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194 



JE^tr act from Journal of a Trip to Bhamo. 



[No. 2, 



struck upon a path within the walls, running south-west. Keeping this 

 general course, we walked I think a mile and a half, and emerged over a 

 line of brickwork on the same level with the top of the sandstone bank 

 and about a dozen yards within it. Now on the bank of the river I 

 could not afford time to follow the wall line southwards, but from a 

 good mark, (a large tree on the lower bank opposite the gap in the 

 true bank,) I measured with a tape the distance to the apparent north- 

 west corner of the city. This was 104 times 50 feet, or 5200 feet. 

 From^this it appears that the natives' account is probably correct, and 

 that the city of Pagan was at least two miles in length from north to 

 south, and probably a mile in breadth from east to west. A thousand 

 feet from the supposed north-west corner of Pagan begins the west wall 

 of Tagoung. This runs directly north for 24 times 50 = 1200 Feet, 

 then turns with the bank of the river to the north-east for 500 feet, from 

 which the north wall is apparently continuous along the creek in a due 

 eastward direction. The west wall of Tagoung is evidently a brickwork 

 capping to the natural sandstone bulwark, and thus appears to be 

 parallel with, but somewhat to the west of the west wall of Pagan, 

 which ]ies behind the natural bank. 



The whole was very probably an island in remote times, and it 

 seems that insular or semi-insular positions have been favorite sites 

 for Burmese capitals ; e. g. " Poukkan" or Lower Pagan on " Yunhlot" 

 Island, Ava, and this the most ancient of all. 



The Thoogyee who had left me after showing the Mwy Zeegoon 

 Phra, now came down to the beach, and seemed a little puzzled at my 

 measuring the old walls. His face bore a queer expression of doubt 

 whether he had not committed a sin in allowing this perhaps dan- 

 gerous proceeding. He, however, spoke very civilly, and we parted the 

 best of friends, he promising me all the information procurable, on my 

 r eturn. It was now 4 o'clock, and a very cold pull it was to reach 

 the boat, which I found about 8 o'clock, moored beneath the bluff of 

 Tongue, about eight miles up the river. This Tongue is said to have 

 been a capital before Tagoung. Again near Myadoung is a place 

 " Thigine" on the west bank, called the Beloo Myo or Monsters' city, 

 where the walls are of stone, and other evidences of superhuman 

 handiwork are talked of. This must be of interest. 



I fancy that in former times there were several petty states in the 

 upper Irrawaddi valley ? and that the Burmese chroniclers have merely 



