euphonious name of hora- 
 nawa. 
 
 It must not, however, be imagined that 
 the absence of le beau sewe from these 
 delightful concerts is caused by any lack 
 of devotion on their part ; on grand occa- 
 sions they muster in great force, and 
 add much to the interest of the Parra- 
 harra, and other national processions, that 
 periodically take place. The Cingalese 
 women have generally good figures, but the 
 same degree of praise can scarcely be ex- 
 tended to their faces, which are seldom 
 handsome, or even pretty. This description 
 applies to those who are congregated in 
 towns and villages. In the country, where 
 
136 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 their occupations are less sedentary, the 
 traveller will often encounter fair and, in- 
 deed, beauteous maidens, whose charms are 
 almost above criticism. The following des- 
 cription of the points of a Cingalese belle, 
 which was given by a Kandian chief to a 
 late writer on Ceylon,* will interest all who 
 profess themselves connoisseurs in female 
 loveliness. 
 
 " Her hair should be voluminous, like the 
 tail of the peacock, long, reaching to the 
 knees, and terminating in graceful curls ; 
 her eyebrows should resemble the rainbow ; 
 her eyes the blue sapphire and the petals of 
 the Manilla flower. Her nose should be like 
 the bill of the hawk. Her lips should be 
 bright and red, like coral on the young leaf 
 of the iron-tree. Her teeth should be small, 
 regular, and closely set, and like jasmine 
 buds. Her neck should be large and round, 
 resembling the benigodea. Her chest should 
 be capacious ; her breasts firm and conical, 
 
 * Dr. Davy. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 137 
 
 like the yellow cocoa-nut ; and her waist 
 small, almost small enough to be clasped by 
 the hand. Her hips should be wide ; her 
 limbs tapering ; the soles of her feet without 
 any hollow ; and the surface of her body in 
 general soft, delicate, smooth, and rounded, 
 without the asperities of projecting bones 
 and sinews." 
 
 There is but a trifling difference between 
 the personal appearance of the generality of 
 the Cingalese and that of the natives on the 
 Coromandel coast. The lowlanders have for 
 ages traded and mixed with their conti- 
 nental neighbours ; and having, during the 
 last three centuries, been under the rule of 
 Europeans, they have gradually lost those 
 minute, but distinct, peculiarities belonging 
 to their forefathers. But the exclusive 
 habits and limited intercourse of the Kan- 
 dians with the inhabitants of the seaboard 
 provinces have prevented this gradual change 
 from affecting them, and the result is a 
 marked difference between their manners 
 
138 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 and persons and those of the Cingalese. 
 They are probably but little, if at all, diffe- 
 rent in this respect from what the islanders 
 were prior to the arrival of the Portuguese, in 
 1505. The independence which, until of late, 
 they possessed, appears to have had the effect 
 of elevating their general bearing above that 
 of the fawning Hindoo. They are taller, 
 darker, and better made than the natives of 
 the low country, for whom they entertain a 
 sovereign contempt, which is duly returned, 
 with compound interest. The hair of these 
 mountaineers is suffered to grow to a consi- 
 derable length, and considered by them to 
 be a necessary concomitant of true dignity. 
 Compared with the closely cropped Moor- 
 man, they certainly appear to great advan- 
 tage, and have a superior nobleness of mien 
 which, if their craniums were shorn of their 
 natural ornament, would, perhaps, in a great 
 measure disappear. 
 
 Taken collectively, the Cingalese may, 
 perhaps, be pronounced inferior in personal 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 139 
 
 beauty to the natives of Hindoostan ; but 
 among them there are some striking excep- 
 tions to this general observation. The ad- 
 mirers of brunettes may occasionally have 
 the felicity of beholding at the balls, given 
 at Government House, a few Kandian belles, 
 who, were it not for their complexion, 
 
 " The shadowed livery of the burnished sun," 
 would be deemed specimens of surpassing 
 loveliness. In the province of Kornegalle 
 there was, and probably still is, a dusky 
 beauty, whom I do not remember ever to 
 have seen equalled in the "clime of the 
 East." Her classically low forehead, shaded 
 by luxuriant masses of jet black hair, her 
 Grecian nose, and short upper lip, were each 
 perfect, and, as a whole, incomparable. If 
 her stature was somewhat above the height 
 which the great masters of sculpture have 
 assigned as the limit of feminine proportions, 
 it seemed so justly to harmonize with her 
 general tournure, that the most fastidious 
 critic could not wish it to be less. Yet she 
 
140 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 possessed nothing of that commanding air to 
 which height is usually considered a neces- 
 sary accompaniment. She appeared rather 
 formed for love than for command ; and in 
 her large and liquid eye the disciple of 
 Lavater might discern the languor and 
 apathy that pervaded " the soul within." 
 
 It has been said that the physiognomy 
 of mountaineers is influenced by the bold 
 scenery amid which they reside, and which 
 is supposed to impart somewhat of hardiesse 
 to their manners and aspect. Whether the 
 mode of life and active habits of the dwel- 
 lers in elevated regions may give some ap- 
 pearance of plausibility to this theory is a 
 question that may be submitted to the dis- 
 cussion of physiognomists and phrenologists. 
 But from what cause soever it may proceed, 
 and some of them have already been cited, 
 there is certainly an evident dissimilarity 
 between the Kandians and the Cingalese, the 
 highlanders and the lowlanders of Ceylon. 
 The latter are the children of servility ; which 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 141 
 
 seems stamped on their brows by the hand of 
 Nature, and, by their peculiar practice of 
 wearing long combs in their hair, they have 
 contrived to render themselves more effemi- 
 nate in appearance than she intended them 
 to be. Their crouching manners and want 
 of manliness evince most forcibly that they 
 do not apprehend fully, and in all its merits, 
 the doctrine of our Trans- Atlantic brethren, 
 that all men are free and equal. 
 
 That key of our power in India, distinc- 
 tion of castes, does not exercise so great an 
 influence over the minds of the Cingalese as 
 it has obtained among the natives of Hin- 
 doostan. Four castes, however, exist in 
 Ceylon. Of these, the first in importance is 
 the Ekshastria WansS, or royal caste, which 
 may be said to have altogether disappeared, 
 there being no acknowledged descendant of 
 the regal dynasty. Second only to royalty 
 are the members of the Brachmina Wans^ 
 or the Brahmin caste. The cultivators of 
 the soil are included under the general name 
 
142 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 of Goewanse, and are next in rank to the 
 Brachmina Wanse. The hewers of wood 
 and drawers of water, and in short all the 
 operative classes, constitute the Kslioodra, 
 or fourth and lowest rank. Each of these 
 castes is split into innumerable subdivisions, 
 a description of which is unnecessary in this 
 general outline. I would, however, make 
 an exception with regard to the unfortunate 
 race of Rhodias, who are considered by the 
 Cingalese ineffably vile, and unworthy of the 
 protection of the laws. 
 
 The crime, for which these unhappy out- 
 casts were originally placed beyond the pale 
 of society, would not in Old England be 
 considered a very heinous or unpardonable 
 misdemeanour: a lurking affection for the 
 flesh of the animal pronounced sacred by 
 Oriental laws was the primary cause of their 
 downfall. Their numbers have, in some 
 instances, been swelled by other malefactors, 
 but their principal supply of recruits has ever 
 been from the ranks of the beef-eaters. The 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 143 
 
 royal clemency did occasionally restore some 
 fortunate individuals to their former rank, 
 but these glimpses of favour were few and 
 far between. The bitter cup of degradation 
 was drained to the last dregs by the wretched 
 Rhodia. On the approach of one of the 
 Goewanse caste, he was compelled to pros- 
 trate himself, and form a stepping-stone for 
 his lord and master. Nothing, perhaps, can 
 give a better idea of the utter contempt in 
 which the Rhodia caste were held, than the 
 circumstance of the Cingalese objecting to 
 lay hands on some of them whom our Go- 
 vernment wished to arrest, but offering to 
 shoot them on the first convenient oppor- 
 tunity. 
 
 Notwithstanding their physical and men- 
 tal sufferings, the food of their choice seems 
 to have, in some measure, repaid them for 
 the sacrifices of which it was the innocent 
 cause. Both the men and women of the 
 Rhodia tribe surpass the general average 
 of Cingalese beauty. The women, in parti- 
 
144 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 cular, win the favour of Europeans, both 
 by their good looks and fascinating man- 
 ners. Shunned and execrated by the vilest 
 of their fellow-countrymen, they avenge 
 themselves in a truly feminine mode, by 
 shewing a marked partiality for the society 
 of the " pale faces." 
 
 To the Kshoodra caste also belong the 
 savage Veddahs, a wandering race inhabit- 
 ing the wild and unfrequented country to 
 the north-eastward of Kandy. A cursory 
 notice of this extraordinary people, who, 
 in the midst of civilization, are still to be 
 found in a state of nature as low as it is 
 possible for humanity to descend, cannot 
 fail to be interesting to those who pursue 
 the first of all studies the study of man- 
 kind ; for, in the history of the world there 
 are few, if any, instances of a race of men 
 who, like the Veddahs of Ceylon, have 
 retained all the propensities and character- 
 istics that belong to the lowest grade of 
 savages, in defiance of the halo of civiliza- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 145 
 
 tiori that on every side surrounds them. 
 The inaccessible nature of their country, 
 covered with dense jungles, and impervious 
 except to the beasts of the forest, and to 
 men resembling them in habits and pursuits, 
 may in some degree account for the utter 
 moral degradation of this singular tribe. 
 
 The tract of country stretching from the 
 base of the hills that terminate the range of 
 the Kandian mountains to the eastward, to 
 the commencement of the civilized belt of 
 land that skirts the eastern coast of the 
 island, is solely occupied by Veddahs, who 
 consider it their birth-right and father-land. 
 Their early history is buried in obscurity, 
 and recorded only in absurd and Oriental 
 tales. There can, however, be no doubt as 
 to their being the descendants of the abo- 
 rigines of the island, who, on the invasion of 
 Ceylon by the Malabars, retired into these 
 " deserts idle," and there found shelter from 
 their powerful invaders. They are divided 
 into two classes, the village and the wild 
 H 
 
146 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 Veddahs. The former and less interesting 
 class may be said to form a link in the chain 
 that connects their wilder brethren with the 
 Cingalese, whom they resemble in form and 
 features. They live for the most part on 
 the spontaneous productions of the earth, 
 and on the food of such animals as their 
 limited skill in the art of venerie enables 
 them to capture. With this simple diet 
 they unite the fruit of the cocoa-nut tree, 
 which they plant and cultivate. The sim- 
 plicity of their mode of living seems a prac- 
 tical illustration of the lines, 
 
 " Man wants but little here below, 
 Nor wants that little long." 
 
 Their dwellings and clothing are on a scale 
 proportioned to the poverty of their diet. 
 The statue of Achilles, in Hyde Park, will 
 afford to the curious the best idea of their 
 costume, which is, however, scarcely so re- 
 spectable as that of the Grecian hero. On 
 one occasion, this deficiency of attire led to 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 147 
 
 a rather ludicrous scene in the court of jus- 
 tice at Alipoot, our most advanced station in 
 this neighbourhood. 
 
 It appears that some knotty subject had 
 been agitated among the elders of the Ved- 
 dahs, by whom all questions that can pos- 
 sibly arise in such a primitive state of society 
 are usually decided. In this instance, how- 
 ever, their judgment was at fault, or at all 
 events did not secure the acquiescence that 
 it generally does among this simple people. 
 It was determined, nem. con., to adjourn to 
 the aforesaid district court, and trust to the 
 justice of a British judge. On their arrival 
 at Alipoot, they accordingly ushered them- 
 selves, sans ceremonie, into the presence. 
 The district judge, unfortunately, happened 
 to be a great observer of the proprieties, 
 and, as soon as he could find words to ex- 
 press his indignation at this flagrant con- 
 tempt of court, directed the whole of the 
 litigants, young and old, to be summarily 
 ejected, with strong injunctions touching the 
 
 H2 
 
148 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 necessity of consulting the village Schneider. 
 To incur expense for such a trifle was an 
 idea that did not for a moment disturb the 
 mental quiescence of these sylvan denizens ; 
 a middle course was, after due delibera- 
 tion, suggested, and forthwith adopted. The 
 charitable villagers, like good Samaritans, 
 clothed the naked with such articles as were 
 most conveniently procured at the moment, 
 and in a few minutes the Veddahs, headed 
 by their " ancient," re-entered the hall of 
 justice in a variety of rather grotesque cos- 
 tumes. Some were swathed, like Egyptian 
 mummies, in immense rolls of country cloth, 
 which enveloped their entire persons, arms 
 and all, and effectually prevented any further 
 objections on the score of deficiency of dress; 
 others appeared enveloped in blankets, the 
 very sight of which, with the thermometer 
 at 90, induced the most disagreeable sensa- 
 tions. In short, the uniformity of " nature's 
 dress" was no longer visible, and in lieu 
 thereof, the most variegated crew that can 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 149 
 
 well be conceived now stood before the 
 lately indignant representative of British 
 justice. 
 
 These village Veddahs, although far be- 
 neath the civilized Cingalese, rank high in 
 the scale of civilization when compared with 
 those roaming and savage children of the 
 trackless forest, who are also comprised 
 under the general name of Veddah. By 
 way of distinction, these wild animals are 
 called forest Veddahs. They never associate 
 with their brethren of the villages, who 
 regard them with feelings of enmity and 
 disgust. Like the beasts of the forest, they 
 live in pairs, and, except on some extraor- 
 dinary occasion, never assemble together. 
 
 Neither the village nor the forest Veddahs 
 have the slightest idea of a Supreme Being, 
 or of a future existence. The former and 
 superior race believe in the existence of 
 devils, who, in their opinion, are the male- 
 volent agents that cause " the thousand 
 natural shocks that flesh is heir to." To 
 
150 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 these evil demons they occasionally offer 
 some rude tribute, to arrest any sickness or 
 other cause of distress which may afflict 
 them. 
 
 The wood-craft of these savages, on which 
 they mainly depend for the support of life, 
 is rude and inefficient in the extreme. The 
 bow is their sole weapon of offence. Their 
 arrows are headed with iron, which they 
 receive from the Cingalese in exchange for 
 the skins of deer and elk. With this feeble 
 instrument of destruction, they wage an in- 
 cessant war with the elephants that abound 
 in their territories and dispute with these 
 creatures in human form the dominion of 
 their desolate wilds. Even under these un- 
 favourable circumstances, human sagacity 
 prevails over the physical force of the brute. 
 Like the invulnerable Grecian hero, the 
 elephant has a weak point, which nearly 
 coincides with that of the son of Thetis. 
 The arrows of the Veddahs, which rebound 
 from his body as from a wall of adamant, 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 151 
 
 become formidable weapons when directed 
 at the sole of his foot. In the act of walk- 
 ing, the animal raises his foot in such a 
 manner as to expose the whole of the sole 
 to view ; the Veddah, aware of this peculiar 
 action, cautiously follows his victim until 
 he is sufficiently near to discharge with 
 effect an arrow at the vulnerable part. 
 When the wounded foot is again placed on 
 the ground, the arrow of course breaks, 
 leaving the barbed point deeply buried in 
 the flesh. The elephant hardly deigns to 
 notice such a trifling injury when first re- 
 ceived, but the pain arising from the in- 
 flamed part soon puts him Jwrs de combat. 
 His persecutors now approach, and by means 
 of arrows and spears, contrive to despatch 
 the now impotent brute. 
 
 Little has hitherto been done towards in- 
 ducing the Veddahs to become useful mem- 
 bers of society. It is to be lamented that 
 more effective steps have not been taken 
 with a view to the accomplishment of so 
 
152 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 desirable an object as that of civilizing this 
 degraded, and, as far as the interests of the 
 state are concerned, useless race of men. 
 The fascinations of that high degree of free- 
 dom which belongs to the savage state, and 
 cannot co-exist with the pursuits and habits 
 of civilized life, will probably retard the 
 moral subjugation of this interesting people 
 for many years. Until a vast increase shall 
 take place in the thinly scattered population 
 of Ceylon, and cause a partial emigration in 
 the direction of the wastes of the Veddah 
 country, the most sanguine can entertain but 
 faint hopes of any considerable change in the 
 character and habits of these " children of 
 the mist." 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 153 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Climate of Kandy Kandian Pavilion Military can- 
 tonments. Kandian rebellion Doombera Plains 
 Massacre of Major Davie's detachment Kornegalle 
 Tunnel Kandian troops Guerilla warfare suited to 
 the Kandian country Abattis Kandian artillery. 
 
 FROM its elevation, Kandy enjoys through- 
 out the year a climate rarely experienced 
 in our Eastern possessions. The annual 
 temperature averages 76; but at certain 
 seasons, the thermometer seldom ranges 
 above 72. This circumstance, together 
 with the many other advantages possessed 
 by this favoured spot, renders it the most 
 agreeable place of residence in Ceylon, and, 
 accordingly, the dwellers in the low country 
 generally endeavour to pass a few months of 
 each year in this cool retreat. 
 
 It is, however, a question yet mooted by 
 
 H3 
 
154 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 medical men, whether the climate of this 
 elevated region is, on the whole, more con- 
 genial to the European constitution than 
 that of Colombo and other places on the 
 western coast of the island. At these the 
 near proximity of the sea tempers the at- 
 mosphere, and induces an equable and 
 scarcely varying temperature ; whereas, at 
 Kandy, the diurnal range of the thermome- 
 ter is excessively great. The burning heats 
 of the day are succeeded by nights which 
 are frequently more chilly than is altogether 
 agreeable to the sensitive frame of an an- 
 cient Anglo-Cingalese. This great and sud- 
 den change, however refreshing at the mo- 
 ment, cannot be otherwise than injurious, 
 and, by its wearing tendency, has some 
 effect in counteracting the general advan- 
 tages of the climate. 
 
 Be this as it may, Kandy is universally 
 admitted to be the most delightful station 
 in Ceylon. The residents therein are the 
 objects of envy to their less fortunate friends, 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 155 
 
 whose evil star compels them to remain in a 
 temperature of 90 at Trincomalee, or some 
 other of the many terrestrial pandemoniums 
 that abound in the island. During the hot 
 months, the governor and all the magnates 
 of the land congregate either in Kandy or 
 the lofty plains of Newera Ellia. The resi- 
 dence of the governor at the former place is 
 the most desirable of the different mansions 
 in the island that are appropriated to her 
 Majesty's representative. It was originally 
 intended to follow the design of the Pavilion 
 at Brighton in the construction of this edi- 
 fice, but the idea, on account of the great 
 expense which it involved, was speedily 
 abandoned. The building, however, glories 
 in the name of, although it mourns its want of 
 similarity to, the regal palace. The Kandian 
 Pavilion is really a splendid mansion, and 
 well adapted to a tropical climate. The 
 main building is cut off from the wings by a 
 long corridor, which serves as a cool lounge 
 during the heat of the day, and adds greatly 
 
156 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 to the means of ventilation, the grand desi- 
 deratum in all Oriental houses. In this 
 part of the Pavilion, the whole of the 
 ground-floor is occupied by one large and 
 well-proportioned state-apartment. The ar- 
 rangement of the different rooms is admira- 
 ble, nor do those destined for public recep- 
 tion encroach on the private apartments, so 
 as to deprive them of their fair propor- 
 tions an error which seems to obtain in 
 most of the buildings of the Anglo-Indian 
 " quality." 
 
 The town of Kandy consists of long strag- 
 gling ranges of paltry houses, here and there 
 interspersed with a few superior buildings. 
 All the desirable residences are to be found 
 in the suburbs, which extend to a consider- 
 able distance on every side, and contain 
 several pretty sites whereon divers bunga- 
 lows, principally occupied by the military, 
 are erected. The cantonment, if such it 
 can be termed, is as widely dispersed as it 
 is possible to conceive ; the barracks of the 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 157 
 
 different corps composing the garrison being 
 placed at the angles of a nearly equilateral 
 triangle, the sides of which average a mile 
 in length. 
 
