ment necessary for their cure. Nearly the southern the color of a pale carbunall their medicines are taken from plants, cle. These colors affect the ocean, and most of their prescriptions have which is divided into the white, the been in use for many generations. Sur- green, the yellow, and the brown sea. gery is a science of which they know The islands and their inhabitants are absolutely nothing, and all deformities, also of the same color as that part of congenital or otherwise, are left to take Mount Meru which faces them. Thus their course. Amputation is never at- the inhabitants of the Eastern island tempted, although in the days of the are white as milk, those of the Western, Burmese kings it was frequently per- green, the Northern, golden, and the formed, deserters from the army being | Southern, brown. punished by having both their legs cut off, and then being left to bleed to death.

pests.

The Southern island is inhabited by the Burmese, Chinese, and Indians, and we English live in one of the small dependent islands. The first inhabitants of the Southern island lived for an almost infinite number of years, but their descendants growing gradually less virtuous, their lives became shorter and shorter until ten years was the length of a man's life. Seeing that

The depth of the ocean varies considerably. The seas between the big islands and their dependent small ones The Burmese idea of the arrangement are easily navigable, but those between of the universe is exceedingly novel. the great islands are far too stormy for They maintain that the world is not any ship to live in. Not only do the spherical, but a mighty plain encircled waves rise to an enormous height, but by a chain of lofty mountains. In the dreadful whirlpools are of frequent occentre of this plain stands Mount Meru, currence, and monstrous fish abound. resting on three huge carbuncles, and So large are these fish that their moveresembling a cask floating end upper-ments cause the sea to boil, and when most, half of it being elevated above they sport in the water they raise temthe sea, and half of it descending below. Around Mount Meru are seven chains of hills, and between these chains are seven rivers, clear as crystal, but unable to support even the lightest feather upon their waters. The height of the first range of hills and the width and depth of the first river are the same. The second range is half as high as the first, and the second river half as wide and half as deep as the first one. In fact, the more distant the hills and wickedness was the cause of the short rivers are from Mount Meru, the smaller they become, the third range and river being half the size of the second, the fourth half the size of the third, and so on. In the middle of the ocean, around Mount Meru, are four great inhabited islands, the Eastern, the Western, the Northern, and the Southern, and each of these has five hundred smaller islands belonging to it. In shape the Eastern island resembles a moon in her quarters; the Western a full moon; the Northern is square, and the Southern is the shape of a trapezium. The two thousand small islands are of the same shape as the large island on which they are dependent. Each side of Mount Meru is of a different color, the eastern being silver, the western glass, the northern gold, and

lives of their parents, children began to lead meritorious lives, and consequently lived for twenty years. Each succeeding generation improved in virtue and the performance of good works, and had their lives protracted to forty, eighty, one hundred, one thousand, ten thousand years, and finally to the length of the existence of the first inhabitants. This decrease and increase in the duration of the life of man must take place sixty-four times before the world can be destroyed. In the Eastern and Western islands the people are all giants, and live for five hundred years. The Northern island is a land of bliss, flowing with streams of sandal-water. Nobody does any work, but lives for a thousand years in tranquillity, always resembling, in vigor and in person, a

66

youth of eighteen. Beautiful garments, | than we," they say, pointing to one of ready for use, grow plentifully on a cer- their finger-nails, but we are this tain tree, which also produces a won- much," indicating the full extent of the derful huskless rice. To cook this rice arm, "better than the natives." The it is only necessary to place it on a par- "natives," be it understood, are the ticular stone and a fire will light of its natives of India, and a Burman beown accord. Directly the rice is cooked comes very indignant if called a native. the fire disappears. Then, while the Truly he is in most respects a much rice is being eaten, the tree produces, better man than the native of India, already cooked, the favorite meat of the who is, without exception, the most person dining, and other courses follow objectionable of the many races inhabin the same way. When this repast, iting Burma. A "native" will calmly which, by the by, takes away all feeling | receive any amount of kicking and cuffof hunger for seven days, is finished, ing from a European, revenging himthe remains will mysteriously disap- self, if he be a servant, by robbing his pear. master whenever the opportunity presents itself, but a Burman would return the blow as quickly and as energetically. as any Englishman.

