206 Dr Hamilton's Account (rf-'the Frontier 



niture, except a stool, which was given to me, and a small car- 

 pet, which was reserved for Aunghiose, with some mats for 

 the attendants. I was received with much civility, although 

 the poor man was a good deal puzzled about the ceremonials, 

 wishing my servants to be seated with his kinsmen and his spi- 

 ritual guide. This officer was reported to be rich, and to have 

 made a great profit by lending his money to the people called 

 Mroo, who give him their young daughters as pledges for the 

 repayment ; and these are liable to be sold in case of failure. 

 On the whole, the subordinate chiefs among the Joomeas seem 

 to have more respectability than those of the Saksahs. 



About the middle of April, the Joomea Muggs of this cen- 

 tral tribe leave their villages, and go to the joom for six 

 months. One day's labour enables a man to build such a hut 

 as he requires during his residence, and he is supposed to raise 

 a hundred baskets of rice, with cotton, dioscoreas, arums, to- 

 bacco, &c. in proportion, the cotton being sufficient, at any 

 rate, to pay his rent. The free people have in their ornaments 

 a good deal of silver, and are cleaner, and appear to be more 

 comfortable than the common Bengalese. They also seem to 

 have the good things of the world in greater abundance than 

 the cultivators of the plains, or at least they are more willing 

 to part with them. Kaungla Pru made me a present of eat- 

 ables, in which were cloves, nutmegs, black-pepper, and asa- 

 fcetida, things which, even at Ramoo, I could procure neither 

 for money nor solicitation; and which, both Hindus and Mu- 

 hammedans assured me, never entered into the fare of the 

 Bengalese in the country parts of the district. Brandy and 

 gin I was told were for sale at Sualuk. 



The priests of this tribe are called Poungri (great virtue,) 

 a title not unknown to those of Ava, although the latter are 

 more commonly called Rah an. Their Kiaungs, or convents, 

 have plain roofs, and are not ornamented like those of Ava ; 

 but they bespeak the inmates to be in easy circumstances. 

 That at Sualuk contained three apartments. In one of these 

 I founda Poungri instructing some boys to read and write. 

 Among -the youths was a son of the chief. In a corner of 

 this apartment were a few small images clothed in yellow, but 

 in a posture different from that of Gautama or Godama, as 



