1831 .] 
Miscellaneous Notices. 
189 
shorter, across the isthmus. Such occurrences are limited to small rivers ; larger 
streams seldom passing the semicircle. 
There is one advantage in a tortuous course ; namely, that it diminishes the slope, 
and consequent expenditure of water, and also the corroding action of the stream. 
Were the Jellingee rectified by a series of cuts, it would soon become liable to the 
changes observed in the Bhageeruttee, and the outlet would be closed to navigation 
earlier than at present. The most navigable outlets, such as the Chundna, are ex- 
tremely serpentine, and take off from the main river, many miles lower down than 
the others, which diminishes by several feet the slope of their surface. 
Before closing the subject of the changes of the Ganges, we should mention the 
great alteration in the Burhampootur since the days of Rennell. The Jenye, then 
one of the minor bifurcations of the Megna, has of late years become the principal 
stream; while the old broad channel, immediately below its efflux, is gradually filling 
up, and is so shallow, that “ Mr. Lamb crossed the Burhampootur, at Cuttyadee, 
without wetting his feet, not finding a stream any where more than a few inches 
deep, and which he could not clear with a jump.” 
The Jenye averages a mile in breadth, and has great rapidity. The tendency of 
this new outlet for the eastern freshes will be to accelerate the periods of inundation 
in the Ganges, until the latter river shall have enlarged for itself a more western 
outlet down the Chundna or other Sundurbun creek. “ Agriculture may, perhaps, 
suffer; the production of indigo on low lands will become more precarious ; but 
the navigation of both rivers, and the intercourse between them, will be greatly im- 
proved.” 
XII . — Miscellaneous Notices. 
1 . — Method of spelling Oriental names; errors in the Account of Dr. Richardson’ » 
Journey to Laos , vol. II. p. 211. 
We are sorry to find, from the subjoined note, that the letter published in our 
19th Number, regarding Mr. Richardson’s Journey to Laos, has, in passing through 
our hands, been subjected to various objectionable mutilations in the names of 
places ; owing partly to the newness of the said names to us, and the occasional 
illegibility of the manuscript ; partly to our ignorance of the method of spelling 
followed by the writer. We need hardly observe, that names of places which are not 
familiar, should always be written with the utmost distinctness ; because the sense 
of the passage affords no clue towards deciphering them, as with ordinary words. 
Indeed, in such cases, it would be a good rule to adopt the printed character, so as 
to render mistake impossible. The writer of the note will probably be surprised to 
bear, that with regard to the word Meu-ang, converted by us into Men-ang, we 
should again have made the same mistake, but for his illustration by the French word 
peu, so exactly like an n was his u formed. With regard to the second cause of our 
grievous mistakes, we submit we are as little in fault ; for if the public, or rather 
Oriental scholars, will not agree to adopt one system of spelling eastern words and 
names, how is it possible there ever should be any thing like correctness. We 
have now, in fact, as many modes of spelling nearly as there are writers; and with- 
out knowing before hand which method the writer intends to adopt, it is of course 
very difficult, if not impossible, to avoid much mistakes. We think it a subject of 
regret that Sir William Jones’ system is not universally adopted, being that adhered 
to by two learned societies ; a circumstance which, in a matter of so little import- 
ance as the preference of one system to another, might surely he allowed to decide 
