EN ROUTE TO A CEYLON TEA ESTATE 17 



" native " being a popular name for a coloured man of 

 any race, clasn, or creed — who serves the planter in 

 the double role of recruiting-sergeant and sub-overseer. 

 He makes jjeriodical journeys to India to arrange for 

 new batches of Tamils to emigrate to the Ceylon tea- 

 lands ; ho brings his recruits to the particular district 

 which is his hcad((uarters, and sees them settled on this 

 estate or that ; and until he is again wanted to go oil 

 recruiting, he joins the staff of some plantation, and 

 takes up the duties of teaching the new hands their 

 work, and of seeing that a certain gang of the old ones 

 are kept up to the mark. The kangany can, to a very 

 great extent, please hinii^clf as regards which planter 

 he will provide with recruits, and he has con.'^iderablo 

 influence in the matter of arranging for the transfer 

 of a coolie from one estate to another. Taijiil men, 

 women and children, work for the planter ; their 

 quarters are callctl " coolie lines," and arc long buiKl- 

 ings of the bungalow type, which are partitioned off 

 into family residences. 



" Are there any Hstate Tamils in Kandy ?" you arc 

 wondering. 



Yes. a few have drifted here to take some lowly part 

 in town life. There is one running in the shafts of a 

 rickshaw. You notice that he has long haii' twisted 

 up into a " bun," and that round his waist, hanging 

 skirt-fashion, is a piece of brightly coloured cotton stuff. 

 And there, crossing the roa<l, is a Sinhalese*, as witness 

 the big comb which almost encircles his head, and 

 which he seems to have fi.xed in his hair hind part 

 before. You will come across a few Sinhalese among 

 the tea-workors in Ceylon, but only a very few. They 

 are not fond of regular work, but they will take part 



8 



