mind, has even here established distinctions at which death mocks. The poorer sort, therefore, raise the pile at a humble distance from the roof of pride.

A singular custom takes place in many instances previous to the ceremony of combustion. It is that of cutting the muscular and soft parts of the body into innumerable small pieces, until nothing is left of the corpse but the bare bones. The flesh thus cut up is thrown to dogs, vultures,and other carnivorous birds, which on this account resort to such places in great numbers. We found one of those pyramids covered with vultures, and the enclosure much frequented by dogs. The scene was loathsome and disgusting in the extreme, and sufficiently attested the prevalence of this custom. The practice is looked upon as charitable and laudable, and the Siamese arrogate to themselves no small share of merit in thus disposing of the body as food, the material of life, to the beasts of the field, and to the birds of the air. It seems probable that this singular practice is connected with their notions of a future existence, and may have derived its origin in some way from the ancient doctrine of Metempsychosis, so strongly inculcated by their religion.*

A different custom prevails among the higher orders of Siamese, which, considering that the body is

• A custom somewhat similar is not unknown to the Bauddhists of Ceylon. During the late war in that country, a chief of some rank was sentenced to un

dergo the punishment of death by decapitation. It was intimated to him that government would not prevent his relations from rendering to his body the funeral rights of his country. He re

plied that it was his desire that his body might be left to be devoured by the jackals and other wild beasts.

destined to be consumed by fire, is as unaccountable as the other is barbarous and unfeeling. The custom I allude to is that of embalming the dead. But what seems most singular in this custom is, that the body has no sooner undergone that degree of preparation which renders it capable of being preserved for a longer period, than it is destined to be totally consumed. Were it not for this apparent inconsistency, we should have little hesitation in attributing the origin of this practice to that warmth of filial affection, and the well-known devotion to their ancestors, for which the Chinese are so remarkable.

The art of embalming, as known to the Siamese, is extremely imperfect, notwithstanding that it has been practised from very ancient times. Its actual state is characteristic of that general ignorance of the ornamental, as well as of the useful arts of civilized life, which I have already hinted at on several occasions.

The process is for the most part left to the relations of the deceased, who call in the assistance of the more experienced.

After washing the body with water, the first step is to pour a large quantity of crude mercury into the mouth. Persons of the highest rank alone, however, can have recourse to a material so expensive.

The others substitute honey in its stead, but it is said with a less favourable result. The body is now placed in a kneeling posture, and the hands are brought together before the face, in the attitude of devotion. Narrow strips of cloth are then bound tightly is compressed in a similar manner. round the extremities, and the body The object of the ligatures is to

mind is accustomed to view the disgusting and humiliating phenomena that attend the last scene of mortality, it might be thought that a stupid insensibility, if not scornful indifference, would be the general result. We have no reason to believe that such is the case with the Siamese. The care and attention they have bestowed upon the remains of their relations, seem but to endear their memory the more to them. The fear of death is, besides, of that nature, that neither the most deliberate reason, nor the most obtuse feeling, can lay it altogether aside. On the minds of the multitude more especially, this fear operates strongly, and produces effects in proportion to their degree of intelligence. Where there is already a strong tendency towards superstition, this bias is still more heightened, and there are perhaps few nations more strongly imbued with this sentiment than the Siamese; and, in general, all the tribes of Mongol origin. With them judicial astrology still holds the rank of the most important of sciences, and is cultivated with the most scrupulous attention. Its pretended results are required on all important occasions, either of a public or a private nature. Nor are the most gross and revolting superstitions confined to the vulgar, as the following anecdote respecting the present Pra-klang, Suree-wong Montree, will shew:

This gentleman hearing of the wonderful effects said to be produced by mercury, became extremely desirous to make proof of the popular belief, that this metal when reduced to a solid state, confers on its fortunate possessor the most extraordinary power, and amongst others that of travelling into the

most distant regions of the globe, without other effort than that of the will to do so. The prospect of seeing neighbouring kingdoms in all their nakedness was irresistible, and the terms were so easy, and attended with so little labour, as to be quite inviting even to the phlegmatic imagination of the Praklang, whose fat, ponderous, and unwieldy corporation was more than enough to have excited doubts of success. A quantity of the metal was procured. The most expert magicians, alchymists, and astrologers were assembled on the occasion, but their united skill failed to produce the much-desired effect. They boiled, and they roasted, and they tortured in every possible way the stubborn slippery metal, but all to no purpose. The poor Pra-klang, ashamed and disappointed, instead of flying through the air, saw himself reduced to the sad necessity of carrying his unwieldy bulk about the streets of Siam for the rest of his life.

Further proofs of the superstitious nature of this people were easily furnished. The belief in the agency of evil spirits is universal, and though disclaimed by the religion of Buddha, they are more frequently worshipped than the latter. Nor will the darker periods of German necromancy and pretended divination be found to exceed, in point of the incredible and the horrible, what is to be observed amongst the Siamese of the present day.

