beasts found on moonstones had something to do with the four cardinal points (see p. 139). That they had some significance is certain. Fa Hien, a Chinese monk who visited India and Ceylon about A.D. 400, mentions having heard of a temple in India built of five storeys, decorated with "elephant figures, lion shapes, horse shapes, ox shapes, and dove shapes," the last of which may have been intended for the sacred geese. The selection of animals coinciding with those on these moonstones is at least suggestive. In speaking of the temple at Halebid in South India, Fergusson refers to the Chinese pilgrim's description, and says that in the temple also there were animal friezes in this order, elephants, lions, horses, a conventional beast replacing the oxen, and a "bird of a species that would puzzle a naturalist." He adds:

"The succession, however, is the same, and the same five genera of living things form the ornaments of the moonstone' thresholds of the various monuments in Ceylon. Sometimes in modern Hindu temples only two or three animal friezes are found, but the succession is always the same. . . . When we know the cause of it, it seems as if this curious selection and succession might lead to some very suggestive conclusions."

The little dwarfs called ganas, or children of Ganesh, can be seen on the "risers" of the stairs at the vihara, and the carving on the balustrades should also be noted. These entrance stairs almost invariably follow one pattern. By far the finest example at Anuradhapura is that at a little

vihara across the Inner Circular Road westward, slightly to the south, easily to be found. Here the delicacy of the carving is an inexhaustible marvel (see p. 65).

We see the curious scroll-balustrade issuing from the mouth of a makara, a kind of fabulous beast, half-dragon, half-crocodile, and running down, carved in a pattern like the finest lacework, to a cushion, while in the panel enclosed by it on the outside is a heraldic lion with upraised paw. Note the sharpness of the lion's teeth and the crocodile's claws. And this was executed somewhere about two thousand years ago, whereas in England the stone work of our most ancient cathedrals cannot boast more than half those years!

The makara motif is also used in Indian architecture, and spoken of as a "dolphin," or shark.

"The' makara,' a fabulous fish or shark very often depicted with a curling trunk like an elephant, cunningly incorporated with conventional foliage, is found in a thousand different forms on the buildings of Nepal. . . . The makara is said to be the vehicle of Varuna, the God of the Ocean, and is also borne on the banner of the God of Love. It represents the sign of Capricornus in the Hindu zodiac, and is a feature of Asiatic art in all countries and all ages. The naga, the hansa (goose), the kirti muka, and scores of other forms in Oriental art all have their own deep meaning and attractive story, an investigation of which, like the makara, would open up an interesting and illuminating field of research."'

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1 Picturesque Nepal, by Percy Brown. (A. & C. Black. 1912.)

The naga and hansa are met with at every turn in Ceylon and seen in many guises.

The moonstone of this little vihara is undecorated save for the central half-lotus. It is a pity that the artist who executed the upper carvings did not find time to do that too. Perhaps he planned it and died before execution, and so we lost what might have been the most delicately dainty moonstone of them all.

Passing on north up the Inner Circular Road, with Basawak Kulam on the left, we come to a green hillock with the remains of ruins on the summit and among them a yantra gala, a square stone with holes in it (see p. 114).

To sit on the summit of this hillock and absorb the beauty and strangeness of the surroundings is an occupation that can never pall. Across the wide park-like spaces of grass, beneath the shady rain-trees, herds of cattle are driven to the feeding grounds around the tank. Black and very dark brown are most of them, but some have the fawn-coloured tint of a Jersey. They are followed by tiny calves, not so big as the great goats of the country, which represent mutton" in a district where sheep cannot live. The herdsmen of the poorer class are clad in dust-coloured rags, with sometimes a twist of red stuff around the head. But here in Anuradhapura, where races are so mixed, headgear is very varied; the Cingalese, as a rule, wear nothing but their own abundant locks, unless they throw a cloth around to keep off exceptionally bright sun. Chignons are not entirely out of fashion for men, but those who have come under European influence often

crop their thick hair. Every imaginable garment makes its appearance. In this pure atmosphere things keep clean for a long time, and a great deal of white is worn, supplemented by gay pinks, greens, blues, and reds, for the Cingalee does not share the prejudice of the Burman against blues and greens. Probably that is because he knows instinctively his dark colouring is not turned sallow by the contact, as is the honey-coloured skin of the Burman.

On one side are the clerks belonging to the Kachcheri in spotless European suits of white drill; on the other is the gentleman who dresses in nothing but a skirt, possibly supplemented by a vivid-coloured scarf over his well-formed shoulders.

Differing a little from him is the man who completes the skirt by a European vest or shirt, the latter of course worn outside, making a most convenient garment. The people of Ceylon have as a whole good manners; the Cingalese are gentle and polite, they stare little, and you hear no loud laughs after you have passed, best of all, there is very little touting or pestering. May it be long before they are ruined by the indiscretion of tourists, and become a nation of touts! There are few places in the East where you can sit at peace in a great shady park-like space in the midst of antiquities dating from B.C. unworried by "guides," without any one even to cast an intrusive glance.

A little bay on Basawak Kulam is a favourite haunt with those who prefer mixed bathing, and probably find pure drinking water insipid. Here, close inshore, they are safe from crocodiles, even to the fat baby, who stamps with delight as its