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+The Project Gutenberg EBook of Siam, by George B. Bacon
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Siam
+       The Land of the White Elephant as it Was and Is
+
+Author: George B. Bacon
+
+Editor: Frederick Wells Williams
+
+Release Date: November 27, 2011 [EBook #38078]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK SIAM ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Hunter Monroe, Juliet Sutherland and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
+
+
+
+
+
+[Illustration: GREAT PAGODA WAT CHANG.]
+
+
+
+
+  _ILLUSTRATED LIBRARY OF TRAVEL_
+
+  SIAM
+
+  THE LAND OF THE WHITE ELEPHANT
+
+  _AS IT WAS AND IS_
+
+  COMPILED AND ARRANGED BY
+  GEORGE B. BACON
+
+  REVISED BY
+  FREDERICK WELLS WILLIAMS
+
+  NEW YORK
+  CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS
+  1893.
+
+  COPYRIGHT, 1881, 1892, BY
+  CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS
+
+  TROW DIRECTORY
+  PRINTING AND BOOKBINDING COMPANY
+  NEW YORK
+
+
+
+
+  REVISER'S NOTE
+
+The present editor's aim in revising this little volume has been to
+leave untouched, so far as possible, Mr. Bacon's compilation, omitting
+only such portions as were inaccurate or obsolete, and adding rather
+sparingly from the narratives of a few recent travellers. The
+authoritative history and description of Siam has yet to be written, and
+until this work appears the accounts of Pallegoix, of Bowring, and of
+Mouhot convey as satisfactory and accurate impressions of the country as
+those of later writers. Though the wonderful ruins at Angkor are now
+technically within the confines of Siam, their consideration still
+belongs to a treatise on Cambodia, and this as a separate country could
+not fairly be joined to Siam in carrying out the plan of the series. In
+other respects, without attempting to be exhaustive, the reviser's
+endeavor has been to neglect no important part or feature of the
+kingdom.
+
+The regeneration effected in Siam during the past half century presents
+a suggestive contrast to that ebullition of new life which has within an
+even briefer period transformed despotic Japan into a free and ambitious
+state. Here, as there, the stranger is impressed with those outward
+symbols of nineteenth-century life, the agencies of steam, gas, and
+electricity that appear in many busy centres in whimsical incongruity
+to their Oriental setting; but these are the adjuncts rather than the
+essentials of that Western civilization which both countries are
+striving to imitate. In Siam, it must be confessed, there is no such
+evidence of popular awakening as now directs the world's attention to
+the Mikado's empire. The languor and content of life in the tropics
+disposes the people to seek new ideals and accept new institutions less
+eagerly than under Northern skies. Siam's policy of gradual progress
+toward a condition of higher enlightenment is in admirable accordance
+with her needs, and promises to achieve its purpose with no such risks
+of reaction or shipwreck as beset the course of more ambitious states in
+the East.
+
+                                                  F. W. W.
+
+
+
+
+ CONTENTS                                          PAGE
+
+ CHAPTER I.                                           1
+
+ CHAPTER II.
+ GEOGRAPHY OF SIAM,                                  10
+
+ CHAPTER III.
+ OLD SIAM--ITS HISTORY,                              17
+
+ CHAPTER IV.
+ THE STORIES OF TWO ADVENTURERS,                     36
+
+ CHAPTER V.
+ MODERN SIAM,                                        65
+
+ CHAPTER VI.
+ FIRST IMPRESSIONS,                                  73
+
+ CHAPTER VII.
+ A ROYAL GENTLEMAN,                                  86
+
+ CHAPTER VIII.
+ PHRABAT SOMDETCH PHRA PARAMENDR MAHA MONGKUT,      104
+
+ CHAPTER IX.
+ AYUTHIA,                                           121
+
+ CHAPTER X.
+ PHRABAT AND PATAWI,                                130
+
+ CHAPTER XI.
+ FROM BANGKOK TO CHANTABOUN--A MISSIONARY JOURNEY
+ IN 1835,                                           146
+
+ CHAPTER XII.
+ CHANTABOUN AND THE GULF,                           170
+
+ CHAPTER XIII.
+ MOUHOT IN THE HILL-COUNTRY OF CHANTABOUN,          183
+
+ CHAPTER XIV.
+ PECHABURI OR P'RIPP'REE,                           200
+
+ CHAPTER XV.
+ THE TRIBES OF NORTHERN SIAM,                       216
+
+ CHAPTER XVI.
+ SIAMESE LIFE AND CUSTOMS,                          234
+
+ CHAPTER XVII.
+ NATURAL PRODUCTIONS OF SIAM,                       258
+
+ CHAPTER XVIII.
+ CHRISTIAN MISSIONS IN SIAM--THE OUTLOOK FOR THE
+ FUTURE,                                            270
+
+ CHAPTER XIX.
+ BANGKOK AND THE NEW SIAM,                          277
+
+
+
+
+                    LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+ GREAT PAGODA WAT CHANG,                        _Frontispiece_
+
+ INUNDATION OF THE MEINAM,                                  11
+
+ PAGODA AT AYUTHIA,                                         21
+
+ VIEW TAKEN FROM THE CANAL AT AYUTHIA,                      31
+
+ RUINS OF A PAGODA AT AYUTHIA,                              38
+
+ GENERAL VIEW OF BANGKOK,                                   76
+
+ THE LATE FIRST KING AND QUEEN,                            105
+
+ ONE OF THE SONS OF THE LATE FIRST KING,                   109
+
+ A FEW OF THE CHILDREN OF THE LATE FIRST KING,             120
+
+ REMOVAL OF THE TUFT OF A YOUNG SIAMESE,                   122
+
+ ELEPHANTS IN AN ENCLOSURE OR PARK AT AYUTHIA,             127
+
+ PAKNAM ON THE MEINAM,                                     129
+
+ PAGODA AT MOUNT PHRABAT,                                  130
+
+ MOUNTAINS OF KORAT FROM PATAWI,                           141
+
+ PORT OF CHANTABOUN,                                       149
+
+ MONKEYS PLAYING WITH A CROCODILE,                         180
+
+ SIAMESE ACTORS,                                           194
+
+ MOUNTAINS OF PECHABURI,                                   200
+
+ SIAMESE WOMEN,                                            234
+
+ SIAMESE ROPE-DANCER,                                      237
+
+ SIAMESE LADIES AT DINNER,                                 242
+
+ BUILDING ERECTED AT FUNERAL OF SIAMESE OF HIGH
+ RANK,                                                     251
+
+ HALL OF AUDIENCE, PALACE OF BANGKOK,                      277
+
+ PORTICO OF THE AUDIENCE HALL AT BANGKOK,                  280
+
+ THE PALACE OF THE KING OF SIAM, BANGKOK,                  292
+
+
+
+
+                             SIAM
+
+
+
+
+                          CHAPTER I.
+
+ EARLY INTERCOURSE WITH SIAM--RELATIONS WITH OTHER COUNTRIES
+
+
+The acquaintance of the Christian world with the kingdom and people of
+Siam dates from the beginning of the sixteenth century, and is due to
+the adventurous and enterprising spirit of the Portuguese. It is
+difficult for us, in these days when Portugal occupies a position so
+inconsiderable, and plays a part so insignificant, among the peoples of
+the earth, to realize what great achievements were wrought in the
+fifteenth and sixteenth centuries by the peaceful victories of the early
+navigators and discoverers from that country, or by the military
+conquests which not seldom followed in the track of their explorations.
+It was while Alphonso d'Albuquerque was occupied with a military
+expedition in Malacca, that he seized the occasion to open diplomatic
+intercourse with Siam. A lieutenant under his command, who was fitted
+for the service by an experience of captivity during which he had
+acquired the Malay language, was selected for the mission. He was well
+received by the king, and came back to his general, bringing royal
+presents and proposals to assist in the siege of Malacca. So cordial a
+response to the overtures of the Portuguese led to the more formal
+establishment of diplomatic and commercial intercourse. And before the
+middle of the sixteenth century a considerable number of Portuguese had
+settled, some of them in the neighborhood of the capital (Ayuthia), and
+some of them in the provinces of the peninsula of Malacca, at that time
+belonging to the kingdom of Siam. One or two adventurers, such as De
+Seixas and De Mello, rose to positions of great power and dignity under
+the Siamese king. And for almost a century the Portuguese maintained, if
+not an exclusive, certainly a pre-eminent, right to the commercial and
+diplomatic intercourse which they had inaugurated.
+
+As in other parts of the East Indies, however, the Dutch presently began
+to dispute the supremacy of their rivals, and, partly by the injudicious
+and presumptuous arrogance of the Portuguese themselves, succeeded in
+supplanting them. The cool and mercenary cunning of the greedy
+Hollanders was more than a match for the proud temper of the hot-blooded
+Dons. And as, in the case of Japan, the story of Simabara lives in
+history to witness what shameless and unscrupulous wickedness commercial
+rivalry could lead to; so in Siam there is for fifty years a story of
+intrigue and greed, over-reaching itself first on one side, and then on
+the other. First, the Portuguese were crowded out of their exclusive
+privileges. And then in turn the Dutch were obliged to surrender theirs.
+To-day there are still visible in the jungle, near the mouth of the
+Meinam River, the ruins of the Amsterdam which grew up between the years
+1672 and 1725, under the enterprise of the Dutch East India Company,
+protected and fostered by the Siamese Government. And to-day, also, the
+descendants of the Portuguese, easy to be recognized, notwithstanding
+the mixture of blood for many generations, hold insignificant or menial
+offices about the capital and court.
+
+As a result of Portuguese intercourse with Siam, there came the
+introduction of the Christian religion by Jesuit missionaries, who, as
+in China and Japan, were quick to follow in the steps of the first
+explorers. No hindrance was put in the way of the unmolested exercise of
+religious rites by the foreign settlers. Two churches were built; and
+the ecclesiastics in charge of the church at Ayuthia had begun to
+acquire some of that political influence which is so irresistible a
+temptation to the Roman Catholic missionary, and so dangerous a
+possession when he has once acquired it. It is probable enough (although
+the evidence does not distinctly appear) that this tendency of religious
+zeal toward political intrigue inflamed the animosity of the Dutch
+traders, and afforded them a convenient occasion for undermining the
+supremacy of their rivals. However this may be, the Christian religion
+did not make any great headway among the Siamese people. And while they
+conceded to the foreigners religious liberty, they showed no eagerness
+to receive from them the gift of a new religion.
+
+In the year 1604 the Siamese king sent an ambassador to the Dutch
+colony at Bantam, in the island of Java. And in 1608 the same ambassador
+extended his journey to Holland, expressing "much surprise at finding
+that the Dutch actually possessed a country of their own, and were not a
+nation of pirates, as the Portuguese had always insinuated." The history
+of this period of the intercourse between Siam and the European nations,
+abundantly proves that shrewdness, enterprise, and diplomatic skill were
+not on one side only.
+
+Between Siam and France there was no considerable intercourse until the
+reign of Louis XIV., when an embassy of a curiously characteristic sort
+was sent out by the French monarch. The embassy was ostentatiously
+splendid, and made great profession of a religious purpose no less
+important than the conversion of the Siamese king to Christianity. The
+origin of the mission was strangely interesting, and the record of it,
+even after the lapse of nearly two hundred years, is so lively and
+instructive that it deserves to be reproduced, in part, in another
+chapter of this volume. The enterprise was a failure. The king refused
+to be converted, and was able to give some dignified and substantial
+reasons for distrusting the religious interest which his "esteemed
+friend, the king of France," had taken "in an affair which seems to
+belong to God, and which the Divine Being appears to have left entirely
+to our discretion." Commercially and diplomatically, also, as well as
+religiously, the embassy was a failure. The Siamese prime minister (a
+Greek by birth, a Roman Catholic by religion), at whose instigation the
+French king had acted, soon after was deposed from his office, and came
+to his death by violence. The Jesuit priests were put under restraint
+and detained as hostages, and the military force which accompanied the
+mission met with an inglorious fate. A scheme which seemed at first to
+promise the establishment of a great dominion tributary to the throne of
+France, perished in its very conception.
+
+The Government of Spain had early relations with Siam, through the
+Spanish colony in the Philippine Islands; and on one or more occasions
+there was an interchange of courtesies and good offices between Manilla
+and Ayuthia. But the Spanish never had a foothold in the kingdom, and
+the occasional and unimportant intercourse referred to ceased almost
+wholly until, during the last fifty years, and even the last twenty, a
+new era of commercial activity has brought the nations of Europe and
+America into close and familiar relations with the Land of the White
+Elephant.
+
+The relations of the kingdom of Siam with its immediate neighbors have
+been full of the vicissitudes of peace and war. There still remains some
+trace of a remote period of partial vassalage to the Chinese Empire, in
+the custom of sending gifts--which were originally understood, by the
+recipients at least, if not by the givers, to be tribute to Peking. With
+Burmah and Pegu on the one side, and with Cambodia and Cochin China on
+the other, there has existed from time immemorial a state of jealous
+hostility. The boundaries of Siam, eastward and westward, have
+fluctuated with the successes or defeats of the Siamese arms. Southward
+the deep gulf shuts off the country from any neighbors, whether good or
+bad, and for more than three centuries this has been the highway of a
+commerce of unequal importance, sometimes very active and remunerative,
+but never wholly interrupted even in the period of the most complete
+reactionary seclusion of the kingdom.
+
+The new era in Siam may be properly dated from the year 1854, when the
+existing treaties between Siam on the one part, and Great Britain and
+the United States on the other part, were successfully negotiated. But
+before this time, various influences had been quietly at work to produce
+a change of such singular interest and importance. The change is indeed
+a part of that great movement by which the whole Oriental world has been
+re-discovered in our day; by which China has been started on a new
+course of development and progress; by which Japan and Corea have been
+made to lay aside their policy of hostile seclusion. It is hard to fix
+the precise date of a movement which is the result of tendencies so
+various and so numerous, and which is evidently, as yet, only at the
+beginning of its history. But the treaty negotiated by Sir John Bowring,
+as the ambassador of Great Britain, and that negotiated by the Honorable
+Townsend Harris, as the ambassador of the United States, served to call
+public attention in those two countries to a land which was previously
+almost unheard of except by geographical students. There was no popular
+narrative of travel and exploration. Indeed, there had been no travel
+and exploration much beyond the walls of Bangkok or the ruins of
+Ayuthia. The German, Mandelslohe, is the earliest traveller who has left
+a record of what he saw and heard. His visit to Ayuthia, to which he
+gave the name which subsequent travellers have agreed in bestowing on
+Bangkok, the present capital--"The Venice of the East"--was made in
+1537. The Portuguese, Mendez Pinto, whose visit was made in the course
+of the same century, has also left a record of his travels, which is
+evidently faithful and trustworthy. We have also the records of various
+embassies, and the narratives of missionaries (both the Roman Catholic
+and, during the present century, the American Protestant missionaries),
+who have found time, amid their arduous and discouraging labors, to
+furnish to the Christian world much valuable information concerning the
+people among whom they have chosen to dwell.
+
+Of these missionary records, by far the most complete and the most
+valuable is the work of Bishop Pallegoix (published in French in the
+year 1854), entitled "Description du Royaume Thai ou Siam." The long
+residence of the excellent Bishop in the country of which he wrote, and
+in which, not many years afterward (in 1862) he died, sincerely lamented
+and honored, fitted him to speak with intelligent authority; and his
+book was of especial value at the time when it was published, because
+the Western Powers were engaged that very year in the successful attempt
+to renew and to enlarge their treaties with Siam. To Bishop Pallegoix
+the English envoy, Sir John Bowring, is largely indebted, as he does not
+fail to confess, for a knowledge of the history, manners, and customs
+of the realm, which helped to make the work of his embassy more easy,
+and also for much of the material which gives the work of Bowring
+himself ("The Kingdom and People of Siam," London, 1857) its value.
+
+Since Sir John Bowring's time the interior of Siam has been largely
+explored, and especially by one adventurous traveller, Henry Mouhot, who
+lost his life in the jungles of Laos while engaged in his work of
+exploration. With him begins our real knowledge of the interior of Siam,
+and its partly dependent neighbors Laos and Cambodia. The scientific
+results of his travel are unfortunately not presented in such orderly
+completeness as would have been given to them had Mouhot lived to
+arrange and to supplement the details of his fragmentary and outlined
+journal. But notwithstanding these necessary defects, Mouhot's book
+deserves a high place, as giving the most adventurous exploration of a
+country which appears more interesting the more and better it is known.
+The great ruins of Angkor (or Angeor) Wat, for example, near the
+boundary which separates Siam from Cambodia, were by him for the first
+time examined, measured, and reported with some approach to scientific
+exactness.
+
+Among more recent and easily accessible works on the country, from some
+of which we have borrowed, may be mentioned, F. Vincent's, "Land of the
+White Elephant," 1874, A. Grehan's, "Royaume de Siam," fourth edition,
+Paris, 1878, "Siam and Laos, as seen by our American Missionaries,"
+Philadelphia, 1884, Carl Bock's "Temples and Elephants," London, 1884,
+A. R. Colquhoun's, "Among the Shans," 1885, L. de Carne's, "Travels in
+Indo-China, etc.," 1872, Miss M. L. Cort's, "Siam, or the Heart of
+Farther India," 1886, and John Anderson's, "English Intercourse with
+Siam," 1890. The most authoritative map of Siam is that published in the
+"Proceedings of the Royal Geographical Society," London, 1888, by Mr. J.
+McCarthy, Superintendent of Surveys in Siam.
+
+
+
+
+                         CHAPTER II.
+
+                      GEOGRAPHY OF SIAM
+
+
+The following description of the country is quoted with some emendations
+from Mr. Carl Bock's "Temples and Elephants."
+
+The European name for this land has been derived from the Malay word
+_Sayam_ (or _sajam_) meaning "brown," but this is a conjecture. The
+natives call themselves _Thai_, _i.e._, "free," and their country _Muang
+Thai_, "the kingdom of the free."
+
+Including its dependencies, the Lao states in the north, and the Malay
+states in the south, Siam extends from latitude 20 deg. 20' N. to exactly 4 deg.
+S., while, with its Cambodian provinces, its extreme breadth is from
+longitude 97 deg. E. to about 108 deg. E. The northern frontier of the Lao
+dependencies has not been defined, but it may be said, roughly, to lie
+north of the twentieth parallel, beyond the great bend of the Mekong
+River, the high range to the east of which separates Siam from Annam. To
+the south lie Cambodia and the Gulf of Siam, stretching a long arm down
+into the Malay Peninsula. On the west it abuts on Upper and Lower Burma,
+both now British possessions.
+
+Through Siam and Lao run two great mountain chains, both radiating from
+Yunnan through the Shan states. The eastern chain stretches in a
+S.S.E. direction from Kiang Tsen right down to Cambodia, while the
+western chain extends in a southerly direction through the Malay
+Peninsula. Their height rises sometimes to 9,000 feet, but it does not
+often seem to exceed 5,000; limestone, gneiss, and granite appear to
+form the main composition of the rocks.
+
+[Illustration: INUNDATION OF THE MEINAM.]
+
+Between these two mountain-chains, with their ramifications, lies the
+great alluvial plain of the Meinam, a magnificent river, of which the
+Portuguese poet Camoens sings (Lusiad X. cxxv.):
+
+    "The Menam now behold, whose waters take
+    Their sources in the great Chiamai lake,"
+
+in which statement, however, the bard was misinformed, the source being
+a mountain stream on the border of the Shan states, but within Lao
+territory, and not, as is generally marked on charts, in Yunnan. Near
+Rahang the main stream is joined by the Mei Wang, flowing S.W. from
+Lakon, the larger river being called above this junction the Mei Ping.
+The other great tributary, the Pak-nam-po, also called the Meinam Yome,
+joins it in latitude 15 deg. 45', after flowing also in a S.W. direction.
+
+To the annual inundation of the Meinam and its tributaries the fertility
+of the soil is due. Even as far up as in the Lao states the water rises
+from eight to ten feet during the rainy season. A failure of these
+inundations would be fatal to the rice crop, so that Siam is almost as
+much as Egypt a single river valley, upon whose alluvial deposits the
+welfare of millions depends. In this broad valley are to be found the
+forty-one political divisions which make up Siam proper.
+
+The second great river of importance is the Bang-Pa Kong, which has its
+source in a barrier range of irregular mountains, separating the
+elevated plateau of Korat from the alluvial plains extending to the head
+of the Gulf of Siam. The river meanders through the extensive
+paddy-lands and richly cultivated districts of the northeast provinces,
+and falls into the sea twenty miles east of the Meinam. Another
+considerable river is the Meklong, which falls into the sea about the
+same distance to the west of Bangkok; at its mouth is a large and
+thriving village of the same name. This is the great rice district, and
+from Meklong all up the river to Kanburi a large number of the
+population are Chinese. In this valley are salt-pits, on which the whole
+kingdom depends for its supply. The Meklong is connected with the Meinam
+by means of a canal, which affords a short cut to Bangkok, avoiding the
+sea passage.
+
+A third river system, that of the Mekong, much the largest of all the
+rivers in Indo-China, drains the extreme north and east of Siam. This
+huge stream, which is also mentioned in Camoens' Lusiad, takes its rise
+near the sources of the Yangtse Kiang in Eastern Thibet, and belongs in
+nearly half its course to China. It was partly explored by M. Mouhot,
+and later (in 1868) by Lagree's expedition, who found it, in spite of
+the great body of water, impracticable for navigation. M. de Carne, one
+of the exploration party, thus sums up the results of the search for a
+new trade route into Southern China: "The difficulties the river offers
+begin at first, starting from the Cambodian frontier, and they are very
+serious, if not insurmountable. If it were attempted to use steam on
+this part of the Mekong the return would be most dangerous. At Khong an
+absolutely impassable barrier, as things are, stands in the way. Between
+Khong and Bassac the waters are unbroken and deep, but the channel is
+again obstructed a short distance from the latter. From the mouth of the
+river Ubone the Mekong is nothing more than an impetuous torrent, whose
+waters rush along a channel more than a hundred yards deep by hardly
+sixty across. Steamers can never plough the Mekong as they do the Amazon
+or the Mississippi, and Saigon can never be united to the western
+provinces of China by this immense water-way, whose waters make it
+mighty indeed, but which seems after all to be a work unfinished."
+
+
+Of the tributary states, the Laos, who occupy the Mekong valley and
+spread themselves among the wilds between Tongking, China, and Siam, are
+probably the least known. In physique and speech they are akin to the
+Siamese, and are regarded by some writers as being the primitive stock
+of that race. They have some claims as a people of historical
+importance, constituting an ancient and powerful kingdom whose capital
+Vein-shan, was destroyed by Siam in 1828. Since then they have remained
+subject to Siam, being governed partly by native hereditary princes,
+duly invested with gold dish, betel-box, spittoon, and teapot sent from
+Bangkok, and partly by officers appointed by the Siamese government.
+Their besetting sin is slave-hunting, which was until recently pursued
+with the acquiescence of the Siam authorities, to the terror of the
+hill-tribes within their reach and to their own demoralization. Apart
+from the passions associated with this infamous trade the Laos are for
+the most part an inoffensive, unwarlike race, fond of music, and living
+chiefly on a diet of rice, vegetables, fruits, fish, and poultry. Pure
+and mixed, they number altogether perhaps some one million five hundred
+thousand.
+
+The most important of the Malay states is Quedha, in Siamese Muang Sai.
+Its population of half a million Malays is increased by some twenty
+thousand Chinese and perhaps five thousand of other races. The country
+is level land covered with fine forests, where elephants, tigers, and
+rhinoceroses abound. A high range of mountains separates Quedha from the
+provinces of Patani (noted for its production of rice and tin) and
+Songkhla. These again are divided from the province of Kalantan by the
+Banara River, and from Tringann by the Batut River. In Ligor province,
+called in Siamese Lakhon, three-fourths of the population are Siamese.
+The gold and silver-smiths of Ligor have a considerable reputation for
+their vessels of the precious metals inlaid with a black enamel.
+
+As to the Cambodian provinces under Siamese rule the following
+particulars are extracted from a paper by M. Victor Berthier:
+
+The most important provinces are those lying to the west, Battambang and
+Korat. The former of these is situated on the west of the Grand Lake
+(Tonle Sap), and supports a population of about seventy thousand,
+producing salt, fish, rice, wax, and cardamoms, besides animals found in
+the forests. Two days' march from Battambang is the village of Angkor
+Borey (the royal town), the great centre of the beeswax industry, of
+which 24,000 pounds are sent yearly to Siam. Thirty miles from this
+place is situated the auriferous country of Tu'k Cho, where two Chinese
+companies have bought the monopoly of the mines. The metal is obtained
+by washing the sand extracted from wells about twenty feet deep, at
+which depth auriferous quartz is usually met, but working as they do the
+miners have no means of getting ore from the hard stone.
+
+Korat is the largest province and is peopled almost entirely by
+Cambodians. Besides its chief town of the same name it contains a great
+number of villages with more than eleven district centres, and contains
+a population estimated at fifty thousand or sixty thousand. Angkor, the
+most noted of the Cambodian provinces, is now of little importance,
+being thinly populated and chiefly renowned for the splendor of its
+ancient capital, whose remarkable ruins are the silent witnesses of a
+glorious past. The present capital is Siem Rap, a few miles south of
+which is the hill called Phnom Krom (Inferior Mount), which becomes an
+island during the annual inundation. The other Cambodian provinces now
+ruled by Siam are almost totally unknown by Europeans.
+
+The population of Siam has never been officially counted, but is
+approximately estimated by Europeans at from six to twelve millions.
+According to Mr. Archibald Colquhoun, however, this is based upon an
+entirely erroneous calculation. "Prince Prisdang assured me," he
+says,[1] "that Sir John Bowring had made a great mistake in taking the
+list of those who were liable to be called out for military service as
+the gross population of the kingdom; and that if that list were
+multiplied by five, it would give a nearer approximation to the
+population. M. Mouhot says that a few years before 1862 the native
+registers showed for the male sex (those who were inscribed), 2,000,000
+Siamese, 1,000,000 Laotians (or Shans), 1,000,000 Malays, 1,500,000
+Chinese, 350,000 Cambodians, 50,000 Peguans, and a like number composed
+of various tribes inhabiting the mountain-ranges. Taking these
+statistics and multiplying them by five, which Bishop Pallegoix allows
+is a fair way of computing from them, we should have a population of
+29,950,000. To this would have to be added the Chinese and Peguans who
+had not been born in the country, and were therefore not among the
+inscribed; also the hill tribes that were merely tributary and therefore
+merely paid by the village, as well as about one-seventh of the above
+total for the ruling classes, their families and slaves. This total
+would give at least 35,000,000 inhabitants for Siam Proper, to which
+would have to be added about 3,000,000 for its dependencies, Zimme
+(Cheung Mai), Luang Prabang, and Kiang Tsen,--a gross population,
+therefore, of about 38,000,000 for the year 1860." On the other hand,
+Mr. McCarthy, a competent judge, considers the government estimate of
+ten million too high.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[1] Amongst the Shans. London, 1885.
+
+
+
+
+                         CHAPTER III.
+
+                    OLD SIAM--ITS HISTORY
+
+
+The date at which any coherent and trustworthy history of Siam must
+commence is the founding of the sacred city of Ayuthia (the former
+capital of the kingdom), in the year 1350 of the Christian era.
+Tradition, more or less obscure and fabulous, does indeed reach back
+into the remote past so far as the fifth century, B.C. According to the
+carefully arranged chronology of Bishop Pallegoix, gathered from the
+Siamese annals, which annals, however, are declared by His Majesty the
+late King to be "all full of fable, and are not in satisfaction for
+believe," the origin of the nation can be traced back, if not into
+indefinite space of time, at least into the vague and uncertain "woods,"
+and ran on this wise:
+
+"There were two Brahminical recluses dwelling in the woods, named
+Satxanalai and Sitthiongkon, coeval with Plua Khodom (the Buddha),
+and one hundred and fifty years of age, who having called their numerous
+posterity together, counselled them to build a city having seven walls,
+and then departed to the woods to pass their lives as hermits.
+
+"But their posterity, under the leadership of Bathamarat, erected the
+city Savanthe valok, or Sangkhalok, about the year 300 of the era of
+Phra Khodom (B.C. about 243).
+
+"Bathamarat founded three other cities, over which he placed his three
+sons. The first he appointed ruler in the city of Haripunxai, the second
+in Kamphoxa nakhon, the third in Phetxabun. These four sovereignties
+enjoyed, for five hundred years or more, the uttermost peace and harmony
+under the rule of the monarchs of this dynasty."
+
+The places named in this chronicle are all in the valley of the upper
+Meinam, in the "north country," and the fact of most historical value
+which the chronicle indicates is that the Siamese came from the north
+and from the west, bringing with them the government and the religion
+which they still possess. The most conspicuous personage in these
+ancient annals is one Phra Ruang, "whose advent and glorious reign had
+been announced by a communication from Gaudama himself, and who
+possessed, in consequence of his merits, a white elephant with black
+tusks;" he introduced the Thai alphabet, ordained a new era which is
+still in vogue, married the daughter of the emperor of China, and
+consolidated the petty princedoms of the north country into one
+sovereignty. His birth was fabulous and his departure from the world
+mysterious. He is the mythic author of the Siamese History. Born of a
+queen of the Nakhae (a fabulous race dwelling under the earth), who came
+in the way of his father, the King of Haripunxai, one day when the king
+had "retired to a mountain for the purpose of meditation, he was
+discovered accidentally by a huntsman, and was recognized by the royal
+ring which his father had given to the lady from the underworld. When he
+had grown up he entered the court of his father, and the palace
+trembled. He was acknowledged as the heir, and his great career
+proceeded with uninterrupted glory. At last he went one day to the river
+and disappeared." It was thought he had rejoined his mother, the Queen
+of the Nakhae, and would pass the remainder of his life in the realms
+beneath. The date of Phra Ruang's reign is given as the middle of the
+fifth century of the Christian era.
+
+After him there came successive dynasties of kings, ending with Phaja
+Uthong, who reigned seven years in Northern Cambodia, but being driven
+from his kingdom by a severe pestilence, or having voluntarily abandoned
+it (as another account asserts), in consequence of explorations which
+had discovered "the southern country," and found it extremely fertile
+and abundant in fish, he emigrated with his people and arrived at a
+certain island in the Meinam, where he "founded a new city, Krung theph
+maha nakhon Siajuthaja--a great town impregnable against angels:
+Siamese era 711, A.D. 1349."
+
+Here, at last, we touch firm historic ground, although there is still in
+the annals a sufficient admixture of what the late king happily
+designates as "fable." The foundations of Ayuthia, the new city, were
+laid with extraordinary care. The soothsayers were consulted, and
+decided that "in the 712th year of the Siamese era, on the sixth day of
+the waning moon, the fifth month, at ten minutes before four o'clock,
+the foundation should be laid. Three palaces were erected in honor of
+the king; and vast countries, among which were Malacca, Tennasserim,
+Java, and many others whose position cannot now be defined, were claimed
+as tributary states." King Uthong assumed the title Phra-Rama-thi-bodi,
+and after a reign of about twenty years in his new capital handed down
+to his son and to a long line of successors, a large, opulent, and
+consolidated realm. The word Phra, which appears in his title and in
+that of almost all his successors to the present day, is said by Sir
+John Bowring to be "probably either derived from or of common origin
+with the Pharaoh of antiquity." But the resemblance between the words is
+simply accidental, and the connection which he seeks to establish is not
+for a moment to be admitted.
+
+His Majesty the late King of Siam, a man of remarkable character and
+history, was probably, while he lived, the best-informed authority on
+all matters relating to the history of his kingdom. Fortunately, being a
+man of scholarly habits and literary tastes, he has left on record a
+concise and readable historical sketch, from which we cannot do better
+than to make large quotations, supplementing it when necessary with
+details gathered from other sources. The narrative begins with the
+foundation of the royal city, Ayuthia, of which an account has already
+been given on a previous page. The method of writing the proper names is
+that adopted by the king himself, who was exact, even to a pedantic
+extent, in regard to such matters. The king's English, however, which
+was often droll and sometimes unintelligible, has in this instance been
+corrected by the missionary under whose auspices the sketch was first
+published.[2]
+
+[Illustration: PAGODA AT AYUTHIA]
+
+"Ayuthia when founded was gradually improved and became more and more
+populous by natural increase, and the settlement there of families of
+Laos, Kambujans, Peguans, people from Yunnan in China, who had been
+brought there as captives, and by Chinese and Mussulmans from India, who
+came for the purposes of trade. Here reigned fifteen kings of one
+dynasty, successors of and belonging to the family of U-T'ong
+Rama-thi-bodi, who, after his death, was honorably designated as Phra
+Chetha Bida--i.e., 'Royal Elder Brother Father.' This line was
+interrupted by one interloping usurper between the thirteenth and
+fourteenth. The last king was Mahintra-thi-rat. During his reign the
+renowned king of Pegu, named Chamna-dischop, gathered an immense army,
+consisting of Peguans, Birmese, and inhabitants of northern Siam, and
+made an attack upon Ayuthia. The ruler of northern Siam was Maha-thamma
+raja related to the fourteenth king as son-in-law, and to the last as
+brother-in-law.
+
+"After a siege of three months the Peguans took Ayuthia, but did not
+destroy it or its inhabitants, the Peguan monarch contenting himself
+with capturing the king and royal family, to take with him as trophies
+to Pegu, and delivered the country over to be governed by Maha-thamma
+raja, as a dependency. The king of Pegu also took back with him the
+oldest son of Maha-thamma raja as a hostage; his name was Phra Naret.
+This conquest of Ayuthia by the king of Pegu took place A. D. 1556.
+
+"This state of dependence and tribute continued but a few years. The
+king of Pegu died, and in the confusion incident to the elevation of his
+son as successor Prince Naret escaped with his family, and, attended by
+many Peguans of influence, commenced his return to his native land. The
+new king on hearing of his escape despatched an army to seize and bring
+him back. They followed him till he had crossed the Si-thong (Birman
+Sit-thaung) River, where he turned against the Peguan army, shot the
+commander, who fell from his elephant dead, and then proceeded in safety
+to Ayuthia.
+
+"War with Pegu followed, and Siam again became independent. On the
+demise of Maha-thamma raja, Prince Naret succeeded to the throne, and
+became one of the mightiest and most renowned rulers Siam ever had. In
+his wars with Pegu, he was accompanied by his younger brother,
+Eka-tassa-rot, who succeeded Naret on the throne, but on account of
+mental derangement was soon removed, and Phra-Siri Sin Ni-montham was
+called by the nobles from the priesthood to the throne."
+
+With the accession of this last-mentioned sovereign begins a new
+dynasty. But before reproducing the chronicles of it we may add a few
+words concerning that which preceded.
+
+This dynasty had lasted from the founding of Ayuthia, A.D. 1350, until
+A.D. 1602, a period of two hundred years. Its record shows, on the
+whole, a remarkable regularity of succession, with perhaps no more
+intrigues, illegitimacies, murders, and assassinations than are to be
+found in the records of Christian dynasties. Temples and palaces were
+built, and among other works a gold image of Buddha is said to have been
+cast (in the city of Pichai, in the year A.D. 1380), "which weighed
+fifty-three thousand catties, or one hundred and forty-one thousand
+pounds, which would represent the almost incredible value (at seventy
+shillings per ounce) of nearly six millions sterling. The gold for the
+garments weighed two hundred and eighty-six catties." Another great
+image of Buddha, in a sitting posture, was cast from gold, silver, and
+copper, the height of which was fifty cubits.
+
+One curious tradition is on record, the date of which is at the
+beginning of the fifteenth century. On the death of King Intharaxa, the
+sixth of the dynasty, his two eldest sons, who were rulers of smaller
+provinces, hastened, each one from his home, to seize their father's
+vacant throne. Mounted on elephants they hastened to Ayuthia, and by
+strange chance arrived at the same moment at a bridge, crossing in
+opposite directions. The princes were at no loss to understand the
+motive each of his brother's journey. A contest ensued upon the
+bridge--a contest so furious and desperate that both fell, killed by
+each other's hands. One result of this tragedy was to make easy the way
+of the youngest and surviving brother, who, coming by an undisputed
+title to the throne, reigned long and prosperously.
+
+During some of the wars between Pegu and Siam, the hostile kings availed
+themselves of the services of Portuguese, who had begun, by the middle
+of the sixteenth century, to settle in considerable numbers in both
+kingdoms. And there are still extant the narratives of several
+historians, who describe with characteristic pomposity and extravagance,
+the magnificence of the military operations in which they bore a part.
+One of these wars seems to have originated in the jealousy of the king
+of Pegu, who had learned, to his great disgust, that his neighbor of
+Siam was the fortunate possessor of no less than seven white elephants,
+and was prospering mightily in consequence. Accordingly he sent an
+embassy of five hundred persons to request that two of the seven sacred
+beasts might be transferred as a mark of honor to himself. After some
+diplomacy the Siamese king declined--not that he loved his neighbor of
+Pegu less, but that he loved the elephants more, and that the Peguans
+were (as they had themselves acknowledged) uninstructed in the
+management of white elephants, and had on a former occasion almost been
+the death of two of the animals of which they had been the owners, and
+had been obliged to send them to Siam to save their lives. The king of
+Pegu, however, was so far from regarding this excuse as satisfactory
+that he waged furious and victorious war, and carried off not two but
+four of the white elephants which had been the _casus belli_. It seems
+to have been in a campaign about this time that, when the king of Siam
+was disabled by the ignominious flight of the war elephant on which he
+was mounted, his queen, "clad in the royal robes, with manly spirit
+fights in her husband's stead, until she expires on her elephant from
+the loss of an arm."
+
+It is related of the illustrious Phra Naret, of whom the royal author,
+in the passage quoted on a previous page, speaks with so much
+admiration, that being greatly offended by the perfidious conduct of his
+neighbor, the king of Cambodia, he bound himself by an oath to wash his
+feet in the blood of that monarch. "So, immediately on finding himself
+freed from other enemies, he assailed Cambodia, and besieged the royal
+city of Lavik, having captured which, he ordered the king to be slain,
+and his blood having been collected in a golden ewer he washed his feet
+therein, in the presence of his courtiers, amid the clang of trumpets."
+
+The founder of the second dynasty is famous in Siamese history as the
+king in whose reign was discovered and consecrated the celebrated
+footstep of Buddha, Phra Bat, at the base of a famous mountain to the
+eastward of Ayuthia. Concerning him the late king, in his historical
+sketch, remarks:
+
+"He had been very popular as a learned and religious teacher, and
+commanded the respect of all the public counsellors; but he was not of
+the royal family. His coronation took place A.D. 1602. There had
+preceded him a race of nineteen kings, excepting one usurper. The new
+king submitted all authority in government to a descendant of the former
+line of kings, and to him also he intrusted his sons for education,
+reposing confidence in him as capable of maintaining the royal authority
+over all the tributary provinces. This officer thus became possessed of
+the highest dignity and power. His master had been raised to the throne
+at an advanced age. During the twenty-six years he was on the throne he
+had three sons, born under the royal canopy--_i.e._, the great white
+umbrella, one of the insignia of royalty.
+
+"After the demise of the king, at an extreme old age, the personage whom
+he had appointed as regent, in full council of the nobles, raised his
+eldest son, then sixteen years old, to the throne. A short time after,
+the regent caused the second son to be slain, under the pretext of a
+rebellion against his elder brother. Those who were envious of the
+regent excited the king to revenge his brother's death as causeless, and
+plan the regent's assassination; but he, being seasonably apprised of
+it, called a council of the nobles and dethroned him after one year's
+reign, and then raised his youngest brother, the third son, to the
+throne.
+
+"He was only eleven years old. His extreme youth and fondness for play,
+rather than politics or government, soon created discontent. Men of
+office saw that it was exposing their country to contempt, and sought
+for some one who might fill the place with dignity. The regent was long
+accustomed to all the duties of the government, and had enjoyed the
+confidence of their late venerable king; so, with one voice, the child
+was dethroned and the regent exalted under the title of Phra Chan Pra
+Sath-thong. This event occurred A.D. 1630," and forms the commencement
+of the third dynasty.
+
+"The king was said to have been connected with the former dynasty, both
+paternally and maternally; but the connection must have been quite
+remote and obscure. Under the reign of the priest-king he bore the title
+Raja Suriwong, as indicating a remote connection with the royal family.
+From him descended a line of ten kings, who reigned at Ayuthia and
+Lopha-buri--Louvo of French writers. This line was once interrupted by
+an usurper between the fourth and fifth reigns. This usurper was the
+foster-father of an unacknowledged though real son of the fourth king,
+Chau Narai. During his reign many European merchants established
+themselves and their trade in the country, among whom was Constantine
+Phaulkon (Faulkon). He became a great favorite through his skill in
+business, his suggestions and superintendence of public works after
+European models, and by his presents of many articles regarded by the
+people of those days as great curiosities, such as telescopes, etc.
+
+"King Narai, the most distinguished of all Siamese rulers, before or
+since, being highly pleased with the services of Constantine, conferred
+on him the title of Chau Phya Wicha-yentra-the-bodi, under which title
+there devolved on him the management of the government in all the
+northern provinces of the country. He suggested to the king the plan of
+erecting a fort on European principles as a protection to the capital.
+This was so acceptable a proposal, that at the king's direction he was
+authorized to select the location and construct the fort.
+
+"He selected a territory which was then employed as garden-ground, but
+is now the territory of Bangkok. On the west bank, near the mouth of a
+canal, now called Bang-luang, he constructed a fort, which bears the
+name of Wichayeiw Fort to this day. It is close to the residence of his
+Royal Highness Chau-fa-noi Kromma Khun Isaret rangsan. This fort and
+circumjacent territory was called Thana-buri. A wall was erected,
+enclosing a space of about one hundred yards square. Another fort was
+built on the east side of the river, where the walled city of Bangkok
+now stands. The ancient name Bangkok was in use when the whole region
+was a garden.[3] The above-mentioned fort was erected about the year
+A.D. 1675.
+
+"This extraordinary European also induced his grateful sovereign King
+Narai to repair the old city of Lopha-buri (Louvo), and construct there
+an extensive royal palace on the principles of European architecture. On
+the north of this palace Constantine erected an extensive and beautiful
+collection of buildings for his own residence. Here also he built a
+Romish church. The ruins of these edifices and their walls are still to
+be seen, and are said to be a great curiosity. It is moreover stated
+that he planned the construction of canals, with reservoirs at intervals
+for bringing water from the mountains on the northeast to the city
+Lopha-buri, and conveying it through earthen and copper pipes and
+siphons, so as to supply the city in the dry season on the same
+principle as that adopted in Europe. He commenced also a canal, with
+embankments, to the holy place called Phra-Bat, about twenty-five miles
+southwest from the city. He made an artificial pond on the summit of
+Phra-Bat Mountain, and thence, by means of copper tubes and stop-cocks,
+conveyed abundance of water to the kitchen and bath-rooms of the royal
+residence at the foot of the mountain. His works were not completed when
+misfortune overtook him.
+
+"After the demise of Narai, his unacknowledged son, born of a princess
+of Yunnan or Chiang-Mai, and intrusted for training to the care of Phya
+Petcha raja, slew Narai's son and heir, and constituted his
+foster-father king, himself acting as prime-minister till the death of
+his foster-father, fifteen years after; he then assumed the royal state
+himself. He is ordinarily spoken of as Nai Dua. Two of his sons and two
+of his grandsons subsequently reigned at Ayuthia. The youngest of these
+grandsons reigned only a short time, and then surrendered the royal
+authority to his brother and entered the priesthood. While this brother
+reigned, in the year 1759, the Birman king, Meng-luang Alaung Barah-gyi,
+came with an immense army, marching in three divisions on as many
+distinct routes, and combined at last in the siege of Aynthia.
+
+"The Siamese king, Chaufa Ekadwat Anurak Moutri, made no resolute effort
+of resistance. His great officers disagreed in their measures. The
+inhabitants of all the smaller towns were indeed called behind the
+walls of the city, and ordered to defend it to their utmost ability; but
+jealousy and dissension rendered all their bravery useless. Sallies and
+skirmishes were frequent, in which the Birmese were generally the
+victorious party. The siege was continued for two years. The Birmese
+commander-in-chief, Maha Noratha, died, but his principal officers
+elected another in his place. At the end of the two years the Birmese,
+favored by the dry season, when the waters were shallow, crossed in
+safety, battered the walls, broke down the gates, and entered without
+resistance. The provisions of the Siamese were exhausted, confusion
+reigned, and the Birmese fired the city and public buildings. The king,
+badly wounded, escaped with his flying subjects, but soon died alone of
+his wounds and his sorrows. He was subsequently discovered and buried.
+
+"His brother, who was in the priesthood, and now the most important
+personage in the country, was captured by the Birmans, to be conveyed in
+triumph to Birmah. They perceived that the country was too remote from
+their own to be governed by them; they therefore freely plundered the
+inhabitants, beating, wounding, and even killing many families, to
+induce them to disclose treasures which they supposed were hidden by
+them. By these measures the Birmese officers enriched themselves with
+most of the wealth of the country. After two or three months spent in
+plunder they appointed a person of Mon or Peguan origin as ruler over
+Siam, and withdrew with numerous captives, leaving this Peguan officer
+to gather fugitives and property to convey to Birmah at some
+subsequent opportunity. This officer was named Phra Nai Kong, and made
+his headquarters about three miles north of the city, at a place called
+Pho Sam-ton, _i.e._, 'the three Sacred Fig-trees.' One account relates
+that the last king mentioned above, when he fled from the city, wounded,
+was apprehended by a party of travellers and brought into the presence
+of Phya Nai Kong in a state of great exhaustion and illness; that he was
+kindly received and respectfully treated, as though he was still the
+sovereign, and that Phya Nai Kong promised to confirm him again as a
+ruler of Siam, but his strength failed and he died a few days after his
+apprehension.
+
+[Illustration: VIEW TAKEN FROM THE CANAL AT AYUTHIA.]
+
+"The conquest by Birmah, the destruction of Ayuthia, and appointment of
+Phya Nai Kong took place in March, A.D. 1767. This date is
+unquestionable. The period between the foundation of Ayuthia and its
+overthrow by the Birmans embraces four hundred and seventeen years,
+during which there were thirty-three kings of three distinct dynasties,
+of which the first dynasty had nineteen kings with one usurper; the
+second had three kings, and the third had nine kings and one usurper.
+
+"When Ayuthia was conquered by the Birmese, in March, 1767, there
+remained in the country many bands of robbers associated under brave men
+as their leaders. These parties had continued their depredations since
+the first appearance of the Birman army, and during about two years had
+lived by plundering the quiet inhabitants, having no government to
+fear.
+
+On the return of the Birman troops to their own country, these parties
+of robbers had various skirmishes with each other during the year 1767.
+
+"The first king established at Bangkok was an extraordinary man, of
+Chinese origin, named Pin Tat. He was called by the Chinese, Tia Sin
+Tat, or Tuat. He was born at a village called Bantak, in Northern Siam,
+in latitude 16 deg. N. The date of his birth was in March, 1734. At the
+capture of Ayuthia he was thirty-three years old. Previous to that time
+he had obtained the office of second governor of his own township, Tak,
+and he next obtained the office of governor of his own town, under the
+dignified title of Phya Tak, which name he bears to the present day.
+During the reign of the last king of Ayuthia, he was promoted to the
+office and dignity of governor of the city Kam-Cheng-philet, which from
+times of antiquity was called the capital of the western province of
+Northern Siam. He obtained this office by bribing the high minister of
+the king, Chaufa Ekadwat Anurak Moutri; and being a brave warrior he was
+called to Ayuthia on the arrival of the Birman troops as a member of the
+council. But when sent to resist the Birman troops, who were harassing
+the eastern side of the city, perceiving that the Ayuthian government
+was unable to resist the enemy, he, with his followers, fled to
+Chantaburi (Chantaboun), a town on the eastern shore of the Gulf of
+Siam, in latitude 12-1/2 deg. N. and longitude 102 deg. 10' E. There he united
+with many brave men, who were robbers and pirates, and subsisted by
+robbing the villages and merchant-vessels. In this way he became the
+great military leader of the district and had a force of more than ten
+thousand men. He soon formed a treaty of peace with the headman of
+Bangplasoi, a district on the north, and with Kambuja and Annam (or
+Cochin China) on the southeast."
+
+With the fall of Ayuthia and the disasters inflicted by the Burman army
+ended the third dynasty in the year 1767. So complete was the victory of
+the Burmese, and so utter the overthrow of the kingdom of Siam, that it
+was only after some years of disorder and partial lawlessness that the
+realm became reorganized under strong centralized authority. The great
+military leader, to whom the royal chronicle from which we have been
+quoting refers, seems to have been pre-eminently the man for the hour.
