CO882-(1-2) — Page 86

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE

། ?། 3།

19

Reference :-

C.O. 882

1

PUBLIC RECORD OFFICE, LONDON

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

50

which the priest, Kahawatte, was hanged,* and had the troops not come till ten or twelve o'clock, in- stead of coming as they did in the morning, the numbers in the evening would have been greatly increased; and had they got to Kandy,, the whole

" (Page 109.) country would have risen.”

Talya-ha-goola Banda, a member of a chief's family, stated, “All the Kandyan districts were prepared to join, there would have been at least 40,000 to 50,000 who would have entered Kandy, and there might have been 100,000.” (Page 110.)

Dehigamme Benior Ratamahatmeya. of Hewa- bette, to the east of Kandy--an influential chief, and I believe loyal, says: "If the Pretender had got as far as the ferry, there can be no doubt that the whole province would have joined him. If the bud when it first springs out is not broken off, it soon grows into a large branch-and if the rebel- lion had not been quelled at once, all the country would have been destroyed; for all would have joipeɖ.” (Page 124.)

Further to the south-east, is the district of Wallapane, the scene of Chandrayosty's conspiracy in 1843, a most wild, lawless, and uncivilized dis- trict; and this is the deposition of its chief, An- drawers. “I have been in the service of the Go vernment since 1818. I am chief of the Wallapane district, I consider this rebellion as a far greater one than that of 1818, as at this time all the whole provinces were fully prepared to come into Kandy. I had the greatest dificulty in preventing the people of my district from coming in, and I had to set guards at each of the outlets to prevent the villagers from leaving. I had to threaten that I would appre- hand them if any left, and that their property would be conferated. I am sure that if the people of Ma- telle had been at all successful, then I could not have presented the people of Wallapane from join- ing. All of them were quite prepared, they had been ready since 1848, when Chandragotty, was veined. They are a most troublesome set.” (Page 196.)

51

Another district adjoining Kandy is Oodaneura,

rich and populous, and its chief, Madugalla, states that had the king reached the ferry or gained any success, the population of all the neighbouring dis- tricts, his own included, must have joined. (Page 126.) “It was a general talk at the time, and the people were prepared for it since 1845, as the Pre- tender had gone from village to village for the last five years preparing them."

Another adjoining district is Yatteneurs, with a population of 6,000 male adults, and one of the Korales says,

"If the Matelle people had been successful, the Yatte Neurs people would have joined the rebellion, though they were quiet to the last." (Page 153 )

These are the districts immediately surrounding Kandy, and from the more remote parts of the province, Ooval in the south, and Bintenne in the east, the Government received evidence of the same readiness to join the rebellion. Rhambo-pošte, a chief of the highest clam, who held omes under

the Kandyan kings, and still retains his ancient fitle of Demare of Dovah, states to the Askistánt Government Agent, Mr. Mackenzie, that the people

of Bintenne, Welease, and Półwatte, had alre began to prepare for was by concealing their perty, and “had not timely prossesióna bonn

the country would have been rahod. The claiming of martial law was the cause of taki Pretender and the principal ringleaders.

the inhabitants knew the force of martial law and its promptituds, they were dissouraged, and afraid

to join the rehala, or

been timely Bintenne,

one and

derived

further. Had

the pro

the the progla

would have

יוי'