TO THE COURT OF AY A. 
105 
frequent in the temples and monasteries. The 
tin made use of in the composition of these is 
brought from Tavoy and Lao. I may here notice, 
that we found in the market of Ava, without as¬ 
certaining to what purpose it was put, a consider¬ 
able quantity of antimony, reduced to the metallic 
state, and said to be brought from Lao. As the 
process of preparing this article is one of consider¬ 
able difficulty, the possession of it by the Shans 
would seem to imply a considerable share of skill 
in metallurgy. I remember, that when an ore of 
this metal was brought to Singapore, the Chinese 
at that place seemed wholly unacquainted with 
the art of reducing it. 
Gold and silver ornaments are manufactured in 
every considerable place in the country, but par¬ 
ticularly at the capital. Some of the gold orna¬ 
ments which we saw at the latter were massive 
and rather handsome, particularly the different 
vessels for holding the various materials of the 
betel preparation. In general, however, the jew¬ 
ellery of the Burinans is not only inferior in taste 
and workmanship to that of several other parts of 
India, but decidedly clumsy and rude. 
Three descriptions of paper are used by the 
Burmans. The first is a domestic manufacture, 
made from the fibres of the young bamboo. This 
is a substance as thick as pasteboard, which is 
rubbed over with a mixture of charcoal and rice- 
water. Thus prepared, it is written upon with a 
