There are many _devil priests_. When any one is sick, it is supposed that the devil has caused the sickness, and a devil priest is sent for. And what can the priest do? He dances,--he sings,--with his face painted,--small bells upon his legs,--and a flaming torch in each hand; while another man beats a loud drum. He dances, he sings--all night long,--sometimes changing his white jacket for a black, or his black for a white,--sometimes falling down, and sometimes jumping up,--sometimes reeling, and sometimes running,--and all this he does to please the devil, and to coax him to come out of the sick person. This is what he _pretends_;--but in _reality_, he seeks to get money by his tricks. The people are very fond of these devil-dancers; it _tires_ them to listen to the Buddhist priests, mumbling out of their books, the five hundred and fifty histories of Buddha; but it _delights_ them to watch all night the antics of a devil priest. What is the character of these deceived people? They are polite, and obliging, but as deceitful as their own priests. They are not even _sincere_ in their wrong religion, but are ready to _pretend_ to be of any religion which is most convenient. The Portuguese once were masters of Ceylon, and they tried to make the people Roman Catholics. Then the Dutch came, who tried to force them to be Protestants. Many infants were baptized, who grew up to be heathen priests. Now the English are masters of Ceylon; they do not _oblige_ the people to be Christians, yet many pretend to be Christians who are not. A man was once asked, "Are you a Buddhist?" "No," he replied. "Are you a Mahomedan?" "No." "Are you a Roman Catholic?" "No." "What is your religion?" "Government religion." Such was his answer. This man had no religion at all,--he only wished to obtain the favor of the governor. But will he obtain the favor of the Governor of the world, the King of kings? We have said nothing yet about the appearance of the Cingalese. Both men and women wear a piece of cloth wound round their waists, called a comboy; but they do not, like the Hindoos, twist it over their shoulders; they wear a jacket instead. Neither do the men wear turbans, as in India, but they fasten their hair with a comb, while the women fasten theirs with long pins. The Cingalese ladies and gentlemen imitate the English dress, especially when they come to a party at the English Governor's house. Then they wear shoes and stockings instead of sandals; the gentlemen contrive to place a hat over their long hair, by first taking out the combs; yet they still wind a comboy over their English clothes. The Hindoos do not thus imitate the English, for they are too proud of their own customs. Hindoo ladies never go into company; but Cingalese ladies may be seen at parties, arrayed in colored satin jackets, and adorned with golden hair-pins, and diamond necklaces.