+By his patient sagacity, joined with bravery and qualities of leadership
+which are not often found in the annals of Oriental warfare, he
+succeeded in expelling the Burmese from the capital, and in reconquering
+the provinces which, during the period of anarchy consequent on the
+Burmese invasion, had asserted separate sovereignty and independence.
+The war which about this time broke out between Burmah and China made
+this task of throwing off the foreign yoke more easy. And his own good
+sense and judicious admixture of mildness with severity conciliated and
+settled the disturbed and disorganized provinces. Notably was this the
+case in the province of Ligor, on the peninsula, where an alliance with
+the beautiful daughter of the captive king, and presently the birth of a
+son from the princess, made it easy to attach the government of that
+province (and incidentally of the adjoining provinces), by ties of the
+strongest allegiance to the new dynasty.
+
+Joined with Phya Tak, in his adventures and successes as his
+confidential friend and helper, was a man of noble birth and vigorous
+character, who was, indeed, scarcely the inferior of the great general
+in ability. This man, closely associated with Phya Tak, became at last
+his successor. For, at the close of his career, and after his great work
+of reconstructing the kingdom was fully accomplished, Phya Tak became
+insane. The bonzes (or priests of Buddha), notwithstanding all that he
+had done to enrich the temples of the new capital (especially in
+bringing from Laos "the emerald Buddha which is the pride and glory of
+Bangkok at the present day"), turned against him, declaring that he
+aspired to the divine honor of Buddha himself. His exactions of money
+from his rich subjects and his deeds of cruelty and arbitrary power
+toward all classes became so intolerable, that a revolt took place in
+the city, and the king fled for safety to a neighboring pagoda and
+declared himself a member of the priesthood. For a while his refuge in
+the monastery availed to save his life. But presently his favorite
+general, either in response to an invitation from the nobles or else
+prompted by his own ambition, assumed the sovereignty and put his friend
+and predecessor to a violent death. The accession of the new king (who
+seems to have shared the dignity and responsibility of government with
+his brother), was the commencement of the present dynasty, to the
+history of which a new chapter may properly be devoted. But before
+proceeding with the history we interrupt the narrative to give sketches
+of two European adventurers whose exploits in Siam are among the most
+romantic and suggestive in her annals.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[2] No attempt at uniformity in this respect has been made by the editor
+of this volume; but, in passages quoted from different authors, the
+proper names are written and accented according to the various methods
+of those authors.
+
+[3] Such names abound now, as Bang-cha, Bang-phra, Bang-pla-soi, etc.;
+_Bang_ signifying a small stream or canal, such as is seen in gardens.
+
+
+
+
+                         CHAPTER IV.
+
+                THE STORIES OF TWO ADVENTURERS
+
+
+The sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, that golden age of discovery
+and adventure, did not fail to find in the Indo-Chinese peninsula
+brilliant opportunities for the exercise of those qualities which made
+their times so remarkable in the history of the world. Marco Polo, the
+greatest of Asiatic travellers, dismisses Siam in a few words as a
+"country called Locac; a country good and rich, with a king of its own.
+The people are idolaters and have a peculiar language, and pay tribute
+to nobody, for their country is so situated that no one can enter it to
+do them ill. Indeed, if it were possible to get at it the Great Kaan [of
+China] would soon bring them under subjection to him. In this country
+the brazil which we make use of grows in great plenty; and they also
+have gold in incredible quantity. They have elephants likewise, and much
+game. In this kingdom too are gathered all the porcelain shells which
+are used for small change in all those regions, as I have told you
+before. There is nothing else to mention except that this is a very wild
+region, visited by few people; nor does the king desire that any
+strangers should frequent the country and so find out about his
+treasures and other resources."
+
+The Venetian's account, though probably obtained from his Chinese
+sailors, is essentially correct, and applies without much doubt to the
+region now known as Siam. Sir Henry Yule derives _Locac_ either from the
+Chinese name Lo-hoh, pronounced _Lo-kok_ by Polo's Fokien mariners, or
+from Lawek, which the late King of Siam tells us was an ancient
+Cambodian city occupying the site of Ayuthia, "whose inhabitants then
+possessed Southern Siam or Western Cambodia."
+
+Nearly three centuries after Polo, when the far East had become a common
+hunting-ground for European adventurers, Siam was visited by one of the
+most extraordinary men of this type who ever told his thrilling tales.
+The famous Portuguese, Mendez Pinto, passed twenty-one years in various
+parts of Asia (1537-1558), as merchant, pirate, soldier, sailor, and
+slave, during which period he was sold sixteen times and shipwrecked
+five, but happily lived to end his life peacefully in Portugal, where
+his published "Peregrinacao" earned the fate of Marco Polo's book, and
+its author was stamped as a liar of the first magnitude. Though mistaken
+in many of its inferences and details Pinto's account bears surprisingly
+well the examination of modern critical scholars. When we consider the
+character of the man and the fact that he must have composed his memoirs
+entirely from recollection, the wonder really is that he should have
+erred so little. The value of his story lies in the fact that we get
+from it, as Professor Vambery suggests, "a picture, however incomplete
+and defective, of the power and authority of Asia, then still unbroken.
+In this picture, so full of instructive details, we perceive more than
+one thing fully worthy of the attention of the latter-day reader. Above
+all we see the fact that the traveller from the west, although obliged
+to endure unspeakable hardships, privation, pain, and danger, at least
+had not to suffer on account of his nationality and religion, as has
+been the case in recent times since the all-puissance of Europe has
+thrown its threatening shadow on the interior of Asia, and the
+appearance of the European is considered the foreboding of material
+decay and national downfall. How utterly different it was to travel in
+mediaeval Asia from what it is at present is clearly seen from the fact
+that in those days missionaries, merchants, and political agents from
+Europe could, even in time of war, traverse any distances in Asiatic
+lands without molestation in their personal liberty or property, just as
+any Asiatic traveller of Moslem or Buddhist persuasion."
+
+Pinto seems to have gone to Siam hoping there to repair his fortunes,
+which had suffered shipwreck for the fourth time and left him in extreme
+destitution. Soon after he joined in Odiaa (Ayuthia) the Portuguese
+colony, which he found to be one hundred and thirty strong, he was
+induced with his countrymen to serve among the King's body-guards on an
+expedition made against the rebellious Shan states in the north. The
+campaign progressed favorably and ended in the subjection of the "King
+of Chiammay" and his allies, but a scheming queen, desirous of putting
+her paramour on the throne, poisoned the conqueror upon his return to
+Odiaa in 1545. "But whereas heaven never leaves wicked actions
+unpunished, the year after, 1546, and on _January_ 15th, they were
+both slain by _Oyaa Passilico_ and the King of _Cambaya_ at a certain
+banquet which these princes made in a temple." The usurpers were thus
+promptly despatched, but the consequences of their infamy were fateful
+to Siam, as Pinto informs us at some length.
+
+[Illustration: RUINS OF A PAGODA AT AYUTHIA.]
+
+"The Empire of _Siam_ remaining without a lawfull successor, those two
+great lords of the Kingdom, namely, _Oyaa Passilico_, and the King of
+_Cambaya_, together with four or five men of the trustiest that were
+left, and which had been confederated with them, thought fit to chuse
+for King a certain religious man named _Pretiem_, in regard he was the
+naturall brother of the deceased prince, husband to that wicked queen of
+whom I have spoken; whereupon this religious man, who was a _Talagrepo_
+of a _Pagode_, called _Quiay Mitran_, from whence he had not budged for
+the space of thirty years, was the day after drawn forth of it by _Oyaa
+Passilico_, who brought him on _January_ 17th, into the city of _Odiaa_,
+where on the 19th he was crowned King with a new kind of ceremony, and a
+world of magnificence, which (to avoid prolixity) I will not make
+mention of here, having formerly treated of such like things. Withall
+passing by all that further arrived in the Kingdom of _Siam_, I will
+content myself with reporting such things as I imagine will be most
+agreeable to the curious. It happened then that the King of _Bramaa_
+(Burmah), who at that time reigned tyrannically in _Pegu_, being
+advertised of the deplorable estate whereunto the Empire of _Sornau_
+(Siam) was reduced, and of the death of the greatest lords of the
+country, as also that the new king of this monarchy was a religious
+man, who had no knowledge either of arms or war, and, withall of a
+cowardly disposition, a tyrant, and ill beloved of his subjects, he fell
+to consult thereupon with his lords in the town of _Anapleu_, where at
+that time he kept his court."
+
+The decision in favor of seizing this favorable opportunity for
+acquiring his neighbor's territory was practically unanimous, and the
+tyrant of Pegu accordingly assembled an army of 800,000 men, 100,000 of
+whom were "strangers," _i.e._, mercenary troops, and among these we find
+1,000 Portuguese, commanded by one Diego Suarez d'Albergaria, nicknamed
+Galego. So the Portuguese, as we shall see, played important parts on
+both sides of the great war that followed. After capturing the frontier
+defences, the Burmans marched across the country through the forests
+"that were cut down by three-score thousand pioneers, whom the King had
+sent before to plane the passages and wayes," and sat down before the
+devoted capital. "During the first five days that the King of _Bramaa_
+had been before the city of _Odiaa_, he had bestowed labour and pains
+enough, as well in making of trenches and pallisadoes, as in the
+providing all things necessary for the siege; in all which time the
+besieged never offered to stir, whereof _Diego Suarez_, the marshall of
+the camp, resolved to execute the design for which he came; to which
+effect, of the most part of the men which he had under his command, he
+made two separated squadrons, in each of which there were six battalions
+of six thousand a piece. After this manner he marched in battell array,
+at the sound of many instruments, towards the two poynts which the city
+made on the south side, because the entrance there seemed more facile to
+him than any other where. So upon the 19th day of _June_, in the year
+1548, an hour before day, all these men of war, having set up above a
+thousand ladders against the walls, endeavoured to mount up on them; but
+the besieged opposed them so valiently, that in less than half an hour
+there remained dead on the place above ten thousand on either part. In
+the mean time the King, who incouraged his souldiers, seeing the ill
+success of this fight, commanded these to retreat, and then made the
+wall to be assaulted afresh, making use for that effect of five thousand
+elephants of war which he had brought thither and divided into twenty
+troops of two hundred and fifty apiece, upon whom there were twenty
+thousand _Moens_ and _Chaleus_, choice men and that had double pay. The
+wall was then assaulted by these forces with so terrible an impetuosity
+as I want words to express it. For whereas all the elephants carried
+wooden castles on their backs, from whence they shot with muskets, brass
+culverins, and a great number of harquebuses a crock, each of them ten
+or twelve spans long, these guns made such an havock of the besieged
+that in less than a quarter of an hour the most of them were beaten
+down; the elephants withall setting their trunks to the target fences,
+which served as battlements, and wherewith they within defended
+themselves, tore them down in such sort as not one of them remained
+entire; so that by this means the wall was abandoned of all defence, no
+man daring to shew himself above. In this sort was the entry into the
+city very easy to the assailants, who being invited by so good success
+to make their profit of so favourable an occasion, set up their ladders
+again which they had quitted, and mounting up by them to the top of the
+wall with a world of cries and acclamations, they planted thereon in
+sign of victory a number of banners and ensigns. Now because the _Turks_
+(Arabs?) desired to have therein a better share than the rest, they
+besought the King to do them so much favour as to give them the
+vantguard, which the King easily granted them, and that by the counsell
+of _Diego Suarez_, who desired nothing more than to see their number
+lessened, always gave them the most dangerous imployments. They in the
+mean time extraordinarily contented, whither more rash or more
+infortunate than the rest, sliding down by a pane of the wall, descended
+through a bulwark into a place which was below, with an intent to open a
+gate and give an entrance unto the King, to the end that they might
+rightly boast that they all alone had delivered to him the capital city
+of _Siam_; for he had before promised to give unto whomsoever should
+deliver up the city unto him, a thousand bisses of gold, which in value
+are five hundred thousand ducates of our money. These _Turks_ being
+gotten down, as I have said, laboured to break open a gate with two rams
+which they had brought with them for that purpose; but as they were
+occupied about it they saw themselves suddenly charged by three thousand
+_Jaos_, all resolute souldiers, who fell upon them with such fury, as in
+little more than a quarter of an hour there was not so much as one
+_Turk_ left alive in the place, wherewith not contented, they mounted up
+immediately to the top of the wall, and so flesht as they were and
+covered over with the blood of the _Turks_, they set upon the _Bramaa's_
+men which they found there, so valiently that most of them were slain
+and the rest tumbled down over the wall.
+
+"The King of _Bramaa_ redoubling his courage would not for all that give
+over this assault, so as imagining that those elephants alone would be
+able to give him an entry into the city, he caused them once again to
+approach unto the wall. At the noise hereof _Oyaa Passilico_, captain
+general of the city, ran in all haste to this part of the wall, and
+caused the gate to be opened through which the _Bramaa_ pretended to
+enter, and then sent him word that whereas he was given to understand
+how his Highness had promised to give a thousand bisses of gold, he had
+now performed it so that he might enter if he would make good his word
+and send him the gold, which he stayed there to receive. The King of
+_Bramaa_ having received this jear, would not vouchsafe to give an
+answer, but instantly commanded the city to be assaulted. The fight
+began so terrible as it was a dreadfull thing to behold, the rather for
+that the violence of it lasted above three whole hours, during the which
+time the gate was twice forced open, and twice the assailants got an
+entrance into the city, which the King of _Siam_ no sooner perceived,
+and that all was in danger to be lost, but he ran speedily to oppose
+them with his followers, the best souldiers that were in all the city:
+whereupon the conflict grew much hotter than before, and continued half
+an hour and better, during the which I do not know what passed, nor can
+say any other thing save that we saw streams of bloud running every
+where and the air all of a light fire; there was also on either part
+such a tumult and noise, as one would have said the earth had been
+tottering; for it was a most dreadful thing to hear the discord and
+jarring of those barbarous instruments, as bells, drums, and trumpets,
+intermingled with the noise of the great ordnance and smaller shot, and
+the dreadful yelling of six thousand elephants, whence ensued so great a
+terrour that it took from them that heard it both courage and strength.
+_Diego Suarez_ then, seeing their forces quite repulsed out of the city,
+the most part of the elephants hurt, and the rest so scared with the
+noise of the great ordnance, as it was impossible to make them return
+unto the wall, counselled the King to sound a retreat, whereunto the
+King yielded, though much against his will, because he observed that
+both he and the most part of the _Portugals_ were wounded."
+
+The king's wound took seventeen days to heal, a breathing space which we
+can imagine both sides accepted with satisfaction. Nothing daunted by
+the failure of his first onset, he attacked the city again and again
+during the four months of the siege, employing against it the machines
+and devices of a Greek engineer in his service, and achieving prodigies
+of valor. At length, upon the suggestion of his Portuguese captain, he
+began "with bavins and green turf to erect a kind of platform higher
+than the walls, and thereon mounted good store of great ordnance,
+wherewith the principal fortifications of the city should be battered."
+Considering the exhausted state of the defenders it is likely that this
+elaborate effort would have succeeded, but before the critical moment
+arrived word came from home that the "_Xemindoo_ being risen up in
+_Pegu_ had cut fifteen thousand _Bramaas_ there in pieces, and had
+withal seized on the principal places of the country. At these news the
+King was so troubled, that without further delay he raised the siege and
+imbarqued himself on a river called _Pacarau_, where he stayed but that
+night and the day following, which he imployed in retiring his great
+ordnance and ammunition. Then having set fire on all the pallisadoes and
+lodgings of the camp, he parted away on Tuesday the 15th of _October_,
+1548, for to go to the town of _Martabano_." So was Ayuthia honorably
+saved, but Pinto, we fear, followed with his countryman Diego in the
+Bramaa's train, for he has much to say henceforth of the civil
+disturbance in Burma and the Xemindoo's final suppression, but of Siam,
+excepting a brief description of the country, he tells us nothing more.
+
+About a century after Pinto's stay in Siam another adventurer found his
+way thither while seeking his fortune in the golden Orient and
+encountered there such vicissitudes of experience as to rival in
+picturesqueness and wonder the tales of the Arabian Nights. This was the
+Greek sailor, Constantine Phaulcon, whose story, even when stripped of
+the extravagant embellishments with which the devout priest, his
+biographer, has adorned it, is marvellous enough to deserve a place in
+the annals of travel and adventure. His strange life has been woven
+into a romance, "Phaulcon the Adventurer," by William Dalton, but the
+following sketch of his career, condensed from Sir John Bowring's
+translation of Pere d'Orleans' "Histoire de M. Constance," printed in
+Tours in 1690, is a better authority for our purpose.
+
+Constantine Phaulcon, or Falcon, born in Cephalonia, was the son of a
+Venetian nobleman and a Greek lady of rank. Owing to his parents'
+poverty, however, he left home when a mere boy to shift for himself, and
+presently drifted into the employ of the English East India Company.
+After several years passed in this service he accumulated money enough
+to buy a ship and embark in speculations of his own, but three
+shipwrecks following in rapid succession brought him at length into a
+desperate plight of poverty and debt. Being cast in his third
+misadventure upon the Malabar coast, he there found a fellow sufferer,
+the sole survivor of a like catastrophe, who proved to be the Siamese
+ambassador to Persia returning from his mission. Phaulcon was able with
+the little money saved in his belt to assist the ambassador to Ayuthia,
+where that officer in gratitude recommended him to the Baraclan
+(prime-minister) and the king, both of whom were delighted with his
+ability and determined to make use of him. He was first taken into
+favor, it is said, from the address with which he supplanted the Moors
+in the employment, which seemed to have been made over to them, of
+preparing the splendid entertainments and pageants that were the king's
+chief pride. Reforms introduced into this office resulted in the
+production of much more effective spectacles at a smaller expense to the
+treasury, for the Moors had indulged in some knavish practices, and when
+their dishonesty was discovered by the Greek his high place in the
+sovereign's estimation was fully assured.
+
+At this time his prosperity was interrupted by a severe illness that
+well-nigh proved fatal to the new favorite, but was turned to good
+account by Father Antoine Thomas, a Flemish Jesuit, who was passing
+through Siam on his way to join the Portuguese missions in China and
+Japan. Thoroughly alive to the importance of securing so powerful a man
+to the Roman Church, the good father adroitly converted the invalid, and
+at last had the satisfaction of receiving from Phaulcon abjuration of
+his errors and heresies and numbering him among the faithful. By the
+priest's advice, also, "he married, a few days afterward, a young
+Japanese lady of good family, distinguished not only by rank, but also
+by the blood of the martyrs from whom she was descended and whose
+virtues she imitates." It is an interesting episode in the history of
+Siam that for about a generation near the beginning of the seventeenth
+century there existed, besides the free intercourse with Western
+nations, an active exchange of commodities between this part of Cochin
+China and Japan, many of whose merchants found good employments under
+Phra Narain, the Siamese king. They proved themselves, however, to be
+such profound schemers as finally to earn the hatred of the natives, who
+drove them out in 1632. Soon after this date Japan adopted a policy of
+complete exclusion and we hear no more of her subjects in any foreign
+country.
+
+"If, as a man of talent," continues Pere d'Orleans, "Phaulcon knew how
+to avail himself of the royal favor to establish his own fortune, he
+used it no less faithfully for the glory of his master and the good of
+the state; still more, as a true Christian, for the advancement of
+religion. Up to this time he had aimed chiefly to increase commerce,
+which occupies the attention of Oriental sovereigns far more than
+politics, and had succeeded so well that the king of Siam was now one of
+the richest monarchs in Asia; but he considered that, having enriched,
+he should now endeavor to render his Sovereign illustrious by making
+known to foreign nations the noble qualities which distinguished him;
+and his chief aim being the establishment of Christianity in Siam, he
+resolved to engage his master to form treaties of friendship with those
+European monarchs who were most capable of advancing this object."
+
+We must be cautious, however, in accepting all his motives from his
+Jesuit biographer, who doubtless does him too much honor. According to
+the Dutch historian Kaempfer, Phaulcon had the fate of all his kind ever
+before his eyes, and the better to secure himself in his exalted
+position, "he thought it necessary to secure it by some foreign power,
+of which he judged the French nation to be the most proper for seconding
+his designs, which appeared even to aim at the royal dignity. In order
+to do this he made his sovereign believe that by the assistance of the
+said nation he might polish his subjects and put his dominion into a
+flourishing condition."
+
+Whatever his intentions, it is certain that Phaulcon carried his point,
+and an embassy was sent to the court of Louis XIV. In return the
+Chevalier de Chaumont, accompanied by a considerable retinue, and
+bearing royal gifts and letters, was despatched to Siam, where he
+arrived in September, 1685, and was splendidly received. Phaulcon was,
+of course, foremost among the dignitaries; the shipwrecked adventurer,
+who had risen from the position of common sailor to the post of premier
+in a rich and thriving realm, found himself receiving on terms of
+equality and in a style of magnificence that, even to European eyes,
+seemed admirable, the ambassador of the most illustrious king in Europe.
+Whether his loyalty to the sovereign whom he was bound to serve was
+always quite above the suspicion of intrigue with the French is more
+than doubtful. He greatly desired on his own behalf to effect the
+conversion of the king to Catholicism, and did what he could to support
+the arguments of the French envoy to this end. But the king, who was a
+shrewd man, refused to abandon the religion of his ancestors for that of
+these designing foreigners.
+
+"Phaulcon had long thought," says the Pere d'Orleans, "of bringing to
+Siam Jesuits who, like those in China, might introduce the Gospel at
+court through the mathematical sciences, especially astronomy. Six
+Jesuits having profited by so good an occasion as that of the embassy of
+the Chevalier de Chaumont to stop in Siam on their way to China, M.
+Constance upon seeing them begged that some might be sent to him from
+France; and for this especial object Father Tachard, one of the six, was
+requested to return to Europe." This was really the first step in
+Phaulcon's ruin; for, aware that his master could not in this way
+encourage the Christians without incurring the hatred of both the
+Buddhists and Mohammedans in the kingdom, he conceived the plan of
+begging Louis for some French troops ostensibly to accompany and support
+the missionaries, but practically to sustain his influence by force, and
+in the event of defeat to hand the country over to France. Three
+officers returned with M. de Chaumont and effected a treaty whereby
+Louis promised to send some troops to the Siamese king, "not only to
+instruct his own in our discipline, but also to be at his disposal
+according as he should need them for the security of his person, or for
+that of his kingdom. In the mean time the king of Siam would appoint the
+French soldiers to guard two places where they would be commanded by
+their own officers under the authority of this monarch." The troops and
+a dozen missionaries set out under Father Tachard's charge in 1686.
+
+But ere they arrived trouble was brewing in Siam. "The Mohammedans,"
+says the historian, "had long flattered themselves with the hope of
+inducing the king and people of Siam to accept the Koran; but when they
+saw the monarch thus closely allying himself with Christians, their
+fears were greatly excited; and the great difference which had been made
+between the French and Persian ambassadors, in the honors shown them in
+their audiences with his majesty, had so much increased the
+apprehensions of the infidels that they resolved to avert the
+apprehended misfortune by attempting the life of the king. The authors
+of this evil design were two princes of Champa and a prince of Macassar,
+all of them refugees in Siam, where the king had offered them an asylum
+against some powerful enemies of their own countries. A Malay captain
+encouraged them by prophecies which he circulated among the zealots of
+his own sect, of whom he shortly assembled a sufficient number to carry
+out the conspiracy, had it not been discovered; which, however, it
+was"--and promptly suppressed by the minister, to his great credit and
+honor at court. Phaulcon then was at the pinnacle of his power when the
+Frenchmen landed, an audience was granted and ratifications exchanged.
+
+"M. Constance had already so high an esteem for our great king [Louis],
+and the king of Siam, his master, had entered so entirely into his
+sentiments, that this sovereign, thinking the French troops were not
+sufficiently near his person, determined to ask from the king, in
+addition to the troops already landed, a company of two hundred
+body-guards. As there was much to arrange between the two monarchs for
+the establishment of religion, not only in Siam, but in many other
+places where M. Constance hoped to spread it, they resolved that Father
+Tachard should return to France, accompanied by three mandarins, to
+present to his majesty the letter from their king; and that he should
+thence proceed to Rome, to solicit from the Pope assistance in
+preserving tranquillity and spreading Christianity in the Indies.
+
+"Father Tachard, having received from the king and his minister the
+necessary orders, left his companions under the direction of M.
+Constance, and quitted Siam, accompanied by the envoys-extraordinary of
+the king, at the beginning of the year 1686. He reached Brest in the
+month of July in the same year.
+
+"Never was negotiation more successful. Occupied as was the king in
+waging war with the greater part of Europe, leagued against him by the
+Protestant party, he made no delay in equipping vessels to convey to the
+king of Siam the guards which he had requested."
+
+It is certainly not surprising that some of the Siamese noblemen should
+have looked with suspicion on the extraordinary measures which Phaulcon
+had inaugurated. With a French military force in possession of some of
+the most important points in the kingdom, and with the Roman Catholic
+religion securing for itself something like a dominant establishment, it
+is no wonder that conspiracies against the authors of the new movement
+should be repeated and ultimately successful. The king had no male heir;
+and it seemed to a nobleman named Pitraxa that the succession might as
+well come to him as to the foreigner who had already risen to such a
+dangerous authority. This time the conspiracy was more audaciously and
+triumphantly carried out. The king, who was beginning to grow old and
+infirm, was taken sick, and during his illness Pitraxa got possession of
+the royal seals, and by means of them secured supplies of arms and
+powder for the furtherance of his designs. The crisis rapidly
+approached. Phaulcon determined to arrest the chief conspirator, but was
+for once outwitted. The French forces which he summoned to his
+assistance were intercepted and turned back by a false report. Pitraxa
+made himself master of the palace, of the person of the king, and of all
+the royal family. It was evident to Phaulcon that the end had come. His
+resolution was taken accordingly.
+
+"Having with him a few Frenchmen, two Portuguese, and sixteen English
+soldiers, he called these together, and, with his confessor, entered his
+chapel that he might prepare for the death which appeared to await him;
+whence passing into his wife's chamber, he bade her farewell, saying
+that the king was a prisoner, and that he would die at his feet. He then
+went out to go direct to the palace, flattering himself that with the
+small number of Europeans who followed him, he should be able to make
+his way through the Indians, who endeavored to arrest him, so as to
+reach the king. He would have succeeded had his followers been as
+determined as himself; but on entering the first court of the palace, he
+was suddenly surrounded by a troop of Siamese soldiers. He was putting
+himself into a defensive attitude when he perceived that he was
+abandoned by all his suite except the French, so that the contest was
+too unequal to be long maintained. He was obliged to yield to the force
+of numbers, and he and the Frenchmen with him were made prisoners and
+loaded with irons."
+
+It remained for the usurper to rid himself of the French soldiers, who
+were still in possession of the two most considerable places in the
+country. Under a false pretext he won over to himself, temporarily, the
+commander of the French forces. "Upon this, six French officers who were
+at court, finding their safety endangered, resolved to leave and retire
+to Bangkok. They armed themselves, mounted on horseback, and under
+pretence of a ride, easily escaped from the guard Pitraxa had appointed
+to accompany them. It is true that, for the one they had got rid of,
+they found between Louvo and the river troops at different intervals,
+which, however, they easily passed. On reaching the river they
+discovered a boat filled with talapoins, which they seized, driving away
+its occupants. As, however, they did not take the precaution of tying
+down the rowers, they had the vexation of having them escape under cover
+of the night, each swimming away from his own side of the boat.
+Compelled to row it themselves, they soon became so weary that they
+determined to land, and continue their journey on foot. This was not
+without its difficulties, as the people, warned by the talapoins whose
+boat had been seized, and by the fugitive rowers, assembled in troops
+upon the river-side, uttering loud cries. Notwithstanding this, they
+leaped out, and gained the plains of Ayuthia, where, most unfortunately,
+they lost their way. The populace still followed them, and though not
+venturing to approach very near, never lost sight of them and continued
+to annoy them as much as possible. They might, after all, have escaped,
+had not hunger compelled them to enter into a parley for a supply of
+provisions. In answer, they were told that they would not be listened to
+until they had laid down their arms. Then these cowardly wretches,
+instead of furnishing them with provisions, threw themselves upon them,
+stripped them, and carried them bound to Ayuthia, whence they were sent
+back to Louvo most unworthily treated. A troop of three hundred
+Mohammedans, which Pitraxa on learning their flight sent in pursuit of
+them, and which met them on their return, treated them so brutally that
+one named Brecy died from the blows they inflicted. The rest were
+committed to prison on their arrival at Louvo.
+
+"From this persecution of the French fugitives, the infidels insensibly
+passed to persecuting all the Christians in Siam, as soon as they
+learned that M. Desfarges was on the road to join Pitraxa; for from that
+time the tyrant, giving way to the suspicions infused by crime and
+ambition, no longer preserved an appearance of moderation toward those
+he hated. His detestation of the Christians had been for some time kept
+within bounds by the esteem he still felt for the French; but he had no
+sooner heard of the deference shown by their general to the orders he
+had sent him, than, beginning to fear nothing, he spared none.
+
+"As the prison of M. Constance was in the interior of the palace, no one
+knows the details of his sufferings. Some say, that to make him confess
+the crimes of which he was accused, they burned the soles of his feet;
+others that an iron hoop was bound round his temples. It is certain that
+he was kept in a prison made of stakes, loaded with three heavy chains,
+and wanting even the necessaries of life, till Madame Constance, having
+discovered the place of his imprisonment, obtained permission to furnish
+him with them.
+
+"She could not long continue to do so, being soon herself in want. The
+usurper had at first appeared to respect her virtue, and had shown her
+some degree of favor; he had restored her son, who had been taken from
+her by the soldiers, and exculpated himself from the robbery. But these
+courtesies were soon discontinued. The virtues of Madame Constance had
+for a time softened the ferocity of the tyrant; but the report of her
+wealth, which he supposed to be enormous, excited his cupidity, which
+could not in any way be appeased.
+
+"On May 30th, the official seals of her husband were demanded from her;
+the next day his arms, his papers, and his clothes were carried off;
+another day boxes were sealed, and the keys taken away; a guard was
+placed before her dwelling, and a sentinel at the door of her room to
+keep her in sight. Hitherto nothing had shaken her equanimity; but this
+last insult so confounded her, that she could not help complaining.
+'What,' exclaimed she, weeping, 'what have I done to be treated like a
+criminal?' This, however, was the only complaint drawn by adversity from
+this noble Christian lady during the whole course of her trials. Even
+this emotion of weakness, so pardonable in a woman of two-and-twenty who
+had hitherto known nothing of misfortune, was quickly repaired; for two
+Jesuits who happened to be with her on this occasion, having mildly
+represented to her that Christians who have their treasure in heaven,
+and who regard it as their country, should not afflict themselves like
+pagans for the loss of wealth and freedom--'It is true,' said she,
+recovering her tranquillity: 'I was wrong, my Fathers. God gave all; He
+takes all away: may His holy name be praised! I pray only for my
+husband's deliverance.'
+
+"Scarcely two days had elapsed after the placing of the seals when a
+mandarin, followed by a hundred men, came to break them by order of his
+new master, and carried off all the money, furniture and jewels he found
+in the apartments of this splendid palace. Madame Constance had the
+firmness herself to conduct him, and to put into his hands all that he
+wished to take; after which, looking at the Fathers, who still continued
+with her, 'Now,' said she, calmly, 'God alone remains to us; but none
+can separate us from Him.'
+
+"The mandarin having retired with his booty, it was supposed she was rid
+of him, and that nothing more could be demanded from those who had been
+plundered of all their possessions. The two Jesuits had left to return
+to their own dwelling, imagining there could be nothing to fear for one
+who had been stripped of her property, and who, having committed no
+crime, seemed shielded from every other risk. In the evening it appeared
+that they were mistaken; for, about six o'clock, the same mandarin,
+accompanied by his satellites, came to demand her hidden treasures. 'I
+have nothing hidden,' she answered: 'if you doubt my word, you can look;
+you are the master here, and everything is open.' So temperate a reply
+appeared to irritate the ruffian. 'I will not seek,' said he, 'but,
+without stirring from the spot, I will compel you to bring me what I
+ask, or have you scourged to death.' So saying, the wretch gave the
+signal to the executioners, who came forward with cords to bind, and
+thick rattans to scourge her. These preparations at first bewildered the
+poor woman, thus abandoned to the fury of a ferocious brute. She uttered
+a loud cry, and throwing herself at his feet said, with a look that
+might have touched the hardest heart, 'Have pity on me!' But this
+barbarian answered with his accustomed fierceness, that he would have no
+mercy on her, ordering her to be taken and tied to the door of her room,
+and having her arms, hands and fingers cruelly beaten. At this sad
+spectacle, her grandmother, her relatives, her servants, and her son
+uttered cries which would have moved any one but this hardened wretch.
+The whole of the unhappy family cast themselves at his feet, and
+touching the ground with their foreheads, implored mercy, but in vain.
+He continued to torture her from seven to nine o'clock; and not having
+been able to gain anything, he carried her off, with all her family,
+except the grandmother, whose great age and severe illness made it
+impossible to remove her.
+
+"For some time no one knew what had become of Madame Constance, but at
+last her position was discovered. A Jesuit father was one day passing by
+the stables of her palace, when the lady's aunt, who shared her
+captivity, begged permission of the guards to address the holy man, and
+ask him for money, promising that they should share it. In this manner
+was made known the humiliating condition of this unhappy and illustrious
+lady, shut up in a stable, where, half dead from the sufferings she had
+endured, she lay stretched upon a piece of matting, her son at her side.
+The father daily sent her provisions, which were the only means of
+subsistence for herself and family, to whom she distributed food with so
+small a regard for her own wants, that a little rice and dried fish were
+all that she took for her own share, she having made a vow to abstain
+from meat for the rest of her life.
+
+"Up to this time, the grand mandarin had not ventured to put an end to
+the existence of M. Constance, whom the French general had sent to
+demand, as being under the protection of the king, his master; but now,
+judging that there was nothing more to fear either from him or from his
+friends, he resolved to get rid of him. It was on the 5th of June,
+Whitsun-eve, that he ordered his execution by the Phaja Sojatan, his
+son, after having, without any form of trial, caused to be read in the
+palace the sentence of death given by himself against this minister,
+whom he accused of having leagued with his enemies. This sentence
+pronounced, the accused was mounted on an elephant, and taken, well
+guarded, into the forest of Thale-Phutson, as if the tyrant had chosen
+the horrors of solitude to bury in oblivion an unjust and cruel deed.
+
+"Those who conducted him remarked that during the whole way he appeared
+perfectly calm, praying earnestly, and often repeating aloud the names
+of Jesus and of Mary.
+
+"When they reached the place of execution, he was ordered to dismount,
+and told that he must prepare to die. The approach of death did not
+alarm him; he saw it near as he had seen it at a distance, and with the
+same intrepidity. He asked of the Sojatan only a few moments to finish
+his prayer, which he did kneeling, with so touching an air, that these
+heathens were moved by it. His petitions concluded, he lifted his hands
+toward heaven, and protesting his innocence, declared that he died
+willingly, having the testimony of his conscience that, as a minister,
+he had acted solely for the glory of the true God, the service of the
+King, and the welfare of the state; that he forgave his enemies, as he
+hoped himself to be forgiven by God. 'For the rest, my lord,' said he,
+turning to the Sojatan, 'were I as guilty as my enemies declare me, my
+wife and my son are innocent: I commend them to your protection, asking
+for them neither wealth nor position, but only life and liberty.' Having
+uttered these few words, he meekly raised his eyes to heaven, showing by
+his silence that he was ready to receive the fatal blow.
+
+"An executioner advanced, and cut him in two with a back stroke of his
+sabre, which brought him to the ground, heaving one last, long sigh.
+
+"Thus died, at the age of forty-one, in the very prime of life, this
+distinguished man, whose sublime genius, political skill, great energy
+and penetration, warm zeal for religion, and strong attachment to the
+King, his master, rendered him worthy of a longer life and of a happier
+destiny.
+
+"Who can describe the grief of Madame Constance at the melancholy news
+of her husband's death?
+
+"This illustrious descendant of Japanese martyrs was subjected to
+incredible persecutions, which she endured to the end with heroic
+constancy and wonderful resignation."
+
+From this edifying narrative, grandiloquent and devout by turns, and
+written from the Jesuit point of view, it is sufficiently surprising to
+turn to Kaempfer's brief and prosaic account of the same events.
+According to him the intrigue and treachery was wholly on the side of
+Phaulcon, who had planned to place on the throne the king's son-in-law,
+Moupi-Tatso, a dependent and tool of his own, as soon as the sick king,
+whose increasing dropsy threatened him with sudden dissolution, should
+be dead; Pitraxa and his sons, the king's two brothers, as presumptive
+heirs to the crown, and whoever else was like to oppose the
+conspirator's designs, were to be despatched out of the way. "Pursuant
+to this scheme, Moupi's father and relations had already raised one
+thousand four hundred men, who lay dispersed through the country; and
+the better to facilitate the execution of this design, Phaulcon
+persuaded the sick king, having found means to introduce himself into
+his apartment in private, that it would be very much for the security of
+his person, during the ill state of his health, to send for the French
+general and part of his garrison up to Louvo, where the king then was,
+being a city fifteen leagues north of Ayuthia, and the usual place of
+the king's residence, where he used to spend the greater part of his
+time. General des Farges being on his way thither, the conspiracy was
+discovered by Pitraxa's own son, who happening to be with two of the
+king's concubines in an apartment adjoining that where the conspirators
+were, had the curiosity to listen at the door, and having heard the
+bloody resolution that had been taken, immediately repaired to his
+father to inform him of it. Pitraxa without loss of time acquainted the
+king with this conspiracy, and then sent for Moupi, Phaulcon, and the
+mandarins of their party, as also for the captain of the guards, to
+court, and caused the criminals forthwith to be put in irons,
+notwithstanding the king expressed the greatest displeasure at his so
+doing. Phaulcon had for some time absented himself from court, but now
+being summoned, he could no longer excuse himself, though dreading some
+ill event: it is said he took leave of his family in a very melancholy
+manner. Soon after, his silver chair, wherein he was usually carried,
+came back empty--a bad omen to his friends and domestics, who could not
+but prepare themselves to partake in their master's misfortune. This
+happened May 19th, in the year 1689. Two days after, Pitraxa ordered,
+against the king's will, Moupi's head to be struck off, throwing it at
+Phaulcon's feet, then loaded with irons, with this reproach: 'See, there
+is your king!' The unfortunate sick king, heartily sorry for the death
+of his dearest Moupi, earnestly desired that the deceased's body might
+not be exposed to any further shame, but decently buried, which was
+accordingly complied with. Moupi's father was seized by stratagem upon
+his estate between Ayuthia and Louvo, and all their adherents were
+dispersed. Phaulcon, after having been tortured and starved for fourteen
+days, and thereby reduced almost to a skeleton, had at last his irons
+taken off, and was carried away after sunset in an ordinary chair,
+unknowing what would be his fate. He was first carried to his house,
+which he found rifled: his wife lay a prisoner in the stable, who, far
+from taking leave of him, spit in his face, and would not so much as
+suffer him to kiss his only remaining son of four years of age, another
+son being lately dead and still unburied. From thence he was carried out
+of town to the place of execution, where, notwithstanding all his
+reluctancy, he had his head cut off. His body was divided into two
+parts, and covered with a little earth, which the dogs scratched away in
+the night-time, and devoured the corpse to the bones. Before he died he
+took his seal, two silver crosses, a relic set in gold which he wore on
+his breast, being a present from the Pope, as also the order of St.
+Michael which was sent him by the King of France, and delivered them to
+a mandarin who stood by, desiring him to give them to his little
+son--presents, indeed, that could be of no great use to the poor child,
+who to this day, with his mother, goes begging from door to door, nobody
+daring to intercede for them."[4]
+
+It seems to be growing every year more difficult to form positive
+opinions concerning the various characters with whom history makes us
+acquainted, and we have here a sufficiently wide choice between two
+opposite estimates of poor Phaulcon. But whichever estimate we adopt,
+it remains abundantly evident that his career is one of the most
+romantic and extraordinary in the world. Venetian by descent, Greek by
+birth, English by avocation, Siamese by choice and fortune; at first
+almost a beggar, a shipwrecked adventurer against whom fate seemed
+hopelessly adverse, he became the chief actor in a scheme of dominion
+which might have given to France a realm rivalling in wealth and
+grandeur the British possessions in India.
+
+Some traces of the public works of which Phaulcon was the founder still
+remain to show the nature of the internal improvements which he
+inaugurated. His scheme of foreign alliance was a failure, but that he
+did much to develop the resources of the kingdom there would seem to be
+no doubt. "At Lopha-buri," says Sir John Bowring, "a city founded about
+A.D. 600, the palace of Phaulcon still exists: and there are the remains
+of a Christian church founded by him, in which, some of the traditions
+say, he was put to death. I brought with me from Bangkok, the capital,
+one of the columns of the church, richly carved and gilded, as a relic
+of the first[5] Christian temple erected in Siam, and as associated with
+the history of that singular, long-successful and finally sacrificed
+adventurer. The words _Jesus Hominum Salvator_ are still inscribed over
+the canopy of the altar, upon which the image of Buddha now sits to be
+worshipped."
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[4] History of Japan, vol. i., pp. 19-21. London, 1728; quoted in
+Bowring.
+
+[5] Sir John Bowring was mistaken. It seems to be well enough
+established that one or two Christian churches were built by the
+Portuguese, a century before the date of Phaulcon's career.
+
+
+
+
+                          CHAPTER V.
+
+                         MODERN SIAM
+
+
+The present king of Siam is the fourth in succession from that
+distinguished general who was at first the friend and companion, and at
+last something like the murderer of the renowned Phya Tak, the founder
+of the new capital, and indeed of the new kingdom of Siam. For, with the
+fall of Ayuthia and the removal of the seat of government to Bangkok,
+the country entered on a new era of prosperity and progress. Bangkok is
+not far from sixty miles nearer to the mouth of the river than Ayuthia,
+and the geographical change was significant of an advance toward the
+other nations of the world and of more intimate relations of commerce
+and friendship with them. The founder of this dynasty reigned
+prosperously for twenty-seven years, and under his sway the country
+enjoyed the repose and peace which after a period of prolonged and
+devastating war it so greatly needed. After him his son continued the
+pacific administration of the government for fourteen years, until 1824.
+At the death of this king (the second of the new dynasty), who left as
+heirs to the throne two sons of the same mother, the succession was
+usurped by an illegitimate son, who contrived by cunning management and
+by a readiness to avail himself of force, if it was needed, to possess
+himself of the sovereignty, and to be confirmed in it by the nobles and
+council of state. The two legitimate sons of the dead king, the oldest
+of whom had been expressly named to succeed his father, were placed by
+this usurpation in a position of extreme peril; and the elder of the two
+retired at once into a Buddhist monastery as a _talapoin_, where he was
+safe from molestation and could wait his time to claim his birthright.
+The younger son, as having less to fear, took public office under the
+usurper and acquainted himself with the cares and responsibilities of
+government.
+
+After a reign of twenty-seven years, closing in the year 1851, the
+usurper died. His reign was marked by some events of extraordinary
+interest. His royal palace was destroyed by fire, but afterward rebuilt
+upon a larger scale and in a better style. And various military
+expeditions against adjoining countries were undertaken with results of
+more or less importance. The most interesting of these expeditions was
+that against the Laos country, a brief account of which by an
+intelligent and able writer is quoted in Bowring's book. As a picture of
+the style of warfare and the barbarous cruelties of a successful
+campaign, it is striking and instructive. It is as follows:
+
+"The expedition against Laos was successful. As usual in Siamese
+warfare, they laid waste the country, plundered the inhabitants, brought
+them to Bangkok, sold them and gave them away as slaves. The prince Vun
+Chow and family made their escape into Cochin China; but instead of
+meeting with a friendly reception they were seized by the king of that
+country and delivered as prisoners to the Siamese. The king (of Laos)
+arrived in Bangkok about the latter end of 1828, and underwent there the
+greatest cruelties barbarians could invent. He was confined in a large
+iron cage, exposed to a burning sun, and obliged to proclaim to every
+one that the king of Siam was great and merciful, that he himself had
+committed a great error, and deserved his present punishment. In this
+cage were placed with the prisoner a large mortar to pound him in, a
+large boiler to boil him in, a hook to hang him by and a sword to
+decapitate him; also a sharp pointed spike for him to sit on. His
+children were sometimes put in along with him. He was a mild,
+respectable-looking, old, gray-headed man, and did not live long to
+gratify his tormentors, death having put an end to his sufferings. His
+body was taken and hung in chains on the bank of the river, about two or
+three miles below Bangkok. The conditions on which the Cochin Chinese
+gave up Chow Vun Chow were, that the king of Siam would appoint a new
+prince to govern the Laos country, who should be approved of by the
+Cochin Chinese, and that the court of Siam should deliver up the persons
+belonging to the Siamese army who attacked and killed some Cochin
+Chinese during the Laos war."
+
+It is safe to say that the kingdom has by this time made such progress
+in civilization that a picture of barbarism and cruelty like that which
+is given in the above narrative could not possibly be repeated in Siam
+to-day.
+
+The reign of this king was noteworthy for the treaty of commerce between
+Great Britain and Siam, negotiated by Captain Burney, as also for other
+negotiations tending to similar and larger intercourse with other
+countries, especially with the United States. But the concessions
+granted were ungenerous, and a spirit of jealousy and dislike continued
+to govern the conduct of Siam toward other nations.
+
+Notwithstanding the slow growth of that enlightened confidence which is
+the only sure guaranty of commercial prosperity, Siam was brought into
+connection with the outside world through the labors of the
+missionaries, both Roman Catholic and Protestant, who, during the reign
+of this king, established themselves in the country. Some more detailed
+reference to the labors and successes of the missionaries will be made
+in a subsequent chapter. It is by means of these self-sacrificing and
+devoted men that the great advances which Siam has made have been
+chiefly brought about. The silent influence which they were exerting
+during this period, from 1824 to 1851, was really the great fact of the
+reign of the king Phra Chao Pravat Thong. Once or twice the king became
+suspicious of them, and attempted to hinder or to put an end to their
+labors. In 1848 he went so far as to issue an edict against the Roman
+Catholic missionaries, commanding the destruction of all their places of
+worship; but the edict was only partially carried into execution. The
+change which has taken place in the attitude of the government in regard
+to religious liberty, and the sentiments of the present king in regard
+to it, are best expressed by a royal proclamation issued during the year
+1870, a quotation from which is given in the Bangkok Calendar for the
+next year ensuing, introduced by a brief note from the editor, the Rev.
+D. B. Bradley.
+
+"The following translation is an extract from the Royal Siamese Calendar
+for the current year. It is issued by the authority of his majesty, the
+supreme king, and is to me quite interesting in many respects, but
+especially in the freedom it accords to all Siamese subjects in the
+great concerns of their religion. Having near the close of the pamphlet
+given good moral lessons, the paper concludes with the following noble
+sentiments, and very remarkable for a heathen king to promulgate:
+
+"In regard to the concern of seeking and holding a religion that shall
+be a refuge to yourself in this life, it is a good concern and
+exceedingly appropriate and suitable that you all--every individual of
+you--should investigate and judge for himself according to his own
+wisdom. And when you see any religion whatever, or any company of
+religionists whatever, likely to be of advantage to yourself, a refuge
+in accord with your own wisdom, hold to that religion with all your
+heart. Hold it not with a shallow mind, with mere guess-work, or because
+of its general popularity, or from mere traditional saying that it is
+the _custom_ held from time immemorial; and do not hold a religion that
+you have not good evidence is true, and then frighten men's fears, and
+flatter their hopes by it. Do not be frightened and astonished at
+diverse events (fictitious wonders) and hold to and follow them. When
+you shall have obtained a refuge, a religious faith that is beautiful
+and good and suitable, hold to it with great joy, and follow its
+teachings, and it will be a cause of prosperity to each one of you."
+
+The contrast between the state of things represented by this document
+and that exemplified by the story of the treatment of the captive king
+of Laos is sufficiently striking. The man who tortured the king of Laos
+was the uncle of the young man who is now on the throne. But between the
+two--covering the period from the year 1851 to the year 1868--was a king
+whose character and history entitle him to be ranked among the most
+extraordinary and admirable rulers of modern times. To this man and his
+younger brother, who reigned conjointly as first and second kings, is
+due the honor of giving to their realm an honorable place among the
+nations of the world and putting it in the van of progress among the
+kingdoms of the far East.
