TO THE COURT OF AVA. 
51 
be not less than two miles in breadth. The 
islands are almost universally uncultivated and 
uncleared. 
After quitting Myan-aong this morning, we 
had low hills, about one hundred and fifty feet 
in height, covered with wood, before us, with 
which we soon came up. The character of the 
scenery now became totally altered: we had 
high land on both sides; and the banks of the 
river became bold and steep. The character of 
the vegetation was also changed. The reedy 
grass, so often mentioned, the saccharum spon- 
taneum , became less tall, rank, and frequent; 
and now and then there was a good deal of 
underwood. The Aracan mountains were very 
distinct to the north-west. With the com¬ 
mencement of the hilly land begins that of the 
disemboguement of the Irawadi, which, by in¬ 
numerable ramifications, is connected to the 
east with the Setang and Martaban rivers, and 
to the west with that of Bassien, and falls into 
the sea by a great many mouths, some of them 
distant from the high land, in a straight line, 
one hundred and fifty miles. The low and 
half-inundated champaign, thus abounding in 
streams and rivers, is the proper country of the 
Peguan race, as distinguished from the true 
Burmans. 
E 2 
