Port of Trincomalee.--A Remarkable Harbor.--How to get
there.--Nelson's Eulogium.--Curious and Beautiful
Shells.--Pearl Oysters.--Process of Pearl Fishing.--What are
Pearls and which are most valued?--Profit to Government.--A
Remarkable Pearl.--Tippo Sahib and Cleopatra.--The
Singhalese not Sailors.--Ancient Ruins.--Hot Springs near
Trincomalee.--"Temple of a Thousand Columns."--Valuable
Supply of Ship Timber.--Salt Manufactures.--Tenacity of Life
in the Shark.
It was long thought that Trincomalee, situated on the northeast coast
of the island, should be the commercial capital of Ceylon, because of
the excellent harbor facilities which it possesses, but various
circumstances turned the tide in favor of Colombo. Tradition tells us
that Trincomalee was founded by a colony of Malabars, many centuries
before Christ, antedating all authentic records relating to the
island. The earliest historic mention of the place refers to the
existence here of an ancient and very sacred Sivaite temple. Other
traditions touching the same period refer to a Tamil kingdom on the
opposite side of the island, ruled over by an Amazon princess, whose
capital was at Kudremale, where granite ruins, still plainly
discernible, give some authenticity to the story. Where Fort Frederick
now stands, at Trincomalee, was formerly the site of one of India's
most sacred shrines, whither pilgrims flocked annually from afar. The
harbor is remarkable for its depth of water, together with its ample
size and security against all sorts of weather which may be raging
outside of its limits. The entrance is between Fort Frederick on the
northwest and Foul Point on the southeast, and is over five miles in
width. As a strong current along the coast sets constantly to the
southward, there is always some trouble in making the port.
Trincomalee is situated about one hundred and eighty miles by land
from Colombo. The best way to reach it from the capital is by
embarking in a coasting steamer, which occupies ten days in making the
complete circuit of the island. Inland travel for long distances is
not enjoyable, and unless one has special purposes to subserve, it is
best avoided. The short and principal routes are, however,
comparatively good. There are a few rest-houses, as they are called,
owned and kept up by the government, where the traveler can find a
shelter beneath which to sleep, but that is about all; bed and bedding
he is supposed to carry with him. It is the same in India proper.
Hotels are to be found, as a rule, only in the large cities. One must
depend upon his own resources in traveling over this island, when off
the beaten tracks, and must carry along his domestic necessities.
Nelson, without due consideration we think, declared the harbor of
Trincomalee to be "the finest in the world." The place has a
population of about fifteen thousand, and is the most important
English naval station in the East, with an extensive dock-yard and
marine workshops for the refitting of large war-ships. But as to the
harbor being the finest in the world, that is an extraordinary and an
unwarranted expression. One is inclined to doubt if Nelson had visited
Sidney, Australia, Rio Janeiro, Brazil, or Nagasaki in Japan, when he
pronounced that eulogium upon Trincomalee. Hongkong, China, which name
signifies "good harbor," is infinitely superior to this vaunted port
of Trincomalee.
In the year 1672, during the possession of the island by the Dutch, a
French squadron surprised and took possession of the place, but the
Dutch immediately retook it.
The beauty, scenery, and general excellence of this harbor are
undoubtedly worthy of special mention. It is dotted with verdant
isles, and is securely land-locked, so that when the heavy monsoons
may be sweeping furiously along the coast, all is as calm inside of
Fort Frederick as an inland lake. Like the harbor of Sidney, the
entrance is dominated by two rocky headlands, but they are much
farther apart. The harbor has such depth of water as to enable vessels
of heavy draught to lie close to the shore and discharge or take in
cargo without the aid of lighters. This is a very unusual advantage in
Eastern waters. When the English took the place from the Dutch, they
added to the fortifications, intending that it should be the naval
port of the island for all time. It is the best harbor of refuge in
all India at this writing. One cannot but anticipate that England, in
the near future, must enter upon a great struggle to maintain her hold
of India. It may be from a well-organized uprising of the native
tribes, or it may originate from some outside nationality, seconded by
the natives themselves, but come it will, sooner or later. Then the
importance of Trincomalee as a naval station will be realized, while
Colombo, as a fortified depot, will be shown as second only to Malta
and Gibraltar. Trincomalee, it should be remembered, is four hundred
miles nearer to Calcutta than Colombo.