+
+It seemed at first a misfortune that these two brothers should have been
+so long kept out of their rightful dignities by their comparatively
+coarse and cruel half-brother, who usurped the throne. But it proved in
+the end, both for them and for the world, a great advantage. The
+usurper, when he seized the throne, promised to hold it for a few years
+only and to restore it to its rightful heirs as soon as their growth in
+years and in experience should fit them to govern. So far was he,
+however, from making good his words that he had made all his
+arrangements to put his own son in his place. Having held the
+sovereignty for twenty-seven years the desire to perpetuate it in his
+own line was natural. And as he had about seven hundred wives there was
+no lack of children from among whom he might choose his heir. In 1851
+he was taken sick, and it was evident that his end was at hand. At this
+crisis, says Sir John Bowring:
+
+"The energy of the Praklang (the present Kalahom) saved the nation from
+the miseries of disputed succession. The Praklang's eldest son, Phya
+Sisuriwong, held the fortresses of Paknam, and, with the aid of his
+powerful family, placed Chau Fa Tai upon the throne, and was made
+Kalahom, being at once advanced ten steps and to the position the most
+influential in the kingdom, that of prime-minister. On March 18, 1851,
+the Praklang proposed to the council of nobles the nomination of Chau Fa
+Tai; he held bold language, carried his point, and the next day
+communicated the proceedings to the elected sovereign in his _wat_ (or
+temple), everybody, even rival candidates, having given in their
+adhesion. By general consent, Chau Fa Noi was raised to the rank of
+wangna, or second king, having, it is said, one third of the revenues
+with a separate palace and establishment."
+
+It is difficult to determine how the custom of two kings reigning at
+once could have originated, and how far back in the history of Siam it
+is to be traced. It is possible that it originated with the present
+dynasty, for the founder of this dynasty had a brother with whom he was
+closely intimate, who shared his fortunes when they were generals
+together under Phya Tak, and who might naturally enough have become his
+colleague when he ascended the throne. Under the reign of the uncle of
+the present king the office of the second king was abolished. It was
+restored again at the next succession, but was finally abolished upon
+the death of King George in 1885.
+
+
+
+
+                         CHAPTER VI.
+
+                      FIRST IMPRESSIONS
+
+
+The entrance into the kingdom of Siam by the great river, which divides
+the country east and west, brings the traveller at once into all the
+richness and variety of tropical nature, and is well suited to produce
+an impression of the singular beauty and the vast resources of the "Land
+of the White Elephant." For this is the name which may properly be given
+to the kingdom since the flag of the country has been established. A
+very curious flag it makes--the white elephant on a red field--and very
+oddly it must look if ever it is necessary to hoist it upside down as a
+signal of distress; a signal eloquent indeed, for anything more helpless
+and distressing than this clumpsy quadruped in that position can hardly
+be imagined.
+
+The editor of this volume, who visited Siam in one of the vessels of the
+United States East India Squadron in 1857, and who was present at the
+exchange of ratifications of the treaty made in the previous year, has
+elsewhere described[6] the impressions which were made upon him at his
+first entrance into the country of the Meinam, and reproduces his own
+narrative, substantially unaltered, in this and the two following
+chapters.
+
+There is enough to see in Siam, if only it could be described. But
+nothing is harder than to convey in words the indescribable charm of
+tropical life and scenery; and it was in this, in great measure, that
+the enjoyment of my month in Bangkok consisted. Always behind the events
+which occupied us day by day, and behind the men and things with which
+we had to do, was the pervading charm of tropical nature--of soft warm
+sky, with floating fleecy clouds and infinite depths of blue beyond
+them; of golden sunlight flooding everything by day; and when the day
+dies its sudden death, of mellow moonlight, as if from a perennial
+harvest moon; and of stars, that do not glitter with a hard and pointed
+radiance, as here, but melt through the mild air with glory in which
+there is never any thought of "twinkling." Always there was the teeming
+life of land and sea, of jungle and of river; and the varying influence
+of fruitful nature, captivating every sense with sweet allurement. Read
+Mr. Tennyson's "Lotos Eaters" if you want to know what the tropics are.
+
+It was drawing toward the middle of a splendid night in May, when I
+found myself among the "palms and temples" of this singular city. It had
+been a tiresome journey from the mouth of the river, rowing more than a
+score of miles against the rapid current; and, if there could be
+monotony in the wonderful variety and richness of tropical nature, it
+might have been a monotonous journey. But the wealth of foliage, rising
+sometimes in the feathery plumes of the tall areca palm--of all palms
+the stateliest--or drooping sometimes in heavier and larger masses,
+crowding to the water's edge in dense, impenetrable jungle, or checked
+here and there by the toil of cultivation, or cleared for dwellings--was
+a constant wonder and delight. Now and then we passed a bamboo house,
+raised high on poles above the ground, and looking like some monstrous
+bird's nest in the trees; but they were featherless bipeds who peered
+out from the branches at the passing boats; and not bird's notes but
+children's voices, that clamored in wonder or were silenced in awe at
+the white-faced strangers. Sometimes the white walls and shining roofs
+of temples gleamed through the dark verdure, suggesting the
+architectural magnificence and beauty which the statelier temples of the
+city would exhibit. Bald-headed priests, in orange-colored scarfs, came
+out to watch us. Superb white pelicans stood pensive by the river-side,
+or snatched at fish, or sailed on snowy wings with quiet majesty across
+the stream. Or maybe some inquiring monkey, gray-whiskered, leading two
+or three of tenderer years, as if he were their tutor, on a naturalist's
+expedition through the jungle, stops to look at us with peculiar
+curiosity, as at some singular and unexpected specimen, but stands ready
+to dodge behind the roots of mangrove trees in case of danger.
+
+It will be fortunate for the traveller if, while he is rowing up the
+river, night shall overtake him; for, beside the splendor of the tropic
+stars above him, there will be rival splendors all about him. The night
+came down on me with startling suddenness--for "there is no twilight
+within the courts of the sun"--just as I was waiting at the mouth of a
+cross-cut canal, by which, when the tide should rise a little, I might
+avoid a long bend in the river. By the time the tide had risen the night
+had fallen thick and dark, and the dense shade of the jungle, through
+which the canal led us, made it yet thicker and more dark. Great fern
+leaves, ten or fifteen feet in height, grew dense on either side, and
+fanlike, almost met over our heads. Above them stretched the forest
+trees. Among them rose the noise of night-birds, lizards,
+trumpeter-beetles, and creatures countless and various, making a hoarse
+din, which, if it was not musical, at least was lively. But the jungle,
+with its darkness and its din, had such a beauty as I never have seen
+equalled, when its myriad fire-flies sparkled thick on every side. I had
+seen fire-flies before, and had heard of them, but I had never seen or
+heard, nor have I since then ever seen or heard, of anything like these.
+The peculiarity of them was--not that they were so many, though they
+were innumerable--not that they were so large, though they were very
+large--but that they clustered, as by a preconcerted plan, on certain
+kinds of trees, avoiding carefully all other kinds, and then, as if by
+signal from some director of the spectacle, they all sent forth their
+light at once, at simultaneous and exact intervals, so that the whole
+tree seemed to flash and palpitate with living light. Imagine it. At one
+instant was blackness of darkness and the croaking jungle. Then suddenly
+on every side flashed out these fiery trees, the form of each, from
+topmost twig to outmost bough, set thick with flaming jewels. It was
+easy to imagine at the top of each some big white-waistcoated fire-fly,
+with the baton of director, ordering the movements of the rest.
+
+[Illustration: GENERAL VIEW OF BANGKOK.]
+
+This peculiarity of the Siamese fire-flies, or, as our popular term
+graphically describes them, the tropical "lightning-bugs" was noticed as
+long ago as the time of old Kaempfer, who speaks concerning them as
+follows:
+
+"The glow-worms settle on some trees like a fiery cloud, with this
+surprising circumstance, that a whole swarm of these insects, having
+taken possession of one tree and spread themselves over its branches,
+sometimes hide their light all at once, and a moment after make it
+appear again, with the utmost regularity and exactness, as if they were
+in perpetual systole and diastole." The lapse of centuries has wrought
+no change in the rhythmic regularity of this surprising exhibition. Out
+upon the river once again; the houses on the shore began to be more
+numerous, and presently began to crowd together in continuous
+succession; and from some of them the sound of merry laughter and of
+pleasant music issuing proved that not all the citizens of Bangkok were
+asleep. The soft light of the cocoanut-oil lamps supplied the place of
+the illumination of the fire-flies. Boats, large and small, were passing
+swiftly up and down the stream; now and then the tall masts of some
+merchant ships loomed indistinctly large through the darkness. I could
+dimly see high towers of temples and broad roofs of palaces; and I
+stepped on shore, at last, on the
+
+    "Dark shore, just seen that it was rich,"
+
+with a half-bewildered feeling that I was passing through some pleasant
+dream of the Arabian Nights, from which I should presently awake.
+
+Even when the flooding sunlight of the tropical morning poured in
+through the windows, it was difficult for me to realize that I was not
+in some unreal land. There was a sweet, low sound of music filling the
+air with its clear, liquid tones. And, joining with the music, was the
+pleasant ringing of a multitude of little bells, ringing I knew not
+where. It seemed as if the air was full of them. Close by, on one side,
+was the palace of a prince, and somewhere in his house or in his
+courtyard there were people playing upon instruments of music, made of
+smoothed and hollowed bamboo. But no human hands were busy with the
+bells. Within a stone's throw of my window rose the shining tower of the
+most splendid temple in Bangkok. From its broad octagonal base to the
+tip of its splendid spire it must measure, I should think, a good deal
+more than two hundred feet, and every inch of its irregular surface
+glitters with ornament. Curiously wrought into it are forms of men and
+birds, and grotesque beasts that seem, with outstretched hands or claws,
+to hold it up. Two thirds of the way from the base, stand, I remember,
+four white elephants, wrought in shining porcelain, facing one each way
+toward four points of the compass. From the rounded summit rises, like a
+needle, a sharp spire. This was the temple tower, and all over the
+magnificent pile, from the tip of the highest needle to the base, from
+every prominent angle and projection, there were hanging sweet-toned
+bells, with little gilded fans attached to their tongues; so swinging
+that they were vocal in the slightest breeze. Here was where the music
+came from. Even as I stood and looked I caught the breezes at it. Coming
+from the unseen distance, rippling the smooth surface of the swift
+river, where busy oars and carved or gilded prows of many boats were
+flashing in the sun, sweeping with pleasant whispers through the varied
+richness of the tropical foliage, stealing the perfume of its blossoms
+and the odor of its fruits, they caught the shining bells of this great
+tower, and tossed the music out of them. Was I awake I wondered, or was
+it some dream of Oriental beauty that would presently vanish?
+
+Something like this AEolian tower there must be in the adjacent kingdom
+of Birmah, where the graceful pen of Mrs. Judson has put the scene in
+verse:
+
+            "On the pagoda spire
+              The bells are swinging,
+    Their little golden circlets in a flutter
+    With tales the wooing winds have dared to utter;
+            Till all are ringing,
+              As if a choir
+    Of golden-nested birds in heaven were singing;
+            And with a lulling sound
+            The music floats around
+    And drops like balm into the drowsy ear."
+
+The verse breathes the spirit, and gives almost the very sound, of the
+bewitching tropical scene on which I looked, and out of which "the music
+of the bells" was blown to me on my first morning in Bangkok.
+
+No doubt my first impressions (which I have given with some detail, and
+with all the directness of "that right line I") were fortunate. But
+three or four weeks of Bangkok could not wear them off or counteract
+them. It is the Venice of the East. Its highway is the river, and canals
+are its by-ways. There are streets, as in Venice, used by pedestrians;
+but the travel and the carriage is, for the most part, done by boats.
+Only, in place of the verdureless margin of the watery streets, which
+gives to Venice, with all its beauty, a half-dreary aspect, there is
+greenest foliage shadowing the water, and mingling with the dwellings,
+and palaces, and temples on the shore; and instead of the funeral
+gondolas of monotonous color, with solitary _gondoliers_, are boats of
+every size and variety, paddled sometimes by one, sometimes by a score
+of oarsmen. Some of the bamboo dwellings of the humbler classes are
+built, literally, on the river, floating on rafts, a block of them
+together, or raised on poles above the surface of the water. The shops
+expose their goods upon the river side, and wait for custom from the
+thronging boats. The temples and the palaces must stand, of course, on
+solid ground, but the river is the great Broadway, and houses crowd upon
+the channel of the boats, and boats bump the houses. It is a picturesque
+and busy scene on which you look as you pass on amid the throng. Royal
+boats, with carved and gilded prows, with shouting oarsmen, rush by you,
+hurrying with the rapid current; or the little skiff of some small
+pedler, with his assortment of various "notions," paddling and peddling
+by turns, is dexterously urged along its way. Amid all this motion and
+traffic is that charm of silence which makes Venice so dream-like. No
+rumble of wheels nor clatter of hoofs disturbs you. Only the sound of
+voices, softened as it comes along the smooth water, or the music of a
+palace, or the tinkling of the bells of a pagoda, break the stillness.
+It is a beautiful Broadway, without the Broadway roar and din.
+
+Of course there is not, in this tropical Venice, anything to equal the
+incomparable architectural beauty of the Adriatic city. And yet it
+seemed to me that the architecture of Siam was in very perfect accord
+with all its natural surroundings. In all parts of the city you may find
+the "wats" or temples. When we started on our first day's sight-seeing,
+and told the old Portuguese half-breed, who acted as our interpreter, to
+take us to a "wat," he asked, with a pun of embarrassment, "What wat?"
+Of course we must begin with the pagoda of innumerable bells, but where
+to stop we knew not. Temple after temple waited to be seen. Through
+long, dim corridors, crowded with rows of solemn idols carved and
+gilded; through spacious open courts paved with large slabs of marble,
+and filled with graceful spires or shafts or columns; along white walls
+with gilded eaves and cornices; beneath arches lined with gold, to
+sacred doors of ebony, or pearly gates of iridescent beauty; amid
+grotesque stone statues, or queer paintings of the Buddhist _inferno_
+(strangely similar to the mediaeval Christian representations of the same
+subject), you may wander till you are tired. You may happen to come upon
+the _bonzes_ at their devotions, or you may have the silent temples to
+yourself. In one of them you will find that clumsy, colossal image, too
+big to stand, and built recumbent, therefore--a great mass of heavy
+masonry, covered thick with gilding, and measuring a hundred and fifty
+feet in length. If you could stand him up, his foot would cover eighteen
+feet--an elephantine monster. But the roofs, of glazed tiles, with a
+centre of dark green and with a golden margin, are the greatest charm of
+the temples. Climb some pagoda and look down upon the city, and, on
+every side, among the "breadths of tropic shade and palms in cluster,"
+you will see the white walls roofed with shining green and gold, and
+surmounted by their gilded towers and spires. Like the temples are the
+palaces, but less splendid. But everywhere, whether in temples or
+palaces, you will find, not rude, barbaric tawdriness of style, but
+elegance and skill of which the Western nations might be proud. Good
+taste, and a quick sense of beauty, and the ability to express them in
+their handiwork, all these are constantly indicated in the architecture
+of this people. And they make the city one of almost unrivalled
+picturesqueness to the traveller, who glides from river to canal and
+from canal to river, under the shadow of the temple towers, and among
+the shining walls of stately palaces.
+
+Where so much wealth is lavished on the public buildings there must be
+great resources to draw from; and, indeed, the mineral wealth of the
+country appears at almost every turn. Precious stones and the precious
+metals seem as frequent as the fire-flies in the jungle. Sometimes, as
+in the silver currency, there is an absence of all workmanship; the
+coinage being little lumps of silver, rudely rolled together in a mass
+and stamped. But sometimes, as in the teapots, betel-nut boxes,
+cigar-holders, with which the noblemen are provided when they go abroad,
+you will see workmanship of no mean skill. Often these vessels are
+elegantly wrought. Sometimes they are studded with jewels, sometimes
+they are beautifully enamelled in divers colors. Once I called upon a
+noble, who brought out a large assortment of uncut stones--some of them
+of great value--and passed them to me as one would a snuff-box, not
+content till I had helped myself. More than once I have seen children of
+the nobles with no covering at all, except the strings of jewelled gold
+that hung, in barbarous opulence, upon their necks and shoulders; but
+there was wealth enough in these to fit the little fellows with a very
+large assortment of most fashionable and Christian apparel, even at the
+ruinous rate of tailors' prices at the present day. To go about among
+these urchins, and among the houses of the nobles and the king's
+palaces, gives one the half-bewildered and half-covetous feeling that it
+gives to be conducted by polite but scrutinizing attendants through a
+mint. Surely we had come at last to
+
+    "Where the gorgeous East, with richest hand,
+    Showers on her kings barbaric pearl and gold."
+
+Of course, of all this wealth the king's share was the lion's share.
+
+Then, as for vegetable wealth, I do not know that there is anywhere a
+richer valley in the world than the valley of the Meinam. All the
+productions of the teeming tropics may grow luxuriantly here. There was
+rice enough in Siam the year before my visit to feed the native
+population and to supply the failure of the rice crop in Southern China,
+preventing thus the havoc of a famine in that crowded empire, and making
+fortunes for the merchants who were prompt enough to carry it from
+Bangkok to Canton. Cotton grows freely beneath that burning sky. Sugar,
+pepper, and all spices may be had with easy cultivation. There is
+gutta-percha in the forests. There are dye-stuffs and medicines in the
+jungles. The painter gets his gamboge, as its name implies, from
+Cambodia, which is tributary to their majesties of Bangkok. As for the
+fruits, I cannot number them nor describe them. The mangostene, most
+delicate and most rare of them all, grows only in Siam, and in the lands
+adjacent to the Straits of Sunda and Malacca. Some things we may have
+which Siam cannot have, but the mangostene is her peculiar glory, and
+she will not lend it. Beautiful to sight, smell, and taste, it hangs
+among its glossy leaves, the prince of fruits. Cut through the shaded
+green and purple of the rind, and lift the upper half as if it were the
+cover of a dish, and the pulp of half transparent, creamy whiteness
+stands in segments like an orange, but rimmed with darkest crimson where
+the rind was cut. It looks too beautiful to eat; but how the rarest,
+sweetest essence of the tropics seems to dwell in it as it melts to your
+delighted taste!
+
+This is the Land of the White Elephant, so singular, so rich, so
+beautiful; but we need also to tell what manner of men the people are
+who live beneath the standard of the elephant, or what kings and nobles
+govern them.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[6] Hours at Home, vol. iv., pp. 464, 531; vol. v., p. 66.
+
+
+
+
+                         CHAPTER VII.
+
+                      A ROYAL GENTLEMAN
+
+
+Soon after arriving in Bangkok, in 1857, on the occasion referred to in
+the last chapter, the present editor was invited to an interview with
+the second king. The account of that interview was written while it was
+still a matter of recent memory; and it seems better to reproduce the
+story, for the sake of the freshness with which the incidents described
+in it were recorded, rather than to attempt the rewriting of it. It is a
+characteristic picture of an extraordinary man, and of the manners and
+customs which still prevail for the most part (with some important
+exceptions) at the court of Siam. This king was the grandson of the
+founder of the present dynasty, and was the junior of the two princes
+who, by the usurpation of their half-brother, were, for twenty-seven
+years, kept out of their birthright. Even so long ago as 1837, an
+intelligent traveller who visited Siam said concerning him: "No man in
+the kingdom is so qualified to govern well. His naturally fine mind is
+enlarged and improved by intercourse with foreigners, by the perusal of
+English works, by studying Euclid and Newton, by freeing himself from a
+bigoted attachment to Buddhism, by candidly recognizing our superiority
+and a readiness to adopt our arts. He understands the use of the
+sextant and chronometer, and was anxious for the latest Nautical
+Almanac, which I promised to send him. His little daughters, accustomed
+to the sight of foreigners, so far from showing any signs of fear,
+always came to sit upon my lap, though the yellow cosmetic on their
+limbs was sure to be transferred in part to my dress. One of them took
+pride in repeating to me a few words of English, and the other took care
+to display her power of projecting the elbow forward,"--an
+accomplishment upon which the ladies of Siam still pride themselves, and
+in which they are extraordinarily expert.
+
+This was in 1837. How greatly the character of the second king had
+developed since that time will appear from the editor's description,
+which refers, as has been said, to the year 1857.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+One king at a time is commonly thought to be as much as any kingdom has
+need of. Indeed, there seems to be a growing tendency among the nations
+of the earth to think that even one is one too many, and the popular
+prejudice is setting very strongly in favor of none at all.
+Nevertheless, there are in Siam (or rather, until very recently, there
+were) two kings reigning together, each with the full rank and title of
+king, and with no rivalry between them. It is probable that, originally,
+a monarchy was the normal condition of the government, and that the
+duarchy is of comparatively modern origin. But it is certain that when I
+was in the Land of the White Elephant there was a kind of Siamese-twin
+arrangement in the kingdom. The two kings were brothers, and though, as
+has been said, their rank and title were equal, the real power and work
+of government rested on the shoulders of the elder of the two, the other
+keeping discreetly and contentedly in the background. Both were men of
+noteworthy ability, and deserve to be known and honored for their
+personal attainments in civilization, and for what they have done to
+lift their kingdom out of degradation and barbarism, and to welcome and
+promote intercourse between it and the Western nations. When we remember
+the obstinacy of Oriental prejudice against innovation, and the
+persistency with which the people wrap themselves in their conceit as in
+a garment, we shall the better appreciate the state of things at the
+court of the White Elephant, which I am about to describe.
+
+The second king was a man of social disposition, and fond of the company
+of strangers. It was, doubtless, owing to this fact that when he heard
+that there was an American man-of-war at the mouth of the river, and
+that an officer had been sent up to Bangkok to report her arrival, he
+sent a messenger and a boat with the request that I would come and see
+him. It did not take long for the score of oarsmen, with the short,
+quick motion of their paddles, and the grunting energy with which they
+plied them, to bring the boat up to the palace gates. For, of course,
+the palace has a water-front, and one may pass at one step from among
+the thronging boats of the river into the quiet seclusion of the king's
+inclosure. Passing through a lofty gateway at the water's edge, we came
+to a large and stately temple, about which were priests in
+orange-colored drapery trying to screen their shining skulls from the
+fierce heat of the morning sun by means of fans. I used to feel sorry
+for the priests. Ecclesiastical law and usage compel them to shave every
+sign of hair from their heads. Not even a tail is left to them, but they
+are as bald as beetles. And when (as in Siam) the sun's rays beat with
+almost perpendicular directness, it is no trifling thing to be deprived
+of even the natural protection with which the skull is provided.
+Whatever can be done with fans toward shielding themselves they do; and,
+also, they can, by the same means, shut off their eyes from beholding
+vanity, so that a fan is a most important part of the sacerdotal outfit.
+Leaving the priests to group themselves in idle picturesqueness near the
+royal temple, we pass on by storehouses and treasuries and stables of
+the royal elephants, between sentries standing guard with European arms
+and in a semi-European uniform, to the armory, where I was to wait until
+the king was ready.
+
+The messenger who had hitherto conducted me was known among the foreign
+residents of Bangkok as "Captain Dick"--a talkative person, with a
+shrewd eye to his own advancement. He spoke good English, and a good
+deal of it, and suggested, I remember, certain ways in which it would be
+possible for me to further his interests with the king. He had been at
+sea, and had perhaps commanded one of the king's sea-going vessels--his
+"captaincy" being rather maritime than military. He was quite disposed
+to join the embassy, which was at that time getting ready to be sent to
+Great Britain. He mentioned, incidentally, that a few of the naval
+buttons on my uniform would be a highly acceptable gift for me to offer
+him. The confidence and self-assurance with which he had borne himself,
+however, began perceptibly to wilt as we drew a little nearer to the
+august presence of royalty. And, at the armory, he made me over, in
+quite an humble manner, to the king's oldest son, who was to take me to
+his father. As I shook hands with the tall, manly, handsome youth who
+was waiting for me, I thought him worthy of his princely station. Kings'
+sons are not always the heirs of kingly beauty or of kingly virtues; but
+here was one who had, at least, the physical endowments which should fit
+him for the dignity to which he was born. He was almost the only man I
+saw in Siam whose teeth were not blackened nor his mouth distorted by
+the chewing of the betel-nut. For the betel-nut is in Siam what the
+tobacco-cud is in America, only it is not, I believe, quite so injurious
+to the chewer as the tobacco; while, on the other hand, its use is a
+little more universal. As between the two, for general offensiveness, I
+do not know that there is anything to choose.
+
+The second king, seeking a significant name for his son, chose one which
+had been borne, not by an Asiatic, not by an European, but by the
+greatest of Americans--George Washington. "What's in a name?" It may
+provoke a smile at first, that such a use should be made of the name of
+Washington, as if it were the whim of an ignorant and half-savage king.
+But when it shall appear, as I shall make it appear before I have
+finished, that the Siamese king understood and appreciated the character
+of the great man after whom he wished his son to be called, I think that
+no American will be content with laughing at him. I own that it moved me
+with something more than merely patriotic pride to hear the name of
+Washington honored in the remotest corner of the old world. It seemed to
+me significant of great progress already achieved toward Christian
+civilization, and prophetic of yet greater things to come.
+
+But as the Prince George Washington walked on with me, and I revolved
+these great things in my mind, another turn was given to my thoughts.
+For when we had gone through a pleasant, shady court, and had come to
+the top of a flight of marble steps which took us to the door of the
+king's house (a plain and pleasant edifice of mason-work, like the
+residence of some private gentleman of wealth in our own country), I
+suddenly missed the young man from my side, and turned to look for him.
+What change had come over him! The man had been transformed into a
+reptile. The tall and graceful youth, princely in look and bearing, was
+down on all his marrow-bones, bending his head until it almost touched
+the pavement of the portico, and, crawling slowly toward the door,
+conducted me with reverent signs and whispers toward the king, his
+father, whom I saw coming to meet us.
+
+This was the other side of the picture. And I draw out the incident in
+detail because it is characteristic of the strange conflict between the
+old barbarism and the new enlightenment which meets one at every turn
+in the Land of the White Elephant. There are two tides--one is going
+out, the ebb-tide of ignorance, of darkness, of despotic power; and one
+is coming in--the flood-tide of knowledge and liberty and all Christian
+grace. And, as in the whirl of waters where two currents meet, one never
+knows which way his boat may head, so sometimes the drift of things is
+backward toward the Orient, and sometimes forward, westward, as the
+"star of empire" moves. Each rank has, or until quite recently had, some
+who crawl like crocodiles beneath it, and is in its turn compelled to
+crawl before the higher. Nor are the members of a nobleman's family
+exempt. I was introduced once to one of the wives of a fat, good-natured
+prince (a half-brother of the two kings), who was crawling around, with
+her head downward, on the floor. I offered my hand as politely as was
+possible, and she shuffled up to shake it, and then shuffled off again
+into a corner. It was very queer--more so than when I shake hands with
+Trip, the spaniel, for then we both of us understand that it is a
+joke--but here it was a solemn and ceremonious act of politeness, and
+had to be performed with a straight face. The good lady has her revenge,
+however, and must enjoy it, when she sees her fat husband, clumsy, and
+almost as heavy as an elephant, get down on his hands and knees, as he
+has to, in the presence of his majesty the king. I have been told that,
+when the Siamese embassy to Great Britain was presented to the queen,
+before anybody knew what they were about, the ambassadors were down on
+all fours, at the entrance of the audience chamber, and insisted on
+crawling like mud-turtles into her majesty's presence. For, consistently
+enough, the court of Siam requires of foreigners only what etiquette
+requires in the presence of the king or president of their own
+country--but when its representatives are sent to foreign courts they
+carry their own usage with them. I felt a pardonable pride, and a little
+kindling of the "_Civis-Romanus-sum_" spirit, and an appreciable
+stiffening of the spinal column as I walked straight forward, while
+Prince George Washington crawled beside me. Blessed was the man who
+walked uprightly.
+
+Halleck, the sprightliest poet of his native State, in verse which will
+be always dear to all who love that good old commonwealth, has told us
+how a true son of Connecticut
+
+    "Would shake hands with a king upon his throne
+    And think it kindness to his majesty."
+
+Of course, then, as the king came toward the portico and met us at the
+door, that was the thing to do, being also the etiquette at the court of
+James Buchanan, who then reigned at Washington. But not even that
+venerable functionary, whose manners I have been given to understand
+were one of his strong points, could have welcomed a guest with more
+gentlemanly politeness than that with which this king of a barbarous
+people welcomed me. He spoke good English, and spoke it fluently, and
+knew how, with gentlemanly tact, to put his visitor straightway at his
+ease. It was hard to believe that I was in a remote and almost unknown
+corner of the old world, and not in the new. The conversation was such
+as might take place between two gentlemen in a New York parlor. On every
+side were evidences of an intelligent and cultivated taste. The room in
+which we sat was decorated with engravings, maps, busts, statuettes. The
+book-cases were filled with well-selected volumes, handsomely bound.
+There were, I remember, various encyclopaedias and scientific works.
+There was the Abbottsford edition of the Waverly novels, and a bust of
+the great Sir Walter overhead. There were some religious works, the
+gift, probably, of the American missionaries. And, as if his majesty had
+seen the advertisements in the newspapers which implore a discriminating
+public to "get the best," there were two copies of Webster's quarto
+dictionary, unabridged. Moreover, the king called my particular
+attention to these two volumes, and, as if to settle the war of the
+dictionaries by an authoritative opinion, said: "I like it very much; I
+think it the best dictionary, better than any English." Accordingly the
+publishers are hereby authorized to insert the recommendation of the
+second king of Siam, with the complimentary notices of other
+distinguished critics, in their published advertisements. On the table
+lay a recent copy of the London _Illustrated News_, to which the king is
+a regular subscriber, and of which he is an interested reader. There was
+in it, I remember, a description, with diagrams, of some new invention
+of fire-arms, concerning which he wished my opinion, but he knew much
+more about it than I did. Some reference was made to my native city,
+and I rose to show on the map, which hung before me, where it was
+situated, but I found that he knew it very well, and especially that
+"they made plenty of guns there." For guns and military affairs he had a
+great liking, and indeed for all sorts of science. He was expert in the
+use of quadrant and sextant, and could take a lunar observation and work
+it out with accuracy. He had his army, distinct from the first king's
+soldiers, disciplined and drilled according to European tactics. Their
+orders were given in English and were obeyed with great alacrity. He had
+a band of Siamese musicians who performed on European instruments,
+though I am bound to say that their performance was characterized by
+force rather than by harmony. He made them play "Yankee Doodle," and
+"Hail Columbia," but if I enjoyed it, it was rather with a patriotic
+than with a musical enthusiasm. When they played their own rude music it
+was vastly better. But the imperfections of the band were of very small
+importance compared with the good will which had prompted the king to
+make them learn the American national airs. That good will expressed
+itself in various ways. His majesty, who wrote an elegant autograph,
+kept up a correspondence with the captain of our ship for a long time
+after our visit. And when the captain, a few years later, had risen to
+the rank of Admiral, and had made the name of Foote illustrious in his
+country's annals, the king wrote to him, expressing his deep interest in
+the progress of our conflict with rebellion, and his sincere desire for
+the success of our national cause. When kings and peoples, bound to us
+by the ties of language and kindred and religion, misunderstood us, and
+gave words of sneering censure, or else no words at all, as we were
+fighting with the dragon, this king of an Asiatic people, of different
+speech, of different race, of different religion, found words of
+intelligent and appreciative cheer for us. He had observed the course of
+our history, the growth of our nation, the principles of our government.
+And though we knew very little about him and his people, he was
+thoroughly informed concerning us. So that, as I talked with him, and
+saw the refinement and good taste which displayed itself in his manners
+and in his dwelling, and the minute knowledge of affairs which his
+conversation showed, I began to wonder on what subjects I should find
+him ignorant. Once or twice I involuntarily expressed my amazement, and
+provoked a good-natured laugh from the king, who seemed quite to
+understand it.
+
+And yet this gentlemanly and well-informed man was black. And he wore no
+trousers--the mention of which fact reminds me that I have not told what
+he did wear. First of all, he wore very little hair on his head,
+conforming in this respect to the universal fashion among his
+countrymen, and shaving all but a narrow ridge of hair between the crown
+and the forehead; and this is cut off at the height of an inch, so that
+it stands straight up, looking for all the world like a stiff
+blacking-brush, only it can never be needed for such a purpose, because
+no Siamese wears shoes. I think the first king, when we called upon him,
+had on a pair of slippers, but the second king, if I remember, was
+barefooted--certainly he was barelegged. Wound about his waist and
+hanging to his knees was a scarf of rich, heavy silk, which one garment
+is the entire costume of ordinary life in Siam. The common people, of
+course, must have it of cheap cotton, but the nobles wear silk of
+beautiful quality and pattern, and when this is wound around the waist
+so that the folds hang to the knees, and the ends are thrown over the
+shoulders, they are dressed. On state occasions something is added to
+this costume, and on all occasions there will be likely to be a
+wonderful display of jewels and of gold. So now, the light would flash
+once in a while from the superb diamond finger-rings which the king whom
+I am describing wore. He wore above his scarf a loose sack of dark-blue
+cloth, fastened with a few gold buttons, with a single band of gold-lace
+on the sleeves, and an inch or two of gold-lace on the collar. Half
+European, half Oriental in his dress, he had combined the two styles
+with more of good taste than one could have expected. It was
+characteristic of that transition from barbarism to civilization upon
+which his kingdom is just entering.
+
+The same process of transition and the same contrast between the two
+points of the transition was expressed in other ways. If it be true, for
+example, that cookery is a good index of civilization, there came in
+presently most civilized cakes and tea and coffee, as nicely made as if,
+by some mysterious dumb-waiter they had come down fresh from the
+restaurants of Paris. The king made the tea and coffee with his own
+hand, and with the conventional inquiry, "Cream and sugar?"--and the
+refreshments were served in handsome dishes of solid silver. Besides, I
+might have smoked a pipe, quite wonderful by reason of the richness of
+its ornament, or drunk his majesty's health in choice wines of his own
+importation. The refreshment which was furnished was elegant and ample,
+and, if taken as an index of civilization, indicated that the court of
+the White Elephant need not be ashamed, even by the side of some that
+made much higher claims. But, on the other hand, while the lunch was
+going on, Prince George Washington and a great tawny dog who answered to
+the name of "Watch," lay prostrate with obsequious reverence on the
+floor, receiving with great respect and gratitude any word that the king
+might deign to fling to them. One or two noblemen were also present in
+the same attitude. Presently there came into the room one of the king's
+little children, a beautiful boy of three or four years old, who dropped
+on his knees and lifted his joined hands in reverence toward his father.
+It was quite the attitude that one sees in some of the pictures of
+"little Samuel,"--as if the king were more than man. After the
+child--whose sole costume consisted of a string or two of gold beads,
+jewelled, and perhaps a pair of bracelets--crawled his mother, who
+joined the group of prostrate subjects. The little boy, by reason of his
+tender age, was allowed more liberty than the others, and moved about
+almost as unembarrassed as the big dog "Watch;" but when he grows older
+he will humble himself like the others. To see men and women degraded
+literally to a level with the beasts that perish was all the more
+strange and sad by contrast with the civilization which was shown in the
+conversation and manners of the king, and in all the furniture of his
+palace. I half expected to see the portrait of the real George
+Washington on the wall blush with shame and indignation as it looked
+down on the reptile attitude of his namesake; and I felt a sensation of
+relief when, at last, it became time for me to leave, and the young
+prince, crawling after me until we reached the steps, was once more on
+his legs.
+
+But it seemed to me then, and a subsequent interview with the king
+confirmed the feeling, that I had been in one of the most remarkable
+palaces, and with one of the most remarkable men, in the world. Twice
+afterward I saw him; once when our captain and a detachment of the
+officers of the ship waited upon him by his invitation, and spent a most
+agreeable evening, socially, enlivened with music by the band, and
+broadsword and musket exercise by a squad of troops, and refreshed by a
+handsome supper in the dining-room of the palace, on the walls of which
+hung engravings of all the American Presidents from Washington down to
+Jackson. I do not know who enjoyed the evening most; the king, to whom
+the companionship of educated foreigners was a luxury which he could not
+always command, or we, to whom the strange spectacle which I have been
+trying to describe was one at which the more we gazed the more "the
+wonder grew." Indeed, we felt so pleasantly at home that when we said
+good-by, and left the pleasant, comfortable, home-like rooms in which
+we had been sitting, the piano and the musical boxes, the cheery
+hospitality of our good-natured host, and dropped down the river to the
+narrow quarters of our ship, it was with something of the sadness which
+attends the parting from one's native land, when the loved faces on the
+shore grow dim and disappear, and the swelling canvas overhead fills and
+stiffens with the seaward wind.
+
+We had an opportunity of repaying something of the king's politeness,
+for, in response to an invitation of the captain, he did what no king
+had ever done before--came down the river and spent an hour or two on
+board our ship (the U. S. sloop-of-war Portsmouth, Captain A. H. Foote
+commanding), and was received with royal honors, even to the manning of
+the yards. We made him heartily welcome, and the captain gave the
+handsomest dinner which the skill of Johnson, his experienced steward,
+could prepare--that venerable colored person recognizing the importance
+of the occasion, and aware that he might never again be called upon to
+get a dinner for a king. The captain did not fail to ask a blessing as
+they drew about the table, taking pains to explain to his guest the
+sacred significance of that Christian act--for it was at such a time as
+this, especially, that the good admiral was wont to show the colors of
+the "King Eternal" whom he served. The royal party carefully inspected
+the whole ship, with shrewd and intelligent curiosity, and before they
+left we hoisted the white elephant at the fore, and our big guns roared
+forth the king's salute. Nor was one visit enough, but the next day he
+came again, retiring for the night to the little steamer on which he
+had made the journey down the river from Bangkok. It was a little fussy
+thing, just big enough to hold its machinery and to carry its
+paddle-wheels, but was dignified with the imposing name of "Royal Seat
+of Siamese Steam Force." It was made in the United States, and put
+together by one of the American missionaries in Bangkok. It was then the
+only steamer in the Siamese waters, but it proved to be the pioneer of
+many others that have made the Meinam River lively with the stir of an
+increasing commerce.
+
+At the death of the second king, in 1866, his elder brother issued a
+royal document containing a biographical sketch and an estimate of his
+character. It is written in the peculiar style, pedantic and conceited,
+by which the first king's literary efforts are distinguished, but an
+extract from it deserves on all accounts to be quoted. These two
+brothers, both of extraordinary talents, and, on the whole, of
+illustrious character and history, lived for the most part on terms of
+fraternal attachment and kindness, although some natural jealousy would
+seem to have grown up during the last few years of their lives, leading
+to the temporary retirement of the second king to a country-seat near
+Chieng Mai, in the hill-country of the Upper Meinam. Here he spent much
+of his time during his last years, and here he added to his harem a new
+wife, to whom he was tenderly attached. He returned to Bangkok to die,
+and was sincerely honored and lamented, not only by his own people, to
+whom he had been a wise and faithful friend and ruler, but also by many
+of other lands, to whom the fame of his high character had become
+known. His brother's "general order" announcing his decease, contains
+the following paragraph:
+
+"He made everything new and beautiful and of curious appearance, and of
+a good style of architecture and much stronger than they had formerly
+been constructed by his three predecessors, the second kings of the last
+three reigns, for the space of time that he was second king. He had
+introduced and collected many and many things, being articles of great
+curiosity, and things useful for various purposes of military arts and
+affairs, from Europe and America, China and other states, and planted
+them in various departments and rooms or buildings suitable for these
+articles, and placed officers for maintaining and preserving the various
+things neatly and carefully. He has constructed several buildings in
+European fashion and Chinese fashion, and ornamented them with various
+useful ornaments for his pleasure, and has constructed two steamers in
+manner of men-of-war, and two steam-yachts and several rowing
+state-boats in Siamese and Cochin-China fashion, for his pleasure at sea
+and rivers of Siam; and caused several articles of gold and silver,
+being vessels and various wares and weapons, to be made up by the
+Siamese and Malayan goldsmiths, for employ and dress for himself and his
+family, by his direction and skilful contrivance and ability. He became
+celebrated and spread out more and more to various regions of the
+Siamese kingdom, adjacent states around, and far famed to foreign
+countries even at far distance, as he became acquainted with many and
+many foreigners, who came from various quarters of the world where his
+name became known to most as a very clever and bravest prince of Siam."
+
+Much more of this royal document is quoted in Mrs. Leonowens' "English
+Governess at the Court of Siam."
+
+
+
+
+                        CHAPTER VIII.
+
+        PHRABAT SOMDETCH PHRA PARAMENDR MAHA MONGKUT
+
+
+In some respects the most conspicuous name in the history of the
+civilization of Siam will always be that of the king under whose
+enlightened and liberal administration of government the kingdom was
+thrown open to foreign intercourse, and the commerce, the science, and
+even the religion of the western world accepted if not invited. His son,
+the present first king, is following in the steps of his father, and has
+already introduced some noteworthy reforms and changes, the importance
+of which is very great. But the way was opened for these changes by the
+wise and bold policy of the late king, whose death, in 1868, closed a
+career of usefulness which entitles him to a high place among the
+benefactors of his age.
+
+A description of this king and of his court is furnished from the same
+editorial narrative from which the last two chapters have been chiefly
+quoted. It will be remembered that the period to which the narrative
+refers is the year 1857, the time of the visit of the Portsmouth, with
+the ratification of the American treaty.
+
+His majesty, the first king of Siam, kindly gives us our choice of
+titles by which, and of languages in which, he may be designated. To
+his own people he appears in an array of syllables sufficiently
+astonishing to our eyes and ears, as Phrabat Somdetch Phra Paramendr
+Maha Mongkut Phra Chau Klau Chau Yu Hud; but to outsiders he announces
+himself as simply the first king of Siam and its dependencies; or, in
+treaties and other official documents, as "Rex Major," or "Supremus Rex
+Siamensium." The Latin is his, not mine. And I am bound to acknowledge
+that the absolute supremacy which the "supremus" indicates is qualified
+by his recognition of the "blessing of highest and greatest superagency
+of the universe," by which blessing his own sovereignty exists. He has
+been quick to learn the maxim which monarchs are not ever slow to learn
+nor slow to use, that "Kings reign by the grace of God." And it is, to
+say the least, a safe conjecture that the maxim has as much power over
+his conscience as it has had over the consciences of some kings much
+more civilized and orthodox than he.
+
+[Illustration: THE LATE FIRST KING AND QUEEN.]
+
+This polyglot variety of titles indicates a varied, though somewhat
+superficial, learning. Before he came to the throne the king had lived
+for several years in the seclusion of a Buddhist monastery. Promotion
+from the priesthood to the throne is an event so unusual in any country
+except Siam, that it might seem full of risk. But in this instance it
+worked well. During the years of his monastic life he grew to be a
+thoughtful, studious man, and he brought with him to his kingly office a
+wide familiarity with literature which marked him as a scholar who knew
+the world through books rather than through men. His manner of speaking
+English was less easy and accurate than his brother's; but, on the other
+hand, the "pomp and circumstance" of his court was statelier and
+stranger, and is worthy of a better description. The second king
+received us with such gentlemanly urbanity and freedom that it was hard
+to realize the fact that we were in the presence of royalty. But our
+reception by the first king was arranged on what the newspapers would
+call "a scale of Oriental magnificence," and it lingers in memory like
+some dreamy recollection of the splendors of the Arabian Nights.
+
+One of the most singular illustrations of the ups and downs of nations
+and of races which history affords, is to be seen in the position of the
+Portuguese in Siam. They came there centuries ago as a superior race, in
+all the dignity and pride of discoverers, and with all the romantic
+daring of adventurous exploration. Now there is only a worn-out remnant
+of them left, degraded almost to the level of the Asiatics, to whom they
+brought the name and knowledge of the Western world. They have mixed
+with the Siamese, till, at the first, it is difficult to distinguish
+them as having European blood and lineage. But when we asked who the
+grotesque old creatures might be who came to us on messages from the
+king, or guided us when we went to see the wonders of the city, or
+superintended the cooking of our meals, or performed various menial
+services about our dwelling, we found that they were half-breed
+descendants of the Portuguese who once flourished here. When we landed
+at the mouth of the river on our way to Bangkok for an audience with the
+king, one of the first persons whom we encountered was one of these
+demoralized Europeans. He made a ridiculous assertion of his lineage in
+the style of his costume. Disdaining the Siamese fashions, he had made
+for himself or had inherited a swallow-tailed coat of sky-blue silk, and
+pantaloons of purple silk, in which he seemed to feel himself the equal
+of any of us. Had any doubt as to his ancestry lingered in our minds, it
+must have been removed by a most ancient and honorable stove-pipe hat,
+which had evidently been handed down from father to son, through the
+generations, as a rusty relic of grander days. This old gentleman was in
+charge of a bountiful supply of provisions which the king had sent for
+us. It was hard not to moralize over the old man as the representative
+of a nation which had all the time been going backward since it led the
+van of discovery in the Indies centuries ago; while the people whom his
+ancestors found heathenish and benighted are starting on a career of
+improvement and elevation of which no man can prophesy the rate or the
+result.
+
+The old Portuguese referred to would seem to be the same whom Sir John
+Bowring mentions in the following passage, and who has been so long a
+faithful servant of the government of Siam that his great age and
+long-continued services entitle him to a word of honorable mention,
+notwithstanding the droll appearance which he presented in his
+remarkable costume. Sir John Bowring, writing in 1856, says:
+
+"Among the descendants of the ancient Portuguese settlers in Siam there
+was one who especially excited our attention. He was the master of the
+ceremonies at our arrival in Paknam, and from his supposed traditional
+or hereditary acquaintance with the usages of European courts, we found
+him invested with great authority on all state occasions. He wore a
+European court dress, which he told me had been given him by Sir James
+Brooke, and which, like a rusty, old cocked hat, was somewhat the worse
+for wear. But I was not displeased to recognize in him a gentleman whom
+Mr. Crawford (the British ambassador in 1822) thus describes:
+
+"'July 10 (1822). I had in the course of this forenoon a visit from a
+person of singular modesty and intelligence. Pascal Ribeiro de
+Alvergarias, the descendant of a Portuguese Christian of Kamboja. This
+gentleman holds a high Siamese title, and a post of considerable
+importance. Considering his means and situation, his acquirements were
+remarkable, for he not only spoke and wrote the Siamese, Kambojan, and
+Portuguese languages with facility, but also spoke and wrote Latin with
+considerable propriety. We found, indeed, a smattering of Latin very
+frequent among the Portuguese interpreters at Bangkok, but Senor Ribeiro
+was the only individual who made any pretence to speak it with accuracy.
+He informed us that he was the descendant of a person of the same name,
+who settled at Kamboja in the year 1685. His lady's genealogy, however,
+interested us more than his own. She was the lineal descendant of an
+Englishman, of the name of Charles Lister, a merchant, who settled in
+Kamboja in the year 1701, and who had acquired some reputation at the
+court by making pretence to a knowledge in medicine. Charles Lister
+had come immediately from Madras, and brought with him his sister. This
+lady espoused a Portuguese of Kamboja, by whom she had a son, who took
+her own name. Her grandson, of this name also, in the revolution of the
+kingdom of Kamboja, found his way to Siam; and here, like his
+great-uncle, practising the healing art, rose to the station of
+Maha-pet, or first physician to the king. The son of this individual,
+Cajitanus Lister, is at present the physician, and at the same time the
+minister and confidential adviser of the present King of Kamboja. His
+sister is the wife of the subject of this short notice. Senor Ribeiro
+favored us with the most authentic and satisfactory account which we had
+yet obtained of the late revolution and present state of Kamboja.'"
+
+[Illustration: ONE OF THE SONS OF THE LATE FIRST KING.]
+
+It is not safe always to judge by the appearance. This grotesque old
+personage, whom the narrative describes, represented a story of strange
+and romantic interest, extending through two centuries of wonderful
+vicissitude, and involving the blending of widely separated
+nationalities. But to resume the narrative:
+
+When at last, after our stay in Bangkok was almost at an end, we were
+invited by "supremus rex" to spend the evening at his palace, we found
+our friend of the beaver hat and sky-blue coat and purple breeches in
+charge of a squad of attendants in one of the outer buildings of the
+court, where we were to beguile the time with more refreshments until
+his majesty should be ready for us. Everything about us was on a larger
+scale than at the second king'sthe grounds more spacious, and the
+various structures with which they were filled, the temples, armories,
+and storehouses, of more ambitions size and style, but not so neat and
+orderly. A crowd of admiring spectators clustered about the windows of
+the room in which we were waiting, watching with breathless interest to
+see the strangers eat: so that as we sat in all the glory of cocked hats
+and epaulets, we had the double satisfaction of giving and receiving
+entertainment.
