TO THE COURT OF AVA. 
497 
appears that it is their special duty to attend 
upon such occasions. The King, who was 
still very much out of humour, summoned 
the Ministers before him ; sent for a sword, 
drew it, and ordered them, one by one, to 
come forward and swear upon it that they were 
present at the conflagration, and assisting in 
extinguishing it. Kaulen Mengyi came for¬ 
ward and avowed that he was not present; 
but that he had gone as far as the Rung- 
d’hau, or Town-hall, to give the necessary in¬ 
structions upon the occasion. He was imme¬ 
diately ordered to be taken out of the Audi¬ 
ence-hall ; and, to avoid being dragged thence 
by the hair of the head, according to usage, 
voluntarily made as rapid a retreat as could be 
expected from a man between sixty and seven¬ 
ty, and of a weakly constitution. An order 
was given that he should be punished after a 
manner which I shall presently describe. The 
other Ministers, none of whom were present 
at the fire, escaped under various pretexts of 
business or sickness. The punishment now 
awarded to the first Minister is called, in the 
Bur man language, Ne-pu m'ha Vhan the , or, 
“ spreading out in the hot sun.” The offen¬ 
der who undergoes it is stretched upon his back 
by the public executioners, and thus exposed 
VOL. i. 2 K 
