Natural-History Collectors. 7033 



Proceedings of Natural-History Collectors in Foreign Countries. 



Mr. H. MoDHOT.* — Mount Sabab, Koumban, Chantaburi, Siam, 

 June 6th, 1859. — Siara is not so good a country for the naturalist 

 as is generally imagined. This country offers nothing very brilliant 

 in colour, nor extraordinary in the form of its productions. There 

 are also difficulties to contend with seldom found in other countries ; 

 the indolence of its inhabitants, their state of slavery, besides their 

 religion, which forbids them to kill any animal, give you to under- 

 stand at once that you must not expect much assistance from them. 

 I am also obliged to go on groping my way, as it were, and making 

 new attempts, for all the Europeans established at Bankok are of 

 opinion that this country is inexplorable, on account of its climate and 

 dangerous inundations, and effectively I find that the localities which 

 would prove the most productive are just those which are uninhabitable, 

 even for the natives, during the greater part of the year. 



Now, however, I feel assured that you will be infinitely better pleased 

 with the collection I am sending you, for it consists, for the greater 

 part at least, of very good species, — Lucani, Longicornes, Anthribi, 

 good Carabi, &c., — captured just where you now recommend me to 

 search, principally at the foot of the mountains, on their sides and under 

 the bark of dead trees, so that during the last two months the hatchet has 

 been more at work than the net. 1 send you only about thirty butter- 

 flies, as the}'^ are rare and mostly very common. Birds are excessively 

 rare here ; they retire to the plains or the woods during the dry season, 

 and are only found on the mountains during the inundations. During 

 the time I have been on Mount Sabab I have only seen one hawk 

 and not a single partridge, quail or pheasant, and yet I pass the greater 

 part of my time out of doors, and had we not made our provision of 

 dried fish and rice we should be obliged to eat the insects instead of 

 sending them to you, or died of hunger. 



Though I have only been three months in this province I am about 

 to leave it, and am going on to Cambodia, which I believe to be much 

 richer, being more woody, less cultivated and more thinly inhabited. 

 By waiting longer I should lose a whole year, as the rainy season is 

 commencing, and soon all communication with that country will be 

 at an end until the dry season again commences. 



The topography of this country being so little known I cannot yet 

 tell you in what part I shall take up my abode ; it will probably be 



* Communicated by Mr. S. Stevens. 



XVIII. 2 I 



