242 
Circumstances which distinguish 
was too large for any room to contain, a house was built and 
covered in for the purpose. In the course of the evening the 
governor presented the Moodelier with a gold Chain, as a tes- 
timony of the high sense entertained of his faithful and upright 
conduct in our service. 
The Moodeliers are of infinite use in preserving the obedience 
of the natives, and it is extremely fortunate that they are upon 
so good a footing with our countrymen. The whole cast of 
]\lahondrews, like the nobility of other conquered countries, 
have transferred their pride from real power to the preservation 
of a fictitious pre-eminence, and a species of scrupulous honour; 
and therefore it is easy, by paying a proper deference to 
those objects which they most value, to procure their sincere 
attachment and assistance. 
The natural dispositions of the Cinglese are, as I have al- 
ready observed, mild and humane;- and their morals, except in 
the promiscous intercourse of the sexes, far from being depra- 
ved. It is to be lamented however that tlieir minds labour 
so dreadfully under the influence of superstitious fears, and that 
their morality is not founded on more rational principles. It 
is to be lioped that more attention will be paid to their cul- 
tivation and improvement by our countrymen than their for- 
mer masters, the Dutch and the Portuguese; who, by their 
own avaricious and short-sighted policy, precluded themselves 
from receiving that support from the natives which might still- 
have maintained them masters of Ceylon. Many of the Cing- 
lese have indeed been converted to the Christian faitli ; and 
part profess to be Roman Catholics, while others attend the 
Calvinist and Lutheran worship; but scarcely one of them un- 
derstands the fundamental principles of Christianity. It seemed 
