190 Manners and Customs of tJie Ceylonese. 
Ceylonese has often been known to contrive to kill himself 
in the company of his enemy, that the latter might suffer 
for it. 
This dreadful spirit of revenge, so inconsistent with the usual 
mild and humane sentiments of the Ceylonese, and much more 
congenial to the bloody temper of a Malay, still continues to 
be fostered by the sacred customs of the Candians. Among the 
Cinglese however it has been greatly mitigated by their inter- 
course with Europeans. The desperate mode of obtaining re- 
venge which I have just described has been given up from hav- 
ing been disappointed of its object ; as in all those parts under 
our dominion, the European modes of investigating and pu- 
nishing crimes are enforced. A case of this nature occurred 
at Caltura in 1799. A Cinglese peasant happening to have a 
suit or controversy with another, watched an opportunity of 
going to bathe in company with him, and drowned himself with 
the view of having his adversary put to death. The latter 
was upon this taken up and sent to Columbo to take his trial 
for making away with the deceased, upon the principle of hav- 
ing been the last seen in his company. There was, however, 
nothing more than presumptive proof against the culprit, and 
he was of course acquitted. This decision, however, did not 
by any means tally with the sentiments of the Cinglese, who 
are as much inclined to continue their ancient barbarous prac- 
tice as their brethren the Candians, although they are depri- 
ved of the power. 
There is no nation among whom the distinction of ranks is 
kept up with such scrupulous exactness as among the Cey- 
lonese : even in the dimensions and appearance of their houses 
they seem restricted ; and a house of a certain size commonly 
