PROVISIONS FOB. DIMBULA^ 
but these sort of fellows sometimes meet with a check, 
and it so happened, one day, on being opposed some- 
what more persistently than usual, it might probably 
be on purpose, by one who knew his man, ^^nd knew 
he was his match in strength, the usual offer of fight- 
ing was made, and accepted : the result of which was 
our fighting acquaintance got such a dose of it as sick- 
ened him of this sort of thing for some time, indeed 
people afterwards said it quite cured him, so that 
even his former victims, who used to be quite passive 
under his threats and offers, or rather orders, to fight, 
would now take up his former position ^pd ipsist 
upon him fighting with them, but he would not. 
It was just about this time the Dimbula estates 
had commenced. Pussellawa resthouse was the ter- 
minus of the carts, vdth rice and stores from Cqjopibo, 
which were stored by Carruthers. The only access 
to these estates was across the patanas down to and 
across the Kotmale river, and on in the same way 
on the other side. And thus it was the Pussellawa 
resthouse on Saturday or Sunday was generally fre- 
quented by the early or pioneer Dimbula planters, 
who came down with their coolies for rice and other 
supplies. No wonder that the Dimbula estates then 
could not get a sufficient supply of labour ; ^ve 
wonder how the coolies would stand this sort of thing 
now, having to carry their rice from Pussellawa to Dim- 
bula, over roads, or rather paths, which were rather diffi- 
cult and dangerous to get over without any load at 
all, without taking account of a bushel of rice : we 
forget, but surely the coolies would not be made or 
expected to carry a full bushel across this wretched 
track. But what will our readers say, when we vouch 
for the fact, that an old acquaintance of these days, 
since dead, and no wonder, having no coolies on his 
new clearing, which was not at all an unusual state 
of matters, used to walk to the resthouse on a 
Saturday, spend the Sunday there, and start back early 
on Monday morning with his own week’s supply of 
provisions on his back, which were half a b.ushel of 
rice, some curry-stuffs, and a pumpkin or §alt-fish. 
We never heard if he cooked them himself : in ,ajl 
probability he had a servant of some sort. Sp here 
was a case of master, cooly-fashion, carrying his own 
rice and curry-stuffs ; worse than this, for, while car- 
rying them for himself, was he not only doing so, but 
also for his boy ? Just let the Dimbula planters of 
the present day think over this ; just let them fancy-:-- 
fancy, it was no fancy, but stern reality — the pioneers 
of their now beautiful district, toiling along Jhe grass 
lands below Tyspane and Bogawatte estates, laden 
