"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."