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    and we are hurried on from chapter to chapter by an incessant rattle of animal spirits and vivacity . Mr . Sullivan confesses himself more at home in the saddle than with a gun , but his campaign in the jungle is picturesquely told , and his occasional remorse betrays " a soul above" spore . The visit to a coffee plantation is described with intelligence and accuracy . We owe it to Mr . Sullivan to warn him against a propensity to mistake slang for wit . In a writer so animated and well-informed , so weak a subetitute is doubly regrettable . We _ extract a few cf the most salient of Mr . Sullivan ' s experiences and reflections His apology for Lord Torrington's severities in ' 48 is , we know , the opinion entertained by all who were in Ceylon at tbe time of that rebellion , winch , but for the energetic measures of the governor , threatened to become a really formidable conspiracy . The following explanation of the execution of the Buddhist priest is , we believe , a correct statement of the facts : —

    The lies circulated about the Buddhist priest who was { executed at Kandy , -were at once the offspring of personal dislike and of popularity-seeking philanthrophy . The priest was arrested in the very act of administering to hundreds of rebels an oath of enmity and revenge against the British inhabitants . If individual treason is a capital offence , he deserved death ; if exciting a nation to revolt Is criminal , he doubly deserved it ; and if debasing and misapplying the influence of his priestly office could add to his crime , he had trebly earned his fate . The account of his being shot in his Tobes , —which was compared to shooting the Pope or the Archbishop of Canterbury in full canonicals , —was simply a fabrication , which designing men saw might be foisted upon the British public , whose ignorance of Cingalese customs might lead them to suppose that the priest's robe was that only used in religious ceremonies , and that the degradation of the national faith was as much the object of the government as the individual punishment of the traitor himself . Such , however , was not the case ; the Buddhist priests don tie saffron robe on entering the priesthood , or rather on becoming-students , and never lay it aside till they retire from the service , or till they quit their human form for that of a cohra or an elephant . They have no other article of dress whatever , and if the priest had been deprived of that , he must have been exposed quite naked , degraded and disgraced , before all his people .

    The punishment of treason was inflicted on him . by a military court , and he would have suffered equally , whether h& had been a Brahmin or a Mahomedan , a Protestant or a Roman Catholic . He was tried and ex ecuted in the dress in which his crime was committed . Do we suppose that those who lynched the Monk Clement , or shot the preachers of the Scotch covenant , waited to direst them of theiT ordinary attire , or intended to degrade the faith while they punished the traitor ? JJot only was Lord Torrington perfectly warranted in acting as he did , but he would have had ample reason on his side had he forfeited the whole of the Buddhist property in the island . Here is Mr . Sullivan ' s onslaught on the Missionaries : — It is an ungrateful office to decry the efforts of Missionaries in foreign countries , especially amongst savages and uneducated natives , but still it is \ mdeniably the duty of travellers to offer the fruits of their experience , gathered in the several parts of tho world they may have yasited , and to expose the almost utter uselessness of a system that deprives the mother country of the energies of some of the most zealous and noble of her children , and squanders sums that , if expended at home , would bring to perfection fruit that has been implanted on good aoil , but from neglect and want of attention is suffered to rot and perish .

    My experience , gathered from visits amongst the Indians of ^ orth and South America , the Arabs of A . sia , and the natives of Ceylon and India , and supported by the testimony and opinion of unprejudiced persons , whose long residence amongst them had made them acquainted with all their habits , leads me to believe , that scarcely one real convert , whose belief is sincere and lasting , annually rewards the labours of the hundreds who are engaged in the spiritual warfare . This opinion may appear incrpdible , and too frightful to be believed , and Exeter Hall would decidedly crush any one who ventured to assert auch a fact , but two instances will prove that it is not entirely without foundation . The Abbe' Dubois , -who was for upwards of fifteen years the most energetic and enlightened of Roman Catholic Missionaries in India , declared

    when leaving that country , that during the whole period of his labours , he had not made one sincere Christian . A Baptist Missionary I visited in the Sioux country , told me that during thirteen years of uninterrupted residence and labour among the Indians , in which time he had educated scores of children , and translated two or three of the Gospels , he could not say that he had made one single convert whoso profession was sincere . If the hiimano and Christian population of England would only inquire into these things , and instead of wasting their energies and their means in useless attempts to convert th « beathen , whose time is not yet come , would unite to convert tho heathen at home , they would find their labour crowned , with certain success instead of as certain disappointment .

