OF SIAM. 265 



middle class. The consequence is that there is often but one step betwixt 

 abject penury and the acme of exaltation ; and the grovelling slave of to-day- 

 spurns to-morrow the man who was but yesterday his equal. 



Offices are hereditary — but not absolutely so. The holders receive 

 small salaries — -inadequate for their support, which are paid once in a year, 

 although two periods of payment are enjoined in Bali writ. The king 

 bestows on them slaves, goods, and land, and they make up for limited 

 incomes by rapacity and venality, which it can hardly be doubted are con- 

 nived at in the main, although an occasional example ostensibly on public 

 grounds, but really to gratify private pique and the avarice of the court, 

 may be made. 



The king addresses an officer by his title and not by his name ; and to 

 an untitled subject he calls out hce ai nan — " ho you there," or he uses the 

 second personal pronoun, meong, thou ! ' 



The following scale of ranks in Siam has been framed from their codes 

 of civil and criminal law ; and from various MSS. in the Thai language, 

 received from natives of the capital. It is probably still imperfect — and 

 I pretend not to determine how far its operation may be really modified in 

 practice. 



Next in personal and civil rank to the king is the Akkjiamahesee, Q) 

 or queen and the princes of the blood. 



These last are, the Kho-ang lo-ang wang na, or lords of the interior 

 division of the palace — amongst whom ought to be the Somdet PJira 

 Caaulok tJioo, or heir apparent. The last heir apparent was termed 

 Chaau Khrommachet. 



The K,ko-ang ivang kjilang, or lord of the centre division — and Kho- 

 ang tvang lang, Lord of the rear division. The term Chddu includes all 

 other scions of the royal stock. It must be discriminated from the word 

 Chdu — which is less dignified — and often means plain Sir. Nang is 



(') P. Aggamahesf, 

 F 



