ousands of years back have
been settled here. The colour of their skin is very dark, almost
black, their hair is not woolly, their features are regular, and
their build is exceedingly fine. The children especially, who, while
they are small, often go completely naked, with their regular
features, their large eyes, and fresh plump bodies, are veritable
types of beauty, and the same holds true of most of the youths.
Instead of buying in one of the capitals of Europe the right to draw
models, often enough with forms which leave much to desire, and
which must be used without distinction for Greek or Northern
divinities, for heroes or _savants_ of the present or former times,
an artist ought to make tours of study to the lands of the south,
where man does not need to protect himself from the cold with
clothes, and where accordingly nakedness is the rule, at least among
the poorer classes. The dress which is worn here is commonly
convenient and tasteful. Among the Singhalese it consists of a piece
of cloth wound round the middle, which hangs down to the knees. The
men, who still prefer the convenient national dress to the European,
go with the upper part of the body bare. The long hair is held
together with a comb which goes right over the head, and among the
rich has a large four-cornered projection at the crown. The women
protect the upper part of the body with a thin cotton jacket. The
priests wear a yellow piece of cloth diagonally over one shoulder.
The naked children are ornamented with metal bracelets and with a
metal chain round the waist, from which a little plate hangs down
between the legs. This plate is often of silver or gold, and is
looked upon as an amulet.

The huts of the working men are in general very small, built of
earth or _cabook_-bricks, and are rather to be considered as sheds
for protection from the rain and sunshine than as houses in the
European sense. The richer Singhalese live in extensive "verandas"
which are almost open, and are divided into rooms by thin panels,
resembling in this respect the Japanese houses. The Japanese genius
for ornament, their excellent taste and skill in execution, are
however wanting here, but it must also be admitted that in these
respects the Japanese stand first among all the peoples of the
earth.

In the seaport towns the Singhalese are insufferable by their
begging, their loquacity, and the unpleasant custom they have of
asking up to ten times as much, while ma