TO THE COURT OF AY A. 
151 
upon the part of the Burman chiefs, it was dic¬ 
tated by a spirit of conciliation and politeness. 
As usual, they inquired first after the health of 
the King of England, and of the Royal Family 
in general. On our side, we inquired after the 
health of his Burman Majesty, after that of the 
Queen, the young Prince, and the favourite 
Princess. Inquiries after the female branches 
of their families, it should be observed, are con¬ 
sidered by the Burmans as marks of civility ; in 
which respect they differ entirely from the in¬ 
habitants of Hindostan and other countries of 
Western Asia, among whom such questions 
would be considered as betraying the utmost in¬ 
delicacy. The Burman chiefs informed us, that 
64 the glorious King,” as they repeatedly called 
him, had directed the house we were now in to 
be constructed for our accommodation ; and that 
he desired we would be at our ease and happy, 
since friendship was restored between the two 
countries. They told us, that a guard of eighty 
men, twenty to each of the four gates of the in¬ 
closure, were appointed to keep the populace 
from intruding upon us. All this preparation 
was a show of keeping up the usages of the Bur¬ 
man Court, and indeed that of all the nations to 
the eastward of Hindostan,—of placing foreign 
ambassadors under a certain restraint, until a 
