72 JOURNAL R. A, S. (CEYLON). [Vol. VII, , Pt. II. 



some cases 10 li, in Others from 20 to 200 li; all are dependent 

 upon the great Island."* 



These islets answer perfectly to the islands of Jaffna, Delft, 

 Iranaitivu, &c, on the one side of the Straits of Mannar, and 

 on the other to Mannar and the connected islands with Kara- 

 tivu, Ipantivu, Dutch Bay, and the long peninsula of the 

 Akkara-pattu of recent geological formation, and very likely a 

 line of islands in A.D. 400, and the small islets of the Puttalam 

 lagoon, and the present peninsulas opposite Negombo and 

 Chilaw, Fa-Hian goes on to say of the islands, " Many 

 precious things and pearls are procured there." 



He further says :— " There is a district which produces the 

 jewel mo-ni [a red gem probably, by the context, ruby] and 

 which may be about 10 li square. The King sends people 

 thither to protect it, and when they have gathered the jewels 

 lie takes three pieces out of every ten." 



Ten li would be three miles,* and this district of red gems 

 was possibly Nuwara Eliya, and not Sabaragamuwa. 



This independent testimony of a Chinese pilgrim to Anura- 

 dhapura, in A.D. 410, is surely convincing proof that u the large 

 ships" then traded with the North-Western coast of Ceylon as 

 the emporium, and his account identifies the islands of the 

 Arabian voyagers, and the King who had the hyacinth, as 

 already quoted from their narratives. 



It was not until A.D. 850, when Soleyman visited it, that 

 we hear of any traveller actually visiting and identifying the 

 gem district, no doubt jealously guarded as a secret monopoly 

 by the Kings of Anuradhapura. 



The fact that former writers overlooked our islands North 

 and South of the Straits of Mannar is not surprising, — they are 



* Laidlay's "Pilgrimage of Fa-Hian," translated from the Foe koue hi of 

 MM. Remu?at, Klaproth, and Landresse, p 330. 



* " Cinq li (1643 met,) font un peu plus d'un mille anglais (1609 met.)" 

 (Stanislas Julien). — Hon. Sec. 



