38 
JOURNAL OF AN EMBASSY 
that time had fought one petty action with the 
Barmans* in which one or two persons were killed. 
They stated that Maong-zat had taken the name 
and title of King,—that he had created two or 
three great officers, and that Maong-pyo, the chief 
of the Karians, who was marching upon Bassein, 
was to have the government of that place as the 
reward of his services. They readily promised a 
safe passage for our boats, and seemed indeed but 
too happy to have an opportunity of obliging us 
in any thing within their power. The river at 
Panlang is scarcely sixty yards in breadth, and 
this post, which commands every access to Ban- 
goon, had been very judiciously selected. If reso¬ 
lutely defended, it might long have intercepted all 
relief from Ava to the latter place. We anchored 
at night at a place seven miles above Bangoon. 
In this day’s journey we saw alligators for the 
first time, and in great numbers, basking in the 
sun, on the muddy shores at low water : some of 
them were of great size, and the species seemed 
to us to be different from either of the two found 
in the Ganges. 
As soon as the ebb-tide had made, and the 
thick fog, which now prevailed every morning, 
would allow us to see our way, we prosecuted 
our journey this morning, and at ten o’clock an¬ 
chored before Bangoon. In coming down, we 
found the village of Kemmendine totally destroy¬ 
ed. A much more extensive desolation presented 
