,,among ,,the ,,burmans ,illustration3 ,a ,,typical ,,shan ,illustration3 7titlepage7 ,among the ,burmans ,a record of fifteen years of work and its fruitage ,by ,,henry ,,park ,,cochrane ,,illustrated ,,new ,,york ,,chicago ,,toronto ,fleming ,h4 ,revell ,company ,,london ,,and ,,edinburgh ,copyright1 #aijd1 by ,,fleming ,h4 ,,revell ,,company ,new ,york3 #aeh ,fifth ,avenue ,chicago3 #fc ,washington ,street ,toronto3 #bg ,richmond ,street1 ,w ,london3 #ba ,paternoster ,square ,edinburgh3 #cj ,st4 ,mary ,street ,preface ,the aim of this book is to give a true picture of life and conditions in ,burma4 ,heathen religions1 superstitions1 and native customs are described as seen in the daily life of the people4 ,concrete illustrations are freely used to make the picture more vivid4 ,truth is stronger than fiction4 ,in matters of personal experience and observation ,i have used the ,perpendicular ,pronoun as more direct and graphic4 ,in matters of history ,i have read nearly everything available1 and drawn my own conclusions1 as others have done before me4 ,if interest in ,the ,land of ,judson is stimulated by reading this little volume1 its object will have been accomplished4 ,h4 ,p4 ,c4 ,contents ,i4 ,,first ,,experiences #i ,,ii4 ,,living ,,like ,,the ,,natives #bg ,,iii4 ,,customs ,,of ,,the ,,burmese #cg ,,iv4 ,,chief ,,races ,,of ,,burma #gj ,v4 ,,buddhism ,,as ,,it ,,is #aac ,,vi4 ,,burma',s ,,outcasts #adf ,,vii4 ,a ,,nation ,,in ,,transition #aeg ,,viii4 ,,by ,,all ,,means--,,save ,,some #afg ,,ix4 ,,with ,,persecutions #bjh ,x4 ,,heroes ,,and ,,heroines #bbd ,,xi4 ,,peculiar ,,experiences #bdj ,,xii4 ,,obstacles #bej ,,xiii4 ,,what ,,hath ,,god ,,wrought #bfe ,,list ,,of ,,illustrations ,,facing ,,page ,a ,,typical ,,shan ,title ,,raw ,,material 7,,kachins7 #cj ,,kachins ,,sacrificing ,,to ,,demons #cj ,,pounding ,,rice #dj ,,dancing ,,girls #dh ,,tattooing #ef ,,buddhist ,,shrines #gh ,,burmese ,,woman ,,weaving #ij ,,worshipers #aaf ,a ,,karen ,,family #abh ,,buddhist ,,idol #abh ,,the ,,last ,,king ,,of ,,burma #aeh ,,government ,,house1 ,,rangoon #afd ,,how ,,we ,,travel ,,by ,,cart ,,and ,,boat #agb ,,transplanting ,,rice #ahj ,,dorian ,,sellers #ahj ,,pineapples ,,and ,,jackfruit #bjd ,,elephants ,,at ,,work #bbb ,,baptist ,,church1 ,,rangoon #bfh ,among the ,burmans ,i ,,first ,,experiences ,the ,chanda was slowly making her way with the tide up the ,rangoon ,river4 ,two young missionaries1 myself and wife1 were leaning on the rail1 deeply interested in the scene before us4 ,the rising sun1 sending its rays over the land1 seemed to us a pledge of the ,master's presence in the work to which we had consecrated our lives4 ,on every hand were strange sights and sounds1 strange scenery1 strange craft1 strange people2 everything far and near so unlike the old life that we had left behind4 ,but it was something more than new sights and sounds that stirred in us the deep emotion expressed in moistened eye and trembling lip4 ,thoughts were going back to the time when we heard the call1 ,whom shall ,i send1 and who will go for us8 ,and now that we were about to enter upon the realization of that to which we had so long looked forward1 hearts too full for utterance1 were stirred with gratitude and praise4 ,but not long were we permitted to indulge in either retrospect or prospect4 ,as the steamer drew near the dock all was turmoil and excitement1--officers shouting their orders2 sailors dragging the great ropes into place2 passengers getting their luggage ready for quick removal2 friends on ship and shore eagerly seeking to recognize a familiar face2 waving of handkerchiefs2 sudden exclamations when an acquaintance or loved one was recognized4 ,at last the gangplank is in place1 and on they come1--officials1 coolies1 business men1 hotel-runners1 representatives of many races1 and conditions1 energy for once superseding rank2 missionaries well to the front to extend a welcome to the newcomers4 ,what a power there is in the hearty hand-shake and cordial greeting6 ,to the newcomer1 who has everything to learn and much to unlearn1--this warm reception by the veterans is a link to reconnect him with the world from which he seemed to have been separated during the long voyage2 a bridge to span the gulf of his own inexperience2 a magic-rite of adoption into the great missionary family2 a pledge of fellowship and cooperation for all the years to come4 ,it was ,sunday morning1--though few in that motley crowd either knew or cared4 ,mohammedan1 ,hindu1 ,parsee1 ,buddhist1 and ,christian jostled one another1 each intent on his own affairs1 and all combining to make this the farthest possible extreme from a day of holy rest4 ,little wonder that this first ,oriental ,sunday was a distinct shock to the new missionaries4 ,they had yet to learn that on many such ,sundays they would long for the ,sabbath- and ,sanctuary-privileges of the home-land4 ,but soon it became evident that the missionaries at least1 were about the ,father's business1 each hurrying away to be in time for the morning service in his own department of mission-work among many races4 ,to the eye of one who has just landed in ,rangoon each individual in the throng of natives on the street seems to have arrayed himself as fantastically as possible1 or to have gone to the other extreme and failed to array himself at all4 ,but at these ,christian services one sees the natives classified according to race1 and learns to distinguish certain racial characteristics1--of feature1 costume1 and custom4 ,a congregation of ,burmese is a beautiful sight1 their showy skirts1 turbans1 and scarfs presenting the appearance of a flower garden in full bloom1 but especially beautiful as a company of precious souls turned from their idols to the ,true and living ,god4 ,among our first experiences was a warm appreciation of the kind attempts on the part of the missionaries to initiate us1 by means of good advice1 into life in the tropics4 ,now do be careful about exposing yourself to this tropical sun4 ,remember1 you are not in ,america now4 ,that solar tope of yours is not thick enough for one who is not used to this climate4 ,flannel next to the skin is absolutely necessary1 as a safeguard against malaria1 dysentery1 and other complaints so common here4 ,now dear brother and sister1 you must look out and not let your zeal run away with your judgment4 ,yankee hustle won't do in ,burma4 ,dear souls1 we thought1 you mean well1 but we are not subject to these troubles of which you speak4 ,their warnings sink about as deep as the remark of one of our party who ran down the gangplank just ahead of us3 ,when you have been in the country as long as ,i have1 etc41--an old expression1 now under the ban4 ,a few months later we began to take their advice4 ,experiences leading to such action will be described further on4 ,two days afterwards we reached our mission station1 just as the sun was going down4 ,while picking out our luggage 7it was baggage when it left ,america7 we received our first impressions as to the ,british ,indian system of checking1 or booking1 as it is called4 ,a luggage receipt given at the starting point1 called for so many pieces4 ,then we found that to each article was glued a patch of paper on which its destination was marked1 and also a number corresponding to the number on the receipt4 ,all well so far4 ,the luggage clerk seemed neither to know nor care1 but left each passenger to claim his own4 ,we noticed too that everything imaginable was allowed to be booked1 a certain number of viss in weight being allowed free on each ticket4 ,to our observing eyes1 each passenger's luggage indicated about how long he had been in the country1 or how much he had travelled4 ,some evil spirit seems to possess the luggage clerk's assistant to glue the label in a new place each time1 cancelling other bookings by tearing off loose corners of old labels4 ,this custom is specially trying to spirituality when applied to bicycles1 the railroad glue having such affinity for enamel that they stay or come off together4 ,another thing that impressed us was the suddenness with which the darkness of night came on1 as if darkness rather than light reigned over this heathen land1 and could hardly wait for the usurping sun to disappear behind the horizon4 ,first impressions of our new home we gained late that night1 by the dim light of a lantern4 ,home1 did ,i say8 ,as we peered through the shadows it did not strike us as being a place that could ever1 by any stretch of imagination1 seem like home4 ,bare1 unpainted walls dingy with age2 huge round posts1 some of them running up through the rooms2 no furniture except a teak bedstead1 and a large round table so rickety that it actually bowed to us when we stepped into the room2 lizards crawling on walls and ceiling1--interesting and harmless things1 as we afterwards found1 but not specially attractive to a newcomer4 ,oh1 no1--it was not homesickness1 only just lack of power to appreciate a good thing after the weary experiences of our long journey4 ,in the night ,i was roused from sleep by hearing some one calling4 ,half awake1 ,i was getting out from under the mosquito net1 when my wife remarked1 ,better get back into bed4 ,it is only that taukteh1 that ,mrs4 ---- told us about4 ,the taukteh is the crowing1 or trout-spotted lizard4 ,the ,english call it the tuctoo1 from the sound it makes4 ,the ,burmans call it taukteh1 for the same reason4 ,some declare that it says doctor1 doctor1 as plain as day4 ,alarming stories are told of this terrible creature2 how it loses its hold on the ceiling to alight in a lady's hair1 and that nothing short of removing scalp and all will dislodge it4 ,the worst thing we have known it to do was to wake the baby in the dead of the night1 when we had got fairly settled to sleep after hours of sweltering4 ,i have shot several for this unpardonable offense4 ,the taukteh's sudden call in the night causes some children to suffer much from fright1 though no harm is intended4 ,our house was situated on a narrow strip of land with streets on three sides1 and school dormitory in the rear4 ,just across one street was a native ,police ,guard1 but we did not know what it was until next morning4 ,we had come into our possessions after dark1 so knew nothing of our environment4 ,these were dacoit times4 ,disturbances were frequent4 ,of course our ears had been filled with exciting stories of dacoit atrocities4 ,the incessant and unintelligible jabbering of the ,paunjabby policemen1 sometimes sounding as though they were on the verge of a fight1 and the sharp call of the sentry as he challenged passers-by were anything but conducive to sleep through that first night in our mission bungalow4 ,the new missionary has many trying experiences while becoming accustomed to the changed conditions of life in the tropics4 ,judging from our own experience and observation1 covering many years1 it seems utterly impossible for the returned missionary to transmit to the new missionary1 while yet in the home-land1 anything like true conceptions of the life upon which he is about to enter1 and how to prepare for it4 ,either the new missionary has theories of his own which he fondly imagines never have been tried1 or he considers himself so unlike other mortals that rules of living1 developed by long experience1 do not apply to one of his own peculiar physical make-up4 ,but whatever his attitude of mind towards the new life and work1 the fact remains that he has dropped down in the midst of conditions so unlike anything in his past experience that he must learn to adapt himself to life as he finds it4 ,the first place to apply his gift of adaptation is in the household4 ,first experiences with native servants are decidedly interesting1 to say the least4 ,our cook ,naraswamy1 ,sammy for short1--came to us highly recommended1 and neatly clothed4 ,we had not yet learned that the poorer the cook1 the better his recommendations 7often borrowed from some other cook71 and the neater his clothing1--also borrowed for the purpose of securing a place1 but never seen after the first day or two4 ,one day when ,missis was giving directions about the dinner she called ,sammy and said1 ,sammy1 how many eggs have you8 ,two egg1 missis4 ,very well1 you make a pudding the best you can1 with the two eggs4 ,at dinner no pudding appeared4 ,sammy1 where is the pudding8 ,putting on a sorrowful look ,sammy replied1 ,i done break egg 7spreading out his hands to indicate the two eggs71 one got child1 one got child4 ,when ,sammy felt fairly sure of keeping his place1 his two little boys began to spend much of their time in and around the cook house4 ,one of our first rules was that no child should be allowed to go naked on the mission compound4 ,these two dusky youngsters had not a thread of clothing4 ,sammy was called up and instructed that if his children were coming to the mission premises1 they must be properly clothed1 at the same time presenting him with a suit for one child4 ,the next day they came again1 with smiles of satisfaction1 one wearing the trousers1 the other the jacket4 ,many of these ,madrassi cooks are professing ,christians1 merely to secure a place in a missionary family4 ,a small minority are ,christians in fact4 ,but whether a heathen cook sneaks off with a stuffed turban1 or a professed ,christian appropriates our food quietly humming ,i love to steal1---- the resulting loss to commissariat and spirituality is the same4 ,madrassi cooks1 almost without exception1 are dishonest4 ,they will jealously guard ,master's property against the depredations of all comers1 but help themselves to a liberal commission from the daily ,bazar money1--and catch them if you can4 ,this has been their custom for many generations1 and is their right1 from their point of view4 ,when engaging a cook it may as well be kept in mind that his pay is so much a month1 and ----4 ,he will fill out the blank to suit himself4 ,take his ,bazar-account every day1 and make him show the articles charged for1 but do not congratulate yourself that he has made nothing by the transaction4 ,and yet his prices may be quite as low as his employer could get4 ,find fault with the quality of the meat1 and he will bring a better article1 but short weight4 ,a stranger might conjecture that the meat was selected for its wearing qualities1 as one would buy leather2 or that they had heard of the mummified beef found with one of the ,pharaohs1 and decided that only such was kingly food4 ,the cook is supposed to board himself4 ,he does1 and all his family connections4 ,just how he does it may never be known1 but ,master pays the bill1 in cash or kind4 ,bengalee cooks are much more desirable1 but hard to get4 ,mrs4 ,judson's testimony to the faithfulness of her ,bengalee cook may well be repeated here4 ,i just reached ,aungpenla when my strength seemed entirely exhausted4 ,the good native cook came out to help me into the house2 but so altered and emaciated was my appearance that the poor fellow burst into tears at the first sight4 ,i crawled on to the mat in the little room1 to which ,i was confined for more than two months1 and never perfectly recovered until ,i came to the ,english camp4 ,at this period1 when ,i was unable to take care of myself1 or look after ,mr4 ,judson1 we must both have died had it not been for the faithful and affectionate care of our ,bengalee cook4 ,a common ,bengalee cook will do nothing but the simple business of cooking2 but he seemed to forget caste1 and almost all his own wants in his efforts to serve us1 444 ,i have frequently known him not to taste food until near night1 in consequence of having to go so far for wood and water1 and in order to have ,mr4 ,judson's dinner ready at the usual hour4 ,he never complained1 never asked for his wages1 and never for a moment hesitated to go anywhere1 or perform any act that we required4 ,the dhoby 7washerman7 is always a source of much distraction4 ,he takes away the soiled linen on ,monday1 promising to bring it back on ,saturday2 carries it to the riverside1 stands in the water facing the shore1 pounds it out on a flat stone with swinging blows1 and1--brings back what is left4 ,garments worn perhaps but once1 are found on spreading out1 to be spoiled by long rents or mildew4 ,socks that have been filled with sand in order to strike a harder blow1 still retain enough sand to cause much discomfort4 ,one or two pieces are missing altogether4 ,he promises to bring them the next time4 ,in the meantime he has probably hired them out to some person of mixed blood and principles1 or native aping ,european habits4 ,the sweeper1 waterman1 and other native helpers slight their work1 or perchance1 with the poorest excuse1 and that not made known until afterwards1--absent themselves altogether4 ,but why--some will ask is it necessary to employ these native cooks1 washermen1 etc48 ,many of these women who go to the foreign field as missionaries' wives were accustomed to do much of their own work here at home1--why not do the same over there1 and so avoid the expense1--as many of us who support them have to do8 ,in the first place1 many of the missionaries have only one servant who is paid for full time1 that is the cook4 ,all others do a little work night and morning1 their wages being made up by serving several different families4 ,again1 it would be a physical impossibility for the missionary's wife to do the cooking and washing1 adding the heat and smoke of an open fire to the tropical heat of the atmosphere4 ,some have tried it1 only to give it up as utterly impracticable4 ,others have persisted in it1 only to be laid away in a cemetery in a foreign land1 or to return hopelessly broken in health1 to the home-land4 ,it cannot be done4 ,moreover1 it would be the height of folly for the wife to spend her time and strength over cooking utensils1 dish-pans and wash-tubs4 ,the wife1 as truly as the husband1 has consecrated her life to the ,master's service4 ,there is work for her to do1 among the women and children1 that he cannot touch4 ,the missionary's wife whether touring with him among jungle-villages2 visiting from house to house in the town2 working in the school2 making her influence felt in the church2 or even when prevented by family cares or failing health--from engaging in active service1--she furnishes the object lesson of a well-ordered ,christian home1 her life is of just as much worth to the cause of ,christ as is that of the missionary whose helpmate she is4 ,i can do no better than quote ,dr4 ,herrick's beautiful tribute to her worth3 ,i never yet saw a missionary's wife whose companionship did not double her husband's usefulness4 ,i have known more than one whose face1 as the years of life increase took on that charm1 that wondrous beauty that youthful features never wear1 the beauty of character1 disciplined by suffering1 of a life unselfishly devoted to the highest ends4 ,one of the choicest things of missionary work is the unwritten heroism of missionary homes4 ,it is the missionary's wife who1 by years of endurance and acquired experience in the foreign field1 has made it possible1 in these later years1 for unmarried women to go abroad and live and work among the people of eastern lands4 ,when a young man or woman has once settled the burning question3 ,is it my duty and privilege to go as a missionary8 and has become fully pledged to that service1 there is an intense desire to get to the scene of action as soon as possible2 to enter upon the grand work of proclaiming ,christ where ,he has not been named4 ,we had not long been in our new home before ,burmans1 both ,christian and heathen1 began to call to see the new teachers4 ,they evidently wanted to welcome us as their missionaries2 and we1 in turn1 wanted them to know that love for them1 for whom ,christ died1 had brought us among them4 ,but how helpless we felt6 ,an exchange of smiles1 a hand-shake1 a few words that neither party could understand1--that was all4 ,we found ourselves utterly powerless to communicate to them one word of all that was burning1--had been burning for years1 in our hearts4 ,then it was that the fact fully dawned upon us that before we could hope to do effectively the work to which we had consecrated our lives1 a difficult foreign language must be mastered2 that we must keep our consecration warm1 from the ,a ,b ,c of a strange tongue until the time when1 through the medium of that tongue we could tell the story of ,jesus and ,his love4 ,first in order then1 is to get right down to hard boning on the language of the people among whom the missionary is to labour4 ,he who fails to gain a strong hold on the language during the first year1 will labour under a disadvantage through all the years of missionary service4 ,burdens are thrust upon him more than enough to consume all his time and strength4 ,hundreds of villages in his large district furnish a strong appeal to postpone study4 ,the climate soon begins to effect him so that he seems to lose the power to study4 ,inheriting a large organized work he is forced at once into service as a full-fledged missionary1 before a pin-feather of experience has had time to start4 ,interruptions are frequent and unavoidable4 ,how to find time for language study is indeed a serious problem1--but he must find it1 if his life is to tell for ,christ1 at its best4 ,moreover1 the missionary must master practically two languages before he is fully equipped for service1--the language of the book1 and the language of the people4 ,the formal style of classical ,burmese would be as out of place in the jungle as the colloquial ,burmese would be in the pulpit4 ,in the one case it would not be understood1 in the other it would give offense1--for one may not talk down to even a native audience4 ,hence1 to be effective the missionary must at the same time be faithful to study1 and to real contact with the people4 ,it is no easy matter1 after one has struggled through all the years of training in the home-land1 thumbing ,latin1 ,greek1 and ,hebrew ,lexicons until he fondly thinks that his training has been completed1--to get right down again to the ,a ,b ,c of a new language4 ,here he meets something1 that will test the soundness of his consecration and of his staying qualities4 ,from first to last our great missionaries have been men who have thoroughly mastered the language of their people4 ,but it is perfectly wonderful how the natives will listen respectfully to the most laborious attempts to speak to them in their own tongue4 ,not a smile at the most ridiculous mistakes1 not a word or sign to indicate that they are not really understanding what you are driving at4 ,this excessive respect sometimes leads to serious consequences4 ,the missionary1 thinking that he has made himself understood1 is disappointed and hindered because things do not come to pass4 ,the native is not wanting a sense of humour1 and if he feels sure that you will enjoy the joke1 he will point out the mistake1 and join in the laugh over it4 ,unlike other languages of ,burma1 the construction of a ,burmese sentence is the reverse of the ,english order4 ,many sentences may be translated backward1 word for word1 certain connective particles becoming relative pronouns1 with a perfect idiomatic ,english sentence as the result4 ,the eye can soon be trained to take in a printed sentence as a whole1 and grasp its meaning1 without stopping to render it into ,english in the reversed order4 ,but to keep this order in mind1 in conversation1 with the word expressing action left for the last1 like the snapper to a whip1 is not so easy4 ,in acquiring the language by ear a difficulty arises from the universal habit of kun-chewing4 ,never careful about enunciating his words1 a wad of kun in a ,burman's cheek adds to the confusion of sounds4 ,with mouth half full of saliva1 chin protruding to keep it from slopping over1--a mumbled jargon is what the ear must be trained to interpret as human speech4 ,by this time the newcomer has seen enough of the climate1 and of the side of society in which he will move1 to convince him that his ,prince ,albert coat1 in which he has been accustomed to array himself every day in the week1 and twice on ,sunday must be folded away in his trunk until such a time as he takes a furlough in the home-land4 ,a fellow-missionary consoles him with the remark that he once wore back to ,america the same coat that he wore to ,burma eight years before4 ,missionaries usually arrive in ,november1 the beginning of the cold season4 ,after that comes the hot season1--but it is difficult to tell just where the one leaves off and the other begins4 ,in any event1 the newcomer soon warms to his work4 ,first the waistcoat is discarded1 then the long thick coat gives place to a short thin one4 ,for underwear1 gauze flannel and singlets are in demand4 ,starched shirts and linen collars are reserved for special occasions4 ,high-top shoes are relegated to the corner-closet4 ,even his watch hangs as an uncomfortable weight in his light clothing4 ,in the old life he hardly perspired once in the year4 ,now there is hardly once in the year when he is not perspiring4 ,the drinking-water is so warm that it seems to have lost much of its wetness4 ,what would he not give to feel cool again4 ,but he has not long to wait for his wish to be more than realized4 ,some night1 after fanning himself into a restless sleep1 he will wake up in a chill1 to find himself in the throes of the ,burma fever1 to which he was not subject4 ,then he will recall the lightly-regarded advice1 repeatedly violated in every particular1 and now---- ,as this is the first attack he will get his wife to treat him the first day with the homeopathic remedies in his morocco medicine case1--his last misguided purchase before sailing4 ,there is nothing better to perpetuate a fever4 ,on the second day1 having recalled some more advice1 his head will be buzzing with quinine1 the only thing that will really help him1--as every man in the tropics knows4 ,,ii ,,living ,,like ,,the ,,natives ,much has been said and written about living like the natives4 ,many have maintained that the missionaries should abandon their former mode of living1 and adopt the customs and costume of the people among whom they labour4 ,it is said that old maids know the most about the proper way to bring up children4 ,it is interesting to note that advocates of this theory of missionary methods are men who never have been out of their native land1 and have spent but little of their time in informing themselves as to the habits of uncivilized peoples4 ,prospective missionaries will do well to provide themselves with the customary outfit1--to meet their needs while finding an answer to the many-sided question1--how do the natives live8 ,for the present we will confine our investigations to ,burma4 ,let us visit one of the native houses1 and see for ourselves4 ,running the gauntlet of several snarling pariah dogs1 we pass through the muddy door-yard1 littered with banana leaves1 munched sugar-cane1 and waste from various sources4 ,the house is set up on posts1 several feet from the ground1 affording a shady place below1 to be shared by the family and the domestic animals4 ,the floor overhead is of split bamboo or thin boards1 with wide cracks through which all sweepings fall1 and kun-chewers lazily spit without troubling themselves to get up4 ,at the back part of the house a corner is partitioned off for the cook-room1 the stove being a very shallow box filled with earth4 ,the cooking is done in earthen chatties over the smoky open fires4 ,near the cook-room is an open space where household utensils are washed and the babies bathed1 the water falling through the open floor to the ground below4 ,month after month and year after year this filthy habit goes on1 forming a cesspool from which a foul stench arises1 offensive to nostrils and dangerous to health4 ,this foul pool is a paradise for their ducks1 its slime being tracked all over the place4 ,the house is small1 its thatched roof coming down so low as hardly to leave room for a full-sized door4 ,many of these homes have no out-buildings whatever1 trusting to the pariah dogs and the crows1--the village scavengers1--to keep the premises in a sanitary condition4 ,some of the well-to-do ,burmans live in larger better houses2 showing that not only is it impracticable for ,europeans to live like the natives1 but that natives when able1 find it wise to live like ,europeans4 ,this is a tropical climate1 with the temperature at #aab in the shade on the day these words were written4 ,it would be almost suicidal for ,europeans to attempt to live in such houses1 even under the best sanitary conditions possible4 ,missionaries have lived for a time in such houses1 from force of circumstances1 but always to the detriment of health1 sometimes with very serious consequences4 ,to a stranger1 ,european bungalows in the tropics seem needlessly large4 ,globe-trotters in general1 and sometimes representatives of missionary societies1 it is to be feared1 visiting the tropics in the coolest season1--carry away this impression with them4 ,in ,new ,england there is a saying ,you must summer him and winter him to find out the real worth of a man or beast4 ,could all who visit the tropics1 or presume to write of conditions in the tropics1--spend a whole year in such a climate critics would be few1 and funds for seemingly expensive1 though necessary buildings less grudgingly given4 ,they who urge that ,europeans should clothe like the natives would surely allow exceptions to the rule1 on closer study of native habits4 ,among some of the tribes of ,burma the question of wardrobe and latest style would be easily solved4 ,clothing like such natives would greatly reduce the expense for outfit4 ,two strips of cotton cloth1 one for the head1 the other for the loins1 would meet all requirements even on state occasions4 ,but apart from all questions of common decency1 it is to be seriously doubted whether the ,european would enjoy sailing under bare poles in a tropical sun4 ,the railway trains are provided with first1 second1 and third-class compartments4 ,officials and wealthy business men travel first-class4 ,less fortunate ,europeans1 and people of mixed race but with ,european habits travel second-class4 ,natives1 as a rule1 go third-class1--but the rule has many exceptions4 ,not to speak of well-to-do ,burmans and ,chinese1 who1 though unobjectionable in dress1--are inveterate smokers1 the chetties1 or money-lenders invariably travel second-class4 ,they are the wealthiest men in the county1 but with the exception of coolies1--they wear the least clothing and are the most offensive in their habits4 ,the missionaries1 whether on private or mission business1 being unable to bear the expense of the higher class1 and striving to save for the society which they represent1 travel second-class4 ,now that many very objectionable natives have taken to riding second-class1 it is no longer respectable for ,europeans1 except on rare occasions when the train is not crowded4 ,for my own part1 ,i seriously doubt whether this habit1 on the part of ,american missionaries1 of taking an inferior place among so-called ,europeans1 is a wise policy4 ,illustration3 ,,raw ,,material 7,,kachins7 ,illustration3 ,,kachins ,,sacrificing ,,to ,,demons ,but whether wise or otherwise1 lack of funds has made it necessary4 ,far from adopting the impossible costume of ,chins1 ,kachins1 ,salongs and other benighted races1 the missionaries are earnestly striving to develop in the natives sufficient moral sense that they may come to regard the matter of being clothed at all1 as something more than a minor consideration4 ,it is true that ,burmans1 ,shans1 and ,christian ,karens dress more respectably4 ,in fact1 their costume1 at its best1 seems to be very well adapted to the climate and their manner of life4 ,but even this somewhat generous concession must be modified4 ,the customary skirt for ,burmese women in ,upper ,burma1 and more or less throughout the country1 is a piece of coloured cloth about a yard square1 fastened around the waist to open in front4 ,this style of skirt is said to have been adopted by a decree of the ,burman ,king4 ,multitudes of ,burmese women seem to have no disposition to abandon it for something more modest1 even after eighteen years of ,british rule4 ,elderly women1 as well as men of all ages1 wear nothing above the waist while about their work1 even passing through the streets in that condition with no self-consciousness4 ,the ,burmese skirt made after the most approved pattern is only one thickness of cloth1 tightly fitting the body1 not such a dress as ,european ladies would care to wear4 ,mrs4 ,judson1 ministering to her imprisoned husband1 felt compelled to adopt the native costume1 to make her position more secure4 ,but supposing the missionaries adopt the costume of the corresponding class1--the priests and nuns1--they must go with bare feet and shaven heads2 all very well for the natives1 but nothing short of ridiculous1 as well as extremely dangerous under a tropical sun1 if practiced by white people4 ,in the interior of ,china the costume of the people has been found very suitable for the missionaries1 and a help to winning their way4 ,but wherever the people have become familiar with ,european customs1 respect is forfeited1 rather than gained by exchanging ,european customs for those of the natives4 ,a missionary and his wife recently returned from ,africa were invited to speak in a certain church dressed in the native costume4 ,they appeared1 but in their usual attire4 ,in the course of his remarks the missionary referred to the request that they appear in native costume1 and drawing a piece of cotton cloth from his pocket remarked ,that is the costume1--you will excuse us8 ,eating like the natives1--here comes the tug-of-war4 ,the backward tribes1--,chins1 ,kachins1 ,salongs1 many tribes of ,karens1 and others1 eat everything1--from the white ant to the white-eyed monkey4 ,worms1 beetles1 maggots1 lizards1 snakes1 and many other such delicious morsels would form a part of one's daily diet1--a necessary part1 unless the missionary has supplied himself with tinned provisions1--in which case he would not be living like the natives4 ,but we will suppose that the missionary's lot has fallen in pleasant places--among the more civilized ,burmans of the plains4 ,rice will be the centre and substance of the two daily meals4 ,rice1 well-cooked1--the natives can do that to perfection1--is an excellent food1 and finds a conspicuous place on the bill of fare at every ,european table4 ,but rice is made palatable by the savoury curry served with it4 ,in jungle-villages1 and among poor people in the town this curry will be made of vegetables 7not such vegetables as we have known in the home-land71 and tender sprouts and leaves1 seasoned with chillies4 ,devout ,buddhists will not take animal life1 hence meat-curries1 if far from the market1 may not be thought of4 ,if the missionary has undertaken to live among the natives and like the natives1 he must learn to do without meat4 ,they will not kill a fowl for him4 ,if he kills one for himself1 he has broken his contract4 ,but1 perchance1 an animal may die of itself1 then its carcass will be parcelled out to all the villagers1 and the missionary will have his share4 ,in the town he may fare better1 without breaking his rule4 ,meat slaughtered by non-,buddhists is on sale in the ,bazar every day4 ,buddhists as well as others may buy and eat1 for the sin is only in the killing1 in which they had no part4 ,it is nothing to them that the demand occasions the supply4 ,so what time the missionary spends in town he may have his meat4 ,in spite of the commandment1 thou shalt not take the life of any living thing1 undoubtedly the most important ,thou shalt not--in the ,buddhist creed1 with the penalty of the lowest hell for its violation1--there is no lack of fishermen4 ,theoretically1 they are the lowest of the low4 ,but if all fishermen were to die to-day--their places would be filled to-morrow1 and the market still be supplied4 ,the natives want fish seven days in the week1 if they can get it4 ,but not even a fresh-meat or fresh fish-curry is satisfactory to the native palate until flavoured with dried fish1 or with nga-pee4 ,in the ,bazar may be found smoked and dried fish in great variety1 very tempting to the native1 but betraying the fact that too many hours under a tropical sun were allowed before curing4 ,this fish is often eaten raw1 in blissful ignorance of the microbe theory1--indifference would be the better word1 for their microbes frequently are visible to the naked eye4 ,if these organisms have not actually eaten part of the fish1 