The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-12-28
MISSING LINK, PERHAPS.
veddas of Cey1on Described by Sci
entists.
From the Boston Globe.

From the Boston Globe.
In print every now and then we read
that the missing link"-the human be-
ing most nearly resembling the ape-has
been discovered; but upon impartial in
vestigation it is always rejected as not
fulfilling the necessary conditions.
The very latest discovery in this direc-
ton. says a German magazine, has just
been made known by two Swiss scientists,
two brothers, who declare that the We'd
das of Ceylon I'LL the void between man
and ape.
The brothers have spent several years
in Ceylou in order to study this little
known but interesting race of pigmies;
and quite apart from the theory which
they put forward, the facts which they
publish concerning the Veddas are of suf-
ficient interest to command general atten-
ton.
The Veddas are quite distinct race,
and are more like apes than any other
human beings. Their skeletons and the
general organization of their bodies are
greatly similar to those Of the chimpan-
2ees The Veddas is the best preserved
specimen of the curly-haired race. These
black pigmies lived in India many CEN
turtles before Buddha or Jesus Christ.
Historians of the early centuries of the
Christian era speak of the Veddas and
describe their mode of living, which is
almost in every respect the same as at
the present time. We find in the Maha-
vanso, the most important of the Cinga-
lese chronicles, detsils concerning the
Yakas, people who are exactly like those
whom we call Veddas; and the Sauscrit
poem, "Ramayana, " the llliad OF India,
USES THE WORD APE
when speaking of the Yakas.
Tho ol1u1 hnY, n the Vpddag does NOT nOtp
exceed ZOO, yet they occupy an immense
tract of land situated between 70 and 90
latitude and So and 82' longitude.
If you wish to see the We'd
das, in their pure state, free
from any mixture with the other races of
Ceylon, you must go to that part of the
island. They live in small groups, or in
families, apart from each other, each
family having his own part of the forest
to hunt in.
When the rainy season (October-De-
cember) comes round and the forest is
inundated, they take refuge among the
rocks and live in grottos They are thus
brought together and become sociable;
they arrange marriages and talk about
chiefs, know no laws, and are quite devoid
of any ideas.
1t has been said above that the Veddas
resemble chimpanzees in certain respects
it remains to be added that they are about
four feet in hight, their hair is very thick
and very black, and when in trouble or
grieved they hang their heads down
upon their breast in a way which gives
them very peculiar appearance.
Among themselves they go about naked,
but when strangers are about they adopt
covering of leaves or cloth. They do
| not know what beds are, but pass the
| night naked upon the moist ground with
out the slightest covering.
THE vEDDAs
have no idea of ornamentation; neither
| the man nor the woman wears any object
with view to making himself or herself
! look pretty Household utensils are also
| lacking, for they eat their vegetable
| food Just as they find it, and their
meat is thrown on the fire for few min
one of their "dishesp is composed
of pieces Of decayed wood mixed with
honey.
Their only weapons are their
wooden bows and arrows, and their
axes, which they always have near them.
Alcohol and salt are both unknown to
them.
Their communication with the Cinga-
lese is reduced to this; During the night
they will place in front of the door of a
Cingalese blacksmith some honey and
dried meat, with rough model made of
leaves and twigs) of the AK which they
require. A few nights afterward they
will go,to the door and take away the ak
which the blacksmith has placed outside
ready for them This shows what
a dislike they have to mixing with other
people.
THEIR LANGUAGE
is very simple, and consists partly of
| Cingalese words so altered that the ma