1083 



BIRMA. 



BIRMA. 



1094 



154 feet high and 10 feet in thickness, with innumerable embrasures 

 about the distance of five feet from each other ; on the inside of the 

 wall there is thrown up a bank of earth, forming an angle of about 

 forty-five degrees. The ditch round this wall is inconsiderable, and 

 during all the dry season fordable in every part. The Myit-nge' on 

 the east face forms a considerable defence on that side. The city is 

 inclosed by a separate wall, which is better constructed than the 

 one already noticed. The ditch on the south and west faces of it is 

 also broader and deeper and not fordable ; the east side is defended 

 by the Myit-nge, and the north by the Irawaddi. It is mostly 

 occupied by the palace of the king, the Rung d'hau, or hall of 

 justice, the Lut d'hau, or council chamber, the arsenal, and the 

 habitations of a few courtiers of distinction. All these buildings 

 are situated in a square, which is surrounded by a strong well-built 

 wall about 20 feet in height ; and on the outside of this wall and 

 at no great distance is a teak-wood stockade of the same height as 

 the wall. 



The circumference of Ava round the walls and excluding the 

 suburb. 3 is about 5^ miles. In general the houses are mere huts 

 thatche'l with grass. Some of the dwellings of the chiefs are 

 constru ted of planks and tiled ; there are probably in all not half 

 a dozen houses constructed of bricks and mortar. Poor as the houses 

 are, they are scattered over the extensive area of the place, but 

 some large quarters are wholly destitute of habitations. There are 

 in the town elever. markets or bazaars, composed of thatched huts 

 and sheds, but well supplied with commodities. Paltry as the town 

 is, it has a splendid and imposing appearance at a distance, which it 

 owes to the great number of temples, all surmounted by tall white 

 or gilded spires. 



The town of Ava, which twice before had been the capital of the 

 Birman empire, became so a third time in 1822 : its population in 

 1826 was about 25,000. It was almost entirely destroyed by an 

 earthquake in March, 1839; and the seat of government was then 

 transferred, for a time at least, to Monchabo. 



The town of Sagainy, or Zakkain, which was once the seat of 

 government, is situated on the opposite side of the Irawaddi, directly 

 fronting Ava. The river is at this place 1 050 yards wide. On the 

 river-face the town has a brick wall, which extends for about half a 

 mile : the height of this is not above ten feet ; but it has a terre- 

 pleine, a parapet, and embrasures, like the wall of Ava. On the 

 land side there are no defences whatever. The town extends along 

 the Irawaddi more than a mile and a half, but its depth towards the 

 hills is very inconsiderable. It consists of mean houses, thinly 

 scattered among gardens and orchards. On the site of the town 

 and its environs there are innumerable temples, ruinous, old or 

 modern, which give it a striking appearance from a distance. 



Afokiobo, commonly called by Europeans Monchabo, is about 52 

 miles N.W. from Ava, and at no great distance from the western 

 shores of the Lake of Nandagando. It is a walled town, and a place 

 of considerable traffic and population. In 1756 Alompra, the 

 founder of the present dynasty, who was a native of the place, made 

 Moksobo his capital, and gave it the Pali name of Ratna-sinha, or 

 the Pearl Lion, or Lion of Pearls. 



Below the town of Ava the Irawaddi is a majestic river, with a 

 breadth in some places extending to four miles and upwards, but it 

 is commonly divided into many channels by sandy and uninhabited 

 islands, which are inundated when the water of the river rises to 

 its greatest height. Near the place where the river declines to the 

 gouth-west begins an extensive island, called Ala-kyun, or ' Middle 

 Islands,' which extends for many miles to the confluence of the 

 Kyan-Duayn with the Irawaddi. It is the largest of all the islands 

 in the river, high and not exposed to inundation, and consequently 

 well cultivated and inhabited. Opposite this island, on the eastern 

 bank of the Irawaddi, is the town of Yandabo, where the peace was 

 concluded between the Birmans and the English in 1826. 



The Kyan-Duayn, by far the largest of the tributaries of the 

 Irawaddi, drains a vast extent of country, its further branches rising 

 in the Patkoi and the Samokhtura Mountains, where these two chains 

 meet the Langtan Mountains. The numerous streams which 

 descend from these ranges unite in a country called Hukhung, which 

 seems to be a largo fertile plain, inclosed on all sides by mountains. 

 Hukhung lies between 26" and 27 N. lat. The river formed in this 

 plain receives the name of the Tmui, and passes afterwards through 

 a nearly unknown mountainous country in a narrow vale, till near 

 25 N. lat. it enters a wider valley, and unites with the Nampagna, 

 which for the greatest part of its course constitutes the boundary- 

 line between Birma and Munipoor. After this junction the country 

 on the river begins to resemble an undulating plain, especially on 

 the eastern banks of the river, which is here called the Ninyihi. 