Scientists have found the harbor and immediate neighborhood of
Trincomalee remarkable not only for the reasons already named, but
more especially for its unique shells and interesting forms of marine
life. There are several groups of animals found here which creep upon
the bottom of the sea, and which are elsewhere unknown. All alongshore
one sees a queer little fish, three or four inches in length and of a
dark brown color, which has the capacity of darting along the surface
of the water, and of running up the wet stones with the utmost ease
and rapidity, as well as of creeping across the damp sand. It climbs
the smooth face of the rocks in search of flies and other insects,
adhering to the surface so firmly as to resist the assault of the
on-coming and receding waves. These little amphibious creatures are
so nimble that it is almost impossible to catch them with the hands.
The coast on this side of Ceylon has long been celebrated for the
beauty and variety of the shells which it produces, of which immense
quantities have been sent to various parts of the world. Pearl oysters
are found here in large beds, though they are obtained in greater
abundance farther north of Trincomalee, at a point ten or twelve miles
off the coast. Here, at a certain spot, beds have existed for
thousands of years, and are annually dredged for, or we should rather
say, dived for, by organized companies. Pearl oysters are also found
in large numbers in the Gulf of Manaar, between this island and the
continent of India. The season chosen for the pearl fishery, which
gives employment to large numbers of the natives, is naturally when
the sea is most calm, that is, between the termination of the
northeast and the commencement of the southwest monsoons. This period
occurs in March and the early part of April, when a fleet of pearl
fishermen may be seen anchored at the pearl banks, as they are called,
all under the supervision of a government officer, who controls the
operations.
The reader hardly requires to be told that these pearls for which
Ceylon is celebrated are found secreted within certain non-edible
oysters. The interior of this species of mussel is lined with a
beautiful transparent material called mother-of-pearl, which is
gathered and sent by the ton to Europe for delicate ornamental
purposes, especially for inlaid work. Sometimes one of these pearl
oysters will contain two or three valuable pearls, then a score or
more may be opened containing none. The divers work rapidly when
engaged in this peculiar business, fifty seconds being the average
time during which one can remain under water without coming to the
surface for breath. They descend by attaching a heavy stone to their
feet, the weight of which causes them to reach the bottom quickly,
where they rapidly gather all that can be got of the pearl oysters, in
so brief a period, into a wide-mouthed net, which is taken down with
them. At the proper signal, those who remain in the boat draw up the
net, while the diver, kicking off the stone from his feet, comes to
the surface with the speed of an arrow. In addition to the pearl
oysters, all sorts of curious marine animals, sea-slugs, black,
greasy, and hideous polypi, together with beautiful variegated shells,
come up in the diver's net. He works too rapidly while at the bottom
of the sea to discriminate as to the substances which he gathers.
After a few brief moments of quiet rest, inflating his lungs to the
full capacity, the diver descends, to again repeat his efforts
"fathoms deep."
Extravagant stories are told of these experienced pearl divers,
representing them as able to remain below the surface of the water for
four or five minutes. This is simply impossible. We were assured by
intelligent local authority that a minute and a quarter, that is,
eighty-five seconds, is as long as the best divers can remain below,
the average being considerably less. If the reader will try the
experiment of holding his breath under the most favorable conditions
and while not otherwise exerting himself, he will realize how very
brief is the time in which he can refrain from using his lungs. The
greatest depth at which the pearl oyster can be secured by the divers
is thirteen fathoms. This is nearly eighty feet, at which point the
pressure of the water is so great that the divers not infrequently
bleed at the ears on coming to the surface. It is curious to realize
that these gems which are so highly prized are composed of ninety per
cent. of the carbonate of lime.
