No. 33. 1886.] THE VEDDAS OF CEYLON. 351 



to the district of Batticaloa.* The more savage remnant of 

 the tribe live in the beautif ul province of Nilgala and in the 

 forests of Bintenna. 



There is much evidence, however, that in times not very 

 distant the Veddas were scattered over a much larger extent 

 of territory. The name " Vedda-land " ( Vediratd) in the 

 time of Mr. Bailey (1863) belonged to extensive districts 

 in the north-east of the Kandy mountains, which were 

 no longer inhabited by the Veddas, but by the Sinha- 

 lese (Wanniyas). The designation Mahavedirata (" Great 

 Vedda-land") seems of pretty wide application. Davy, who 

 in one place transfers it to U'va, in anotherf gives it to the 

 far-reaching flat lands in which the so-called " lake " of Bin- 

 tenna lies. Mr. Pridham, who indeed was never himself in 

 Ceylon, places Mahavedirata in Wellasse and a part 

 of U'va. These are subordinate matters, however. More 

 important far are several earlier statements. CordinerJ 

 tells us, after mentioning the real Veddas, that "another 

 race of a similar description formerly existed in the district 

 of the Wanny, bordering on the province of Jaffnapatam. 

 They are now, in some degree, civilised." They spoke Malabar, 

 and adhered to the Brahmin religion. In another place he 

 says§ that at the advent of the Portuguese the " Bedahs " dwelt 

 in the north and the Sinhalese in the south. This seems 

 to prove that the Veddas formerly reached much farther 

 northward. But their earlier presence in the south and even 

 south-west is also proved. Knox|| tells us that at " Hourly," 

 a remote possession of the king of Kandy, numerous Veddas 

 were living, who were, however, pretty tame ; and ValentijnlT 

 mentions, besides " Vintana " and " Hoerli," still another 



* Bailey, I. c, p. 281, note, 

 f Davy, I. c, p. 377. 



X James Cordiner. A Description of Ceylon. London, 1807, vol. L, p. 91. 

 § Id., p. 137. 

 || Knox, p. 124. 



f Francois Valentijn. Oud en Nienw Oost Indie. Dordr, en Amster- 

 dam, 1726. Deel V. Ceylon, p, 49. 



B 2 



