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NAGKON WAT: PRINCIPAL EAQADE

THE LAND

OF THE

WHITE ELEPHANT
SIGHTS AND SCENES IN SOUTH-EASTEBN ASIA.
A PERSONAL NARRATIVE OF TRAVEL AND ADVENTURE
IN
FAETHEE INDIA,
EMBRACING THE COUNTRIES OF
BURMA, SIAM, CAMBODIA, AND COCHIN-CHINA.
(1871-2).
By FRANK VINCENT, Jun.

WITH MAP, PLANS, AND NUMEROUS ILLUSTRATIONS.

NEW YORK:
HARPER & BROTHERS, PUBLISHERS,
FRANKLIN SQUARE.
l874.

Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by
Harper & Brothers,
In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.

TO

BARON HENRY CALICfi,
MINISTER-RESIDENT AND CONSUL-GENERAL OF
HIS I. AND R. AP. M. THE EMPEROR OF AUSTRIA, KING OF HUNGARY, ETC.,
IN CHINA, JAPAN, AND SIAM,
WITH PLEASANT REMEMBRANCE OF RARE EXPERIENCES IN
SHANGHAE, CHEFOO, AND PEKING,

€l*is Volume,

DESCRIPTIVE OF THE PEOPLES AND COUNTRIES OF INDO- CHINA,

Is SratefuUg Inscribe!).

PREFACE
Within the past five years especially the attention
of the western world has been earnestly and anxious
ly directed to many of the countries of Asia — -to
Burma, Siam, Cambodia, and Cochin-China amongst
others — where unusual and extraordinary innovations
have been introduced, where encouraging social and
rehgious revolutions have been initiated, and where
' modern progress ' is now so rapid as almost to
raise fears of dangerous reaction or even collapse.
Last year the Kings of Siam and Cambodia left,
for the first time in history, their capital cities, and
travelled in search of instruction and pleasure, the
one to Java and India and the other to Hong Kong
and Peking.
Opinions, laws, customs, even religions, which
have been rooted and established for ages, are gra
dually undergoing change, and a change on the whole
for the better. And still there are no countries in
Asia, where the arts of civilised life are understood,
of which we have so limited a knowledge as those
which He between the Bay of Bengal and the China

vm PREFACE
Sea. Although during the present century some
thing has been learned, yet much remains to be
told ; a great deal of important information has to
be gathered before we can claim a full and true
acquaintance with the kingdoms and protectorates
of Farther India — their present condition, capabilities,
and prospects. A country of 1,000,000 square miles
in area and 25,000,000 inhabitants — having a won
derfully productive soil and a greatly extended
commerce — with which the unavoidable march of
events shows we are soon to have more intimate
relations, certainly merits a careful study.
A three-years1 journey round the world — the great
er part of the time occupied in which was devoted to
the study of Man and Nature in the various lands of
southern and eastern Asia (from Persia to Tibet, to
Mongolia and Japan), and but recently completed —
included visits to Farther India or Indo-China (as it
is also styled) in the years 1871-72. And the fol
lowing pages contain a personal narrative of travel
and adventure in Burma, Siam, Cambodia, and Cochin
China, for which little else is claimed than the merit
of being true.
F. V., Jr.

CONTENTS

BURMA

CHAPTER I

Steamer ' Oriental ' — Glances at Indian Towns — First View of Land-
Approach to Burma — Shipping — The Rangoon River — Rangoon City — Ar
rival — Search for Quarters — Historical — Description of the City — Population—
The Shoay Dagon, or Golden Pagoda — Temples — Great Bell of Rangoon —
Its Inscription — Generous Treatment — Other Pagodas . . . page 1
CHAPTER II
BURMESE MANNERS AND CUSTOMS
The Burman Bace — Ethnology — Houses— Dress — Tattooing — Food — Infant
Smokers — Jewellery — The Oath of a Witness in Court — Language and Litera
ture — Religion — Leave Bangoon for Mandalay . . 11
CHAPTER III
UP THE IRRAWADDY
The ' Colonel Phayre ' and ' Pegu ' — My Fellow-Passengers — The Irra-
waddy Eive.r — Scenery — Myanoung — Budhist Idols — Market — ' Arakan
Hills ' — Eiver Boats, Canoes, and Cargoes — Burmese Characteristics — The
' Marriage-knot ' — Prome — ' All Quiet at the Capital ' — A Eoyal Eeligious
Gift— Mengla . . .21

X CONTENTS
CHAPTER IV
PAGHAN AND THE OLD CAPITALS
The Kingdom of Ava — Yaynan-gyoung — Petroleum Wells — Euihs of Pag-
han — Counterpart of an English Archbishop of the Middle Ages — Large
Pagoda of Indian Model — Ava — Amarapoora — Changes of Capital — The
'¦ Golden City ' at last  page 31
CHAPTER V
MANDALAY
The Landing — Great Bell of Mengoon — Mr. Seng-Ko's Letter — First View
of the City — The Suburbs — Eoads — Fires — Chinese Dwellings — Population —
The City— Walls ; Gates ; Streets ; Canals— The Palace Walls— Eoyal Guards—
The Pakhan Mengyee, or Foreign Minister — A Burmese Eegiment of Infantry
— Palace, Square — The ' Grand Hall of Audience ' — The Prime Minister's
Breakfast — Conversation with the Yaw-Ahtween-Woon, or Minister of the In
terior — The ' Governor of the Glass Manufactories ' — Government Accounts —
The King's Throne and Audience Chamber . . .38
CHAPTER VI
AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF AVA
Our Party and Presents —King Mounglon Appears— The Eoyal Person —
Presentation to His Majesty — A Spy — Tempting Offers — A Veritable ' Houri '
— The King's Eeign — The Government — Tyranny and Monopoly — Some Appre
ciation of the Advantages of Western Civilisation — Native Account of the
Introduction of the Electric Telegraph ... .54
CHAPTER VII
THE WHITE ELEPHANT
The White Elephant, not White— The King ' out of sorts '—The White
Elephant in the Sixteenth and Eighteenth Centuries— The White Elephant at
the Present Day— His Majesty's ' Pass '—Writing Material and Books — A
Burma-Chinese Tiffin — Odd Use of Tea Leaves — The Bazaars — Coins ; In
terest; Barter; Prices— The Market — The Eoyal Navy — The King's Barge. 65

CONTENTS xi
CHAPTER VIII
BHAMO AND THE OLD TRADE ROUTE
Leaving Mandalay — The Upper Irrawaddy — Domesticated Fish — Grand
Defile — Mineral and Vegetable Eesourcesof Ava— Old Trade Eoute to China —
By Bail to the Makong Eiver — Bhamo — Shan Emigrants — The Laos Tribes —
The Hide Trade — Our Cargo — The English Cantonment at Thayet-myo —
Genpral Norman and Secretary Seward — Change of Monsoon — Proposed Over
land Trip to Bangkok — Prome Again — Arrival at Rangoon . . page 74
CHAPTER IX
FROM MAULMAIN AND PENANG
Amherst — Maulmain — Timber- Yards — Sagacity and Usefulness of the
Elephant — Departure for Penang — Chinese Passengers ; their Life on Board —
The Bishop of Rangoon, Eight Rev. T. Bigandet — First View of Penang —
The Island — Province Wellesley — Georgetown — General Appearances — Visit
to 'Penang Mountain' — The Waterfall — The Signal Station — Magnificent
View — Eeturn to the Steamer — The Mangosteen — The Dorian — The Straits of
Malacca  84
CHAPTER X
TO MALACCA AND SINGAPORE
The Town of Malacca — Chinese Burying-ground — A Portuguese Tiffin — Old
Cathedral— Captain Semmes' Piracy— Approach to Singapore — The Harbour—
' H6tel d'Europe.' — The Island and its Products — The ' Town of Lions ' — The
American Consul — View from Fort Canning — The Governor's House — Chinese
Temple— The Market — European Country Houses— New Harbour — Cocoanut
Plantations— Coir-Eope Manufactory— Hon. Mr. Whampoa's Gardens— A Sago
Manufactory  99

xn CONTENTS

SIAM

CHAPTER XI
BANGKOK
A Short Digression — Steamer ' Martaban ' — The Gulf of Siam — Mouth
of the Menam Eiver — Paknam — A Siamese Custom House — The River and
its Scenery — The City — Consulates of the Western Powers — My Hotel — The
Royal Secretary— The American Consul — A Row through the City — The
Thoroughfares— Floating Houses — Boats and Canoes — Rice Factories — A Huge
Pagoda — General Appearance of Bangkok — Wat Cheng Pagoda — Siamese
Drama and Music — Wat Sah Prah Tam — Large Chinese Temple — A Ride tc
the Palace Buildings ......... page 115
CHAPTER XII
EXCURSION TO PECHABURI
The Second King's Private Secretary — The Canal — The Country — A Royal
Sanitarium — American Mission Station — The King's Summer Palace — Cave
Temples — Huge Idol — The 'Reclining' Budha — A Laos Village — Return to
Bangkok .  . 133
CHAPTER XIII
AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF SIAM
The Second King — The Consuls — The Palace — Audience with His Majesty
— Personal Appearance and Character of the Second King — Cigars, Coffee, and
a Pleasant Talk — Grand Parade of the Palace Guards — The Royal Military
Bands — Bonzes Seeking Alms —Interview with the Regent of Siam — His Grace
Chow Phya Sri Sury Wongse — The ' Real Ruler of Siam ' . . . 145
CHAPTER XIV
A DAY IN THE PALACE
White Elephants— Budhist Reverence for White Quadrupeds — Sir John
Bowring's Gift — Why the White Elephant is so Specially Revered — A Badge
of Distinction— Two Royal Claims to the Title of ' Master of Many White
Elephants' — The Arsenal of Artillery — 'Coining Manufacture' — The Wat

CONTENTS XI 11
P'hzaKeau; or, Temple of the Emerald Idol — Description; Exterior and In
terior — Library of Budhist Sacred Books — The Supreme King's Palace — Wat
Poh; Gigantic Image of Budha — Preparation for the Overland Excursion to
Angkor — Our Official Passport — Farewell to Bangkok . . . page 1 60
CHAPTER XV
ACROSS SOUTHERN SIAM
Canal Travel — Bang pa Kong River — Pachim — The Governor — Interview
with His Excellency — The Citadel — Remarkable Trees — A Paddy-Mill —
Horses ; Bullocks ; and Carts — A Siamese Dinner — Scenery of the Road —
Kabin — Gold Mine — The Forest and its Wild Inhabitants — Quinine — We
Pass the Boundaries of Ancient Cambodia — Our Night Bivouacs — Sesupon —
Siamese Elephant, Saddle, and Driver — Fish Traps — Panoum-sok — The
Governor's Wife . . . 175
CHAPTER XVI
SIAMRAP
Ancient Stone Bridge — Ride in a Bullock-Cart — A Border Town — A Mar
riage Festival — Another Native Dinner — Presents from the Governor — A
Water- Wheel — Canoes and Barges — The Walls and Houses — The Palace —
Interview with the Governor — His Excellency's Band — Tiesumi, of Travel —
Preparations and Start for Angkor and Nagkon Wat . . 199
CHAPTER XVII
THE RUINS OF ANGKOR: THE GREAT TEMPLE
Preliminary Observations — Description of the Great Nagkon Wat; Exterior
and Interior — No Cement Used in Construction — Quarry Thirty Miles
Distant— A Half a Mile of Sculptured Wall — One Hundred Thousand Separate-
Figures — Bas-Reliefs of the ' Grand Gallery ' — Fifteen Hundred Solid Columns —
Galleries, Image Houses, Pagodas — Figures of Budha — Who Built the Won
derful Nagkon Wat ? — When was it Built ? — Native Account — Its Great Anti
quity Established — The Lost Tribes of Israel — Our Opinion — Inscriptions,
Ancient and Modern — Former Cannot be Deciphered, and Latter throw no
Historical Light — Chinese Discovery, and Portuguese Re-Discovery — Nagkon
Wat from the year 1295 to 1872 . .... 209

XIV CONTENTS
. CHAPTER XVIII
A CAMBODIAN MARRIAGE FESTIVAL
Other Ruins — Lailan — The Royal Lake, Sasong — Visit to Siamrap — Letter
from the Governor of Siamrap to the Prime Minister of Cambodia — Dinner
at the Palace — Siamese and Chinese Viands Compared — Gold Betel-Boxes,
Cigar-holders, Cups, and Dishes — Invitation to Accompany some Chinese
Travellers toPanompin — The Marriage Festival — The Bride and Bridegroom —
The Ceremony— The Grand Banquet— Nak Prat, the ' Wise Man '—The Go
vernor's Idea Concerning the Builders of Angkor — The Wedding Presents —
We Return to Nagkon Wat .... ... page 228
CHAPTER XIX
THE RUINS OF ANGKOR: THE CITY AND ENVIRONS
A Visit to the Old City — Tradition of the Power and Magnificence of the
Ancient Kingdom of Khaman — The Walls — Large Temple — Colossal Faces
of Budha built in the Pagodas — The Poh Trees — Idol Cells — The Leper King —
Founders of Angkor — Is the Religion of Budha Identical with that of Ancient
Egypt? — Did the Egyptians build Angkor City and Temple ? — Resemblance of
Budhism to Christianity — The Royal Palace — Custodian of the Ruined City —
Remains of an Observatory — Immense Stone Griffins — The Elephant-headed
' Ganesh' of the Hindoo Mythology — Image Houses — Description of the
Observatory — Extensive View — An Evening Call — Parting from my Fellow-
Travellers  239

CAMBODIA

CHAPTER XX
SIAMRAP TO PANOMPIN
Preparations — My Cochin-China Servant — An Amusing Dinner — The Start
for Lake Thalaysap — Road to the Lake — Description of our Boat — Campong
Pluk—A. Fishing Village— Vexatious Delays— A Second Start— Enter ' Sweet-

CONTENTS XV
Water" Lake — Pass the Boundary of Siam and Cambodia — Boat Life in
Cambodia — 'Joss' on Board — The~Mesap River — Villages — Eiver Fishe
ries — Oodong, the Old Capital — Views on the River — Approach to Panom-
pin . . . . . page 255
CHAPTER XXI
PANOMPIN
General Appearances — Panompin from the River — An Interpreter and
Friend — Description of the Capital of Cambodia — Roads; Shops; Popula
tion — Inhabitants; their Dress — Miriano, the Interpreter — The Chief Aide-
de-Camp — The Prime Minister — His Reception Hall — The Palace Inclosure —
Details of the Royal Palace ... . . 269
CHAPTER XXII
AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF CAMBODIA
Norodom I. — Conversation with His Majesty — The Greatest Fete ever
Celebrated — Interior of the Palace — The Drawing-room — Apartments of the
Harem — Dining-room — Large Orchestral Music Box, with a Wonderful
Mechanical Bird — The King's $1,000 Watch — The Library— His Majesty's
Bed-room — Gold and Silver Toilet Services — Pictures — Observatory and
Telescope — Reflections — The Artificial (stone, silver, and gold) Mountain —
Cutting off a Princess's Hair — The King an Inveterate Smoker — Palace
Guards . . ... . ... 277

CHAPTER XXIII
WALKS ABOUT THE CITY
An Old Pagoda — Music at the Palace — Machine Shops— The King's Private
Office — Ambassadors' 'Audience Hall' — Supreme Court — Royal Theatre —
Barracks — His Majesty's Stables — Horses presented by Napoleon III. —
Description of the Old Capital, Oodong — A Telegram from Saigon — My Last
Interview with the King — The Royal Carriage and Cavalry Escort — A Royal
Cambodian 'Swell:' the King in Semi-European Garb — Present of a Gold
Box — The Theatricals — Our Boat and Crew — Adieu to Panompin . . 289

XVI CONTENTS

COCHIN-CHINA

CHAPTER XXIV
PANOMPIN TO SAIGON
The Great Makong River — Products of the Country — Enter Cochin-China —
Chaudoc — Citadel and Garrison — French Justice — Lang-Xuen, Chadec, and
Mitho — Intendant's Residence — French Settlement — Delta-ground of the
Makong— The Creek — Chinese Merchant-Boats— Chalen — Ride to Saigon —
Ancient Annamite Tombs — Arrive at the City— Congratulations — Times and
Distances of the Overland Journey from Bangkok . . . page 298
CHAPTER XXV

Brief Geographical Notice — First Impressions — The River: Gunboats and
Shipping — Hotels and Cafes — Population — Administration — Streets — Botanical
Garden — Government House — Business — The 'Toiler of the East' — Schools
for Annamites — Army and Navy — Police System — Morals— Climate: Dis
eases — Language — ' France in the East ' — Colonisation — The Makong as a
Water-Road — The Value of Cochin China — The Songkoi as a ' Back Way ' to
the Yang-tse-kiang — The Saigon River — Departure — Conclusion . . 306

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

FULL-PAGE ENGRAVINGS

1. Nagkon Wat: Principal Facade . . . . Frontispiece
BURMA
2. Great Shoay Dagon, or Golden Pagoda (Rangoon) . 5
3. Gaudama, the last Budha . . to face page 6
4. Burmese Image-House . . . 24
5. View of the City of Mandalay . . 38
6. Budhist Monastery . . . .41
7. The Palace, Mandalay. . . ... 44
SINGAPORE
8. The Fan Palm— 'The Traveller's Fountain' . . . .109
SIAM
9. General View of Bangkok and the Menam River . . 1 1 fi
10. His Majesty the King of Siam . . 118
11. Temples and Pagodas at Bangkok . . 125
12. Wat Cheng Pagoda, Bangkok . . .126
13. Brass Idol in Temple, Bangkok . . 130
14. Supreme King of Siam in his State Robes . . 132
15. The Second King of Siam in his State Robes . 145
16. Temple of the Emerald Idol . . . 165
17. Siamese Gentleman and Lady . . . 197
2

xviii LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
RUINS OF ANGKOR
18. Nagkon Wat: Entrance West of the First Enceinte (inner view)
to face page 209
19. ,, „ North-West Edicule . . . .210
20. „ „ Peristyle of the GaUery of Bas-Reliefs . . .214
21. Sculptures at Nagkon Wat . . . . . 216
22. Nagkon Wat : Fragment of Bas-Relief ... 218
23. Colonnade at Nagkon Wat  220
24. The Grand Staircase, Nagkon Wat . . .222
25. View from Central Pagoda, Nagkon Wat . . . 224
26. Angle of the Great Court of the Temple . . .227
27. Sculptures at Entrance to Nagkon Wat  238
CAMBODIA
28. His Majesty the King of Cambodia  277
29. Queen of Cambodia and Royal Children  283
30. Panompin, the Capital of Cambodia  289
COCHIN CHINA
31. Cochin Chinese Prince and Attendants  299
32. Street View, Saigon  306
33. Government House, Saigon (French, recently completed) . . 308
34. Annamite Lady  310

SMALLER ENGRAVINGS

Page
1. Burmese Woman  ... 13
2. Burmese Judge, Clerks, and Attendants . . 17
3. Copy of an Old Burmese Painting ... 19
4. Irrawaddy River-Boat  25

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

XIX

5. Elephant employed in a Timber-Yard, Maulmain
6. A Budhist Priest .
7. Temple of the Sleeping Idol, Bangkok .
8. The Royal Guards
9. The Regent of Siam .
10. The Minister of Foreign Affairs
11. Siamese War-Elephant
1 2. Cambodian Female Band .
13. Priests' Houses, Nagkon Wat
14. Sculptures in the City of Angkor ,
15. Columns of Nagkon Wat
1 6. Wooden Idol
1 7. The Leper King .
18. Banks of the River Mesap, Cambodia
19. Annamite Female
20. Gift from the King of Cambodia .
21. Makong River-Boats
22. Annamite Male ....
"23. Annamite Soldiers

Page 80
. 89
128152 155
157
. 195
. 207
. 211214
. 217 241
243
. 266
287
. 295
304
. 309 311

MAP AND PLANS

Sketch Map of the Author's Route.
Plan of the Province of Siamrap ; showing the location of the Ruins of Angkor.
Ground Plan of the Great Nagkon Wat, in Eastern Siam.

I JY X>

OCEAN

MAP OF
For ' The Land of th e White Elephant"

M? Vincent's route—-
English Miles.

300 400

Harper A.. Brothers. New J&i*.

THE LAND
OF
THE WHITE ELEPHANT
CHAPTEE I.
RANGOON
It was at daybreak on the 2nd of April, 1871, that
we — an English friend was with me — first saw the
shores of Burma. We had been a short time at sea,
having left Madras eight days previously, but the end
of the voyage was none the less welcome, for it was
about the season that the monsoon changes, and those
terrific revolving storms called cyclones sweep the
upper part of the Bay of Bengal, so often with fatal
effect. Our steamer was the ' Oriental' (Capt. Smith).
We had a full list of passengers, many of them being
English officers, who were ordered from various Indian
stations to the cantonment of Tounghoo, on the Sittang

2 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
river, in north-eastern Burma. The route usually taken
by these steamers — calling at Masulipatam, Coconada,
Vizagapatam, and Bimlipatam on the coast of India,
and thence nearly due east to Eangoon — is about a
thousand miles in length.
We enjoyed a remarkably pleasant voyage. Masu
lipatam was reached on the second day. This town
is of importance only as being the nearest seaport to
the large city of Secunderabad, in the Nizam's dominions
of Southern India. In 1865 a tremendous cyclone
and tidal wave destroyed thirty thousand of the in
habitants, and nearly all the buildings of the town. Co
conada is a larger town than Masulipatam, and from it
are exported large quantities of cotton, castor-oil, seeds,
and grain. On the third day we anchored off Viza
gapatam, a large town, most picturesquely situated on
a plain surrounded by gently sloping hills, near the sea
shore. The houses are built of mud and unburnt
bricks ; and crowning the summits of several of the
nearer hills are graceful little temples ; and at their bases
date and cocoa palms, whose green-, feathery leaves
add very much to the beauty of the scene. Leaving
Bimlipatam — a simple cluster of mud huts — we saw
nothing but sky and water until the hghthouse on the
Alguada reef, fifteen or twenty miles distant from Cape

RANGOON 3
ISTegrais (the south-west extremity of Pegu), rose up
from the ocean's bed before us. It is erected on a very
dangerous reef, more than a mile in length, and much
of which is only just above water at low tide. The
shaft, built of a red stone, is 160 feet in height, and,
no land being in sight, certainly presented a most
singular appearance ; however, with our binoculars we
could distinguish two or three lines of billows dashing
themselves one after another upon the dark rocks.
Soon after ' sighting ' the land we received on board
the pilot, and then half an hour's steaming brought us
to the mouth of the Bangoon river, with its low,
wooded shores, and red obelisks on either headland —
warnings to the mariner. Sandbanks, whose edges are
marked by large iron buoys indicating the channel's
bed, stretched for a long distance out to sea. We
passed a dozen or more large ships before reaching the
river's mouth ; these, the captain informed us, an
chored there in order to free themselves from the port
dues to which they would be subject if lying at the
city, and the masters go ' up to town ' and engage their
cargoes. At its entrance the Bangoon river is two
miles in width, while opposite the city, twenty-six
miles above, it narrows to about a third of a mile, with
four or five fathoms' depth. The foreign ships anchored

4 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
in the river made a very considerable show, our visit
being at the height of the rice season. Bangoon, lying
upon level ground, extends for about a mile along the
river, and perhaps three times that distance inland.
By the bank of the river there runs a broad maca
damised street, called ' the Strand,' and facing this are
the Government offices and many imposing and sub
stantial stores and dwelling-houses. The city abounds
with rich tropical foliage, which shades many of the
teak and bamboo built huts, and from the steamer's
deck we can see a small English cantonment, two or
three European churches, and several large pagodas,
with gilded and richly ornamented spires. Beyond the
city we see a jungle of palms and bananas, and bamboos
stretching away, a waving sea of green, to the very
horizon itself. The country about Bangoon— the delta
of the great Irrawaddy river — is of much the same
nature as that at the embouchure of the Ganges, being
low, sandy, and muddy, and subject to tremendous
floods in the rainy season.
There are two or three hotels in Bangoon, but these
were full, and not being able to obtain rooms in any
private dwelling, we were compelled ' to go to house
keeping,' i.e. to have an entire cottage and order our
meals from a neighbouring bakery. The next few days

GBEAT SHOAY DAGON, OR GOLDEN PAGODA (BANGOON).

RANGOON 5
were pleasantly passed in seeing * the sights ' of the
city. Bangoon, the commercial capital of Burma, was
founded by King Alompra, the Burmese conqueror of
Begu, in 1755, and was peopled by the inhabitants of
the ancient capital of the province, who were brought
away for that purpose. It was captured by the
British during the first Burmese war in 1824, but was
afterwards restored. In 1852 it again fell into the
hands of the English, and will now remain, doubtless,
permanently in their possession. The population at
present is about 60,000 — Burmese, Chinese, and
Hindoos. The streets of Bangoon are laid out at right
angles, and most of them are broad, macadamised, and
clean. The greater part of the European private
residences are raised upon piles. These are built of
plain teak boards and have tiled roofs, but the native
town or quarter is very mean-looking, the huts there
being of bamboo, with palm-leaf thatched covers.
The most wonderful sight in Bangoon is the great
Shoay Dagon, or Golden Pagoda — the largest edifice
of the kind in Burma, and probably the largest in the
world. It is situated about a mile from the city upon
a hill perhaps eighty or a hundred feet in height.
The entrance, guarded by two huge griffins of brick

6 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
and mortar, passes between long narrow sheds, which
are beautifully carved and gaudily painted in ver
milion and gold, and covered with horrid represen
tations of the Budhistic tortures reserved for the
damned ; and thence, mounting a very dilapidated
staircase, the immense stone terrace upon which the
pagoda itself stands is reached. This terrace is nearly
a thousand feet square, and the base of the structure,
standing at its centre, is octagonal-shaped and fifteen
hundred feet in circumference, while the entire height
of the pagoda is three hundred feet. It is built of solid
masonry and lime, covered with gold leaf, and gradually
tapers to a spire, which terminates in a tee (umbrella),
an open iron-work cap, twenty-six feet in height. The
gold upon this pagoda is said to equal the weight of a
former Burmese king, and the spire blazes so fiercely
under a noonday's sun as to almost dazzle the beholder.
At the base of the immense structure are broad stone
steps and large griffins, and also some smaller pagodas
of like design and finish.
Within the enclosure of the pagoda are many
temples, most of them containing huge images of
Gaudama (the last Budha), made of wood, brick and
lime, marble and metal, and nearly all thickly gilded ;
some of the sitting figures are twelve feet, and some of

GAUDAMA, THE LAST BUDHA

RANGOON 7
the standing ones as much as eighteen feet in height. I
noticed that all the faces wore a humorous, contented
expression, one sensual, however, rather than intel
lectual. Some of their drapery was made of minute
pieces of glass, especially were the fringes of the robes
thus ornamented. This gave them the appearance of
coats of mail, and when different coloured glasses were
used in a court dress the effect was' quite gay. Some
of the idols were clothed in yellow garments — yellow
being the ordained colour of all priestly robes. On
small tables in front of many of the images were
placed candles, flowers, and little paper flags ; some of
these being used in the forms of worship, and some
having been presented as offerings by rehgious devotees.
Lofty poles were planted at short intervals around the
pagoda. These were crowned with tees, and also at
several feet from their tops were fixed rudely made
game-cocks — the national emblem of the Burmese —
and the remainder of the pole was hung with vari
coloured streamers. Burma is well known to be one
of the strongholds of Budhism. The Shoay Dagon
pagoda derives its peculiar sanctity from being the
depository, according to Burmese tradition, of relics
of the last four Budhas — viz. the staff of Kan-
thathon, the water-dipper of Gaunagon, a garment

8 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
of Kathapa, and eight hairs from the head of Gau
dama. Burman pagodas, it may be observed, are not
temples, but monuments erected to the memory of
Gaudama, and they are all supposed to contain sacred
relics, and consequently are objects of worship to the
Budhist. The Golden Pagoda rears its lofty head from
a beautiful grove of Palmyra and cocoa palms and
mango trees, but it is not a very symmetrical structure,
the base being far too large and the shaft too massive
to secure an elegant effect.
What is justly termed ' the great bell ' of Bangoon
is hung in a gaily ornamented pavilion near the large
pagoda. I stood upright under it with perfect ease,
and a dozen men might have stood there with me.
The bell has a long inscription in the Burman character,
eulogistic of the king who presented it, cut around its
circumference. Hopes are expressed that for this
meritorious gift, replete with the virtue of beneficence,
he (the king who presented the bell) may be conducted
to Nieban (the Budhist heaven), and obtain the de
stined blessing of men, nats (genii), and Brahmas by
means of divine perfection, and that he may also obtain
in his transmigration only the regal state among men
and nats. ' Thus, in order to cause the voice of
homage during the period of five hundred years to be

RANGOON 9
heard at the monument of the divine hair in the city of
Bangoon, let the reward of the great merit of giving
the great bell called Maha Gauda be unto the royal
mother queen, the royal father proprietor of life, lord
of the white elephant, theroyal grandfather Aloungmeng,
the royal uncle, the royal aunt-queen, the royal sons,
the royal daughters, the royal relatives, the royal
concubines, the noblemen, the military officers, and
teachers. Let the nats who guard the religious dis
pensation five thousand years ; the nats who guard the
royal city, palace, and umbrella ; the nats who all
around guard the empire, the provinces, and villages ;
the nats who guard the monuments of the divine hair,
around the hill Tampakokta, together with the nats
governing Bomma and Akatha, and all rational beings
throughout the universe, utter praises and accept the
supplica tions.'
Though many natives were in the pagoda enclosure,
we were allowed to freely walk about, to enter all the
image-houses, and to inspect everything at our leisure,
the Burmese having less fanatical notions in regard to
their religious edifices than either the Hindoos or
Mohammedans. The English military officials have
built a strong brick wall, pierced for musketry, about
the Golden Bagoda, to serve as a temporary retreat in
3

10 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
case of any sudden outbreak among the natives, and
because it, being upon high ground, commands the
city, and the cantonments are near at hand.
There are several other smaller pagodas in Bangoon,
but all of them are built pretty much on the same plan ;
the base consists of one or more quadrangles, succeeded
by a tapering bell-shaped structure, either round or
forming a polygon, the apex of which is crowned with
the tee (umbrella), and without that addition it would
be considered incomplete. The building itself is
invariably a solid mass of masonry constructed of
unburnt brick, with an outer coating of plaster, which
usually is richly gilded.

BURMESE MANNERS AND CUSTOMS 11

CHAPTEE II.
BURMESE MANNERS AND CUSTOMS
It is now generally believed that the Burmese, and
indeed all the various races and nations of Indo-China,
migrated at a remote period from the plateaus of
Central Asia, and that they are of mixed origin, pos
sessing some of the characteristics of the Hindoo
(the Caucasian) and some also of the Chinaman (the
Mongol). Thus in person they are short and stout,
with the small, oblique eyes, high and prominent cheek
bones, and flat, short, and broad nose of the Tartar,
Chinese, and Japanese races, and the ' raven black '
hair, pearly teeth, and olive-brown skin of the Hindoos
and the Malays ; and though of nearly the same stature
as the latter, they generally possess the stouter frames
of the former. The Burmese are a simple-minded,
indolent people, frank and courteous, fond of amuse
ment and gay-coloured apparel, friendly among them
selves and hospitable to strangers. They appreciate
a quiet life, smoking, and gossiping, and sleeping

12 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
throughout the day, and listening to wild music and
singing through half of the night ; - stern ' ambition is
among them, indeed, a very rare trait of character.
Burmese houses are built of teak wood, palm leaf,
bamboo, rattan, and grass ; and are generally raised
upon piles four or five feet from the ground, as a pre
servative against fevers, bred by the great dampness of
the climate, and to provide against the inundations of
the rainy season. Native villages often consist of but
one long and broad street, running through perfect
jungles of date, banana, palm, or other tropical trees ;
and beneath and among these, nearly concealed from
view, are the httle bamboo huts, artfully carved
monasteries, and tapering pagodas.
The costume of the Burmese is remarkably simple.
Both sexes wear a short white jacket, called an engie ;
and the male a putso (a piece of silk or cotton cloth,
usually the former), and of gay colour (red or yellow),
about a yard in width, and four or five in length,
which is worn round the hips ; while the women wear
a temine, which is a nearly square piece of cloth, or
silk, sufficiently large to wrap around the body, but
fastened merely by tucking the outer end within the
other, and consequently it gapes open at every step
taken by the wearer, and discloses nearly the whole of

BURMESE MANNERS AND CUSTOMS

13

one leg ; but this exhibition, being - the custom,' is not
deemed immodest. The men wear gay-coloured silk
bandannas — gounboungs — in adjusting which they some
times entwist a thick lock of hair ; the women wear no

BURMESE WOMAN

head covering. Both men and women leave their hair
long ; the former gather it in a bunch on the top of
their head, and the latter comb it straight back from
the forehead and tie it in a knot on the back of the

14 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
head. The men seldom or never wear any hair upon
their faces, unless it might be a very feeble moustache.
The sexes generally walk barefooted, though the
women sometimes wear a sort of leather sandal, made
after the classical Boman model.
The Burmese males are all tattooed from above the
hips to the knees with a blackish -blue pigment, and
some besides have punctured spots upon the upper
part of the body stained a vermilion colour. This tat
tooing of the thighs is a painful operation ; it is done
when they are very young, a little at a time, and opium
is often administered on such occasions, and deaths
from an overdose of this drug, or from inflammation,
are not infrequent. Begarding this curious custom of
tattooing the body of the males, and of the immodest
dress of the females, an old traveller in Burma states
that, ' the men of this nation have a singular custom of
tattooing their thighs, which is done by wounding the
skin and then filling the wound with the juice of
certain plants, which has the property of producing a
black stain. Some, besides both their thighs, will also
stain their legs of the same colours, and others paint
them all over with representations of tigers, cats, and
other animals. The origin of this custom, as well as of
the immodest dress of the women, is said to have been

BURMESE MANNERS AND CUSTOMS 15
the policy of a certain queen, who, observing that the
men were deserting their wives and giving themselves
up to abominable vices, persuaded her husband to
establish these customs by a royal order, that thus by
disfiguring the men, and setting off the beauty of the
women, the latter might regain the affections of their
husbands.' The diet of the Burmese is both simple and whole
some. The general food of the nations of southern
and eastern Asia is rice. Of the Burmese we may
say that salt fish, rice and ngapee, and fruits constitute
the solid and substantial part of their bill of fare, while
betel-nut and the cheroot make quite an enjoyable
dessert. The condiment ngapee, for which there is a
very great demand, is made of preserved fish, fish
which has arrived at that epicurean stage termed
' high : ' it is a sort of paste which mixes with rice like
the Indian sauce, chutnee. The betel-nut is extensively
used, and most houses have about or near them
trellises of the piper-betel plant, which is chewed with
the nut. Smoking is universal and continual among
both sexes and all ages ; cheroots of solid tobacco, but
more often a preparation covered with a green-leaf
wrapper, and some of them of enormous size, are used.
Burmese boys take to smoking even earlier than do

16 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
the youths of this country. I have frequently seen
babes at their mothers' breast alternating the nourish
ment of ' JSIature's Nile ' with pulls and puffs at their
cheroots. The natives of Burma do not appear to wear so
much jewellery as the Hindoos, but they delight espe
cially in ear ornaments. The lobe of the ear is bored to
a hole of astonishing size — often an inch in diameter —
and in it various articles are worn : pieces of wood,
jewels, or rolls of solid gold or silver. When no
ornaments are in the ears, the men often put their
cheroots, or any small article in frequent use, through
them, and the women use them as bouquet- holders
or flower-stands, thus presenting a very comical appear
ance. Burmese laws on the whole seem wise, and evidently
are calculated to advance the interests of justice and
morality ; but they very often prove futile, owing to
the tyranny and rapacity of the king and the venality
of many of his officers. False swearing is particularly
obnoxious to the Burmese citizen. A witness in court
takes a fearful oath, which is so singular that I give it
entire, through a translation : ' I will speak the truth.
If I speak not the truth, may it be through the in
fluence of the laws of demerit — viz. passion, anger, folly,

BURMESE MANNERS AND CUSTOMS

17

pride, false opinion, immodesty, hard-heartedness, and
scepticism — so that when I and my relations are on
land, land animals — as tigers, elephants, buffaloes,
poisonous serpents, scorpions, &c. — shall seize, crush,
and bite us, so that we shall certainly die. Let the
calamities occasioned by fire, water, rulers, thieves,

BURMESE JUDGE, CLERKS, AND ATTENDANTS
and enemies oppress and destroy us, till we perish and
come to utter destruction. Let us be subject to all the
calamities that are within the body, and all that are
without the body. May we be seized with madness,
dumbness, blindness, deafness, leprosy, and hydrophobia.
May we be struck with thunderbolts and lightning, and

18 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
come to sudden death. In the midst of not speaking
truth may I be taken with vomiting clotted black
blood, and suddenly die before the assembled people.
When I am going by water may the water nats as
sault me, the boat be upset, and the property lost ; and
may alligators, porpoises, sharks, and other sea monsters
seize and crush me to death ; and when I change
worlds may I not arrive among men or nats, but
suffer unmixed punishment and regret, in the utmost
wretchedness, among the four states of punishment,
Hell, Prita, Beasts, and Athurakai.1
' If I speak the truth, may I and my relations,
through the influence of the ten laws of merit, and on
account of the efficacy of truth, be freed from all
calamities within and without the body, and may evils
which have not yet come be warded far away. May
the thunderbolts and lightning, the nat of the waters,
and all sea animals love me, that I may be safe from
them. May my prosperity increase like the rising sun
and the waxing moon ; and may the seven possessions,
the seven laws, and the seven merits of the virtuous be
permanent in my person ; and when I change worlds
may I not go to the four states of punishment, but attain
the happiness of men and nats, and realise merit,
reward, and perfect calm.'

BURMESE MANNERS AND CUSTOMS

19

The vernacular tongue of the Burmese has neither
declension nor conjugation, and is very difficult for
Europeans to learn. It is written from left to right,
with no division between the words, and with letters
most of which are circles or parts of circles. The

COPY OP AN ODD BURMESE PAINTINQ

alphabet contains forty-four letters. Printing is un
known. The Burmese write generally upon long pieces
of black prepared paper, and with thick soapstone
pencils. Knowledge is so widely diffused that there
are few of the common people even who cannot read
and write. Burmese literature consists for the most
part of treatises upon theological and legal themes in

20 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
the Pali dialect, and legends of the different Budhas,
simple ballads, and books of astrology, cosmography,
and astronomy in both the Bah and Burmese languages.
The religion of this nation is Budhism ; and all the
peoples of Farther India profess the same faith. And
Budhism is, without doubt, the most extensively diffused
religion of the wrorld — its followers numbering more
than three hundred millions — though it has never been
extended beyond the limits of Asia and its adjacent
islands. The Burmese burn their dead, as do the
Hindoos. The bodies of the priests are first embalmed,
and then publicly burned with great demonstration.
Having seen all of interest in Bangoon, I determined
to make an excursion up the great Irrawaddy river, as
far as Mandalay, the capital of Ava, to pay my respects
to His Majesty the King. One of a large flotilla of
Enghsh steamers runs monthly to Bahmo, nearly a
thousand miles from Bangoon, and there are weekly
trips as far up as the capital. My English friend pre
ferred to remain in Bangoon until my return. But
nothing could change my plan, and so, all preparation
being made, I embarked on the fiat ' Pegu,' towed by
the steamer - Colonel Phayre,' on the 7 th of April, for
a long river voyage through British Burma, and into
the very centre of the kingdom of Ava.

