George E. de Silva:

Champion of the poor

The fifty-seventh death anniversary of the late George Edmund de Silva fell on March 12. He was the third son of a famous ayurvedic physician, who migrated to Nuwara Eliya from the South in 1870 and set up a lucrative practice in the British era.

He owned the ‘Orange Tree House’ at the foot of the Pidurutalagala mountain, with a large garden of roses. He was a very enthusiastic golf and tennis player and on March 12, 1950 died from a stroke followed by a heart attack while playing at the Peradeniya golf course with a few Englishmen friends. He was 71 years of age at the time of his sudden death. His brother lawyer Timothy de Silva was the first Ceylonese golf champion.

George Edmund de Silva was a very prominent politician in the Donoughmore era of Sri Lanka history. He was a tall, sturdily built, fair, handsome and jovial man with a constant smile and attracted the attention and friendship of all whom he met. He began his career as a journalist. He was a reporter at the ‘Ceylon Independent’ and later worked in the editorial staff of the then famous ‘Times of Ceylon'. He had a brilliant command of the English language, having being tutored by the famous English scholar at Nuwara Eliya, Henry Young. He entered the Law College, Colombo, being a student of the then famous Lorenz College of Colombo. He passed the proctors final exam in 1900s and went to Kandy and within a short period established a very lucrative practice.

The Kandy Bar at that time was dominated by Dutch Burgher lawyers and they resented the entry of the new comer George, and on the first day all lawyers including a few Kandyan aristocrats walked out of the Bar, but the English magistrate remained, and George won his first case, much to the consternation of those who boycotted the courts. Subsequently he found it difficult to get a chair in the court house, and he got his valet to bring one.

He married Agnes the only daughter of Paul Nell who was the provincial engineer, from the cream of Burgher society. George was a very keen ballroom dancer and quiet adept in dancing and singing. He met Agnes at many of these parties and subsequently married her in grand style.

George entered politics as a ward member for Katukelle in the Kandy Municipal Council and in 1931 was elected to the first State Council of Ceylon for the Central Province seat, which extended from Dambulla to Nuwara Eliya. He handsomely defeated Sir Gerard Wijekoon and Kandyan lawyer Albert Godamunne who were prominent in the country's politics.

He was subsequently re-elected and held the Kandy seat for 16 years. He was appointed as the Health Minister by the then Prime Minister D S Senanayake and held this portfolio for five years, and in the next Parliament was the first Industries and Fisheries Minister.

The racial riots between the Sinhalese and Muslims started at Gampola in 1915 and spread to Kandy and within a few days to all parts of the country except to the North and East. Many Sinhalese national leaders and professional men from many areas were jailed and some were tried by ‘kangaroo courts’ presided over by Justices of Peace, who were mostly senior British planters. The Martial Law was enacted and Punjabi troops were brought from India. They harassed the Sinhalese people which irked George very much and it proved to be a watershed in George’s political advancement.

He fought against the injustices meted out to the Sinhala people by Governor Chalmer and went to England along with E. W. Perera, another national hero of this era, and had this British Governor recalled. He fought valiantly to save the lives of young Hewavitharana and D G Pedris.

He commenced the Mura-Pola Ela irrigation scheme in Hewaheta and many barren lands were irrigated and paddy and vegetable cultivation commenced in the Kandyan areas. As the Health Minister he established the first ayurvedic hospital having come from a generation of famous ayurvedic physicians from Galle, Nuwara Eliya and Matara areas. He established 250 cottage hospitals in rural areas as malaria was rampant at that time. He introduced the system of spraying DDT to eradicate malaria breeding mosquitoes all over the island.George E de Silva died a poor man. His tea estate in Kandy was sold on a mortgage although once he was the co-owner of the largest coconut estate in Sri Lanka.

He had a palatial bungalow overlooking the Hantane Range and the Dumbara Valley. All his wealth was spent to help the poor people. He gave a helping hand to many poor students and looked after his enemies at the time of distress.

His worst enemy in the Kandy Bar was Cox Sproule a leading Burgher lawyer. He spoke against British excesses during the Martial Law and was arrested and detained at Diyatalawa camp to be shot dead. His wife came and fell at George’s feet. It was a remarkable day for George to travel to Diyatalawa in the height of martial law and get the release of his enemy by forcefully arguing the case.

When you enter the Kandy city you could see the memory statue erected by the grateful people of Kandy at the George E. de Silva Park, as a fitting tribute to the selfless service he rendered for five decades.