 Admitting, for the sake of argument, that 
 the bulk of the Kandians are good men and 
 true, the objections to this extreme disper- 
 sion of the military force are but little, if at 
 all, diminished thereby. In Ceylon, as in 
 India, our power rests on opinion rather 
 than any particular affection for us or love 
 for our rule. The Kandian chieftains never 
 have shared, and never will share, in the 
 favourable feeling entertained towards us by 
 the lower grades. There is no doubt that 
 many of the Adigars, Dissaves, and other 
 chiefs, who, although subject to the fiat of 
 royalty, formerly ruled as lords paramount 
 in their respective provinces, regard our 
 levelling sway with no other feelings but 
 those of hatred and undying enmity. Their 
 influence is, indeed, on the wane, but still 
 considerable, and sufficient, were a fitting 
 
158 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 opportunity to present itself, to cause num- 
 bers to join them in an attempt to throw off 
 the English yoke. Such an effort would, in 
 all human probability, be utterly vain and 
 impotent, but it should, nevertheless, be re- 
 garded as an event which, unlikely though 
 it be, is yet within the bounds of possibility. 
 A curious and somewhat interesting epi- 
 sode in the recent history of Ceylon would 
 seem to bear out the distrustful view here 
 taken. In 1834, a Cingalese chief informed 
 the then governor, Sir Robert Wilmot 
 Horton, that a plan of a general rebellion 
 was in agitation among several of the most 
 influential Kandian chiefs. Sundry suspi- 
 cious occurrences corroborated the truth of 
 this statement, and as a matter of precau- 
 tion, the suspected chiefs were seized and 
 kept in close confinement. This prompt 
 measure had the beneficial effect of nipping 
 in the bud all designs of rebellion, and in- 
 duced some of the conspirators, who had a 
 due regard for the welfare of " number 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 159 
 
 one," to disclose the following particulars of 
 the proposed tragedy. 
 
 It was arranged that one of the principal 
 chiefs amongst the Kandians should invite 
 the governor to a grand entertainment, 
 which was to have been given at a house in 
 the neighbourhood of Kandy, and to which 
 all the military officers and civilians resident 
 at that station were to have received a 
 general invitation. In the event of its be- 
 ing accepted, it was settled that the wines 
 should be drugged to such a degree as to 
 stupify all who drank thereof. The gentle- 
 men were then to have been knocked on 
 the head, and the ladies reserved to grace 
 the harems of the conspirators. By supply- 
 ing the troops of the garrison with arrack 
 ad libitum, it was confidently hoped that the 
 vinous propensities of the European soldiery 
 would soon put a large proportion of them 
 hors de combat, and that the remainder, sur- 
 prised and without officers, would offer but 
 a faint and ineffectual resistance. 
 
160 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 This diabolical plan was matured with a 
 secrecy which, considering the numbers to 
 whom it was necessarily intrusted, is truly 
 surprising. The plot thickened the fatal 
 hour approached and the days of the des- 
 tined victims were nearly numbered, when 
 one, less daring or less blood-thirsty than his 
 fellows, disclosed the fatal secret. 
 
 These particulars were elicited and proved 
 on the trial of the chiefs of the embryo 
 rebellion. No moral doubt did or could 
 exist regarding their guilt ; but the ingenuity 
 of the counsel employed on the defence, and 
 the notorious leaning of the jury, a majority 
 of whom were natives, in favour of the pri- 
 soners, procured a verdict of " not guilty," 
 and added another to the many illustrations 
 of " the glorious uncertainty of the law." 
 
 Kandy is not regularly fortified ; but a few 
 redoubts garnish the surrounding heights, 
 and would, in case of necessity, serve the 
 purposes of a temporary defence. Field- 
 works have lately been erected on the sum- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 161 
 
 mit of an eminence commanding the ap- 
 proaches from Badulla and the south-eastern 
 provinces, the inhabitants of which have the 
 reputation of being the most disaffected in 
 the island. 
 
 No station in Ceylon is more fortunate 
 than Kandy in the beauty of the surround- 
 ing country. Of the many magnificent 
 views in the island, that of the Doombera 
 Plains, in the immediate vicinity of the 
 station, is the most worthy of the notice of 
 the tourist. From the heights to the east- 
 ward of the town, the best view of this sub- 
 lime landscape may be obtained. The 
 plains comprise a vast extent of beautifully 
 undulating country, dotted here and there 
 with groups of large and majestic trees, the 
 intervals between which are open and en- 
 tirely free from jungle. The whole bears a 
 striking resemblance to an English park on 
 an immense scale, which would be complete 
 but for the total absence of cultivation and 
 of the dwellings of man. A death-like still- 
 
162 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 ness seems to reign over this apparently 
 deserted valley, and contrasts strongly with 
 the busy and animated aspect of the waving 
 corn-fields and happy hamlets that adorn the 
 smiling face of an English landscape. 
 
 Through the midst of this magnificent 
 scenery rolls the Mahavilaganga. Being 
 much interrupted with rocks and shoals, no 
 boats appear on its majestic stream, and the 
 lonely river wanders sullenly through a re- 
 gion that seems to sympathize with and 
 share in its solitude. The dark and lofty 
 cone of Hoonnisagiria, which attains an 
 altitude of six thousand feet, raises itself 
 up in the distance, and, supported by a 
 rugged and elevated range of mountains, 
 that fill up the back-ground, lends an addi- 
 tional charm and grandeur to this enchant- 
 ing scene. 
 
 Nearly in the centre of the valley of 
 Doombera may be descried a slight emi- 
 nence, crowned by a solitary and ancient 
 tree, generally known as " Davie's Tree." 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 163 
 
 It is thus denominated on account of its 
 vicinity to the site of the massacre of a de- 
 tachment, under the command of Major 
 Da vie, which occurred during the Kandian 
 war of 1803. As the details of this sad 
 event, though universally known in Ceylon, 
 are not familiar to the British public, and 
 as they serve to evince the ferocity and 
 treachery that, in the days of their inde- 
 pendence, characterized the Kandians, they 
 deserve a brief and cursory notice. 
 
 When the Kandian war of 1803, which 
 Governor North vainly endeavoured to pre- 
 vent by conciliatory measures, broke out, the 
 British army, under General MacDowal, ad- 
 vanced into the interior, and occupied the 
 capital as a military post. On the approach 
 of the sickly season, it was deemed advisa- 
 ble to withdraw the greater portion of the 
 force employed ; and, accordingly, a detach- 
 ment of only a thousand men, the majority 
 of whom were Malays and Lascars, remained 
 as the garrison of Kandy. Shortly after the 
 
164 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 retreat of the main body of the army, the 
 Kandians, aware of the weakness of the 
 garrison, attacked the town of Kandy with 
 overwhelming numbers. The jungle, which 
 at that time hemmed in the place on every 
 side, offered great facilities to the attack, by 
 enabling the assailants to approach unob- 
 served to the skirts of the dense thicket 
 from whence they poured an incessant and 
 wasting fire. After a few hours' resistance, 
 the commandant, Major Davie, agreed to 
 evacuate the place, on condition of being 
 allowed an unmolested retreat, with arms 
 and baggage, to Trincomalee. The Kandians 
 having acceded to this demand, the ill-fated 
 troops, abandoning their sick and wounded 
 to the mercy of the enemy, commenced their 
 retrograde movement. About three miles 
 from Kandy, intersecting the road to Trinco- 
 malee, flows the Mahavilaganga, which is at 
 this point a stream of considerable breadth, 
 and when, as at the period in question, 
 swollen with rain, of great depth and ra- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 165 
 
 pidity. Major Davie halted for the night 
 on the right bank of this river under the 
 tree which has since borne his name. At 
 day-break he despatched messengers to the 
 chiefs of the Kandian army, which still hung 
 on his rear, with a requisition for boats or 
 rafts, for the purpose of transporting his 
 party over the river in their front. The 
 chiefs, with true Indian cunning, undertook 
 to furnish the boats required ; and, lulled by 
 this deceitful promise, the English commander 
 passed the day without making any effort to 
 overcome the obstacle presented to his march. 
 Time was thus gained for the advance of 
 reinforcements to the enemy, whose numbers 
 now enabled him to dispose his forces round 
 the devoted band in a semicircle, of which 
 the spot of ground occupied by Davie's party 
 was the centre, and the river the diameter. 
 On the second morning of their bivouac, 
 the British detachment found themselves 
 thus enveloped by a perfidious enemy, whose 
 objects were now fully revealed. 
 
166 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 Despondency now began to prevail amongst 
 the native troops under Davie, numbers of 
 whom went over to the Kandians, who 
 received them with open arms. By the 
 exertions of some officers, who did not yet 
 despair, rafts were at length made, and it 
 was hoped that, in the obscurity of night, 
 the passage of the river might still be ef- 
 fected. But the ray of hope which thus 
 burst upon the minds of the depressed 
 soldiery was speedily dissipated by an order 
 from Major Davie to surrender to an enemy 
 never known to spare a captive. So well 
 and truly was the merciless character of the 
 Kandians estimated, that two officers, on 
 hearing this fatal mandate, mutually per- 
 formed the last kind office, and died a Roman 
 death. 
 
 Their anticipations were fully realized. 
 The Kandians took the disarmed European 
 soldiers by twos and threes, into a neigh- 
 bouring ravine, and there massacred them. 
 Only one of the destined victims, a private of 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 167 
 
 H.M. 19th regiment, escaped ; and from him 
 these particulars were chiefly gleaned. He 
 swam across the river, and, although severely 
 wounded, succeeded in making his way to 
 Trincomalee. 
 
 More than three hundred European offi- 
 cers and soldiers, including those who were 
 abandoned at Kandy, were thus murdered 
 in cold blood. Of the whole party, Major 
 Davie was the only individual whose life was 
 spared by the captors. This circumstance 
 has led some to suspect him of treachery. 
 It is, however, not probable that he would 
 have willingly resigned the charms of civilized 
 society for the life of a savage, or that the 
 Kandians could have tempted him to incur 
 everlasting infamy by their most specious 
 promises. Incapacity may, with more jus- 
 tice, be laid to Davie's charge. His opera- 
 tions, from the commencement of the attack, 
 indicate weakness and indecision, and his 
 early surrender filled the measure of his dis- 
 grace. As if to illustrate the practicability 
 
168 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 of a retreat under similar circumstances, a 
 detachment of less than half the numerical 
 force of that under Davie effected their 
 retreat from Kandy in the following year, 
 over the same ground, and in presence of a 
 large Kandian force, which attacked them in 
 front and rear, and harassed their march 
 until they arrived within a few miles of 
 Trincomalee. 
 
 When our troops occupied Kandy, in 1815, 
 Davie managed to elude the strict search that 
 was made for him. He had contrived to 
 insinuate himself into the good graces of the 
 Kandian monarch, by adopting the dress, 
 religion, and customs of the natives. He 
 died in 1816. Like the Venetian 
 
 " Unannealed he passed away, 
 Without a hope from mercy's aid, 
 To the last a renegade." 
 
 On each of the passes by which Kandy is 
 approached, scenery but little inferior to that 
 of the Doombera Plains meets the eye. The 
 road by one of these passes runs through a 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 169 
 
 tunnel five hundred and forty feet in length, 
 which gave the finishing blow to the ideas 
 previously conceived by the Kandians con- 
 cerning the duration of their independence. 
 An ancient legend informed them that their 
 country would never be subdued until the 
 invaders bored a hole through one of the 
 mountains that encircle the Kandian capital. 
 This feat having, by the construction of the 
 Kornegalle tunnel, been achieved, they at 
 length believe that it is their khismet (des- 
 tiny) to submit to foreign domination. 
 
 The road through the tunnel unites itself, 
 at the foot of the Kandian hills, with the 
 principal road to Colombo. By means of 
 this circuitous route, troops advancing on 
 Kandy would turn the heights near Cadaga- 
 nava, on which the natives used to place 
 great reliance, as a strong natural position 
 for the defence of their capital. 
 
 This, being a warlike chapter, may be 
 appropriately concluded by an account of 
 the mode of warfare usually adopted by the 
 
170 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 Kandian militia for such they were in all 
 but the name. Every male able to endure 
 the fatigues of war was liable to be called on 
 to " do the state some service." Each vil- 
 lage furnished its quota, calculated according 
 to the number of men resident therein. The 
 conscripts were expected to appear at the 
 appointed rendezvous, provided with fifteen 
 days' provision, which, to the abstemious 
 native of the East, is not a particularly 
 heavy burden. At the expiration of a 
 fortnight, these warriors were relieved by 
 another batch from the villages, these by a 
 third party, and so on until the campaign 
 terminated. 
 
 This mode of recruiting, it may readily be 
 conceived, was not likely to produce good 
 soldiers or energetic operations. There are, 
 however, few countries in the world where 
 the advantages of discipline are of so little 
 avail as in Ceylon where the rude and un- 
 disciplined peasant is so nearly on a level 
 with the trained soldier. The broken and 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 171 
 
 rugged nature of the ground, the impassable 
 swamps, the impervious character of the 
 jungle that covers the face of the country, 
 all these baffle the operations of regular 
 troops, and reduce a Kandian action to a 
 multitude of single combats. 
 
 The wooded country in the interior pro- 
 vinces everywhere offers facilities for the 
 formation of the most simple, but the 
 best of all military obstacles an abattis. 
 Of this the Kandians constantly availed 
 themselves, and, sheltered among the adja- 
 cent thickets, frequently inflicted a severe 
 loss before it could be removed. They 
 were for the most part armed with mus- 
 kets, which they eagerly purchased during 
 their short intervals of peace with the 
 Dutch. Their artillery consisted of a few 
 gingals, a description of gun capable of 
 throwing a one-pound ball, and mounted 
 on a w r ooden and extremely rude carriage. 
 These were laid with great care and ac- 
 curacy, and their first salvo was conse- 
 i2 
 
172 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 quently effective ; but the difficulty of firing 
 such an unwieldy machine with precision 
 rendered comparatively harmless the suc- 
 ceeding discharges of these " mortal en- 
 gines." 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 173 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 Newera Ellia Gampola Ceylon hotels or rest-houses 
 Pusilava Coffee-planting in Ceylon Shadists and 
 Anti-Shadists Coffee estates Supply of labour not 
 equal to the demand Suggestions thereon. 
 
 NEWERA ELLIA, the station sanitaire to which 
 the invalid flies in search of that health 
 which he has vainly wooed in the less ele- 
 vated districts of the island, is a place of 
 such infinite merit as to deserve a full and 
 circumstantial description of its manifold 
 and varied excellencies. 
 
 Some dozen years have elapsed since these 
 invaluable plains were brought into notice. 
 Their existence prior to that period was 
 known, but unappreciated, until Sir Edward 
 Barnes, with that energy which always cha- 
 racterized him, decided upon availing him- 
 self and the colony of the " goods the gods 
 
174 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 provided." With this object in view, that 
 admirable road, to which allusion has been 
 made in a former chapter, was commenced 
 in 1828, and in despite of the many and 
 various obstacles presented by the difficult 
 nature of the mountainous country through 
 which it runs, completed in the course of 
 the following year. 
 
 After leaving Kandy en route for Newera 
 Ellia, you retrace your steps to the Para- 
 dinia Bridge, near which the road branches 
 off from that to Colombo, and follows the 
 course of the valley of the Mahavilaganga. 
 The country continues flat for the first few 
 miles, and nothing of interest occurs until 
 you arrive at the little village of Gampola, 
 where there is a tolerable rest-house, which 
 stands on a rising ground, and commands a 
 view of the distant blue mountains you are 
 about to ascend. 
 
 They may manage these things better in 
 India, but in Ceylon the rest-houses are 
 seldom to be depended upon, and the tra- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 175 
 
 veller must, if he have a lurking affection 
 for the creature comforts, provide all things 
 needful. Provender for man and beast is 
 sometimes procurable, but it would be the 
 height of folly to trust to such a rare con- 
 tingency. Rest-houses, as their name im- 
 ports, are dwellings wherein the wayfaring 
 man may rest from his fatigues, and court 
 the embraces of " Nature's kind restorer." 
 They generally contain a few dirty and 
 rickety chairs and tables, provided by Go- 
 vernment; and when one has carefully 
 counted them, and observed that four bare 
 white-washed walls inclose this elegant fur- 
 niture, nothing remains to be noted or com- 
 mented upon. 
 
 I think it was Dr. Johnson who observed, 
 " Men always meet the most cheerful wel- 
 come at an inn." Far be it from me to 
 deny the truth of an aphorism emanating 
 from such grave authority; but, as with all 
 general rules, exception may be taken 
 against this* Had the doctor traversed the 
 
176 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 wilds of Ceylon, he would have discovered 
 that the inns, caravansaries, or rest-houses 
 of that island afford a striking contradiction 
 of the trite saying above quoted. No portly 
 Bonifaces there welcome the wearied tra- 
 veller, who, as he stalks unattended into the 
 mansion, gazes on a " banquet-hall deserted" 
 apparently for ever. " Mine host" is, in all 
 probability, absent, and dreams not of the 
 advent of his guest, who awaits his return in 
 a most unchristianlike mood. When the 
 stray gentleman is caught, matters are 
 scarcely improved ; nor does he attempt to 
 apologize for the undeniable deficiencies of 
 his culinary establishment. " There \vas 
 milk this morning," and " there had been 
 fowls for sale," are the only words of con- 
 solation which the hungry voyageur is likely 
 to wring out of his dusky landlord . 
 
 Notwithstanding these petty disagr&mens, 
 a person provided with the one thing need- 
 ful in this sublunary planet, will never 
 starve even in the rest-houses of Ceylon. The 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 177 
 
 necessaries, if not the luxuries, of life, will 
 at length be forthcoming. Curries, fruit, and 
 eggs, form the usual repast, which, although 
 rather miscellaneous, is, under such circum- 
 stances, not to be despised. 
 
 The rest-house at Gampola is on the left 
 bank of the Mahavilaganga, which is at this 
 point confined and rapid. It is crossed by 
 means of a tolerable ferry-boat, which does 
 duty for a bridge. The country on the op- 
 posite bank now begins gradually to ascend 
 and assume a more wild and romantic aspect. 
 Before reaching the next station, Pusilava, 
 the steep Atabagge pass must be surmounted. 
 Near the head of this pass stands the Pusi- 
 lava rest-house, which is nearly one thousand 
 two hundred feet above Kandy, and, conse- 
 quently, some three thousand above the level 
 of the sea. At this elevation, the most de- 
 lightful temperature is experienced. Par- 
 taking neither of the intense heat of the low 
 country, nor of the bitter keen mountain air 
 of the lofty plains of Newera Ellia, the 
 i 3 
 
178 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 climate of Pusilava may be pronounced, ex 
 cathedra, to be the most salubrious and de- 
 lightful within the tropics. Invalids, who 
 dread the sudden transition from the sultri- 
 ness of the atmosphere of the valleys to the 
 extreme chilliness on " the mountain's brow," 
 frequently establish themselves at this half- 
 way house, which enjoys the bracing breezes, 
 without the frosts, of the temperate zones. 
 
 In this neighbourhood, some valuable cof- 
 fee-plantations exist, and it is considered 
 that the temperature of the station is that 
 which is best adapted for the full develop- 
 ment and perfection of the coffee-tree. The 
 plantations near Pusilava certainly flourish 
 in great luxuriance ; but whether this arises 
 from the favourable nature of the soil, or 
 from the peculiar climate, is a point on which 
 some doubt exists. Ceylon coffee-planta- 
 tions are, in truth, in their infancy, and a 
 few years must yet elapse before sundry 
 dubious questions in the art of cultivating 
 them shall be satisfactorily solved. On one 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 179 
 
 subject connected with their culture there is 
 a very material difference of opinion. The 
 question may be thus stated : " Is shade 
 beneficial or injurious to the coffee-tree ?" 
 " There's the rub" which has puzzled the 
 island agriculturists, who have, on this knotty 
 point, ranged themselves under the banners 
 of two factions, the " Shadists" and " Anti- 
 Shadists," whose opinions are as opposite as 
 light and darkness. When such great au- 
 thorities disagree, who shall presume to de- 
 cide ? One may, however, be permitted to 
 draw an inference from a fact. The ranks of 
 the Anti-Shadists are occasionally recruited 
 by " rats" from those of the opposing creed, 
 and, though the Shadists still preserve a bold 
 front, they are slowly but surely dwindling 
 in numbers, in intelligence, in wealth, in all 
 that constitutes a party. Their pertinacity 
 deserved a better fate ; but their doom is 
 fixed requiescant in pace ! 
 
