D T R 



it ihe proprietor of thufe r.uimals ; m^ one of his Bir- 

 null majillv's tilki i.s '•IoiJoiiIr- wliitc cUphiint, and of 

 all the elfpiianls in tlif woiM." 'I'lit: forcils alvuiid with 

 ti«-rs. Their liorfcs are linall. but handfonie and fpTited, 

 hardy and aftive ; and are frequently exported in timber- 

 fhlps bound for Madras and other parts of the coaft, where 

 they are difpofed of to oniliderablc advantaj^e. Their cows 

 are diminutive, rcfeinlilino; the breed on the conllofCoro- 

 niandcl ; but their buffaloes are n»>ble animals, mu.h fupenor 

 to thofe of India, and arc ufed for draft and agriculture ; 

 fome of them are of a liijht cream colour, and are almoft as 

 fierce as tl^'ers, who dare not niok-ll them. The ichneumon, 

 or rat of Pharaoh, called by the natives Chinbaii, is found in 

 this country ; but there is no fuch animal as the jackal in the 

 Ava dominions, though they are very numerous in the ad- 

 joining country. Among the birds, which are the fame 

 with thofe of other parts of India, "is one called the Hcn- 

 •/a, the fynibol of t!>e Binnan nation, as the eagle was ot tlie 

 Roman empire ; it in a fpecits of wild fowl called in India 

 the liraminy goufe ; but the natives of Ava do not deify this 

 bird. 



The Birmaii'? fecm to be in potTilTion of feveral fniall idands 

 in the gulf of Martaban, the Magnus Sinus of antiquity, 

 and of others to the fouth and weft. Symes's EmbalTy 

 to the Kingdom of Ava, 3 >ols. 8vo. pafilm. Afiatic Re- 

 fearches, vol. vi. p. 163— 30S. SccArracan, Ava, and 

 I'eoi'. 



BIRMINGHAM, is juftiy efteemed the gveateft manu- 

 fatluring town in England, and \vc may faftly affert, that in 

 the quantitv, variety, elegance, and utility of its manii- 

 fafl'.ired articles, it furpalTes any town in Europe. To 

 enable the llrancrer and foreigner to appreciate the ge- 

 neral character of this place, with its vaiious fubordinate 

 features, we will endeavour to depicl them to the fancy, in 

 a concife and perfpiciious narrative. Its dillinguifliiiig cha- 

 raftcriliic is appropriately difplayed in the following lines 

 by Mr. Jago, in his poem of " Edge-hill," 



" 'Tis noife, and hurry all,— the throng'd fireet, 

 The clofe-pil'd warehoufe, and the bufy fliop. 

 With nimble ftroke the tinkling hammers move ; 

 ■WTiile flow and weighty the vail fledge defcends, 

 In folemii bafe refponfivc, or apart. 

 Or focially conjoin'd in tuneful peal. — 

 How the coarle metal brightens into fame, 

 Shap'd by their plaftic hands ! what ornament ! 

 What various ufe ! — Nor this alone thy praife, 

 Thine too of graceful form, the letter'd type ! 

 The friend of learning, and the poet's pride." 

 The etymology of the name of this town is not readily at- 

 tained, as it has been written Brumwycheham, Bromwy- 

 cliam, and variou! other ways ; indeed, in common conver- 

 fation, it is frequently pronounced Bromiugham. The 

 town lies near the centre of the ifland, in the north-wef- 

 tern extremity of the county of Warwick. It is in the 

 diocefc of Lich!kld and Coventry, in the deanery of Arden, 

 and ill the hundred of Hemlingford. The fuperficial con- 

 tents of theparifli are 2864 acres. In 1800 here were 16,403 

 lioufes, 1875 of which were uninhabited. The whole popu- 

 lation was 73,670, of v/hcm 34,7 16 were males, and 38,954 

 were females. 



In the fcalc of national importance, Birmingham bears 

 an exalted fitnation ; without recurring to its ancient hif- 

 tory, the modern inhabitants have, by laudable indiiilry, 

 raifed it ptrhaps to the acme of manufadluriiig and com- 

 mercial fame. The fagacious and elegant Burke emphati- 

 cally pronounces Birmingham the " Toy Shop of Europe." 

