The Forrest City times., 1891-04-17
SOME SIGHTS IN CEYLON.
CLIMATE AND PEOPLE OF A
 FORTUNATE ISLAND.
Midwinter Fruits and Flowcrs-Thc Ma lives, Their Dress, Wages and Habits = Religions and
 Differing Origins.

luo kOOQ WuO cdnS
 ''The Spicy Freezes Blow Soft Ger
 Ceylon's Isle' had very correct intui-
 ton as to the character of the climate
 and verdure of that fertile island. It
 is land of soft winds. warm sun, a
 prolific soil, splendid rainfall and a
 luxuriant vegetation. Its fruits are
 famous in part of the world where
 Pomona holds her courts. On the
 table of my hotel, says a writer, in a
 letter from Colombo, to-day (and it is
 mid-winter here as in the New World)
 were oranges, lemons, Hines, pine
 apples. bananas, mangoes, dates, figs,
 pomegranates, pears and apples In
 the market were watermelons, citrons,
 breadfruit, persimmons, rampootans Ca
 fruit which looks like huge, hairy
 strawberry. but tastes like a sub-acid
 custnrd), bolos. shaddocks, raisins.
 cocoanuts and prickly pears. In the
 suburbs and the surrounding country
 the natives offer you punches of ban-
 anas at about the rate of five for cent.
 other fruits at correspondingly low
 prices.
 The natives dress according to the
 climate, that is to say without super
 fluous display. The handsome athlete who draws the rickshaw or man-buggy employs a bmech cloth. The hotel porter wears n turban. a neckerchief and piece of calico around his waist. Most childsen under , wear bracelets
 and anklets and nothing else. Modest women wear light shawl across the upper part of the chest thin petticoat
 and several pounds of bangles. Half of the chest, all of the stomach and half of the lower limbs arc left uncov- cred. Untl the police interfered the dervishes and begging priests were wont to go about naked. but this has now stopped.
 Rents in the European quarters are small. in the native quarters mere trifle and in the suburbs next to noth- ing. One of my guides who lives in a neat little house. with garden at- tached, pays $lo a year and a percent age of the fruit and vegetables grown. Wages are similarly low. A good gardener, mason. carpenter or ship joiner is paid from IF to 20 rupees a month. A hotel waiter (and in Ceylon the natives regard that position as the most desirable in the world1 gets ru- pees ($l.90 8 month and his board and lodging.
 The morality of the natives is better theoretically than practically. The
 best types ethically are the Parsees, or so-called fire-worshipers. tho Moslems and thu Buddhist Hindustanis. Among | the poor types are the Tamils, Telegus | and Malabars. whose faith is hybrid ! between deism and devil worship; the | lowcaste Hindus, who are Brahmans. ! and the Christian converts. The form | CT are honest, clean. content and l ahstinent; among the latter arc some | of the most skillful thieves extant. | They row out for example, as boat men in the fleets of little boats which | meet every steamer. climb up the sides | of the vessel and enter the ports like monkeys. When the aperturcs are too
 small they employ hooked sticks or short canes, to wnich is attached a stout cord. ending in sharp steel
 hook. With these instruments they
 have frequently despoiled a stateroom.
 stripped it Of the occupants wearing apparel. as well as of the bed-clothes and pillows.
 While nominally the Cingalese ars
 lazy, the presence of civilization and tho admirable local government by the English crown are forcing them to be
 industrious to high degree. This Is
 manifest in many ways. The small streams which. coming from the hill
 district once flowed directly into the ocean have been carefully damned and dyked. so as to form q series of handsome lakes of fresh water All of the work in the construction was dono by natives under the supervision of | Dutch and English engineers. These lakes arc kept scrupulously clean and every year are increased in size and l efficiency. They undoubtedly have much to do with the healthfulness of l Colombo.
 The excellence of the roads has 1 developed travel and so opened new fields to the unemployed. Riding on horseback. donaeys or OK carts has given way to improved modes of loco
 motion. From Europe comes white
 roofed vehicle that is partly carriage and partly carryan. From the Orient comes the rieSshaw. that curious little go-cart with a hood ike a buggy.
 whose p.opg,sivc power is man between the ska.ts The carriage costs about ;werty cents an hour and
 tho ricxshaw len or less. Hundreds
 of each are in day tee and add a picturesque c.emen' to the streets Of
 the city and ;he read. cf :he suburbs. Tho superior endurance of the biped oyer the quadrapei .s well shown by the fact that the carriage horse seldom goes more than fifteen miles day without being worn out wh:.e the rickshaw man walks and trots from fifteen 10 forty miles in the same time and the next morning is as fresh as ever. Even the awful climate seems to have no terrors to these human steeds. They are as active in August as in January.
 Despite the conditions opposed to progress. the Cinhalese manifest n desire to better themselves. They attend schools of their own accord, learn the three R's, and knowing in some instinctive way that their rulers, the English. have greater knowledge than thamsolvoa ou1oovor t<, vcn.x..~