Mr. E, L. Layard's Rambles in Ceylon. 393 



About an hour before sunrise, next morning, my faithful old horse 

 again awoke me by thrusting his nose into my face, and after getting 

 my usual dish of canjie (rice boiled very thoroughly with water and 

 cocoa-nut milk) we started from this place. The road was in first-rate 

 order, with the exception of one spot, which for badness yielded the 

 palm to none other in the whole journey: it was a rapid descent into a 

 nullah*, with a steep ascent on the other side, both covered with 

 large stones, the bridge across the ravine being broken down : there 

 was nothing for it but to scramble through as best we might. 



I again this day added a prize to the Ceylon fauna, a pair of the 

 racket-tailed shrikes. 



Edolius paradiseus, L. — The song of these birds is very pleasing, 

 and they have also the curious chattering note of the other Dicruri, 

 of which we have six species in this country. 



E. paradiseus, L. and D. longicaudatus, A. Hay, are both of them 

 found about Anarajahpoora, the latter very common and extending 

 throughout the Wannyf and the Jaffna peninsula, where also D. 

 ctBrulesceiis, L., joins it. 



D. edoliformis, Blyth, is not uncommon in the Ambagamoa range 

 of hUls, at about 2000 feet elevation. D. macrocercus, Vieill., is 

 common about the jungle in the neighbourhood of Colombo, if in- 

 deed it is the true macrocercus and not a new and smaller species. 



2). leucopygialis, Blyth, is also common about Colombo, and is a 

 new species named by Mr. Blyth from specimens I have sent him. 



I should here remark that my nomenclature of the birds of this 

 country has been obtained from that gentleman. 



Without his kind and ready assistance I should never have been 

 able to explore the natural histoiy of my adopted country so success- 

 fully. Guiding my inquiries and suggesting others — sending me 

 large cases of bird skins for comparison — liberally paying from his 

 own funds for the transit of specimens sent to him for identification, 

 and then presenting them in my name to the Calcutta Museum — 

 and all for a perfect stranger — I am indeed indebted to him. 



About nine o'clock I reached Mehintally, whence a road branches 

 off leading to Anarajahpoora ; some natives told me the river between 

 us and that place, called the Malwattyoya, was rising, — so I hurried 

 along (not however omitting to shoot two more racket-tailed shrikes), 

 and arrived at the banks of the river, now rolling down a muddy 

 turbid stream. No time was to be lost ; so Muttu, who swims like a 

 fish, stripped and went over the river to find the ford ; on this even 

 the water took him to the arm-pits ; — taking off my clothes I tied them 

 in a bundle on my head, and Muttu seizing the rifle, and I my beau- 

 tiful shrikes, in we went, steadying each other. Gaining the opposite 

 bank, I hung my birds on a tree, dressed, and shouldering the rifle, 

 set off to walk to the old city to procure help. How far I had to 

 go I did not know, — so I hastened along, heedless of sculptured stone 

 or fern-clothed tree. Though I had been driving among the pro- 

 strate remains of "towers o'er thrown" during the morning, here 



* Creek. t Jungle or wild land. 



Ann. ^c Mag. N. Hist. Ser. 2. Vol xi. 26 



