It is very extensive; the streets are handsome, broad,
and clean; the houses only one story high, and surrounded by
verandahs and colonnades. The population is reckoned at about
80,000 souls, of whom about 100 are Europeans, exclusive of the
troops, and 200 descendants of Portuguese colonists, who founded a
settlement here some centuries ago. The complexion of the latter is
quite as dark as that of the natives themselves.
In the morning I attended mass. The church was full of Irish
soldiers and Portuguese. The dress of the Portuguese was extremely
rich; they wore ample robes with large folds, and short silk
jackets; in their ears hung ear-rings of pearls and diamonds, and
round their necks, arms, and even ankles, were gold and silver
chains.
In the afternoon I took a walk to one of the numerous cinnamon
plantations round Colombo. The cinnamon tree or bush is planted in
rows; it attains at most a height of nine feet, and bears a white,
scentless blossom. From the fruit, which is smaller than an acorn,
oil is obtained by crushing and boiling it; the oil then disengages
itself and floats on the top of the water.
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