Henry A. Blake

“ To those who contemplate the investment of capital in Ceylon, as to those who are already engaged in cultivation, the Labour Question is important. In 1904, 76,963 coolies came from Southern India, and 56,246 returned. All coolies on arrival are sent to Ragama Camp, eight miles from Colombo, whence, after a detention of twenty-four hours, they are despatched to their destination. The coolies are contented and peaceable. Medical aid is provided in every district. There are sixty-six hospitals and 371 outdoor dispensaries in the island. ”

“ From time to time elephants are captured by means of elephant kraals, a system that involves the expenditure of considerable time and money in the preparation. A strong enclosure having been constructed, many hundreds of men are employed for some weeks in forming a cordon round the portion of the forest where herds of elephants are known to be. The men are supplied with torches, and work inwards, making noise by day and lighting their torches by night. The cordon gradually contracts, until the elephants are at length driven into the kraal, the entrance to which is securely fastened. ”

“ The captured elephants are then left until starvation reduces them to docility, when they are conducted by trained elephants to their future 'stables,' where they are similarly fastened to trees, and carefully fed until they resign themselves to the position, and are trained by their keeper and attendant, who is a member of a special class. In the capture of the elephants there is a great deal of unavoidable cruelty, as a proportion of those fastened to trees kill themselves in their efforts to burst their bonds ”

“ All papers of interest to small cultivators are translated into Sinhalese and Tamil, and the leaflets are distributed by the local societies to their members. A number of native gentlemen have thrown themselves heartily into the work, and undertaken various experiments under the advice of the Botanic Department There is thus equally from the planters of the hill districts and the planters of the plains a large number of stations devoted to experiments on present crops and new products that without expense to the public must produce results of great value in the near future. ”

“ The tame elephants take a keen and sporting interest in the captures, and assist by cajolery and force in the operations.
The population was in 1901 over 8,500,000, which is divided as follows:
The population is now probably over 8,600,000. About one-fifth of the land is under cultivation, of which rice and other grains account for 780,000 acres; coco-nuts, areca-nuts, etc., 800,000; tea, 880,000; cacao, 88,000; tobacco, 25,000; sugar-cane, 11,000; coffee, 4,000; while rubber-trees and other new products are estimated at 45,000. ”

“ Drugs are supplied at cost price to superintendents of estates. The rates paid for medicines at public dispensaries would hardly satisfy a private chemist, 5 cents an ounce being the authorized charge for an ordinary mixture, 2 cents for a lotion, and 2 cents per square inch for a blister! ”

“ It may be stated in general terms that the hill districts are healthy and suitable for the residence of Europeans, and that the low country is malarious, especially where forest or jungle has been recently cleared. ”