+
+But presently there came a messenger to say that the king was ready for
+us. And so we walked on between the sentries, who saluted us with
+military exactness, between the stately halls that ran on either hand,
+until a large, closed gateway barred our way. Swinging open as we stood
+before them, the gates closed silently behind us, and we found ourselves
+in the august presence of "Rex Supremus Siamensium."
+
+It might almost have been "the good Haroun Alraschid" and "the great
+pavilion of the caliphat in inmost Bagdad," that we had come to, it was
+so imposing a scene, and so characteristically Oriental. What I had read
+of in the "Arabian Nights," and hardly thought was possible except in
+such romantic stories, seemed to be realized. Here was a king worth
+seeing, a real king, with a real crown on, and with real pomp of royalty
+about him. I think that every American who goes abroad has a more or
+less distinct sense of being defrauded of his just rights when, in Paris
+or Berlin, for example, he goes out to see the king or emperor, and is
+shown a plainly-dressed man driving quietly and almost undistinguished
+among the throng of carriages. We feel that this is not at all what we
+came for, nor what we had been led to expect when, as schoolboys, we
+read about imperial magnificence and regal splendor, and the opulence of
+the "crowned heads." The crowned head might have passed before our very
+eyes, and we would not have known it if we had not been told. Not so in
+Bangkok. This was "a goodly king" indeed. And all the circumstances of
+time and place seemed to be so managed as to intensify the singular
+charm and beauty of the scene.
+
+We stood in a large court, paved with broad, smooth slabs of marble, and
+open to the sky, which was beginning to be rosy with the sunset. All
+about us were magnificent palace buildings, with shining white walls,
+and with roofs of gleaming green and gold. Broad avenues, with the same
+marble pavement, led in various directions to the temples and the
+audience halls. Here and there the dazzling whiteness of the buildings
+and the pavement was relieved by a little dark tropical foliage; and, as
+the sunset grew more ruddy every instant,
+
+    "A sudden splendor from behind
+    Flushed all the leaves with rich gold green,"
+
+and tinged the whole bright court with just the necessary warmth of
+color. There was the most perfect stillness, broken only by the sound of
+our footsteps on the marble, and, except ourselves, not a creature was
+moving. Here and there, singly or in groups, about the spacious court,
+prostrate, with faces on the stone, in motionless and obsequious
+reverence, as if they were in the presence of a god and not of a man,
+grovelled the subjects of the mighty sovereign into whose presence we
+were approaching. It was hard for the stoutest democrat to resist a
+momentary feeling of sympathy with such universal awe; and to remember
+that, after all, as Hamlet says, a "king is a thing ... of nothing." So
+contagious is the obsequiousness of a royal court and so admirably
+effective was the arrangement of the whole scene.
+
+The group toward which we were advancing was a good way in front of the
+gateway by which we had entered. There was a crouching sword-bearer,
+holding upright a long sword in a heavily embossed golden scabbard.
+There were other attendants, holding jewel-cases or elegant betel-nut
+boxes--all prostrate. There were others still ready to crawl off in
+obedience to orders, on whatever errands might be necessary. There were
+three or four very beautiful little children, the king's sons, kneeling
+behind their father, and shining with the chains of jewelled gold which
+hung about their naked bodies. More in front there crouched a servant
+holding high a splendid golden canopy, beneath which stood the king. He
+wore a grass-cloth jacket, loosely buttoned with diamonds, and a rich
+silken scarf, which, wound about the waist, hung gracefully to his
+knees. Below this was an unadorned exposure of bare shins, and his feet
+were loosely slippered. But on his head he wore a cap or crown that
+fairly blazed with brilliant gems, some of them of great size and value.
+There was not wanting in his manner a good deal of natural dignity;
+although it was constrained and embarrassed. It was in marked contrast
+with the cheerful and unceremonious freedom of the second king. He
+seemed burdened with the care of government and saddened with anxiety,
+and as if he knew his share of the uneasiness of "the head that wears a
+crown."
+
+He stood in conversation with us for a few moments, and then led the way
+to a little portico in the Chinese style of architecture, where we sat
+through an hour of talk, and drink, and jewelry, mixed in pretty equal
+proportions. For there were some details of business in connection with
+the treaty that required to be talked over. And there were sentiments of
+international amity to be proposed and drunk after the Occidental
+fashion. And there were the magnificent royal diamonds and other gems to
+be produced for our admiring inspection--great emeralds of a more vivid
+green than the dark tropical foliage, and rubies and all various
+treasures which the Indian mines afford, till the place shone before our
+eyes, thicker
+
+    "With jewels than the sward with drops of dew,
+    When all night long a cloud clings to the hill,
+    And with the dawn ascending lets the day
+    Strike where it clung; so thickly shone the gems."
+
+All the while the nobles were squatting or lying on the floor, and the
+children were playing in a subdued and quiet way at the king's feet.
+Somehow the beauty of these little Siamese children seemed to me very
+remarkable. As they grow older, they grow lean, and wrinkled, and ugly.
+But while they are children they are pretty "as a picture"--as some of
+those pictures, for example, in the Italian galleries. Going quite
+innocent of clothing, they are very straight and plump in figure, and
+unhindered in their grace of motion. And they used to bear themselves
+with a simple and modest dignity that was very winning. They have the
+soft and lustrous eyes, the shining teeth (as yet unstained by
+betel-nut), the pleasant voices, which are the birthright of the
+children of the tropics. In default of clothes, they are stained all
+over with some pigment, which makes their skin a lively yellow, and
+furnishes a shade of contrast for the deeper color of the gold which
+hangs around their necks and arms. I used to compare them, to their
+great advantage, with the Chinese children.
+
+There is not in Siam, at least there is not in the same degree, that
+obstinate conceit behind which, as behind a barrier, the Chinese have
+stood for centuries, resisting stubbornly the entrance of all light and
+civilization from without. I do not know what possible power could
+extort from a Chinese official the acknowledgment which this king freely
+made, that his people were "half civilized and half barbarous, being
+very ignorant of civilized and enlightened customs and usages." Such an
+admission from a Chinaman would be like the demolition of their great
+northern wall. It is true of nations as it is of individuals, that pride
+is the most stubborn obstacle in the way of all real progress. And
+national humility is the earnest of national exaltation. Therefore it
+is that the condition of things at the Siamese court seems to me so full
+of promise.
+
+By and by the king withdrew, and intimated that he would presently meet
+us again at an entertainment in another part of the palace. His
+disappearance was the signal for the resurrection of the prostrate
+noblemen, who started up all around us in an unexpected way, like toads
+after a rain. Moving toward the new apartment where our "entertainment"
+was prepared, we saw the spacious court to new advantage. For the night
+had come while we had waited, and the mellow light from the tropic stars
+and burning constellations flowed down upon us through the fragrant
+night air. Mingling with this white starlight was the ruddy glow that
+came through palace windows from lamps fed by fragrant oil of cocoanut,
+and from the moving torches of our attendants. And as we walked through
+the broad avenues, dimly visible in this mixed light, some gilded window
+arch or overhanging roof with gold-green tiles, or the varied costume of
+the moving group of which we formed a part, would stand out from the
+shadowy darkness with a sudden and most picturesque distinctness. So we
+came at last to the apartment where the king had promised to rejoin us.
+
+Here the apparition of our old sky-blue friend, the beaver-hatted
+Portuguese, suggested that a dinner was impending, and, if we might
+judge by his uncommon nervousness of manner, it must be a dinner of
+unprecedented style. And certainly there was a feast, sufficiently
+sumptuous and very elegantly served, awaiting our arrival. At one side
+of the room, on a raised platform, was a separate table for the king,
+and beside it, awaiting his arrival, was his throne,
+
+                      "From which
+    Down dropped in many a floating fold,
+    Engarlanded and diapered
+    With inwrought flowers, a cloth of gold."
+
+In the bright light of many lamps the room was strangely beautiful. On
+one side, doors opened into a stately temple, out of which presently the
+king came forth. And as, when he had disappeared, the nobles seemed to
+come out from the ground like toads, so now, like toads, they squatted,
+and the sovereign of the squatters took his seat above them.
+
+Presently there was music. A band of native musicians stationed at the
+foot of the king's throne commenced a lively performance on their
+instruments. It was strange, wild music, with a plaintive sweetness,
+that was very enchanting. The tones were liquid as the gurgling of a
+mountain brook, and rose and fell in the same irregular measure. And
+when to the first band of instruments there was added another in a
+different part of the room, the air became tremulous with sweet
+vibrations, and the wild strains lingered softly about the gilded eaves
+and cornices and floated upward toward the open sky.
+
+It seemed that the fascination of the scene would be complete if there
+were added the poetry of motion. And so, in came the dancers, a dozen
+young girls, pretty and modest, and dressed in robes of which I cannot
+describe the profuse and costly ornamentation. The gold and jewels
+fairly crusted them, and, as the dancers moved, the light flashed from
+the countless gems at every motion. As each one entered the apartment
+she approached the king, and, reverently kneeling, slowly lifted her
+joined hands as if in adoration. All the movements were gracefully timed
+to the sweet barbaric music, and were slow and languid, and as quiet as
+the movements in a dream. We sat and watched them dreamily, half
+bewildered by the splendor which our eyes beheld, and the sweetness
+which our ears heard, till the night was well advanced and it was time
+to go. It was a sudden shock to all our Oriental reveries, when, as we
+rose to leave, his majesty requested that we would give him three
+cheers. It was the least we could do in return for his royal
+hospitality, and accordingly the captain led off in the demonstration,
+while the rest of us joined in with all the heartiness of voice that we
+could summon. But it broke the charm. Those occidental cheers, that
+hoarse Anglo-Saxon roar, had no proper place among these soft and
+sensuous splendors, which had held us captive all the evening, till we
+had well-nigh forgotten the everyday world of work and duty to which we
+belonged.
+
+It is when we remember the enervating influence of the drowsy tropics
+upon character, that we learn fitly to honor the men and women by whom
+the inauguration of this new era in Siamese history has been brought
+about. To live for a little while among these sensuous influences
+without any very serious intellectual work to do, or any very grave
+moral responsibility to bear, is one thing; but to spend a life among
+them, with such a constant strain upon the mind and heart as the laying
+of Christian foundations among a heathen people must always necessitate,
+is quite another thing. This is what the missionaries in Siam have to
+do. Their battle is not with the prejudices of heathenism only, nor with
+the vices and ignorance of bad men only. It is a battle with nature
+itself. To the passing traveller, half intoxicated with the beauty of
+the country and the rich splendor of that oriental world, it may seem a
+charming thing to live there, and no uninviting lot to be a missionary
+in such pleasant places. But the very attractiveness of the field to one
+who sees it as a visitor, and who is dazzled by its splendors as he
+looks upon it out of kings' palaces, is what makes it all the harder for
+one who goes with hard, self-sacrificing work to do. The fierce sun
+wilts the vigor of his mind and scorches up the fresh enthusiasm of his
+heart.
+
+    "Droops the heavy-blossomed flower, hangs the heavy-fruited tree."
+
+And all the beautiful earth, and all the drowsy air, and all the soft
+blue sky invite to sloth and ease and luxury.
+
+Therefore I give the greater honor to the earnest men and to the patient
+women who are laboring and praying for the coming of the Christian day
+to this benighted people.
+
+His majesty, Phrabat Somdetch Phra Paramendr Maha Mongkut closed his
+remarkable career on October 1, 1868, under circumstances of peculiar
+interest. Amid all the cares and anxieties of government he had never
+ceased to occupy himself with matters of literary and scientific
+importance. Questions of scholarship in any one of the languages of
+which he was more or less master were always able to divert and engage
+his attention. And the approach of the great solar eclipse in August,
+1868, was an event the coming of which he had himself determined by his
+own reckoning, and for which he waited with an impatience half
+philosophic and half childish. A special observatory was built for the
+occasion, and an expedition of extraordinary magnitude and on a scale of
+great expenditure and pomp was equipped by the king's command to
+accompany him to the post of observation. A great retinue both of
+natives and of foreigners, including a French scientific commission,
+attended his majesty, and were entertained at royal expense. And the
+eclipse was satisfactorily witnessed to the great delight of the king,
+whose scientific enthusiasm found abundant expression when his
+calculation was proved accurate.
+
+It was, however, almost his last expedition of any kind. Even before
+setting out there had been evident signs that his health was breaking.
+And upon his return it was soon apparent that excitement and fatigue and
+the malaria of the jungle had wrought upon him with fatal results. He
+died calmly, preserving to the end that philosophic composure to which
+his training in the Buddhist priesthood had accustomed him. His private
+life in his own palace and among his wives and children has been
+pictured in an entertaining way by Mrs. Leonowens, the English lady
+whose services he employed as governess to his young children. He had
+apparently his free share of the faults and vices to which his savage
+nature and his position as an Oriental despot, with almost unlimited
+wealth and power, gave easy opportunity. It is therefore all the more
+remarkable that he should have exhibited such sagacity and firmness in
+his government, and such scholarly enthusiasm in his devotion to
+literature and science. Pedantic he seems to us often, and with more or
+less arrogant conceit of his own ability and acquirements. It is easy to
+laugh at the queer English which he wrote with such reckless fluency and
+spoke with such confident volubility. But it is impossible to deny that
+his reign was, for the kingdom which he governed, the beginning of a new
+era, and that whatever advance in civilization the country is now
+making, or shall make, will be largely due to the courage and wisdom and
+willingness to learn which he enforced by precept and example. He died
+in some sense a martyr to science, while at the same time he adhered, to
+the last, tenaciously, and it would seem from some imaginary obligation
+of honor, to the religious philosophy in which he had been trained, and
+of which he was one of the most eminent defenders. His character and his
+history are full of the strangest contrasts between the heathenish
+barbarism in which he was born and the Christian civilization toward
+which, more or less consciously, he was bringing the people whom he
+governed. It is in part the power of such contrasts which gives to his
+reign such extraordinary and picturesque interest.
+
+[Illustration: A FEW OF THE CHILDREN OF THE LATE FIRST KING.]
+
+
+
+
+                         CHAPTER IX.
+
+                           AYUTHIA
+
+
+The former capital of Siam, which in its day was a city of great
+magnificence and fame, has been for many years supplanted by Bangkok;
+and probably a sight of the latter city as it now is gives to the
+traveller the best impression of what the former used to be. So
+completely does the interest of the kingdom centre at Bangkok that few
+travellers go beyond the limits of the walls of that city except in
+ascending or descending the river which leads to it from the sea. For a
+description of Ayuthia in its glory we are obliged to turn back to the
+old German traveller who visited Siam during the first half of the
+seventeenth century. Sir John Bowring has connected this ancient
+narrative with that of a recent observer who has visited the ruins of
+the once famous city. We quote from Bowring's narrative:
+
+"The ancient city of Ayuthia, whose pagodas and palaces were the object
+of so much laudation from ancient travellers, and which was called the
+Oriental Venice, from the abundance of its canals and the beauty of its
+public buildings, is now almost wholly in ruins, its towers and temples
+whelmed in the dust and covered with rank vegetation. The native name of
+Ayuthia was Sijan Thijan, meaning 'Terrestrial Paradise.' The Siamese
+are in the habit of giving very ostentatious names to their cities,
+which, as La Loubere says: 'do signify great things.' Pallegoix speaks
+of the ambitious titles given to Siamese towns, among which he mentions
+'the City of Angels,' 'the City of Archangels,' and the 'Celestial
+Spectacle.'
+
+"The general outlines of the old city so closely resemble those of
+Bangkok, that the map of the one might easily be mistaken for the
+representation of the other.
+
+"It may not be out of place here to introduce the description of Ayuthia
+from the pen of Mandelsloe--one of those painstaking travellers whose
+contributions to geographical science have been collected in the
+ponderous folios of Dr. Harris (vol. i., p. 781)." Mandelsloe reports
+that:
+
+"The city of Judda is built upon an island in the river Meinam. It is
+the ordinary residence of the king of Siam, having several very fair
+streets, with spacious channels regularly cut. The suburbs are on both
+sides of the river, which, as well as the city itself, are adorned with
+many temples and palaces; of the first of which there are above three
+hundred within the city, distinguished by their gilt steeples, or rather
+pyramids, and afford a glorious prospect at a distance. The houses are,
+as all over the Indies, but indifferently built and covered with tiles.
+The royal palace is equal to a large city. Ferdinando Mendez Pinto makes
+the number of inhabitants of this city amount, improbably, to four
+hundred thousand families. It is looked upon as impregnable, by
+reason of the overflowing of the river at six months' end. The king of
+Siam, who takes amongst his other titles that of Paecan Salsu,
+_i.e._--Sacred Member of God--has this to boast of, that, next to the
+Mogul, he can deduce his descent from more kings than any other in the
+Indies. He is absolute, his privy councillors, called mandarins, being
+chosen and deposed barely at his pleasure. When he appears in public it
+is done with so much pomp and magnificence as is scarce to be imagined,
+which draws such a veneration to his person from the common people,
+that, even in the streets as he passes by, they give him godlike titles
+and worship. He marries no more than one wife at a time, but has an
+infinite number of concubines. He feeds very high; but his drink is
+water only, the use of strong liquors being severely prohibited by their
+ecclesiastical law, to persons of quality in Siam. As the thirds of all
+the estates of the kingdom fall to his exchequer, so his riches must be
+very great; but what makes them almost immense is, that he is the chief
+merchant in the kingdom, having his factors in all places of trade, to
+sell rice, copper, lead, saltpetre, etc., to foreigners. Mendez Pinto
+makes his yearly revenue rise to twelve millions of ducats, the greatest
+part of which, being laid up in his treasury, must needs swell to an
+infinity in process of time." Sir John Bowring adds:
+
+[Illustration: REMOVAL OF THE TUFT OF A YOUNG SIAMESE.]
+
+"I have received the following account of the present condition of
+Ayuthia, the old capital of Siam, from a gentleman who visited it in
+December, 1855:
+
+"'Ayuthia is at this time the second city of the kingdom. Situated, as
+the greater part is, on a creek or canal, connecting the main river with
+a large branch which serves as the high road to Pakpriau, Korat, and
+southern Laos, travellers are apt entirely to overlook it when visiting
+the ruins of the various wats or temples on the island where stood the
+ancient city.
+
+"'The present number of inhabitants cannot be less than between twenty
+and thirty thousand, among which are a large number of Chinese, a few
+Birmese, and some natives of Laos. They are principally employed in
+shopkeeping, agriculture, or fishing, for there are no manufactories of
+importance. Floating houses are most commonly employed as dwellings, the
+reason for which is that the Siamese very justly consider them more
+healthy than houses on land.
+
+"'The soil is wonderfully fertile. The principal product is rice, which,
+although of excellent quality, is not so well adapted for the market as
+that grown nearer the sea, on account of its being much lighter and
+smaller. A large quantity of oil, also an astringent liquor called
+toddy, and sugar, is manufactured from the palm (Elaeis), extensive
+groves of which are to be found in the vicinity of the city. I was shown
+some European turnips which had sprung up and attained a very large
+size. Indigenous fruits and vegetables also flourish in great plenty.
+The character of the vegetation is, however, different from that around
+Bangkok. The cocoa and areca palms become rare, and give place to the
+bamboo.
+
+"'The only visible remains of the old city are a large number of wats,
+in different stages of decay. They extend over an area of several miles
+of country, and lie hidden in the trees and jungle which have sprung up
+around them. As the beauty of a Siamese temple consists not in its
+architecture, but in the quantity of arabesque work with which the brick
+and stucco walls are covered, it soon yields to the power of time and
+weather, and becomes, if neglected, an unsightly heap of bricks and
+wood-work, overgrown with parasitical plants. It is thus at Ayuthia. A
+vast pile of bricks and earth, with here and there a spire still rearing
+itself to the skies, marks the spot where once stood a shrine before
+which thousands were wont to prostrate themselves in superstitious
+adoration. There stand also the formerly revered images of Gaudama, once
+resplendent with gold and jewels, but now broken, mutilated, and without
+a shadow of their previous splendor. There is one sacred spire of
+immense height and size which is still kept in some kind of repair, and
+which is sometimes visited by the king. It is situated about four miles
+from the town, in the centre of a plain of paddy-fields. Boats and
+elephants are the only means of reaching it, as there is no road
+whatever, except such as the creeks and swampy paddy-fields afford. It
+bears much celebrity among the Siamese, on account of its height, but
+can boast of nothing attractive to foreigners but the fine view which is
+obtained from the summit. This spire, like all others, is but a
+succession of steps from the bottom to the top; a few ill-made images
+affording the only relief from the monotony of the brickwork. It bears,
+too, none of those ornaments, constructed of broken crockery, with
+which the spires and temples of Bangkok are so plentifully bedecked.
+
+"'This is all that repays the traveller for his visit,--a poor
+remuneration though, were it the curiosity of an antiquarian that led
+him to the place, for the ruins have not yet attained a sufficient age
+to compensate for their uninteresting appearance.
+
+"'As we were furnished with a letter from the Phya Kalahom to the
+governor, instructing him to furnish us with everything requisite for
+our convenience, we waited on that official, but were unfortunate enough
+to find that he had gone to Bangkok. The letter was thus rendered
+useless, for no one dared open it in his absence. Happily, however, we
+were referred to a nobleman who had been sent from Bangkok to
+superintend the catching of elephants, and he, without demur, gave us
+every assistance in his power.
+
+"'After visiting the ruins, therefore, we inspected the kraal or
+stockade, in which the elephants are captured. This was a large
+quadrangular piece of ground, enclosed by a wall about six feet in
+thickness, having an entrance on one side, through which the elephants
+are made to enter the enclosure. Inside the wall is a fence of strong
+teak stakes driven into the ground a few inches apart. In the centre is
+a small house erected on poles and strongly surrounded with stakes,
+wherein some men are stationed for the purpose of securing the animals.
+These abound in the neighborhood of the city, but cannot exactly be
+called wild, as the majority of them have, at some time or other, been
+subjected to servitude. They are all the property of the king, and it
+is criminal to hurt or kill one of them. Once a year, a large number is
+collected together in the enclosure, and as many as are wanted of those
+possessing the points which the Siamese consider beautiful are captured.
+The fine points in an elephant are: a color approaching to white or red,
+black nails on the toes (the common color of these nails is black and
+white), and intact tails (for, owing to their pugnacious disposition, it
+is rarely that an elephant is caught which has not had its tail bitten
+off). On this occasion the king and a large concourse of nobles assemble
+together to witness the proceedings; they occupy a large platform on one
+side of the enclosure. The wild elephants are then driven in by the aid
+of tame males of a very large size and great strength, and the selection
+takes place. If an animal which is wanted escapes from the kraal, chase
+is immediately made after it by a tame elephant, the driver of which
+throws a lasso to catch the feet of the fugitive. Having effected this,
+the animal on which he rides leans itself with all its power the
+opposite way, and thus brings the other violently to the ground. It is
+then strongly bound, and conducted to the stables.
+
+[Illustration: ELEPHANTS IN AN ENCLOSURE OR PARK AT AYUTHIA.]
+
+"'Naturally enough, accidents are of common occurrence, men being
+frequently killed by the infuriated animals, which are sometimes
+confined two or three days in the enclosure without food.
+
+"'When elephants are to be sent to Bangkok a floating house has to be
+constructed for the purpose.
+
+"'As elephants were placed at our disposal we enjoyed the opportunity of
+judging of their capabilities in a long ride through places
+inaccessible to a lesser quadruped. Their step is slow and cautious, and
+the rider is subjected to a measured roll from side to side, which at
+first is somewhat disagreeable. In traversing marshes and soft ground
+they feel their way with their trunks. They are excessively timid;
+horses are a great terror to them, and, unless they are well trained,
+the report of a fowling-piece scares them terribly.'
+
+"Above Ayuthia the navigation of the Meinam is often interrupted by
+sand-banks, but the borders are still occupied by numerous and populous
+villages; their number diminishes until the marks of human presence
+gradually disappear--the river is crowded with crocodiles, the trees are
+filled with monkeys, and the noise of the elephants is heard in the
+impervious woods. After many days' passage up the river, one of the
+oldest capitals of Siam, built fifteen hundred years ago, is approached.
+Its present name is Phit Salok, and it contains about five thousand
+inhabitants, whose principal occupation is cutting teak-wood, to be
+floated down the stream to Bangkok.
+
+"The account which Bishop Pallegoix gives of the interior of the country
+above Ayuthia is not very flattering. He visited it in the rainy season,
+and says it appeared little better than a desert--a few huts by the side
+of the stream--neither towns, nor soldiers, nor custom-houses. Rice was
+found cheap and abundant, everything else wanting. Some of the Bishop's
+adventures are characteristic. In one place, where he heard pleasant
+music, he found a mandarin surrounded by his dozen wives, who were
+playing a family concert. The mandarin took the opportunity to seek
+information about Christianity, and listened patiently and pleased
+enough, until the missionary told him one wife must satisfy him if he
+embraced the Catholic faith, which closed the controversy, as the
+Siamese said _that_ was an impossible condition. In some places the
+many-colored pagodas towered above the trees, and they generally
+possessed a gilded Buddha twenty feet in height. The Bishop observes
+that the influence of the Buddhist priests is everywhere paramount among
+the Siamese, but that they have little hold upon the Chinese, Malays, or
+Laos people. In one of the villages they offered a wife to one of the
+missionaries, but finding the present unacceptable, they replaced the
+lady by two youths, who continued in his service, and he speaks well of
+their fidelity."
+
+[Illustration: PAKNAM ON THE MEINAM.]
+
+
+
+                          CHAPTER X.
+
+                      PHRABAT AND PATAWI
+
+
+One of the most famous of the holy places of Siam, and one which it is
+now comparatively easy to visit, is the shrine of "the footstep of
+Buddha." This footstep was discovered early in the seventeenth century
+by the king who is called the founder of the second dynasty. As he had
+been, before his accession to the throne, a member of the priesthood,
+and "very popular as a learned and religious teacher," it is easy to see
+what aptitude he had for such a discovery. It is a favorite resort for
+pilgrims.
+
+"Bishop Pallegoix," says Bowring, "speaks of a large assemblage of
+gaily-ornamented barges, filled with multitudes of people in holiday
+dresses, whom he met above Ayuthia, going on a pilgrimage to the 'foot
+of Buddha.' The women and girls wore scarfs of silk, and bracelets of
+gold and silver, and filled the air with their songs, to which troops of
+priests and young men responded in noisy music. The place of debarkation
+is Tha Rua, which is on the road to Phrabat, where the footprint of the
+god is found. More than five hundred barges were there, all illuminated:
+a drama was performed on the shore; there was a great display of
+vocal and instrumental music, tea-drinking, playing at cards and dice,
+and the merry festivities lasted through the whole night.
+
+[Illustration: PAGODA AT MOUNT PHRABAT.]
+
+"Early the following day the cortege departed by the river. It consisted
+of princes, nobles, rich men, ladies, girls, priests, all handsomely
+clad. They landed, and many proceeded on foot, while the more
+distinguished mounted on elephants to move toward the sacred mountain.
+In such localities the spirit of fanaticism is usually intemperate and
+persecuting; and the bishop says the governor received him angrily, and
+accused him of 'intending to debauch his people by making them
+Christians.' But he was softened by presents and explanations, and
+ultimately gave the bishop a passport, recommending him to 'all the
+authorities and chiefs of villages under his command, as a Christian
+priest (farang), and as his friend, and ordering that he should be
+kindly treated, protected, and furnished with all the provisions he
+might require.'
+
+"Of his visit to the sacred mountain, so much the resort of Buddhist
+pilgrims, Pallegoix gives this account:
+
+"'I engaged a guide, mounted an elephant, and took the route of Phrabat,
+followed by my people. I was surprised to find a wide and excellent
+road, paved with bricks, and opened in a straight line across the
+forests. On both sides of the road, at a league's distance, were halls
+or stations, with wells dug for the use of the pilgrims. Soon the road
+became crooked, and we stopped to bathe in a large pond. At four
+o'clock we reached the magnificent monastery of Phrabat, built on the
+declivity, but nearly at the foot of a tall mountain, formed by
+fantastic rocks of a bluish color. The monastery has several walls
+surrounding it; and having entered the second enclosure we found the
+_abbe-prince_, seated on a raised floor, and directing the labors of a
+body of workmen. His attendants called on us to prostrate ourselves, but
+we did not obey them. "Silence!" he said; "you know not that the
+_farang_ honor their grandees by standing erect." I approached, and
+presented him with a bottle of salvolatile, which he smelt with delight.
+I requested he would appoint some one to conduct us to see the vestige
+of Buddha; and he called his principal assistant (the _balat_), and
+directed him to accompany us. The _balat_ took us round a great court
+surrounded with handsome edifices; showed us two large temples; and we
+reached a broad marble staircase with balustrades of gilded copper, and
+made the round of the terrace which is the base of the monument. All the
+exterior of this splendid edifice is gilt; its pavement is square, but
+it takes the form of a dome, and is terminated in a pyramid a hundred
+and twenty feet high. The gates and windows, which are double, are
+exquisitely wrought. The outer gates are inlaid with handsome devices in
+mother-of-pearl, and the inner gates are adorned with gilt pictures
+representing the events in the history of Buddha.
+
+"'The interior is yet more brilliant; the pavement is covered with
+silver mats. At the end, on a throne ornamented with precious stones,
+is a statue of Buddha in massive silver, of the height of a man; in the
+middle is a silver grating, which surrounds the vestige, whose length is
+about eighteen inches. It is not distinctly visible, being covered with
+rings, ear ornaments, bracelets, and gold necklaces, the offerings of
+devotees when they come to worship. The history of the relic is this: In
+the year 1602, notice was sent to the king, at Ayuthia, that a discovery
+had been made at the foot of a mountain, of what appeared to be a
+footmark of Buddha. The king sent his learned men, and the most
+intelligent priests, to report if the lineaments of the imprint
+resembled the description of the foot of Buddha, as given in the sacred
+Pali writings. The examination having taken place, and the report being
+in the affirmative, the king caused the monastery of Phrabat to be
+built, which has been enlarged and enriched by his successors.
+
+"'After visiting the monument the _balat_ escorted us to a deep well,
+cut out of the solid stone; the water is good, and sufficient to provide
+for crowds of pilgrims. The abbe-prince is the sovereign lord of the
+mountain and its environs within a circuit of eight leagues; he has from
+four to five thousand men under his orders, to be employed as he directs
+in the service of the monastery. On the day of my visit a magnificent
+palanquin, such as is used by great princes, was brought to him as a
+present from the king. He had the civility to entertain us as well as he
+could. I remarked that the kitchen was under the care of a score of
+young girls, and they gave the name of pages to the youths who attended
+us. In no other monastery is this usage to be found.
+
+"'His highness caused us to be lodged in a handsome wooden house, and
+gave me two guards of honor to serve and watch over me, forbidding my
+going out at night on account of tigers. The following morning I took
+leave of the good abbe-prince, mounted my elephant, and taking another
+road, we skirted the foot of the mountain till we reached a spring of
+spouting waters. We found there a curious plant, whose leaves were
+altogether like the shape and the colors of butterflies. We took a
+simple breakfast in the first house we met with; and at four o'clock in
+the afternoon we reached our boat, and after a comfortable night's rest
+we left Tha-Rua to return to our church at Ayuthia.'"
+
+M. Mouhot thus describes his journey from Ayuthia, made in the winter of
+1858:
+
+"At seven o'clock in the morning my host was waiting for me at the door,
+with elephants mounted by their drivers, and other attendants necessary
+for our expedition. At the same hour in the evening we reached our
+destination, and before many minutes had elapsed all the inhabitants
+were informed of our arrival; priests and mountaineers were all full of
+curiosity to look at the stranger. Among the principal people of the
+place I distributed some little presents, with which they were
+delighted; but my fire-arms and other weapons were especially the
+subjects of admiration. I paid a visit to the prince of the mountain,
+who was detained at home by illness. He ordered breakfast for me; and,
+expressing his regret at not being able to accompany me, sent four men
+to serve as guides and assistants. As a return for his kindness and
+urbanity, I presented him with a small pistol, which he received with
+extreme gratification.
+
+"We proceeded afterward to the western side of the mountain, where is
+the famous temple containing the footprint of Samona-Kodom, the Buddha
+of Indo-China. I was filled with astonishment and admiration on arriving
+at this point, and feel utterly incapable of describing the spectacle
+which met my view. What convulsion of Nature, what force could have
+upheaved those immense rocks, piled one upon another in such fantastic
+forms? Beholding such a chaos, I could well understand how the
+imagination of this simple people, who are ignorant of the true God,
+should have here discovered signs of the marvellous and traces of their
+false divinities. It was as if a second and recent deluge had just
+abated; this sight alone was enough to recompense me for all my
+fatigues.
+
+"On the mountain summit, in the crevices of the rocks, in the valleys,
+in the caverns, all around, could be seen the footprints of animals,
+those of elephants and tigers being most strongly marked; but I am
+convinced that many of them were formed by antediluvian and unknown
+animals. All these creatures, according to the Siamese, formed the
+_cortege_ of Buddha in his passage over the mountain.
+
+"As for the temple itself, there is nothing remarkable about it; it is
+like most of the pagodas in Siam--on the one hand unfinished and on the
+other in a state of dilapidation; and it is built of brick, although
+both stone and marble abound at Phrabat. The approach to it is by a
+flight of large steps, and the walls are covered with little pieces of
+colored glass, forming arabesques in great variety, which glitter in the
+sun with striking effect. The panels and cornices are gilt; but what
+chiefly attracts attention by the exquisite workmanship are the massive
+ebony doors, inlaid with mother-of-pearl of different colors, and
+arranged in beautiful designs. The interior of the temple does not
+correspond with the outside; the floor is covered with silver matting,
+and the walls bear traces of gilding, but they are blackened by time and
+smoke. A catafalque rises in the centre, surrounded with strips of
+gilded serge, and there is to be seen the famous footprint of Buddha. To
+this sacred spot the pilgrims bring their offerings, cut paper, cups,
+dolls, and an immense number of toys, many of them being wrought in gold
+and silver.
+
+"After staying a week on the mountain, and adding many pretty and
+interesting objects to my collection, our party returned to Arajik, the
+prince of Phrabat insisting on sending another guide with me, although
+my friend, the mandarin, with his attendants and elephants, had kindly
+remained to escort me back to his village. There I again partook of his
+hospitality, and, taking leave of him the day following, I resumed my
+voyage up the river. Before night I arrived at Saraburi, the chief town
+of the province of Pakpriau and the residence of the governor.
+
+"Saraburi is a place of some extent, the population consisting chiefly
+of Siamese, Chinese, and Laotian agriculturists; and consists, like all
+towns and villages in Siam, of houses constructed of bamboo. They peep
+out, half hidden, among the foliage along the banks of the river; beyond
+are rice plantations, and, further in the background, extensive forests,
+inhabited solely by wild animals.
+
+"On the morning of the 26th we passed Pakpriau, near which the cataracts
+begin. The waters were still high, and we had much trouble to fight
+against the current. A little to the north of this town I met with a
+poor family of Laotian Christians, of whom the good Father Larmandy had
+spoken to me. We moored our boat near their house, hoping that it would
+remain in safety while I explored the mountains in the neighborhood and
+visited Patawi, which is the resort of the Laotian pilgrims, as Phrabat
+is of the Siamese.
+
+"All the country from the banks of the river to the hills, a distance of
+about eight or nine miles, and the whole surface of this mountain-range,
+is covered with brown iron-ore and aerolites; where they occur in the
+greatest abundance vegetation is scanty and consists principally of
+bamboo, but it is rich and varied in those places where the detritus has
+formed a thicker surface of soil. The dense forests furnish gum and oil,
+which would be valuable for commerce if the indolent natives could be
+prevailed on to collect them. They are, however, infested with leopards,
+tigers, and tiger-cats. Two dogs and a pig were carried off from the
+immediate vicinity of the hut of the Christian guardians of our boat
+during our stay at Pakpriau; but the following day I had the pleasure
+of making the offending leopard pay for the robbery with his life, and
+his skin served me for a mat.
+
+"Where the soil is damp and sandy I found numerous traces of these
+animals, but those of the royal tiger are more uncommon. During the
+night the inhabitants dare not venture out of doors; but in the day-time
+the creatures, satisfied with the fruits of their predatory rambles,
+skulk into their dens in the recesses of the woods. One day I went to
+explore the eastern part of the chain of Pakpriau, and, becoming excited
+in the chase of a wild boar, we soon lost ourselves in the forest. The
+animal made his way through the brushwood much more easily than we
+could, encumbered as we were with guns, hatchets, and boxes, and we ere
+long missed the scent. By the terrified cries of the monkeys we knew we
+could not be far from some tiger or leopard, doubtless, like ourselves,
+in search of prey; and as night was drawing in, it became necessary to
+retrace our steps homeward for fear of some disagreeable adventure. With
+all our efforts, however, we could not find the path. We were far from
+the border of the forest, and were forced to take up our abode in a
+tree, among the branches of which we made a sort of hammock. On the
+following day we regained the river.
+
+"I endeavored fruitlessly to obtain oxen or elephants to carry our
+baggage with a view of exploring the country, but all beasts of burden
+were in use for the rice-harvest. I therefore left my boat and its
+contents in charge of the Laotian family, and we set off, like pilgrims,
+on foot for Patawi, on a fine morning with a somewhat cloudy sky, which
+recalled to me the pleasant autumn days of my own country. My only
+companions were Kuee and my young Laotian guide. We followed for three
+hours, through forests infested with wild beasts, the road to Korat, and
+at last reached Patawi. As at Phrabat, there is a bell, both at the foot
+of the mount and at the entrance of a long and wide avenue leading to
+the pagoda, which the pilgrims ring on arriving, to inform the good
+genii of their presence and bespeak a favorable hearing of their
+prayers. The mount is isolated, and about four hundred and fifty feet in
+height; its formation is similar to that of Phrabat, but although its
+appearance is equally grand it presents distinct points of variation.
+Here are not to be seen those masses of rock, piled one upon another, as
+if hurled by the giants in a combat like that fabled of old. Patawi
+seems to be composed of one enormous rock, which rises almost
+perpendicularly like a wall, excepting the centre portion, which toward
+the south hangs over like a roof, projecting eighteen or twenty feet. At
+the first glance might be recognized the action of water upon a soil
+originally clay.
+
+"There are many footprints similar to those of Phrabat, and in several
+places are to be seen entire trunks of trees in a state of petrifaction
+lying close to growing individuals of the same species. They have all
+the appearance of having been just felled, and it is only on testing
+their hardness with a hammer that one feels sure of not being mistaken.
+An ascent of several large stone steps leads, on the left hand, to the
+pagoda, and on the right to the residence of the talapoins, or priests,
+who are three in number, a superior and two assistants, appointed to
+watch and pay reverence to the precious 'rays' of Somanakodom. Were the
+authors who have written about Buddhism ignorant of the signification of
+the word 'ray' employed by the Buddhists? Now, in the Siamese language
+the same word which means 'ray' signifies also shadow, and it is through
+respect for their deity that the first meaning is applied.
+
+"The priests were much surprised to see a 'farang' (foreigner) in their
+pagoda, but some trifling gifts soon established me in their good
+graces. The superior was particularly charmed with a magnet which I gave
+him, and amused himself with it for a long time, uttering cries of
+delighted admiration as he saw it attract and pick up all the little
+pieces of metal which he placed near it.
+
+"I went to the extreme north of the mount, where some generous being has
+kindly had constructed, for the shelter of travellers, a hall, such as
+is found in many places near pagodas. The view there is indescribably
+splendid, and I cannot pretend to do justice either with pen or pencil
+to the grand scenes which here and elsewhere were displayed before my
+eyes. I can but seize the general effect and some of the details; all I
+can promise to do is to introduce nothing which I have not seen.
+Hitherto all the views I had seen in Siam had been limited in extent,
+but here the beauty of the country is exhibited in all its splendor.
+Beneath my feet was a rich and velvety carpet of brilliant and varied
+colors; an immense tract of forest, amid which the fields of rice and
+the unwooded spots appeared like little streaks of green; beyond, the
+ground, rising gradually, swells into hills of different elevations;
+farther still to the north and east, in the form of a semicircle, is the
+mountain-chain of Phrabat and that of the kingdom of Muang-Lom; and in
+the extreme distance those of Korat, fully sixty miles distant. All
+these join one another, and are, in fact, but a single range. But how
+describe the varieties of form among all these peaks! In one place they
+seem to melt into the vapory rose-tints of the horizon, while near at
+hand the peculiar structure and color of the rocks bring out more
+strongly the richness of the vegetation; there, again, are deep shadows
+vying with the deep blue of the heaven above; everywhere those brilliant
+sunny lights, those delicate hues, those warm tones, which make the
+_tout ensemble_ perfectly enchanting. The spectacle is one which the eye
+of a painter can seize and revel in, but which his brush, however
+skilful, can transfer most imperfectly to his canvas.
+
+[Illustration: MOUNTAINS OF KORAT FROM PATAWI.]
+
+"At the sight of this unexpected panorama a cry of admiration burst
+simultaneously from all mouths. Even my poor companions, generally
+insensible to the beauties of nature, experienced a moment of ecstasy at
+the sublimity of the scene. 'Oh! _di, di!_' (beautiful) cried my young
+Laotian guide; and when I asked Kuee what he thought of it, 'Oh! master,'
+he replied, in his mixed jargon of Latin, English, and Siamese, 'the
+Siamese see Buddha on a stone, and do not see God in these grand things.
+I am pleased to have been to Patawi.'
+
+"On the opposite side, viz., the south, the picture is different. Here
+is a vast plain, which extends from the base of Patawi and the other
+mountains beyond Ayuthia, whose high towers are visible in the distance,
+120 miles off. At the first glance one distinguishes what was formerly
+the bed of the sea, this great plain having taken the place of an
+ancient gulf: proof of which is afforded by numerous marine shells, many
+of which I collected in a perfect state of preservation, while the
+rocks, with their footprints and fossil shells, are indicative of some
+great change at a still earlier period.
+
+"Every evening some of the good Laotian mountaineers came to see the
+'farang.' These Laotians differ slightly from the Siamese: they are more
+slender, have the cheek-bones more prominent, and have also darker
+complexions. They wear their hair long, while the Siamese shave half of
+the head, leaving the hair to grow only on the top. They deserve praise
+for their intrepidity as hunters, if they have not that of warriors.
+Armed with a cutlass or bow, with which latter weapon they adroitly
+launch, to a distance of one hundred feet, balls of clay hardened in the
+sun, they wander about their vast forests, undismayed by the jaguars and
+tigers infesting them. The chase is their principal amusement, and, when
+they can procure a gun and a little Chinese powder, they track the wild
+boar, or, lying in wait for the tiger or the deer, perch themselves on a
+tree or in a little hut raised on bamboo stakes.
+
+"Their poverty borders on misery, but it mainly results from excessive
+indolence, for they will cultivate just sufficient rice for their
+support; this done, they pass the rest of their time in sleep, lounging
+about the woods, or making excursions from one village to another,
+paying visits to their friends on the way.
+
+"At Patawi I heard much of Korat, which is the capital of the province
+of the same name, situated five days' journey northeast of
+Pakpriau--that is about one hundred and twenty miles--and I determined,
+if possible, to visit it by and by. It appears to be a rich country,
+producing especially silk of good quality. Caoutchouc-trees abound, but
+are neglected by the inhabitants, who are probably ignorant of their
+value. I brought back a magnificent specimen of the gum, which was much
+admired by the English merchants at Bangkok. Living, according to
+report, is fabulously cheap: six fowls may be purchased for a _fuang_
+(37 centimes), 100 eggs for the same sum, and all other things in
+proportion. But to get there one has to cross the famous forest of 'the
+King of the Fire,' which is visible from the top of Patawi, and it is
+only in the dry season that it is safe to attempt this; during the rains
+both the water and the atmosphere are fatally pestilential. The
+superstitious Siamese do not dare to use fire-arms there, from fear of
+attracting evil spirits who would kill them.
+
+"During all the time I spent on the top of the mountain the chief priest
+was unremitting in his attentions to me. He had my luggage carried into
+his own room, gave me up his mats to add to mine, and in other ways
+practised self-denial to make me as comfortable as was in his power. The
+priests complain much of the cold in the rainy season, and of the
+torrents which then rush from the summit of the mountain; they are also
+greatly disturbed by the tigers, which, driven from the plains by the
+inundations, take refuge on the high ground, and carry away their dogs
+and fowls out of the very houses. But their visits are not confined to
+that period of the year. About ten o'clock on the second night of my
+stay the dogs suddenly began to utter plaintive howls. 'A tiger! a
+tiger!' cried my Laotian, who was lying near me. I started up, seized my
+gun, and half opened the door; but the profound darkness made it
+impossible to see anything, or to go out without uselessly exposing
+myself. I therefore contented myself with firing off my gun to frighten
+the creature. The next morning we found one of our dogs gone.
+
+"We scoured the neighborhood for about a week, and then set off once
+more by water for Bangkok, as I wished to put my collections in order
+and send them off.
+
+"The places which two months previously had been deep in water were now
+dry, and everywhere around their dwellings the people were digging their
+gardens and beginning to plant vegetables. The horrible mosquitoes had
+reappeared in greater swarms than ever, and I pitied my poor servants,
+who, after rowing all day, could obtain no rest at night.
+
+"During the day, especially in the neighborhood of Pakpriau, the heat
+was intense, the thermometer being ordinarily at 90 deg. Fahrenheit (28 deg.
+Reaumur) in the shade, and 140 deg. Fahrenheit (49 deg. Reaumur) in the sun.
+Luckily, we had no longer to contend with the current, and our boat,
+though heavily laden, proceeded rapidly. We were about three hours'
+sail from Bangkok, when I perceived a couple of European boats, and in a
+room built for travellers near a pagoda I recognized three English
+captains of my acquaintance, one of whom had brought me to Singapore.
+They were, with their wives, enjoying a picnic, and, on seeing me,
+insisted on my joining them and partaking of the repast.
+
+"I reached Bangkok the same day, and was still uncertain as to a
+lodging, when M. Wilson, the courteous Danish consul, came to me, and
+kindly offered the hospitality of his magnificent house.
+
+"I consider the part of the country which I had just passed through
+extremely healthy, except, perhaps, during the rains. It appears that in
+this season the water, flowing down from the mountains and passing over
+a quantity of poisonous detritus, becomes impregnated with mineral
+substances, gives out pestilential miasmata, and causes the terrible
+jungle-fever, which, if it does not at once carry off the victim, leaves
+behind it years of suffering. My journey, as has been seen, took place
+at the end of the rainy season and when the floods were subsiding; some
+deleterious exhalations, doubtless, still escaped, and I saw several
+natives attacked with intermittent fever, but I had not had an hour's
+illness. Ought I to attribute this immunity to the regimen I observed,
+and which had been strongly recommended to me--abstinence, all but
+total, from wine and spirits, and drinking only tea, never cold water? I
+think so; and I believe by such a course one is in no great danger."
+
+
+
+
+                         CHAPTER XI.
+
+   FROM BANGKOK TO CHANTABOUN--A MISSIONARY JOURNEY IN 1835
+
+
+For many years the region on the eastern shore of the gulf has been more
+or less familiar to the foreign residents in Bangkok. So long ago as
+1835 the Protestant missionaries explored and mapped out, with a good
+degree of accuracy, the coast line from the mouth of the Meinam to the
+mouth of the Chantaboun River. Extracts from the journal of Dr. Bradley,
+a pioneer among American missionaries in Siam, give an interesting
+sketch of the country as it was, as well as of the modes of travel many
+years ago, and the beginnings of the civilization in which, since that
+time, Siam has made such extraordinary progress.
+
+Dr. Bradley, accompanied by another missionary and wife, made his
+journey in the first vessel ever built in Siam on a European model. A
+young nobleman, who has since then become very distinguished by reason
+of his interest in scientific pursuits of every kind, and his
+attainments in various branches of knowledge, had built at Chantaboun a
+brig which he had named the Ariel, and was about returning from Bangkok
+to that port. With the liberality and kindness by which his conduct
+toward the missionaries has always been characterized, he invited Dr.
+Bradley and his colleague to be his guests on the return voyage. Dr.
+Bradley thus speaks of the Ariel.