UP THE IRRAWADDY 21

CHAPTEE III.
UP THE IRRAWADDY
Owing to the shallow water we could not ascend the
Bangoon river in order to enter the Irrawaddy, but
were compelled to go by the Bassein Creek, and then
through another caUed the China Bakeer, a narrow but
deep stream, with low, jungle clad banks. We had an
excellent breeze during the day and through part of
the night, until early morning, when so dense a fog
enveloped us that the captain dropped anchor and
awaited daylight, before effecting which, however, the
vessels grounded near the bank, but managed after a
while to work off the sandy bottom. At the breakfast
table I noticed that the European passengers were
eight in number, viz. three young ladies who were
going to Thayet-myo, to see some relatives in the can
tonments ; a young married couple just out from
England, who had taken passage to Mandalay — the
gentleman was a mining engineer and under engage
ment with the King to prospect and bore for coal in

22 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
Ava — an assistant who accompanied him to the capital ;
and two English officers who were going to canton
ments at Thayet-myo. Then, as - upper deck ' passen
gers, there was a company of English troops, and, as
' lower deck,' fully fifty Burmese, Chinese, Hindoos, and
Mussulmans, who were ' booked ' for various towns along
the river. The natives pay Bs. 15 (a rupee is about
50 cts.) for passage to Mandalay, and provide their own
food ; the cabin passengers (European) pay Es. 100,
and Bs. 4 per diem additional for the table.
At noon on the second day from Bangoon we
wheeled into the great Irrawaddy — the fourth river
of the world in point of size, and the great highway
into the dominions of his ' golden-footed ' Majesty of
Ava. The head of this celebrated river — styled
' Irrawaddy,' from the elephant of Indra — has not yet
been actually discovered. It is probably, however, in
the Himalaya mountains, east of Tibet, and near the
Brahmapootra. This would make the entire river —
which flows southerly and debouches into the Gulf of
Martaban, or Bay of Bengal, through nine large mouths
and a perfect labyrinth of small ones — about 1,400
miles in length. Its width varies from three to five
miles when flowing through British Burma, and may,
perhaps, average a mile or less from Mandalay to

UP THE IRRAWADDY 28
Bhamo, a thousand miles from the sea. During a
great part of the year the channel is very intricate and
the current swift, but in May navigation is compa
ratively easy, for in that month the river begins to
rise, and so continues until, during July, its height
above the lowest level will often be as much as forty
feet. The scenery of the river became more interesting as
we proceeded. Sometimes for miles and miles we had
in sight nothing but the gigantic ' elephant ' grass (so
called from its being, when in flourishing condition,
tall enough to conceal an elephant) ; then we would
have straggling villages — the huts made of bamboo
framework and palm mats, and covered with grass
roofs — and the people in gay-coloured garments would
flock to the river's bank, and squatting down upon
their haunches, gaze curiously at the wonderful fire-
boat and its ' barbarian ' passengers ; then followed a
long reach of sandy or muddy beach; then we would
pass miles of bananas, growing so rankly as to re
semble the common jungle ; and next a beautiful
fringe of the richest green foliage skirting the water's
edge. The first large village at which we stopped was
Myanoung. Some of us went on shore to see * the
sights,' which consisted of half a dozen pagodas and

24 TILE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
image-houses. I endeavoured to purchase a couple of
small gilt images of Gaudama from a pongyee (priest),
and offered a rupee in payment, but he either did not
understand, or the offer was insufficient, or his religious
scruples prevented the sale. The English authorities
have built a brick market-house with an iron roof
here for the accommodation and use of the natives.
In it we saw an excellent variety of vegetables, fruits,
and grains, also some few stalls containing dry goods.
We had anchored near the bank, and, during the
night, female coolies walked up and down the steep
bluff, some fifty feet in height, carrying upon their
heads large flat baskets of paddy (rice in the husk) on
board the - flat. ' — 3,000 baskets of the grain being our
cargo from that place.
Leaving Myanoung, we found the scenery improve
still more. The high sand and mud banks which
before had obstructed our view of the country inland
now had disappeared, and we saw upon' our left a low
jrange of hills called the 'Arakan,' and upon our right
plains covered with the densest of luxurious vegetation.
The current became stronger, and the stream more
tortuous, averaging in breadth less than a quarter of a
mile. Near where a spur of the ' Arakan Hills ' comes
to an abrupt termination at the water's edge we ob-

BURMESE IMAGE-HOUSE

UP THE IRRAWADDY

25

served a number of small niches cut in the face of the
rock ; there were forty in one row. These contained
brick, and plaster, and marble (white marble of very
good quality is quarried some forty or fifty miles
from Ava) images of Gaudama, placed in various
positions. One very large ' reclining ' Gaudama espe
cially claimed our attention. It must have been as

IRRAWADDY RIYER BOAT

much as thirty feet in length, and had been recently
gilded and painted.
The curious river craft of various forms and size
afforded us much amusement. Teak timber seemed to
be the material most generally employed in their con-

26 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
stniction. They are of all lengths and widths, and
the usual style is that modelled somewhat after the
ancient Phoenician galleys. They have one lofty mast,
and a long yard which supports an immense ' spread '
of canvas ; then there are usually two studding-sails
and two upper sails ; besides these are oars for eight,
ten, or twelve rowers, when there is no wind ; most of
them have high and beautifully carved sterns, sitting
on which the steersman directs the course of the vessel
at will. The captain told me he had seen native boats
whose yards were 110 feet in length, and whose ropes
required 1 22 ' blocks ' (pulleys) to assist in the proper
manoeuvering of the sails. Against a strong current
these boats sail but poorly ; three or even four months
from Bangoon to Mandalay, a distance of seven hun
dred miles, is the average time employed. The
Burmese have also long narrow canoes, made from
the single trunk of a tree, which they paddle very dex-
trously and swiftly. An upset, which, by the way, does
not often happen, seems to occasion them no incon
venience ; for should such an accident occur, they at
once right their canoes, and swim round until they
are partly baled, when they re-enter, and shaking
themselves, with a grin, paddle on as if nothing wet
and uncomfortable had happened. The Irrawaddy

UP THE LRRAWADDY 27
boats and rafts are often the homes of large families.
Their cargoes are usually salt fish, earth-oil (petroleum),
paddy, and the condiment ngapee.
The Burmese men are remarkably indolent; the
women, however, are industrious, but it is because the
men compel them to do all the household work, at
least the heaviest and most irksome part of it, and
they will even sit about a place where their wives are
at work, chatting and smoking, or else stretched upon
the ground at full length asleep. If you give the
native sufficient rice and ngapee to keep him just above
the starving point, he will not work for Bs. 2 per diem ;
but take these articles of diet away, and he will cheer
fully work for eight annas (25 cts.) However, like
their neighbours the Chinese, they make excellent
carpenters and blacksmiths. Marriage among the
Burmese is a most peculiar institution, and the ' mar
riage knot ' is very easily undone. If two persons are
tired of each other's society, they dissolve partnership
in the following simple and touching but conclusive
manner : They respectively light two candles, and shut
ting up their hut, sit down and wait quietly until they are
burned up. The one whose candle burns out first, gets
up at once and leaves the house (and for ever), taking
nothing but the clothes he or she may have on at the

28 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
time ; all else then becomes the property of the other
party. On the 12th we reached the large town of Brome.
It lies upon a level plain, which juts out into the river
a considerable distance. The hills round about were
covered with custard apples, bananas, and many
unknown plants. The fourth largest pagoda of Burma
is situated in Prome ; a party from the steamer, in
cluding myself, visited it. In general arrangements
and character it resembles the Golden Pagoda at Ban
goon ; some of the images of Gaudama and some of
the bells (cast from a mixed sort of metal resembling
bronze) were of fair model and most extraordinary
workmanship. The people evidently possess no small
talent and ability for Easterns, but are too indolent to
employ their faculties of mind or body in severer labour
than eating, sleeping, chatting, and smoking. After
our walk to the pagoda, which, situated upon a hill
back of the town, is fully a hundred feet high, we
visited several native huts, where the women were
weaving, upon primitive looms, silk cloth of various
gay patterns, stripes of alternate colours being the most
esteemed. Between Prome and Thayet-myo the
scenery of the river is most diversified ; highlands and
lowlands, islands and sandbanks, villages and boats,

UP THE IRRAWADDY 29
pagodas and temples, thick groves of palms near the
banks and bare ranges of hills in the distance follow
in quick succession and combine to make a picturesque
scene, which is calculated long to remain green in the
memory. A day or two after leaving Thayet-myo we passed
the steamer ' Nagpore ' on her downward passage.
The captain of this vessel reported - all quiet at the
capital,' though disturbances had been feared for some
time previously, and for the following reason : It
seems the King had built a very fine tee, or gilt
umbrella, as a gift for the great Shoay Dagon pagoda
at Bangoon, and wished to send it down in grand state
with an escort of 10,000 troops. To this the British
Commissioner objected, reducing the number of the
escort to 300 ; but afterwards political and prudential
motives had induced him to forbid any escort at all
to accompany the tee. This decision naturally irritated
the King exceedingly, and grave fears of rebellion or
riot were entertained by the European residents at the
capital. The same day we passed the ' boundary pillars '
which separate the British territory from that of the
King of Ava, and anchored at a small village called
Mengla for the night. As soon as we were made fast

30 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
about thirty coolies, men and women, began to bring
firewood on board. I was much surprised at the
immense loads the women would carry — six or eight
sticks of wood four feet long and nearly as large as
one's leg — and these they carried from the top of the
steep bank down to the steamer's deck, and threw into
the hold.

PAGHAN AND THE OLD CAPITALS 31

CHAPTEE IV.
PAGHAN AND THE OLD CAPITALS
What is generally known by the term Burma com
prises two distinct regions : British or Lower Burma,
which is under English rule, and Upper Burma, or
more properly Ava, under the dominion of a native
sovereign. British Burma embraces the three divisions
of Arakan, on the eastern shores of the Bay of Bengal ;
Pegu, bordering on the Gulf of Martaban, on the
south ; and the long and narrow strip of country
styled Tenasserim, which extends to the Isthmus of
Kraw on the Malay peninsula. These divisions of the
country are some of the results of two wars which the
English Government have waged with Burma. The
first, in 1824, caused by some insults offered to the
British flag by the Viceroy of Bangoon, was settled
two years later by ceding to the crown of England
the provinces of Arakan and Tenasserim ; the other,
concluded in 1853, and brought about by native out
rages towards European merchants and aggressions upon
British territory, resulted in the annexation of the rich

32 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
province of Begu to the already enormously extended
Anglo-Indian empire in the east. So that at the
present day King Mounglon has no sea-board : Ava is
entirely inland. The Irrawaddy river still remains as
an outlet for the produce of the kingdom, though
passing through foreign territory.
Broceeding up the river, we anchored on the 15th at
the picturesque town of Yaynan-gyoung, with its long
line of high-sterned fishing boats moored to the shore,
and with scores of pagodas and temples crowning the
neighbouring hill-tops for miles around. This town is
noted for its export of earth-oil, or petroleum, so valu
able to the Government as a source of revenue ; the
wells are situated about six miles distant from the
river, and the oil is transported to this the nearest
port in large earthen jars carried on carts drawn by
bullocks, and then shipped to Eangoon. We received
on board 3,000 baskets of paddy for the King at
Mandalay, and the night was nearly spent before it was
all shipped. The manner of loading was peculiar.
Five large boats were rowed out from the shore in
succession, and being made fast alongside, coohes
carried the rice, in baskets holding sixty pounds each,
upon their heads, and deposited it loose in the hold of
our 'flat.'

PAGHAN AND THE OLD CAPITALS 33
The scenery was fast becoming dull and monotonous
The banks were of sand, and inland low and barren
hills alone were to be seen. Pagodas and temples
seemed to increase in number, and many zyats (free
houses of rest for travellers) also appeared. The ruins
of Paghan — a city founded over a thousand years ago —
were an interesting study. No other signs of its former
splendour now remain, however, than some pagodas and
temples, a portion of very massive brick wall, and part
of an old gateway. The ruins extend for eight miles
along the bank of the river and two miles inland. The
pagodas are of all sizes, shapes, and almost colours, and
there are said to be nearly a thousand of them still
standing. They are very massively built, the founda
tions being of stone and the superstructure of brick and
plaster. Many of them are square structures raised
over vaults, where Budhist priests dwell ; then come
several terraces gradually decreasing in width, and a
bell-shaped spire, or in some of them a slender dome,
rises above all. In the temples are many images of
Gaudama, some of them of white alabaster and others
of brick and plaster, painted red, and twenty feet in
height. The various forms and contents of the pagodas and
temples now remaining render it extremely doubtful

34 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
what people were formerly the builders or possessors
of this ancient city of Paghan. Thus, besides the purely
Budhistical monuments, there are statues bearing re
markable resemblances to those of the Egyptian Peti-
chism ; others are of a Brahminical or Hindoo cha
racter ; and some even, wonderful as it may seem,
bespeak a Christian origin, or rather possess elements
which have evidently been incorporated with the doc
trines of Christianity. In support of this last statement
I will quote the observations of a recent visitor at
Baghan ; says the author, speaking of one of the ruined
buildings, ' On either side of the entrance to this
pagoda, at the summit of the steps above the dragons,
were two small figures of priests standing in long
gowns, with umbrellas over their heads. One of these
figures was the very counterpart of the statue of an
English archbishop of the Middle Ages ; and I was once
before startled with a similar resemblance in a life-
sized image of the same character, covered with gold
mixed with black, near the foot of the staircase in
the rooms of the Asiatic Society at Calcutta. More
over, the umbrella over the little archbishop bore a
remarkable similarity to the small circular roof over the
pulpit of an English cathedral, which is popularly sup
posed to serve as a sounding board. Other resem-

PAGHAN AND THE OLD CAPITALS 35
blances, including the ground plan of most of the
temples, which is shaped like a cross after the manner
of European cathedrals, have induced some missionaries
to presume that these buildings have a Christian origin.
This idea seems somewhat preposterous. It is far more
likely that there is a Budhist element in the Christ
ianity of the dark ages, of which monasticisin evidently
forms a part, just in the same way that there is a great
deal of Platonism in the early Fathers.'
Just after leaving Paghan the bank rises in a high
sandstone bluff, and cut in the almost inaccessible face
of this were many small openings which led to equally
small chambers within, where some ascetic priests had
taken up their abode. The next town we reached
was called Tsagaing. It lies at the foot of some
beautiful hills which are almost covered with pagodas,
temples, griffins, and long, winding staircases. Some
of the stone staircases, leading from the httle town to
the pagodas on the tops of the hills, were as much as
half a mile in length. Before reaching Ava we no
ticed on the left bank of the river an immense bell-
shaped pagoda. It was built after the Mussulman
model found in India, and reminded me strongly of
some of the tombs which are to be seen in the old cities
near Delhi. This pagoda is esteemed very holy, and

36 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
once a year a great mela, or religious festival of dif
ferent nations, is held in its honour. Ava, formerly the
capital, and built on an island, is now only a miserable
village, though the massive ruins still standing attest
its former splendour. The ancient city wall, sixteen
feet high and ten feet thick, formerly enclosed six or
seven miles of buildings. Ava was very famous for its
silk manufacture in olden times. Amarapoora, which
was also at one time the metropolis of Burma, and
contained 175,000 inhabitants, was but dimly seen
on the left bank of the river, six miles east of Ava.
The Burmese have been accustomed to change their
capital rather frequently for many years back ; this was
owing, sometimes, to revolution ; again to royal caprice,
or superstition, or else change of dynasty. Thus Ava
was first made capital a.d. 1364 ; nextMonchobo (about
1740) was used as the seat of government by King
Alompra (surnamed ' the Great,' though a man of low
birth, who having first driven the Talains out of Pegu,
caused himself to be proclaimed king, then built a
palace at Dagong, changing its name to Eangoon, made
a treaty with the English, and established a new dynasty
— that at present on the throne), it being his native
town ; then, in 1782, the court was removed to Amara
poora; in 1819 the government was changed back to

VIEW OP THE CITY OF MANDALAY

PAGHAN AND THE OLD CAPITALS 37
Ava, the reigning king being thus advised by the court
astrologers. In 1839 Ava was destroyed by an earth
quake, and then again Monchobo became the capital ;
not long afterwards Amarapoora was a second time
chosen as the residence of the fickle court ; next again,
for the third time, Ava, and now, since 1857, Mandalay
has been the abode of royalty and power.
Mandalay is but a few miles above Amarapoora, on
the same bank of the river. On the 18th we anchored
at the port or landing of the ' golden city,' and so safely
reached the proposed limit of my excursion north from
Eangoon.

38 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT

CHAPTEE V.
MANDALAY
All that can be seen of the city of Mandalay from
the river is a confused mixture of spires, and towers,
and temple-tops appearing above the rich masses of
foliage with which it is thickly surrounded. We
anchored at twelve o'clock by the side of a dreary
sandbank, with some fine large trees a httle distance
inland, a few bamboo huts in sight, and the usual
complement of dirty and curious natives squatting along
the bank — the landing being three miles distant from
the city. Just behind us in the river lay a large
steamer belonging to the King, but which was not
then in use. His Majesty owns several others which
are in the same predicament ; and, besides, he is build
ing ten steamers of a larger size and better constructed —
for what purpose I did not learn. These steamers he
upon the stocks in rows, and are covered with huge
sheds ; they are being built of solid teak timber, and
the work is done by the natives under the direction of

MANDALAY 39
a European, who bears the proud title of Shipwright
to H.M. the King of Ava.
On the opposite side of the river, and four or five
miles from Mandalay, there is a very large bell, the
largest in the world with the exception of that at
Moscow. It is said to be twelve feet high, and more
than sixteen feet in diameter at the lip, and could easily
contain twenty people. There is no clapper, as in
former times it was beaten from without. It emits no
sound now. It is still slung from a great beam by a
huge copper hook or sling ; but the hook has given
way, and the bell now rests upon some blocks of wood
carved in strange, grotesque figures. The thickness of
the metal of the bell varies from six inches to twelve, and
its actual weight is about ninety tons. The exterior mea
surements of this bell do not much exceed those of ' the
great bell of Bekin,' that being thirteen feet in diameter
and fourteen feet in height, but weighing only fifty-
three and one-half tons, being much thinner than the
Burman bell. Early on the morning following our
arrival Mr. Seng-Ko, a Chinese gentleman to whom I
had brought a letter of introduction, called on board.
I was much surprised at the abilities of this gentleman.
He is one of the richest men at Mandalay, speaks
English fluently, and enjoys the especial confidence and

40 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
friendship of the King, having a private entree to ' the
Bresence ' by day or night. He remained to breakfast,
and before leaving promised ' to do his best ' to obtain
me an audience with His Majesty.
At six o'clock the next morning Mr. Seng-Ko's
servant arrived with a pony ; he also brought a note
from his master, which read : ' I have seen His Majesty
personally, and spoken to him about your desire to see
him. H.M. is happy, and has desired me to bring
you up to-day (Thursday). I send you the pony ;
the boy will be your guide to — Yours faithfully,' &c.
I did not delay for my breakfast, but mounting the
beautiful little Pegu pony, started at once for the city.
Eiding up the sandbank, which is covered by the river
in the wet season, a little inland we passed, first, a
large new palace, which the King has just built as a
residence during the warmest months of the year. It
consists of an immense square of fantastic-shaped
buildings, with pretty httle carved and peaked roofs,
the whole lavishly ornamented with fancy wood carv
ings. A bamboo fence, twenty feet high, and fully a
quarter of a mile square, surrounds the royal mansion.
Then we crossed an immense plain and saw before us
the numerous pagoda and temple spires of ' the golden
city,' and beyond, a small eminence called ' Mandalay

MANDALAY 41
Hill,' covered with monasteries and bell towers. During
a great part of the year this plain is inundated with
water, and then for locomotion the natives are com
pelled to betake themselves to canoes and rafts in
lieu of ponies and bullock-carts. Mandalay is a
new city ; as recently as 1855 the area now thickly
peopled was merely farm land ; building began the
following year, and the Court has resided there since
1857. The houses in the suburbs of Mandalay do not
at all differ from those in any of the villages seen
along the river ; they are simple, frail structures of
bamboo framework and mat covering, with grass or
palm-leaf thatched roofs, and are raised some four or
five feet from the ground upon wooden piles, as a
precaution against inundations, dampness, fevers, and
dysentery. This lower story is sometimes used as a
stable for the domestic animals.
In the principal streets of the suburbs the majority of
the houses are either built of brick or large bricks are
nailed to the timbers and sidings, and then the whole
exterior is thickly plastered with hme or mud. Some
of the Chinese shops are two stories in height; these
present a very neat and tidy appearance. Numbers of
pagodas and temples and kyoungs (schools or monas
teries) were seen in all directions. As many of the

42 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
houses are built of very inflammable material, and are
crowded so closely together, and as the natives are so
apathetic and phlegmatic, a fire becomes a terrible
scourge. One occurred several weeks before my visit,
and destroyed about five thousand houses ; our road
led through the burned district, and the desolate
picture there presented was fearful to behold. The
ground was covered with the charred and blackened
remnants of huts and household goods, the dead trees
were heaped about and still smoking, and, as if to
heighten the mournful spectacle, here and there, at
considerable intervals, might be seen little mat hovels
which had just been erected by some of the sufferers,
who had saved only enough to shelter themselves from
the scorching mid-day sun.
At last we halted before a plain brick house built
much in the European style ; and, dismounting, I was
cordially welcomed by the Chinaman, who, after he
had examined my present for the King — a large magni
fying glass, with a bright gilt rim and an ivory handle —
and pronounced it both novel and appropriate, ordered
his own pony to be brought, and then we rode at once
to the palace — distant about a mile and a half from his
residence. By the wayside I noticed a large image of
Gaudama (the last Budha), which had its head protected

MANDALAY 43
from the sun by a broad-brimmed and peaked-crowned
Chinese hat ; the picture produced by the smiling, gilt-
faced god shaded by such a curious head-gear was
most ludicrous.
There are several Asiatic nations represented in
Mandalay, the population of which is about a hundred
thousand, but the Chinese, dwelling mostly in the
suburbs and southern parts of the city, have the greater
part of the trade in their hands ; the Europeans, hving
in the western quarter, all told, number but fourteen,
some of them being officials of the English Govern
ment and a few being engaged in trade.
The city proper is a square — a mile on each side —
and is surrounded by a lofty and very thick wall of
loose brick (unplastered) with a notched parapet, and
having a broad and deep moat filled with clear, water.
There are three gates on each side, and macadamised
streets about a hundred feet in width, leading from
them, intersect the city at right angles ; then between
these there are small and irregular streets and by-paths.
Along the sides of the larger avenues there run channels
for carrying water (which is brought from the river in a
canal fifteen miles long) throughout the city Each
gateway is surmounted by a lofty pyramidal-shaped
wooden tower with the customary terraced roof, and

44 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
at irregular intervals there are turrets raised a little
higher than the wall and surmounted by small wooden
pavilions of the same model as those over the great
gates. We crossed the moat on a massive wooden
bridge, and passed through one of the western gate
ways — the only one through which corpses are allowed
to be taken from the city, as my guide observed. The
gates are of enormous height and thickness, and are
built of teak beams fastened together with huge iron
bolts. A few half-naked soldiers, who were stationed
as a guard just within the entrance, saluted us by
squatting on the ground in true native fashion. On
reaching the palace we left our ponies and proceeded
on foot, entering through the south gate.
The outer palace walls are double, the one being
thirty feet distant from the other ; both are built of
brick, and enclose about seventy-two acres of ground.
The western gate is strictly set apart for the use of the
ladies of the Court ; near the one at which we entered
were some barracks and a guard-house, before which
latter, standing in a row, were five of the King's soldiers.
They wore brass hats, shaped somewhat like a broad-
brimmed * panama,' with griffins in front ; red coats,
with green facings (British army pattern) ; their legs
and feet were bare ; and their only weapon consisted of

mm

Bls&iiSHsKLii

THE PALACE, MANDALAY

MANDALAY 45
an immense dah, an instrument shaped precisely like
our butchers' cleavers, and which they held over their
shoulders in a most laughable serio-comic manner.
It is not always, indeed, that the Burmese soldiers adopt
even so much uniform as this ; their profession can
often only be known by a tattooed mark on the back of
the neck. Walking into the square, which was filled
with natives of all ranks passing in every direction, I
saw upon the right a small pagoda, farther on a bell
tower, and in the left-hand corner a magazine and
some buildings filled with light ordnance ; next came
the ' High Court,' and then the ' Eoyal Mint,' while
towering high above all rose the graceful spire of the
magnificent ' Hall of Audience.'
In a small building, or rather shed (for it was a very
plain bamboo affair, and contained no furniture, carpets,
or vessels of any kind), near the High Court-house,
was the Pakhan Mengyee, or Foreign Minister, and
upon him we made our first call. The shed was
entirely open on the front side, and there a low bamboo
platform was placed ; and upon this we sat, and taking
off our shoes and leaving them underneath (agreeably
to Burmese etiquette) we walked in a rather humble
manner into the diplomatic office and sat, or more
properly lay, down upon the floor on our hips, with the

46 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
feet thrust far to the rear, for the soles of the feet must
never be shown when in the presence of a superior.
The Pakhan Mengyee was taking his breakfast, but he
at once entered into conversation with my Chinese
cicerone concerning my nationality, age, business,
travels, &c. This gentleman, whose rank is only se
cond to members of the royal family, appeared to be
upwards of sixty years of age ; he had a rather sinister
and crafty countenance and a very pompous and con
ceited manner. The minister was plainly dressed, with
his hair - put up ' in a knot and a white handkerchief
twisted into a coil and bound once round his head,
the two ends left out and appearing just above the hair,
like the war plumes of a North American Indian. I
afterwards noticed that aU the Government officials and
clerks wore this style of turban or head-dress, instead
of the usually seen vari-coloured bandanna.
Leaving the Foreign Office, we passed round the
Hlot-daw, or * High Court ' — a large but not imposing
building, painted red, with gilt ornamental work ; and
in which the four principal Woongyees, or ministers of
the King, sit to adjudicate all appeal cases — and were
about to enter, through a double line of walls, the
enclosure which contains the palace buildings, when our
attention was attracted by a regiment of native Burmese

MANDALAY 47
soldiers, who had been out at target practice. They
marched by us in column, four deep, clothed in nothing
but the doty (waist cloth), and carrying huge old-
fashioned muskets, closely resembling the historic
blunderbuss of the sixteenth century. Judging from
the appearance of these troops I should say that a
thoroughly equipped European soldier would be a
match for at least ten of them, and yet it has been
said that the Burman soldier fights well under favouring
circumstances. But the chief excellence of a Burman
army lies in the absence of the impedimenta; the sol
dier carries his bed (a mat or blanket) at one end of
his matchlock, a package of powder and a brass kettle
at the other, and his provisions (rice, salt, and the half-
putrid fish condiment called ngapee) in a cloth about
his waist. After a few words with the ' Captain of the
Guard,' who showed me some ' Schneider ' rifles recently
imported, we entered the square which contains the
temporal abode of the '* Lord of Earth and Air.' Near
the centre of this enclosure is the imposing ' Hall of
Audience,' which is only used on great or solemn occa
sions, as for the reception of foreign ambassadors or
the celebration of royal fetes. The building consists
of a lofty tower, with terraces of little roofs rising one
above the other, and crowned by the gold umbrella in

48 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
the centre, and two smaller ones on each wing, over a
long central court or hall (both also in the many-roofed
style of Burmese architecture), and the whole gaudily
painted in red and gold and covered with ornate
carvings and decorations of brass, china, and glass. In
front of the grand staircase are two immense cannon,
mounted on primitive carriages having sohd wooden
' block ' wheels. On the right hand were barracks, a
carriage foundry, and the royal gardens ; while on the
left were ordnance stores, the abode of the - white
elephant,' a building filled with canoes, and some sheds
containing war and work elephants — these latter
black. We then called at the office of the Prime Minister,
whom we found, with his assistant, discussing a whole
some breakfast. The food for each was brought by
servants in four or five little bowls placed upon trays,
and they ate with their fingers, taking something from
each bowl in turn. The meal embraced vegetables
and fish, rice, ngapee, greens, and spices ; water only,
from wooden cups, was drunk during the breakfast.
My Chinese friend here learned that the King had just
terminated his first ' audience,' and so I would have to
wait nearly two hours, and then attend the second.
During this time he introduced me to some other of

MANDALAY 49
the Government officials, with all of whom he seemed
to be on most excellent terms. The conversation with
all of them was similar to that held with the Foreign
Minister, except one with the Yaw- Ahtween- W oon, or
Minister of the Interior, who was singularly and not
altogether pohtely curious, asking such embarrassing
questions as how much money I expended in travelhng,
what business my father did, what I was travelling for,
and why I did not settle down somewhere. His Ex
cellency imagined I must be travelhng for political
purposes, and could not comprehend any other motive
for visiting foreign countries. He was a middle-aged
man, a thorough politician of the unscrupulous sort,
and I doubt not exceedingly cunning ; but yet it
appears he had quite recently been forbidden by the
King to transact any further business with Europeans,
owing to some discrepancies in the official returns, and
his duties and powers had been transferred for the
time to one of the royal secretaries. Near the office
of the Minister of the Interior I saw a half-dozen men
who were shackled with their hands behind them, and
exposed, bare-headed, to the noon-day rays of the sun ;
they were prisoners for debt, and would be held in
* durance vile ' until some friend advanced sufficient
funds to satisfy the just claims of their creditors.

50 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
At the Yaw-Ahtween-Woon's office I met a very
intelhgent young Burman, who had studied in Baris,
spoke French fluently and English fairly ; his Burmese
title being Pangyet Woon, or ' Governor of the Glass
Manufactories' — a rather irrelevant appellation, for there
are no such manufactories in Ava. I conversed with
him nearly an hour, and obtained much valuable infor
mation concerning his country and countrymen and
women. In a small pamphlet published in Eangoon
(November 1870) I found the following account of
this talented native gentleman, which presents a
notable, though not unique, example of the capabilities
and intelligence of the higher class of Burmese youth —
the nobles : ' At eighteen years of age he was sent by
the late Crown Prince to Calcutta, to be educated in
Enghsh at Doveton College. After four years' resi
dence at Calcutta this young Burmese gentleman
returned to Mandalay, and during the voyage he made
the acquaintance of Count de Lacy, who was a pas
senger on board the steamer, and could speak English.
After staying a few months at Mandalay the King was
induced by his French proclivities to send the young
Burman to Baris, in charge of the Count, to study
French. After acquiring the language he studied
sciences for five years at the institution known as the

MANDALAY 51
Pantheon, and here he took the degrees of both
Bachelor and Master of Arts. Finally he studied
for three years at the Central Imperial School of Arts
and Manufactures, and obtained a diploma. His
career in Europe was brought to a close by the re
bellion in 1866, in which the Crown Brince was slain,
and early in 1867 he was recalled to Mandalay by the
King.' In addition to his duties as one of the royal
secretaries, he had been appointed to sit with the
Political Agent (English) as judge of the mixed court
at Mandalay. WeU, indeed, would it be for King
Mounglon were there more such as he at the Court of
Ava! In one of the offices, a minor court, there seemed tc
be a great deal of business transacted, for there were
as many as thirty or forty people waiting all the
time ; each seemed to speedily finish his errand, what
ever it might have been, but more coming in kept the
room continually full. In asking favours of an official
the natives prostrate themselves upon their stomachs,
clasp the hands as if in the act of worship, and scarcely
dare to raise their eyes from the floor. The Govern
ment clerks ' keep ' their accounts, as is usual through
out Burma, upon long strips of a prepared black paper,
which is very rough ; it is written upon with slate

52 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
pencils or sticks of French chalk the size of one's
finger. After remaining in the Court-room about
twenty minutes an officer came with a message that
the King was ready to give ' audience,' and so, pre
ceded by two of the grand ministers, we approached
the Mhan-gan — the Crystal Palace — passing through
still another gate in a low brick wall. A huge
elephant looked calmly at us from a red shed near the
road, but we did not stop ; and soon after, leaving our
shoes at the foot, mounted a long flight of stone stairs
and entered another office, where our arrival was
announced to His Majesty. While awaiting an answer
I strolled into the ' Hall of Audience ' to see the
throne. It is a flat, raised dais, perhaps eight feet
square, richly gilded, and on either side are the white
and gold silk umbrellas, symbols of royalty (it is said
that umbrellas were a sign of rank in ancient Nineveh,
and they are so esteemed by most Asiatic nations at
the present day). The hall is gaily painted, and the
ceiling is supported by enormous round teak pillars.
Banquets, at which the table service is of pure gold
and silver, are sometimes served here. In the rear of
this building, and connected with it, are the minor
audience chambers, one or the other being used at the
humour of the King, and each being named from their

MANDALAY 53
peculiar style of decoration ; thus there is the ' Golden
Palace,' which is entirely covered with gold (?), and the
Mhan-gan, or ' Crystal Palace ' (already mentioned),
and so called because it is adorned with trimmings in
isinglass, porcelain, and glass — small mirrors

54 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT

CHAPTEE VI.
AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF AVA
After waiting five or ten minutes we were summoned
to a small pillared portico, open on two sides. At our
backs there was a golden door leading to another
chamber, and before us was a large green baize curtain,
extending from the ceiling to the floor of another room
which was some few feet above us. In the centre of
this screen was an opening about ten feet square ;
here a red velvet cushion and a pair of silver-mounted
binoculars were laid upon the floor, where there was
an elegantly carpeted staircase connecting the two
chambers. The roof was supported by immense
pillars, grouped around the bases of two of which were
the royal umbrellas and other insignia. No one save
the King is allowed to possess a white umbrella, and
princes of the blood are allowed to have two umbrellas
(gilt, with poles ten or fifteen feet in length attached)
carried above them by their servants when they walk
or ride in pubhc — ministers but one. There were

AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF AVA 55
about half a dozen princes in the * Audience Chamber,'
among them the heir-apparent, an intelligent as well
as handsome young man, plainly dressed, excepting a
pair of immense cluster diamond ear-rings. Our party
— for there were several others whom we found wait
ing — was disposed in the following order : The princes
sat upon the right, then came the Yaw-Ahtween- Woon,
then another minister, then myself, next Mr. Seng-Ko,
then two ex-ministers of the former King ; adjoining
them were two Portuguese Eoman Catholic missionaries,
and then two commercial gentlemen upon the extreme
left ; besides these, in the rear, were some dozen or
more clerks, who were paying their respects to His
Majesty upon the receipt of new appointments, each
offering a large basket of fruit in support of his loyal
feehngs. Our presents were displayed before us, placed
on httle wooden stands about a foot in height.
The natives were all prostrating themselves flat upon
their stomachs, with their noses nearly touching the
carpets and their eyes cast down in a most abject and
servile manner.
In a few moments we heard two or three muffled
booms — taps on a large tom-tom probably — and then
all of us becoming at once silent, the King appeared,
and quietly and slowly laid himself down, reclining

56 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
against the velvet cushion and only partially facing
the audience. At the same time one of the queens
entered and placed a golden spittoon, betel-box, chatty
(with water), and cup on the floor before him. The
King is a short, stout, pleasant, though, hke many of
his ministers, an exceeding crafty-looking gentleman,
fifty-four years of age. His hair was thin and was
tied in the usual Burmese knot ; the head was high at
the ¦ crown, showing ' self-esteem,' large, and the eyes
were closely set, indicating cunning (if we are to believe
phrenology and physiognomy) ; the neck was thick,
expressive of vitality and physical power, and the face
close shaven, excepting a thin black moustache. His
dress was very plain and simple, consisting merely of
a white engie, a white linen jacket, and a silk putso, a
cloth worn around the hips and .thighs ; there were no
ornaments in the ears, though their lobes contained
holes nearly an inch in diameter, which did not improve
the expression of his countenance very materially. His
Majesty first took up his opera glass, though we were
not more than twenty feet distant, and surveyed us in a
very grave and leisurely manner, ending with a flourish
of the glass, as if to say, ' Now, then, for business.'
The royal secretary read aloud our names, business,
and the list of the presents which were placed before

AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF AVA 57
us ; this was done in a loud, drawling style, and con
cluded with a sort of supplicating moan.
His Majesty then began the conversation through
the Minister and my Chinese friend as interpreters.
After the usual questions concerning my age, business,
residence, and travels, the King said he wished me to
convey to my Government the sentiment that ' he
had a great partiality for Americans, and wished them
to come over and colonise in his dominions.' But a
word preliminary : it seems that I had the honour to
be the first American presented at the Court of Ava
(excepting a mechanical engineer, who was in His
Majesty's employ ten or twelve years ago), and that
the King in his astuteness graciously thought me a
spy, or at least that I was visiting Burma for political
purposes, and consequently had some influence with
as well as instructions from the Government at home.
It was in vain that I protested being a simple traveller,
visiting different countries for the purpose of studying
their geography, chmate, productions ; the people —
their manners and customs, government, rehgion, laws,
language, literature, industries, ard commerce — and all
for the improvement of mind and health of body, and
that I had travelled about twelve thousand miles more
especially to pay my respects to the King of Ava, and

58 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
to see the wonderful white elephant, about which I
had heard and read so much in my own country ; but
to no purpose, for it was quite evident His Majesty
thought pohtics were surely my main object and end.
Promising to make his wishes known to the proper
authorities at home did not seem to be alone sufficient
for his purposes, for he said he would keep me in
Mandalay while I wrote, and until an answer came
from America. At this I demurred of course, when
His Majesty said if I would remain he would give me
a house, living, and as many Burmese wives as 1
wished (a rather tempting offer, for the women of the
upper classes are both pretty and modest), and,
furthermore, he would ' make my fortune.' I was
fast becoming very much interested, and slightly ex
cited as well. His Majesty wished to make also a
commercial treaty with America, and my services
would be indispensable. Thus were alluring nets
spread for my feet and enticing temptations presented
to me. Still I was not then prepared to enter the
King's service ; the idea was too new and novel, the
change — from republican America and steam ploughs
to monarchical Burma and white elephants — too great.
' I must have time to consider His Majesty's gracious
offers,' said I to the interpreter. 'You will never

AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF AVA 59
have a better chance,' was returned from the King.
Seeing me still reluctant, the King condescendingly
offered to ' make me a great man ' — to give me high
rank among his own nobles and princes. To this
I answered my duty was first to my parents, and next
to my own country, and that I would return to the
latter and consult with the former, and then, if they
were willing, I would be most happy to accept his
magnificent and unusually gracious terms. He rephed,
* It might then be too late ; ' and there the matter
dropped, and the conversation was changed to other
topics, though the King was evidently not a little vexed
at my obstinacy, and doubtless thought me mad or
certainly very foohsh not to accept such generous pro
posals. One of the missionaries then presented some
petitions, which were referred to the proper minister ;
some State business was transacted ; a present of
Es. 100 was brought me (' to use for my travelhng
expenses or to purchase a memento of my presentation
at the Courtof "His Golden-Footed Majesty"'), and
then the audience was terminated by the King suddenly
rising and abruptly retiring from the room.
One of his queens or concubines (he has four of the
former and about a hundred of the latter) who, though
out of sight, had been fanning the King with a gorgeous

60 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
fan of peacock's feathers during the audience, now took
a peep at us, of course exhibiting herself at the same
time, and such a beautiful creature I have rarely looked
upon before and perchance never shall see again. She
was one of the veritable ' houris of Paradise,' an oriental
pearl of indescribable loveliness and symmetry. I will
not attempt a description ; but the King's liberal offers
came at once to mind, and I felt what a great sacrifice
it would be to return to my native land, and refuse —
nay, almost spurn — rank, wealth, and beauty under the
peacock banner and golden umbrella of His Majesty of
Ava. The ' audience ' lasted over an hour. The King
seemed to have very respectable ideas of America and a
high appreciation of the (usually conceded) enterprise
and industry of her people ; perhaps he wished Ameri
cans to settle in Burma as a sort of political offset to the
English, whose power — now owning two-thirds of
ancient Burma — is naturally very great, but I think his
main idea was simply to obtain from the United States
a commercial treaty advantageous to himself. His
Majesty's use of the binoculars, which he invariably
employs in all audiences, is not altogether pleasant;
but the manner in which he would scan our coun
tenances while replying to some of his commanding

AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF AVA 61
speeches was most amusing. His voice is soft and low,
and he speaks in a very deliberate manner, taking
ample time to arrange his thoughts before giving them
utterance. The present King is a son of the famous Tharawaddi ;
his brother — the eldest legitimate son — assumed the
government in 1845, but, proving a tyrant, was de
posed and succeeded by King Mounglon in 1853. In
1857 he removed the capital from Amarapoora to
Mandalay. The King, little thinking that he would
ever attain the crown, had in early youth taken the
vows of a pongyee, or Budhist priest, and lived se
cluded in a monastery until his accession. Like his pre
decessors his reign has not been without its troubles.
In 1866 a rebellion broke out headed by two of the
King's sons, the Mengon and Mengondyne princes,
having for its object the dethronement of their father.
The attempt failed, and the former is a refugee in the
Shan States, while the latter resides under British pro
tection in Bengal. As regards the events of the King's
rule much might be said of blame and something also
of praise. The Government is a despotism ; among
many others we notice the royal title of ' Lord of the
Power of Life and Death.' The Holt-daw (Council of
State), composed of the four principal ministers of

62 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
State, are the executive officers of the Government ;
they also try all appeal cases, forming a high court for
that purpose, and receiving ten per cent, of the property
in suit, are said to derive very handsome incomes from
this source alone. The tyranny and weight of the
King's rule is most felt at, or in the immediate vicinity
of, the capital, the remote districts being almost inde
pendent, and paying but little more heed to the ruling
monarch than to swear allegiance whenever visited by
his officers. And so limited in extent of territory is
the real power of the King that the people dwelling
upon the borders of Yunan are said to acknowledge the
sovereignty of the local rulers of the Emperor of China
as well as those of the King of Ava, and so enjoy
privileges from both Governments. At present there is
a royal monopoly of the paddy (rice) and cotton and
other leading products — marble, amber, gold, copper,
coal, and gems above a certain size (all over Es. 100
in value). The King dare not leave his palace for fear
of foul play, and he has consequently never seen his
own war canoes or steamers, nor has he ever visited
his new palace built near the river.
The Government is ' rotten to the very core ; '
bribery and corruption reign paramount. The King
appropriates most of the revenue ; many of his

AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF AVA 63
ministers receive no salary at all ; and the King buys
goods of merchants and serves them out as pay to
his troops and followers, who "* afterwards have to sell
them in the bazaars at half-price ; besides, the country
bitterly suffers * from the extortionate duties, from the
grinding taxation, and from the cruelties and oppres
sions that daily transpire (boys of tender years and
infirm old men being flogged to death in the streets,
or publicly crucified with a barbarity that beggars
description), and from the guild of brokers, who
rule the markets according to the orders of the King
or his ministers, so that no one can buy or sell save
through these brokers.' And yet the King has shown
some appreciation of the advantages of western
civilisation. He offers good inducements to European
mechanics and engineers to establish themselves in
Mandalay. His Majesty has succeeded in bringing
his country into telegraphic communication with India
and Europe. The introduction of the electric tele
graph into Burma is thus curiously described by my
friend the Yaw- Ahtween- Woon (Minister of the In
terior) : ' The present founder of the city of Mandalay
or Eutuapon, Builder of the Eoyal Palace, Euler of
the Sea and Land, Lord of the Celestial Elephant
and Master of many White Elephants, Owner of the

64 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
Shekyah or Indra's Weapon, Lord of the Power cf
Life and Death, and Great Chief of Eighteousness,
being exceedingly anxious for the welfare of his
people, in the year 1231 introduced the telegraph,
a science the elements of which may be compared to
thunder and lightning for rapidity and brilliancy,
and such as his royal ancestors in. successive genera
tions had never attempted.' Orientals are profuse in
high-sounding and adulatory diction ; the foregoing-
article does not contain the half of the titles per
taining to King Mounglon.

THE WHITE ELEPHANT 65

CHAPTEE VII.
THE WHITE ELEPHANT
Having put on our shoes at the bottom of the palace
staircase, we went to see the so-called white elephant.
One of the proudest titles of the King of Ava is
' Lord of the White Elephant,' though the King of
Siam at Bangkok is also the possessor of one or more
of these sacred beasts. The Mandalay animal I
found to be a male of medium size, with white eyes
and a forehead and ears spotted white, appearing as
if they had been rubbed with pumice-stone or sand
paper, but the remainder of the body was as ' black as
coal.' He was a vicious brute, chained by the fore
legs in the centre of a large shed, and was surrounded
with the ' adjuncts of royalty ' — gold and white cloth
umbrellas, an embroidered canopy above, and some
bundles of spears in the corners of the room. The
attendants told me that a young one, captured in the
north-eastern part of British Burma, near Tounghoo,
had recently died, after a short residence in the

66 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
capital, and that the king had been ' out of sorts '
ever since. This animal was suckled by twelve
women, hired for the express purpose ; these elephant
' wet-nurses ' receiving Es. 50 per mensem, and
thinking it a great honour to serve in such capacity.
The white elephant, well named the Apis of the
Budhists, has long been an appendage to Burman
state. Mr. Ealph Fitch, who travelled through Burma
about the year 1582, speaking of the king who
reigned at that time, says, in his quaint, black-letter
foho, that " among the rest he hath foure white
elephants, which are very strange and rare, for there
is none other king that hath them but he ; if any
other king hath one, hee will send vnto him for it.
When any of these white elephants is brought vnto
the king, all the merchants in the city are com
manded to see them and to giue him a present of
halfe a ducat, which doth come to a great summe,
for that there are many merchants in the city. After
that you have given your present, you may come and
see them at your pleasure, although they stand in the
king's house. The king, in his title, is called the
king of the white elephants. If any other king
haue one, and will not send it him, he will make
warre with him for it, for he had rather lose a great

THE WHITE ELEPHANT 67
part of his kingdome than not to conquer e him.
They do very great seruice vnto these white elephants ;
euery one of them standeth in a house gilded with
golde, and they doe feede in vessels of siluer and gilt.
One of them, when he doth go to the riuer to be
washed, as euery day they do, goeth under a canopy
of clothe, of golde or of silke, carried ouer him by
sixe or eight men, and eight or ten men goe before
him, playing on drummes, shawmes (clarionets), or
other instruments; and when he is washed, and
cometh out of the riuer, there is a gentleman which
doth wash his feet in a siluer basin, which is his
office giuen him by the king. There is no account
made of any blacke elephant, be he neuer so great.
And surely there be woonderful faire and great, and
some be nine cubites in height." Again, in Father
Sangermano's 'Description of the Burmese Empire,'
some two hundred years later, we have interesting
accounts of the capture, transportation (to the capital),
and more than royal treatment of the white elephant :
how, when caught in the forests of Begu, it was bound
with scarlet cords and waited upon by the highest
mandarins of the empire ; how the place where it
was taken being infested with mosquitoes, a silken net
was made to protect it from them ; how it was

68 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
transported to Amarapoora in a boat having a pavihon
draped with gold-embroidered silk, and covered with
a roof similar to those covering the royal palaces ;
how, on its arrival in the city, a grand festival,
continuing for three days, was celebrated in its
honour; and how the most costly presents were
brought to it by the mandarins, one offering a vase
of gold weighing 480 ounces. This animal was
honoured no less at its demise than during life.
Being a female, its funeral was conducted with the
same forms and rites as those practised at the death
of a queen. The body was burned upon a pile of
sassafras, sandal, and other aromatic woods, the pyre
being fired with the aid of four immense gilt bellows
placed at its corners. Three days afterwards its ashes
were gathered by the chief mandarins, enshrined in
gilt urns, and buried in the royal cemetery. A
superb mausoleum, of a pyramidal shape, built of
brick, richly painted and gilt, was subsequently raised
over the tomb. If this elephant had been a male,
it would have been interred with the same ceremonial
as that used for the sovereign. And even at this
day the ' celestial ' white elephants are still the
objects of great veneration, royal favour, and attention;
aside from their divine character of (being) trans-

THE WHITE ELEPHANT 69
migrating Budhas, their possession, according to
Burmese superstition, is considered to bring prosperity
to, the country in peace and good fortune in war, and
therefore their death is regarded as nothing less than
a national calamity. At such times the entire nation
shave their heads, and perform such deeds of sorrow
and mourning as are customary on the loss of the
nearest and dearest of their relatives.
In one shed were some large gilded war-boats, and
in another were the royal palanquins and carriages, all
richly gilded, the former of fantastic and whimsical
model, and the latter of English design, if not manu
facture. The ' Eoyal Gardens ' we did not visit. They
are said to be laid out in squares, crossed in different
places by canals of brickwork, in which the water is
seven fathoms in depth. The pathways run in every
direction, and grottoes are thickly interspersed among
them. We inspected the artillery sheds, and observed
that most of the cannon were of small calibre and
antique manufacture ; some of them were as much as
twenty feet in length and scarcely more than four inches
bore from muzzle to vent; they had been captured
from the Siamese/ We next visited the ' Eoyal
Herald's' office, and obtained a permit to take the
present with which His Majesty had honoured me

70 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
through the palace gates. This ' pass ' was simply a
piece of prepared palm-leaf about live inches in length
and a little more than one in width ; the order was an
engraved intaglio (in the ordinary Burmese circular
character), and 011 one corner*was the King's Treasury
stamp impressed in basso-relievo. Strips of palm-leaf
are also used by scholars. They usually write or
engrave with a sharp iron instrument (a style) upon
pieces about two feet long and two and a half inches
broad, and with a number of these strips and two thin
boards of the same size for covers they form their
books. Having gained the street beyond the outermost wall,
we remounted our ponies and rode to Mr. Seng-Ko's
house. My host's pretty little Burmese wife then
' served up ' a very palatable tiffin (lunch), and over
our cheroots and tea we discussed the events of the
morning, the future of Burma, the present state of
China, and the rapid rise and prospects of the Chinese
population of San Francisco and California. Speaking
of tea, this valuable commodity is raised, in small
quantity, upon the northern hills, those bordering upon
the province of Yunan, in China ; but the Burmese
devote the leaf to a far different purpose from that
employed by the surrounding nations and by our-

THE WHITE ELEPHANT 71
selves. Instead of steeping the leaves and drinking
the warm and refreshing decoction obtained therefrom,
they make a sort of salad of them, together with garlic,
adding some kind of oil and condiment.
About three o'clock in the afternoon my obliging
Chinese friend accompanied me on a walk through the
bazaars and market, and to see the King's war canoes.
The bazaars were similar to those of Eangoon for variety
and quality of goods, containing chiefly Chinese silks
and British cloths, Bengal steel goods, checkered ban
dannas, putsoes (cloths worn round the hips), earthen
ware, porcelain, amber — sold for Es. 2 per pound
in the capital — carved marble and wooden images
of Gaudama, paper umbrellas and copper from
China, &c. Here I obtained a complete collection of
Burmese coins — made of copper, lead, pewter, silver,
and gold. The silver coins have a copper ahoy of
about fifteen per cent. Interest is very high — sixty
per cent, per annum being sometimes charged.
Much of the trade is carried on by means of barter,
petroleum being the chief circulating medium ; rice
also is used as a money exchange in some parts of
the country. The prices demanded seemed moderate,
though a European is always, and perhaps justly, asked
to pay more than a native. We saw some cotton

72 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
goods of English manufacture and importation, which
were sold cheaper even than the products of the
domestic looms. The market was very large, and con
tained good varieties of vegetables and fish, but no
meats. It consisted of about a hundred httle bamboo
sheds, built together, and the different articles were
arranged in sections. It was a long walk to the war
canoes, and made under a burning sun — therm. 112°
(Fah.)in the shade — but I felt amply repaid on behold
ing the curious navy belonging to the King. These
canoes lie in a small creek which runs from the river
up to the city. They are very long, with both prow
and stern curling up high, and are paddled by forty
men usually, sometimes sixty ; most of the boats are
handsomely gilded on the outside and painted red
within. A very fine barge, with decks and apartments,
Mr. Seng-Ko pointed out as being used exclusively by
the queens ; it is drawn or towed by war boats. The
King's barge is the grandest of them all, but being too
distant to observe minutely its construction, I give
another's description : ' This splendid vessel has been
built on two large canoes, and is covered with the
richest carving and gilding. This also, when used, will
be drawn by war boats. In the centre is a lofty tower
with eight or nine square storeys or terraces of black

THE WHITE ELEPHANT 73
and gold, surmounted by the tee, or umbrella. The
prows of the two canoes on which this water palace is
constructed consist each of an immense silver dragon ;
and behind each dragon is the fierce colossal figure of a
warrior deity called by the Burmese a Nat, but which
is evidently identical with one of the Devatas of Hindoo
mythology, of whom Indra is the special type. The
stems of the canoes are beautifully adorned with a
fretted work consisting of small pieces of looking-glass,
which has a very rich appearance.' We returned to
the house through the suburbs, and after a rest of half
an hour I reluctantly took leave of the kind China
man, who had devoted so much time to my service,
entertaining me most hospitably at his own house,
and rode back to the steamer, feeling rather exhausted,
but much gratified at the novel and wonderful expe
riences of the day.