It is usual to inter women that have died pregnant; the popular belief is, that the necromancers have the power of performing the most extraordinary things when possessed of the infant which had been thus interred in the womb of the mother: it is customary to

watch the grave of such persons, in order to prevent the infant from being carried off. The Siamese tell the tale of horror in the most solemn manner. All the hobgoblins, wild and ferocious animals, all the infernal spirits are said to oppose the unhallowed deed; the perpetrator, well charged with cabalistic terms, which he must recite in a certain fixed order, and with nerves well braced to the daring task, proceeds to the grave, which he lays open. In proportion as he advances in his work the opposing sprites become more daring; he cuts off the head, hands, and feet of the infant, with which he returns home. A body of clay is adapted to these, and this new compound is placed in a sort of temple; the matter is now accomplished, the possessor has become master of the past, present, and future.

The funeral ceremonies observed on the death of a king are somewhat different from those mentioned above, but the principle is the same. All the people go into mourning. All ranks and both sexes shave the head, and this ceremony is repeated a third time. An immense concourse is assembled to witness the combustion of the body. The ceremony is said to constitute the most imposing spectacle which the country at any time can boast.

Within the first inclosure a line of priests are seated, reciting prayers from the sacred books, in a loud voice. Behind them the new king has taken his station. In the succeeding enclosures the princes of the royal family and other persons of distinction have taken their places. It will be seen by the manner in which the funeral-pile is lighted, how much attention has

been bestowed upon the arrange ment even of the most trivial matters. A train is laid from the pile to the place where the king stands, others to those occupied by the princes of the family, with this distinction in their distribution, that the train laid to the king's station is the only one that directly reaches the pile. That of the next person in rank joins this at a little distance, and so of the others, in the order of rank. These trains are fired all at the same moment.

The outer circle of all is allotted to the performance of plays, gymnastic exercises, and feats of dexterity, and sleight of hand. The plays are divided into Siamese, Burman, Pegu, Laos, and Chinese; and they are so called more from the performers being of these several countries, than from any essential difference in the drama.

The external forms of reverence for the deceased king are impressive and unbounded; and the image formed from his ashes, being placed upon the altar, claims scarce less devotion than that of Buddha himself. That during life, while he yet grasped the sceptre, and made his subjects tremble, he should impiously assume the attributes of divinity, and claim from the unwilling mind the adoration due only to the Deity, seems even less strange, and less revolting, than this shameful, because voluntary prostitution of human intellect.

Laws. Where the government is perfectly despotic, it will readily be conceived that law and right are but empty names, at least, as far as regards the king, and his under-despots; that, in fact, power is law, and right, and justice. Yet where the interests of these

are not directly involved, we shall find in the system of laws a marked attention to distributive justice on the part of government. Necessity itself dictates this policy, without which no government could long exist. Under this form of administration the laws are often strictly equitable, and severely just. Yet though the laws are good, the propounders of them are in general corrupt; and where the channels of justice are tarnished, it matters little to the people that they have derived good laws from their ancestors.

Adultery. The laws regarding this crime have undergone considerable changes, and seem to have kept pace with the state of civilization. Anciently, the punishment was left entirely in the hands of the injured husband, the government taking no cognizance of the affair. He could put one or both of the offending parties to death in what manner he chose. Compensation in money or goods often reconciled the parties. Subsequently, this unlimited power was taken out of the hands of the individual, and the law declared that the husband had a right to put both the offending parties to death upon the spot, but not one alone. The punishment, to be legal, must have been inflicted instantly, and without deliberation. The present laws have left no part of the punishment in the hands of individuals; the crime is punish

able only by fine. The amount of the fine, though fixed, is in proportion to the rank of the criminal. Thus, a man of low rank, offending in this manner, his equal, or one of superior rank, pays two catties of silver, about two hundred Bengal rupecs, or twenty-five pounds sterling. A man of rank again pays six catties.

It is reckoned a capital crime to seduce any female belonging to the palace.

Theft Debt. The laws regarding theft are in many instances particularly severe. After restoring the property or its value to the rightful owner, a fine is imposed, and the culprit is cast into prison, for a longer or shorter period, during which he is obliged not only to maintain himself but he is made to pay for light, and even for his lodging. Of the greater number of debtors, begging is the only means of existence. They are supplied with food by the people as they pass along in chains through, the bazar. Their necessities impel them to greater crimes, and they ultimately become involved in perpetual slavery. Yet the Siamese are undoubtedly a very charitable people, and appear to take delight in assisting the needy, feeding the hungry, and helping the wretched. Nor is this virtue in them connected with ostentation. Wherever want exists, wherever distress is observed, there their aid is freely bestowed.

various tribes that belong to the Tartar race, the most diminutive.