As they approached Colombo there were occasional glimpses of houses among the trees, and the boys were not surprised to learn that the cocoa forest was considered a desirable place of residence for the foreigners in Colombo who could afford homes out of the city. Avenues of palms led from the road to the dwellings, and in several instances there were evidences of liberal expenditure and excellent taste in the arrangement of the houses and their surroundings. Seven or eight miles from Colombo the planter called the attention of the boys to an island that was just visible through the trees, and was separated from the land by a very narrow channel. He explained that it was a favorite resort of the foreigners in Colombo when they wished to indulge in sea-bathing, and that a railway had lately been completed to it. It was about eight o'clock in the morning when the coach rolled from the edge of the forest and out upon an open space which is used as a drilling-place for troops, and also for the races in which the residents of the city indulge occasionally. On the sea-front of this area the surf was breaking, and the pure breeze from the waters was a grateful refresher after the ride of the night. As they rose to the crest of the ridge the boys came in sight of the red walls of the city; in less than a quarter of an hour they were at the door of the principal hotel of Colombo. [Illustration: SCENE ON THE COAST NEAR COLOMBO.] CHAPTER XVIII. SIGHTS IN COLOMBO.--RAILWAY JOURNEY TO KANDY. Colombo consists of two parts, "The Fort" and "The Black Town." The Fort includes the foreign quarter: the government offices are here, and also the principal hotels and warehouses, as well as the residences of the English inhabitants. The Black Town, or Pettah, is made up of a mixed population, principally natives and half-castes, with a sprinkling of Moormen, Parsees, and other nationalities more or less uncertain. The Pettah formerly extended close up to the Fort, but when the Dutch were about to be attacked by the English, near the end of the last century, they cleared a space of several hundred yards, and it has remained clear ever since. Our friends took a stroll through the Fort and down to the harbor, where they found a miscellaneous collection of ships from the coasts of India and Ceylon, and from other parts of the world. The harbor is accessible only to small vessels of native construction: foreign ships are obliged to lie farther out, and to land and receive their cargoes and passengers in lighters and row-boats. When the south-west monsoon is blowing the surf rolls unpleasantly from the sea, and the operation of landing or embarking is a serious one for nervous persons. A long pier or breakwater was begun in 1875, and the authorities promised to have it completed within ten years from the date of commencement. When finished, it will afford shelter for large ships, and greatly increase the importance of Colombo.