+
+"Went aboard of the brig Ariel to have a look at the first square-rigged
+vessel ever made in Siam, and brought up a few days since from
+Chantaboun to present to the king. Considering that this is the first
+essay made in this country to imitate European ship-building, that the
+young nobleman had but poor models, if any, to guide him, and that all
+his knowledge of ship-building has been gathered by here and there an
+observation of foreign vessels in port, this brig certainly reflects
+very great credit on his creative genius. Not only this, but other facts
+also indicate that the young nobleman is endowed with an uncommonly
+capacious mind for a Siamese. It appears that he is building at
+Chantaboun several vessels of from 300 to 400 tons burthen. His wife has
+just left our house, having spent the evening with Mrs. B. She possesses
+many interesting qualities, and, like her husband, is fond of the
+society of Europeans and Americans. Her attendants were three or four
+females who paddled the sampan in which she came, and carried her
+betel-box and other accompaniments. They remained at the door in a
+crouching posture, while their mistress visited Mrs. B. Her dress
+consisted of a phanung of ordinary cloth, a Birmese jacket of crimson
+crape, a scarlet sash of the same material, and a leaden-colored shawl
+of the richest damask silk."
+
+All preparations being made for the excursion, and an abundant supply
+of Christian tracts laid in for distribution among the natives as
+opportunity might offer, Dr. Bradley's narrative continues, under date
+of November 12, 1835:
+
+"One of the most delightful mornings I have seen since I left my dear
+native land. While the brig Ariel floated down with the tide, I called
+upon my brethren in company with my wife, when I took leave of her for
+the first time since we were married. The brig had made more progress
+than we were aware, which subjected us to the inconvenience of
+overtaking her in an open boat under a burning sun. She was under full
+press of sail before we reached her, but with much exertion on our part
+to inspire our paddlers to lay out more strength, by crying out in
+Chinese tongue _qui qui_, and in the Siamese _reow reow_, and by a
+full-souled response on their part, we reached the brig at 12 A.M. We
+were somewhat disappointed in finding the cabin exclusively occupied by
+the mother and sisters of Luang Nai Sit, who being high in rank as
+females, must of course have the best accommodations on board. The
+mother is allied to the royal family, and consequently ranks higher than
+her husband, the p'rak'lang, though he is one of the first in point of
+office, being commander-in-chief of the Siamese forces, and
+prime-minister of foreign affairs. But Luang Nai Sit did all he could to
+make us comfortable on deck, spreading a double awning over us, one of
+thin canvas, and the other of attap leaves. Our pride was somewhat
+uncomfortably tried by finding ourselves dependent upon K'oon Klin, the
+wife of Luang Nai Sit, for the common comforts of shipboard. But it
+is due to her and her husband to say that they were both very polite,
+and evidently regretted that they could not then make us perfectly
+comfortable. They anxiously encouraged us with the promise that after a
+little time they would have matters in a better state, saving that their
+mother and sisters would leave the brig at Paknam, and give us the
+occupancy of the cabin.
+
+[Illustration: PORT OF CHANTABOUN.]
+
+"The more I dwell upon it the more I am interested in the Providence
+that has brought us on board this vessel. But it may be asked, What is
+there peculiarly interesting in it? Why, here is a new Siamese brig,
+recently presented to the king of Siam, as the first specimen of a
+successful imitation of European ship-building, on her first voyage,
+volunteered by one of the first men in the kingdom to bear a company of
+missionaries to a province of Siam, carrying the everlasting gospel to a
+people who have never heard it, and who, to use the expression of the
+nobleman who has volunteered to take us thither, 'have no God, no
+religion, and greatly need the labors of missionaries among them.'
+
+"On awaking the next morning, I find that we are lying at anchor
+opposite Paknam, where the mother and sisters of our noble friend are to
+disembark. It is truly affecting to witness the kind attentions of Luang
+Nai Sit, and to observe how ready he is to anticipate our wants, and
+prepare to meet them. Last evening, while we were singing, a company of
+native singers removed their seats at the forecastle, and sitting down
+near to us, began to bawl out in the native style. Luang Nai Sit soon
+came to us and requested that we should go to the upper deck, and take
+seats which he had prepared for us, saying, 'There is too much confusion
+for you to stay here; go up yonder, and bless God undisturbed.'
+
+"These native singers, I am informed, are now practising with a view to
+sing to the white elephant at Chantaboun. They sang many times a day, of
+which I have become heartily sick.
+
+"We weighed anchor very early in the morning of the 14th, and sailed
+with the tide in our favor for the bar. We were interested in witnessing
+the outgushings of maternal and filial affection of the noble relatives
+just before we sailed from Paknam. Luang Nai Sit exhibited much of it on
+parting with his mother, and she was tenderly moved on taking leave of
+her son and grandchildren. [One of the latter was a little boy, who
+afterward became prime minister and minister of war.] We noticed that
+their tears were allowed to flow only in the cabin, out of sight of
+their slaves. On deck, and when in the act of parting, they were solemn
+and perfectly composed. A little after sunrise we came in sight of the
+mountains of Keo, which to me was a peculiarly gratifying sight. I had
+for months sighed after something of the kind to interrupt the dead
+monotony of Bangkok. There, do what you may by the means of telescopes
+and towers, you will discover nothing but one unbroken plain."
+
+We condense Dr. Bradley's journal from this point, omitting unnecessary
+details of the voyage:
+
+"Arose at four in the morning of the 15th, and found that we were at
+anchor a little south of the Keo Mountains, having Koh Chang or See
+Chang on the west, eight miles distant, and the coast of See Maha Racha
+on the east, five miles distant. I know not when I have been so
+delighted with natural scenery as at this time. Not a cloud was seen in
+the heavens. The moon walked in brightness amid myriads of twinkling
+suns and shining worlds. A balmy and gentle breeze just ruffled the
+bosom of the deep. The wonted confusion of the deck was perfectly
+hushed. Lofty mountains and a rugged and romantic coast darkened the
+eastern horizon. At five o'clock Luang Nai Sit invited us to go ashore
+with him. We readily accepted the invitation and accompanied our friend
+to the village of See Maha Racha, attended by his bodyguard, armed with
+guns, swords, and lances. The scenery, as the dawn brightened, was most
+exhilarating. The mountains, hills, and plains were covered with
+vegetation in the liveliest green, with here and there a cultivated
+spot. As we approached the settlement from the west, at our right was a
+rock-bound coast. Just in the background of this, and parallel with it,
+was an admirably undulated ridge, which seemed to be composed of hill
+rolled close upon hill. At our left were islands of lofty white-capped
+rocks. Further removed, at the east, were mountains towering behind
+mountains. Before us was an extensive plain bounded with mountains far
+in the distance. We reached the village a little after sunrise, which we
+found to contain three hundred or four hundred souls, chiefly Siamese.
+It was a matter of not a little regret that we had no tracts to give
+them. The people seemed to live in somewhat of a tidy manner, not very
+unlike a poor villager in our own country. Still their houses were built
+of bamboo, and elevated, according to the Siamese custom, as on stilts.
+We called at several houses, and found the females engaged in eating
+their rice. We attempted to penetrate the jungle behind the settlement,
+but did not go far, as there seemed to be but little prospect that we
+should descry other settlements.
+
+"Having spent a part of an hour in surveying the village, we followed
+our honorable guide along the beach, among immense ferruginous and
+quartz rocks having apparently been undermined by the restless ocean,
+and these were interlaid with small seashells of great variety. On the
+one hand we had the music of the roaring tide, on the other an admirable
+jungle, overhanging the beach from the east, and thus protecting us from
+the blaze of the rising sun, while the air was perfumed with many a
+flower. Several boat-loads of Luang Nai Sit's retinue soon came off the
+brig to the shore, which composed a company of fifty or more. At length
+a boat came loaded with provisions for a picnic breakfast, all cooked
+and duly arranged on salvers. The whole company (ourselves excepted) sat
+down on the beach in three classes, and there partook of the repast with
+a keen relish. Luang Nai Sit and his brothers ate by themselves; the
+women, consisting of K'oon Klin, or wife of the chief, and her children
+and other high blood attendants, ate by themselves. After these had
+finished their breakfast, the multitude of dependents messed together.
+Meanwhile the natives of the village and vicinity flocked in, loaded
+with plantains, red peppers, cerileaves, cocoanuts, jack-fruit, etc.,
+and presented them as tokens of respect to the son of their lord, the
+p'rak'lang, and to him they bowed and worshipped on their hands and
+knees. At 10 A.M. we returned to the brig in an uncovered boat, in
+company with K'oon Klin and her train. Luang Nai Sit could not, of
+course, return in the same boat with the women, as it would be a
+violation of Siamese custom. He came in another boat behind us. The sun
+was very powerful, and that, together with the crowd and confusion of
+the company in the absence of their chief, quite overcame me in my
+feebleness of health.
+
+"At 11 A.M. our anchor was again weighed, and we sailed very pleasantly
+before a gentle breeze, being continually in full sight of the mainland
+at our left, and the islands of Koh Kram, Sewalan, and a number of
+others on our right. The former is noted for the quantities of turtles
+which are caught on its coasts, the latter is a cluster of verdant
+spots, probably uninhabited by man. Much of the mainland which we have
+as yet passed is mountainous, diversified with extensive plains, and
+covered with lofty timber. With the aid of the brig's telescope we
+descried several villages on the shore."
+
+After beating about for a night and a day in a good deal of uncertainty
+and some peril (for the Siamese officers and crew were unskilful
+navigators), "we were not a little disappointed on the morning of the
+18th in supposing that we were entering the mouth of Chantaboun River,
+which proved to be but a passage between the island of Semet and the
+main coast. It seems that we have been beating for this passage between
+thirty and forty hours, and but a few miles from it all the time. The
+scenery about this place is quite charming, combining much of the
+romantic with the beautiful. Have sailed twenty or thirty miles this
+afternoon in full sight of the coast, passing many small islands, which
+have given us a very pleasing variety. Much of the coast is level near
+the sea, with towering mountains, several miles distant. One island
+which we passed near by is worthy of some notice. It is quite small,
+composed of rocks, which rise sixty or eighty feet above the water, and
+crowned with pleasant shrubbery. It has a wing extending out fifty feet
+or more, which is about thirty feet high, and through this there is a
+natural tunnel, having much the appearance of an artificial arch of
+stone, and apparently large enough to allow a common-sized boat to pass.
+Hence the islet is called Koh Loo.
+
+"On the morning of the 19th, the curtains of a tempestuous night having
+been removed, very much to our joy we found that we were in sight of our
+desired haven, and we enjoyed much interesting scenery while tossing
+about during the day. There are many bold islands in this vicinity, with
+rocky bases, and crowned with luxuriant vegetation. Koh Ch'ang lies
+fifteen or twenty miles south of us. It is a large island, with lofty
+peaks, and it is said to be famous for elephants and that there are
+several thousand souls upon it. Prit Prote are three small islands,
+interesting only as affording pleasant objects to the eye of the
+naturalist. Koh Nom Low is a very curious pinnacle near the entrance
+into the mouth of Chantaboun River. With a small base, it rises out of
+the sea probably four hundred feet. The mouth of the river is admirably
+guarded by an arm of a mountain ridge, which extends out into the sea
+and embraces the harbor, which is also artificially protected by two
+batteries. The coast extends east by southeast. That part of it east of
+the river, in the immediate vicinity of the sea, is level, low, and
+covered with a thick jungle. The main body of the trees appear low,
+having interspersed among them many tall trees, with here and there
+small hills, handsomely attired. Parallel with this coast, and
+apparently ten miles from the sea, the mountain Sal Bap towers into the
+clouds, and stretches a long way to the north and to the south. The
+coast west of the river is rugged and mountainous. In the apparent
+direction of the river there are several sublime peaks. As far as the
+eye can command, vegetation appears luxuriant, but is quite different
+from that of Bangkok. The cocoanut palm, which is the queen of all the
+jungles in that vicinity, is not to be seen here. The appearance of the
+water about the mouth of this river is perfectly clear, while that of
+the Meinam is extremely turbid."
+
+At this point the missionaries' Siamese friend left them and proceeded
+in advance to Chantaboun. On the day following, November 21st, "he sent
+back a small junk for us, which we gladly accepted, and took passage in
+her, starting in the morning, and expected of course that we should
+arrive at our destination early in the evening. But almost every rod of
+our way seemed beset with extraordinary obstacles. In the first place,
+we had a strong contrary wind to contend with, which obliged us to beat
+till late in the afternoon with but little success. In the early
+evening the breeze became gentle, when, with great entreaty on our part,
+our boatmen were induced to take to their oars. Presently we found a
+strong current against us, and within the next half hour our boat
+touched the bottom of the channel and became immovable in the mud. Now
+it seemed certain that instead of reaching our destination early in the
+evening, as we had hoped, we should be under the necessity of staying
+aboard of our craft all night, exposed to the inclemency of the night
+air, and with but a scanty supply of food. It was well that we had taken
+a late breakfast, for a cup of tea with sea bread and cheese had to
+suffice both for our dinner and supper. With these we satisfied the
+cravings of hunger, being, I trust, thankful to God that we were so well
+fed. Having taken our frugal supper we sought for places to lodge
+ourselves for the night. As for a cabin, of course there was none in
+such a junk. There were _holds_, but they were filled with luggage. My
+fellow-travellers preferred to seek their rest on the open deck in a
+half-reclining posture, wrapped up in their cloaks. I found a place in
+the 'hinder part of the ship' just large enough to lie down in, where I
+spread my mattress and tried to sleep. About midnight the tide rose and
+bore our junk away from the mud. But it was only a little time when it
+was announced by a singular scraping on our boat's bottom, and by a
+tremendous scolding of a party of Chinamen whom we had met, that we had
+found another obstacle. It was soon revealed that we had got entangled
+in a fish-net belonging to the Chinamen. Here we were detained an hour
+or more in efforts to disengage our boat from the ropes of the fish-net.
+After this was done I know not what other impediments we met with, for I
+fell into a sleep.
+
+"At 4 A.M. it was announced that we had arrived at our destination. We
+shook off our slumbers and looked out, and behold our junk was anchored
+in front of a house with open doors, literally, and windows without
+shutters, while a piercing, chilling wind was whistling through it. It
+proved to be, not in Chantaboun, but several miles below it at a Siamese
+dockyard. As all our boatmen had gone ashore, and we were left without a
+guide, we determined to 'stick to the ship' till full day, and
+accordingly lay down and took another nap. When we arose early in the
+morning we were surprised to learn that Luang Nai Sit and his retinue
+had lodged in that bleak house the night before, and had gone up the
+river to Chantaboun, and that this was the place he designed to have us
+occupy while we sojourned in this part of Siam. This house assigned to
+us here is situated over the water, exposed to the strong north winds
+that blow from the opposite side of the river. It is built of bamboo
+slats and small poles, so as to operate as a kind of sieve for the bleak
+winds. The most of the floor is also of bamboo slats, and admits strong
+currents of air through them, while the waves are both heard and seen
+dashing beneath them. The roof is made of attap leaves, which rattle
+like hail in the wind. The best rooms in the house, two in number, are
+enclosed with bamboo slats and lined with cajung. These were politely
+assigned to us by our kind friend, who is ever ready to deny himself to
+oblige us. This would be a delightfully cool place in the spring and
+summer months, but at this season of the year it is unpleasantly chilly.
+
+"This place has no importance, only what is connected with the
+ship-building carried on here. There are now on the stocks not less than
+fifty vessels, consisting of two ships of three hundred or four hundred
+tons burden, thirty or forty war-boats or junks, and a number of smaller
+craft."
+
+On the following day the missionaries made an excursion up the river as
+high as the p'rak'lang's establishment, where "we left our boat and
+proceeded by land two or three miles to Bang Ka Chah. The river up to
+the place where we left it is exceedingly serpentine, the banks being
+low and overflowed by the tides, and covered with an impenetrable jungle
+of low timber.
+
+"As we drew near the p'rak'lang's there appeared pleasant fields of
+paddy, and at a distance a beautiful acclivity partially cleared, around
+which government is building extensive fortifications. The works are
+rapidly advancing. The circumference of the enclosure when finished will
+not vary much from two miles. The embankment is forty feet above the
+surface of the ground, and the depth of the ditch on the outside will
+increase it six feet. The earth is of a remarkably red color, and gives
+the embankment the appearance of solid brick. This is to be surrounded
+by a breastwork six feet high, with portholes, and made of brick
+literally dug out of the earth, which, a few feet from the surface,
+possesses the consistence of brick that had been a little dried in the
+sun. Blocks eighteen inches in length, nine in breadth, and six in
+thickness, are cut out by Chinamen and Malays, which, with a little
+smoothing, are prepared for laying into the wall.
+
+"We were objects of great curiosity to the natives. Our _passport_ was
+only to tell them that we came from Bangkok in Koon Sit's brig, and this
+was perfectly satisfactory. With the idea that Bang Ka Chah was but a
+little way onward, we continued to walk, being very much exhilarated by
+the sight of palmy plains, palmy hills and extensive rice plantations.
+The country appeared to have a first-rate soil, and to be very
+extensively cultivated. The paddy fields were heavy laden and well
+filled. It was harvest time. In one direction you might see reapers; in
+another gatherers of the sheaves; in another threshers; one with his
+buffaloes treading out the grain, another with his bin and rack, against
+which he was beating the sheaves. The lots were divided by foot-paths
+merely, consisting of a little ridge thrown up by the farmers.
+
+"In Bang Ka Chah we found a settlement of four thousand or more Chinese.
+Our guide conducted us to a comfortable house, where, much to my
+comfort, we were offered a place to lie down, and presented with tea and
+fruit. We had not been in the place ten minutes before we had attracted
+around us hundreds of men, women, and children, who were as eager to
+examine us Americans as the latter once were to examine the Siamese
+twins. The inhabitants appeared remarkably healthy. I could not
+discover a sickly countenance among them. There were many very aged
+people. Children were particularly abundant and interesting. How
+inviting a harvest, thought I, is here for the future missionary. The
+houses are mostly built of brick after the common style of Chinese
+architecture. The streets are crooked, narrow, and filthy. At 4 o'clock,
+P.M., we returned to the house of Luang Nai Sit, who lives near his
+father, the p'rak'lang, where we were refreshed with a good dinner,
+after which we took to our boats and arrived at our lodgings at seven
+o'clock in the evening.
+
+"We have made an excursion to the town of Chantaboun. It is about nine
+miles from the place where we stay, being on the main branch of the
+river, while Bang Ka Chah is on a smaller one. After we passed the
+p'rak'lang's, there was much to be seen that was in no small degree
+interesting. The river was from sixty to eighty yards wide, apparently
+deep and exceedingly serpentine. The banks were generally cleared of
+wild timber, gently elevated, uniformly smooth, and cultivated. As we
+approached Chantaboun, the margin of the river was most charmingly
+graced with clumps of the bamboo, and several fields were bounded with
+the same tree. We passed not far from the foot of the lofty mountain Sah
+Bap, from which point we could also see several other mountains. The top
+of one was lost in the clouds. Near Chantaboun the river is quite lined
+on one side with Siamese war-junks on the stocks. The reigning passion
+of the government at present is to make preparations in this section of
+their country for defence against the Cochin-Chinese, and for
+aggressions against the same if need be.
+
+"We reached Chantaboun at 2 P.M. The natives discovering us as we drew
+near their place, congregated by scores on the banks of the river to
+look at us. They were exceedingly excited, the children particularly,
+and scarcely knew how to contain themselves. Some ran with all their
+might to proclaim in the most animated manner to the inhabitants ahead
+that we were coming. Others jumped up and down, laughing and hallooing
+most merrily. We preferred to pass up the river to the extreme end of
+the town before we landed, that in coming down by land we might form
+some estimate of the amount of the inhabitants. The town is situated on
+both sides of the stream, which is probably eighty yards wide. As we
+passed along we observed one of the most pleasant situations occupied by
+a Roman Catholic chapel. Its appearance, together with some
+peculiarities in the inhabitants, led us to think that the Catholics had
+got a strong foothold here. We saw only four Siamese priests and no
+temples. The houses on the river were built principally of bamboo and
+attap. They were small, elevated five or six feet above the ground, and
+wore the aspect of old age. The ground on which the town is situated
+rises gently from the river and is a dry and sandy loam. There were a
+number of middling-sized junks lying in the river, which proves that the
+stream is sufficiently deep to admit of the passage of such craft.
+
+"Having reached the farthest extremity of the place, we landed and
+walked down the principal street. We were thronged with wondering
+multitudes, who were Cochin, Tachu, and Hokien-Chinese, with only here
+and there a Siamese. The inhabitants looked healthy, and were more
+perfectly dressed than we usually observe in heathen villages in this
+climate. The day being far spent we could not prolong our stay more than
+one hour. When we got into our boat to return the people literally
+surrounded us, although it was in the water. Some stood in the river
+waist-deep to get a look at the lady of the party, and petitioned that
+she should rise from her seat, that they might see how tall she was. As
+we pushed out into the river the multitudes shouted most heartily. There
+cannot be less than eight thousand or ten thousand souls in Chantaboun,
+and probably thousands in the immediate vicinity.
+
+"On our return we stopped at Luang Nai Sit's, and spent an hour or more.
+In looking about the premises we heedlessly entered a large bamboo
+house, where to our surprise we saw a monster of an elephant, and his
+excellency, the p'rak'lang, who beckoned to us to enter and directed us
+to seats. We learned that this elephant was denominated white, and
+seemed to be an object of great religious veneration. He was as far from
+being white as black. There appeared to be a little white powder
+sprinkled upon his back. He was fastened to a post, and a man was
+feeding him with paddy-grass.
+
+"All the days that we have been in this place have been very
+uncomfortably cold. We have not only wanted winter clothes, but have
+found ourselves most comfortable when wrapped up in our cloaks till the
+middle and sometimes till after the middle of the day. The natives
+shiver like the aspen leaf, and they act much as an American in the
+coldest winter day. The northeast monsoon sweeps over the mountains, and
+I think produces a current downward from that high and cool region of
+air, which retains nearly its temperature till after it has passed this
+place.
+
+"It seems that there are a great number of settlements, within the
+circumference of a few miles, as large as Bang Ka Chah; that the country
+is admirably watered by three rivers; and that the soil is rich and
+peculiarly adapted to the growth of pepper, of which large quantities
+are raised. There is a small mountain near by, where it is said diamonds
+are procured. At Bang Ka Chah there is a remarkable cave in a mountain.
+The country intervening between Bang Ka Chah and Thamai is under a high
+state of cultivation, being almost exclusively occupied by Chinamen, who
+cultivate rice, tobacco, pepper, etc. The face of the country is
+pleasantly undulated. Thamai contains four hundred or five hundred
+souls, chiefly Chinese. Nung Boah lies east from this place about four
+miles by the course of the river. It is not a condensed settlement, but
+an agricultural and horticultural district, with thirty or forty
+dwellings, perhaps, on every square mile. It is situated on a large
+plain, a little distance from the foot of the mount Sah Bap. Not more
+than a quarter of the land is cultivated, while the remainder is covered
+with small and scrubby junglewood. Multitudes of charming flowers lined
+both sides of the paths as we walked from one farm to another; and many
+a bird was seen of beautiful plumage and some of pleasant note. The
+graceful tops of cocoanut trees we found a never-failing sign of a human
+dwelling, and sometimes of a cluster of them. The land is almost wholly
+occupied by Tachu-Chinese; a few of them have Siamese wives, the
+remainder are single men. They cultivate but small portions of land,
+which they bring under a high state of improvement. They raise chiefly
+sugar-cane, pepper, and tobacco. The soil, being a rich loam, is well
+adapted to the culture of these articles, as well as of a great variety
+of horticultural plants.
+
+"We have continued our surveys to the southeast of this place, and
+visited Plieoo, a settlement south of Nung Boah. We left our boat at
+Barn-Chowkow, which is a settlement of Siamese, consisting of about
+sixty families living in a very rural, and, for a Siamese, a very
+comfortable style, in the midst of groves of cocoanuts, interspersed
+with many a venerable jungle-tree. On either side of a gentle elevation
+on which their houses are scattered along a line of half a mile, are
+rice-fields far surpassing in excellence any I had before seen. The
+grain was nearly all out, and a large proportion of it gathered. They
+need no barns, and therefore have none. At this season of the year they
+have no rains to trouble them. The rice is threshed by buffaloes. All
+the preparation that is necessary for this is to smooth and harden a
+circle of ground 30 feet in diameter, and set a post in its centre.
+Siamese carts have wheels not less than twenty-five feet in
+circumference, set four or five feet apart, with a small rack in which
+the sheaves are placed. These are drawn by a yoke of buffaloes. The
+person who loads the cart guides the team by means of ropes, which are
+fastened to the septum of their nostrils by hooks.
+
+"At Plieoo we first went into a blacksmith's shop, where four Chinamen
+were employed. The master was very polite and did all he could think of
+to make us comfortable. He prepared his couch for us to rest upon, got
+us a cup of tea, etc. We gave him one of the histories of Christ, for
+which he was abundantly thankful. We next went to the market, where we
+disposed of a few books. Entering into the house of a Chinaman, we were
+surprised to find three Siamese priests. The master of the house had
+prepared a very neat dinner for one of his clerical guests, and was just
+in the act of sitting down on the floor to eat, as we entered. There was
+a frown on his brow as he saw us approach. Although he could read, he
+utterly refused to receive a tract. Being much in want of some
+refreshment, I proposed that he should let me have a dish of rice. He
+refused. I still pleaded for a little, but he was determined that I
+should not be fed from the same table with his priest. After a little
+time we returned to our good friend the blacksmith, and merely suggested
+to him our want of food. The aged, hospitable man seemed very happy that
+he could have an opportunity to render us such kindness and hastened to
+prepare us a dinner. He went himself to market and purchased a variety
+of articles for our comfort. The table was soon well supplied with rice,
+eggs, greens, and various nameless Chinese nick-nacks.
+
+"In the village of Plieoo there are only a few hundred souls, who are
+mostly Tachu-Chinese, and cannot read. Their wives are Siamese. We
+conclude, from what we were able to learn, that the vicinity is densely
+populated."
+
+The voyage back to Bangkok was comfortably made in a small junk
+furnished by Luang Nai Sit, and in company with his brother-in-law, an
+agreeable and intelligent Siamese. Dr. Bradley continues:
+
+"We have in tow an elegant boat, designed probably for some one of the
+nobles at Bangkok. It was manufactured at Semetgaan. The Siamese possess
+superior skill in making these boats. They have the very best materials
+the world can afford for such purposes. The boats consist generally of
+but one piece.
+
+"A large tree is taken and scooped out in the form of a trough. By some
+process, I know not what, the sides are then sprung outward, which draws
+the extremities into a beautiful curve upward. After this is done the
+boat is admirably wrought and trimmed. The one we have in tow is about
+sixty feet in length and five in breadth. Compared with many it is quite
+small. I have seen not a few that were nearly a hundred feet long and
+from six to eight feet wide, made in the way I have above described.
+
+"[Not long after the above was written, the writer learned that these
+boats are swelled out in their mid-ships by means of fire, and that the
+curves of their bows and sterns are increased by means of pieces of the
+same kind of timber so neatly fitted and firmly joined as to appear on a
+distant examination to be a continuation of the body of the boat.]
+
+"On the morning of December 16th we were passing between Koh Samet and
+Sem Yah. After we passed this our course lay west-northwest to another
+cape called Sah Wa Larn. The wind was favorable but light, and we were
+becalmed in the heat of the day four hours or more. The heat was
+excessively oppressive. No shade on deck and my cabin a small place, not
+large enough to admit of my standing upright. Our vessel has been rowed
+much of the afternoon for the want of wind. Cast anchor just at evening
+a little east of Sah Wa Larn, having made less than twenty miles during
+the day. The coast about Lem Sing is very picturesque. West of this,
+till you come to Sah Wa Larn, it is uniformly level. The land appears to
+be entirely uncultivated. The forests are composed of large timber,
+their tops presenting a very uniform surface. I have much cause for
+gratitude to God that I find in my companion, Soot Chin Dah, a very
+attentive friend. He is desirous to render me all the assistance he can
+in acquiring the Siamese language, in which I hope I am making some
+proficiency by engaging with him in conversation.
+
+"The scene between Koh Arat and Koh Yai, in the midst of which we were
+at anchor the next morning, is most charming. The distance from one to
+the other is about one mile. Arat is a small island rising very abruptly
+many hundred feet above the sea. At the top is a rock of a conical form,
+which seems on the point of rolling down with a tremendous crash into
+the sea. Koh Yai is a much larger island, and hence its name. A little
+before us was the cape Samaasarn, shielded against the sea by immense
+white rocks. Just as the sun was rising Soot Chin Dah invited me to
+accompany him to Koh Yai for a morning exercise. Our fine boat was
+manned with nineteen men, and we went off in princely style. We coasted
+some distance and then landed; whence we walked a long way, first on a
+sandy beach and then among rocks composed of marine shells interlaid
+with coral and shells of infinite variety. The land was all one unbroken
+jungle. Much of the small timber was of a thorny kind, which seemed to
+bid defiance to human invasion. Our men were chiefly engaged in picking
+up shells suitable for gambling purposes. On our return we touched at
+Arat, where I amused myself a little time in climbing around craggy and
+stupendous rocks. After two hours we returned to our junk well prepared
+for breakfast. The hired cook, which Luang Nai Sit had the goodness to
+provide for me, had my food all ready, consisting of a broiled chicken,
+salt and fresh eggs, and rice with tea. Soot Chin Dah eats by himself,
+sometimes in one place and sometimes in another. His food is very neatly
+served for him in a circular wooden tray. It is prepared by a Portuguese
+cook, and served by his inferior brother. When he is done eating, his
+brother, serang, assistant serang, and cook eat of the remainder,
+sitting on the deck. They use neither knife, fork, nor spoon, their
+fingers serving the purposes of these instruments. The helmsman and his
+mate, who are masters of the junk, and country-born Portuguese, eat by
+themselves in the style of the Siamese. The crew clan together in
+eating according to their nameless distinctions. Their main dependence
+is rice and fish. The former they eat out of the bark of a plantain tree
+rolled up at the sides and one end in the shape of a scoop shovel, or
+out of a most filthy-looking basket or cocoanut shell. There are three
+females on board who eat in the hold, where they remain almost
+constantly from morning to night. In the evening they come out to enjoy
+the fresh air, and have a most voluble chat with the men.
+
+"About noon we anchored close to the shore of Sem Poo Chow, which is an
+abrupt and lofty promontory. Here three wild hogs made their appearance.
+Having looked upon us a few minutes they disappeared. It seemed
+wonderful that they could inhabit such a bluff, for a misstep would
+plunge them into the abyss below.
+
+"On the evening of the 19th our captain ordered the anchor to be
+dropped, as we were on the bar at the mouth of the Meinam River, eight
+or ten miles from Paknam. We have had a good view of every mile of the
+coast along which we have passed to-day, and I may with but little
+qualification say the same of all the coast between this and Chantaboun.
+The coast north of Bangplasoi is low, without so much as a rock or hill
+to break the evenness of the jungle. We saw distinctly the entrance of
+Bangpakong River, its mouth appearing as large as that of the Meinam. I
+have spent much of this day in finishing charts of Chantaboun and the
+coast from thence to Paknam."
+
+
+
+
+                         CHAPTER XII.
+
+                   CHANTABOUN AND THE GULF.
+
+
+Since the date of the missionary journey recorded in the last chapter
+Chantaboun has become a place of considerable commercial importance,
+being now the second port in the kingdom, noted for its ship-building
+and fisheries and carrying on an active export trade from Cambodia and
+the south-eastern provinces. The government regards the place as one of
+its chief cities, and has fortified the port at great expense. The
+prosperity and value of this province have improved since Mouhot's time,
+an account of whose visit there will afford an idea of its physical
+features and life.
+
+M. Mouhot, it should be explained by way of introduction, was one of the
+most competent and gifted explorers of modern times. A Frenchman by
+birth, he became allied by his marriage with an Englishwoman to the
+family of Mungo Park, the famous African explorer. He was a faithful
+student of natural science, devoting himself especially to ornithology
+and conchology. While still a young man he travelled extensively in
+Russia, and there learned to speak both Russian and Polish. He was a
+good draughtsman and a practical photographer of large and varied
+experience; but more than all he was possessed of an adventurous and
+enthusiastic spirit, which welcomed danger when it came in the pursuit
+of scientific data, and which, together with his great bodily strength
+and physical constitution, especially fitted him for the life of an
+explorer. Mouhot's own creed was Protestant, but he was a man of such
+amiability and broad sympathies as to win the cordial affection of both
+Protestant and Catholic missionaries in the regions where he travelled.
+He was a man of devout and religious heart, and almost the last words of
+his journal, written while he was dying in the jungles of Laos, breathe
+a spirit of Christian faith and reliance on the love of God. His loss in
+the prime of manhood was severely felt by the scientific world as well
+as by those who were bound to him by ties of kinship or of personal
+acquaintance.
+
+The following are Mouhot's experiences at Chantaboun and among the
+islands of the gulf:
+
+"My intention now was to visit Cambodia, but for this my little river
+boat was of no use. The only way of going to Chantaboun was by embarking
+in one of the small Chinese junks or fishing vessels, which I
+accordingly did on the 28th of December, taking with me a new servant,
+called Niou, a native of Annam, and who, having been brought up at the
+college of the Catholic priests at Bangkok, knew French well enough to
+be very useful to me as an interpreter. The boat was inconveniently
+small, and we were far from comfortable; for, besides myself and
+servant, there were on board two men and two children about thirteen. I
+was much pleased with the picturesque aspect of all the little islands
+in the gulf; but our voyage was far longer than we expected, three days
+being its usual duration, while, owing to a strong head-wind, it
+occupied us for eight. We met with an accident which was fatal to one of
+our party, and might have been so to all of us. On the night of the 31st
+of December our boat was making rapid way under the influence of a
+violent wind. I was seated on the little roof of leaves and interlaced
+bamboo which formed a sort of protection to me against the rain and cold
+night air, bidding adieu to the departing year, and welcoming in the
+new; praying that it might be a fortunate one for me, and, above all,
+that it might be full of blessings for all those dear to me. The night
+was dark; we were about two miles from land, and the mountains loomed
+black in the distance. The sea alone was brilliant with that phosphoric
+light so familiar to all voyagers on the deep. For a couple of hours we
+had been followed by two sharks, who left behind them a luminous and
+waving track. All was silent in our boat; nothing was to be heard but
+the wind whistling among the rigging and the rushing of the waves: and I
+felt at that midnight hour--alone, and far from all I loved--a sadness
+which I vainly tried to shake off, and a disquietude which I could not
+account for. Suddenly we felt a violent shock, immediately followed by a
+second, and then the vessel remained stationary. Every one cried out in
+alarm; the sailors rushed forward; in a moment the sail was furled and
+torches lighted, but, sad to say, one of our number did not answer to
+his name. One of the young boys, who had been asleep on deck, had been
+thrown into the sea by the shock. Uselessly we looked for the poor lad,
+whose body doubtless became the prey of the sharks. Fortunately for us,
+only one side of the boat had touched the rock, and it had then run
+aground on the sand; so that after getting it off we were able to anchor
+not far from the shore.
+
+"On the 3d January, 1859, after having crossed the little gulf of
+Chantaboun, the sea being at the time very rough, we came in sight of
+the famous Lion Rock, which stands out like the extremity of a cape at
+the entrance of this port. From a distance it resembles a lion couchant,
+and it is difficult to believe that Nature unassisted has formed this
+singular colossus. The Siamese--a superstitious race--hold this stone in
+great veneration, as they do everything that appears to them
+extraordinary or marvellous. It is said that the captain of an English
+ship, once anchored in the port, seeing the lion, proposed to buy it,
+and that, on the governor of the place refusing the offer, he pitilessly
+fired all his guns at _the poor animal_. This has been recorded in
+Siamese verse, with a touching complaint against the cruelty of the
+Western barbarians.
+
+"On the 4th January, at eight o'clock in the morning, we arrived at the
+town of Chantaboun, which stands on the bank of the river, six or seven
+miles from the mountain range. The Christian Annamites form nearly a
+third of the population, the remainder being composed of Chinese
+merchants, and some heathen Annamites and Siamese. The Annamites are all
+fishers, who originally came from Cochin-China to fish in the northern
+part of the Gulf of Siam, and settled at the Chantaboun. Every day,
+while the cold weather lasts, and the sea is not too rough, they cast
+their nets in the little bays on the coast, or in the sheltered water
+among the islands.
+
+"The commerce of this province is inconsiderable, compared with what it
+might be from its situation; but the numerous taxes, the grinding
+exactions of the chiefs, and the usury of the mandarins, added to the
+hateful system of slavery, keep the bulk of the people in a ruinous
+state of prostration. However, in spite of a scanty population, they
+manage to export to Bangkok a great quantity of pepper, chiefly
+cultivated by the Chinese at the foot of the mountains; a little sugar
+and coffee of superior quality; mats made of rushes, which meet with a
+ready sale in China; tobacco, great quantities of salted and dried fish,
+dried leeches, and tortoise-shell. Every Siamese subject, on attaining a
+certain height, has to pay to government an impost or annual tribute
+equivalent to six ticals (eighteen francs). The Annamites of Chantaboun
+pay this in eagle-wood, and the Siamese in gamboge; the Chinese in
+gum-lac, every four years, and their tribute amounts to four ticals. At
+the close of the rainy season, the Annamite Christians unite in parties
+of fifteen or twenty, and set out under the conduct of an experienced
+man, who heads the expedition, and indicates to the others the trees
+which contain the eagle-wood, for all are not equally skilled in
+distinguishing those which produce it. A degree of experience is
+requisite for this, which can only be acquired by time, and thus much
+useless and painful labor is avoided. Some remain in the mountains,
+others visit the large islands of Ko-Xang or Ko-Khut, situated southeast
+of Chantaboun. The eagle-wood is hard and speckled, and diffuses a
+powerful aromatic odor when burnt. It is used at the incremation of the
+bodies of princes and high dignitaries, which are previously kept in the
+coffins for a twelvemonth. The Siamese also employ it as a medicine. The
+wood of the tree which yields it--the _Aquilara Agallocha_ of
+Roxburgh--is white and very soft; and the trunk must be cut down, or
+split in two, to find the eagle-wood, which is in the interior. The
+Annamites make a kind of secret of the indications by which they fix
+upon the right trees, but the few instructions given me put me on the
+right track. I had several cut down, and the result of my observations
+was, that this substance is formed in the cavities of the trees, and
+that as they grow older it increases in quantity. Its presence may be
+pretty surely ascertained by the peculiar odor emitted, and the hollow
+sound given out on striking the trunk.
+
+"Most of the Chinese merchants are addicted to gambling and to the use
+of opium; but the Annamite Christians are better conducted. The nature
+of these Annamites is very different from that of the Siamese, who are
+an effeminate and indolent race, but liberal and hospitable,
+simple-minded, and without pride. The Annamites are short in stature,
+and thin, lively, and active; they are choleric and vindictive, and
+extremely proud; even among relations there is continual strife and
+jealousy. The poor and the wretched meet with no commiseration, but
+great respect is accorded to wealth. However, the attachment of the
+Christians to their priests and missionaries is very great, and they do
+not hesitate to expose themselves to any dangers in their behalf. I must
+likewise own that, in all my dealings with the pagan Annamites, whose
+reverence for their ancestors induces them to hold fast their idolatry,
+I experienced generosity and kindness from them, both at Chantaboun and
+in the islands.
+
+"The missionaries at Bangkok having given me a letter of introduction to
+their fellow-laborer at Chantaboun, I had the pleasure of making
+acquaintance with the worthy man, who received me with great cordiality,
+and placed at my disposal a room in his modest habitation. The good
+father has resided for more than twenty years at Chantaboun, with the
+Annamites whom he has baptized, content and happy amid indigence and
+solitude. I found him, on my arrival, at the height of felicity; a new
+brick chapel, which had been for some time in course of construction,
+and the funds required for which had been saved out of his modest
+income, was rapidly progressing, and promised soon to replace the wooden
+building in which he then officiated. I passed sixteen days very
+agreeably with him, sometimes hunting on Mount Sabab, at other times
+making excursions on the rivers and canals. The country greatly
+resembles the province of Pakpriau, the plain being, perhaps, still more
+desert and uncultivated; but at the foot of the mountains, and in some
+of the delightful valleys, pepper is grown in some quantity by the
+Chinese.
+
+"I bought for twenty-five ticals a small boat to enable me to visit the
+isles of the gulf. The first I landed at was named Konam-sao; it is in
+the form of a cone, and nearly two hundred and fifty metres[7] in
+height, but only two miles in circumference. Like all the other islands
+in this part of the gulf, it is of volcanic origin. The rocks which
+surround it make the access difficult; but the effect produced by the
+richness and bright green of the vegetation is charming. The dry season,
+so agreeable for European travelling, from the freshness of the nights
+and mornings, is in Siam a time of stagnation and death for all nature;
+the birds fly to the neighborhood of houses, or to the banks of the
+rivers, which furnish them with nourishment; rarely does their song come
+to enchant the listener; and the fishing-eagle alone utters his hoarse
+and piercing cry every time the wind changes. Ants swarm everywhere, and
+appear to be, with the mosquitoes and crickets, the only insects that
+have escaped destruction.
+
+"Nowhere did I find in these islands the slightest trace of path or
+stream; and it was extremely difficult to advance at all through the
+masses of wild vines and interwoven branches. I was forced to make my
+way, hatchet in hand, and returned at night exhausted with the heat and
+fatigue.
+
+"The greater portion of the rocks in the elevated parts of these islands
+is elementary and preserves traces of their ancient deposit beneath the
+waters. They have, however, undergone considerable volcanic changes, and
+contain a number of veins and irregular deposits of the class known as
+contact deposits, that are formed near the junction of stratified rocks
+with intruded igneous masses.
+
+"On the 26th we set sail for the first of the Ko-Man Islands, for there
+are three, situated close together, bearing this name. The largest is
+only twelve miles from the coast. Some fishing-eagles, a few black
+doves, and a kind of white pigeon were the only winged creatures I saw.
+Iguanas are numerous, and when in the evening they come out of their
+retreats, they make such a noise in walking heavily over the dead leaves
+and branches that one might suppose it caused by animals of a much
+larger size.
+
+"Toward evening, the tide having fallen, I allowed my boat to ground on
+the mud, which I had remarked during the day to be like a peat-bog
+impregnated with volcanic matter; and during the whole night so strong a
+sulphurous odor escaped from it that I imagined myself to be over a
+submarine volcano.
+
+"On the 28th we passed on to the second island, which is higher and more
+picturesque than the other. The rocks which surround it give it a
+magnificent effect, especially in a bright sunlight, when the tide is
+low. The isles of the Patates owe their name to the numerous wild tubers
+found there.
+
+"I passed several days at Cape Liaut, part of the time being occupied in
+exploring the many adjacent islands. It is the most exquisite part of
+the gulf, and will bear comparison, for its beauty, with the Strait of
+Sunda, near the coast of Java. Two years ago, when the king visited
+Chantaboun, they built for him on the shore, at the extremity of the
+cape, a house and kiosk, and, in memory of that event, they also
+erected on the top of the mountain a small tower, from which a very
+extensive view may be enjoyed.
+
+"I also made acquaintance with Ko-Kram, the most beautiful and the
+largest of all the islands north of the gulf between Bangkok and
+Chantaboun. The whole island consists of a wooded mountain-range, easy
+of access, and containing much oligist iron. On the morning of the 29th,
+at sunrise, the breeze lessened, and when we were about three miles from
+the strait which separates the Isle of Arec from that of the 'Cerfs' it
+ceased altogether. For the last half hour we were indebted solely to our
+oars for the little progress made, being exposed to all the glare of a
+burning sun; and the atmosphere was heavy and suffocating. All of a
+sudden, to my great astonishment, the water began to be agitated, and
+our light boat was tossed about by the waves. I knew not what to think,
+and was seriously alarmed, when our pilot called out, 'Look how the sea
+boils!' Turning in the direction indicated, I beheld the sea really in a
+state of ebullition, and very shortly afterward an immense jet of water
+and steam, which lasted for several minutes, was thrown into the air. I
+had never before witnessed such a phenomenon, and was now no longer
+astonished at the powerful smell of sulphur which had nearly overpowered
+me in Ko-Man. It was really a submarine volcano, which burst out, more
+than a mile from the place where we had anchored three days before.
+
+"On March 1st we reached Ven-Ven, at Pack-nam-Ven, the name of the
+place where the branches of the river unite. This river, whose width at
+the mouth is above three miles, is formed by the union of several
+streams flowing from the mountains, as well as by an auxiliary of the
+Chantaboun River, which, serving as a canal, unites these two places.
+Ascending the stream for fourteen or fifteen miles, a large village is
+reached, called Bandiana, but Paknam-Ven is only inhabited by five
+families of Chinese fishermen.
+
+"Crocodiles are more numerous in the river at Paknam-Ven than in that at
+Chantaboun. I continually saw them throw themselves from the banks into
+the water; and it has frequently happened that careless fishers, or
+persons who have imprudently fallen asleep on the shore, have become
+their prey, or have afterward died of the wounds inflicted by them. This
+latter has happened twice during my stay here. It is amusing,
+however--for one is interested in observing the habits of animals all
+over the world--to see the manner in which these creatures catch the
+apes, which sometimes take a fancy to play with them. Close to the bank
+lies the crocodile, his body in the water, and only his capacious mouth
+above the surface, ready to seize anything that may come within reach. A
+troop of apes catch sight of him, seem to consult together, approach
+little by little, and commence their frolics, by turns actors and
+spectators. One of the most active or most impudent jumps from branch to
+branch, till within a respectful distance of the crocodile, when,
+hanging by one claw, and with the dexterity peculiar to these animals,
+he advances and retires, now giving his enemy a blow with his paw, at
+another time only pretending to do so. The other apes, enjoying the fun,
+evidently wish to take a part in it; but the other branches being too
+high, they form a sort of chain by laying hold of each other's paws, and
+thus swing backward and forward, while any one of them who comes within
+reach of the crocodile torments him to the best of his ability.
+Sometimes the terrible jaws suddenly close, but not upon the audacious
+ape, who just escapes; then there are cries of exultation from the
+tormentors, who gambol about joyfully. Occasionally, however, the claw
+is entrapped, and the victim dragged with the rapidity of lightning
+beneath the water, when the whole troop disperse, groaning and
+shrieking. The misadventure does not, however, prevent their
+recommencing the game a few days afterward.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+"On the 4th I returned to Chantaboun from my excursions in the gulf, and
+resumed charge of my collections, which, during my absence, I had left
+at the custom-house, and which, to my great satisfaction, had been taken
+good care of. The tide was low, and we could not go up to the town. The
+sea here is steadily receding from the coast, and, if some remedy be not
+found, in a few years the river will not be navigable even for boats.
+Already the junks have some trouble in reaching Chantaboun even at high
+water. The inhabitants were fishing for crabs and mussels on the
+sand-banks, close to the custom-house, the _employes_ in which were
+occupied in the same pursuit. The chief official, who, probably hoping
+for some small present, had come out to meet me, heard me promise a
+supply of pins and needles to those who would bring me shells, and
+encouraged his men to look for them. In consequence, a large number were
+brought me, which, to obtain otherwise, would have cost much time and
+trouble.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[7] A metre is equivalent to 3 feet 3-1/3 inches.
+
+
+
+
+                        CHAPTER XIII.
+
+          MOUHOT IN THE HILL-COUNTRY OF CHANTABOUN.
+
+
+"Here I am," continues Mouhot, in his narrative, "once more installed in
+the house of a good old Chinese, a pepper planter, whose hospitality I
+enjoyed on my first visit to the place, two months ago. His name is
+Ihie-How, but in Siamese he is called Apait, which means _uncle_. He is
+a widower, with two sons, the eldest eighteen, a good young man, lively,
+hard-working, brave, and persevering. He is already much attached to me,
+and is desirous of accompanying me to Cambodia. Born amid the mountains,
+and naturally intelligent, there are none of the quadrupeds and few of
+the feathered tribes found in the district with whose habits he is not
+familiar. He fears neither tiger nor elephant. All this, added to his
+amiable disposition, made Phrai (that is his name) a real treasure to
+me.
+
+"Apait has also two brothers who have become Catholics, and have settled
+at Chantaboun in order to be near a Christian place of worship. He
+himself has never had any desire to change his religion, because he says
+if he did he must forget his deceased parents, for whom he frequently
+offers sacrifices. He is badly off, having incurred a debt of fifty
+ticals, for which he has to pay ten as yearly interest, the rate in
+Siam being always twenty or thirty per cent. Besides this he has various
+taxes to pay--twelve ticals for his two sons, four for his house, one
+for his furnace, one for his pig. The tax on the pepper-field is eight
+ticals, one on his areca-trees, one on the betel cultivated by him, and
+two _sellungs_ for a cocoa-tree; altogether thirty-nine ticals. His land
+brings him in forty after all expenses are paid; what can he do with the
+one remaining tical? The unlucky agriculturists of this kind, and they
+are many, live on vegetables, and on the rice which they obtain from the
+Siamese in exchange for areca.
