o find either Nowell or Mr Fordyce, I saw a figure emerge
from some ruins on my right, and approach the late. It was that of an
old man. His skin was of a dark brown, and he wore a long white heard,
with a loose robe cast over his shoulder and round his loins. His whole
appearance was in thorough keeping with the scene. He filled a gourd he
carried with water, and was returning to the place he came from, when
his eye fell on me. He started on seeing me, and then, putting down his
water-pitcher, advanced towards where I was sitting. I rose to receive
him, as I should have done had he been the poorest peasant; but from the
dignity of his air and the gravity of his countenance, he seemed to be
much above that rank. He salaamed, and so did I, imitating his action;
but it appeared that here our power of intercourse must cease, for I
soon discovered that he did not understand a word of my language more
than I did of his.

"Though I cannot speak to him, I will try, however, what effect signs
may have," I said to myself.

I set to work at once. I took my stick and drew an outline of the shape
of the island on the sand. Then I made a mark in the position of Kandy,
and another on the east side to show the position of Trincomalee,
clearly pronouncing the names of those two places. Then I mounted my
stick, to show that I was riding along from one to the other, and I put
my arm out in the shape of a trunk, to show him that there were
elephants, and I changed my stick from hand to hand, by which I wished
him to understand that there were a number of people with us. Having
marked a line somewhere between Kandy and Trincomalee, I drew some tents
on the sand, and seizing my gun, and putting it next to the stick twice,
to show that two people accompanied me, I ran on as if in chase of
animals. Then I left my stick and ran up to the ruins, and putting my
head down to the ground, showed that I had slept there. Then I got up
and ran about in different directions, to show that I could not decide
which way to go. The old man seemed fully to comprehend me, and I
understood by the signs he made that if I would accompany him to his
abode, he would show me the way I was to take. I accordingly followed
him, when, taking up his gourd of water, he led me to a small hut in
front of a large and aged pippul-tree, a species of banyan or Indian
fig. The tree was surrounded by a wall covered with a variety of carved
work. There were step