they are considered so much clear gain to the consumer4 ,such food is largely responsible for the great demand for a strong vermifuge in the treatment of sickness4 ,now we come to nga-pee proper1 regarded by the ,burmans and several other races1 as essential to a well-flavoured meal4 ,the smell of nga-pee is certainly not charming to an uneducated nose1--said a writer on ,burmese customs1--a statement that has passed unchallenged4 ,there are many varieties of nga-pee1 but to all the remark quoted may be applied4 ,the most common is called fish-paste or ,burmese butter1 made from the smaller fish which are caught in large quantities1 as smelts are in the home-land4 ,the fish are spread on mats under a tropical sun1 just as they come from the water1 and left there until in a condition which an uneducated nose would not care to investigate4 ,they are then mashed to a paste1--a very easy matter1--salt is worked into the mass1 and then it is packed away to drain4 ,the oily juice is carefully saved in earthern jars1 a highly prized liquid flavouring4 ,when well drained the nga-pee is taken to market in sacks or in bulk1 the indescribable odour always going a mile in advance1 when the wind is right4 ,passengers by river-steamers sometimes find themselves sandwiched in between two cargo-boats loaded with nga-pee1 fairly sizzling under a broiling sun4 ,passenger trains halting at stations sometimes stand over against a few carloads of nga-pee on the side-track1 filling the passenger-compartments with an odour rank and unbearable4 ,and yet this vile stuff is eagerly devoured by all races1 and must be allowed a place in the missionary's meal1 if he is to live like the natives4 ,nga-pee furnishes only one1 though a very self-assertive one of the many offensive smells of an ,oriental ,bazar4 ,many fastidious people never go to the ,bazar1 for fear of contracting some kind of disease4 ,there is much in the condition of these places to furnish ground for such fears4 ,and yet ,i never have heard of disease being so taken4 ,it would seem that one odour counteracts another1 completely foiling all evil intentions of the spirit of sickness4 ,,iii ,,customs ,,of ,,the ,,burmese ,the ,burman is the proudest mortal on earth4 ,indeed1 he is not of earth1 according to his own belief1 but has descended from fallen angels4 ,many ages ago certain ,brahmas came down from the celestial regions to dwell on the earth4 ,by adapting themselves to the habits of ordinary human beings1 they themselves gradually became human4 ,from these ,brahmas or fallen angels1 the whole ,burman nation descended4 ,the ,burman recognizes no superior4 ,the superior advantages of a training in the ,western world counts for nothing1 because the ,burman cannot appreciate such advantages4 ,at one time when in conversation with a ,burman official recognized as one of the ablest ,burmans in the country1 ,i dilated upon the extent1 power1 wealth1 and resources of the ,united ,states1 in answer to his many questions about my country4 ,wishing to impress him1 ,i made the figures as large as conscience would allow4 ,at last he summed it all up in the self-satisfied expression--,about as big as ,burma1 isn't it8 ,a difference of about #gj1jjj1jjj in population was not comprehended4 ,he could conceive of nothing bigger or more important than ,burma4 ,the ,burman kings posed as the ,head of ,religion4 ,the king was more than human4 ,his subjects were his slaves1 with no legal right to anything which he might crave for himself4 ,he could compel them to perform any labour he saw fit to impose4 ,his titles indicate his high estimate of himself3 ,his glorious and excellent ,majesty1 ,lord of ,elephants1 ,lord of gold1 silver1 rubies1 amber1 and the noble serpentine1 ,sovereign of the ,empires of ,thunapurtanta and ,jambudipa1 and other great ,empires and countries1 and of all the ,umbrella-bearing chiefs1 ,the supporter of ,religion1 ,descendant of the ,sun1 ,arbiter of ,life1 ,king of ,righteousness1 ,king of ,kings1 and ,possessor of boundless dominion and supreme wisdom4 ,that is all4 ,it was well to be somewhat modest1 as an example to the people4 ,the king was ,lord of the ,white ,elephant1 for short4 ,that in itself ought to have satisfied a man of ordinary ambition1 inasmuch as the white elephant was a sacred animal1 and had the power of making its possessor invincible4 ,the white umbrella was the emblem of sovereignty in ,burma1 and its use was limited to the king and the images of ,gautama4 ,the ,buddhist priest must be content with a more modest title than ,pongyi1 the name by which they are now known1--for pongyi means ,great ,glory1 and could be applied only to the king4 ,but when the king fell into the hands of the ,english the title ,great ,glory went broadcast--to minister to the vanity of the thousands of priests and to be retained by them as a monopoly4 ,burman officials to this day are equally proud of their titles1 from the highest in the land down to the ,ywa-,thugyi1 the village headman4 ,to address any official by name instead of his title1 would be a gross breach of etiquette4 ,in the king's time official etiquette was scrupulously observed1 even towards prisoners of the official class4 ,royal blood must never be shed1 even in executions4 ,a blow from a bludgeon on the back of the neck of the stooping victim1--or in the case of females1 a blow on the front of the neck settled the account4 ,nor might royal victims be buried4 ,the body1 enshrouded in a red velvet sack1 was taken in a boat to the middle of the river1 and thrown in4 ,it is said that this was sometimes done without the formality of an execution1 a few stones in the sack answering the same purpose4 ,crucifixion was also common4 ,it is claimed that in many instances the victim was first put to death and then the mutilated body bound to the bamboo cross and exhibited as a fearful warning to evil-doers4 ,dread of being crucified led thousands to migrate to ,british territory after the annexation of ,pegu4 ,the ugly terms imprisonment1 and execution were never used at the court of the king4 ,there was a keeping by and a clearing away1 to suit the caprice of the king1 scores and hundreds being massacred at once1 on the merest suspicion of conspiracy4 ,uneasy lies the head that wears a crown1 was true of ,burman kings1 and they had a way of making all others of royal blood equally uneasy4 ,illustration3 ,,pounding ,,rice ,one of the causes leading to the last ,burmese-,english war1 was the famous ,shoe question4 ,according to the ,burmese custom1 sandals must be removed outside the entrance1 whether of private residence or royal palace4 ,when a subject of however exalted rank was admitted to the presence of the king1 he must come in his bare feet1 and approach in a crouching position so that his skirt would prevent his feet being seen by the fastidious eyes of the king4 ,heads have been lost for violation of less important rules of etiquette4 ,representatives of the ,british ,government were compelled to follow this humiliating custom1--though they were graciously allowed to keep their stockings on1--and to sit on the floor at a respectful distance from ,his ,majesty1 ,lord of the ,white ,elephant1 etc41 etc4 ,the ,briton thought this inconsistent with proper respect for the government he represented1 to say nothing of his own personal feelings4 ,diplomatic negotiations were delayed1 for the haughty king would allow no deviation from this humiliating custom4 ,although the war was not declared on this issue1 ,english officials who had been required to remove their shoes1 found great satisfaction in requiring the king to remove his crown4 ,the custom of taking off one's sandals when entering any house still prevails4 ,entering with sandals on could only be interpreted as a deliberate insult4 ,when a ,european enters a monastery he is expected to take off his shoes1 though the priest does not insist upon it--when informed that it is not ,european custom4 ,if twenty men come to see the missionary1 the last man must step over nineteen pairs of sandals at the foot of the stairs4 ,but when it comes to head-gear1 the custom is reversed4 ,while ,europeans would take off their hats1 the ,burmans do not remove their gaung-baungs1 or turbans4 ,the gaung-baung is usually of gaudy silk1 and worn at all times1 even at worship1 by both ,buddhist and ,christian4 ,when ,saul had been informally proclaimed ,king of ,israel1 the people despised him1 and brought him no present4 ,this would not have happened in ,burma1 as the attitude of men from whom presents would naturally be expected1--unless perchance they had ceased to value that portion of their bodies above the shoulders4 ,whether king1 subordinate official1 or private citizen1 a present suited to the weight of the matter in hand was an essential preliminary to a hearing4 ,under ,british rule1 ,burman officials do not openly perpetuate this custom4 ,they now content themselves with bribes quietly presented1 usually through a third party1 in place of the present once openly offered4 ,but in social life the custom of making presents is a recognized matter of etiquette1 even when visiting non-official superiors4 ,it commonly takes the form of a tray of the choicest fruit procurable4 ,but in the majority of instances it finally appears that some favour or other is being sought4 ,poor people sometimes come with a bunch of plantains or a few oranges which they beg us graciously to accept as a token of their great esteem1 and then hang around the place waiting for a return present of ten times the value of their own4 ,the ,european soon becomes suspicious of presents as likely to prove more expensive than the regular ,bazar rate4 ,a missionary to the ,indians in ,british ,columbia relates a story which1 so far as motive is concerned1 might have been matched in ,burma4 ,one day an ,indian gave them two fat ducks4 ,what shall ,i pay for them8 ,oh1 nothing1 they are a present for the missionary4 ,the ,indian hung around1 remained to dinner1 ate one of the ducks1 remained through the afternoon1 ate the equivalent of the other duck1 remained until bedtime1 when the missionary hinted that perhaps he had better go home to see if his wigwam was where he left it4 ,i'm only waiting4 ,waiting for what8 ,waiting for the present you are to give me for the present ,i gave you4 ,a peculiar custom that always impresses the newcomer1 is that of doing obeisance1 called shikkoing4 ,when the devout worshipper counts the beads on his rosary he repeats the formula with each bead ,lord1 ,law1 ,priest--the three precious things or objects of his worship4 ,as a counterpart of this formula he goes through three prostrations1 with palms together1 bowing his face to the ground in honour of the three precious things of his creed4 ,these prostrations are also gone through at confessional before the priest1--one of the precious things before mentioned4 ,he does not enumerate his sins1 but lumps them1 declaring that for all the sins he has committed he prostrates himself three times1 in honour of the three precious things1 and hopes thereby to be freed from all punishments and calamities4 ,in respect to both spirit and method this custom reminds one of a certain man who used to hang his clumsily written prayer to the bedpost1 saying as he crawled into bed1 ,lord1 them's my sentiments4 ,after his lump-sum confession he receives the priest's benediction1 which is practically the same as absolution1 and goes away1 the self-complacent pharisee that he is4 ,what astonishes and shocks the missionary is to find a heathen ,burman at his feet going through this seeming act of worship4 ,he feels as horrified as did ,paul and ,barnabas at ,lystra4 ,but he afterwards learns when he comes to understand the ,burman better1--that these prostrations before superiors are not intended as acts of real worship4 ,he is merely showing his humble respect1 as a preliminary to some appeal for favour4 ,english officials require from non-,christian natives the same tokens of respect that were in vogue prior to the annexation4 ,native ,christians are exempt from all customs which savour of ,buddhism4 ,the idol and the priest alike represent ,gautama1 the only god the ,buddhist knows4 ,the attitude of the ,burman mind may be illustrated by what a ,burman ,christian boy told me of his experience when he visited his native village4 ,in response to an invitation he went to see the old priest1 who had known him as a child4 ,the priest was held in honour both by virtue of office1 and his advanced age4 ,the young ,christian went through the customary prostrations respectfully1 and then said1 ,i do not shikko you as ,god1 but because ,i do not know of any other way to show my respect4 ,the heathen ,burman is in the same difficulty when he appears in the presence of a foreigner whom he wishes to honour4 ,this ,oriental mode of showing reverence1 not necessarily worship1 throws light on the word worship1 so often used by ,matthew4 ,the ,burman is a religious animal1 both terms emphasized4 ,he has many religious festivals1 and every festival is a feast4 ,the casual observer would see but little difference between the street processions of weddings and funerals4 ,there are the same tom-toms1 the same grotesque dancing1 the same stuffing of insatiable stomachs4 ,among ,chins and ,kachins such occasions are scenes of drunkenness and disorder4 ,not so among the ,burmans4 ,many have contracted the drink habit by contact with ,europeans1 but the use of intoxicants has not yet become a national vice4 ,the ,burman attends all feasts and festivals because it is unchangeable custom to do so2 because everybody else will be there1 and he enjoys being in a crowd2 because it gives him an excuse for abstaining from work1 which he does not enjoy2 because he can array himself in his best silk skirt and gaung-baung1 and will find all the ladies there similarly arrayed2 and most of all because whatever the occasion1 it will be a feast4 ,during the rainy season1 which coincides with ,buddhist ,lent no feasts or festivals are held4 ,funerals cannot always be postponed1 especially as there is much sickness in the rainy season1 but weddings are prohibited4 ,courting may be indulged in on the sly1 to shorten the process when ,lent is over4 ,at the beginning of ,lent there is a great festival1 entered into with enthusiasm because it will be the last for several months4 ,at the end of ,lent there is another great festival1 hilariously enjoyed because the dull rainy ,lenton period with its round of ,duty-days without the craved accompaniments is over at last4 ,even the priests enjoy it1 for presents to the monasteries1 which had fallen off during ,lent1 will now be renewed4 ,the young are again free to pair4 ,the whole town is illuminated4 ,fire-balloons are sent up1 with reckless disregard to safety of their houses4 ,all are bent on having a good time4 ,it is a religious festival1 to be sure1 each separate observance being in honour of some nat or divinity--but there will be time enough to meditate on all that afterwards4 ,for the present it is a round of picnic enjoyment4 ,the ,burman era began in #fci ,a4 ,d4 ,the ,new ,year begins in ,april4 ,the month is reckoned from midway between two full moons4 ,any ,burman can readily give you the date1 according to the ,burman system1 but very few have mastered the ,european calendar4 ,the date is given as so many days before or after the full of the moon4 ,the ,new ,year is always celebrated by the ,water-feast4 ,offerings of pots of water are taken to the monasteries1 the images of ,gautama given their annual washing down1 and then the show begins4 ,boisterous young men arm themselves with buckets or chatties of water1 frolicsome damsels with cups1 and the boys with bamboo squirt-guns1 each and all bent on douching everybody else4 ,by some means or other everybody gets his share4 ,he would feel slighted if he did not receive a due share of liquid attention4 ,the use of water at the beginning of the year has a religious significance1--but let the priest and the pious attend to that4 ,the young folks are in for a jolly good time1 and they get it4 ,at the beginning of ,november there is another feast in honour of the time when ,gautama ,buddha made a visit to the celestial regions to preach to his mother4 ,then on the full moon of ,november another feast in honour of the time when ,gautama became a ,buddha under the bawdee-tree4 ,lesser feasts occur at intervals until ,lent begins again4 ,what with all the religious feasts1 the weddings1 ear-borings1 funerals1 etc41 etc41 the ,burman suffers no lack of enjoyment4 ,he manages to get some fun out of everything1 the funeral being no exception4 ,he will dance and sing on the way to the cemetery1 and race bullock-carts on the way home4 ,the funeral of a priest often resolves itself into a tug of war4 ,two stout ropes are attached to each end of the four-wheeled cart on which the casket has been placed4 ,the crowd divides itself into two parties1 the ropes are seized1 and the struggle begins4 ,up the street the cart is dragged with a great hurrah1 until reinforcements strengthen the opposing party1 then the cart takes a lurch in the other direction1 its lofty spire swaying in a threatening manner4 ,back and forth goes the cart1 the exciting contest sometimes lasting for hours4 ,merit is gained by drawing the pongyis' remains to the funeral pyre4 ,of course the pyre-ward side must ultimately win1 or there would be no cremation4 ,illustration3 ,,dancing ,,girls ,the rope-pull is sometimes resorted to in much the same manner to break a prolonged drought4 ,whether successful or not1 as rain-makers1 they have the sport4 ,is the ,burman lazy8 ,he certainly has that reputation1 and ,i never heard it disputed by employers of ,burman labour4 ,his services would be better appreciated were he as punctual at the beginning of the day as he is at its close1 and as diligent in the use of his tools as he is in keeping his cheroot lighted4 ,he must have some credit for hard work to leave so many things undone4 ,at turning off work he has no superior4 ,he invariably turns off all the work he can1--and does the rest4 ,and yet when one reflects that outside of the delta nearly all of the hard work of cultivation in the plains is done by ,burmans one feels compelled to reconsider his verdict as to the ,burman's capacity for work4 ,no man can tell by a ,burman's clothing whether he is rich or poor4 ,all that a man hath will he give for a silk skirt4 ,in the good old times when the king's will was law subordinate officials made demands for money wherever appearances indicated that money existed1 to make up the amount of revenue called for4 ,it was then good policy to dress below one's ability rather than above it1 or one might find himself in an embarrassing situation4 ,moreover1 certain material1 style of cut1 etc41 was reserved for royal blood4 ,but when the king fell1 and the ,burman found that the conqueror's method of raising revenue was by equitable taxation1 royal customs went to the winds4 ,young men and maidens1 and even the middle-aged blossomed out in gaudy array on festive occasions1 though there might not be a pice of loose change to back it4 ,of all the races of ,burma the ,burmese are the cleanliest and dressiest4 ,the costume of nearly all races1 at its best1 is fairly respectable and suited to their manner of life1--if they would only keep it clean and keep it on4 ,when one is about to die the friends say1 ,think not of friends or of property1--think only of ,god4 ,this sounds hopeful1 but it is well known that these spiritual advisers have in mind only the brazen image of ,gautama1 found in every village1 the only god they know4 ,when a death occurs the pongyis are invited to the house1 not to console the living1 but to perform certain rites on behalf of the dead4 ,first a priest repeats a formula something like this1 ,he worships ,god2 he worships the law2 he worships the clergy1 friends assuming the attitude of worship as substitutes for the deceased4 ,the priest continues--,he kills not1 steals not1 commits no offense against his neighbour's wife2 lies not2 drinks not4 ,he has all his life been careful about these things4 ,the formula ended1 one of the friends drops water from a gurglet or cocoanut shell into a glass1 to accompany another formula by the priest1 ,may the deceased enjoy the food of the nats4 ,may the nat of the earth bear witness4 ,the person who pours out the water drawls in a loud voice1 ,ah-mya-myo--in great abundance and variety1 the people responding1 ,thah-doo1 thah-doo--it is well1 it is well4 ,at the grave1 or in a zayat nearly the same ceremonies are repeated4 ,the priests have already been feasted at the house1 and now presents are given on behalf of the dead1 that he may enjoy the same blessings in the abode of the nats4 ,the priests do not usually accompany the procession1 but go in advance to the zayats near the cemetery4 ,at death a small coin is placed in the dead man's mouth to pay his ferry fare across the mystic river of death4 ,without the coin for the ferry he could not cross1 but would have to return to this world to suffer--nobody knows what4 ,the use of the coin is said to be dying out4 ,the coffin is swung endwise over the grave seven times 7sometimes docked to three7 as a good-bye1 and to give the deceased a good start towards the great ,myin-,mo ,mount1 the abode of the nats4 ,human nature is much the same the world over4 ,courtship and marriage are universal customs4 ,methods differ1 but motives are the same4 ,the majority of marriages are for love1 or for something that has been mistaken for that sentiment4 ,when a ,burmese young man and maiden fancy each other well enough to indulge in playful flirtations at pagoda feasts and other public occasions it is pretty sure to develop into something more serious4 ,the young lady is not likely to let a good chance slip by4 ,old-maidhood is dreaded by all1 except the comparatively few who become nuns1 and many of them are said to have become nuns because disappointed in love4 ,lover-like attentions may not be given openly4 ,clandestine meetings would scandalize the whole community4 ,at about nine o'clock in the evening the young man1 accompanied by his friends approaches the house of the maiden whose charms cause his heart to thump against his ribs4 ,he finds her awaiting his coming4 ,but they are not to enjoy a fond tte--tte by themselves4 ,several young lady friends are sitting on the open veranda with her1--and the old lady peeking through a chink in the bamboo wall4 ,it is courtship under difficulties1 but it means business just the same4 ,the rules of propriety have been observed1 the parents are satisfied4 ,as for the rest1 trust the young folks to find ways and means to enjoy themselves as lovers do the world over4 ,accepting presents of jewelry from a young man is generally recognized as an engagement4 ,many a maiden has allowed her fondness for jewelry to lead to complications from which she has difficulty in extricating herself4 ,according to old ,burmese law the sole right to select or reject suitors was vested in the parents4 ,the daughter1 until twenty years of age1 was entirely under their control4 ,the ,dhammathat says3 ,amongst men there are only three ways of becoming man and wife1 which are as follows3 ,first1 a man and woman given in marriage by their parents1 who live and eat together4 ,second1 a man and wife brought together by the intervention of a go-between1 who live and eat together4 ,third1 a man and woman who came together by mutual consent1 who live and eat together4 ,in question of property rights the most importance is attached to the first method4 ,a marriage without the consent of the parents1 if the girl is under twenty1 may be cancelled by the parents1 if action is promptly taken4 ,the girl may reject the man to whom she has been betrothed by her parents1 but her decision is recognized only after she has run away from him and been forcibly restored three times4 ,in like manner a girl who has been taken in marriage without the consent of her parents must be restored to them three times4 ,if she then returns again to her husband the parents' claim upon her is forfeited1 because the ,owner of the daughter could not control her4 ,widows and divorced women are subject to no control4 ,while all this is ,buddhist law1 the girl1 as a matter of fact1 does about as she pleases in the matter of accepting or rejecting1 just as they do in other lands1 whether she is under twenty or not4 ,neither ,buddhist law nor established custom renders any kind of a marriage ceremony essential1 nor is registration of the marriage necessary4 ,living and eating together1 constitute all desired evidence of marriage4 ,the first eating together is something done in the presence of witnesses and so becomes in itself a simple wedding ceremony4 ,this happy-go-lucky custom makes it exceedingly difficult to settle any questions in law growing out of such a marriage4 ,a couple may prove that they are1 or are not husband and wife1 as best suits their ends4 ,in ,christian lands the wife is sometimes taken home to live with her mother-in-law4 ,in ,burma the situation is reversed1 the young husband going to live with his wife's parents4 ,by a generally accepted division of labour the wife is the burden-bearer1 while the husband gets the glory for what is accomplished4 ,husband and wife are going into town to exchange a basket of rice for a supply of putrid fish and other necessaries of life4 ,the wife carries the basket1 weighing seventy-five or one hundred pounds1 on her head1 the husband with only his kun-bag slung over his shoulder walking ahead at a gait which she finds it difficult to follow4 ,the load may now and then be rested on a convenient stump1 or the considerate husband helps to lower it to the ground and raise it to her head again4 ,so accustomed have they become to this arrangement that it never occurs to either party that the man might carry the load part of the time4 ,familiar as is this custom1 it never fails to stir in my soul an indignant protest4 ,but the worm may turn1 if pressed too hard4 ,a poor woman was going to the station to take a train4 ,on her head was a heavy load1 and on her hip a child4 ,tears were trickling down her cheeks4 ,the husband1 carrying nothing but his umbrella1 was persistently tormenting her4 ,at last she deposited load and child on the ground none too gently1 and pitched into him with great fury1 cuffing1 scratching and screaming all at once1 until he gave her a wide berth4 ,it was one of the most refreshing sights ever witnessed1 in this land4 ,according to ,buddhism the male is far superior to the female4 ,no woman can cherish the slightest hope of attaining to ,naik-ban4 ,her highest hope and prayer is that in the next1 or some future existence she may be born as man1 and so take a fresh start4 ,but in this life the ,burmese woman holds a higher place than is enjoyed by her sisters in any other ,oriental land4 ,if divorced from her husband she can take away whatever property she brought when married1 together with all she may have gained by her own exertions4 ,she is by no means a silent partner in business affairs4 ,usually she has greater business acuteness than her husband1 and does not hesitate to have a voice in all negotiations4 ,the ,bazar is almost wholly run by the women1 each having her own stall and keeping her own accounts in her head1 for she cannot read nor write4 ,at this point women seem to be inferior1 but it is because they were excluded from the monastic school1 and never had a chance4 ,vastly better than her indolent husband or brother she knows how to make money and keep what she makes4 ,while ,mohammedan and ,hindu women are shut up in harems and zenanas1 the ,burmese women walk the streets with head erect1 puffing their huge cheroots without the slightest thought of being the weaker vessel4 ,the energy of the ,burmese women saves the race from going to the wall4 ,illustration3 ,,tattooing ,from courtship and marriage we pass by a natural transition to child-life in ,burma4 ,the crop of babies never fails4 ,parents would as soon think of failure of the rice harvest as of a failure to add annually to the population of the village1 and the disappointment would be about the same4 ,if nature did not defeat the barbarous methods of native midwives there would be no child-life to describe4 ,but in spite of methods that would soon depopulate more civilized lands1 every town and village is just romping full of children4 ,boys run naked until six or eight years of age1 and girls until one or two4 ,many a time have ,i seen parents1 wrapped in blankets1 huddled around a fire in the cool season while their infants and small children had not the slightest protection4 ,there is no intentional neglect1 for the parents love their children1 but it is custom4 ,this custom supplements the ignorance of the midwives1 and adds to the number of shallow little graves in the adjacent jungle for the parish dogs to fight over4 ,but baby has its cradle for its frequent naps4 ,this is made of wood or wickerwork1 and suspended from a bamboo in the floor or roof above4 ,sometimes this swinging cradle is a wide strip of cloth tied together at the ends1 with the baby deposited in the loop4 ,baby has not long been in the world before it has a name4 ,the name depends on the day of the week in which it was born4 ,certain letters of the alphabet are assigned to each day4 ,the baby's name must begin with one of the letters assigned to its birthday4 ,there is no family name1 nothing to indicate to what particular family a child belongs4 ,each day of the week represents some planet1 from which it takes its name4 ,the planet assigned to a particular day will influence the life of a person born on that day1 and determine his temperament4 ,the naming is done when the baby is one month old4 ,on the previous day invitations are sent around to the elders of the village1 who by eating a pinch of pickled tea from a cup sent by the messenger1--accepts the invitation to be present at the ceremony1 the parents make ready a supply of food1 a feast being an essential part of every ceremony4 ,invited guests bring presents of money1 precious stones1 or jewels1 which they cast into a large jar of water set there for the purpose4 ,some of the more valuable presents are merely lent for the occasion1 but they help to make a show4 ,when the guests have enjoyed their pickled tea1 betel-nut1 and cheroot1 several of the elders proceed to bathe the baby in the vessel containing the presents4 ,another repeats a benediction calling for the continuous welfare of the child1 but limits it to one hundred and twenty years4 ,from the centre of a circle of coins on a dish of rice a cord of cotton thread is taken and bound around the child's wrist4 ,one of the elders now announces the child's name1--previously decided on by the parents1--as if it were the happy result of his own meditations4 ,this ceremony is to the ,burman and ,shan what a christening is to many in other lands1 in its relation to a child's future4 ,an interesting naming ceremony was held by two couples of native ,christians1 in my mission4 ,the missionaries and native ,christians were invited to a prayer-meeting4 ,after the meeting a number of ,old ,testament names1 written on slips of paper1 were put in a hat borrowed from the missionary4 ,the first fond father to put his hand into the hat drew for his offspring the name ,daniel1--which he would pronounce ,dan-ya-lah4 ,the other father got ,moses as a name for his son4 ,dan-ya-lah and ,maw-shay they are to this day4 ,it is interesting to watch little children at their play4 ,with sun-dried marbles1 large seeds1 or peculiarly-shaped sticks1 plays have been improvised1 which1 in the course of years1 have become national games for the youngsters4 ,boys and girls enjoy the sport together4 ,before the ,english annexed the country the monasteries were the only schools4 ,this is still the case in the majority of villages4 ,but every ,buddhist boy1 whether he has the advantage of the ,english schools or not1 must spend a few months in the monastery4 ,until he enters the monastery as a probationer he is not considered a human being in such a sense that it would count in future transmigrations4 ,he now receives a new name1 to be used so long as he remains in the monastery4 ,if he finally becomes a priest he retains the religious name for life4 ,the novitiate-ceremony usually takes place when the boy is between ten and twelve years of age4 ,if not already familiar with life in the monastery1 he is taught how to address the priests1 and conduct himself generally4 ,as this is the most important event in a ,burman boy's life1 the ceremony is made on as grand a scale as the circumstances and credit of the boy's parents and friends will permit4 ,decked in gayest costume and covered with jewelry he is placed on a pony1 or1 in the towns1 in the best vehicle obtainable1 protected from the sun by a long-handled umbrella1 and conducted to the homes of his relatives1 to bid them farewell4 ,flashily dressed men and women1 boys and girls make up the procession1 some of the young men dancing and singing as they go4 ,all this pomp and show1 to celebrate renunciation of the world4 ,the farewells being said1 the candidate is reconducted to his own home1 where the feast has been prepared1 and an elaborate bamboo tabernacle erected1 extending from the house to the opposite side of the street4 ,here1 in the presence of the priests1 friends1 and a host of gaudily-dressed spectators the actual ceremony is performed4 ,the candidate's finery gives way to a strip of white cloth fastened around his loins1 forming a very brief skirt4 ,then the barber is called in to deprive him of his long hair and shave his head4 ,after a bath he dresses and presents himself before the priests1 goes through the prescribed prostrations1 repeats the memorized formula pledging himself as a novitiate1 is duly clothed in the yellow robe of the order1 the thabeit or begging-bowl is given him1 and then he joins the other novitiates in their return to the monastery in which he is to live4 ,how sad it seems to see a small boy thus shut out from the gay world1 at just the time when he is fullest of fun and frolic1--but not half so sad as it seems4 ,devout ,buddhists may compel their sons to remain in the monastery three months1 but to become a priest is not compulsory4 ,in many places a week is the limit4 ,not infrequently a boy who has made the round of pathetic farewells1 and gone through the whole ceremony of pledging himself to the ,assembly1 is back home again before night1 having met all actual demands1 and exchanged his fine head of hair for an interesting experience4 ,and right glad he is to be back1 for the feast is still on1 and he comes in for a share of the dainties4 ,comparatively few give their lives to the priesthood4 ,some enter the priesthood later in life4 ,the longer the term--the greater the merit4 ,the number of young men to remain in the monastery is steadily decreasing4 ,the same is true of the number of men who thoroughly understand ,buddhism4 ,the festivities have not slackened1 but with less and less religious significance in the minds of participants4 ,having been in the monastery the boy has become a human being4 ,but whether before or after this ceremony he must receive the signs of manhood by being tattooed from his waist to his knees4 ,if this is not done the boys and girls will poke fun at him and call him a woman4 ,this tattooing may be done piece by piece1 at intervals1 to allow time for healing of the surface covered4 ,the sessamum-oil lampblack used for ink1 pricked into the skin on a large surface causes a great deal of swelling1 and sometimes fever4 ,the professional tattooer has his figure-patterns from which the boy or his parents may select4 ,the figures are usually animals1 set off with an ornamental edging4 ,few boys have the nerve to endure the pricking very long4 ,this is overcome by a dose of opium1 deadening the sense of feeling1 and dazing the mind1 though not to such an extent as to keep him from puffing his cheroot while the operation is going on4 ,besides this tattooing of imitation breeches1 there are many kinds of charms1 done in vermilion on the upper parts of the body and arms1 as desired by the superstitious4 ,schoolboys have charms to protect them against the pain of whipping1 young men have charms to make them successful in their wooing4 ,soldiers and dacoits have charms to protect them from bullets and dah-thrusts1 and everybody has charms to render harmless all snake and insect bites4 ,besides the tattooed charms1 certain objects are inserted under