ARRIVAL IN CEYLON.—CINGALESE BOATS.—PRECIOUS STONES OF THE EAST.
The steamer sped onward to the south-west, toward the shores of Ceylon; favored by the north-east monsoon, she made good progress, and the time passed rapidly for our friends. On the morning of the third day, after they lost sight of the Andaman Islands, a sail was reported directly ahead, and the boys were thrown into a state of excitement in consequence.
Rapidly they approached the stranger, which was soon made out to be a craft of a style that had not been seen before. As it came toward them, Fred remarked that it was the narrowest boat he had ever seen to carry such a sail, and Frank wondered why it did not tip over; but as it came nearer, and swung along-side, he saw the reason why.
The boat was about thirty feet long, and hewn from a single log that had been spread at the centre, so as to hold two men of medium size, sitting side by side. On the gunwale, or top edge, there were planks a foot and a half in width, and these planks extended the whole length of the boat, and were closed at the ends by short ones that had a considerable slope forward; the latter planks served to keep out the waves, and, as they were somewhat narrower than the width of the log, they gave the craft its very pinched appearance. They were fastened to the boat by means of coarse twine,or "coir" twisted from the fibres of the cocoa-nut-tree. The joints were daubed with pitch and oil to render them water-proof, but they were only partially so, and when the boat leaned far over to leeward, it was likely that a good deal of water would be shipped.
"You are quite right," said the Doctor, in response to the observation just recorded, which was made by Frank, "but she doesn't go far over to leeward, even in the strongest winds."
"How can that be," queried Frank, "when she's so narrow?"
"The outrigger keeps her down," was the reply; "you have been so absorbed with looking at the boat that you haven't seen the outrigger."
OUTRIGGER BOAT FROM LADRONE ISLANDS.
The youth now perceived a log of wood nearly as long as the boat, and sharpened at the ends, lying parallel to, and about twenty feet away from it. It was held in place by means of a couple of bamboo poles, that were curved above the water so as to offer no resistance by dragging. Frank had observed the poles, but had not noticed the log, as it was almost completely submerged, and, besides, it was so near the color of the water that it could not be readily distinguished from it.
"You see the use of the outrigger," said the Doctor; "when sailing, they always keep it on the windward side, and before it could tip over the boat must lift the log clean from the water, and high in air, which it is hardly able to do. Perhaps it might in a cyclone, or in a very strong gale, but at such times the boats seek the shelter of the land or lie to and face the storm as best they can."
"I remember now," said Fred, "that we saw some boats with outriggers while we were at the Philippine Islands, and there were some at Rangoon and Singapore, but I don't think any of them were as graceful as this."
"That is so," was the reply. "The Cingalese, as the people of Ceylon are called, are famous for the lightness and swiftness of their boats, and their speed is something marvellous. They have been known to sail fifteen or twenty miles an hour, and when at their best speed they hardly seem to touch the waves, which they skim with the velocity of a bird; they go far out to sea, and have been known to make voyages of hundreds of miles. Their carrying capacity is not great, but the wants of these people are so few that they can get along with a much smaller stock of provisions than the majority of sailors."
"Why don't they put two boats together, and make a double one?" inquired one of the boys.
DOUBLE CANOE, FRIENDLY ISLANDS.
"As to that," answered Doctor Bronson, "I can only say, because they don't. Double canoes are in use in some of the South Pacific Islands, and have been found very successful; they sail finely, and have a great carrying capacity, and when used in sheltered bays, or in parts of the ocean where the waves are not likely to rack them too much, a deck or platform is built to cover both boats. This is the case in the Society and Friendly Islands, where the double canoe has long been used, and is famous for its high speed; in the Ladrone Islands the outrigger is more popular, and is made on the same principle as that of Ceylon; but the boat is neither so sharp nor so long in proportion to its length.
DOUBLE CANOE, SOCIETY ISLANDS.
