the young coco-nut wood on the beach at Heccadua. In the afternoon we proceeded to Ambolamgodda, and stopped about half a mile from it to look at a magnificent lake, formed by a large river which descends from the Candian country. The Candians frequently come down this river to barter betel nut, rice, and precious stones, for salt and some other necessaries, a traffic that no jealousy of their government can prevent, for, as the English possess the whole of the coast of Ceylon, they have no salt but what they obtain in this manner. There is a long wooden bridge over the stream between the lake and the sea, on which we were met by all the dancing men and musical instruments of the village, to which they conducted us dancing and playing before us all the way. At the entrance of Ambolamgodda we found what I suppose is the militia of the place drawn up to receive us. Three or four old bayonets stuck upon sticks, as many old bearspears, old pikes, and weapons without names, composed the rugged armour of the ragged crew; and a Madras bed-cover, fluttering on a pole, served for a standard. At the head of this band marched the village Modeliar, who led us to the rest-house, where, after dressing ourselves, we sat down to an excellent dinner of the fish of the coast, part of a wild hog, of which there are great numbers in the island, and other good things; but as I do not mean to record our daily bill of fare, I shall mention at once all the provisions that may be had without going out of Ceylon. The coast abounds with a variety of good fish; domestic quadrupeds require feeding at great expense, owing to the scarcity of fodder, but the poultry

The coco

is excellent, and the woods occasionally furnish wild hogs, venison, and jungle-fowl, besides wild ducks and teal. The fruits are the best I have seen in India of their kind; they are, the pine-apple, the pamplemousse, or, shaddock, the plantain, and the orange. nuts are remarkably good, particularly a large kind of a golden colour, called the Rajah's coco-nut. The common people eat great quantities of the Jack-fruit, which they slice and curry while unripe; I, of course, prefer them ripe, but they require to be nicely prepared and steeped in salt water, for the eatable part, when ripe, is bedded in a slimy substance, the smell of which is intolerable. The bread here is extremely good, and the butter made in private houses is only inferior to that in England. The supply of vegetables is very scanty; potatoes and onions are imported from Bombay; and sometimes, but very rarely, cabbages and peas are brought from Bengal.

"When I went to my room at night, I found a lamp, of probably a more antient form than any antique; a solid lump of wood, with a long stick inserted into it, supported half a coco-nut shell, which contained the oil and the wick. The hand of art only was wanting to convert this rude lamp into an elegant piece of furniture; for the log was an unplaned piece of ebony, the stick a fresh bamboo, and the, shell itself, whose form as a lamp is beautiful, takes a fine polish

"The next morning after breakfast we went to Cossgodda, a small village, the only stage where we were not on the sea shore. As we went through the wood, I saw one of the large baboons, called here Wanderows, on the top of a coco

nut

nut tree, where he was gathering nuts, with which he run along the tops of the trees with surprising agility. I at first took him for a man, but I discovered my mistake, when he peeped at my palankeen through the leaves, by the large grey ruff he has round his face. From Cossgodda we proceeded to Bentot, where there are the remains of a Dutch fort and town. It is on the side of a very beautiful river, which we crossed in the same manner as we did that near Heccadua. Before breakfast the next morning, Captain and I walked round the neighbouring fields, and were delighted with the beauty of the scenery. There is a little promontory jutting out into the sea, covered with flowers and shrubs, and charmingly shaded; there we sat and watched two small vessels as they sailed at a distance, while the murmurs of the ocean were but now and then hushed enough to allow us to hear the songs of the fishermen on the beach. I cannot sometimes help comparing the dif ferent ways in which the same objects affect minds accustomed to different trains of association. The low rocks on the shore, which cause a continual boiling of the water round them, and the stupendous clouds that roll over the main, changing its hue to every various tint as they roll, I have always admired as among the most interesting circumstances of a sea view; but my companion, though fully sensible of their beauty, feels at the sight of these objects the secret horror that the forerunners of storms and shipwrecks are calculated to inspire.