+
+"On my return from the islands, I had been detained nearly ten days at
+Chantaboun, unable to walk; I had cut my heel in climbing the rocks on
+the shore at Ko-Man, and, as I was constantly barefooted in the salt
+water, the wound soon closed. But afterward I began to suffer from it;
+my foot swelled, and I was obliged to reopen the wound to extract a
+piece of shell which had remained in it. As soon as I could leave
+Chantaboun I hired a carriage and two buffaloes to take me to the
+mountain. I experienced much gratification in finding myself again among
+these quiet scenes, at once so lovely and so full of grandeur. Here are
+valleys intersected by streams of pure and limpid water; there, small
+plains, over which are scattered the modest dwellings of the laborious
+Chinese; while a little in the distance rises the mountain, with its
+imposing rocks, its grand trees, its torrents, and waterfalls.
+
+"We have already had some storms, for the rainy season is approaching,
+vegetation is fresh, and nature animated; the song of birds and the hum
+of insects are heard all around. Apait has resigned to me his bed, if
+that can be so styled, which consists merely of a few laths of areca
+placed upon four stakes. I have extended my mat upon this framework, and
+should enjoy uninterrupted sleep all night were it not for the swarms of
+ants which frequently disturb me by passing over my body, getting under
+my clothes and into my beard, and, I almost fancy, would end by dragging
+me out if I did not from time to time shake them off. Occasionally great
+spiders and other disgusting creatures, crawling about under the roof,
+would startle me by dropping suddenly on my face.
+
+"The heat now is quite endurable, the thermometer generally marking 80 deg.
+Fahr. in the morning and 90 deg. in the middle of the day. The water of the
+streams is so cool and refreshing that a good morning and evening
+ablution makes me comfortable for several hours, as well as contributing
+to keep me in health.
+
+"Last evening Phrai, having gone along with my man Fiou to Chantaboun to
+buy provisions, brought back to his father some Chinese bonbons, for
+which he had paid half a fuang. The poor old man was delighted with
+them, and this morning at daybreak he dressed himself in his best
+clothes, on which I asked him what was going to happen. He immediately
+began to clean a plank which was fitted into the wall to serve as a sort
+of table or altar. Above this was a drawing of a man dancing and
+putting out his tongue, with claws on his feet and hands, and with the
+tail of an ape, intended to represent his father. He then filled three
+small cups with tea, put the bonbons in a fourth, and placed the whole
+upon the simple altar; finally, lighting two pieces of odoriferous wood,
+he began his devotions. It was a sacrifice to the manes of his parents,
+performed with the hope that their souls would come and taste the good
+things set before them.
+
+"At the entrance of Apait's garden, in front of his house, I had made a
+kind of shed with stakes and branches of trees, covered with a roof of
+leaves, where I dried and prepared my large specimens, such as the
+long-armed apes, kids, and hornbills, as also my collections of insects.
+All this has attracted a crowd of inquisitive Siamese and Chinamen, who
+came to see the "farang" and admire his curiosities. We have just passed
+the Chinese New Year's-day, and, as there has been a _fete_ for three
+days, all those living at any distance have profited by the opportunity
+to visit us. At times Apait's house and garden have been crowded with
+people in their holiday dresses, many of whom, seeing my instruments, my
+naturalist's case, and different preparations, took me for a great
+doctor, and begged for medicines.
+
+"Alas! my pretensions are not so high; however, I treat them on the
+'Raspail' system; and a little box of pomade or phial of sedative water
+will perhaps be represented in some European museum by an insect or
+shell brought to me by these worthy people in return for the good I
+would gladly do them.
+
+"It is very agreeable, after a fatiguing day's chase over hills and
+amongst dense forests, through which one must cut one's way, axe in
+hand, to repose in the evening on the good Chinaman's bench in front of
+his house, shaded by banana, cocoanut, and other trees. For the last
+four days a violent north wind, fresh in spite of the season, has been
+blowing without intermission, breaking asunder and tearing up by the
+roots some of the trees on the higher grounds. This is its farewell
+visit, for the southeast wind will now blow for many months.
+
+"This evening everything appeared to me more beautiful and agreeable
+than usual; the stars shone brightly in the sky, the moon was clear.
+Sitting by Apait while his son played to me some Chinese airs on the
+bamboo flute, I thought to what a height of prosperity this province,
+even now one of the most interesting and flourishing in the country,
+might attain, were it wisely and intelligently governed, or if European
+colonists were to settle and develop its resources. Proximity to the
+sea, facility of communication, a rich soil, a healthy and propitious
+climate; nothing is wanted to ensure success to an industrious and
+enterprising agriculturist.
+
+"The worthy old Apait has at last consented to allow his son to enter my
+service, providing I pay him thirty ticals, half a year's wages, in
+advance. This will enable him, if he can sell his house and
+pepper-field, to clear off his debt and retire to another part of the
+mountain. Phrai is delighted to attend me, and to run about the woods
+all day, and I am not less pleased with our bargain, for his knowledge
+of the country, his activity, his intelligence, and attachment to me,
+are invaluable.
+
+"The heat becomes greater and greater, the thermometer having risen to
+102 deg. Fahr. in the shade: thus hunting is now a painful, and sometimes
+impossible, exertion, anywhere except in the woods. A few days ago I
+took advantage of a short spell of cloudy and consequently cooler
+weather to visit a waterfall I had heard of in the almost desert
+district of Prion, twelve miles from Kombau. After reaching the
+last-named place our course lay for about an hour and a half along a
+charming valley, nearly as smooth as a lawn and as ornamental as a park.
+By and by, entering a forest, we kept by the banks of a stream, which,
+shut in between two mountains, and studded with blocks of granite,
+increases in size as you approach its source. Before long we arrived at
+the fall, which must be a fine spectacle in the rainy season. It then
+pours down from immense perpendicular rocks, forming, as it were, a
+circular peaked wall, nearly thirty metres in diameter and twenty metres
+in height. The force of the torrent having been broken by the rocky bed
+into which it descends, there is another fall of ten feet; and lower
+down, after a third fall of fifteen feet, it passes into an ample basin,
+which, like a mirror, reflects the trees and cliffs around. Even during
+the dry season, the spring, then running from beneath enormous blocks of
+granite, flows in such abundance as to feed several streams.
+
+"I was astonished to see my two servants, heated by their long walk,
+bathe in the cold water, and on my advising them to wait for a little,
+they replied that the natives were always accustomed to bathe when hot.
+
+"We all turned stone-cutters, that is to say, we set to work to detach
+the impression of an unknown animal from the surface of an immense mass
+of granite rising up out of one of the mountain torrents. A Chinese had
+in January demanded so exorbitant a sum for this that I had abandoned
+the idea, intending to content myself with an impression in wax, but
+Phrai proposed to me to undertake the work, and by our joint labor it
+was soon accomplished. The Siamese do not much like my meddling with
+their rocks, and their superstition is also somewhat startled when I
+happen to kill a white ape, although when the animal is dead and skinned
+they are glad to obtain a cutlet or steak from it, for they attribute to
+the flesh of this creature great medicinal virtues.
+
+"The rainy season is drawing near; storms become more and more frequent,
+and the growling of the thunder is frightful. Insects are in greater
+numbers, and the ants, which are now looking out for a shelter, invade
+the dwellings, and are a perfect pest to my collections, not to speak of
+myself and my clothes. Several of my books and maps have been almost
+devoured in one night. Fortunately there are no mosquitoes, but to make
+up for this there is a small species of leech, which, when it rains,
+quits the streams and infests the woods, rendering an excursion there,
+if not impracticable, at all events very disagreeable. You have
+constantly to be pulling them off you by dozens, but, as some always
+escape observation, you are sure to return home covered with blood;
+often my white trousers are dyed as red as those of a French soldier.
+
+"The animals have now become scarcer, which in different ways is a great
+disappointment to all, for Phrai and Niou feasted sumptuously on the
+flesh of the apes, and made a profit by selling their gall to the
+Chinese doctors in Chantaboun. Hornbills have also turned wild, so we
+can find nothing to replenish our larder but an occasional kid. Large
+stags feed on the mountain, but one requires to watch all night to get
+within range of them. There are not many birds to be seen, neither
+quail, partridges, nor pheasants; and the few wild fowl which
+occasionally make their appearance are so difficult to shoot that it is
+waste both of time and ammunition to make the attempt.
+
+"In this part of the country the Siamese declare they cannot cultivate
+bananas on account of the elephants, which at certain times come down
+from the mountains and devour the leaves, of which they are very fond.
+The royal and other tigers abound here; every night they prowl about in
+the vicinity of the houses, and in the mornings we can see the print of
+their large claws in the sand and in the clay near streams. By day they
+retire to the mountain, where they lurk in close and inaccessible
+thickets. Now and then you may get near enough to one to have a shot at
+him, but generally, unless suffering from hunger, they fly at the
+approach of man. A few days ago I saw a young Chinese who had nineteen
+wounds on his body, made by one of these animals. He was looking out
+from a tree about nine feet high when the cries of a young kid tied to
+another tree at a short distance, attracted a large tiger. The young man
+fired at it, but, though mortally wounded, the creature, collecting all
+his strength for a final spring, leaped on his enemy, seized him and
+pulled him down, tearing his flesh frightfully with teeth and claws as
+they rolled on the ground. Luckily for the unfortunate Chinese, it was a
+dying effort, and in a few moments more the tiger relaxed its hold and
+breathed its last.
+
+"In the mountains of Chantaboun, and not far from my present abode,
+precious stones of fine water occur. There is even at the east of the
+town an eminence, which they call 'the mountain of precious stones;' and
+it would appear from the account of Mgr. Pallegoix that at one time they
+were abundant in that locality, since in about half an hour he picked up
+a handful, which is as much as now can be found in a twelvemonth, nor
+can they be purchased at any price.
+
+"It seems that I have seriously offended the poor Thai[8] of Kombau by
+carrying away the footprints. I have met several natives who tell me
+they have broken arms, that they can no longer work, and will always
+henceforth be in poverty; and I find that I am considered to be
+answerable for this because I irritated the genius of the mountain.
+Henceforth they will have a good excuse for idleness.
+
+"The Chinese have equally amused me. They imagine that some treasure
+ought to be found beneath the footprints, and that the block which I
+have carried away must possess great medicinal virtues; so Apait and
+his friends have been rubbing the under part of the stone every morning
+against another piece of granite, and, collecting carefully the dust
+that fell from it, have mixed it with water and drunk it fasting, fully
+persuaded that it is a remedy against all ills. Here they say that it is
+faith which cures; and it is certain that pills are often enough
+administered in the civilized West which have no more virtue than the
+granite powder swallowed by old Apait.
+
+"His uncle Thie-ou has disposed of his property for him for sixty
+ticals, so that, after paying off his debts, he will have left,
+including the sum I gave him for his son's services, forty ticals. Here
+that is enough to make a man think himself rich to the end of his days;
+he can at times regale the souls of his parents with tea and bonbons,
+and live himself like a true country mandarin. Before leaving Kombau the
+old man secured me another lodging, for which I had to pay two ticals
+(six francs) a month, and I lost nothing in point of comfort by the
+change. For 'furnished apartments' I think the charge not unreasonable.
+The list of furniture is as follows: in the dining-room _nothing_, in
+the bedroom an old mat on a camp-bed. However, this house is cleaner and
+larger than the other, and better protected from the weather; in the
+first the water came in in all directions. Then the camp-bed, which is a
+large one, affords a pleasant lounge after my hunting expeditions.
+Besides which advantages my new landlord furnishes me with bananas and
+vegetables, for which I pay in game when the chase has been successful.
+
+"The fruit here is exquisite, particularly the mango, the mangosteen,
+the pineapple, so fragrant and melting in the mouth, and, what is
+superior to anything I ever imagined or tasted, the famous 'durian' or
+'dourion,' which justly merits the title of king of fruits. But to enjoy
+it thoroughly one must have time to overcome the disgust at first
+inspired by its smell, which is so strong that I could not stay in the
+same place with it. On first tasting it I thought it like the flesh of
+some animal in a state of putrefaction, but after four or five trials I
+found the aroma exquisite. The _durian_ is about two-thirds the size of
+a jacca, and like it is encased in a thick and prickly rind, which
+protects it from the teeth of squirrels and other nibblers; on opening
+it there are to be found ten cells, each containing a kernel larger than
+a date, and surrounded by a sort of white, or sometimes yellowish,
+cream, which is most delicious. By an odd freak of nature, not only is
+there the first repugnance to it to overcome, but if you eat it often,
+though with ever so great moderation, you find yourself next day covered
+with blotches, as if attacked with measles, so heating is its nature. A
+_durian_ picked is never good, for when fully ripe it falls off itself;
+when cut open it must be eaten at once, as it quickly spoils, but
+otherwise it will keep for three days. At Bangkok one of them costs one
+_sellung_; at Chantaboun nine may be obtained for the same sum.
+
+"I had come to the conclusion that there was little danger in traversing
+the woods here, and in our search for butterflies and other insects, we
+often took no other arms than a hatchet and hunting-knife, while Niou
+had become so confident as to go by night with Phrai to lie in wait for
+stags. Our sense of security was, however, rudely shaken when one
+evening a panther rushed upon one of the dogs close to my door. The poor
+animal uttered a heart-rending cry, which brought us all out, as well as
+our neighbors, each torch in hand. Finding themselves face to face with
+a panther, they in their turn raised their voices in loud screams; but
+it was too late for me to get my gun, for in a moment the beast was out
+of reach.
+
+"In a few weeks I must say farewell to these beautiful mountains, never,
+in all probability, to see them again, and I think of this with regret;
+I have been so happy here, and have so much enjoyed my hunting and my
+solitary walks in this comparatively temperate climate, after my
+sufferings from the heat and mosquitoes in my journey northward.
+
+"Thanks to my nearness to the sea on the one side, and to the mountain
+region on the other, the period of the greatest heat passed away without
+my perceiving it; and I was much surprised at receiving a few days ago a
+letter from Bangkok which stated that it had been hotter weather there
+than had been known for more than thirty years. Many of the European
+residents had been ill; yet I do not think the climate of Bangkok more
+unhealthy than that of other towns of eastern Asia within the tropics.
+But no doubt the want of exercise, which is there almost impossible,
+induces illness in many cases.
+
+"A few days ago I made up my mind to penetrate into a grotto on Mount
+Sabab, half-way between Chantaboun and Kombau, so deep, I am told, that
+it extends to the top of the mountain. I set out, accompanied by
+Phrai and Niou, furnished with all that was necessary for our excursion.
+On reaching the grotto we lighted our torches, and, after scaling a
+number of blocks of granite, began our march. Thousands of bats, roused
+by the lights, commenced flying round and round us, flapping our faces
+with their wings, and extinguishing our torches every minute. Phrai
+walked first, trying the ground with a lance which he held; but we had
+scarcely proceeded a hundred paces when he threw himself back upon me
+with every mark of terror, crying out, 'A serpent! go back!' As he spoke
+I perceived an enormous boa about fifteen feet off, with erect head and
+open mouth, ready to dart upon him. My gun being loaded, one barrel with
+two bullets, the other with shot, I took aim and fired off both at once.
+We were immediately enveloped in a thick cloud of smoke, and could see
+nothing, but prudently beat an instant retreat. We waited anxiously for
+some time at the entrance of the grotto, prepared to do battle with our
+enemy should he present himself; but he did not appear. My guide now
+boldly lighted a torch, and, furnished with my gun reloaded and a long
+rope, went in again alone. We held one end of the rope, that at the
+least signal we might fly to his assistance. For some minutes, which
+appeared terribly long, our anxiety was extreme, but equally great was
+our relief and gratification when we saw him approach, drawing after him
+the rope, to which was attached an immense boa. The head of the reptile
+had been shattered by my fire, and his death had been instantaneous,
+but we sought to penetrate no farther into the grotto.
+
+[Illustration: SIAMESE ACTORS.]
+
+"I had been told that the Siamese were about to celebrate a grand _fete_
+at a pagoda about three miles off, in honor of a superior priest who
+died last year, and whose remains were now to be burned according to the
+custom of the country. I went to see this singular ceremony, hoping to
+gain some information respecting the amusements of this people, and
+arrived at the place about eight in the morning, the time for breakfast,
+or 'kinkao' (rice-eating). Nearly two thousand Siamese of both sexes
+from Chantaboun and the surrounding villages, some in carriages and some
+on foot, were scattered over the ground in the neighborhood of the
+pagoda. All wore new sashes and dresses of brilliant colors, and the
+effect of the various motley groups was most striking.
+
+"Under a vast roof of planks supported by columns, forming a kind of
+shed, bordered by pieces of stuff covered with grotesque paintings
+representing men and animals in the most extraordinary attitudes, was
+constructed an imitation rock of colored pasteboard, on which was placed
+a catafalque lavishly decorated with gilding and carved work, and
+containing an urn in which were the precious remains of the priest. Here
+and there were arranged pieces of paper and stuff in the form of flags.
+Outside the building was prepared the funeral pile, and at some distance
+off a platform was erected for the accommodation of a band of musicians,
+who played upon different instruments of the country. Farther away some
+women had established a market for the sale of fruit, bonbons, and
+arrack, while in another quarter some Chinamen and Siamese were
+performing, in a little theatre run up for the occasion, scenes
+something in the style of those exhibited by our strolling actors at
+fairs. This _fete_, which lasted for three days, had nothing at all in
+it of a funereal character. I had gone there hoping to witness something
+new and remarkable, for these peculiar rites are only celebrated in
+honor of sovereigns, nobles, and other persons of high standing; but I
+had omitted to take into consideration the likelihood of my being myself
+an object of curiosity to the crowd. Scarcely, however, had I appeared
+in the pagoda, followed by Phrai and Niou, when on all sides I heard the
+exclamation, 'Farang! come and see the farang!' and immediately both
+Siamese and Chinamen left their bowls of rice and pressed about me. I
+hoped that, once their curiosity was gratified, they would leave me in
+peace, but instead of that the crowd grew thicker and thicker, and
+followed me wherever I went, so that at last it became almost
+unbearable, and all the more so as most of them were already drunk,
+either with opium or arrack, many indeed, with both. I quitted the
+pagoda and was glad to get into the fresh air again, but the respite was
+of short duration. Passing the entrance of a large hut temporarily built
+of planks, I saw some chiefs of provinces sitting at breakfast. The
+senior of the party advanced straight toward me, shook me by the hand,
+and begged me in a cordial and polite manner to enter; and I was glad to
+avail myself of his kind offer, and take refuge from the troublesome
+people. My hosts overwhelmed me with attentions, and forced upon me
+pastry, fruit, and bonbons; but the crowd who had followed me forced
+their way into the building and hemmed us in on all sides; even the roof
+was covered with gazers. All of a sudden we heard the walls crack, and
+the whole of the back of the hut, yielding under the pressure, fell in,
+and people, priests, and chiefs tumbling one upon another, the scene of
+confusion was irresistibly comic. I profited by the opportunity to
+escape, swearing--though rather late in the day--that they should not
+catch me again.
+
+"I know not to what it is to be attributed, unless it be the pure air of
+the mountains and a more active life, but the mountaineers of Chantaboun
+appeared a much finer race than the Siamese of the plain, more robust,
+and of a darker complexion. Their features, also, are more regular, and
+I should imagine that they sprang rather from the Arian than from the
+Mongolian race. They remind me of the Siamese and Laotians whom I met
+with in the mountains of Pakpriau.
+
+"Will the present movement of the nations of Europe toward the East
+result in good by introducing into these lands the blessings of our
+civilization? or shall we, as blind instruments of boundless ambition,
+come hither as a scourge to add to their present miseries? Here are
+millions of unhappy creatures in great poverty in the midst of the
+richest and most fertile region imaginable, bowing shamefully under a
+servile yoke, made viler by despotism and the most barbarous customs,
+living and dying in utter ignorance of the only true God!
+
+"I quitted with regret these beautiful mountains, where I had passed so
+many happy hours with the poor but hospitable inhabitants. On the
+evening before and the morning of my departure, all the people of the
+neighborhood, Chinese and Siamese, came to say adieu, and offer me
+presents of fruits, dried fish, fowls, tobacco, and rice cooked in
+various ways with brown sugar, all in greater quantities than I could
+possibly carry away. The farewells of these good mountaineers were
+touching; they kissed my hands and feet, and I confess that my eyes were
+not dry. They accompanied me to a great distance, begging me not to
+forget them, and to pay them another visit."
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[8] The Siamese call themselves Thai.
+
+
+
+
+                         CHAPTER XIV.
+
+                   PECHABURI OR P'RIPP'REE
+
+
+On the opposite side of the gulf from Chantaboun, and much nearer to the
+mouth of the Meinam, within a few hours' sail of Paknam, is the town of
+Pechaburi, which is now famous as the seat of a summer palace built by
+the late king, and as a place of increasing resort for foreigners
+resident in Siam.
+
+The proper orthography of the name of this town was a matter which gave
+the late king a great deal of solicitude and distress. Priding himself
+upon his scholarship almost as much as on his sovereignty, his pedantic
+soul was vexed by the method in which some of the writers for the press
+had given the name. Accordingly, in a long article published in the
+Bangkok _Calendar_, he relieved his mind by a protest which is so
+characteristic, and in its way so amusing, that it will bear to be
+quoted by way of introduction to the present chapter. He has just
+finished a long disquisition, philological, historical and antiquarian,
+concerning the name of the city of Bangkok, and he continues as follows:
+
+"But as the city P'etch'ara-booree the masses of the people in all parts
+call it P'ripp'ree or P'et-p'ree. The name P'etch'ara-booree is
+Sanskrit, a royal name given to the place the same as T'on-booree,
+Non-boo-ree, Nak'awn K'u'n k'an, Samoota-pra-kan, and Ch'a-chong-sow.
+Now, if Maha nak'awn be called Bangkok, and the other names respectively
+called Talatk'wan, Paklat, Paknam, and Paatrew, it is proper that
+P'etch'ara-booree should follow suit, and be called by her vulgar name
+P'rip-p'ree, or P'et-p'ree.
+
+[Illustration: MOUNTAINS OF PECHABURI.]
+
+"Now that the company of teachers and printers should coin a name
+purporting to be after the royal style and yet do not take the true
+Sanskrit, seems not at all proper. In trying to Romanize the name
+P'etch'ara-booree, they place the mark over the _a_ thus P'etcha-booree,
+making foreigners read it P'etcha-booree, following the utterances of
+old dunces in the temples, who boast that they know Balam Bali, and not
+satisfied with that, they even call the place City P'et, setting forth
+both the Bali and the meaning of the word; and thus boasting greatly of
+their knowledge and of being a standard of orthography for the name of
+that city.
+
+"Now, what is the necessity of coining another name like this? There is
+no occasion for it. When the name is thus incorrectly printed, persons
+truly acquainted with Sanskrit and Bali (for such there are many other
+places) will say that those who write or print the name in the way, must
+be pupils of ignorant teachers--blind teachers not following the real
+Sanskrit in full, taking only the utterances of woodsmen, and holding
+them forth [as the correct way]. In following such sounds they cannot be
+in accord with the Sanskrit, and they conclude that the name is Siamese.
+Whereas, in truth, it is not Siamese. The true Siamese name is
+P'rip-p'ree or P'et-p'ree. It matters not what letters are used to
+express it--follow your own mind; but let the sound come out clear and
+accurate either P'rip-p'ree or P'et-p'ree, and it will be true Siamese.
+But the mode of writing and printing the name P'etcha-booree with the
+letter _a_ and mark over it and other marks in two places, resists the
+eye and the mouth greatly. Whatever be done in this matter let there be
+uniformity. If it be determined to follow the vulgar mode of calling the
+name, let that be followed out fully and accurately; but if the royal
+mode be preferred let the king be sought unto for the proper way of
+writing it, which shall be in full accordance with the Sanskrit. And
+should this happen not to be like the utterance of the people in the
+temples, the difference cannot be great. And persons unacquainted with
+Sanskrit will be constrained to acknowledge that you do really know
+Sanskrit; and comparing the corrected with the improper mode of
+Romanizing, will praise you for the improvement which you have made.
+Such persons there are a few, not ignorant and blind leaders and dunces
+like the inmates of the temples and of the jungles and forests, but
+learned in the Sanskrit and residents in Siam."
+
+It is to be feared, however, that his majesty's protest came too late,
+and that, like many another blunder, the name Pechaburi has obtained
+such currency that it cannot be superseded.
+
+Sir John Bowring "received from a gentleman now resident in Siam the
+notes of an excursion to this city in July, 1855.
+
+"'We left Bangkok about three in the afternoon, and although we had the
+tide in our favor, we only accomplished five miles during the first
+three hours. Our way lay through a creek; and so great was the number of
+boats that it strongly reminded me of Cheapside during the busiest part
+of the day. Although I had been in Bangkok four months, I had not the
+least conception that there was such a population spread along the
+creeks. More than four miles from the river, there appeared to be little
+or no diminution in the number of the inhabitants, and the traffic was
+as great as at the mouth of the creek.
+
+"'Having at last got past the crowd of boats, we advanced rapidly for
+two hours more, when we stopped at a _wat_, in order to give the men a
+rest. This _wat_, as its name "Laos" implies, was built by the
+inhabitants of the Laos country, and is remarkable (if we can trust to
+tradition) as being the limit of the Birmese invasion. Here, the Siamese
+say, a body of Birmans were defeated by the villagers, who had taken
+refuge in the _wat_: and they point out two large holes in the wall as
+the places where cannon-balls struck. After leaving this, we proceeded
+rapidly until about 12 P.M., when we reached the other branch of the
+Meinam (Meinam mahachen), and there we halted for the night.
+
+"'Our journey the next day was most delightful: most of it lay through
+narrow creeks, their banks covered with atap and bamboo, whilst behind
+this screen were plantations of chilis, beans, peas, etc. Alligators and
+otters abounded in the creeks; and we shot several, and one of a
+peculiar breed of monkey also we killed. The Siamese name of it is
+_chang_, and it is accounted a great delicacy: they also eat with
+avidity the otter. We crossed during the day the Tha-chin, a river as
+broad as the Meinam at Bangkok. Toward evening we entered the Mei-Klong,
+which we descended till we reached the sea-coast. Here we waited till
+the breeze should sufficiently abate to enable us to cross the bay.
+
+"'11th.--We started about 4 A.M., and reached the opposite side in about
+three hours. The bay is remarkably picturesque, and is so shallow that,
+although we crossed fully four miles from the head of the bay, we never
+had more than six feet of water, and generally much less. Arrived at the
+other side we ascended the river on which Pechaburi is built. At the
+mouth of the river myriads of monkeys were to be seen. A very amusing
+incident occurred here. Mr. Hunter, wishing to get a juvenile specimen,
+fired at the mother, but, unfortunately, only wounded her, and she had
+strength enough to carry the young one into the jungle. Five men
+immediately followed her; but ere they had been out of sight five
+minutes we saw them hurrying toward us shouting, "_Ling, ling, ling,
+ling!_" (_ling_, monkey). As I could see nothing, I asked Mr. Hunter if
+they were after the monkey. "Oh, no," he replied; "the monkeys are after
+them!" And so they were--thousands upon thousands of them, coming down
+in a most unpleasant manner; and, as the tide was out, there was a great
+quantity of soft mud to cross before they could reach the boat, and here
+the monkeys gained very rapidly upon the men, and when at length the
+boat was reached, their savage pursuers were not twenty yards behind.
+The whole scene was ludicrous in the extreme, and I really think if my
+life had depended upon it that I could not have fired a shot. To see the
+men making the most strenuous exertions to get through the deep mud,
+breathless with their run and fright combined, and the army of little
+wretches drawn up in line within twenty yards of us, screaming, and
+making use of the most diabolical language, if we could only have
+understood them! Besides, there was a feeling that they had the right
+side of the question. One of the _refugees_, however, did not appear to
+take my view of the case. Smarting under the disgrace, and the bamboos
+against which he ran in his retreat, he seized my gun, and fired both
+barrels on the exulting foe; they immediately retired in great disorder,
+leaving four dead upon the field. Many were the quarrels that arose from
+this affair among the men.
+
+"'The approach to Pechaburi is very pleasant, the river is absolutely
+arched over by tamarind trees, while the most admirable cultivation
+prevails all along its course.
+
+"'The first object which attracts the attention is the magnificent
+pagoda, within which is a reclining figure of Buddha, one hundred and
+forty-five feet in length. Above the pagoda, the priests have, with
+great perseverance, terraced the face of the rock to a considerable
+height. About half-way up the mountain, there is an extensive cave,
+generally known amongst foreigners as the "Cave of Idols;" it certainly
+deserves its name, if we are to judge from the number of figures of
+Buddha which it contains.
+
+"'The talapoins assert that it is natural. It may be so in part, but
+there are portions of it in which the hand of man is visible. It is very
+small, not more than thirty yards in length, and about seven feet high;
+but anything like a cavern is so uncommon in this country, that this one
+is worth notice. We now proceeded to climb the mountain. It is very
+steep, but of no great height--probably not more than five hundred feet.
+It is covered with huge blocks of a stone resembling granite; these are
+exceedingly slippery, and the ascent is thus rendered rather laborious.
+But when we reached the top we were well repaid. The country for miles
+in each direction lay at our feet--one vast plain, unbroken by any
+elevation. It appeared like an immense garden, so carefully was it
+cultivated; the young rice and sugar-cane, of the most beautiful green,
+relieved by the darker shade of the cocoanut trees, which are used as
+boundaries to the fields--those fields traversed by suitable foot-paths.
+Then toward the sea the view was more varied: rice and sugar-cane held
+undisputed sway for a short distance from the town; then cocoanuts
+became more frequent, until the rice finally disappeared; then the
+bamboos gradually invaded the cocoanut trees; then the atap palm, with
+its magnificent leaf; and lastly came that great invader of Siam, the
+mangrove. Beyond were the mountains on the Malay Peninsula, stretching
+away in the distance.
+
+"'With great reluctance did we descend from the little pagoda, which is
+built upon the very summit; but evening was coming on, and we had
+observed in ascending some very suspicious-looking footprints mightily
+resembling those of a tiger.
+
+"'Pechaburi is a thriving town, containing about twenty thousand
+inhabitants. The houses are, for the most part, neatly built, and no
+floating houses are visible. Rice and sugar are two-thirds dearer at
+Bangkok than they are here, and the rice is of a particularly fine
+description. We called upon the governor during the evening. Next
+morning we started for home, and arrived without any accident.'"
+
+It was not until the completion of his prolonged tour of exploration
+through Cambodia, and his visit to the savage tribes on the frontier of
+Cochin-China, that Mouhot found time for his excursion to Pechaburi from
+Bangkok.
+
+"I returned to the capital," he says, "after fifteen months' absence.
+During the greater part of this time I had never known the comfort of
+sleeping in a bed; and throughout my wanderings my only food had been
+rice or dried fish, and I had not once tasted good water. I was
+astonished at having preserved my health so well, particularly in the
+forests, where often wet to the skin, and without a change of clothes, I
+have had to pass whole nights by a fire, at the foot of a tree. Yet I
+have not had a single attack of fever, and been always happy and in good
+spirits, especially when lucky enough to light upon some novelty. A new
+shell or insect filled me with a joy which ardent naturalists alone can
+understand; but they know well how little fatigues and privations of all
+kinds are cared for when set against the delight experienced in making
+one discovery after another, and in feeling that one is of some slight
+assistance to the votaries of science. It pleases me to think that my
+investigations into the archaeology, entomology, and conchology of these
+lands may be of use to certain members of the great and generous English
+nation, who kindly encouraged the poor naturalist; while France, his own
+country, remained deaf to his voice.
+
+"It was another great pleasure to me, after these fifteen months of
+travelling, during which very few letters from home had reached me, to
+find, on arriving at Bangkok, an enormous packet, telling me all the
+news of my distant family and country. It is indeed happiness, after so
+long a period of solitude, to read the lines traced by the beloved hands
+of an aged father, of a wife, of a brother. These joys are to be
+reckoned among the sweetest and purest of life.
+
+"We stopped in the centre of the town, at the entrance of a canal,
+whence there is a view over the busiest part of the Meinam. It was
+almost night, and silence reigned around us; but when at daybreak I rose
+and saw the ships lying at anchor in the middle of the stream, while the
+roofs of the palaces and pagodas reflected the first rays of the sun, I
+thought that Bangkok had never looked so beautiful. However, life here
+would never suit me, and the mode of locomotion is wearisome after an
+active existence among the woods and in the chase.
+
+"The river is constantly covered with thousands of boats of different
+sizes and forms, and the port of Bangkok is certainly one of the finest
+in the world, without excepting even the justly-renowned harbor of New
+York. Thousands of vessels can find safe anchorage here.
+
+"The town of Bangkok increases in population and extent every day, and
+there is no doubt but that it will become a very important capital. If
+France succeeds in taking possession of Annam, the commerce between the
+two countries will increase. It is scarcely a century old, and yet
+contains nearly half a million of inhabitants, among whom are many
+Christians. The flag of France floating in Cochin-China would improve
+the position of the missions in all the surrounding countries; and I
+have reason to hope that Christianity will increase more rapidly than it
+has hitherto done.
+
+"I had intended to visit the northeast of the country of Laos, crossing
+Dong Phya Phai (the forest of the King of Fire), and going on to Hieng
+Naie, on the frontiers of Cochin-China; thence to the confines of
+Tonquin. I had planned to return afterward by the Mekong to Cambodia,
+and then to pass through Cochin-China, should the arms of France have
+been victorious there. However, the rainy season having commenced the
+whole country was inundated, and the forests impassable; so it was
+necessary to wait four months before I could put my project in
+execution. I therefore packed up and sent off all my collections, and
+after remaining a few weeks in Bangkok I departed for Pechaburi,
+situated about 13 deg. north latitude, and to the north of the Malayan
+peninsula.
+
+"On May 8th, at five o'clock in the evening, I sailed from Bangkok in a
+magnificent vessel, ornamented with rich gilding and carved work,
+belonging to Khrom Luang, one of the king's brothers, who had kindly
+lent it to a valued friend of mine. There is no reason for concealing
+the name of this gentleman, who has proved himself a real friend in the
+truest meaning of the word; but I rather embrace the opportunity of
+testifying my affection and gratitude to M. Malherbes, who is a French
+merchant settled at Bangkok. He insisted on accompanying me for some
+distance, and the few days he passed with me were most agreeable ones.
+
+"The current was favorable, and, with our fifteen rowers, we proceeded
+rapidly down the stream. Our boat, adorned with all sorts of flags, red
+streamers, and peacocks' tails, attracted the attention of all the
+European residents, whose houses are built along the banks of the
+stream, and who, from their verandas, saluted us by cheering and waving
+their hands. Three days after leaving Bangkok we arrived at Pechaburi.
+
+"The king was expected there the same day, to visit a palace which he
+has had built on the summit of a hill near the town. Khrom Luang,
+Kalahom (prime-minister), and a large number of mandarins had already
+assembled. Seeing us arrive, the prince called to us from his pretty
+little house; and as soon as we had put on more suitable dresses we
+waited on him, and he entered into conversation with us till
+breakfast-time. He is an excellent man, and, of all the dignitaries of
+the country, the one who manifests least reserve and hauteur toward
+Europeans. In education both this prince and the king are much
+advanced, considering the state of the country, but in their manners
+they have little more refinement than the people generally.
+
+"Our first walk was to the hill on which the palace stands. Seen from a
+little distance, this building, of European construction, presents a
+very striking appearance; and the winding path which leads up to it has
+been admirably contrived amid the volcanic rocks, basalt, and scoria
+which cover the surface of this ancient crater.
+
+"About twenty-five miles off, stretches from north to south a chain of
+mountains called Deng, and inhabited by the independent tribes of the
+primitive Kariens. Beyond these rise a number of still higher peaks. On
+the low ground are forests, palm-trees, and rice-fields, the whole rich
+and varied in color. Lastly, to the south and east, and beyond another
+plain, lies the gulf, on whose waters, fading away into the horizon, a
+few scattered sails are just distinguishable.
+
+"It was one of those sights not to be soon forgotten, and the king has
+evinced his taste in the selection of such a spot for his palace. No
+beings can be less poetical or imaginative than the Indo-Chinese; their
+hearts never appear to expand to the genial rays of the sun; yet they
+must have some appreciation of this beautiful scenery, as they always
+fix upon the finest sites for their pagodas and palaces.
+
+"Quitting this hill, we proceeded to another, like it an extinct volcano
+or upheaved crater. Here are four or five grottoes, two of which are of
+surprising extent and extremely picturesque. A painting which
+represented them faithfully would be supposed the offspring of a fertile
+imagination; no one would believe it to be natural. The rocks, long in a
+state of fusion, have taken, in cooling, those singular forms peculiar
+to scoria and basalt. Then, after the sea had retreated--for all these
+rocks have risen from the bottom of the water--owing to the moisture
+continually dripping through the damp soil, they have taken the richest
+and most harmonious colors. These grottoes, moreover, are adorned by
+such splendid stalactites, which, like columns, seem to sustain the
+walls and roofs, that one might fancy one's self present at one of the
+beautiful fairy scenes represented at Christmas in the London theatres.
+
+"If the taste of the architect of the king's palace has failed in the
+design of its interior, here, at least, he has made the best of all the
+advantages offered to him by nature. A hammer touching the walls would
+have disfigured them; he had only to level the ground, and to make
+staircases to aid the descent into the grottoes, and enable the visitors
+to see them in all their beauty.
+
+"The largest and most picturesque of the caverns has been made into a
+temple. All along the sides are rows of idols, one of superior size,
+representing Buddha asleep, being gilt.
+
+"We came down from the mountain just at the moment of the king's
+arrival. Although his stay was not intended to exceed two days he was
+preceded by a hundred slaves, carrying an immense number of coffers,
+boxes, baskets, etc. A disorderly troop of soldiers marched both in
+front and behind, dressed in the most singular and ridiculous costumes
+imaginable. The emperor Soulouque himself would have laughed, for
+certainly his old guard must have made a better appearance than that of
+his East Indian brother. Nothing could give a better idea of this set of
+tatter-demalions than the dressed-up monkeys which dance upon the organs
+of the little Savoyards. Their apparel was of coarse red cloth upper
+garments, which left a part of the body exposed, in every case either
+too large or too small, too long or too short, with white shakos, and
+pantaloons of various colors; as for shoes, they were a luxury enjoyed
+by few.
+
+"A few chiefs, whose appearance was quite in keeping with that of their
+men, were on horseback leading this band of warriors, while the king,
+attended by slaves, slowly advanced in a little open carriage drawn by a
+pony.
+
+"I visited several hills detached from the great chain Khao Deng, which
+is only a few miles off. During my stay here it has rained continually,
+and I have had to wage war with savage foes, from whom I never before
+suffered so much. Nothing avails against them; they let themselves be
+massacred with a courage worthy of nobler beings. I speak of mosquitoes.
+Thousands of these cruel insects suck our blood night and day. My body,
+face, and hands are covered with wounds and blisters. I would rather
+have to deal with the wild beasts of the forest. At times I howl with
+pain and exasperation. No one can imagine the frightful plague of these
+little demons, to whom Dante has omitted to assign a place in his
+infernal regions. I scarcely dare to bathe, for my body is covered
+before I can get into the water. The natural philosopher who held up
+these little animals as examples of parental love was certainly not
+tormented as I have been.
+
+"About ten miles from Pechaburi I found several villages inhabited by
+Laotians, who have been settled there for two or three generations.
+Their costumes consist of a long shirt and black pantaloons, like those
+of the Cochin-Chinese, and they have the Siamese tuft of hair. The women
+wear the same head-dress as the Cambodians. Their songs, and their way
+of drinking through bamboo pipes, from large jars, a fermented liquor
+made from rice and herbs, recalled to my mind what I had seen among the
+savage Stiens. I also found among them the same baskets and instruments
+used by those tribes.
+
+"The young girls are fair compared to the Siamese, and their features
+are pretty; but they soon grow coarse and lose all their charms.
+Isolated in their villages, these Laotians have preserved their language
+and customs, and they never mingle with the Siamese."
+
+To any one who has had experience of the Siamese mosquitoes, it is
+delightful to find such thorough appreciation of them as Mouhot
+exhibits. In number and in ferocity they are unsurpassed. A prolonged
+and varied observation of the habits of this insect, in New Jersey and
+elsewhere, enables this editor to say that the mosquitoes of Siam are
+easily chief among their kind. The memory of one night at Paknam is
+still vivid and dreadful. So multitudinous, so irresistible, so
+intolerable were the swarms of these sanguinary enemies that not only
+comfort, but health and even life itself seemed jeopardized, as the
+irritation was fast bringing on a state of fever. There seemed no way
+but to flee. Orders were given to get up steam in the little steamer
+which had brought us from Bangkok, and we made all possible haste out of
+reach of the shore and anchored miles distant in the safe waters of the
+gulf till morning.
+
+Mouhot remained for four months among the mountains of Pechaburi, "known
+by the names of Makaon Khao, Panam Knot, Khao Tamoune, and Khao Samroun,
+the last two of which are 1,700 and 1,900 feet above the level of the
+sea." He needed the repose after the fatigue of his long journey, and by
+way of preparation for his new and arduous explorations of the Laos
+country, from which, as the result proved, he was never to come back. He
+returned to Bangkok, and after a brief season of preparation and
+farewell, he started for the interior.
+
+
+
+
+                         CHAPTER XV.
+
+                 THE TRIBES OF NORTHERN SIAM
+
+
+Until recent years little has been known or said of the inhabitants who
+occupy the remoter districts of Siam. Owing to its debilitating climate
+and the many dangers of travel in jungle and wilderness, explorers have
+thus far made but meagre contributions to our knowledge of the shy and
+savage tribes in the north and west. In spite of our ignorance, however,
+it is admitted that these various races found in the Indo-Chinese
+peninsula present problems of great ethnological interest, the solution
+of which will some day explain the origins of many language and race
+puzzles now quite insoluble. To most foreigners, Siam is the city of
+Bangkok and its neighborhood; yet, to obtain a fair conception of the
+kingdom, as one of the foremost states of Asia, we must understand the
+variety and extent of the country, a few glimpses of which we may have
+through the reports of those who have penetrated its wilds.
+
+For the most part, we are told by Mr. McCarthy, whose six years'
+experience in superintending the government survey, entitles him to
+respect as an authority, "the people settle on the banks of the rivers
+and are employed chiefly in cultivating rice. There are but few villages
+distant from the large rivers, and in the mountainous parts of the
+kingdom the towns and villages are built in open flat valleys,
+picturesquely surrounded by the mountains, which are clothed with
+forests from top to bottom, the undergrowth being so heavy that one
+seldom or never sees any sport which would change the monotony of daily
+trudging through mountains, where one's view is confined to within ten
+yards around. There is one peculiar feature in this population of
+different nationalities, and that is that they do not amalgamate with
+one another; thus it comes about that near Bangkok itself villages of
+Burmans and Annamites are found living in separate communities,
+preserving their own language and customs."
+
+The region to the west of the Meinam is mostly mountainous and a perfect
+wilderness of jungle, the country being sparsely inhabited. A short
+distance from the broad valley the high range appears which forms the
+water-shed between the Gulf of Siam and the Bay of Bengal. The portion
+of this range which lies above the Malay peninsula appears to be drained
+on its eastern slope, not by the "Mother of Waters" itself, but by its
+neighbor, the Mei-Klong, running almost parallel with it from the
+heights of the Karen country to the Gulf. "This river to Kanburi," says
+Dr. Collins, an American missionary who was the first to cross the wild
+district between Bangkok and Maulmein, "is an exceedingly winding,
+broad, clear, shallow stream, with a slow current and well-defined
+banks, on which are a few villages and many separated habitations. The
+best land seemed to be in the hands of Chinese, who cultivate tobacco,
+sugar-cane, cotton, and rice. Many of the Chinese located on the banks
+of this river, as in other parts of Siam, have married native women and
+form the best element of the population. Quite a number are Roman
+Catholics, while all are sober, industrious, orderly, and prosperous."
+
+After leaving his river-boat at Kanburi, the missionary pursued his
+journey across country by elephant through the regions occupied by the
+Karens, a simple and hardy race of mountaineers, who worship the forest
+spirits. This folk occupy in small numbers the border-land between Siam
+and Lower Burmah. "We saw," continues Dr. Collins, "very few signs of
+animal life in the forests; generally a profound silence reigned, broken
+only by the wild songs of the Karens, or the cracking of bamboos in the
+pathway of the elephants. It is true, in the early mornings we would see
+along the river banks whole families of monkeys basking in the warm
+sunshine, and talking over the plans of the day, but as we passed along
+they would retire into the depths of the forest. These forests could not
+be infested with tigers and other dangerous animals, as we frequently
+passed Karen families on foot, journeying from one village to another.
+The Karens have settlements all through the jungle. Their small villages
+consist of a few rude bamboo huts, and around them are cultivated their
+upland rice and cotton, while the mountain streams furnish them fish in
+abundance. Sometimes they raise fowls, and cultivate sweet potatoes, the
+red pepper, and flowers. They seldom remain over two or three seasons in
+the valleys, but move away to fresh land. Our forest paths led through
+many abandoned Karen villages and plantations, where now rank weeds and
+young bamboos supplant the fields of rice and cotton. The Karens with
+whom we came in contact were mountain heathen Karens. They seemed to
+possess no wealth, cultivating only sufficient land to clothe and feed
+themselves. The women were fairer than the Siamese or Birmese;
+and it was a pleasant sight to see them always cheerful and
+industrious--pounding paddy, weaving their garments, or otherwise
+occupied in their simple household duties, and lightening their toil by
+singing plaintive native songs." Owing to a tradition that they would
+one day receive a religion from the West, these people are said to be
+peculiarly amenable to the influence and instruction of Christian
+missionaries.
+
+Of the Lao or Shan tribes owning allegiance to the King of Siam, we have
+spoken very briefly in the second chapter of this volume. They probably
+represent the mixed and deteriorated remnant of the aborigines who were
+originally driven from Central China to occupy, under the national name
+of _Tai_, the forests and coasts of Indo-China. Such accounts as we
+possess of these peoples are fragmentary, and often strangely
+contradictory, their tribal names and divisions being applied by
+different travellers to a great variety of localities. In general,
+although the names are often used interchangeably, the word _Lao_ seems
+to be given to that part of the great Shan (or Tai) race who live in the
+north and east of Siam, some of their tribes coming down as far south as
+the Cambodian frontier. Mr. Carl Bock, in his notes taken on the spot,
+explains that "there are six Lao states directly tributary to Siam, all
+entirely independent of each other, but with several minor states
+dependent upon these larger ones. The rulers in all these states, even
+the smaller ones, are autocratic in their authority. Their chiefs hold
+office for life, but their places are not hereditary, being filled
+nominally by the King of Siam, but really on the election and
+recommendation of the people, who send notice to Bangkok on the decease
+of a chief, with a private intimation of their views as to a successor.
+Tribute is paid triennially, and takes the form of gold and silver
+betel-boxes, vases, and necklaces, each enriched with four rubies of the
+size of a lotus-seed, and a hundred of the size of a grain of Indian
+corn. Besides these are curious representations of trees in gold and
+silver, about eight feet high, each with four branches, from which again
+depend four twigs, with a single leaf at the end of each. The gold trees
+are valued at 1,080 ticals (L135) each, and the silver ones at 120
+ticals (L15) each.
+
+"Of all Laosians, those living in the extreme north are the most
+backward, and from what has been said it will be gathered that the
+instincts of the people generally are not of a very high order. They are
+mean to a degree; liberality and generosity are words they do not
+understand; they are devoid of ordinary human sympathy, being eaten up
+by an absorbing desire to keep themselves--each man for himself--out of
+the clutches of the spirits. Their highest earthly ambition is to hoard
+up money, vessels and ornaments of gold and silver, and anything else
+of value; as to the means adopted for obtaining which they are not
+over-scrupulous. They are extremely untruthful and wonderfully apt at
+making excuses, and think no more of being discovered in a lie than of
+being seen smoking. I give them credit, however, of being, generally
+speaking, moral in their domestic relations.
+
+"If a man's face is an index to his feelings, then the Laosians must be
+bereft of all capacity to appreciate any variety of mental emotions. It
+is the rarest phenomenon to see any change in their countenance or
+deportment, except--there is always one exception to every rule--when
+they are aroused to anger. This statement is more particularly true of
+the men, but even the women--demonstrative as the sex usually are--are
+seldom moved to either laughter or tears. Whatever news a Laosian may
+receive, whether of disaster or of joy, he hears it with a philosophic
+indifference depicted on his calm, stoical countenance that a European
+diplomatist would give a fortune to be able to imitate. But when any
+sudden feeling of anger or any latent resentment is aroused, then the
+passion begins to display itself, if not in any great change of facial
+expression, at any rate in general demeanor and in quick, restless
+movements of impatience and irritation."