 The culture of coffee, the staple produce 
 of the island, demands the attention even of 
 
180 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 a Rambler in Ceylon. Cinnamon was for- 
 merly the most important item of the colo- 
 nial exports, but the demand for this valuable 
 spice is so capricious, that it has completely 
 abandoned the field to its new rival. The 
 quick return which the coffee-planter meets 
 with is an additional inducement to its culti- 
 vation. In five years the tree arrives at 
 maturity, and before the expiration of the 
 sixth, the receipts cover the original and 
 current expenditure. 
 
 It has been estimated that the expenses 
 attendant on reclaiming lands in Ceylon 
 from a state of nature, and converting them 
 into coffee-plantations, average nearly eight 
 pounds per acre. The lands are sold by the 
 Government at the low price of five shillings 
 the acre ; the principal item of the additional 
 cost is incurred in clearing away the jungle, 
 which almost invariably covers the future 
 estates, the extent of which is regulated only 
 by the available capital of the purchaser, and 
 consequently varies considerably. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 181 
 
 To those anxious to obtain information 
 regarding Ceylon coffee-plantations, the fol- 
 lowing estimate of the probable expenditure 
 and receipts on account of an estate of an 
 average size cannot be perused with indiffer- 
 ence. It is the result of a careful compari- 
 son of the actual outlay and profit on differ- 
 ent estates, and, having been framed by men 
 practically acquainted with the subject, may 
 be received with the utmost confidence. In 
 drawing up this estimate, the expenditure 
 has been rather exaggerated, while, on the 
 other hand, the receipts have been calculated 
 on the lowest possible scale. For instance, 
 it will be observed, that the produce of trees 
 six years old is estimated at half-a-pound ; 
 now there is every reason to believe that 
 Ceylon trees of that age, like those of Ja- 
 maica, will, on an average, yield one pound. 
 It is unnecessary to dwell upon the enor- 
 mous addition to the credit side of the ac- 
 count that will accrue in the event of this 
 expectation being realized. 
 
182 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 ESTIMATED EXPENSES OF ESTABLISHING A COFFEE PLAN- 
 
 TATION OF THREE HUNDRED ACRES IN THE ISLAND 
 
 OF CEYLON FOR FOURTEEN YEARS. 
 
 ' First Year's Outlay. 
 
 1. Purchase of land, 300 acres, at 5* 75 
 
 2. Two superintendents, 150 each per annum... 300 
 
 3. One hundred labourers employed cutting and 
 
 burning jungle, planting, &c. &c. at 6<7. per 
 
 day, or 15s. per month, for twelve months... 900 
 
 4. Four overseers, l each per month 48 
 
 5. Purchase of tools, consisting of mammoties, 
 
 catties, felling-axes, spades, rakes, broad 
 
 axes, &c. &c 200 
 
 6. Building huts for labourers 50 
 
 7. Two bungalows for superintendents ... ... 200 
 
 8. Furniture for ditto ... ... 50 
 
 9. Three serviceable horses for mill or other 
 
 purposes ... ... . 90 
 
 10. Horsekeeper and fodder for horses ... ... 60 
 
 11. Bullock bandies and bullocks 60 
 
 12. Bandy-drivers and fodder for bullocks ... 50 
 
 13. Cost of an elephant 50 
 
 14. Keepers for ditto 18 
 
 15. Sundry petty expenses 50 
 
 2,201 
 
 Second Year's Outlay. 
 
 1. Nos. 2, 4, 10, 12, 14, as before, No. 5, 20, 
 
 No. 15, 20, and other ; expenses 1,416 
 
 2. Building a store-house 500 
 
 3. Machinery required for three years 300 
 
 2,216 
 
 Third Year's Outlay. 
 
 1. Monthly expenditure as second year 1,416 
 
 2. Repairs to bungalows, huts, &c 30 
 
 1,446 
 
 5,863 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 183 
 
 Fourth Year's Outlay. 
 
 1. Monthly expenditure as second year ... ... 1,416 
 
 2. Extra labourers for picking and cleaning coffee 
 
 for four months ... ... 90 
 
 3. Repair of tools 30 
 
 1,536 
 
 7,399 
 
 Pith Year's Outlay. 
 
 1. Monthly expenses ... ... ... ... 1,416 
 
 2. Extra labourers, picking coffee, &c 90 
 
 1,506 
 
 8,905 
 
 Sixth Year's Outlay. 
 
 1. As fifth year 1,506 
 
 10,411 
 
 Seventh Year's Outlay. 
 
 1. Monthly expenses ... ... 1,416 
 
 2. Building new huts for labourers ... ... 50 
 
 3. Repairing bungalows 50 
 
 4. New store 80 
 
 5. Wear and tear of machinery ... ... ... 100 
 
 6. Casualties, such as death of cattle employed in 
 
 above line 50 
 
 1,746 
 Eighth Year's Outlay. 12,157 
 
 1. Monthly expenses 1,506 
 
 Ninth Year's Outlay. 
 
 1. Ditto 1,506 
 
 Tenth Year's Outlay. 
 1. Ditto 1,506 
 
 Eleventh Year's Outlay. 
 
 1. Monthly expenses 1,506 
 
 2. New tools 25 
 
 3. Trifling repairs to buildings 20 
 
 1,551 
 
 18,226 
 
184 
 
 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 Twelfth Year's Outlay. 
 1. Monthly expenses 
 
 Thirteenth Year's Outlay. 
 
 Fourteenth Year's Outlay. 
 
 1,506 
 1,506 
 
 1,506 
 
 22,744 
 
 Expenses incurred in sending the crops to Colombo 
 for exportation, 2,000 bandies at 2 each ... 4,000 
 
 Total expenditure in fourteen years ... 26,744 
 
 Ditto 
 
 Ditto 
 
 
 PRODUCE. 
 
 
 3rd Year, 300 x 1 
 
 ,000=300,000, @ lb. each=6/0 cwt.@60*. 
 
 ... 2,010 
 
 4th Year, 
 
 ditto ... 670 cwt. 
 
 ... 2,010 
 
 5th Year, 
 
 ditto lb. 1,340 cwt. 
 
 ... 4,020 
 
 6th Year, 
 
 ditto ... 1,340 cwt. 
 
 ... 4,020 
 
 7th Year, 
 
 ditto ... 1,340 cwt. 
 
 ... 4,020 
 
 8th Year, 
 
 ditto ... 1,340 cwt. 
 
 ... 4,020 
 
 9th Year, 
 
 ditto ... 1,340 cwt. 
 
 ... 4,020 
 
 10th Year, 
 
 ditto ... 1,340 cwt. 
 
 4,020 
 
 llth Year, 
 
 ditto fib. 2,010 cwt. 
 
 ... 6,030 
 
 12th Year, 
 
 ditto ... 2,010 cwt. 
 
 ... 6,030 
 
 13th Year, 
 
 ditto ... 2,010 cwt. 
 
 ... 6,030 
 
 14th Year, 
 
 ditto ... 2,010 cwt. 
 
 ... 6,030 
 
 
 
 52,260 
 
 
 Sale of estate 
 
 3,000 
 
 
 
 
 
 Total receipts 
 
 ... 55,260 
 
 
 Deduct total expenditure 
 
 ... 26,744 
 
 
 Net profit ... 
 
 ...28,516 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 185 
 
 Considerable sales of Government lands 
 have taken place within the last few years. 
 During the year 1838, more than forty thou- 
 sand acres were purchased by various specu- 
 lators. If the progress of cultivation con- 
 tinues to advance at the same rate that it 
 has done for the last five years, an immense 
 alteration will be effected in the heretofore 
 desert wastes of the island, and, as a neces- 
 sary consequence, in the moral character 
 and intellectual advancement of its inha- 
 bitants. 
 
 The price of labour has not, as yet, been 
 much affected by the great and unprece- 
 dented demand that has been created by the 
 new coffee-plantations ; but it is easy to fore- 
 see that the increase of the agricultural po- 
 pulation will not keep pace with the rapidly 
 multiplying wants of the landed proprietors. 
 The Malthusian system, however well adapt- 
 ed to the great European family, would be 
 greatly misplaced in Ceylon, where the pro- 
 portion of inhabitants to the square mile is 
 
186 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 by no means quantum suff. It has been cal- 
 culated that the island contains twenty-four 
 thousand seven hundred square miles. As- 
 suming the total number of the islanders to 
 be one million, it will appear that the average 
 proportion of population is not more than 
 forty to the square mile. But the great 
 bulk of the people are congregated along the 
 southern and western shores of the island, so 
 that the Kandian provinces, within which 
 nearly the whole of the coffee -plantations 
 are situated, are comparatively deserted. Of 
 the limited number that dp inhabit the Kan- 
 dian district, a very large proportion are em- 
 ployed in the culture of their own fields an 
 employment which they infinitely prefer to 
 servitude on the coffee estates, even though 
 the latter proceeding would, generally speak- 
 ing, be more lucrative and less laborious. 
 To supply the demand, a small influx of 
 labourers has already begun to flow into the 
 colony from the Coromandel coast, and more 
 particularly from the fertile and populous 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 187 
 
 delta of Tanjore. Nostalgia is, however, 
 found to prevail among these imported tillers 
 of the soil, and the result is, that the coffee- 
 planters have conceived a justly-grounded 
 prejudice against the employment of indivi- 
 duals on whose permanent stay so little reli- 
 ance can be placed. 
 
 At present, the evil is of small magnitude, 
 because the demand and supply are nearly 
 balanced ; but it needs no ghost to inform 
 us, that when the anticipated preponderance 
 of the former shall occur, the injurious ejects 
 that must arise from such an untoward state 
 of things will be both great and manifold. 
 A system of apprenticeship would seem to 
 be that best calculated to arrest the further 
 progress of this political malady. If a cer- 
 tain period of servitude were fixed, during 
 which the Indian labourers should be bound 
 to remain in the employment of the Ceylon 
 planters, the confidence of the latter would 
 be restored without in any degree infringing 
 on the liberty of their temporary bondsmen. 
 
188 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 That tyranny and oppression might occasion- 
 ally result from the adoption of this plan is 
 no doubt within the bounds of possibility ; 
 but the abuse of the power that would thus 
 be placed in the hands of the planter might 
 be guarded against by limiting the duration 
 of the apprentice's servitude to the brief 
 period of two or three years. The object is 
 rather to place a sufficient check on the 
 caprice of the apprentice than to insure his 
 protracted stay in the island. 
 
 Numerous coffee-plantations are scattered 
 over the country between Kandy and Pusi- 
 lava, and from thence towards Newera Ellia, 
 The road frequently winds through estates 
 which are, almost without exception, in a 
 high state of cultivation ; but a disquisition 
 on their several merits, however interesting 
 to the commercial world, would probably be 
 lightly esteemed by the majority of those 
 for whose edification this work is intended. 
 For further details, the curious reader, who 
 would fain pursue the subject of planting, 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 189 
 
 picking, and sorting coffee, must, therefore, 
 consult other and more learned pages. The 
 advantages of the small over the large ber- 
 ries the maximum height of the invaluable 
 tree whereon they grow the arguments 
 urged by the Shadists and their opponents, 
 the Anti-Shadists all these, and many other 
 equally interesting topics, must be over- 
 looked, and left to vegetate in the hearts of 
 Ceylon coffee-planters, 
 
190 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 Forest of Pusilava Valley of Cotamalie Cataracts of 
 Rambodde Ceylon Snakes Ceylonese fable regard- 
 ing the Cobra-di-Capello and the Tic Polonga 
 Sanctity of the Cobra, and character Tic Polonga 
 The Pimbera, or Rock Snake Ceylon Leeches. 
 
 AFTER passing through Pusilava, the road 
 immediately enters the forest of that name. 
 This extends for several miles, and con- 
 tains some majestic trees, the appearance of 
 which is not injured by the presence of 
 any unsightly jungle. The term "jungle," 
 as understood in Ceylon, applies to ground 
 covered with thick and nearly impervious 
 underwood. Large trees seldom occur in a 
 jungle of this description, which is, there- 
 fore, per se, an uninteresting object ; but 
 when it clothes a wild and mountainous 
 country, its uniformity does not displease, 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 191 
 
 because it seems to harmonize with the 
 stern sombre character that belongs to such 
 a landscape. The forest of Pusilava, con- 
 sisting of detached trees of considerable size, 
 affords a striking contrast to the low jungle 
 which skirts its edges, and there is, perhaps, 
 no part of the Kandian provinces that com- 
 bines so many charms as that in the vicinity 
 of this picturesque and extensive woodland. 
 At Hellbodde, the forest terminates, and 
 the magnificent valley of Cotamalie spreads 
 its gently undulating and varied surface 
 before the fascinated traveller. The wind- 
 ing mountains here form a vast basin, in the 
 centre of which the various torrents that 
 descend from them unite into one deep and 
 rapid stream, which, after winding a long and 
 tortuous course, caused by the peculiar and 
 almost chaotic formation of the country that 
 it traverses, ultimately discharges itself into 
 the Mahavilaganga. The road winds round 
 the precipitous slopes of the mountains, and 
 at its salient angles are many points from 
 
192 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 whence one may gaze down into the in- 
 most recesses of what may be aptly termed 
 the " Devil's Punch Bowl." Between Pusi- 
 lava and Rambodde a glimpse of the tower- 
 ing cone of Adam's Peak may be occasion- 
 ally obtained. Its distance from those vil- 
 lages exceeds forty miles, and its elevation 
 above them is nearly four thousand feet. 
 
 The vicinity of Rambodde is announced 
 by the stunning roar of the falls in its neigh- 
 bourhood, which greatly contribute to com- 
 plete the effect of the surrounding scenery. 
 This village is situate at the base of the 
 apparently inaccessible heights that girdle 
 the plains of Newera Ellia. From the rest- 
 house the valley of Cotamalie is seen to 
 great advantage, and while the ceaseless yet 
 soothing sound of the cascades, which pour 
 down on every side, affords to the ear that 
 indescribable pleasure which the noise of 
 falling waters rarely fails to produce, the eye 
 is gratified by the surpassing grandeur of 
 their appearance. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 193 
 
 These falls vary considerably in their 
 volume of water at different periods of the 
 year. Subject to the same causes as those 
 which so greatly affect the magnitude of 
 rivers in Ceylon, the streams which supply 
 
 the Rambodde cascades dwindle to compara- 
 / 
 
 tive insignificance during the fervour of the 
 summer heats ; but this temporary diminu- 
 tion is more than compensated for by the 
 magnificent appearance which they assume 
 on the commencement of the rainy season. 
 It is then that their character, which in the 
 hot months approximates to the contempti- 
 ble, if not to the ludicrous, becomes truly 
 sublime. 
 
 Some prefer the chilly temperature of 
 Newera Ellia ; others, the mild climate of 
 Kandy; but the vale of Cotamalie, "in 
 whose bosom the bright waters meet," is, 
 in the opinion of many, the most enchanting 
 spot in Serendib's romantic isle. Its seques- 
 tered situation and sublime scenery recom- 
 mend it to the notice of those who have 
 K 
 
104 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 recently entered into the state yclept " hap- 
 py." By the margin of the foaming torrents 
 into which the waters, after descending the 
 falls, immediately resolve themselves, may 
 often be descried a youthful couple, who 
 are dreaming away the period allotted to 
 hymeneal bliss, and 
 
 Under the shade of melancholy boughs, 
 Lose and neglect the creeping hours of time. 
 
 But, alas ! no human happiness is without 
 some alloy. Even in this romantic spot, 
 where scenes and sounds combine to induce 
 the unwary to become sentimental, and 
 meditate on things celestial rather than on 
 those which appertain to this nether world, 
 even here, where all proclaims peace and 
 innocence, danger is rife. A rencontre with 
 the tempter of our common mother in vul- 
 gar parlance, a snake is by no means an 
 uncommon event in the dark glens that 
 environ Rambodde. Such an occurrence 
 has, on more than one occasion, acted as an 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 195 
 
 unpleasant interruption to the interchange 
 of that "flow of soul," or, as some have 
 termed it, that amatory nonsense, in which 
 brides and bridegrooms are so apt to in- 
 dulge. 
 
 In the absence of any well-accredited 
 fact to gratify the lovers of the marvellous, 
 the following fable, which is implicitly be- 
 lieved by the Cingalese, may serve as a 
 substitute. The natives refer to it as an 
 illustration of the contrast which exists be- 
 tween the dispositions of the cobra-di-capello 
 and the tic polonga, the former being, in 
 their opinion, a benevolent, the latter a 
 malevolent being : 
 
 " In the Isle of Serendib there is a happy 
 valley, which men call the Vale of Cotama- 
 lie. It is watered by numerous streams, 
 and its fields produce rice in abundance ; 
 but at one season great drought prevails, 
 and the mountain torrents then cease their 
 constant roar, and subside into rivulets or 
 altogether disappear. At this period, when 
 K2 
 
196 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 the rays of the noon-tide sun beat fiercely 
 and hotly on the parched earth, a tic po- 
 longa encountered a cobra-di-capello. The 
 polonga had in vain sought to quench his 
 burning thirst, and gazed with envy on the 
 cobra, who had been more successful in 
 his search for the pure beverage. ' Oh, 
 puissant cobra ! I perish with thirst ; tell me 
 where I may find the stream wherein thou 
 hast revelled.' ' Accursed polonga,' replied 
 the cobra, ' thou cumberest the earth ; 
 wherefore should I add to the span of thy 
 vile existence ? Lo ! near to this flows a 
 mountain-rill, but an only child is disporting 
 herself therein, while her mother watches 
 the offspring of her heart. Wilt thou then 
 swear not to injure the infant, if I impart to 
 thee where thou mayest cool thy parched 
 tongue ?' ' I swear by all the gods of Seren- 
 dib,' rejoined the polonga, 'that I will not 
 harm the infant.' ' Thou seest yonder ham- 
 let ; in front of it gushes forth a spring of 
 water, which never dries during the inten- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 197 
 
 sity of the summer heats.' The polonga 
 wended his way towards the indicated spot, 
 and there beheld a dark-eyed girl bathing in 
 the midst of the rushing waters. Having 
 quaffed the delicious fluid, he repented him 
 of his oath touching the infant. His evil 
 soul prompted him to kill her, and as she lay 
 beneath the shade of a leafy tamarind tree, 
 he accordingly approached and inflicted a 
 mortal wound. As he retired from his 
 dying victim, he again met the cobra, who, 
 seeing blood on his fangs, and perceiving 
 the cause, thus addressed him : * Hast 
 thou forgotten the sacred oath that thou 
 sworest unto me ? The blood of the infant 
 cries for revenge, and thou shalt surely 
 die.' He then darted his fangs into the 
 body of the polonga, who instantly ex- 
 pired." 
 