 This defignation muft not, however, be taken in its literal 



B I R 



fcr.fe, as the articles of utility made in this town far exceed 

 thofe intended only fo;- (hew and ornament. Many of our 

 cities are attractive fo'.- their vencralile ruins and grand cathe- 

 drals, but of thofe Birmingham is dcltitute. The traveller 

 who delights in feeing the human race profitably employed 

 to their own, and their country's advantage, will difregard 

 the fmoke wliich fometimes envehipts the town, and difcern 

 thiou >h the veil the bright beams of indullry enlightning 

 vail piles of riches : jullico, however, will compel him to 

 acknowledge, that profligacy has contrived to infinuate itfelf 

 within too many dwellings of tha labouring claflts, pro- 

 ducing idlenefs, difcontcnt, drunkenntfs, and riots, of which 

 ftvcral inllances might be cited, exclufive of that grand con- 

 vullion which attend.-d the commencement of that revolu- 

 tion in France, which in its confequcnces has fo feverely op- 

 picfled this, and almoft every other nation. The Ikenild- 

 ilreet, one of the great Roman military roads, conifs within 

 a mile of Birmingham, and in Suttoir park and Coldfiekl, 

 four miles froin the town, it remains nearly as perfect as 

 if juft compL'ted ; one of the principal evidences of the 

 antiquity of Birmingham is, that it is contiguous to two 

 Roman roads, the Ikeiiild, and Shirley ftreets, 



I'lie family of Birmingham were lords of this manor till 

 1537, at which period it is faid to have been oV;taincd by 

 the duke of Northumberland, through the fucccfs of a deep- 

 planned fcheme. Having endeavoured in vain to purchafe 

 it, he contrived to make Edward Birmingham appear as an 

 accomplice in a highway robbery, and ofteredhim his intereft 

 to fave a forfeited life, on condition of felling him the manor. 

 The manor-iioufe, which is novv called the mote, (lill remains, 

 though the fite has been converted into a manufaftorvi and 

 an apartment is fliewu where the ancient lords held their 

 court-leets. 



The parifli of Birmingham is fmaller than any in its neigh- 

 bourhood. Mr. Huttoii obferves, that when Alfred found a 

 town, he allotted a much fmaller fpace of land to it, than 

 when he portioned a villag-e, obvioufly intending the former 

 for trade and comnierc:e, and the latter for agriculture ; this 

 circumftance feems to prove that AUrcAfoiDul Birmingham a 

 toiu/!. " The buildings occupy the fouth-eaft part of the pa- 

 rifli, which, with theirappendages, are about 800 acres. This 

 part being infufficicnt for the extraordinary increafc of the 

 inhabitants, flie has of late extended her buildings along 

 the Bromfgrove road, near the boundaries of Edgbafton, 

 and on the other fide planted fome of her ilreets in the 

 parifli of Afton." 



" The fituation is elevated, and the foil one folid mafs of 

 dr)', rcddifli fand, through which the water defcends freely, 

 thus making even the cellars comfortable habitations ;" the 

 fame author adds facetioufly, that though metals of various 

 forts are found in great plenty above the furface, we know of 

 nothing below except fand, gravel, flone, and water. All the 

 richesof the place, like thofe of an empiric in laced clothes, 

 appear on the outfide. " There is not any natural river in the 

 parifli, but in the lower parts of the town are two excellent 

 fprings of foft water, fuitable for mod purpofes, one at the 

 top of Digbeth, the other Lady well ; and at the latter 

 place arc feven of the moft complete baths in the kingdom. 

 They coft 2000I. in erefting, and are ever ready for the 

 accommodation of hot or cold bathing, for immerfion or 

 amufement, with conveniency for fweating. That appro- 

 priated to fwimming is 18 yards by 36, fituate in the centre 

 of a garden, in which aie 24 private undrcffing houfes, and 

 the whole furrounded by a wall ten feet high." 



Mr. Hutton mentions feveral inllances of longevity, 



which feem to demonftrate either that the air is too pure to 



be rendered unwholefome by the fmoke of the town, or that 



6 fmok« 



