dn't look on. I always said that if snakes would let me
alone, I would let them alone. But they brought all sorts of things to
sell: embroideries of all kinds, carved ivory, tortoise shell and all
kinds of jewels. Paris and London gits some of their finest jewels
here.

Men and wimmen are all bejewelled from head to foot, children up to
ten years of age are almost always naked, but wearin' bracelets,
anklets and silver belts round their little brown bodies, sometimes
with bells attached. Some of the poorer natives chew beetle nuts which
make their teeth look some like an old tobacco chewer's. They eat in
common out of a large bowl and I spoze they don't use napkins or
finger bowls. But unlike the poor in our frozen winter cities, as
Arvilly said, there is little danger of their starving; warm they will
be from year's end to year's end, and the bread tree and cocoanut palm
supply food, and the traveller's palm supplies a cool, delicious
drink. There is one palm tree here--the talipot--that blooms when
about forty years old with a loud noise and immegiately dies. Arvilly
said that they made her think of some political candidates.

Dorothy and Robert Strong and Miss Meechim wanted to go to Kandy, the
capital of Ceylon, only seventy milds away, to see the tooth of
Boodha. Miss Meechim said she wanted to weep over it. She is kinder
romantic in spots, and Josiah hearn her and said, soty vosey, to me,
"You won't ketch me weepin' over any tooth unless it is achin' like
the Old Harry."

But I kinder wanted to see the tooth. I had hearn Thomas J. read a
good deal about Prince Siddartha, Lord Buddha, and how he wuz "right
gentle, though so wise, princely of mean, yet softly mannered, modest,
deferent and tender hearted, though of fearless blood," and how he
renounced throne and wealth and love for his people, to "seek
deliverance and the unknown light."

I had always pictured him as looking more beautiful than any other
mortal man, but of this more anon.

Josiah and Arvilly concluded to go too; it wuz only a four hours'
ride. We passed coffee plantations, immense gardens and forests full
of ebony trees, the strange banion tree that seems to walk off all
round itself and plant its great feet solidly in the earth, and then
step off agin, makin' a hull forest of itself, and satin wood trees,
and India rubber, bamboo, balsam, bread fruit, pepper and cinchony or
quinine bushes, tea and rice plantations. Our road led up the mounta