318 Geography of Cochinchina. [April, 



The effeminate king of Camboze (he deserved this name for his escort was 

 composed of nothing but women) for a long time found himself between 

 two zealous protectors, who, while they were encroaching little by little on 

 his dominions, were always feasting him with the titles of noble and power- 

 ful majesty. In a word, the situation of this phantom of a king resem- 

 bled that of the unfortunate individual in the proverb who sitting between 

 two stools soon found himself on the ground between them. The king of 

 Cochinchina always placed near his majesty several mandareens to pro- 

 tect and direct his politics. For a long time this king had no male child, 

 and although in that country the Salic law was not in existence, the 

 Cochinchinese king only waited for the favorable moment to put into 

 execution the project he had privately entertained for many years of 

 adding to his kingdom what little still remained in the possession of the 

 king of Camboze. About the end of 1835 or beginning of 1836 the 

 king of Camboze died; immediately the king of Cochinchina gave the 

 daughter of the defunct monarch in marriage to a Cochinchinese man- 

 dareen and proclaimed Nam Vang one of the protectors of the em- 

 pire of Annam, and also of the country in the vicinity of the sea, under 

 the title of Protector (prefect ?) of Gosat. In order not to terrify the 

 neighbouring kings and principally so as not to excite the jealousy of 

 the king of Siam, the Cochinchinese king gave the title of Nu Vuong, 

 that is to say Queen, to the Princess of Camboze. If I were asked to 

 say in which kingdom she reigns, as all her dominions have been 

 added to the Cochinchinese prefecture ? I should answer that I do not 

 know; but in the same manner as small bones are given to amuse chil- 

 dren, so sometimes fine titles are given to amuse grown up people. These 

 are my reasons for having only placed the name of Camboze in my 

 map and reduced the country into prefectures. 



This is what I have done: — now what I have not done is the changing 

 of Nam Vang the capital. Has it changed its place ? Certainly, and 

 what to us appears so extraordinary is not so to those who know the 

 customs and superstitions of the Indians and of the Indo-chinese. In 

 your journal for September 1 837, it strikes me that I gave the reasons 

 for these different changes. About the end of December 1833, this 

 town of Nam Vang was entirely destroyed by the Siamese. The king 

 of Camboze has had another town built at a short distance from the 

 former one, and on the opposite bank of the same river, but being igno- 

 rant of its right position I have not altered it. I may say as much regard- 

 ing the position of Saigon y in lower Cochinchina ; — it is no longer in its 

 ancient place. Some day looking at this map, people will say that there 

 are mistakes, but these errors are known and announced so as to enable 