Pearls found in the Gulf of Persia have the highest reputation, but it
must be a shrewd expert who can see any decided difference between
those which come from that region and these of Ceylon. Pearls are most
valued throughout India which have a slight golden blush or faint rose
tint, a prevailing characteristic of those found on this coast. Such
are esteemed above the finest white specimens, while the pure white,
if it has the proper lustre, is the European favorite. A true
connoisseur in pearls in this country rejoices in the rose-tinted
specimens of the gem. All colors are found on the coast of this
island,--pink, brown, and jet black.
The men employed on the coast of Ceylon are generally Tamils and
Moormen, who are well paid for their somewhat arduous services, as
wages are considered in this region, besides which, there is but a
short period in the year during which they can work at this
occupation. Sometimes they enter into a cooperative engagement,
sharing, that is, in the possible profits of the season, but as a rule
they prefer to receive prompt and sure wages, and to run no risk as
regards emolument. At this writing, there is a scarcity of pearl
oysters at the old beds, both in the Gulf of Manaar and off the
northeast coast. The pursuit of them has been so eager and exhaustive
that these bivalves have been nearly exterminated. With a wise purpose
of restoring their former abundance, the English government, which
always keeps a business eye upon the pearl fisheries, lately declared
a "close season," and in the mean time the valued pearl-bearers can
increase and multiply undisturbed. The pecuniary profit accruing to
the government of Ceylon from the pearl fisheries amounted in 1891 to
over a million rupees, while the result of some seasons' operations
has far exceeded this sum.
Not long since, a remarkable pearl was found on the northwest coast of
Ceylon,--remarkable for size and perfection of color,--at a point
where the pearl-fishing industry has been followed for thousands of
years. It would be natural to suppose that a very choice and valuable
gem of this sort would be sent to Paris, Vienna, or London, to find
the readiest and best market for its disposal, but this was not the
case. It was sent to Calcutta, where it realized to the owner a
fabulous sum, promptly paid by a native Indian prince, who retains and
would not part with it for any price. A valuable string of Ceylon
pearls ornamented the neck of Tippo Sahib, when he fell at the
storming of Seringapatam. We are also told that the pearl swallowed by
Cleopatra so long ago, when she drank to the health of Mark Antony,
came from this island.
The space over which the oyster banks extend on the northwest coast of
Ceylon is over twenty miles square in the lower part of the Gulf of
Manaar. If the oysters are gathered when too young the pearls are
small, almost valueless, and therefore a system of survey is carried
on by the English government. Buoys are regularly placed, within
which, and nowhere else on the banks, is fishing permitted during the
regular season set apart for the purpose. Some of the poorest of the
natives eat the pearl oyster, but it is neither palatable nor
wholesome. Perhaps a thousand years hence, people will be expatiating
upon the beauty of these most attractive gems of the Indian Ocean, and
natives will be diving for them.
It seems to be rather extraordinary that with so available a sea
coast, the Singhalese proper are in no wise a maritime people. Beyond
being good fishermen and good managers of boats of their own peculiar
construction, they have little or nothing to do with the ocean. They
scarcely ever embark as seamen for a long voyage, and have no ships of
their own. According to the records of Ceylon, this has been the case
from the earliest period. The Singhalese have ever been essentially an
agricultural race, a small portion devoting themselves to such simple
handicraft as life on the island demanded. They are not traders, even
in our day. Moormen, Syrian Jews, and Parsees monopolize that
occupation, and the few 'longshore sailors are all of the Tamil race.
