CO882-(1-2) — Page 80

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

Reference :-

C.O. 882

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PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

ALLY WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE BE REPRODUCED PHOTOGRAPHIC- | COPYRIGHT PHOTOGRAPH-NOT TO

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2. And the priests of the decay of their religion Priests disaffected. -(though when I come to speak of the measures of the Government in relation to Buddhism, I shall be prepared to demonstrate the error of supposing

that the disaffection of the priesthood has only taken its origin in the recent proceedings, as has

been stated to the Committee*.)

3. The higher orders universally have been irri- Higher orders disloyal.

tated at the promotion of low-caste men of merit,

and at the equality of all ranks in the eye of the

law. (De Saram, page 46.)

4. And the masses of the people, for whose bene- fit the abolition of Raja Karia was designed, com- bene- plain that along with it they have lost many fits which they formerly derived from the chiefs in consideration of this compulsory service. The chiefs, too, lost a considerable source of income by its abolition, as they formerly were paid a small sum by the people, as the price of exemption.

5. All complain of our judicial system, its delays, and its expensive processes. Almost every dispute between Kandyans arises out of quarrels about land; such disputes by our charter can only be set- tled in the higher courts, and by the costly inter- vention of the proctors and advocates--and the Kandyans reproachfully contrast our European sys- tem with their own simple appeal to their chiefs and village councils. Mr. Buller, in a document printed in the Blue Book, page 228, has stated forcibly the dissatisfaction of the Kandyans with

our judicial system, and adds the strong fact that "the most active parties in the late disturbance were found to be those who were most constant attendants at courts of law, and who had been reduced to poverty in consequence." The whole passage should be read, and also Major Skinner's expose [paper, No. 34.]

They complain of low-caste men sitting as asses- sors when the interests of high-caste men are in- volved (J. Staples, page 15), and they complain of the abolition of oaths, and the absorption of their substance by lawyer's fees, and injustice done them by false and vexations charges for alleged breaches of the Armek ordinance in drawing toddy from

• The policy of the home and local government relative to Buddhism met the unanimous approbation of the Legislative Clean- cil in 1846-(Bas their address to the Governor, papar No. 98.)

Sale of Foresta.

Dislike to Coffee cultivation.

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their own cocos-nut trees, instead of purchasing at the taverna licensed by the Government.

This complaint is very general, and requires serious attention, not merely for the discontent but the increasing demoralization of the people. A accurate and striking account of the ruinous effects of our Arrack system is given in Major Skinner's Memorandum (paper No. 84). (See Mr. Morris's Letters, Enclo. Nos. 5 and 29.)

very

These and the many other inconveniences and incongrulțies incident to the policy of an enlight- oned Christian Government over an uncivilized and idolatrous race have been uniformly subjects of complaint and pretext of rebellion since 1817. But within the last ten or twelve years others less tan- gible and prominent, but not less vexatious and irritating to the Kandyans, have followed the open- ing of coffee estates, and the formation of roada through the Kandyan hilla.

1. Prominent amongst these have been the sale and felling of these forests, which, although the property of the Crown, had heretofore been of little value, and encroachments on them by the natives were laxly regarded by the local authorities. Here they followed game for their amusement, and pastured their buffaloes in the damp shade, but now these forests are being cleared SWAY, and the trespass of the cattle exposes the owners to con- stant fines and annoyances.

2. Again it is a curious characteristic of the Kandyans, their love of retirement and privacy; their scattered villages and houses are bufft in the mont secluded spots, hidden in hollows, and so con- cealed in the dense forests that a stranger might be within a hundred yards of a village and quite una- ware of its existence, To these they have no roads, but marsly shady paths under the thick trees.

All this privacy has been rudely disturbed by the formation of coffee plantations. There is hardly a › in the hilla that has not been exposed by the

of, the forests, their solitude has been sằng of the ronda; and, instead privacy, their hamlets Tho

Suzy dotast are consinertly

honda, and gardens, stealing and robbing their poultry.