TO THE COURT OF AVA. 
317 
few were of marble ; and the former, although 
at first sight making a good appearance, were 
built of very crude materials, and even the most 
recent were often found in a state of dilapida¬ 
tion. The “ religious merit” consists in building 
a huge, costly, and showy edifice : there is none, 
apparently, in building a durable one, and very 
little in repairing or restoring an old one. In 
the vicinity of Sagaing accordingly, there are to 
be seen several half-finished structures of enor¬ 
mous magnitude, the founders having died while 
they were in progress, and no one afterwards 
thinking it worth while to complete the work. 
The most remarkable example of this is in the 
celebrated temple at Mengwan, upon which an 
enormous expense was lavished, which was an 
object of solicitude with the late King for half 
his life; but which is incomplete, because he 
died while it was in progress. The country 
through which we passed is very sterile, and 
without any other cultivation than fruit trees, 
and a few patches of cotton and pulses. 
Dr. Stewart and Lieutenant Montmorency 
walked through the town of Ava this morning, 
and encountered the procession which, once a 
month, at the new moon, goes about the city 
reading a proclamation enjoining the inhabi¬ 
tants to observe certain moral precepts. These, 
