1839.] Mission to the Court of Siam. 1027 



it joins. The Thaung-kala is joined near the same place by Meene- 

 Kyning, which rises in the hills near Yea, where the three take the 

 name of Ka-tain-tsein ; further south the Mag-nan-noi, which rises in 

 the hills towards Tavoy, joins it, and though smaller gives its name to 

 the united stream. At lh. 30m. we cross in a few minutes a rather steep 

 hill bearing S. 60° E. near the eastern part of which a road runs N. E. 

 to Kenk-Khaung, the residence of the Kareen Ank of this district ; 

 south of his village he has about seventy houses under him, who pay 

 each a tax of fifty viss of cotton. At 3h. 35m. having halted an hour, 

 reach this ground. Just before halting, the Taung-thoo traders who 

 accompanied me, and who had come on to this village yesterday, met 

 me with a complaint against the interpreter, who had told the vil- 

 lagers they were not part of the mission, and not to sell them any rice ; 

 he must have heard the complaint, for one of the coolies had given 

 him half a rupee to bring rice, this he gave to the Kareen, and 

 directed him to tell me that he had said they were traders, and to sell 

 or give them rice if he had any to spare ; the Kareen gave this version 

 of the story when I inquired into the complaint, and as soon as he got 

 home, the interpreter went and demanded the half rupee or a basket 

 of rice; the Kareen returned the money, and then told the truth, 

 expecting I would make the man pay him back the money. I shall 

 however henceforth supply the whole of them with rice, which will 

 save a great deal of trouble. 



January 9tk. — Papan Kyuing, 2h. 10m., seven miles. The ele- 

 phants which were unable to come up last night, have again obliged 

 me to take up my quarters under a bamboo bush ; they did not over- 

 take us till 12h. 10m., when having hired an elephant from one of the 

 Kareens, to carry the load of the lost one, agreed to pay the half of his 

 price if they recover him, which they expect to do. We started having 

 procured three days rice, and given a pass to the Taung-thoo traders 

 who separate from us here, and propose joining again in Bankok. The 

 country was a good deal broken throughout this day's march, and 

 the hills apparently at no great distance, but the jungle so thick that 

 we could not see twenty yards in any direction ; we crossed two small 

 streams immediately after quitting the last ground, and at 12h. 55m. 

 Raja of Kyuing, knee-deep, passed two or three other small streams, 

 and at 2h. 30m. halted at this one, to enable the elephants to come up, 

 which they did just before dark. The Kareens have been civil and fur- 

 nished us with rice, the only thing they had^ as they rear no poultry nor 

 pigs. A Taline visited us this morning from one of the military posts, 

 the name of which, and apparently the name only, is still kept up ; he 



