﻿174 
  Scientific 
  Intelligence. 
  

  

  but 
  its 
  shores 
  are 
  too 
  far 
  away 
  to 
  yield 
  anything 
  plainly 
  discerni- 
  

   ble, 
  and 
  even 
  Minicoy, 
  an 
  island 
  lying 
  between 
  the 
  Maldives 
  and 
  

   Laccadives, 
  gives 
  only 
  a 
  faint 
  suggestion 
  of 
  plant 
  life. 
  Its 
  low- 
  

   lying 
  land 
  is 
  iringed 
  with 
  scattered 
  coconut 
  palms, 
  of 
  which 
  

   later 
  one 
  sees 
  so 
  many. 
  Before 
  reaching 
  Ceylon 
  the 
  ship 
  passes 
  

   within 
  sight 
  of 
  the 
  southern 
  point 
  of 
  India, 
  but 
  not 
  near 
  enough 
  

   to 
  show 
  what 
  its 
  plants 
  are 
  like. 
  In 
  fact, 
  therefore, 
  the 
  arrival 
  

   in 
  the 
  harbor 
  of 
  Colombo 
  brings 
  a 
  surprise. 
  Coming 
  down 
  to 
  

   the 
  shore, 
  and 
  extending 
  as 
  far 
  as 
  the 
  eye 
  can 
  reach 
  on 
  either 
  

   side, 
  are 
  crooked 
  coconut 
  palms, 
  here 
  and 
  there 
  intermingled 
  with 
  

   trees 
  having 
  foliage 
  of 
  the 
  deepest 
  green. 
  A 
  botanist 
  is 
  struck 
  

   at 
  once 
  by 
  the 
  superb 
  capabilities 
  of 
  such 
  a 
  country 
  for 
  a 
  tropical 
  

   garden. 
  These 
  capabilities 
  were 
  not 
  overlooked 
  by 
  the 
  Dutch, 
  

   who 
  succeeded 
  the 
  Portuguese 
  in 
  possession. 
  A 
  Botanic 
  Garden 
  

   was 
  founded 
  by 
  them 
  at 
  Slave 
  Island 
  in 
  Colombo, 
  but 
  when 
  the 
  

   Dutch 
  were 
  driven 
  out 
  by 
  the 
  British 
  it 
  fell 
  into 
  neglect. 
  There 
  

   was, 
  however, 
  at 
  this 
  period, 
  an 
  excellent 
  garden 
  connected 
  with 
  

   the 
  country 
  place 
  of 
  the 
  first 
  English 
  Governor, 
  near 
  Colombo, 
  

   which 
  at 
  the 
  begining 
  of 
  this 
  century 
  was 
  under 
  the 
  charge 
  of 
  

   a 
  naturalist, 
  who 
  gave 
  it 
  somewhat 
  the 
  character 
  of 
  a 
  botanical 
  

   garden. 
  

  

  In 
  1810, 
  Sir 
  Joseph 
  Banks 
  sketched 
  the 
  plan 
  for 
  a 
  Botanical 
  

   Garden 
  in 
  Slave 
  Island, 
  Colombo, 
  and 
  succeeded 
  in 
  transferring 
  

   thither 
  from 
  Canton, 
  Mr. 
  Kerr, 
  who 
  became 
  its 
  chief. 
  According 
  

   to 
  the 
  work 
  from 
  which 
  I 
  have 
  derived 
  these 
  facts, 
  the 
  Slave 
  

   Island 
  garden 
  was 
  found 
  subject 
  to 
  floods, 
  and 
  consequently 
  the 
  

   establishment 
  was 
  moved 
  to 
  Kalutara. 
  One 
  finds 
  here 
  and 
  there 
  

   in 
  Colombo 
  traces 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  occupancy 
  remaining 
  in 
  the 
  names 
  

   of 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  streets, 
  " 
  Kew 
  " 
  for 
  instance. 
  From 
  Kalutara 
  the 
  

   garden 
  was 
  transferred 
  in 
  1821 
  to 
  its 
  present 
  site. 
  Since 
  that 
  

   time 
  the 
  large 
  garden 
  has 
  established 
  four 
  branches, 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  

   secure 
  all 
  the 
  advantages 
  which 
  can 
  come 
  from 
  having 
  land 
  at 
  

   different 
  altitudes 
  and 
  with 
  different 
  exposures. 
  

  

  The 
  branch 
  gardens 
  are 
  (1) 
  Badidla, 
  founded 
  in 
  1886, 
  in 
  the 
  

   eastern 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  island, 
  with 
  an 
  elevation 
  somewhat 
  over 
  2,000 
  

   feet. 
  " 
  The 
  climate 
  here 
  is 
  somewhat 
  drier 
  than 
  on 
  the 
  western 
  

   side 
  of 
  the 
  hill 
  region, 
  receiving 
  but 
  little 
  rain 
  with 
  the 
  south- 
  

   west 
  monsoon." 
  (2) 
  Anurddhapura, 
  dating 
  from 
  1883, 
  about 
  a 
  

   hundred 
  miles 
  north 
  of 
  the 
  large 
  garden, 
  at 
  the 
  ancient 
  capital 
  of 
  

   the 
  island. 
  Besides 
  the 
  interesting 
  ruins 
  at 
  this 
  point 
  which 
  are 
  

   well 
  worth 
  seeing, 
  there 
  exists 
  the 
  oldest 
  historical 
  tree 
  in 
  the 
  

   world, 
  Fiats 
  religiosa, 
  (the 
  sacred 
  Bo), 
  assigned 
  to 
  288 
  B. 
  C. 
  

   This 
  garden 
  has 
  a 
  short 
  rainy 
  season, 
  and 
  a 
  hot 
  dry 
  climate. 
  (3) 
  

   Heneratgoda, 
  33 
  feet 
  above 
  the 
  sea, 
  and 
  thoroughly 
  tropical, 
  is 
  

   on 
  the 
  railroad 
  running 
  from 
  Colombo 
  to 
  Kandy. 
  It 
  was 
  founded 
  

   in 
  1876. 
  Here 
  certain 
  plants 
  which 
  cannot 
  be 
  grown 
  at 
  Perade- 
  

   niya 
  are 
  very 
  successfully 
  cultivated. 
  (4) 
  Hakgala, 
  established 
  

   in 
  1 
  860, 
  as 
  a 
  nursery 
  for 
  Cinchona 
  cultivation, 
  is 
  near 
  Nuwara- 
  

   Eliya, 
  (commonly 
  pronounced 
  " 
  Newralia 
  ") 
  the 
  famous 
  sanita- 
  

   rium. 
  It 
  is 
  almost 
  6,000 
  feet 
  above 
  sea-level, 
  in 
  a 
  place 
  of 
  sur- 
  

  

  