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Charles Henry de Soysa:

The great philanthropist

Do you know whose statue is at the Town Hall Eye Hospital roundabout in Colombo - right in front of the old Eye Hospital? It is one of the very old statues in the city of Colombo. It is the statue of Charles Henry de Soysa, a great philanthropist. It would not be wrong to name him the greatest philanthropist in the 19th century Ceylon. His statue was erected at that spot, because the Eye Hospital was built by him at his own expense, for the benefit of the people of his homeland. It was the only Eye Hospital in the country for a long, long time.

When you next travel that way, have a close look at the statue and if possible read the inscription.

C. H. de Soysa is wearing a long coat that reaches below his knees, and a cloth over his trousers. This was the usual attire of the English speaking gentlemen of the time. He has a key in his right hand which he is stretching out as if to give it to somebody. This is a symbolic gesture; to show that he is giving away his wealth the key to his treasury.

A new Eye Hospital was built close by in 1958-59 or thereabouts and the building was for a time used for offices of the Health Department.The women's hospital at Borella was also built and donated to the Government by C. H. de Soysa. That's why it is named De Soysa Hospital for Women.

His philanthropy was boundless. He donated to the Government land and money for a model agricultural farm - 87 acres behind Kanatta and 10,000 sovereigns. Today the name Model Farm Road, which forms one boundary of Kanatta is all that is left to remind us of the model setup on de Soysa's land with his money.

Although C. H. de Soysa lived in a mansion in Colombo, donating vast sums of money for the general welfare of the people, he did not forget his hometown - Moratuwa. The two leading Colleges in Moratuwa, Prince of Wales and Princess of Wales are also monuments to his magnificent generosity. Both schools were declared open on the same day - September 14, 1870.

The boys' school was named Prince of Wales in honour of and to commemorate the visit of the Prince of Wales to Ceylon. The Prince of Wales who became King Edward VII, was the great, great, grandfather of Prince Charles, who is now the Prince of Wales.

The girls' school adjoining the boys' school was very appropriately named Princess of Wales. Both schools are by the Galle Road.At the time of the Prince of Wales' visit, C. H. de Soysa was living in his mansion in Kollupitiya. The land on which the mansion stood extended from Tunmulla to Flower Road. C. H. de Soysa entertained the Prince to a banquet in his home.

The royal guest was served on plates of gold. This is true, not something made up by those who reported the event.

From that day the de Soysa home became Alfred House because the Prince of Wales name was Alfred Edward.

There is no Alfred House now and roads that criss-cross the mansion's sprawling grounds bear names which are like memorials to the mansion and its owner - Alfred Place, Alfred House Avenue, Alfred House Gardens, Charles Place and Charles Circle.He was undoubtedly the richest man in Ceylon at that time. How did he become so rich, acquiring so much land and money?

Charles Henry de Soysa - note that he spelt his name with and S and so do all his descendants - was born on March 3, 1836. Every year on March 3 his descendants gather and lay wreaths at the statue, as a mark of respect and remembrance.

He was the only son of Warusahennedige Joronis de Soysa. Joronis de Soysa was already a wealthy man when his son was born.

After his father's death in 1862 he inherited hundreds of acres and other movable and immovable properties. Young Soysa brought those vast acres of land under cultivation. The income from these lands he invested in mines and oil mills and this increased his income.

His father's younger brother, Wasala Mudaliyar Susen de Soysa, had no children. So C. H. de S inherited his properties too. In 1863 he married Catherine, the daughter of another wealthy man Jusey de Silva and got a big dowry.

During the coffee boom he had 16,000 acres under coffee, mainly in Hanguranketa in the Kandy district.

He also had coconut and cinnamon plantations. When he died in 1890 he owned 27,000 acres of land, oil mills and fibre mills and large mansions in Colombo, Moratuwa and Kandy. The present day Soysa Pura with its housing scheme was once a well-maintained coconut plantation known as Lady Catherine Estate.This giant landlord and great philanthropist had a sad and unexpected death. Bitten by a mad dog he passed away on September 29, 1890. 'Why did such a fate befall a great and generous man," was the thought in everyone's mind as they watched his coffin being lowered into the grave at St. Emmanual's Church in Moratuwa which had been built by his father Warusahennedige Joronis de Soys.

- Sumana SAPARAMADU

Chimpanzees have police officers, too

Chimpanzees are interested in social cohesion and have various strategies to guarantee the stability of their group. Anthropologists now reveal that chimpanzees mediate conflicts between other group members, not for their own direct benefit, but rather to preserve the peace within the group. Their impartial intervention in a conflict -- so-called “policing” -- can be regarded as an early evolutionary form of moral behaviour.

Conflicts are inevitable wherever there is cohabitation. This is no different with our closest relatives, the chimpanzees. Sound conflict management is crucial for group cohesion. Individuals in chimpanzee communities also ensure that there is peace and order in their group.

This form of conflict management is called “policing” -- the impartial intervention of a third party in a conflict. Until now, this morally motivated behaviour in chimpanzees was only ever documented anecdotally.

However, primatologists from the University of Zurich can now confirm that chimpanzees intervene impartially in a conflict to guarantee the stability of their group. They therefore exhibit pro-social behaviour based on an interest in community concern. The more parties to a conflict there are, the more policing there is. The willingness of the arbitrators to intervene impartially is greatest if several quarrellers are involved in a dispute as such conflicts particularly jeopardize group peace. The researchers observed and compared the behaviour of four different captive chimpanzee groups. At Walter Zoo in Gossau, they encountered special circumstances: “We were lucky enough to be able to observe a group of chimpanzees into which new females had recently been introduced and in which the ranking of the males was also being redefined. The stability of the group began to waver..

This also occurs in the wild,” explains Claudia Rudolf von Rohr, the lead author of the study. Not every chimpanzee makes a suitable arbitrator. It is primarily high-ranking males or females or animals that are highly respected in the group that intervene in a conflict. Otherwise, the arbitrators are unable to end the conflict successfully.

As with humans, there are also authorities among chimpanzees.

“The interest in community concern that is highly developed in us humans and forms the basis for our moral behaviour is deeply rooted. It can also be observed in our closest relatives,” concludes Rudolf von Rohr.

- ScienceDaily