the skin1 or carried about1 according to the superstition of the individual1 and representing about as high a type of intelligence as does the horseshoe over many a door in civilized lands4 ,the custom of tattooing is said to have originated many centuries ago1 when the ,burmans were subject to the ,shan kings in ,upper ,burma4 ,the ,shans1 who were themselves tattooed1--branded with tattoo-marks captives taken in war1 as evidence of their servility4 ,instead of regarding this as humiliating1 the ,burmans were proud of their tattooing1 as marks of the king4 ,moreover1 the despised ,chins1 wild tribes in the north-western hills1 did not tattoo4 ,a non-tattooed ,burman might be mistaken for a ,chin1 which would be humiliating indeed4 ,tattooing became popular1 the custom spread rapidly1 and now a full-grown ,burman who is not the proud possessor of a pair of tattooed breeches that will last him a lifetime1 is seldom found4 ,in the jungle-villages nearly every boy is tattooed4 ,in the towns the custom is rapidly dying out4 ,not five per cent4 of ,burman boys in the towns have submitted to this custom4 ,town boys are much more afraid of being taken for countrymen than of being made fun of for departing from the time-honoured custom4 ,in fact1 the town boy is as anxious to have it known that he is not tattooed as the unbreeched village boy would be to conceal it4 ,the fact that at the last census nine hundred and eighty six persons were returned as professional tattooers indicates that their business is still thriving1 notwithstanding the disaffection of the town dudes4 ,the desire to ape ,english customs may have something to do with this backsliding4 ,this is also noticeable in the habit1 now popular among town boys1 especially in the schools1 of cutting the hair short4 ,only a few years ago a cropped head would have stamped one as a convict4 ,girls are not tattooed except possibly an invisible love-charm1--but they furnish a companion-ceremony1 when ear-boring time comes round4 ,it answers to the time when a girl in the home-land begins to think of getting out of short dresses1 to be a child no longer4 ,when an ear-boring ceremony is announced everything else must take second place4 ,the day and hour are fixed by the soothsayer1 but he manages to make his divinations harmonize with the plans of the parents who engaged his services4 ,in spite of the frightened girl's screams and struggles her ears are pierced with the gold or silver needle of the professional ear-borer1 the tom-toms and horns of the band outside doing their best to drown her cries4 ,the holes are kept open until they heal1 and then they are gradually enlarged by wearing glass or metal tubes of increasing size1 until finally a tube half an inch in diameter can be inserted4 ,in the olden time the lobe of the ear was stretched much more than is now the fashion4 ,i have seen old women with holes in their ears through which two fingers could be passed4 ,such ear-lobes furnished handy holders for their big cheroots4 ,this stretching and elongating of the lobes of their ears formerly had a religious significance that is now being forgotten4 ,all images of ,gautama represent him with ear-lobes touching the shoulders1 as a symbol of perfection4 ,devout women1--and some of the men1--did their best to imitate his example4 ,ear jewelry may be inexpensive colored glass1 or of gold elaborately designed and set with precious stones4 ,once her ears are bored the girl puts an end to all street play with small-boy acquaintances1 and poses as a young lady4 ,changes are observed in the style of dressing her hair2 in her costume2 in the use of cosmetics1--for every ,burmese girl1 though naturally brown1 desires to be white2 in her bearing as she walks the street2 in every pose of her graceful body4 ,she may not have so much freedom of action as she enjoyed before1 but she knows it will not be long until some choice young man will want her1 to adorn his household4 ,the one universal custom1 common to all1 both men and women1 boys and girls alike1 is the filthy habit of kun-chewing and smoking4 ,the kun-chew is made up of part of a betel 7areca7 nut1 chopped fine1 and an astringent green leaf of a certain vine4 ,a little lime-paste1 usually coloured red1 is spread on the leaf1 then it is wadded up and jammed into the side of the mouth1 with the betel nut4 ,saliva soon accumulates4 ,to expectorate would be to lose some of the small pieces of the nut before the good had been extracted4 ,attempts at conversation are ridiculous and nauseating in the extreme4 ,when the mouth can retain its load no longer its contents are discharged through a crack in the floor4 ,the white pony of a lady-missionary was once tethered under a native house for the night4 ,what was the lady's disgust the next morning to find her beautiful pony all stained and bedaubed with vile red kun-juice4 ,smoking is begun before teething is finished4 ,i myself have seen a mother take a lighted cheroot from her own mouth1 and put it in the mouth of a wee child in her arms4 ,burmese ladies consider a cigar the finishing touch to their preparations for a dress-parade4 ,but the ,burman cigar contains but a small proportion of real tobacco leaf1 otherwise the smoke-habit would soon kill off the race4 ,they cannot both chew and smoke at the same time1 but the twin habits keep them so busy that they accomplish little else4 ,it is said that the ,burman smokes between chews1 and chews between smokes4 ,it is simply marvellous how far a ,burman can smell a rupee1 and what methods he will employ to get it4 ,has the mission work to be done by carpenters1 cartmen1 etc41 heathen ,burmans are not wanting who will regularly attend chapel services1 and pose as devout inquirers so long as the job lasts4 ,i have known fortune-tellers1 teachers1 court-clerks1 and common rice-cultivators to become pretended disciples with no other motive than to become preachers4 ,they know that the native evangelists have regular salaries1 and that the missionary takes a fatherly interest in their welfare1 giving medicine when they are ill1 advising when they are in difficulty4 ,though the salary is not large1 it secures a fairly comfortable living1 which is more than many a heathen is sure of the year round4 ,so the wily heathen comes to our people1 pretending to be deeply interested in ,christianity1 applies himself to learn all he can1 attends worship1 and finally asks for baptism1 with every appearance of sincerity4 ,one year we drew a prize1 ,saya ,tike he was called4 ,saya because he had charge of a small private school4 ,he was past middle age1 of uncommon intelligence1 and fine bearing4 ,a more earnest and devout inquirer1 to all appearances1 we never met4 ,after some months of waiting he was baptized and received into the church4 ,then began his tale of woe4 ,in consequence of his becoming a ,christian his school had been broken up4 ,persecutors had broken into his house and stolen his clothing4 ,friendless1 penniless1 and out of a situation1 he appealed to the missionary for something to do4 ,being fairly handy as a carpenter he was given such work on the mission buildings4 ,after about two weeks he suddenly disappeared4 ,some weeks passed before we could get any clue to his whereabouts4 ,then one day one of our preachers met him in a jungle-village wearing the yellow robe of a ,buddhist priest4 ,when asked why he had left the mission he complained that instead of being employed as a teacher he had only carpenter work to do4 ,he preferred being a pongyi1 and have his food given him4 ,some months later he again turned up at the mission1 professing repentance for his backsliding1 and asking to be received back again4 ,our faith in him had been badly shaken1 but we tried not to show it4 ,if we would only give him citizen's clothing in place of his yellow robe he would gladly go to work again4 ,giving him the benefit of a doubt ,i arranged with my right-hand man to give him a longyi1 such as the other men were wearing4 ,no1 he did not like a longyi1 but must have the more stylish puhso4 ,his taste not being gratified1 back he went again to his heathenism4 ,we soon learned that all his pathetic stories of persecution had been trumped up for the occasion1 to excite our sympathy1 and secure a position4 ,one day a strange ,burman came to the mission4 ,he said that he was a ,christian from a mission fifty miles away4 ,on the train he had been robbed of his clothing and the little money he had4 ,all he wanted was to be kept over night1 and money enough to pay his way home4 ,the case was referred to me4 ,i placed the required sum in the hands of my man ,friday with instructions to give it to the applicant should he prove worthy4 ,the next morning my man came to report1 and to give back the money4 ,i said to him1 ,well1 ,ko ,ngi1 how did you find out that he was a humbug8 ,replying in broken ,english1 he said ,last night we have meeting 7evening prayers74 ,i think1 you proper ,christian1 ,i make you pray4 ,he no know anything4 ,he can't pray proper4 ,then ,i say--,your ,saya 7missionary7 how many chillen8 ,he say ',four little boy1 so much big4' ,i know he ,saya done got five chillen1--one so much girl1 indicating with hand a full grown young lady4 ,so he had sent the man away without the hand of fellowship1 and returned the money4 ,among non-,christian ,burmans sin1 of whatever sort1 is sin only when discovered4 ,how could it be sin when nobody knew anything about it8 ,deceit is practiced without a pang of conscience so long as the game can be worked4 ,the missionary is kind-hearted1 supposed to have plenty of money1 like other ,europeans1 and is considered legitimate prey4 ,,iv ,,chief ,,races ,,of ,,burma ,reliable history of ,burma dates back only to the early part of the eighteenth century4 ,burmese chronicles claim to cover a period from seven to eight hundred years before the ,christian era4 ,the ,burmese language certainly was not reduced to writing earlier than the fifth century of the ,christian era4 ,early history is founded upon legend4 ,doubtless many of the events recorded actually happened1 but their dates are hopelessly mixed1 and events themselves distorted by exaggeration4 ,measured by their records of the ,burmese-,english wars of the nineteenth century1 in which every reverse was written down as a great victory1--all of the history prior to the eighteenth century is utterly untrustworthy4 ,much may be learned from other sources1 but the information is at best fragmentary and conflicting4 ,in #agie1 the time of the first ,embassy to ,ava1 historical facts dating back to the early part of the century were gathered and verified4 ,from that time the history of ,burma1 compiled by ,europeans1 is fairly continuous and accurate4 ,in giving a brief sketch of the chief races of ,burma1 the main facts of history will appear4 ,the chief races1 in order of numbers1 are the ,burmans1 ,shans1 ,karens1 ,talaings1 ,chins1 and ,kachins4 ,taken in the order of priority1 the ,talaings1 according to the theory which seems to me to have most in its favour1--come first in order4 ,this theory is that they were the first of all the many races of ,burma to migrate southward from ,tibet1 or neighbouring parts of ,asia4 ,they seem to have been of the same race as the ,burmans4 ,they still retain the same general characteristics and customs1 and cannot be distinguished from the ,burmans where the two races mingle4 ,the time of this migration is not known1 but it may safely be placed many centuries before the ,christian era4 ,it is probable that they gradually drifted southward until they reached ,burma4 ,the ,burmans1 coming from the same general source long afterwards1 failed to recognize the ,talaings as having any kinship to themselves4 ,the fact that the ,talaing language is utterly unlike the ,burmese1 both in root words1 and in construction of sentences indicates that the two races1 or two sections of the same race1 as the case may be1--were kept quite distinct prior to the migration of the ,talaings4 ,the ,burmans1 who held the ,talaings in contempt1 finally became indebted to them in a threefold manner1--by the adoption of the ,talaing system of writing1 the ,buddhist religion1 and the sacred books in which it was recorded4 ,the sacred books were brought to ,thatone from ,ceylon1 by ,buddhist missionaries not earlier than #chf ,a4 ,d4 ,these books were written in ,pali1 which is still the religious language of ,buddhism4 ,the ,talaings soon reduced their own language to writing1 not adopting the ,pali characters1 but drawing chiefly from the ,tamil1 with a change from the square to the round shaped letters4 ,it is well known that there was a colony of ,tamils near ,thatone at that early date4 ,the old theory that the ,talaings descended from the ,telugus1 and that their original home was in ,talingana1 is now generally discredited4 ,little is known of them prior to the ,christian era1 scant mention of them being found in ,burmese chronicles1 and having none of their own1 covering their early history4 ,whatever chronicles they may have had were destroyed by the ,burmese conquerors4 ,the ,talaings seem to have been in control in the first century1 ,a4 ,d41 from the ,gulf of ,martaban to the upper ,irawadi4 ,they founded ,pegu in the sixth century1 but lost it1 as well as ,thatone to the ,burmans in the eleventh century4 ,the present city of ,pegu was founded by the ,talaings in the sixteenth century1 and they have since been known as ,peguans4 ,the term ,talaing is said to have been applied to them by the ,burmese as a term of reproach1 the word meaning the down-trodden4 ,they call themselves ,mons1--but ,talaings they will be1 so long as they maintain a distinct existence4 ,in #ache they were again in power at ,pegu1 and two years later at ,martaban4 ,in #adaj they had extended their sway to ,arracan1 which they held until #adbc4 ,the ,talaings of ,pegu and ,martaban were conquered by the ,burmans in #aeea4 ,but in #agdj we find them again to the front4 ,taking advantage of the recklessness of the ,burman king the ,talaings1 in alliance with a colony of ,shans living near ,pegu1 seized that town1 and soon afterwards were in possession of ,prome and ,toungoo4 ,in #ageb1 aided1 it is said1 by renegade ,dutch and ,portuguese1 and with firearms procured from ,european traders1 they invaded the upper country1 capturing and burning ,ava1 the capital of the ,burman kingdom4 ,three years later ,alaungpra recaptured ,ava1 driving the ,talaings southward1 and in #agee followed with his army to ,rangoon1 destroying the ,talaing power4 ,the ,burmans having regained possession of the whole country1 retained control until they had to yield to the greater power of the ,english4 ,descendants of the ,talaings who remained in the ,pegu district1 have practically lost their identity1 readily and willingly passing as ,burmans4 ,the main body retired to the country east of the ,gulf of ,martaban4 ,in consequence of an exodus1 probably more than one1--of ,talaings into ,siam after unsuccessful wars with the ,burmans1 joining the many already in that country1 there are now more ,talaings in ,siam than in ,burma4 ,it is even claimed that ,siam got her code of laws from the ,talaings4 ,the census of #aija gives the number of ,talaings in ,burma as #cba1hih4 ,the number will increase year by year1 as many are returning to ,burma from ,siam4 ,thousands of ,talaings scattered through the country doubtless returned themselves as ,burmans1 without so much as recalling that their ancestors were ,talaings4 ,many prophesy that the ,talaing language will in time1 die out4 ,this may be true1 for the ,burmanizing process is slowly1 steadily1 irresistibly going on4 ,nearly half of the ,talaings in ,burma speak ,burmese1 many of them speaking ,burmese only4 ,but this still leaves a large body beyond the reach of ,burmanizing influences1 waiting for the gospel in their own tongue4 ,if the ,talaings--as a race1 are to be evangelized in this generation or the next1 the gospel must be given to them in their own language4 ,,the ,,burmese ,the original home of all so-called indigenous races is still in doubt4 ,the bulk of evidence seems to be in favour of the borders of ,tibet as the original home of the race known as ,burmese4 ,to one who knows the characteristics of these people it is difficult to conceive of such a migration1 except under compulsion4 ,in the census report of #aija we find them described as follows3 ,the ,burman as we know him1 is essentially a non-migrating1 unbusinesslike1 irresponsible creature1 perfectly incapable of sustained effort1 content with what can be gained by a minimum of toil4 ,that the race ever voluntarily left its original home1 whatever the attraction1 seems incredible4 ,the ,burman himself solves the mystery by claiming celestial origin4 ,brahmas dwelling in the celestial regions came down to dwell on earth4 ,at first they existed as semi-supernatural beings1 living above the ordinary appetites and passions of men4 ,by extending their diet to kinds of food not allowed to such beings they gradually lost their supernatural attributes1 and finally became like ordinary mortals4 ,the ,burmans proudly claim lineal descent from these ,brahmas4 ,their argument1 quite conclusive to themselves1 is based on the similarity between ,brahma and ,bam-ma1 as they call themselves4 ,philologists1 with cruel disregard for the feelings of these people1 have utterly spoiled their pretty theory4 ,brahma is a ,hindoo term1 introduced long after the ,burmese migration4 ,so now there is nothing left to substantiate their cherished belief1--except the national habit of wanting to eat everything they see4 ,in both history and religion legend is inextricably mixed with facts and fancies imported with ,buddhism4 ,burman tradition1 backed by ancient ruins on the upper ,irrawadi1 assert that ,sakya tribes from central northern ,india1 migrating by way of ,manipur1 settled in ,upper ,burma a few centuries before the ,christian era4 ,it is difficult to account for such ruins as are to be seen at ,tagaung1 on any other theory4 ,these ruins can hardly be the remains of work accomplished by any of the indigenous races of ,burma1 in their barbarous condition4 ,the claim that the first ,burmese monarchy received its stimulus from these ,indian princes can neither be proved nor disproved4 ,in any event whatever remained of the foreign tribes was assimilated by the ,mongoloid peoples who were first in the land4 ,an incursion of ,shans before the opening of the ,christian era1 themselves forced out of western ,china1 seems to have caused the downfall of the kingdom of the ,indian tribes1 if they really had one4 ,shans1 rather than ,burmans1 then became supreme in the upper ,irrawadi valley4 ,not until as late as the eleventh century did the ,burmans regain their supremacy1 and even then the ,shans continued to hold the country north of ,bhamo4 ,in the ,burman war of conquest in the south at this time1 the main object was to secure the ,buddhist ,scriptures1 known to be in possession of the ,talaings at ,thatone4 ,these sacred books1 obtainable in no other way1 were essential to the king's purpose to reform the imperfect ,buddhism of the north4 ,there is some evidence that ,buddhism was introduced into ,upper ,burma from ,india1 by way of ,manipur1 several centuries before it was brought to ,lower ,burma from ,ceylon4 ,it is evident that ,upper ,burma did not have the ,buddhist sacred books prior to the eleventh century4 ,northern ,buddhism was only super-added to the existing rites of ,naga1 and spirit worship4 ,in the south the sacred books had already been translated from ,pali into ,talaing1 but not into ,burmese4 ,with the importation of the sacred books into ,upper ,burma1 and their translation from ,talaing into ,burmese1 the real history of ,buddhism among the ,burmese began4 ,it is not known when this translation was begun1 nor when the ,burmans1 by adopting the ,talaing system1 reduced their language to writing4 ,some of the later translations of ,pali writings into ,burmese direct1 were made about the beginning of the nineteenth century4 ,the ,burmese ,pagan ,monarchy1 weakened by bad government and luxurious living1 came to an untimely end in the thirteenth century1 through an invasion of the ,chinese4 ,the ,shans in the north held the balance of power1 and may have agreed to the subordination of ,burma to ,china1 as the ,chinese have always claimed4 ,illustration3 ,,buddhist ,,shrines ,in the fourteenth century a new king1 nominally ,burmese1 but connected with the ,shans1--came into full power1 and founded ,ava4 ,but early in the fifteenth century 7#adbf7 the ,burmans lost their capital and all the territory north of ,toungoo and ,prome1 to the ,shans4 ,the new city of ,toungoo1 built about this time1 was the seat of an independent prince4 ,pegu had been ruled by kings of ,shan race since #abha4 ,in #aech-i the ,toungoo ,burman prince1 ,tabin ,shwe' ,htee1 conquered ,pegu1 in the following year ,martaban1 and after being proclaimed king in ,pegu1 extended his sway in #aedb1 as far north as ,pagan4 ,two years later1 with an allied army of ,burmans1 ,shans and ,talaings1 he invaded and conquered ,arracan1 but not ,chittagong4 ,but his success as king at ,pegu was short-lived4 ,expensive but fruitless wars1 and excessive dissipation turned the people against him4 ,he soon became the victim of a conspiracy and was treacherously murdered4 ,in #aeea the ,burmans were again victorious at ,pegu1 pursuing and destroying the ,talaing king4 ,three years later they regained ,ava from the ,shans1 but retained the capital at ,pegu4 ,pressing his successes1 the ,burman king1 in #aeeg1 conquered the ,shans in the extreme north of ,burma1 and a little later at ,thibaw1 ,mone and ,zimme2 northern ,siam becoming tributary to ,burma4 ,steps were taken to make the then non-,buddhist ,shans 7many were doubtless already ,buddhists71 conform to the ,buddhist customs of the ,burmese4 ,the ,burman ruler1 ,nawartha1 was now what his ambition craved1--the ,king of ,kings4 ,but before the end of the century ,pegu and all the territory south to ,tavoy had been lost4 ,between #afjj and #afac a ,portuguese adventurer named ,philip de ,brito reigned as king of ,pegu1 with residence at his own fortified city of ,syriam4 ,by the marriage of his son with the daughter of the king of ,martaban1 the cooperation of that section was secured4 ,in #afab ,de ,brito and the king of ,martaban marched against the prince of ,toungoo1 who had broken faith with ,de ,brito by forming an alliance with ,ava4 ,they plundered the city1 burned the palace and retired4 ,this high-handed aggression soon reacted on his own head4 ,the ,burman king advanced from ,ava with an immense army1 laid seige to ,syriam1 and starved the garrison to surrender4 ,de ,brito1 who had been guilty of many sacrilegious acts1 destroying pagodas and other sacred objects in search of plunder1 could hope for no mercy at the hands of his captors4 ,the leading ,portuguese were slaughtered4 ,the remainder1 including the women1 were carried away captive to ,ava as slaves4 ,their descendants may now be found throughout ,burma1 many of them being ,roman ,catholic priests4 ,in #afcd ,ava was made the permanent capital4 ,an immense pagoda was built1 and a costly image of ,gautama cast to add to the sacredness of the place1 and to the merit of the king4 ,but ,burman fortunes were uncertain4 ,ava the ,great was taken and burned by the ,talaings in #ageb4 ,not long were the ,talaings allowed to hold the ,burman capital4 ,a ,burman who took the name of ,alaungpra1 with wonderful vigour and ability rallied his people4 ,little more than a year had passed when ,alaungpra recaptured ,ava4 ,in #agee he took his armies southward1 conquering as he went1 not content until he reached ,dagon4 ,there he founded a new city1 which he designed should be the chief port of ,burma1 and named it ,rangon 7or ,yangon71 the word meaning the war ended4 ,a legend says that ,dagon village was founded and the ,shwe ,dagon pagoda built in #ehf ,b4 ,c41 which is probably within a few centuries of the true date4 ,the village was rebuilt by the ,talaing king of ,pegu about #gdd ,a4 ,d4 ,the great pagoda1 upon which an expensive htee or umbrella had been placed in #aedj1 was still further improved1 to rival the one at ,pegu4 7,the present htee was placed on the ,shwe ,dagon pagoda in #ahga1 by ,mindon ,min47 ,but the ,talaing capital of ,lower ,burma1 ,pegu1 had not yet been taken4 ,we have seen that in #afac ,syriam was destroyed by the ,burmans because of ,de ,brito's aggressions4 ,now1 in #agee1 both ,british and ,french traders were established there4 ,during the struggles between the ,burmans and ,talaings1 the ,europeans hardly knew which should have their favour and help4 ,everything depended on being on the side which should prove victorious4 ,alaungpra1 after securing ,rangoon1 returned to ,ava4 ,this was interpreted as a sign of weakness1 and thereafter the ,europeans openly showed their sympathy with the ,talaings4 ,when the ,talaings attacked the ,burmese1 they were assisted by the ships of both ,british and ,french4 ,but alas1 ,alaungpra returned early in the following year4 ,after a blockade of several months ,syriam was taken and destroyed1 including the ,european factories4 ,the principal ,europeans1 after being held a short time as prisoners1 were put to death4 ,the downfall of ,pegu soon followed1 marking the end of ,talaing supremacy4 ,six years later1 #agfb1 ,sagaing became the capital of the ,burmese ,empire4 ,passing over the wars with ,siam1 ,manipur1 and ,china1 we find the capital changed1 in #aghc1 to ,amarapura1 a new city built for the purpose4 ,the following year ,arracan was invaded and conquered4 ,the most valued booty was an immense brass image of ,gautama1 cast in the second century1 said to possess miraculous powers4 ,this image1 taken over the mountains1 a wonderful feat1 was placed in a building erected for the purpose1 on the north side of ,amarapura1 the new capital1 where it may now be seen by visitors to the ,arracan ,pagoda4 ,in #agie the first envoy to the king of ,burma was sent by the government of ,india4 ,the envoy was not well received1 and secured no permanent advantage4 ,the following year another was deputed to be resident at ,rangoon1 instead of ,ava4 ,he met with the same discourteous treatment1 and accomplished nothing4 ,up to #ahab five successive attempts were made to arrive at an understanding with the ,burman king1 with reference to political and commercial relations1 but without success4 ,envoys were either ignored or made the bearers of insolent replies4 ,at this time war between ,england and the ,united ,states was about to begin4 ,adoniram ,judson was getting ready to sail as a foreign missionary4 ,in #ahbc the capital was restored to ,ava4 ,a great fire at ,amarapura destroying some of the royal buildings1 together with certain bad signs1 induced the king to abandon the city which had been in existence only forty years4 ,during the previous year the ,burmans had overrun ,manipur and parts of ,assam1 and claimed the territory as a part of the ,burman ,empire4 ,the first battle ever fought between the ,burmese and ,english was at ,cachar--in ,january1 #ahbd4 ,the ,burmans were defeated4 ,in #ahbd-e the ,british and native troops succeeded in driving the ,burmans back into their own country4 ,the bulk of the ,burmese army had already been recalled to repel the ,british who were advancing from the south1 war having been formerly declared in ,march1 #ahbd4 ,in the meantime the ,american missionaries1 ,judson and ,price1 together with all ,europeans at ,ava were imprisoned as suspected spies1 or in league with the enemy4 ,after eleven months they were transferred to ,aungbinle1 with the intention to put them to death4 ,the first ,burmese war lasted two years4 ,arracan1 and all the country east of the ,gulf of ,martaban was ceded to the ,british4 ,rangoon reverted to the ,burmese4 ,but the most interesting result to ,american readers1 was the release of the missionaries1 ,judson and ,price1 who were utilized as messengers to negotiate the terms of surrender4 ,after the second installment of indemnity had been paid1 and the ,british troops withdrawn to territory ceded by the humiliated king the following record of the affair was added to the royal chronicles4 ,in the years #aahf1 #aahg 7,burmese7 the white strangers of the west fastened a quarrel upon the ,lord of the ,golden ,palace4 ,they landed at ,rangoon1 took that place and ,prome1 and were permitted to advance as far as ,yandabu1 for the king1 from motives of piety and regard to life1 made no preparation whatever to oppose them4 ,the strangers had spent vast sums of money in their enterprise1 so that by the time they reached ,yandabu their resources were exhausted1 and they were in great distress4 ,they then petitioned the king1 who1 in his clemency and generosity1 sent them large sums of money to pay their expenses back1 and ordered them out of the country4 ,the record modestly omitted to mention the fact that the strangers had permission to take with them the ,arracan1 ,ye1 ,tavoy1 ,mergui1 and ,tenasserim provinces6 ,the whole period from #ahbf to the second ,burmese-,english war1 in #aheb1 was marked by heartless cruelties inflicted by successive ,burman kings upon all real or suspected offenders2 by persistent repudiation of the terms agreed upon at the close of the first war2 and by gross insults to ,british representatives4 ,the second ,burmese-,english war lasted a year and a half1 and resulted in the annexation of the ,province of ,pegu1 which included ,rangoon and extended to a point about thirty miles north of ,toungoo4 ,in about #ahcg the capital was again transferred to ,amarapura1 where it remained until ,mandalay was founded1 in #ahfj1 by ,mindon ,min4 ,a new king1 ,mindon ,min1 was soon proclaimed at ,amarapura4 ,throughout his reign1 from #ahec to #ahgh1 relations between the ,british and ,burmese were greatly improved4 ,mindon ,min was the best king ,burma ever had4 ,moreover1 the loss of ,arracan1 ,tenasserim1 and ,pegu had inspired some degree of respect for representatives of the ,british ,indian ,government4 ,with the death of ,mindon1 and the ascension of ,thibaw1 trouble began4 ,the great massacre1 in which about seventy of royal blood1 including women and children1 were ruthlessly butchered1 called forth a vigorous remonstrance from the ,british ,government4 ,an insolent reply was returned1 rejecting outside interference4 ,in ,august #ahgi the resident at ,mandalay was withdrawn4 ,massacres soon followed1 rivalling the horrors of the past4 ,at this time many thousands of ,burmese migrated to ,lower ,burma to escape oppression4 ,thibaw then began a flirtation with ,france4 ,the ,bombay ,burma ,trading ,company was accused of defrauding the king in the matter of royalty on teak logs4 ,an enormous fine was inflicted4 ,arbitration was rejected4 ,the ,french were conspiring with the king to gain commercial advantages1 giving them practically full control of ,upper ,burma1 including the only route to western ,china4 ,in ,june1 #ahhe1 the government of ,india obtained conclusive evidence as to the nature of these negotiations4 ,a demand was made that a ,british resident be received at ,mandalay1 and that ,thibaw reveal his foreign policy4 ,this ultimatum was refused4 ,the ,british immediately advanced on the capital4 ,on the #bhth of ,november1 #ahhe1 ,mandalay was taken1 and ,king ,thibaw made a prisoner4 ,the great1 self-sufficient ,burman kingdom had fallen to rise no more4 ,french diplomatists had outreached themselves1 and precipitated the annexation of ,upper ,burma4 ,on the first of ,january1 #ahhf1 the following proclamation was issued3 ,by command of the ,queen-,empress it is hereby notified that the territories formerly governed by ,king ,thibaw will no longer be under his rule1 but have become a part of ,her ,majesty's dominions1 and will during ,her ,majesty's pleasure1 be administered by such officers as the viceroy and government of ,india may from time to time appoint4 ,it will be seen that the ,burmese throughout their history have been a warlike people4 ,the adoption of ,buddhism1 as the national religion1 with its strict rules concerning the taking of life1 does not seem to have wrought any change in this respect4 ,the grossest cruelties were practiced1 suspected conspirators slaughtered by hundreds1 generals who had failed in battle1 as well as others of high rank or noble blood were executed1 sewed up in red sacks1 and sunk in the ,irrawadi ,river4 ,sometimes the preliminary execution was dispensed with4 ,victorious kings built great pagodas1 at the expense of the people1 to expiate their sins of bloodshed1--and then renewed the carnage4 ,the cruelties inflicted upon ,judson and his companions at ,ava and ,aungbinle2 the history of ,burman dacoity since the ,english occupation2 together with many other evidences1--stamp the ,burman as far from being the tolerant1 peace-loving1 life-reverencing character that many of his admirers1 on the interest of ,buddhism1 or ,theosophy1 have pictured4 ,it is said that a professor in a certain theological seminary1 seeking to cast discredit on the historical authenticity of the ,book of ,daniel1 called the attention of his class to the unlikelihood that any ,oriental monarch would have issued such decrees as are attributed to ,nebuchadnezzar1 in the third chapter4 ,to say nothing of ,mohammedan fanaticism1 familiarity with ,oriental character as exhibited by ,burman kings would have dispelled the professor's doubts4 ,when ,naungdawgyi had completed the great ,shwe ,dagon pagoda1 in comparison with which ,nebuchadnezzar's image was ,liliputian1 he made a decree that all peoples must fall down and worship it1 on penalty of death4 ,the majority of the people being spirit-worshippers1 the decree could not be enforced4 ,to let himself down easily1 the king commanded that a nat-sin1 or spirit-house be erected near the pagoda4 ,the people coming to make offerings to the nats--would also be coming to the pagoda1 and so the decree would be obeyed1 and1 in time1 its purpose effected4 ,the character of the ,burman king ,bodaw-para1 who was on the throne when ,judson came to ,burma1 is thus described by ,father ,san-,germano1 who lived in ,burma twenty years during this king's reign4 ,his very countenance is the index of a mind ferocious and inhuman in the highest degree1--and it would not be an exaggeration to assert that during his reign more victims have fallen by the hand of the executioner than by the sword of the common enemy4444 ,the good fortune that has attended him 444 has inspired him with the idea that he is something more than mortal1 and that this privilege has been granted him on account of his numerous good works4444 ,a few years since he thought to make himself a god4 ,he did in fact1 proclaim himself as the fulfillment of the national expectation of a fifth ,buddha4 ,priests who refused to recognize his claims1 were punished4 ,who can doubt that the late ,king ,thibaw would have been quite capable of repeating ,nebuchadnezzar's decree1 had he thought of it1 and seen any advantage in it1 to himself4 ,the census of #aija gives the total population of the province as #aj1dij1fbd4 ,of this total the ,burmese number #f1ejh1fhb1 while the number returning the ,burmese language as their ordinary tongue was #g1jjf1die4 ,the total number of ,buddhists1 including the ,shans and ,talaings1 is #i1ahd1aba4 ,the area of the province is #bhf1gch square miles4 ,to the casual visitor the country seems to be peopled almost exclusively by ,burmese1 and ,buddhism the only form of worship1 the other races inhabiting isolated parts of the country1 far removed from the main lines of travel4 ,the population of ,rangoon is about #bce1jjj4 ,buddhists and ,hindus number about the same1 with more than half as many ,musalmans as of either4 ,fifty per cent4 of the population are immigrants4 ,rangoon is no longer a ,burman city4 ,in ,mandalay1 their last capital1 and second city of ,burma1 the situation is quite different4 ,in a total of #agh1jjj over #aeb1jjj are ,buddhists4 ,this city has been in existence only sixty-three years4 ,its outward appearance is much the same as it was when taken by the ,british in #ahhe4 ,the same brick wall1 twenty-six feet high1 with its crenelated top1 a mile and a quarter on each side of the square1 forming an impregnable 767 barrier against all comers1--still surrounds what was the royal town4 ,on each side are three gates1 reached by bridges across the wide moat1 which is kept filled with water by a connection with a natural lake a few miles to the northeast4 ,illustration3 ,,burmese ,,woman ,,weaving ,inside of the walled town comparatively little now remains as it was when captured4 ,the natives occupying thatched houses1 were compelled to move outside the wall1 taking their shanties with them4 ,for this they were amply compensated by the ,british ,indian ,government4 ,a large city1 regularly laid out with straight wide streets1 was already flourishing outside of the walled section4 ,within the walls the palace and monasteries still remain1 the former now being restored by the provincial government1 at great expense4 ,services of the ,church of ,england are held in one of the large halls4 ,in one of the buildings near the palace the ,mandalay ,club is comfortably established4 ,several old cannon1 used by the ,burmese in their wars1 more for the noise they could make than for any death-dealing powers they possessed1 now adorn the grounds4 ,the king's monastery1 and the queen's monastery1 are objects of interest4 ,near the former is the site of the ,incomparable temple1 destroyed by fire in #ahib4 ,this immense structure1 with its gilded columns and lofty ceiling1 was the grandest building in the city4 ,near by is a huge pagoda within a high rectangular wall4 ,the space enclosed is subdivided into three compartments by low walls extending around the pagoda1 to represent the threefold division of the ,buddhist scriptures4 ,these spaces contain seven hundred and twenty shrines about fifteen feet high1 their tops supported by four columns4 ,in the centre of each shrine1 set like a gravestone in the cement floor1 is a stone tablet about three feet wide by five and a half feet high1 covered on both sides with portions of the sacred writings4 ,the floor around each tablet is polished by the bare feet of many devotees1--for the ,law is one of the three precious things of ,buddhism--commanding their worship4 ,for all this immense outlay of time and money devoted to sacred objects ,mindon ,min is supposed to have secured the royal merit1 freeing him from the countless existences through which the ordinary mortal must pass4 ,the prevailing impression that as a result of the monastic school system all of the ,burmese males can read and write1 is not corroborated by the recent census4 ,a little less than half 7#dij in each #a1jjj7 are able to both read and write4 ,doubtless a large majority spent enough of their childhood in the monastery to acquire these accomplishments1 but1 to many1 they have become lost arts1 through disuse4 ,only fifty-five in each thousand of ,burmese women can read and write4 ,girls are not admitted to monastic schools4 ,this small gain is chiefly due to mission schools4 ,the demand for female education is rapidly increasing4 ,all ,burmans1 except the relatively small number of converts to ,christianity1 are ,buddhists4 ,nearly all are worshippers of idols4 ,a sect called ,paramats was founded at the beginning of last century4 ,the ,paramats will have nothing to do with pagodas and idols4 ,they respect the ordinary ,buddhist priests1 as representatives of ,gautama1 who was the incarnation of eternal wisdom4 ,they do not hold that eternal wisdom is reincarnated in the priests1 and therefore do not worship them as orthodox ,buddhists do4 ,this eternal wisdom1 which existed before the world was made1 and will exist throughout eternity1 fills all space1 but exercises no influence over this world4 ,eternal wisdom is not1 except in a very vague sense1 personified--as an equivalent of the ,christian conception of an eternal ,god4 ,but the ,paramats have the germ of a true belief1 and1 as a rule1 are thinking men1 which is more than can be said of the ordinary ,buddhist4 ,numerous in the district midway between ,mandalay1 and ,rangoon1 they furnish a hopeful field for missionary effort4 ,,the ,,shans ,the ,shans rank second in point of numbers4 ,max ,muller held that the ,shans were the first to leave their original home in western ,china4 ,contact with the ,chinese has left its mark upon them1 sufficient1 apart from other evidence1 to prove their origin4 ,having been forced out of western ,china they drifted southward1 and founded some of the large towns in the territory now known as ,shan-land as early as #djj1 or #ejj ,b4 ,c4--if their own chronicles can be believed4 ,but at this point different conclusions have been reached from the same sources of information1 some accepting these dates as approximately correct1 others rejecting them as too remote by several centuries4 ,indeed1 it is difficult to determine whether the first migration was southward1 or to the southwest1 or whether there were two migrations simultaneously4 ,as we have seen in our study of the ,burmese1 the ,shans were supreme on the ,upper ,irrawadi early in the ,christian era1 having expelled the ,burmese and taken possession of that part of the country4 ,it may have been as early as #djj or #ejj ,b4 ,c41 when they overthrew the ,tagaung monarchy4 ,my own view is that the ,shans first migrated to the southwest across the ,namkham valley1 founding the ,maw ,kingdom1 which finally extended to the ,irrawadi and ,chindwin rivers in northern ,burma4 ,and that not until several centuries later did they extend their sway to the southeast1 founding ,thibaw1 ,mone1 and other towns4 ,that there is a discrepancy of ten centuries or more between this view and the ,shan ,chronicles1 in which the most striking feature is exaggeration1 need not disturb any one4 ,in fact1 a sound principle of interpretation of legendary history1 whether ,burmese or ,shan1 is to cut down its figures by about one half4 ,near the end of the tenth century the ,shans occupied ,arracan about eighteen years4 ,the ,shan kingdom continued until overcome by the ,burmese1 in the middle of the eleventh century4 ,they still remained in power in the far north4 ,in #abha ,shans from ,siam joining with ,shans of ,martaban1 conquered ,martaban1 then with assistance of ,shans from the north they captured ,pegu from the ,burmans4 ,at the beginning of the fourteenth century the ,shans were again in the ascendant in ,upper ,burma1 the ,burmans having been weakened by ,chinese invasions4 ,the ,shans now ruled the country from the upper reaches of the ,irrawadi as far south as ,prome1 but not including ,toungoo4 ,all ,burma was threatened with ,shan supremacy4 ,this might have been realized but for the ,shan emperor's own recklessness and tyranny1 working his own downfall4 ,kings of ,shan race controlled ,pegu from #abha until conquered by the ,toungoo ,burman prince1 ,tabin ,shwe' ,htee1 in #aeci4 ,the ,shan power in the north having become weakened1 the ,burmese in #aeed1 captured ,ava1 and in #aeeg conquered the ,shans throughout the ,upper ,irrawadi region4 ,thibaw1 ,mone1 and ,zimme in northern ,siam1 fell to the ,burmans a year later4 ,the ,shans seem to have remained subject to the ,burman kings until the annexation of ,upper ,burma2 and sometimes assisted the ,burmans in their wars with the ,talaings and ,siamese4 ,the census of #aija gives a total of #gea1gei ,shan-speaking people4 ,besides the northern and southern ,shan ,states1 a large number of ,shans are still found in ,upper ,burma1 and many ,shan villages throughout ,lower ,burma4 ,it is not definitely known when the ,shans adopted ,buddhism4 ,there are evidences that the ,shans1 who were supreme on the ,upper ,irrawadi at the opening of the ,christian era1 and for several centuries after1 were influenced by ,buddhism introduced from ,india by way of ,manipur1 and that many accepted it4 ,after the introduction of ,buddhism from the south it spread rapidly among the ,burmese1 and through them to the ,shans1 becoming the national religion of both races4 ,it is said that many ,shan ,buddhist priests sought reordination according to the rules of the southern type of ,buddhism4 ,the ,shans established monasteries throughout their country4 ,under the later ,burman kings1 ,burman priests were sent to propagate ,buddhism in the ,shan country4 ,in some places the sacred books were destroyed1 and other books written in the ,burmese language substituted1 ,burmese becoming the language of the ,monastic schools for ,shan boys4 ,burman kings adopted the same tactics in dealing with the ,talaings4 ,the customs of the ,shans and the ,burmese are much the same1 but their costume is more like that of the ,chinese4 ,the same is true of the ,karen costume4 ,though differing from the costume of the ,shan1 both seem to have been derived from their contact with the ,chinese before their migration to ,burma4 ,the broad lopped-rim ,shan hat and flowing trousers with the seat between the knees differentiate the ,shan from other races4 ,they have a written language1 adopted from the ,burmese1--some four or five hundred years ago1--as the ,burmese had adopted theirs from the ,talaing4 ,,the ,,karens ,the ,karens found their way in ,burma from western ,china2 forced southward by the ,chinese4 ,then when the ,shans were in like manner driven into ,burma1 the ,karens were pushed on still further south1 like driftwood before the tide4 ,their original home is uncertain4 ,it seems evident that at a much earlier period they had migrated into western ,china from some place still further north4 ,one of their own traditions is that their ancestors1 in their wanderings1 crossed a river of sand4 ,the desert of ,gobi best answers to their tradition4 ,other traditions point to western ,china as their early home4 ,it is not unlikely that the tradition of the river of sand is much the older1 and these traditions taken together mark the progress of the ,karens in at least two widely separated migrations southward4 ,the ,karens strongly resemble certain hill-tribes now living in western ,china2 in fact some of the ,karens have identically the same customs1 as these ,china hill-tribes1 who are also said to have the tradition of a river of sand4 ,there are three main divisions of the ,karens1 known as ,pwo1 ,sgaw1 and ,karennee or ,red ,karens4 ,this threefold division antedates their migration to ,burma4 ,the ,pwos1 sometimes called the mother race1 are supposed to have been the first arrivals1 working their way south by the way of the valleys of the ,salwen and ,mekong ,rivers2 followed by the ,sgaws1 and finally by the ,karennees1 though it is doubtful whether there was any interval between these main divisions in the general migration4 ,but in some way they have--to this day--maintained the distinction4 ,it is probable that for a time the ,karens held the territory now known as the eastern ,shan states1 and all the upper ,salwen region4 ,the coming of the ,shans1 whether from the north or west1 drove them southward1 each of these tribal divisions advancing under compulsion in the same order in which they first entered the country4 ,the ,pwos are now found in the delta and still farther south in the ,maulmain district2 the ,karennees farther north1 bordering on the ,shan country1 and east to the ,siam border2 the ,sgaws keeping to the central territory1 in the ,toungoo district and diagonally across to ,bassein1 sharing parts of the delta with the ,pwos4 ,a large body of ,sgaw ,karens1 as well as many ,pwos1 are found in the ,tavoy district1 farthest south of all4 ,the ,tavoy ,karens drifted in from ,siam1 not extending to the seacoast until early in the last century4 ,there is now a continuous chain of ,karens from ,tavoy far into the north of ,siam4 ,in general1 the ,karens live in the highlands1 the ,burmans occupying the plains4 ,formerly this was partly from choice1 but unavoidable whether from choice or not1 on account of the cruel oppression suffered at the hands of the more powerful ,burmans4 ,but under ,british rule many ,karens have come down to the plains1 and forming villages of their own1 have engaged in cultivation4 ,they still like to be within easy reach of the mountains1 to which they resort for game and other food4 ,in the shady ravines they have profitable gardens of betel 7areca7 palms1 the nut being essential to any native's happiness1 and commanding a ready sale4 ,some writers have advanced the theory that the religious traditions of the ,karens were derived from their supposed contact with ,nestorian ,jews in western ,china4 ,this can hardly be true--as it places the migration of the ,karens to ,burma at much too late a date4 ,the ,nestorians did not begin their work in western ,china until #eje ,a4 ,d41 closing it in #acfh1 when they were expelled by the ,mongols4 ,it seems certain that the ,karens were already in ,burma long before the ,nestorian missionaries went to ,china4 7,marco ,polo's ,roman ,catholic mission-work in western ,china did not begin until #abga47 ,if it is true that the large towns in ,shan-land were founded by the ,shans four or five hundred years before the ,christian era1 the migration of the ,karens must be placed at an even earlier period1--but that early date is doubtful4 ,the non-,christian ,karens are1 and always have been spirit-worshippers4 ,this so-called worship is limited to propitiatory sacrifice4 ,in this respect they are at one with all the races of ,burma1 not excepting the ,burman ,buddhists1 though the latter have abandoned bloody sacrifice4 ,before the adoption of ,buddhism the ,burmans1 ,shans and ,talaings were spirit-worshippers pure and simple4 ,spirit-worshippers they still are1 with the forms of ,buddhism for a veneering4 ,but the ,karens have many religious traditions1 so closely following the ,bible accounts of the creation1 fall1 flood1 and other events as to furnish strong evidence that in bygone ages their ancestors somewhere were in touch with the people of ,god4 ,in spite of their spirit-worship they have retained a belief in a ,supreme ,being1 and long looked forward to the time when ,god's ,word1 which they had lost1 should be restored to them4 ,god was believed to be a benevolent ,being1 but so far away that he had nothing to do with men4 ,all spirits were believed to be evil1 vengeful and near at hand4 ,therefore the ,supreme ,being was left out of their worship1 and sacrifices offered to propitiate evil spirits who might work harm to them1 by causing sickness1 destruction of crops1 and many other possible misfortunes4 ,the ,karens contend that in making offerings to the evil spirits they were not showing disloyalty to the ,supreme ,being4 ,they illustrate their position by the following story3 ,some children left in a place of supposed safety by their parents1 were so frightened by the approach of a tiger that they threw down the cliff some pigs that had taken refuge with them4 ,their eyes1 however1 were not fixed on the tiger1 but on the path by which they expected their father to come4 ,their hands fed the tiger from fear1 but their ears were eagerly listening for the twang of their father's bowstring1 which should send the arrow quivering into the tiger's heart4 ,and so1 although we have to make sacrifices to demons1 our hearts are still true to ,god4 ,we must throw sops to the demons who afflict us1 but our hearts were looking for ,god4 ,the history of the ,karens in ,burma has been a sad one4 ,for centuries they had been grievously oppressed by the ,burmans1 who robbed them1 carried away captives into slavery1 and kept the ,karens pent up in the most inaccessible parts of the mountain ranges4 ,under ,british rule the ,karens are safe from serious molestation1 but the old feeling still remains1 and they hold aloof from the ,burman as much as possible4 ,the coming of the ,christian missionary1 restoring to them the knowledge of the true ,god so vaguely known through their traditions1 was the great event to which the whole ,karen nation had so long looked forward4 ,multitudes readily accepted ,christianity4 ,by its power they were emancipated from the domination of evil spirits2 the swords and spears of tribal feuds were forged into pruning hooks2 and the whole ,christian world rejoiced in the glorious spectacle of ,a nation in a day4 ,the census of #aija gives a total of nearly #gad1jjj ,karens1 of all tribes4 ,many more are found in ,siam4 ,it has been asserted that more languages are spoken in ,assam than in any other country in the world4 ,the same may be said of ,burma4 ,the recent census recognized fifty-seven indigenous races or tribes1 and as many more non-indigenous4 ,in the ,toungoo district the missionaries meet with several ,karen dialects not mentioned in the census enumeration1 but so distinct that one tribe does not understand the dialect of another4 ,in some localities one meets with a new dialect in each village through which he passes in a day's journey4 ,ye shades of ,shinar6 confusion of tongues1--twice confounded4 ,it seems incredible that so many families of one race1 occupying the same territory1 and with practically the same habits1 customs1 and superstitions1--should each perpetuate for centuries its own peculiar dialect and clannish exclusiveness4 ,the missionary or official1 to do effective work among such a people1 needs a small army of interpreters at his heels4 ,,the ,,kachins ,the ,kachins inhabit the extreme northern part of ,burma1 extending as far south as the ,bhamo and ,namkham districts1 and east into ,china4 ,the ,kachins are own cousins to the ,nagas of the adjacent hill tract of ,assam1 who call themselves ,singpho4 ,kachin is a name applied to these people by the ,burmans4 ,the ,kachins of ,burma call themselves ,chingpaw4 ,this quite suits their kinsmen of ,assam1 who look down upon the ,chingpaws as unworthy the grand name of ,singpho4 ,both terms seem to mean men1--but men in distinction from the inferior races around them4 ,the census of #aija gives a total of #fe1eaj ,kachins in ,burma alone4 ,the early missionaries held that the ,kachins and ,karens were of the same origin2 that the ,kachins were really ,karens1 from whom the southern ,karens had become separated4 ,this view seemed substantiated by the people themselves2 by some of their customs1--such as the manner in which their houses are constructed and partitioned off2 by a certain similarity of language--many common nouns said to be common to both languages1 and by their spirit-worship4 ,it is now generally admitted that the ,kachins and ,karens are not of the same origin4 ,in bygone ages they may have been neighbours1 if not more closely related1--in the borders of ,tartary1--but at a very remote period4 ,certainly they did not migrate to ,burma at the same time1 nor by the same route4 ,the ,kachins have traditions that they migrated to ,burma by way of the headwaters of the ,irrawadi1--that their primal ancestor lived at ,majoi ,shingra ,pum4 ,in his ,handbook of the ,kachin ,language1 ,h4 ,f4 ,hertz says3 ,i have succeeded in obtaining the views of several old men1 ,tumsas and ,faiwas1 who might be described as ,kachin priests4 ,it would seem from these that ',majoi ,shingra ,pum' is a high table-land with very few trees1 frequently covered with snow1 and very cold4 ,now1 the name ',majoi ,shingra ,pum1' literally translated is a naturally flat mountain1 or in other words1 a plateau1 and it does not need any stretch of the imagination to identify it with some part of eastern ,tibet4 ,colonel ,hannay1 writing in #ahdg1 describes tribes residing in the inaccessible regions bordering on ,tartary as closely allied to the ,kachins4 ,this identifies the ,kachins more closely with the ,burmans and ,chins than with the ,karens4 ,moreover it is said that the ,kachin language has more points in common with the ,burmese than with the ,karen4 ,this is especially true of the ,marus1--a tribe to the eastward1 allied to the ,kachins of ,burma4 ,it is not difficult to believe that all these races1 in the very remote past1 were neighbours in the borders of ,tibet1 and that while the ,kachins and ,burmese migrated south direct1 the ,karens migrating by way of western ,china1--the meeting of these races on ,burmese soil reveals a few of the many things they once had in common4 ,after the ,burmans and ,chins had migrated to ,burma1 the ,shans1 pressing westward by way of the ,namkham valley1 blocked the way of further migrations from the north4 ,the ,shans are known to have been supreme in northern ,burma at the beginning of the ,christian era4 ,it is probable that they peopled the ,upper ,irrawadi several centuries earlier4 ,in the thirteenth century the ,shans overran ,assam4 ,not until the middle of the sixteenth century were they finally overcome by the ,burmans4 ,nothing is known of the ,kachins in ,burma earlier than the sixteenth century4 ,they seem to be comparatively recent arrivals1 working their way into ,burma after the ,shans had been weakened by their struggles with the ,burmans4 ,the ,singphos of ,assam are said to have drifted into that country but a little more than a century ago4 ,the ,kachins have gradually forced the ,palaungs and ,shans before them1 or isolating some of their villages from the main body4 ,their sudden development of power is remarkable4 ,political changes consequent on the annexation of ,upper ,burma checked ,kachin aggressions4 ,they are still spreading1 but by fairly peaceable means4 ,the ,namkham district1 supposedly ,shan1 is found to contain fully as many ,kachins as ,shans4 ,slowly but surely the ,shans will be pressed southward4 ,before passing under control of the ,british the various tribes of ,kachins were ever at war among themselves4 ,captives were sold into slavery4 ,retaliatory raids were constantly expected4 ,feuds are still kept up1 though they do not have the free hand to execute vengeance enjoyed in former years4 ,the ,kachin1 from habit1 is watchful and suspicious of strangers1--until his confidence is gained4 ,their villages are usually high up in the hills1 as secluded and inaccessible as possible4 ,but the isolated situation of the village probably is due to the fear of nats1 spirits1--quite as much as from fear of human enemies4 ,one writer describes an avenue leading to the village1 with bamboo posts at regular intervals1 with rattan ropes1 la clothes-line1 from which various emblems are suspended4 ,near the village wooden knives1 axes1 spears1 and swords are fastened to the tree-trunks4 ,all this display is for the benefit of the nats4 ,like the ,chinese1 they do not give their demons credit for much acuteness4 ,for one thing they believe that they can only move in a straight line4 ,therefore the nats avoid going about in the jungle1 and keep to the open paths4 ,a few judicious turns are made in the avenue1 so as to turn the prowling devils off1 if possible1 but if he should happen to be cannoned off the tree stems in the right direction1 there are the emblems to show him where the thing he is in search of may be found4 ,if he is hungry there is the bullock's skull nailed to a tree1 to indicate where food may be found2 if he is thirsty a joint of bamboo points out where a libation of rice spirit has been made4 ,these spirit-worshippers are more easily gained than the ,buddhist ,burmans and ,shans1 but they have not the traditions of the ,karens to prejudice them in favour of ,christianity4 ,morally1 they rank very low1--and yet their morality must be viewed in the light of ,kachin1 rather than ,english custom4 ,as with the non-,christian ,karens1 there are certain unwritten tribal laws governing family life4 ,should a ,kachin presume to poach on his neighbour's preserves1 there would be one less ,kachin the next day4 ,courtship1 when once the parties have come to an understanding1 is conducted as a probationary marriage4 ,they may separate before the marriage ceremony takes place1 if they weary of each other4 ,but if they have already started a colony1 marriage must follow1 or the man has to kill a bullock and pigs--to appease the nats of the damsel's house4 ,in addition he has to pay a fine to the parents1 of a spear1 a gong1 a da1 and some pieces of cloth1 and sometimes a bullock or buffalo4 ,the old man is more exacting than the nats4 ,such separations do not effect the social standing of either party4 ,it is claimed that separations or disloyalty after marriage are practically unknown4 ,it certainly would not be healthy to have it known4 ,the ,kachins have their own distinctive costume1 varying according to tribe and locality4 ,but ,kachin men in touch with ,chinese1 ,shans1 or ,burmans1 usually adopt the costume of their neighbours4 ,the women hold to their own costume4 ,the religion of the ,kachins1 though gross spirit-worship1 contains an element of truth not found in the ,buddhism of the more civilized ,burmans4 ,rev4 ,mr4 ,geis1 missionary at ,myitkyina says--,above and beyond all nats to whom ,kachins offer sacrifices at one time or another1 they recognize the existence of one great spirit called ,karai ,kasang4 ,altars in his honour are not found in ,kachin villages or houses4 ,no priest has been able to divine what offerings are to be made to it1 but in time of great danger nats and their offerings are forgotten1 and their cry goes out to ,karai ,kasang for help and succour4 ,,the ,,chins ,the ,chins1 who number about #ahj1jjj1 are thought to be of the same origin as the ,burmese1--from the neighbourhood of ,tibet4 ,it is evident that they became separated from kindred tribes at a very remote period4 ,the ,lushais of ,assam1 and ,bengal1 and the ,kukis of ,manipur have the same race-characteristics1 and probably formed part of the original migration southward4 ,at present the ,chins1 occupying the hill country in the northwest corner of ,burma1 are slowly pressing northward1 affecting ,manipur4 ,the ,chins of the hill-country are quite isolated from other races4 ,for this reason ,buddhism has never reached them4 ,like their kinsmen1 the ,kachins1 they are spirit-worshippers1 as were their other kinsmen1 the ,burmese1 before the introduction of ,buddhism4 ,the ,chins are divided into several tribes4 ,the northern ,chins call themselves ,yo1 the ,tashons call themselves ,ka,ka2 the middle tribes give their names as ,lai2 the southern ,chins call themselves ,shu4 ,since the annexation of ,upper ,burma1 securing immunity from oppression by the ,burmans many ,chins have drifted down from their own hill-country and formed agricultural villages in the plains4 ,the ,chin country is about #bej miles long by from #ajj to #aej miles wide4 ,it is wholly mountainous1 the highest peaks being from #e1jjj to #i1jjj feet4 ,liklang peak1 the highest of all1 is nearly #aj1jjj feet4 ,like all spirit-worshippers1 the ,chins dread the power of demons1 and offer to them the same left-handed sort of worship4 ,but their worst enemy is of their own manufacture1 made by fermenting rice1 millet1 or corn1 and called ,zu4 ,the great and wide-spread vice among the ,chins is drunkenness4 ,men1 women1 children1 even babes in arms--all drink and glory in intoxication as an accomplishment of which to be proud4 ,no act is considered a crime if committed when drunk4 ,many people ,i have seen in ,european and ,american cities must have been ,chins4 ,no function is complete without liquor4 ,hospitality is gauged by the number of cups of spirit dealt out1 and appreciation of it--by the number of cups consumed4 ,again1 how like many of their white cousins4 ,a man should drink1 fight1 and hunt1 and the portion for women and slaves is work--is both creed and practice4 ,they have a peculiar custom1 now dying out1 of tattooing the faces of the women1 until the whole face1 from chin to hair--is dyed a purplish black4 ,the reason for this custom is in dispute4 ,some have asserted that it was to make them unattractive to their enemies1 especially the ,burmans1 who frequently raided their villages in the foot-hills4 ,others claim that the tattooing was in order to increase their attractiveness to the young men of their own kind4 ,fortunate indeed were they if this queer custom served the double purpose of repelling enemies and attracting friends4 ,to unaccustomed eyes the tattooed face is hideous in the extreme4 ,the first attempt by the ,british to control any part of the ,chin ,hills was made in #ahei1 but was neither continuous nor effective4 ,in #ahga an expedition was sent into the hills to recover captives1 and punish offenders4 ,the ,chins remained quiet for ten years1 then broke out again in repeated raids1 from #ahhb to #ahhh4 ,the ,english were obliged to undertake a systematic subjugation of the whole ,chin country4 ,this was effected in #ahhi-ij4 ,the expedition met with stubborn resistance1 by guerilla methods4 ,many villages were burned by the ,english1 as the only means of subduing the wily enemy4 ,many villages were burned by the ,chins themselves4 ,near one village a dog had been killed and disemboweled1 and tied by its four legs and thus stretched on a rope suspended between two sticks across the path to the village1 its entrails being likewise suspended between two other sticks1 thus barring the road4 ,asking the ,chins what this might mean1 they said it was an offering to the war nat to protect their village1 and to ward off our bullets from injuring them4 ,the work of subjugation had to be continued for some years1 before the ,chins were made to realize that the ,english government must be respected4 ,the ,hakas and others were disarmed in #ahie4 ,the ,chin ,hills are administered by a political officer at ,falam1 with a ,european assistant at other important points1 as ,tiddim and ,haka4 ,the morals of these benighted ,chins1 still further degraded by their drink habit1 are what might be expected4 ,marriages are governed by the working-value of the bride1 parents expecting compensation for the loss of her services1 according to her capacity for work1 and expectation of life4 ,this seems to have been the custom among all races of ,burma4 ,it is said that when a ,chin wife is asked ,where is your husband8 she will give the required information in case he is living1--but if dead she will reply1 ,he is not here1 and expects the subject to be dropped at that4 ,this reminds me of a ,shan girl's answer when ,i asked her the whereabouts of a former resident--,i don't know1--he is dead4 ,the ,chins of the foot-hills and plains present an encouraging field for missionary work1 but missionary work must be pushed with all possible vigour--to forestall the influences of ,buddhism4 ,to win them from spirit-worship is hard enough1 to win them from ,buddhism will be very much harder4 ,the dialect of the southern ,chins has been reduced to writing1 and is found to be strikingly similar to the ,burmese1 perhaps half of the words being more or less allied to the ,burmese4 ,as the southern ,chins have great difficulty in understanding the speech of the wild tribes in the northern hills1 it is quite probable that their own dialect has been corrupted by contact with the ,burmans since their migration to ,burma4 ,the ,chin dialect of the south is also said to contain many words of ,shan origin4 ,this must have come about in the same way1 either by contact with ,shans on the ,upper ,chindwin at a very early period1 or when the ,shans occupied ,arracan about eighteen years1 towards the end of the tenth century4 ,this later contact seems much too short to have left a permanent mark on the southern ,chin dialect4 ,the total number of ,animists--demon-worshippers--in ,burma1 ,chin1 ,kachin1 ,karen1 and other1 is about four hundred thousand4 ,but as we have seen1 the ,buddhist ,burmans1 ,shans and ,talaings1 are at core1 demon-worshippers1 all races having in common practically the same superstitions4 ,v ,,buddhism ,,as ,,it ,,is ,much has been written on ,buddhism1 besides the translation of the ,buddhist's sacred books4 ,little1 however1 can be learned from books of ,buddhism as one finds it expressed in the life of the people4 ,riding one day with a missionary who had a wide acquaintance with the ,burmans and their language1 ,i asked him certain questions as to their real belief4 ,his reply was1 ,no man can tell1 until he finds a way to get into the ,burman mind4 ,the first business of the missionary seemed to be then to make every effort to get into the ,burman mind2 to study him2 study his religious habits2 ascertain if possible1 his point of view2 learn to see things from his point of view2 to know what there is in him that must be eradicated and supplanted by the gospel of ,jesus ,christ4 ,we see the country fairly alive2--no1 dead with idols4 ,we see the people kneeling before these idols1 and1 to every appearance praying4 ,are they praying8 ,how can they be praying1 inasmuch as ,buddhism knows no ,god1--does not claim to have a ,god8 ,gautama himself whom all these images represent1 never claimed to have any power to save others1 or even to save himself4 ,these worshippers know that he was only a man1 that at the age of eighty years he died1 that his death was due to an attack of indigestion 7from eating too much fresh pork71 as any other man might die4 ,it is supposed that he was born near ,benares1 about six hundred years before ,christ2 that his father was a chief of an ,aryan tribe called the ,sakyas4 ,from the sacred books they learn that ,gautama's early life was spent in dissolute pleasure and luxury common to oriental princes2 that after a time becoming dissatisfied with his own manner of life and the corrupt conditions around him1 he yielded to another his princely prospects1 abandoned his wife and child and gave himself up to a life of meditation and study under religious teachers2 that failing in this to gain the longed-for peace of soul he for several years led a life of the most severe privation and affliction of the flesh1 until by long continued meditation and self-concentration the light broke in upon him1 and he became the enlightened one1--a ,buddha4 ,did he not by this enlightenment become something more than man8 ,not at all4 ,he had learned nothing of ,god1 not even that such a being existed4 ,he entertained no thought that he himself had acquired any supernatural character or power4 ,and so he died4 ,even the common people of the jungle villages know all this1 and yet they prostrate themselves before these images of brass1 wood1 or stone4 ,are they praying8 ,perchance their hopes are based on what ,gautama became1 after death4 ,according to ,buddhism1 ,gautama had now passed through all the necessary conditions and changes1 and entered at once upon the final state1 the highest goal of ,buddhism1 ,nirvana1 7,neikban1 in ,burmese74 ,had he now become a ,god8 ,not at all4 ,no ,buddhist entertains such a thought4 ,what then is ,neikban8 ,it means1 they say1 the going out1 like the flame of a candle4 ,by a long-continued process of self-concentration ,gautama is supposed to have become absolutely oblivious to the world around him1 and ultimately to have become unconscious even of self4 ,his death is believed to have been utter extinction of both physical and spiritual existence4 ,some deny that ,neikban is equivalent to annihilation4 ,the best that can be claimed for it is an impossible existence in which there is neither sensation nor conscious life4 ,fittingly they describe it as a flame which has been blown out4 ,according to ,buddhist teachings and current belief ,gautama has disappeared1 body and soul4 ,brahmins may talk of being absorbed in the ,one ,supreme ,soul1 and ,theosophists glibly repeat the form of words1 but ,buddhists claim nothing of the sort4 ,there is no ,supreme ,soul to absorb them1 and no human souls to be absorbed4 ,it is not soul1 or life that is perpetuated1 but desire merely4 ,neikban1 they declare1 is the cessation of everything1 a condition of unconsciousness1 lifeless ease1 they do not like to say annihilation4 ,then what are these worshippers doing here on their knees before images which represent no existing being8 surely not praying1 for they have no hope1 without ,god in the world2 no being higher than themselves to whom prayer could be addressed2 no expectation of blessing of any sort from any supernatural source2 absolutely nothing in their religious conceptions or experience corresponding to the communion between the ,christian and his ,god4 ,there is no such thing as real prayer in the whole ,buddhist system4 ,what1 then1 are they doing8 ,here comes in the system of merit on which ,buddhism is built4 ,an instinctive sense of guilt and impending penalty is universal4 ,having no ,saviour--man must save himself4 ,from what8 ,not from sin1 as violation of the laws of a ,holy ,being1 but from their train of evil consequences to himself4 ,illustration3 ,,worshipers ,the chief tenets of ,buddhism are3 7#a7 ,misery is the inevitable consequence of existence4 7#b7 ,misery has its source in desire4 7#c7 ,misery can be escaped only by the extinction of desire4 7#d7 ,desire can be extinguished only by becoming wholly unconscious of the world and of self4 7#e7 ,he who attains to such unconsciousness attains to ,neikban4 7#f7 ,evil actions