    SNAKES IN CKYI-ON . Ceylon is certainly & grand place for tho study of ophiology , and the varieties are more numerous than charming . It is curious that , although every one of the four orders of Kcptilia are represented in each hemisphere , not one appeal's in exactly tho same form ; the serpents , alligators , batrachians , and chelonians of either hemisphere , though excessively similar , are not identical . All this must bo a source of gTeat interest and delight to the naturalist , but to tho traveller it ia not always a cause of so much satisfaction . It may not bo uninteresting to name a few of the varieties and their peculiarities , as stated by competent authorities . Omitting nil auch na aro oviparous , imd are innocuour , except frpm their strength , I will mention those that uro ovovivipiirous and poiaonoua . Of cobras or hooded snakes there are four kinds—tho Cobra di Cap tlio , or serpent A lunettes , esteemed sacred by the Buddhist , and looked upon as tho cinblorn of wisdom , but still slain on all occasions ; tko Cohra Minallc

    with whoso peculiarities I am not acquainted ; the Cobra di Mortt , a delightful variety , of some six or niiio Inches in length , with a skull and oroas-boncs marked on tho head ! ! ( I give tho M ory as it was told to me , but it is only fair to- nay I don ' t believe it ); itrt bito ia almost instantaneously fatal ; tho Cobra Aurcliu , about six inches long , that < lis |> lityfl it predilection for crawling into person ' s ears , and causing death by frenzy ( j'idu " Hamlet" ) . Of those four species , I can only Hjiouk from experience of tho cubni di cupcllo , never having seen any individual of tho otlior three . The Mjuny Polongji , or Tie J ' okmga , aro the most common hi tho Kuruiian country ; they nre very <| uidc and livuly in tboir movements , and thtiir bito i . s not . attended with the fearful agony that generally accompanies Hnako venom . The bito i » succeeded by a lethargic apath y , very much like that induced by laudanum , ami tho only chance of Having tho patient is to keep liim moving , for if once allowed to sluop , it ia the Hkop of douth , that knows no waking .

    Of all BuakoH tho cobra ia tho mont boautiful , a nd when oroct , with its hood expanded , gracefully moving in time to tho inutile , it in certainly a mo tit ( drilling and frtsdimting object j its eye , which i « in general leaden arid heavy , bocomoti , under the influence of music , intonnoly bright and glitturing . Thin effect is liolghtonccl by the fact of sniikcu having no eyelids ; tbe eye , although ho boautiful , ia not strong , and

    cannot bear any strong glare . This was well known to the ancients , who had an idea that the flash of an emerald deprived them of sight . The poison from the fang of a cobra is like one or two drops of laudanum . It is said , and I believe -vrith truth ! that it loses a joint of its tail every time it expends its poison . The cobra is par excellence the sacred snake among Hindoos and Buddhists , and -with the latter has attained that enviable position from a myth of its having -with its hood shaded Buddha , when sleeping , from the sun . It must have been a " pretty considerable tall snake that , and no mistake . " The Cingalese believe that there is a world full of cobras , whose forms are tenanted by the souls of men , who , in life , had been free from every vice but malice : they are Buddhists in faith , worship in temples , reside in furnished houses , and enjoy society , living on the best of " chicken fixings , " —they facthave of food

    may , m , any variety they can desire , with this peculiarity , that it must always assume the form of a frog . They have a king , who is the biggest ; and they retain the distinctions of high and low caste ; the light-coloured snakes constituting the former , tie darker ones the latter . I cannot imagine what there is so enticing in the existence or habits of snakes , that should have induced people in all ages to covet their form in a future state ? Cadmus and his wife , after having , by-the-by had a good deal to do with dragons and snakes in their lifetime , were by choice converted into snakes ; and the pet boy of one of the mission schools at Kandy , being asked by a visitor ^ vhat he hoped to become in a future state , answered , " A cobra . " The delight of living in a land free from snakes and other noxious insects , is a blessing which we do not appreciate till we have experienced the horror and annoyance of the contrary .

    THE CEYLON RIFLES . The Rifles were originally recruited entirely by Malays from the eastern islands , the recruiting head-quarters being at Singapore ; but , for some reason , the service has within the last few years become unpopular , and few can be persuaded to join . The only Malays , "therefore , that now join the Tanks are youngsters born and bred in the regiment itself . The vacancies have lately been filled up chiefly by Kaffirs . The Kaffirs , not-withstanding their thick skulls and unintellectual appearance , have a very remarkable turn for music ; and seven-eighths at least of the Rifle band keep time to the dulcet tones with blubber lips , woolly heads , and heels of African elongation . A belief has commonly prevailed in England that thin lips are advantageous for good execution on wind instruments , especially the flute and cornet-a .-piston ; but this theory seems unfounded / for the Kaffir solo-players of the Rifle band , with lips of any imaginary dimensions , both as regards width and thickness , strike the highest notes with as much clearness and precision as any European performer could boast of ; they are also excellent tiineists .

