1840.] Mission to the Court of Siam. 25 



crape ; indeed the whole furniture and ornaments of their houses, 

 and most of their clothes, are borrowed from that people. He 

 was quite civil, and remained about an hour ; he told me it would 

 be expected I should remain here till the next day, against 

 which I in vain remonstrated. The people were all feasted, the 

 dinner placed on little tables in the Chinese manner, and an 

 abundance of pork and vegetables, fruit, sweetmeats, and tea, 

 &c. &c. &c. were brought out for me. The Myo-won told 

 me there were about 1500 Talines here, and I learned after- 

 wards from a brother of the Hloot-dan writer at Maulmain, who 

 is a refugee and most anxious to get away, that there are 

 on the different branches of the river about eight or nine 

 hundred families of Talines, many of them employed in mak- 

 ing salt. 



February 8th. — Bankok, 13h. 30m. About 7 a. m. the Myo- 

 won came to the zayat, having previously sent out break- 

 fast for myself and the people, and said we had better now 

 start. He asked a number of questions regarding the objects 

 of my mission, which, having the orders of the ministers, and 

 boats sent by them to convey us to Bankok, he ought not 

 to have put ; as however I had no object in refusing, I answered 

 him in detail. He came to the end of the wharf to see me off, and 

 hoped to see me on my return. The boats which had arrived from 

 Bankok in the night were large, commodious paungs (long 

 boats with a house on them) sufficient to convey every body 

 with comfort, manned, the one by twenty Talines, the other by 

 twenty Cummins, or Cambodians ; the Talines were dressed in 

 blue shirts and trowsers, and black bamboo-work hats, and the 

 Cummins like Malays, whom they very much resemble in ap- 

 pearance. We started at 9 a. m. the tide turned against us 

 at 10, and our progress was consequently very slow ; at 4h. 45m. 

 we were obliged to halt from want of water, and remained 

 till past 10 p. m. when we started at quarter flood. At llh. 

 20m. p. m. we enter a cut made from the head of the Mahitchi 

 to the small stream which falls into the May-nam, which 

 completes the communication through the Nakoutchathee branch 

 between the May-nam and May-klong ; this we passed in seven 

 minutes, and in half an hour got into deep water on the Bankok 



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