338 JOURNAL R, A. S. (CEYLON). [Vol. III. 



had a chatty full of beans and sweet potatoes boiling, and 

 which we were very thankful to get from them, as we had 

 eaten the last of our rice that morning. 



I may remark, that though the very common habit of our 

 cooks here to put a copper coin in beans, boiled for table, 

 improves their color, it does not their wholesomeness. 



Besides the foregoing and constant allusions to Wheat and 

 Barley in the Bible, Moses described the ancient land of the 

 Israelites as "a land of wheat and barley, and vines and 

 fig trees, and pomegranates ; a land of oil olive, and honey." 

 (Dent. viii. 7, 8.) And in reference to Rye, it is said, "The 

 wheat and rye were not smitten, for they were not grown 

 up." (Exod. ix. 32.) 



Wheat. Barley and Oats were cultivated in Uva many 

 years ago, and several attempts have been made since to grow 

 them at Nuwara Eliya, but not with any great success. 

 Wheat and Barley are too well known to require a descrip- 

 tion of them. The wheat the bakers here use, comes from 

 India ; rice, kurakkan, &c, are members of the same natural 

 order, and like the Rosacece elsewhere referred to, seem not 

 to have been created before man. The expression, " Cast 

 thy bread upon the waters, for thou shalt find it after many 

 days,' 1 (Eccles. xi. 1) is supposed to refer to the Rice grown 

 in the water. 



" Take thou also unto thee wheat and barley, and beans, 

 and lentils, and millet and fitches, and put them in one 

 vessel and make thee bread thereof." (Ezek, iv. 9.) 



This is the only passage in the Bible where the Millet is 

 mentioned. We have no less than 46 species indigenous to 

 Ceylon of the genus to which the millet belongs, besides the 

 millet referred to, which is freely grown in Ceylon and is 

 known as ?neniri. 



The useful " Guinea Grass" belongs to the same genus. 



