Observations of the late Mission to Ava. 23 



upon the point of being minutely explored by Dr Wallich. 

 Lieutenant Scotland, under the instructions of Sir A. Camp- 

 bell, had, just before the arrival of the mission at Amherst, 

 made a journey by land to the Siamese frontier, in the course 

 of which he passed through two teak forests towards the 

 source of the Ataran river. The largest of these was five 

 miles in breadth, and scarcely contained any other tree than 

 teak, many of which measured from eighteen to nineteen feet 

 in circumference. ^o J'»'«'i»»i 



One of the oaks already mentioned, and which grows to a 

 large size, is found in great abundance close to the new set- 

 tlement of Amherst ; and should it prove a valuable timber, 

 which is most probable, it may be obtained with every facility. 

 A fine durable timber, called by the Burmans thinghan, and 

 which they place next to the teak, or almost on an equality 

 with it, is found every where throughout the new provinces. 

 Dr Wallich has ascertained this to be the Hopea odorata of 

 Roxburgh. Another valuable timber, the uses of which are 

 well known in our Indian arsenals and timber yards, the son- 

 dree, Heritiera robusta, is found largely in the maritime parts 

 of the Martaban district, and of a size much exceeding what 

 is brought from the Sunderbunds of the Ganges. Of these 

 woods, and many others in use amongst the natives, although 

 as yet unknown to us, specimens will be brought to Bengal 

 by Dr Wallich, for the purpose of subjecting their qualities 

 to rigid experiment. 



In the department of zoology, if we except the fossil bones 

 already described, the inquiries of the gentlemen of the mis- 

 sion have not been so successful. The features of the animal 

 kingdom, indeed, differ much less from those of Hindustan 

 than the vegetable. Still there is no doubt much room for 

 discovery, when the countries are leisurely explored by expe- 

 rienced naturalists. In the Martaban provinces, the forests 

 of which teem with the elephant, the rhinoceros, the wild buf- 

 falo, ox, and deer, a new species of the latter is believed to 

 exist. In the upper provinces a species of mole-rat is very 

 frequent, and thought to be an undescribed animal. Some of 

 the officers of our army imagined that they had ascertained the 

 existence of the jackal and fox in the upper provinces of the 



