No. 9. — 1856-8.] district of nuwarakalawiya. 



145 



than field cultivation, but the requisite labour is greater, 

 therefore it is not in favour with the Sinhalese : the Moormen 

 carry it on to a considerable extent. 



A third system of paddy cultivation is on elevated ground, 

 so called, high lands, in exactly the same way as other chena 

 crops are grown ; in this case irrigation is not applicable, and 

 the crop is totally dependant for moisture on the natural fall 

 of rain, The return is large, but the risk of losing one's 

 labour is great. 



I am sorry to say, that the general food of the people is 

 not rice, but kurakkan (Eleusine coracang) which is grown 

 in chenas. These are pieces of land on which the smaller 

 trees and brushwood are cut down and burnt, the thicker 

 branches are in this way merely charred, and being piled 

 round the enclosure, form a tolerably good fence. The seed 

 is sown broadcast, and then covered slightly by aid of that 

 useful implement, the mamotie. A man can sow and cover 

 about a seer of kurakkan seed in a day. It rarely occurs 

 that more than two crops are taken from one chena ; alter 

 the last of these has been removed, the jungle is allowed to 

 grow up, and is not again cut till after the lapse of from 

 five to fifteen years. It is evident that this system must 

 prove most destructive to timber, as new land is cleared 

 every year. 



In these chenas various other plants, such as miiiet, he ; 

 as also varieties of gram, &c., are cultivated. One oi t|e. 

 most useful of these, so cadea, fine grains, is the faa oi lie 

 Sinhalese (Sesame Sesomum Orient ale,) wines jiekds ::: 

 used for lamps and in medicines, liie price ox ice • 

 about a penny per seer, and large quancifc.es are 

 tavalam peopio from tne low conn cry, cm io a - 



'.cultivating this 'niant, ana n an ii/iigii.m merc.is.Tit wei^a 



bouring ports, the cultivation might be increased to a great 

 extent. 



