RIVER BOATS, RANGOON.

THE approach to Rangoon, situated on a branch of the Irrawady known as the Rangoon river, at once impresses the traveller with a vivid idea of Burmah. Rangoon has of late risen rapidly into importance, and now is blessed with public buildings, hospitals, and lovely gardens, principally the result of a great trade in rice. The true Burmese character of the town remains unchanged, the people equally picturesque, the natives just as fond of a choice flower coquettishly placed on one side of their shining black hair, and the pagodas with bells and little gilt crowns are still being erected regardless of cost, whilst the great pagoda Shway Dagohn rears his proud and gilded head to nearly the height of 400 ft. Around it is clustered a dense forest of minor and still more elaborate pagodas, the tenants of this forest being innumerable Buddhist priests clothed in yellow. The entrance is guarded by two immense stone monsters with open mouths, tusks, and teeth; these are supposed to deter the evil spirits from intruding on such holy ground. In 1852 the Irrawady river was blockaded by Captain Lambert, and Rangoon was captured by the English under General Godwin in the month of May of that year.

Teak and rice are the features of commerce on the Irrawady, which runs up country for a thousand miles. Teak, which used to be so valuable for our teak-built East Indiamen, has now been applied to so many other uses that its importance and value is still maintained; besides, this prophet is well appreciated in his own country, for all the river boats are constructed of it. The Rangoon elephants, which are leading features in the lumber yards where the timber is stored, evince an intelligence in moving the huge blocks of teak only exceeded by their docility. They not only move a log but stack it, first lifting one end up on to the pile, then going to the other end to push it up to the balance, and then to its final position. Now

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all this is taught by kindness; there is no "unca" or steel prod in the hand of the mahout or driver; a little touch with his heel is quite enough to steer the huge animal, who understands his work and does it. In one part of the yards the logs have to be placed on a platform to be run up to the circular saws to plank. As the elephant pushes the mass on the platform, he will just step back to be sure that it is going straight and square. Heredity is a factor, as it is found that in the elephant family a good father and mother have good sons and daughters to follow on. One thing has to be remembered about these intelligent creatures—they never forgive if their attendant gives them short measure or offends them.

The boats on the river are most beautiful in their lines and curves, yet with all that, strong and well balanced. The very fine, thin counter or stern can hardly be accounted for, except for the beauty of line. The row boats have this as their special feature, the sterns of the larger craft being much higher. Then their ornamentation is quaint; no colour catches the eye on the boat itself; the beauty of colour is centred in the garments and headgear of those on board. They are fond of peacocks as an ornament, and the steersman is always in a state chair of elaborate carving, whilst his deep-toned complexion is usually protected by a kind of Japanese parasol. Fortunately in this warm climate of lat. 17° N. the tiller does not require either much exertion or much locomotion; it is an exalted position, combined in most cases with repose.

Here the Chinese sampan is now generally adopted as a sort of knockabout dinghey, with its swallow-winged stern, the rower always standing with his face to the bow.

MOULMEIN SAMPAMS.

The city is finely situated

MOULMEIN is the next important town to Rangoon in Burmah, lying a short distance from Rangoon to the south-west. on rising ground on the banks of the River Salwen, an important river running far up into the teak country, which accounts for the great trade carried on in this valuable timber. There again we find our intelligent friends the elephants hard at work as at Rangoon. It is a new view to take of animal creation to look upon quadrupeds as labour-saving machines, which these elephants really are, when we see the heavy work they do and how they think of the work in which they are engaged, stepping back to see if their work is straight and square. The foreman particularly mentioned that they are most earnest at their regular routine, more than when put on just to exhibit their power before visitors, because in that case they are not sure what the next function will be.

The population here seemed to contain a great many Chinese, who had imported their favourite and national water conveyance, the sampan, as at Rangoon, whilst the natives keep to their beautiful light river boats, with a small thatched cover midships, formed like small models of the Burmese boats in the rice trade, which have been referred to as "hnaus." The bright and rich colours of the river folk blending splendidly with the dark colour of the teak of which the hulls are constructed, fortunately innocent of misplaced coats of paint. The picturesqueness of these groups of boats