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Bible Encyclopedias
Ceylon
The Nuttall Encyclopedia
or A pear-shaped island about the size of Scotland, separated from India, to which it geographically belongs, and SE. of which it lies, by Palk Strait, 32 m. broad; comprises a lofty, central tableland with numerous peaks, the highest Tallagalla, 8000 ft., and a broad border of well-watered plains. It was an ancient centre of civilisation; the soil is everywhere fertile; the climate is hot, but more equitable than on the mainland; the chief products are tea, cinnamon, and tobacco; the forests yield satin-wood, ebony, &c.; the cocoa-nut palm abounds; there are extensive deposits of iron, anthracite, and plumbago; precious stones, sapphires, rubies, amethysts, &c., are in considerable quantities; the pearl fisheries are a valuable government monopoly. The chief exports are tea, rice, cotton goods, and coals. Two-thirds of the people are Singhalese and Buddhists, there are 6000 Europeans. The island is a crown colony, the largest in the British Empire, administered by a governor with executive and legislative councils; the capital and chief port is Colombo.
Public Domain.
Wood, James, ed. Entry for 'Ceylon'. The Nuttall Encyclopedia. https://www.studylight.org/encyclopedias/eng/nut/c/ceylon.html. Frederick Warne & Co Ltd. London. 1900.
