June i, ib36.J 



laii tRdPiCAL AURIC ULTURi^T. 



S4C, 



Pcith estate that sugar would not do — the oane 

 grew, but the succhaiine matter would not crys- 

 tallize properly in the over-moist climate and 

 poor soil — before he had need to clear and 

 plant, and he sold the Nambapaua block to 

 Messrs. Uibbs Clark & Co. for 10s. an acre. What 

 has become of this property now, it is hard to 

 say. unless it be the block in the hands of a 

 native which it was rumoured lately was to be 

 trunsferred to a Limited Company, with a view 

 to the cultivation of tea. On Perth or Etgala. 

 sugar cultivation and manufacture was continued 

 by Mr. (iay till after 18(i0, but the result was very 

 poor Unancially, and now this property is devoted 

 by its I'r.vsec proprietors (like so many other old 

 sugar estates in Ceylon) solely to coconuts. 



But in this neighbourhood tea has already 

 made a start, for I heard later on of the 

 purchase of tine forest land by Mr. J. G. Fort 

 in rthc neighbourhood of Perth and Horane 

 siretchiug in fact to the borders of the Sal- 

 pitty Korale, which after clearing looks very 

 promising for tea. Although the Kalutara tea 

 estates are all south of the river, yet there is no 

 doubt a good deal of land on the Northern or 

 Colombo side at any rate towards Nambapana which 

 may be expected to be selected and taken up for tea. 



Tlie lowest and most formidable of the rapids is 

 the Periagalla, and here with the water of the 

 wide river confined to a narrow passage by 

 huge masses of rock midstream and with 

 a really sudden descent, the passage looks like a 

 aervice of some danger as the waters boil and 

 surge in small breakers below. But although 

 tliere is more rocking and spray than at any 

 . of the other two or three rapids, yet our boat- 

 men take the matter coolly and we are soon in 

 smooth water with no further obstacle between us 

 and Angurantota Perry which — 35 miles from 

 Uatnapura — we reach about 3 p.m., or within 

 ten hours of starting. Not bad work considering 

 there was a good deal of hard pulling over many 

 miles, that we got aground once or twice, and went 

 ashore at least once. Of covirse we had breakfast 

 and titlin with us in the boat from the Uatna- 

 pura rest-hou;-e. The charge for the boat too was 

 moderate enough B.5 each or ElO for the 'M 

 miles. The boatmen had one native passenger 

 besides wl-.o was going on with them to Kalutara 

 10 miles chrad and which in conse(]uence of the 

 greater slowness of the current and indeed the oppo- 

 sition of the f ea or tidal water, they did not expect 

 to reach before il or 10 p. m. 



The improvement of the navigation of the 

 Kaluganga has been a problem of long standing, 

 specially considered by Governors SirHerculesRobin- 

 son and Sir William Gregory and finally dis- 

 posed of as an unprofitable work, on which to 

 spend pubh'c money, I believe, by Mr. .T. F. 

 Churchill. I refer of course to the blasting of 

 the rocks and clearing of the rapids on the upper 

 portion. V-> civil officer ever urged this work 

 more Btrcim'usly than did Mr. E. N. Atherton 

 when Assislint Agent at Katnapura in 1>*72-). 

 Uc got Governor Gregory to travel down the 

 river and El 0,000 were promised as a bogiiming, 

 for the purpose of bjasling rocks and widening 

 the channeh at the rapids; a proper towpath 

 along the mrrgin of the river was also designed, 

 with the B) ecial oliject of helping padda boats 

 upwards which sometimes took a fortnight 

 between the lirst rapids and Eatnapura — a dix- 

 tauce nf si.r:een miles ! A mile a day up the 

 river was indeed slow progress. Mr. Atherton was 

 very sanguine in those old days that a steam 

 tug to tow a dozen pada boats between Colombo and 

 106 



Eatnapura and back in 3 days could be got to work 

 readily and should not cost more than 1118,000. 

