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JOURNAL, R.A.S. (CEYLON). [VOL. XV. 



in this state is called Ronkedor, an object of greater terror to a traveller 

 than a hundred wild ones." Portuguese Roncador, " snorer." This is 

 the term given by the Dutch to the " rogue " (afgeslagen, deserted 

 and cast away) elephant. See Haafner Reize tevoet door het Eiland 

 Ceilon (2ne druk), xix. and 52 ; Wolfs, p. 108. 



22 Those who obtained recruits for the service of the Dutch East 

 India Company were also called by this name. 



23 Cornax, Sin. Kurundyeha : from kuru, " elephant, " and nayaka, 

 " chief." See also Haafner, p. xiv. See Tennent's Wild Elephant, 

 p. 122. 



Most of the elephant-keepers belong to the Kuruvi class, which is 

 a distinct caste. There are, of course, exceptions. " The Gajana- 

 yakaNilame" (Elephant chief), as Davy points out, was the first 

 officer of the household department. His duty was to superintend 

 the people who had charge of the royal elephants, of whom a register 

 was kept by a subordinate officer called the " Cooroonee (Kuruvi?) 

 lekam." I believe " Kuruvi Mudaliyar " is a well-known title in the 

 low country. In the south, the title, I have been informed, fell into 

 disuse after the elephant hunts were abolished in that division of the 

 Island. Tennent speaks of ths " Cooroowe Yidahn," or " the head 

 of the stables," standing in front of the wild elephants holding a long 

 stick with a sharp point. 



The iron hook is called in Sinhalese henduiva or ankusa (according 

 to Haafner, p. xix, ankosjh), which is said to be fashioned after the 

 claw of the fabulous monster Etkandalihiniyd, the greatest enemy of 

 the elephant, who carries off ten of them at a time hooked to his power- 

 ful talons. In Oriental poetry it is written that the nose of a pretty 

 woman should be like an anhusa ! 



Kornah. — Mr. A. E. Buultjens kindly furnishes me with the follow- 

 ing note : — "This word is explained in an account of elephants 

 appearing in J. C. Wolf's Reyze naar Ceylon, s'Gravenhage, 1783, 

 where, at page 112, it is clear that the 'Kornak' was the hunter or 

 driver who sits on the tame elephant with his hook, with which he 

 directs the head of the beast on the way it should go. Kornak = 

 jaager = driver or huntsman." 



24 See Wolfs, p. 115. See also Memorie (December 3, 1679) of 

 Van Goens to Macare. 



5. The Chairman asked if they could ascertain the distance the 

 elephant was said to go in a day. The Paper just read gave the 

 distance as eight or nine miles : it might be a misprint for eighty or 

 ninety. 



6. The following Paper was then read by the author : — 