"These outrigger boats sail in either direction; the sail is attached to two poles, which are raised and lowered with it; the mast is in the centre, and the ends of the craft are exactly alike. The change of direction is made by raising one pole and lowering the other; when this is done the boat immediately reverses her movements, and the outrigger is always kept to windward. The same is the case with the double canoes of the Friendly Islands, which sail either way, but the canoes of the Society Islands are pointed at the bow and flat at the stern, and consequently can only go in one direction.
FEEJEE ISLAND CANOE.
"The people of the Feejee Islands make their boats on a combination of the two systems. They have the outrigger principle in place of that of the double canoe, but they make the outrigger hollow, and use it for stowing cargo; and in large canoes it is the home of a part of the crew. Then they have the platform, as in the case of the double canoe, and sometimes they have a sort of upper deck, or pilot-house, on the platform, where the captain stands to direct the movements of the craft. All these forms of boats are steered by means of paddles, and not with a rudder."
"I wonder somebody in the civilized world does not take something from these savages in the way of boat-building," said Frank, as soon as the Doctor paused. "Seems to me there is a good deal in these ideas of the double canoe, and the way they manage them."
"A great many persons have wondered as you do," the Doctor answered; "and some have ceased wondering, and tried the principles on both small and large craft. A few years ago one of the races of the New York Yacht Club was won by a boat on the double-canoe principle, and since then several of these boats have been built with different degrees of success. In England a steamer called the Castalia was built for crossing the channel between Dover and Calais, but she proved to be very slow in spite of her enormous engines, which were intended to propel her not less than twenty miles an hour. The chief defect in her construction was that she was built like two complete boats placed side by side, whereas she should have been shaped like a single boat that had been sawed in two from one end to the other. The water is ploughed off from the bows of a boat, as you can see at any time, and when two boats are close to each other and parallel, the water is banked up between them and retards their progress; but where a double boat is built as I have suggested, and as the South Sea Islanders build them, the case is different, and the two hulls glide as smoothly as though they were only one.
AMERICAN MODIFICATION OF A SAVAGE BOAT.
"An American, who has given much study to the subject, has devised a form of boat for pleasure purposes along the coast, that he claims to be a vast improvement over the boats we now have in use. He suggests a double hull sixteen feet long, and each half of the hull eighteen inches wide at the top, and the same in depth. He puts these hulls five feet apart, connects them by beams, and lays down a light deck thirteen feet long and eight feet wide at its broadest part. He places a rudder on each hull, and attaches the two to a single tiller, and he rigs the boat with a lateen sail, though he frankly confesses that the ordinary boom-and-gaff sail is better for all purposes except that of picturesqueness. As the Americans are a practical people, they are not very likely to adopt the sail of the Mediterranean and the South Seas because it looks well."
While this conversation concerning boats was going on the strange craft swung into the path of the steamer, and a rope was thrown from the latter to the former. It was caught by one of her men, and without the speed of the steamer slacking in the least, the Cingalese boat came along-side and was made fast. A native clambered up the rope with the speed of a monkey, and Frank observed that he grasped it between the first and second toes of his feet, exactly as the Malays do. Like the Malays they go barefooted all their lives, and consequently the toes retain far more freedom of action than they would if confined in boots or shoes.
The occupants of the boat were fishermen, and they had a stock of freshly-caught fish, from which the captain of the steamer made a liberal purchase for the use of his passengers and crew. Then they had some of the fruits of Ceylon, principally cocoa-nuts, both green and ripe; the former were in the greatest demand, as they afforded an agreeable relief from the warm water that had been the beverage of the party since their departure from Rangoon. The juice of the green cocoa-nut is one of the most delicious drinks imaginable; it is slightly acidulous, and an excellent tonic for the stomach. The natives drink it without the least restriction, and it is very rarely that a foreigner finds any ill effects resulting from its use.
