the middle of the stream, and shot hurriedly through the rapids, till the increasing roar of the ocean surf told us that we were nearing Kalutara."

The pleasant town of Kalutara is twenty-six miles distant from Colombo; the healthiness of its situation, facing the sea-breeze from the southwest, has always recommended it to Europeans as one of the sanataria of the Island, and not a few deem a residence in its neighbourhood preferable to a visit to the colder region of Nuwara Eliya. The resthouse, formerly the residence of the District Judge, is one of the most commodious in Ceylon. Views of picturesque scenery are to be had in all directions from the surrounding eminences; the most extended being that from a vihára, about six miles off, on the top of the steep rocky hill, Vehera-galakanda, "the mountain of the temple rock," the residence of a Buddhist priest, celebrated amongst the Sinhalese for his extraordinary medical knowledge. The old fort on the promontory commanding the mouth of the river, has its own peculiar historic interest. It was originally the site of a Buddhist Vihára, destroyed by the Portuguese for the pose of converting the place into a fort. A mile or two from the town, a very singular Banyan tree, in front of a Moorish mosque, droops from an over-hanging branch its aerial roots like a thick veil right across the road. Cocoa-nut plantations, gardens, roperies, distilleries, fisheries, busily occupy the inhabitants; so many of whom are Moormen, that Madam Ida Pfeiffer, led astray by the venerable bearded faces of the numerous Israelitish-looking ancients whom she saw,

pur

says, in her description of the town, that its population consists principally of Jews. A District Court and Minor Courts of Justice and a Jail, provide for the litigants and the criminals of a numerous population; while schools and places of worship, well attended by children and adults, shew that the educational and spiritual wants of the people are not neglected.

The low pile bridge, already referred to, was constructed to supersede the old "tara," or ferry, across the Kalu-ganga, and forms a connecting link of the Galle and Colombo road, the beauty of which, as it skirts the sea-coast, and passes through groves of palms, and noble forest, or cultivated bread and jack-fruit trees, calls forth the admiration of every traveller. About a mile and a quarter from the bridge, in a prominent position on the road side, is a Dharma Sáláwa, or preaching hall, belonging to the Waskaduwa Buddhist community, presided over by Saranapála Unánsé of the Amarapura sect, whose principal pupil is the learned Subhúti Unánsé, known in the literary world as the editor of a recent edition of the Abhidhánappadipíká, an ancient Páli dictionary, composed about A.D. 1153, by the théra Moggelána. A drive of nearly eight miles further brings one to the town of Pánaduré;* a thriving populous place,

*There are three derivations given for this name; one 'pána' rock, 'dura' distance, referring to the rock Góná-gala or "elk-rock," seen at a distance from the resthouse of about two miles out at sea: the second is connected with a legend, which states that Dewol-dewiyó sailing hither

and the head quarters of a Police Magistracy. Here is the Gal-kanda, an extensive vihára, presided over by Gunaratana Unánse, a priest of portly presence and much affability. Being but sixteen miles from Colombo, Pánaduré is a very favorite spot for an occasional visit. Folk from the capital, whose business will not allow of long absences, can with ease run down on the Saturday and return on the Monday morning. The resthouse is admirably situated, facing the mouth of a broad estuary, bounded by a sand bank, against which the waves of the ocean fret themselves and break into foamy surf; the resthouse keeper is proverbial for the solicitude with which he studies the confort of his visitors; excellent bathing is always attainable; fresh fish may be had in abundance, morning, noon, and night; and a trip in a canoe up the estuary to visit the curious cane-wicker fishkraals, or the rocks from whence the oysters are obtained, is most interesting and enjoyable.

Crossing the estuary by the bridge, a further drive of four miles leads to the town of Moratuwa. Here we enter

with seven ships, and being wrecked, and escaping on seven stone rafts, saw a lamp shining at a déwálé, and endeavoured to effect a landing; but the goddess Pattini, the presiding deity of the déwálé, objecting to Dewoldewiyó landing near her domains, caused the light of the lamp to recede as the dewiyó drew near; whereupon Dewol-dewiyó desisted, remarking "pána durayi," the lamp is too far. The third is connected with the time of the invasion of Ceylon by Wijaya, and refers to some event connected with the breaking of lamps, respecting which I have not been able to obtain particulars.

the region of Cinnamon; and from thence to Colombo the road passes by or through almost continuous gardens of this renowned laurel,- the cultivation of the cocoanut palm distinguishing the western, while that of the fragrant cinnamon bush marks the eastern side of the road. Moratuwa,* for

a purely native town, is perhaps the handsomest in Ceylon. The great bulk of its population of upwards of 12,000 souls consists chiefly of carpenters of the fisher caste, who devote themselves to the manufacture of furniture, and casks and barrels for the export of coffee and cocoanut oil; but it also numbers among its inhabitants some of the most prosperous and wealthy of the Sinhalese community; and these, emulous of one another, have erected mansions on either side of the main road, in a style which shews at a glance the opulence of their owners. Amongst the most eminent of the inhabitants was the late Jeronis de Soyza, Mudaliyar of the Governor's Gate, whose dwelling-house on the outskirts of the town might be considered the model of a Sinhalese mansion, with its garden and oriental grounds. To his munificence the inhabitants are mainly indebted for the noble Anglican church which adorns the town,—a sacred edifice that surpasses in its ecclesio architectural beauty all others in Ceylon. His liberality† was in like manner

*

Mora,' a small but pleasant fruit; atuwa,' a granary or store.

For an account of the procession and fête in Colombo and Moratuwa,

after Governor Sir George Anderson had conferred upon Mr. De Soyza the rank of Mudaliyar, see Appendix M.

manifested, in the establishment of schools, the erection of ambalamas, the making of roads, and in every kind of improvement that conduced to the welfare of his countrymen. The Wesleyans and the Roman Catholics form a large and influential section of the population here, and possess spacious places of worship, and well attended schools.

Next to Moratuwa lies the village of Ratmalana, formerly as its name imports, "a forest of red flowers," but now famous for its extensive cinnamon cultivation; and for its pansala or monastery, where a college of priests is assembled under the presidency of Hikkaduwe Samangala, the Chief priest of Adam's Peak, elected to that office in 1866, because, in the opinion of his brethren—an opinion shared by all the literati of Ceylon-"his reputation for piety and scholarship stands super-eminent among the priesthood of the Malwatta establishments of the Island of Ceylon." The pansala is

* There are two sects of Buddhist priests in Ceylon, the Siamese and the Amarapura; the former has two establishments, the Malwatte, and the Asgiriya. Of these, the latter establishment is the more ancient, and was originally located in a dell on Asgiriya, "the horse rock," a hill in the outskirts of the town of Kandy. The former was established by King Kirti Srí, on the re-establishment, or resuscitation of Buddhism which took place in his reign. It was placed under the charge of the Saugha Raja, Weliwita, Chief-priest of Adam's Peak, at Mal-watta, "the flower garden,”—a place bordering the Kandy lake, given by the king to be prepared as a residence for the priests from Siam, upon their arrival in Ceylon; and the privilege was conferred upon it of taking precedence over the Asgiriya establishment. Its members were supposed to be more subservient to the royal will; but the doctrines and practices of both are precisely the same. The