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JOURNAL, K.A.S. (CEYLON). [Vol. VIII. 



trigonometrical station situated on the boundary of Agar's 

 Land tea estate, and known as Balakotenna, and connected 

 from that station with Miriyakotakanda, the starting point 

 first named. This includes the whole of Balangoda proper ; 

 and from the length of my list of species, I think it will 

 "be found to cover a wide number of forms, especially in 

 proportion to the area of land. 



Geographical Outline.— This may be roughly said to 

 resemble a basin, closed on the south, west, and north by 

 ranges of hills, and open on the east. The two chief ranges 

 are those on the north, which are a continuation of the 

 Adam's Peak and sister mountains, and the Pettiagala hills 

 on the south, that are more or less connected with the first 

 by a number of broken and undulating spurs passing through 

 the Bambarabotuwa district, towards Kondurugala. 



Miriyakotakanda is approximately 5,800 feet, from which 

 the dividing range descends into a saddle, continuing to 

 rise as it goes eastward till it reaches Etamoruwa at 6,600, 

 overlooking Bagawantalawa. Deteniyagalla is about 6,300, 

 and, viewed from below, it looks like a huge sugarloaf 

 towering above the grass lands at its foot. 



Pettiyagala, on the southern range, is over 4,000 feet, 

 sloping down to Balangoda town, that stands on the 

 eastern base of the range at an elevation of 1,776 feet, 

 and facing Kirindigala on the east ; that is, part of a 

 small and distinct line of hills, separate from either of 

 those mentioned above. The altitude in consideration, 

 therefore, is between, approximately, 1,600 (at the 78th mile- 

 stone) and 6,600, or a vertical range of 5,000 feet. 



The southern aspects of both the dividing range and the 

 Pettiyagala chain are equally precipitous, being wholly 

 inaccessible to ordinary passage throughout wide extents 

 of ground, and it is only where the rocks give support to 

 soil and trees that a means of ascent can be found. Below 

 Miriyakotakanda, and onwards to Deteniyagalla, huge walls 

 of rock form the face of the hilly range, and it is with 

 the utmost labour and difficulty that a traveller can get 

 lrom one side to the other. 



