passing. There are
jugglers, dancers, and musicians of various nations, whose chank shells and
other musical instruments are ornamented with gold. The distance from the
principal gate to the opposite gate is four gaws (sixteen miles); and from
the north gate to the south gate four gaws. The principal streets are Moon
Street, Great King Street, and Great Sandy Street. In Chandrawakkawidiya
are eleven thousand houses, many of them being two stories in height; the
smaller streets are innumerable. The palace has immense ranges of
buildings, some of two, others of three stories in height; and its
subterranean apartments are of great extent."

Sir J. E. Tennent gathers from various ancient sources, including the
veritable Mahawanso, that Anuradhapura, between four and five
centuries before Christ, contained the temples of various
religions,--"temples and palaces whose golden pinnacles glittered in
the sky,"--besides spacious public gardens and free baths, together
with almshouses and hospitals, in which animals as well as human
beings were tenderly cared for.

One king gave the "corn of a thousand fields" for the support of the
hospitals, another set aside a certain quantity of rice to feed the
squirrels which frequented the city gardens, while a third monarch
displayed his skill in treating the diseases of elephants, horses, and
domestic cattle. The streets were lined with grand shops and bazaars.
On festive occasions, barbers and dressers were stationed at each
entrance to the capital for the convenience of strangers who visited
the city. Public officials vied with each other in their patriotic
deeds designed for the public good.

In one corner of the widespread ruins of Anuradhapura there is now a
small village, with a Christian mission and school for the native
children. There are also a few bazaars, a post-office, telegraph
station, and a court house, which serve, by affording a strong
contrast to the former splendor which reigned here, to emphasize the
historic grandeur of the defunct capital.

CHAPTER IV.

Oriental Dagobas.--Ancient City of Pollonarua.--Laid out
like our Modern Capitals.--Unexplored Ruins.--Elaborate
Stone Carvings.--Colossal Stone Figure.--The "Buried
Cities."--The Singhalese not a Progressive People.--Modern
History of Ceylon.--Captured by the English.--The
"Resplendent Island."--Commercial Prosperity.--Increasing
Foreign Population.--Under English Rule