NO. 50. — 1899.] SAMAN DEVALE MURAL STONE. 93 



was stationed as Captain Francisco Pimentel, it being , a strong place 

 and suited to withstand the enemy, and to make the rebellious 

 territories return to obedience. This fort Simao Pinhao caused to be 

 made. This vexed the tyrant greatly, and he ordered that war to be 

 pursued with much ardour : wherefore the whole force was concen- 

 trated in the fort of Atanagale, whence our troops made several 

 incursions into the enemy's territories, in which they slew and captured 

 many, whereupon part of the rebellious districts returned to obedience, 

 and the tyrant began to retire, and our forces advanced a day's march 

 forward in order to get near him, because they had a great desire to 

 encounter him. 



The tyrant, seeing himself so closely pursued, ordered a good fort to 

 be made on the top of a range near our force, and within our territories, 

 in order both to support those who were obedient to him, and the 

 better to be able to secure his own, and the other fort which he had 

 on the confines of the Four Corlas, which was that on which they relied 

 more than all. Our troops, having learnt of the fort that had been 

 made close to them on the top of the range, assaulted it as soon as it 

 was completed, and entered it with such determination and courage 

 that with the death of many of the enemy they captured it, and 

 razed it to the ground ; and as those who were in the stockade 

 of the Four Corlas did not seem willing to retire completely from our 

 territories, but were rather confident of dominating them from there 

 by means of several fortifications, which they had made in the passes 

 where our troops might attack them, the General ordered the camp to 

 advance thither ; and in several skirmishes that they had there with 

 the enemy they def eated'them and put them to flight, and captured 

 all their fortifications, whereupon they vacated the districts, and 

 retreated to the limits of Seitavaca, and our soldiers committed 

 conspicuous cruelties on the inhabitants of the villages which had 

 rebelled, as an example to the others.* 



The tyrant having learnt this, and fearing that our troops would 

 next attack his fort and his stockades, sought to divert them from this, 

 wherefore he sent the greater part of his force to the two chiefs of 

 the Corlas, in order that they with the other rebels should attack our 



on the state of Ceylon, says (Val., Ceylon,}). 231): — "Fromhere [Malvana] 

 a road goes north-east through the Hina Corla to, a famous hilly Rock 

 or Rocky Hill Attenegale, which was often a hindrance to the Portuguese, 

 on account of its rocky surroundings, through which one has to go, and 

 with a few men can withstand a large army; but we have overcome the 

 difficulty with great labour, so that one now goes unhindered right through 

 by Dangowitta to the great pass of Alauw." I do not know if any traces 

 of Simao Pinhao's fort remain. James Alwis, in his description of the 

 temple, &c. (Attanagalu-vansa, pp. 94-98), mentions none. — D. W. F, 



* Oouto does not enter into details of these atrocities as do Bocarro and 

 Faria y Sousa. But then Azevedo the Infamous was viceroy when Couto 

 wrote some of his Decades, possibly this one. — D. W. F. 



