114 
JOURNAL OF AN EMBASSY 
In reference to the state of Burman knowledge, 
I ought not to omit an intense passion for al¬ 
chemy, of which the object is to transmute the 
baser into the precious metals.* From our earliest 
acquaintance with the Bur mans, they seem to have 
been tainted with this folly : persons of all ranks, 
who can afford to waste their time and money, 
engage in it; and even his present Majesty and 
his predecessors have not disdained thus to occupy 
their leisure hours. A question frequently put to 
us was, whether we, the English, did not under¬ 
stand the art of converting iron into silver, and 
copper into gold. They observed our compara¬ 
tive wealth, and thought they could not so ration¬ 
ally account for it, as by imagining that we were 
adepts in the art of transmuting metals. A si¬ 
milar question, “ Can the English convert iron 
into silver?” was put by the Burmese courtiers to 
an intelligent Armenian merchant who had long 
resided among them, and who understood their 
language perfectly. His reply was, that the Eng¬ 
lish understood the art perfectly, but not in the 
sense in which they meant it. He took an English 
penknife out of his pocket, and threw it down on 
the table before them, observing, that it was worth 
more than its weight in silver, and that this was an 
* The search for an elixir of immortality forms no part of 
Burman alchymy. This would be contrary to their religion; 
for, according to their system, immortality, or even longevity, 
would be a misfortune and not a blessing. 