The immediate district of Trincomalee is not populous, though the soil
is rich and the means of irrigation are abundant for a large number of
rice plantations. It is dependent upon other places for its constant
supplies of rice, fruits, and various necessaries, which are brought
from along the coast both north and south. Were it not for the
presence of the military and the occasional visit of English
squadrons, it would be nearly deserted. Sir Emerson Tennent, thirty
years ago, prognosticated great things for Trincomalee, but it will be
very long before it can come into competition with Colombo. The
breakwater was not in existence at the latter port when Sir Emerson
wrote. That important structure, with other harbor improvements, has
settled the question as to which shall be the permanent commercial
centre of Ceylon. There are several hot springs, eight miles from the
town, known as the Wells of Kannya. More than ordinary interest
attaches to this supply of hot water because of the absence of all
signs of volcanic action in the neighborhood. These hot springs, in
addition to the hygienic properties claimed for them, are much
resorted to by the devout, as they are dedicated to Kannya, the mother
of Rawana. Those who have lost near and dear friends by death come to
the wells to perform certain appropriate ceremonies. Hot springs
equally remarkable are found at or near Bintenne, Batticaloa, and also
at Badulla. The water of these flowing hot wells is said to be pure,
and of such temperature as to be fit for cooking. The natives of
Ohinemutu, New Zealand, boil their vegetables and meat in similar
springs, as the author can testify from personal observation. The
ruins of a temple dedicated to Ganesa show that this vicinity was
once, ages ago, the resort of worshipers of that god of wisdom. This
elephant-headed deity would seem to be an especially appropriate one
for worship in Ceylon, if any dumb animal is to typify such an idea.
In any instance, it does not seem so repulsive as the serpent worship
still in existence near Jaffna. Special medical virtues are claimed
for the waters to which we have referred,--the hot wells. It is stated
that fishes actually live in them where the temperature is 115 deg.. Ten
miles north of the city are the largest salt works of the island, the
product of which is nearly all exported to Calcutta. Fifty thousand
bushels have been produced at Nillavelle alone in a single season,
though the "pans" are simple clay embankments, the construction of
which involves but little labor. The process of obtaining salt is to
expose shallow quantities of sea water to the intense rays of the sun.
Evaporation is rapid in these tropical regions. The saline crystals
remain, and are gathered from the pans.
It is recorded that an extensive range of temples dedicated to Siva
once existed here, but were leveled to the ground by the Portuguese,
who employed the stone material thus obtained for the building of the
local fortifications, in which stones crop out here and there, bearing
elaborate carvings and other evidences of having originally served
some other special purpose.
The few official buildings in Trincomalee are substantial and
serviceable structures, but the town is poorly arranged, and not very
interesting to a stranger. Even the bazaars are unattractive, though
these places in the East are always a study of local life. A few Hindu
temples give an oriental appearance, and, as we have shown, the place
is of great antiquity. It was once the site of a famous shrine,
visited by hordes of people from all parts of continental India, which
is reverentially mentioned in early records of the island as the
"Temple of a Thousand Columns." The author believes this to be the one
destroyed by the Portuguese, the material of which served them for
building purposes. Unfortunately, this is in the midst of a malarial
district, and is consequently avoided by Europeans, except those whose
official connections compel them to live here. Trincomalee, however,
has some great advantages as a commercial port which cannot be
ignored. The proper clearing of the surrounding jungles in the near
future, and the introduction of a system of modern drainage, will
eventually remedy this evil, at least in a considerable degree.
The neighboring district affords an unlimited supply of the valuable
teak timber, suitable for shipbuilding, together with ebony,
satinwood, ironwood, and other choice woods available for cabinet
work, which are exported in certain quantities, though not to a large
amount. The ironwood-tree is so named from its intense solidity and
durability. It also forms a highly ornamental tree when growing, and
is planted in large numbers near the temples. No one can fail to
admire its broad white flowers, which are marvelously fragrant, and
the rich, polished green of its foliage. It has another striking
beauty common to several species of tropical trees, namely, the young
leaves and shoots are so red as to clothe the tree at times with a
rich mantle of crimson, almost rivaling in effect the magnolia-like
blossoms. Hereabouts, but particularly to the northward on the Jaffna
peninsula, the palmyra palm is found in profusion, with its black
straight stem crowned by a thick sheaf of pinnate leaves. This tree is
said to live three hundred years. Of all the varieties of the palm,
the palmyra, with the exception of the date, has the widest
geographical distribution. The Tamils have a proverb to the effect
that "The palmyra lives for a lac of years after planting, and lasts
for a lac of years when felled."