The inhabitants of the Northern, Eastern, and Western islands are always born again in the island in which they formerly existed, an arrangement which It is very rarely indeed that the Burone would think would be particularly mese become domestic servants, for pleasing to them, especially to those they are far too independent to be at who lived in the Northern island. But the beck and call of anybody, and, beit is not, for they can never hope to sides that, they like to have almost as obtain the perfect bliss of Nirvana, as many holidays as working days. Their only the inhabitants of the Southern superstitions, too, are very trying to island can reach that much-desired European masters. One of them is state. For that reason the Southern that, during sleep, the spirit leaves the island is called the ferry to Nirvana. body and flits about at will, and that if the sleeper be suddenly awakened he will surely die, for the "butterfly spirit would be absent. This idea is certainly

by having a servant who will on no account awake you is exceedingly great. You may argue with him, you may threaten him with dismissal, but you will never induce him to disturb your slumber.

Like many other estimable people, the Burmese have a very good opinion of themselves, but their independent spirit, coupled with their unbusiness- a very pretty one, but the worry caused like habits, is likely before long to prove very disastrous to them. Devoid of enterprise and disliking exertion, they have allowed golden opportunities to escape them, and the trade which should have been theirs is now in the hands of Europeans, Americans, Chinamen, and Mahommedans. As clerks, or indeed in any commercial position, they are almost worthless, for they have a profound disregard for regulations, and at the slightest rebuke haughtily resign. There are always plenty of Chinamen and natives of India ready and eager to step into their places, and finding they work well, it is only natural that when other vacancies occur employers engage such men in preference to Burmans.

A lazier man than the average Burman it would be extremely hard to find. When it is absolutely necessary for him to work he generally hits upon some method which will save him a lot of exertion. If he wishes to cultivate a piece of ground he sets light to the brushwood as a cheap, easy, and efficacious method of preparing the soil. For two or three years he cultivates that piece of land, and then sets light to another spot, allowing the jungle to In spite of their high opinion of grow in the old place, which will be themselves the Burmese confess that ready for reburning when the other they are just a trifle inferior to the ground wants a rest. Rice-growers disBritish. "You are that much better pense with ploughs, turning loose in

stead a number of buffaloes, who cut up the saturated soil with their hoofs.

their spirits for any length of time. Fires are of every-day occurrence in the When a Burman has earned a little dry season, but John Burman does not money he immediately proceeds to excite himself when his house is on spend it all, for the Burmese have no fire, or make any great effort to extinambition to be rich and never hoard. guish the flames. When he sees that Consequently there are no large land- his house is doomed, he calmly lights a owners, and there being no aristocracy cheroot and squats down in the road to the people are as near being on an watch the destruction of his home. equality as possible. Poor people are His friends and neighbors gather around quite as rare as rich people, and the him to discuss the matter, and when only beggars to be met with are the the fire has burnt out they hold a conlepers, who sit on the steps of the pa- cert almost over the ashes. Most of godas. Should a Burman find himself the houses are built of wood, and in possession of a large sum of money, erected on piles some eight or ten feet he builds a pagoda, and possibly a zayat from the ground. During the rainy or rest-house. If any money still re-season the wisdom of so building them mains he gives a theatrical perform- is very apparent, especially in some ance. There is no Burmese theatre, parts of Burma where over two hunbut when a Burman wishes to entertain dred inches of rain are registered during his friends, he engages a troupe of actors and actresses to give a performance in a space which he curtains off outside his house. Scenic effect is entirely dispensed with, the stage being simply a platform decorated with flags. When the actors and actresses have said their parts they step down from the platform to sit among the audience and smoke their cheroots until it is time for them to go on again. No dressingrooms are provided for them, and they are, therefore, compelled to make up before the admiring gaze of the audience. The play is, as a rule, far too realistic to please respectable Europeans, but the Burmese follow the fortunes of the prince and princess — the chief characters are almost invariably royal personages-with the greatest interest. The performance generally commences at nine o'clock at night, and frequently the doings of the hero and heroine are strung out to such an enormous length that daybreak finds the actors still performing and the audience as interested as ever. Sometimes the play is so long that it takes three nights to get through it.