 So great is the reverence manifested by 
 the natives towards the cobra-di-capello, 
 that should one be discovered in the inner- 
 most penetralia of their houses, they care- 
 
198 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 fully secure and replace it in the jungle. 
 It is not altogether to the reputation of a 
 merciful disposition that the cobra owes so 
 perfect an immunity from injury. The po- 
 pular belief is, that this reptile is a super- 
 natural being, who deigns to revisit " the 
 glimpses of the moon " in the incarnation of 
 a snake. Be this as it may, it cannot be 
 denied by the sceptical that the cobra par- 
 takes rather of the character of " a spirit of 
 health " than that of " a goblin damned," its 
 harmless disposition being by no means fabu- 
 lous. Conscious of a giant's strength, it 
 uses its destructive powers with a giant's 
 generosity. Far otherwise does the vindic- 
 tive and dangerous tic polonga conduct 
 himself. It is never known to spare an 
 enemy, and being the most venomous as 
 well as the most vicious creeping thing 
 in the island, it is justly dreaded by the 
 Cingalese. Most of the casualties arising 
 from the bites of snakes are caused by this 
 species. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 199 
 
 The pimbera, or rock-snake, and the cara- 
 willa, make up the complement of poisonous 
 reptiles in Ceylon. The first of these is, in 
 point of size, the monarch of the island 
 snakes, being' frequently twenty feet and 
 upwards in length. It is, however, but 
 little dreaded, and seems to confine its de- 
 vastations to the feathered tribe. Of the 
 carawilla little fear is entertained. It rarely 
 exceeds a foot in length, and appears to 
 possess neither the will nor the power to 
 inflict a mortal wound. Even fowls and 
 small birds occasionally recover from the 
 effects of its bite, though this but rarely 
 happens. 
 
 Some twenty other varieties of snakes 
 occur in Ceylon, but none of them are in 
 reality venomous, though the natives give 
 most of them credit for being so. Scorpions 
 and centipedes abound, but their bites are 
 never productive of serious ill effects. More 
 troublesome than either of them are the 
 Ceylon leeches, which, by reason of their 
 
200 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 extreme activity and great numbers, rarely 
 fail to force themselves on the acquaintance 
 of pedestrians in the island jungles. It is 
 found in the Kandian provinces, beyond 
 which it never ventures, the excessive heat 
 and drought of the districts adjacent to the 
 sea not being congenial to the taste and 
 habits of this annoying animal. Unless the 
 pedestrian in the jungles of Ceylon be duly 
 provided with some sufficient protection for 
 his nether man, he will find that it is physi- 
 cally impossible to keep in check these per- 
 severing and active assailants. Nor is any 
 consolation to foe derived by reflecting on the 
 medical advantages of losing a little of the 
 circulating fluid. Unlike their brethren 
 famed in the pharmacopeia, these leeches 
 inflict a wound that, unless actively treated, 
 speedily degenerates into a painful and dan- 
 gerous ulcer. Some instances have occurred 
 in which even loss of life has ensued from 
 the bites of these apparently insignificant 
 animals. Numbers of the troops, both na- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 201 
 
 tive and European, who served in the Kan- 
 dian campaigns, were placed hors de combat 
 in this manner, and in many cases it was 
 found necessary to have recourse to ampu- 
 tation. 
 
 K 3 
 
202 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 Pass of Rambodde Caffre Soldiers Caffre Women 
 Their Dances and mode of Courtship Scenery of 
 Newera Ellia Pedrotallagalla Its elevation above 
 the sea View from its summit Reflections on the 
 Sublime and Beautiful, and Breakfast. 
 
 IT is in the pass of Rambodde, which 
 emerges on the plains of Newera Ellia, that 
 the greatest natural obstacles on the line 
 of route between that Alpine station and 
 Kandy were surmounted. The elevation of 
 the plains above Rambodde, from whence 
 the ascent commences, is between three and 
 four thousand feet. Measured in an hori- 
 zontal plane, the distance between that vil- 
 lage and Newera Ellia does not exceed eight 
 miles. The result is, that the greater por- 
 tion of the road through the pass is on an 
 inclined plane, which ascends one foot in 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 203 
 
 twelve or thirteen, an inclination which is 
 nearly the same as that which occurs in 
 Napoleon's celebrated military communica- 
 tion over the Simplon. To keep this cork- 
 screwing way in repair, and clear it of the 
 slips of soil which not unfrequently come 
 thundering down, and choke up the narrow 
 thoroughfare, a strong working party of 
 Caffre soldiers are constantly employed on 
 different parts of the pass. These Caifres 
 are found to make better labourers than sol- 
 diers. There is something in their character 
 repugnant to the etiquette and strictness 
 of military discipline. They have been gra- 
 dually exchanged for Malays, who, almost 
 exclusively, compose the present Ceylon 
 Rifle Regiment. Nature appears to have 
 designed the Caffre to be the counterpart of 
 the Malay. The former is social, cheerful, 
 and amiable ; the latter cold, stern, and vin- 
 dictive. The one awakens our sympathies 
 and affections ; the other commands our 
 respect, but makes no effort to secure our 
 
204 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 regard, for which he apparently entertains a 
 sovereign contempt. Nor are their corpo- 
 real characteristics less at variance than their 
 moral attributes. The Malay is active, of a 
 slight yet muscular form, and his every move- 
 ment bespeaks energy, while in his restless 
 eye and firm lip may be read that daring and 
 enterprising spirit that has ever belonged to 
 the rovers of the Eastern Archipelago. The 
 Caffre, on the contrary, possesses all the 
 characteristics of the Negro. The woolly 
 hair the blubber lip the long heel all 
 these appear in your true Caffre. His eye, 
 though shrewd, is heavy, and its glances 
 evince none of that cold, sardonic spirit that 
 is born with a Malay, " grows with his 
 growth, and strengthens with his strength." 
 The few Caffre soldiers still in Ceylon are 
 solely employed in repairing old, or in 
 making new, roads. The detachment on 
 the Rambodde pass consists of sixty or 
 seventy men. Nearly all of these being 
 married, and, generally speaking, the fathers 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 205 
 
 of a numerous progeny, their encampment 
 presents an animated spectacle amid the 
 loneliness of the surrounding jungle. A 
 favourable opportunity of studying another, 
 and, to the Anglo-Cingalese, a novel impress 
 of the " human face divine," is thus afforded 
 to the visitor of Rambodde, who, if a disci- 
 ple of Lavater, or a phrenologist, has here 
 a new field for his philosophical researches. 
 
 Without entering into any dissertation 
 touching the charms of Caftre women, it 
 may, perhaps, be permitted to me to record 
 my conviction that, on the surface of the 
 habitable world, more frightful specimens 
 of le beau sexe do not exist. It would be 
 an insult to humanity to believe that any 
 creatures yet uglier could " live and have 
 their being." The head of the Gorgon could 
 hardly have united more horrors than are 
 combined in the physiognomy of a Caffre 
 belle. 
 
 Although the party that accompanied me 
 were quite unanimous on this point, these 
 
206 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 interesting animals were evidently uncon- 
 scious of their utter want of loveliness ; for, 
 on being bribed by copious libations of 
 brandy, for which they shewed an inordinate 
 affection, they readily undertook to favour 
 their visiters with a Caffre dance. The 
 dance somewhat resembled the fandango of 
 Spain ; but the resemblance, it must be con- 
 fessed, was that of a caricature. Two indi- 
 viduals of opposite sexes gradually approach 
 each other with an air of coquetry, making 
 indescribable contortions and grimaces. The 
 female slowly retires from the ardent ad- 
 vances of her lover, who, suiting the action 
 to the word, endeavours to capture the fair 
 fugitive, while he pours forth his tale of 
 love in the most moving tropes that his elo- 
 quence can command. " The lady of his 
 love " at length abates somewhat of the air 
 of scorn with which she at first affects to 
 regard her impassioned swain, who, em- 
 boldened by this evidence of a favourable 
 impression, and again alarmed at his own 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 207 
 
 audacity, alternately advances towards and 
 retreats from the object of his adoration. 
 The movements of the lover and the lovee, 
 during this scene of courtship, much resem- 
 ble those of two ill-trained bears, to which 
 animals they, in truth, bear a striking simili- 
 tude. The lady at length intimates to her 
 adorer that his is not an hopeless love. This 
 denouement is followed by sundry embraces, 
 of rather too vehement a character ; after 
 which " the happy pair " vanish from the 
 stage which has witnessed the rise, pro- 
 gress, and termination of this amatory scene, 
 during which, it should be observed, the 
 spectators are in duty bound to keep up a 
 continued howl or yell, by way of encou- 
 raging the performers. 
 
 The sins that do most easily beset the 
 Caffres are drunkenness and drowsiness 
 two failings which most effectually prevent 
 them from shining as soldiers. 
 
 When they are not drunk they are asleep. 
 In the one case they are sufficiently trouble- 
 
208 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 some ; in the other, the most innocuous 
 creatures on the face of the earth ; but it 
 need not be added that in both they are 
 equally hors de combat and non-effective. 
 In their own country, the Caffres have a 
 reputation for activity and energy; be this 
 as it may, expatriation seems to deprive 
 them of whatever portion of those qualities 
 nature may have originally endowed them 
 with. 
 
 A ludicrous defence made by a Caffre 
 before a court-martial, held at Kandy in 
 1838, may serve to illustrate Jack's* opinion 
 of the undue severity of military discipline. 
 Being charged with divers offences and 
 misdemeanours, all of which were fully esta- 
 blished, the prisoner was, selon les regies, 
 called on for his defence, which, if it failed 
 to carry conviction, had probably some 
 effect in mollifying the judicial sternness of 
 the court then and there assembled. In 
 
 * In Ceylon, Caffres are always denominated 
 " Jacks." 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 209 
 
 this memorable rejoinder, the prisoner, who, 
 no doubt, possessed forensic talents of an high 
 order, endeavoured to palliate rather than 
 to deny the crimes with which he stood 
 charged. He complained that those who 
 held dominion over him had but one receipt 
 for all the moral infirmities that ever and 
 anon " overcame him like a summer cloud." 
 That receipt will best be explained in the 
 words with which he concluded his eloquent 
 and energetic oration : " If I ask for my 
 pay, they say, ' Put him in the guard-room.' 
 If I take a little 'rack,* ' Send him to the 
 guard-room.' If I get sleepy, ' To the 
 guard-room.' When I get a little drunkay, 
 ' Take him to the guard-house.' " 
 
 After passing this Caffre station, the road 
 continues to wind up the tedious and appa- 
 rently interminable pass. The head of the 
 pass is nearly three miles distant from Ne- 
 wera Ellia, and from thence is obtained the 
 first view of the plains. From this point 
 * Arrack. 
 
210 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 the road sensibly descends, and at length 
 debouches suddenly on the wide and open 
 valley in which the village of Newera Ellia 
 stands. There is nothing particularly fine 
 in this part of the plains, but the scene, 
 from the contrast which it presents to the 
 generality of Oriental landscapes, strikes for- 
 cibly on the mind of him who, for the first 
 time, beholds it, and leaves an impression 
 which is not easily effaced from the tablet 
 of memory. The thatched cottages the 
 chimneys with their respective columns of 
 smoke wreathing upwards and, above all, 
 the keen blast which you encounter as you 
 leave the cover of the woods and emerge on 
 the open plain all these are so entirely 
 dissimilar from all one is accustomed to 
 view and experience within the tropics, that 
 the novelty is at first delightful and exhila- 
 rating. 
 
 This effect is much increased by the ap- 
 pearance of the flowers and plants proper to 
 the colder climes. On every side may be 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 211 
 
 seen splendid wild rhododendrons, which in 
 this Alpine region seem to rival the best 
 specimens of those nurtured in the valleys 
 of other lands. The violet, the geranium, 
 and the rose, all flourish in perfection in and 
 around the plains. Nor are the less showy, 
 but more valuable, plants of the vegetable 
 kingdom in any degree unappreciated or 
 neglected by the dwellers in these elevated 
 plains, where the fruits and productions of 
 Europe appear commingled with those of 
 Asia. In addition to the vulgar luxuries of 
 potatoes and cabbages, and other culinary 
 articles, the strawberries and gooseberries, 
 which grow in great abundance in the gar- 
 dens of the European residents, deserve 
 honourable mention. 
 
 The plains of Newera Ellia contain about 
 seven square miles. A road circumscribes 
 their entire extent, and forms the fashion- 
 able drive, which, there being no rival, it 
 is likely long to remain. The centre of 
 the valley is occupied by rich grass land, 
 
212 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 through which a little river slowly meanders. 
 Around are the houses of the European resi- 
 dents, few and far between, and looking 
 sufficiently sombre and melancholy in their 
 solitude. Newera Ellia is, in truth, a new 
 creation, and still in a state of transition 
 from the majesty of " nature unadorned " 
 to the less sublime, yet equally pleasing, 
 charms that belong to cultivation. Some of 
 its panegyrists consider it an embryo Para- 
 dise, and invalids, who have benefited by a 
 temporary residence there, are naturally apt 
 to entertain grateful reminiscences of the 
 scene of their convalescence. Nevertheless, 
 it must be confessed that the merit of these 
 plains rests rather on the climate of the 
 favoured region wherein they are located, 
 than on their claims to beauty. An Eu- 
 ropean climate within the tropics is not, 
 however, to be lightly esteemed, and, when 
 weighed in the balance against the petty 
 desagremens of a tame landscape and a thick 
 mist, that, owing to their elevation and the 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 213 
 
 attraction of the encircling mountains, con- 
 stantly overhangs the plains, will assuredly 
 not be found wanting. 
 
 Newera Ellia is to Ceylon what the 
 Neilgherries and the lower ranges of the 
 snow-capped Himalayas are to the presi- 
 dencies of Madras and Calcutta. The eleva- 
 tion of Ootacamund, the chief station in 
 the Neilgherries, above the level of the 
 sea, nearly approximates to that of Newera 
 Ellia. There can be little, if any, material 
 difference between the climates of the two 
 stations; but the Anglo-Cingalese have a 
 great advantage over their continental neigh- 
 bours in the near vicinity of Newera Ellia 
 to the principal stations in the island. By 
 the shortest routes from Madras to Ootaca- 
 mund, the distance exceeds three hundred 
 and fifty miles. To invalids, the fatigues of 
 such a journey over the burning sands of 
 the Carnatic almost amount to an actual 
 prohibition against undertaking it. From 
 Newera Ellia to the capital of the island, 
 
214 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 the distance does not" greatly exceed one 
 hundred miles. Nor should the additional 
 facilities of travelling in Ceylon be forgotten, 
 in drawing a comparison which, however 
 indifferent to the strong and robust, is of 
 the utmost importance in estimating the 
 relative merits and advantages of the two 
 invalid stations. 
 
 Being designed for the use of less ephe- 
 meral wayfarers than those who frequent 
 the ordinary rest-houses on the roads, the 
 accommodations of that at Newera Ellia are 
 much superior to those generally found in 
 these homes for the weary. There are 
 about a dozen rooms, divided into three 
 suites of apartments for the reception of 
 different parties. The windows look out on 
 the plains, and command a bird's-eye view 
 of the principal houses, which are occupied 
 by the commandant of the station, the go- 
 vernment agent, and the few military sta- 
 tioned at the place. Behind the house are 
 the sources of the rivulet that wanders 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 215 
 
 through the plains. In pursuing its head- 
 long course down the sides of the neigh- 
 bouring mountains, the constant attrition of 
 the stream has worn several natural baths in 
 its rocky bed, the intense frigidity of which 
 operates like a charm on the relaxed nervous 
 systems of the parboiled Colombites. 
 
 It was at one period intended to dam up 
 this little river, and, by thus inundating the 
 valley through which it flows, to form a 
 small lake. A narrow gorge, through which 
 the stream makes its egress from the plains, 
 offers every facility for the proposed im- 
 provement. Should it be carried into effect, 
 the station will attract as much attention on 
 the score of beauty as it now most de- 
 servedly does on account of its salubrity. 
 But, until that metamorphosis shall be ac- 
 complished, it will be somewhat difficult to 
 discover loveliness of scenery in a broad 
 flat valley, skirted by a few desolate-look- 
 ing cottages, which, without any claim to 
 the character of ornamental, have a certain 
 
216 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 white-washed aspect that completely ban- 
 ishes all idea of the picturesque. 
 
 From the summits of nearly all the heights 
 that encircle the Newera Ellia plains, ex- 
 tensive and magnificent views may be ob- 
 tained. These heights, when viewed from 
 the valley they surround, do not redeem the 
 otherwise tame features of the landscape. 
 Their outline is, generally speaking, mono- 
 tonous, and they rather resemble vast pro- 
 tuberances than majestic mountains. Pe- 
 drotallagalla, which attains an altitude of 
 eight thousand feet above the sea, and rises 
 immediately over the Newera Ellia rest- 
 house, is particularly characterized by the 
 absence of those undulations and lower 
 features which so greatly add to the beauty 
 of mountain scenery. It has, however, ob- 
 tained a reputation that rests on its loftiness 
 rather than on its external grandeur. It is 
 believed to be the highest elevation in Cey- 
 lon. Adam's Peak was long considered to 
 be so, but late geodesical operations have set 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 217 
 
 the question at rest by giving the palm to 
 its rival. 
 
 It is usual to consider Pedrotallagalla one 
 of the principal " lions" of the plains, and to 
 quit them without climbing its rugged sides 
 would, in the opinion of all good and true 
 Anglo-Cingalese, imply a lamentable lack 
 of energy. The mountain is, however, so 
 frequently encanopied with thick mist, that 
 the majority of those who " seek the bubble 
 reputation" on its lofty brow return sadly 
 disappointed. But as the view which it 
 commands in clear weather is really sub- 
 lime, few are deterred by the fate of such 
 unfortunate adventurers. The ascent is, in 
 many places, extremely steep, and, on the 
 whole, rather trying to any but accom- 
 plished pedestrians. The mountain-path is 
 frequently choked up with the luxuriant 
 jungle that surrounds it, which, unless kept 
 in check by the constant presence of the 
 pruning-hook, would speedily obliterate all 
 traces of it. Several peeps through the 
 L 
 
218 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 intervals of the jungle at the grand scenery 
 of the surrounding country may be enjoyed 
 before you reach the highest point of the 
 mountain ; but when that is attained, the 
 magnificent prospect, which is beheld in 
 every direction, surpasses all description. 
 Immediately at the base of the chain of 
 heights which is crowned by Pedrotallagalla, 
 the plains of Newera Ellia stretch away, 
 as it were, beneath the feet of the spec- 
 tator. The fine country of Ouva, which 
 is considered the richest province in the 
 island, is seen more in the distance ; and 
 behind, in the back-ground, towers Adam's 
 Peak, which is visible in all its glory. In 
 whatever direction the eye wanders, it feasts 
 on the gorgeous handiwork of nature un- 
 assisted by art. Traces of the presence 
 of mankind .are nowhere distinguishable 
 in the landscape that rewards the exer- 
 tions of him who scales the steep and 
 rugged sides of Pedrotallagalla. Moun- 
 tains upon mountains, horrid crags, and 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 219 
 
 impervious forests, appear to defy the 
 power of man, and give a stern, magnifi- 
 cent, yet withal, a somewhat savage and 
 awe-striking, aspect to the face of the 
 country. 
 
 After gazing on this sublime scene for 
 some time, and taking notes as to the 
 bearings of some conspicuous heights, we 
 commenced descending the mountain side 
 an undertaking which is almost, if not 
 quite, as fatiguing as the ascent. The 
 celebrated definition, " man is a cooking 
 animal," was never more forcibly illustrated 
 than on this occasion. The bitter keen- 
 ness of the air on the summit of Pedro- 
 tallagalla is sensibly felt even by the accli- 
 mated dwellers in the plains of Newera 
 Ellia, and produces an appetite which it 
 usually is a matter of some difficulty to 
 allay. " If we have writ our annals true," 
 speculations on the character of the break- 
 fast that awaited our return at the rest- 
 house seemed to occupy the minds of the 
 
 L2 
 
220 EAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 less sentimental of my compagnons de voyage 
 more than those reflections on the " sub- 
 lime and beautiful" which the scene we had 
 just beheld was so well calculated to call 
 forth. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 221 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 Maturatta District Horton Plains Their recent dis- 
 covery Chetahs or Ceylon tigers Road to Badulla 
 View of Ouva Wilson Plains Ceylon Hunting 
 Club Elephant herds Mode of tracking them 
 Maximum height of elephants. 
 
