A TRANSLATION OF THE KEDDAH ANNALS. 18l 
* who came to Patani or Tani, as it was ahio then called, and 
* offered to marry this son of Chiwit if he would seize the capital 
* of Siam. This he refused it appears, doubtless because he had 
* not the means, and the lady forthwith expelled him from Patani, 
* and took the government in her own hands, but the Emperor of 
* Siam afterwards regained that province and appointed district 
* governor to rule it/ 
Owing to this custom of allowing women to wield the reigns of 
empire, and which seems to have been pretty widely extended, we 
might be induced to attribute a considerable degree of refinement 
to the people whom they ruled. But it is to be suspected that this 
refinement did not go deeply into society, and that the real power 
was generally exercised by ministers, if not usurped by them. 
Wherever Islamism was introduced these females ceared to reign, 
and were excluded from succession. At this day Indo-Chinese 
females enjoy more personal liberty and enter more directly and 
keenly into the bustle of life than do those of India. Bo I have 
noted to be the case in Pegu, in Burtnah, and amongst the Sia¬ 
mese. In Siam the lady of a governor of a province is not debarred 
from acting officially for him during his temporary absence. 
Another Siamese, a priest, informed me that Phra Chan Ko Lai, 
the son of Chan Chiwit, king of Siam (a) went to Tani, or.JPatani, 
to drive off some Chinese. It happened that a princess of Srai or 
Sai had arrived there from that country, who promised to marry 
him provided he would seize on the throne of Siam. But finding 
him rather disposed to remain master of Patani, she had him killed 
and reigned herself. The Emperor cf Siam however reduced the 
country afterwards, and having apportioned it amongst certain chiefs 
made them tributaries, [which mode of ruling is in practise at this 
day 1 
Alphonso de Sosa reduced Patani town to ashes in A. D. 1527, 
The above two recitals however some to confirm the account of our 
Kedda historian, for the Marong Mahawangso was not known to 
the Siamese, being in the Malayan language and preserved in the 
private repositories of the Rajas of Kedda.* It was discovered by 
the Raja ofLigor when he last took that province into his own 
hands, and it is said he destroyed it when told that a king of Siam 
had his origin there. 
(a) Chan Chiwit “ the lord of life,” ii applied to every king of Siam, 
* Other copies mu»t exiit. We have one.— Ed. 
[To be Continued.'] 