+
+A rather more favorable estimate of Laosian character is made by the
+missionaries who live among them, and presumably know them better.
+"Considering their disadvantages," says Miss McGilvary, "the Laos are a
+remarkably refined race, as is shown by many of their customs. Should a
+person be telling another of the stream which he had crossed, and
+wished to say it was ankle-deep, as he would feel a delicacy in
+referring to his person, his expression would be, 'I beg your pardon,
+but the water was ankle-deep.' If one wished to reach anything above
+another's head, he would beg the latter's pardon before raising his
+hand. A great and passionate love for flowers and music also indicates a
+delicacy of feeling. Although before missionaries went there the women
+did not know how to read, they were always trained to be useful in their
+homes, and a Laos girl who does not know how to weave her own dress is
+considered as ignorant as a girl in this country who does not know how
+to read.
+
+"The holiday which most interests the missionaries' children is the New
+Year, when all, and especially the young, give themselves up to a
+peculiar form of merry-making, consisting in giving everyone a shower.
+Armed with buckets of water and bamboo reeds, by which they can squirt
+the water some distance, these people place themselves at the doors and
+gates and on the streets, ready to give any passer-by a drenching,
+marking out as special victims those who are foolish enough to wear good
+clothes on such a day. It is most amusing to watch them, after
+exhausting their supply of water, hasten to the river or well and run
+back, fearing the loss of one opportunity. Sometimes several torrents
+are directed on one individual; then, after the drenching, shouts of
+laughter fill the air. On this day the king and his court, with a long
+retinue of slaves, go to the river. Some of the attendants carry silver
+or brass basins filled with water perfumed with some scented shrub or
+flower. When the king reaches the river's brink he goes a few steps into
+the water, where he takes his stand, while the princes and nobles
+surround him. The perfumed water is poured on the king's head, afterward
+on the heads of the nobles, and they plunge into the river with noisy
+splashings and laughter. The custom is also observed in families. A
+basin of water is poured on the head of the father, mother, and
+grandparents, by the eldest son or by some respected member of the
+family. The ceremony has some religious significance, being symbolical
+of blessings and felicity; a formula of prayer accompanies the ceremony
+in each case."
+
+Like remote and uncivilized tribes the world over, the Laos are
+extremely and fanatically superstitious. Their fears of the supernatural
+are far more influential in directing their daily lives than their
+respect for the doctrines and practices of Buddhism, which is their
+accepted religion. An interesting account of one of their ruling
+delusions is quoted from Mr. Holt Hallett's article on Zimme (Cheung
+Mai) in _Blackwood's Magazine_ for September, 1889. "The method
+practised when consulting the beneficent spirits--who like mortals are
+fond of retaliating when provoked--is as follows: When the physician's
+skill has been found incapable of mastering a disease, a
+spirit-medium--a woman who claims to be in communion with the
+spirits--is called in. After arraying herself fantastically, the medium
+sits on a mat that has been spread for her in the front veranda, and is
+attended to with respect, and plied with arrack by the people of the
+house, and generally accompanied in her performance by a band of village
+musicians with modulated music. Between her tipplings she chants an
+improvised doggerel, which includes frequent incantations, till at
+length, in the excitement of her potations, and worked on by her song,
+her body begins to sway about and she becomes frantic and seemingly
+inspired. The spirits are then believed to have taken possession of her
+body, and all her utterances from that time are regarded as those of the
+spirits.
+
+"On showing signs of being willing to answer questions, the relations or
+friends of the sick person beseech the spirits to tell them what
+medicines and food should be given to the invalid to restore him or her
+to health; what they have been offended at; and how their just wrath may
+be appeased. Her knowledge of the family affairs and misdemeanors
+generally enables her to give shrewd and brief answers to the latter
+questions. She states that the _Pee_--in this case the ancestral, or,
+perhaps, village spirits--are offended by such an action or actions, and
+that to propitiate them such and such offerings should be made. In case
+the spirits have not been offended, her answers are merely a
+prescription, after which, if only a neighbor, she is dismissed with a
+fee of two or three rupees and, being more or less intoxicated, is
+helped home. In case the spirit medium's prescription proves
+ineffective, and the person gets worse, witchcraft is sometimes
+suspected and an exorcist is called in. The charge of witchcraft means
+ruin to the person accused, and to his or her family. It arises as
+follows: The ghost or spirit of witchcraft is called Pee-Kah. No one
+professes to have seen it, but it is said to have the form of a horse,
+from the sound of its passage through the forest resembling the clatter
+of a horse's hoofs when at full gallop. These spirits are said to be
+reinforced by the deaths of very poor people, whose spirits were so
+disgusted with those who refused them food or shelter, that they
+determined to return and place themselves at the disposal of their
+descendants, to haunt their stingy and hard-hearted neighbors. Should
+anyone rave in delirium, a Pee-Kah is supposed to have passed by. Every
+class of spirits--even the ancestral, and those that guard the streets
+and villages--are afraid of the Pee-Kah. At its approach the household
+spirits take instant flight, nor will they return until it has worked
+its will and retired, or been exorcised. Yet the Pee-Kah is, as I have
+shown, itself an ancestral spirit, and follows as their shadow the son
+and daughter as it followed their parents through their lives. It is not
+ubiquitous, but at one time may attend the parent, and at another the
+child, when both are living. Its food is the entrails of its living
+victim, and its feast continues until its appetite is satisfied, or the
+feast is cut short by the incantations of the spirit-doctor or exorcist.
+Very often the result is the death of its victim. When the witch-finder
+is called in he puts on a knowing look, and after a cursory examination
+of the person, generally declares that the patient is suffering from a
+Pee-Kah. His task is then to find out whose Pee-Kah is devouring the
+invalid.
+
+"After calling the officer of the village and a few headmen as
+witnesses, he commences questioning the invalid. He first asks 'Whose
+spirit has bewitched you?' The person may be in a stupor, half
+unconscious, half delirious from the severity of the disease, and
+therefore does not reply. A pinch or a stroke of a cane may restore
+consciousness. If so, the question is repeated; if not, another pinch or
+stroke is administered. A cry of pain may be the result. That is one
+step toward the disclosure; for it is a curious fact that, after the
+case has been pronounced one of witchcraft, each reply to the question,
+pinch, or stroke is considered as being uttered by the Pee-Kah through
+the mouth of the bewitched person. A person pinched or caned into
+consciousness cannot long endure the torture, especially if reduced by a
+long illness. Those who have not the wish or the heart to injure anyone,
+often refuse to name the wizard or witch until they have been
+unmercifully beaten. Or the sick person naming an individual as the
+owner of the spirit, other questions are asked, such as, 'How many
+buffaloes has he?' 'How many pigs?' 'How many chickens?' 'How much
+money?' etc. The answers to the questions are taken down by a scribe. A
+time is then appointed to meet at the house of the accused, and the same
+questions as to his possessions are put to him. If his answers agree
+with those of the sick person, he is condemned and held responsible for
+the acts of his ghost.
+
+"The case is then laid before the judge of the court, the verdict is
+confirmed, and a sentence of banishment is passed on the person and his
+or her family. The condemned person is barely given time to sell or
+remove his property. His house is wrecked or burnt, and the trees in the
+garden cut down, unless it happens to be sufficiently valuable for a
+purchaser to employ an exorcist, who for a small fee will render the
+house safe for the buyer; but it never fetches half its cost, and must
+be removed from the haunted ground. If the condemned person lingers
+beyond the time that has been granted to him, his house is set on fire,
+and, if he still delays, he is whipped out of the place with a cane. If
+he still refuses to go, or returns, he is put to death.
+
+"Some years ago a case came to the knowledge of the missionaries, where
+two Karens were brought to the city by some of their neighbors, charged
+with causing the death of a young man by witchcraft. The case was a
+clear one against the accused. The young man had been possessed of a
+musical instrument, and had refused to sell it to the accused, who
+wished to purchase it. Shortly afterward he became ill and died in
+fourteen days. At his cremation, a portion of his body would not burn,
+and was of a shape similar to the musical instrument. It was clear that
+the wizards had put the form of the coveted instrument into his body to
+kill him. The Karens were beheaded, notwithstanding that they protested
+their innocence, and threatened that their spirits should return and
+wreak vengeance for their unjust punishment. In Mr. Wilson's opinion,
+the charge of witchcraft often arises from envy or from spite, and
+sickness for the purpose of revenge is sometimes simulated. A neighbor
+wants a house or garden, and the owner either requires more than he
+wishes to pay or refuses to sell. Covetousness consumes his heart, and
+the witch-ghost is brought into action. Then the covetous person, or his
+child, or a neighbor falls ill, or feigns illness; the ailment baffles
+the skill of the physician, and the witch-finder is called in. Then all
+is smooth sailing, and little is left to chance."
+
+The following paragraphs from the same article give an agreeable picture
+of Cheung Mai, or Zimme, the chief town of this region, and the
+headquarters of an important branch of the American Presbyterian
+Mission.
+
+"The city of Zimme, which lies 430 yards to the west of the river, is
+divided into two parts, the one embracing the other like the letter L on
+the south and east sides. The inner city faces the cardinal points, and
+is walled and moated all round. The walls are of brick, 22 feet high,
+and crenelated at the top, where they are 3-1/2 feet broad. The moat
+surrounding the walls is 30 feet wide and 7 feet deep. The outer city is
+more than half a mile broad, and is partly walled and partly palisaded
+on its exterior sides. Both cities are entered by gates leading in and
+out of a fortified courtyard. The inner city contains the palace of the
+head king, the residences of many of the nobility and wealthy men, and
+numerous religious buildings. In the outer city, which is peopled
+chiefly by the descendants of captives, the houses are packed closer
+together than in the inner one, the gardens are smaller, the religious
+buildings fewer, and the population more dense. The floors of the houses
+are all raised six or eight feet from the ground, and the whole place
+has an air of trim neatness about it. Dr. Cheek estimates the population
+of the area covered by the city and its suburbs at about one hundred
+thousand souls....
+
+"It is a pretty sight in the early morning to watch the women and girls
+from neighboring villages streaming over the bridge on their way to the
+market, passing along in single file, with their baskets dangling from
+each end of a shoulder-bamboo, or accurately poised on their heads. The
+younger women move like youthful Dianas, with a quick, firm, and elastic
+tread, and in symmetry of form resemble the ideal models of Grecian art.
+The ordinary costume of these graceful maidens consists of flowers in
+their hair, which shines like a raven's wing and is combed back and
+arranged in a neat and beautiful knot; a petticoat or skirt, frequently
+embroidered near the bottom with silk, worsted, cotton, or gold and
+silver thread; and at times a pretty silk or gauze scarf cast carelessly
+over their bosom and one shoulder. Of late years, moreover, the
+missionaries have persuaded their female converts and the girls in their
+schools to wear a neat white jacket, and the custom is gradually
+spreading through the city and into the neighboring villages. The elder
+women wear a dark-blue cotton scarf which is sometimes replaced by a
+white cotton spencer, similar to that worn by married ladies in Burmah,
+and have an extra width added to the top of their skirt which can be
+raised and tucked in at the level of the armpit. On gala occasions it is
+the fashion to twine gold chains round the knot of their hair, and
+likewise adorn it with a handsome gold pin. The Shans are famous for
+their gold and silver chased work; and beautifully designed gold and
+silver ornaments, bracelets, necklaces, and jewel-headed cylinders in
+their ear-laps are occasionally worn by the wealthier classes."
+
+Notices of the wilder tribes who inhabit the northeast of Siam are
+extremely inadequate, the region being practically unvisited by
+Europeans, and almost unknown to its titular sovereign, the king. The
+French expedition under Lagree passed through the lower edge of the
+country on their toilsome journey up the Mekong in 1867, and M. de Carne
+furnishes us with some particulars of the natives in and about the chief
+centre, Luang Phrabang. "One must go," he says, "to the market to judge
+the variety of costumes and types. At a glance at this mixed population
+the least skilful of anthropologists would see beforehand the
+inextricable confusion of races and languages which he will meet at a
+short distance from Luang-Praban. Numbers of savages who have submitted
+to the king come every morning to the town to sell or buy. They live in
+the mountains. Their dress is extremely simple; so much so that it could
+hardly be lessened.... The Laotians, who are very proud of their
+half-civilization, look on these savages as much inferior to themselves,
+and indeed as almost contemptible. Every group of three miserable huts
+of theirs has a name of its own, known in the neighborhood; but the most
+important village of the people, who may be regarded as the original
+owners of the country, is called by the common and scornful name of
+Ban-Kas [or Bang Kha,] a kraal of savages. The stranger refuses to
+accept this estimate formed by perverted pride. The savages are hard
+workers, and the finest fields of rice and noblest herds of cattle I
+have seen have been in their parts of the country. They are all shy at
+first, but they are easily brought to be familiar. How often have I in
+my walks had to ask these children of the woods for shelter from the
+sun, or water to quench my thirst, or a mat on which to forget my
+fatigue! They did not understand my words, but divined with the quick
+instinct of hospitality the wants which brought me among them, and
+hastened to satisfy them. I have enjoyed positive feasts in these huts,
+where the bamboo, worked in a hundred ways, spread all the luxury before
+me it could display; and I cannot recall without gratitude the
+recollection of a collation made up of sticky rice, smoked iguana legs,
+and pepper, which a savage, some sixty years of age, whom I met in the
+forest, to whom my long beard caused astonishment rather than fear,
+offered me one day."
+
+This was during the Mohammedan rebellion in southern China, when the
+natives south of the empire enjoyed a comparative degree of peace and
+prosperity. Since the conclusion of this and the Taiping insurrection,
+and the sharp conflict of the French in Annam, great numbers of Chinese,
+many of them the dregs of their country, have flocked to this wild
+region, and under their different "flags" or bands have for many years
+past inflicted untold misery in the gradual extermination of these
+harmless natives. The devastators of this beautiful region are known
+generally as Haws. Our latest and most exact information about them
+comes from Mr. McCarthy, who was sent with a party by King Chulalonkorn
+to investigate the raids perpetrated in the kingdom by these wandering
+robbers. "The term Haw," he informs us, "is the Lao word for Chinamen,
+but it is now being applied to those worthies who employ their time in
+plundering. It is supposed that they were originally remnants of the old
+Taiping rebellion, who settled in Tonquin and lent themselves as
+soldiers to the then Annamite governors. In time they became too
+powerful for the governors and either exacted a large annual payment in
+silver or became governors themselves. They ranged themselves under
+different standards, the principal colors of which were black, red,
+yellow and striped (red, white and blue). The name of the chief of the
+standard was written in Chinese characters on the principal one. The
+bands were composed of Chinese from Yunnan, Kwangsi, and Kwangtung [the
+three southern provinces of China]. They ravaged the countries near
+them, extending their operations yearly, the governors of which used to
+employ another band to revenge their wrongs; and in this way the
+different flags were constantly fighting one against another until the
+French war in Tonquin, when they became united for the single purpose of
+fighting the French.
+
+"It was the Haws of the striped banner who overran Chiang Kwang or Muang
+Puen about the year 1873, and extended their ravages as far as Nongkai
+[on the bend of the Mekong in about latitude 18 deg.]; here, however, they
+were destroyed by the Siamese. They came back, and the same Siamese
+general, Phraya Rat, who defeated them before, was sent against them
+again. He was wounded, however, shortly after making his attack upon
+their position, and the Haws eventually escaped. The honor of destroying
+the place fell to Phra Amarawasie, the son of the prime-minister, who
+has done credit to the training he received at the Royal Academy of
+Woolwich. On the northeast of Luang Phrabang, Phraya Suri Sak, a general
+in whom the king has always placed implicit trust, has been operating
+against Black Flags and Yellow Flags. These Black Flags are excellently
+armed with Remingtons, Martini-Henries, Sniders, and repeating rifles,
+and their ammunition is of the best, being all solid brass cartridges
+from Kynoch of Birmingham. I understand that an arrangement has been
+entered into by which the Haws are to be suppressed by the combined
+action of the French and Siamese. Let us hope that these beautiful
+countries will soon be restored to prosperity, and the inhabitants left
+free to lead the peaceful lives they so much desire."[9]
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[9] Proceedings of the Royal Geographical Society for March, 1888.
+
+
+
+
+                         CHAPTER XVI.
+
+                   SIAMESE LIFE AND CUSTOMS
+
+
+The impression which most travellers in Siam have received in regard to
+the moral characteristics of the people has been generally favorable,
+and is on the whole confirmed by the judgment of foreigners who have
+been longer resident among them. They have, of course, the defects and
+vices which are to be expected in a half savage people, governed through
+many generations by the capricious tyranny of an Oriental despotism. And
+the climate and natural conditions of the country are not suited to
+develop in them the hardier and nobler virtues. Industry and
+self-sacrifice can hardly be looked for as characteristics of people to
+whom nature is so bountiful as to require of them no exertion to provide
+either food or raiment. And, on the other hand, with the sloth and
+inactivity to which nature invites, the animal passions, by indulgence,
+often become fierce and overmastering. But it seems to be agreed that if
+the Siamese lack the industry and economy of their neighbors, the
+Chinese, they have not the passionate and sometimes treacherous
+character of the Malays. To the traveller they seem inoffensive, almost
+to timidity, and with a more than ordinary share of "natural affection."
+One of the Roman Catholic missionaries, quoted in Bowring, says,
+"Parents know how to make themselves extremely beloved and respected,
+and Siamese children have great docility and sweetness. Parents answer
+to princes for the conduct of their children; they share in their
+chastisements, and deliver them up when they have offended. If the son
+takes flight, he never fails to surrender himself when the prince
+apprehends his father or his mother, or his other collateral relations
+older than himself, to whom he owes respect." Bowring himself testifies
+that "of the affection of parents for children and the deference paid by
+the young to the old, we saw abundant evidence in all classes of
+society. Fathers were constantly observed carrying about their offspring
+in their arms, and mothers engaged in adorning them. The king was never
+seen in public by us without some of his younger children near him; and
+we had no intercourse with the nobles where numbers of little ones were
+not on the carpets, grouped around their elders, and frequently
+receiving attention from them."
+
+[Illustration: SIAMESE WOMEN.]
+
+The large sums frequently expended in the decoration of the little
+children with anklets and bracelets and necklaces and chains of gold
+(often hundreds of dollars in value and constituting their sole
+costume), are another proof of the same parental fondness. The great
+beauty of the children has attracted the notice of almost all
+travellers, and they seem as amiable as they are beautiful. Their skins
+are colored with a fine powder, of a deep, golden color, and an aromatic
+smell. "In the morning, Siamese mothers may be seen industriously
+engaged in _yellowing_ their offspring from head to heel. So universal
+is the custom, that in caressing the children of the king or nobles, you
+may be certain to carry away yellow stains upon your dress. A small
+quantity mingled with quick-lime makes a paste of a bright pink color,
+of which the consumption is so large for spreading on the betel-leaves
+which are used to wrap around the areca-nut, that I have seen whole
+boat-loads moving about for sale amidst the floating bazaars on the
+Meinam. This _curcuma_ or Indian saffron is known to be the coloring
+matter in the curries, mulligatawnies and chutnees of India"--and is
+thus seen to be available for the inside as well as the outside of men.
+
+The relations between the sexes seem to be characterized by propriety
+and decorum; and though polygamy is permitted and practised by the
+higher classes, and divorce is easy and somewhat frequent, yet, "on the
+whole," says Bowring, "the condition of woman is better in Siamese than
+in most Oriental countries. The education of Siam women is little
+advanced. Many of them are good musicians, but their principal business
+is to attend to domestic affairs. They are as frequently seen as men in
+charge of boats on the Meinam. They generally distribute alms to the
+bonzes, and attend the temples, bringing their offerings of flowers and
+fruit. In the country they are busied with agricultural pursuits. They
+have seldom the art of plying the needle, as the Siamese garments almost
+invariably consist of a single piece of cloth."
+
+Of the acuteness and wit of a people, the best evidence is to be found
+in their familiar proverbs, and the following may be cited (from
+Bowring) in illustration of their shrewd sense and Chinese aptitude for
+seizing nature's hints.
+
+[Illustration: SIAMESE ROPE-DANCER.]
+
+"When you go into a wood, do not forget your wood-knife.
+
+"An elephant though he has four legs may slip; and a doctor is not
+always right.
+
+"Go up by land, you meet a tiger; go down by water, you meet a
+crocodile.
+
+"If a dog bite you, do not bite him again."
+
+Between the luxury and splendor of the king's court and the poverty of
+the common people there is of course the greatest and most painful
+contrast. The palaces of the king are filled with whatever the wealth
+and power of their owner can procure. The hovels of the common peasants
+are bare and comfortless, the furniture consisting only of a few coarse
+vessels of earthenware or wicker-work, and a mat or two spread upon the
+floor. In houses of a slightly better class will be found carpenter's
+tools, a movable oven, various cooking utensils, both in copper and
+clay, spoons of mother-of-pearl, plates and dishes in metal and
+earthenware, and a large porcelain jar, and another of copper for fresh
+water. There is also a tea-set, and all the appliances for betel chewing
+and tobacco smoking, some stock of provisions and condiments for food.
+
+Probably the most reliable witnesses to the true character of the
+Siamese are those Protestant missionaries whose lives are passed in
+intimate association with the people and devoted to doing them good.
+From a recent book written by one of these, Miss M. L. Cort,[10] we
+shall obtain a fair idea of life in Siam and of certain customs dear to
+the common people.
+
+"Women enjoy greater liberty than in almost any other Oriental land. You
+meet them everywhere; and in the bazaars and markets nearly all the
+buying and selling is done by them. As servants and slaves, too, they
+are seen performing all sorts of labor in the open streets. Still, they
+are downtrodden and considered infinitely inferior to men. It is a
+significant fact that although boys have been educated for past
+centuries in the Buddhist monasteries, there are not and have never
+been, so far as I can learn, any native schools for girls. Quite a
+number, however, learn to read in their own families, but such knowledge
+is looked upon as a superfluous accomplishment, and they are not
+encouraged in it, neither is any one ashamed to acknowledge her
+ignorance of books.
+
+"The Siamese are a pleasant, good-natured people, but lazy and indolent
+to the utmost degree, and vain, shallow, and self-conceited. Their
+greatest vices are lying, gambling, immorality, and intemperance,
+although the latter is strictly forbidden by one of the commandments in
+their Buddhist decalogue."
+
+The Siamese are deplorably susceptible to the evil effects of alcohol
+and opium. Physically they are a small and rather weakly race, and the
+effect of strong drink upon them is shown in the rapid deterioration of
+their bodily health; while their temperament, which is by nature light,
+timid, and gay, becomes morose and sullen under the same influence. The
+terrible inroads which were at one time made on the health and
+well-being of the people from the too-abundant use of arrack, a native
+spirit distilled from rice, brought these truths vividly before the
+minds of the authorities, and led to the adoption of stringent
+regulations affecting the sale of that spirit, to the loss and much to
+the regret of the Chinese dealers who had acquired a monopoly of the
+trade. A still more determined crusade was undertaken against
+opium-smoking, which was even held to be a blacker and more pernicious
+habit than swilling arrack. Strict laws prohibiting the practice were
+passed and enforced; and any ill-starred Siamese now found pipe in hand
+has the choice given him of either denationalizing himself by adopting
+the Chinese pig-tail, and paying an annual tax as an alien, or of
+suffering death. In this traffic also the purveyors are Chinese, who,
+while protesting, perhaps too much, against the importation of the drug
+into their own country, show no compunction whatever in distributing it
+broadcast among the people of other nations.
+
+Returning to Miss Cort's account: "The dress of the Siamese," she
+writes, "is very simple and comfortable, consisting of a waist-cloth,
+jacket, and scarf, and sometimes a hat and sandals. If all would at all
+times wear the native dress there would be no occasion for
+fault-finding. But as a nation they do not know what shame is, and as
+the climate is mild and pleasant, and the majority of the people poor
+and careless, their usual dress consists of a simple waist-cloth,
+adjusted in a very loose and slovenly manner; while many children until
+they are ten or twelve years old wear no clothing whatever. When
+foreigners first arrive in Siam they are shocked almost beyond
+endurance at the nudity of the people; and although they constantly
+preach a gospel of dress, their influence in this respect seems less
+apparent than in almost any other. Not until Siam is clothed need she
+expect a place among respectable, civilized nations.
+
+"The old-fashioned shave, which left a patch of stiff bristles on the
+top of the head, like a shoe-brush, is no longer the universal style.
+European trims are fashionable in the capital, and some of the young men
+are trying to cultivate the mustache, while the women let their hair
+cover the whole head and dress it with cocoanut oil. They shave their
+foreheads, rub beeswax on their lips, powder their faces, and perfume
+their bodies. They bend their joints back and forth to make them supple,
+and give the elbow a peculiarly awkward twist which they consider very
+graceful.
+
+"Their salutations are decidedly peculiar. The old style is to get down
+on all fours, and then resting on the knees, raise the clasped hands
+three times above the head, and also bow the head forward until the brow
+touches the floor. They kiss with their noses, by pressing them against
+their friends', and saying 'Very fragrant, very fragrant!' while they
+take long, satisfied sniffs. Many are now learning to shake hands and
+make graceful bows like Europeans, but the imported kiss is not yet in
+vogue, and I do not see that it ever can be until betel is discarded,
+for at present the nose is a more kissable feature of the Siamese face
+than the mouth.
+
+"The people are exceedingly fond of jewelry, and often their gold
+chains and rings are the only adornment the body can boast. Many a young
+girl refuses to wear a jacket because it would cover up her chains,
+which are worn as a hunter carries his game-bag, over one shoulder and
+under the arm. She prefers a scarf which she can arrange and rearrange,
+and thus display the glitter of her golden ornaments. They wear a great
+many gold rings, and their ear-rings are often costly and beautiful.
+They also have gold armlets and anklets and charms encircling neck and
+waist, and the higher ranks now wear gold girdles with jewelled clasps.
+The jewelry is of odd and unique designs--snake-bracelets; necklaces of
+gold turtles, fish and flowers, set with gems; dragon-headed rings, with
+diamond, emerald, or ruby eyes, and a tongue that moves. Some rings have
+little birds poised upon them, with out-spread wings and sparkling with
+jewels; golden elephants, and many other rich and costly designs....
+
+"All ordinary Siamese houses must have three rooms; indeed, so important
+is this number considered to the comfort of the family, that the suitor
+must often promise to provide three rooms ere the parents will let him
+claim his bride. There is the common bedroom, an outer room where they
+sit during the day and receive their visitors, and the kitchen. Let me
+begin at the latter and try to describe the dirty, dingy place. Having
+no godliness, the next thing to it, cleanliness, is entirely lacking.
+There is a rude box filled with earth, where they build the fire and do
+what they call the cooking; that is, they boil rice and make curry, and
+roast fish and bananas over the coals. There is no making of bread or
+pie, of cake or pudding; no roasts, no gravies, no soups. Even
+vegetables are seldom cooked at home, but are prepared by others and
+sold in the markets, or peddled in the streets. There they buy boiled
+sweet potatoes, green corn, and preserved fruits, curries, roasted fish,
+and ants, peanuts, and bananas, sliced pineapples, and melons, and
+squash. Pickled onions and turnips are sold in the streets of Bangkok
+just as pickled beets are in Damascus. Curry is made of all sorts of
+things, but is usually a combination of meat or fish, and vegetables. If
+you want an English name for it that all can understand, you must call
+it a stew. The ingredients are chopped very fine or pounded in a mortar,
+especially the red peppers, onions, and spices. The pre-dominant flavor
+is red pepper, so hot and fiery that your mouth will smart and burn for
+half an hour after you have eaten it. Still many of the curries are very
+good, and with steamed rice furnish a good meal. But sometimes a 'broth
+of abominable things is in their vessels,' as for instance, when they
+make curry of rats or bats, or of the flesh of animals that have died of
+disease, and they flavor it with _kapick_, a sort of rotten fish, of
+which all Siamese are inordinately fond. It is unrivalled in strength of
+fragrance and flavor. Siam is unique in that she possesses two of the
+most abominable things, and yet the most delicious, if we believe what
+we hear, and they are the durian, a large fruit found only on this
+peninsula, and 'kapick,' which I hope is not found anywhere outside of
+Siam.
+
+"There is no regularity about their meals, and they do not wait for one
+another, but eat when they get hungry. In the higher families the men
+always eat first and by themselves, and the wives and children and dogs
+take what is left. The usual rule is for each one to wash his own
+rice-bowl, and turn it upside down in a basket in a corner of the
+kitchen, there to drip and dry till the next time it is needed. They eat
+with their fingers, very few having so much even as a spoon.
+
+[Illustration: SIAMESE LADIES AT DINNER.]
+
+"The kitchen floors are nearly all made of split bamboos, with great
+cracks between, through which they pour all the slops and push the dirt,
+so there is no sweeping or scrubbing to do. Near the door are several
+large earthen jars for water, which are filled from the river by the
+women or servants as often as they get empty, and here they wash their
+feet before they enter the house. They also use brass basins and trays a
+great deal, but for lack of scouring they are discolored and green with
+verdigris, and I cannot help thinking the use of such vessels is one
+fruitful source of the dreadful sores and eruptions with which the whole
+nation is afflicted."
+
+It would be hopeless to endeavor to describe all the peculiarities of
+native fashion and thought, many of which, indeed, are already
+disappearing under the advancing tide of western civilization. Like all
+idolatrous nations, the people are subject to rank superstitions and
+curious fancies, some of them gross or brutal, but more often whimsical
+in their extravagance. To express, for example, the duration of a _kop_,
+one of the divisions of eternity, they say that when a stone ten miles
+square, which is visited once a century by an angel who brushes it with
+a gossamer web, is finally worn away, then a _kop_ is completed.
+Compared with other Asiatic nations, the Siamese cannot be called cruel,
+what pain they inflict comes in most cases from ignorance or obtuseness,
+seldom from wantonness. Punishments, of course, involve whipping, and in
+capital offences the victim loses his head in the old-fashioned way.
+But, Miss Cort tells us, "after taking a soothing draught, provided by
+merciful Buddhists who wish to make merit, the victim's eyes are
+bandaged and his ears stuffed with mud, and thus he is at least
+partially unconscious of the stroke that destroys his life.... Some
+offenders, instead of being executed, are degraded from all titles and
+rank, and condemned to cut grass for elephants for life. They are
+branded on the forehead, and have to cut the grass themselves; no one is
+allowed to help them, nor can they buy it with their own money." A
+glance at the customs connected with birth, marriage, and death will be
+interesting, and will serve to illustrate the peculiarities of Siamese
+life.
+
+"Marriages," says Sir John Bowring, "are the subject of much
+negotiation, undertaken, not directly by the parents, but by
+'go-betweens,' nominated by those of the proposed bridegroom, who make
+proposals to the parents of the intended bride. A second repulse puts
+the extinguisher on the attempted treaty; but if successful, a large
+boat, gayly adorned with flags and accompanied by music, is laden with
+garments, plate, fruits, betel, etc. In the centre is a huge cake or
+cakes, in the form of a pyramid, printed in bright colors. The
+bridegroom accompanies the procession to the house of his future
+father-in-law, where the lady's dowry and the day for the celebration of
+the marriage are fixed. It is incumbent on the bridegroom to erect or to
+occupy a house near that of his intended, and a month or two must elapse
+before he can carry away his bride. No religious rites accompany the
+marriage, though bonzes are invited to the feast, whose duration and
+expense depend upon the condition of the parties. Music is an invariable
+accompaniment. Marriages take place early; I have seen five generations
+gathered round the head of a family. I asked the senior Somdetch how
+many of his descendants lived in his palace; he said he did not know,
+but there were a hundred or more. It was indeed a frequent answer to the
+inquiry in the upper ranks, 'What number of children and grandchildren
+have you?' 'Oh, multitudes; we cannot tell how many.' I inquired of the
+first king how many children had been born to him; he said, 'Twelve
+before I entered the priesthood, and eleven since I came to the throne.'
+I have generally observed that a pet child is selected from the group to
+be the special recipient of the smiles and favors of the head of the
+race.
+
+"Though wives or concubines are kept in any number according to the
+wealth or will of the husband, the wife who has been the object of the
+marriage ceremony, called the Khan mak, takes precedence of all the
+rest, and is really the sole legitimate spouse; and she and her
+descendants are the only legal heirs to the husband's possessions.
+Marriages are permitted beyond the first degree of affinity. Divorce is
+easily obtained on application from the woman, in which case the dowry
+is restored to the wife. If there be only one child, it belongs to the
+mother, who takes also the third, fifth, and all those representing odd
+numbers; the husband has the second, fourth, etc. A husband may sell a
+wife that he has purchased, but not one who has brought him a dowry. If
+the wife is a party to contracting debts on her husband's behalf, she
+may be sold for their redemption, but not otherwise."
+
+One natural result of polygamy is, not only to take away from the beauty
+and dignity of the marriage relation, but also to lessen the amount of
+ceremony with which the marriage is celebrated. A Siamese of the higher
+class is generally "so much married," that it is hardly worth his while
+to make much fuss about it, or indulge in much parade on the occasion.
+Accordingly the ceremonial would seem to be much less than that of
+burial. For a man can die but once, and his funeral is not an event to
+be many times repeated.
+
+A singular custom connected with childbirth is described by Dr. Bradley,
+a former American missionary. The occasion was the first confinement of
+the wife of the late second king, in the year 1835. Dr. Bradley was
+dining with a party of friends at the house of the Portuguese consul. He
+says: "Just before we rose from table, a messenger from Prince
+Chowfah-noi [the late second king] came, apologizing for his master's
+absence from the dinner, and requesting my attendance on his wife in her
+first parturition. The call for me, although silently given, was quickly
+understood by all the party, and the interest which it excited was of
+no ordinary character, because it indicated a violation of the sacred
+rules, absurdities, and cruelties of Siamese midwifery, and that too by
+the second man in the kingdom.
+
+"I was obedient to the call, and was forthwith conducted thither in H.
+R. Highness's boat after I had accompanied my wife to our home. The
+prince was at the landing awaiting my arrival. His salutation in English
+was most expressive, indicating peculiar pleasure in seeing me,
+informing me that his wife had given birth to a daughter a little before
+my arrival, and saying that in accordance with Siamese custom, she was
+lying by a fire. He expressed great abhorrence of the custom, and
+desired me to prevail upon his friends and the midwives to dispense with
+it, and substitute the English custom. To confirm him still more in his
+opinion that the English custom was incomparably the best, I spread
+before him many arguments and appealed to humanity itself. He appeared
+to enter fully into my views, saying that his wife was of the same
+opinion, but expressed much fear that no improvement could be made in
+her situation in consequence of the influence of the ex-queen, his
+mother, and princesses and midwives.
+
+"I was not allowed to see his wife until after his mother and princesses
+had retired, which was not till quite late in the evening. The prince
+went a little time before me to prepare the way, and then sent his
+chamberlain to conduct me to the house of his wife, where he received me
+and led me to the bedside of his suffering companion. She was
+surrounded by a multitude of old women affecting wondrous wisdom in the
+treatment of their patient. The fiery ordeal had indeed commenced, and
+the poor woman was doomed to lie before a hot fire a full month. I found
+the mother lying on a narrow wooden bench without a cushion, elevated
+above the floor eight or ten inches, with her bare back exposed to a hot
+fire about eighteen inches distant. The fire, I presume to say, was
+sufficiently hot to have roasted a spare-rib at half the distance.
+Having lain a little time in this position, she was rolled over and had
+her abdomen exposed to the flame.
+
+"With all the reasoning and eloquence I could employ, both through the
+prince and speaking directly to them, I could not persuade the ignorant
+women that it would be prudent to suspend their course of treatment,
+even for a night, so that the sufferer might have a little quiet rest on
+a comfortable bed. They said that the plan of treatment which I proposed
+was entirely new to them, and that I was also a stranger, and therefore
+it would not do at all to expose so honorable a personage to the dangers
+of an _experiment_.
+
+"The prince then informed me that this amount of fire was to be
+continued three days, after which its intensity would have to be
+doubled, and continued for 30 days, as it was the mother's first child.
+The custom, he said, is to abridge the term to 25, 20, 18, 15, and 11
+days, according to the number of children the woman has had.
+
+"Having had a look at the infant princess lying in a neatly-curtained
+bed, I retired from the place with scarcely any expectation that my
+visit would effect any immediate good.
+
+"I visited Chowfah-noi the next evening in company with Mrs. B. The
+thought had occurred to me that she could probably exert more influence
+with the females than I could, and that possibly she might induce them
+to adopt my plan of practice in relation to the mother and the child. We
+were heartily welcomed by his royal highness, who first took much
+pleasure in showing us all his curiosities, and then gave us an
+interview with his lady. She was still lying by a hot fire, and
+complained much of soreness of the hips from pressure on the hard couch.
+At first she seemed to be somewhat abashed at the presence of Mrs. B.,
+whom she had never before seen. But it was not long ere that was all
+exchanged for a good degree of intimacy, seeing that she was a woman
+like herself. Mrs. B. prevailed on her to take some of my medicine and
+to have the child put to the breast of its mother instead of giving it
+up to a wet-nurse. But though she made the experiment in our presence,
+there was no reason to think that it was continued.
+
+"Two days later the prince sent for me in great haste, about 2 P.M., to
+see his wife and child. I hastened to the palace, but was too late to do
+anything for the child, as it had died a little before my arrival. The
+prince was evidently much affected at the death of his first-born, and
+there was much weeping among the relatives and servants, who had
+congregated in multitudes in apartments adjacent to the room which the
+mother occupied. The prince was very anxious concerning his wife, and
+seemed to wish with all his heart to have her taken out of the hands of
+native physicians and placed under my care. This he labored
+indefatigably to accomplish for more than two hours, while I waited for
+the result. But to his sorrow he at length reported that he could not
+succeed, and said that his mother and sisters and physicians, together
+with a multitude of conceited and headstrong old women, were too much
+for him, and that he would be obliged to allow them to go on in their
+own way, however hazardous the consequences. He wished me to give him
+the privilege of sending for me if his wife should by her own physicians
+be considered in a dangerous way. I had declined doing anything in the
+case unless I could have the entire care of the patient, fearing that if
+I attempted to administer while the native means were being employed, I
+should bring reproach both upon European medical practice, and the dear
+cause which I had espoused."
+
+"Shaving the hair tuft of children is a great family festival, to which
+relations and friends are invited, to whom presents of cakes and fruits
+are sent. A musket-shot announces the event. Priests recite prayers, and
+wash the head of the young person, who is adorned with all the ornaments
+and jewels accessible to the parents. Music is played during the
+ceremony, which is performed by the nearest relatives; and
+congratulations are addressed, with gifts of silver, to the newly shorn.
+Sometimes the presents amount to large sums of money. Dramatic
+representations among the rich accompany the festivity, which in such
+case lasts for several days.
+
+[Illustration: BUILDING ERECTED AT FUNERAL OF SIAMESE OF HIGH RANK.]
+
+"Education begins with the shaving the tuft, and the boys are then sent
+to the pagodas to be instructed by the bonzes in reading and writing,
+and in the dogmas of religion. They give personal service in return for
+the education they receive. That education is worthless enough, but
+every Siamese is condemned to pass a portion of his life in the temple,
+which many of them never afterward quit. Hence, the enormous supply of
+an unproductive, idle, useless race.
+
+"When a Thai (Siamese) is at the point of death the talapoins are sent
+for, who sprinkle lustral water upon the sufferer, recite passages which
+speak of the vanity of earthly things from their sacred books, and cry
+out, repeating the exclamation in the ears of the dying, 'Arahang!
+arahang!' (a mystical word implying the purity or exemption of Buddha
+from concupiscence). When the dying has heaved his last breath the whole
+family utter piercing cries, and address their lamentations to the
+departed: 'O father benefactor! why leave us? What have we done to
+offend you? Why depart alone? It was your own fault. Why did you eat the
+fruit that caused the dysentery? We foretold it; why did not you listen
+to us? O misery! O desolation! O inconstancy of human affairs!' And they
+fling themselves at the feet of the dead, weep, wail, kiss, utter a
+thousand tender reproaches, till grief has exhausted its lamentable
+expressions. The body is then washed and enveloped in white cloth; it is
+placed in a coffin covered with gilded paper, and decorated with tinsel
+flowers. A dais is prepared, ornamented with the same materials as the
+coffin, but with wreaths of flowers and a number of wax-lights. After a
+day or two the coffin is removed, not through the door, but through an
+opening specially made in the wall; the coffin is escorted thrice round
+the house at full speed, in order that the dead, forgetting the way
+through which he has passed, may not return to molest the living. The
+coffin is then taken to a large barge, and placed on a platform,
+surmounted by the dais, to the sound of melancholy music. The relations
+and friends, in small boats, accompany the barge to the temple where the
+body is to be burnt. Being arrived, the coffin is opened and delivered
+to the officials charged with the cremation, the corpse having in his
+mouth a silver tical (2_s._ 6_d._ in value) to defray the expenses. The
+burner first washes the face of the corpse with cocoanut milk; and if
+the deceased have ordered that his body shall be delivered to vultures
+and crows, the functionary cuts it up and distributes it to the birds of
+prey which are always assembled in such localities. The corpse being
+placed upon the pile, the fire is kindled. When the combustion is over,
+the relatives assemble, collect the principal bones, which they place in
+an urn, and convey them to the family abode. The garb of mourning is
+white, and is accompanied by the shaving of the head. The funerals of
+the opulent last for two or three days. There are fireworks, sermons
+from the bonzes, nocturnal theatricals, where all sorts of monsters are
+introduced. Seats are erected within the precincts of the temples, and
+games and gambling accompany the rites connected with the dead."
+
+At the death of any member of the royal family the funeral ceremonies
+become a matter of national importance. If it is the king who is dead
+the whole country is in mourning; all heads are shaved. The ceremonies
+at the cremation of the body of the late first king lasted from the 12th
+of March (1870) till the 21st of the same month. The king of Cheung-mai
+came from his distant home among the Laos to be present on the occasion;
+and the pomp and expense of the ceremony, for which preparations had
+been more than a year in progress, surpassed anything that had been
+known in the history of Siam. The following description of the funeral
+of one of the high commissioners who negotiated the English treaty, and
+who died a few days after the signing of the treaty, was furnished to
+Sir John Bowring by an eye-witness. The ceremonies at the royal funeral
+were not dissimilar, though on a more extensive scale.
+
+"The building of the _men_, or temple, in which the burning was to take
+place, occupied four months, during the whole of which time between
+three and four hundred men were constantly engaged. The whole of it was
+executed under the personal superintendence of the 'Kalahome.'
+
+"It would be difficult to imagine a more beautiful object than this
+temple was, when seen from the opposite side of the river. The style of
+architecture was similar to that of the other temples in Siam; the roof
+rising in the centre, and thence running down in a series of gables,
+terminating in curved points. The roof was covered entirely with
+scarlet and gold, while the lower part of the building was blue, with
+stars of gold. Below, the temple had four entrances leading directly to
+the pyre; upon each side, as you entered, were placed magnificent
+mirrors, which reflected the whole interior of the building, which was
+decorated with blue and gold, in the same manner as the exterior. From
+the roof depended immense chandeliers, which at night increased the
+effect beyond description. Sixteen large columns, running from north to
+south, supported the roof. The entire height of the building must have
+been 120 feet, its length about fifty feet, and breadth forty feet. In
+the centre was a raised platform, about seven feet high, which was the
+place upon which the urn containing the body was to be placed. Upon each
+side of this were stairs covered with scarlet and gold cloth.
+
+"This building stood in the centre of a piece of ground of about two
+acres extent, the whole of which ground was covered over with close
+rattan-work, in order that visitors might not wet their feet, the ground
+being very muddy.
+
+"This ground was enclosed by a wall, along the inside of which myriads
+of lamps were disposed, rendering the night as light as the day. The
+whole of the grounds belonging to the adjoining temple contained nothing
+but tents, under which Siamese plays were performed by dancing-girls
+during the day. During the night, transparencies were in vogue. Along
+the bank of the river, Chinese and Siamese plays (performed by men) were
+in great force, and to judge by the frequent cheering of the populace,
+no small talent was shown by the performers, which talent in Siam
+consists entirely in obscenity and vulgarity.
+
+"All approaches were blocked long before daylight each morning, by
+hundreds--nay, thousands of boats of every description in Siam,
+_sampans_, _mapet_, _mak'eng_, _ma guen_, etc., etc.; these were filled
+with presents of white cloth, no other presents being accepted or
+offered during a funeral. How many shiploads of fine shirting were
+presented during those few days it is impossible to say. Some conception
+of the number of boats may be had from the fact that, in front of my
+floating house I counted seventy-two large boats, all of which had
+brought cloth.
+
+"The concourse of people night and day was quite as large as at any
+large fair in England; and the whole scene, with the drums and shows,
+the illuminations and the fireworks, strongly reminded me of Greenwich
+Fair at night. The varieties in national costume were considerable, from
+the long flowing dresses of the Mussulman to the scanty _pan-hung_ of
+the Siamese.
+
+"Upon the first day of the ceremonies, when I rose at daylight, I was
+quite surprised at the number and elegance of the large boats that were
+dashing about the river in every direction. Some of them with
+elegantly-formed little spires (two in each boat) of a snowy-white,
+picked out with gold, others with magnificent scarlet canopies with
+curtains of gold, others filled with soldiers dressed in red, blue, or
+green, according to their respective regiments, the whole making a most
+effective _tableau_, far superior to any we had during the time the
+embassy was here.
+
+"Whilst I was admiring this scene I heard the cry of _Sedet_ (the name
+of the king when he goes out), and turning round, beheld the fleet of
+the king's boats sweeping down. His majesty stopped at the _men_, where
+an apartment had been provided for him. The moment the king left his
+boat, the most intense stillness prevailed--a silence that was
+absolutely painful. This was, after the lapse of a few seconds, broken
+by a slight stroke of a tom-tom. At that sound every one on shore and in
+the boats fell on his knees, and silently and imperceptibly the barge
+containing the high priest parted from the shore at the Somdetch's
+palace, and floated with the tide toward the _men_. This barge was
+immediately followed by that containing the urn, which was placed upon a
+throne in the centre of the boat. One priest knelt upon the lower part
+of the urn, in front, and one at the back. (It had been constantly
+watched since his death.) Nothing could exceed the silence and
+_immovability_ of the spectators. The tales I used to read of nations
+being turned to statues were here realized, with the exception that all
+had the same attitude. It was splendid, but it was fearful. During the
+whole of the next day, the urn stayed in the _men_, in order that the
+people might come and pay their last respects.
+
+"The urn, or rather its exterior cover, was composed of the finest gold,
+elegantly carved and studded with innumerable diamonds. It was about
+five feet high and two feet in diameter.
+
+"Upon the day of the burning the two kings arrived about 4 P.M. The
+golden cover was taken off, and an interior urn of brass now contained
+the body, which rested upon cross-bars at the bottom of the urn. Beneath
+were all kinds of odoriferous gums.
+
+"The first king, having distributed yellow cloths to an indefinite
+quantity of priests, ascended the steps which led to the pyre, holding
+in his hand a lighted candle, and set fire to the inflammable materials
+beneath the body. After him came the second king, who placed a bundle of
+candles in the flames; then followed the priests, then the princes, and
+lastly the relations and friends of the deceased. The flames rose
+constantly above the vase, but there was no unpleasant smell.
+
+"His majesty, after all had thrown in their candles, returned to his
+seat, where he distributed to the Europeans a certain number of limes,
+each containing a gold ring or a small piece of money. Then he commenced
+_scrambling_ the limes, and seemed to take particular pleasure in just
+throwing them between the princes and the missionaries, in order that
+they might meet together in the 'tug of war.'
+
+"The next day the bones were taken out, and distributed among his
+relations, and this closed the ceremonies. During the whole time the
+river each night was covered with fireworks, and in Siam the pyrotechnic
+art is far from being despicable."
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[10] Siam: or, The Heart of Farther India. New York, 1886.
+
+
+
+
+                        CHAPTER XVII.
+
+                 NATURAL PRODUCTIONS OF SIAM
+
+
+The varieties of animal and vegetable life with which the tropics
+everywhere abound are in Siam almost innumerable. From the gigantic
+elephant and rhinoceros in the jungle to the petty mosquitoes that
+infest the dwellings and molest the slumbers of the crowded city; from
+the gigantic Indian fig-tree to the tiniest garden-blossom, an almost
+infinite diversity of life and growth invites attention. The work of
+scientific observation and classification has been, as yet, only very
+imperfectly accomplished. Much has been done by the missionaries,
+especially by Dr. House of the American Presbyterian Mission, who is a
+competent and scientific observer. And the lamented Mouhot, gathered
+vast and valuable collections in the almost unexplored regions to which
+he penetrated. But no doubt there are still undiscovered treasures of
+which men of science will presently lay hold.