71 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT

CHABTEE VIII.
BHAMO AND THE OLD TRADE ROUTE
At daylight the next morning we started to remeasure
the seven hundred miles of water communication be
tween Mandalay and Bangoon. The river Irrawaddy
is navigable as far as Bhamo, three hundred miles above
the capital, and a steamer runs there once a month.
On an island somewhere in this part of the river there
is a Budhist monastery where are some large tame fish
— fed regularly by the monks — which will come to
the surface of the water at the simple cry of ' Tit-tit- tit.'
They are said to be a large species of dog-fish, without
scales, from three to five feet in length, and appear to
consist chiefly of head and mouth. They are exceed
ingly voracious, and beg by the simple process of
opening their huge jaws. These strange fish are so
thoroughly domesticated as to freely permit anyone to
stroke them on the back.
The scenery from Mandalay to Bhamo is said to be
very fine, the river passing through narrow mountain

BHAMO AND THE OLD TRADE ROUTE 75
gorges, fertile lands, and by picturesque villages, pago
das, and temples. Not far below Bhamo there is an
especially striking and beautiful gorge or defile about
fifteen miles in length. The river is there quite narrow,
while the banks on either side rise to a height of five
or six hundred feet, and are covered with grand old
forests, which cast their dark shadows upon the smooth
water. A huge rock — called ' Monkey Castle,' from
the number of monkeys that hang about it — rising
perpendicularly eight hundred feet above the surface
of the river, is a noticeable feature of this wonderful
defile. As the steamer slowly tugs along there is
constant change in the view. Sometimes the river
takes a winding course between the high and precipitous
banks, with their dense green forests. At other places
one comes upon a long vista of wood and stream.
Here and there is a pagoda, or a village, or a few
fishermen in a boat. The scene is not so much calcu
lated to please and astonish the eye by wild sublimity,
by rude precipices, as by graceful hills, glass-like water,
and soft shadows.
This part of Burma is much the richest in its natural
productions ; the hills contain iron, coal, tin, copper,
lead, gold, and silver — more than a million and a half
dollars' worth of these two latter metals has been dug

76 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
from the mines near Yunan, on the frontiers of China —
sulphur, nitre, marble, and amber, and are covered (the
hills) with valuable teak and oak timber ; the topaz, ruby,
sapphire, amethyst, and other gems are found in the beds
of rivulets ; while the valleys and plains offer, with mode
rate cultivation (the soil being remarkably fertile),
millet, maize, wheat, cotton, tobacco, and the sugar
cane. The produce of earth-oil (petroleum) in wells,
some of them three hundred feet in depth, along the
banks of the Irrawaddy is very great, amounting to
more than eight million pounds per annum.
The old trade route between Burma and western
China lay through Bhamo, but for the past twenty years
it has been closed, owing to a rebellion in the province
of Yunan (China). It appears that some Mussulman
Chinese, called Banthays, suddenly broke out in rebel
lion, defeated the Chinese authorities and troops sent
against them, and established themselves in a separate
colony, with Tali-foo for their capital city and the
residence of their king, who is styled ' Suleiman the
First.' But although the Chinese cannot muster in
sufficient force to put down these rebels, still they are
continually harassing them, carrying on a ' dacoity
war ; ' they devastate the country, keep the roads closed,
and thus destroy commerce ; and not until the Panthay

BHAMO AND THE OLD TRADE ROUTE 77
Government is acknowledged as actually established by
the Emperor of China, and order and law are restored,
will the old caravans with silks, cotton cloths, tea,
earthenware, and ornamental articles find their way
again down to Bhamo.
Within the last ten years various parties have in
vestigated, and some have surveyed, different trade
routes between Burma and China ; but no further
action has as yet been taken by the Burman
Government than to subsidise a monthly line of
steamers to Bhamo, from which place to the Shan
States on the frontiers of China, the distance is
about fifty miles * as the crow flies.' One of the in
tended lines of overland communication between
Burma and China is deserving of passing attention. It
has been proposed to build a railway from Eangoon,
four hundred miles, to a town called Kiang-hung on the
great Makong river, from which the distance is only
about twenty miles to the borders of Yunan. But it
seems this could hardly prove a success; for were the
route opened, then there would be the competition of
easier and of course cheaper communication by water
with Saigon and the French settlements ; still the rail
way may yet be built, and at no very distant day. It
is quite as feasible a project as many others of like

78 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
nature which have been undertaken in different coun
tries of Asia. India, among many other lines, has
one continuous road extending from Calcutta to
Peshawur, on the confines of Afghanistan, which is
more than sixteen hundred miles in length ; and already
we hear of railroads in the islands of Java and Japan.
Bhamo itself is described as being a very ordinary-
looking village, containing some four or five thousand
inhabitants — Chinese, Shans, and Burmese. An Enghsh
assistant political agent resides there, and is, I believe,
the only European in the town. The former trade of
Bhamo — silks, woollens, and cotton — was carried on
principally by the Chinese, who arrived there from
Yunan in large caravans during the months of Decem
ber and January. " Under existing circumstances
Bhamo has been dwindling away. History has repeated
here in this remote quarter precisely what has befallen
the great cities of the ancient world. When the
Eomans obtained possession of the Mediterranean trade,
Tyre and Sidon passed into nothingness; when the
land route through the Arabian desert was abandoned
for the water route through the Bed Sea, Petra and
Edom became a howling wilderness. Whether Bhamo
is to become a mere fishing village, or is once again to
become an emporium of trade, depends upon whether

BHAMO AND THE OLD TRADE ROUTE 79
the Panthays and Chinese can become friendly neigh
bours." There have been but few trips made by the
English steamers, and no goods, excepting some cottons,
have as yet passed either way. By the contract the
steamers are obliged to carry down to Eangoon fifty
deck passengers (emigrants) free of charge ; on our
passage we had fifty-three of them. They were all Shans
or Laos, and were much fairer in complexion and
stouter and stronger in body than the Burmese ; more
over they spoke a different language.
The Laos race — estimated at 1,500,000 in number —
inhabits a great part of the interior of the Hindoo-
Chinese peninsula, and is divided into numerous tribes,
some of which are subject to the Emperor of China,
some owe a sort of dubious allegiance to the Kings of
Ava, or Siam, or Annam, while very many are politi
cally independent, being only under the government of
their patriarchal chiefs. The Laos are a quiet, peaceable,
and indolent people. They cultivate the soil, confining
their attention chiefly to rice, though tobacco and sugar
cane and some vegetables are also grown ; they manu
facture beautifully lacquered wares, gold and silver
ornaments, and silk for home consumption ; they are
also expert miners, their territory abounding in gold,
silver, iron, and copper. The Laos tributaries of the

80 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
King of Ava export many cattle to Mandalay — these
are small but useful, being strong and docile. The Ava
Government adopts a rather curious though quite effec
tual (as it proves) method of compelling obedience
from their Laos dependants. It seems that the latter
are indebted to the former — their rulers — for so great
a necessity of diet as salt, and the moment one of
their chiefs proves refractory the supply is withheld
until he shall implicitly yield what is enjoined.
In going down the river we stopped first at the
town of Isagaing, and took on board 1,000 baskets
of grain (coarse peas, usually food for cattle), 1,000
baskets of wheat, and 200 hides. An amusing fact
is connected with the hide trade. The Burmese are
strictly forbidden by their religion to kill bullocks,
cows, or calves ; and yet, the captain tells me, some
times as many as 5,000 hides are shipped at a time
from one town. Besides, the King had even recently
forbidden the European residents at Mandalay to
slaughter any cattle within the royal dominions. Late
in the afternoon we stopped at a small village called
Shoay-Pouk-Ben, and remained there during the
night, lading 2,500 baskets of grain, and on the
following day we completed our cargo by receiving
on board, at one village, 200 bales of loose and pressed

BHAMO AND THE OLD TRADE ROUTE 81
cotton and 315 bags of cutch (a resinous product
from which a valuable dye is manufactured), and at
another village 900 baskets more of grain.
The steamer remained about six hours at Thayet-
myo, and I embraced the opportunity to visit the
Enghsh cantonment, stationed on the very frontier.
It is nearly a mile from the native village, is well laid
out, with good roads, and the barracks are built of
wood, with shingle roofs, and are raised from the
ground on brick, or stone, and plaster piles. The term
of service for troops stationed here is usually four
years. There is a small fort at Thayet-myo, which
would be much strengthened were some works erected
on the opposite side of the river, and to forward this
project General Norman — the military member of
the Viceroy's Council — had been recently sent from
Calcutta. The General, returning home, became our
fellow-passenger as far as Eangoon. He mentioned
meeting the Hon. William H. Seward on the .occasion
of his recent visit to Calcutta (when making the tour
of the world), and spoke very highly pf the superior
abihties and cordial affability of our renowned and
venerated patriot and statesman.
On several evenings during the downward passage,
our steamer was struck by furious squalls of wind, the

82 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
rain falling in torrents, but unaccompanied by either
thunder or lightning. These squalls were the har
bingers of the change of monsoon — from north-east to
south-west in May — and after this change the rainy
season commences, and continues for four or five months.
It had been my intention to go from Eangoon to
Maulmain, and thence to travel overland to Bangkok in
Siam. The latter trip is neither difficult nor long. There
is a * pass ' through the Shan mountains (none of the
peaks of which rise above 8,200 feet in height), and ele
phants, ponies, and guides are easily procured. Leaving
the Shan mountains behind, one soon arrives at the Mek-
long river, where communication is easy with Bangkok
by boat, down the stream, and then fifty miles on a canal ;
or one might travel nearly due east from Maulmain
until the great Menam was reached, and then sail
down this rapid stream, by the ancient capital of
Ayuthia, to the modern capital, with its thousands of
floating houses and hundreds of graceful pagodas. But
this is a trip which, though easily possible from
November to April, still would be almost impossible
during the remaining months of the year, for sometimes
as many as ten and even twelve inches of rain fall
during one day in that part of Burma.
We stayed four hours at Prome — a town which re-

BHAMO AND THE OLD TRADE ROUTE 83
sembles Mandalay in many respects. Prome was the
seat of government for nearly five hundred years, but
none of the Burmese kings have resided there since
1,000 B.C.
Nothing more of interest occurred on our downward
voyage. We reached Eangoon on the 28th inst., just
three weeks from the date of my departure * up the
Irrawaddy ' for Mandalay.

84 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT

CHAPTEE IX.
FROM MAULMAIN AND PENANG
Another week, passed in the chief city of British
Burma, was made very pleasant for us by the good
offices of the several residents we had first met as
strangers, but whom we afterwards came to recognise
as kind friends, and then we took passage in the British
India Steam Navigation Co.'s steamer ' Mahratta,' 500
tons burden, Captain Lang in command, for Singapore,
intending to stop at the towns of Maulmain, Penang,
and Malacca on the passage. We were but twenty
hours in descending the Eangoon river, crossing the
bight of the Gulf of Martaban, and sighting the thickly-
wooded promontory beyond the little village of Amherst,
which latter was formerly the capital of the Tenasserim
provinces, but is now only used as a pilot station.
Near Amherst may be seen the lonely grave of
Mrs. Judson, the devoted missionary and wife, shaded
by a single beautiful hopea tree. We had entered the
Salween river — one of the largest in that remote pari

FROM MAULMAIN AND PENANG 85
of the world — and a rapid run of twenty-seven miles
brought us to Maulmain, and we dropped anchor
abreast of the business quarter of the town, with but a
half-dozen small vessels in sight. The town does not
appear to advantage from the river, almost hidden as
it is by immense groves of the cocoa-nut and betel-
nut palm, banana, papaya, bamboo, and other tropical
plants. The population, comprising Burmese, Chinese,
Parsees, Armenians, Khngs, Jews, and Cingalese, is
about 10,000 ; the European residents may number
less than a hundred.
There are many large timber-yards at Maulmain;
indeed, it has always been famed for its export of teak
logs which are cut in the forests upon the banks of the
Salween, and then floated, sometimes hundreds of miles,
down to the capital. In these timber-yards the
usefulness, power, sagacity, and docility of the elephant
is most wonderfully illustrated, for these uncouth
monsters are employed in drawing, stacking, and
shifting the immense teak logs — some of them weigh
ing as much as two tons. A log that forty coolies
could scarcely move the elephant will quietly lift upon
his tusks, and holding it there with his proboscis, will
carry it to whatever part of the yard he may be directed
by his driver. They will also, using trunk, feet, and

86

THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT

tusks, pile the huge timbers as evenly and correctly as
one could wish. What surprised us the most was to
see the elephants select and pick out particular timbers
from the centre of an indiscriminate stack or heap of

ELEPHANT EMPLOYED IN A TIMBER-YAKD, MATTLMAIN

more than a hundred simply at the command of the
driver. The huge beasts are directed by the mahouts,
or drivers, by spoken orders, pressure of the feet on
their necks, and the customary use of the ankus, or

FROM MAULMALN AND PENANG 87
elephant goad. It usually requires a year or a year and
a half to teach them the ' lumber business,' and when
thoroughly taught they are worth from Es. 500 up
wards, according to their abilities. We saw one, a
venerable old fellow nearly ten feet in height, for
which the owner said he had refused an offer of
Es. 3,000. Sometimes an animal breaks his tusks,
being forced to carry an excessive weight by a stupid
or brutal driver; though the elephant knows his own
power, and generally refuses to lift more than his tusks
can safely bear, for if these should be broken off close
to the head, death would soon ensue ; if only cracked
they are hooped about with iron bands, and are thus
rendered serviceable for many years.
On leaving Maulmain our course was nearly due
south. We saw, though dimly, some of the islands
of the Mergui Archipelago, belonging to the British,
and the island of Junk Ceylon, which has extensive
tin mines, and which exports the famous edible birds'
nests, eaten as a luxury by the Chinese. Soon after
ward we obtained glimpses of the Malay peninsula —
the Golden Chersonese of the ancients. The sea life of
our Chinese passengers was to us a diverting spectacle,
and greatly relieved what would otherwise have been
a rather monotonous voyage. Some of them were

88 THE. LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
' saloon ' passengers, and ate at our table. They wore
the orthodox blue shirt and baggy trousers, slippers
and * pigtails,' and long finger-nails — one gentleman in
particular had these useful appendages nearly as long
as his fingers — and they smoked tobacco and opium
in little brass pipes, and gambled through half of
the night. They seemed intelligent, and were very
dignified at table, partaking of everything, and
using their knife and fork gracefully. By going
' forward ' we could see the ' deck * passengers, a
lower class, eating with chop-sticks — little pieces of
wood the size of lead pencils, and about eight inches
in length, held between the thumb and forefinger, and
supported by the second and third fingers — from
numerous little bowls. Their food consisted of rice
and little fishes, or bits of pork, or potted duck, and
fruit, though shrimps, crabs, potatoes and squashes are
also eaten by them ; very weak tea was drunk between
meals, and at meals usually nothing, though sometimes
I detected a bottle of so-called ' champagne.' ' John
Chinaman ' hves temperately, though he has pretty
exact ideas upon the subject of good living. On the
steamer they cooked with small, portable, charcoal
furnaces ; usually each variety of food was kept by
itself in a separate bowl, though sometimes stews of

FROM MAULMAIN AND PENANG

89

everything, all the ' odds and ends,' well mixed, were
made. A Chinaman eats from many little bowls,
holding one of rice in his hand, and selecting bits from
the others in turn to mix and eat with the rice ; in

A BUDHIST PRIEST

eating, they hold the bowl to the lips, and then poke
the food into their mouths with the chop -sticks.
They ate but twice a day, and at the conclusion of a
meal most amusing was it to see all the dishes washed
in about half a pint of water.

90 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
Our voyage was much ' lightened ' also by the society
and friendship of the Eight Eev. T. Bigandet, Bishop of
Eangoon and Apostolic Vicar of Ava and Pegu. He
is a talented and pleasant old gentleman, and was
proceeding to Penang, for the purpose of ordaining a
young priest there. The reverend father has lived
twelve years in Penang and about the same time in
Burma, and has travelled over nearly all the country
between Calcutta and Singapore. He speaks eight
languages, including the difficult Burmese, Malay, and
Hindustani. He has written a very learned work
on the ethnology of the Burmese, another on the life
of Gaudama, the ways to NTeibban, and the pongyees
or monks, and is altogether the best informed gen
tleman concerning those strange countries and their
stranger peoples that we had the pleasure of meeting.
At daylight on the morning of the 10th of May
we were awakened by the steward, who whispered
through the keyhole of the door of our cabin, ' Penang
is in sight, gentlemen.' We dressed quickly, and
going on deck, there we beheld the beautiful little
island, scarcely two miles distant. A sudden rain
squall came on, hiding everything from view, but we
were soon anchored off Fort Cornwallis, and a notice
was posted on the main-deck that the ' Mahratta '

FROM MAULMAIN AND PENANG 91
would remain thirty hours, thus giving ample time for
' through ' passengers to land. An English war vessel,
a small Siamese steamer, and a half-dozen ships of
various nationalities lay at anchor near by, while
farther to the southward were about a hundred Chinese
junks. The strait in which we were anchored was
about two miles wide, and Pulo Penang, covered with
cocoa and areca palms, (its name is derived from the
latter, Penang being the Malay word for the betel-nut
palm, and Pulo meaning island ; it is also sometimes
called Prince of Wales' Island), nutmeg and clove
trees, dorians, and all the Malayan fruits, lay before us.
It is fifteen miles in length and eight in width. The
eastern part consists of a large plain, two or three miles
in depth, and on the western side of the island there is
a range of granite hills which rise in one place to a
height of 2,500 feet, where there is a signal station, and
some European bungalows, or country houses. Penang
was purchased in 1785 by the East India Company
from theEajah of Queda, a neighbouring Malay prince,
for 2,000 Spanish dollars. At that time the island was
without a single inhabitant ; now it has a population
of 60,000 — Malays, Chinese, natives of India, other
Asiatics, and Europeans, about 200 of the latter.
On the mainland opposite Penang is a strip of country,

92 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
sixty miles in length and twenty in breadth, purchased
by the British in 1802, and called Province Wellesley ;
its population numbers 50,000, mostly Malays, who
raise large quantities of sugar-cane for export. -At one
time black pepper was largely grown by the Chinese
in Penang, but now Sumatra and some other East
Indian islands have taken the lead in this valuable
commodity. Penang forms, together with Province
WeUesley, Malacca, and Singapore, what is called the
Straits Settlements, the government being under the
direction of the Lieutenant-Governor of Singapore,
who formerly was subject to the Viceroy of India,
but latterly, I believe, reports directly to the (En
glish) Home Government.
The town — once called George Town — hes upon the
north-eastern corner of the island. We are rowed
ashore in a sampan — a small passenger row-boat — by a
smiling Chinaman, who wears an immense hat, shaped
like a sugar-bowl cover, made of palm leaf, and a coat
or short cape made of rope, waterproof, and which
strikingly resembles a western door-mat. Landing at
the stone jetty, we enter a gharry, the regulation cab
of the east, and are driven through some of the princi
pal streets. Chinese sampans, as well as junks, all
have huge eyes painted upon their prows, for, says

FROM MAULMAIN AND PENANG 93
' John,' ' Spose no hab got eyes, how can see ? ' which
terse explanation should certainly satisfy the most in
quisitive. Biding along a broad and clean street, we
noticed a few fine squares, though there were no public
edifices of any particular beauty ; the private dwellings
of the Europeans were pleasantly situated in the midst
of fine gardens. Very many of the streets were occu
pied by Chinese shops ; among them we noticed those
in which the liquors shamshu and bhang (strong
spirits made from rice and hemp) were dispensed ;
there were also many joss or idol houses to be seen.
A regiment of sepoys is stationed here ; the small fort
commands the town and harbour, and just courts and
an excellent police organisation combine to preserve
order even with such a mixed population.
The great fertility of Penang is owing to the high
temperature of its chmate, together with the moisture
produced by so great an extent of surrounding water ;
and it is perhaps a more healthy residence for
Europeans than any lowland station in India. When
one is worn with sickness or the cares of business, it
is only necessary to go from the plains to the hills,
eight miles distant, to find a perfect sanitarium, with a
temperature which ranges from 70° to 75° Fahrenheit
throughout the year. We had fortunately abundant

94 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
time to visit ' Penang Mountain.' In our gharry we
rode four miles to the foot of the hills, and ordered
two grooms with ponies to follow us for the steeper
half — the remaining four miles of the journey. The
road is very good, and runs past the foreign residences ;
then ensue immense plantations of cocoa and areca
palms, with little Malay huts embedded in them ; groves
of bread-fruit trees, nutmegs, cloves, bananas, bamboos,
and the pepper-plant follow ; then again we pass cocoa
palms — millions of them ; and finally the gharry halts
alike at the terminus of the road and the foot of the
hills, and from here it is but a half-mile to a wonder
ful waterfall. In the midst of dense woods a mountain
torrent, about twenty feet in width, dashes down a
precipice of jagged stone, at least a hundred and fifty
feet in height, and falls, with a noise of thunder, into a
small, deep pool, whence it flows on down the hill in a
channel deeply cut through the solid rock. The fall
is a grand sight now at the end of the dry season, but
must be much grander after the annual rains, when
the water is said to fall in a nearly sohd sheet. On
one side of this fall, at the bottom, there is a small
Hindoo temple — a singular example of the reverence
which even pagans have for the subhme in nature.
From this mountain torrent large iron pipes convey

FROM MAULMAIN AND PENANG 95
cool water to Penang, far away off on the heated
plain. Our ponies had how arrived, and, mounted on their
backs, we commenced the ascent of the hills by an ex
cellent bridle-path. After a ride of about two miles,
winding backwards and forwards over the hills and
through the valleys, but continually rising higher, we
reached a region of beautiful ferns, interlaced vines,
and huge trees, having trunks over a hundred feet in
height, straight ' as an arrow,' and with but few
branches, and these near their tops, and so thickly set
with their foliage that the brightest noonday sun
could scarcely penetrate them. Occasionally we ob
tained glimpses of the plains and sea below, but not
until we had reached the signal station did the mag
nitude and magnificence of the view burst upon us.
The flag-staff is about 2,500 feet above the sea-level,
and scattered around on convenient heights near at
hand are some dozen bungalows, including a large and
comfortable one belonging to the Governor. The view
from the observatory was simply superb. Away to
the north was the ocean, dotted by httle green islands,
and the peninsula of Malacca, with its level plains
close to it, and ranges of mountains — some peaks over
a mile in height — afar off'; to the east lay the town of

96 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
Penang, the houses with red tiled roofs, and white and
yellow walls, the bright emerald groves of tropical
trees, and the well-made roads, and the sea with hun
dreds of vessels at anchor ; then beyond, on the main
land, were perfect forests of cocoa palms, and a small
river, shining like molten silver, wending away to the
mountains, whose dim outlines could just be discerned
in the distance ; to the south were some islands covered
with the rankest of vegetation, and the eye also looked
over the beautiful hills and valleys of Penang island
itself; while to the westward lay the azure-hued ocean
stretching away, in calm majesty, to the horizon.
The air was so pure and exhilarating that we walked
the greater part of the distance to the foot of the hills
without fatigue, and then, re-entering our gharry,
returned to the steamer, first purchasing, however,
some dorians and mangosteens, the former fruit being
largely grown in Penang. The mangosteen is about
the size of a Sicily orange, and grows upon a small
tree which much resembles the orange tree. The skin
is a reddish brown, hke that of the egg-plant ; the rind
is red, bitter, and about a third of an inch thick, and
within it is a white pulp, divided into six or eight parts,
each with a large seed. The flavour is very much
like that of wild grapes, vinous and refreshing. On

FROM MAULMAIN AND PENANG 97
eating it the rind is broken with the fingers, and then
the white pulp is removed with a fork or spoon. The
mangosteen is justly esteemed the most delicious of the
East Indian fruits. We had often heard of the exqui
site flavour though disagreeable smell of the dorian,
so we resolved to taste one of them and judge for
ourselves. This fruit is much the shape of, though
the size is larger than a pineapple; it is green and
covered with short thorns ; the husk is yellow, and
about a third of an inch in thickness ; within, the
pulp is divided into four quarters, each with a central
rib or partition, and six large seeds the size and
shape of hen's eggs, which are covered with the thin.
juicy, edible matter. The smell of the dorian when
first opened is like stale fish, and when eaten the
flavour is like raw onions, leaving a nauseating garlic
taste in the mouth. However, notwithstanding its
rank odour, many Europeans resident in the east pro
fess to like the dorian, but we thought its primary
intervening, and final taste most unsavoury, nay, even
extremely disgusting.
On leaving Penang we had fairly entered the
Straits of Malacca — a channel 500 miles in length,
which connects the China Sea with the Indian Ocean,
flowing between the Malay peninsula and the island
9

98 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
of Sumatra, with a width of from 25 to 200 miles,
and steamed along in sight of land, on one hand
or on the other, the greater part of the time. The
navigation of some part of the straits is difficult and
dangerous for heavy draught vessels, there being huge
sandbanks which extend across it, leaving only narrow,
tortuous channels. We passed several large ships and
two or three ' canalers,' steamers bound for different
European ports, vid the Suez Canal. On the morning
of the 13th we sighted the old town of Malacca, and
were soon after at anchor about three miles from the
shore.

TO MALACCA AND SINGAPORE 99

CHAPTEE X.
TO MALACCA AND SINGAPORE
The town of Malacca, founded in the year 1252, was
taken by the Portuguese under Albuquerque in 1511,
by the Dutch in 1641, and by the English in 1695 ;
again held by the Dutch from 1818 to 1825, when,
with an adjacent territory extending for forty miles
along the coast and thirty miles inland, it was ceded to
Britain in exchange for Bencoolen, in Sumatra. Of late
years Malacca has much declined ; whereas formerly
it contained 20,000 inhabitants, there are now but
13,000 — two-thirds of which number are Malays. The
trade is mostly in the hands of the Chinese ; there are
not many Europeans, and none engaged in trade ; a few
only are in the Government service. From our anchor
age the little native town looks very pretty, and the
European residences upon a small hill and an old
church nearly covered with trees can just be discerned.
To the right of the town, though thirty miles inland,
lies Mt Ophir, a single peak 5,700 feet high, rising

100 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
sharply from the plain, and the locality where there
is mined a good quality of gold. About the same
distance to the left are some excellent tin mines.
In the middle of the day, going on shore with the
captain, the first objects which attracted our attention
were the ruined churches, and the original fortifications
built by Albuquerque, immediately behind the town
upon a hill about a hundred feet in height. The ruins
are those of the Portuguese monasteries of St. Paul and
of the Hermanos de leche with the church of Madre de
Dios, in which once reposed the ashes of the celebrated
apostle of the Indies, St. Francis Xavier, which were
afterwards transferred to Goa. We saw a tomb slab
within the crumbling walls, carved with an hour-glass
and wings, death's head and cross bones, and bearing
the date 1568, all in good preservation. One part of
this church is now used as a signal station, and another
as a powder magazine. We afterwards noticed in the
town several tall, many-storied dwellings of the archi
tecture of the 16th century. Entering a, gharry, we
were driven to the old cemetery, where sleep many
thousand Chinese far from their 'flowery kingdom.'
The grounds embrace a hill about a mile in circum
ference, and upon its sloping sides all the graves have
been dug ; there are no divisions between the stones,

TO MALACCA AND SINGAPORE 101
which are low, carved with Chinese characters, and
sometimes gilded or coloured red or green. Chinese
graves have no footstones, and the head stone is always
placed towards the bottom of the hill, and around the
remainder of the grave there runs a low horseshoe-
shaped wall, built even with the turf on its outer
side. The vegetation of Malacca is, like that of Penang,
very luxuriant. The streets of the town are clean,
though not broad or straight. The Chinese houses are
well made, two storeys in height, and as we rode along
we generaUy saw, through the open doors, that they con
tained immense paintings of some one of their numerous
gods. We took ' tiffin' (lunch) with an old Portuguese
resident, born in ¦ Malacca, and the agent of the steam
ship company to which the ' Mahratta ' belongs. In
conversation afterwards the old gentleman told me that
he acted the part of * the good Samaritan ' to the des
titute captain and officers of one of the American ships
which the piratical Captain Semmes plundered and
burned almost within sight of Singapore, and then
brought into Malacca. Eeturning to the steamer, we
weighed anchor at four o'clock in the afternoon, and at
daybreak on the foUowing morning had passed the
southern extremity of the peninsula of Malacca, and

102 THE' LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
were in sight of the island of Singapore, which is low,
richly wooded, with very irregular shores, and skirted
by beautiful little islands, the homes of native fishermen.
Like Malacca, very little of the town or city of Singapore
appears from the sea, though a hiU, with a signal-staff
and the Governor's house, and a long row of well-built
godowns (stores or warehouses), stand rather promi-
ently forth. We steam past two or three war vessels,
two telegraph steamers (which are only awaiting orders
from London to commence laying a wire from here to
Hong Kong), and by some thirty or forty merchant
ships of all nations to our anchorage in the crescent-
shaped roadstead about a mile from the town. We
engage a Malay prow to take us ashore, and are landed
near the Hotel d 'Europe, to which our good captain
has recommended us. This hotel we find to be very
large and comfortable, situated in the midst of beautiful
gardens, facing ' the green,' and commanding a fine
view of the straits, the large island of Bintang in the
distance, and the Chinese junks and foreign shipping in
the harbour. Attached to the establishment, which is
kept by a German, is that ' peculiar institution' an
American bar-room, where California mixed drinks
are served, and there is besides a ' regular down east'
Boston Arctic soda-water fountain ; a billiard-room ;

TO MALACCA AND SINGAPORE 103
and a reading-room, where one will find papers and
journals, in four or five languages, from New York,
London, Bombay, Calcutta, Batavia, Hong Kong,
Shanghae, Yokohama, and San Francisco.
The island of Singapore, situated but eighty miles
north of the equator, and separated from the mainland
by a strait less than a mile in width, is itself about
twenty-seven miles in length by fifteen in breadth,
and no part of its surface rises more than 500 feet
above the sea-level. Gutta-percha, the prepared juice
of a tree, was originally discovered in this island ; the
principal products now are spices, sugar-cane, and
fruits ; the only important manufacture is that of sago,
which, however, comes from the eastern parts of the
Malay Archipelago. Singapore, taken by the British in
1818, was, six years subsequently, confirmed in their
possession by treaty with the native Malay prince — the
Sultan of Johore — to whom it had belonged. The
town of Singapore is situated on the south-east corner
of the island. The term Singapore or Singapura, is
derived from the Sanscrit, singa, a lion, and pura, a
town, Lion-town, or ' town of lions,' though why so
fancifully named is not known ; there are no lions in
the island, the nearest approach to the ' king of beasts '
being his royal cousin the Bengal tiger. Formerly these

104 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
latter animals made sad havoc among the natives ; a man
a day, on an average, was kUled for many years after the
founding of the settlement. The wily beasts were said
to swim across the channel from the adjacent continent,
where they were quite plentiful, and on this account
it was thought impossible to rid the island of their
presence ; but by cutting down and burning the jungle
and building towns the annual death-rate has decreased
to about a dozen a year, and these are usually coolies
who are employed in the spice and other plantations
in the interior, far away from any dwellings.
The present population of the island is nearly
100,000, of which number 60,000 are Chinese and
about 6,000 Europeans. Singapore is said, for its
size, to have the most conglomerate population of
any city in the world. It is a free port, and conse
quently has a large trade. It owes its present pro
sperity, and even existence, to the fact of its being
situated upon the great thoroughfare of eastern com
merce; ships can be found at this great entrepdt of
spices, pepper, sago, rattan, coirrope, oil, etc., loading
for all parts of the world ; it is a coaling station for
the men-of-war of all nations, and the India and China
lines of steamers make it a port ; it is a great com
mercial emporium in which are warehoused for future

TO MALACCA AND SINGAPORE 105
distribution the staple products of America, Europe,
and Asia. Fifty years ago even, Crawford — at one
time Governor of the settlement — said that Singapore
had become the great entrepdt of south Asia and the
Malay Archipelago, to which the inhabitants of all
parts of the Indian Ocean resorted with the produce of
their farming and manufacturing industry, and in
which they found a ready market abundantly stocked
with every variety of European goods.
During our stay at Singapore we received every
kindness and attention from the American Consul,
Dr. JeweU, of Washington, D.C., "who lived with his
wife in the same hotel. Dr. J. and his family are
Mississippians by birth, education, and residence, but
they remained faithfuUy loyal to the National Govern
ment during our late terrible civil war. The Doctor
has been seventeen years in Washington, connected, in
various capacities, with both the Treasury and Post-
Master General's Departments. He had lived a little
more than two years in Singapore, and was both able
and willing to give us much valuable information.
One day we visited Fort Canning to obtain a general
view of Singapore. This fort, built upon a smaU
pyramid-shaped hill, about 200 feet in height, and just
back of the town, mounts, among numerous guns of

106 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
smaller calibre, some few 68-pounders, and is garri
soned by 300 British and 700 Sepoy troops. Singapore
is divided into a Malay, Chinese, and European ' town,'
or quarter ; it is too irregular to present a handsome
appearance, but the view of the shipping in the harbour
and the distant islands is rather impressive. The town
is divided by a small river, in which afe thousands of
native craft of every description, many of them being
employed as lighters in the harbour. On the extreme
western side hes the Chinese quarter ; nearer is the
European business town, the centre of which is laid
out in a small garden or park, around which is a
narrow street faced by two-storey brick stores, and
called ' Commercial Square.' To the east of the river
are the public buildings, the esplanade, chief hotels,
European residences, and the greater part of the Kling
community. In this quarter of the town is a hand
some building styled the ' Singapore Institution,' fur
nished with a library, museum, branch schools, &c, for
the cultivation of the Chinese and Malay languages
and literatures ; it was established by Sir Stamford
Baffles, the founder of the settlement of Singapore, in
1823. The Governor's house is a large brick and
stucco building on the summit of a little knoll, perhaps
half a mile inland from Fort Canning. Were it not

TO MALACCA AND SINGAPORE 107
for its immense cupola it would be mistaken for a
Government department or office of some kind, and, as
it is, the second storey, composed entirely of arches and
Venetian blinds, and the upper storey formed of pillars
and Venetians, present a very ugly appearance. There
are few trees about the house, so that it receives the
entire force of both sun and rain, and, excepting only
when a strong breeze is blowing, it must be a very
uncomfortable residence.
The large Chinese temple of Singapore is worthy of
a visit. It is situated in one of the principal streets,
and consists of a plain stone house with most fantastic
and curious adornments, having a court-yard in front
and around open sheds. Before the entrance are
two large stone tigers, in whose mouths held by the
teeth, may be seen and felt, perfectly round, loose
stones, so cut out by an ingenious Chinaman. Then
there are bas-reliefs, and inscriptions, and figures
carved upon the front of the building, while its pillars
are encircled by enormous dragons. But it is in the
supporting of the roof that the most lavish ornamen
tation is to be seen — the wood carving of gods, and
animals, and flowers, and arabesques, all painted and
gilded, being something wonderful. In the interior
of the large building are three niches, and in these sit

108 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
three gods, each about a foot in height, carved in
wood and richly gilded ; and before them are altars
upon which burn a peculiar kind of punk, or slow-
match, and candles, and there are besides fruits and
rice, placed as votive offerings. On these altars there
were also wishing-blocks — pieces of wood five inches by
three, shaped like kidney-beans, and finely carved. In
' wishing ' they are held by one extremity, side by side
in the hands, and then thrown in the air, the manner
of their falling indicating good or evil fortune ; but I
have heard somewhere that the ingenious people have a
knack of throwing them until they fall in the desired
way. Near the wishing-blocks upon the altar
were huge metallic cups, containing each about fifty
little thin sticks of bamboo. Each of these sticks has
a number upon it, which indicates a passage in their
' Book of Moral Sentences,' and the Chinamen shake
the cups round until one of these little sticks falls out,
and if the reference to this should not prove satis
factory, why, they simply shake again, and so on.
Some of the idols resembled jolly old mandarins, but
most had a very disagreeable look, with their narrow,
almond-shaped eyes, broad, sensual faces, and thick,
flabby lips. The interior of this temple was covered
with the most flaring red and black Chinese texts, and

THE FAN PALM— 'THE TRAVELLER'S FOUNTAIN'

TO MALACCA AND SINGAPORE 109
the roofs were ornamented with little dragons, made of
encaustic tiles and glass.
, We next visited the market, which contained a great
variety of vegetables and fruits, but few meats, the
Chinese diet consisting principally of fish and pork.
We drove several times, while in Singapore, into the
interior of the island, vid Orchard Eoad and Eiver
Valley Eoad, on which are situated the European bun
galows, or country houses, from two to four miles from
town. Orchard Eoad seems to be the most popular as
a residence. After leaving town it passes through a
naiTOw valley, with a series of little hillocks on either
hand, and upon which many houses have been built.
The road is very pretty, being lined by tall bamboo
hedges and trees which, uniting above, form a com
plete shade ; the beautiful fan-palm — or ' traveller's
fountain,' as it is sometimes called — will deserve
especial notice, with its immense spread of feathery
leaves, constituting an exact semicircle. The bun
galows are generally built of brick and stucco, like
those of India, and are surrounded by large compounds,
or gardens. The vegetation is always in the full bloom
of summer in Singapore, owing to its proximity to the
equator and the almost daily showers of rain. Beyond
the residences are the remains of many nutmeg planta-

110 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
tions (the nutmeg for some reason or other will not
flourish in Singapore), then succeeds a strip of thin
jungle, then the Chinese pepper and gambier planta
tions, and then comes the jungle in earnest, with its
gigantic trunks, creepers, orchids, parasites, and faUen
or decayed trees, plants, and vegetables. A very
beautiful spot near Singapore is caUed New Harbour.
The harbour consists of a long row of wharves, about
three miles from town, where the Peninsular and
Oriental and the Messageries Maritimes steamers he,
and where there are coal sheds, and docks built for
their repair. New Harbour is nearly land-locked by
many beautiful little green islands, and the clear blue
water and the graceful hills of Singapore add to the
charm of the scene.
Cocoa-nut oil is a large item of export from Singapore.
Dr. Little, an Enghsh gentleman and an old resident,
to whom I was so fortunate as to bring letters of intro
duction, called one morning at the hotel to take me in
his buggy to a large cocoa-nut plantation, owned partly
by himself, and five miles distant from the town. The
estate is nearly a mile square, embracing about six
hundred acres, situated near the sea shore, and the soU,
at least as far as the roots penetrate, is entirely com
posed of sand. The trees are planted in rows each

TO MALACCA AND SINGAPORE 111
way about twenty feet apart, and are of all ages and
sizes. Cocoa-nuts are raised principally for their oil,
though rope is made from their husks, and some quan
tity of them is exported for food. We walked for
some time beneath the trees, and then, re-entering the
buggy, drove to a distant part of the plantation where
there was a coir-rope manufactory. The European
manager was kind enough to explain the different pro
cesses of manufacture, which are extremely simple.
First the cocoa-nuts are broken in halves, and the meat
is grated off the shells and boiled down to make oil,
while the husks are soaked for a day or two in a large
tank of water. When taken from the tank they are
quite soft, and their coats are then removed by simply
forcing them between and through two rough rollers
(revolving by steam) ; this process leaves the long
straight fibres, which are something like those of a
broom, and next they are cleaned by being placed in
a large fan-miU. The fibres are then taken to another
house, where they are again cleaned by shaking them
in the air with two sticks, and then they are ready to
be spun into ropes of various sizes. There are several
ingenious as weU as simple contrivances for the twisting
of the strands, though the greater part of the rope is
made by hand. Nearly 200 Malays and Chinese
10

112 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
were employed in this establishment, which 'turns
out ' about 25,000 pounds of rope per annum. This
kind of rope, though extensively used by vessels, is
not so strong as that made from hemp. We took a
chota hazree, a little breakfast, with the obliging
superintendent, and arrived in town again about nine
o'clock, at the regular breakfast hour.
In the afternoon we rode to the house and gardens
of the Hon. Mr. Whampoa, a Chinese merchant who,
unhke the majority of his countrymen, has settled for
hfe at Singapore, where he has been for a long time in
business, and is reported to have made a fortune of
#2,000,000. Mr. Whampoa is a weU-educated gentle
man, speaks English perfectly, and is a member of the
town council. His house, three miles from the town,
is a complete museum, fiUed with the most expensive
and beautiful curios from all countries, while his
gardens — he is a great lover of flowers — are one of the
' lions ' of the place, and one of the first questions asked
a stranger by the European residents of Singapore is,
' Have you seen the Chinaman's gardens ? if not, be
sure and do so before leaving.' These gardens are
rather a work of art than nature, i.e. the most inte
resting plants to be seen have been brought to their
present form and condition by the hand and skill of

TO MALACCA AND SINGAPORE 113
man. Some shrubs — a species of box apparently —
are tortured into the most fantastic shapes by means of
clipping and confining them with wires. One may
see Hving dogs, dragons, fish, and exactly formed
boats, pagodas, and baskets. In many parts of the
gardens may be observed the monstrous Victoria
Regia lilies, here growing in the open air. Walking
along, we saw fish-ponds, summer-houses, canals,
hedges, a very network of paths, neatly gravelled, and
then we came to the — pig-sty, a long shed filled with
separate pens, or boxes, in which immense pigs, of
different breeds, were wallowing; one hog — nearly the
size of a cow — being too fat to stand upon its feet.
We also had an opportunity to see a sago manu
factory through the kindness of Dr. Little, who sent
his Chinese servant, who spoke Enghsh, with us as
cicerone. It is not generally known that sago is the
pith of a tree called the sago palm. The raw product
comes chiefly from Borneo and Sumatra, and Singapore
is its chief place of manufacture and exportation. The
sago palm, bears but once — in its fifteenth year — it is
then cut down, the pith is removed, cleared of its
fibres, pressed into smaU masses, and, being bound with
leaves, is shipped to the factory. Here it is washed a
number of times, dried, and passed through sieves,

114 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
becoming a fine white flour. It is then placed in large
pieces of linen, sprinkled with water, and shook until
it forms into grains ; then it is dried in large kettles
heated very hot, next passed through a fan-mill, and
dried for a day on large mats placed in the sun, and
then, being put in bags holding about two bushels, is
ready for shipment as the sago of commerce. The
factory consisted of a series of large open sheds, and
the workmen were all Chinese. Chinamen are the in
dustrious, hard-working class of the native population
of Singapore; the Malays and Klings (from the
Coromandel coast of India) are boatmen, gharry
wallahs (cab drivers), sailors, dhobees (washermen),
fishermen, &c.
It may give some idea of the remarkable produce
of the sago palm when it is known that three trees
wfll yield more nutritive matter than an acre of wheat,
and six trees more than an acre of potatoes. And
hence we find that sago is the sole bread of the
inhabitants of the Spice Islands and Bapua, or New
Guinea, and its neighbouring islands.