constitute demerit4 ,good actions constitute merit4 ,in this deeply grounded belief as to merit and demerit lies the secret of much that we see in the life of the people4 ,now we know what these people are doing1--they are seeking to accumulate merit by repeating over and over again a certain formula1 or portions of their ,law with their faces towards the1--to them1--sacred pagoda or idol4 ,but no ,buddhist expects to attain to ,neikban at the end of this existence4 ,he realizes that it is utterly hopeless for him to think of fulfilling the conditions4 ,but he cherishes the groundless hope that in some future existence under more favourable conditions he may be able to accumulate sufficient merit1 though he cannot now4 ,this belief presupposes the doctrine of transmigration1 or metempsychosis4 ,the ,buddhist believes that he has passed through countless existences in the past1--whether as man1 animal1 or insect1 or all many times over1 he knows not2 finally1 birth into this world as man4 ,he dies only to be reborn into this or another world1--whether as man1 animal1 or insect he knows not2 then death again1 and so through countless ages4 ,even ,gautama himself is said to have passed through five hundred and fifty different phases of existence1 including long ages in hell1 before he finally entered this world as man1 and became a ,buddha4 ,although ,buddhism has no ,god1 and no heaven1 it has a very vivid conception of hell1 yes1--eight of them1 surrounded by over forty thousand lesser hells1--their terrors limited only by the limitations of the imagination4 ,but no man can escape--the doctrine of ,karma settles that4 ,a man's own words and deeds pursue him relentlessly1 and there is no city of refuge to which he may flee4 ,not in the heavens1 not in the midst of the sea1 not if thou hidest thyself in the clefts of the mountains1 will thou find a place where thou mayest escape the force of thy own evil actions4 ,so say their scriptures1 and so every ,buddhist believes4 ,hell is the inevitable penalty of many deeds or accidents1 such as the killing of the smallest insect under foot4 ,between the ,buddhist and his hopeless hope of ,neikban yawns this awful gulf of existences and sufferings4 ,whatsoever a man soweth1 that shall he also reap1 gives the gist of ,buddhism4 ,he is now reaping from past existences2 he will reap in the next from his deeds in this4 ,in the past each succeeding existence depended upon the last previous existence4 ,in like manner1 what the next existence shall be depends wholly upon the deeds of this life4 ,so the countless series of transmigrations may be1 theoretically1 in the ascending or descending scale4 ,but when the awful penalties assigned to innumerable and unavoidable violations of the ,buddhist law are taken into consideration all hope of future existences in the ascending scale vanishes4 ,the poor fisherman1 beginning at the very bottom of the lowest of the four chief hells must spend countless ages in each1 before he can hope to be reborn as man4 ,the man who unwittingly puts his foot on the smallest insect and crushes out its life must atone for the deed by spending a long period in torment4 ,taking the life of any living thing1 even to the killing of poisonous snakes1 is held to be the worst of all sins4 ,the priests1 to avoid the possibility of destroying insect life1 use a brass strainer finely perforated1 to cleanse their drinking water1 in blissful ignorance of the microbe theory4 ,a native preacher once asked me to get him a microscope so that he might prove to the priests that notwithstanding their precautions they were drinking to themselves perdition4 ,his motive may have been in part1 to convince them as to the futility of their hope1 and in part to get even with them for their harsh criticisms of animal-killing ,christians4 ,a story told by one of our native preachers vividly illustrates this dread of future punishment4 ,i had been preaching for about two hours to a large company in a jungle-village4 ,during all this time an old woman was sitting on a log near by1 counting off her beads1 and devoutly murmuring to herself the customary formula1 ',ah-nas-sa1 ,dok-ka1 ,ah-nat-ta2 ,paya1 ,taya1 ,thinga1--,radana ,thn-ba'--',transitoriness1 ,misery1 ,illusions2 ,lord1 ,law1 ,priest1--the three ,jewels4' ,when ,i had finished ,i approached her saying3 ',why do you worship so devoutly8' ',to escape the penalty of hell1' she sadly replied4 ',so you fear the future1--what is your notion of hell8' ',oh1 it is a terrible place4 ,they say it is shaped like a great cauldron1 and full of burning oil in which people suffer endlessly and are not consumed4 ,and when they try to escape1 the evil beings of the place thrust them back with sharp forks and spears4 ,oh1 it is a terrible place6' she repeated1 fairly trembling as she described its horrors4 ',yes1' ,i said4 ',you seem to understand it very well4 ,now what are you doing to escape such an awful fate8' ',oh1 many1 many years ,i have worshipped before the pagodas and idols2 every day ,i count my beads over and over1 repeating the formula1 as ,gautama directed4 ,do you think that after all ,i have done ,i must still go to hell8' ',yes1' ,i said4 ',if that is all you have done1 you surely must4' ',oh1 then1 tell me1' she said in great distress1 'what can ,i do to escape1 for ,i greatly fear the terrors of that place4' ,then sitting there on the log1 with this poor old woman on the ground before me1 ,i told the blessed gospel story over again1 as ,jesus ,christ did with the woman of ,samaria4 ,and then ,i said3 ',you must repent of your sins1 and confess them to the eternal ,god4 ,you must believe and trust the ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 who died to save you4 ,if you do this ,he will forgive your sins1 and save you4' ,her wrinkled face brightened with hope as she exclaimed1 ',if ,i do as you have said1 and believe on ,jesus ,christ1 will ,he save me8' ',yes1 ,he surely will1 for ,he has said1 ,him that ,cometh unto me ,i will not cast out4' ,on her face was an almost heavenly light--as she replied3 ',then ,i do believe1 and ,i want to go with you that you may tell me about ,him until ,i die4' ,her friends ridiculed her saying1 ',oho6 ,grandma wants to go off with the preacher4 ,she is becoming foolish in her old age4' ',oh1 no1' she said4 ',but the preacher has told me how ,i may escape the penalty of hell1 and ,i am so glad4' ,it has often been asserted that ,buddhism has a moral code rivaling1 if not superior to that of ,christianity4 ,we had not been at our mission station a week before we heard the remark1 ,buddhism is a beautiful religion1--why do the missionaries try to disturb them in their belief8 ,that there are noble precepts and commandments all must admit4 ,but he who expects to see their beauty reflected in the lives of the people will be doomed to disappointment4 ,take the commandment already noticed--,thou shalt not take the life of any living thing4 ,this commandment admits of no exceptions whatever1 under any possible circumstances1 not even in self-defense2 and puts the taking of a human life and that of the smallest insect in the same category4 ,but the ,burmans1 among whom ,buddhism is found in its purest form1 have been a more or less warlike race from their earliest history1 often practicing the greatest cruelties4 ,how do they reconcile this with the teachings of their law8 ,we will suppose that one man has taken the life of another4 ,according to his own belief and the law of the land1 he is a murderer4 ,to free himself from just and inevitable penalty he resorts to his doctrine of merit1 by which he may absolve himself from the demerit of his evil act4 ,the building of a small pagoda of sun-dried brick1 or the forming of an idol from a portion of his fire-wood log will balance the scales1 square the account1 restore him to his former prospects1 and to future prospects as bright as though he had kept the whole law4 ,by this convenient belief he may take his absolution into his own hands1 and work it out to suit himself4 ,but if he be a poor man1 unable to perform an adequate work of merit1 he must suffer to the full the consequences of his act4 ,a missionary found a man digging for huge beetles4 ,when one was found it was impaled on a sharp stick along with the others1 all to go into the curry for the morning meal4 ,then the following conversation took place3 ,are you not afraid of punishment in hell for killing these creatures8 ,i shall go there if ,i do not kill them4 ,then you do this because there is no hope for you1 whether you take animal life or not8 ,it is all the same4 ,sins beyond his power to counterbalance by merit had already been committed1 until hope had given way to despair4 ,one may shoot pigeons in the vicinity of a ,buddhist monastery1 and then divide with the priest1 who anticipates a savoury meal without any compunctions of conscience on account of aiding and abetting4 ,young ,burmans are eager to follow the man with the gun1 showing him the likeliest place to find game1 and when the animal is wounded1 will rush in and dispatch it with their dahs4 ,the fisheries of ,burma furnish a livelihood to hundreds of ,burmans4 ,large sums are paid to government annually for the privilege of controlling certain specified sections of rivers or streams4 ,the fisherman makes the taking of animal-life his business and daily occupation4 ,theoretically he is ranked among the very lowest classes4 ,in real life we find him enjoying the same social position that others of equal wealth enjoy4 ,but ,i do not hesitate to say that this general belief that fearful penalties must be endured in future existences for taking animal-life in this1 has a deeper hold on the ,buddhist than any other commandment4 ,take the commandment3 ,thou shalt speak no false word1--strikingly like the ,christian's commandment1 ,thou shalt not bear false witness1 ,lie not one to another4 ,one would naturally expect to find among the devotees of a system containing such a commandment some value placed upon one's word of honour4 ,but if truthfulness has ever been discovered among non-,christian ,burmans1 the discovery has never been reported4 ,but we have not far to search to find the secret of this general lack of any regard for truthfulness4 ,the same ,sacred ,book that sets forth the commandment1 ,thou thalt speak no false word1 gives this definition of falsehood3 ,a statement constitutes a lie when discovered by the person to whom it is told1 to be untrue6 ,see what latitude such a definition gives4 ,deceit is at a premium4 ,children grow up with no higher standard of honour than a belief that the sin of falsehood and fraud lies entirely in its discovery4 ,is it any wonder that these people have become expert in the art4 ,it is the common practice among themselves1--in business1 in family life1 in match-making1 and most of all1 in their dealings with foreigners4 ,no ,european 7after the first year7 places the slightest reliance upon the most emphatic promise of a heathen ,burman4 ,in fact1 the more emphatic the promise1 the greater seems to be the temptation to do just the other thing4 ,it may have been this inbred trait that led the schoolboy to translate ,judge not1 that ye be not judged1 by ,do no justice1 lest justice be done to you4 ,when it is remembered that deceit and fraud are national vices1 bred in the bone for centuries1 it is not to be marvelled at that native ,christians1 only a step from heathenism1 are sometimes found deficient in their sense of honour4 ,here is an illustration in point4 ,a young ,burman wanted to become a ,christian4 ,he became a regular attendant at chapel services1 and finally asked for baptism4 ,this greatly enraged his heathen wife1 who proceeded to make his life most miserable4 ,she tore around1 screamed1 pulled her own hair1 and made things interesting generally4 ,she got possession of his box containing his best clothing and other valuables1 and would neither give it back to him nor live any longer with him unless he would promise to break with the ,christians1 and cease attending their worship4 ,the young man appealed to his uncle4 ,the uncle's advice was3 ,you go and tell your wife that you will have nothing more to do with the ,christians4 ,you cannot recover your property in any other way4 ,when you have regained possession of your box1 come back to us1 and then we will baptize you4 ,so far as he then knew1 the end justified the means4 ,take the commandment3 ,thou shalt commit no immoral act1--an ideal precept in itself1 but standing for little more than a joke when inscribed on the banner of any non-,christian people4 ,the ,burman is perhaps superior1 morally1 to some other races of this country1 yet his moral sense is very low4 ,among middle-aged people marriage seems to be an actual institution1 and family life well guarded4 ,separations are comparatively few4 ,conditions of life in the tropics are such that the young are subject to temptations sad to contemplate4 ,heathen parents freely discuss subjects in the presence of their children that never would be mentioned before them in a ,christian home4 ,missionaries' children often startle their parents by repeating what never should have come to their ears4 ,it seems a wonder that moral character exists at all among the young4 ,that many do set a high value upon virtue no unprejudiced observer of native life can doubt4 ,jealousy plays a large part in early separations1 and with sufficient cause4 ,both may find other partners of their joys on the day following4 ,among all races there are certain laws and social customs that in large measure restrain evil practices4 ,even among the heathen a certain value is placed upon one's social standing in the community1--which has greater weight than the commandment against immorality1 in his law4 ,an educated ,burman once said to me--,burmans do not take much account of sin1 but they do not like to lose their respectability4 ,other commandments1 such as those directed against love of the world1 and love of money1 seem to be honoured more in the breach than in the observance4 ,the ,burmans are notoriously the proudest1 gayest people on the face of the earth4 ,they enjoy a good time and will have it1 whatever the occasion4 ,there is little of real religious significance in their so-called religious gatherings4 ,a display of fine clothes1 a few presents for the priests2 some of the more devout1 especially the elderly women1 worshipping before the shrine4 ,but a large majority will be found sitting in the zayats talking familiarly among themselves1 painting the ground below red with kun-juice by spitting through cracks in the floor1 and never going near the pagodas or idols at all4 ,the ,buddhists are proud of their law1 and lay great stress upon it for purposes of argument4 ,but as we have seen1 either from their low moral sense1 or their dependence on works of merit1 the law has little effect on the lives of the people4 ,we visited that most famous worship-place of the ,buddhists1 the ,shwe ,dagon pagoda1 and for the first time saw heathenism as it is4 ,we had read ,the ,light of ,asia2 and heard theosophists talk glibly of ,mahatmas whose wisdom is more ancient and profound than anything in the religious literature of the ,west4 ,but here we saw the yellow-robed1 ,light of ,asia 7more fittingly called the ,blight of ,asia7 and the graven image1 both representing their annihilated ,buddha1 seemingly equal in intelligence1 and sharing together the superstitious worship of the common people4 ,up the long ascent to the pagoda is a covered way1 its brick or flagged steps hollowed out by the tramp1 tramp of thousands on thousands of barefooted worshippers1 extending over many1 many years4 ,illustration3 ,a ,,karen ,,family ,illustration3 ,,buddhist ,,idol ,guarding the approach are two horrible griffins1 the first suggestion of the superstitious mind of these benighted people4 ,on either side of the stairway are sellers of artificial flowers1 paper streamers1 candles1 and other things used as offerings1 each worshipper stopping to invest in whatever he thinks will gain for him the greatest amount of merit at the least possible cost4 ,this great pagoda itself #a1cej feet in circumference1 tapering in graceful curves to a height of #cbh feet1 is entirely covered with gold leaf4 ,it is said that the pagoda has been regilded several times1 at fabulous cost4 ,but this does not seem so wonderful when one recalls that the ,parliament of ,religions witnessed the regilding of the entire ,buddhist system4 ,this lofty spire is surmounted by a htee or umbrella ornamented with gems and gold said to be valued at about #bjj1jjj4 ,the htee has been renewed several times1 by different kings1 each striving to outdo all others4 ,the present htee was placed there in #ahga1 by ,mindon ,min4 ,the space around the base of the pagoda1 protected by a parapet1 and flagged with stone or cement1 accommodates a large throng of worshippers4 ,hither pilgrimages are made every year from all parts of ,burma4 ,besides the four large idols built into the base of the pagoda far out of sight1 as in all pagodas1 there are many auxiliary shrines deeply recessed into the base1 dimly lighted by tiny candles1 and containing gilded or alabaster images of ,gautama4 ,still other shrines have been erected at the outer circumference of the floor space4 ,huge bells are suspended between posts1 near the floor4 ,the largest1 cast in #ahdb1 is fourteen feet high1 seven and a half in diameter1 with sides fifteen inches in thickness1 weighs #id1fhb pounds4 ,it is said that when this bell was cast1 quantities of gold1 silver and copper were thrown in as offerings4 ,after the second ,burmese war1 the ,english undertook to carry this bell away as a curio1 but by some accident it fell into the river4 ,the ,burmans afterwards recovered it and put it again in its place1--a marvellous feat1 considering their rude appliances4 ,intensely interesting is all this when seen for the first time2 but inexpressibly saddening when one stops to reflect what it all stands for4 ,one is forcibly reminded of its terrible significance by groups of worshippers kneeling before these shrines1 mumbling hurriedly through their so-called prayers1 prostrating themselves repeatedly to the ground4 ,after going through his prayers and prostrations the worshipper goes to the bell and strikes it with the end of a heavy piece of wood1 kept there for the purpose4 ,the attention of gods and men must be called to the fact that he has performed a certain amount of merit-earning worship4 ,thou shalt have no other gods before me4 ,thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image nor any likeness of anything that is in heaven above or that is in the earth beneath2 thou shalt not bow down to them nor serve them4 ,what new meaning that commandment had for us1 as we saw it violated before our eyes6 ,idolatry seemed even darker than it had been painted4 ,pagodas may be seen all over ,burma1 single or in groups2 of all sizes from the less pretentious structure in the jungle-village1 to the great ,shwe ,dagon in ,rangoon1 with its umbrella-top #cbh feet in the air4 ,these pagodas1 modelled after the dagobas of ,ceylon1 are all of the same general shape1 resembling the bottom half of a child's top1 inverted4 ,they occupy the most conspicuous places1 on nearly every hilltop1 on points jutting out into the rivers1 and near the chief highways4 ,the more important were built over some supposed relic of ,gautama1 such as a tooth or a hair4 ,these pagodas are considered much more sacred than those that were built for merit only4 ,the ,shwe ,dagon pagoda1 most famous of all ,buddhist shrines1 is said to have been built over relics of four ,buddhas1 including eight hairs of ,gautama4 ,the ,shwe ,hmaw ,daw pagoda at ,pegu1 erected by the ,talaings1 claims a tooth of ,gautama4 ,the ,shwe ,san ,daw pagoda at ,toungoo has a different history4 ,a ,burman prince1 ,tabin ,shwe' ,htee1 when born had one long red hair standing out from the top of his head4 ,this was a sure indication of an embryonic ,buddha4 ,in his honour the great pagoda was erected1 and called the ,golden ,hair ,pagoda4 ,the ,maha ,myat ,moonee pagoda at ,mandalay1 commonly known as the ,arracan ,pagoda is second only to the ,shwe ,dagon1 in the esteem of ,upper ,burmans4 ,in ,a4 ,d41 #adf1 the ,king of ,arracan cast a great brass image of ,gautama1 which became famous for its supposed miraculous powers4 ,in ,a4 ,d41 #aghd1 the king of ,burma1 having conquered other parts of the country1 and secured about everything he wanted1 turned longing eyes towards ,arracan and the far-famed image4 ,this great image1 twelve feet high1 though cast in a sitting posture1--was brought over the mountains and deposited at the ,arracan pagoda in a large building specially prepared for it1 north of ,amarapura4 ,not a smile disturbs the settled calm on its face as the visitor reads the inscription setting forth that the image was drawn here by the charm of the king's piety4 ,but from other sources we learn that his piety found expression in a war of conquest1 of which this image was one of the coveted fruits4 ,its importation over the mountains was a wonderful feat4 ,little wonder that ,burmans think it was accomplished by supernatural help4 ,a few miles north of ,mandalay is the great ,mingon pagoda1 begun in #agij1 and never finished4 ,it is four hundred feet square at the base1 and was to have been carried up to a height of five hundred feet1 but work was suspended when it had reached about one third of its intended height1 the country already having become seriously impoverished4 ,in #ahci an earthquake split it from top to bottom4 ,no one mourned the seeming disaster1 for no king could gain the royal merit by completing the work of another4 ,as it is1 this ,mingon pagoda is said to be the largest pile of brick and mortar in the world4 ,the largest bell in ,burma1 weighing between eighty and ninety tons1 and second in size to the great bell at ,moscow1 cast to match the immense pagoda1 is still to be seen near the ruins4 ,this bell is eighteen feet high1 seventeen in diameter1 and a foot and a half in thickness4 ,it now rests on the ground1 having long ago proved too heavy for its supports4 ,pagodas are not temples4 ,there is no open interior for a worship place4 ,the worshipping is done in the open space around the pagoda1 or in the idol-houses1 the real temples4 ,the first pagoda was probably built at the close of the fourth century or even later2 though ,buddhists refer it to a much earlier date4 ,the sacred books of ,buddhism were brought to ,burma about #cig ,a4 ,d41 according to the best authorities4 ,before the introduction of ,buddhism the ,burmans and ,talaings1 like all other races around them1 were spirit-worshippers4 ,they knew no gods but nats1 spirits with supernatural powers4 ,the reigning king became a convert to the new religion1 built a pagoda1 and issued a royal decree that all his subjects should worship it1 death being the penalty of refusal4 ,the king's edict failing to accomplish its purpose1 he cunningly commanded that a nat-sin or spirit-house be built near the pagoda4 ,the transition from the worship of invisible nats to the worship of the more tangible pagoda was natural and inevitable4 ,it was by a strange irony of fate1 says ,sir ,monier ,williams1 that the man who denied any ,god or any being higher than himself1 and told his followers to look to themselves for salvation1 should have been not only deified and worshipped1 but represented by more images than any other being ever idolized in any part of the world4 ,dharmapala1 who represented ,buddhism at the ,parliament of ,religions1 said3 ,a system in which our whole being1 past1 and present1 and to come1 depends on ourselves1 theoretically1 leaves little room for the interference or even existence of a personal ,god4 ,it really leaves no room at all1 and its founder plainly said so4 ,buddhism is a worship of ancestors1 of which ,gautama holds a monopoly4 ,as we have seen1 at the advent of ,buddhism the worship of evil spirits1 by propitiatory sacrifice1 prevailed throughout ,burma1 among all races4 ,it is not to be supposed that the adoption of ,buddhism dispelled these superstitions4 ,spirit-worship is still the religion1 if it can be called a religion1--of the non-,christian ,karens1 ,chins1 ,kachins1 and other non-,buddhist races4 ,when ,buddhism was adopted by the ,talaings1 ,burmans1 and ,shans1 bloody sacrifice involving the taking of animal-life1 had to be abandoned4 ,but to this day propitiatory offerings of rice1 fruit1 or flowers1 are made to the spirits as before4 ,animism supplies the solid constituents1 says a recent writer1 that hold the faith together1 ,buddhism the superficial polish4 ,the ,burman has added to his ,animism just so much of ,buddhism as suits him1 and with infantile inconsequence draws solace from each in turn4 ,spirit-worship is his every-day religion1 ,buddhism for special occasions4 ,two illustrations will suffice to show how strong a hold superstition still has upon the people4 ,a harmless lunatic had wandered through the streets for years4 ,no one seemed to know the cause1 but his reason1 what little he ever possessed1 had been dethroned1 leaving him to wander about homeless and friendless4 ,for his living he had to compete with the pariah dogs in the common effort to exist on what the people chanced to cast into the street after finishing their meals4 ,one of the priests1 thinking to gain notoriety as well as more substantial favours1 declared that this man was a case of demoniacal possession4 ,this was nothing new1 for it is the common belief that nats are responsible for disordered minds1 sickness1 and other calamities4 ,but the priest further suggested that the nat that had taken up his abode in this man be exorcised by drowning him out4 ,a company of ,burmans assembled1 secured the demoniac1 and headed by the priest and tom-toms1 proceeded to the river4 ,the poor demoniac1 filthy1 naked and with matted hair1--a picture of abject helplessness1--was led by a rope to1--he knew not what4 ,several of the men took the poor creature in a boat to the middle of the river1 and threw him overboard4 ,when he tried to regain the boat they thrust him off with their bamboo poles4 ,when he became exhausted and water-logged they would rescue him1 only to throw him in again after a brief breathing spell4 ,this was repeated for several days in the presence of the would-be wonder-worker1 to the deafening sound of the tom-toms4 ,it is needless to add that he continued to roam the streets1 in the same condition as before4 ,at one time when out on a tour among jungle-villages a native ,christian called my attention to a large banyan-tree by the roadside4 ,up on one of the higher branches was a large gnarl1 which1 by a long stretch of the imagination slightly resembled a human face4 ,the tree was standing there before the oldest inhabitant was born4 ,the gnarl was a peculiar growth of many years4 ,one day a passer-by noticed a fancied resemblance to a human face1 and spread the story that the tree was haunted1--that it was the abode of a nat4 ,of course the superstitious and gullible people believed it4 ,a zayat was quickly built under the tree2 many brought offerings of rice1 fruit1 and flowers1 and all who passed by that tree bowed down to worship that big knot on the limb4 ,the dread of evil spirits is the bane of existence4 ,there is constant fear lest some real or fancied lack of respect paid to the nats will bring some kind of disaster4 ,nagas are the most feared of all4 ,there are several different kinds of nagas4 ,some live under water1 others on land4 ,they are dragon-like reptiles1 fearsome and terribly dreaded by old and young4 ,when a man is drowning it is because a naga is drawing him down4 ,does a man sink and not reappear1 a naga has got him sure4 ,on-lookers fear to go to the rescue4 ,but there is one great naga1 most dreaded of all1 so long that it encircles the earth1 which to the native mind1 is as flat as a pancake4 ,this monster is constantly moving forward1 so that the position of its head is ever changing4 ,but fortunately the astrologers have discovered that its progress in its orbit is regular1 and the location of its head may be known1 according to season of the year1 a full year being required for the circuit4 ,every ,burman knows in what direction is the awful naga's head at a given season4 ,no love nor money will tempt them to travel through the jungle in that direction1 in unfamiliar territory4 ,naga-worship once prevailed in northern ,india4 ,whether imported into ,burma1 or also existing in ,burma before the introduction of ,indian influences in the north1 is not known4 ,but up to the eleventh century naga-worship was the most conspicuous feature in the observances of both spirit-worshippers and nominal ,buddhists4 ,even now it is not uncommon to hear a ,burman1 suffering from some calamity or disease1 lamenting that he has in some way brought disaster to himself by unwillingly offending the great naga4 ,once it was my good fortune to profit by their superstitious notions4 ,having rented a native house as temporary quarters1 ,i learned soon after moving in1 that it had the reputation of being haunted4 ,spirits of certain dacoits who came to a sudden death in a jail that formerly stood near by1 were supposed to frequent the place4 ,from that time on ,i could sleep in perfect security against all thought of prowling thieves4 ,no fear that any native would come near that house after dark4 ,buddhism a ,beautiful ,religion8 ,that it has many noble precepts no one will deny4 ,the same is true of every system of philosophy ever formulated4 ,but at its best it furnishes no incentive to righteous living1 beyond one's own self-interest4 ,it offers no help or hope whatever1 beyond one's own unaided efforts4 ,if man cannot save himself he must stay where he is1 or be sinking lower1 ever lower4 ,buddhism1 as seen in the life of the people1 is rotten to the core4 ,we have seen how its adherents craftily seek to evade the precepts and commandments of their law1 so far as possible2 and then to balance their evil doings by works of merit4 ,the priests prey upon the superstitions of their people1 and grow fat4 ,if offerings to the monastery do not come in so freely as desired the wily priest conveniently has a remarkable dream1 in which a nat reveals to him that terrible calamities will befall the people if they do not increase their zeal4 ,this invariably has the desired effect4 ,there is a general hustling throughout the jurisdiction of the monastery2 and soon the greedy priests are fairly swamped with presents of plantains1 rice1 cocoanuts1 etc4 ,at ,kyankse there is a very steep hill1 with several pagodas at the top4 ,a missionary relates that he there met an aged man who1 to gain merit1 climbs to the summit every day carrying two pots of water 7about seventy pounds7 for the use of the people who may come to worship there4 ,he had a writing from the ,buddhist priest1 assuring him that a ,buddha was about to appear1 and if he continued in this meritorious work for seven years he would see the ,buddha1 and be rewarded4 ,the priest1 in order to secure a regular supply of water1 had deliberately duped this simple old man4 ,and yet1 as a work of merit1 his daily task had a certain value1 according to ,buddhist teaching4 ,the utter powerlessness of ,buddhism to meet the needs of the human heart forced itself upon me when first ,i witnessed one of their funerals4 ,a rich ,burman jeweller1 living near our chapel1 died of old age4 ,one of his sons occupied a high official position4 ,of course the funeral must be a grand affair4 ,we reached the place just as the procession was forming4 ,first1 there were four men bearing a bamboo frame on which was an artificial tree1 four feet high1 its branches wound with bright coloured paper4 ,from the ends of the branches silver coins wrapped in paper1 were suspended4 ,this money was to buy offerings for the pagodas4 ,fifty-six men in squads of four1 carried bamboo frames on which were piled gifts for the priests1 consisting of mats1 rugs1 chinaware1 lacquered-ware1 lamps1 etc4 ,there were fourteen of these frames1 being one each for fourteen priests4 ,four coolies1 each carrying on his shoulder a bamboo pole from which were suspended jackets and skirts to be given to the poor4 ,a double line of men with slender strips of bamboo covered with showy paper1 held upright like so many spears4 ,then came the procession proper1 headed by one of the rich relations carrying a lacquer vessel filled with copper coin4 ,four coolies carrying two ,burmese drums1 suspended from bamboo poles4 ,two little boys fantastically dressed1 danced before the drums1 turning around in a solemn1 but graceful manner1 and at each turn striking the drums with their fists4 ,then the mourners and friends1 two daughters being dressed in white1 with handkerchiefs tied round their heads as hair-bands4 ,the coffin1 covered with gold leaf1 tinsel1 and mirror glass1 was elevated on a framework1 about ten feet above the four-wheeled cart on which the framework rested4 ,above the coffin were several roof-like projections1 one above another forming a pyramid1 surmounted by a spire twenty feet high4 ,framework and spire were covered with showy paper and tinsel in artistic designs1 and adorned with flags4 ,the cart was drawn and pushed along by as many men as could get around it1 long streamers of white cloth or ropes extending forward to the friends in front4 ,next to the bier was an ox-cart with the ,burman band1 or tom-toms4 ,one man was blowing on an instrument resembling a large-mouthed flageolet1 from which issued a tuneless succession of weird sounds1--music to their ears1 no doubt1--but most melancholy to ours4 ,another was sitting inside of a low circular frame with small drums arranged in a semicircle1 each producing a different sound4 ,behind the cart was a man with the cymbals1 which he manipulated with marvellous skill1 though the vibratory sounds and clangour were excruciating in the extreme to sensitive nerves4 ,on another cart1 under a canopy of red and white cloth was another coffin more elaborately decorated1 but empty1 merely for pomp and show1 or to fool the evil spirits4 ,if in the extra coffin the consequences of a man's evil deeds1 together with desire1 which constitutes the germ of the next existence1 could also be buried1 it would be the ne plus ultra of hope to the ,buddhist4 ,then followed several gharries with well-to-do acquaintances of the family4 ,as the procession moved slowly along the man with the pot of copper coin now and then threw a handful forward into the crowd of poor children1 and oh what a scramble6 ,the priests had already gathered at the zayat in the cemetery to receive the expected offerings4 ,had they been present at the bedside to minister some hope to the dying man who was about to pass out into the awful dark8 ,not at all1 for the priest is supposed to be passing through the process of crushing out all natural feeling4 ,he must not show that he is influenced in the least by death-bed scenes4 ,did they minister consolation to the sorrowing ones8 ,not at all1 for the priest is not supposed to feel the least sympathy with sorrow and distress4 ,to ,rejoice with them that rejoice1 and weep with them that weep is not in all his thoughts4 ,he came not to minister1 but to be ministered unto1--a complete reversal of the ,christian principle4 ,so at the funeral he offers no consolation1 but expects to be himself consoled1 very substantially4 ,at the cemetery he sits in the zayat on his elevated platform1 chewing and spitting kun--the picture of indolence and indifference4 ,after the burial the afflicted ones1 sorrowing without hope1 with hearts bleeding as even heathen hearts can bleed1 come and prostrate themselves before the priests1 worshipping them in their very despair4 ,but the priests seem neither to see nor to hear4 ,their minds from which love of the world has been well-nigh extinguished 767 are intent upon the rich presents with which their monastery is being filled4 ,doubtless there are priests1 especially the aged1 who are sincerely striving to keep the law in spirit as well as in letter4 ,but the very spirit of the law is selfishness4 ,the ,buddhist sacred books were a gradual but abnormal growth4 ,they contain comparatively little of the actual teachings of ,gautama1 but a vast deal that ,gautama would not have sanctioned4 ,marvellous stories have grown up around the memory of ,gautama1 whom the people of his time regarded as a religious hero1 rather than a god4 ,the most absurdly extravagant statements as to time1 dimensions1 space1 