140 The Rifle and Hound in Ceylon. 



pitched the tent under some shady trees upon a fine 

 level sward. By this time it was nearly dusk, and I 

 had barely time to stroll out and kill a peacock for din- 

 ner before night set in. 



The next morning, having been joined by my friend, 

 a Mr. P. Braybrook, then government agent of this dis- 

 trict, our party was increased to three, and seeing no 

 traces of elephants in this neighborhood, we determined 

 to proceed to a place called Wihare' welld, about six 

 miles farther inland. 



Our route now lay along a broad causeway of solid 

 masonry. On either side of this road stone pillars of 

 about twelve feet in height stood in broken rows, and 

 lay scattered in every direction through the jungle. 

 Ruined dagobas and temples jutted their rugged sum- 

 mits above the tree-tops, and many lines of stone col- 

 umns stood in parallel rows, the ancient supports of 

 buildings of a similar character to those of Pollanarua 

 and Anarajahpoora. We were among the ruins of 

 ancient Mahagam. One of the ruined buildings had 

 apparently rested upon seventy-two pillars. These 

 were still erect, standing in six lines of twelve col- 

 umns : every stone appeared to be about fourteen feet 

 high by two feet square and twenty-five feet apart. This 

 building must therefore have formed an oblong of three 

 Xhundred feet by one hundred and fifty. Many of the 

 granite blocks were covered with rough carving ; large 

 flights of steps, now irregular from the inequality of the 

 ground, wei'e scattered here and there ; and the general 

 appearance of the ruins was similar to that of Polla- 

 narua, but of smaller extent. The stone causeway 

 which passed through the ruins was about two miles 

 in length, being for the most part overgrown with low 



