Brachmana Wansa, descendants of Brahmans. Wiepa Wansa, cultivators and shepherds. Shoodra Wansa has 60 subdivisions.
The Rhodia race is regarded as unclean ; very numerous ; forbidden to approach a temple, or auy of the higher castes.
The Gataroo is an outcaste race.
Burgher is the name applied to those of mixed European and native origin. One race in Ceylon wear their hair, which is long and luxuriant, dressed like a woman's, with one or two very large tortoiseshell combs fastened in it, which, to a European eye, imparts a peculiarly unmanly look to the wearer. The dress of women differs little from that of men, but they mostly wear a kind of bodice with long sleeves. An aversion to carry ing the lightest burden prevails in Ceylon, and the poorest tradesman or servant generally employs a coolie to carry a bundle which a gentleman would take in his hand.
The vegetable productions of Ceylon are coffee, cinnamon, coir, sugar, rice, tobacco, cotton, cocoa, areca nuts, cocoanuts, cardamoms, pepper, rice, arrowroot, maize, manioca, arrack, cocoanut oil, essential oils of cinnamon, citronella, and lemon grass, dye - wood, ebony and other furniture woods. The sugar-cane was brought to Ceylon from the Mauritius by a merchant of Colombo about 1832. European settlers have largely en gaged in coffee planting. This latterly became less remunerative, and tea, cacao, cinchona, and the Liberian coffee were introduced. At the end of 1880, about 5400 acres were under cacao. In 1880 the export of cinchona bark was 1,161,989 lbs., valued at Rs. 12,00,000. The mineral and animal products are precious stones, pearls, ivory, and thank shells. Precious stones are found in the flat country around Ballansgodde, S.E. of Rat napura,. on the western plains between Adam's Peak and the sea ; at Neueraellia, in Oovah, at Kandy, at Matelle in the Central Provinces, and at Ruanelle near Colombo, at Matura, and in the beds of the rivers eastward towards the ancient Mahagam ; but the chief gem district is in the plains at the foot of the stupendous hills of Saffragam. The ruby, amethyst, topaz, sapphire, and cinnamon stone, are found in great abundance, but not emeralds. Spinell, chryso beryl and corundum are also found. Sapphires, red, purple, yellow, blue, white, and star-stone, are met with at Matura and Saffragam, and rubies and sapphires in the neighbourhood of Avisavelli, and on the Neuraelliapatam. The corundum of Batta
gamana is frequently found in large six-sided prisms, and is commonly of a brown colour, from which it is called by the natives Curundu gallc, cinnamon stone ; occasionally it is to be met with partially or entirely covered with a black crust, which is merely the stone with an unusual pro portion of iron. In the beds of the rivers south and cast of the mountain chain in 'Ceylon, the sands are so rich in comminuted fragments of mica, quartz, sapphire, ruby, and jacinth, as in some places to be used by lapidaries in polishing the softer stones, and sawing elephants' grinders into plates. Dr. Gygax considered the original matrix of these rubies to be a stratum of decomposed grey granite at YE= Pohura on the south-eastern decline of the Pettigallo Kandy. Corundum is very plentiful at Battagamana, on the banks of the river Agiri Kandurn. The great bulk of the gems, however, come from Ratnapura,. which means the city of gems. Ceylon affords all the varieties of quartz, as rock-crystal, amethyst, rose-quartz, cat's eye, and prase. Rock-crystal occurs in abundance, both massive and crystallized, of various colours, good quality, and in large masses. Amethyst also is pretty abundant ; very beautiful specimens are found in the alluvion, derived from the decomposition of gneiss and granite rock, in Saffragam and the Seven Korles. Adularia is very abundant in some parts of the interior, particularly in the neighbourhood of Kandy, where it is occasionally the predominating ingredient of the rock. Ceylon produces the finest cat's eyes in the world,—indeed, the only kind that is highly esteemed, and that bring a high price. The best specimens have been found in the granitic alluvion of Saffragam and Matura. Prase is of rare occurrence amongst the pebbles on the shore of Trincomalee. Belonging to the schorl family are topaz and schorl. The topaz commonly passes under the name of the `white or water sapphire.' It is generally white, or bluish or yellowish white; it is commonly much waterworn, perfect crystals of it being very rare. It occurs in many places in the alluvion of granitic rock.