 THE plains of Newera Ellia form but a small 
 portion of the long and narrow table-land 
 that extends, in a south-westerly direction, 
 towards the Sanragam district, and is gene- 
 rally known by the name of the Maturatta 
 country. No part of Ceylon is more se- 
 cluded than this alpine region, inhabited as 
 it is by a race of mountaineers, whose hardy 
 habits and capabilities of enduring intense 
 cold distinguish, and in some degree sepa- 
 rate, them from their fellow-countrymen of 
 the plains. Upon the Maturatta district im- 
 mense forests of valuable trees grow, and 
 
222 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 remain untouched save by the decaying 
 fingers of Time. At intervals, wide plains, 
 of similar character to that of Newera Ellia, 
 but of much greater extent, occur to inter- 
 rupt the uniformities of the wooded land- 
 scape. The Horton Plains, so called in 
 honour of the late governor, Sir Robert 
 Wilmot Horton, afford a magnificent speci- 
 men of the open and undulating vistas that 
 are embosomed amid the solitude of the 
 majestic and wide-spreading forests which 
 adorn the table-land of Maturatta. They 
 spread over a nearly circular space, the peri- 
 meter of which is about twenty-five miles, 
 and being somewhat more elevated than the 
 general level of the adjacent country, expe- 
 rience a proportionate degree of cold. 
 
 Some idea of the topographical ignorance 
 of both Europeans and natives regarding this 
 lofty and salubrious district may be formed 
 from the fact of the existence of these beau- 
 tiful plains being unknown until within the 
 last five years. They were first seen by 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 223 
 
 Lieutenants Fisher and Watson, of the 58th 
 and Ceylon Rifle regiments, who discerned 
 them from the summit of a distant hill. 
 Having taken the bearings of the spot, they 
 cut their way towards it, through the dense 
 forests that intervened, and were at length 
 rewarded by arriving at by far the most 
 extensive and magnificent plains that have 
 hitherto been discovered in Ceylon. 
 
 Elephants, the monarchs of Ceylon forests, 
 are occasionally, but rarely, seen in the Ma- 
 turatta province. They usually confine their 
 wanderings to the flat country, or to tracts 
 that are not greatly raised above the level of 
 the sea. But the chetahs, or hunting tigers, 
 though found in most parts of the island, 
 seem to enjoy the keenness of the mountain 
 air, and to flourish in a temperature that is 
 shunned by the rest of the animal world. 
 Their audacity reaches its acme in this tem- 
 perate region, the rustic inhabitants of which 
 often suffer in purse, if not in person, from 
 the effects of their constant depredations. 
 
224 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 In Ceylon, this animal seems to supply the 
 place of the formidable Bengal tiger. That 
 tyrant of the Indian jungles is not met with 
 in this island ; but chetahs, who may be 
 termed tigers in miniature, are extremely 
 numerous. They commonly measure four 
 feet in extreme length, but seldom attain 
 a greater height than eighteen or twenty 
 inches. The most powerful dogs have no 
 chance with a full-grown chetah, who fre- 
 quently springs upon them from his con- 
 cealed lair in the jungle, and immediately 
 destroys them. 
 
 From Newera Ellia, the only roads lead- 
 ing to other stations are those to Kandy and 
 Badulla. The latter place is about forty 
 miles distant towards the south-east, and is 
 situate in the province of Ouva, which, 
 though less fortunate in its geographical 
 position than the Saffragam district, is not 
 inferior in natural advantages or in point of 
 scenery to any other in the island. The 
 road connecting Badulla with Newera Ellia 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 225 
 
 is the only one by which this fine province 
 is traversed. At the point where it begins 
 to descend from the plains of Maturatta to 
 the comparatively low district of Ouva, an 
 extensive and beautiful view of that fine 
 district is commanded. After entering 
 within the limits of Ouva, the road soon 
 degenerates into a narrow and occasionally 
 dangerous pathway, now skirting the faces 
 of precipitous cliffs, and again wandering 
 along the bottom of deep and gloomy ra- 
 vines. 
 
 Mid-way between Badulla and Newera 
 Ellia, a wide and open tract of rich grass- 
 land, named Wilson Plain, in compliment to 
 Lieutenant-General Sir John Wilson, lately 
 commanding the forces in Ceylon, extends 
 its smooth velvet carpet over a softly undu- 
 lating country. In the centre of the plain 
 stands a bungalow, built by a hunting club, 
 which lived for a brief space amid these 
 romantic scenes, and then expired for want 
 of materiel whereon to practise the science 
 
 L3 
 
226 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 of venerie. For it is a singular fact, that 
 the Kandian provinces, apparently so well 
 calculated for the increase and multiplying 
 of abundance of game of all descriptions, are 
 extremely destitute of every kind, always 
 excepting the lordly elephant. Hares and 
 snipe are tolerably numerous, but wild pigs, 
 deer, and jungle-fowl, a bird bearing some 
 resemblance to a pheasant, are seldom seen, 
 and, by reason of the thick cover in which 
 they are invariably found, still more rarely 
 shot. Florikin and teal, which afford a con- 
 stant resource to the Anglo-Indian sports- 
 man, are quite unknown in Ceylon, and the 
 only woodcock that, in the memory of man, 
 ever appeared in the island, was shot by 
 Lieutenant Bligh, of H.M. 61st regiment, 
 and is now preserved in the Colombo Mu- 
 seum as an extraordinary curiosity. Elk, 
 which usually lie in the most retired recesses 
 of the forest, afforded the chief source of 
 amusement to the members of the ephemeral 
 Ceylon Hunting Club. They abound in and 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 227 
 
 around the Wilson Plain ; but their extreme 
 timidity, which belies the ferocity of their 
 appearance, renders it difficult to drive them 
 out of the impervious thickets, to which they 
 pertinaciously cling for protection against 
 the arch-enemy of the beasts of the forest. 
 It was, therefore, a rare event to bring them 
 to bay in the open country, and the hounds 
 that came up with them in the jungle usually 
 began, continued, and ended the chace with- 
 out the aid or presence of the huntsmen, 
 who, much to their mortification, were gene- 
 rally compelled to remain stationary at the 
 edge of the forest, and listen to the music of 
 the baying of the dogs erectis auribus. 
 
 After traversing the extensive Wilson 
 Plain, the Badulla road again plunges into 
 a succession of cliffs and chasms; but their 
 character now becomes less stern, and gra- 
 dually changes to the gently-rounded fea- 
 tures and level plains of a champaign country. 
 Badulla is by no means an uninteresting spot. 
 The houses stand on the slope of a steep 
 
228 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 eminence, and command a pleasing prospect 
 of hill and dale. Immediately behind the 
 town, if a paltry hamlet merits that appella- 
 tion, the mountain yclept Kammoonakooli 
 lifts its majestic outline and gigantic mass 
 towards heaven, and reaches an altitude of 
 nearly seven thousand feet. 
 
 Badulla is garrisoned by a company of the 
 Ceylon Rifles, and is the principal military 
 station in the secluded district of which it is 
 the capital. The country around is particu- 
 larly fertile, and, being raised three thousand 
 feet above the sea, is extremely well adapted 
 for the culture of coffee, a large quantity of 
 which is grown in its neighbourhood. The 
 district around has always been famed for 
 the multitude of elephants that in numerous 
 herds wander over it and the adjacent pro- 
 vince of Bintenne. They chiefly abound in 
 the neighbourhood of Alipoot, the most ad- 
 vanced post in this direction, where there 
 is a small military detachment. It is not 
 unusual to see ten or twenty elephants, 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 229 
 
 followed by their young, in the same herd. 
 The crashing sound which so many gigantic 
 brutes produce in forcing their way through 
 the long tangled underwood and jungle is 
 often distinctly heard at a considerable dis- 
 tance, in the silence of the night, when the 
 elephants come forth from the cool retreats 
 wherein they have avoided the noontide 
 heats. The cry, or, as it is generally called, 
 the trumpeting of the animal, which is very 
 peculiar and shrill, serves as an accompani- 
 ment to the falling of the trees and the 
 snapping of the branches that impede his 
 progress or tempt his somewhat fastidious 
 appetite. These nocturnal sounds cannot 
 be better described than in the words of 
 Southey : 
 
 " Trampling his path through wood and brake, 
 And canes that crackling fall before his way, 
 And tassel-grass, whose silvery feathers play, 
 O'ertopping the young trees, 
 On comes the elephant, to slake 
 His thirst at noon, in yon pellucid springs. 
 Lo ! from his trunk upturned aloft he flings 
 
230 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 The grateful shower ; and now, 
 
 Plucking the broad-leaved bough 
 
 Of yonder plane, with waving motion slow, 
 
 Fanning the languid air, 
 
 He waves it to and fro."* 
 
 After heavy rains, the track of these herds 
 is easily detected by the impressions of their 
 feet on the soft clay. Some of the natives 
 evince considerable sagacity in immediately 
 detecting the least vestige of the foot-print 
 of an elephant. From the most trifling 
 marks, they can confidently state the num- 
 ber, and, what appears still more extraor- 
 dinary, the size, of the elephants composing 
 the herd. The secret of this last discovery 
 consists in the anatomical fact, that twice 
 the circumference of an elephant's foot is 
 exactly equal to his greatest height, mea- 
 sured from the fore-foot to the point that 
 corresponds with the withers of a horse. By 
 long practice, and perfect acquaintance with 
 the formation of the foot of the animal, the 
 most expert native huntsmen can, by closely 
 
 * The Curse of Kehama. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 231 
 
 examining even a small section of the im- 
 pression that it leaves, calculate his height, 
 and nearly approximate to the truth. 
 
 The elephants of Asia are said to be larger 
 and fiercer than those of Africa. Those of 
 Ceylon are undoubtedly equal in size and 
 strength to any on the Indian continent, 
 but I never saw any of these animals that 
 exceeded ten feet in height, nor do I believe 
 that they ever attain in any part of India 
 more considerable dimensions. Even this 
 may be pronounced the extreme maximum, 
 for an elephant eight or nine feet high is by 
 no means a contemptible specimen of his 
 kind. 
 
232 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 Adam's Peak Tradition concerning Adam The Kalu 
 Ganga Scenery around Adam's Peak Anarajah- 
 poora Ski Malia Bodi Tree Its supposed sanctity 
 and eternal duration Ruins of the Sowamahapaaya 
 Dagobas Compared with the Pyramids of Egypt 
 Decline of Ceylon Attributable to the ruin of the 
 Roman Empire. 
 
 THE conical formation of the mountain 
 known by the name of "Adam's Peak" 
 renders it a remarkable object, which, to be 
 recognized, requires only to be seen. To 
 ships approaching the island from the west- 
 ward, it forms an important landmark, that, 
 although many miles from the sea-coast, is 
 often seen long before any other land is 
 visible above the horizon. Tradition, which 
 assigns to it the honour of being the spot 
 from whence our first parents were igno- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 233 
 
 miniously expelled, gives the peak that 
 undefinable degree of interest, with which 
 we fondly contemplate the scene of "an- 
 cient tales and legends old," however unsup- 
 ported by probability or the credence of 
 mankind. With a brief account of this 
 sacred mountain, for such it is considered 
 by the followers of both Boodhoo and Siva, 
 I propose to conclude my reminiscences of 
 the Kandian provinces. 
 
 By the devotees who frequent, and by the 
 curious who visit it, the mountain is usually 
 approached from the side of Colombo. It 
 is situate in the province of Saffragam, one 
 of the finest in the island, and, on account 
 of the facilities of water-communication 
 which it enjoys, one likely to become the 
 most important and valuable. The Kalu 
 Ganga, a river which has its source at the 
 foot of Adam's Peak, and enters the Saffra- 
 gam district, affords the best line of route to 
 and from that holy hill. It discharges itself 
 into the sea in the neighbourhood of Cal- 
 
234 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 tura, a place nearly mid-way between Galle 
 and Colombo. From Caltura, therefore, 
 most tourists take their departure when 
 about to plunge into the recesses of the 
 Saffragam country, which, although possess- 
 ing advantages superior to those enjoyed 
 by any other province in the island, is but 
 little known and still less frequented by 
 Europeans. 
 
 To make way against the stream of the 
 Kalu Ganga, which, like all other rivers in 
 Ceylon, is extremely rapid, is a tedious 
 operation, that would be intolerable to the 
 most enthusiastic traveller, were it not that 
 the grand character of the country through 
 which the river wanders serves to divert 
 his attention from the contemplation of all 
 the ills that are concentrated in the island 
 paddy-boats. 
 
 The river is navigable as far as Ratna- 
 poora, a small village at the base of Adam's 
 Peak, which derives its name from the nu- 
 merous gems and precious stones that are 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 235 
 
 found in the beds of the tributary streams 
 which here join the Kalu Ganga. Being a 
 central point in Saffragam, Ratnapoora has 
 been selected as a military post, and as the 
 residence of the government agent of that 
 district. A temple, dedicated to Samen, the 
 tutelar deity of the province, is the chief 
 object worthy of attention in the place, and 
 serves as a rendezvous for the pilgrims to 
 the peak, who generally pass the night 
 within its sacred precincts, before attempt- 
 ing to climb the lofty mountain. From 
 this village the road or path, which leads to 
 the summit of Adam's Peak, follows for a 
 short distance the line of the Kalu Ganga, 
 and then suddenly ascends from the banks 
 of that river. At this point, palanquins or 
 other conveyances must be dispensed with, 
 and the remainder of the journey is neces- 
 sarily performed on foot. Unlike the moun- 
 tains of the interior, which gradually attain 
 their extreme altitude, Adam's Peak rises 
 precipitately from the Kalu Ganga to an 
 
236 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 elevation of seven thousand feet. To reach 
 the celebrated Peak is, therefore, a feat of 
 no ordinary difficulty; and, however the 
 fatigue attendant on the undertaking may 
 affect the devotion of those who visit it from 
 religious motives, there can be no doubt 
 that it acts as an unpleasant sedative on the 
 ardour of the unbelieving but inquisitive 
 Christian. 
 
 But all who have stood on that lofty 
 summit, which, towering over all surround- 
 ing objects, seems to " dally with the wind 
 and scorn the sun," will readily admit that 
 the toils of the way are more than compen- 
 sated for by the extensive and beautiful 
 landscape which is on every side seen from 
 Adam's Peak. The view towards the west 
 is that most generally admired. In that di- 
 rection, the splendid province of Saffragam, 
 with its hills covered with some of the finest 
 timber in the island, and its valleys for the 
 most part in a state of cultivation that forci- 
 bly contrasts with the wild character of the 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON, 237 
 
 mountains within which they are embosomed, 
 stretches towards the ocean, which is dis- 
 tinctly visible in the far distance. When 
 the first rays of the morning sun bathe this 
 landscape in a flood of light, such as is 
 emitted only from the sun of the tropics, 
 and the nocturnal mist, which usually over- 
 hangs the depths of valleys, begins to yield 
 to their cheering influence, the gorgeous 
 magnificence of its appearance at that mo- 
 ment is the theme of universal admiration. 
 
 The mountains of the interior, amid which 
 those around Newera Ellia are, by reason of 
 their superior loftiness, most prominent and 
 distinct, afford on the other hand some wild 
 and grand scenery, which is but little inferior 
 to that of the Saffragam province. Adam's 
 Peak is separated from the chain of moun- 
 tains that intersect the Kandian province 
 by a tract of comparatively low country. 
 Its consequent isolation renders it particu- 
 larly conspicuous from most of the principal 
 heights in the interior, and it has thus been 
 
238 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 of eminent service as a trigonometrical point 
 in the survey of the island that, under the 
 superintendence of Colonel Fraser, is now in 
 progress. The web of triangulation that, 
 under the auspices of the late Colonel Lamb- 
 ton, has been woven over the whole of 
 Southern India, has in no instance been ex- 
 tended to Ceylon, the best maps of which 
 are erroneous in the extreme, and undeserv- 
 ing of the slightest credit. Much of the 
 interior provinces has, however, of late years, 
 been surveyed for civil and military purposes, 
 and there is reason to hope that a map more 
 worthy of the colony will be published in the 
 course of the present year. 
 
 The summit of Adam's Peak embraces a 
 flat oblong area of two hundred square yards. 
 Of this space a large portion is occupied by a 
 mass of rock, upon which a gigantic impres- 
 sion of the human footstep is stamped. The 
 impression is slightly, but indelibly, indented 
 on the smooth surface of the rock, and mea- 
 sures nearly five feet and a half in length by 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 239 
 
 thirty inches in average breadth. Believers 
 and sceptics are indifferently permitted to 
 ascend this rock and examine the footprint ; 
 but the entr&e into a small temple, which is 
 erected upon and adorns this sacred spot, 
 is reserved for the devout disciples of Bood- 
 hoo. 
 
 Respecting the origin of this sacred foot- 
 step, a great variety of opinions exists. The 
 Hindoos, Moors, and Boodhists, all ascribe 
 its sanctity to very different causes. The 
 first of these assert that the Hindoo god, 
 Siva, was pleased to bestow on the island this 
 visible sign of his favour. The Boodhists, 
 on the other hand, hold that Boodhoo was 
 the deity in question. But the theory en- 
 tertained by the Moors, if not more probable, 
 is undoubtedly more interesting, than those 
 of the rival creeds. The Moorish traditions 
 declare that Serendib was the site of Para- 
 dise, from whence our first parents were, for 
 their transgressions, expelled to the neigh- 
 bouring continent of Hindoostan. From the 
 
240 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 summit of the Peak, the first man was, ac- 
 cording to this legend, permitted to behold 
 for the last time the happy scene of his 
 nativity and existence, while yet in a state 
 of innocence. The mystery of the footprint 
 is thus easily solved. 
 
 The interest that may attach to Adam's 
 Peak is, however, infinitely less than that 
 belonging to Anarajahpoora, the ancient 
 capital of Ceylon. This city, and the 
 populous and cultivated country that once 
 surrounded it, are now transformed into 
 an uninhabited desert. Its ruins are situ- 
 ate about mid-way between the northern 
 extremity of the island and Kandy, from 
 which place it is most easily approached. 
 The investigation of the annals of, and the 
 legends concerning, a place so famous in 
 island story as Anarajahpoora, will naturally 
 lead to the consideration of that highly 
 interesting period of its history, when 
 Taprobane, as Ceylon was called by the 
 Romans, contributed largely to supply the 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 241 
 
 demands of the luxury that marked the 
 decline of the " sometime" mistress of the 
 world. 
 
 According to the Malia Wanse, a work to 
 which reference has already been made in a 
 former chapter, and which is held by the 
 Cingalese to contain the most authentic ac- 
 counts of their early history, Anarajahpoora 
 is a corruption of Anarudhapura, a word 
 derived from the name of a prince who 
 founded the city. A succession of pious 
 moriarchs contributed to the embellishment 
 of a locality, for which Boodhoo was believed 
 to have evinced a decided partiality, from 
 the circumstance of his having been shel- 
 tered under the umbrageous trees in its 
 vicinity. To commemorate this happy event, 
 a large tree, called the Ski Maha Bodi, has, 
 in all subsequent ages, been the object of 
 the devotion of the devotees who annually 
 undertake a pilgrimage to the " Holy City." 
 The priests of Boodhoo pretend that the 
 Ski Maha Bodi tree has received from the 
 M 
 
242 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 grateful deity the boon of immortal youth 
 and of eternal luxuriance. Not doubting 
 but that, for his own especial purposes, Bood- 
 hoo has emancipated his favourite tree from 
 the immutable laws which govern the vege- 
 table as well as the animal world, the credu- 
 lous pilgrims fondly imagine that the leaves 
 they now behold on the Ski Maha Bodi are 
 those which, when he took upon himself the 
 form of man and visited the earth, pro- 
 tected him from the fierce rays of a vertical 
 sun. 
 
 One of the principal objects of attraction 
 to the antiquary, who wanders amid the 
 ruins of Anarajahpoora, is the Sowamaha- 
 paaya. The ancient documents relating to 
 the city concur in stating that this was for- 
 merly a majestic structure of nine stories. 
 Of these, none are now in existence ; but 
 sixteen hundred stone pillars, upon which 
 the building was erected, are still in tolerable 
 preservation. This immense number are dis- 
 posed in a perfect square, the side of which 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 243 
 
 is about two hundred feet in length. Along 
 each side, at nearly equal distances, forty pil- 
 lars are ranged. The interval between the 
 rows varies from two to three feet, and the 
 square of the pillars, which, with few ex- 
 ceptions, are uniform in size and height, is 
 two feet. 
 
