It had never been disturbed: but it has since
shared the fate of many other places.
The open forest in the vicinity of the lake abounded with deer. Grassy
glades beneath the shady trees give a park-like appearance to the scene,
and afford a delightful resort for the deer.
In strolling through these shady glades you suddenly arrive among the
ruins of ancient Pollanarua. The palaces are crumbled into shapeless
mounds of bricks. Massive pillars, formed of a single stone, twelve feet
high, stand in upright rows throughout the jungle here and there over an
extent of some miles. The buildings which they once supported have long
since fallen, and the pillars now stand like tombstones over vanished
magnificence. Some buildings are still standing; among these are two
dagobas, huge monuments of bricks, formerly covered with white cement,
and elaborately decorated with different devices. These are shaped like
an egg that has been cut nearly in half, and then placed upon its base;
but the cement has perished, and they are mounds of jungle and rank
grass which has overgrown them, although the large dagoba is upwards of
a hundred feet high.
A curious temple, formed on the imperishable principle of excavating in
the solid rock, is in perfect preservation, and is still used by the
natives as a place of worship: this is presided over by a priest. Three
large images of Bhudda, carved out of solid rock, occupy the positions
in which he is always represented; that in the recumbent posture is
fifty-six feet long, cut from one stone.
I was strolling through these ruins when I suddenly saw a spotted doe
feeding among the upright pillars before mentioned. I was within twenty
yards of her before she was aware of my vicinity, and I bagged her by a
shot with a double-barrelled gun. At the report of the gun a herd of
about thirty deer, which were concealed amongst the ruins, rushed close
by me, and I bagged another doe with the remaining barrel.
The whole of this country must at one time have been densely populated;
perhaps this very density may have produced pestilence, which swept away
the inhabitants. The city has been in ruins for about 600 years, and was
founded about 300 years B.C. Some idea of the former extent of the
Ceylon antiquities may be formed from the present size of the ruins.
Those of Anarajapoora are sixteen miles square, comprising a surface of
256 square miles. Those of Pollanarua are much smaller, but they are
nevertheless of great extent.
The inhabitants of the present village of Topari are a poor squalid
race; and if they are descended in a direct line from the ancient
occupants of the city, they are as much degenerated in character and
habits as the city itself is ruined in architecture. Few countries can
be more thinly populated than Ceylon, and yet we have these numerous
proofs of a powerful nation having once existed. Wherever these lakes or
tanks exist in the present day, a populous country once flourished. In
all countries which are subject to months of drought, a supply of water
is the first consideration, or cultivation must cease. This was the
object in forming the tanks, which are especially numerous throughout
the Tambancadua district. These tank countries afford a great diversity
of sport, as they all abound with wild fowl, and snipe in their season
(from November to May). During the time of drought they are always the
resort of every kind of wild animal, which are forced to the
neighbourhood for a supply of water.
The next tank to Topari is that of Doolana; this is eight miles from the
former, and is about the same extent. In this district there are no less
than eight of these large lakes. Their attractions to rogue elephants
having been explained, it may be readily understood that these gentry
abound throughout the district. I shall, therefore, select a few
incidents that have happened to me in these localities, which will
afford excellent illustrations of the habits of `rogues.'
Having arrived at Doolana, on the 5th April, 1847, with good Moormen
trackers, who were elephant-catchers by profession, I started for a
day's sport, in company with my brother B. This particular portion of
the district is inhabited entirely by Moormen. They are a fine race of
people, far superior to the Cingalese. They are supposed to be descended
from Arabian origin, and they hold the Mohammedan religion. The
Rhatamahatmeya, or head man of the district, resides at Doolana, and he
had received us in a most hospitable manner. We therefore started direct
from his house.
Passing through a belt of low thick jungle, exactly in front of the
village, we entered upon the plain which formed the border of the tank.
This lake is about three miles in length, but is not more than a mile in
width in its widest part, and in some places is very much less. The
opposite side of the tank is fine open forest, which grows to the
water's edge, and is in some parts flooded during the wet season. At
this time the soil was deep and muddy.
This was not a place visited by sportsmen at that period; and upon
arriving at the margin of the lake, an exciting view presented itself.
Scattered over the extent of the lake were `thirteen rogue elephants;'
one was not a quarter of a mile from us; another was so far off he could
hardly be distinguished; another was close to the opposite jungle; and
they were, in fact, all single elephants. There was an exception to
this, however, in one pair, who stood in the very centre of the tank,
side by side; they were as black as ebony, and although in view with
many brother rogues, they appeared giants even among giants.
