1837.] Journal of an expedition from Moulmien to Ava. 1009 



authority of Monay. I satisfied them in the two first points, and 

 agreeing to halt proposed calling on the Tso-boa in the morning. I 

 was prevented doing so by the crowds of noisy people round my tent ; 

 1 had however a good deal of conversation with some municipal offi- 

 cers who visited me ; they were all Burmans, understood the nature of 

 my mission, and expressed a readiness, as far as they could, to forward 

 the objects of it. I learned from them that the authority of the Tso- 

 boa is a dead letter, the whole real power being in the hands of officers 

 appointed by the court of Ava. The Bo-hmoo-meng-tha Meng-myat- 

 boo (general prince Meng-myat-boo) a half brother of the king's, son 

 of a Shan princess, was at that time, and had been ever since the war, 

 governor of the whole of the Shan countries comprehended under the 

 general name of Camboza tyne; he generally resided in Ava, but his 

 deputy the Tseet-kay-dau-gyee had his head quarters at Monay with 

 some officers and a small military force. All business is transacted 

 by them at the Tat youm or military court-house. Much surprize 

 was expressed that I had brought letters to the Tso-boa and not to the 

 military chiefs. I begged them to believe our sincere wish to esta- 

 blish friendly relations with the government in whomever vested, 

 and assured them that had you been aware of the existence of a higher 

 authority than that of the Tso-boa's, resident in the country, your 

 letter would have been addressed of course to that authority. I desir- 

 ed them to inform the Tso-boa of the reason of my having failed to 

 visit him to- day, and to request he would give orders or send some one 

 to prevent the people crowding round the tent in the unreasonable 

 way they had done, and to say I should put off my departure and 

 wait on him on the following day. An Away-yuik came out in the 

 morning to say the Tso-boa would be glad to see me, and I accompa- 

 nied him into the town. The Tso-boa is a young man of about six 

 and twenty, son of the last Tso-boa who was killed in the dreadful 

 slaughter of the Shans at the stockades above Prome, during the late 

 war. 



I explained to him the nature of my mission, regretted that you were 

 not aware on my leaving Maulmain, that my route lay through his city, 

 expressed my certainty that you would be equally sorry that you had 

 not had an opportunity of writing to him. I repeated my assurance 

 of our anxiety to be on friendly terms with the Shan chiefs, and pro- 

 mised every protection and facility of trading to his people if they 

 visited Maulmain. I requested him to encourage their doing so and 

 begged in return that he would afford the same protection and facili- 

 ties to our people visiting his country, to which he merely assented 