and numbers1 are found in these stories4 ,imagination has run riot in fabricating accounts of impossible miracles performed by ,gautama4 ,modern geography1 if seriously taken into account by ,buddhists1 would stampede the whole ,buddhist system4 ,and yet these millions1 given over to believe a lie1 accept it all without a question4 ,the ,buddhist scriptures are divided into three main divisions4 ,the first is addressed to the priests1 and contains rules governing their life1 duties and habits4 ,the second is addressed to the laity2 the third to the dewas and ,brahmas in the worlds of nats4 ,it is claimed that the first council to settle the sacred canon was held in the year #edc ,b4 ,c41 in ,india2 that the law was rehearsed from memory1 but not committed to writing2 that the second council was held in #ddc ,b4 ,c41 when the law was again rehearsed1 but not committed to writing2 that the third and last council1 held in #bda ,b4 ,c41 and continuing nine months1 settled many questions in dispute2 and furnished the stimulus of a great ,buddhist missionary enterprise4 ,authorities differ as to the dates of these councils4 ,dr4 ,judson held that the ,buddhist scriptures in their present form were not completed until four hundred and fifty-eight years after ,gautama's death4 ,were it possible for any human being to keep the law outlined in the sacred books of ,buddhism1 and thereby attain to its goal1 ,neikban1 it might be said3 ,the gift of ,gautama is eternal death4 ,how different from the central truth in the ,christian religion-- ,the gift of ,god is eternal life4 ,to make this known to the nations that sit in darkness1 rests as a privilege and responsibility upon the ,christian church4 ,,vi ,,burma',s ,,outcasts ,admirers of ,buddhism assert its superiority over ,hinduism in that ,buddhism has no caste system4 ,in all ages and in all lands there has been1 in real life1 a sharp social distinction between the rich and the poor4 ,this is inevitable1 so long as unsanctified human nature holds sway4 ,burma furnishes no exception to the rule4 ,but while ,buddhist ,burma has no caste system1 involving contamination to one caste by contact with another2 or social degradation by departing from caste-rules1--,burma has her outcasts4 ,there are five classes of outcasts1 namely3--former pagoda-slaves and their descendants2 the grave-diggers2 the lepers2 the beggars2 and the deformed or maimed4 ,apostates from the ,ancestral religion might be added as a sixth class4 ,slavery existed in ,burma before the introduction of ,buddhism4 ,when the pagoda spires of the new religion began to multiply throughout the land somebody must be found to take care of the pagoda-grounds4 ,existing slaves were not available for that purpose1 for they had been apportioned to the service of the king1 and others in high life4 ,prisoners taken in war2 life-convicts2 and others who had incurred the displeasure of the king were drawn upon to meet the fresh and ever-increasing demand4 ,princely captives and their followers are said to have been condemned to lifelong drudgery as pagoda slaves1 with all of their descendants forever1 while the world should last4 ,as ,pagan was the first great centre of ,buddhism in ,upper ,burma1 there it was that this form of slavery originated4 ,buddhism of the southern type was taken to ,pagan in the eleventh century4 ,the pagodas of ,thatone were duplicated4 ,one after another was built1 until an area eight miles long by two miles wide along the river was literally covered with pagodas1 far surpassing any city in the world in the extent of its religious structures4 ,pagan ceased to be a capital in the fourteenth century1 and its wonderful pagodas and temples were left to go to ruin4 ,but the king's decree was perpetuated in all other important centres1 until the ,british ,indian ,government annexed the country1 and put an end to compulsory slavery4 ,besides the descendants of the original pagoda-slaves1 others were added by successive kings1 whether as punishment for crime1 or by arbitrary selection of obnoxious villages or families4 ,once a slave always a slave4 ,posterity was doomed before it was born4 ,not only was there no possible release from this inexorable law1 but the common people came to regard the pagoda-slaves as a class under a curse4 ,terrible sins of a former existence must have brought this great calamity upon them4 ,their touch was contaminating4 ,shunned and spurned at every point they became a community of outcasts1 living by themselves1 and existing on such offerings to the idols as could be rescued from the dogs and crows4 ,under ,british rule this form of slavery has nominally ceased to exist4 ,but no law of a civilized government could restore the pagoda-slave or his descendants to equal social standing with their neighbours4 ,they are outcasts still1 and outcasts they will remain1 until ,buddhism is no more4 ,climb the long covered stairway leading to the ,shwe ,dagon pagoda1 or other of the more sacred shrines1 you will find your path lined with sellers of offerings1 paper prayers1 candles1 and other things used at pagoda-worship4 ,these sellers1 with rare exceptions1 are descendants of former pagoda-slaves1 free in the eye of the law1 but in slavery still to the unchangeable customs of ,burman ,buddhists4 ,other ,burmans will not employ them1 even to perform the tasks of the common ,indian coolie4 ,do they go to some distant place where they are not known1 and there attain wealth and social position1 the first intimation that they are of the old pagoda-slave stock mercilessly consigns them again to their former condition as shunned outcasts4 ,companions in social degradation are the ,thu-bah-yah-zahs or grave-diggers4 ,every ,burman burial ground has its little community of thu-bah-yah-zahs1 living apart from their fellow-men4 ,each community has its head-man1 who makes the bargain when a grave is to be dug4 ,there is usually a fixed price for this work4 ,but when a grave is to be dug for one who has met a violent death the price is gauged by the age of the individual4 ,violent deaths are windfalls to the grave-diggers4 ,the grave is filled in the presence of the friends1 who consider it a mark of respect to tarry until the work is done4 ,but it is well-known that the grave-diggers do not hesitate to exhume a body the following night if the clothing in which it was buried1 or other objects placed in the coffin makes it worth the trouble4 ,the coin in the mouth of the corpse1 for the ferry-fare over the mystic river1 is abstracted with callous indifference to the future state of the deceased4 ,as in the case of pagoda-slaves1 the grave-diggers were devoted to this degrading service by a decree of the king4 ,some say that descendants of pagoda-slaves have swelled their numbers4 ,beggars and lepers are permitted to live in their villages4 ,misery loves company4 ,birds of a feather flock together4 ,a rich thu-bah-yah-zah in ,mandalay had an attractive daughter4 ,anxious to emancipate her from the doom of her class he offered three thousand rupees 7#a1jjj7 to any respectable man who would marry her1 and take her away where she would not be known4 ,ten times the amount of his generous offer would have been no temptation4 ,there is also a distinct beggar-class1 of practically the same origin as the pagoda-slave and grave-diggers1--condemned by the king to a life of beggary4 ,forbidden to engage in any self-supporting work1 they could be drawn upon at any time to fill a lack in either of the other classes4 ,this was sometimes for suspected disloyalty4 ,few had need to become lifelong beggars because of abject poverty1 for a respectable ,burman1 though poor1 is able to exist in this fruitful land without leaving his own village4 ,neither the aged nor the orphaned are driven out to beg or starve4 ,these unfortunates did not become beggars because they were outcasts1 but became outcasts because they were made beggars1 not of choice1 but by royal decree4 ,true to his creed1 the ,burman then heaped upon the victim all the blame for his calamity4 ,he is only reaping in this life what he sowed in some former existence4 ,therefore1 he and his descendants forever are to be despised1 and compelled to remain beggars1 whatever their actual condition4 ,some of this beggar class are known to have become wealthy1 but wealth secures to them no social standing4 ,outcasts they are1 and outcasts they must remain4 ,it has become a deeply-rooted suspicion among these people themselves that unless they go out and beg at least once a year1 some disaster will befall them4 ,the children of none of these outcast classes are permitted to enter the monastic or other schools4 ,the admission of one child of outcast parentage1 however bright and respectable he may be1 would stampede any school4 ,this superstitious contempt of outcasts is so deep-rooted and universal that managers of non-,buddhist schools do not find it wise to ignore it4 ,strange to say1 the deformed and the maimed are held in abhorrence1 and blamed for their misfortune4 ,the disciples asked--,who sinned1 this man or his parents1 that he should be born blind8 ,one day while my train was waiting at a station1 a poor woman1 armless from her birth1 came by the open window of my compartment1 and stopped for alms4 ,when she had passed out of hearing1 ,i said to a heathen ,burman standing by1 ,how pitiful6 ,without any show of compassion he unknowingly repeated the old-time question--,because of whose sin was she born in that condition8 ,that she was under a curse he had no doubt4 ,no pity is wasted on a person who is born blind1 deformed1 or heir to loathsome disease4 ,he is only getting what he deserves1 in this life1 and nothing can he hope for but ages in one of the lowest hells hereafter4 ,with such a belief1 is it any wonder that ,buddhists never found asylums or hospitals1 or attempt any organized system of relief for the unfortunate4 ,it is of no use to fight against ,fate1--let ,fate claim her own4 ,it is said that census enumerators in some sections did not consider old men and women worth counting1 because they were past work2 priests and nuns1 because they had renounced the world2 lunatics and cripples1 because they were below the level of human beings4 ,so great is the dread of becoming a cripple that a ,burman would sooner die than have a limb amputated4 ,better to die respectably than be a living disgrace to himself and his family4 ,this feeling extends even to post-mortem examinations1 as dooming one to some lower condition in the next existence4 ,leprosy1 in whatever age or country1 seems the most pitiable of all calamities4 ,and the leper in whom the plague is1 his clothing shall be rent1 and the hair of his head shall go loose1 and he shall cover his upper lip1 and shall cry1 ,unclean1 unclean4 ,all the days wherein the plague is in him he shall be unclean3 he is unclean3 he shall dwell alone2 without the camp shall his dwelling be 7,lev4 #ac3 #de1 #df74 ,such was the brand put upon the leper and his awful affliction1 under the ,mosaic law4 ,the brand never has been removed1 nor the awfulness of the disease abated4 ,in ,europe this scourge1 introduced by warlike campaigns1 and reintroduced by subsequent crusades1 through isolation1 segregation of sexes1 and improved sanitary methods1 has been nearly exterminated4 ,in ,america its spread is prevented by the same means4 ,in barbarian or semi-civilized countries no attempt is made to control the disease4 ,such was the case in ,burma1 under ,burman rule1 and still is the case throughout the land1 outside of a few municipalities under ,english control4 ,even in the larger towns the rule that lepers shall go to the asylums1 or dwell without the camp is not rigidly enforced4 ,the leper is an outcast1 so treated by his own race even more than by ,europeans1 but this does not prevent him from wandering at will through the crowded streets and bazars4 ,rags that have covered his repulsive sores may be cast away where men traffic and children play4 ,they are permitted to marry among themselves1 thereby perpetuating and multiplying the terrible disease4 ,the latest census gives a total of #d1aij lepers in ,burma alone4 ,of this number #b1idj are males1 #a1bej females4 ,this does not include the large number of untainted children of leprous parents1 doomed to become lepers later in life4 ,on the streets one may observe leprosy in all stages4 ,one shows no other sign than swollen feet1 and may not even know that he has become a leper4 ,another shows unmistakable signs of the disease by white1 red1 or violet patches on his skin4 ,another is in the last stage of the disease4 ,where once were feet and hands are only stumps4 ,some have what is left of feet and hands bandaged with foul rags4 ,others1 whether from lack of wherewith to bandage1 or in order to excite sympathy and almsgiving1 expose their repulsive sores4 ,passing ,buddhists may now and then toss a copper into the tin-cup1 to get merit for themselves1 but of compassion they have little or none4 ,the leper's own fate or ill-luck1 the outcome of evil committed in past existences1 has overtaken him4 ,there is no help for it4 ,why trouble about it8 ,whatsoever a man soweth1 that shall he also reap1 is a tenet of ,buddhism1 as well as of ,christianity1 but with no place for repentance or forgiveness4 ,fortunately leprosy is not infectious4 ,there is not the slightest danger from near approach4 ,it is generally believed that it is not even contagious1 like smallpox or scarlet fever4 ,no doubt there is danger of contracting the disease by inoculation4 ,some claim that the use of imperfectly cured1 or putrid fish as an article of diet1 is the cause of leprosy4 ,this seems reasonable1 but there is ample evidence that it is not the only cause4 ,both cause and cure still furnish fields for investigation by medical science4 ,of the #d1aij lepers in ,burma only about #efj are in ,leper ,homes4 ,this work is conducted by the ,wesleyan and ,roman ,catholic missions in ,mandalay1 the ,rangoon municipality1 and the ,baptist mission in ,maulmein4 ,never yet have the ,buddhists of ,burma lifted a finger to alleviate the sufferings of their outcasts4 ,whatever desultory and trifling almsgiving as has been indulged in has been prompted not by compassion but by selfishness1 to add to the giver's own store of merit4 ,this is ,buddhism1 in both theory and practice4 ,buddhism has been extolled as a religion of love and peace4 ,its love is self-love2 its peace self-conceit1 and indifference to the sufferings of others4 ,but ,christian missionaries are teaching a striking object lesson4 ,while proclaiming the love of ,god in ,christ1 they are exemplifying their teaching by putting forth a mighty effort to relieve these unfortunates who have been cast off by their own people4 ,english officials give this work their sympathy and assistance4 ,the number to share the benefits of the asylums will steadily increase4 ,hundreds of lepers1 homeless1 friendless1 and hopeless1 waiting and longing for the end1 wander about in all the towns and villages of the land4 ,this wandering habit is the chief obstacle to work among them4 ,so long as subsistence can be gained by begging1 many prefer change of scene to the more certain comforts of the ,leper ,home4 ,but the time is not far distant when1 in the larger towns at least1 they will not be allowed to roam at will4 ,work for the lepers appeals to the hearts of all races1 in all ,christian lands4 ,until effective means are devised to check the propagation of this terrible disease1 the need will be ever-increasing4 ,,vii ,a ,,nation ,,in ,,transition ,in nearly all non-,christian lands the first impressions of western civilization have come from the aggressions of commerce4 ,the minister of a foreign government has preceded the missionary of the ,cross4 ,the flag of a foreign nation has gone in advance of the banner of ,christianity4 ,both political and commercial relations may have been forced upon the people of the weaker nation4 ,all this may have been in the best interests of the world at large2 probably in the best interests of the people themselves1 however slow they have been to realize it4 ,were ,christian nations always worthily represented commercial1 diplomatic1 and evangelistic efforts might cooperate for the uplifting of backward races4 ,in the initial attempts to bring about the remolding of a nation1 the restraining influence upon the natives1 as exercised by the missionaries1 is of inestimable importance4 ,missionaries in turn1 need protection from fanatical and ignorant natives1 so easily influenced by irresponsible characters1 to desperate deeds4 ,new colonies invariably become a dumping ground for adventurers4 ,government officials1 transferred for cause1 drift farther and farther towards the frontier4 ,because of a scarcity of trained men certain positions have been filled by persons morally unfit to represent a civilized people4 ,so it transpires that civil law sometimes becomes civil lawlessness1 which men in higher positions are powerless wholly to restrain4 ,but sweeping charges that officials of whatever nation1 in outlying colonies1 are profligate and tyrannical do gross injustice to many noble men who are doing their utmost for the advancement of morality and justice4 ,burma has suffered as other colonies have suffered4 ,but there is steady progress for the better4 ,the various departments of government are becoming more thoroughly organized2 competent and trustworthy men are in the ascendant4 ,but throughout the period since the annexation of ,burma by the ,british ,indian government--impressions far from complimentary to a ,christian nation have become indelibly fixed in the native mind4 ,illustration3 ,,the ,,last ,,king ,,of ,,burma ,vice is always more conspicuous than virtue4 ,unscrupulous men have brought reproach upon a ,christian nation2 and created strong prejudice against ,christianity itself1 that many years of good government and evangelistic effort combined cannot efface4 ,the innocent must suffer suspicion with the guilty4 ,it is also true that natives are naturally suspicious of all foreigners1 and apt to regard even necessary measures as oppressive4 ,the old question ,is it lawful to give tribute to ,csar8 crops out wherever tribute is exacted4 ,every son of ,adam1 the world over1 holds the tax collector in contempt1 and will evade payment if possible4 ,publicans and sinners are inseparably wedded1 in the popular mind4 ,this deeply-grounded prejudice1 whether with or without cause1 constitutes a serious hindrance to the progress of evangelistic work4 ,often the missionary must spend a whole day in a jungle village striving to win the confidence of the people1 who are slow to discriminate between the missionary and the official4 ,suspicion as to his character and errand is a greater hindrance than their prejudice against ,christianity as such4 ,at the same time there is reason for believing that could the ,burmans throw off the ,british yoke1 and reestablish a kingdom of their own1 missionaries would not be permitted to propagate ,christianity at all4 ,in ,february1 #ahbf1 ,adoniram ,judson and ,dr4 ,price1 having been released from their long imprisonment at ,ava and ,aungbinle1 were finally permitted to go down to the ,british camp1 ,mrs4 ,judson accompanying them4 ,the release of these ,american missionaries1 and the recovery of their property1 of which the ,burman officials had heartlessly robbed them1 were due entirely to special efforts in their behalf on the part of the general commanding the ,british troops4 ,mrs4 ,judson thus recounted their experiences3 ,we now1 for the first time1 for more than a year and a half1 felt that we were free1 and no longer subject to the oppressive yoke of the ,burmans4 ,and with what sensation of delight1 on the next morning1 did ,i behold the masts of the steamboat1 the sure presage of being within the bounds of civilized life4 ,as soon as our boat reached the shore1 ,brigadier ,a---- and another officer came on board1 congratulated us on our arrival1 and invited us on board the steamboat where ,i passed the remainder of the day2 while ,mr4 ,judson went on to meet the general1 who1 with a detachment of the army1 had encamped at ,yandaboo1 a few miles further down the river4 ,mr4 ,judson returned in the evening with an invitation from ,sir ,archibald to come immediately to his quarters1 where ,i was the next morning introduced1 and received with the greatest kindness by the general1 who had a tent pitched for us near his own1 took us to his own table1 and treated us with the kindness of a father1 rather than as strangers of another country4 ,we feel that our obligations to ,general ,campbell can never be cancelled4 ,our final release from ,ava1 and our recovering all the property that had there been taken1 was owing entirely to his efforts4 ,his subsequent hospitality1 and kind attention to the accommodation for our passage to ,rangoon1 have left an impression on our minds1 which can never be effaced4 ,we daily received the congratulations of the ,british officers1 whose conduct towards us formed a striking contrast to that of the ,burmese4 ,i presume to say that no persons on earth were ever happier than we were during the fortnight we passed at the ,english camp4 ,for several days this single idea wholly occupied my mind1--that we were out of the power of the ,burmese government1 and once more under the protection of the ,english 7,memoir of ,rev4 ,dr4 ,judson1 by ,wayland74 ,such testimony as this is enough to arouse a sense of everlasting gratitude in the heart of every missionary whose privilege it is to conduct mission work under the protection of the ,british flag4 ,happily there has never been another occasion in the history of ,burma missions to extend such kindnesses as ,mr4 and ,mrs4 ,judson enjoyed at the hands of these ,english officers4 ,but missionaries of all societies represented in ,burma have always been able to number among their best friends noble men in some department of government service1 civil or military4 ,transitions are more readily effected in government than in religion4 ,the ,powers that be1 though recently come into their possessions1 speak authoritatively4 ,might makes right1 and compels changes4 ,a foreign religion speaks persuasively1 having no authority1 and desiring none1 to compel its acceptance4 ,when a foreign religion enters ground already preempted by twenty-five centuries of such a strongly organized religion as ,buddhism1 transitions may also be reckoned by centuries4 ,the world may witness the evangelization of ,burma in this generation1 but it cannot recall the three generations of ,burmans that have gone out in the dark since ,judson began his work in this land4 ,their idols are silver and gold1 the work of men's hands4--,they that make them are like unto them3 so every one that trusteth in them4 ,the image of ,gautama ,buddha bears on its face an expression1 or rather lack of expression intended to represent that1 to him1 change was forever past4 ,the idol as truly represents ,buddhism as it does the founder of ,buddhism4 ,there is no word in the ,burman language of wider application than the word for custom4 ,on that word the ,buddhist falls back for justification of every act1 as sufficient reason for non-action1 as a clincher to every argument4 ,he attaches greater weight to ancestral custom than to the teachings of his law or to the dictates of his own judgment4 ,when defeated at every point1 in religious controversy he has been known to say1 ,if what you say is true1 then my ancestors have gone to hell4 ,i want to go wherever they have gone4 ,if they have gone to hell1 ,i want to go there too4 ,aged ,buddhists have said3 ,our children may become ,christians1 but we are too old to change4 ,we will die in ,buddhism1 as we have lived4 ,they are like unto their idols in that they seem to have no power to change4 ,having changed the glory of the incorruptible ,god for the likeness of corruptible man2 ,exchanged the truth of ,god for a lie1 and worshipped and served the creature 7,gautama7 rather than the creator1 and ,refused to have ,god in their knowledge1 they seem to have been given up to a reprobate mind4 ,they now declare that there is no ,god4 ,if there is no ,god there can be no sin against ,god4 ,sins are against self only1 in that they involve penalty4 ,but penalty may be counter-balanced by meritorious works4 ,therefore all responsibility to ,god or man is repudiated4 ,each man must be his own saviour4 ,his meritorious works are solely for his own advantage4 ,self-centred1 and self-sufficient1--the ,christian doctrines of an ,eternal ,god1 atonement1 pardon1 regeneration and heaven are rejected as idle tales concerning things which they consider neither necessary nor desirable4 ,the ,apostles1 or missionaries 7sent-forth-ones7 of the early church found that the ,gentiles received the gospel much more readily than the ,jews4 ,the latter were steeped in bigotry1 and imagined themselves a superior and specially favoured people4 ,they were priest-ridden1 and led astray by the traditions of the elders4 ,any suggestion of change was deeply resented1 especially by the religious teachers4 ,history repeats itself in ,burma4 ,non-,buddhist tribes receive the gospel far more readily than the ,buddhist4 ,buddhists manifest the same ,jewish spirit of haughty pride and arrogant bigotry4 ,they are priest-ridden1 and bound down by teachings and customs never dreamed of by the founder of their religious system4 ,pharisees decreed that if any man should confess ,jesus to be the ,christ1 he should be put out of the synagogue4 ,where there were no ,pharisees to agitate against the ,christian missionaries the common people heard them gladly4 ,while the ,karens1 as a nation1 have already passed the transitional stage1 the ,burmans are still held back by their pharisaical priests1 who never lack willing instruments for the execution of their malice against converts to ,christianity4 ,but in communities where there are no priests to hold the people in awe1 native evangelists have little difficulty in securing a good hearing4 ,this indicates the real spirit of the people when untrammelled by intimidating influences4 ,human nature is much the same the world over4 ,environment and inherited custom make men to differ4 ,results already achieved 7to be discussed in another chapter7 show that ,burma is in a state of transition religiously as well as politically1 though less conspicuously4 ,illustration3 ,,government ,,house1 ,,rangoon ,the sure promise of ,god that ,christ shall have the nations for ,his inheritance2 the uttermost parts of the earth for ,his possessions1 has here substantial beginnings of fulfillment4 ,uhlhorn said of the ,roman ,empire in transition3 ,the most mighty of forces cannot change in a day the customs and institutions of an ,empire more than a thousand years old4 ,in ,burma these forces are arrayed against customs and institutions that have developed during a period of twenty-five hundred years4 ,change of government effects outward changes in the life of a people2 but more than mere change of government is required to work changes for the better in the soul of a people4 ,aping ,european customs may give an air of increased respectability1 but the aping of ,european vices1 always first in order1 makes the man ,tenfold more a child of hell than before4 ,much is expected from the government system of education4 ,education will furnish a supply of petty officials2 raise the people to some extent1 from their gross ignorance2 and possibly do something towards undermining ,buddhism1--though to undermine ,buddhism is far from being the purpose or desire of the ,british ,indian government4 ,but something more than education is required to prepare a nation to be an inheritance of the ,king of ,kings4 ,the gospel1 and only the gospel is the power of ,god unto the salvation of any nation4 ,in industry1 skill1 statesmanship1 and all the qualities that go to make up a strong people1 the ,burmans are sadly lacking4 ,to come to the front rank of progress1 as the ,japanese have done1 is not in them1 and never will be4 ,but as a dependent nation1 restrained by their conquerors from the almost continual warfare which marks their history2 and transformed by the leavening influences of ,christianity1 they may yet take the front rank among ,asiatic races as a ,christian people4 ,,viii ,,by ,,all ,,means--,,save ,,some ,in face of the fact that whole nations lie in the darkness of heathenism2 bound down by ancestral customs2 priest-ridden2 wedded to their idols2--what seeming folly for a handful of missionaries to attempt the world's evangelization4 ,how futile the task of breaking down the strongholds of heathen religions that have stood for centuries4 ,so they sneered at ,carey the cobbler4 ,so they tried to discourage ,judson4 ,a ship's captain once asked an out-going missionary to ,china3 ,do you think you can make any impression on the four hundred millions of ,china8 ,no1 said the missionary4 ,but ,god can4 ,a coloured preacher discoursing on faith1 and warming to his subject said1 ,if ,god tole me to jump froo dat wall1 ,i'd jump4 ,de jumpin' froo belongs to ,god4 ,de jumpin' at it belongs to me4 ,god certainly has commanded ,his people to jump through the wall of heathenism4 ,the command is clear1 emphatic1 and large with divine intensity1 and promise of power and triumph4 ,nothing was said as to methods to be employed in making disciples4 ,there are many ways of proclaiming the gospel4 ,it may fairly be inferred that any or all effective methods may be employed2 and that methods may vary according to varying circumstances1 in order by all means to save some4 ,there is danger of too narrow an interpretation of instructions4 ,as an illustration1 take the case of ,paul1 who determined to know nothing among the ,corinthian ,christians save ,jesus ,christ and ,him crucified4 ,but in elaborating his theme he found occasion to discuss social purity1 matrimony1 divorce1 celibacy1 apparel for the sexes1 the place of woman in public gatherings1 as well as church discipline and collections4 ,whatever instruction was needed for the moral and spiritual development of the individual had a direct bearing upon his central theme4 ,such instruction could not be omitted without dwarfing the benefits of ,christ's sacrifice4 ,in ,god's plan for the evangelization of the world ,the foolishness of the preaching is to save them that believe2 ,christ crucified furnishing both the theme and the power4 ,all other plans have failed4 ,but this theme may be proclaimed in many ways2--by the evangelist1 as he goes from village to village2 by the pastor from the pulpit2 by the teacher in the daily ,bible-study of the school2 by the medical missionary1 whose ministrations of mercy are sermons in themselves2 by the holy life of missionary and disciple2 even by the ,christian chapel1 standing in a heathen community as a silent yet significant witness for ,christ4 ,all of these forces1 and others are being used of ,god in the redemption of ,burma4 ,direct evangelization1 or the proclamation of the gospel-message from village to village1 throughout the large district to which a missionary has been assigned1 is the predominating method4 ,our first experience in this line came when we had been but a few months in ,burma4 ,a messenger from a village twenty-three miles away came to inform us that two young men wanted to be baptized4 ,having already made plans to visit that village we prepared at once to respond to the summons4 ,when a ,burman wishes to be baptized in the presence of the heathen people of his own village1 it is taken as evidence that the ,holy ,spirit is working in his heart4 ,such opportunities must not be neglected4 ,first we must summon our forces4 ,u ,po ,hlaing must go1 because this is the village in which he used to live1 and these converts are fruits of his labours4 ,ko ,thaleh must go1 because he has had much experience in examining candidates1 and his judgment can be trusted4 ,maung ,ka must go1 because he is young1 full of fire1 and will not cease to preach the gospel1 whatever the circumstances4 ,but it is not easy to secure an audience in the heathen village1 unless there is some special attraction4 ,music hath charms to draw the people from their homes1 and hold them until the preachers have done their work4 ,mama is going1 with the portable organ1 and some of the ,christian girls to sing1 insuring success though other methods fail4 ,after going seventeen miles by rail we still had six miles to make by ox-cart4 ,the delight of an ox-cart ride over rough jungle roads beggars description4 ,the driver sits on the projecting front1 guiding the animals1 or pretending to1 by means of a rope passed through their noses4 ,just as we are about to sit down the oxen start4 ,we save ourselves by clutching at somebody else4 ,a desire to say something emphatic to the driver is overcome by inability to speak his language1 and a feeling of thankfulness that we are still on deck4 ,the road is conspicuous by its absence1--but that does not matter4 ,all the driver wants is to get his bearings1 then off he goes across sun-baked rice-fields1 and through the jungle4 ,by instinct he knows that a straight line is the shortest distance between two points1 and he keeps to that line without regard to obstructions or our feelings4 ,at last we reach the river1 and see on the opposite bank the thatch-roofed houses of the village4 ,the preachers shout to the villagers1 and soon two boats are poled across to take us over4 ,our boat is a long narrow dug-out1 our boatman a chubby ,burmese girl4 ,we are in momentary expectation of being dumped into the river2 but happily our expectations are not realized4 ,chubby enjoys it immensely1 and seems proud when she has landed us safely4 ,landing means that the dug-out has stuck in the mud1 twenty feet from shore4 ,the natives could wade1 and so could we1 but we did not like to1 through all that mud4 ,a brawny bare-backed ,burman soon solved the problem by taking ,mama in his arms and carrying her to the shore1 returning to take the ,sayah on pick-a-pack4 ,we were piloted to a house at the farther end of the village4 ,ascending by a short ladder to the open veranda we were glad to stretch out on the split-bamboo floor for a little rest4 ,after we had eaten supper1 and the men and women had returned from their work in the rice-fields1 the portable organ was placed in position4 ,in response to its tones1 sounds never heard before in that village1 men1 women1 and children came from all directions4 ,some sat around on the ground1 others climbed the ladder and filled all available space4 ,the preachers did their best to make known the ,glad ,tidings4 ,whenever the audience showed signs of thinning out1 the organ would send forth another appeal1 restoring numbers and interest4 ,sankey's songs1 translated into ,burmese1 were sung with vigour by the schoolgirls4 ,the ,old1 ,old ,story seemed to take new meaning when sung to the heathen by some of their own people who had learned to love it and live by it4 ,during the following day1 while the people were busy at their work1 our attention was given to the children4 ,a dozen or so1 drawn by curiosity1 had collected about the house4 ,some were half clad1 others with no protection whatever1 save a string around the neck1 with one large bead attached4 ,all were very dirty1 and as shy as rabbits4 ,after winning their confidence a picture card was given to each1 with instructions to go and bring other children4 ,illustration3 ,,how ,,we ,,travel ,,by ,,cart ,,and ,,boat ,it was interesting to see them scatter through the village to do their first missionary work4 ,few in the home-land realize how helpful to the missionary are the bright coloured advertising cards4 ,wild children in jungle villages are won by these pictures4 ,attendance at ,sunday-school in town may be doubled by their use4 ,but these native children want something more than bright colours4 ,strange to say that although fond of flowers for personal adornment1 they will give only a passing glance at the showiest picture of flowers2 while a picture of a person1--man1 woman1 or child1 of any race1--if in bright attire1 is eagerly seized4 ,a darky boy riding a spool of ,coat's thread is more effective than a dull ,sunday-school card for evangelizing purposes4 ,bushels of such cards might be utilized4 ,late that afternoon the council came together to examine the candidates for baptism4 ,sitting around on the floor in all sorts of positions they formed a strange looking group1 yet as sincere and earnest as a similar council in the home-land4 ,the examination was declared satisfactory1 so after