NOTES. 143 
the year, in a few vil or natural lakes, in the sandy beds of rivers 
where the animals dig for water, and in a large number of rock 
water-holes. From their wide, almost universal, distribution, these 
last must be considered as the most important of the several 
sources. r 
Now that the great irrigation works of the Sinhalese have been 
breached and have lapsed into forest, the conditions of the wilder 
parts of the country is the same as it was 3,000 years ago; and the 
animal population of the forests is again largely dependent for its 
existence on the water which lies in the deep holes in the rocks. 
These holes, which are of so great importance to the animals, are 
not all alike ; for some are large enough and shallow enough to permit 
of buffaloes wallowing, while others are so small that a bear can 
hardly crawl in far enough to slake his thirst. But the large shallow 
ones do not survive a prolonged drought, and eventually the thirsty 
denizens of the forest are reduced to seeking their drink in a few 
deep narrow holes, the area of which is so small proportionately to 
their cubic content that even the driest year leaves them unex- 
hausted. 
These holes are, as a rule, situated in the middle of great spaces 
of slab rock (gneiss), which provides a catchment area large enough 
to fill them from a few heavy showers. One side is generally higher 
and steeper than the other, so that access to the water is only possible 
at one or two spots. 
Some of these holes are very deep with nearly precipitous sides, 
and when thirsty animals and evaporation have reduced the water 
below a certain level, it is exceedingly difficult for any animal to 
quench his thirst save at great risk of falling in. Into the traps thus 
formed animals do sometimes fall and are unable to escape. 
I was once brought some of the teeth of a bear which had been 
found a mass of corruption in a nearly-dry water-hole. On another 
occasion I saw the bones of deer which had been dug up in the mud 
at the bottom of a hole which elephants had drunk dry. And during 
last year (1905) there were no less than three instances in the North- 
Central Province of elephants being thus entrapped. A cow elephant 
and her calf were successfully removed from one hole and led away 
captive, already half tamed by their trying experience. Of these 
captive elephants I was lucky enough to see one a young female 
abowt 5 ft. at the shoulder. 
The hole which was her prison lay in the centre of a wide expanse 
of slab rock some two acres in extent. It was about 50 ft. long by 
some 15 ft. in breadth, and when I saw it contained 2 ft. of 
water. 
U ) 10(4)06 
