Nevertheless, V. B.
started off, and arrived in Badulla that evening. On the same pony he
pushed on to Newera Ellia, thirty-six miles, the next day; and then
taking a fresh horse, he rode into Kandy, forty-seven miles, arriving in
good time on the evening of the 30th November.
Having parted with V. B., we saddled and mounted, and, following our
guide through a forest-path, we arrived at Curhellulai after a ride of
four miles. Nothing could exceed the wretchedness of this place, from
which we had been led to expect so much. We could not even procure a
grain of rice from the few small huts which composed the village. The
headman, who himself looked half-starved, made some cakes of korrakan;
but as they appeared to be composed of two parts of sand, one of dirt
and one of grain, I preferred a prolonged abstinence to such filth. The
abject poverty of the whole of this country is beyond description.
Our coolies arrived at eight A.M., faint and tired; they no longer
turned up their noses at korrakan, as they did at Monampitya, but they
filled themselves almost to bursting.
I started off V. B.'s coolies after him, also eight men whose loads had
been consumed, and, with a diminished party, we started for Bibille,
which the natives assured us was only nineteen miles from this spot. For
once they were about correct in their ideas of distance. The beautiful
'Park' country commenced about four miles from Curhellulai, and, after a
lovely ride through this scenery for sixteen miles, we arrived at the
luxurious and pretty village of Bibille, which had so often been my
quarters.
We had ridden a hundred and forty miles from Minneria, through a country
abounding with game of all kinds, sixty miles of which had never been
shot over, and yet the whole bag in this lovely country consisted of
only three elephants. So much for hurrying through our ground. If we had
remained for a week at the foot of the Gunner's Coin we could have
obtained supplies of all kinds from Doolana, and we should have enjoyed
excellent sport through the whole country. Our total bag was now
wretchedly small, considering the quantity of ground that we had passed
over. We had killed nine elephants and two deer. V. Baker had a
miserable time of it, having only killed two elephants when he was
obliged to return. The trip might, in fact, be said to commence from
Bibille.
This is a very pretty, civilized village, in the midst of a wild
country. It is the residence of a Rhatamahatmeya, and he and his family
were well known to me. They were perfectly astonished when they heard by
which route we had arrived, and upon hearing of our forty-eight hours of
fasting, they lost no time in preparing dinner.
