700 Account of Arakan, [No. 117. 



by the Burmese. The son of Pa-tang-tsa, named Shwe-pang^ either 

 had made his escape, as he averred, or been permitted quietly to de- 

 part the court of Ava, perhaps, hoping thereby to excite troubles in 

 Arakan, Certain it is, that on his appearance, most of the headmen 

 of the country were favourable to his claims, and attempts were made 

 in April 1827, to tamper with the native officers and men of the Local 

 Battalion. Shwe-pang was subsequently made a kywn-aop ; the flame 

 was smothered for a time, but the fire remained smouldering. Nine 

 years aft6r, the above named individuals were guilty of exciting a man, 

 named Kyeet-tsan-wCf to rise in arms ; he commenced plundering the 

 country, with the assistance of a band of escaped convicts, and other 

 desperate characters, and some of the ignorant hill tribe, the Khyengs. 

 He and his adherents were at length forced to fly into the Burman 

 territory, whence they were brought back in the beginning of 1837, 

 being given up by the Burman government. 



This emeute was called dakoity^ (gang robbery,) but the real object 

 of the attempt was to seize the government of the country. The in- 

 stigators were insane enough to believe, that the British government 

 would be wearied out by their system of ravaging the country, and 

 make it over to them on payment of a yearly tribute! Since this 

 attempt, every thing has been very quiet. The English expedition to 

 China has excited an intense interest among the Ra-khoing-thas, and 

 as China is regarded as the first power in the world, the issue of the 

 contest was held to be rather doubtful until the favourable result of 

 certain magical calculations which were resorted to, when it was dis- 

 covered to have been long ago foretold in certain books, that the 

 English were destined to subdue China. There is in Arakan a village 

 named Ta-rouk, the same name which the Burmese give to China. 

 On going into the interior in January 1841, I directed my steps to 

 this village first, in order to ascend a hill in the vicinity. The people 

 were impressed with the belief that I was going there to have a mimic 

 fight for the village, and order the inhabitants to come out and make 

 their submission, as an omen for the success of the China expedition ! 



Within the last four years, great improvements have been made in 

 Arakan taxes. It is difficult to account for such an impolitic and 

 unjust system of taxation as existed up to 1836 ever having been 

 proposed or adopted. Boats, nets of all sizes, cattle not used in agri- 