+
+"Elephants," says Bowring, "are abundant in the forests of Siam, and
+grow sometimes to the height of twelve or thirteen feet. The habits of
+the elephant are gregarious; but though he does not willingly attack a
+man, he is avoided as dangerous; and a troop of elephants will, when
+going down to a river to drink, submerge a boat and its passengers. The
+destruction even of the wild elephant is prohibited by royal orders, yet
+many are surreptitiously destroyed for the sake of their tusks. At a
+certain time of the year tame female elephants are let loose in the
+forests. They are recalled by the sound of a horn, and return
+accompanied by wild males, which they compel, by blows of the proboscis,
+to enter the walled prisons which have been prepared for their capture.
+The process of taming commences by keeping them for several days without
+food. Then a cord is passed round their feet, and they are attached to a
+strong column. The delicacies of which they are most fond are then
+supplied them, such as sugar-canes, plantains, and fresh herbs, and at
+the end of a few days the animal is domesticated and resigned to his
+fate.
+
+"Without the aid of the elephant it would scarcely be possible to
+traverse the woods and jungles of Siam. He makes his way as he goes,
+crushing with his trunk all that resists his progress; over deep
+morasses or sloughs he drags himself on his knees and belly. When he has
+to cross a stream he ascertains the depth by his proboscis, advances
+slowly, and when he is out of his depth he swims, breathing through his
+trunk, which is visible when the whole of his body is submerged. He
+descends into ravines impassable by man, and by the aid of his trunk
+ascends steep mountains. His ordinary pace is about four to five miles
+an hour, and he will journey day and night if properly fed. When weary,
+he strikes the ground with his trunk, making a sound resembling a horn,
+which announces to his driver that he desires repose. In Siam the
+howdah is a great roofed basket, in which the traveller, with the aid of
+his cushions, comfortably ensconces himself. The motion is disagreeable
+at first, but ceases to be so after a little practice.
+
+"Elephants in Siam are much used in warlike expeditions, both as
+carriers and combatants. All the nobles are mounted on them, and as many
+as a thousand are sometimes collected. They are marched against
+palisades and entrenchments. In the late war with Cochin-China the
+Siamese general surprised the enemy with some hundreds of elephants, to
+whose tails burning torches were attached. They broke into the camp, and
+destroyed more than a thousand Cochin-Chinese, the remainder of the army
+escaping by flight.
+
+"Of elephants in Siam, M. de Bruguieres gives some curious anecdotes. He
+says that there was one in Bangkok which was habitually sent by his
+keeper to collect a supply of food, which he never failed to do, and
+that it was divided regularly between his master and himself on his
+return home; and that there was another elephant, which stood at the
+door of the king's palace, before whom a large vessel filled with rice
+was placed, which he helped out with a spoon to every talapoin (bonze)
+who passed.
+
+"His account of the Siamese mode of capturing wild elephants is not
+dissimilar to that which has been already given. But he adds that in
+taming the captured animals every species of torture is used. He is
+lifted by a machine in the air, fire is placed under his belly, he is
+compelled to fast, he is goaded with sharp irons, till reduced to
+absolute submission. The tame elephants co-operate with their masters,
+and, when thoroughly subdued, the victim is marched away with the rest.
+
+"Some curious stories are told by La Loubere of the sagacity of
+elephants, as reported by the Siamese. In one case an elephant, upon
+whose head his keeper had cracked a cocoanut, kept the fragments of the
+nut-shell for several days between his forelegs, and having found an
+opportunity of trampling on and killing the keeper, the elephant
+deposited the fragments upon the dead body.
+
+"I heard many instances of sagacity which might furnish interesting
+anecdotes for the zooelogist. The elephants are undoubtedly proud of
+their gorgeous trappings, and of the attentions they receive. I was
+assured that the removal of the gold and silver rings from their tusks
+was resented by the elephants as an indignity, and that they exhibited
+great satisfaction at their restoration. The transfer of an elephant
+from a better to a worse stabling is said to be accompanied with marks
+of displeasure."
+
+If the elephant is in Siam the king of beasts, the white elephant is the
+king of elephants. This famous animal is simply an albino, and owes his
+celebrity and sanctity to the accident of disease. He is not really
+white (except in spots); his color is a faded pink, or, as Bowring
+states of the specimen he saw, a light mahogany. In September, 1870,
+however, a very extraordinary elephant arrived in Bangkok, having been
+escorted from Paknam with many royal honors. A large part of the body of
+this animal was really white, and great excitement and delight was
+produced by its arrival at the capital. The elephant which Bowring saw
+and described died within a year after his visit. She occupied a large
+apartment within the grounds of the first king's palace, and not far
+off, in an elevated position, was placed a golden chair for the king to
+occupy when he should come to visit her. "She had a number of
+attendants, who were feeding her with fresh grass (which I thought she
+treated somewhat disdainfully), sugar-cane, and plantains. She was
+richly caparisoned in cloth of gold and ornaments, some of which she
+tore away and was chastised for the offence by a blow on the proboscis
+by one of the keepers. She was fastened to an upright pole by ropes
+covered with scarlet cloth, but at night was released, had the liberty
+of the room, and slept against a matted and ornamented partition,
+sloping from the floor at about an angle of forty-five degrees. In a
+corner of the room was a caged monkey, of pure white, but seemingly very
+active and mischievous. The prince fed the elephant with sugar-cane,
+which appeared her favorite food; the grass she seemed disposed to toss
+about rather than to eat. She had been trained to make a salaam by
+lifting her proboscis over the neck, and did so more than once at the
+prince's bidding. The king sent me the bristles of the tail of the last
+white elephant to look at. They were fixed in a gold handle, such as
+ladies use for their nosegays at balls."
+
+There seems some reason for believing that the condition of the white
+elephant is not at present quite so luxurious as it used to be, and a
+correspondent of Miss Cort is quoted as saying--"I think it is time the
+popular fallacy about feeding the white elephant from gold dishes, and
+keeping him in regal splendor was exploded. Except on state occasions it
+has no foundation in fact." Advancing civilization begins to make it
+evident, even to the Siamese, that there are other things more admirable
+and more worthy of reverence. It was noticed that the late second king,
+especially, did not always speak of the noble creature with the
+solemnity which ancient usage would have justified, and even seemed to
+think that there was something droll in the veneration which was given
+to it. But the superstition in regard to it is by no means extinct, and
+the presence of one of these animals is still believed to be a pledge of
+prosperity to the king and country. "Hence," says Bowring, "the white
+elephant is sought with intense ardor, the fortunate finder rewarded
+with honors, and he is treated with attention almost reverential. This
+prejudice is traditional and dates from the earliest times. When a
+tributary king or governor of a province has captured a white elephant
+he is directed to open a road through the forest for the comfortable
+transit of the sacred animal, and when he reaches the Meinam he is
+received on a magnificent raft, with a chintz canopy and garlanded with
+flowers. He occupies the centre of the raft and is pampered with cakes
+and sugar. A noble of high rank, sometimes a prince of royal blood (and
+on the last occasion both the first and second kings), accompanied by a
+great concourse of barges, with music and bands of musicians, go forth
+to welcome his arrival. Every barge has a rope attached to the raft, and
+perpetual shouts of joy attend the progress of the white elephant to the
+capital, where on his arrival he is met by the great dignitaries of the
+state, and by the monarch himself, who gives the honored visitor some
+sonorous name and confers on him the rank of nobility. He is conducted
+to a palace which is prepared for him, where a numerous court awaits
+him, and a number of officers and slaves are appointed to administer to
+his wants in vessels of gold and silver."
+
+It is believed that these albinos are found only in Siam and its
+dependencies, and the white elephant (on a red ground) has been made the
+flag of the kingdom. It is probable enough that the festival of the
+white elephant, which at the present day is celebrated in Japan (the
+elephant being an enormous pasteboard structure "marching on the feet of
+men enclosed in each one of the four legs"), may be a tradition of the
+intercourse between that country and Siam, which was formerly more
+intimate than at present.
+
+"The white monkeys enjoy almost the same privileges as the white
+elephant; they are called _paja_, have household and other officers, but
+must yield precedence to the elephant. The Siamese say that 'the monkey
+is a man--not very handsome to be sure; but no matter, he is not less
+our brother.' If he does not speak, it is from prudence, dreading lest
+the king should compel him to labor for him without pay; nevertheless,
+it seems he has spoken, for he was once sent in the quality of
+generalissimo to fight, if I mistake not, an army of giants. With one
+kick he split a mountain in two, and report goes that he finished the
+war with honor.
+
+"The Siamese have more respect for white animals than for those of any
+other color. They say that when a talapoin meets a white cock he salutes
+him--an honor he will not pay a prince."
+
+Tigers are abundant in the jungle, but are more frequently dangerous to
+other animals, both wild and domestic, than to men. The rhinoceros, the
+buffalo, bears, wild pigs, deer, gazelles, and other smaller animals
+inhabit the forests. Monkeys are abundant. In Cambodia Mouhot found
+several new species. And the orang-outang is found on the Malayan
+peninsula. Various species of cats, and among them tailless cats like
+those of Japan, are also to be found. Bats are abundant, some of them
+said to be nearly as large as a cat. They are fond of dwelling among the
+trees of the temple-grounds, and Pallegoix says (but it seems that the
+good Bishop must have overstated the case, as other travellers have
+failed to notice such a phenomenon) that "at night they hang over the
+city of Bangkok like a dense black cloud, which appears to be leagues in
+length."
+
+Birds are abundant, and often of great size and beauty; some of them
+sweet singers, some of them skilful mimics, some of them useful as
+scavengers. Peacocks, parrots, parroquets, crows, jays, pigeons, in
+great numbers and variety, inhabit the forest trees.
+
+What the elephant is in the forest, the crocodile is in the rivers, the
+king of creeping things. The eggs of the crocodile are valued as a
+delicacy; but the business of collecting them is attended with so many
+risks that it is not regarded as a popular or cheerful avocation. It
+will be well for the collector to have a horse at hand on which he can
+take immediate flight. The infuriated mother seldom fails, says
+Pallegoix, to rush out in defence of her progeny.
+
+"At Bangkok there are professional crocodile-charmers. If a person is
+reported to have been seized by a crocodile, the king orders the animal
+to be captured. The charmer, accompanied by many boats, and a number of
+attendants with spears and ropes, visits the spot where the presence of
+the crocodile has been announced, and, after certain ceremonies, writes
+to invite the presence of the crocodile. The crocodile-charmer, on his
+appearance, springs on his back and gouges his eyes with his fingers;
+while the attendants spring into the water, some fastening ropes round
+his throat, others round his legs, till the exhausted monster is dragged
+to the shore and deposited in the presence of the authorities." Father
+Pallegoix affirms that the Annamite Christians of his communion are
+eminently adroit in these dangerous adventures, and that he has himself
+seen as many as fifty crocodiles in a single village so taken, and bound
+to the uprights of the houses. But his account of the Cambodian mode of
+capture is still more remarkable. He says that the Cambodian river-boats
+carry hooks, which, by being kept in motion, catch hold of the
+crocodiles, that during the struggle a knot is thrown over the animal's
+tail, that the extremity of the tail is cut off, and a sharp bamboo
+passed through the vertebrae of the spine into the brain, when the animal
+expires.
+
+There are many species of lizards, the largest is the _takuet_. His name
+has passed into a Siamese proverb, as the representative of a crafty,
+double-dealing knave, as the takuet has two tongues, or rather one
+tongue divided into two." This is perhaps the lizard (about twice as
+large as the American bull-frog) which comes into the dwellings
+unmolested and makes himself extremely useful by his destruction of
+vermin. He is a noisy creature, however, with a prodigious voice. He
+begins with a loud and startling whirr-r-r-r, like the drumming of a
+partridge or the running down of an alarm-clock, and follows up the
+sensation which he thus produces by the distinct utterance of the
+syllables, "To-kay," four or five times repeated. He is not only
+harmless, but positively useful, but it takes a good while for a
+stranger to become so well acquainted with him that the sound of his cry
+from the ceiling, over one's bed for instance, and waking one from a
+sound sleep, is not somewhat alarming.
+
+There is no lack of serpents, large and small. Pallegoix mentions one
+that will follow any light or torch in the darkness, and is only to be
+avoided by extinguishing or abandoning the light which has attracted
+him. There are serpent-charmers, as in other parts of India. They
+extract the poison from certain kinds of vipers, and then train them to
+fight with one another, to dance, and perform various tricks.
+
+Pallegoix mentions one or two varieties of fish that are interesting,
+and, so far as known, peculiar to Siamese waters. One, "a large fish,
+called the mengphu, weighing from thirty to forty pounds, of a bright
+greenish-blue color, will spring out of the water to attack and bite
+bathers." He says there "is also a tetraodon, called by the Siamese the
+moon, without teeth, but with jaws as sharp as scissors. It can inflate
+itself so as to become round as a ball. It attacks the toes, the calf,
+and the thighs of bathers, and, as it carries away a portion of the
+flesh, a wound is left which it is difficult to heal."
+
+Of centipedes, scorpions, ants, mosquitoes, and the various pests and
+plagues common to all tropical countries it is not necessary to speak in
+detail.
+
+Sir John Bowring considered that sugar was likely to become the
+principal export of Siam, but thus far it would seem that rice has taken
+the precedence. The gutta-percha tree, all kinds of palms, and of fruits
+a vast and wonderful variety (among which are some peculiar to Siam),
+are abundant. The durian and mangosteen are the most remarkable, and
+have already been described. So far as is known, they grow only in the
+regions adjacent to the Gulf of Siam and the Straits of Sunda. And
+though there are many fruits common to these and to all tropical
+countries which are more useful (such as the banana, of which there are
+said to be in Siam not less than fifty varieties, "in size from a little
+finger to an elephant's tusk"), there are none more curious than these.
+The season of the mangosteen is the same with that of the durian. The
+tree grows about fifteen feet high, and the foliage is extremely glossy
+and dark. The fruit may be eaten in large quantities with safety, and is
+of incomparable delicacy of flavor. No fruit in the world has won such
+praises as the mangosteen.
+
+Of the mineral treasures of Siam, enough has been already indicated in
+the description of the wealth and magnificence which is everywhere
+apparent. We need only add that coal of excellent quality and in great
+abundance has been recently discovered, and that the country is also
+rich in petroleum, which awaits the wells and refineries by which it may
+be profitably used. Gold and silver mines are both known but little is
+produced from them. The government is obliged to import Mexican dollars
+in order to melt and recoin them in the new mint.
+
+
+
+
+                        CHAPTER XVIII.
+
+    CHRISTIAN MISSIONS IN SIAM--THE OUTLOOK FOR THE FUTURE
+
+
+No account of the present condition of Siam can be at all complete which
+does not notice the history of missionary enterprise in that country.
+Allusion has already been made to the efforts of Roman Catholic
+missionaries, Portuguese and French, to introduce Christianity and to
+achieve for the Church a great success by the conversion of the king and
+his people. The scheme failed, and the political intrigue which was
+involved in it came also to an ignominious conclusion; and the first era
+of Roman Catholic missions in Siam closed in 1780, when a royal decree
+banished the missionaries from the kingdom. They did not return in any
+considerable numbers, or to make any permanent residence until 1830. In
+that year the late Bishop Pallegoix, to whom we owe much of our
+knowledge of the country and the people (and who died respected and
+beloved by Buddhists as well as Christians), was appointed to resume the
+interrupted labors of the Roman Catholic Church. Under his zealous and
+skilful management, much of a certain kind of success has been achieved,
+but very few of the converts are to be found among the native Siamese.
+There is at present on the ground a force of about twenty missionaries,
+including a vicar apostolic and a bishop, with churches at ten or a
+dozen places in the kingdom. Their converts and adherents are chiefly
+from the Chinese, Portuguese half-castes, and others who value the
+political protection conferred by the priests.
+
+The religious success of the Protestant missionaries, which has not been
+over-encouraging, has also been in the first place, and largely, among
+the Chinese residents. A few Siamese converts are reported within the
+past few years, and their number is steadily increasing. The first
+Protestant mission was that of the American Baptist Board, which was on
+the ground within three years after the arrival of Bishop Pallegoix,
+though several American missionaries of other denominations had been in
+the country and translated religious books before this. The Baptists
+were followed within a few years by Congregationalists and Presbyterians
+from the United States. But "as time passed on one agency after another
+left the field, until to-day the entire work of Christianizing the
+Siamese is left to the Board of Foreign Missions of the Presbyterian
+Church in the United States," which began work in Bangkok of 1840.
+
+At first sight their efforts, if measured by a count of converts, might
+seem to have resulted in failure. The statistics show but little
+accomplished; the roll of communicants seems insignificant. And of the
+sincerity and intelligence even of this small handful there are
+occasional misgivings. On the whole, those who are quick to criticise
+and to oppose foreign missions might seem to have a good argument and
+to find a case in point in the history of missions in Siam.
+
+But really the success of these efforts has been extraordinary, although
+the history of them exhibits an order of results almost without
+precedent. Ordinarily, the religious enlightenment of a people comes
+first, and the civilization follows as a thing of course. But here the
+Christianization of the nation has scarcely begun, but its civilization
+has made (as this volume has abundantly shown) much more than a
+beginning.
+
+For it is to the labors of the Christian missionaries in Siam that the
+remarkable advancement of the kings and nobles, and even of some of the
+common people, in general knowledge and even in exact science, is owing.
+The usurpation which kept the last two kings (the first and second)
+nearly thirty years from their thrones was really of great advantage
+both to them and to their kingdom. Shut out from any very active
+participation in political affairs, their restless and intelligent minds
+were turned into new channels of activity. The elder brother in his
+cloister, the younger in his study and his workshop, busied themselves
+with the pursuit of knowledge. The elder, as a priest of Buddhism,
+turned naturally to the study of language and literature. The younger
+busied himself with natural science, and more especially with
+mathematical and military science. The Roman Catholic priests were ready
+instructors of the elder brother in the Latin language. And among the
+American missionaries there were some with a practical knowledge of
+various mechanical arts. It was from them that the two brothers learned
+English and received the assistance and advice which they needed in
+order to perfect themselves in Western science. At a very early day they
+began to be familiar with them; to receive them and their wives on terms
+of friendly and fraternal intimacy; to send for them whenever counsel or
+practical aid was needed in their various philosophical pursuits and
+experiments. Through the printing-presses of the Protestant missions
+much has been done to arouse the people from the lethargy of centuries
+and to diffuse among them useful intelligence of every sort. The late
+king was not content until he established a press of his own, of which
+he made constant and busy use. The medical missionaries, by their
+charitable work among the rich, in the healing of disease and by
+instituting various sanitary and precautionary expedients, have done
+much to familiarize all classes with the excellence of Western science,
+and to draw attention and respect to the civilization which they
+represent. It is due to the Christian missionaries, and (without any
+disparagement to the excellence of the Roman Catholic priests), we may
+say especially to the American missionaries, more than to any enterprise
+of commerce or shrewdness of diplomacy that Siam is so far advanced in
+its intercourse with other nations. When Sir John Bowring came in 1855
+to negotiate his treaty, he found that, instead of having to deal with
+an ignorant, narrow, and savage government, the two kings and some of
+the noblemen were educated gentlemen, well fitted to discuss with him,
+with intelligent skill and fairness, the important matters which he had
+in hand. Sir John did his work for the most part ably and well. But the
+fruit was ripe before he plucked it. And it was by the patient and
+persistent labors of the missionaries for twenty years that the results
+which he achieved were made not only possible but easy.
+
+Hitherto the Buddhist religion, which prevails in Siam in a form
+probably more pure and simple than elsewhere, has firmly withstood the
+endeavors of the Christian missionaries to supplant it. The converts are
+chiefly from among the Chinese, who, for centuries past, and in great
+numbers, have made their homes in this fertile country, monopolizing
+much of its industry, and sometimes, with characteristic thriftiness,
+accumulating much wealth. They have intermarried with the Siamese, and
+have become a permanent element in the population, numbering, in the
+coast region, almost as many as the native Siamese, or _Thai_. For some
+reason they seem to be more susceptible to the influence of the
+Christian teachers, and many of them have given evidence of a sincere
+and intelligent attachment to the Christian faith. The native Siamese,
+however, though acknowledging the superiority of Christian science, and
+expressing much personal esteem and attachment for the missionaries,
+give somewhat scornful heed, or no heed at all, to the religious truths
+which they inculcate. The late second king was suspected of cherishing
+secretly a greater belief in Christianity than he was willing to avow.
+But after his death, his brother, the first king, very emphatically and
+somewhat angrily denied that there was any ground for such suspicions
+concerning him. For himself, though willing to be regarded as the
+founder of a new and more liberal school of Buddhism, he was the steady
+"defender of the faith" in which he was nurtured, and in the priesthood
+of which so many years of his life were passed. He seldom did anything
+which looked like persecution of the missionaries, but contented himself
+with occasionally snubbing them in a patronizing or more or less
+contemptuous manner. This attitude of contemptuous indifference is also
+that which is commonly assumed by the Buddhist priests. "Do you think,"
+said one of them on some occasion to the missionaries, "do you think you
+will beat down our great mountains with your small tools?" And on
+another occasion the king is reported to have said that there was about
+as much probability that the Buddhists would convert the Christians, as
+that the Christians would convert the Buddhists.
+
+But there can be little doubt with those who take a truly philosophical
+view of the future of Siam, and still less with those who take a
+religious view of it, that this advancement in civilization must open
+the way for religious enlightenment as well. Thus far there has come
+only the knowledge which "puffeth up." And how much it puffeth up is
+evident from the pedantic documents which used to issue from the facile
+pen of his majesty the late first king. A little more slowly, but none
+the less surely, there must come as well that Christian charity which
+"buildeth up." Even if the work of the missionaries should cease to-day,
+the results accomplished would be of immense and permanent value. They
+have introduced Christian science; they have made a beginning of
+Christian literature, by the translation of the Scriptures; they have
+awakened an insatiable appetite for Christian civilization; and the end
+is not yet.
+
+[Illustration: HALL OF AUDIENCE, PALACE OF BANGKOK.]
+
+
+
+
+                         CHAPTER XIX.
+
+                   BANGKOK AND THE NEW SIAM
+
+
+"I do not believe," says the Marquis de Beauvoir (in his "Voyage Round
+the World," vol. ii.), "that there is a sight in the world more
+magnificent or more striking than the first view of Bangkok. This
+Asiatic Venice displays all her wonders over an extent of eight miles.
+The river is broad and grand; in it more than sixty vessels lie at
+anchor. The shores are formed by thousands of floating houses, whose
+curiously formed roofs make an even line, while the inhabitants, in
+brilliant-colored dresses, appear on the surface of the water. On the
+dry land which commands this first amphibious town, the royal city
+extends its battlemented walls and white towers. Hundreds of pagodas
+rear their gilded spires to the sky, their innumerable domes inlaid with
+porcelain and glittering crystals, and the embrasures polished and
+carved in open-work. The horizon was bounded to right and left by
+sparkling roofs, raised some six or seven stories, enormous steeples of
+stone-work, whose brilliant coating dazzled the eyes, and bold spires
+from one hundred and fifty to two hundred feet in height, indicating the
+palace of the King, which reflected all the rays of the sun like a
+gigantic prism. It seemed as though we had before us a panorama of
+porcelain cathedrals.
+
+"The first general view of the Oriental Venice surpassed all that we
+could have hoped for in our travellers' dreams. We longed to get into
+gondolas and go through the lively canals which are the streets of the
+floating town, and where the bustle, animation, and noise bewildered
+us.... At length, jumping into a boat, we directed our rowers toward the
+tower of the Catholic mission by signs. We were nearly an hour crossing
+over, as we had to struggle against the rising tide. Thus we were able
+to study the details of the floating town while we went through its
+streets, or rather canals, between the crowded houses, each one of which
+formed a small island. We met and passed thousands of light boats, which
+are the cabs and omnibuses of Bangkok. The waving paddle makes them
+glide like nut-shells from one shop to another. Some were not much more
+than three feet long, with one Siamese squeezed in between piles of
+rice, bananas, or fish; others hold fifteen people, and are so crowded
+that one can hardly see the edge of the boat, which is a hollow
+palm-tree....
+
+"As to the children, who are scattered about in profusion, their dress
+consists of a daub of yellow paint; but they are most fascinating little
+things. I was charmed with them from the very first moment, but it
+grieves me to think that some day they will become as ugly as their
+fathers and mothers--and that is saying much! Their little hair-tufts,
+twisted round with a great gold pin, are surrounded by pretty wreaths of
+white flowers. They are merry and full of tricks, and very pretty to
+see in their childish nakedness; yet they are more dressed than the
+grown-up young ladies who were bathing. Besides a heap of bracelets and
+necklaces of gold or copper gilt, with which they are covered like
+idols, they wear a small vine-leaf, cut in the shape of a heart, and
+hung round the waist by a slight thread. This hanging leaf, which is
+about two inches long and one and a half broad, marks their caste. For
+the rich it is gold, for the middle classes silver, for the poor red
+copper.
+
+"The grandest and most characteristic pagoda is on the right bank,
+surrounded by a fine and verdant wood. It rises amidst a cluster of
+small towers which command a central pyramid three hundred feet high.
+This is at the base in the form of the lower part of a cone, with one
+hundred and fifty steps; then it becomes a six-sided tower with dormer
+windows supported by three white elephants' trunks; the graceful spire
+then rises from a nest of turrets, and shoots upward like a single
+column rounded off into a cupola at the summit; from thence a bronze
+gilt arrow extends twenty crooked arms that pierce the clouds. When
+lighted up by the rays of the sun it all becomes one mass of brilliancy;
+the enamelled colors of flaming earthenware, the coating of thousands of
+polished roses standing out in the alabaster, give to this pagoda, with
+its pure and brilliant architecture unknown under any other sky, the
+magical effect of a dream with the colossal signs of reality.
+
+"As we approached it, gliding slowly along in a gondola against the
+impetuous current of the river, the promontory looked like an entire
+town, a sacred town of irregular towers, crowded kiosques, painted
+summer-houses, colonnades and statues of pink marble and red porphyry.
+But on landing we had to pass the ditches and shallows which surround
+the sacred ramparts, where, walking with measured steps, was a whole
+population of men, with heads and eyebrows shaved, and whose dress was a
+long saffron-colored Roman toga. These were the 'talapoins,' or Buddhist
+priests. In one hand they hold an iron saucepan, and in the other the
+'talapat,' a great fan of palm-leaves, the distinguishing sign of their
+rank. The lanes they live in are horribly dirty, and their houses are
+huts built of dirty planks and bricks, which are falling to pieces. One
+could imagine them to be the foul drains of the porcelain palaces which
+touch them, luckily hidden by bowers of luxuriant trees. More than seven
+hundred talapoins or 'phras' looked at us as we passed, with an
+indifference that bordered on contempt. And when we saw the sleepy and
+besotted priests of Buddha, who looked like lazy beggars, and the twelve
+or fifteen hundred ragged urchins who surrounded them in the capacity of
+choristers, and who grow up in the slums together with groups of geese,
+pigs, chickens, and stray dogs, it seemed a menagerie of mud, dirt, and
+vermin belonging to the monastery; and we could not help noticing the
+remarkable contrast which exists between the fairy-like appearance of
+the temple as seen from the town, and the horrible condition of the
+hundreds of priests who serve it.
+
+"We only had to go up a few steps to pass from the dirty huts to
+marble terraces. We scaled the great pyramid as high as we could go; no
+such easy matter beneath a scorching sun which took away our strength,
+and blinded by the dazzling whiteness of the stone-work. But a panorama
+of the whole town was now laid before us, with the windings of the
+river, the royal palaces, the eleven pagodas in the first enclosure, the
+two and twenty in the second, and some four hundred porcelain towers and
+spires, looking as though planted in a mound of verdure formed by the
+masses of tropical vegetation. In the symmetrical colonnades which we
+visited there are hundreds of altars, decorated with millions of
+statuettes of Buddha, in gold, silver, copper, or porphyry. On the left
+side is a very large temple with a five-storied roof in blue, green, and
+yellow tiles, and dazzling walls. A double door of gigantic size, all
+lacker-work inlaid with mother-o'-pearl, opened to us, and we were in
+the presence of a Buddha of colored stone-work. He was seated on a
+stool, nearly fifty feet high, his legs crossed, a pointed crown upon
+his head, great white eyes, and his height was nearly forty feet. This
+deified mass, altogether attaining to the height of ninety feet, is the
+only thing that remains unmoved at the sound of more than fifty gongs
+and tom-toms, which the bonzes beat with all their strength. Incense
+burns in bronze cups, and a ray of light penetrating the window strikes
+upon five rows of gilded statuettes which, in a body of two or three
+hundred, crouch at the feet of the great god, and baskets of splendid
+fruit are offered to them: you can imagine who eats it. Suits of armor
+are fixed against the walls, and at certain distances the seven-storied
+umbrella hangs like a banner. As for the bas-reliefs, their description
+would take a whole volume; they represent all the tortures of the
+Buddhist hell. I shuddered as I looked on these wretched creatures, some
+fainting away, thrusting out their tongues, which serpents devoured, or
+picking up an eye torn out by the claw of an eagle, twisting round like
+tee-totums, or eagerly devouring human brains in the split skull of
+their neighbor. On the other side of these walls there are colored
+frescoes. The illustrations extend into a whole world of detail of the
+Buddhist religion, which varies in every part of Asia and is so
+impossible to separate from tradition, and so contradictory in its
+laws."
+
+[Illustration: PORTICO OF THE AUDIENCE HALL AT BANGKOK.]
+
+Each king in turn seems to wish to rebuild the royal residence, and here
+is a brief description, from Mr. Bock, of that which King Chulalonkorn
+has erected for himself: "Adjoining the old building is the new palace,
+called the Chakr Kri Maha Prasat, the erection of which has long been a
+favorite scheme of his majesty, who in 1880 took formal possession of
+the building. The style is a mixture of different schools of European
+architecture, the picturesque and characteristic Siamese roof, however,
+being retained. The internal fittings of this palace are on a most
+elaborate scale, the most costly furniture having been imported from
+London at an expense of no less than L80,000. One of the features of the
+palace is a large and well-stocked library, in which the king takes
+great interest--all the leading European and American periodicals being
+regularly taken in.
+
+"Here the king transacts all state business, assisted by his brother and
+private secretary, Prince Devawongsa--usually called Prince Devan. These
+two are probably the hardest-worked men in the country, nothing being
+too great or too trivial to escape the king's notice. A friend of mine,
+who has had many opportunities of observing the king's actions, writes
+to me: 'Every officer of any importance is compelled to report in person
+at the palace, and the entire affairs of the kingdom pass in detail
+before his majesty daily. Although the king is obliged through policy to
+overlook, or pretend not to see, very many abuses in the administration
+of his government, yet they do not escape his eye, and in some future
+time will come up for judgment.'
+
+"Inside the palace gates were a number of soldiers in complete European
+uniform, _minus_ the boots, which only officers are allowed to wear. At
+the head of the guard, inside the palace gates, is the king's aunt, who
+is always 'on duty,' and never allows anyone to pass without a proper
+permit. Passing through a long succession of courts and courtyards, past
+a series of two-storied and white-washed buildings--the library, museum,
+barracks, mint, etc., all of which are conveniently placed within the
+palace grounds--we were led to an open pavilion, furnished with chairs
+and tables of European manufacture, in which were two court officers,
+neatly dressed in the very becoming court suit--snow-white jacket with
+gold buttons, a 'pa-nung,' or scarf, so folded round the body as to
+resemble knickerbockers, with white stockings and buckled shoes....
+
+"The ninth child of his father and predecessor on the throne, King
+Chulalonkorn has profited by the liberal education which that father was
+careful to give him, and, with a mind fully impressed by the advantages
+afforded by large and varied stores of knowledge, he has striven to give
+practical effect to the Western ideas thus early instilled in him. Born
+on September 22, 1853, he was only fifteen years of age when he came to
+the throne, and during his minority his Highness the Somdeth Chow Phya
+Boromaha Sri Suriwongse--an able and upright statesman, the head of the
+most powerful and noble family in the country, which practically rules
+the greater portion of Western Siam--acted as regent.... Although the
+king shows great favor to Europeans, he does not display any undue
+predilection for them, and only avails himself of their assistance so
+far as their services are indispensable, and as a means of leavening the
+mass of native officialdom. The example of the sovereign has not been
+without its effect on the minds of his native advisers, and the princes
+and officials by whom he is surrounded are rapidly developing
+enlightened ideas. This is the more important since many of the highest
+offices are hereditary, and there is consequently not the same scope for
+the choice by the king of men after his own heart which he would
+otherwise have. As one instance out of many, I may mention the case of
+his Highness Chow Sai, the king's body-physician, one of the last
+offices that one would suppose to be hereditary! Chow Sai is one of
+those princes who are favorably disposed toward Europeans; he is well
+read, and some years ago sent his eldest son to be thoroughly educated
+for the medical profession in Scotland. Chow Sai's father, by the way,
+was a great believer in European medicines, especially Holloway's pills,
+of which he ordered the enormous quantity of ten piculs, or over 1,330
+pounds; a large stock still remain, with their qualities, no doubt,
+unimpaired."
+
+Before leaving the palace we may pause a moment to hear a quaint tale of
+Oriental cunning by means of which a former king succeeded in obtaining
+the jar of sacred oil still preserved here with religious care. The
+story, as told in Cameron's book,[11] reminds one of the artful dodges
+employed by zealous monks of the Middle Ages to secure saints' relics
+with their profitable blessings. "When the English took possession of
+Ceylon," relates the author, "Tickery Bundah and two or three
+brothers--children of the first minister of the King of the
+Kandians--were taken and educated in English by the governor. Tickery
+afterward became manager of coffee plantations, and was so on the
+arrival of the Siamese mission of priests in 1845 in search of Buddha's
+tooth. It seems he met the mission returning disconsolate, having spent
+some L5,000 in presents and bribes in a vain endeavor to obtain a sight
+of the relic. Tickery learned their story, and at once ordered them to
+unload their carts and wait for three days longer, and in due time he
+promised to obtain for them the desired view of the holy tooth. He had a
+check on the bank for L200 in his hands at the time, and this he
+offered to leave with the priests as a guarantee that he would fulfil
+his promise; he does not say whether the check was his own or his
+master's, or whether it was handed over or not. Perhaps it was the check
+for the misappropriation of which he afterward found his way to the
+convict lines of Malacca. The Siamese priests accepted his undertaking
+and unloaded the baggage, agreeing to wait for three days. Tickery
+immediately placed himself in communication with the governor, and
+represented, as he says, forcibly the impositions that must have been
+practised upon the King of Siam's holy mission, when they had expended
+all their gifts and not yet obtained the desired view of the tooth.
+
+"The governor, who, Tickery says, was a great friend of his, appreciated
+the hardship of the priests, and agreed that the relic should be shown
+to them with as little delay as possible. It happened, however, that the
+keys of the mosque where the relic was preserved were in the keeping of
+the then resident councillor, who was away some eight miles elephant
+shooting. But the difficulty was not long allowed to remain in the way.
+Tickery immediately suggested that it was very improbable the councillor
+would have included these keys in his hunting furniture, and insisted
+that they must be in his house. He therefore asked the governor's leave
+to call upon his wife, and, presenting the governor's compliments, to
+request a search to be made for the keys. Tickery was deputed
+accordingly, and by dint of his characteristic tact and force of
+language, carried the keys triumphantly to the governor.
+
+"The Kandy priests were immediately notified that their presence was
+desired, as it was intended to exhibit the great relic, and their
+guardian offices would be necessary. Accordingly, on the third day the
+mosque or temple was opened; and in the building were assembled the
+Siamese priests and worshippers with Tickery on the one side the Kandy
+or guardian priests on the other, and the recorder and the governor in
+the centre.
+
+"After making all due offering to the tooth of the great deity, the
+Siamese head priest, who had brought a golden jar filled with otto of
+roses, desired to have a small piece of cotton with some of the otto of
+roses rubbed on the tooth and then passed into the jar, thereby to
+consecrate the whole of the contents. To this process the Kandy priests
+objected, as being a liberty too great to be extended to any foreigners.
+The Siamese, however, persevered in their requests, and the governor and
+recorder, not knowing the cause of the altercation, inquired of Tickery.
+Tickery, who had fairly espoused the cause of the Siamese, though
+knowing that in their last request they had exceeded all precedent,
+resolved quietly to gratify their wish; so in answer to the governor's
+interrogatory, took from the hands of the Siamese priest a small piece
+of cotton and the golden jar of oil. 'This is what they want, your
+honor; they want to take this small piece of cotton--so; and having
+dipped it in this oil--so; they wish to rub it on this here sacred
+tooth--so; and having done this to return it to the jar of oil--so;
+thereby, your honor, to consecrate the whole contents.' All the words of
+Tickery were accompanied by the corresponding action, and of course the
+desired ceremony had been performed in affording the explanation. The
+whole thing was the work of a moment. The governor and recorder did not
+know how to interpose in time, though they were aware that such a
+proceeding was against all precedent. The Kandy priests were taken
+aback, and the Siamese priests, having obtained the desired object, took
+from Tickery's hands the now consecrated jar, with every demonstration
+of fervent gratitude. The Kandy priests were loud in their indignation;
+but the governor, patting Tickery on the back said, 'Tickery, my boy,
+you have settled the question for us; it is a pity you were not born in
+the precincts of St. James', for you would have made a splendid
+political agent!'
+
+"Tickery received next morning a _douceur_ of a thousand rupees from the
+priests, and ever since has been held in the highest esteem and respect
+by the King of Siam, also by the Buddhist priests, by whom he is
+considered a holy man. From the King he receives honorary and
+substantial tokens of royal favor. He has _carte blanche_ to draw on the
+King for any amount, but he says he has as yet contented himself with a
+moderate draft of seven hundred dollars."
+
+There used to be a story current in Bangkok that every new king made it
+his pious care to set up in one of the royal temples a life-size image
+of Buddha of solid gold. Though we need not believe this tale, it would
+be hard to exaggerate the impression of lavishness and distinction
+produced upon the visitor to this city, full of temples. Nothing in
+great China or artistic Japan can compare with their peculiar
+brilliance or their wonderful array of color flashing in the tropical
+sunlight. We have no reason to repeat the enthusiastic descriptions
+which travellers never tire of giving, impressed as they are sure to be
+by an architecture which, with all its wealth and oddity of detail,
+harmonizes perfectly with the rich vegetation in the midst of which it
+is placed. Change and decay are, however, doing their part in reducing
+the picturesqueness of this strange city. No Oriental thinks of
+perpetuating a public monument by means of constant attention and
+repairs, and many of these gay edifices already lose their fine details
+by long exposure to the effects of a climate in which nothing endures
+long if left to itself. With the improvements introduced by the present
+king and his father are disappearing also many of those features of
+daily life in the capital which once heightened its oriental charm. A
+pleasure park has been made, in which, and on some of the new macadam
+roads about the city, the foreigners and richer natives drive in wheeled
+vehicles. So long, however, as the roads are covered by the annual
+inundations and made unserviceable for months at a time, the use of
+carriages must be almost as restricted here as that of horses in Venice.
+A more regrettable innovation is that of dress-coats, starched linens,
+and to some extent dresses, in the fashionable circles of Siam. Taken
+out of their easy and becoming costumes, and encased in ill-fitting and
+uncomfortable Western clothes, the Siamese nobles can hardly be said to
+have improved on the old days. With the removal of their nakedness the
+lower classes, too, are becoming more conscious, while contact with a
+higher civilization has introduced vices among them without always
+bringing in their train the Christian virtues of cleanliness and truth.
+
+The population of Bangkok increases steadily with its prosperity and
+influence, and is to-day variously estimated at from three hundred
+thousand to half a million souls, nearly half of whom perhaps are
+Chinese. Its main article of export is rice, which goes not only to
+every country of Asia, but to Australia and America. Sugar and spices,
+as well as all products of tropical forests, are also largely exported.
+The customs returns of 1890 show a considerable improvement of the
+Bangkok trade over previous years, the exports being $19,257,728 against
+$13,317,696 for 1889, a difference of over $5,540,000; the imports of
+1890 were $15,786,120, against $9,599,541 in 1889, a gain of more than
+six millions.
+
+Gas and kerosene are both used for illumination, the former in the
+palaces of royalty and the nobility, where the electric light has also
+been introduced. Foreign steam engines and machinery are employed in
+increasing numbers, while iron bridges span many of the smaller canals,
+and steam dredges keep the river channel clear. Telegraphic
+communication has long since been established with the French settlement
+of Saigon, in Cochin China, and thus with the outer world, and since the
+British occupation of Burmah a line is promised from Rangoon into Siam.
+A railway has been commenced between Bangkok and Ayuthia, to extend
+thence to Korat, a total distance of 170 miles; but the overflow of the
+Meinam, which renders a considerable embankment or causeway along the
+river necessary, is a serious obstacle to its construction, while the
+great water-way itself renders a railroad less necessary in Siam than in
+other countries. Another line, from Bangkok to the mouth of the Pakong
+River, 36 miles southeast of the city, is also in contemplation; while a
+design exists to eventually connect Zimme with the sea by a line running
+the whole length of the Meinam Valley.
+
+Thus the beautiful city, in awaking from the dream of its old, narrow
+life, must become by degrees like other busy trade centres of the
+civilized world, cursed with its sins as well as blessed with its
+strength and excellence. The tastes and education of the present
+sovereign have led him to hasten, so far as a single will could, this
+progress toward modern methods of living. He has abolished the ancient
+custom of prostration in the presence of a superior, so that now a
+subject may approach even his king without abasement. He has by degrees
+put an end to slavery as a legalized institution, throughout the
+country, and although many of his poorer subjects are hardly better off
+under the system of forced service than as actual slaves, the change, if
+only in some sort one of name, is a change for the better. He strives to
+make Bangkok the pulse of the kingdom, through which the life-blood of
+its commerce and control must course, achieving by his polity that
+highly centred system of administration, without which no pure despotism
+can be either beneficial or successful.
+
+As an indication of the spirit that is quickening New Siam we should not
+forget to mention the exhibition held in Bangkok in 1882, to celebrate
+the centennial of the present dynasty and of its establishment as the
+capital. An object-lesson on such a grand scale was of course a thing
+before unheard-of in Eastern Asia, but its benefits to the people of
+this region were both wide-spread and real, and are still to some extent
+active in the form of a museum where many of the exhibits are
+permanently preserved for examination and display. "The exhibition will
+be given"--run the words of the royal announcement--"so that the people
+may observe the difference between the methods used to earn a living one
+hundred years ago and those now used, and see what progress has been
+made, and note the plants and fruits useful for trade and the improved
+means of living. We believe that this exhibition will be beneficial to
+the country."
+
+Miss Mary Hartwell, one of the American missionaries in Bangkok, in
+describing the exposition says: "Nothing there was more significant than
+its school exhibit. The Royal College was solicited to make an exhibit
+representing the work done in the school. This consisted chiefly of
+specimens of writing in Siamese and English, translations and solutions
+of problems in arithmetic, the school furniture, the text-books in use,
+and the various helps employed in teaching, such as the microscope,
+magnets, electric batteries, etc. The Siamese mind is peculiarly adapted
+to picking up information by looking at things and asking questions, and
+it is believed that this exhibit will not only enhance the reputation of
+the college, but give the Siamese some new ideas on the subject of
+education.
+
+[Illustration: THE PALACE OF THE KING OF SIAM, BANGKOK.]
+
+"Miss Olmstead and I, together with our assistant, Ma Tuen, have been
+training little fingers in fancy-work, or rather overseeing the
+finishing up of things, to go to the exhibition. April 25th we placed
+our mats, tidies, afghans, rugs, cushions, needle-books, edgings,
+work-bags, and lambrequins in the cases allotted to our school in the
+Queen's Room, and on the 26th we were again at our posts to receive his
+Majesty the King, and give him our salutations upon his first entrance
+at the grand opening. He was dressed in a perfectly-fitting suit of
+navy-blue broadcloth, without any gaudy trappings, and never did he wear
+a more becoming suit. His face was radiant with joy, and his quick,
+elastic step soon brought him to us. He uttered an exclamation of
+pleasure at seeing us there, shook our hands most cordially, took a
+hasty survey of our exhibits, and then cried out with boyish enthusiasm,
+'These things are beautiful, mem; did you make them?' 'Oh, no,' I
+responded, 'we taught the children, and they made them.' 'Have you many
+scholars?' was the next question. 'About thirty-one,' I answered.
+Turning again to the cases he exclaimed, emphatically, 'They are
+beautiful things, and I am coming back to look at them carefully--am in
+haste now.' And off he went to the other departments. Since then we see
+by the paper published in Bangkok, that his Majesty has paid the girls'
+school of Bangkok the high compliment of declaring himself the purchaser
+of the collection, and has attached his name to the cases."
+
+"The king of this country," says a discriminating writer in the
+_Saturday Review_, "is no doubt one of the monarchs whom it is the
+fashion to call 'enlightened.' But he understands the word in a very
+different sense from that which is often applied to it in London. He
+does not interpret it to mean a sovereign who throws about valuable
+lands and privileges to be scrambled for by all the needy adventurers
+and greedy speculators who are on the watch for such pickings. No; King
+Chulalonkorn and his ministers, many of whom are highly accomplished
+men, are sincerely anxious for the speedy development of the great
+resources over which they have command. They have shown, by the most
+practical proofs, that they have this desire and are able to carry it
+out. An extensive network of telegraphs has rapidly been established
+throughout their wide territory. Schools, hospitals, and other public
+buildings have been erected and are increasing every day. In 1888 a
+tramway company, mainly supported by Siamese capital, began running cars
+in the metropolis. A river flotilla company, wholly Siamese, carries the
+passenger traffic of the fine stream on which Bangkok is built; and in
+1889 important gold-mining operations were begun by a company formed in
+London, in which the great majority of subscribers are Siamese nobles
+and other inhabitants of that country. Lastly, a well-known Englishman,
+formerly Governor of the Straits Settlements, obtained some years ago a
+contract for surveying a trunk line of railway in Siam, for which he was
+paid some L50,000 by the Siamese government.
+
+"With these evidences staring us in the face, it would be very absurd to
+speak of the country or its ruler as hanging back in the path of
+progress. One must, moreover, remember that, besides these signs of
+advancement, a free field has been and is opened to the wide employment
+of foreign capital in ordinary matters of trade. Rice-mills, saw-mills,
+and docks are doing a very large business, with very large profits to
+their owners, who consist of English, French, German, and Chinese
+capitalists.... A policy of reaction or inaction is the very reverse of
+that which Siam now professes; and the ruling powers in that country are
+as anxious as any foreigner to improve it in a wise, liberal, and even
+generous spirit. We have thus, on the one hand, a king and ministers
+sincerely desirous of promoting European enterprise, and, on the other
+hand, a European public hardly less ready to embark capital therein."
+
+Unfortunately for Siam, there lies in the way of her advancement the
+same stumbling-block of extra-territoriality which has impeded the
+honest aspirations of other Asiatic states. The term implies those civil
+and judicial rights enjoyed by foreigners living in the East, who, under
+treaties for the most part extorted when the conditions were entirely
+different, exercise the privilege of governing and judging themselves
+independently of native officers and tribunals. In such eager and
+enlightened countries as Japan and Siam, this limitation to the autonomy
+of the sovereign is peculiarly humiliating as well as intensely
+unsuitable to existing conditions. The simplest measures of police
+ordinance and local government, even if it be a new liquor traffic law,
+or an opium farm regulation, cannot be carried into effect without the
+separate consent of every European power, whether great or small, which
+has a consul in the place. Add to this the too common contingency of
+unjust or inefficient consuls, wholly unqualified for their offices, and
+their frequent inability to properly control the adventurers or aliens
+nominally residing under their flag, and the drawbacks to further
+improvement in Siam, as in other parts of Asia, may be dimly understood.
+With the revision of the antiquated treaties now in force commercial
+relations between Siam and the countries of Christendom would soon be
+established on a fair footing, to the mutual advantage of all parties
+interested.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[11] Our Tropical Possessions in Malayan India.
+
+
+
+
+                           THE END.
+
+
+
+
+[Transcriber's Notes: Obvious typographical errors have been corrected,
+for instance, decribing - describing panaroma - panorama, leve - level,
+nothen - northen, Kingdon - Kingdom, nothwithstanding - notwithstanding,
+Christain - Christian, and dinder - dinner. Hyphenation of Lopha-buri
+standardized.]
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Siam, by George B. Bacon
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