"We left Bentot after breakfast, and arrived at Barbareen about two o'clock, where we found that the

provident Modeliar had erected a beautiful rest-house for us, and had prepared an excellent collation. There is a bold projecting rock, nearly insulated, on the top of which is a Mussulman saint's tomb,-a mean little building, overshadowed by four or five coco-nut trees. Here the Modeliar had built our bungalo of bamboos, covered with cotton cloth, and decorated with leaves, flowers, and bunches of coco-nut by way of capitals to the pillars; and across the chasm which separates it from the village, a temporary bridge was thrown, covered with cotton, and decorated like the bungalo. At the foot of the promontory. the fishermen sometimes lay up their boats and spread their nets; and the whole scene was so picturesque that I made a sketch of it, after which I joined the party in the rest-house, and enjoyed the freshness of the breeze, which ruffled the open sea, but left the inner bay smooth and clear as a mirror.

"Barbareen is a Mussulman village, and the Modeliar is also · a Mussulman; the inhabitants are chiefly artizans, who work in all kinds of metals; we saw several swords and dirks, with their scabbards, of very good workmanship. The next stage to Barbareen is Caltura, where there is an old Dutch fort, commanding a most beautifel view. A broad river flows from the eastern forests, which extend almost as far as the eye can reach, where they are lost, together with the distant mountains, in the bori zon. Westward the river empties itself into the ocean, amidst rocks and groves, where the fishermen shelter their boats and build their huts. As I was attempting to sketch the scene, a violent storm of

rain, thunder, and lightning came on, with all the grand circumstances peculiar to tropical climates, and forced us to take shelter in the rest-bouse, where we remained till the next morning, when we crossed the river before day-break. First our palankeens and servants went over in two or three small boats lashed together, and with them a number of people carrying lights; then all the village musicians in separate boats, having also their lights; and lastly our boat, dressed with white cotton, flowers, and leaves, and illuminated with the dried coco-nut leaves. I really never saw so gay a scene; and it was with no small regret that I reached the opposite shore, to shut myself up in my palankeen, and to listen to the monotonous song of my palankeenbearers.

"After breakfasting in a small bungalo on the sea - shore, we reached our friend's house on the Jake of Columbo, about two o'clock, and were well pleased to find ourselves settled quietly in a comfortable bungalo, after spending so long a time in wandering, the last four days of which were passed either in travelling in a palankeen, or in a rest house preparing for it. The distance from Point de Galle to CoJumbo is only seventy-two miles, and might be accomplished in little more than twenty-four hours; but it is fatiguing to travel so fast, and is attended with considerable expense, as in that case you must have more than double the number of bearers for your palankeen.

"March 1.-We have now been at Columbo some days; and I am so delighted with the place, and with the English society here, that if I could choose my place of residence for the rest of the time of my

absence from England, it should be Columbo. We generally drive out before breakfast in a bandy, and go sometimes through the fort, which is extremely pretty. It is immediately between the sea and the lake, and only joined to the mainland by a causeway on each side of the water; and sometimes we go through the cinnamon gardens, which lie at the opposite end of the lake. The cinnamon is naturally a tall shrub, or rather tree, but it is kept low in the gardens for the sake of the young bark, which is gathered at two different seasons, though the same plants are not cut every season. When the sticks are cut, the bark is taken off with a little instrument, which peels the whole at once; it is then laid in the sun to dry, when it rolls of itself in the manner in which we see it in the shops. Great nicety is required in laying together a sufficient number of pieces for one roll, and in sorting the different qualities, the finest spice being always at the extremity of the branch. The soil in the gardens is fine white sand. Besides the cinnamon, I saw there the cashew-nut, two kinds of datura, the ixora, and a variety of plants with the names and properties of which I am not acquainted.

"A few days ago we joined a large party in an excursion to the governor's country-house, Mount Lavinia. It is a charming residence; it literally overhangs the sea, and has all the beauty that hill and valley, wood and rocks, with a beautiful beach and a fine open sea, can give. The interior, though not large, is very pleasant; a long gallery looks towards the sea; the rooms on the other side command some pretty hills, the sides of which form fine lawns; and in the valley

are

are palm-trees, which hide all the farm-offices, and afford shelter to a collection of animals of the deer and elk kind, from the interior of the island, and from the opposite coast of India. Feeding by himself, we remarked an animal not less beautiful than terrible, the wild bull, whose milk-white hide is adorned with a black flowing

mane.

