( 138 ) 



the head-men of Hokah, a village principally inhabited by Kakhyens, 

 though a few Shan-Burmese occupy a semi-detached portion enclos- 

 ed by a bamboo palisade. The Kakhyens at this early hour were 

 all sober, and welcomed me with all civility : liquor was handed 

 round after the usual fashion, and pressing offers made for me to 

 partake of food, which I declined under the plea of want of time. 

 Their mode of life differs but little from that of their highland 

 brothers, with whom they are in constant communication, and join 

 in their wild raids when called upon. The Shan-Burmese had here 

 again placed themselves under the protection of the Kakhyens, who 

 are reputed never to betray the confidence placed in them, though 

 they regard it no breach of honour to plunder the village under 

 their protection, provided the inhabitants are warned of their inten- 

 tion : action in such cases soon follows the alarm, and the result 

 is uncontested pillage. 



242. They spoke of themselves as one great tribe known as 

 Thainbows, with various ramifications, each branch taking its name 

 from the clan it represented ; they denied there being any distinct 

 division between the mountaineers of either bank, and explained 

 that the Singphos were merely a separate clan, who, by intermarriage 

 with Shans and lowlanders, had in a measure adopted their cos- 

 tume, and in other respects also lost their identity. The Mauroos 

 they gave as their clan, and the Marains, Murrils, Lesses, and 

 Labines as their sub-clans. Another interesting feature in the 

 social laws of these people, is, that each class is governed by Homa, 

 whose sway is absolute in all matters of importance : the sub-clans 

 are under the immediate rule of a Tswabwa, who assisted by a 

 Pontine (generally elected by the people) exercises entire control 

 over the village he represents. 



243. I was surprised at the general frankness of these people, 

 and their willingness to give information ; certainly the liquor had 

 been round twice, which, perhaps, may have had something to do 

 with their candour. They seemed most anxious to visit Rangoon, 

 and learn more about us, but had evidently been intimidated by 

 false reports circulated at Bhamo. The disinclination of the people 

 of the plains to deal fairly with them was given as an excuse for 

 their depredations, and instances were cited in which unquestion- 

 ably they had been manifestly cheated. 



244. This colony had only temporarily settled on the river's 

 bank to collect salt and ngapee, and it is encampments of this 

 nature that petty traders dread. Before leaving, I distributed a few 

 presents, with which all seemed greatly pleased, and the last words 

 of the Tswabwa's wife were — as she put some hard-boiled eggs into 



