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History of the Liang dynasty (502 — 556). Book 54. 



The country Lang-ga-su or Lang-ga (*) is situated in the southern 

 ocean, its length from east to west is thirty days and from sonth to north 

 twenty days , its distance from Canton is twenty four thousand li. The cli- 

 mate and the products of the soil are about the same as in Siam. 



Lignum aloes in its different qualities and camphor oil are very abun- 

 dant everywhere. 



Men and women have the upper part of the body naked, their hair 

 hangs loosely down and around their lower limbs they only use a sarong of 

 cotton. The king and the nobles moreover have a thin, flowered cloth for 

 covering the upper part of their body (slendang), they wear a girdle of gold 

 and golden rings in their ears. 



Young girls cover themselves with a cloth of cotton and wear an em- 

 broidered girdle. 



In this country they have made the citywalls of piled up bricks; the 

 wall has doublé gates and watchtowers. 



When the king goes out he rides on an elephant, he is surrounded 

 with flags of feathers, banners and drums, and is covered by a white ca- 

 nopy. His military establishment is very complete. 



The people say that their country was established more than 400 

 years ago. 



It once happened that one of the succeeding kings was very un- 

 satisfactory in his rule , one . of his relations was a clever man and therefore 

 the people began to turn towards him. When the king heard of this , he 

 put him in prison, but his chains broke spontaneously from him. On this 

 the king thought him a supernatural being and dared not hurt him , but he 

 sent him out of the country, whereupon the other went to India and there 

 married the eldest daughter of the ruler of that country. Soihe time after- 

 wards the king of Lang-ga died and the exiled prince was called back by 

 the noblemen to be their king. He died more than twenty years afterwards 

 and was succeeded by his son Pa-ka-da-to. ( 2 ) 



In the year 515 this prince sent an envoy of the name A-cha-to ( 3 ) 



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