BANGKOK 115

CHAPTEE XI.
BANGKOK
At Singapore I parted from my English friend, he
going to Ceylon, Bombay, and thence, vid the Suez
Canal, to London ; and I to Java, and Japan, and China.
In Yokohama it was my good fortune to meet the Baron
Hiibner — formerly ambassador of Austria in Paris and
in Eome — and two English gentlemen, who were fresh
from a fourteen months' tour -through the United
States. At the Baron's kind solicitation, I joined his
party, and then we visited in turn Shanghae, Tientsin,
Pekin, and the ' Great Wall.' But I cannot reproduce
here the strange scenes we witnessed in northern China ;
nor can I relate how hospitably we were entertained by
Ministers Low, Vlangalli, Calice, and Wade in the
' Tartar City ; ' nor can I give an account of our voyage
600 miles up the great Yang-tse-Kiang river to
Hankow and Wuchang ; nor may I write about the
quaint sights of Canton or Macao : all this would easily
fill another volume, and besides the title-page speaks

116 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
only of travels in Farther India. Merely let me add
that from Hong Kong we crossed the China Sea to
ManiUa and the Philippine Islands, and then our course
was towards the equator, to Saigon ; and now again,
seven months from the time of my departure, I find
myself at the 'Hotel d'Europe,' Singapore, eager and
impatient to visit those other lands of the White Elephant
and the areca palm — Siam, Cambodia, and Cochin China.
My fellow-travellers having decided to go on to
Ceylon and India, alone I go on board the steamer
'Martaban,' of 600 tons burden, which Capt. Buxton
informs me will leave at nine o'clock in the evening for
Bangkok. I find myself to be the only cabin passenger
on board, and also soon find that the steamer is re
markably slow, making but about six knots per hour,
and the distance to Bangkok being 800 miles, with the
north-east monsoon blowing and a head current of a
knot and a half running. Fortunately with pleasant
weather we crossed the China Sea, and on December
30 entered the Gulf of Siam (500 miles in length by
250 in breadth), and which, notwithstanding the penin
sula of Cambodia consists for the most part of low-
lying land, is never visited by typhoons or heavy gales.
The head of the gulf is a ' bight ' about sixty mUes
square, and entering this, an island away to the north-

BANGKOK 117
east was the first land of Siam — the chief kingdom of
the Chin-Indian group of countries — seen by the officers
of the steamer. Soon after some hills upon the main
land to the westward of us appeared ; and about four
o'clock in the afternoon, with the lowland lying ahead
and just visible, we received on board our pilot.
At the mouth of the Menam river there is an almost
impassable bar, a channel through which might easily
be kept open, but the Siamese authorities object to such
a project. It is reported that a few years ago some
Enghsh merchants offered to dredge a channel through
this bar, whereupon the King told them he would not
have it done on any account, that rather he would
prefer to pay somebody to place a sandbank there —
that it was a good protection against enemies. And
just at the mouth of the river the Siamese have sunk
three junks, in the same enlightened spirit which
prompts them to retain the bar intact ; but the pUots,
knowing the position of these junks, manage, though
with difficulty, to pass between them. The river seems
about half a mile in width ; its banks are fringed with
mangroves and jungle, and beyond are immense paddy
fields. About six miles up the river we came to the small
viUage of Paknam, where is the Siamese custom-house ;

118 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
and two forts, the one on a small island opposite the
town, mounting eight or ten large guns, the one next the
town with no armament, and seeming to be in a very
dUapidated condition. According to rule, the captam
is compelled to anchor and land at the custom-house —
a large bamboo shed, with a palm-leaf roof, and con
taining nothing but a table and two or three chairs.
A Siamese official in native dress — a short white jacket
and a strip of cloth around the waist and drawn between
the thighs — presents a common blank-book, in which
the captain writes his report, and besides (at the request
of the officer, who spoke English fairly), some infor
mation concerning the movements of the King of Siam
at Singapore. His Majesty was at the time absent
from the kingdom on a pleasure excursion to Calcutta
and India. Proceeding up the river, just above Paknam
we noticed another small fort having a few guns, but
no guard or other evidence of occupation. Opposite
this fort on an island is a plain white pagoda and some
small temples ; these are used only on particular festival
days. The river banks are very beautiful, being thickly
covered with the vegetation pecuhar to the tropics —
bamboos, bananas, cocoa palms, mangroves, and hun
dreds of plants of famihar form but unknown name.
We next passed some immense sugar-cane plantations,

HIS MAJESTY THE KING OF SIAM

BANGKOK 119
then some paddy fields and a Burmese village on the
right, and orange gardens and a small town on the left
bank. The river here doubles upon itself, so to speak,
thus increasing the distance to Bangkok by fifteen miles.
We afterwards passed large plains of betel-nut and
cocoa-nut palms on the one side, and dock and ship
building yards upon the other. Owing to a low tide
we anchor here, though the city proper is nearly two
mUes distant, and nothing can be seen of it, the ground
being too level and the vegetation too dense. The
captain takes me ashore in his gig. We pass on the
right a French Eoman Catholic church, another
custom-house, and the Consulates of America, Ger
many, England, France, and Portugal. These consular
buUdings are plainly built of brick and stucco, situated
in large compounds of plants and flowers near the
river. In this section of the Menam are anchored
many smaU barks, most of them flying the national
standard of a white elephant on a crimson ground ; no
large vessels and no steamers are to be seen, though
in commerce Bangkok once ranked second only, to Cal
cutta and Canton.
We land at Falcks' 'Bowling Alley and Billiard
Hall,' and enquire for rooms in the boarding and
lodging department, which we find situated a short

120 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
distance back from the river. ' Falcks' Hotel ' consists
of a long, low, one-storey building, raised upon piles
about four feet from the ground, and I am shown by
the polite proprietor into a room less than ten feet
square, it being - the best the house affords ; ' the sides
of this room extend only to the eaves of the roof, the
entire building being open above them to the ridge
pole. The people assembled at dinner were all Germans,
and apparently all skippers — masters of the merchant
vessels in port. The table was graced by the presence
of but one lady, a captain's wife. On the foUowing day,
being the bearer of a letter of introduction to the
Private Secretary of the Supreme King — Nai phon
Eaya nat tianahar — I called upon the American
Consul — General F. W. Partridge, of Illinois — to ask
his advice concerning its disposal. Sending in my card,
a tall and slender gentleman about sixty years of age,
dressed in a white duck suit with gilt army buttons,
soon presented himself, and gave me a most cordial
greeting. Upon stating that, having no acquaintance
there, I had taken the hberty to call and ask his advice
concerning the things best worth seeing in Bangkok
and the surrounding country, the General very kindly
offered me any assistance in his power. The Private
Secretary, to whom my letter was addressed, had gone

BANGKOK 121
with the King to Calcutta. Tha Consul — a truly
representative American — graduated in the University
of Vermont; was president for some time of a
college in Pennsylvania; served in the Mexican war
and through the greater part of the late civil war,
and bears upon his body many scars — honourable
proofs of fidehty and zeal in his country's cause. He
has resided in Bangkok a little more than two years,
and proposes remaining two more.
In the afternoon the Consul's son, who acted as U.S.
Marshal, kindly took me to see something of the city.
We went in the Consulate barge, which is simply a large
row-boat of the gondola pattern, with a small pavihon
in its centre fitted with blinds and shelves and seats
and cushions ; and the boatmen in livery, two behind
and two before, row standing and facing the bow, look
ing forwards. Bangkok has been aptly styled the
' Venice of the East,' for its thoroughfares and high
ways of traffic are simply intersecting canals and branches
of the river ; and the majority of the houses are either
floating, built upon rafts, or upon piles on the sides of
these waterways. There are some narrow paths on
terra firma, however, and the King has recently built a
long stretch of road as a drive ; it is reported that
he also promises to build highways alongside of the

122 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
principal canals. The situation of Bangkok is unique.
The river Menam flows through its western quarter,
and upon the eastern there is a wall fifteen feet in
height and about twelve in breadth. When the capital
was moved here from Ayuthia, in 1769, the houses
were built upon the banks of the river, but the cholera
became so frequent that one of their kings ordered the
people to build upon the river itself, which, ' owing to
greater cleanliness and better ventUation,' proved to be
much more healthful. The houses are built upon
bamboo rafts, which extend for several mUes along the
river, four or six deep, chained together and to the
shore ; and each raft is secured by rattan ropes to a pole
driven into the muddy bottom in such a manner as to
allow of its rising and falling with the tide. It is said
there are as many as twelve thousand of these floating
dwellings and shops. Siamese houses are generally
built of bamboo, covered on roofs and sides with atap-
palm leaves, and are one storey in height. Those on the
river front are mostly shops owned by Chinamen ; they
have two little peaked roofs and a small verandah, and
one side is left open to display goods to those passing
on the river. When a family dwelling in a floating
house wish to move, they simply cast off the moorings
and float with the tide up or down the river, as the

BANGKOK 123
case may be. There are said to be only two divisions
in a Siamese house ; of these one is occupied by males
and the other by females. The floors of the houses
which are built (raised upon piles) on the banks of the
canals are reached by ladders, those on the river have
small landing-places and steps on their rafts.
The existence of the Siamese, hke that of the
Burmese, may almost be said to be amphibious ; they
seem to pass more than half their lives in or on the
water, and their chief food is the supply they get from
it, fish. Everywhere we see canoes and boats, many of
them propelled by women and little boys. ' Boats are
the universal means of conveyance and communication.
Except about the palaces of the kings, horses or carriages
are never seen [1858], and the sedan of the Chinese
appears unknown in Siam ; but a boat is a necessary
part of every person's household ; to its dexterous
management every child is trained ; women and men
are equally accustomed to the use of the oar, the
paddle, and the rudder. From the most miserable
skiff which seems scarcely large enough to hold a
dog, to the magnificently adorned barge which is
honoured with the presence of royalty, from the shab
biest canoe hewn out of the small trunk of a tree from
the jungle up to the roofed and curtained, the carved

124 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
and gilded bark of the nobles— every rank and con
dition has its boats plying in endless activity, night and
day, on the surface of the Menam waters.'
For nearly half a mile both banks of the canal were
lined with rice factories, owned, almost without an
exception, by the Chinese ; their business is to separate
the rice kernel from its paddy husk and pack it for
shipment. Then we came to the Wat Sah Kdte
pagoda, situated in a vast enclosure, containing besides,
after the usual arrangement, two or three temples, with
huge gilt images of Budha within them, a large
building for preaching, the dwelhngs of the priests,
and many pavilions for the use of worshippers ; but the
grounds were, in a very dilapidated condition. The
King had recently turned ' adrift ' aU the priests, several
hundreds of them, to earn an honest living by hard
work instead of begging, and so the wat, or temple, was
closed to the public. The pagoda is not completed, but
still sufficient has been built to convey an idea of the
original design. It was erected by a prince about fifty
years ago, and is the largest edifice of the kind in the
city. Built of brick, the form is that of a bell, with a
circumference of about a thousand feet, and an altitude
of about two hundred and fifty feet. The sides are
covered with small niches (probably intended as the

'

TEMPLES AND PAGODAS AT BANGKOK

BANGKOK 125
receptacle of idols), and many narrow, sunken stair
cases lead to the summit; a large one on the outside
winds around it to the top, which is a level place about
fifty feet square, and upon which rests another pagoda,
perhaps seventy-five feet in height. This one has pas
sages through it, and in the centre there is a small
brass image of Budha. From the summit of this huge
pile of brick may be obtained a very fine view of the
city of Bangkok and its surroundings ; though this is
hardly a correct statement, for you see very few of the
dweUing-houses of the city ; here and there a wat, or
pagoda, the river with its shipping, the palace of the
King, and a waving sea of cocoa-nut and betel-nut
palms, is about all thatdistinctly appears. The general
appearance of Bangkok is that of a large, primitive
viUage, situated in and mostly concealed by a virgin
forest of almost impenetrable density. On one side
beyond the city limits were paddy fields, and on the
other to the very horizon stretched the exuberant
jungle. On the bank of the river opposite the palace stands
the most remarkable pagoda in Bangkok, called Wat
Cheng. While being rowed thither I was much
struck with the resemblance of the Siamese women to
the men, their features being very similar, their

126 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
dresses nearly alike, and both having the head shaved
in the same manner ; but upon close inspection it was
usually seen that there were some distinguishing
marks— that the women wore a narrow scarf around
the shoulders, and allowed a lock of hair, some three
inches in length, to hang down before the ear. Seen
from the river, the floating houses, swiftly-passing
boats, wats and pagodas, and palaces together form a
scene partaking more perhaps of the quaint and odd
than of either the beautiful or grand. The Wat
Cheng pagoda is bell-shaped, with a lofty, tapering steeple
— uprachadi, sacred spire ; the whole probably two
hundred and fifty feet in height. It is built of brick
and plastered on the outside, which is wrought into a
grotesque and fantastic 'mosaic with Chinese cups,
plates, and dishes of all sizes and colours, broken and
whole, so set in the plaster as to form figures of
elephants, monkeys, demons and griffins, flowers,
fruits, vines and arabesques. In large niches upon the
sides, at nearly half the distance to its top, are images
of Budha riding on three elephants. The grounds of
Wat Cheng, some twenty acres in extent, embrace 
besides the priests' dwellings, temples, preaching-room,
library, and halls — beautiful flower and fruit gardens,
ponds, grottoes, belvederes, and stone statues (brought

WAT CHENG PAGODA, BANGKOK

BANGKOK 127
from China) of sages, giants, warriors, griffins,
nondescripts, &c. In returning to the hotel we
stopped at a floating booth where a theatrical
entertainment was in progress. The dresses of the
performers were rich, and the acting was much in the
Chinese style, though there was perhaps not so much
ranting, the voices being pitched to a more natural
key. A great part of the dialogue was in verse ; and
the accompanying music was most primitive and droll,
consisting simply of beating two bamboo sticks
together. A band of three ' pieces ' was also in
attendance, and the music discoursed was of a hvely
character, and very much resembled some of the
Scotch and Irish airs. The play was gross and
obscene throughout, as is usually the case among
eastern nations. The Siamese are alike fond of their
national music and drama.
In company with the Consulate interpreter, ' Henry '
— a good-natured, intelhgent Siamese, who spoke
English quite well — I visited other of the temples and
pagodas of Bangkok. To the Wat Sah Prah Tam,
situated without the city walls, we were admitted by
the porter in charge, after paying a sUver tical (about
60 cts.) At one extremity of this temple was a large
gUded image of Budha, with a smaller one just in

128

THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT

front, both sitting cross-legged, and being surrounded
by many costly garments. The walls were painted in
gaudy colours, with pictures of the annual or semi
annual religious visit of the King and Court to this wat.
In these paintings the landscapes were fairly executed,

TEMPLE OP THE SLEEPING IDOL, BANGKOK
though the colours were too deep and decided, the
contrasts too great, the perspective often at fault ; and
the figures were stiff, and faces smiling, but devoid of
any distinguishing character. This wat and all Siamese
ivats are lofty buildings of brick, with roofs rising in

BANGKOK 129
connected but decreasing tiers, and projecting over deep
verandahs, which are supported by rows of massive
square pUlars, some of them sixty feet in height, and
the whole is covered with white cement. The roofs
are usually made of varicoloured tiles, and at the
ridge-pole extremities are wooden ornaments very
much the shape and size of a bullock's horn, which
give an odd and fanciful but rather graceful finish to
the buUdings. The doors are large and covered with
fine carving, gUt and black ; the windows (or rather
window shutters, for there is no glass), which are
numerous, are also carved and sometimes ornamented
with small pieces of coloured glass.
There are many temples belonging to the Chinese,
which race is so largely represented in the population
of Bangkok. The largest of these, called Wat Con-
layer Nemit, contains a brass, cross-legged (sitting)
Budha, about fifty feet in height and forty in width at
the bent knees. The immense roof of this temple is as
much as one hundred feet from the ground. A great
heap of betel-nuts was stored in one, and two or three
keepers or priests were hving in another corner of the
sacred edifice. There were two smaller wats within
the same enclosure ; the one contained a brass Budha
sitting upon a rock, supported by a copper elephant on

130 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
one side and a leaden monkey looking up with rever
ential eyes on the other. The other wat contained a
large central image of Budha, and about a hundred
smaller ones in different positions, before and around
it ; some were made of lead, some of brass, some of
mixed metal, some of wood, and ' Henry,' the inter
preter, tells me there were some there also of gold
and silver, presented by the princes and nobles, but the
priest in attendance could not be induced to point out
their locality. The walls were covered with coloured
illustrations of Siamese tradition, fable, and history.
Having pretty extensively traversed the city by
water, one day some friends proposed a horse-back ride
to the palace walls and back. We rode over a good,
macadamised road, built by the late Supreme King,
to the main entrance of the palace, where we saw a
battahon of native troops exercising. Halting for a
few moments, we observed that their drill and evolu
tions were performed with rapidity and exactness.
Their uniform consisted of yellow coats and blue
trousers, with white canvas caps (navy pattern) ; their
feet were bare, and their weapons were muskets and
swords of European design and manufacture. The
palace walls, fifteen feet high by twelve in width, with
a notched parapet, and the trees conceal most of the

BEASS IEOL IN TEMPLE : BANGKOK

BANGKOK 131
buildings within, though we noticed some such lofty
structures as a clock-tower, also some wats, pagodas,
and ' sacred spires.' The native houses have been
torn down and cleared away for some considerable dis
tance around the walls, and it is intended that this
space shall be neatly turfed or arranged in parks and
flower gardens. At one corner of the palace enclosure
we passed the royal (black) elephant stables — a dozen
in number — the * white ' elephant being housed within
the walls. The gates of the palace are built of simple
teak wood, embossed with huge nails, but they are
neither strong nor handsome.
Near this part of the city the late King has laid out
several streets at right angles to each other, and built
upon them compact blocks of two-storey brick houses,
which are now rented by the Government (the King ?)
to the people. The present King has followed the
example of his royal father in these civic improvements.
He has buUt a good road around the city just within
the walls, and also several blocks of houses next ad
joining those erected by the late King. In several
instances the intersection of two streets has been made
or built into a circle, having a fountain or tower in
the centre. And thus are some small transplanted
shoots, taken from the great tree of western civilisation,

132 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
with its wide-spreading branches of progressive thought
and action, slowly but surely taking root in the recep
tive soil of Siam, once so vain and capricious. Having
roads, the Siamese will next have ox-carts or carriages ;
indeed, some of the nobles have already imported
the latter from Calcutta, and they may now occasion
ally be seen taking a drive, at the fashionable hour of
the afternoon, sitting gravely upright, and as they roll
along the dusty streets looking upon their friends and
neighbours with a very perceptible sense of new-found
importance, illustrative of deep culture and nice re
finement. The Supreme King himself is also accustomed
to take the air in a barouche drawn by six horses,
with liveried postiUions, and attended by gorgeous out
riders and a mounted escort of the royal guard.

SUPREME KING OF SIAM IN HIS STATE ROBES

EXCURSION TO PECHABUR1 133

CHAPTEE XII.
EXCURSION TO PECHABUEI
To the kindness of the American Consul I was
indebted for an introduction to the Private Secretary
of the Second King and Secretary of the Foreign
Office — a Mr. Chandler, formerly of Connecticut.
This gentleman told me he came out to Siam twenty-
eight years ago in the capacity of a missionary. He
has hved here during the reign of three Siamese kings,
and has witnessed the arrival and departure of several
foreign missions, whose commercial leagues or treaties
with Siam he has often been instrumental in furthering
or negotiating. He has seen the country progress in
legislation and commerce, until now nearly every
western Power is represented by its consul resident
at Bangkok, and Siam is fast becoming one of the
most enlightened nations east of Calcutta. Several
years ago Mr. C. gave up his missionary labours and
entered the Government service, first as an interpreter,
next as tutor to the King, and then as Secretary of the
Foreign Office, which latter position he at present

134 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
retains. Mr. Chandler's family consists only of a wife —
a most worthy lady, who came from home with her
husband to assist him in his rehgious labours, and who
now employs her time in teaching about a dozen
Siamese boys the English language and rudiments of
education. From this exceUent couple I received every
hospitality, and now, from afar, desire to tender them
my most heartfelt acknowledgments.
One day when relating to Mr. Chandler what I had
seen of interest in Bangkok, he said to me : ' Before
leaving Siam you should visit a large town about
100 miles south-west of here, caUed Bechaburi. It is
a sanitarium for both Europeans and natives, and the
King has built himself a palace there, also some
temples, some good roads and bridges. You go
there,' continued my friend, ' in a large barge, called
a " house " boat, rowed by six men, and in which you
eat and sleep, carry your books and papers, and at
your ease survey the country and people as you pass
along.' ' It would be a pleasant and interesting ex
cursion surely,' I replied, ' and, not being pressed for
time, I will go. Perhaps the Consul's son would like
to take a rest from his official duties and make the
trip with me ; I will ask him.'
Mr. Partridge, upon consultation, like the redoubt-

EXCURSION TO PECHABURI 135
able Barkis, ' was wiUin ;' and a large ' house ' boat
with five rooms, a cook, and table-boy having been
engaged, we slipped away from the Consulate, rowed
up the beautifuUy-lighted Menam — the Mother of
Waters — and turned into the canal leading westward
from about the centre of the city on the evening of
the 7th of January. Our beds, with the ubiquitous
mosquito nettings above them, had been placed in the
comfortable cabin, our clothes and provisions packed
away underneath its floor, and the cooking utensils,
ready for use, were arranged in the stern quarter,
back of the cabin. About nine o'clock on the fol
lowing morning we stopped for breakfast and to rest
our crew, who had rowed hard most of the night ; and
while we foreigners ate, the boatmen looked curiously
on, and then in turn when they ate we gazed, no
doubt, quite as curiously at them and their strange
meal. Siamese food, at least that of the lower classes,
consists principally of dried (often putrid) fish and
rice, which are eaten in the form of curries, highly
seasoned with pepper and spices. All classes in Siam
use a sauce called namphrik, which differs from the
Burmese fish condiment ngapee, in that a greater
variety of articles are employed in its composition ; it
also mixes 'with rice like the Indian chutnee, though it

136 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
approximates more in appearance and flavour to this
paste than does the Burmese ngapee. The Siamese
sauce is prepared, when all the desired ingredients are
at hand, ' by bruising a quantity of red pepper in a
mortar, to which are added kapi (paste of shrimps and
prawns), black pepper, garhc, and onions. These
being thoroughly mixed, a small quantity of brine and
citron-juice is added. Ginger, tamarinds, and gourd
seeds are also employed.' That the namphrik is ' one
of the most appetite-exciting condiments ' I know my
self by experience ; it is also, though very hot and
' high,' a savoury and toothsome addition to the
ordinary curry of simple meat, rice, and gravy.
People who are rich of course provide themselves with
a variety of dainties. The Siamese eat from a common
dish, with the fingers usually, though sometimes they
use small spoons made of china or mother-of-pearl :
water or tea is drunk with their meals, of which it is
customary to have but two in the day — the breakfast
at seven in the morning, and the dinner between the
hours of five and six in the afternoon. Between meals,
during the day, they chew the betel-nut, and smoke
cigarettes made of native-grown tobacco, rolled in
little slips of palm-leaf. The Siamese sometimes drink
strong spirit in the form of arrack (made from boiled

EXCURSION TO PECHABURI 137
rice, molasses, and palm wine), though very rarely, and
almost always secretly.
During the morning we crossed the Mahachen river,
its banks thickly clad with verdure, and a canal which
was straight and about thirty miles in length. The
country was level, and at first only covered with rank
grass ; and we passed but few villages. But afterwards
the banks of the canal were lined with bananas and
atap palms, and beyond were market gardens and
paddy fields. The capital is in great part supplied by
the vegetables raised here ; and the renters of the land
and the labourers are almost all Chinese. In the
afternoon we crossed another river — the Haichin — and
late in the evening entered and rowed for a considerable
distance down the Meklong — a large and deep river —
and passed into another canal and anchored for the
night. The banks of the Meklong seemed to be thickly
settled, and the country in the distance was undulating
and even hUly. A town called Meklong, near the
mouth of this river, was the birthplace of the famous
Siamese Twins. The face of the country improved
as regards trees and vegetation as we went on, until
we entered the Pechaburi river, which we were in and
out of half a dozen times, while cutting off long and
sinuous reaches by short cross-canals.

138 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
At three o'clock we arrived at Pechaburi, and having
anchored at the outskirt of the town, sent our letters
from the Consul at Bangkok to the Governor, request
ing the use of a house, horses, &c, during our stay.
The reply of the Governor, coming at last, aUotted us a
smaU brick house, furnished (?) with some bamboo
mats, a table, and two chairs, upon the banks of the
river : the lower storey or portion of the building had
been set apart for, and evidently been recently used
by, some domestic animals, such as sheep and dogs,
and perhaps horses. In the evening we took a long
walk through the bazaars and market along a
macadamised street lined by substantial two-storey
brick houses. The variety and quahty of the native
food exposed for sale in the market quite astonished
both of us. The town of Pechaburi, biult on both
banks, and twenty miles from the mouth of a river
bearing the same name, contains about twenty thousand
inhabitants ; it is about a hundred miles distant south
west from Bangkok, and is situated near the range of
hills which divides the kingdom of Siam from the
Tenasserim Provinces. Pechaburi is chiefly noted as
a royal sanitarium. At the back of the town, on the
summit of a beautiful hill, stands a large palace, built by
the late Supreme King. On an adjoining hiU are some

EXCURSION TO PECHABURI 139
pagodas and temples, and at the foot of the hiU are
some Budhist monasteries, where native youth are
gratuitously educated, and near these is a cave fiUed
with idols. There are some fine roads in and about
Pechaburi, which were also built by the late King.
On our return to the boat we met the Governor riding
in a buggy, but he stopped, and we had some conver
sation with him through the interpreter. The Governor
of Pechaburi was a young man, not intellectual or
smart-looking ; he was dressed in a European shirt and
sun-hat [topee), with the native panoung, or cloth,
which is worn around the waist and passed between
the legs, striped socks, and patent-leather shppers.
His servants laid abjectly upon the ground, with then-
feet behind them (in Burmese fashion), whenever they
addressed His Excellency. In the buggy there was a
finely-wrought gold xroh, or betel-box — an article in
almost constant requisition by. every Siamese noble
man. Two missionaries of the American Presbyterian
Board, with their families, hve here, and they are the
only foreigners in the town. Later in the evening we
called upon the Eev. Mr. MacFarland; his confrere,
who owns the adjoining house, was away on a leave
of absence at the time. The reverend gentleman

140 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
— from Pennsylvania, U.S. — has hved twelve years in
Siam, and has enjoyed very good health, notwith
standing the trying chmate. He speaks the Siamese
and Laos dialects perfectly, and thoroughly understands
the people and their country after so long a residence.
Mr. MacFarland told me he had made about twenty
converts — that only one had relapsed into his old faith
during his ministration. I remarked that I thought
the Siamese seemed much more anxious to learn
Enghsh than they were to acquire new rehgious tenets.
He assented, but doubted the value of a general
diffusion of the Enghsh language, notwithstanding there
were no scientific, hterary, or educational books as yet
translated into the Siamese vernacular. He thought
that the mission was too young to have expected
greater successes — that the harvest truly was plenteous,
but the labourers were few.
Perhaps the most interesting buUdings in Pechaburi
are those constituting the King's palace, which is
situated upon a low hUl near the town. His Majesty
and some members of the Court are accustomed to
spend part of every summer there. Eiding across the
plain to the foot of the hill, and there dismounting, we
walk over a wide brick-paved path to the top, passing
on the way many solas, or sheds open on the sides,

EXCURSION TO PECHABURI 141
and used for entertainments of various kinds, foi
quartering soldiers, &c. One of these sheds contained
four or five mounted twelve-pounder cannon. The
grounds were in a wretched state, being overgrown
¦with weeds, but upon the annual visits of the King
everything is put in good order. The path soon led
us up steep staircases, with massive stone balustrades,
and by several plain two-storey brick buildings used
by His Majesty's friends and officers. Next we ap
proached the private apartments of the King, with their
wide, paved terraces and surrounding barracks. On
the very summit of the hUl, which is quite sharp, are
three buUdings — the royal audience hall, a temple,
and an observatory. The audience hall is almost
entirely without ornament. It is a long, low room
about seventy-five feet in length by forty in width
and twelve in height. The exterior walls are decorated
between the windows, with a poor representation,
carved in wood, of the flags of all nations standing
upon a globe — evidently a recent addition to the
building. The interior waUs and ceihngs are covered
with a dingy-brown paper. At one end of the room
is a semicircular throne, consisting of four stone steps,
and painted upon the walls on either side are some
excellent samples of Siamese art. The subjects are, of

142 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
the one, the ' Eeception of the French Ambassadors
at Court,' and of the other ' Bonzes worshipping
Gaudama.' The observatory is a round brick tower
about thirty feet in height. From its top the country,
as far as we could see, was a vast plain of paddy,
broken here and there on every side by small, thickly
wooded hills — luxuriant islets in a waveless sea of
verdure — away to the north and west were low ranges
of dark-blue mountains, and upon the south shone
brightly, in the rays of the rising sun, the tranquil Gulf
of Siam.
After a long ride we reached a large wat, near
which, in the side of one of the hills, is a subterranean
cavern, styled the ' Cave of Idols,' consisting of several
small chambers connected by narrow passages. Light
is admitted through one or two openings in its ceUing,
though the greater part requires to be illuminated by
torches. Judging from its material and structure, we
thought the cave to be of volcanic origin. Its sides,
within, are lined with rows of gilt Budhas, and at the
end of one of the halls there is a huge reclining image
of the same divinity. The trees about the mouth of
the cave were filled with chattering and grinning
monkeys. At sight of us they scampered from branch
to branch and tree to tree, and then would sit still and

EXCURSION TO PECHABURI 143
steadUy observe us in a most amusing manner for as
much as an entire minute at a time. At the bottom
of the hill we inspected a temple in which was an
immense reclining Budha. This colossal image was
built of brick and chunam (lime), and covered with
thick gold-leaf; it was clothed with yellow (the
priestly colour) garments, and lay in the ordinary state
of repose, its head upon the right hand and resting on
a gaily ornamented pillow. I paced the length of this
idol, and made it to be 135 feet — its feet being seven
feet in width, ears ten feet in length, and other
members of like enormous proportions. The object
the priests have in view in building such monstrous
statues of Budha is to impress and awe the (common)
people, and, besides, the larger the idol the more merit
there wUl accrue to its makers.
A few miles from Pechaburi is a Laos village. It
consists of only about twenty huts. These are built
upon piles and made of bamboo, roofed with palm
leaves. Under the floors are stables for the domestic
animals and space for rubbish of all kinds. We en
tered the house of the chief magistrate of the viUage 
an old man, wearing nothing but a cotton panoung
(waist cloth). He cheerfully showed us his house,
which had but two rooms — a small one used as a

144 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
general sitting-room, and a large one intended for
both kitchen and bed-chamber — and which was the
home of a large family, whose relationships embraced
three generations. Furniture there was none, except
ing a few baskets and some large boxes. In the rear
of the hut, but attached to it, was a large bin, made
of bamboo and plaster, in which was stored rice (their
* staff of life,' or bread). The chief city of the Laos
people in Northern Siam is Xiengmai, with about
fifty thousand inhabitants. The Laos tribes have been
many times at war with Siam, and have generally
proved themselves to be no mean adversaries.
Pechaburi is a very pretty place, and it is justly
popular with Europeans resident at Bangkok as a
summer resort for a change of air or a little bit
of rustication. We left it, very reluctantly, on the
11th, and reached Bangkok late on the following
evening.

ebaaoaig

¦HI  m^
mSraSP

THE SECOND KING OF SIAM, IN STATE ROBES

AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF SIAM 145

CHAPTEE XIII.
AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OP SIAM
It had been my earnest desire to obtain an audience
with the Supreme King of Siam, but, as His Majesty
was in Calcutta at the time of my visit, of course the
wish could not be gratified ; still, I could hardly
esteem myself less fortunate in being granted, through
the kind intervention of the American Consul, an
audience with the Second King, H.M. Krom Prah
Eacha Wang Bowawn Bawara Sab tan Mongkon.
Siam, I believe, is the only country in the world at
the present day which is ruled by two kings. The
position of the Second King is, however, not clearly
understood. His office would hardly correspond with
our Vice-President, nor is he exactly a co-ruler, nor
the successor to the Supreme King ; nevertheless his
' opinion and sanction are sought on important State
policy, and his name is associated in treaties.' The
late Sir John Bowring, a most excellent authority, says
that ' the institution of a Second King is one of the
13

146 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
peculiarities of the Siamese usuages. He' is not charged,
as in the case of Japan [formerly], with the religious
as distinguished from the civil functions of govern
ment, but exercises a species of secondary or reflected
authority, the hmits of which did not appear to me to
be clearly defined. ... He is said to dispose of one-
third of the State revenue, and to have at his command
an army of about 2,000 men. He is generally a
brother or near relation of the King. . . . His
palace is nearly of the same extent as that of the First
King. ... He is surrounded with the same royal
insignia as the First King, though somewhat less
ostentatiously displayed ; and the same marks of
honour and prostration are paid to his person. He has
his ministers corresponding to those of the First King,
and is supposed to take a more active part in the wars
of the country than does the First King. It is usual to
consult him on all important affairs of State. . . . He is
expected to pay visits of ceremony to the First King,'
&c. Thus it will be seen that the position of the
Second King in the government of Siam is most
pecuhar and anomalous.
On the occasion of our visit His Majesty the
Second King intended to have a parade of some of his
household troops, and had invited the Austrian and

AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF SIAM 147
German Consuls to accompany us to the palace ; Mr.
Chandler, the Private Secretary, was also to be present,
and act as marshal and interpreter. At three o'clock
on the afternoon of the 15th inst. I repaired to the
U.S. Consulate, and found General Partridge awaiting
me, dressed in fuU military uniform, with an elegant
sword dangling by his side. We then took boat—
with the ' stars and stripes ' proudly floating at the
stern and the Siamese rowers in hvery — to the house
of Mr. Chandler, whom we found ready, in diplomatic
dress, the brass buttons of his coat being stamped with
the royal elephant of Siam, and together we walked to
the palace gate, where we heard that the Austrian and
German Consuls, with their secretaries, had preceded
and were awaiting us in the royal reception hall. The
guards presented arms as we entered the lofty gateway
and walked upon a brick-laid path between what
seemed to be the abodes of the Court servants and
quarters for the troops. At the second gate (there are
three walls about the palace) more guards saluted, and
we passed across a smaU open square, surrounded by
temples, salas, barracks, and dwellings, and were
ushered into a large wat, which is now used as a
waiting-room. Carpets had been spread upon the
floor, and around a small table were sitting the German

148 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
Consul, Baron  , a short gentleman in a captain's
uniform (black, trimmed with red), wearing a faded
order, and having a small glass cocked in one eye ;
and at his side the Austrian Consul, a Bangkok
merchant, in tasty diplomatic dress, with white kid-
gloves. Soon an aide-de-camp entered, and announced that
His Majesty was quite ready to receive us. We were
directed across the square already mentioned, past a
low shed, in which was a European fire-engine,
buckets, axes, and other paraphernalia for extin
guishing a conflagration ; through another gateway,
with more guards saluting ; by the King's carriage-
house, which we noticed contained several handsome
Calcutta-built vehicles ; and through a small but very
pretty garden, laid out in Chinese style, to the palace,
which consists of a number of small two-storey houses,
built according to the rules (or rather vagaries) of
Chinese architecture. Ascending a very narrow
marble staircase, we were met at its top by the King
himself, who cordially shook hands with us all, each
being introduced in turn by Mr. Chandler. We were
ushered into a small parlour, having in the centre a
table, around which we seated ourselves in comfort
able arm-chairs, the King with us. The walls of the

AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF SIAM 149
room were hung with Chinese pictures, a chandelier
for candles depended from the ceiling, a Brussels
carpet lay upon the floor, a small book-rack stood
in one corner, a Japanese lacquered etui in another,
two guns with cloth covers in another, and two
umbrellas in a stand at one side and a large gilt
spittoon by the table completed the furniture of the
room. His Majesty is a fine-looking man, with a large and
powerful though not corpulent body, and a large,
shapely head, the perceptive and reflective faculties
being about equally well developed ; his hair is thin
but black, eyes hazel-brown, teeth regular, but dis
coloured by the use of the betel-nut, his age about
fifty. In conversation the King smiles pleasantly, and
impresses one as a man of more than ordinary ability,
energy, and tact. He was dressed very plainly, with
no orders or insignia, wearing only a blue-black
silk jacket with stand-up coUar and steel buttons ; a
white linen vest, buttoning up close to the neck ; a
drab silk panoung, dropping as low as the knees ; and
a pair of cloth sandals, of peculiar construction, upon
his otherwise bare feet. The King understands Enghsh
pretty well, but is a little embarrassed in speaking that
language with strangers. He is weU acquainted with

150 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
English literature, and possesses also a tolerable know
ledge of Western science, philosophy, and pohtics. His
Majesty has been named after our great General and
first President, for preceding half a dozen Siamese
titles, is that of * George Washington,' and the King
previous to mounting the throne was generaUy known
among the European residents of Bangkok as ' Prince
George.' Coffee and tea were brought in by three or four
servants, who had been lying flat upon the floor of the
verandah, and who crawled upon all fours into the
room and, without lifting their eyes, placed the cups
upon the table. And the King offered us from a mag
nificent open-work gold box cigars and cigarettes of
Siamese manufacture ; the latter, having wrappers made
of the lotus flower, gave rise to a long conversation
about the lotus, and also the Victoria Regia lily, &c.
Then the talk was of birds of Paradise and phea
sants ; and then the King questioned me concerning
the King of Ava and Mandalay. During our call His
Majesty showed us some maps of Siam, drawn on a
very large scale from recent Government surveys,
and executed in a most beautiful manner, with the
pen, by Siamese artists; the names of towns, moun
tains, and rivers were marked in Eoman characters.

AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF SIAM 151
After this, the King intimating to Mr. Chandler that
some of his troops were ready to perform their drill
for our amusement, we adjourned to the square, and
found there some matting spread upon the ground and
a row of , chairs for our convenience. His Majesty
soon foUowed in a sedan chair, carried by eight bearers,
with the royal umbrella suspended above his head, and
preceded and followed by attendants bearing gilded
spears. He requested us to be seated, and took a chair
upon the right, facing us. Immediately an attendant
brought a smaU table, and placing it by the King's
side, put upon it a magnificent gold-embossed sword,
a gold betel-box, cigar-box, and a tray with two small
cups of perfumed liquor, and at the royal feet laid a
large gold-plated spittoon. We seated ourselves in a
hne, the General occupying the place of honour, and
the parade began at once.
There were two companies of troops, which marched
in quick time from their barracks. The Second King
has two thousand soldiers ; but these were picked men
(or rather boys, for such they were), who guard the
palace and its royal occupants, and of whose profi
ciency in mUitary tactics His Majesty is especially proud.
They have had various instructors (drill-masters) at
different times — French, English, and German ; the

152

THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT

orders which we heard were given in broken Ger
man. Their uniform of white duck is patterned after
that worn by the British troops in India ; they wear
also (mirabile dicta !) shoes and socks. The companies,
in turn, went through the manual of arms, and per
formed some skirmishing in remarkably good style ;
the musket drill was better than that of many of
our so-caUed ' crack ' regiments at home. After the

THE EOYAL GUARDS

parade His Majesty's own brass band played for us.
There were sixteen instrumentalists, led by a sergeant-
major, a mere youngster seven or eight years old and
three feet in height ; indeed, none of the members of
the band were more than twenty years of age ; their
uniform was the same as that worn by the guards.
They played in remarkably good time and tune, first
the ' Siamese National Hymn,' a rather pretty composi
tion ; and, second, a very familiar western waltz.

AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF SIAM 153
Afterwards another band of musicians, who were older,
but had had less practice, were ordered out, and they
rendered a piece of dance music tolerably well. We
then took leave, shaking hands with the King, and
returned through the same gateway we had entered,
the guards being drawn up in line and saluting as we
passed. One morning at six o'clock, a few days afterwards, I
caUed, in company with General Bartridge and Mr.
Chandler, upon the Eegent of Siam, our object being
to obtain information concerning an overland route to
Saigon, in Cochin China (an excursion proposed for
myself), and to procure, if possible, letters of introduc
tion from His Grace to the governors of the several
provinces through which it would be necessary to
journey. We were to meet the high Siamese official
on board his steam yacht ' Eising Sun ' (400 tons bur
den) according to appointment. Being upon the Menam
at such an early hour of the morning, I was enabled to
see the bonzes going their daily rounds to gather the
alms by which they live. Each priest was seen sitting
in a little canoe, having before him a large iron pot and
one or two bowls, and thus paddling from house to
house, receiving contributions — nowhere does Budhism
hold so pure and absolute a sway as in Siam — of rice,

154 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
fish, vegetables, fruit, cakes, &c, which were dealt out
to them from large brass urns, generally by women,
the priests never returning thanks, but paddhng away
as if they had conferred a favour upon the charitable
donors instead of the contrary. I noticed as many as
a dozen bonzes waiting around one house in turn.
It is considered a deed of merit to give alms to these
priests, and daily at sunrise they go the rounds of the
city. And it is said that no less than ten thousand of
them are fed solely in this manner.
By Mr. Chandler I was presented to His Grace Chow
Phya Sri Sury Wongse, the Eegent. We were invited
to take seats at a small table, covered with the usuaUy-
seen gold betel-boxes, spittoons, cigar-boxes, &c, His
Grace sitting at its head. The Eegent is a short, thick
set gentleman about sixty-five years of age ; he was
dressed in much the same manner as the Second King
on the occasion of our recent audience with His
Majesty. The Eegent had an intellectual forehead and
bright, intelligent eyes, but his mouth seemed to indicate
a rather crabbed and petulant disposition, the latter
perhaps caused by his old age and the anxieties of
a busy and responsible life. He wears his hair in
true Siamese fashion, viz. a tuft upon the crown of the
head, the remainder being shaven about once a month

AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF SIAM

155

at a certain stage of the moon. While conversing with
us he smoked a smaU Chinese pipe, and often rose and
walked about the deck in a very nervous, fidgety
manner. Mr. Chandler showed His Grace my sapphire

THE EEGENT OF SIAM

ring, remarking that it was presented by the present
reigning King of Ava, Mounglon ; whereupon His
Grace asked me several questions (it should be remem
bered that Siam and Burma are old-time enemies)

156 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
about Mandalay, the capital, and among others ' if the
King went out much.' Upon my replying ' Never,' he
said (in English, the remainder of the conversation
being in Siamese), with a merry twinkle of the eye, ' He
'fraid they shoot him.' ' No, your Grace,' I replied, ' it
is not that ; King Mounglon fears if he ventures beyond
his palace walls that upon his return he will very
likely find the gates closed and barred, and perhaps
hear that another sits upon the royal throne instead,' at
which answer he laughed heartily. The Eegent's attend
ants were all of them girls, and very good-looking girls
they were too ; they crept about the deck and noiselessly
executed any orders received from their ' august lord.'
Mr. Chandler asked His Grace the best and safest
route to the temples of Angkor, in eastern Siam, and he
replied, * That by Kabin, through the forests, about
east : ' the other route being by sea down the gulf
to Tung Yai, and then crossing overland to the ruins.
The Eegent told us that the Governor of Kabin, having
been in town on official business, had left only that
very morning to return to his province ; that he would
obtain for us a bullock-cart, horses, &c, upon our
arrival there ; and that he himself would request the
Minister of Foreign Affairs, or his representative, to
furnish us with the much- desired and very necessary

AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF SIAM

157

letters of introduction and passports, for use on our un
usual and somewhat perilous excursion. Touching
the tips of His Grace's fingers, we then withdrew,
having heartily but respectfully thanked him for the
honour of the interview and its favouring results.
The prominent position in the government of Siam

MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS

which Chow Phya Sri Sury Wongse has occupied
before the world for the past twenty years or more
prompts me to add something further concerning this
rare and admirable statesman. Ever since Sir John
Bowring's visit in 1855 the Eegent has been 'the
real ruler of Siam ; ' his ability and influence are most

158 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
remarkable and his successes undoubted. At the time
of the negotiation of the treaty of friendship and com
merce between H.B.M. and the Kings of Siam the
Eegent was Phra Kalahom, or Prime Minister (his son
holds the office at present), and was one of the four
commissioners appointed by the Supreme King to
discuss and decide upon that treaty on the part of the
Siamese Government.
Sir John Bowring thus had much intercourse with
His Grace, and in his * Personal Journal ' has written
a just estimate of his many exceUent quahties. Says
Sir John in one place, ' It is quite a novelty to hear
a minister abuse the administration of which he is the
head. He confirms his statements by facts ; he men
tioned instances of bribery and extortion: in a word,
his language is of the most high-minded patriotism.'
And in another place he writes, ' The personal character
of the Prime Minister is to me an object of much
admiration. He is the most distinguished man of the
greatest family in the empire. ... He has again and
again told me that if my pohcy is to save the people
from oppression and the country from monopoly he
shall labour with me, and if I succeed my name will
be blest to all ages. He unveils abuses to me without
disguise, and often with vehement eloquence. If he

AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF SIAM 159
prove true to his profession [which he most honourably
did] he is one of the noblest and most enlightened
patriots the Oriental world has ever seen. To him Siam
owes her fleet of merchant ships.'
The sequel has proved that this rather florid praise
was not exaggerated, and that the nobility of His
Grace's nature has not been over-estimated. During
the absence of the Supreme King in Singapore, Calcutta,
and British India, and notwithstanding the Second
King still remained at Bangkok, the vacillating helm
of the ' ship of state,' with all its ' tearful interests,"5
was readily and confidently entrusted for the time to
His Grace Chow Phya Sri Sury Wongse, Eegent of
Siam.

160 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT

CHAPTEE XIV.
A DAT IN THE PALACE
One day of my stay at Bangkok was pleasantly spent
within the palace walls, with Mr. Chandler as my
obliging cicerone. We went first to see the so-called
' white ' elephants. These are kept, fastened to stout
posts, in large sheds, and covered with gilt canopies, in
the same manner as the one I saw at Mandalay, which
-belonged to the King of Ava. The first animal whose
stable we entered was quite small, and possessed few
of the peculiar characteristics of a ' dark-cream albino,'
excepting perhaps the eyes. The keeper fed him with
bananas, and caused him to make a salaam (a pro
found salutation or bow) by raising his proboscis to
his forehead for a moment and then gracefully lower
ing it to the ground. In another shed we saw a larger
and also whiter elephant, its body having the peculiar
flesh-coloured appearance termed ' white.' Here there
was, besides, a white monkey — ' white animals are the
favourite abodes of transmigrating souls ' — kept to ward
off bad spirits, as the attendant informed us.

A DAY IN THE PALACE 161
Sir John Bowring — and he is about the only person
who has written at length on this subject — in a very
interesting ' Chapter on Elephants,' tells us that the
Budhists have a special reverence for white quad
rupeds ; that he has himself seen a white monkey
honoured with special attention. Also, that white
elephants have been the cause of many a war, and
their possession more an object of envy than the con
quest of territory or the transitory glories of the battle
field. In the money market a white elephant is
almost beyond price. Ten thousand sovereigns
(#50,000) would hardly represent its pecuniary
value ; a hair from its tail is worth a Jew's ransom.
'It was my good fortune,' he says, 'to present [in 1855]
to the First King of Siam (the Siamese have two kings
exercising supreme authority) presents with which I
had been charged by my royal mistress. I received
many presents in return ; but the monarch placed in
my hand a golden box, locked with a golden key, and
he informed me the box contained a gift far more
valuable than all the rest, and tha^ was a few hairs of
the white elephant. And perhaps it may be well to
state why the white elephant is so specially reve
renced. ' Because it is believed that Budha, the divine
14

162 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
emanation from the Deity, must necessarily, in his
multitudinous metamorphoses or transmissions through
all existences, and through millions of aeons, dehght
to abide for some time in that grand incarnation of
purity which is represented by the white elephant.
While the bonzes teach that there is no spot in the
heavens above, or the earth below, or the waters under
the earth, which is not visited in the peregrinations of
the divinity — whose every stage or step is towards
purification — they hold that his tarrying may be
longer in the white elephant than in any other abode,
and that in the possession of the sacred creature they
may possess the presence of Budha himself. It is
known that the Cingalese have been kept in subjection
by the behef that their rulers have a tooth of Budha in
the temple of Kandy, and that on various tracts of the
East impressions of the foot of Budha are reverenced,
and are the objects of weary pilgrimages to places
which can only be reached with difficulty ; but with
the white elephant some vague notions of a vital Budha
are associated, and there can be no doubt that the
marvellous sagacity of the creature has served to
strengthen their religious prejudices. Siamese are
known to whisper their secrets into an elephant's ear,
and to ask a solution of their perplexities by some sign

A DAY IN THE PALACE 163
or movement. And most assuredly there is more
sense and reason in the worship of an intelligent beast
than in that of stocks and stones, the work of men's
hands. ' And yet,' continues Sir John, ' after all the white
elephant is not white, nor anything like it. It is of a
coffee colour ; not of unburnt, but of burnt coffee —
dull brownish yellow or yellowish brown — white only
by contrast with his darker brother. The last which
reached Bangkok was caught in the woods. The King
and Court went a long way out into the country to
meet him, and he was conducted with a grand pro
cession, much pomp, and music, and flying banners, to
the capital. There a grand mansion awaited him, and
several of the leading nobility were appointed his cus
todians. The walls were painted to represent forests,
no doubt to remind him of his native haunts, and to
console him in his absence from them. All his wants
were sedulously provided for, and in his " walks
abroad," when " many men he saw," he was escorted
by music and caparisoned by costly vestments. His
grandest and farthest promenades were to bathe in the
river, when other elephants were in attendance,
honoured by being made auxiliaries to his grandeur.
Now and then the two sovereigns sought his presence,

164 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
but I did not learn that his dignity condescended to
oblige them with any special notice. But he wanted
no addition to his dignity. Everything associated with
majesty and rank bore his image. A white elephant is
the badge of distinction. The royal flags and seals,
medals and moneys — on all sides the white elephant is
the national emblem, as the cross among Christians or
the crescent among Turks ; and the Siamese are prouder
of it than Americans, Eussians, Germans, or French
are of their eagles, or Spaniards of the golden fleece.
The Bourbon Oriflamme, the British Union Jack, show
but faintly in the presence of the white elephant.'
Thus it will be seen that in Siam the ' white ' elephant,
as in the kingdom of Ava, is a grave and important ap
pendage of state, and that the King of Siam lays quite
as just claim to the coveted and pompous titles of
' Lord of the Celestial Elephant ' and ' Master of Many
White Elephants ' as does His Majesty of Ava.
In the arsenal of artiUery were some enormous brass
cannon, said to have been made under the direction of
the Portuguese. One of them was full twenty feet
in length, mounted on a very clumsy wooden carriage ;
another must have had a bore of eighteen inches in
diameter ; another was engraved with the date 1627
and a Latin inscription. A plain two-storey building

TEMPLE OF THE EMERALD IDOL

A DAY IN THE PALACE 165
within the second wall had a sign over its door which
read ' Coining Manufacture ' — some of the late King's
droll English. We were shown through this establish
ment — the Eoyal Mint. The machinery is of English
make, though none but Siamese workmen are em
ployed. At the time of our visit the Mint was coining
silver ticals (worth about 60 cts.) The courts of
justice are simply large sheds with matted floors, like
those in Mandalay. We could not obtain admittance
to the Audience Hall ; it is a large, fantastic-shaped
building, with a lofty spire from its centre.
The Wat P'hza Keau, or Temple of the Emerald
Idol, is the finest of its class in Siam. The model is
simUar to the others, but the workmanship, both ex
teriorly and interiorly, is of a much higher order.
The waUs are covered with admirably executed paint
ings; the floor is laid over with brass bricks. The
altar, built in the shape of a pyramid, about sixty feet
high, is surmounted by the ' Emerald Idol ' — an image
twelve inches in height and eight in width. ' Lnto the
virgin gold of which 'ts hair and collar is composed,'
says a recent observer, - must have been stirred, while
the metal was yet molten, crystals, topazes, sapphires,
rubies, onyxes, amethysts, and diamonds — the stones
crude and rudely cut, and blended in such proportions

166 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
as might enhance to the utmost imaginable limit the
beauty and the cost of the admired effigy.' On the
altar there are many large images covered with pure
gold, whose robes are ornamented with genuine pre
cious stones ; also some lusus natural, as extra
ordinarily formed tusks of the elephant and rhinoceros;
beautifully carved marble statues, clocks, golden
altar-utensils, and garments which belonged to the
late King. The reigning monarch worships in this
temple, and here also the nobles take the oath of
allegiance. On either side of the principal entrance
stand two life-size marble statues, whose history I could
not learn, of Peter, ' the Apostle of Jesus Christ,' and
of Ceres, the Eoman goddess of agriculture. Near
this wat is a small pagoda which, in an enormous
pyramidal cabinet of ebony and mother-of-pearl, con
tains the Budhist sacred books. A carpet made of
sUver wire lies upon the floor. Adjoining this is a
large pagoda which has been ten years in building,
and has already cost over #200,000 ; and two years
more will be necessary for its completion. The interior
side of the wall which surrounds the Temple of the
Emerald Idol is covered with gorgeous paintings of
old Siamese fables and superstitions.
The palace where the Supreme King resides consists

A DAY IN THE PALACE 167
of a large number of odd-looking houses crowded
together within the third wall. Very many buildings
could not be shown us because of the absence of the
King, and some others because they were undergoing
repairs at that time. An absurd custom prevails,
which requires that at the close of each reign all the
temples and most of the palace buildings shall be torn
down and new ones erected in their places, and if the
buildings themselves are not removed, at least their
ornaments and other accessories are carried away. We
next visited the temple Wat Poh, outside the palace
waUs, in which is a ' reclining ' Budha, 145 feet in
length, and 65 in height at the shoulders. It is built
of brick and chunam, thickly covered with leaf gold.
The soles of the feet, which are sixteen feet in length,
are covered with the mystic symbols pecuhar to a
Budha, inlaid with mother-of-pearl, and finished with
gold-leaf. The proposed overland excursion to the ruins at
Angkor was fast taking shape, and for four or five days
I was busily engaged in making the necessary prepa
rations. I had invited the Eev. Mr. MacFarland, of
Pechaburi, and General Partridge to accompany me,
and to my delight both had accepted. We thought a
month only would be requisite to accomplish the entire

168 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
journey to Angkor and the return to Bangkok. I
proposed to go on alone to Banompin, the capital of
Cambodia, and thence down the great Makong river
to Saigon, in Cochin China ; but the official duties of
both my companions would compel them, however
unwillingly, to return direct to Bangkok. First, it was
necessary to provide ' house ' boats for the canal and
river travel, in which we hoped to accomplish one-
third of the distance ; and these the General obtained,
together with interpreters, boatmen, and servants. He
secured as cook a strong and tough Chinaman named
' Deng,' who spoke English pretty well, and who was
one of the ' boys ' whom M. Henri Mouhot, the French
naturalist, took with him up to Louang Prabang, a
town in north-eastern Siam ; and who, with another
' boy,' buried there the brave traveller (who died of
the terrible fever, 1861), and returning, brought his
journal and letters to Bangkok. In his book of
'Travels in Indo-China, Cambodia, and Laos' M.
Mouhot tells some amusing stories about the character
and morals of this ' Deng ;' one of these relates that
his attendant had a little defect. ' He now and then
takes a drop too much, and I have found him sucking,
through a bamboo cane, the spirit of wine from one of
the bottles in which I preserve my reptiles, or laying

A DAY IN THE PALACE 169
under contribution the cognac presented to me by my
friend Malherbes [a merchant at Bangkok]. A few
days ago he was seized with this devouring thirst, and
profiting by my absence for only a few minutes, he
opened my chest and hastily laid hands on the first
bottle which presented itself, great part of the contents
of which he swallowed at one gulp. I came back just
as he was wiping his mouth with his shirt sleeve, and
it would be impossible to describe his contortions and
grimaces as he screamed out that he was poisoned. He
had had the bad luck to get hold of my bottle of ink ;
his face was smeared with it, and his shirt was pretty
weU sprinkled. It was a famous lesson for him, and
I think it wiU be some time before he tries my stores
again.' But ' Deng ' was a capital cook, M. Mouhot
tells us, and so we expected great things of him ; and
we were not afterwards in any way disappointed, for
he proved throughout one of our most faithful, hard
working, and obliging servants.
A part of my duty was to select and purchase the
food supplies — liquors and provisions in bottles and
tins — ale, brandy, sherry, and claret, meats, vege
tables, biscuits, soups, condiments, &c. ; and potatoes,
rice, onions, hams, coffee and tea in bulk. We
intended to rely principally upon these, though we

170 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
also proposed to eke out our preserved, condensed,
and desiccated victuals with the produce of the country
through which we would journey, viz. rice, fish,
poultry, eggs, and various fruits. I used much time
in endeavouring to obtain a Cambodian interpreter, one
speaking English, or even Siamese, who was willing
to go with us, but met with no success. However,
Mr. MacFarland's servant was a Cambodian by birth,
and, though he had lived nearly all his hfe in Siam,
stUl remembered sufficient of his native tongue to be
of considerable service to us. We took an assortment
of medicines, especially a hberal supply of quinine,
three grains of which we were recommended to take
every morning in our coffee by Dr. Hutchinson. Each
one had his mattress, blankets, and mosquito netting,
though aU carried as little personal baggage as con
sisted with comfort and health. The offensive and
defensive (especiaUy) weapons of the party compre
hended two revolvers and two or three large bowie-
knives. We also carried a few scientific instruments and
writing and drawing materials, maps of the country, a
selection of books and old magazines, and I packed in my
waterproof bag besides a few presents for the King of
Cambodia, Governor of Siamrap, and some other great
men. Money was carried in several small packages —

A DAY IN THE PALACE 171
silver and copper coins — though our letters were quite
adequate to secure for us every hospitality and atten
tion. These letters were simply official orders from the
Siamese Minister of Foreign Affairs to the governors
of the provinces through which it would be necessary
for us to pass: of one of these, written in the verna
cular idiom, with the great seal of the Foreign Office
attached, I am able to give a translation, verbatim et
literatim, prepared for me by ' Henry,' the Consulate
interpreter. The passports were granted by the
Siamese Government on apphcation of General F. W.
Partridge, as United States Consul. One reads : —
' Chow Phraya Pootarupai-metaya-pitayasai-mahattri-
nayoh-siamdUor-maha Senabodi, the Samuha-nayok ; To
Phraya Utaimontri Sri-suraraj-bodintr-narintr Mataya
Mahaprichi-songkram, Governor of the Province of
Phra-Prachinburi, Phra Palat, the Lieutenant-Governor,
and the Provincial Officers of the province and depen
dencies :
'Phraya Pepat Hosa, the proper officer of the Foreign
Department, has presented the original letter of General
F. W. Partridge, U.S. Consul, stating that he, the said
Consul, is going on a tour to see the province of
Nakon Siamrap, on the north of the lake Talesap, on
the borders of Cambodia. General  , with those who

172 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
accompany him, are Americans, three in number, one
interpreter, six Siamese, and one Chinese, in all eleven
persons.  and company wiU go by land from
Pachim to Siamrap. Should  and those who
accompany him arrive at Pachim, let the Governor,
the Lieutenant-Governor, and the Provincial Officers
receive them and make such provision for their wants
as becomes their rank. If when  and his
company go on to the province of Siamrap they are
in want of provisions of any kind, let the Governor,
the Lieutenant-Governor, and the Provincial Officers
of Pachim and its dependencies provide for them, and
give in a becoming manner. Also, provide for them
elephants, carts, oxen, and buffaloes to take them on
their way thither through the vUlages to the province
and town of Siamrap in a manner becoming their
honourable rank, and avoid complaint from the
foreigners. ' Given on Thursday, the 8th day of
the waxing moon, the 3rd month, year
of the goat, 3rd of the decade, and 3rd
year of the present reign ; corresponding
to the 18th of January, 1872.'
This order — a fine example of Siamese composition
and usage — simply as a ' state paper ' is quite worthy of

A DAY IN THE PALACE 173
being filed for preservation with the archives of our
department at Washington. At any rate, to it
principally we were indebted for the success of our
expedition. In Indo-China, and in fact most countries
of the East, the nations humbly reverence and honour
rank and authority and its enjoinments ; and they will
readily find ways and means of complying with a
governmental order when the demands and bribes
or threats of an unknown, unrecommended, private
traveUer would avaU nothing. Upon the governors of
provinces remote from the metropolis and the ruling
monarch we were dependent for our means of
transportation — elephants, horses, buffaloes, carts, and
servants — and everywhere on our journey, when the
passport was produced, we were received with
distinguished courtesy and consideration. And for
such condescending favour and aid on the part of the
Siamese Government it is only permitted me here to
return my most respectful thanks to the leading
authorities — to His Grace the Eegent and the Minister
of Foreign Affairs, and also to their subordinate
officers, the governors of the provinces in eastern
Siam — for the very hospitable manner in which they
complied with their instructions from the distant
capital.

174 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
But I am anticipating, for we are only now starting
on our journey. Everything is ready, however, and
so, on the evening of the 25th of January, 1872, we
are at last off. There are three boats. In the first —
a four-oar— voyages the General and his servant;
next follows a six-oar, with the Missionary and
myself; and last goes a four-oar, containing our
interpreter, my ' boy,' ' Deng ' the Chinese cook, and
the greater part of the provisions and baggage.
The great floating city, bathed in the pale moonlight,
and at the same time iUumined with ten thousand
coloured lanterns, presents a strange, weird appearance
as our boats swing away from the Consulate wharf,
with their prows headed up the whirling Menam ; the
native boatmen break out in wild, whimsical, cadenced
songs, keeping time to the regular, almost noiseless dip
of their oars ; as we sail along we hear the pariah
dogs growling over their midnight prey, and we
distinguish also a few strains, a trifle more melodious,
of the monotonous music of a Chinese theatrical
booth ; and thus standing upon deck, with the flag of
our so far away country floating over us, we wave a
hasty adieu to Bangkok — the eastern Venice — and our
many kind friends, and turning away, enter a narrow
canal leading directly to the east — towards the very
heart of Siam.

ACROSS SOUTHERN SIAM 175

CHAPTEE XV.
ACROSS SOUTHERN SIAM
The boats were anchored about midnight, and in
the spacious cabins we slept soundly until morning.
With daylight we saw the canal was lined with bamboo
huts, and that passing us were many boats on their
way to Bangkok with market stuffs. In the middle of
the day we stopped for an hour to allow the men rest
and time for eating their fish and rice. The canal
continued very narrow during the remainder of the
day ; its sides were covered with a thin strip of cocoa
palms and bamboos, but the country beyond was a
vast plain of rank jungle grass, with an occasional hut
in sight, or a small viUage of a dozen or more dwellings,
and always a cock-pit, licensed by, and a source of
great revenue to, the Government. The huts were
very dilapidated. A rule with the Siamese is never to
repair a building, but to live in it until it almost falls
upon their heads. The people appeared poor, and were
certainly shockingly dirty. The mosquitoes proved
15

176 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
very troublesome, becoming towards evening almost
unbearable. We noticed that all the natives slept
within curtains, and that the huge buffalo-cows were
coralled in small swampy enclosures, in which they
wallowed, covering themselves with mud and water as
a protection against the stinging pests. At night we
entered the nettings we were so careful not to leave
behind, but no such thing as - balmy sleep ' could be
obtained ; there seemed to be quite as many mosquitoes
within as without the curtains. They made a buzzing
as of a thousand bees ; the air was literally thick and
heavy with them. The only respite we had from their
attacks was when completely enveloped in our
blankets ; but this was simply ' from the frying-pan
into the fire,' for the action nearly suffocated us. In
the morning the General said he counted fifty of the
merciless insects which were hanging on the inner side
of his curtains, in a semi-torpid state, after the night's
sanguinary foray ; and my face was so red and swollen
as scarcely to be recognisable by my companions.
On the morning of the second day from Bangkok
we enter the Bang pa Kong river, which we propose
to ascend about fifty miles to Pachim, the residence of
a governor ; and then, if possible, we shall go on by
water to Kabin, thirty or forty miles farther. In an

ACROSS SOUTHERN SIAM 177
old wat where we breakfasted, thrown over a small
image of Budha, was a piece of yellow cloth, about a
foot in length and two inches in width, upon which
was written in Siamese characters, ' This cloth I,
Nang Yai, send to my aunt Sim ; if anybody steals it,
may he go to hell.' From which we understood that
the cloth was consecrated to the memory of Nang's
transmigrating aunt, and that he entertained pretty
strong and precise feelings towards the person who
should purloin the haUowed offering. The Bang pa
Kong river is three or four hundred feet in width, deep,
with strong tides and a very tortuous course ; we did
not pass a straight reach as much as an eighth of a mile
in length. In the afternoon we observed an alligator
about eight feet long, with open, cavernous mouth and
sleepy, half-closed eyes, lying in the tall grass on the
bank, enjoying the bright rays of the sun.
Arrived at Bachim, the Governor sent us an invita
tion to pass the night in a house which he had prepared
for our reception (we had sent a messenger ahead to
herald our approach), but we preferred sleeping on
board the boats. The Governor's house we saw on the
following mormng. It is a large bamboo building, raised
upon piles, and in the long room, having one side open,
His Excellency received our party. Before us stood an

178 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
old gentleman of short stature, intelligent and amiable
countenance, with grey hair, and teeth much blackened
by use of the betel. His dress was a silk coat and
buff cloth waistcoat, with a simple panoung, and bare
legs and feet ; he wore besides a pair of immense spec
tacles. The room made a rather primitive ' audience
chamber,' containing as it did only a small sofa,
beyond which were some emblems of authority — large
umbrellas — a bamboo mat, chandehers hanging from
the beams, and two paroquets with rich plumage in
cages at either end ; and there were also two clocks,
both of which insisted upon indicating that the hour
(at seven in the morning) was half-past one. Lying
upon their hips, prostrate upon the floor, were a dozen
or more officers and attendants. We conversed about
half an hour with the Governor, through the Missionary
as interpreter. He promised to obtain three ponies for
us, and four bullock-carts for our servants and baggage,
and at < taking leave he sent with us a present of meat
and fish, asking what other provisions we were de
sirous of receiving. The Governor will send orders in
advance to the sub-governors of the provinces between
Pachim and Siamrap, who wUl have provisions and
conveyance waiting, so that in future we may not be
delayed.

ACROSS SOUTHERN SIAM 179
The town of Pachim lies upon level ground on the.
north bank of the Bang pa Kong river, and contains,
scattered over a large extent of country, some two or
three thousand inhabitants. Anchored before the town
were about fifty boats, some of them of large size, and
owned by Chinamen; and back of the town the
Government authorities were building a citadel and
palace, the brick waUs of which are to be six feet in
breadth, and are to enclose a section of land about
eight acres in extent. A saw-miU and brick-yard are
in operation, preparing the materials of construction ;
we visited the latter. The work is mostly done by
women. The bricks are made of clay and paddy
husks, and are burnt : they seU for #2.40 a thousand,
dehvered in Bangkok. At the entrance of the new
citadel we saw a remarkable natural gateway, formed
by two trees (the poh species, the sacred tree of the
Siamese, being that under which Budha is said to have
expired when he left this world), about two feet in
diameter at their bases, joining and growing together
in the form of a perfect arch twenty feet from the
ground, and towering up in a single trunk thirty feet
higher, and spreading out in grand masses of bright
green fohage. It seemed that formerly the gate of an
old stockade stood there, which compeUed the trees to

180 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
either die or unite, and, owing to the fertility of the
soU and their inherent vigour, they chose the latter,
and so are now living united, like the Siamese twins.
Near here was also another wonder — a lusus natures
— two poh trees growing together, with a tamarind
between them, and a poh tree, another tamarind, and
a lofty and healthy toddy-palm tree standing interlaced
in one cluster or group. We had an opportunity also
to witness the native method of grinding paddy —
hulhng the grain — in a low bamboo shed. The mill
consisted of two parts, of course, but, instead of the
usual coarse stones, they were made of thin slabs of
hard wood embedded in mud and surrounded by
wicker-work. The motive power was a man and a
woman, who worked this primitive machine by means
of a long pole and a cross-piece of bamboo at one end,
with the other fastened in a loose socket to the upper
mill-stone (or rather mud and wood basket), it being
the same principle as that applied to our grindstone.
In the morning there came as a present from the
Governor two kinds of dried fish, some eggs, oranges,
and cocoa-nuts, and in the evening a dozen of fowls.
We arose at dayhght on the 29th of January,
removed our baggage from the boats, and sent them
back to Bangkok, as from this point we were to travel

ACROSS SOUTHERN SIAM 181
by land. We retained of the servants the Chinese
cook, Chinese butler or table-boy, and two Siamese
* boys ' — personal attendants. Our horses and carts
and bullocks — three of the former and eight of the
latter — with their grooms and drivers, came about
noon. The horses, or rather ponies, were so small and
thin that we greatly feared their abihty to bear us.
The General had brought his own saddle and bridle
from the Consulate, but the Missionary and myself
were to use native seats and head-stalls. The Siamese
simply ride upon a cushion placed upon the horse's
back, and held in position by the rider's knees and
legs, without stirrups, and with a most primitive
bridle, made usuaUy of coarse twine. Natives on a
journey are accustomed to alternately run at full speed
and walk their horses, until the httle beasts, warmed
into a profuse white lather, almost drop from fatigue.
The bullocks are black, very large and powerful ; they
are driven, with a Une passed through the nostrils, as
we direct horses. Most singular in appearance are the
native carts. The body is built of a hght but strong
wood, the sides being of bamboo ; it is usuaUy about
six feet in length, one or two feet in width at the
bottom, and thrice as much at its top, which is a
bamboo roof, projecting far beyond the body of the

182 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
cart at the front end, where sits the driver, thus
protected from the sun. The wheels are of solid
wood, and about five feet in diameter ; they turn upon
small wooden axles. The Governor sent us a final
present of sugar, cucumbers, and fried cakes, and
nearly the entire town assembled to see us depart.
The road at first led over an even plain, for the
most part covered with coarse grass, and in the
distance were forests and a low range of blue
mountains. Some paddy was cultivated by the road
side, but few dwellings, however, were seen. We on
horseback travelled at the rate of three miles an hour,
and the carts followed at about a mile per hour less.
Having crossed the Bang pa Kong river, we shortly
afterwards entered the viUage of Chantakan, distant
fifteen miles from Pachim, and of about the same
size — and were escorted by some of the people with
torches to the residence of the Deputy-Governor.
Instructions from the Governor of Pachim had pre
ceded us, and this official had prepared for our use
two newly built salas, where, after we were
comfortably settled, he sent us a ready-cooked
(Siamese) dinner. As our provisions had not yet
arrived, we were glad as well as curious to partake of
the native food. It was served upon three little

ACROSS SOUTHERN SIAM 183
wooden stands, half a dozen bowls upon each ; there
was neither knife, fork, nor spoon : Siamese eat with
their fingers, and so did we. There was set before
us fish cooked in five different styles, boiled rice, salad,
and condiments, including, of course, namphrik, which,
however, was made in a new way, mixed with fish oil
and some other articles not very inviting to American
palates ; water for drinking was brought in large brass
bowls. Before we had quite finished the repast three
spoons were brought us — one of iron, another of
porcelain, and another of mother-of-pearl, the latter
being a clear, silvery sheU, and handsomely cut. I
induced its owner to part with it for a lead pencil and
two or three sheets of note-paper.
We were off at daylight in the morning, and now
travelled over a good but very dusty road — dusty at
that particular time of year, and very preferable to
the floods of water, which bring fevers and breed
mosquitoes — and halted at noon, having accomphshed
about twelve miles. There were a goodly number of
taU trees to be seen this day ; especially interesting
was a species from which the natives obtain a lubri
cating oU. Great fields of paddy stalks lay near the
road ; a httle farther off was the dense forest, and a
range of hills, just discernible, ran away to the north-

184 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
ward. We saw the prairie-grass and woods burning
in many places, and everywhere there were blackened
and charred remains of recent fires, which the natives
say are accidentally started or produced, perhaps by a
match or a discarded cigar stump. They burn for
months at a time, sometimes quietly simmering at the
foot of an old tree, from which a sudden strong wind
wiU scatter sparks into some dry vegetable matter,
which of course will at once blaze up, and so the fire
wiU spread and travel over immense districts of
country. The villages we passed were aU small — six
or a dozen houses — with long distances between
them ; everything about the dweUings and people
betokened great and general poverty ; still the latter
seemed nearly as happy and contented as they were
dirty and curious.
Kabin we found to be a Laos town of about a
thousand inhabitants. The Governor was absent
when we arrived, but a subordinate made us comfort
able in the pubhc sala, while notice was sent to His
ExceUency of the arrival of the ' farangs ' (foreigners).
Our room was enclosed by fastening straw matting
along its sides ; water for bathing purposes was brought
in large jars ; then appeared servants bringing torches,
fowls, eggs, and rice ; and soon afterwards a dinner,

ACROSS SOUTHERN SIAM , 185
served in true native style, consisting of ten little tables
or stands, which held altogether some forty dishes of
food. This latter civility we dechned, and with the
officer's permission gave the dinner to our servants :
there was sufficient for all, and they exceedingly
enjoyed what was to them, we doubted not, a most
royal feast. In the evening the Governor called,
an ' oldish ' gentleman, with a pleasing face and
engaging manners, dressed in a blue silk panoung and
red and grey silk jacket, his head and feet being of
course bare. He answered the missionary's questions
and also our own so quickly and decidedly as to prove
a most thorough acquaintance with his special province.
He told us that the gold mine near there, worked
entirely by Siamese, was paying pretty weU at the
time ; and he showed us some of the gold, which had
been manufactured into little filigree-work boxes, for
holding tobacco. Their workmanship was rude, but
the gold is said to be the most ductUe in the world ;
its colour is a dark, dull yeUow, and it appears very
soft. We informed the Governor that we wished to
proceed on our journey at daylight, and he promised
that we should have ponies and bullock-carts and that
he would give us a letter to another Governor at the
next town, some twenty-five miles distant. We were

186 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
not expected to make any return or present to the
servants we employed on the road ; still we thought it
right to award them something when faithful, and so
we paid for the use of our animals and their drivers
and attendants at the rate of half a tical each per
diem. We entered this day upon the ' grand military
road ' built by the Siamese some thirty-five or forty
years since for the easier transport of troops to the
remote districts of their kingdom — parts of Cambodia
and Cochin China, then recently annexed. The road
was in such excellent condition, the General remarked,
that over it might easUy be drawn the heaviest
artillery. The Siamese have quite as vague and amusing
impressions of distance as the Hindoos. We asked a
traveller whom we met on the road a few days ago 'how
far it was to the nearest well,' and received for reply,
' About as far as a dog can bark ' (i.e. one could hear
the animal). And again this morning we heard another
ludicrous expression of distance ; a town was ' as far
as a cock could crow,' and we found it to be nearly
half a mile — rather a far-fetched crow. In India once,
when travelling on horseback in the Himalayas near
the borders of Tibet, I chanced to pass eight several
Hindoos on the road, and enquiring of each the

ACROSS SOUTHERN SIAM 187
distance to a particular town, no two answered me
with the same number of koss, or miles (about two
English), or else sometimes, when asking a similar
question, I would receive for reply, ' Just a little before
you ' (Tora age hai), or else, ' Go straight forwards '
(Seedha age chulejao), whether my destination was one
or twenty miles distant, or there were a dozen turns
or intersecting ways.
We next entered a region of very dense forest,
through which the road was evenly cut, the branches
of the trees joining just above our heads and making a
complete shade Some trees which we saw were over
200 feet in height and three feet in diameter ; they
were very straight, and did not branch until far above
the ground. It is, however, not the best time of year
to see the forests in their virgin splendour — the rainy
season favours vegetation more — the trees now have
rather too scanty foliage, too many ugly dead limbs,
too many leaves, half green and half yellow. Tigers,
wild elephants, and other ferocious animals abound
hereabouts, and our guides told us it would not be
safe to travel at night ; even during the day we carried
loaded revolvers, and each of our ' boys ' had large
knives or two-edged daggers attached to cords and worn
around their necks. On the march we distinguished

188 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
the tracks of elephants and panthers, and at night
hstened to the howls of jackals prowhng around our
camp. The screams of monkeys, though we did not
often see the wary httle animals, the notes of peacocks,
quails, parrots, and many unknown birds were also
heard. One day, as we were quietly jogging along,
we observed two immense birds standing together
upon the grassy plain ; they appeared to be of the
adjutant species, with a long bUl, black neck, broad
white stripe round the body, black tail, and very long
red legs, and were about four feet in height. As we
journeyed on we also saw great turkey-buzzards, and
occasionally a herd of red deer. It is customary with
the natives to ensnare the latter by driving them into
narrow enclosures, in which strong nets have been
spread. It was our practice to walk as much as eight
miles every day, the remainder being accomplished on
horseback ; and the sun being excessively hot, at noon
and night we were, of course, much exhausted. At
such times two or three grains of quinine soon wrought
a happy change in our feehngs. Quinine taken as a
precaution, or an (almost) preventer of fever, is an
invaluable medicine everywhere in the tropics. It is
a powerful tonic, and if used in moderation it
strengthens and builds up the system, leaving no un-

ACROSS SOUTHERN SIAM 189
pleasant effects, no depressing reaction ; besides, a large
quantity may be carried in smaU bulk, and with the
addition of a httle water, or even taken dry, it is
always in readiness for immediate use.
On the 1st of February we passed the boundaries of
ancient Cambodia. The Siamese have at different
times appropriated so much of this territory that from
being one of the largest of the Indo-Chinese countries
it has become the smallest. The Annamites also, and
latterly the French, have encroached upon its eastern
and southern borders, and ' between two fires ' — avoid
ing ScyUa, faUing upon Charybdis — the old kingdom
of Khamen, or Kambqja, has suffered both much and
long. Our daily routine of marching and camping is quite
simple. We rarely accomphsh more than twenty miles
a day, and at night sleep under a large tree, with naught
but the blue, star-studded canopy of heaven above
us. At a night bivouac each of our attendants has his
especial duty. The baggage and provision carts are
usually two or three hours behind us, as we make about
an hour more than they do on the road. If we are so
fortunate as to obtain an old sala for the night, the
carts are driven to its side, and the drivers at once
unyoke the oxen and lead them off to graze at the

190 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
edge of the forest. Our butler and one of the - boys
then remove from the carts our respective mattresses,
which are placed upon the sala floor side by side ; our
books, writing materials, and personal baggage most
in request soon foUow. ' Deng,' the Chinese cook,
assisted by ' Tah,' one of the Siamese ' boys,' builds
the fire and begins to prepare the dinners. The fire
places are rather ingeniously made. Two holes are
dug near each other in the hard clay and united
underneath the surface ; the one is round, larger below
than above, in fact — its mouth wUl just receive a kettle
or saucepan — the other is bored in an oblong direction,
sloping up to the surface. This is the ' draught,' and
through this aperture the fire is fed with light, dry
fuel. ' Imm,' the Chinese butler, soon has our table
'set,' i.e. the plates and dishes are placed on a large
bamboo mat upon the floor, and before long the meal
itself is thus announced : ' Master, master, dinny have
got leady.' But prior to this our dusty travelling clothes
have been removed, we have bathed, and dressed in
clean and cool baju and pyjamas (loose jacket and
drawers of thin silk or linen), and we now recline at
length upon our beds, much after the manner of the"
ancient Bomans at their symposia, — and partake of
the frugal repast. Our larder is modest but sufficient,

ACROSS SOUTHERN SIAM 191
for besides tinned provisions and a variety of liquors
we obtain such fresh food as eggs, rice, fish, poultry,
and fruit by official levies upon the country people.
On our menu there will often be, as a starter (or
* preliminary canter,' as an Enghshman rendered the
Parisian hors d'osuvre of breakfast), oyster soup, the
oysters bond fide ; next roast beef, green peas, and
potatoes for the substantials ; egg curry and rice with
preserved tamarinds wiU do duty as entremets ; stewed
pippins, dried figs, and bread and butter serve for
dessert ; and as beverages — on the wine list — we have
sherry-wine, beer, claret, and brandy ; and then, as a fit
conclusion of the whole matter, cafe noir. After dinner
there is a general talk of the day's travel, or else some
one reads a few pages of Mark Twain, or Artemus Ward,
or Dr. Holmes, and then, after a look at the animals,
we go ' to roost ' — literally, for the partial flooring of
the sala is four or five feet above the ground — usually
by nine o'clock, for we need rest, and prefer to begin our
march by daylight, and thus employ the coolest part
of the day. The ' boys ' build large fires on every side
of the sala to frighten away wild animals, to keep
themselves warm (for the nights are cold in comparison
with the days), also to provide hght and guard against
thieves, and to drive off mosquitoes by the smoke.
16

192 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
Watchmen are appointed, each 'boy' in turn, to
protect the oxen and ponies. Our attendants sleep
upon the bare ground, with their entire persons
enveloped with blankets or coarse sheets, to shield
themselves from mosquitoes or any poisonous insects.
If there is no sala at hand, a circle is made of our
carts (about which the men sleep) around a large tree,
under which we sleep, and then with an outer cordon
of fire we consider ourselves pretty safe. In the
mornings, while the General is marsh ailing the caravan,
and the Missionary is recording, in a blank-book, his
impressions of hfe and adventure in the interior of
Siam, there is usually opportunity to use the pencil ;.
and, seated upon the ground, with a drawing-book in
hand, I make rough sketches of the country, people,
and their characteristics — now an image of Budha,
then a wat, a Cambodian nobleman, or a particularly
romantic camp, a cart, an elephant, or perhaps a sala —
where no photographer or artist has been before me.
Passing slowly through an immense plain of grass six
feet in height, with large burned tracts here and there,
we approached the town of Sesupon. Around the bases
of some large trees, usuaUy a group of three or four,
we saw hillocks ten feet in height and eighty feet in
circumference, the habitations of a species of white ant,

ACROSS SOUTHERN SIAM 193
These are built so large and high in order to avoid the
effects — floods — of the annual rain, as in some parts
of tropical America a species of black ant builds large
nests — roundish, of light earth and plastered smooth —
on trees for the same purpose. The Governor of
Sesupon was very demonstrative in his wishes to be of
all possible service to us. He provided for our use
three elephants and three buffalo and one buUock cart.
He sent us presents also of fresh pork, onions, rice,
eggs, sugar, and some very nice vermicelli made from
rice flour. During our first interview His Excellency
smoked three cigars and drank a dozen little cups of
tea, but dechned some brandy which we proffered, say
ing he was not accustomed to its use. Europeans very
seldom visit this part of Siam, and we were, therefore,
objects of great curiosity to the natives, who crowded
in upon all sides of our sala to view the ' farangs.' In
the Governor's garden were some green stuffs, such as
onions, cabbages, salads, &c, and aU about we could
see evidences of the great fertility of the soil, and that
the natives were too lazy to cultivate anything more
than the bare necessities of life, and selected even of
them those which required the least possible exertion for
a return. There were in Sesupon some excellent fat
pigs, and also some very sleek-looking cattle. European

194 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
or American settlers might do well in many parts of
the country, were it not for the hot chmate and the
mahgnant fevers which are so prevalent during a great
part of the year.
The elephants we obtained at this town were rather
smaUer than the average of those seen in India. The
Siamese howdah, or elephant saddle, also differs from
that used by the Hindoos. It is simply an oblong
wooden box (five feet in length, two and a half in
width, and one foot in depth), which fits snugly to the
elephant's back ; it has a circular bamboo top or cover,
five or six feet in height, which rises from the two
ends, and has curtains provided for both the front and
rear sides. Under it upon the monster's back are
placed, first, a thick sheet of soft bark, and then three
or four pieces of stiff raw hide, and the saddle is secured
by a rattan rope, about an inch in diameter, passed
under the beUy, by a rope crupper to the tail, and
forwards by ropes round the animal's massive neck.
The mahout, or driver, sits of course upon the neck, his
feet and legs placed against the ears, by which in great
part he guides the beast ; though the Siamese elephant
is accustomed to no words of command — ' to the right '
or left, * advance,' * stop,' &c. — nor to kneel when about
to be mounted, as in India. In riding one may either sit

ACROSS SOUTHERN SIAM

195

cross-legged upon soft cushions or rest as in a chair,
placing the feet upon the animal's neck. In some parts
of Siam a young elephant may be purchased for as little
as twenty ticals (about #12). The animals which wehad

SIAMESE 'WAR ELEPHANT

from time to time travelled two, or two and a half miles
an hour, but they could not make more than twenty
miles a day, nor could they carry more than four
hundred pounds' weight upon their backs.
One day, near a lake where we had been resting

196 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
during the great heat of noon, the Missionary dis
covered some interesting ruins — large blocks of a grey
stone, with basso-relievo carving upon them. We had
met with many Cambodians during the past week :
their appearance is very like that of the Siamese ; their
houses are simUar in construction ; they worship the
same Budha ; their manners and customs are identical ;
their laws have the same tenor ; but their languages are
very dissimilar. We had an opportunity of seeing
some natives fishing in a small river near the town of
Panoum-sok. While we were resting in the sala after
tiffin, some two hundred men, women, and children
came out from their huts and entered the river — here
about one hundred and fifty feet in width and from two
to six feet in depth — together, and whUe some drew
nets, the majority used a sort of trap, made of bam
boo, three feet in length, open at one end the entire
diameter (about a foot) and closed at the other, ex
cepting a hole in the centre of sufficient size to receive
the arm. This trap was quickly thrust down to the
bed of the river, and the number and size of the fish
ensnared by such simple means was a source of much
astonishment to us all ; many of them would weigh
three pounds.
At Panoum-sok we were housed in a most exceUent

SIAMESE GENTLEMAN AND LADS*

ACROSS SOUTHERN SIAM 197
sala, and everything was done for our comfort by an
under-governor. While we were at dinner there came
an imposing procession of fourteen men, women, and
children, walking in single file, headed by two of the
chief men of the town, and bringing in their hands
and on their heads presents of food in almost endless
variety ; there was rice, two kinds of dried fish, pork,
eggs (fresh), salted eggs (prepared in native style),
bananas, (Siamese) cooked dinners, and one little table
which had upon it five different kinds of cakes and
sweets ; some of these latter we ate after dinner, and
found them quite palatable. These good (except the
salted eggs — ugh !) things were sent us by the Governor's
wife, His Excellency being absent on a journey to
Korat for the purpose of assisting at the cremation
ceremonies of his dead nephew.
The Governor's wife intended herself to leave in the
morning for Siamrap to attend the marriage of her
cousin there, and she very courteously invited us to
join her party. But upon learning that it was her in
tention to travel slowly, we were obliged to decline her
invitation, for we had already been too much delayed
upon the road. After dinner came four more presents
of food, making twenty-two in all: we appropriated
some delicacies for our own use, but gave the greater

198 THE LAND OF THE WHILE ELEPHANT
part to our attendants, who, it is almost needless to
add, lived extremely well, or ' high,' according to their
own dietetic philosophy, during the entire journey from
Bangkok.