prayer we all started for the river1 followed by nearly the whole village1 curious to witness a ,christian baptism1--the strange magic rite of initiation into the foreign religion4 ,this is always a grand opportunity to preach ,christ4 ,rather than lose the baptism they will remain and listen as they would not at other times4 ,so long as the missionary remains in their village they will not show1 by word or sign1 that they are not in sympathy with these proceedings4 ,the new converts1 who have had the courage of their convictions1 will be made to realize to their sorrow the real mind of the people4 ,on the way to this village we met a squad of ,burmans1 accompanied by a native policeman4 ,one of the men was carrying a parcel wrapped in plantain leaves4 ,interested to know what was in the parcel1 that it should require a police escort1 what was our surprise to learn that it contained a dacoit's head6 ,bands of dacoits had been giving a great deal of trouble4 ,several of their leaders were still at large4 ,more regular methods having failed to secure their capture1 the ,british ,indian government offered tempting rewards for their heads4 ,two men living in the village to which we were going1 surprised one of these dacoit leaders in a jungle path1 and thinking that his head would be worth more to them than it ever would be to him1 they struck it off with their dahs4 ,the head was taken to the court1 where it was identified1 and the reward recovered4 ,continuing our tour1 we halted one morning at about ten o'clock for breakfast4 ,our preachers had told us what a wicked village this was1 how the people had driven them out every time they had attempted to preach or distribute tracts2 and that only a little while before our visit they had beaten the wife of one of the preachers because she spoke of ,christ while resting by the way4 ,but this time there was no danger of violence1 for the presence of one white man is sufficient security against serious molestation4 ,so each preacher armed himself with a handful of tracts1 and started out to work the village1 and advertise our coming4 ,then ,mama opened the portable organ there in the open air1 and played a few tunes4 ,soon quite a number of women and children were attracted by the sound4 ,after throwing out this bait1 we paused for breakfast1 for we were hungry1 hot1 and tired1 having been travelling since the first signs of morning light4 ,the people were told to come again about noon1 and bring others with them4 ,the news that the white teachers had come1 that one was a white woman1 and played on a wonderful music-box1 such as they never had seen before1 went like wild-fire through the village4 ,the building in which we hoped to have our meeting was set up on posts several feet from the ground1 according to the custom4 ,the door was reached by means of a ladder4 ,how to get the people up into the house was the question that we must solve4 ,we placed the organ well to the back side of the one large room1 and posted the native helpers as to our purposes4 ,at the appointed time the people began to come1--men1 stripped to the waist as they came from their work2 women smoking huge cheroots1 with babies astride their hips2 children of all sizes1 some clothed1 some naked4 ,the missionary's wife took her place at the organ and played away1 tune after tune1 everything she could think of1 from ,old ,hundred to ,gloria in ,excelsis1 and repeated the most of them4 ,everything depended upon the drawing power of the music4 ,the preachers and ,christian girls1--some up in the house1 others down in the yard1--coaxed and urged the people up the ladder until we had filled the house4 ,up to this time ,i had kept well in the background on account of the more timid4 ,my object accomplished1 ,i now climbed up the ladder and seated myself in the door1--the only door there was4 ,with back against one door-jamb1 and knees against the other1 ,i was the gladdest man on earth4 ,we had trapped nearly the whole village6 ,fully seventy-five people who had persistently refused to listen to the gospel were penned in with the preachers4 ,to crowd out over a white man1 even had they dared to attempt it1 would have been too great a breach of ,burman etiquette4 ,at a given signal the music stopped1 and one of the preachers addressed the people4 ,he was the very man whose wife had recently been beaten4 ,he began by telling them how he had wanted for a long time to tell them about this new religion1 but never had been permitted to do so4 ,he reminded them of their action in beating his wife4 ,but1 said he1 ,i have no hard feelings against you4 ,this new religion is a religion of love4 ,its sacred book tells us that ',god is love1' and that ,he ',so loved the world that ,he gave ,his only begotten ,son1 that whosoever believeth on ,him should not perish1 but have eternal life4' ,then for about ten minutes1 with wonderful tact and earnestness1 he proclaimed ,christ as the world's ,saviour4 ,after a tune on the organ1 to keep the people interested and expectant1 another preacher gave his message4 ,another tune1 and then the third preacher emphasized what the others had spoken4 ,for three-quarters of an hour these people1 entrapped by strategy1 listened to the gospel at short range1 and were interested in spite of themselves4 ,but two men who were specially bitter against the name of ,christ1 climbed out through a window and dropped to the ground4 ,in the outskirts of that village we found an aged couple who professed to be followers of ,christ4 ,they had heard the gospel elsewhere1 and with what light they had1 believed4 ,the villages had utterly cut them off1 refusing to sell to them1 buy from them1 or even allow them to draw water from the village well4 ,but these old people had found the ,water of life4 ,in their hearts shone all the light there was in that terribly benighted village4 ,both of them died in the faith a few years later4 ,many of the ,karens have come down from the mountains and started villages of their own in the plains4 ,until the ,english had thoroughly subdued the country this was not possible1 as the ,karens were terribly oppressed by the ,burmans4 ,on one of our jungle tours we came across one of these ,karen villages4 ,nearly all the men understood colloquial ,burmese4 ,they received the missionary party with great kindness1 and eagerly listened to the gospel1 which they had not heard before4 ,the fifteen houses comprising the village were built at regular intervals around the outer edge of the small clearing they made in the forest4 ,in the open space the ,karens were seated in a semicircle on the ground1 with the missionary and native preachers in front4 ,we were about to sow precious seed in virgin soil4 ,not a soul had ever heard of ,christ before4 ,the story must begin at the beginning1--the ,eternal ,god2 the creation2 the fall2 the revelation of ,god in ,jesus ,christ--the ,saviour of the world4 ,as he went on to tell of ,christ's majesty and holiness1 of ,his wonderful words and works ,i was deeply stirred4 ,suddenly the face of the head-man lighted up1 and with a twinkle in his eye he interrupted the preacher4 ,pointing to me he said3 ,is this your ,christ8 ,for a moment his question seemed merely ridiculous4 ,but as the preacher continued his good work1 my mind was busy with this heathen ,karen's mistake4 ,when it dawned upon me that he had actually mistaken me for ,christ1 ,i never was so overwhelmed in all my life4 ,and yet1 ,i thought1 is it such a mistake8 ,true1 the ,god-man was infinitely superior to any human being4 ,but the missionary represents1 for the time1 all that these people can know of ,christ4 ,they must see exemplified in me the principles of ,christianity1 and the spirit of its ,founder4 ,they must see ,his holiness reproduced in my daily life4 ,as ,he1 when tried at all points1 was without sin2 when reviled1 reviled not again2 emerging calm and triumphant from every distracting storm1 so ,i must manifest the ,master's spirit1 and by ,his help preserve self-control under the most trying circumstances4 ,they must see ,christ truly represented in my life until they can look beyond1 to ,him who is the ,author and perfecter of our faith4 ,that was a high standard set for me by that poor heathen ,karen1 but it has proved more helpful to me than anything in all my ,christian experience4 ,it stimulated me to strive the harder to be able to say to my people ,be ye imitators of me1 as ,i also am of ,christ4 ,the ,burman race has the reputation of being thriftless and lazy4 ,many have prophesied that the ,burman must go to the wall before the encroachments of natives of ,india1 ,chinese1 and ,karens4 ,as seen in the chief towns the ,burman has fairly earned such a reputation4 ,if he has government employment1 even a petty clerkship1 he is good for nothing else4 ,many are birds of the night--gamblers--and loafers by day4 ,the average citizen spends the most of his time in indolence1 supported by his more enterprising wife4 ,but in the jungle villages we find a very different state of affairs4 ,few men are found in the village in the daytime4 ,to prepare their land1 plant1 harvest1 thresh1 and market the crop of rice1 requires diligent work almost the whole year round4 ,i have almost regretted their diligence sometimes1 when compelled to spend a day in almost idleness waiting for the men to return from their fields at sunset4 ,then an hour or so passes while they are getting their evening meal4 ,by this time it is pitch dark1 if there is no moon4 ,there is not a lamp in the whole village4 ,ordinary methods will not attract tired men from their homes4 ,there is no time for house-to-house preaching4 ,but the ,gospel must be preached4 ,if we cannot reach them by day we must reach them by night4 ,in the home-land a magic-lantern service is resorted to now and then1 as a special attraction4 ,we have come prepared to do the same in the jungle villages4 ,early in the day we clean up a spot in the centre of the village1 and stretch our large white curtain between two trees1 or support it by bamboo poles4 ,a clean white sheet in a conspicuous place1 is a novelty in itself sufficient to advertise the presence of outsiders4 ,while tracts are being distributed from house to house the evening service is announced4 ,if there is no musical instrument to call the people together the head-man is asked to sound his gong at the appointed time4 ,illustration3 ,,transplanting ,,rice ,illustration3 ,,dorian ,,sellers ,the magic lantern never fails to draw a crowd4 ,but as the first picture is thrown upon the screen we notice that many are hanging back where they cannot see and hear to the best advantage4 ,then we discover that this has been mistaken for a traveling show1 and that they are keeping out of reach of the collection plate4 ,they can hardly believe our repeated assertion that all this is for them1 without money and without price4 ,at last the crowd is gathered in as close as possible1 the children sitting on the ground in front4 ,at first we show a few pictures illustrating their own life and customs4 ,how pleased they are when a ,burmese damsel arrayed in gaudy skirt and flowers1 appears on the screen4 ,then we pass to pictures illustrating mission work among their own people1 taking care to emphasize the fact that ,christianity has already made substantial progress in ,burma1--has come to stay4 ,by this time our dusky audience has become accustomed to the novelty of the situation1 and is ready to settle down to look and listen4 ,now we pass to our real purpose1--the setting forth of ,jesus ,christ as the world's ,saviour4 ,often the preacher has been met with the demand1 ,show us your ,god4 ,that ,god is a ,spirit1 and they that worship ,him must worship in spirit and truth is beyond the comprehension of the heathen mind4 ,he has no conception of an eternal1 invisible ,god4 ,he can point to his god in that idol-house on the hilltop1 but where is the ,christian's god8 ,great care is taken at the outset to make them understand that these pictures of ,christ on the screen are in no sense idols2 that we do not worship the pictures4 ,then each picture is made a text for a brief but earnest sermon1 as we strive to convey to them1 through eye and ear1 some conception of the majesty1 power1 holiness1 and love of ,god as revealed in ,christ4 ,there is a crisis when we reach the picture of the crucifixion4 ,christ is the ,christian's ,god1 and his ,god is dead4 ,that thought is expressed in various exclamations4 ,up to this point we seemed to be carrying our audience with us1 but now they slip from our grasp4 ,for the moment the case seems lost1 the message rejected4 ,how earnestly we pray that the ,holy ,spirit will make the attraction of the cross realized by these heathen men and women4 ,have we made a mistake in displaying the cross in the first proclamation of the gospel in these villages8 ,surely ,christ and ,him crucified was the central theme of ,paul's preaching1 wherever he was4 ,he ,himself said1 ,and ,i1 if ,i be lifted up1 will draw all men unto ,me4 ,this theme and this picture shall have their place1--we will leave the result with ,god4 ,without waiting for too much of a reaction we pass to the picture of the resurrection4 ,at once the preacher gathers fresh courage4 ,with earnestness and triumph in his voice he sets forth the glorious fact of the resurrection4 ,yes1 ,christ died for our sins1 but ,he laid down ,his life that ,he might take it again4 ,after citing proofs of the resurrection we close with the ascension4 ,christ enthroned1 with ,all power in heaven and on earth1 ever liveth to make intercession for us4 ,the people fully understand that there has been nothing supernatural in the appearing of the pictures on the screen1 and yet they are more deeply impressed than when appealed to through the ear alone4 ,as one man expressed it1 ,how can we disbelieve1 when we have seen with our own eyes4 ,for day-work we sometimes use large coloured pictures illustrating the life of ,christ4 ,a bamboo pole is fastened up horizontally about five feet from the ground4 ,the picture-roll is suspended under the pole so that each picture1 when done with1 can be thrown back over the pole4 ,this method is very effective with the children1 and can be used when the older people are at their work4 ,both old and young enjoy the pictures1 for all have child-minds4 ,on one occasion we were preaching by this method in a ,karen village4 ,a middle aged ,karen1 a typical specimen of the ,great ,unwashed1 planted himself directly in front of the picture1 intensely interested in what he saw and heard4 ,as the young preacher graphically described some of ,christ's miracles1 or told of the sad events of the ,passion ,week1 the man's face was a study4 ,its expression changed with the varying sentiment of the message1--now wreathed in a smile that showed all of his blackened teeth2 now drawn down with a look of sadness that would have been comical but for the sacredness of the theme4 ,the narration of ,christ's heavenly words and works would be responded to by an ,ugh1 ,ugh of approval2 the story of ,his rejection1 by the same grunts in a different tone1 expressive of disapproval4 ,this man1 at least1 was ripe for a personal application of the message4 ,now and then we find a village in which is more than the usual amount of prejudice against ,europeans4 ,the people have suffered some real or imagined oppression4 ,not being able to discriminate between the missionary and the official1 they naturally resent his coming4 ,sometimes a whole day must be spent in disarming their fear4 ,we learn that a man is sick with fever1--the medicine-box is opened and the sick man treated4 ,children come peeping around the corners1 and we win them with picture-cards4 ,a young mother goes by with her little one astride her hip1 and we praise the baby4 ,so by degrees we work our way into their confidence and prepare the way for our message4 ,not always can the missionary accompany his native evangelist in their jungle tours4 ,it may be that other forms of mission-work compel him to remain at headquarters4 ,it may be that his health has become so affected by the climate that he can no longer endure the unavoidable hardship and exposure4 ,it may be that funds are wanting to cover the expense of further touring4 ,missionary experience has demonstrated the wisdom of adopting the ,master's method1 and he sends out his native helpers two by two4 ,one man alone confronting the forces of heathenism1 may become disheartened4 ,poorly trained1 he may find himself led into argument only to be worsted4 ,he may get sick1 and have no one to take care of him1 or carry a message to his friends4 ,but two by two1 one encourages the other4 ,when preaching1 one supplements the other4 ,the one who follows warms to his work even more earnestly than the one who led off4 ,what one does not think of the other one does4 ,we have often marvelled at their faithfulness1 knowing that nearly every attempt to preach ,christ to the heathen is met by a rebuff from some one4 ,they may have made repeated attempts without any sign of fruitage4 ,should they shake off the dust of their feet as a testimony against every village in which their message is not well received1 they would soon cover the ground1 and go out of business4 ,often after a day of ox-cart riding1 followed by preaching extending well into the evening1 we have retired to our curtained corner in a native house1 so weary that a bamboo floor seemed smooth and soft4 ,retired1 but not to sleep1--for no sooner are we out of sight than the preaching begins again4 ,among the many who have heard the gospel1 one1 two1 or half a dozen want to know more about this new teaching4 ,they climb up into the house1 and with the preachers form a circle around the smoking tin lamp4 ,to ten1 twelve1 or one o'clock in the night the preaching goes on4 ,we forget our weariness1 for we know that the very best work of all is now being done4 ,the preachers are face to face with the few who are willing or anxious to hear1 unhindered by scoffers or fear of neighbours4 ,native evangelists are not encouraged to attend heathen festivals by themselves1 although these large gatherings furnish good opportunities for preaching and tract distribution4 ,their presence at a heathen festival might be misunderstood1 besides furnishing an excuse to weaker ,christians who might be attracted by the pomp and show4 ,the one exception is the heathen funeral4 ,as has already been pointed out1 the funeral is also a festival1 but animated to some extent by a different spirit4 ,there are genuine mourners in the house1 besides the wailers who make such ado by turns4 ,there are truly sympathetic friends1 besides the many who attend because it is customary1 or to share in the feast4 ,there is one solemn subject1 death1 that will not down1 besides the idle chatter of the throng4 ,here is the place for the preacher4 ,now and then1 it is true1 he is summarily dismissed the moment he attempts to preach4 ,but as a rule he finds many who are in a sober1 thinking frame of mind1 ready to listen to the ,christian teacher's view of death and the ,great ,beyond4 ,that the deceased will some time reappear1 as man or animal1 they believe1 but not as the same individual4 ,the ,christian doctrine of the immortality of the soul1 is utterly foreign to all their thinking4 ,they have no conception of a final state of bliss or misery4 ,nothing is final except ,neikban1--annihilation1--and few there be who find it4 ,in the ,christian doctrine they see a ray of hope4 ,some from real interest1 others from curiosity will listen to the message4 ,sometimes it happens that the deceased was the heathen wife of a ,christian husband1 or the heathen husband of a ,christian wife1 for they do not always separate where one is converted to ,christianity4 ,such a case happened near our home4 ,ever since his baptism ,ko ,poo had led a terrible life with his heathen wife1 who cherished the most intense hatred of everything ,christian4 ,after a lingering illness ,ko ,poo realized that his time had come4 ,far from dreading death he hailed it as bringing sweet release from an unhappy life4 ,before his death he made his will1 bound his little ten year old boy to the mission1 and secured the missionary's promise that in spite of all opposition1 he should have ,christian burial4 ,his people were given their choice whether to have the remains taken to the ,christian chapel or to have a ,christian service in the house1 in which his wife would still be living4 ,they chose the latter course4 ,but an unforeseen event occurred1 complicating matters4 ,the wife was taken suddenly ill1 and died at half-past seven in the morning1 two hours before the death of her husband4 ,some said that her ill-timed demise was a final manifestation of her spirit of interference with all ,christian doings4 ,be that as it may1 it was now inevitable that there would also be a heathen funeral at the house1 at the same time4 ,here was an occasion calling for diplomacy1 but not for yielding4 ,they knew the missionary too well to expect him and his native preachers to quit the field4 ,according to native custom a body is kept from three to five days1--a dangerous custom1 to say the least1 in a tropical country1 with no facilities for embalming4 ,the remains of the wife might be kept longer if they so desired1 but according to ,christian custom the funeral of the husband must be held on the second day4 ,oh1 no1 that would not be good4 ,they had lived together so long1 now let them be buried at the same time4 ,so they yielded that point4 ,next1 where should they be buried8 ,the ,christians had their cemetery1 and the ,buddhists had theirs4 ,the missionary could plead his promise to the dying man that he should have ,christian burial1 a promise badly kept if the interment should be in the ,buddhist cemetery4 ,of course they were not willing that the wife should be buried in the ,christian cemetery1--so that point was peaceably gained4 ,then1 how should the two coffins be conveyed to their last resting place8 ,as they had lived together so long1 let the two coffins be carried side by side1--but that would not do1 for they were not bound for the same destination1--another point quietly gained4 ,the next problem was1 should the usual expensive spire-topped bier be constructed1 on which to place the wife's coffin4 ,the ,christians were not providing anything of that kind1 so the heathen friends were easily persuaded to forego their custom for once1 and save the money1 for the benefit of the orphaned children4 ,when the time came for the ,christians' service the missionary repaired to the house1 whither the native preachers had already gone4 ,in fact1 one or more of them had remained there the entire time from the death of ,ko ,poo4 ,at the appearance of the missionary and the ,christian company the tom-toms ceased their din1 and the room was made for all to enter4 ,when a movement was made to bring from the upper part of the house the coffin containing the remains of the husband1 one of the heathen relatives suggested that both coffins be brought down1 at the same time1 and be placed on the trestle side by side4 ,when this had been done1 the missionary made a sign to the native pastor that all was ready for the service to begin4 ,then the situation1 of their own creating1 dawned upon them4 ,a ,christian service was about to be held over the wife as well as the husband6 ,a man jumped up in anger to protest1 but was quietly though emphatically told to sit down and not disturb the service4 ,christian hymns were sung1 appropriate scripture read1 prayer offered1 and brief but earnest talks made by three of the ,christian workers1 including the missionary4 ,a crowd had gathered filling all available space in the large room1 and open space out to the street4 ,there was not the slightest disturbance or evidence of dissatisfaction throughout the service4 ,scores heard for the first time of ,christ--the ,resurrection and the ,life4 ,many others heard anew1 under more impressive conditions4 ,then the procession formed1 the ,christian section in advance1 and all moved slowly up the street1 to the sound of the tom-toms in the rear4 ,at the ,buddhist cemetery1 the heathen section swung off1 the ,christians going a short distance beyond to their cemetery4 ,the husband's relatives followed with the ,christians4 ,after a brief service at the grave1 all returned to their homes4 ,so closed a unique experience1 and a rare opportunity to proclaim ,christ as ,saviour4 ,often the ,christians have opportunity to minister to a mourning mother--weeping for her children2 and she would not be comforted1 because they were not4 ,in a twofold sense they are not4 ,according to ,buddhist belief1 for infants there is no hope4 ,little boys are hardly considered human beings until they have spent at least one day in a monastery4 ,the status of little girls is still more uncertain4 ,the mourning mother has not even ,david's comfort1 ,i shall go to him1 but he will not return to me4 ,she sorrows without hope4 ,her little one is dead1 it was too young to have a soul1 it is simply to be taken away into the jungle and buried4 ,how her face brightens with hope1 in spite of her belief1 when we tell her that her little one is safe in heaven4 ,she is ready to listen to the sweet story of ,jesus blessing little children2 and saying to ,his disciples1 ,suffer the little children to come unto ,me2 and forbid them not2 for to such belongeth the kingdom of heaven4 ,her mind may be so dark that she fails to take in its wealth of meaning1 but it is a message of comfort1 at least4 ,even some native ,christians who had lost little ones before their own conversion1 have carried with them the old heathen ideas concerning their lost ones until assured by the teacher that they will see their little ones again4 ,this truth comes to them as a blessed revelation1 giving joy and hope in place of sadness4 ,human nature is much the same1 the world over2 the same susceptibility to joy and sorrow4 ,christ in the heart makes all the difference4 ,a sad occasion1 furnishing a grand opportunity1 was the burial of a little child of mixed parentage4 ,the father had returned to ,england1 leaving his native concubine and two little children4 ,the younger1 only about nine months old1 sickened and died4 ,heathen friends and relatives of the mother came to the mission with a request that the child be buried according to ,christian custom4 ,a large company gathered at the grave1 all ,buddhists except the missionary and the native pastor4 ,the heathen friends were allowed to set a circle of lighted candles around the grave according to their custom4 ,then a short passage of scripture was read1 containing the ,saviour's words ,suffer the little children to come unto ,me1 and forbid them not1 for to such belongeth the kingdom of heaven2 and ,he took them in ,his arms and blessed them1 laying ,his hands upon them4 ,men and women listened intently while the precious truth1 so new and strange to them1 was set forth that these little ones1 far from being soulless creatures1--as ,buddhism teaches1--are choicest material for the paradise of ,god4 ,and that except a man become as a little child1 in simple trust and purity of heart1 he cannot enter the kingdom of ,god4 ,returning to their homes these people must pass the missionary's house4 ,twenty of them stopped to get tracts that they might learn more about the ,glad ,tidings4 ,another method of preaching ,christ is through medical missions1 or the incidental medical work1 which every missionary must perform4 ,as a philanthropic work medical missions would be justified from a purely medical or humanitarian point of view4 ,the woman who had suffered much from many physicians was a victim of men probably much more advanced in the knowledge of medicine than the average ,burman doctor4 ,both the diagnosis and the treatment are based on superstition4 ,the so-called doctor enters that profession because he has a taste for it and thinks he can do well 7for himself7 at it4 ,he requires no training1 and no drugs other than he can pick up in the jungle as he goes along1--herbs1 barks1 and roots of a peculiar smell1 shells1 stones1 etc4 carefully gathered at the right time of the moon4 ,some of the articles in his stock possess a real medicinal value1 and now and then are put to their proper use1 as is the case in country districts the world over4 ,any one of the ninety-six diseases which1 according to the ,burman notion1 the flesh is heir to1 may have come from one of about as many different causes4 ,the sick man may have been bewitched1 one of their many demons may be having a turn at him1 or perhaps he has offended the great nagah1 or dragon4 ,if it is due to the balance of kan1 fate being against him1 the case is hopeless4 ,that the sickness was caused by eating unripe fruit1 drinking from a polluted well1 or eating dried and putrid fish seldom occurs to the man of science who has come on to the scene to lessen the chances of recovery4 ,such is the fear of cholera that cathartics1 in many cases the only remedy needed1 are rarely given4 ,some of the ,burmese1 averse to taking medicine of any kind1 prefer to call a dietist4 ,no matter what the ailment may be1 the patient's birthday determines the treatment4 ,every ,burman knows the day of the week on which he was born1 though he may not know the month or the year4 ,his own name would recall the day1 should he forget it4 ,certain letters are assigned to each day of the week1 according to the planet from which the day took its name4 ,the person's name must begin with one of the several letters belonging to his birthday4 ,now in like manner all kinds of food beginning with one of those letters the patient must carefully shaung1--avoid4 ,rice would be tabooed on ,saturday1 but as no ,burman can eat at all without rice1 an exception is made1 to save the doctor's popularity4 ,burying an effigy of the sick person is sometimes resorted to1 in order to fool the demon who is hanging around the house4 ,thinking his victim has died1 he will depart4 ,massage sometimes is very helpful4 ,half a dozen people in a village are noted for their knowledge of the muscles of the human body1 and for special skill in the shampooing process1 but nearly every man and woman attempts it now and then4 ,this may be done with the hands1 or by treading slowly back and forth on the prone body of the sufferer4 ,practiced with discrimination it has more value than all the nostrums of doctors or dietists4 ,but unfortunately the ,burmese practice it for everything1 from a lame toe to confinement cases4 ,a prominent ,burman in ,rangoon recently declared as his belief that ,burma's immunity from the plague is due to the reverence of the people for the three precious things of ,buddhism1 the ,buddha1 the law1 and the priest4 ,against the occult power of ,karma on the right side of the scale1 accumulated by such faithful observance of the noble precept1 the baccilli of the plague can make no headway4 ,by the same reasoning the presence of the plague in ,india is attributed to the fact that ,hinduism with its revolting customs and bloody sacrifices has supplanted ,buddhism in that country4 ,putting these two together he confidently asserts that the only effectual remedy for the plague in ,india is the restoration of ,buddhism as the national religion4 ,mortality among infants is very high4 ,this is remarkable when one considers the faithfulness of the mother in attending to its wants1 starting it on honey and water in place of its natural food2 and afterwards supplementing its natural food by stuffing little wads of boiled rice into its mouth while it is yet but a few weeks old4 ,moreover1 special precautions are taken against the departure of the little one's butterfly-spirit4 ,that which the ,christian calls the soul1 the ,burman calls the sense of knowing1 and is personified as the butterfly-spirit4 ,when the body dies the butterfly-spirit also dies4 ,when a mother dies leaving an infant behind1 immediate precautions must be taken to prevent the child's butterfly-spirit from going off with the mother's4 ,incantations are resorted to1 and they distractedly appeal to the dead mother not to take away the butterfly-spirit of the babe4 ,then a ceremony is performed with a tuft of fluffy cotton to imitate the return of the spirit to the body of the child1 who is blinking in blissful unconsciousness of the awful crisis through which it is passing4 ,during one's sleep the butterfly-spirit may go wandering about by itself1 hence the peculiar experiences in dreams4 ,the temporary absence of the butterfly-spirit does no harm1 unless perchance it gets lost in the jungle1 or badly frightened1 it rushes back so tumultuous as to cause a shock to its owner4 ,another danger is that the person may be roused from sleep while the butterfly-spirit is off on a picnic1 in which case he would at least be sick until the spirit returns4 ,a sleeping man must not be disturbed1 however imperative the summons4 ,i was once the victim of over solicitude on my behalf4 ,travelling to ,rangoon by night-train1 with a ,burman as a companion ,i fell asleep4 ,the ,burman knew that ,i was very anxious to reach my destination on time4 ,he also knew that while ,i was asleep our train was delayed1 and that an opportunity offered for a transfer to the mail-train which had the right-of-way4 ,but that fellow1 educated and ,christian that he was1 had not outgrown the feeling that a sleeper must not be roused1 and so let the chance slip by4 ,an important business engagement was missed1 to say nothing of subsisting on one ear of boiled corn until twelve o'clock the next day4 ,much more might be said to show that there is a large field1 and an urgent demand for medical missions4 ,i am fully persuaded that1 given a medical missionary with an evangelistic temperament1 which means a passion for souls1 no other missionary agency can be compared with medical missions4 ,especially is this true of work among ,burman and ,shan ,buddhists4 ,the value of the work depends largely on the man himself4 ,if he cannot or does not win the people to himself he never will win them to ,christ4 ,the spiritual work will suffer in proportion as he allows himself to become absorbed in the purely medical or scientific side of his work1 leaving the evangelistic work to the native helpers4 ,the doctor has rare opportunities for personal influence in his dispensary and in heathen homes4 ,it is to be greatly regretted that at the present time there is not one medical missionary in the whole country assigned to ,burman ,buddhists1 who comprise about four-fifths of the population4 ,all of the ,shan mission stations have medical missionaries1 and the success of their work testifies to the soundness of the policy1 though this policy was due primarily to the need of such protection for the missionary family in these frontier stations4 ,the medical missionary has a double hold on the people4 ,the dispensary brings them to him1 and his outside practice takes him to their homes1 and that by invitation4 ,in both respects he has an advantage over the clerical missionary4 ,moreover1 as medical treatment is the ostensible object in their case1 anti-,christian opposition is not prematurely excited4 ,frequent visits of the clerical missionary to a heathen home1 brands that home as leaning towards ,christianity4 ,the one1 by relieving suffering1 removes prejudice1 although he may at the same time proclaim ,christ as faithfully as the other who1 by making that his sole errand1 unavoidably excites prejudice4 ,if as the result of a man's ministrations the blind receive their sight1 the lame walk1 and fevers are banished1 he is forgiven for being a ,christian1 and others are forgiven for consorting with him4 ,all governments and religions recognize the fact that to elevate a people the beginning must be made with the children4 ,it is too late now to begin with the child's grandfather4 ,missionaries do not confound education with evangelization1 but they do recognize its great value in the evangelizing process4 ,ideally1 evangelization should come first1 and education afterwards to meet the consequent demand4 ,this is usually the method followed1 to the extent of the evangelizing force available4 ,the missionary to ,burmans is shut up to a choice between losing the children of ,christian parents to the government1 ,roman ,catholic and ,s4 ,p4 ,g4 schools2 and establishing an anglo-vernacular school of his own1 in connecting with the ,education ,department of government4 ,it has come to pass that every school for the ,burmese in the towns1 must have government registration1 and must teach ,english4 ,every boy1 