No. 58.— 1907.] PROCEEDINGS. 



269 



well-known Nijhoff of the Hague from whom Mr. van Houten 

 bought his collection of drawings, in one of my trips to Holland 

 in 1885 or 1886. The title of the Memoir is " Memorie raekende 

 Ceylon door den afgaanden Gouverneur Joan Gideon Loten aan 

 den aan Komenden Gouverneur Jan Schreuder, nagaleten, 

 gedateert Colombo, 28 Feb., 1757, geinsereert in het 2nd 

 Ceylon's Briefboek, 1758, p. 202. 



(Memoir on Ceylon left by the outgoing Governor Joan Gideon 

 Loten to the incoming Governor Jan Schreuder, dated Colombo, 

 February 28, 1757, inserted in the 2nd Ceylon Letterbook 1758, 

 page 202.) 



I may at once say that though several officials' names are men- 

 tioned, no mention is made of De Bevere or Lebeck. However, 

 some light is thrown upon the work of Land Surveyors in Ceylon 

 in 1743-1757, which is interesting, as the artist De Bevere was 

 a Land Surveyor. I may here mention that Dutch surveyors' 

 plans were coloured, and far more works of art than modern slip- 

 shod surveys ; and from two such plans in my possession I can 

 fancy that De Bevere must have had a training in drawing before 

 he qualified to become a Land Surveyor. 



The contents of the Memoir are — 



Section I. 



The Company should remain in harmony with the Prince of 

 the Land. 



Chaper I. 



The King's birth and marriage. 

 The Dessaves and Adigaars. 



Relations with the Kandyan Court reKaymel and Chilaw banks. 

 Siamese embassy. 



Chapter II. 



Of the Princes and their rule on the coast of India and the 

 Maldives. 



Madura, Tinnevelly, Tutucorin, &c. 

 The Maldivian Sultan, cowries, embassy. 



Section II. 

 Administration of possessions and subjects. 



Chapter I. 



Functions of Dessave, Land Raad, the Tombo or Land and 

 Garden Description. 



As De Bevere was Land Surveyor, 1743-1757, 1 translate a part 

 of this chapter, and it may well be imagined that De Bevere had 

 ample scope for study of birds from nature during his surveys. 



The Land Description was begun in Colombo in 1743 [the year 

 that the artist De Bevere was appointed Land Surveyor], and 

 now, says Loten (in 1757), " the Register of Lands and Men of the 

 Hina, Raygam, Alutkoer, Hewagam, and Happitigam Korles has 

 been completed. 