An observant person occasionally notices a handsome, thrifty tree with
dark and abundant foliage, which bears a fruit as large as a lemon and
of the same color. Though this fruit resembles an orange and looks
quite tempting to the uninitiated, it is dangerous and to be avoided,
for within its pulp lies the seed which produces the deadly poison
known as strychnine. The natives believe it to be an antidote to the
poisonous bite of the cobra, but doubtless it would prove equally
fatal.
There is no deficiency of fruit trees in this north-western district.
The jack especially abounds with its valuable product, each one of
which weighs from ten to twenty pounds. The tamarind also thrives, and
yields its fruit without care or thought on the part of man. Here and
farther north the blue lotus with lilac petals is sprinkled over the
ponds and lakes in vast quantities.
There are some extremely interesting and mysterious ruins not far
inland from Trincomalee, which show remains of handsomely carved stone
work, such as the capitals of tall monoliths, but of whose real
history nothing is known. Even legend fails us here, and groping
conjecture is at fault. Two thousand years and more have passed away
since these structures were reared. Not only have the temples,
monuments, and palaces once existing here nearly crumbled into dust,
but it is even forgotten who their builders were. What a comment upon
the pride which gave them birth. What lessons history teaches us
touching this folly. Egyptian kings, ages ago, built pyramids to
contain their mummified bodies; in the nineteenth century of our
period, these mummies are sold to European museums as curiosities.
The salt marshes and lagoons in this vicinity are famous for the
multitude of aquatic birds and waders which frequent them. Among these
the prevailing species are egrets, herons, sandlarks, and plovers,
while in the jungle great numbers of the pea-fowl are to be met with
at all seasons of the year. The Ceylon pea-fowl, of which we have
before spoken, is remarkable for its size and the beauty of its
plumage. It is unmolested by the natives, but Europeans find the flesh
palatable and nutritious. All this country is stocked with a great
variety of small birds, such as finches, fly-catchers, thrushes, and
the ubiquitous sparrow, as well as their natural enemies, eagles,
hawks, and falcons,--birds of prey which exhibit most wonderful
sagacity in seeking for victims with which to appease their appetites.
They remain securely hidden until a small bird is seen upon the wing,
when they dart towards it with a rapidity quite impossible for the
human eye to follow. In a moment after the rapacious bird is first
seen, it is again observed sailing leisurely away to make a meal upon
the quarry clasped in its talons.
Though sharks are known to be common all along the coast of the
island, still in the harbor of Trincomalee they are particularly so,
where the huge saw-fish also abounds, from ten to twelve feet in
length, including the powerful weapon from which it derives it name.
Many lives have been sacrificed, first and last, to the man-eating
sharks in this beautiful harbor and along the neighboring coast, where
Europeans have been tempted to bathe in the cool, refreshing waters of
sheltered inlets. Some tragic stories are related to the stranger as
to the murderous doings of these monsters of the deep. It is a
singular fact that the dreaded sharks rarely if ever attack the
natives, and so far as we could learn no lives are sacrificed to them
by the pearl divers in the season of their operations. The author has
observed the same discrimination exercised between the whites and the
blacks by this destructive creature in the waters of the West Indies.
Inhabitants of St. Thomas, for instance, dive for sixpences thrown
into that land-locked harbor, with entire immunity from danger, but
certainly no white man would dare to bathe in the same place. Knowing
that sharks abound in the neighboring waters, one actually hesitates
when tempting the negro lads to dive for coins, though assured that
the sharks never molest them.
