318 
of bracelets of the finest jade costs about 1o0/ at 
Momien. 
At some remote period the jade appears to have been 
applied to useful rather than to ornamental purposes, for 
celts formed of this material are found all over the district, 
lying on the surface soil, and doubtless turned up by the 
plough. They have also been formed of various other 
rocks, such as quartz, Lydian-stone, green-stone, clay-slate, 
&c. Lithographic plates are given of twenty-three of these 
instruments of various size, form, and material; but 
about 150 were procured by different members of the 
expedition. A good series of them has been presented 
to the Christy collection by Major Sladen. 
A bronze celt, socketed, but without any side loop, and 
of peculiar form, with an oblique segmental cutting edge, 
was also procured. These are so highly valued that as 
much as 5/. apiece was asked for them. The composition, 
curiously enough, is identical with that usual in European 
antiquities of the same class, being 9 of copper to 1 of 
tin. The stone celts being more abundant than those in 
bronze, were less valued, being sold in the bazaars and 
elsewhere at from 4d. to 1s, 6d. each. Both they and 
the bronze celts are regarded as thunderbolts, which, 
after they fall and penetrate the earth, take nine years 
to work their way up to the surface. Not only is this 
belief in the celestial origin of these implements common 
to Asia and Europe, but the healing powers attributed to 
them in most European countries, are also accorded 
them in Yunan. They are worn as charms and carefully 
kept in small bags ; and water, in which they have been 
placed, is administered as a medicine, especially in the 
case of tedious labour. It is rather a compliment to the 
students of prehis‘oric archzology that the only objects 
thought worthy of being figured by Dr. Anderson should 
be these celts. 
The ethnological details given by the author as to the 
Shans, and what may be regarded as the transitional 
varieties between them and the Burmese on the one side, 
and the Chinese on the other, are highly interesting. A 
more barbarous people with whom the expedition was 
brought in contact, are Kakhyens or Chingpaws, who, 
though hemmed in on either side by Buddhist nations, 
still retain an ancient worship of good and evil spirits 
whom they call “nats,” and to whom they are constantly 
making propitiatory offerings of pigs, fowls, and rice. 
Their method of producing fre is very remarkable, and 
is effected by “the sudden and forcible descent of a 
piston in a closed cylinder. There is a small cup-shaped 
cavity at the end of the piston rod, into which a little 
tinder is inserted. The piston is then introduced into 
the cylinder, which it tightly fits, and by a blow is made 
to descend with great rapidity and force, and is as rapidly 
withdrawn, when the little pellet of tinder is found to 
have become ignited.” The instruments are not rnore 
than four inches long, and are in general use. It would 
be highly interesting to trace the origin and date of this 
invention, 
At Bhamé one of the articles exposed for sale in the 
shops was flint, which would therefore appear to be the 
fire-producing material of the Burmese-Shans. Iron is 
abundant, and the Chinese-Shans, who resort annually to 
Bhamé for the purpose of manufacturing the dahs or 
swords, are expert blacksmiths, their bellows consisting 
NATURE 
ee eee eee 
of a segment of bamboo with a piston, and a valve at 
each end. 
Among some of the Shan tribes neck-rings or forgues, 
curiously like those found in Western Europe, are still in 
use ; but the majority of the ornaments appear to be 
Chinese in character. It would, however, extend this 
notice beyond all reasonable limits were an attempt made 
to give even a short abstract of the chapter on the Shans, 
Kakhyens and other races to the east of Bhamé, The 
curious practice of horse-worship in connection with the 
Buddhism of the Sanda Valley may, however, be noticed, 
as well as the Shan method of concealment of gold and 
precious stones, by burying them beneath the skin of 
their chest and necks by making slits, through which the 
coins or stones are forced, and which subsequently heal up. 
When the valuable object is wanted a second cut is made 
upon the spot, and it is extracted. In some instances, as 
many as fifteen stones or coins were found to be hidden 
beneath the skin of men just arrived with a caravan at 
Mandalay. It is needless to follow the author in his 
report on the Mahomedans in Yunan, the presence of 
whom, however, proved of great service to the expedition, 
as many of their guard were of that religion, and thus 
found friends. Nor need the trade routes of Upper 
Burmah be here discussed. The geographer will find 
much information in the chapter on the Irawady and its 
sources, and in the accompanying map. This chapter 
conciudes the Report, and the remainder of the volume 
contains the diary of the author, written during the expe- 
dition. His report on the Natural History collections 
formed during his travels, has yet to appear, and will no 
doubt contain curious details, Even now we may call 
attention to the remarkable instance of the taming of fishes 
in a large river like the Trawady, by the phoongyees or. 
Buddhist priesis. At the boatman’s cry of “it, tt, t2t, 
numbers of fish came to be fed with rice and plantains, 
putting their heads above water, allowing themselves to 
be stroked, and even permitting Dr. Anderson to put his 
fist into their mouths so as to feel their teeth. He was 
unable to procure a specimen, as there were strict orders 
from the kiag that they should not be killed, 
With this anecdote we must conclude our notice of this 
interesting Report, and must express a hope that a cer- 
tain number of copies of it may be consigned to some 
London publisher so that it may become accessible to 
the general publtc, which as yet it apparently is not, — 
JOHN Evans 
THE HYGIENE OF AIR AND WATER 
The Hygiene of Air and Water. Being a Popular Ac- 
count of the Effects of the Impurities of Air and Water, 
their Detection, and the Modes of remedying them, 
By William Proctor, M.D., F.C.S., Surgeon to the 
York Dispensary, and formerly Lecturer on Chemistry 
and Forensic Medicine in the York School of Medi- 
cine. (Hardwicke) 
a Pes IS is auseful little book, but it wants some revising : 
it is too sweeping a statement to say that the 
oxygen of the air is constant in amount and the carbonic 
acid variable ; it is true that the variations in the amount 
of oxygen are very small in proportion tothat amount. It 
would have been well to state even in a popular treatise 
