112 SOUTHERX AXD CENTRAL PROVINCES. [rARX VII. 



beautiful striped shells of the Helix hcemastoma, on the 

 stems of the coco-nut palms on the road as we drove 

 towards Matura, and stopping frequently to collect them, 

 I was led to observe that each separate garden seemed 

 to possess a variety almost peculiar to itself ; in one the 

 mouth of every individual shell was red, in another 

 separated from the first only by a wall, black, and in 

 others (but less frequently) pure white ; whilst the 

 varieties of external colouring were equaUy local ; in 

 one enclosure they were nearly all red, and in an adjoiii- 

 ino; one all brown. ^ 



The southern coast, from Galle to Ilambangtotte 

 (which I visited at a later period), is one of the most 

 interesting and remarkable portions of Ceylon. Its 

 inhabitants are the most purely Singhalese section of 

 the population. It formed an important part of the 

 ancient division of Eohuna, whicli was colonised at an 

 early period by the foUowers of Wijayo^, and then' 

 descendants were so far removed from Anarajapoora 

 and the north, that they liad neither intercourse nor 

 commixture with the Malabars. Their temples were 

 asylums for the studious and learned, and to the present 

 day, some of the priests of Matura and Mulgu-igalle 

 are accomphshed scholars in Sanskrit and Pali, and 

 possess rich collections of Buddhist manuscripts and 

 books. 



The sceneiy of the coast as far as Dondera, is singu- 

 larly lovely, the cmTcnts having scooped the hue of the 

 shore into coves and bays of exqmsite beauty, separated 

 by precipitous headlands covered with forests and crowned 

 by groves of coco-nut palms. 



Close by Belhgam the road passes a rock, a niche 



^ Dakwin, in liis Naturalist^ s [ coloiu'ed, a tint not common any- 



past ur,'i;>-o of East Falkland Island ; black heads and feet were common." 

 "roimd Mount Osborne about lialf — Ch. ix. p. 192. 



of some of the herds were mouse- ' ^ Seertw^e^Vol.I. Pt. i. ch. iii. p. 337 



