It Is Very Extensive; The Streets Are Handsome, Broad, And Clean; The Houses Only One Story High, And Surrounded By Verandahs And Colonnades.

The population is reckoned at about 80,000 souls, of whom about 100 are Europeans, exclusive of the troops, and 200 descendants of Portuguese colonists, who founded a settlement here some centuries ago.

The complexion of the latter is quite as dark as that of the natives themselves.

In the morning I attended mass. The church was full of Irish soldiers and Portuguese. The dress of the Portuguese was extremely rich; they wore ample robes with large folds, and short silk jackets; in their ears hung ear-rings of pearls and diamonds, and round their necks, arms, and even ankles, were gold and silver chains.

In the afternoon I took a walk to one of the numerous cinnamon plantations round Colombo. The cinnamon tree or bush is planted in rows; it attains at most a height of nine feet, and bears a white, scentless blossom. From the fruit, which is smaller than an acorn, oil is obtained by crushing and boiling it; the oil then disengages itself and floats on the top of the water. It is mixed with cocoa- oil and used for burning.

There are two cinnamon harvests in the course of the year. The first and principal one takes place from April to July, and the second from November to January. The rind is peeled from the branches by means of knives, and then dried in the sun; this gives it a yellowish or brownish tint.

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