734 
A Defcripion 0/ G E Y L O N. 
Deferters 
wh'ifd 
bacl^ into 
the City. 
An inter- 
ceptcA 
Letter. 
Milagre i but the Women and Children 
being brought before the General, he or- 
der'd them ( purfuant to their former 
Refoiution) to be whipM back into the 
Town near the Baftion of St. Jofc«, this 
being look'd upon as the moft proper 
means to ftraiten the Enemy, and to 
bring them to our Terms. Towards the 
Evening the Men, with 20 more, who 
iince had join'd them, being alfo brought 
into the Camp, the General took two of 
them afide, and told them, that they 
muft look upon it as a particular Favour, 
to be fenc back once more \ but if they 
returned they mufl; exped nothing but the 
Gallows, unlefs they would engage with 
fomc of the Aratchcs that had deferted 
our Camp, tofurprize fome Baftion or 
other for our Service. They were like- 
wife forced back with a good Whipping, 
and the 2<\th 150 more had the fame En- 
tertainment. 
The 16th of February the Dijjave of the 
four Cor/ej came to tell the General, that 
thofe of Sajfragamme were ftill bufy in 
repairing the Roads and Bridges, and 
produced a Letter from certain Great 
Men of the Court, enjoining him to de- 
mand 10 certain Perfons, that had made 
ftiift to get out of the City with the Ene- 
mies Troops, and Iheltred themfelves 
in the adjacent Villages, having deferted 
the King's Service before. The General 
was not unwilling to grant his Requell ^ 
but withal told him, that if thefe Perfons 
of Quality had been as forward in further- 
ing their King's Service as we, there 
would no^^have been fo many Deferters. 
The fame day a Letter was deliver'd to the 
General written by one of our Aratcha to 
thzVidane oi Pafdun-Corle^ as follows : 
Angedera Lionayde^ Son-in-law to 
RatiatoYige Arachie., wifties Health 
toT/Uwc, and the three Chieftains of 
the three Pattos of Pafdun-Corle. Im- 
mediarely upon the receipt of thefe, 
you ihall without fail or delay gather, 
' in the time of 8 days, out of all the 
circumjacent Villages, 50 Pingues of 
Pullets, Butter, Pepper, Atchiar, and 
Earthen Velfels i and with them, in 
^ company of all the Heads or Majo- 
rals of the Villages of Augur atotte, 
" come towards Horne^ and from thence 
" into the Imperial Camp, there to pay 
" your Obeyfance to his Majefty. Such 
" as f.iil in their Duty muft exped to 
receive condign Punilhment. You 
muffc not pnblifh my Name, what I do 
in this refpeft not being by my own 
" A'-ithoriry •, but when you come to 
Court, you may then declare, that it 
" was Hangedera Lionayde^ Ranatonge 
" Ralis Son-in-law, who gave you this 
" Invitation. 
T\\Q Aratche -who had been the Author 
of this Letter, being feized and exa- 
min'd the fame Evening by Mr. Adrian 
van der Meyden and Major van der Laan^ 
did not difown his Hand, but refufed to 
difcover (tho he was threatened with 
prefent Death) by whofe Command he 
had writ it. The General being of opi- 
nion that there was fome Myftery hid 
under this pretence, efpecially fince this 
Clngakfe liv'd under the Company's Jurif- 
didion, and had received fignal Obliga- 
tions from them, commanded his Head 
to be cut off, and deliver'd him up 
for that purpofe to the Provoft, in 
hopes of extorting a Confedion from him 
by this means i but under-hand order'd 
him to be fecur'd only aboard the Ship 
the Arms of Amfterdam^ for fear, that, 
in cafe he (hould be executed on a fudden, 
they might be bereaved of the Oppor- 
tunity of difcovering the Truth. 
February 2~th being Sunday, the Gene- 
ral fent a Letter" to Raja Singa, to adver- 
tife his Majelly what had pafs'd with the 
Aratche., and at the fame time enclofed 
the Original of the intercepted Letter. 
The fame day the Dijfave of Saffragamme 
coming to the General to tell him, that 
the Roads and Bridges were now repaired 
according to his Majefty's Orders •, he 
was commanded by him to imploy the 
fame People in perfeding the Pallifadoes 
intended for the new Redoubt near the 
Gate of Rajuha^ which he promifed to 
do. The General alfo told him what had 
happened with the Aratcbe; which he ap- 
proving of, the General further deHred 
him to provide fome Bufflers for the ufe 
of the Seamen, who were forely afflided 
with the Scurvy, which he likewife a- 
greed to. 
Word being brought that fourFilher- 
men were coming over to us in a Tony 
or Fifher-boat, they were forewarn'd not 
to come into the Camp, under the pain 
of being hang'd, unlefs they could en- 
gage all the Fifhermen to come at once. 
About the fame time a certain Adoorifh 
Veffel came into the Road from Puntegale 
with a Pafsport from John Kroon our Head 
Fador there. They brought advice that 
the Lands and Villages under the Jurif- 
didion of Gale were farm'd out at i 5849 
Rixdollars, for the next Year, to be paid 
by four quarterly Payments, and that the 
Areckj which the Company had taken at 
the 
Letter fent 
to the Em- 
peror.. 
A Moorifh 
Veffel 
brings Ad- 
vice con- 
cerning the 
Condition 
of Gale. 
