Began to turn from steely blue to grey
And toward the sea the thunder drew away,
Leaving the north wind blowing steadily

The rain-clouds from Olympus' ་་་

Right glad were we to take shelter in the ferry-keeper's hut until its fury had abated; and thankful too, that we had encountered nothing like it while in the mountains.

At Dimbulwitiya, about six and a half miles from Ratnapura, we met, while halting on our first journey, Wellanewatte Anunayaka Unánse, the second in rank of the priesthood of the Peak. He was on his way to the Srí-páda, travelling in state,-banner-bearers and musicians before him, himself borne in a palanquin by four tall coolies, two attendant priests on foot behind, and a retinue of servants and followers in the rear. Shrewd and intelligent in look, and in the full prime and vigour of manhood, he eyed us keenly, and on learning that we were returning from the pilgrimage, became greatly interested, questioning us as to the state of the roads, &c. When we that day regained our starting-point at Ratnapura, we were glad enough that our march of fifteen. miles was done. D.'s bungalow, the creature comforts he there provided, and the delicious beds we that night slept on, are things to be remembered as those productive of a heartfelt satisfaction, such as one meets with only on very rare occasions in the course of a busy but withal somewhat monotonous life. The next day we visited the gem pits and

* MORRIS'S "Life and Death of Jason."

gold diggings of Ratnapura; but as there were neither gemmers nor gold washers at work, we had to draw upon our imaginations for pictures of the treasures that possibly lay hidden beneath our feet. We saw however some fine specimens of the Talipot palm,* that

"sultan of the stately tribe,

Who once a century displays

His flow'rs to man's admiring gaze;
For none of woman born behold

His buds a second time unfold.

With arch on arch successive crown'd
The folding leaves the top surround,
Each leaf a fan-like circle forms,

An ample screen from sun and storms,
By Nature kindly lent to bless
The unrejoicing wilderness!

* The Corypha umbraculifera, "the stem of which sometimes attains the height of 100 feet, and each of its enormous fan-like leaves, when laid upon the ground, will form a semicircle of 16 feet in diameter, and cover an area of nearly 200 superficial feet. The tree flowers but once and dies; and the natives firmly believe that the bursting of the sheath, which contains a magazine of seeds, is accompanied by a loud explosion. The leaves alone are converted by the Sinhalese to purposes of utility. Of them they form coverings for their houses, and portable tents of a rude but effective character; and on occasions of ceremony, each chief and headman on walking abroad is attended by a follower, who holds above his head an elaborately-ornamented fan, formed from a single leaf of the talpat. But the most interesting use to which they are applied is as substitutes for paper, both for books and for ordinary purposes. In the preparation of olas, which is the term applied to them when so

As if her bounteous care had spread

A shelter for the traveller's head,
Beneath whose umbellated leaf

His languid form might find relief."*

One had only quite recently burst into bloom; the central flower spathe towered straight up from the stem, and was surrounded by others in gracefully drooping circles, the whole forming a most magnificent floral plume. Its appearance exactly corresponded with the description given of this noble palm by Mr. A. M. Ferguson in his Souvenirs of Ceylon. "The trunk rose about ninety feet in height. The grand spike with its immense mass of primrose coloured blossoms rising thirty feet high, formed a rich contrast to the dark green of the foliage from which it sprang, and presented a spectacle perhaps the most glorious which the range of the vegetable kingdom can present."

employed, the leaves are taken whilst still tender, and, after separating the central ribs, they are cut into strips and boiled in spring water. They are dried first in the shade, and afterwards in the sun, then made into rolls, and kept in store, or sent to the market for sale. Before, however, they are fit for writing on, they are subjected to a second process, called madema. A smooth log of areca-palm is tied horizontally between two trees, each ola is then damped, and a weight being attached to one end of it, it is drawn backwards and forwards by the other till the surface becomes perfectly smooth and polished; and during the process, as the moisture dries up, it is necessary to renew it till the effect is complete. The smoothing of a single ola will occupy from fifteen to twenty minutes."-Sir J. E. TENNENT'S Ceylon, vol. i. pp. 109, 110. ** The Wanderer in Ceylon.”

Adam's Peak.

"A gentle river wound its quiet way

Through this sequester'd glade, meandering wide;
Smooth as a mirror here the surface lay:

Where the pure lotus, floating in its pride,

Enjoy'd the breath of heaven, the sun's warm beam,
And the cool freshness of its native stream.

"Here o'er green meads whose tresses waved outspread,
With silent lapse the glassy waters run,—

Here in fleet motion o'er a pebbly bed,

Glitling, they glance and ripple to the sun :
The stirring breeze that swept them in its flight
Raised on the stream a shower of sparkling light."

MOUNT LAVINIA.— COLLUPITIYA.—GALLE FACE.-COLOMBO,

BEING pressed for time on our March excursion, we returned to Colombo by the Ratnapura Coach; a course adopted, for the same reason, on our Christmas and NewYear's trip. But in September we determined upon taking the river route to Kalutara, and from thence to return to Colombo, by the Galle road. We accordingly engaged a

páda-boat, and as the resthouse is very near the river, this was brought for our accommodation to a landing place close by. Sending our horse home by road, for he would not enter the boat, we dismounted our carriage from its wheels and stowing it with our boxes in the centre of the boat, took up our quarters in the fore part, while our servants and a portion of the crew occupied the hinder end. The crew consisted of a tindal or steersman, and six rowers; a complement which allowed four to be always working the sweeps on the overhanging prow, while two rested, spell and spell about. A good supply of fresh rice straw, covered with empty coffee bags, over which we spread our rugs, made excellent couches; while a clay hearth near the stern, with a few bricks and earthenware pans, served all the purposes of a kitchen. Our arrangements being quickly completed, we started from our mooring shortly after daybreak. It was a lovely morning, although the night had been rainy; it seemed indeed as if we were now about to have a return of fine weather, so auspiciously broke

"the dewy morn

With breath all incense, and with cheek all bloom
Laughing the clouds away with playful scorn
And living as if earth contained no tomb
And glowing into day."

BYRON.

* A large flat-bottomed barge, about fifty feet long, with a roofing of cadjans, raised sufficiently high in the centre to allow a man to stand upright; the ends of this are separately made so as to slide backwards and forwards over the central portion.