 Around the Sowamahapaaya, which was 
 probably a temple dedicated to the worship 
 of Boodhoo, are six Dagobas, or immense 
 solid domes, the altitude of which is equal to 
 their greatest diameter. They are for the 
 most part surmounted by spiral cones, that 
 in some measure relieve the vastness and 
 massiveness of their gigantic proportions. 
 Like the Pyramids of Egypt, they were de- 
 signed to commemorate the reign of the mo- 
 narch to whose honour they were raised. In 
 either case, the simplicity and solidity of the 
 construction have defied the ravages of time, 
 and insured its permanence. But the handi- 
 work of the ignorant labourers of Ceylon, 
 though it may rival and even surpass the 
 
 M2 
 
244 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 massive greatness, wants the elegance and 
 grandeur, that belongs to the more majestic 
 productions of the Egyptian architects. The 
 Dagobas have a ponderous and ignoble ap- 
 pearance ; their magnitude is, however, 
 almost unparalleled, and elicits the admira- 
 tion or the contempt of the European pil- 
 grim, who may either applaud the perseve- 
 rance or ridicule the injudicious taste of the 
 ancient islanders. The solid contents of the 
 largest of them have been estimated to ex- 
 ceed four hundred and fifty thousand cubic 
 yards ; its greatest diameter and altitude 
 are equal, and measure two hundred and 
 seventy feet. 
 
 The extent of Anarajahpoora can still be 
 faintly traced. Its perimeter is believed 
 to have exceeded sixty miles, and the an- 
 cient walls that encircled the city, and are 
 in some places visible, give some probability 
 to this conjecture. Nearly in the centre 
 of the space formerly occupied by the city, 
 the present mean village, 'which still retains 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 245 
 
 the name of Anarajahpoora, remains to mark 
 the site of the fallen capital. 
 
 During the last ten centuries, Anarajah- 
 poora has been neglected by the monarchs 
 who have successively ruled the destinies of 
 Ceylon. The central position and numerous 
 advantages enjoyed by Kandy would seem 
 to have attracted their attention, and in- 
 duced them to abandon the unhealthy site 
 of the former seat of government ; but, 
 prior to the desertion of the ancient capital, 
 Ceylon attained the highest degree of pros- 
 perity which it has, either in former or later 
 ages, experienced. From its discovery in the 
 reign of the first Claudius, it rapidly rose to 
 commercial importance, to which its geo- 
 graphical position, centrically situated with 
 regard to the eastern confines of the Roman 
 empire and the more remote India, mainly 
 contributed. The merchants from China 
 and the Eastern Archipelago awaited at 
 Ceylon, as a mid-way station, the periodical 
 arrival of the Roman fleets, which, taking 
 
246 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 advantage of the south-west monsoon, usually 
 accomplished the voyage from the Red Sea 
 to the coast of Taprobane in six weeks. 
 The silks of China, the precious stones of 
 Ceylon, and the rich spices and aromatics 
 of India, were the articles of trade prin- 
 cipally sought for by the Roman navigators. 
 In lieu of these trifling but costly objects 
 of luxury, the Romans were unable to 
 barter the manufactures of Europe, and 
 were thus reduced to the necessity of ex- 
 changing their silver for the productions of 
 the Eastern world.* 
 
 It was estimated that eight hundred thou- 
 sand pounds sterling were thus annually 
 expended. Of this sum, which must have 
 appeared immense to the Indian merchants 
 of that age, the capital of Ceylon largely 
 participated. There is good reason to be- 
 lieve that the whole of the extensive public 
 buildings and vast Dagobas which adorned, 
 and of which the ruins still indicate the 
 * Gibbon's Roman Empire. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 247 
 
 position of, Anarajahpoora, were designed 
 and erected during this era of opulence and 
 national prosperity. 
 
 It appears that the Kandian provinces 
 were not, at this remote period, subject to 
 the rule of the sovereign of the sea-board 
 provinces. The Kandian king " possessed 
 the mountains, the elephants, and the lu- 
 minous carbuncle," while the rival monarch 
 " enjoyed the more solid riches of domestic 
 industry, foreign trade, and the capacious 
 harbour of Trinquemale, which received and 
 dismissed the fleets of the East and West."* 
 With the decay of the Roman empire, the 
 lucrative trade, to which the historian here 
 alludes, gradually declined. The profitable 
 traffic was at length monopolized by the 
 Persian navigators. The subjects of the 
 great king sailed from the Persian Gulf, 
 along the western shores of Hindoostan, to 
 the coast of Ceylon. But, in the dark 
 ages that succeeded the ruin of the Roman 
 * Gibbon. 
 
248 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 world, the productions and manufactures 
 of the East, which consisted of the luxu- 
 ries rather than the necessaries of life, sunk 
 in the public estimation, and ultimately 
 became so little esteemed, that the Ori- 
 ental trade, which at one time threatened 
 to exhaust the wealth of the empire, dwin- 
 dled into obscurity and utter insignificance. 
 
 From being the chief emporium of com- 
 merce in the East, Taprobane again merged 
 into the barbarism from which the influx 
 of the polite subjects of Rome and Persia 
 had in some degree raised her. At this 
 period, the usual concomitants of national 
 poverty and distress began to appear. Do- 
 mestic tumults and intestine wars succeeded 
 to the long interval of calm that had cha- 
 racterized what may be termed the golden 
 age of Ceylon. Famine and the sword 
 rapidly thinned the superabundant popula- 
 tion, and reduced the island to the de- 
 generate state in which it was found by the 
 Portuguese of the sixteenth century. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 249 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 Summary of Ceylon history Natural advantages of the 
 island, and moderate temperature Principal rivers in 
 Ceylon Want of roads System of Rajah Carrier 
 Its advantages and disadvantages Cinnamon gardens 
 Revision of export duties The advantages of free 
 trade illustrated Concluding observations. 
 
 FROM the interesting records that tell of the 
 former greatness of Taprobane, we learn 
 that the island first rose from its pristine 
 obscurity in the first century of the Chris- 
 tian era. Before that period, an host of 
 kings serve but as landmarks to guide us 
 through the " dim obscure" which overhangs 
 the wilderness of incredible legends and 
 absurd fictions that make up the history of 
 their ignoble lives and inglorious reigns. 
 On the discovery of the island by the Ro- 
 mans, in the reign of the first Claudius, the 
 M 3 
 
250 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 influence of trade, the possession of wealth, 
 and the constant presence of the Roman 
 and Persian merchants, combined to pro- 
 duce the beneficial effect of elevating its in- 
 habitants in the scale of civilization. This 
 state of commercial prosperity and intellec- 
 tual advancement may be said to have, 
 without any interval, continued for five hun- 
 dred years. The causes that operated to 
 overthrow this temporary political elevation 
 have already been shewn, and the dark in- 
 terval of ten centuries which followed is 
 hardly worthy of mention. Of the Portu- 
 guese and Dutch colonists, enough has been 
 said. The state and prospects of the island 
 at the present time only remain to be com- 
 mented upon. 
 
 There are few places in British India so 
 highly favoured by nature as Ceylon. At 
 the same time it must be confessed that, of 
 the immense territories subject to our rule 
 in the East, there are none, the commercial 
 and agricultural advantages of which have 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 251 
 
 been less developed by the labours of man 
 than those of that island. The principal 
 cause of this exists in the difficult nature of 
 the country, so opposed to the character of 
 the level and open plains of Bengal and of 
 the Carnatic. The want of population, which 
 effectually checks the increase of cultiva- 
 tion, may perhaps be ranked as the second, 
 and the rustic habits and few wants of the 
 agricultural peasantry as the third, of the 
 causes that have chiefly tended to create 
 this infelicitous effect. 
 
 The geographical position of Ceylon is 
 eminently favourable to commercial pros- 
 perity. It also enjoys the great advantage 
 of having its most fertile provinces in the 
 near vicinity of the sea an advantage that 
 can only be fully appreciated by the dwellers 
 in the East, where the expenses of land- 
 carriage often amount to treble the prime 
 cost of the articles of merchandize. A great 
 portion of the island consists of virgin soil, 
 the rich quality of which is sufficiently at- 
 
252 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 tested by the luxuriant vegetation that 
 everywhere meets the eye. The visiter 
 from the arid plains of the neighbouring 
 continent never fails to be forcibly struck 
 with the pleasing contrast that the beauti- 
 fully verdant appearance of the island affords 
 to the stunted vegetation and withered as- 
 pect of an Indian landscape. 
 
 From its insulated position, and consequent 
 exposure to the violence of the alternate 
 monsoons, the temperature of Ceylon is ex- 
 tremely moderate when compared with the 
 intense heat of India. The extensive forests 
 that conceal the face of the country, by ex- 
 cluding the rays of the sun from the surface 
 of the earth, greatly tend to moderate the 
 intensity of the heat which, from the sixth to 
 the tenth parallel of north latitude, might, 
 a priori, be presumed to exist. On the 
 western shores of the island, the annual 
 temperature has been estimated at 80, and 
 the extreme range of the thermometer from 
 75 to 85. The near proximity of the Kan- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 253 
 
 dian mountains, by attracting constant and 
 copious showers of rain, and thus producing 
 a perpetual redundancy of moisture, mainly 
 contributes to create the extremely mild and 
 equable climate that so eminently marks 
 the favoured districts around Colombo and 
 Galle. 
 
 The island may be said to consist of two 
 distinct divisions of territory, the line of de- 
 markation between which may be drawn 
 from Colombo to Kandy, and from thence 
 through Badulla to Hambentotte on the 
 south-eastern coast. In the southern of the 
 two districts that are thus formed are com- 
 prised the whole of the Kandian highlands, 
 the rich provinces of Colombo and Galle, and 
 the sea-board connecting those places, and 
 extending towards Hambentotte. Towards 
 the north, all is flat, barren, and unprofit- 
 able. To this general observation the dis- 
 trict of Jaffna, however, forms a solitary and 
 honourable exception. But the whole of 
 the inland territory, stretching from the left 
 
254 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 bank of the Mahavilaganga to the peninsula 
 of Jaffnapatam, may safely be included in 
 this sweeping condemnation. Only the ruins 
 of Anarajahpoora remain to tell of the for- 
 mer prosperity of this extensive tract of 
 country, which is now as unpeopled and 
 silent as that ancient capital. 
 
 Anarajahpoora does not appear to have 
 possessed any peculiar advantages for the 
 site of a populous city. Its centric position 
 between the ports of the western coast and 
 that of Trincomalee would seem to have 
 been its sole recommendation, as far as its 
 own intrinsic merits were concerned. Its 
 selection as the capital was doubtless owing 
 to the supposed predilection of Boodhoo 
 for this his favourite haunt. The country 
 around is poor, and no large river or other 
 natural advantage compensates for the in- 
 feriority of the soil. Nature has evidently 
 lavished her treasures on the southern dis- 
 tricts, to the total exclusion of the northern. 
 It is, therefore, in the south of Ceylon, that 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 255 
 
 the hopes of the agricultural and commer- 
 cial speculators, who are now beginning to 
 turn their attention to that long-neglected 
 island, are chiefly concentrated. Of this 
 land of promise, a brief description, embody- 
 ing in an abstract form those details con- 
 cerning it that have already been touched 
 upon in the former chapters, may, perhaps, 
 be necessary to refresh the memory of the 
 reader. 
 
 The principal, and indeed the only rivers 
 of any magnitude in the island, water this 
 part of it. The " Great River," which flows 
 near to, and encircles, Kandy, is the least 
 important of them, on account of the shoals 
 and rapids that are interspersed throughout 
 its course. After passing Kandy, in the 
 neighbourhood of Matel, it rushes down a 
 descent of more than one thousand feet, 
 and pursues a devious and almost unknown 
 course through the wastes of Bintenne and 
 of the Veddah country, until it falls into the 
 sea in the vicinity of Trincomalee. 
 
256 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 Of the Kalu Ganga, or the " Black River," 
 by means of which the resources of the rich 
 province of Saffragam are partially developed, 
 mention has already been made. Its stream 
 is rapid, but deep ; and there is no doubt 
 but that its importance will gradually in- 
 crease in proportion to the growing improve- 
 ment of the fertile province that it traverses. 
 At its mouth this river is of considerable 
 breadth, but, unfortunately, there exists a 
 sandy bed, which materially impedes its free 
 communication with the sea. 
 
 The Kelany Ganga rivals the " Black 
 River." It is navigable for sixty or seventy 
 miles from its mouth, which is in the suburbs 
 of Colombo.* It penetrates a difficult and 
 thickly wooded district, which is only par- 
 
 * A bridge of boats has been thrown over this river 
 near Colombo. Its breadth at this point is about two 
 hundred yards, and its velocity from two to three miles 
 an hour. The boats are moored head and stern, and 
 at certain hours of the day two of those in the centre 
 are withdrawn, for the purpose of allowing the country 
 craft to pass. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 257 
 
 tially under cultivation. Much of it has, 
 however, of late years been surveyed and 
 purchased, and a gradual change is being 
 effected in the face of this part of the 
 island. 
 
 There is but one other stream dignified 
 by the appellation of " ganga " or river. A 
 multitude of " oyae," or small rivers, to- 
 gether with some deep bays, that occur on 
 the western coast, and form indents nearly 
 parallel to the line of the sea coast, make 
 up the sum of the means of water-commu- 
 nication. All these streams have the great 
 disadvantage, arising from the mountainous 
 character of the country around their sources, 
 of being extremely rapid. This, however, is 
 of less importance in Ceylon than it would 
 prove in countries less covered with forests. 
 The natives usually form large rafts with 
 the majestic trees that overhang the banks 
 of these rivers, and after floating themselves 
 and the produce of their farms down to the 
 coast upon this simple construction, dispose 
 
258 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 of the timber composing their temporary 
 vessels. 
 
 Roads, which have been truly said to be 
 the best tests of the progress of civilization, 
 are much wanting in every part of Ceylon. 
 The expense which they involve, when they 
 run through the wild arid almost impervious 
 tracts of country that constitute the greater 
 part of that half-savage island, is quite in- 
 credible. In the populous districts of India, 
 where the ground is level, and free from 
 marshes and thick jungle, the construction 
 of a road is sufficiently easy of execution ; 
 but when forests are to be felled, and the 
 ground is to be cleared of the roots of trees 
 and other obstacles, the difficulties of the 
 undertaking increase ad infinitwn. It must 
 also be borne .in mind, that all the sup- 
 plies, tools, and various articles necessary 
 in road-making, are, in the majority of 
 the cases which occur in Ceylon, brought, 
 at a great expense, from a considerable 
 distance. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 259 
 
 Under these circumstances, the colonial 
 Government is necessarily chary in granting 
 the sums demanded for the execution of 
 various projects of this nature. The road 
 from Kandy to Trincomalee is a good in- 
 stance of the reluctance with which they 
 furnish the supplies that, as in the case in 
 question, are often urgently required. This 
 road, although commenced about eight years 
 ago, may still be considered in a state of 
 infancy. The slow progress of the work 
 is entirely owing to the want of fands, 
 for it is admitted on all hands that a free 
 communication between the places it is 
 intended to unite, whether regarded in a 
 military or political point of view, would 
 be highly advantageous. A great deal of 
 time, of money, and of life has been wasted 
 upon this apparently Herculean undertak- 
 ing, and the result has hitherto been 
 nothing. 
 
 It is, however, due to the Ceylon Govern- 
 ment to observe, that in consequence of the 
 
260 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 repeal of the law of " Rajah Carrier," or 
 compulsory labour, their means of carrying 
 into execution their plans of improvement 
 are considerably diminished. This iniquitous 
 law was introduced by the Dutch, who have 
 ever been severe task-masters in their colo- 
 nial empire. It remained in force under the 
 British Government until 1832, when a board 
 of commissioners, who at that time made an 
 official report upon the island, recommended 
 and effected its abolition. How, under the 
 beneficent rule of Britain, it was so long 
 permitted to continue in operation, is an 
 enigma that can only be solved by assuming 
 the ignorance of the home authorities with 
 regard to this crying evil. The nature of 
 the Rajah Carrier, reminding us as it does of 
 the feudal times, when vassal and slave were 
 nearly synonymous terms, requires a brief 
 exposition. 
 
 By the Dutch law of " Rajah Carrier," 
 which is now so happily repealed, every 
 peasant capable of performing labour was 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 261 
 
 liable to be called upon to work, for an 
 indefinite period, on the public buildings, 
 highways, and on the fortifications. Every 
 village, according to the number of its in- 
 habitants, was bound to furnish, at the 
 requisition of the government agent, a cer- 
 tain proportion of labourers for the public 
 service. The headmen of each district were 
 held responsible for the due appearance of 
 its quota, and the notorious partiality of 
 these native chiefs had the effect of render- 
 ing still more intolerable the odious Rajah 
 Carrier. 
 
 Infinitely degrading as slavery, even in 
 its mildest forms, is to human nature, its 
 actual miseries have, perhaps, in some re- 
 spects been exaggerated. The slave-holder 
 has an interest in the preservation and well- 
 being of his property, which, in the absence 
 of better motives, affords some protection to 
 the bondsmen against the dictates of avarice 
 and cruelty. But, in this particular, the 
 victim of the law of Rajah Carrier was more 
 
262 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 unfortunate and more worthy of commise- 
 ration than the meanest slave. He was 
 mocked with the title of freeman, and, as 
 such, his life or death was a matter of total 
 indifference to the agents of the Dutch Go- 
 vernment. Dragged from their homes to 
 toil in a service for which they received no 
 sort of remuneration, the wretched Cinga- 
 lese in many instances failed, from actual 
 inanition, and died at the feet of their Chris- 
 tian task-masters. 
 
 The effects of this abominable system 
 were indeed mollified when the milder sway 
 of the British was substituted for the tyran- 
 nical rule of the Dutch ; but the practice, 
 in a modified form, still existed until within 
 the last few years. Although the enormities 
 which were perpetrated under, and disgraced, 
 the Dutch regime, were in a great measure 
 abated by their successors in the colonial 
 government, the operation of this baneful 
 law was still in the highest degree injurious. 
 It rendered the labours of the peasant of no 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 263 
 
 avail, for, by forcing him to quit his farm 
 at a critical moment, his hopes were often 
 nipped in the bud, and promising crops irre- 
 mediably destroyed. It created an enduring 
 irritation and a want of confidence amongst 
 the governed towards their governors. In 
 a word, its abolition is the greatest boon that 
 has been conferred on the islanders since 
 their subjection to a foreign yoke. 
 
 As in the generality of cases, a certain 
 degree of good arose even from the evil 
 system here detailed. By its aid, the Dutch 
 were enabled to construct many useful public 
 works, and to effect great improvements in 
 the face of the country. Had it not been in 
 force during the period of his government, 
 Sir Edward Barnes would in all probability 
 have failed in the execution of many of the 
 projects that he designed and accomplished. 
 The hands of the present government are 
 comparatively paralyzed by the want of the 
 funds by which only the labour of the natives 
 can now be obtained. In thus alluding to 
 
264 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 the partial advantages that did undoubtedly 
 arise from the existence of the arbitrary 
 " Rajah Carrier," it is by no means intended 
 to imply that they were any adequate com- 
 pensation for the sufferings and distress 
 which it caused, but merely to shew the 
 limited resources of the existing colonial 
 administration, as compared with those of 
 former times. 
 
 Having thus described the means of land 
 and water communication in the southern 
 districts of the island, their produce and 
 agricultural capabilities remain to be con- 
 sidered. Cinnamon, the high export duties 
 on which form a very important item in 
 the colonial revenue, grows only in this part 
 of Ceylon. The principal gardens are con- 
 fined to the district of Colombo. This fra- 
 grant plant appears to love a poor sandy 
 soil ; that in these gardens consisting almost 
 entirely of white siliceous sand. The equa- 
 ble temperature of Colombo, and the low 
 sheltered position of the country imme- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 265 
 
 diately around it, have, with some appear- 
 ance of probability, been also assigned as 
 the causes of the flourishing condition of 
 the cinnamon plantations in its neighbour- 
 hood. Under the Dutch, these and all other 
 plantations in the island were monopolized 
 by the government. In accordance with 
 the more enlightened spirit of the present 
 day, the trade is now thrown open to the 
 public, but the high duties levied on this 
 article of luxury deter speculators from pur- 
 chasing the gardens. 
 