 On the western banks the country belongs to Munipoor, and is 

 ranch more hilly, and in some parts even mountainous. South of 

 24 N. lat. Birma extends on both banks of the Ningthi, which is 

 here increased by the waters of the Kongba, or river of Munipoor, 

 which comes from the west. This latter river runs nearly parallel 

 to the Ningthi for about 200 miles from north to south, but then 

 mi'l'l-Tily turning to the east breaks through the chain of the 

 Danghii'hilU nnd unites with the Ningthi. After this junction the 

 rtrer begins to be called Kyan-Duayn, and to the west of it, at no 



great distance from its banks, rises a range of hills, the Danghii 

 hills, or Gnambeandong, which are of moderate height but very 

 barren and bleak. The level country on its eastern banks extends 

 to a considerable distance, is in general well peopled, and contains 

 extensive tracts' of cultivated ground. It is bounded eastward by 

 an undulating country, which becomes hilly only near the banks of 

 the Lake of Nandagando. The Kyan-Duayn in the wet season is 

 a considerable river, but in the dry season its mouth is not more than 

 200 yards wide. The whole of its course probably exceeds 600 miles. 



From its confluence with the Kyan-Duayn the Irawaddi continues 

 in general its south-western direction, but with numerous bends on 

 both sides, to the neighbourhood of Sembeghewn, where it turns to 

 the south, and continues in that direction to the town of Padaong 

 Mew. Hence it runs to the south-east, and after a few miles passes 

 the promontory of Kyaok-ta-ran, and enters the low countries which 

 form its delta. This promontory lies on the boundary between the 

 ancient kingdoms of Ava and Pegu. The population, which north of 

 it consists principally of Birmans or Mranmas, is to the south of it 

 almost entirely composed of Talains and Karians. In this part of 

 its course the river sometimes expands to a width of three or four 

 miles, and at other places it narrows to 600 or 800 yards. At the 

 more narrow places it is commonly very rapid, and the navigation 

 is also rendered difficult in the dry season by numerous shoals and a 

 few ledges of rocks which traverse the bed of the stream. 



The valley of the Irawaddi, south of its confluence with the Kyan- 

 Duayn, to the town of Melloon (south of 20 N. lat.), is in its 

 general aspect hilly and very uneven, but the hills rise to no great 

 height, at least not near the river, and are in many places separated 

 by tracts of flat country, which in some places are extensive and well 

 cultivated. South of Melloon the hills approach nearer the river, 

 and often form its banks. They are in most places covered with 

 forest-trees of considerable size, among which teak -trees abound. 

 Cultivation is confined to the narrow flat tracts which here and there 

 separate the hills from the river. 



The most remarkable place in this part of the valley of the Irawaddi 

 is Pnghan or Pagliam Mew (north of 21 N. lat.), which according to 

 Birman chronology was the seat of government for above 1200 years. 

 It contains the most remarkable and interesting remains of antiquity 

 in the Birman dominions. The ruins extend for at least eight miles 

 along the bank of the river, and extend in some places as far as three or 

 four miles from its bank. In this space the number of temples is quite 

 surprising. They are of all sizes and in varioxis states of preservation 

 Some have been restored, and are still used as places of worship ; 

 others are tolerably complete, though neglected ; but many are mere 

 ruins, and a considerable number are heaps of mouldering brick. 



Farther to the south (about 20 30' N. lat.) the eastern banks of 

 the Irawaddi offer a remarkable natural phenomenon the famous 

 wells of petroleum, which are situated near a village called Re-nan- 

 khyaung, about three miles from the banks of the river. The wells, 

 which are stated to be about 300 in number, occupy altogether a 

 space of about 16 square miles. The country here is a series of 

 sand-hills and ravines. The hills are either covered with a thin so^l 

 or altogether bare, the trees which are sparingly scattered over them 

 not rising more than 20 feet in height. The pits from which the 

 petroleum is obtained are artificial perpendicular shafts, from 200 to 

 300 feet deep. At the bottom of the pits the liquid seems to boil, 

 either from the emission of gaseous fluids or from the escape of the 

 oil itself from the ground. The oil is drawn from them by common 

 earthen pots. When taken out of the well it is of a thin watery 

 consistence but thickens by keeping, and in cold weather it coagulates. 

 It has a pungent aromatic odour. Immense quantities of this oil are 

 annually consumed in the Birman empire. It is used for the purpose 

 of burning in lamps and smearing timber to protect it against insects, 

 especially the white ant, which will not approach it. The quantity 

 exported is trifling. 



The country near the petroleum wells is also remarkable for its 

 petrified wood and its fossil bones. The petrified wood is abundantly 

 scattered over the whole country between Prome and Ava. It is 

 commonly beautifully silicified, and displays most delicately the 

 structure and fibres of the living plant. The fossil bones are confined 

 as it seems, to the neighbourhood of the town of Wesmasut, at no 

 great distance from the petroleum wells. They are imbedded in the 

 sandy hills, and consist principally of the remains of mastodons, 

 alligators, deer, and the rhinoceros. 



The most important place on the Irawaddi between the mouth of 

 this river and the capital of the Birman empire, is Prome, called by 

 the Mohammedans Pron, whence the European name derives its 

 origin, the Birmans call it Pri (pronounced Pyi). It is a thriving 

 town, about two miles in circuit, defended by a brick wall, stockade, 

 and ditch. Outside the fortifications are several suburbs, and the 

 hills to the southward are crowned with pagodas. Around the town 

 are gardens and rice-grounds. The British took Prome in 1825 ; and 

 again in 1852. A place lying about six miles to the east of Prome is 

 reported to have been the most ancient seat of the Birman government, 

 at an epoch which begins some centuries before the Christian era. 

 The ruins of the ancient town consist of a broad earthen wall, of a 

 quadrangular form, from five to six feet in height. The area contains 

 no relics of antiquity, and is overgrown with trees. 