"Here I saw specimens of several beautiful kinds of wood in the furniture of the house. The jack wood, which, at first yellow, becomes on exposure to the air of the colour of mahogany, and is of as fine a grain; the toon, or country mahogany, which comes from Bengal; the ebony, whose black vies with the native jet of the island; the satin-wood, with its silky lustre; the calaminda, whose dark and light veins alternately shew each other to the greatest advantage; and some others of more ordinary appearance, and in more common

trap, which is sixteen miles from Negumbo, and within half a mile of the Candian frontier. The first eight miles the bandies conveyed us over very good roads; but the marshy ground we had to pass afterwards, obliged us to get into our palanke ens, which had been sent on to await us near a talipot tree we wished to see. The talipot is a species of palm like the palmyra, when not in blossom; but when it is crowned with its flower, it is the most magnificent of vegetables. From the centre of its bushy head rises a stem of twelve or fifteen feet, which puts out on every side a number of small branches, covered with a delicate straw - coloured flower, having the appearance of one grand blossom on the top of the tall palm, whose graceful stem, like a pillar crowned with fan-like leaves, form the most beautiful support for its elegant superstructure.

"When we reached the craal it was near ten o'clock, and we found the collector and Mr. Daniel awaiting us in the breakfast bungalo, where the attention of the former had literally spread a feast in the wilderness. The craal is in the shape of a funnel, the wide part of which extends several hundred feet into the forest, leaving the trees within standing. It is composed of strong posts made of whole trunks of trees driven well into the ground, and lashed to others, placed hori zontally, with strong coier ropes. To defend this wall from the fury of the elephants, small fires are lighted near it on the outside, which intimidate the animals so that they do not approach it. The trap is divided into three parts, the outer one of which is only enclosed on three sides, and communicates with

the

the next by a gate made of strong poles, fastened together by ropes so as to permit it to roll up. When the elephants are once driven into the outer chamber, they are prevented from retreating by men stationed at the entrance with different kinds of weapons, but chiefly sticks, on the ends of which are bundles of lighted straw. When a sufficient number are thus collected in the outer enclosures, the hunters close in upon them, and drive them by their shouts and weapons into the second chamber, the gate of which is immediately let down, and they are there confined till it is convenient to take them out. When every thing is prepared for that purpose, the animals are driven into the third and last enclosure, which is also the smallest. One end of it terminates in a long passage, just wide enough for a single beast; and the moment one of them enters it, the hunters thrust strong poles through the interstices in the walls of the craal, and close him in so that he cannot move backwards or forwards. Two tame elephants are then stationed one at each side of the outlet, and putting in their trunks, they hold that of their wild brother till the hunters have passed several bands of rope round his neck, and fastened nooses to each of his feet. A rope is then passed through his neck bands, ard those of the tame animals; the stakes in front are gradually removed; the ropes drawn tighter; and the prisoner is led out between his two guards, who press him with their whole weight, and thus lead him to the tree or the stake where he is to be fastened. If he be refractory, they beat him with their trunks till he submits; he is sometimes tied by one leg, sometimes by two; if

he be very strong and furious, he is fastened by the neck and by all his limbs. I never saw grief and indignation so passionately expressed as by one of these creatures; he groaned, tried to tear his legs from their fetters, buried his trunk in the earth, and threw dust into the air. Not even the choicest food, the plaintain tree, or the leaf of the young palm, could tempt him to eat or to forget his captivity for several hours. It sometimes happens that they starve themselves to death; but a few days generally suffices to calm their fory, and their education is immediately begun.

"The elephants here are used for drawing timber out of the jungle, and for other public works; but the greater number of those caught in Ceylon are sold to the continent of India. The elephantkeepers teach their beasts a number of tricks, such as walking upon two legs, taking up people with their trunks, tearing up trees, and picking pins or small coins out of the sand. Yet, tame as they are, they are extremely sensible to injuries. One of those we saw, though habitually gentle and obedient, formerly killed a keeper who had been cruel to him. The number and variety of stories concerning the sagacity of the elephant told by those most in the habit of seeing and observing that animal, if they do not prove the truth of each anecdote, are yet strongly presumptive of his wisdom and docility. I was told by a gentleman, that, not long ago, a considerable body of troops had to cross, the Kistna, then much swoln by the rains, in doing which, one of the artillery-men who was mounted on a gun fell off in the middle of the stream, immediately before the wheel of the gun-carriage; his

comrades