526 Visit to the Pakchan River. [No. 139. 



be relied on, having been obtained from one of our own people who 

 had formerly resided some time at Chimpohun. The protraction of 

 my route also, with these five miles added, makes the East coast of 

 the peninsula correspond, within one mile short, with its longitude 

 by Horsburgh's chart. The distance therefore between Pakchan and 

 the coast of the gulf of Siam is thirty- two miles, and the entire breadth 

 of the peninsula at this point from the Bay of Bengal to the gulf, is as 

 nearly as possible sixty miles. 



5. After receiving the chiefs return visit, elephants were provided 

 to take us back to Pakchan ; we started at 11 a. m. and halted for the 

 night on the Chimpohun river at a shed about half way, named 

 Tacumlae, and reached Pakchan the next day, 14th March, at 2 p. m. 

 On the way back, I paid particular attention to the inclination of the 

 country, with the view of forming a probable estimate of the elevation 

 of the top of the Kraa Pass, where the head waters of the Kraa and 

 Chimpohun rise, and I am of opinion, that the difference of level be- 

 tween that point and the plains at Chimpohun and Pakchan does 

 not exceed 450 feet. Along the entire route between these two 

 places, or twenty-three miles, running water was crossed thirty- two 

 times, besides which, there are numerous dry nullahs before mentioned, 

 which would be occasionally unfordable during the rains. 



The road is never more than 100 feet above the bed of the river- 

 course ; it has an easy slope, and except at the crossings of the streams 

 and nullahs, is now passable by guns ; but no part of the road would 

 during the dry season present any difficulty to the passage of an army. 



6. Some speculations having appeared lately in the columns of the 

 Moulmain Chronicle, on the practicability of carrying a canal across 

 the Isthmus of Kraa, whereby ships might pass by a short route from 

 India to China, instead of round the Malayan peninsula, I am induced 

 to offer some observations, under the idea, that enquiries on the subject 

 might probably be made at some future period. 



From the tidal waters of the Pakchan flowing westward to the Bay 

 of Bengal, to those of the Chimpohun running eastward to the Gulf of 

 Siam, I paid as much attention to the slopes and facilities for such a 

 work as the nature of our journey allowed, and while no work of this 

 description, where the physical difficulties are not absolutely insur- 

 mountable, ought perhaps to be pronounced impracticable, I have no 