SIAMRAP 199

CHAPTEE XVI.
SIAMRAP
At about eleven o'clock on the morning of the 11th
we came suddenly upon a branch of the Krapong-Seng
river, which is here spanned by an old, ruined stone
bridge, about three hundred feet in length, sixty in
height, and forty in width. It is buUt of a very
coarse porous stone — evidently of volcanic origin —
with twenty-six arches in the pointed Gothic style
of architecture ; it rests upon a massive platform of
masonry, and the blocks of stone — four feet in length,
two in breadth, and one in thickness — are laid entirely
without cement. There is no carving to be seen
except a little arabesque work upon the narrow stone
coping. No keystone being employed, and the stones
not being smoothed upon their tops, the arches have
consequently many of them broken in, and aU are
much dilapidated. The bridge exhibits marks of great
age ; most of the stone facing has been thrown down ;
the top of the bridge is overgrown with shrubs, and in

200 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
one or two places quite large trees have grown up,
¦ fastening their roots into the rich debris between the
blocks of stone. Some of these latter have been worn
round and nearly smooth, by the action of running
water apparently; many blocks have small holes in
them, as if by this means they had been lifted and
placed in position. There are no other ruins to be
seen near the bridge except two smaU heaps of stone
and rubbish in the centre of a shaUow lake. This
bridge, which the natives in their flowery diction style
Taphan-iheph — the ' Celestial,' ' Angels',' or ' Shining
Bridge ' (as it may be variously translated)-was probably
built about the same time as the temples and palaces
of Angkor, when that city was the capital of Cambodia
— many hundred years since.
We crossed Taphan-theph upon our elephants, and
soon after halted for tiffin under the shade of some
large trees. In the afternoon I had a long ride in one
of the little passenger buUock-carts. The body of
this vehicle looks very much like- a huge barrel; it is
made of bamboo covered with leaves, but so narrow is
it that one has to sit cross-legged, and so low is it that
when thus sitting it is impossible to wear one's hat.
Upon a small seat which projects out before, the driver
sits; he drives the oxen by means of a small rope

SIAMRAP 201
passed through their nostrils, and uses a goad (a sharp
nail fastened to the extremity of a stout stick) upon
their humps instead of a lash. The buUocks usually
bear strings of wooden clapper-bells around their
necks, and when trotting fast their jinghng sound
reminds one somewhat of the sleigh-bells in winter
at home. Upon a good, level road this mode of
conveyance is not disagreeable, but httle of the
country through which one is riding can, however, be
seen. Siamrap we found to be a town — of about a
thousand inhabitants — pleasantly situated upon the
banks of a smaU river, and three and a half miles
distant from the ruins at Angkor. We were received
in the pubhc sala by the Palat (an inferior provincial
officer), who brought us an invitation from the Governor
to dine with him ; but this hospitality we were obhged
to decline, feeling quite exhausted after our day's
travel. It seemed that we had arrived in Siamrap at
a time of unusual festivity. The daughter of the
Governor was about to be married to the cousin of the
Governor of Battambong — a large province to the
south-west — and great preparations for the happy
event were going forwards. After we had unpacked
some of the baggage the Governor sent us a very nice

202 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
Siamese (though served in European style) dinner
upon a silver tray ; there was soup in a large blue
China tureen, a great dish of boiled rice, and a
variety of stewed meats and condiments in small
bowls : knives and forks were provided and a table
and chairs brought, a cloth laid, and upon it (mirabile
visu!) a 'reg'lar down-east' tallow-dip was placed, the
the wick being quite two-thirds of its size, and it
burning at about the rate of an inch a minute. After
dinner we had a long conversation, through ' Henry '
as medium, with the chief men of the viUage, who
asked questions — many very absurd ones too — much
faster than we could answer them. In the morning
came presents from the Governor of a shoulder of
beef, some eggs, fowls, cucumbers, pumelows, and
bananas. We sent our letter from the Foreign Office
at Bangkok to His Excellency. It was received with
distinguished ceremony on a golden salver, with a
conspicuous display of white umbreUas ; and afterwards
we were invited to an interview.
In the river near the sala are several large water-
wheels, used by the natives for drawing water by the
action of the current of the stream. Their construc
tion is novel ; the wheels are perhaps twelve feet in
diameter, with broad flanges made of mats, the action

SIAMRAP 203
of the current turning them, and the water of the
river, directed to this point, filling small joints of*
bamboo which are fastened to the inner circumference
of the wheel, and these, revolving, are emptied upon a
thatch of afap-palm leaves, a trough under which
collects the water, which is then directed to the
different houses by means of long wooden pipes.
Lower down the river were several canoes and barges,
hollowed- out of single trunks of trees, which were as
much as forty feet in length and eight feet in beam or
breadth ; one had a cabin of palm leaves built in its
centre, and a grass thatch extending over it from stem
to stern. These canoes and large boats are intended
rather for use on Lake Thalaysap, eight miles distant,
being too unwieldy and of too great draught to
penetrate far up the river.
The waUs of Siamrap, built of brick and stone, are
twelve feet in height and about half a mUe in cir
cumference ; they have bastions at the corners, and
openings in the parapet for cannon. The Governor
afterwards told the General that forty years ago each
of these embrasures — there are 806 of them — was
occupied by a cannon, but having since become rusty
and otherwise out of repair, they have aU been
removed. There are two gates on the eastern side

204 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
and one on each of the others. These gateways are
surmounted by curious old towers or guard-rooms,
with peaked roofs ; the gates themselves are bunt of
massive teak planks, thickly studded with large iron
naUs. There are few houses besides the palace and
the courts of justice within the walls ; the town,
which is not very large, hes chiefly along the banks
of the small river which flows south to the Lake
Thalaysap, on the eastern side of the walls. The
houses, built upon piles, of bamboo and palm-leaf, and
thatched with grass, and the people seem generally
to present a more thrifty appearance than that usual
in Siamese villages.
Preceded by the interpreter and followed by all our
servants, we entered the palace enclosure through one
of the immense -gates already mentioned, and walked
fearlessly past the gaping mouth of a large iron
cannon, mounted upon huge wooden wheels ; for we
knew no danger was to be apprehended, since the bore
of the cannon had been converted into a peaceful
aviary. The Governor received us in a long and
broad verandah and waved us graciously to some
chairs, himself taking one before us. Behind His
Excellency, laid upon the floor, were some red velvet
cushions, elegantly embroidered with gold thread, and

SIAMRAP 205
before them were placed the most magnificent
betel-boxes, cigar-cases, spittoons, &c, we had
as yet seen ; they were made of pure Siamese
gold and studded with costly gems. There was also a
set of beautiful tea-things. Along the walls of the
verandah or audience haU were placed rows of gims
and swords; some of the former were old-fashioned
flint-locks, some were modern muskets of good
manufacture, some were furnished with bayonets —
rather formidable-looking weapons — and with brass
scabbards. At the right of His Excellency were some
royal umbrellas in cases, some long state swords to
be carried in procession, a Connecticut clock, some
glass candlesticks and shades, &c, and the waUs were
hung with grotesque Chinese paintings. Grouped
about the Governor, to the right and left, were some
hundred or more prostrate officers and attendants ; the
rank of each might be determined by his dress, the
material of which his betel-boxes were manufactured,
and the proximity to his lord. The Governor was a
young man — a Cambodian by birth — of pleasant
though not very inteUectual countenance, of short
stature, inclined to obesity ; and he was dressed in a
white under-vest, stand-up collar with a gold button, a
yellow figured silk gown, and a green silk panoung,
17

206 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
the lower part of the legs and his feet being bare.
His ExceUency promised to provide elephants to carry
the General and the Missionary back to Sesupon and
Kabin when they were ready to return, and also to
give me a letter of introduction to the Brime Minister
of Cambodia, requesting him to obtain for me, if
possible, an audience with His Majesty the King of
Cambodia, and also to provide a boat and boatmen to
convey me across Lake Thalaysap and down the
Mesap river to Banompin, the capital.
During the interview the Governor ordered his own
band of fourteen instruments to play for our amusement;
Cambodian music, like the Siamese, consists principally ,
of noise — of the shrill and penetrating sounds produced
by flageolets and other peculiarly formed reed instru
ments, and the banging, clanging,- and rattling of
tom-toms, cymbals, musical wheels (metal cups of
different sizes and thicknesses struck with a hammer),
bamboo sticks (also of different sizes and thicknesses,
and struck in the same manner); all playing their
loudest, most interminable notes in full blast at the
same time, and for half an hour without intermission.
The character of the music, however, is often sweet,
sometimes wailing and rather dirge-like, although
always played in quick time. The instruments them-

SIAMRAP

207

selves are capable of considerable melody, if played
with reference to tune and time, modulation and
expression. The performers upon the musical
wheels and the boxes with suspended bamboo sticks
evinced much skill in the use of their instruments.
When playing the musicians sit upon the floor in rows

CAMBODIAN FEMALE BAND

close together ; there does not appear to be any
particular leader, as there is no particular tune. On
taking leave, the Governor sent with us a present of
water-melons, pumelows, jack-fruits, and bananas.
The total distance we traveUed from Bangkok was
275 miles ; of this 30 miles was by canal in boats,
30 miles on the Bang pa Kong river in boats, and

208 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
the remainder — 215 miles — was performed upon horses
and elephants, in buUock-carts, and on foot ; the
greater part of the journey, however, was accomplished
on horseback. The time consumed in making this trip
was seventeen days.
The Governor of Siamrap having provided us with
three elephants, on the 13th inst. we started for the
ruins of Angkor, three and a half miles distant, to the
north. We took but little baggage with us, being
rather impatient now that we were nearing the main
object of the expedition — the ultima Thule of our desires
and hopes — and so we passed quickly and silently along
a narrow but good road cut through the dense, riant
forest, until, in about an hour's time, on suddenly
emerging from the woods, we saw a little way off to
the right, across a pond filled with lotus plants, a long
row of columned galleries, and beyond — high above
the beautiful cocoa and areca palms — three or four
immense pagodas, built of a dark-grey stone. And
my heart almost bounded into my mouth as the Cam
bodian driver, turning towards the howdah, said, with
a bright flash of the eye and a proud turn of the lip,
'Naghon Wat ;' for we were then at the very portals
of the famous old ' City of Monasteries,' and not far
distant was Angkorthom — Angkor the Great.

NAGKON WAT: ENTRANCE WEST OF THE FIRST ENCEINTE: INNER VIEW

I ! s\o- 1
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PROVINCE of SIAMRAP
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RUINS ofANGKOR,
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THE RUINS OF ANGKOR— THE GREAT TEMPLE 209

CHABTEB XVII.
THE RUINS OF ANGKOR — THE GREAT TEMPLE
We, whose good fortune it is to live in the nineteenth
century, are accustomed to boast of the perfection
and pre-eminence of our modern civilisation, of the
grandeur of our attainments in Science, Art, Literature,
and what not, as compared with those whom we call
ancients ; but stUl we are compeUed to admit that they
have far excelled our recent endeavours in many things,
and notably in the Fine Arts of painting, architecture,
and sculpture. We were but just looking upon a most
wonderful example of the two latter, for in style and
beauty of architecture, solidity of construction, and
magnificent and elaborate carving and sculpture, the
great Nagkon Wat has no superior, certainly no rival,
standing at the present day. The first view of the
ruins is almost overwhelming. One writer says, ' The
ruins of Angkor are as imposing as the ruins of Thebes
or Memphis, and more mysterious ;' and another — M.
Mouhot — whose work we have used as a guide-book

210 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
in this distant part of Siam — thinks that ' one of these
temples [Nagkon Wat] — a rival to that of Solomon,
and erected by some ancient Michael Angelo — might
take an honourable place beside our most beautiful
buildings. It is grander than anything left to us
by Greece or Bome.' At a first sight one is most
impressed with the magnitude, minute detail, high
finish, and elegant proportions of this temple, and
then to the bewildered beholder arise mysterious
after-thoughts — who built it? when was it built? and
where now are its builders ? But it is doubtful if these
questions will ever be answered. There exist no
credible traditions — all is absurd fable or legend.
The ruins of Angkor are situated in the province of
Siamrap, eastern Siam, in about Lat. 13.30 K and
Long. 104 E. We entered upon an immense cause
way, the stairs of which were flanked with six huge
griffins, each carved from a single block of stone.
This causeway, which leads directly to the main entrance
of the temple, is 725 feet in length, and is paved
with stones each of which measures four feet in length
by two in breadth. On either side of it are artificial
lakes fed by springs, and each covering about five acres
of ground. We passed through one of the side gates
and crossed the square to a sala situated at the very

NAGKON WAT: NORTH-WEST EDICTJLE

THE RUINS OF ANGKOR— THE GREAT TEMPLE 211
entrance of the temple. Embosomed in the midst of a
perfect forest of cocoa, betel-nut, and toddy palms,
and with no village in sight — excepting a dozen or
more huts, the abodes of priests having the charge of

PEIESTS' HOUSES, NAGKON WAT
it — the general appearance of the wonderful temple is
beautiful and romantic as well as impressive and grand.
A just idea of' it can hardly be conveyed by writing ;
it must be seen to be understood and appreciated.
StiU, perhaps, a detailed description might assist the

212 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
imagination somewhat in forming a proper estimate of
the grand geniu3 which planned and the skill and
patience which executed such a masterpiece of archi
tecture. The outer wall of Nagkon Wat — which words signify
a city or assemblage of temples or monasteries — about
half a mile square, is built of sandstone, with gateways
upon each side, which are handsomely carved with
figures of gods and dragons, arabesques and intricate
scrolls. Upon the western side is the main gateway,
and passing through this and up a causeway (paved
with slabs of stone three feet in length by two in
breadth) for a distance of a thousand feet, you arrive at
the central main entrance of the temple. About the
middle of the causeway, on either side, are image-
houses, much decayed and overgrown with rank para
sitic plants ; and a little farther on are two small ponds,
with carved stone copings, which in most places are
thrown down. The foundations of Nagkon Wat are as
much as ten feet in height, and are very massively
built of the same volcanic rock as that used in the con
struction of the ' Angels' Bridge.' The entire edifice —
which is raised on three terraces, the one about thirty
feet above the other — including the roof, is of stone,
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THE RUINS OF ANGKOR— THE GREAT TEMPLE 213
as even now to be scarcely discernible. The quarry
where the stone was hewn is about two days' travel —
thirty miles — distant, and it is supposed the transpor
tation of the immense boulders could only have been
effected by means of a water communication — a canal
or river, or when the country was submerged at the end
of the rainy season. The shape of the building is
oblong, being 796 feet in length and 588 feet in width,
while the highest central pagoda rises some 250 odd
feet above the ground, and four others, at the angles of
the court, are each about 150 feet in height.
Passing between low railings, we ascend a plat
form — composed of boulders of stone four feet in length,
one and a half feet in width, and six inches in thick
ness — and enter the temple itself through a columned
portico, the facade of which is beautifully carved in
basso-relievo with ancient mythological subjects. From
this doorway, on either side, runs a corridor with a
double row of columns, cut — base and capital — from
single blocks, with a double, oval-shaped roof covered
with carving, and consecutive sculptures upon the outer
wall. This gallery of sculptures, which forms the
exterior of the temple, consists of over half a mile
of continuous pictures, cut in basso-relievo upon sand
stone slabs six feet in width, and represents subjects

214

THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT

taken from Hindoo mythology — from the Ramayana —
the Sanscrit epic poem of India — with its 25,000 verses
describing the exploits of the god Eama and the son
of the King of Oudh. The contests of the King of
Ceylon, and Hanuman, the monkey god, are gra-

WmmSmmmm

SCULPTURES IN THE CITY OF ANGKOR

phically represented. There is no keystone used in
the arch of this corridor, and its ceiling is uncarved.
On the walls are sculptured the immense number of
100,000 separate figures (or at least heads). Entire
scenes from the Ramayana are pictured ; one, I re
member, occupies 240 feet of the wall. Weeks might

THE RUINS OF ANGKOR— THE GREAT TEMPLE 215
be spent in studying, identifying, and classifying the
varied subjects of this wonderful gallery. You see
warriors riding upon elephants and in chariots, foot
soldiers with shield and spear, boats, unshapely divini
ties, trees, monkeys, tigers, griffins, hippopotami, serpents,
fishes, crocodiles, bullocks, tortoises, soldiers of immense
physical development, with helmets, and some people
with beards — probably Moors. The figures stand
somewhat like those on the great Egyptian monuments,
the side partly turned towards the front ; in the case
of the men one foot and leg are always placed in
advance of the other ; and I noticed, besides, five
horsemen, armed with spear and sword, riding abreast,
Hke those seen upon the Assyrian tablets in the British
Museum. In the processions several of the kings are preceded
by musicians playing upon shells and long bamboo
flutes. Some of the kings carry a sort of battle-axe,
others a weapon which much resembles a golf-club, and
others are represented as using the bow and arrow. In
one place is a grotesque divinity who sits elegantly
dressed upon a throne surmounted by umbrellas ; this
figure, of peculiar sanctity evidently, has been recently
gilded, and before it, upon a small table, there were
a dozen or more 'joss-sticks' kept constantly burning

216 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
by the faithful. But it is almost useless to particularise
when the subjects and style of execution are so diverse,
Each side of the long corridor seemed to display
figures of distinct feature, dress, and character. ' The
most interesting sculptures,' says Dr. Adolf Bastian, the
President of the Eoyal Geographical Society of Berlin,
who explored these wonderful ruins in 1864, ' the most
interesting sculptures at Nagkon Wat are in two com
partments, called by the natives respectively the pro
cession and the three stages (heaven, earth, and hell).
What gives a peculiar interest to this section is the fact
that the artist has represented the different nationalities
in all their distinctive characteristic features, from the
flat-nosed savage in the tasseled garb of the Pnom and
the short-haired Lao to the straight-nosed Eajaput, with
sword and shield, and the bearded Moor, giving a cata
logue of nationalities, hke another column of Trajan,
in the predominant physical conformation of each race.
On the whole there is such a prevalence of Hellenic
cast in the features and profiles, as well as in the
elegant attitude of the horsemen, that one might sup
pose Xenocrates of old, after finishing his labours in
Bombay, had made an excursion to the east.'
There are figures sculptured in high relief (nearly
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SCULPTURES AT NAGKON WAT
THE RUINS OF ANGKOR— THE GREAT TEMPLE 217
entrance ; all are females, and apparently of Hindoo
origin. The interior of the quadrangle bounded by

NAGKON -WAT COLUMNS

the long corridor just described is filled with galleries
— halls, formed with huge columns, crossing one
another at right angles. In the Nagkon Wat as

218 THE LAND OF THE WHTTE ELEPHANT
many as 1,532 solid columns have been counted, and
among the entire ruins of Angkor there are reported
to be the immense number of 6,000, almost all of
them hewn from single blocks and artistically carved.
On the inner side of the corridor there are blank
windows, each of which contains seven beautifully
turned little columns. The ceilings of the galleries
were hung with tens of thousands of bats and pigeons,
and other birds had made themselves comfortable nests
in out-of-the-way corners. We pass on up steep stair
cases, with steps not more than four inches in width,
to the centre of the galleries which here bisect one
another. There are two detached buildings in this
square, probably used formerly as image-houses, and
they now contain wooden Budhas, though of recent
date. In one of the galleries we saw two or three
hundred images — made of stone, wood, brass, clay — of
all shapes and sizes and ages (some of the large stone
idols are said to be 1,400 years old), a Budha's
'sacred foot,' &c. ; 'joss-sticks' were burning before
the largest images, which were besides daubed with red
paint and partially gilded. We walk on across
another causeway, with small image-houses on either
hand, and up a steep flight of steps, fully thirty feet
in height, to other galleries crossing each other in the

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THE RUINS OF ANGKOR— THE GREAT TEMPLE 219
centre, above which rises the grand central pagoda —
250 feet in height — and at the four corners of the court
four smaller spires. These latter are much dilapidated
and do not now display their full height ; the porticoes
also bear evidence of the presence of the ' heavy hand
of time.' Upon the four sides of the base of the
highest spire are colossal images of Budha — made
of plaster — and other smaller divinities in various
positions. These figures of. Budha are grandly placed,
for when the doors of the enclosing rooms are opened,
from their high position they overlook the surrounding
country ; and the priests of Nagkon Wat worship here
at the present day. There is one more gallery, and
then we come to the outer corridor, and pass through
a magnificent doorway to the rear of the temple, and
walk round to our sala, not knowing which to admire
the most, the vastness of the plan or the propriety and
grace of the performance.
But who built the Nagkon Wat? and when was it
built ? Learned men (who have visited the ruins) have
attempted to form opinions from studies of its con
struction and especially its ornamentation ; but what
decision could be reached, what judgment passed, when
we see in the same temple carved images of Budha,
four- and even thirty-two-armed, and two- and sixteen-

220 TILE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
headed gods, the Indian Vishnu, gods with vnngs,
Burmese heads, Hindoo figures, Ceylon mythology, &c?
Native Cambodian historians reckon 2,400 years from
the building of Nagkon Wat, and the traditions of
their country are said to date back to the year of the
world 205. Some have supposed Nagkon Wat to be
but 1,400 years old, to have been built by different
kings, and to have been completed by one who was a
Budhist. The Cambodians still possess accounts of the
introduction of Budhism. ' Samanokodom left Ceylon
and w ent to Tibet, where he was very well received ;
from thence he went among the savages, but not meet
ing with encouragement from them, he took refuge in
Cambodia, where he was welcomed by the people.'
And Dr. Bastian says that this temple was built for the
reception of the learned patriarch Buddhaghosa, who
brought the holy books of the Trai-Pidok from
Langka (Ceylon). And likewise Bishop Pallegoix, a
French Eoman Catholic missionary who resided many
years in Siam, travelled much about the country, and
wrote a very valuable work upon Siam and the
Siamese, refers the erection of this edifice to the reign
of Phra Pathum Suriving, at the time the sacred books
of the Budhists were brought from Ceylon and Budhism
became the religion of the Cambodians. The natives

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THE RUINS OF ANGKOR— THE GREAT TEMPLE 221
themselves (the common people) can throw no light
upon this subject. I asked one of them how long
Nagkon Wat had been built. ' None can tell
when — many hundred years ago,' he replied. I asked
if Cambodians or some other race erected this wonder
ful building, and he answered frankly, ' I do not know ;
but it must have either sprung up from the ground
or been built by giants, or perhaps by the angels.'
Another man said he did not believe it was built by
angels, for he could see the effect of the tools of man
upon it — certainly an amazing display of intellectual
acumen for a native. But still the degenerate Cam
bodians of the present day, whose only genius expresses
itself in the carving of their boats, have no idea or
belief that their ancestors may have constructed these
temples. c Was civilisation,' asks Louis de Carne (late mem
ber of the French Commission of Exploration of the
Makong river) — 'was civilisation, in the complex mean
ing we give that word, in keeping among the ancient
Cambodians with what such prodigies of architecture
seem to indicate ? The age of Phidias was that of
Sophocles, Socrates, and Plato ; Michael Angelo and
Eaphael succeeded Dante. There are luminous epochs
during which the human mind, developing itself in

222 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
every direction, triumphs in all, and creates master
pieces which spring from the same inspiration. Have
the nations of India ever known such periods of special
glory? It appears little probable, and it is only
necessary to read the Chinese traveller of the thirteenth
century, whose narrative M. Abel Eemusat has trans
lated, to be convinced that it was never reached by the
Khmers [ancient Cambodians]. He describes the monu
ments of the capital, most of which were covered with
gilding, and he adds that, with the exception of the
temples and the palace, all the houses were only
thatched. Their size was regulated by the rank of the
possessor, but the richest did not venture to build one
like that of any of the great officers of state. Despotism
induced corruption of manners, and some customs
mentioned by our author show actual barbarism.'
This article would tend to prove, therefore, that the
authorship of Nagkon Wat must be ascribed to other
than the ancient Cambodians. But to whom ?
M. Henri Mouhot, who gave the first exact account
of these since celebrated ruins, was strongly of the
opinion that they were built by some of the lost tribes
of Israel — those scape-goats of so many anonymous
monuments throughout the world. M. Mouhot, in his
travels through Indo-China, made many efforts to dis-

THE GRAND STAIRCASE, NAGKON WAT

THE RUINS OF ANGKOR— THE GREAT TEMPLE 223
cover traces of Jewish emigration to Siam or Cambodia,
but met with nothing satisfactory excepting a record
of the Judgment of Solomon — attributed to one of
their kings, who had become a god after having been.
according to their ideas of metempsychosis, an ape, an
elephant, &c. — which was found by M. Miche, the
French Bishop of Laos and Cambodia, to be preserved
verbatim in one of the Cambodian sacred books.
Everywhere M. Mouhot was told * there were no Jews
in the country ;' still he could not but be struck by the
Hebrew character of the faces of many of the savage
Stiens, and when looking at the figures in the bas-
reliefs at Angkor, he could not avoid remarking the
strong resemblance of the faces there to those of these
savages. 'And besides the similar regularity of feature,
there are the same long beards, straight langoutis
(waistcloths), and even the same weapons and musical
instruments.' It is M. Mouhot's belief that, without
exaggeration, some of the oldest parts of Angkor may
be fixed at more than 2,000 years ago, and the more
recent portions not much later. But where are now
the race of people who had the genius to plan and the
skill and patience to rear such magnificent structures ?
There is no trace of them existing among the Cam
bodians of the present day ; there is no trace of any
19

224 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
such people among the surrounding nations, unless,
indeed, faith is to be placed in the statement con
cerning the Stiens, and another race— the Bannans —
quite as well, who inhabit the old country Chiampa, or
Tsiampa. And the Abbe Jaquenet, a Eoman Catholic
missionary in Cochin China, seems rather to confirm
M. Mouhot's impressions, for he writes : ' Whether we
consider the commercial relations of the Jews with these
countries, particularly when, in the height of their power,
the combined fleets of Solomon and Hiram went to seek
the treasures of Ophir (a generic name used, perhaps,
to designate the two Indies), or whether we come lower
down, to the dispersion of the ten tribes, who, instead
of returning from captivity, set out from the banks of
the Euphrates and reached the shores of the ocean —
whatever ground of explanation we resolve upon,'
concludes the pious father, ' the shining of the light
of revelation in the far east is not the less incon
testable.' Another circumstance of considerable inte
rest, and one mentioned by both Dr. Bastian and M.
Mouhot, is, that the foundation of Angkor is referred
by the native historians to a Prince of Eoma, or Eunia,
and that the name of Eoma is familiar to nearly all the
Cambodians, who place it at the western end of the
world.

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VIEW FROM CENTRAL PAGODA : NAGKON WAT

THE RUINS OF ANGKOR— THE GREAT TEMPLE 225
We regarded the temples as at least a thousand years
old ; for how could a race be swept entirely — with not
a single vestige — out of existence in less time ? And
again, the general appearance of the buildings —the
deeply -worn stone stairs, the battered and decayed
columns and slabs, the moss-covered and fallen roof,
the absence of the keystone in the arches, and the
undecipherable inscriptions, all betoken great age,
giving evidence of another people and another civili
sation. The style of the architecture of this wat is
very like that of the temples of India, and somewhat
resembles also that of the temples of Java, and this
would, perhaps, seem to indicate a Hindoo or a Malay
origin ; there is httle resemblance, however, to the
Egyptian monuments : here all is light, airy, graceful ;
there all is massive, severe, and grand.
But are there no tablets eulogising its founders or
commemorating its establishment, no inscriptions con
cerning the building and the builders, set up in this
temple ? Yes, inscriptions truly there are ; some can
be deciphered and some can not, but those which can
be read only give descriptions of offerings made by
different donors, with some allusions to religious cere
monies and mythological objects. There is a tablet of
black marble, about five feet square, let into the wall

226 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
of the rear (eastern) corridor, from which this infor
mation, and this alone, may be gained. The inscrip
tions which cannot be read are written in ancient
Cambodian, in a character which resembles the Pali,
though in a more antiquated form. 'The language
differs from the vernacular Cambodian, as well as from
the Pali, and is not understood now.' It is said that
several of the old kings of Cambodia ' introduced com
pulsory changes into the alphabet,' besides changing
the Cambodian era, and hence we see the almost hope
less confusion which Orientalists now have to encounter
and overcome before the chronology and history of
this country can be known. And there we must leave
this interesting question until some inscriptions are
discovered which, with competent linguists to decipher
them, may offer something of historical moment, or
until some monastery may be found which has pre
served a record of these very ' problematic annals ' —
if indeed they have ever been written.
An officer of the Chinese Government visited the
capital of Cambodia in the year 1295, and mentions
the wonderful appearance of the city and its monu
ments, and describes some of the manners and customs
of the people. From this traveller's time until the
latter part of the sixteenth century nothing authentic

THE RUINS OF ANGKOR— THE GREAT TEMPLE 227
is heard. Christoval de Jaque, a Portuguese, who in
1570, being driven from Japan, took refuge in Cam
bodia, describes the ruins of Nagkon Wat, and states
that even then the inscriptions were unintelligible to
the Cambodians, and that Angkor was no longer a
royal residence. ' He seems to say that even at that
period it had already been deserted by its inhabitants.'
Christoval thought the Cambodians were the most
potent people between the provinces of Pegu (Burma)
and Tonquin (Annam). Perhaps the name ' Eoma,'
so familiar to all Cambodians, was introduced by the
Portuguese through the tenets of the Eoman Catholic
faith ; but then why should their religion have become
extinct, and still the tradition of a Prince of Eoma
remain ? Then again there is a long silence concerning
these ruins, which is not broken until the year 1855 ;
since which date the labours and studies of M. Mouhot,
Dr. Bastian, and Mr. Thompson (the English photo
grapher) have again brought the wonderful temples
to the attention of the civilised world, and almost, as
it were, discovered them for the first time, for it was
to their persevering efforts mainly we were indebted
for a knowledge of the ruins of Angkor and the great
temple Nagkon Wat.

228 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT

CHAPTEE XVHI.
A CAMBODIAN MAREIAGE FESTIVAL
The principal ruins of Siam and Cambodia yet dis
covered lie in the province of Siamrap, as already
stated. At about three miles north-east of Angkor, on
the opposite side of the Siamrap river, are the ruins of
a city called Patentaphrohm, the citadel of Taphrohm,
and near it is a wat styled Prdkeoh, or the Gem
Tower, presenting the same combination of a royal and
priestly residence as Angkor and Nagkon Wat. Some
of these temples and palaces, with their columns,
sculptures, and statues, are quite as interesting, though
not so well preserved, as those at Angkor. About four
miles east of Nagkon Wat are two other remains of
antiquity — Bakong and Lailan. At the latter there
are several images of Budha ' built up of bricks upon
the freestone which forms the fundament and the
lower stage. The bricks are exceedingly hard, and
made in a manner not understood now by the people
of the country. They are polished and laid upon each

A CAMBODIAN MARRIAGE FESTIVAL 229
other in so neat a manner that no traces of mortar can
be discovered.' In the province of Battambong, forty
or fifty miles south-west from Siamrap town, there are
also ruins — temples, monasteries, and palaces — and
indeed the whole valley of the Makong river to the
very borders of China is spread with ruins of more or
less magnitude, beauty, and interest.
Near the monastery olPrdkeoh is an artificial lake
called Sasong (the Royal Lake), built by the kings of
Patentaphrohm, and surrounded with pleasure houses
for their recreation. Dr. Bastian thinks that it must
havebeen a work of immense labour,and that the whole
population of Cambodia of to-day would scarcely be
able to raise such a gigantic structure. The lake
of Sasong he escribes as being ' of oblong shape,
about 2,000 feet broad and 4,000 feet long, and sur
rounded by a high embankment of sohd masonry. Some
of the blocks are fourteen to sixteen feet long and
highly finished. In convenient places square platforms
were built overhanging the water, with broad flights
of steps leading down to it, and in such places the huge
masses of stone laid on each other are embellished by
delicate chisellings, bearing the figures of serpents,
eagles, lions (in their fabulous shapes, as Naga, Kruth,
Sinto) on the ends. In the middle of the lake is a small

230 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
island with the remains of a former palace upon it. Of
all the figures used for ornaments, that which recurs
most frequently is that of the Naga ; and the Chinese
officer who visited Cambodia in 1295 describes already
the pillars of the stone bridges adorned with serpents,
each of which had nine heads.'
We had been but two or three days at the Nagkon
Wat, when there came an invitation from the Governor
to visit him at Siamrap. So mounting our elephants
early in the morning, we returned to our old'sala, not
far distant from the palace gate. Soon after our arrival
came the promised letter of introduction from the
Governor of Siamrap to the Prime Minister of Cambodia,
requesting him to obtain me an audience with His
Majesty. It was written in the Cambodian language,
though accompanied by a Siamese translation, which
latter ' Henry,' the Consulate interpreter, rendered into
literal English for my instruction and amusement. It
read as follows : —
' The letter of Phraya-nu-pap-Tripoph, the Governor
of the Province of Siamrap, sent to Phraya-Kralahome
at the city of Panompin, stating that the American
Consul brought a letter with the seal of Chow-
Phraya-Pootarupai out to the Governor of the Province
of Siamrap, the substance of which is as follows: —

A CAMBODIAN MARRIAGE FESTIVAL 231
Mr. the American Consul wished to travel to the ruins
of Nagkon Wat and Nagkon Thdm, and if Mr. Consul
wished to travel to any place whatever, let the Governor
prepare everything that he requires (to see it). The
American Consul also wishes to have Mr.  , an
American citizen, go out [i.e. of this Province] to see
the city of Panompin. I herewith send (transport)
Mr.  , the American citizen, out [i.e. of this
Province to Panompin] in accordance with the tenor
of the letter of Chow-Phraya-Pootarupai. Will you
please conduct Mr.  up to have an audience with
His Majesty Ong Somdetch Norodom Phranarowdom ?
' Given on Saturday, the ninth day of
the waxing moon, the fourth month of I
the year of the goat, and the third year
of the reign.'
An invitation to dinner accompanied this letter, and
we could not refuse the hospitality of the Governor so
courteously proffered, though we took pains to eat a
tolerably substantial meal before going, agreeably to
the necessities — as regards quality and species, not
quantity — of native dinners before experienced. His
Excellency received us in a truly oriental style of
(very) ' low neck and (very) short sleeves ' dress,
having nothing whatever upon his dusky person

232 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
excepting a silk panoung, round the loins. Dinner
was served on a small table in the audience hall ; and
with about a hundred noblemen and attendants, who
lay around crouching on the floor, curious to see the
farangs ' barbarous and ridiculous manner of eating.
The Governor had resided some time at Bangkok, and
consequently had seen a good deal of foreigners and
their customs, and so the dinner was served with all
the western display his experience and cuisine could
prompt or effect. The meal was presented in five
courses — soups, meats, vegetables, sweets, and fruits —
and the table was lavishly burdened with the variety
of food. There were two kinds of soup, served in
large blue china tureens ; pigs' feet and boiled beef ;
broiled chicken, cooked spread out flat, with the feet
attached ; fried sweet potatoes (here a white variety) ;
boiled and baked rice ; half a dozen bowls of mixed
and minced meats; two or three varieties of condi
ments, &c. ; then followed a dozen bowls and plates of
sweets, cakes, and fritters ; and some excellent (white)
water-melon concluded the feast. We rather regretted
having eaten before leaving our sala, for many of the
articles on the table before us were quite good — in fact,
very good when compared with the diet of some of the
eastern nations, as, say, the Chinese ; most palatable,

A CAMBODIAN MARRIAGE FESTIVAL 233
for example, if likened to the breakfasts, with their
forty little bowls of bird's-nest, sea-slug, and shark's-fin
soup ; unhatched chickens ; the stomachs of ducks ; fried
fat pork, writk sugar and pepper ; the entire viscera of
various animals ; . eggs, much mellowed by lapse of
time ; putrid fish ; and (if one chooses, though they are
eaten by the poorer classes only) puppies and rats,
which are served ' to order,' in the Mussulman (Chinese)
restaurants of Pekin ; or even in Canton, where I have
seen a sign in an eating-house frequented by well-to-do
merchants and artisans — and, by the bye, it proves
' there is nothing new under the sun ' even in Tankee-
dom — which announces to its patrons, in business-like
manner, the appetising fact that that desirable delicacy,
that luxuriant dainty — 'Best black cats' m,eat is ready at
all hours'
Apeculiar strong liquor, much resembling camphene,
and the Japanese saM (rice spirit) less, in taste, was
drunk with the dinner ; and afterwards we had tea, and
then cheroots — native tobacco rolled in palm-leaf and
tied with fibre. The serving of the meal was quite
amusing. The food was brought in upon silver trays,
some of which were placed upon the floor, there not
being roum for all upon the table. Our plates were
of different colour and ornamentation ; thus the

234 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
General had a red one, the Missionary a black one,
and I a blue one ; and scarcely two bowls or dishes
upon the table were of the same size or pattern. We
ate with silver-plated forks and spoons, and tried — but
miserably failed — to cut our meat with rusty steel
knives. The tea was served in brass bowls, from
which we clipped with little cups, holding less than a
mouthful each. We tried to refrain from laughing,
lest the Governor might be offended, but it was rather
difficult to keep our features composed when we saw
the attendants wiping our knives and forks upon their
pyjamas, or rending chunks from the general water
melon, and offering them to us in their own hands.
After dinner there was music and dancing, and then
the Governor exhibited his gold betel-boxes and other
paraphernalia. He told us that all were made by a
Cambodian goldsmith im Siamrap from the gold and
silver coins of Hue, the capital of Annam — of entirely
pure metal — and they certainly were very elegant in
design and finish. We most admired the cigar case
(value #125). The other articles were a large dish
which contained the ' kit,' a gold betel-leaf and lime
holder ; a small gold tobacco-box ; a silver cup, with
cigars ; and a little silver box, made in the form of
a fish, containing a perfumed ointment, used by the

A CAMBODIAN MARRIAGE FESTIVAL 235
native noblemen to anoint their lips and nostrils.
During the evening His Excellency asked if I would
not hke to accompany a party of Chinese who were
going to Panompin for business purposes ; he remarked
they were ready to start at once, but, if agreeable, he
would detain them until we had seen all the ruins of
Angkor. The Governor's kind proposal was accepted
with many thanks.
February the 15th was the day appointed for the
marriage festival in the palace, but I being sick, my
companions thought it imprudent for me to attend.
However, in the evening the Missionary gave me a
detailed account of the entire proceedings. He said
that when they reached the Governor's palace the
ceremony had just commenced. That they were
ushered, amid a tremendous din of gongs, into a large
sala beyond the reception hall, where were seated the
Governor and about a hundred noblemen and invited
guests ; the bridegroom, a young man about twenty
years of age, elegantly attired in silk jacket and
panoung, was also there. By the time the farangs
were seated, a procession — headed by the bride, sup
ported on either hand by demure-looking matrons —
composed principally of aged or married women, all
elegantly attired, entered and slowly marched towards
20

236 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
the Governor. The bride was not particularly interest
ing as regards personal charms ; she was young, how
ever, and dressed richly and in good taste. Besides her
silk panoung she wore a gold-embroidered scarf upon
her shoulders, also gold rings upon her fingers, bracelets
upon her wrists, and armlets above the elbows. The
bride took up her position near the bridegroom, both
sitting upon the floor, but not looking towards each
other ; in fact, throughout the entire ceremony they both
were perfectly impassive and nonchalant. The marriage
ceremony proper now began. A number of wax
candles were brought in a salver, and then lighted by
one of the nobles. The silver waiter was then passed
round before the company eight times, each one in
turn saluting the couple and wishing them good fortune
by waving or blowing the smoke towards them, thus ex
pressing something like the old English custom of throw
ing the slipper after a newly -married couple — the band
of string and reed instruments playing the meanwhile.
Two large velvet cushions having been previously placed
before the bride and bridegroom, and upon them a
large sword, the leader of the lacon (theatricals) now
came forward and went through, for a few moments, a
most fantastical sword exercise. Dishes had been
placed before the unsusceptible couple upon the floor

A CAMBODIAN MARRIAGE FESTIVAL 237
with covers upon them, which latter the lacon man
removed during his flourishes, disclosing to view some
cooked fowls or ducks ; nothing was eaten, however.
Next the hands of the expectant couple were bound
together, and to each other, with silken threads by
the women attendants — probably some near relatives.
Thus were they truly 'joined together 'in Budhistic
wedlock. And this completed the nuptial ceremony.
Afterwards a grand banquet was served in the
reception room, the Governor himself officiating.
The nobles and guests partook of the viands, sitting
apart at little tables by themselves. The farangs
occupied the place of honour at the end of the haU ;
and they pronounced the dinner excellent. Several
enquiries were made by the Governor and some of the
nobles after Nak Prat (the ' wise man ' or philosopher),
alluding to my modest self, for, having learned that I
had traveUed ' through many lands and over many
seas,' they inferred a commensurate expansion of
intellect — a large stock of wisdom or philosophy
gathered from so extensive observation and study of
diverse peoples and countries. Perhaps it is super
fluous to add that the term Nak Prat was afterwards
very frequently heard apphed as a surname in our
sala, until the General and Missionary so happily

238 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
bethought themselves of the necessity of their leaving
Siamrap and returning the one to Bangkok and the
other to Pechaburi, to reassume the weighty cares of
State and Church there separately located. The Go
vernor's answer to the question, ' Where are now the
race who built the grand old edifices of Angkor ? ' was
to the effect that a certain king of Siam had pressed
these people (whoever they were) so hard that they left
their city and fled away off to the north somewhere —
perhaps to the provinces of Dangtrong or Tonquin.
The wedding presents of the ' happy ' couple were
spread upon mats laid on the floor of the reception
hall. The Governor's gift was a large lump of gold
(worth #450), five silver bars (worth #15 each), an
American gold watch and chain, a gold tobacco-box,
and 800 silver ticals. Upon one mat were 2,000 ticals'
worth of money in coins of different values. The
other gifts were panoungs and native trinkets and
jewellery. Late in the afternoon we returned to our sala at
Nagkon Wat, and prepared to visit the city of Angkor
and its environs.