 But nothing came of these and several other 

 stirring proposals. True the river was surveyed 

 and levelled with the result that at Eatnapura it 

 was found to be only 31) feet higher than 

 at the sea! Twelve years ago with heavy 

 coffee crops and much prosperity, as much 

 as El.^0 was paid for a single pada-boat-load 

 down the river. But later on much of the Irafiio 

 disappeared. Now that tea is coming on willi ■' a 

 rush," it may be a question if something should 

 not be done at any rate on the lower half of the 

 Kaluganga and Mr. L. Jackson, engineer, says he is 

 anxious to put a steamer on the river. But there 

 is also some idea of the GoYcrnniont starling 

 railway boats (pada) to bring freight to the Kalu- 

 tara line which would otherwise go all by 

 the canal to Colombo. How this can be worked is 

 the trouble ; for water carriage by river and canal 

 is being made available to the Kalutara estates, 

 so that for 20 cents a full chest of 100 lb. (Rl-.')0 

 a ton 1) they can send their tea from their stores 

 to the Colombo depot ! Not much margin here 

 for the railway to mike a ju-olH including the 

 cost of transhipment,— althougli I dare say the 

 planters would paj a little more for the guarantee 

 of freedom from tampering on the way. 



How little can one realize in an ordinary season 

 with the water sluggishly moving along, what our 

 Ceylon rivers are like in time of Hood. In lt<T> 

 the Ivaluganga rose at Eatnapura 10 feet in the 

 course of a few hours ! That was on the 8lh- 

 9th September— the whole town (save the lofty 

 heights) was submerged and ESO.OOO represenle'd 

 the damage done. Such a flood is not recorded 

 before or since at that point and m.ay it not 

 recur, but it would not do to trust to that chance. 

 The Eatnapura folk should have their places of re- 

 fuge ready to flee to. 



FRO.M THE KIVKR TO OKEKIVAXAKANDE— LOliD Kl I'KIN- 

 STONE'S HISTORICAL PKOrEKTY— lOLXKKS ANU KXIfiHT 

 — " ONE OF nature's gentlemen "— CITIIONELIA 

 GRASS CULTIVATION AND EXPORTS OF OIL TOR 30 YEARS 

 — LDiEKlAN COFFEE— THE SINHALESE AM) KXKillT'.S 

 PAPFR CUKRENCV — TEA PLUCKING IIY SINHALESE — THE 

 KALUTARA TEA ROLLER AMD LAw's KALUGANGA WORKS. 



Starting from the Angurantota Ferry about 3-30 

 p.m. we had during the course of a four-mile 

 walk, an opportunity of observing llie nature of 

 the country to the west of Geekianakanda pro- 

 perty. The road, a gravelled one, is a continuation 

 of that from Ilorane ((i miles distant across the ferry) 

 and goes on through the Pasdum and Wallalawitla 

 Korales, uphill and down dale after Sir C. 1'. Layard's 

 usual plan, to Agalawatte and round to Bentota. 

 The good pasturage and open park-like country 

 near the river ])rovoked remarks as to the 

 splendid tea gardens that might be formed on 

 the flats, though manuring might there become 

 a necessity. The evidence of advancingeultivationin 

 coconut and fruit gardens in all stages of growth 

 along the roadside — showing however, in too many 

 cases, the common native neglect in promising plants 

 all choked with weeds and grass — was very observable. 

 We got to Lord Elpliinstone's citronella grass lieUls 

 and farther on in time to iinijcct, with Mr. David- on 

 and Mr. Knight, the 0-acre Hat of tea opened under 

 Libcrian coffee (which is being gradually taken nul). 

 This field is close to a vast pit of citronella grass 

 refuse calculated to contain many thousands of tons of 

 manure, and manure too wliich evidently suits tlie 

 tea. Already results from the flat only comparable to 

 those obtained on Mariawatto, have been 

 recorded, and nothing could exceed the lino appear- 



