a.ilwn.y system of the Island of Ceylon is owned and worlr~d by t h Ceylon Government. It comprises 605 miles of line of .',-foot, G-inch gauge and 95 miles of %foot 6-inch gnuge, with 11 8 miles of extensions and branches under construction or bring snrveyrtl. This Paper describes the d.nmage at certain places on t h e h o d -g a u g e line from Colombo to Kandy and Bandarawels., and Gn the branch from Kandy to Mntale, which occurred during the north-east monsoon in January, 1913, the

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... repairs made, and the permanent work since carried out a t those points. The climate of the island is very wet in the southern and central porticns and dry in the nortl~. The mountn.in range lying somewhat south of the centre breaks the force of the wind in either the south-west or the north-east nlonaoons, the incoming moistureladen currents are trapped in the gorges, and produce heavy and continuous rains for long periods, causing damage to the railway by slips and subsidences through the mountain country, and heavy floods which result in washouts in the low country. The average annual rainfall ranges from 85 inches in Colombo on the southwest coast to 220 inches a t Padupola in the mountain district, whi!e a t Jaffna in the north it is 48 inches. I n certain districts, owing t80 the configuration of the country, it varies considerably in neighbowing localities. Downloaded by [ Syracuse University] on [11/09/16].