The Parawas, or fishermen of Ceylon, are a distinct class or caste by themselves, and it is a curious circumstance that they are all Catholic Christians. They are of the same race as the fishermen of Southern India, and were among the first converts of the Portuguese missionaries more than three hundred years ago. The fishermen of Northern Ceylon invited St. Francis Xavier to go and teach them in the doctrines of Christianity in 1544; they were converted through his labors, and their descendants have remained faithful to the creed that was then promulgated. Partly in consequence of the difference of religious belief they have comparatively few relations with the other inhabitants of Ceylon, and stick persistently to their occupations. They are divided into thirteen sections, and each has its own work connected with the fishing business. Some of them are boat-builders, others are carpenters, others weave the nets, and others make the spears and various metal implements that are used. Those who go out to catch the fish are divided into various classes, such as rock-fishers, beach-fishers, net-fishers, spear-fishers, boat-fishers, rod-fishers, etc. They are a brave and hardy people, and though few of them get rich, they usually lead comfortable lives, as the seas around Ceylon abound in fish, and the man who pursues them patiently is pretty sure to be rewarded.
The boat delivered the purchases made by the steamer, and then dropped off, and was soon left far behind. The next morning, when the boys went on deck, the coast of Ceylon was in sight, eight or ten miles away. Near the shore it was a mass of green, with here and there a little nook opening into what might possibly be a harbor, and for the greater part of the way the verdure came closely down to the water. As they drew nearer and nearer, the boys made out the verdure to be a limitless extent of cocoa-nut trees, and they were not at all surprised when told that there were many millions of them on the island of Ceylon.
SCENE ON THE COAST OF CEYLON.
"You observe," said the Doctor, "that all along the shore the trees hang over the water, and apparently their roots are pushed out into the sea. The tree is fond of the salt-water, and grows better at the edge of the sea than away from it. It is a wonderful provision of nature that the tree bends over the sea, as the fruit when ripe falls into the water, and is carried away to other lands. It may furnish food for men and animals, or it may be cast on a sandy shore, where it develops and takes root, and grows into another tree, that follows the example of its parent."
At this moment the captain of the steamer approached them, and pointed out a chain of mountains that could just be designated on the horizon. "The sharp one is the Peak of Adam," he explained; "you'll probably know more about it by-and-by."
"Why is it called the Peak of Adam?" was the inquiry that naturally followed this announcement.
"Because," was the reply, "it is supposed to bear the mark of Adam's foot when he stepped from the island to the Kingdom of Siam. This is the Mohammedan tradition, but the natives claim that the footprint was made by Buddha, and for this reason they hold it in high veneration, and have a temple on the summit. For sailors it is a landmark, as it is the highest mountain in the island, with a single exception."
"Perhaps we may have an opportunity to ascend it," said the Doctor; "and if we do, we shall see many things about it and from its summit to remind us of our ascent of Fusiyama, in Japan."
The steamer rounded the southern extremity of the great island, and headed for the port of Point de Galle. The scenery of the coast was not materially changed as the miles were left behind, and our friends began to weary a little on account of its monotony. It seemed as though the cocoa-nut-trees were unending, and one of the boys declared that he had seen enough of them to last him for some time. By-and-by a flag-staff was visible on a little promontory, and the captain announced that they were close to their destination. Several boats were cruising about in front of the entrance to the harbor, and, as the steamer came into sight, two or three of these boats headed for her. They were outriggers, of the same pattern as we have already encountered, and from one of them a pilot was taken to guide the steamer to her anchorage.
A ship arriving in front of Galle at night must anchor outside, or cruise up and down till daylight, as the pilots never come off during the hours of darkness, no matter what signals are made. The harbor is not an easy one to enter, and requires great care on the part of the pilot to bring a ship safely to anchor. There are several sunken rocks inside, and a stranger would be almost certain to run on them, even with the assistance of a good chart; a steamer was once lost here owing to the delay of only a few seconds in the transmission of an order for the stoppage of the engines, and others have received serious damage from similar causes. Many plans have been devised for improving the harbor by the removal of the rocks, and it is said that contracts have been made recently with some Americans for that very desirable work.