“In this monument as in the hearts of the people for whom he lived and laboured, the name of George E de Silva is enshrined. Born: 8.6.1879. Died: 12.3.1950.”

L B Abeyratne

Bhadranie Jayawardene:

English teacher with knowledge in mathematics

Born in Ambalangoda in the 1930's she was popularly known as M.A. Bhadranie as there were several other contemporaries of the same name, but how many of them are aware that M.A. Bhadranie departed a year ago?

I remember her as a sisterly aunt and I was rather attached to her as she was only about twelve years older than me. Besides, she was the only person in our household of a plethora of trained English teachers, who had some knowledge in mathematics. So I used to bring home mathematical sums and problems and go to her for guidance. She would work the problem into many pages to get the answer. At the end of the exercise I became hapless as I could not understand any of it. Well, English and maths do not go together.

But, she was a respected teacher of the English language in so many schools; Revatha Vidyalaya of Balapitiya, Maha Vidyalaya of Induruwa, Deniya Central and Weeraketiya Maha Vidyalaya to name a few in the Galle-Matara regions. At about these junctures she was proposed by her charming husband Bandula Jayawardene and their marriage materialized in double quick time. They then moved to Colombo as uncle was working in the Tea Control Department. There was no turning back as they shifted to Malabe in 1975. In the second stint in Colombo she taught English from Wesley College, Borella to a number of schools in Borella, Battaramulla and Malabe. Her pupils in all the island-wide schools marginalized in thousands but her demise was uninformed and may be still unknown to the majority of her students. Oh tempora oh mores!

Her marriage to Bandula Jayawardene culminated in two pretty daughters. The elder one now prosperous in Australia, the other a senior executive in a foreign bank. They are both jewels in the crest of my aunt.

What really happened? She was the harbinger of a detestable illness that was a mystery. She played netball in school and was a certified oriental and Kandyan dancer and a deft drummer. But she waxed a very bad sweet-tooth. In her late forties she got the inevitable blood sugar.

The doctor's advice was not heeded and she ended up in Diabetes Melitus. This parlous situation was not anticipated by her and was over-sighted. Her sweet tooth was still revelling and she went into a hyper-glycemic state, and was admitted for three weeks in an Intensive Care Unit (ICU).

She left this world in a very humble manner inside a cold room.

I sometimes get the feeling that her subconscious mind may have been so pleased with this cold, cozy, calm slumber and no living person would have had such a chance.

Her parting reached one year on March 7th and she would continue her journey through sansara helping other beings and collecting the blessings till someday she accomplishes her goal of total emancipation.

May she attain this emancipation sooner!

Pinsiri Jayasinghe

Karel Roberts:

She loved Royal College

Karel Roberts my good friend and erstwhile colleague passed away on February 5th and was buried that Wednesday, according to Buddhist rites. I do not know details of her journalistic career but what I do know is that Karel's colour pieces which she wrote with so much of fervour can never be matched. I do not think anyone in her era could have written the kind of colour pieces she wrote.

Karel was not the patronizing kind. To my knowledge I do not think she would have patronized any place using her position as a journalist, as many present day journalists are won't to do. Of course she loved a good drink and good food but she would never patronize anyone to obtain this. In the latter part of her life, her drinking became a worry and many are the times I have taken her to Dr. Hazari to be treated, till in the end her relative Angelie intervened and we had to wean her off liquor before she could be kept at an elder's home.

I came to know her much later in life and became very close to her. I worked with her at the Island newspapers but I really palled up with her when I joined Lake House.

We used to travel together after work and what a hilarious time we had on our journey home. She lived in Ratmalana and I in Dehiwela.

She was a wonderful entertainer. I kept her with me at my home for a short spell when she was unwell, and how she entertained us with her jokes and regaling her stories.

Karel was very happy to be in the company of my son because he was a Royalist and to her Royal was all the world. Karel had family links with Royal College. I do not know the details but I think many of her family members were distinguished old boys and this was the reason for her love for Royal. She simply loved Royal College. It was as if she schooled there although, she was a Bishopian.

Come big match time, and she will be getting ready with all kinds of blue and gold attire to ‘grace’ the Royal-Thomian.

I don't think any old boy of Royal looked forward to the Royal-Thomian match as much as she did.

Latterly she lost interest because she did not have a proper place to live. It was at this time that her cousins in Australia found out about her and followed it up and sorted it out for her with the able assistance of another cousin's daughter Angelie who took care of her from this end.

May the turf lie lightly over her. Goodbye Karel.

Fahima Farisz