1834.] along the Manipur Frontier. 127 



ternative is to quit the vicinity of the place where it occurs ; they do 

 not attribute the recurrence to a relish for human flesh required from 

 having once tasted it, but to the displeasure of the " Laee" (Deity) of 

 the place ; they endeavour to deprecate his anger by offerings on the 

 first occurrence, but on a second taking place, they conclude he is im- 

 placable, and take it as a warning to remove. The village in question 

 is only waiting to collect in the crops now on the ground and flit. 



3rd — Mung-ya, two and a half hours. Passed a small nala on 

 the Burmese side of the river, called Khywook-ma-Kywoong, at the 

 mouth of which a number of people were employed washing the sand 

 for gold. Was visited during the day by nearly the whole of the in- 

 habitants, men, women and children, of the village, on the opposite 

 side of the river ; who came, as they said, to see the wonder ! an Eu- 

 ropean. Much cannot be said in favour of the modesty of the Kubos. 

 I saw both this day and yesterday numbers both of men and women 

 bathing at not ten paces distant from each other, with not so much 

 covering even as a fig leaf. Unmarried girls observe, I am told, some 

 little decorum in dress ; married women, none ! 



4th — Helaoo five and a half hours. The current in one or two 

 places somewhat more rapid than yesterday. — Passed three parties wash- 

 ing for gold, one at a place called Nan-yen-sneek on the Burmese 

 side of the river, and two on the Manipur one, near Eng-da-baoong. 



5th — Maloo, seven hours. Immediately below Helaoo the Ningthee 

 is joined by a river of considerable size, called the Moo, Nummoo, or 

 Muwa, coming directly from the east and Neojeri hills. Gold is 

 said to be more abundant in it than in the Ningthee, in this neigh- 

 bourhood ; but not equal to the quantity found in the more northern 

 parts of the latter, in the Sing-Phos country. The Kubos say that 

 gold is not sought for in the Ningthee itself, below Helaoo, but only 

 in the different hill streams which fall into it on the eastern side. As 

 usual, since I left Mulphoo, I was visited by numbers of the inhabitants 

 from the different villages as I passed down : my communications with 

 these people leave not a doubt on my mind but what they would be 

 happy to change their masters: indeed many of them took opportunities 

 of slily telling me so, and expressed disappointment at my not proceed- 

 ing to the Neojeri hills to place thanas. 



6th — Brought to at a small nala called Khywook-kan-khywoong, six 

 hours, no viDage. The current generally very slow, in some places al- 

 most still. Passed but one village during the day, and that on 

 the opposite side of the river; it belongs to the knight of the " bran- 

 ches and bamboos," who passed down whilst I was at Knesung. At 

 a short distance below this village is an extraordinary hill called Swe- 