 Ceylon affords a striking instance of the 
 triumph of free principles in commerce. 
 Until within the last few years nearly every 
 important article of produce was subject 
 to almost prohibitory duties. During the 
 government of Sir Robert Horton, this un- 
 enlightened system was suppressed, and in its 
 place were substituted tariff duties founded 
 on the more enlarged views and commercial 
 principles of the present day. The result 
 has even surpassed the anticipations of the 
 
 N 
 
266 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 most sanguine ; and from the day on which 
 the principles of free trade were applied to 
 the colony, the prosperity of Ceylon may 
 henceforward be dated. 
 
 One great and unfortunate exception has, 
 however, been made in the application of 
 the universally just principles of freedom 
 in commercial intercourse. Cinnamon, for- 
 merly the staple product of the island, and 
 that for which it was chiefly famed, is now 
 lying under the incubus of the enormous 
 export duty of one hundred per cent. Thus, 
 while the export of coffee, sugar, and cocoa- 
 nut oil is rapidly increasing under the bene- 
 ficial influence of these fiscal alterations 
 which have been mentioned, the demand for 
 cinnamon, fettered as it is with restrictive 
 duties, has rather diminished than increased, 
 and the trade in this spice will continue to 
 decay and languish until a material change 
 is effected in those absurd and anomalous 
 duties by which its energies have of late 
 been cramped and subdued. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 267 
 
 The sea-board connecting Galle and Co- 
 lombo is a flat belt of land, compressed 
 between the foot of the Kandian mountains 
 and the ocean. The cocoa-nut tree, which 
 may be ranked among the staple productions 
 of the island, arrives at its greatest perfec- 
 tion in this part of the coast. No part of 
 India is more productive of this invaluable 
 species of palm than Ceylon, which exports 
 great quantities of cocoa-nuts and arrack to 
 the Malabar and Coromandel coasts. It is 
 observable that this tree never flourishes so 
 well as in the near vicinity of the sea-shore, 
 the sandy soil and peculiar atmosphere of 
 which may, in a great degree, produce this 
 effect. 
 
 Most of the rice grown in the island is 
 cultivated here, the level surface of the 
 country enabling the natives to lay it under 
 water without being under the necessity of 
 resorting to the tedious operation of forming 
 a succession of steps, as practised by the 
 Kandians. The supply of rice has, however, 
 
 N2 
 
268 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 at no period been sufficient to meet the de- 
 mands of the population, who are for the 
 most part furnished from the ports of Cochin 
 and Quilon, on the Malabar coast, with what 
 may justly be termed the staff of life in the 
 Eastern world. 
 
 Galle may be designated the commercial 
 port of the sea-board, as Colombo is of the 
 interior, districts. Some highly valuable 
 lands are situated in its vicinity, and its 
 superior harbour, geographical position, and 
 intelligent inhabitants, will eventually render 
 this sea-port a rival to the present capital. 
 Projecting into the Indian Ocean, mid- way 
 between Calcutta and Bombay, it will un- 
 doubtedly become the principal steam dep6t 
 in the Eastern seas, when they shall be 
 ploughed by the omnipotent agency of that 
 infant Hercules. 
 
 In a work not professing to treat on com- 
 mercial subjects, the pages that have already 
 been devoted to the coffee plantations may 
 by some be considered superfluous, or, at all 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 269 
 
 events, misplaced. Let it, therefore, suffice 
 to observe, that, with a few exceptions, which 
 occur in the neighbourhood of Galle, all the 
 coffee estates are situated within the Kan- 
 dian highlands. That beautiful and rich 
 tract of country, if its resources be duly de- 
 veloped by the introduction of a well-con- 
 nected system of roads, those arteries through 
 which the life-blood of agriculture flows, will, 
 it may be confidently predicted, raise Tapro- 
 bane, like a phoenix from its ashes, and render 
 Ceylon the Jamaica of the East. 
 
 It is, indeed, evident that the great na- 
 tural resources of the island will be only 
 partially brought to light until a considerable 
 improvement in its internal communications 
 takes place. Its impracticable surface pre- 
 sents such insuperable obstacles to the trans- 
 port of agricultural produce as to deter spe- 
 culators from purchasing land except in the 
 close proximity of a road. The pitiful eco- 
 nomy, which compels the colonial govern- 
 ment to confine their designs of improvement 
 
270 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 to the few roads already in existence, is uni- 
 versally condemned by all classes of society 
 in Ceylon. The check thus imposed on local 
 improvements is forcibly contrasted with the 
 liberal system that obtains in the neighbour- 
 ing presidency of Madras, where the expense 
 attendant on the construction of works of 
 acknowledged public utility is rarely, if ever, 
 suffered to interfere with their execution. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 27l 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 Colonial Government Executive and Legislative Coun- 
 cils Civil Service of Ceylon Its defects Supreme 
 Court Clerical establishments Ceylon missionaries 
 The Island Press Troops in Ceylon Their sta- 
 tions and numerical force Ceylon Rifle Regiment 
 Contrast between the Anglo-Indians and the Anglo- 
 Cingalese Attributable to various causes Departure 
 from Ceylon. 
 
 THE government of Ceylon is actually con- 
 centrated in the person of the governor, but 
 ostensibly conducted by two councils, de- 
 nominated the executive and legislative ; 
 the former is composed of the officer com- 
 manding the troops in the island, the colo- 
 nial secretary, the Queen's advocate, and the 
 agent for the Kandian, or, in official par- 
 lance, the Central Provinces. These officials 
 are, by a legal fiction, supposed to advise 
 and assist the governor, who is their per- 
 
272 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 petual president. In the event of his de- 
 mise or absence from the island, the officer 
 commanding the troops, as senior member 
 of the Executive Council, assumes tempo- 
 rarily the office of governor. 
 
 The Legislative Council comprehends the 
 members of the executive, together with the 
 chief justice, and some few other individuals, 
 European and native. Every colonial ordi- 
 nance is submitted to their approval before 
 it becomes the law of the land, but in cases 
 of emergency, the governor is empowered to 
 act without their acquiescence in the mea- 
 sures he may propose. A singular anomaly 
 exists in the composition of this council ; 
 the chief justice, who has no seat in " the 
 other house," takes, in this subordinate 
 assembly, precedence of the officer com- 
 manding the troops, on the principle, it is 
 presumed, of " Cedant arma togce" 
 
 The House of Assembly, wherein the 
 councils hold their occasional sittings, is a 
 large unfinished building, and there is an 
 
EAMBLES IN CEYLON. 273 
 
 appearance of desolation about it that seems 
 to be in keeping with the trifling political 
 estimation in which these bodies are held. 
 They are rarely convened, and their deli- 
 berations do not greatly affect the will and 
 pleasure of the governor. In truth, the 
 duties of these functionaries are of the most 
 limited description, for the details connected 
 with the actual control and civil manage- 
 ment of the various districts are conducted 
 by their respective government agents, who 
 report direct to the governor and colonial 
 secretary. 
 
 There is a wide difference between the 
 civil service of Ceylon and that of India, in 
 the qualifications that are required, in the 
 duties that they perform, and lastly, but 
 perhaps not least, in the amount of the 
 emoluments received by them. With re- 
 gard to qualifications, the candidates for the 
 civil service in Ceylon undergo no examina- 
 tion whatever, but receive their appoint- 
 ments from the secretary for the colonies 
 
 N3 
 
274 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 without reference to the previous course of 
 their studies or to their general abilities for 
 the due performance of the important duties 
 that are assigned to them. The many ad- 
 vantages of this system of colonial patronage 
 are so self-evident, as to need no demon- 
 stration. 
 
 In Ceylon, as in India, the duties of the 
 civil servants are divided into those apper- 
 taining to the administration of justice, and 
 those which are connected with the collec- 
 tion of revenue and the government of dis- 
 tricts. At first sight, it would seem to the 
 undiscerning eye that there is a wide dis- 
 similarity between a judge and a govern- 
 ment agent, considered in their official capa- 
 cities. The study of Blackstone would, it 
 might be imagined, be equally dry and un- 
 profitable to the collector of revenue, whose 
 intuitive knowledge of his profession might, 
 on the other hand, be supposed susceptible 
 of enlargement by a perusal of the works 
 of M'Culloch. But these ideas, which so 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 275 
 
 readily present themselves to a novice in 
 Cingalese diplomacy, do not obtain in Cey- 
 lon, where the members of the judicial and 
 revenue establishments exchange their re- 
 spective duties with a happy facility, arising 
 from a modest consciousness of their inhe- 
 rent talents for the sciences of jurisprudence 
 and political economy. 
 
 These palpable defects in the civil service 
 require no comment. The indiscriminate 
 and partial selection of candidates, and the 
 amalgamation of duties that are in their 
 nature distinct, are evils in the system, the 
 existence of which, I am persuaded, the 
 majority even of Ceylon civilians will can- 
 didly admit. Those who may attempt to 
 defend them will, at all events, subscribe to 
 the truth of the assertion, that their reduced 
 incomes, as established of late years, are the 
 chief impediment to any material improve- 
 ment in the constitution of the body of 
 which they are members. Within the last 
 few years, considerable reductions in their 
 
276 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 pecuniary allowances have been made. The 
 service, according to the new regime, is split 
 into three grades, the members of the high- 
 est of which do not receive a greater income 
 than 750. The inadequacy of this sum, so 
 paltry when compared with the great emo- 
 luments of the civil servants of the East- 
 India Company, is not even compensated 
 for by a retiring pension. 
 
 The new regulations, curtailing the pay 
 and allowances of the civil service, have but 
 recently come into operation, and their in- 
 jurious tendency has, as yet, hardly been 
 felt. But it may, without presumption, be 
 assumed that those who accept such hard 
 terms as those now offered to Ceylon civi- 
 lians will, in the generality of instances, be 
 inferior in information and abilities to their 
 predecessors, who, notwithstanding the fa- 
 vour and affection shewn in nominating them, 
 often made up by their general acquire- 
 ments for the want of those proper to the 
 duties connected with their appointments. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 277 
 
 All criminal cases of so serious a nature 
 as to be excluded from the limited jurisdic- 
 tion of the district judges are referred to 
 the sessions of the Supreme Court. Ap- 
 peals from the sentences of the subordinate 
 courts are also heard and finally determined 
 at the sessions, which are held twice a year 
 by the members of this higher tribunal, 
 which consists of a chief justice and two 
 puisne judges, who are appointed to their 
 offices by virtue of warrants under the sign 
 manual. The governor has, however, the 
 power of provisionally appointing a chief 
 justice or puisne judge, in case of death or 
 resignation, and is even authorized to sus- 
 pend them, on proof of misconduct or inca- 
 pacity, reporting such suspension to the 
 secretary for the colonies. 
 
 The clerical establishment of Ceylon con- 
 sists of an archdeacon and five colonial 
 chaplains. The archdeacon and two of the 
 chaplains permanently reside at Colombo ; 
 the remaining three are stationed at Trinco- 
 
278 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 malee, Kandy, and Galle. At the two for- 
 mer of these places there is no church, and 
 the buildings in which divine service is per- 
 formed are not sufficiently capacious for the 
 reception of the congregations. At Kandy, 
 the pulpit is alternately occupied by the 
 clergyman and the district judge. It has 
 long been in contemplation to erect more 
 suitable places of worship, but up to the 
 present time no effective steps have been 
 taken for the accomplishment of so desira- 
 ble an object. Nor is this " untoward " 
 state of things likely to be remedied, as long 
 as the colonial government are embarrassed 
 by the want of funds. 
 
 If the ministers of the Established Church 
 in Ceylon are rather few in number, there is 
 no lack, but, on the contrary, a superabund- 
 ance of missionaries, principally of the Wes- 
 leyan persuasion. Their chief establishment 
 is at Cotta, a small village within a few 
 miles of Colombo. At this place, the centre 
 of the most salubrious and favoured district 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 279 
 
 in the island, their annual meetings are 
 held, and all business connected with the 
 establishment is transacted. That their 
 labours are in many instances productive of 
 good cannot be denied ; but it is equally cer- 
 tain that their exertions and privations are 
 greatly exaggerated. Their religious zeal 
 seems directed to the inculcation of their 
 own peculiar tenets, rather than to the 
 general diffusion of the light of Christian 
 knowledge. Instead of constantly visiting 
 and residing at the various out-stations, 
 where the bulk of the uninformed popula- 
 tion dwell, they confine their wanderings 
 within the limits of the most desirable 
 places of residence in the island. To these 
 general observations there are, of course, 
 many honourable exceptions. It would be 
 unjust to overlook the merits of the Ceylon 
 American mission, which has been esta- 
 blished in the province of Jaffna, and ever 
 been prominent for its indefatigable yet un- 
 obtrusive efforts in the cause of religion. 
 
280 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 The island press is proportioned to the 
 dimensions of the literary world in Ceylon. 
 There are two newspapers, entitled the 
 Ceylon Herald and Colombo Observer, the 
 former of which professes ultra Tory, and 
 the latter extreme Radical principles. The 
 one usually undertakes the arduous task of 
 defending all the measures, good, bad, and 
 indifferent, of the governor of the day ; the 
 other, that of attacking them. The war of 
 words too frequently degenerates into per- 
 sonal abuse, the natural result of the close 
 compression of such rival spirits in the con- 
 fined area contained within the walls of the 
 fort of Colombo. Of these papers, one, at 
 least, is conducted with much ability, and 
 its editor, even when in error, generally con- 
 trives to overthrow the logical deductions of 
 his opponent, and to make the worse appear 
 the better cause. 
 
 Some attempts have been made to esta- 
 blish a colonial magazine, but this production, 
 though frequently in embryo, has never ar- 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 281 
 
 rived at maturity. A Ceylon almanac is 
 published annually, and often contains some 
 interesting local information. The whole of 
 the appendix at the end of this chapter has 
 been extracted from its pages. 
 
 Of the society in Ceylon, as in most of 
 our colonies, the military form a large ma- 
 jority. The usual establishment in the 
 island has, of late years, consisted of the 
 service companies of four British infantry 
 regiments, the Ceylon Rifle Corps, and two 
 companies of the Royal Artillery. The 
 whole force may amount to four thousand 
 men, one-half of whom are concentrated in 
 and around Colombo. The Ceylon Rifle 
 Regiment is much scattered over the island 
 at the various out-stations, some of which 
 have been found, by sad experience, highly 
 inimical to the constitution of Europeans. 
 This corps, which is now almost entirely re- 
 cruited by Malays, and may without flattery be 
 compared with the finest regiment of sepoys, 
 is entitled to more than a passing notice. 
 
282 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 The present regiment are the relic of four 
 battalions that flourished in the days of the 
 last monarch of the Kandian dynasty. After 
 the capture of that tyrant, the rebellion, which 
 almost immediately ensued, kept them in ac- 
 tive employment, and postponed the evil day 
 of disbandment. That calamitous event at 
 length occurred in the year of Grace, 1821. 
 But if the numbers of the corps suffered dimi- 
 nution on this occasion, its improved morale 
 more than compensates for the reduction of 
 its original force. The Caflres, sepoys, and 
 Cingalese, who formerly made up its hetero- 
 geneous composition, have been gradually 
 exchanged for the proud and stubborn 
 Malays. 
 
 It has proved a matter of considerable 
 difficulty to induce the Malays to confine 
 their feet within shoes, or even to wear the 
 sandals that are universally worn by the 
 sepoys of the Company's army. Excepting 
 a few individuals, who have compounded 
 with their dignity or their prejudices, the 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 283 
 
 regiment still appear on all occasions bare- 
 footed. This certainly does not add either 
 to their efficiency or appearance ; but in all 
 other respects they cannot fail to elicit 
 general approbation. 
 
 That the island requires for the mainten- 
 ance of its internal tranquillity such a large 
 body of troops as that now stationed in it, is, 
 to say the least, more than doubtful. The 
 Kandian provinces include all the disaffected, 
 whose numbers are even now very limited, 
 and are rapidly diminishing. The populous 
 districts on the sea-coast have no community 
 of feeling with the inhabitants of the inte- 
 rior, and have ever evinced a desire to sup- 
 port rather than to resist the British Go- 
 vernment. Ceylon is, however, an excellent 
 point for concentrating a large military force, 
 as, from its centric position, troops may, 
 without difficulty, be despatched by sea to 
 either the Malabar or Coromandel coast. 
 It is, probably, on this account that so 
 large an establishment has been kept up 
 
284 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 in the island during a period of profound 
 peace.* 
 
 Having thus hastily sketched the most 
 prominent features of the society of Ceylon, 
 it may be amusing to observe and trace the 
 wide distinction that exists between the 
 manners and customs of the Anglo-Cingalese 
 and those of their fellow-countrymen in the 
 peninsula of Hindostan. The insular posi- 
 tion of Ceylon would, at first sight, seem to 
 be the principal cause of this dissimilarity, 
 but there are innumerable other and more 
 important circumstances that operate to pro- 
 duce the striking contrast which is here al- 
 luded to. 
 
 In the first place, Ceylon, being a colony 
 under the direct control of the British Go- 
 vernment, is unconnected with the Anglo- 
 Indian world by those ties, arising from a 
 community of interests, that unite in a com- 
 mon bond of alliance, offensive and defensive, 
 
 * Since this was written, a considerable reduction has 
 been effected. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 285 
 
 all the civil and military servants of the East- 
 India Company. The climate of Ceylon, so 
 mild and equable when compared with that 
 of India, has a considerable effect in banish- 
 ing many articles of luxury that are by some 
 considered as absolute necessaries of life 
 within the tropics. The comparatively brief 
 residence of both civilians and military in 
 the island is another, and by no means the 
 least, of the causes that tend to create a 
 vast dissimilarity between the habits and 
 ideas of the English in India and of those in 
 Ceylon. 
 
 One of the consequences arising from the 
 brief sojourn of our countrymen in Ceylon is, 
 that they rarely take the trouble of learning 
 the Cingalese language, or of acquiring even 
 the few ordinary phrases that are most fre- 
 quent in common parlance. Throughout a 
 great part of India it is usual to address ser- 
 vants in Hindoostanee, and a knowledge of 
 English is thus rendered, on their part, un- 
 necessary, if not superfluous. But in Cey- 
 
286 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 Ion the primary qualification of an aspirant 
 for the office of appoo* is, that he speak 
 with fluency the language of " master." In 
 the absence of this indispensable amount of 
 learning, the possession of the graces and of 
 the tournure of Adonis would avail him but 
 little in the eyes of even the fair Anglo- 
 Cingalese. 
 
 Whether " ignorance is bliss" in this in- 
 stance, is a question concerning which some 
 doubts may reasonably be entertained. But, 
 although the ills arising from ignorance may, 
 and probably do, preponderate, there is, at 
 least, one beneficial effect resulting from the 
 cause here mentioned. It is possible to con- 
 verse or correspond with an Anglo-Cingalese 
 without the aid of a Ceylonese Dictionary, 
 as, whether orally or in writing, he usually 
 expresses himself in his mother tongue. 
 Now this the English in India rarely do. 
 Their sentences, whether they reach you 
 through the medium of the eye or of the 
 
 * Head servant. 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 287 
 
 ear, are somewhat unintelligible to one not 
 deeply versed in the recondite mysteries of 
 Oriental literature. It is true that, in pro- 
 cess of time, the griffin, if gifted with supe- 
 rior conversational talents, gradually over- 
 comes the difficulties which thus encounter 
 him on his first entr&e into the Indian world ; 
 but it is, nevertheless, a legitimate subject of 
 inquiry, whether this milange of tongues 
 ought not to be " more honoured in the 
 breach than the observance." 
 