SCULPTURES AT ENTRANCE TO NAGKON WAT

RUINS OF ANGKOR— THE CITY AND ENVIRONS 239

CHAPTEE XIX
THE RUINS OP ANGKOR — THE CITY AND ENVIRONS
Angkor, styled by the natives Nagkon Thorn, the
Great City, is situated about two and a half miles
north-west of Nagkon Wat, and a good road leads there,
through dense forests of immense oil and poh trees.
Angkor is supposed to have been the capital of the
ancient kingdom of Khaman, though we know little or
nothing of its history. There is a tradition preserved
which sets forth, in most extravagant and improbable
manner, that the kingdom had twenty kings who paid
tribute to it ; that its army consisted of 70,000 war
elephants, 200,000 horsemen, and 5,000,000 foot
soldiers ; and that its ' royal treasury occupied a space
of more than 300 miles.' The ancient city was two
and a half miles in length and two and a quarter miles
in width, surrounded by three walls, the outermost of
which, the natives say, it would require an entire day
to circumambulate. The outer wall is the only one
now at all preserved. It is about twenty feet in height

240 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
and ten in width, built of large square blocks of volcanic
rock, and has two gates upon the eastern side and one
upon each of the others. We entered by the south
gateway — a pyramidal structure, perhaps fifty feet in
height, rising above a pointed arch. On the top of this
gateway was growing a poh tree, with a trunk as much
as three feet in diameter, sending its roots down
through and over the huge blocks of stone into the
rich earth. The area within the walls is now mostly
overgrown with jungle. About a mile north from the
gate is a colossal statue of Budha, formed of large
stones, and evidently of modern fabrication.
A little farther on, in the midst of the forest, there
are the ruins of a large wat — a one-storey building,
enclosed within high walls, surmounted by twenty-five
stone pagodas disposed in parallel rows. These pagodas
are about fifty feet in height, except the centre one,
which was originally at least a hundred, and the exterior
of each is worked into colossal faces of Budha — eight
feet long by four in width — upon the four sides.
These faces wear a pleasant, good-natured expression,
which is heightened by the corners of the mouth
curling upwards ; the ears are long and narrow, and
slit like those of the Burmese Gaudama, but a rather
fancy tiara or head-dress takes the place of the short

RUINS OF ANGKOR— THE CITY AND ENVIRONS 241
curls of most Budhas. One of these faces is nearly
concealed by a network of the roots of the poh tree
which has grown up from the side of the pagoda. To
the poh trees is due in great part the present ruinous

WOODEN TOOL

state of this wat, for, having sprung up near or on the
tops of the pagodas, they send their roots down
through the joints of the stones, forcing them out of
place, and, besides, the wind, blowing against their

242 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
thick and widespread fohage, works almost like a lever
upon the roots. Around the bases of the central
pagoda are numerous small idol-cells, and there are
some female figures carved upon the doors of these
cells which are surely of Hindoo origin ; besides the
corresponding features, they wear the long sarong and
the round anklets of that nation. It is doubtful if
these grand monuments can defy time much longer ;
some of the blocks of stone in the pagodas are sepa
rated by as much as an inch ; many seem only to
require a touch to topple them to the ground ; some
chambers are entirely choked up by their roofs having
fallen, and over and through all the ruins the para
sitical poh tree has spread its roots and reared aloft its
glossy green head (we saw a solid block of stone,
ten feet in length, which was supported in a nearly
horizontal position solely by the roots of an immense
poh tree, grown, interlaced around one end of it), and
shrubs and coarse grass now riot where once the
praises of the great Budha — ' the Illuminator of the
World ' — resounded through the halls.
About half a mile from here we came to the palace
gate of the inner or third wall, upon one side of which,
on an immense stone platform, rests the statue of the
Leper King — he who is supposed to have founded, or

RUINS OF ANGKOR— THE CITY AND ENVIRONS 243
at least to have completed, the building of Angkor.
The sides of the platform are faced with slabs of stone
carved with different featured and costumed figures, all
sitting in cross-legged positions. On the opposite side of

THE LEPER KINS

the gateway are pictures in stone, a battle and a mihtary
procession. The famous statue of the Leper King is
carved from sandstone in a sitting posture. The body,
which is naked and rather rudely cut, yet exhibits a
marked contrast to the physical type of the present

244 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
race of Cambodians ; the features are of a much
higher order — indeed, the profile is quite Grecian in
outline — the eyes are closed ; a thin moustache, twisted
up at the ends, covers the upper lip ; the ears are long,
and have the immense holes in their lobes peculiar to
the Burmese and Siamese Budhas ; the hair is thick
and displayed in curls upon the head, the top of which
is surmounted by a small round crown. There is an
inscription in ancient Cambodian characters upon the
front of the pedestal. The figure of the king is some
what mutilated ; the fingers and thumb of the right
hand are wanting, three toes of the left foot are
missing, and a large piece has been broken from the
left arm. The natives have, with (for them) astonish
ing forethought, placed a small grass thatch over this
statue. They have somewhat naturalised (if a
foreigner) and very much travestied their royal ancestor
(if indeed such he be) by blackening his teeth,
rouging his lips, and gilding his forehead. The precise
history of the Leper King has not been determined.
There is one legendary tradition that Angkor was
founded in fulfilment of a vow by a king who was a
leper. Another tradition says that to an Egyptian
king, who for some sacrilegious deed was turned into
a leper, must be ascribed the authorship of Angkor.

RUINS OF ANGKOR— THE CITY AND ENVIRONS 245
The old city besides, as has been already mentioned, is
said by the modern Cambodians to have been built
by the angels or by the giants, or to have sprung up
from the ground. But all these explanations and the
traditions as well are most vague, uncertain, and un
satisfactory. Agreeably to the .legend referring the founding
of Angkor to an Egyptian king, and some fancied
resemblances between the religion of Budha and
that of ancient Egypt, a late writer in the
'National Quarterly Eeview' (Vol. XXVI. No. LI.
art. ' Siam and the Siamese ') seems to think these
' point to the fact that at some very remote period the
Egyptians, or a people identical with them, held sway
over that portion of the globe which comprises Siam,
Cambodia, and Cochin China.' But the founding of
Angkor is also attributed, and by the most learned
Cambodian historians of the present day, to a Prince
of Eoma — Eoma being placed by them at the western
end of the world — while Egypt never has occupied that
position in the ideas of any nation. Historical students
had for a long time entertained very diverse opinions
concerning the origin of Budhism. Some had thought
that, excepting Brahmanism, it was the most ancient
of eastern religions. Others had supposed that it

246 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
was the primitive faith of Hindustan, which has been
driven forth— on the south to Ceylon, and thence
spread towards the east and Farther India, and on the
north to Tibet, Tartary, Mongoha, China, Corea, and
Japan — and superseded by other religions ; and the
fact that scarcely an individual of that belief can
be found -in India to-day, with the knowledge of
the modern sway of Mohammedanism and Brahmanism
there, would perhaps not detract from, if it did not
strengthen, such a notion. Pococke, the author of
' India in Greece,' imagined that the early Greeks were
Budhists. Some had thought that Budhism was
ehminated from the gross pantheisms of Egypt and
Greece, and a few had even essayed to identify Budha
with the Hermes of the ancient Egyptians. The
Jesuits would persuade us that Budhism is of Nestorian
origin. Traces of this ancient faith have been found
in Swedish Lapland, and endeavours have been made
to prove Budha one and the same with the Woden
of the Scandinavians. But notwithstanding all these
conjectures and speculations, Budhism is now generally
believed by oriental scholars to have originated in the
sixth century B.C. — to have sprung up in Nepaul, a
country lying contiguous to India on the north ; and
* in fixing this date no further reliance is placed on

RUINS OF ANGKOR— THE CITY AND ENVIRONS 247
the canonical books of Budhism than seems to be
warranted by evidence derived from other sources, for
a Hindoo has no idea of real history.'
It is true that the prachadis, or sacred spires, of the
Siamese slightly resemble in form — but more in
purpose, for their ' original design was sepulchral ' —
the Pyramids, but there are no prachadis among the
ruins of Angkor. The physiognomy of the Siamese
and Cambodian Budhas compares better, that is more
correctly and fully, with that of several tribes even now
inhabiting the plateaus of Central Asia — beyond the
northern base of the Himalayas — than any race yet
discovered in Ethiopia. And the notion that the
chambers of the Egyptian Pyramids were intended to
contain relics of sacred animals, which were worshipped,
has been exhaustively discussed and amply refuted by
the greater number of learned Egyptologists. The
Siamese word Phra, prefixed to the titles of their
kings, means ' lord ' or ' master ; ' it will hardly bear
the rendering Pharaoh. And the fact that 'the
Egyptians were red-skinned, and the Siamese are a
mixture of black, yellow, and white, and there are no
vestiges of a red race among them,' seems to indicate
that the length of time which has elapsed since the
red men were there (Siam) has been so enormous that

248 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT .
none of the ruins, if the hypothesis of the Egyptians
or a people identical with them (can the writer refer
to the Jews?) holding sway over a portion of Indo-
China were tenable, could now be standing in such
tolerable condition.
Budhism has more striking points of resemblance to
Christianity than to any rehgion of Egypt. An eminent
Budhist reformer of the fourteenth century once defined
the duty of the different classes of Budhists in
the following manner : —
' Men of the lowest order of mind must believe that
there is a God ; and that there is a future hfe, in
which they will receive the reward or punishment of
their actions and conduct in this life.
' Men of the middle degree of mental capacity must
add to the above the knowledge that all things in this
world are perishable ; that imperfection is a pain
and degradation ; and that deliverance from existence
is a deliverance from pain, and consequently a final
beatitude. ' Men of the third or highest order must believe, in
further addition, that nothing exists, or will continue
always, or cease absolutely, except through dependence
on a casual connection or concatenation. So will they
arrive at the true knowledge of God.'

RUINS OF ANGKOR— THE CITY AND ENVIRONS 249
' What is this,' justly asks Princep (' Tibet, Tartary,
and Mongolia'), the distinguished Asiatic antiquarian
and orientalist, who first deciphered the ancient Pali
(obtaining his clue to the characters of that language
from inscriptions engraved on a stone tablet, now
preserved in the Museum of the Asiatic Society,
Calcutta), - what is this but Christianity, wanting only
the name of Christ as its preacher and the Mosaic
faith for its antecedent? It is these that the missionary
must seek to add.' There seems to be much stronger
reason for imputing the founding of Angkor to the
Jews than the Egyptians, and more still to some tribe
which has migrated from Central Asia at a remote
period than to either of these races. But, to return after
so long a digression to Angkorthom. and the palace gate :
the inner wall was originally 11 senn in length and
7i- senn in width (40 senn is an approximation to a
mile), and about 20 feet in height, with a low stone
coping. There are a few minor detached ruins
scattered through the forest, and many heaps of bricks,
of which latter the city proper seems to have been
built. What remains of the royal palace is a large
square structure of pyramidal shape, terminating in a
tower, the whole probably 150 feet in height. It is
much dilapidated. From the staircase the sandstone
21

250 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
facing has fallen away, and the underlying coarse vol
canic rock is much worn ; the steps were so narrow
we could scarcely obtain a sufficiently secure footing to
ascend to the top. In a small room near the summit
were long inscriptions engraved upon the jambs of the
doors in the ancient (undecipherable) Cambodian
character. Near the palace there lives a petty
provincial officer who has had charge of the ruins, he
told us, for over thirty years. His reception room was
quite an armoury : in it were several flint-lock muskets ;
two or three fowling-pieces ; some large swords,
resembling the terrible Japanese weapons ; half a dozen
powder horns, from which the powder was emptied at
the large end; some wickerwork shot-baskets, gun
wad cases, &c. The officer presented us with
pumelows and bananas, and we had a long conversa
tion concerning the ruins, but, excepting the dimensions
of the walls, the old man could give but little informa
tion. About half a mile north-west of Nagkon Wat there
are the ruins of an observatory, built upon the
summit of a hill perhaps 500 feet in height. A foot
path leads up this hill through the thick jungle. The
first indication of any antiquities thereabouts is two
immense stone griffins, one standing on each side of

RUINS OF ANGKOR— THE CITY AND ENVIRONS 25 I
the path ; and next we pass a small image with the
head of an elephant and the body of a human being ;
it is the elephant-headed Ganesh — the god of wisdom
of the Hindoo mythology. Arriving at a small level
space, there appeared a ' foot-print ' of Budha (of
modern make), looking like a gigantic bath-tub sunk
in the ground. Two large stone towers stood near
the 'foot-print,' whose roofs on the interior sloped
gradually, with four carved sides, to an apex. The
architecture was very beautiful and quite unique
in style. One of these towers we found filled with
stone and wood sitting images ; the other contained a
colossal stone king or divinity of some sort, whose
head, hands, and arms had been broken from the trunk.
It lay upon its back on the floor, and was evidently of
ancient make. Its toes being of the natural lengths, we
knew it could not be a Budha (in the latter the toes
and fingers are of the same length); besides, the head
had four faces, and there were four pairs of arms and
hands. It was rudely carved from sandstone, and the
features were not different from many others scattered
around. This hill is cut in five terraces paved with stone, and
having staircases, each about twelve feet in height,
ornamented with stone lions upon their balusters ; and

252 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
at the corners of each terrace are small image-houses
The building is quadrilateral, and covers the entire
crest of the hill, there being four entrances ; the
central spire is now an unshapely mass of large boulders,
all overgrown with trees, shrubs, and vines. From the
summit we obtained an extensive view of the sur
rounding country, which was level and for the most
part covered with riant jungle, there being a great
number of oil trees. To the north there extended from
east to west a range of low blue hills ; to the south
east we could just discern the placid waters of Lake
Thalaysap ; to the south lay the quaint old town of
Siamrap ; and to the south-west there was another
large lake of bright, clear water. We returned to our
sala, took a parting look at Nagkon Wat, tiffined, and
left for Siamrap.
In the evening we paid a farewell visit to the
Governor, who received us at the head of the stairs,
and escorted us to chairs in the reception hall. His
Excellency told Nak Prat that the party of Chinese
merchants would start on the day but one following ;
that he would give him a free passage to Panompin,
and order everything necessary to be provided for his
comfort. There is no possibility of obtaining an inter
preter in Siamrap, so it will be necessary to have

RUINS OF ANGKOR— THE CITY AND ENVIRONS 253
recourse to pantomime on this journey ; and as no
native understands the American cuhnary art, it will
be unavoidable that the farang should cook for himself.
But having no table service — no plates, knife, fork,
spoon, or cup — he took the liberty to request the loan
of these necessary articles from the Governor, knowing
it would not break up any of his sets (?) ; for, from those
he had seen displayed, there were in the palace scarcely
two table articles of like material or fashion. During
our interview tea and cigars were offered, and at one
time the Governor excused himself from the room to
order some cakes and fruit, which were served on
silver trays. We thanked His Excellency very much
for his kindness — the General offering to return his hos
pitalities at the Consulate in Bangkok, should he visit
the capital — and took an early departure.
The night was excessively cold — we shivered, under
three blankets apiece — and yet notwithstanding so great
changes of temperature — 40° in twenty-four hours —
the climate is said to be quite healthy, except during,
and for some time subsequent to, the annual rains. We
arose and breakfasted by candle-light ; the baggage was
packed in carts ; the servants were ready ; presents
had been made ; the elephants were saddled and
brought round to the sala, and my companions

254 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
mounted and rode away — but not until there had been
a hearty shake of hands, and the pleasantest wishes on
both sides — towards the west, on their return journey
overland to Bangkok ; while I was to remain in
Siamrap and start alone on the following morning for
Lake Thalaysap, Panompin, and Saigon.

SIAMRAP TO PANOMPIN 255

CHAPTEE XX.
SIAMRAP TO PANOMPIN
The day was passed in busy preparations for the
journey. Some cooking utensils were sent by the Palat
to the sala — an earthenware fire-holder, a large iron
stew-pan, two bowls for baking rice ; and these, with a
small porcelain-lined kettle brought from Bangkok,
will serve to cook that third of the stock of provisions
remaining yesterday which fell to my share. ' Deng,'
the cook, had made five or six loaves of bread, some
dried apple-pies, and had boiled one-half of a ham,
whilst the Governor offered to supply rice, fowls, eggs,
fish, fruit. In the forenoon came my new servant
a wild-looking Cochin Chinese boy, with his black hair
combed straight back from the forehead and tied in a
knot behind the head, and his large mouth stained red
and his teeth blackened by constant rumination of the
betel cud. Eeturning from a long walk about the town
in the afternoon, a messenger awaited my arrival with
an invitation to dine with the Governor. This I

256 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
accepted, and had a very amusing time, owing to the fact
that there was no conversation between us, though there
was plenty of pantomime (the interpreters had returned
with my companions to Bangkok). Having been
escorted to a house without the walls, I was received by
His Excellency in a very small room, the floor of which
was covered with bamboo mats and whose walls were
hung with grotesque Siamese paintings. After blankly
staring at each other for some time, and making several
futile attempts to express our thoughts by vigorous move
ments of eyes, arms, and legs — at which we both laughed
heartily — the Governor took my hand in his own, and
thus we walked, at the head of a large crowd of
attendants and nobles, out of the compound, and
through the gate of the walled town on to the recep
tion hall of the palace. Here a dinner was served in
European style, consisting of soup (genus undis
covered) ; boiled pigs' feet (very good) ; boiled pork
(too fat) ; roast pork (rather rich) ; a mixed stew
(contents unknown) ; a dish of uncertain meat,
cooked in an uncertain manner; boiled eggs; baked
rice (excellent) ; sweets, four or five sorts of cakes and
fritters (all good) ; bananas (a little wilted) ; and tea
and cheroots, which closed the repast. The Governor
was much pleased with my book of sketches, and

SIAMRAP TO PANOMPIN 257
recognised many which had been taken in his province
and in Siamrap town. But our conversation (?) was so
fatiguing that the visit was not prolonged to a very late
hour. A present of two dozen eggs, six or eight cakes
of sugar, half a bushel of rice, a dozen fowls, and about
two hundred bananas was sent after me to the sala.
On the following morning, the 18th of February, with
a buffalo cart for my baggage, provisions, and servant,
and a bullock cart for myself, we left Siamrap for Lake
Thalaysap and Panompin. The suburbs of the town
extend a long way to the southward ; these traversed,
we entered upon an immense level plain covered with
young paddy of a beautiful green colour and some
six inches in height ; water, for irrigation, being con
ducted over it in little canals, though this is unneces
sary during a considerable part of the year, when the
lake overflows this section of country. Two or three
miles from Siamrap, west of the road, were the ruins
of a lofty stone tower, not as grand or beautiful as
those of Nagkon Wat. Opposite a low sandhill we
came suddenly upon the river, where was a camp of
natives and a large corral of buffaloes and bullocks.
There were two boats in the river, filled with provisions
and cooking utensils, which the men were towing as they
walked in the stream ; farther down were some more

258 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
boats propelled in the same manner. We next crossed
a boggy marsh, and passing through about a mile of
thick shrubbery, over a road much cut up by elephant
tracks, we halted at the present terminus of the road,
for the swamp prevented farther progress by land ;
and after patiently — or rather impatiently — waiting for
nearly two hours, my Cochin Chinese boy succeeded
in procuring a canoe, in which w^, with bag and bag
gage, paddled a mile or so to the place where the
lake boats were moored.
There appeared to be no village thereabouts, only a
little hut where some Chinamen were repairing or
building boats. In the water, moored to each other
and to the shore, were about twenty boats of different
sizes, built somewhat after the Chinese junk pattern,
with huge eyes painted upon either side of their prows ;
their occupants seemed to be Cambodians chiefly,
though there were also many Chinamen. The craft
to which I was allotted was about sixty feet in length,
ten in width, and four above the water-line, with a
house, the sides of plank running fore and aft (ex
cept a small platform in the stern, for the steersman),
raised about three or perhaps four feet at the ridge
pole. It was built of hard wood, gummed (pitched) on
the inner side below the water-line, had two decks, a

SIAMRAP TO PANOMPIN 259
room with two small windows, about the centre of the
boat upon the upper deck, being reserved for my own
accommodation ; and adjoining it towards the stern
there was a room to be used by the boy as a sleeping
apartment and by myself as a kitchen and storeroom
for the provisions. The roof, made of palm-leaf and
covered with stout pieces of bamboo, was so low one
could only crawl about in the cabin below, where
in the middle of the day the heat was almost unbear
able. The crew consisted of three Chinese — two of
whom were also merchants and owners of the boat —
and two Cambodians, and the remaining Chinaman
was simply a passenger like myself; we carried no
freight. At a bend in the river, a short distance below
our moorings, were more huts and boat-builders. The
people on the banks seemed to live by supplying the
boatmen with fish and other food. The river was not
more than thirty or forty feet wide ; its banks were
lined with stunted, scrubby trees and bushes, which
bore a water-mark four feet above the then level of
the stream. After an hour of vigorous use of the pole
we came suddenly into the lake, two sides of which (the
southern and western) were bounded by the horizon ;
the water was muddy and a heavy ground swell was
rolling. After we had all had supper, four oars were

260 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
rigged forward near the bows (nearly all easterns place
their oars for rowing near the bow), the captain
worked with another, holding the tiller with his feet,
and then we rowed along the eastern shore until after
midnight, when the men moored the boat with grass
ropes to a large mangrove tree.
In the morning, going on deck, I found, by my
compass, we were rowing up a narrow river to the
northward, and soon after we arrived at a large
village — of a hundred huts — where the men signified
we were to remain a single night, to receive on board a
supply of rice for the voyage. After breakfast I took
a long walk on shore. The village — styled upon the
map Campong Pluk — is situated upon an immense
sandbank by a little river which here empties itself
into the lake. The miserable huts are built upon piles
eight or ten feet in height, for even the sandbank is
submerged with water during a third of the year. The
people, mostly Cambodians, though there were some
Chinese, are all boat-builders. There were fifty or more
boats, in different stages of construction, lying upon
rollers upon the bank. Native tools, though of rude
make, still are the same in form and purpose as those
used by Europeans ; easily recognisable were the
adzes, axes, planes, saws, and chisels. These people

SIAMRAP TO PANOMPIN 261
are not very luxurious feeders, a little fish and rice
supplying their every need. As I walked through the
boulevard of the village some women were weaving
with primitive looms the coarse cloth from which
their sole and ' confidential ' garment is made ; in a
small temple was an ancient stone image with four
arms ; near it was a boat, over a hundred feet in
length, cut from a single tree. The villagers were most
curious ; wherever the farang stopped a great crowd
collected at once around him, and quite a large pro
cession followed him during his entire walk : many
natives, doubtless, had never before looked upon a
* pale-face.' The crew of my boat had been on shore
all day preparing for the voyage, and in the evening
came to ask that they might remain another day, in
in order to pound their paddy (i.e. remove the husks) ;
this was refused, for ample time had been allowed
them ; and, besides, the Governor of Siamrap had
assured the farang he would not be detained any
where. At Campong Pluk another Chinaman joined us as a
passenger. Y/hen we reached the lake, the wind being
against us, the boat was speedily lashed to a tree. I
suggested the propriety of tacking, as the wind was
not what sailors term ' dead ahead,' but the only satis-

262 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
faction received was the reply that the boat would
upset, and, upon second thought, I believed the old
lumber-raft would do so, for its bottom was quite
round and had no keel, and the ' house ' made it very
topheavy, especially as there was no cargo. In the
evening the mast and sail were prepared for the
expected fair land breeze. The mast was about
twelve feet above the roof of the cabin ; the sail was
lateen-shaped and made of mats. The land breeze
sprang up about nine and continued all night, we
making from two to three miles an hour.
The great lake of Cambodia styled Thalaysap — the
Sweet Water Lake — is intersected about the centre of its
northern half by the 13° of lat. N. and 104° of long. E. ;
it extends north-west and south-east. Its dimensions
are ninety miles in length, twenty-two in width at the
widest part, and eight in the narrowest ; its depth is not
uniform ; six feet would perhaps represent the average,
although in some places, as in the middle, no bottom has
been found. In the rainy season its length is increased
to upwards of 120 miles. The colour of the water
is a dirty yellow, produced by so many small streams
emptying themselves into it. Current there is but little
in the most southerly parts, where it discharges its
waters into the Mesap river. In the rainy season terrible

SIAMRAP TO ^ PANOMPIN 263
storms are sometimes experienced, but during the re
mainder of the year there is usually an immense fleet of
fishing smacks, which cruise about the lake. Thalaysap
is. fed by one large and two smaller rivers at its northern
extremity, by a large stream on the east, and a small one
on the west side, and doubtless by many springs and the
natural drainage of so low-lying a district. The northern
half of the lake is owned by Siam ; the southern belongs
to Cambodia, which kingdom formerly possessed the
greater part of the surrounding region. It was in the
year 1795 that the then ruling king of Siam took pos
session of the provinces of Battambong and Siamrap,
as a reparation for some services he had rendered the
prince of Cambodia — protecting him from his revolted
subjects and causing him to be crowned at Oodong,
the old capital.
On the 22nd we passed the boundaries of Siam
and entered Cambodia. The wind was usually ahead
during the day, but changed in our favour at night. A
Httle of the western shore, or rather side, of the lake
was visible, though there was no land to be seen —
nothing but reeds and low, scrubby trees. We saw
several boats like our own sailing slowly along up the
lake. We passed a long series of islands, or what
would probably be islands later in the season ; they

264 THE LAND OF THE W ELITE ELEPHANT
were then httle more than distinct clumps of trees.
Boat hfe in Cambodia is rather monotonous where one
has no compagnon de voyage, and cannot speak the
language of the people, and there is no other language
understood in common. There is no place to walk ;
there is no awning or shelter so that one might sit
upon deck, and the only recourse left is to lie in bed
and read, or sit bent double — for the deck (the roof
of the cabin) will not admit an erect sitting posture —
and write. However, with reading, and writing, and
mapping (at present there are no correct maps of that
little-known quarter of the globe in existence, and on
the best map procurable I found some of the towns
placed as much as thirty miles out of position, and rivers
whose entfre course varied from three to twelve miles
from their real place), completing my rough sketches,
writing letters, and cooking — I became quite an expert
after a week's practice of the latter — I contrived to
instruct and amuse myself, and pass during the day
the slow revolving hours away. The moon was nearly
at the full, and so the evenings were usually passed
upon deck, lying on my blanket, smoking a banana-leaf-
covered cheroot of native tobacco (made by the Cochin
Chinese 'boy'), gazing at the stars, listening to the
nasal, monosyllabic utterances of the Chinamen and

SIAMRAP TO PANOMPIN 265
the equally intelligible blowings of huge fish, whistling
for simple company's sake, and ever thinking, thinking
of the dear friends then so far away.
One night, when retiring to my mosquito-netting-
enveloped mattress, there was perceptible a strong smell
of burning punk, and looking into the men's cabin, I
found a bunch of joss-sticks smoking before a large
piece of red paper, covered with Chinese characters,
which was pasted against the side of the boat ; there
were before it also offerings of cake and fruit and a
long string of varicoloured papers — wishes, no doubt.
This may have been part of the ' ancestral tablet '
worship, so much esteemed and so faithfully performed
by the Chinese, or it may only have been supplications
to the divinity who is supposed to preside over navi
gation — ships and merchandise — for another bunch of
joss-sticks was also burned at the prow every evening.
We had kept steadily on our course to the south, now
sailing, now drifting, now rowing, when at last we
perceived a slight favouring current, and we passed
several grass marshes and many rows of fish-poles,
until, almost without knowing it — for the lake had
narrowed so gradually, and so little changed was the
appearance of the country — we had entered the river
Mesap, which flows past Panompin, and just below
22

266

THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT

that city mingles its muddy waters with those of the
great Makong river. The Mesap was then about a mile
in width; the banks were below water and covered
with the densest forest.
We sailed by several villages, averaging ten to a

BANKS OF THE RITER MESAP, CAMBODIA
hundred huts each. Before these were large platforms
used for drying fish, and there were also long rows of
poles for hanging nets upon. As we proceeded south
the banks of the river became higher, and we sawlaro*e
towns ; one of them, built upon a bank thirty feet

SIAMRAP TO PANOMPIN 267
above the water, must have contained as many as five
hundred houses, that of the governor and some others
being superior in outward appearance to the majority
met with in Siam. One day we saw some natives
hauling a net about five hundred feet in length ; the
inside of the net was perfectly alive with fish of every
size, some of them being large. Many towns seemed
devoted exclusively to the fish business — drying and
salting fish, and manufacturing fish-oil. Some of the
fish caught in this river are eight or ten feet in length
and three feet in thickness. Immense quantities of
fish are caught in Lake Thalaysap and the Mesap and
Makong rivers, and being smoked and salted are ex
ported to almost every country of Asia. From the
heads of the largest variety fish-oil is made, and from
their bodies the condiment so highly prized by the
Siamese, and styled by them namphrik. These fishing
towns occur every four or six miles, and seem to
consist of but a single row of huts, facing the river.
The first wat seen in Cambodia resembled those of
Siam ; there was a large image-house and a pyra
midal tower or spire. We passed the mouth of a
small river upon which, fifteen miles from the
Mesap, the Cochin Chinese boy signified to me, was
the large town or. .city of Oodong, which was the

268 THE 'LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
capital of Cambodia until within the last three or
four years.
The banks of the river afterwards became Very high,
and were cultivated in many places with melons,
cucumbers, salad, &c. The river was full of huge nets,
the bamboo floats of which were so thick that we had
to use the greatest caution to avoid them, the current
also being strong. The forests became quite thin, a
great number of the trees having evidently been appro
priated for firewood. The heat increased ; the nights
were close and uncomfortable and mosquitoes in
myriads abounded. And so we went on until the
25th inst., when we reached the city of Panompin,
situated upon the right bank of the Mesap river — here
half a mile in width — in about lat. 11° 30' N, and
long. 105° E. ; but the rare and varied sights of this
day must be recounted in other chapters.

PANOMPIN 269

CHAPTEE XXI.
PANOMPIN
The general appearance of the city of Panompin —
Mountain of Gold — is dull, nothing breaking the
uniformity of its bamboo huts excepting a slender,
pyramidal pagoda, one of the palace buildings,
and two blocks of brick stores, recently built by
the King; it resembles many of the villages along
the banks of the Mesap, only differing from them
in size — in number of dwellings and shops. The
water in the river was very low at the time of
my visit, and thus the city seemed built upon a
bluff fully thirty feet in height ; there were no
floating houses to be seen, and not a great number of
boats, most of which were owned and manned by
Chinese. Part of Panompin, to the south, is built
upon an island, and nearly opposite this the river
which drains Lake Thalaysap — the Mesap — enters the
great Makong, one of the largest rivers of the world,
which rises near the confines of Tibet, and, after a

270 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
course of 1,700 miles, empties itself into the sea at the
southern extremity of Cochin China, and which at a
distance of over 200 miles from its mouth is three
miles in width. Another and not a small portion of
Panompin is built upon the opposite side of the river,
to which ferry-boats are continually crossing. As we
sailed slowly down the river, the first objects that
attracted my attention were the small but neat
buildings — chapel and schools — of the Eoman Catholic
mission. Next we passed an old dilapidated steam
boat, and back of this, on the shore, waved the
national Cambodian flag — blue with a red border, and
emblems of peace and plenty in the centre ground.
Then came the barracks, where are stationed a com
pany of French troops, and the residence of the Com
mandant, or Protecteur, as he is styled, who represents
French interests versus His Majesty's. Anchored in
the stream, opposite the Commandant's residence, was
a small gunboat, with a huge tricolour floating from
the stern, another from the jibboom end, and still
another from the captain's gig ; there could surely
be no mistake about the nationality of -this craft.
Farther down the river could be seen a brig, a war
steamer, and a small despatch boat ; these were
anchored abreast of the palace, and belonged to the
King.

PANOMPIN 271
Landing near the barracks, I went thither in search
of an interpreter — some one who could perchance
speak Enghsh. My meagre diction was fortunately
understood, and a Cochin Chinese boy was sent with me
to a store near at hand, where a native of the Isle of
Jersey, named Edwards, received me kindly ; offered to
' put me up ' and to render me besides any assistance in
his power. Edwards' house was simply a large shed
divided into four or five rooms, only one of which,
however, was occupied ; the walls of this one — at once
sitting, dining, and bedroom — were embelhshed with
fowling-pieces, revolvers, powder-horns, &c; the side
board supported an immense array of brandy, claret,
and beer bottles — empty ones for the most part — and
a small table in one corner was covered with Crimean
shirts, hats, shot-bags, boxes of caps, old newspapers,
and pipes in endless profusion and confusion. My
baggage was brought from the boat and deposited in
one of the rooms, which evidently had not been swept
or cleaned since the erection of the building at a
remote epoch. Some planks placed upon a couple of
' saw-horses,' and my mattress laid thereon, made a
bed — and what more could one expect in Central
Cambodia ? Edwards appeared to be a clever, good-
natured, warm-hearted fellow. He had been a sailor,

272 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
was many years in the Hong Kong and Calcutta trade,
and had been in Panompin but a year and a half. He
had a very pretty Annamite wife, who was also at the
same time his cook — taught by himself. In the after
noon a friend staying with Edwards kindly offered to
procure for me an interpreter and to guide me to the
Prime Minister's residence.
At two o'clock we started forth, taking the main
street, south, towards the palace. The city extends
along the bank of the river for a distance of about
three miles, and perhaps not more than half a mile at
the farthest into the interior ; on that side there is a
low embankment of earth, erected recently — at the
time of the Annamite trouble. There is no wall about
Panompin, not even around the palace. The main road
runs north and south along the river ; there are a few
cross-roads, but this is the street. It is about thirty feet
wide, macadamised with broken brick and sand, and
lined throughout its entire length with little bamboo
shops, the greater part owned by Chinese, many by
Khngs, and the remainder by Cambodians and Cochin
Chinese. Many of these shops are 'gambling hells;'
some are used by opium-smokers ; the Klings offer for
sale miscellaneous European goods, and the Cambodians
silks and cottons : the Cambodians are celebrated for

PANOMPIN 273
their manufacture of silk. The population of Panompin
is about 20,000, and embraces Chinese, Cochin Chinese,
Klings, and Siamese, besides Cambodians. As we
walked along, the street was crowded with natives.
The Cochin Chinese were easily distinguishable from
the Cambodians by their height, which is less than
that of the latter ; their frame, which is usually not so
muscular ; by their features, which incline more to the
Mongohan cast ; and their manner of wearing the hair
long and fastened in a knot or twist behind. The
Cochin Chinese women were clothed in gowns which
descended to the knees, and they seemed to be much
better-looking than Siamese women.
We called first upon the favourite interpreter of the
King — a native of Manilla, named Miriano, who spoke
English very well — to engage his services in the
expected interview with His Majesty. We next visited
the chief aide-de-camp of the King — an English Jew —
and found him busy trying on a new military uniform —
covered with an enormous amount of gold lace, and
with a pair of gilt epaulets fit for a field marshal —
which he had had made in Hong Kong, to be worn
during the approaching fete. It appears that about
ten days from now a grand fete is to be celebrated in
Panompin, on the occasion pf the hair-cutting of the

274 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
Princess, daughter of the King, upon her coming of
age. His Majesty is making grand preparations for
this fete, intending to eclipse all past attempts of this
nature in Cambodia or even in Siam. The officials
and many private individuals of Saigon are invited to
be present and take part in the ceremonies.
Leaving the house of the aide-de-camp, we proceeded
to that of the Prime Minister, who is a brother of
the King. His dwelling and grounds are pleasantly
situated upon the bank of the river near the centre of
the city, and present a decidedly European aspect.
The audience or reception hall is about sixty feet long
by thirty wide, and extends upward to the tile-covered
roof. The floor is covered with fine matting ; two or
three cane chairs stand upon one side ; the walls are
adorned with about twenty looking-glasses and a dozen
engravings rather fitted for a bar room ; upon each of
the centre posts are clocks — four in number, only two
of which, however, were going. The front of the
reception hall was open, and was approached by three
flights of stairs ; the garden in front was filled with
beautiful flowers and plants. Sending in my letter
from the Governor of Siamrap, the Minister soon
appeared, and after the customary salutations sat
down, broke the seal, and commenced to read it aloud.

PANOMPIN 275
He was an old gentleman, well preserved — the affairs
of state probably not demanding any great physical
sacrifice — and he was clad in nought but a cotton
panoung. We had no interpreter, but understood the
Minister to imply that at five o'clock I could obtain
an audience with His Majesty. Eeturning to Miriano's
house, my friend left me, and then the interpreter and
myself proceeded to the palace.
As already mentioned, there is no wall around the
palace buildings, but one is to be built as soon as
possible ; the exterior limit of the royal abode is at
present marked by a simple row of brick barracks
upon the front side, which faces the river, and bamboo
huts upon the others ; the wall will be, when built,
about a quarter of a mile square. There is an open
space, perhaps five hundred yards in width, which
extends around, but from without little can be seen
excepting the roof of the new ambassadors' audience-
hall, the palace, and an artificial hill now building
for the fete. We entered by a private side gate — for
. access to the palace enclosure may be had at all times
— and saw before us the unfinished hill ; but I was
hardly prepared for the scene presented to my eyes in
respect to the palace. Imagine in a Cambodian town
of bamboo huts, if you can, a two-storey and a half

276 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
brick and stucco house of the most modern and
elegant construction, with a double-walled entrance
and columned verandahs, painted yellow, with white
borders and trimmings. Manilla men, with glistening
muskets and swords, were standing on guard in the
vestibule as, preceded by the interpreter, I ascended
the marble steps, passed through a crowd of prostrate
nobles and along a paved hall, the ceiling and walls of
which were beautifully frescoed, the latter bearing, in
bright colours, the crown and royal cipher ' N.' — for
' Norodom I.,' probably after the western Napoleonic
style, for since the King has become a French
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AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF CAMBODIA 277

CHAPTEE XXII.
AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OP CAMBODIA
In a room about the centre of the palace, at a small
round table, sat the King, a pleasant-looking person —
thirty-six years of age, as he afterwards told me. He
was a httle man with intelligent and expressive
features ; teeth blackened from the use of betel,
wearing his hair after the Siamese fashion, the head
shaved excepting a small tuft upon the crown ; upon
the lip Avas a thin moustache ; and he was dressed in a
white linen jacket, with gold buttons, and a silk
panoung, his feet were bare, and around his neck was a
fine gold watch chain, upon which were strung some
rings, one or two of them set with very large diamonds.
Upon the table was a most elegant and valuable set of
frosted and engraved gold vases, betel and tobacco
boxes, cigar-holders, bottles, and pomade boxes ; some
large atlases and superbly bound albums, two volumes
of a pictorial history of England, a red cloth military
cap very heavily embroidered with gold thread, and

278 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
some curiosities. I conversed with the King, through
the interpreter, for upwards of an hour, principally
concerning Burma and Siam, though the subjects of
Panompin and Cambodia were also introduced. His
present Majesty is a son of one of the brothers who, in
the last war which Siam had with Cambodia, were
retained in Bangkok as hostages or sureties for the
good behaviour of the reigning monarch. And having
been born, brought up, and educated in Bangkok,
His Majesty knew very well many of the people I
had had the pleasure of meeting there. The King
seemed much pleased at my telling him his palace
was superior in every respect, excepting size, to that
at Bangkok- (though the new palace now being built
in the latter city will probably be, when completed, the
most splendid edifice of the kind in Asia) ; it seems to
be his great desire to excel the King of Siam in every
thing;. After asking my age, nationality, and business
(stereotyped questions in the East), the King remarked
that I had fortunately arrived at Panompin in time
to witness the greatest fete ever celebrated either in
Cambodia or Siam, that he was himself to perform the
religious ceremony of cutting the hair of his royal
daughter on the summit of the artificial - mountain '

ALTDIENCE WITH THE KING OF CAMBODIA 279
then in process of construction in front of the palace.
His Majesty told me that last October he, in company
with the French Governor of Saigon, had visited the
ruins of Angkor, and that he was very much astonished
at their grandeur and beauty ; he believed that Angkor
was built 1,400 years ago. My present to the King
was a fine gold-mounted revolver, in a case with proper
appurtenances, and a large brass box of cartridges. In
return His Majesty said that if there was anything in
the palace or city which I wished, it was only necessary
to acquaint him with the fact to possess it ; this was
rather obscure and equivocal, so I merely bowed in
reply. He desired me to come and see him whenever
convenient, at least twice before leaving, if I did not
determine to remain for the fete, and in the meantime
he would think of some gift for me as a keepsake
from himself. Seeing me peering rather curiously into
some of the adjoining rooms, the King asked if I would
not like to look through the palace ; the foreigner was
only too happy, and His Majesty graciously led the
way into the parlour.
The palace is but just completed. It was planned
and its erection was superintended' by a French archi
tect, but it was built throughout by Cambodian work
men. The construction and furnishing is thoroughly
23

280 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
European in nearly every part. Entering at the grand
central door, the hall leads direct to the reception-
room, and this opens into the parlour. Upon the right
of these rooms is the dining-room, and upon the left
the library, staircase, and billiard-room — Billiards ? Yes,
verily, and the King of Cambodia plays a ' good safe
game.' In the rear of this building are the apartments
of the harem, and not at all ill-looking were many of
the saffron-powdered damsels the stranger chanced to
espy. The ceiling and walls of the parlour were frescoed
in as fine style as many in Grosvenor Square or Fifth
Avenue ; upon the floor lay a velvet carpet ; the
window frames held panes of stained glass ; upon a.
large bow-window were the King's arms and name —
Ong Somdetch Norodom Phranarowdom — and below
the word ' Campuchia ' (Kamphuxa, or Cambodia).
The walls were hung with elegant mirrors and paintings ;
upon the marble-top centre table was a set of gold
chewing (betel) and smoking apparatus ; upon side
tables were costly clocks, barometers, Chinese and
Japanese carved ivory goods, bronzes and vases ; and
from the ceiling depended a beautiful chandeher. There
is, however, no gasometer yet working in Panompin, but
surely it would not be a very long step in advance of
the numerous modern importations of the palace.

AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF CAMBODIA 281
The dining-room contained black walnut furniture,
and upon the side-boards were massive silver table
services. On the walls were large steel engravings of
'Napoleon III. at Solferino,' and 'Prince Malakoff at
Sebastopol.' Upon one of the tables was a music-box,
about four feet long by two in width — a magnificent
instrument, manufactured in Paris. His Majesty having
obtained the key, wound it up for our amusement. It
played eight selections from popular Italian operas in
a sort of orchestral style — there were flutes, drums,
cymbals, and bells. But the most curious and wonderful
part was a bird, about two inches in length, which
stood in a small grotto of leaves in the side of the box,
and which would turn to the right or left, raise its
wings, open its mouth — disclosing the tongue — all in
correct time to the music. It was a perfect marvel of
mechanical skill, and would bear the closest inspection.
This bird was covered with fine feathers of natural hue,
and no joints could be detected even when it turned
its head. Thinking it might prove an interesting
novelty, I showed the King the calendar — dials of the
days of the week and of the month — upon my watch ;
but he had one of that kind, he said, and having
fetched it, strange to say, the watch was made by the
same firm in Geneva as my own. But there were

282 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
some improvements other than mine possessed, and
some differences in their mounting. The King's watch
told also the month and the stages of the moon — new,
full, and the quarters — and was besides a repeater.
The cases were most elegantly jewelled ; upon the
front was a row of large pearls round the rim, and
within this circle was the crown, composed of rubies,
sapphires, topazes, and emeralds, and below the royal
cypher N. in diamonds of different sizes ; a large
diamond was set in the extremity of the ' stem-winder ; '
the reverse had also a circle of pearls, and within it
the coat of arms or seal of His Majesty most elabo
rately carved and engraved — in low relief — and in
Etruscan gold. This watch was made, at the King's
order, in Geneva and Paris, and cost 5,000 francs.
We next went into the billiard-room, which was gaily
decorated with what might be styled ' rather fast '
pictures ; upon one of the tables was another gold betel
set, one of the urns being nearly of the size of a half-
bushel measure and entirely of gold. The Cambodians
and Siamese will possess none but the genuine metal.
Some of their articles they stain red, others a deep
yellow ; both are beautiful, and the engraved arabesque
work is superb and very different from anything we
have in the West. Crossing the hall we next entered

QUEEN OE CAMBODIA AND ROYAL CHILDREN

AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF CAMBODIA 283
the library, which is furnished in green throughout;
the walls were covered with green paper ; the Brussels
carpet was of a dark green, and the leather-seated and
backed chairs were of the same colour. Upon the
walls were large maps of the different continents of
the world and fine engravings of Napoleon III.
In one corner was a glass case, containing a small
collection of books upon general literature in the
French language, uniformly bound in red morocco,
with the King's arms stamped upon their covers. In
another corner was a large geographical globe and
some portfohos of maps and charts, and in another a
black walnut writing-desk, with proper materiel. A
magnificent bronze clock adorned the mantelpiece,
and upon the centre table, besides large piles of books
and a student's lamp, were two marble statuettes —
busts, the one of (wonders will never cease) Goethe and
the other of Schiller. The King seemed to take much
pride in calling attention to various articles in this
room, though he probably understood their uses or
applications less than the contents of any other room of
the palace.
His Majesty then led the way upstairs, where the
rooms were of the same size and arrangement as those
below. The parlour and sitting-room were but httle

284 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
less elegantly furnished than those on the first floor
Two of the rooms contained small glass cases, in which
were placed gold and silver fete and dinner services
and the European cut-glass dinner sets ; they were fur
nished with marble- seated sofas, clocks, and mirrors,
and the ubiquitous gold betel and tobacco utensils. The
two remaining apartments were used as bedchambers :
that of the King was rather plain in its furnishing ; the
bedstead was of black walnut, similar to our own ; the
pillows only were different, being little, hard, square
bags, with gold-embroidered ends. The King pre
sented me with a small lace bag, which contained, he
said, a dozen different kinds of flowers, and with similar
ones his bed was always perfumed, after the Cam
bodian fashion. The toilet service was of gold; the
floor was covered with matting, and a few engravings
hung upon the walls. The other bedroom was similar
in contents, except that some of the piGtures were
rather plain-spoken ; the toilet service of this chamber
was silver, manufactured in European style. Then we
all went up to the observatory, where a small telescope
is mounted, and stepping out upon the roof enjoyed an
excellent view of the river and adjacent country ; but
little of the city, however, could be seen, owing to the
dense vegetation. An iron ladder leads to a small

AUDIENCE WITH THE KING OF CAMBODIA 285
platform still higher. His Majesty did not wish to
ascend, but the interpreter and myself mounted, and
were rewarded by a httle more extended view. While
upon the roof the King reiterated again and again that
in building this palace he only and solely wished to
surpass any edifice of hke nature in the city of
Bangkok, and it must be admitted he had suc
ceeded. The strong contrast between the bamboo huts of the
city and the grandeur of the palace is painfully appa
rent, and for the expenses of beautifying the latter
His Majesty is said to appropriate private property
without indemnification. Still the King deserves great
credit for his remarkable energy, his adoption of
European ideas and notions ; notwithstanding he is
said to despise his subjects now he no longer fears
them, to mock at Budha when he is in the mood, and
to tread under foot the ancient etiquette. Norodom
has reigned now for about eleven years, and his rule
has been in the main just ; he is much liked by the
people generaUy, which, perhaps, is as great praise as
any ruler could wish or could obtain. Since my visit
the King has left his capital and country, and, deter
mined to see something of the great world for himself,
voyaged to Hong Kong, and on to Shanghae, and, I

286 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
believe, Pekin. Is not progress in the East quite as
rapid and wonderful as in the West ?
We descended from the observatory and walked
with the King across the square to the artificial moun
tain. This was a huge affair, as high as the palace,
built of bamboo and covered with stout pasteboard,
which was coloured to represent the lower section,
stone ; the next, silver ; and the upper, gold. It tapers
gradually to the top, to which a path winds, some
times passing through arches, and tunnels, and grottoes,
and valleys, and the whole exterior is covered with
plants of various kinds in pots and boxes, and wooden
and clay figures of men and animals were soon to be
added to its manifold attractions. Upon the summit
is a wooden platform, and here the King, with due
solemnity and ceremony, will cut the hair of the
Princess his daughter. On one side of the ' mountain,'
upon large mats spread on the ground, sat the nobles
and chief men of the kingdom, assembled to meet the
King, who is there accustomed of an evening to confer
with them on matters affecting the pubhc weal or
woe, but at that time on the absorbing topic of the
approaching fete. Many of the nobles followed us to
the top of the ' mountain,' and there the King talked
with them in a very jolly, familiar sort of way, smoking

AUDIENCE WITH TILE KING OF CAMBODIA 287
all the while a Manilla cheroot as much as eight inches
in length ; in fact, His Majesty smokes incessantly —
now a green-leaved, now a dry native, afterwards at
German cigar, then a Manilla, &c.

ANNAMITE FEMALE

Eeturning to the palace, I observed that aU the
guards — some fifty or sixty in number — were natives
of the Philippine Islands. His Majesty had but few
troops in commission ; these were formerly instructed

288 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
by a French officer, but he having been dismissed the
service for some irregularities of conduct, military
affairs were at a very low ebb at Panompin. I then
took leave of the King, very grateful for his kind re
ception. Arriving at Edwards' house, there was awaiting
me an excellent dinner, cooked in the French style by his
smart little Annamite wife. And afterwards a native
cheroot closed a very laborious but intensely interesting
day — one that had amply repaid the many discomforts
of the boat voyage from Campong Pluk.

WALKS ABOUT THE CITY 289

CHAPTEE XXIII.
WALKS ABOUT THE CITY
One day we walked down the main road, past the
palace, and turning to the west, soon found ourselves
at the embankment which bounds Panompin on that
side, and although but a stone's throw from the most
thickly inhabited part of the city, still so dense were
the banana and cocoa-nut trees that not a house was
visible. The parapet of earth is about fifteen feet
high, and the same in width, being faced on both outer
and inner sides with large bamboo sticks. Upon it are
erected the telegraph poles and the wire which runs
from the Protecteurs house here to Saigon ; there is a
branch line from the former to the palace, so that any
surplus information or proper (i.e. for the King to
know) news may be sent to His Majesty. But few
houses stand without the embankment, and not more
than a quarter of a mile distant is the virgin forest.
In rear of the centre of the city, upon a high arti
ficial mound, stands a very old pagoda, some image-

290 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
houses, small temples, and tombs. The pagoda is the
only one at Panompin, and is in most wretched con
dition. In one of the image-houses was an immense
gilded Budha, with mother-of-pearl eyes and finger nails ;
in another was the large gilded figure of a king, and
a lofty four-sided shrine, containing four little Budhas.
The pagoda and the great mound were built of dimi
nutive bricks ; from the summit of the latter an exceUent
view of that part of the river upon the opposite bank,
including the custom house and the great Makong
river, may be had. There are but two or three priests
in charge of the old pagoda ; in fact, there are but few
priests and temples in Panompin, though the rehgion
here — the Budhist — is the same as that professed by
the Siamese. In the evening we went to the palace —
there is a stand for musicians near the entrance — to hear
the King's brass band. A selection of lively dance
music, concluding with the Cambodian National Hymn,
was played by the band — Manilla men — of fourteen
pieces. Early on one morning of my stay at Panompin,
Miriano, the interpreter, called to offer /his services for
a visit to some of the public and royal buildings within
the palace enclosure. We first looked in at some of the
machine shops, where, with French overseers, natives

WALKS ABOUT THE CITY" 291
were working a saw-mill and a brass turning-lathe, and
where there were forges for making metal vessels and
musical instruments. Directly before the palace building
is the private office of the King, a handsomely fur
nished little room where His Majesty receives all
visitors on business ; behind it are the reception halls,
in process of erection and -nearly completed. These
buildings, built of brick, with tiled roofs and gaily
ornamented in the Siamese style, are quite imposing.
The ambassadors' grand audience hall is a room a
hundred feet in length, forty in width, and thirty in
height, and extending through its entire length are
two rows of massive square pillars ; the ceiling is to be
finished in blue and gold. Not far from this magnificent
building is the supreme court — a sala open upon three
sides, and having at one end, for the King's use, an
elegant sofa, attached to which was a patent breech-
loading rifle and a Cambodian spear, to be used by His
Majesty in case of emergency or necessity for self-
protection. There exists what is called ' a board of
judges,' but no case of importance can be tried without
the presence of the King, from whose decision there is
no appeal. Near and parallel to the supreme court is
the royal theatre — a large shed open upon three sides,
the floor covered with mats, and with a miserably
24

292 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
painted scene at one end, though it is not here that
the plays are performed, as with us, a narrow gaUery
just beneath the roof being reserved for the lacon
(theatricals) ; a sala near by is set apart for the ladies
of the harem.
There are several small brick houses within the
palace enclosure — the residences of princes, brothers
of the King, and some of the higher nobles. In the
barracks were about two hundred stand of arms —
breech-loaders with sword-bayonets attached. In
the King's stables there were three carriages — a
barouche, a rockaway, and a buggy — not in very good
repair — and a dozen or more horses. Among the
latter were two beautiful greys, presented by H.I.M.
Napoleon HI. It is seldom that the King rides out,
owing to the very important desideratum of properly
constructed roads.
As previously stated, Panompin has but recently
been made a seat of government; untU within three
or four years Oodong has been the capital of the
kingdom of Cambodia. In 1860 M. Mouhot, the
French naturalist, visited Oodong, and thus writes
of its appearance, which corresponds with that of
Panompin at the present day in many respects : ' On
approaching the capital the prospect becomes more

WALKS ABOUT THE CITY 293
diversified ; we passed fields of rice, cottages encircled
by fruit gardens, and country houses belonging to the
Cambodian aristocracy, who come here in the evening
for the sake of breathing a purer air than they can
find in the city. As we drew closer to the gates I
found the place to be protected, by a palisade three
metres high. * * * The houses are built of bamboo
or planks, and the market-place, occupied by the
Chinese, is as dirty as all the others of which I have
made mention. The largest street, or rather the only
one, is a mile in length ; and in the environs reside
the agriculturists, as well as the mandarins and other
Government officers. The entire population numbers
about 12,000 souls [in I860].
' The many Cambodians hving in the immediate
vicinity, and still more the number of chiefs who
resort to Oodong for business or pleasure, or are
passing through it on their way from one province
to another, contribute to give animation to the capital.
Every moment I met mandarins, either borne in
Utters or on foot, foUowed by a crowd of slaves carry
ing various articles : some yellow or scarlet parasols,
more or less, according to the rank of the person ;
others, boxes with betel. I also encountered horsemen
mounted on pretty, spirited little animals, richly capa-

294 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
risoned and covered with bells, ambling along, while a
troop of attendants, covered with dust and sweltering
with heat, ran after them. Light carts, drawn by a
couple of smaU oxen, trotting along rapidly and noisily,
were here and there to be seen. Occasionally a large
elephant passed majesticaUy by. On this side were
numerous processions to the pagoda, marching to the
sound of music ; there, again, was a band of ecclesiastics
in single file, seeking alms, draped in their yellow
cloaks, and with the holy vessels on their backs.'
A telegram had arrived from Saigon stating that
the opium steamer, which runs to Panompin, had been
chartered by the French authorities to transport some
troops to a district of Cochin China where there was a
native outbreak; and the regular Government steamer
not being due for three days, and then requiring an
entire week to reach Saigon, it was necessary for me
to leave in a.native boat, and Edwards kindly offered
to accompany me down the river.
In the evening of the 27th inst. I had my last inter
view with the King of Cambodia. Upon arriving at
the palace about nine o'clock, I found there the royal
and some other carriages, and a small escort of cavalry,
waiting for the King, who was about to attend a
theatrical exhibition, given by some of the great

WALKS ABOUT THE CITY 295
Chinese mandarins of the city, in connection with
the approaching fete. The cavalry escort presented
a most ridiculous appearance, the men riding without
stirrups and clothed in tight black jackets and silk
panoungs, with blue cloth navy caps, and armed with

GIFT FROM THE KING OF CAMBODIA

huge sabres, carried as nearly as convenient at their
shoulders. After waiting for some little time in the reception
room, His Majesty appeared, dressed as a most
gorgeous ' swell.' He wore a white choker ; white
Marseilles vest, with little gold buttons ; black cloth
frock coat, with flowers in the button-hole ; red silk
panoung ; white silk stockings and patent leather

296 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
pumps. Around his royal neck was a heavy gold
watch chain, and upon his royal fingers five or six
valuable and beautiful rings ; one of them, a diamond
cluster, was a full inch in diameter. His Majesty
was very sorry to hear - the foreigner ' did not intend
to remain for the fete, hoped he had enjoyed himself
in Panompin, and said he would now present him with
a httle souvenir. Thereupon the King sent for his
keys, and opening a huge iron safe standing in a corner
of the hall, took therefrom an extremely pretty gold
pomade-box, and handed it to me wrapped in a piece
of note-paper. This box was made by native work
men from native gold, pure and stained red, in the
shape of a Cambodian pumpkin, the top of which was
carved in a cluster of leaves, and the end of the broken
(purposely) stem of which contained an uncut topaz.
Its workmanship — the engraving, embossing, and
filigree — would dehght the eye as well as puzzle the
head (to know how so barbarous a people could
produce such elegant work) of many a western gold
artificer. Thanking the King very much for his
beautiful gift, 'the foreigner' then withdrew. Ee-
turning to Edwards', I passed a large open sala, where
a genuine Chinese drama — crash, fizz, and pop, similar
to those witnessed in Pekin and Canton — was being

WALKS ABOUT THE CITY 297
enacted. Before the shed stood the carriage of the
King and the cavalry escort, and an immense crowd
of people were present, but there was little feeling or
excitement displayed.
At one o'clock in the morning we started for
Saigon in a native boat, about thirty feet in length
and six in width, with five men, who were by turns
to row night and day until we reached our destination.
The centre of the boat was covered with a low, round
bamboo and palm-leaf (very thin) roof or cover — so
low that one could scarcely sit upright beneath it —
and under this we placed our mattresses and pro
visions. There were but two positions of body to be
had in the miserable craft — a recUning or a sitting — and
the passage proved tiresome on this account ; and we
suffered also from the continued exposure to the sun,
the reflection from the surface of the river, the great
heat, and last, but anything rather than least, from the
mosquitoes.

298 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT

CHAPTEE XXIV.
PANOMPIN TO SAIGON
We had fairly left Panompin and had entered the
great Makong river, which, just below the city, divides
into two streams which flow to the south — about fifteen
miles apart — and empty themselves into the China Sea.
There are many branches and intercommunications —
in fact, a perfect labyrinth of canals — near its mouth ;
one of the smaller streams flows north-east to Saigon,
and empties itself into the sea twenty-five miles to the
eastward of that city. At first the river averaged about
a thousand feet in width ; its banks were far from beau
tiful, being at that season about thirty feet above
water-level ; the surface was covered with a thick green
scum, produced by a species of oil-fish smaller than
sprats. On the banks there were few large (woody)
trees, but many bamboos, bananas, and betel palms.
We passed but few villages, of about a dozen huts
each ; near them were large patches of cucumbers,
melons, and other vegetables ; much indigo of fair,

COCHIN CHINESE PRINCE AND ATTENDANT

PANOMPIN TO SAIGON 299
and cotton of better quahty, and gamboge (whence the
name of the country, Kambodgia or Cambogia) — a
sweet-smelling resin which ' exudes from incisions
made in the stem of the Garcinia Cambogia, a very
high tree, the fruit of which is eatable.' Pepper is
raised and exported from this section of the country; but
the fishing and oU manufacturing is all done above, in
the Mesap river and Lake Thalaysap. The provinces
along the river are the best cultivated in Cambodia,
though the country inland is, for the most part, level
and fertile. We met with but few boats. Our course
was nearly due south, the current helping our progress
somewhat, and the wind also a little — acting as it did
upon a wretched sail, about the size of a couple of
pocket-handkerchiefs. At night the mosquitoes were
so troublesome that sleep was only attainable through
wrapping one's entire person in a blanket.
On the afternoon of the second day we entered Cochin
China. There is an Annamite custom-house at one
side of the river and a Cambodian one upon the other
at the boundary line. At Chaudoc we spent part of an
afternoon in procuring four additional rowers, knowing
that with those we had alone it would be impossible to
reach Saigon as soon as desirable. Chaudoc is a town
about half the size of Panompin, situated on both banks

300 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
of the Makong, and also upon a small river which flows
west and empties itself into the Gulf of Siam at Kampot;
it is laid out with narrow streets, but the houses are not
of as good construction as those at the capital of
Cambodia. The French have a fort or citadel here,
with war stores, about 200 soldiers, and a functionary
styled ' District Inspector.' The fort is a simple earth
work, paUsaded exteriorly with bamboo, and sur
rounded by a broad moat filled with water ; no guns
are mounted, and the whole is in very bad order,
being overgrown with trees and grass, the barracks
and buildings also within are much dilapidated. The
Inspector or his representative, to whom we preferred
our request, ordered four men to be sent us ; who
not presenting themselves within his limit — an hour —
he said that if they were not in our boat within ten
minutes he should levy a fine of 100 francs upon the
village. The threat had its desired effect, for within
the prescribed time the men came, and we were able
and glad to depart without such an injustice being
done the innocent inhabitants of Chaudoc.
About noon, on the 1st of March, we passed a large
town composed partly of floating houses, lying on both
sides of the river, and called Lang-Xuen. A small
French gunboat was anchored abreast of the town, and

PANOMPIN TO SAIGON 301
there was a small citadel, with Annamite troops, French
officers, and a French inspector. In the afternoon
a small Government steamer, loaded with Annamite
troops, passed us on its way down the river, not to
Saigon, however. The French Government have about
twenty of these little steamers, which are used as
despatch boats by the different inspectors, and for trans
porting troops to the different citadels throughout
Cochin China. The latter province or country appeared
to be much more thickly settled than Cambodia. The
thick forests had given place to very sparse vegetation,
and this in turn to large groves of betel-nut, bamboo,
and banana trees.
At a large town caUed Chadec, where we stopped
on the following morning, we heard that the opium
steamer, already spoken of as being due at Panompin
during my stay, had been there, and returning had
left Chadec for Saigon the previous evening. We
experienced such strong head-winds and tides that it
was doubtful if we could reach Saigon in less than a
week's time, unless we encountered one of the Govern
ment steamers at some of the towns which we passed ;
and even for a passage on one of these it was necessary
to obtain a written permit from a French inspector.
Chadec is about the same size of town as Chaudoc,

302 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
for which it is often mistaken, owing to similarity of the
names ; there is there a citadel, an inspector, a gun-boat,
and some Annamite troops. Going on, the river widened
to near a mile, and the number of passing boats, the
beautiful little islands in the stream, the large trees
and numerous villages upon the banks, produced a
very picturesque kaleidoscopic scene.
Notwithstanding a strong head-wind and tide, we
succeeded in reaching Mitho, situated upon both banks
of the river, and being one of the largest towns in
Cochin China, about six o'clock the following morning.
There is a large French citadel there, with two or three
hundred foreign troops, and perhaps twice as many
Annamites. The Intendant's or Governor's residence
is a palatial structure, surrounded by pleasure-grounds
handsomely laid out with flower-beds, lawns, and neat
gravelled walks. Throughout the town are good
macadamised roads, bordered with rows of beautiful
young cocoa-nut trees. There are several French stores
in Mitho ; a large brick cathedral is in process of
erection ; two or three gunboats are anchored abreast
of the town ; and I noticed several imported carriages
in the streets. We were now in the delta-ground of
the Makong, the land being low and rivers and creeks
running and joining each other in every direction. We

PANOMPIN TO SAIGON 303
rowed aU day through a narrow creek, the banks of
which were covered with jungle ; there were no
villages, but the creek was fuU of boats — fishing-junks
and sea-junks — the most of them manned by Chinamen.
Gradually this creek narrowed to about thirty feet,
and our progress was very slow, as it was crowded
and jammed with huge rice-boats — some of them with
fourteen rowers — salt-boats, fish-boats, and small
general merchandise boats, which we had great diffi
culty in passing.
The next morning, at five o'clock, we suddenly came
upon a part of the creek which was entirely blocked
with boats, and it being low tide, all were embedded
in the mud and could not be moved until the incoming
tide should re-float them. Determined not to be thus
baffled so near the end of our journey, we took two or
three of the boatmen to carry our baggage, and started
to walk along the bank of the creek towards a large
town called Chalen, which Edwards thought could
not be far distant. A walk of an hour, and we
were in the heart of the town, and had engaged
a gharry (we had arrived at semi-civilisation
again) to take us to Saigon, about three miles
over a good road. Chalen is a very large town,
built upon both sides of the river, which is there

304

THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT

crowded with boats of every description ; it was (and
is now almost) the grand terminus of the Makong
river and Lake Thalaysap trade, until Saigon, ten
years ago but a small fishing village, was taken by the
French. The population of Chalen consists mostly of
Chinese; the remainder are Annamites, with a few

ill lA\JjKKffi&timm ''Warn
WmBSaBa* '¦¦.I'.v' -,t«|PsT^S«HBBlWiJi*5hB^BHi

MAKONG RIYER BOATS

Cambodians.' Soon after leaving Chalen for Saigon
we passed an immense Annamite cemetery — a mile
square of old tombs — simple stone enclosures with
small spires, which seem to indicate that there must
have been a large city hereabouts at one time, and
tradition supports the supposition. Next we passed a

PANOMPIN TO SAIGON 305
few mihtary storehouses, and then some large vege
table gardens, worked by Chinese, for supplying Saigon ;
and afterwards we entered the stragghng suburbs.
We reached the city early in the forenoon, and
driving to the ' Hotel de l'Univers,' there Edwards
congratulated me upon the safe, successful, and happy
completion of the overland journey from Bangkok to
Saigon. I had traversed the great Indo-Chinese
peninsula — riding over its plains, voyaging across its
lakes, paddling down its rivers — a distance of 655
mUes — m six weeks, including many long and delightful
delays bv the wav. 25

306 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT

CHAPTEE XXV.
SAIGON
Saigon, captured by the French in 1861, and added to
their dominions, together with six provinces of Lower
Cochin China placed by treaty under a French pro
tectorate, is situated upon the right bank of the river
of the same name, about twenty-five miles from the
sea. From Chalen a large creek runs to the Saigon
river, joining it about the centre of the city. The
approach to Saigon is through an immense forest of
the betel and cocoa-nut palm, banana and bamboo
trees, and thick copses of others with names unknown,
save to the professed naturalist. The first impressions
one receives of the town are not at all flattering to its
appearance. The only object that attracts the attention
is a large three-storey brick building on the bank of
the river, at once the town hall and - an hotel. In the
river, which is here not more than five hundred feet in
width, are anchored several small French gunboats —
intended for up-country service most of them — and,

SAIGON 307
besides these, there are usually two or three large
steamers in port (either one of the ' Messageries,' or an
English Hong Kong ' liner,' or one running to Singa
pore and Penang, or the war vessel of some foreign
power) ; farther down the river are anchored some
times as many as twenty merchantmen, mostly of five
to eight hundred tons burden and flying the flags of
either France or Germany.
There are in Saigon very many hotels, or more
properly speaking cafes, at which the most of the
French residents appear to hve. These cafes are not
scrupulously clean ; still one may obtain a modest room
and fair meals at reasonable charges. The popula
tion — ten thousand at a guess — consists of Cochin
Chinese, Chinese, Malabars, and French troops,
civilians, and a few Europeans of other nationahties.
Public affairs are administered by a Governor ap
pointed by the Emperor and sent out from France,
and assisted by a Legislative and Executive Council.
The streets of Saigon are broad, and macadamised
with brick (which makes a very disagreeable dust) ;
in two of them, which run at right angles to the river,
are stone canals for the more convenient loading and
unloading of the small cargo boats of the country.
The street which runs parallel and next to the river

308 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
is lined with double rows of trees. Here, after sun
down, it is the custom of the residents to promenade,
while listening to the music of one of the regimental
bands. The streets are lighted by oil lamps, and are
drained by extensive gutters at the sides. There are
no public squares, but there is a small botanical gar
den, tastefuUy laid out, but not kept in the best order;
in it are some wild animals, among them two fine large
tigers, captured in Cambodia.
The pubhc buildings are few in number and not
particularly grand in design or elegant in construction,
with perhaps the exception of the Government House,
recently completed. It is built of brick and stucco,
is two storeys in height — about three hundred feet in
length by one hundred in depth — and is situated in
the centre of a large cleared space on the southern side
of the town. The compartments of the interior
embrace an elegantly plastered ball-room, rooms for
the different offices of Government, an observatory, &c,
with marble staircases and balustrades, laid floors, and
frescoed ceilings. The appearance, however, of this
elegant modern palace, with its grand staircases and
pillars, which would appear to advantage in London
or Washington, in the midst of a tropical jungle and
surrounded only by a few bamboo huts is most droll.

GOVERNMENT HOUSE, SAIGON (PnENCH, RECENTLY COMPLETED)

SAIGON

309

In one part of Saigon is a large nunnery and chapel
inclosed by a lofty wall; there are aLso many small
Eoman Catholic chapels.

ANNAMITE MALE

The European business houses are few in number —
America not being represented — and trade is anything
but brisk. As usual, the real life of the town is
maintained by the Chinese, who do the work, keeping

310 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
small shops of miscellaneous goods generally. The
Chinaman is the ' toiler of the East ; ' he is industrious,
persevering, and frugal ; his wants are few, and his
vices (including gambling, to which he is passionately
addicted) never seem to reduce him to a state of
beggary. Wherever money is to be made, there you will
find John Chinaman ; he gradually but surely monopo
lises the trade a,nd business of all the countries to which
he immigrates, and, strange to tell, notwithstanding this,
manages to keep upon excellent terms with the lazy
natives with whom he lives in contact.
In Saigon there are many schools for teaching
Annamites the French language and the general rudi
ments of education ; the children of Europeans are
usually sent home to attend school. The army and navy
at the disposal of the Governor-General is small, but
sufficient to preserve order throughout the French
provinces in Cochin China. There is an earthwork
fortification at Saigon, which is garrisoned, I was
told, by about three thousand men ; it contains, more
over, a large quantity of provisions and war stores.
The troops wear a blue blouse uniform with leather
leggings and a white flat sun-hat (pith or cork) ; they
are armed with breech-loading muskets and sword-
bayonets. The navy consists of ten or fifteen hght-

ANNAMITE LADY

SAIGON

311

draught gun-boats (for river guards, and to transport
troops to the various citadels throughout the country),
the whole under the command of an admiral. The
pohce system is very effective, Malays from Singapore
having been enrolled and trained for that service.

ANNAMITE SOLDIERS

Morals are at the low ebb usually found among
Europeans in oriental towns — the French living at free
quarters with Annamite girls, whom they purchase,
when quite young, from their parents, #30 being
considered a high price. The climate of Saigon is
hot, being so near the equator, but it is generally

312 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
considered healthy for temperately-living foreigneis ;
the diseases are those incidental to the tropics every
where — fevers, dysenteries, and cholera in its various
stages. The French language is of course that in com
mon use by all Europeans and even by the Annamites,
who learn to speak it without much difficulty.
' France in the east ' is, as far as my limited observa
tion goes, a great farce — a travesty, a burlesque upon
colonisation in general. The French character is sadly
wanting in many of the virtues necessary for successful
pioneering in foreign lands ; it lacks that sturdy,
energetic, persevering trait which we see so ably
displayed by the English in India and Austraha and
by the German settlers in America. It must be that
politics alone have to do with the retaining by France
at the present day of so minute and oddly situated a
province as Pondicherry, or such a country as Cochin
China, inhabited by so warlike and rebellious a people.
After seeing the healthy, growing, and usually paying
colonies of the British Empire in the east, a visit
to Saigon, ' the infant capital of Asiatic France,'
leaves a ludicrous impression indeed upon the mind
of an observant, thinking, and reflecting traveller.
The great hope of France that the Makong river
might prove a water-road and an outlet to the rich

SAIGON 313
districts of southern China, vid Saigon, has proved
an illusion, and that geographical mystery has been
cleared away with the survey and exploration of the
river, nearly to its sources, by a French Govern
mental commission. An account of this exploration
has been given to the world in a book styled ' Travels
in Indo-China and the Chinese Empire ' by M. de Carne,
a member of the commission. And a late writer in the
London ' Daily Telegraph ' thus sums up the results
of the expedition up the great Makong river : —
* AI. Louis de Carne started in the summer of 1866
from Saigon, in French Cochin China, to track the
great river of Cambodia, the Makong, to its sources.
The hope of the French Colonial Office was that
this large stream, unknown, hke the Salween, the
Menam, and the Tonquin, might offer an available
water-road through Laos and Yunan to the back of
China, and give to the Cochin Chinese delta which
is held by France the commerce of a second Nile
or Ganges. This hope has faUed ; the Makong, which
the Frenchman traced at the cost of terrible hard
ships and great sacrifice of brave and valuable life,
is an ' impassable river,' broken at least thrice
by furious cataracts and having a current against
which nothing could be navigated. The dis-

314 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
covery, purchased at the cost of existence by the
leader of the expedition and by M. de Carne, whose
story is posthumously published, takes away half the
value of Cochin China. It is our [England's] turn to
find out whether the great streams which have their
embouchure at Bangkok and Maulmain offer any
better chance of a back way to the Yang-tse-kiang.'
In connection with a ' back way ' route to China, it
may be mentioned that the members of the French
commission found the Songkoi — a fine river nearly two
hundred miles in length, which flows into the Gulf of
Tonquin by two mouths — perfectly navigable, and
'in every way fitted to promote the commercial
intercourse of the Celestial Empire with our new
colony.' Though this could hardly be termed a
discovery, for the most northerly of the two branches of
the Songkoi, which is about a mile in width at its
embouchure, is known to have been safely navigated
by European shipping in the seventeenth century.
My good friend Edwards of Panompin unweariedly
accompanied me about Saigon, acting as interpreter,
packing my curios, and assisting me in any and every
way he could, and only left me on board the
' Messageries ' steamer as the bell rang for all not
passengers to leave her decks and their friends for

SAIGON 315
the shore. The Saigon river remains about the same
width — 500 feet — until it reaches the China Sea ; it
is tortuous but deep, aUowing vessels of the largest
draught to steam quietly up to the city. The country
on either side is low, level, and thinly peopled ; the banks
are lined with mangroves down to the very water's
edge. At the mouth of the river, upon a low hill, is
a hghthouse with a powerful light, and in a sheltered
position behind this hiU there is a small fishing viUage
where the pilots and their famihes reside.
We steamed gaily down the tortuous river and out
to sea, where we met a favourable breeze from the
northward ; all was prosperous and hopeful, but as I
slowly paced the deck on that beautiful star-lit night
of the 4th of March, 1872, I could not but feel sad
at the thought of leaving the marvellously beautiful
countries and the strange people and stranger customs
of Farther India, probably for many years, possibly
for ever.
Our steamer was the ' Alphee,' 1,000 tons burden,
of the French line ; and among others Admiral Dupre,
the Governor of Cochin China, was a passenger to
France for the benefit of his health. And I was a
passenger to Ceylon — to visit in the centre of ' the
divine island ' the wonderful ruins of structures erected
26

316 THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
2,400 years ago — to see the Lava Maha Paya, with
its 16,000 pillars, the mountain temples at Matate, the
grottoes of Dambool, and the Lake of Candeley,, with
its embankment of stones fourteen feet in length, laid
regularly one above the other.
We had a pleasant and delightful passage to
Singapore, and thence on to Point de Galle, where I
may with some propriety take leave of the reader;
for from Ceylon the great and mighty religion of
Budha, without doubt, first spread to Burma and
the other countries of Farther India.

THE END.

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By Paul B. Du Chaillu, Corresponding Member of the American Ethnological
Society, of the Geographical and Statistical Society of New York, and of the
Boston Society of Natural History. With numerous Illustrations. 8vo, Cloth, $5 00.
DU CHAILLU'S ASHANGO LAND. A Journey to Ashango Land, and Further
Penetration into Equatorial Africa. By Paul B. Du Chaillu. New Edition.
Handsomely Illustrated. 8vo, Cloth, $5 00.
EWBANK'S BRAZIL. Life in Brazil ; or, a Journal of a Visit to the Land of the
Cocoa and the Palm. With an Appendix, containing Illustrations of Ancient
and South American Arts, in recently discovered Implements and Products of
Domestic Industry, and Works in Stone, Pottery, Gold, Silver, Bronze, &c. By
Thomas Ewuank. With over 100 Illustrations. 8vo, Cloth, $3 00.
ELLIS'S MADAGASCAR. Three Visits to Madagascar, during the Years 1853, 1854,
1856. Including a Journey to the Capital, with Notices of the Natural History
of the Country, and of the Present Civilization of the People. By the Rev. Wil
liam Elms, F.H.S. Illustrated by a Map and Woodcuts from Photographs, &c.
8vo, Cloth, $3 50.
BALL'S ARCTIC RESEARCHES. Arctic Researches and Life among the Esqui
maux : being the Narrative of an Expedition in Search of Sir John Franklin, in
the Years 1860, 1861, and 1862. By Charles Franois Hall. With MapB and 100
Illustrations. Svo, Cloth, Beveled, $5 00.
HERODOTUS, LIFE AND TRAVELS OF. The Life and Travels of Herodotus in
the Fifth Century before Christ : an Imaginary Biography founded on Fact, illus
trative of the History, Manners, Religion, Literature, Arts, and Social Condition
of the Greeks, Egyptians, Persians, Babylonians, Hebrews, Scythians, and other
Ancient Nations, m the Days of Pericles and Nehemiah. By J. Talboys Wheel
er, F.R.G.S. Map. 2 vols., 12mo, Cloth, $3 50.
HOLTON'S NEW GRANADA. Twenty Months in the Andes. By I. F. Holton.
Illustrations and Maps. 8vo, Cloth, $3 00.
KINGSLEY'S WEST INDIES. At Last : A Christmas in the West Indies. By
Charles Kingsi.ey, Author of "Alton Locke," "Yeast," 4c, &c. Illustrated.
12mo, Cloth, $1 50.

Valuable and Interesting Works of Travel. 3
LIVINGSTONE'S SOUTH AFRICA. Missionary Travels and Researches in South
Africa; including a Sketch hf Sixteen Years' Residence in the Interior of Africa,
and a Journey trom the Cape of Good Hope to Loando on the West Coast ;
thence across the Continent, down the River Zambesi, to the Eastern Ocean. By
David Livingstone, LL.D., D.C.L. With Portrait, Maps by Arrowsmith, and
numerous Illustrations. Svo, Cloth, $4 60.
LIVINGSTONE'S EXPEDITION TO THE ZAMBESI. Narrative of an Expedition
to the Zambesi and its Tributaries ; and of the Discovery of the Lakes Shirwa
and Nyassa. 1S5S-1864. By David and Cuarles Livingstone. With Map and
Illustrations. 8vo, Cloth, $5 00.
LAYARD'S NINEVEH. A Popular Account of the Discoveries at Nineveh. By
Austen Henry Lavard. Abridged by bim from his larger Work. With numer
ous Wood Engravings. 12mo, Cloth, $1 75.
LAYAED'S FRESH DISCOVERIES AT NINEVEH. Fresh Discoveries at Nineveh
and Babylon ; with Travels in Armenia, Kurdistan, aud the Desert. Bein^ the
Result of a Second Expedition undertaken for the Trustees of the British Mu
seum. By Austen Henry Layard, M.P. With all the Maps and Engravings in
the English Edition. Svo, Cloth, $4 00.
MAECY'S ARMY LIFE ON THE BORDER. Thirty Years of Army Life on the Bor
der. Comprising Descriptions of the Indian Nomads of the Plains ; Explorations
of New Territory; a Trip across the Rocky Mountains in the Winter; Descrip
tions of the Habits of Different Animals found in the West, and the Methods of
Hunting them; with Incidents in the Lives of different Frontier Men, &c, &c.
By Brevet Brig.-General E. B. Maroy, U. S. A. Svo, Cloth, Beveled Edges, $3 00.
MOWEY'S ARIZONA AND SONORA. Arizona and Sonora. The Geography, His
tory, and Resources of the Silver Region of North America. By Sylvester Mow-
ey, of Arizona, Graduate of the U. S. Military Academy at West Point, late Lieu
tenant Third Artillery, U. S. A., Corresponding Member of the American Institute,
late U. S. Boundary Commissioner, &c, &c. 12mo, Cloth, $1 50.
MACGREGOR'S ROB EOY ON THE JORDAN. The Rob Roy on the Jordan, Nile,
Red Sea, and Gennesareth, &c. A Canoe Cruise in Palestine and Egypt, and the
Waters of Damascus. By J. Maogregor, M.A. With Maps and Illustrations.
Crown 8vo, Cloth, $2 50.
NEVIUS'S CHINA. China and the Chinese: a General Description of the Country
and its Inhabitants ; its Civilization and Form of Government ; its Eeligious and
Social Institutions; its Intercourse with other Nations; and its Present Condition
and Prospects. By the Eev. John L. Neviub, Ten Years a Missionary in China.
With a Map and Illustrations. 12mo, Cloth, $1 75.
NEWMAN'S FROM DAN TO BEEESHEBA. From Dan to Beersheba ; or, the Land
of Promise as it now appears. Including a Description of the Boundaries, Topog
raphy, Agriculture, Antiquities, Cities, and Present Inhabitants of that Wonderful
Land. With Illustrations of the Remarkable Accuracy of the Sacred Writers in
their Allusions to their Native Country. By Rev. J. P. Newman, D.D. Maps aud
Engravings. 12mo, Cloth, $1 75.
OLIPHANT'S CHINA AND JAPAN. Narrative of the Earl of Elgin's Mission to
China and Japan, in the Years 1857, '58, '59. By Laurence Oliphant, Private
Secretary to Lord Elgin. Illustrations. Svo, Cloth, $3 50.
ORTON'S ANDES AND THE AMAZON. The Andes and the Amazon ; or, Across
the Continent of South America. By James Oeton, M.A., Professor of Natural
History in Vassar College, Ponghkeepsie, N. Y., and Corresponding Member of
the Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia. With a New Map of Equatorial
America and numerous Illustrations. Crown 8vo, Cloth, $2 00.
PAGE'S LA PLATA. La Plata, the Argentine Confederation, and Paraguay. Being
a Narrative of the Exploration of the Tributaries of the River La Plata and Ad
jacent Countries during the Years 1853, '54, '55, and '56, under the Orders of the
United States Government. New Edition, containing Farther Explorations in La
Plata dnringlS59 and 1860. By Thomas J. Page, U. S. N., Commander of the Ex
peditions. With Map and numerous Engravings. 8vo, Cloth, $5 00.
PRIME'S (S. I.) TRAVELS IN EUROPE AND THE EAST. Travels in Europe aud
the East. A Year in England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales, France, Belgium, Hol
land, Germany, Austria, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Syria, Palestine, and Egypt. By
Rev. Samuel Iekn.eus Prime, D.D. Engravings. 2 vols., large 12mo, Cloth, $3 00.
READE'S SAVAGE AFRICA. Western Africa: being the Narrative of a Tour in
Equatorial, Southwestern, and Northwestern Africa ; with Notes on the Habits
of the Gorilla; on the Existence ofUnicorns and Tailed Men ; outhe Slave Trade;
on the Origin, Character, and Capabilities of the Negro, and on the Future Civil
ization of western Africa. By W. Winwood Reade, Fellow of the Geographical
and Anthropological Society of London, and Corresponding Member of the Geo
graphical Society of Paris. With Illustrations and a Map. 8vo, Cloth, $4 00.

4 Valuable and Interesting Works of Travel.
REINDEER, DOGS, AND SNOW-SHOES. A Journal of Siberian Travel and Ex
plorations made iu the Years 1865-67. By Riohard J. Bush, late of'the Russo-
American Telegraph Expedition. Illustrated. Crown 8vo, Cloth, $3 00.
PRIME'S (W. C.) BOAT-LIFE IN EGYPT. Boat-Life in Egypt and Nubia. By
William C. Prime. Illustrations. 12mo, Cloth, $2 00.
PRIME'S (W. C.) TENT-LIFE IN THE HOLY LAND. By William C. Prime. Il
lustrations. 12mo, Cloth, $2 00.
SQUIER'S CENTRAL AMERICA. The States of Central America: their Geography,
Topography, Climate, Population, Resources, Productions, Commerce, Political
Organization, Aborigines, &c, &c. Comprising Chapters on Honduras, San Sal
vador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Belize, the Bay Islands, the Mosquito
Shore, and the Honduras Inter-Oceanic Railway. By E. G. Squiee, formerly
Charge d'Affairs of the United States to the Republics of Central America. With
numerous Original Maps and Illustrations. 8vo, Cloth, $4 00.
SQUIER'S NICARAGUA. Nicaragua : its People, Scenery, Monuments, Resources,
Condition, and Proposed Canal. With One Hundred Maps and Illustrations. By
E. G. Squier. 8vo, Cloth, $4 P0.
SQUIER'S WAIKNA. Waikna; or, Adventures on the Mosquito Shore. By E. G.
Squier. With a Map and upward of Sixty Illustrations. 12mo, Cloth, $1 50.
SPEKE'S AFEICA. Journal of the Discovery of the Source of the Nile. By Captain
John Hanking Speke, Captain H. M.'s Indian Army, Fellow and Gold Medalist
of the Royal Geographical Society, Hon. Corresponding Member aud Gold Med
alist of the French Geographical Society, &c. With Maps and Portraits and nu
merous Illustrations, chiefly from Drawings by Captain Grant. 8vo, Cloth, $4 00.
STEPHENS'S TRAVELS IN CENTRAL AMEEICA. Travels in Central America,
Chiapas, and Yucatan. By J. L. Stephens. With a Map and 88 Engravings. 2
vols., Svo, Cloth, $0 00.
STEPHENS'S TEAVELS IN YUCATAN. Incidents of Travel in Yucatan. By J.
L. Stephens. 120 Engravings, from Drawings by F. Catherwood. 2 vols., 8vo,
Cloth, $6 00.
STEPHENS'S TRAVELS IN EGYPT. Travels in Egypt, Arabia Fetraa, and the
Holy Land. By J. L. Stephens. Engravings. 2 vols., 12mo, Cloth, $3 00.
STEPHENS'S TRAVELS IN GREECE. Travels in Greece, Turkey, Russia, and
Poland. By J. L. Stephens. Engravings. 2 vols., 12mo, Cloth, $3 00.
THOMSON'S LAND AND BOOK. The Land and the Book ; or, Biblical Illustra
tions drawn from the Manners and Customs, the Scenes and the Scenery of the
Holy Land. By W. M. Thomson, D.D., Twenty-five Years a Missionary of the
A.B.C.F.M. in Syria and Palestine. With Two elaborate Maps of Palestine, an
accurate Plan of Jerusalem, and Several Hundred Engravings, representing the ¦
Scenery, Topography, and Productions of the Holy Land, and the Costumes, Man
ners, and Habits of the People. Two large 12mo Volumes, Cloth, $5 00.
VAMBERY'S CENTRAL ASIA. Travels in Central Asia: being the Account of a
Journey from Teheran across the Turkoman Desert, on the Eastern Shore of the
Caspian, to Khiva, Bokhara, and Samarcand, performed in the Year 1863. By
Arminius Vambery, Member of the Hungarian Academy of Pesth, by whom he
was sent on this Scientific Mission. With Map and Woodcuts. Svo, Cloth, $4 50.
VIEGINIA ILLUSTEATED : containing a Visit to the Virginian Canaan, and the
Adventures of Porte Crayon and his Cousins. Hlustrated from Drawings by
Porte Crayon. 8vo, Cloth, $3 50.
WALLACE'S MALAY ARCHIPELAGO. The Malay Archipelago : the Laud of the
Orang-Utan and the Bird of Paradise. A Narrative of Travel, 1854-'6'2. With
Studies of Man and Nature. By Alfred Russel Wallace. With Maps and nu
merous Illustrations. Crown Svo, Cloth, $2 50.
WELLS'S EXPLORATIONS IN HONDURAS. Explorations and Adventures in
Houduras ; comprising Sketches of Travel in the Gold Regions of Olancho, and
a Review of the History and General Resources of Central America. By William
V. Wells. With Original Maps and numerous Illustrations. 8vo, Cloth, $3 50.
WHYMPER'S ALASKA. Travel and Adventure in the Territory of Alaska, formerly
Russian America— now ceded to the United States — and in various other Parts
of the North Pacific. By Frederick Wuymper. With Map and Illustrations.
Crown Svo, Cloth, $2 50.
WILKINSON'S ANCIENT EGYPTIANS. A Popular Account of the Ancient
Egyptians. Revised and abridged from his larger Work. By Sir J. Gardner
Wilkinson, D.C.L., F.R.S., <Sbc. Illustrated with 500 Woodcuts. 2 vols., 12mo.
Cloth, $3 50.

YALE UNIVERSITY I

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