RUINS OF A PORTUGUESE CHURCH.
The steamer was brought to the place assigned her, and securely moored, and as soon as this had been done, our friends entered one of the curious little outrigger boats and were carried to the shore. The boys were so pleased with the picturesque beauty of the place that they wished to make a sketch of it, but there was no time to do so, and the proposal was dropped. The port is a delightful nook in the coast of Ceylon, surrounded with cocoa-nut-trees that grow down to the very edge of the water, and have their roots washed by its spray. At one side is the old town or fort, which dates back to the Portuguese occupation of the place, and gives a hint of its age by its venerable appearance. Some of the old buildings are in ruins, as the government does not care to reconstruct them.
Point de Galle has very little local commerce, and its chief importance comes from its geographical position. Nearly all the steamers between Europe, on the one hand, and China and the Far East, on the other, touch at Galle for coal, and many thousand tons of this fuel are handled there every month. Some days there are eight or ten arrivals and departures, and rarely is there a day without a steamer entering or leaving. A glance at the position of the place, with reference to other ports of the Indian Ocean and the Eastern seas in general, will show its great importance as a coaling-station. Its name is supposed to be derived from the great number of coral rocks—Galla—on this part of the coast, and particularly in the vicinity of the harbor.
A YOUNG NATIVE AT BREAKFAST.
Doctor Bronson and the youths had hardly set foot on land before they were pestered with natives offering precious stones for sale. Ceylon is famous for its real gems, and as there is rarely a good thing in this world without a counterfeit, there are plenty of imitation gems in the hands of the peddlers. In fact, it may be set down that nearly all that are offered are false, for the reason that the profit on their sale is greater than can possibly happen with real stones. The stones for which Ceylon is famous are the sapphire, ruby, topaz, and garnet, but they are not sufficiently abundant to yield fortunes to those who dig for them. Some of the rivers flowing from Adam's Peak are literally paved with garnets, but they are nearly all so small as to be worthless. The only use for these garnet-sands is for sawing elephants' teeth into plates, and for polishing other gems.
The annual exportation of precious stones from Ceylon is about $50,000; this does not include the stones, nearly all false, that are sold to passengers on the steamers touching at Galle. When there is a goodly number of verdant travellers on a steamer, the harvest is likely to be a rich one. The European naturally thinks there is a relation between the asking and the selling price of an article, and when a native demands a hundred dollars for a gem, the stranger is very apt to offer five or ten dollars for the stone, and even then he thinks he has acted meanly. He is astonished to find his offer accepted, and still more astonished to find that, his purchase is not worth twenty-five cents.
A couple of natives followed our friends in their walk on shore, and persisted in offering a select assortment of rubies, sapphires, and other stones. One of them urged Frank to buy a fine ruby for ten pounds, and a sapphire for fifteen, with the guarantee of his word of honor that they were genuine. Frank thought of his sister and Miss Effie, and how much these gems would please them, and finally asked the dealer his lowest price.
The man meditated a moment, as if balancing in his mind the figure that came as nearly as possible to the actual cost, and then said he would sell the two for twenty pounds, or one hundred dollars.
Frank referred the matter to Doctor Bronson, and asked how much it would be wise to offer. The latter looked at the stones for a moment, and suggested that a rupee (fifty cents) would be about the thing.
Frank was rather taken aback at this difference in figures, but gravely followed his mentor's advice. He tendered the rupee, which was refused with indignation; but when he held the stones in one hand and the rupee in the other, for the man to take his choice and be gone, the rupee was accepted, and Frank was the happy owner of a sapphire and a ruby of excellent color and "finest water," that had their origin among the makers of false gems in Paris or London. The native makers are, however, quite as skilful as the Europeans, and it is said that some of the best fictions in the way of precious stones are produced in India.
VIEW OF THE COAST NEAR GALLE HARBOR.