    The Ceylon Rifles are held in particular dread and abhorrence by the natives ; and the latter feeling ,-without being tempered by any dread whatever , is the reciprocal sentiment of the Rifles , especially the Malays . In 1848 this feeling -was illustrated by many , and in some cases bloody , instances . The Rifles are active , dapper men , and well drilled for a field day ; but , unfortunately , coming of races used , to their own peculiar kind of warfare from childhood , they find it difficult to forget the manners and customs of th « ir fathers , and are rather apt , in the heat of a n engagement , to forget their European education , and discarding all the advantages of discipline and mutual dependence , to break their ranks , fling away their muskets , and , trusting entirely to their daggers and kreeses , to rush upon the enemy in their national manner , and work away each , man on his own book . This , of course , answers very well in bush-fighting ; but if opposed bj' discipline , would be utterly fatal . In several instances in tbe rebellion of 1848 , the detachments sent against the Kandians disobeyed the OTders of their officers , and , to use an expression especially applied to the Malays ,. " ran a muck" amongst their opponents . The loss they inflicted on the Kandians is not well ascertained , but there is little doubt that it -was severe .

    AN ELEPHANT "WOUKINO . We passed an elephant vrorking on the road , and it -was most interesting to watch the half-reasoning brute ; lie wag tearing out large roots from the ground by means of a chain and hook , fastened round his neck with a species of collar . He pulled like a man , or rather like a number of men , with a succession of steady hauls , throwing his whole weight into it , and almost going down on his knees , turning round every now and then to see what progress he was making . Really the instinct displayed by the elephant in its domesticated state is little short of reason in its fullest sense . There is jio doubt they do think , and also act upon experience and memory , and their capacity seems to increase in an extraordinary degree from their intercourse with man . The remarkable nicety and trouble they talte in squaring and arranging the blocks of hewn stone when building a bridge is incredible , unless seen ; they place them

    with as much skill as any mason , and will return two or three times to give the finishing touches when they think the work is not quite perfect . They retire a few yards , and consider what they have effected , and you almost fancy you can detect them turning their sagacious old noddles on one side , and sliutting one eye in a knowing mannor , to detect any irregularity in tho arrangement . Sidney Smith ' s anecdotes of elcpliants' reason , in his Lectures on Moral Philosophy , although moat astonishing , do not fail for the want of corroboration . I heard numerous anecdotes almost as extraordinary as thoao ho mentions ; and , amongst others , one of an elephant at Tinnevclly that bad been engaged nil day in piling logs of timber , but in the evening , becoming angry at some promise his keeper had neglected to fulfil , he went of biB own accord and undid every stroke of work ho liad completed during the day .

    HOSPITALITY IN CEYLON . Hospitality is genuine and unrestricted among the planters in Ceylon ; you rido up to a bungalow , put your horse into the ( stable , enter the house , and if the owner bo at homo introduce yourself , or if you have ji companion introduce him , and ho performs the same kind ofh ' ec for you ; if tbe owner is not in , you ncvertUoleas introduce yourself to his butler , as tlio houHckucpcrn nro called , light a cheroot , call for beer , &c , and make yourself at home till his return . This conversation on entering a planter ' s bungalow , whether friend or not , ia usually on this wiso : —" Master at lioinoV" "No , sar . " "Uecr got ? " " Yes , Bar . " " liceir bring . Cheroot got ? " " Yen , sar . " " Now , then , you nigger , bring a . light , and got Honictlring to oat . " " Yos , Bar . " This free-and-easy way of proceeding it ) oxiwetod and universally practised . It ia a sort of communism of tho plcuHantcwt description , and In ncceBHitfHcd \> y tho ntato and extent of the population ; for where bungalowH aro twelve and twenty niilon apart , roadw barely passable , and weather during nix montliH of tho year inclement , tho wonted coromonioiiH and formal introductions of mor « civiliMt'd Houiuly would bo out of place , and highly diougrcuublo to tho hungry , hioLsLuiukI voyager .

    l . IFK Of A GOl'l'JilC-l'I . ANTISK . The life of a coflee-planter in monotonous * to a dognio , and to any onn without very contiidorablo powora of soliUry intellectual enjoy muni , would hu litllo nliurt of unbearable During tho crop hciihou , from tho inuldlo of October or beginning of November to tho end of February , lio can , indeed , Hud < : oiirtt / ui t tui > i > lii . yiiK ) Ht for eyuu nnd oar « , in watching and listening l <> this monotonous rattle of tho pul |> orn , an limy dlvont tho coflco-borry of itu ncarlnt overcoat ; but thlrt i « a kind of occu |» ntion tliut would mirfeit the most patloat in a tow < lay «| thcro in not tlio nlitfhto . it inturontin it ; and if bin mind in engaged at all , it muni , lie with objcctn out « i < l « tho piilping-houM ) , rather than with Uiobo within . Tins manager or owner on hi « < u * tu to hi crop aontton J » in thijj

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    November 11 , 1854 . ] THE LEADER . 1073

• Citation
  • Leader (1850-1860), Nov. 11, 1854, page 1073, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2064/page/17/