With theatrical performances and dances at night-time, and boxing matches, cock-fights, boat, pony, and foot races during the day, the Burmese manage to thoroughly enjoy life, and the greatest misfortune cannot damp

the year. The necessarily open nature of the houses makes them accessible to insects and birds, and bats fly about the rooms as erratically and freely as if they were in some old barn. Lizards are very plentiful, and creep about the walls in search of small insects, which they devour with a sound which greatly resembles a chuckle. Crows, too, frequently enter the houses, but, as they always arrive on some thieving expedition, their visits are very strongly resented. White ants, mosquitoes, and rats, are some of the pests which are to be found in every house; flying bugs, and other disgusting insects, pay occasional visits.

Several times during the early part of the rainy season I saw an army of ants on the march. It was really a wonderful sight, for as they advanced, about six abreast, they cleared their path of all animal and vegetable matter, leaving a long, barren trail which somewhat resembled a miniature railway cutting. Each army must have contained some millions of ants, and at their approach all other insects hurried quickly away. At intervals of about six or eight inches were large black fighting ants, and had another army of ants been met, these black ones would have given battle to their fighting ants. Unfortunately, I never managed to see an engagement, but several naturalists have

witnessed some very fierce fights be- | Shway O. In a large family the variety tween them. of names is, of course, both great and confusing.

The Burmese dress is most attractive, both men and women being very partial to bright colors. The men wear colored lungyis, or skirts, bright waistcoats, white jackets, and gorgeous turbans, in which their long black hair is done up. The women are still more picturesque, although it is doubtful whether the cheroots, a foot long and two inches in circumference, which are nearly always in their mouths, add to their personal beauty. All the women, or at any rate all the young ones, have long jet-black hair, which they do up into a tight little chignon and adorn with a pink, white, or yellow flower. When their hair gets thin, they buy false hair and wind it up in their own. A Burmese lady will ingenuously take her hair down and do it up again in the main thoroughfare, without attracting the slightest attention.

The women, unfortunately, do not retain their good looks long after being married, certain barbarous customs in connection with their accouchement rendering them prematurely old. When a child is born, the mother is wrapped up in blankets and placed near a huge fire, where she remains for seven days and seven nights. Considering the intense heat of the country it is a matter for great surprise that the poor women survive the ordeal.

In their treatment of their children the Burmese are far ahead of most Asiatic races. They do not destroy any of their infants, and are quite as kind to the girls as they are to the boys. The only difference they make between them is to give the boys a better education than the girls.

Burmese girls have a great liking for Chinamen, and this partiality being cordially reciprocated by the Celestials, a large number of those residing in Burma have Burmese wives. In the majority

of cases John Chinaman has a wife in his native land, as well as in Burma, but he is thought none the worse of for that, and when he dies it is generally found that his property in China is left to his Chinese wife, and his property in Burma to his Burmese one. The sons of a Chinaman and a Burmese woman are brought up as Chinamen; the daughters as Burmese. A Burman may lawfully have as many wives as he can keep, but, as a rule, he is satisfied with one. Some people attribute this to a desire to economize, but such can scarcely be the case, for economy is about the last thing which a Burman would think of. The truth is, the women in Burma rule the husbands, who soon