 In India, the habits of the European so- 
 cieties are tinged with the delicacy of Orien- 
 tal luxury. A multitude of servants supply 
 every want, and almost anticipate every 
 thought. But the pride of caste amongst 
 the Hindoos, which absolutely compels the 
 Anglo-Indian to maintain a great number of 
 domestics to perform the most trival offices, 
 is almost unknown to the less scrupulous 
 Cingalese, of whom a less numerous esta- 
 blishment than is usual in India is found to 
 answer every purpose. Palanquins and ton- 
 
288 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 Johns, which are universally used throughout 
 Hindostan, are rarely, if ever, seen in Ceylon. 
 In short, the English on the Asiatic conti- 
 nent seem to accommodate themselves to 
 the climate of the country in which they are 
 destined to reside, while those in Ceylon 
 pertinaciously endeavour to resist the soft 
 allurements of Eastern indolence, and to 
 imitate, as far as may be practicable, the 
 mode of living in England. 
 
 It may be questionable whether in this, as 
 in the majority of cases, the adoption of a 
 happy medium between English habits and 
 Indian customs would not prove to be the 
 most judicious plan of proceeding. But to 
 enter into the comparative merits of the 
 modes of living here contrasted, and fully to 
 discuss this intricate subject in all its bear- 
 ings arid dependencies, is an undertaking to 
 which I confess myself incompetent, and 
 accordingly leave to the pens of more expe- 
 rienced Orientalists. 
 
 There is, however, one regulation in the 
 
RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 289 
 
 code of Eastern etiquette that appears so 
 opposed to our laudable English prejudices 
 as to demand the earnest reprobation of all 
 good and true Englishmen. I allude to the 
 practice which obtains throughout India, of 
 requiring those who have recently arrived at 
 a station to make the first advances towards 
 forming the acquaintance of their neigh- 
 bours, and thus to force themselves, as it 
 Were m et armis, upon the society in their 
 vicinity. For this singular custom, which so 
 strongly militates against all the previously- 
 formed ideas that new-comers from England 
 are wont to entertain, no justification is ever 
 attempted, and the querulous griffin is usually 
 silenced, if not convinced, by the aphorism, 
 " Do at Rome as Romans do." To the ho- 
 nour of the Anglo-Cingalese community be 
 it said, that they have ever resisted the intro- 
 duction of this law of fashion, which in India 
 appears, like those of the Medes and Persians, 
 to alter not. 
 
 Comparisons, however, at all times and 
 o 
 
290 RAMBLES IN CEYLON. 
 
 under all circumstances, are dangerous, and 
 often, as Dogberry justly observes, "odorous." 
 As, in the course of this volume, I have en- 
 deavoured to " nothing extenuate nor aught 
 set down in malice," I am unwilling, in this 
 concluding chapter, to incur the pains and 
 penalties resulting from the neglect of that 
 invaluable maxim. To flatter the Anglo- 
 Cingalese at the expense of their continental 
 brethren were indeed an unworthy, and, to 
 me, an ungrateful task. A pleasing recol- 
 lection of the kindness and hospitality that 
 so eminently characterize our countrymen in 
 India will ever be prominent amid my remi- 
 niscences of men and manners in the East. 
 
 On the 24th October, 1839, I sailed for 
 England on board H. M. S. Jupiter, and, as 
 the shades of evening gradually enveloped 
 the fast-receding mountains of Ceylon, bade 
 a long adieu to " the clime of the East" and 
 " the land of the sun." 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 HEIGHTS OF SOME OF THE PRINCIPAL MOUN- 
 TAINS, &c. IN THE INTERIOR OF CEYLON. 
 
 (L, by levelling ; A, geodesical operations.) 
 
 
 Height above 
 the sea, in feet. 
 
 Means. 
 
 Upper Lake in Kandy 
 Mai tan Pattanna, the hill above it ... 
 Cornegalle, to the southward of Kandy 
 Hoonriisagiria Peak ... 
 The " Knuckles " 
 Kaddoogunnawa Pass 
 
 1678 
 3192 
 4380 
 4990 
 6180 
 1731 
 7420 
 
 L 
 
 A 
 A 
 A 
 A 
 L 
 A 
 
 Kammoonakoole, near Badula 
 
 6740 
 3540 
 
 A 
 
 A 
 
 Pedro tallagalla 
 
 8280 
 5030 
 
 A 
 
 A 
 
 Alloogalle 
 
 3440 
 
 A 
 
 Plains of Newera Ellia 
 Plain of Welinanee 
 Totapella 
 
 6210 
 6990 
 
 7720 
 
 A 
 A 
 A 
 
 
 7810 
 
 A 
 
 
 
 
 o2 
 
294 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 LATITUDES AND LONGITUDES. 
 
 
 Latitude. 
 
 Longitude. 
 
 Authors. 
 
 it Basses 
 
 6 I3f 0" 
 
 81 46' 
 
 1 
 
 e Basses 
 
 6 24' 30" 
 
 81 55' 
 
 ^Norie. 
 
 icaloa... 
 
 7 44> 0" 
 
 81 52' 
 
 J 
 
 egam Bay 
 metta Bay 
 
 5 57' 30" 
 
 6 4' 7" 
 
 80 33' 
 
 81 2' 
 
 f Twyriam. 
 
 mbo ... 
 
 6 57' 0" 
 
 80 (X 
 
 
 dra Head 
 
 5 55' 15" 
 
 80 42' 
 
 
 e 
 
 6 1' 0" 
 
 80 2(X 
 
 ) 
 
 dore ... 
 ibantotte 
 
 5 55' 0" 
 6 6' 0" 
 
 80 44' 
 81 14' 
 
 >Twynam. 
 
 dy ... 
 
 7 18' 0" 
 
 80 49' 
 
 
 t Pedro 
 
 9 49' 0" 
 
 80 24/ 
 
 Norie. 
 
 comalee 
 
 8 33' O' 
 
 81 24/ 
 
 
 Galle 
 
 STATEMENT OF REVENUE FOR THE YEAR 1836. 
 
 Sea customs duty on imports and exports, ex- 
 clusive of cinnamon ... 
 
 Export duty on cinnamon ... 
 
 Sale of Government cinnamon ... 
 
 /paddy farms 
 . f 
 
 Land rents < fine grain farms 
 
 ^garden farms 
 
 Ferry, bridge, and canal tolls 
 Cart tolls ... 
 
 ("arrack and toddy farms 
 
 Licenses <j duty on arrack stills 
 
 on weights and measures 
 
 . s. d. 
 66,418 1 8 
 74,631 10 
 52,533 17 5| 
 32,481 9 lOf 
 2,733 19 9 
 466 1 If 
 5,906 2 
 68 15 
 32,296 
 2,305 
 
 1 
 
 
 
 3 11$ 
 2 11 
 
 86 9 
 
APPENDIX. 295 
 
 Pearl fishery 25,816 3 11 
 
 Fish farms 7,412 7 5 
 
 Salt farms 31,8721210^ 
 
 Tax on houses 809 5 2 
 
 Commutation tax 7 17 6 
 
 Tithes redeemed 2,317 1 3f 
 
 Tobacco tithes 8 2 2 
 
 Auction duties 231 4 OJ 
 
 Portage ditto 2,607 9 7i 
 
 Blank stamps 2,806 15 1U 
 
 Judicial stamps 10,874 12 6 
 
 Total fixed Revenue ... 354,491 011^ 
 
 Total incidental receipts... 41,629 4f 
 
 " minor receipts ... 6,254 11 4| 
 
 " arrears of revenue of former years ... 4,413 11 
 
 406,787 13 8& 
 
 STATEMENT OF EXPENDITURE FOR THE 
 YEAR 1836. 
 
 Arrears of expenditure 23,328 7 3 
 
 Civil expenditure 229,94616 7| 
 
 Military expenditure 77,930 1 6} 
 
 Expended by the agent in England during the 
 
 year 1836 21,781 12 9 
 
 Total Expenditure ... ... 352,986 18 2 
 
296 
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 RETURN OF THE REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE OF EACH 
 YEAR, FROM 1821 TO 1836, INCLUSIVE, SHEWING 
 THE EXCESS OF REVENUE OR OF EXPENDITURE IN 
 EACH YEAR. 
 
 
 
 ' Fxc ss of 
 
 Excess of 
 
 
 Revenue. 
 
 Expenditure. Revenue. 
 
 Expenditure. 
 
 
 . 
 
 . 
 
 . 
 
 . 
 
 1821.. 
 
 459,699 
 
 481,854 
 
 . 
 
 22,155 
 
 1822.. 
 
 473,669 
 
 458,346 
 
 15,323 
 
 
 
 1823.. 
 
 355,406 
 
 476,242 
 
 
 
 120,836 
 
 1824.. 
 
 387,259 
 
 441,592 
 
 
 
 54,333 
 
 1825.. 
 
 355,320 
 
 495,529 
 
 
 
 140,209 
 
 1826.. 
 
 278,350 
 
 394,229 
 
 
 
 115,879 
 
 1827.. 
 
 264,735 
 
 411,648 
 
 
 
 146,913 
 
 1828.. 
 
 305,712 
 
 339,516 
 
 
 
 33,804 
 
 1829.. 
 
 389,534 
 
 344,757 
 
 44,777 
 
 
 
 1830.. 
 
 403,475 
 
 347,029 
 
 56,446 
 
 
 
 1831.. 
 
 420,170 
 
 346,565 
 
 73,605 
 
 
 
 1832.. 
 
 369,437 
 
 338,100 
 
 31,337 
 
 
 
 1833.. 
 
 437,555 
 
 331,764 
 
 105,791 
 
 
 
 1834.. 
 
 377,952 
 
 334,835 
 
 43,117 
 
 
 
 1835.. 
 
 371,995 
 
 323,277 48,718 
 
 
 
 1836.. 
 
 406,787 
 
 352,986 
 
 53,801 
 
 TTT 
 
 
 6,057,055 
 
 6,218,269 
 
 472,915 
 
 634,129 
 
 Deduct excess of Revenue 
 
 472,915 
 
 Net excess of Expenditure 
 
 161,214 
 
 THE END. 
 
 Printed by J. L. Cox and SONS, 75, Great Queen Street, 
 Lincoln's-Inn Fields. 
 
NEW WORK 
 
 BY 
 
 THE LATE EMMA ROBERTS. 
 
 In Post Svo. doth lettered, price 10s. 6d. 
 
 NOTES of an OVERLAND JOURNEY through FRANCE 
 and EGYPT to BOMBAY. With Remarks upon Aden and Bom- 
 bay. By the late MISS EMMA ROBERTS. With a Memoir of 
 the Authoress. 
 
 OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 
 
 " Miss Roberts is entitled to the distinction of being the first writer 
 who succeeded in furnishing sketches of Indian scenery, life, and man- 
 ners, suited to the taste of European readers. The descriptions of the 
 successive scenes and objects are written with the vivacity, ease, and 
 fidelity, which characterize her former work." Times, May 20, 1841. 
 
 " We recommend the present volume to ' our public ' as one of the 
 most graphic and agreeable of travel that has issued from the press for 
 many seasons." Atlas. 
 
 " The matter communicated is interesting, and the lively manner in 
 which it is conveyed adds greatly to that interest." Literary Gazette. 
 
 " Her descriptions of Alexandria, Cairo, the Desert, Aden, and 
 Bombay, are unequalled by any known traveller for their truth, fulness, 
 and compass of observation." East-India Telegraph. 
 
 " We shall only be doing justice to a work of so much real merit, 
 usefulness, and originality, by expressing the great pleasure we have 
 derived from its perusal, and by entreating for it a favourable reception 
 from the public." Britannia. 
 
 " The writer of this pleasant volume has evidently allowed nothing 
 worthy of note to escape her ; and her account of the presidency of 
 Bombay, which takes up nearly a third of the volume, is as valuable for 
 the information it contains, as it is entertaining for the lively manner in 
 which it is conveyed. "New Monthly Magazine. 
 
 " By persons meditating a similar journey, the book of course will be 
 eagerly read ; and not a few of its hints will be found profitable. The 
 disposition and manner of the writer are worthy of close imitation." 
 Monthly Review. 
 
 " These ' Notes ' compose a very attractive volume, abounding with 
 vivid delineations of Eastern scenes, and with animated pictures of 
 external life and manners." Cheltenham Chronicle. 
 
 " This is a volume of great interest." Statesman. 
 
 " Jt is impossible to read this work without a feeling of profound 
 melancholy, for every page reminds us of the intellectual brightness 
 which has passed away. Few writers have possessed in a higher degree 
 the talent of making one an actual spectator of the scenes described, so 
 vividly and truthfully are they brought before the mental eye." Court 
 Journal. 
 
 " These ' Notes ' exhibit the same spirit of observation, and are as 
 replete with interesting descriptions of the gorgeous East, as the other 
 productions of Miss Roberts." Courier. 
 
 WM. H. ALLEN & CO., 7, LEADENHALL STREET. 
 
la Two Volumes, post 8vo. Cloth boards. Price 18*. 
 SECOND EDITION. 
 
 SCENES AND CHARACTERISTICS 
 
 OF 
 
 HINDOSTAN, 
 
 WITH 
 
 SKETCHES OF ANGLO-INDIAN SOCIETY. 
 
 BY THE LATE EMMA ROBERTS. 
 
 THESE highly amusing volumes are the result of three years' atten- 
 tive observation of the Upper Provinces of Bengal, and of a twelve- 
 month's residence- at Calcutta. The fidelity of the description has 
 been attested by every competent judge. The work combines instruc- 
 tion with amusement, for it affords to persons about to visit India, the 
 advantages and conveniences of a Hand- Book. 
 
 " Miss Roberts's book, entitled Scenes and Characteristics of Hindos- 
 tan, is the best of its kind. Other travellers have excelled her in depth 
 and sagacity of remark, in extent of information, and in mere force or 
 elegance of style ; but there is a vivacity, a delicacy, and a truth, in her 
 light sketches of all that lay immediately before her, that have never 
 been surpassed in any book of travels that is at this moment present to 
 our memory. She had a peculiar readiness in receiving, and a singular 
 power of retaining, first impressions of the most minute and evanescent 
 nature. She walked through a street or a bazaar, and every thing that 
 passed over the mirror of her mind left a clear and lasting trace. She 
 was thus enabled, even years after a visit to a place of interest, to 
 describe every thing with the same freshness and fidelity as if she had 
 taken notes upon the spot. They who have gone over the same ground, 
 are delighted to find in the perusal of her pages their own vague and half 
 faded impressions revived and defined by her magic glass, while the 
 novelty and vividness of her foreign pictures make her home readers feel 
 that they are nearly as much entitled to be called travellers as the fair 
 author herself. They truly accompany her. They see with her eyes, 
 and hear with her ears. They are present on the spot described. Her 
 pictures have that air of sincerity and truth which we sometimes trace 
 in a portrait, with the living original of which we may be wholly unac- 
 quainted. Her readers trust her, and resign the reins of their imagina- 
 tion into the author's hands." Calcutta Literary Gazette. 
 
 WM. H. ALLEN & CO., 7, LEADENHALL STREET. 
 
Published monthly, immediately on the arrival of each Overland Mail. 
 
 THE ASIATIC JOURNAL 
 
 FOR 
 
 BRITISH AND FOREIGN INDIA, CHINA, AND 
 AUSTRALASIA. 
 
 THE Proprietors of the ASIATIC JOURNAL, anxious that the 
 Public should derive through that work all the advantages which the 
 rapid transmission of intelligence from the East, by means of steam and 
 overland communication, (an afford, have determined to alter the time 
 of its publication, and instead of issuing it at the End of the Month, to 
 publish it immediately on the Arrival of each Monthly Mail from India, 
 so that it may include all the intelligence brought by the Mail. This 
 new mode of publication commenced with the ASIATIC JOURNAL for 
 January, 1841, the first Number of the Thirty-fourth Volume, New Series 
 
 The Proprietors avail themselves of the occasion of this announcement 
 to direct the public attention to a Work which is exclusively dedicated 
 to topics connected with a part of the globe now exciting an unprece- 
 dented degree of curiosity. The ASIATIC JOURNAL is, and has been for 
 many years, the organ of communicating to Europe, monthly, intelli- 
 gence of every kind political, domestic, scientific, literary, commercial 
 from 1. The vast Empire of British India; 2. Our Insular Depen- 
 dencies in the East; 3. The Empires of China and Japan; 4. The 
 States of Burmah, Siam, and Cochin China; 5. The Malay States ; 6. 
 Central Asia ; 7. Persia and Affghanistan ; 8. Dutch, French, Spanish, 
 and Portuguese India; 9. The Cape of Good Hope; 10. Australasia 
 and Polynesia. These various matters are treated of more fully and 
 more accurately than can be expected in any work not specially devoted 
 thereto. 
 
 The Literary Department consists of an agreeable variety of intel- 
 lectual amusement, suited to all tastes, to the student and the indolent 
 reader, comprising, 1. Scientific and Literary Papers ; 2. Tales and 
 light or popular Sketches; 3. Travels and Descriptions; 4. Biography; 
 5. Criticism; 6. Poetry. 
 
 In all Book Clubs, Reading Societies, &c., the ASIATIC JOURNAL 
 ought to be found, otherwise a material link in the chain of necessary 
 information will be wanting. 
 
 The ASIATIC JOURNAL is published, price 3s. Gd., by William H. Allen 
 Sf Co., 7, Leadenhall Street; and may be had of all Booksellers in the 
 United Kingdom. 
 
Post 8vo., cloth lettered, price 5s. 6d., 
 
 MEDICAL ADVICE TO THE INDIAN 
 STRANGER; 
 
 BY JOHN M'COSH, M.D., 
 
 Licentiate of the Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh; Member of 
 
 Bengal Medical Service ; late Lecturer in Clinical Medicine, 
 
 New Medical College, Calcutta. 
 
 OPINIONS OF THE PRESS. 
 
 " The Cadet may accept this as a valuable addition to his luggage. It 
 contains, in a short space, a mass of useful information for Europeans 
 visiting India. People of all classes will find something in it applicable 
 to their peculiar circumstances and position ; and to individuals con- 
 nected with the Military or Civil Services, it will be especially valuable. 
 The medical hints are thoroughly practical, aud the notes upon climate 
 and diet cannot be too earnestly commended to the attention of all our 
 countrymen in the East." Atlas. 
 
 " Dr. M' Cosh's little volume teems with a variety of practical infor- 
 mation." Spectator. 
 
 " Every one who has been in India knows what sufferings he would 
 have avoided had he taken advice in time ; and those who may have to 
 go would do well to take warning. This book will supply them with 
 the means, being practical, and apparently the result of experience." 
 Brittatitut. 
 
 2 vols. 8vo., cloth lettered, price 1. 12s. 
 
 THE 
 
 EAST-INDIA GAZETTEER; 
 
 CONTAINING 
 
 Particular Descriptions of the Empires, Kingdoms, Principalities, 
 
 Provinces, Cities, Towns, Districts, Fortresses, 
 
 Harbours, Rivers, Lakes, &c. of 
 
 HINDOSTAN AND THE ADJACENT COUNTRIES, 
 
 INDIA BEYOND THE GANGES, & THE EASTERN ARCHIPELAGO, 
 TOGETHER WITH 
 
 Sketches of the Manners, Customs, Institutions, Agriculture, Commerce, 
 Manufactures, Revenues, Population, Castes, Religion, 
 
 History, &c. of the various Inhabitants. 
 BY WALTER HAMILTON. 
 
 " This work is not like the generality of Gazetteers a mere dictionary 
 of names and terms, with laconic explanations but is replete with full 
 and important details, and the most interesting historical descriptions, 
 and characteristic sketches. No person proceeding to India should be 
 without it ; and, indeed, to every one connected in any way with the 
 East, it is almost unnecessary to recommend it as a most valuable and 
 interesting publication." 
 
 LONDON : WM. H. ALLEN & Co., 7, LEADENHALL STREET. 
 
14 DAY USE 
 
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 This book is due on the last date stamped below, or 
 
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 Renewed books are subject to immediate recall. 
 
 NOV24 1968 19 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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