So also at Aden, situated at the mouth of the Red Sea, the
copper-colored natives of the straits of Bab-el-Mandeb dive with
entire confidence in those waters, for silver coin thrown from the
ship's deck; but were the body of a European sailor to strike the
water, it would be devoured by the sharks in a moment; at least, so we
were assured by our captain. Like the tiger and the crocodile, it is
said that a shark which has once tasted human blood neglects
henceforth all other sources of food supply in order to watch for the
bodies of men, women, and children. A shark has been known to follow a
ship closely five thousand miles across the ocean, from San Francisco
to Yokohama. The identity of the creature was established by the fact
that a part of a whale-lance protruded from its body, showing that it
had been wounded in some former encounter with seamen, perhaps in
their effort to rescue a comrade from its terrible jaws.
It may be proper to mention in this connection that the shark referred
to was finally captured before entering the harbor of Yokohama, by
means of a stout line and shark-hook baited with a large piece of salt
pork, and was promptly dispatched.
A special industry among certain natives in the vicinity of
Trincomalee is the collection and classification of marine shells,
which they do with a certain degree of scientific knowledge. They are
placed in neatly made satin wood boxes, and either sold to visiting
strangers or shipped to European markets. Sometimes the covers of the
boxes are beautifully inlaid with small shells. The profusion and
variety of these mineral sea flowers of Ceylon have long been known.
Conchologists visit the island solely to collect examples of their
favorite study. An earnest and intelligent collector might add many
treasures of species heretofore unknown, or rather undescribed, by
employing a dredge from a common boat, just off the northeast shore of
the island.
The edible oysters obtained hereabouts are really enormous, measuring
eight inches and more in length, and four or five in width. Such giant
oysters are not so inviting to the palate as those found on our own
shores, but they are cooked and eaten both by the natives and by
European residents. The natives make great use of shrimps or prawns,
which they mingle with other ingredients in forming their favorite
dishes of rice and curry.
The tortoises taken on this shore are thought to yield the best and
finest shell for combs. It was necessary, in behalf of a spirit of
humanity, to promulgate a law forbidding the roasting of tortoises
alive, and taking off their shells during the process, which was done
in order to obtain the shell of a finer lustre than is yielded after
the animal's death. It seems that a people whose religion forbids the
taking of life even in the case of the meanest insect can draw the
line at fish, and, calling the tortoise a fish, can proceed to be thus
outrageously cruel.
Tortoise-shell forms one of the most universal and attractive items of
native manufacture, and great skill is evinced by the natives in the
production of combs of various shapes, together with bracelets and
charms, the latter often mounted in silver. The workmen of Trincomalee
and Point de Galle have made a specialty of tortoise-shell
manufactures since the time of the Romans. Strabo, the Greek
geographer and historian, speaks of this. The pale yellow shell is the
rarest and most expensive. Like the choicest jewels, specimens of this
sort find the best market in continental India, but the home
consumption of shell combs is enormous; every male Singhalese of any
pretension in the southern part of Ceylon wears one, and the majority
wear two in their long, straight hair.
The manner of dress among the Singhalese, the mode of wearing their
hair, and the assumption of shell combs by the men afford singular
evidence of the unchanging habits of an Eastern race. Seventeen
hundred years ago, Ptolemy, speaking of these people, designates the
same peculiarities which exist to-day. "The men," he says, "who
inhabit Ceylon allow their hair an unlimited growth, and bind it on
the crown of their heads, after the manner of women." It is also
curious that this custom should be confined to the Singhalese of the
southwest coast near Colombo. It is not a custom of the interior, or
of the northern portion of the island.
Almost every stranger, upon first landing at the capital, speaks of
the effeminate appearance of the men. With their delicate features,
their lack of beards, their use of hair-combs and earrings, together
with the wearing of an article of dress almost precisely similar to a
petticoat, it is often difficult at first to distinguish them from the
other sex.