Their tamehns, or skirts, are always of some bright color, and frequently daintily flowered, but being somewhat tightly drawn round the legs, cramp their movements. But their little steps, and a curious way they have of turning their elbows towards the body and swinging their hands outwards, give them a decidedly quaint and coquettish appearance, a fact of which they themselves are well aware. Unlike the women of other races around them, they enjoy perfect freedom, more freedom perhaps than any women in the world. They go about wherever they please, unattended and unveiled. They keep stalls in the bazaars on their own account, and get up an innocent flirtation with most of their male customers. They marry young, but the wedding is not a religious ceremony. When a woman marries she does not take the name of her husband but re-recognize the fact that an additional tains her maiden name; nor are the wife would mean a further curtailment children born of the marriage named of liberty. Should a man tire of his after either of their parents. This ar- wife and desire a divorce, he can easily rangement is at first rather puzzling to attain it by becoming a phoongyee, as Europeans, for in a small family of that at once dissolves the marriage. husband and wife, son and daughter, After a time he can return to the world the names may be respectively Moung and, should he wish to do so, marry Goon, Mah Thin, Nga Po Toke, Mah somebody else.

When a woman de

sires a divorce she goes to the chief | are held for the purpose of preventing men of the village, and states what her the relatives of the deceased from objection to her husband is. If they brooding over their loss.

think it a reasonable one they immediately grant her a divorce, and she is free to marry again at once.

From a wedding to a funeral may appear to be a very big jump, a rapid transition from gaiety to gloom, but it is not, for a Burmese funeral is a very jolly affair.

The following is the order of procession of one which I saw a few months ago:

The Burmese are inveterate gamblers. Sometimes they indulge in a little sharp practice, as the following proves: There were two men at Tharrawaddy who possessed bullocks which had the reputation of being somewhat fleet of foot, and as each one was convinced of the superiority of his own animal a match was arranged between them. But to make assurance doubly sure one of the bullock-owners went to a doctor and offered him one hundred rupees to make up two balls of opium and administer them to the rival bullock. The man of medicine consented, pocketed the one hundred rupees, and sent the bullock-owner on his way rejoicing to back his own animal as heavily as he possibly could. The race took place, and the animal that should have lost, won, for the very simple reason that the doctor had not administered the pills. Vowing vengeance, the enraged owner of the losing animal hurried to an advocate to consult him about bringing an action against the doctor for obtaining money under false pretences. The action, however, was not brought, and the cunning bullock-owner

one.

Six men carrying long bamboos with white streamers attached. Four men made up to represent two elephants. Four phoongyees in their yellow robes. Four men dressed in green and gold. Four men carrying crimson umbrellas. Four men carrying golden umbrellas. Four men carrying mahogany-colored umbrellas. Twenty men carrying white umbrellas. Two men dressed up to represent a European married couple. Their antics amused the crowd immensely, and what appeared to be most appreciated was their walking arm-inarm. Four men with miniature pagodas on their heads, and large fans in their hands. Two men beating drums which coolies carried slung on poles. A man with cymbals. The coffin -a is a wiser man, and the doctor a richer gorgeous, ark-shaped box-carried on poles and surrounded by a number of As handicraftsmen the Burmese cangaily dressed men. A bullock-cart con- not be said to rank high, for although taining music and musicians. A man they excel in originality of design there on foot playing a reed instrument. is a very noticeable want of neatness Seven bullock-carts with raised seats, and finish about their work. Woodon which were seated gaily attired and carving is the art in which they are plentifully powdered and bejewelled most proficient, and a large number of damsels, smoking their cheroots and men is always engaged upon decorative thoroughly enjoying themselves. A work for the kyoungs, or monasteries. long line of ordinary bullock-carts Brass-founders turn out some very serbrought the procession to an end. The viceable domestic utensils, as well as funeral rites concluded, the party inva- numberless bells, triangular gongs, and riably return to the deceased's house images of Gautama. The bells, which and make a night of it. Just recently are a very prominent feature of the the police made a raid on one of these pagoda platforms, have a ring at the parties, and arrested ten men in the act top, by which they are slung to a horiof gambling. The custom of the coun-zontal bar. There are no tongues to try was pleaded on behalf of the prison- the bells, which are sounded by being ers, who were all acquitted. These struck with a piece of wood or horn. post-funeral festivities, which are some- Goldsmiths are employed chiefly in times continued for four or five days, making rings, bracelets, chains, and