whether from a ,christian or heathen home1 is bound to have the certificates which only registered schools can give1 and is bound to have an ,english education4 ,if the missionary does not provide the opportunity the male children of his ,christian community will go where they can get it4 ,the ,education ,department holds annual promotion-examinations4 ,certificates are given to all who complete the course4 ,these certificates are the condition of securing employment in government clerkships1 mercantile houses1 and in all schools connected with the ,education ,department4 ,the boy who picks up his education in a vernacular school1 or a non-registered school1 however proficient he may become1 stands no chance in the race4 ,so much for the point of view from the native side4 ,it is also a generally recognized fact that non-,christian races never will be evangelized by the missionary alone4 ,the great work of the missionary is to train up a native evangelizing agency through which he can multiply himself1 perpetuate himself1 and establish a self-sustaining work1 that will go on when he shall have been compelled to lay it down4 ,time was when a middle-aged convert from a jungle village1 with no education beyond the ability to stumble through a chapter in his ,bible could do fairly effective service4 ,such men are still helpful outside of the towns1 if helped by the missionary to a better understanding of their message4 ,evangelists of such limited training are far from ideal1 even for jungle tours4 ,in the towns their influence is very slight4 ,how shall a stronger force be provided8 ,only through the mission schools1--there is no other way4 ,it may be said that the missionary is not called upon to educate clerks for government4 ,it is also true that he is not called upon1 by his ,master1 to decide beforehand what boys in his mission shall be educated for the ministry4 ,much of a boy's training must be given before he himself is sufficiently mature to comprehend a divine call to the ministry4 ,if no place is given for such a call1 the native ministry will be filled with men who would do better service in the rice-fields4 ,rice would be their main object in the ministry4 ,moreover1 the preliminary training cannot even be deferred until the boy is converted4 ,the vocation of the preacher is not hereditary1 like that of the various castes in ,india4 ,the son of a dacoit may be converted during his school life1 and become a preacher4 ,the son of a preacher may become a dacoit1 or at least never feel called to the ,christian ministry4 ,the mission school cannot even be limited to children of ,christian families4 ,opening the doors to all classes willing to pay for the advantages of the school greatly reduces its cost to the mission4 ,increase of numbers does not involve increase in the number of classes or teachers4 ,much of the expense is thereby placed where it belongs1--upon the people themselves4 ,opening the doors to all classes furnishes the grandest field for evangelistic work within the missionary's sphere of influence4 ,every day in the week ,christian influences are brought to bear upon the same individuals2 ,christian truths are inculcated2 the creeds of false religions forestalled in youthful minds2 prejudice against ,christianity dispelled1 and either during school life1 or when the pupils are free to break from the control of heathen parents many converts are gained4 ,from these converts1 as well as from children of ,christian parents1 come accessions to the mission force of teachers and evangelists4 ,paul was laid hold on by ,christ ,jesus for special service while he was yet as intense a hater of ,christianity as can be found in ,buddhist ,burma4 ,from among the unconverted children now in mission schools some1 already chosen in the foreknowledge of ,god1 will be laid hold on to be ,gospel preachers to the rising generation4 ,from the early days of ,buddhism in ,burma1 even before the language was reduced to writing there were monastic schools for the purpose of teaching boys the doctrines of the new religion4 ,when the language was reduced to writing1 all boys were compelled to attend the monastic school to learn to read and write1 in addition to the memorizing of portions of the sacred books4 ,this is still the custom1 where no ,english schools are provided4 ,with the advent of the ,english school compulsory attendance at the monastery is continued for religious purposes only1 and may be limited to the brief period required by the novitiate ceremony1 through which every boy must pass4 ,this may extend to three months1 or be cut short at the end of a week1 according to the zeal of the parents1 or the anxiety to get the boy back into the ,english school so that he may not lose his promotion examination4 ,let a boy spend a year in the monastery1 and you have a full-fledged ,buddhist to deal with4 ,take the same boy into the mission school at the age of five or six1 even earlier where there is a kindergarten department1 and you have a child who is no more a ,buddhist than your own little ones4 ,buddhism is not hereditary1 it is the result of training and environment4 ,forestall that training by taking the children into the ,christian school1 and there train them in the blessed doctrines of ,christianity4 ,for the poisonous environment of the heathen home and community1 substitute the ,christian influences of life in the mission school4 ,for this purpose the boarding-school1 in which the pupils are required to live1 and be under ,christian influences and safeguards day and night is worth vastly more than the day-school1 which holds the pupils only during school hours1 allowing them to return at night to their heathen homes4 ,but the existence of the mission day-school1 with its staff of native ,christian teachers1 and its daily ,bible-study is amply justified by results4 ,the pupils thus kept away from the monastic school are not being indoctrinated in ,buddhism2 they are being indoctrinated in ,christianity4 ,few children in ,christian lands receive a like amount of ,bible teaching4 ,i venture to say that there are day-schools in ,burma1 made up largely of children from heathen homes1 that could successfully compete with the average ,sunday-school in ,america in answering questions on the ,bible4 ,heathen parents of pupils in the day-school have complained that their children have already renounced ,buddhist worship and customs1 and openly preach ,christ to their own parents4 ,whether these pupils are gathered into the ,christian fold or not1 a few years hence they will be rearing families of their own4 ,the next generation1 born of pupils now in mission schools1 will not be taught to hate everything in any way connected with the ,jesus ,christ religion1 as these pupils have been4 ,even the day-school is one of the stepping-stones heavenward for these benighted people4 ,illustration3 ,,pineapples ,,and ,,jackfruit ,the ,karen village school-teacher1 besides his regular work in the school1 brings his influence to bear on the parents as well1 with the result that in many instances the entire village is won to ,christianity4 ,some of these teachers are marvels of consecration4 ,poorly fed1 poorly clothed1 often with no other pay than their meagre fare1 far from home and friends1--they are worthy a place among the heroes of our time4 ,scores of these schools are now in operation4 ,their value as an evangelizing agency can hardly be estimated4 ,many of these teachers are young men1 just out of the training-school in town4 ,following the example of the missionaries under whom they have been trained1 and catching something of their spirit1 these young men have themselves become missionaries4 ,if in ,christian villages without settled pastors1 not only the children in the school1 but men and women of all ages become their pupils1 recognizing the young teachers' superior training1 and willingly sitting at their feet1 both in their homes and at the regular worship in the village chapel4 ,if in non-,christian villages the teacher1 by his school and such other influences as he can bring to bear1 excites an interest in ,christianity1 of which as yet they know nothing4 ,they wanted a school because they had noticed1 or had it impressed upon them by the missionary1 that other villages were benefited by having schools4 ,the missionary seizing the opportunity1 inserts this entering wedge1 with its ,christian influences which they would not accept from the regular evangelist4 ,the net is cast1 and it gathers of every kind4 ,soon the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence and the whole village would take it by force1 only checked by the requirements that they utterly abandon their spirit-worship1 and turn unto the ,lord with all their hearts4 ,this requirement not only differentiates the ,christian villages from the heathen1 but from the ,roman ,catholic villages as well1 for the latter are allowed to retain all their old customs and vices1 adding thereto the vices of their foreign teachers4 ,martin ,b4 ,anderson once wrote to a friend--,the work of our eastern missions is vastly more comprehensive than ordinary ,christians suppose4 ,it is nothing else than the creation1 among a heathen1 semi-barbarous1 and ignorant population1 of the most advanced type of ,christian civilization4 ,this at least ought to be the ideal which we should have before our minds1 and for whose realization we should constantly labour4 ,the cultivation of the moral and religious nature of man should be carried on simultaneously with the highest practical development of the intellectual powers4 ,can such an education as our eastern converts require be communicated to them through their vernacular languages8 ,my own impression is that it cannot4 ,it 7the ,english language7 comes to them freighted with all the intellectual accumulations of the past4 ,it brings to them the terminology of spiritual religion1 of the science of the mind1 and the science of ,god4 ,their preachers and teachers1 and moral and political leaders must be trained in ,english1 or their education will be inadequate and narrow4 ,the foregoing pages describe some of the many methods employed by our missionaries1 who would by all means 444 save some4 ,,ix ,,with ,,persecutions ,amarapura had been the capital of ,burma forty years when1 in #ahbc1 a great fire destroyed some of the royal buildings4 ,having decided that ,amarapura was an unlucky place the capital was restored to ,ava4 ,judson's first visit to the capital occurred at this time4 ,the king had requested him to open a mission at ,ava1 and offered land for the purpose4 ,then a war cloud on the western coast arose to darken his prospects4 ,the ,british at ,chittagong refused to deliver up certain ,burmans who had taken refuge there4 ,in #ahbd the ,burman king declared war4 ,several ,englishmen who were then at ,ava1 were seized and thrust into prison4 ,judson and his associate1 ,dr4 ,price1 suspected of being in league with the ,english1 were also imprisoned4 ,the son of ,bodawp'ra1 known in history as ,badawgyi1 was then king4 ,the ,burman kingdom1 with the exception of ,chittagong1 was yet intact4 ,the haughty king imagined himself to be the most powerful monarch on earth2 and that his cities were impregnable1 his armies invincible4 ,unable to discriminate between ,americans and ,englishmen1 the king caused all white men to be thrown into prison together4 ,eleven months at ,ava and six months at ,aungbinle ,judson and ,dr4 ,price suffered indescribable misery4 ,bound with chains1 crowded in with scores of natives1 famishing from lack of suitable food1 the whole place reeking in filth4 ,mental distress was almost equal to the physical1 for ,judson's beloved wife and child1 whom he longed to see1 were also suffering4 ,in the providence of ,god their lives were spared1 but they would feel the effects of such sufferings to the end of their days4 ,a school history of ,burma contains this touching reference to the released missionaries and ,europeans3 ,a sadder spectacle has seldom been presented to living human beings than that which was offered to the ,english camp by those liberated captives4 ,they were covered with filthy rags1 they were worn to skin and bones1 and their haggard countenances1 sunken1 wandering eyes1 told but too plainly the frightful story of their long suffering1 their incessant alarms1 and their apprehension of a doom worse than death4 ,such was the experience of the first missionary to ,burma4 ,the oft-repeated remark1 ,the days of missionary heroism are past1 has done much to deaden interest in foreign missions4 ,it is not my purpose to give a prominent place to the subject of missionary sacrifices4 ,a few illustrations1 which might be multiplied1 will serve to show to what extent the spirit of ,burman ,buddhists has changed since the time when they inflicted upon ,judson such terrible tortures4 ,in #ahdb1 a few years after ,judson triumphantly held aloft the last leaf of the ,bible translated into the ,burman language1 the first martyr laid down his life for ,christ's sake and the gospel's4 ,his name was ,klo ,mai1--a converted ,karen4 ,a company of ,burmans broke into his house1 abused him cruelly1 threatening his life if he would not recant4 ,his son ,shwe ,nyo1 also a ,christian1 leaped to the ground and hid himself in the jungle1 but not until he had been severely stabbed4 ,klo ,mai was dragged from his house and crucified by his heartless tormentors4 ,bound to a hastily constructed bamboo cross1 in the form of a letter ,x1 he was left to die1 and did die1 rather than deny his ,master4 ,his son ,shwe ,nyo1 became an effective preacher of the gospel1 stimulated to the greater earnestness by his father's faithful example4 ,surely he bore in his body the brand-marks of the ,lord ,jesus1 for he carried with him until his death in #ahib1 the scar of that stab received in his youth4 ,buddhism has been said to be the most tolerant of all non-,christian religions2 and the ,burmese the most tolerant of all ,buddhist peoples4 ,this may be true1 up to a certain point4 ,judson gave as the reason why ,portuguese ,roman ,catholics were left unmolested in ,burma1 that very few ,burmans entered that church1 proselytism being the only thing in foreign religions to which ,buddhists object4 ,but to gain a convert from ,buddhism he declared to be like pulling the tooth of a tiger4 ,with the establishing of an elaborate police-system1 by the ,british government1 and the certainty that crime would be punished1 missionaries and native converts no longer had reason to fear the more violent forms of persecution4 ,but the ,burman still found ways to persecute1 without laying himself liable to the law of the land1 when one of his people had the temerity to forsake the ancestral religion4 ,a case of this kind was very soon brought to our notice4 ,our personal teacher was a young convert4 ,in his native village he had heard the gospel from a travelling evangelist2 learned more from tracts that were given him2 believed what he heard and read1 and openly declared his belief to his people4 ,this excited such anger and opposition that he was obliged to run away from home4 ,his people followed him to the mission1 threatening to kill him if he did not renounce ,christianity1 and return to his village4 ,the young man again escaped from his persecutors1 and remained in hiding until they returned to their homes4 ,the missionary gave him the training he so earnestly desired1 and he became an effective preacher4 ,a few years later1 in company with the missionary and others1 he returned to his village and openly proclaimed ,christ before them all4 ,at our mission station a middle-aged man was led to ,christ by this young man4 ,the new convert's wife and others bitterly opposed his companying with the ,christians1 and attending their worship4 ,when it became known that he was to be baptized1 his mother followed him to the river and earnestly besought him to give up his crazy purpose4 ,failing in this she returned home and told his wife that her husband had actually been baptized before her eyes4 ,this so enraged her that she snatched his clothing from its place1 and would have cut it to bits had not the mother prevented her4 ,for several days and nights the husband and father had to remain away from his family1 waiting for the atmosphere to clear4 ,at last the wife consented to live with him1 but her continued opposition was a source of great unhappiness until1 a few years later1 he was called to come up higher4 ,at another mission station an old man became a convert1 and felt it his duty to be baptized4 ,at first he shrank from it1 knowing what the consequences would be1 but he felt that he should obey ,god rather than man4 ,his decision raised a terrible storm of opposition4 ,his own grown-up children joined with the rest in calling him crazy4 ,they tore around like fiends1 slapped and pushed the poor old man1 and twice knocked him to the ground1 before the missionary could rescue him4 ,it was a terrible test1 but ,god was with him4 ,encouraged by the missionary1 he walked out of the village to the waterside1 and without one of his relations to witness his obedience of faith he followed his ,lord in baptism4 ,radiant with joy he returned to the village1 though he knew that henceforth his foes would be they of his own household4 ,another missionary has given the following account of the conversion and baptism of a pupil in one of the mission schools4 ,it gives me great joy to record the baptism of another of our pupils1 the first ,burman to be converted in our school1 or in this town1 so far as ,i know4 ,he has come out amidst bitter opposition and persecution from all his friends4 ,more than a year ago he asked his parents' consent to his baptism1 but received nothing but curses from his mother1 and tearful entreaties to postpone his baptism1 from his father4 ,after waiting a year he told them firmly that he had decided to obey ,god rather than man1 and that if they still withheld their consent he must be baptized without it4 ,so during a visit from ,mr4 ---- last month he presented himself as a candidate for baptism4 ,his sister came to the preliminary meeting1 and attempted to prevent his being received4 ,failing in this she left in anger1 threatening him with a beating when he returned home4 ,he had scarcely left the riverside1 when his mother appeared1 and after much loud and abusive language ordered him home1 renewing the sister's threat of a beating4 ,he went obediently1 saying as he left1 ',this is a very hard day for me1 but ,i can bear it with joy for ,jesus' sake4' ,they did not use personal violence1 but employed every other means to hurt and humiliate him4 ,when he remained steadfast they called in all their relations and friends1 a large and respectable company1 for they are a family in good standing1 and spent the evening in trying1 some by gentle persuasion1 some by threats and ridicule to make him renounce his ,christian faith4 ,but he only answered that he knew he had found the right way1 and should never forsake it4 ,he even dared to preach to them of the true ,god1 until his father commanded him to stop4 ,the following ,sunday they took away his jacket1 and threatened to come and curse us if he came to worship4 ,since they have given up the hope of winning him back to ,buddhism1 they simply ignore his presence in the house1 and have informed him that he is at liberty to eat at home but will never receive another pice from them while he remains a ,christian4 ,his former friends have forsaken him1 some even refuse to speak to him4 ,yet he has not wavered for a moment1 and often says with a radiant face1 ',this religion is a very happy religion4' ,in a distant village lived a young ,christian ,burman1 with his heathen wife4 ,he was the only ,christian in the place1 and for miles around4 ,unflinchingly he confessed ,christ as his ,saviour1 in the face of much prejudice and opposition4 ,one night men burst into his house and demanded his money and other valuables4 ,not securing so much as they expected1 they began beating him with their clubs4 ,he shouted with all his might1 but not a soul stirred in the surrounding houses4 ,with each blow they reviled him saying1 ,can ,jesus save you8 ,can ,jesus ,christ save you8 ,having satisfied their brutal instincts1 and being unable to secure more plunder they descended to the ground1 dragging the young man with them4 ,as they passed through the village they shouted threateningly1 ,let no one follow us4 ,there was little danger that any one would follow4 ,there was not a light in the village1 and not a head showed itself4 ,doubtless some of the villagers were in league with these villains1 others were intimidated1 supposing they were dacoits4 ,the young man1 bruised and suffering1 was forced to accompany his persecutors about a mile1 where they released him4 ,he worked his way back to the village1 and on the following day persuaded two men to take him to the nearest railway station1 six miles away4 ,jungle roads were impassable1 but he made the journey astride a buffalo4 ,reaching the mission station he was examined by the medical missionary1 who found that he had sustained a green fracture of two ribs1 besides a serious scalp wound and many bruises4 ,acting on information furnished by the missionary1 the police traced and captured the whole band4 ,they were sentenced to terms in the penitentiary1 ranging from four to seven years4 ,here is an extract from a missionary's account of a tour made in #ahhc to a town in ,upper ,burma where now is a ,christian church and school3 ,before going north ,maung ---- was warned not to use the same boldness of speech that he was accustomed to use in ,british ,burma1 lest they should kill him4 ,but as far as ,i observed he was bolder than ever1 denouncing idolatry in every form1 and pleading the merits of ,jesus ,christ4 ,a ,german who had declared that there was not a true conversion among the ,burmans1 was compelled to acknowledge that he had been mistaken1 for no man 7said he7 could face what this one did who was not a ,christian4 ,as has been said1 there is little reason1 at the present time1 to fear for one's life4 ,but such instances of persecution as here given are being repeated at every station where mission work among ,buddhists is being carried on4 ,here we have enacted before our eyes a living commentary on these words of ,christ3 ,think not that ,i came to send peace on the earth4 ,i came not to send peace1 but a sword4 ,for ,i came to set a man at variance against his father1 and the daughter against her mother1 and the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law2 and a man's foes shall be they of his own household4 ,he that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me2 and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me4 ,the doctrine that ,there is no other name whereby we must be saved inevitably would produce this very result1 as every missionary witnesses4 ,it is my profound conviction that missionaries and native converts owe the safety of their lives1 under ,god1 to the strong arm of the ,british ,indian government4 ,doubtless the majority of ,burman ,buddhists1 if left to themselves1 would tolerate any foreign religion in their midst4 ,but they are not left to themselves4 ,the priest is the ,pharisee of ,buddhism2 each idol-maker a modern ,demetrius4 ,the one says3 ,only by our hold upon the superstitious reverence of the people we have sustenance4 ,the other says3 ,only by this business have we our wealth4 ,both hate the ,christian evangelist with a bitter hatred4 ,take away the strong arm of the law which1 by many severe lessons1 they have learned to respect1 these emissaries of ,satan would make the advent of a ,christian evangelist an occasion of rioting rivalling that of ,ephesus4 ,judson's experiences would be repeated in the experience of many a missionary4 ,as it is there are scores of ,buddhists who secretly admit that ,christianity is right1 but dare not openly break away from the toils of this ,buddhist hierarchy4 ,the reign of ,badawgyi1 the king that imprisoned ,dr4 ,judson1 extended to #aheg4 ,during the last years his authority was but nominal4 ,the humiliation of his defeat by the ,english2 loss of territory2 and from #ahcj1 the degradation of being compelled to have a ,british resident in the royal city finally drove him insane4 ,in that condition he remained until his death1 in #ahde4 ,so ended the career of this cruel king under whom ,dr4 ,judson suffered4 ,at about this time the capital was again transferred to ,amarapura1 which remained the capital until the founding of ,mandalay1 in #ahfj4 ,ava was left to fall to ruin4 ,from the founding of ,ava until it was finally abandoned1 thirty kings had reigned there1 for periods from a few months up to thirty-eight years1 including temporary changes of the capital4 ,i visited the site of ,ava in ,august1 #aijc1 crossing the ,irrawadi ,river1 from ,sagaing4 ,the old city wall1 from which much of the brickwork has been removed1 still stretches along the bank of the river for two miles4 ,the main entrance1 through which ,judson must have passed and repassed1 is still intact1 though the great gates have disappeared4 ,the city was built in the angle formed by the junction of the ,irrawadi and ,myitngi ,rivers1 and extended back along the ,myitngi one and a half miles4 ,a smaller inner wall enclosed the palace and other royal buildings4 ,only one building of the entire city is still standing4 ,this building is of brick1 plastered on the outside with cement1 and represents the best workmanship of which their imported ,indian architects and masons were capable4 ,it is about twenty-five feet square and seventy-five feet high1 and is without doors or windows4 ,there was a brick and plaster stairway on the outside1 winding around the tower4 ,from some unknown cause the tower long ago settled on one side1 so that it leans fully six feet out of perpendicular4 ,this settling threw down the massive brick stairway1 which now lies in chaotic ruin4 ,this lofty building1 standing within the royal quarters1 was the watch-tower4 ,from its top long views up and down the great river1 and out over the open plains1 could be obtained4 ,sentinels paced its top to give timely warning of the approach of an enemy4 ,on a great gong they struck the hours by day and night4 ,the sound1 easily reaching far beyond the limits of the royal grounds1 would be welcomed by ,judson and his fellow sufferers to break the awful monotony of life in the miserable prison1 which stood outside the inner wall4 ,the prison was demolished many years ago1 but within the memory of ,burmans now living near by4 ,around a large tree1 that must have been large enough in ,judson's time to furnish partial shade from the fierce rays of the tropical sun1 a circular platform of old brickwork still remains4 ,broken brick and roofing-tile cover the ground4 ,much of the site of the old city is covered with tangled jungle-growth1 through which chetahs and other animals sometimes prowl4 ,a score of ,burmans are slowly digging up the ground to the depth of about three feet over the entire area once covered by the royal buildings4 ,now and then their labours are rewarded by finds of jewelry or silver4 ,the finer earth below the layer of dbris is washed for gold dust1 from the many gold-decorated buildings that have marked the spot through the reign of many kings4 ,the sight of the ,ava prison having been identified beyond a doubt1 the ,baptists of ,america would do well to place there a suitable monument to mark the spot where their first missionary suffered so much for ,christ's sake and the gospel's4 ,after suffering for eleven long months at ,ava the prisoners were transferred to ,aungbinle1 a day's journey to the northeast4 ,in company with the missionary at ,mandalay ,i rode to the place1 two days before my visit to ,ava4 ,aungbinle is about five miles east of ,mandalay1 towards the hills4 ,among the public works of ,bodawp'ra1 who reigned from #aghi to #ahai1 was an artificial lake1 formed by a raised embankment of earth enclosing about fifteen square miles of the nearly level plain4 ,this was filled by means of a canal connecting with a natural lake two or three miles farther north1 fed by mountain streams4 ,in these two reservoirs abundance of water for irrigation could be stored for use through the many rainless months4 ,this artificial lake was called ,aung-binle--the conquered or shut-in sea4 ,at its southwest bend ,aungbinle village still stands1 though its thatch-and-bamboo houses have been renewed ten times over since ,judson was brought there to be thrown into the death-prison4 ,the site of this prison also has been identified beyond a reasonable doubt4 ,an aged ,burman there pointed out the spot to missionaries who were investigating the matter several years ago4 ,a ,burman official who had been there many years1 and was familiar with land-titles1 confirmed the old man's story4 ,more recently an old brick pathway was discovered when ditching the road that passes the prison-site4 ,this further corroborated the statement of the two ,burmans that the police quarters were on the north side of this road1 and the prison on the south4 ,there is little room for doubt that the brick pathway connected the two4 ,the prison itself was only a bamboo structure1 of which nothing would now be left4 ,a ,buddhist monastery erected later near the prison-site1 was destroyed by fire a few years ago4 ,there are two pagodas within a stone's throw1 one of which may have stood there in ,judson's time4 ,except a few slender palms1 the region must have been treeless1 the heat indescribable4 ,the location of ,mrs4 ,judson's house is uncertain4 ,judging from the situation of the village1 and the character of the land near by it must have been quite near the prison4 ,illustration3 ,,elephants ,,at ,,work ,the ,baptist mission has secured about two acres of land1 including the prison-site4 ,by the generous gift of two ,american ,baptists who recently visited ,aungbinle1 a neat and substantial brick chapel has been erected on the prison-site1 as nearly as can be determined4 ,a little farther back1 and to one side1 is the ,burman preacher's house1 also included in the gift4 ,the missionary1 who frequently visits the village1 has provided a miniature cottage of thatch-and-bamboo1 in which to rest and find protection from the mid-day heat4 ,as one attempts to realize the situation as it was1--,judson suffering untold agonies1 aggravated by his heartless tormentors1--in the miserable prison2 ,mrs4 ,judson1 in her isolation and friendlessness1 suffering from privation1 intolerable heat1 disease1 and the yet greater mental suffering on account of her husband who might at any moment be led to execution before her eyes1--the picture becomes more and more terrible4 ,then as we turn again to the chapel and preacher's house our thoughts rise in praise to ,him who has wrought these changed conditions4 ,on the very spot where the innocent and the guilty were together imprisoned and tortured1 an earnest man of ,god1 of the same race as the king by whose order these men suffered1--now proclaims ,jesus ,christ as the world's ,saviour4 ,as ,i turned away from this spot1 and again as ,i passed out through the old gateway at ,ava1 it was with an earnest prayer that a double portion of ,judson's spirit might rest upon his successors in this heathen land4 ,x ,,heroes ,,and ,,heroines ,if heroes and heroines are men and women who have shown startling qualities in time of stress and strife1 many such may be found among converts from heathenism4 ,the examples here given are from my own fellow workers4 ,u ,po ,hline1 pastor of the church at ,pyinmana1 is well known in the ,burman mission4 ,a conspicuous figure at conventions and associations1 his massive form1 intelligent face1 and dignified bearing mark him a ,saul among his brethren4 ,but ,u ,po ,hline's interesting history is not so well known4 ,his early life was spent in the yellow robes of the ,buddhist priesthood4 ,there he learned the real inwardness and emptiness of the ancestral religion4 ,in it he could not find that which could satisfy his spiritual sense2 nor was he satisfied to lead the indolent1 selfish life of the ,buddhist priest4 ,but familiarity with their arguments and contents of their sacred books1 gained during the years of monastic life1 was yet to be turned to good account4 ,casting off the yellow robes he became a tiller of the soil4 ,by industry and good management not common to his race1 he possessed himself of rice-fields1 bullocks1 and buffaloes1 and money interests among the villagers where he lived4 ,loyalty to the ,british ,indian government never has been1 and is not to-day true of the mass of ,burmans4 ,u ,po ,hline's broader intelligence led him not only to accept the inevitable1 but also to see what benefits would accrue to his race from ,english rule4 ,he used his influence to restrain his people from acts of violence1 and in various ways lent his aid to the progress of law and order4 ,in those troublous times he had an adventure1 of which he never speaks unless questioned on the subject4 ,returning from ,rangoon where he had marketed his harvest of tsan1--unhulled rice1--he and his boatmen were attacked by dacoits4 ,the boatmen1 terrified by the fiendish yells of these desperate dacoits1 threw down their paddles and would have tried to escape by taking to the water4 ,not so ,u ,po ,hline4 ,neither his life nor his rupees were to be taken so easily4 ,crawling under the paung1 he seized his rifle1 and1--to use his own words--,two of the dacoits sank in the water1 and did not reappear4 ,the tables were turned4 ,the dacoits1 now as badly frightened as the boatmen1 lost no time in taking to the brush4 ,u ,po ,hline still remembers the adventure with the sad feeling that although acting in self-defense1 he sent two souls into eternity unprepared4 ,his conversion is especially interesting4 ,a copy of the ,new ,testament1 given him by a native evangelist1 was the means of shaking his faith in ,buddhism2 and of awakening a desire to know more about the ,jesus ,christ religion4 ,relating the circumstances of his conversion he said3 ,i kept my ,new ,testament in my jacket pocket wherever ,i went4 ,when resting from my work ,i would take out my ,testament and read a little1 slowly going on through ,matthew1 ,mark1 and ,luke1--but ,i understood nothing of what ,i read4 ,i read about the birth of ,jesus ,christ1 ,his teaching1 ,his wonderful miracles1--but who ,christ was ,i did not know4 ,then ,i came to ,john4 ,in the first chapter ,i read3 ',in the beginning was the ,word1 and the ,word was with ,god and the ,word was ,god4' ,then a little farther down ,i read3 ',that ,word everything created2 and without a divine creating was not so much as one thing4' ,is that so1 ,i said4 ,did that ,word make me8 and not only me1 but everybody and everything in all this great world8 ,and then ,i read that ,he was the ,light1 and the ,light shines in the darkness1 and the darkness would not receive it4 ,why1 ,i said1 that is just the way it is here4 ,these people are in the dark1 and will not believe what the preachers of the ,jesus ,christ religion say to them4 ,then still farther down ,i read3 ',the ,word took the state of man1 and lived among us4' ,and as ,i read on1 ,i found that the ,word that was with ,god1 and was ,god2 and created all things2 and became flesh and lived on earth was the same ,jesus ,christ that ,i had been reading about in ,matthew1 ,mark and ,luke6 ,i went home and told my wife that ,i had become a ,christian2 and that as the preacher said that all who enter the ,jesus ,christ religion must receive the dipping ceremony ,i am going to get baptism4 ,were you not afraid your heathen neighbours would make trouble8 ,i asked him4 ,what trouble could they make1 teacher8 ,nearly all of them were in debt to me4 ,but when ,i told my heathen wife1 she was very angry1 and said1 ',very well4 ,if you want to be baptized1--be baptized1--but ,i will not be a ,jesus ,christ wife4 ,i never1 never will live with you4' ,finding that she would not relent ,i said3 ',do not go away4 ',all this trouble is not because of your changing1 but because of my changing4 ,if anybody is to suffer1 ,i must be the one to suffer4 ,there are the eleven buffaloes1 and the six rice-fields1 and the house1 and the banana garden1--take everything1--only let me have the thirty rupees in the box1 and ,i will go away4 ,i will go to ,toungoo4 ,if they will not baptize me there1 ,i will go to ,henzada4 ,if they will not baptize me there1 ,i will go to ,bassein4 ,if they will not baptize me there1 ,i will go to ,maulmein4' ,i had taken the ,jesus ,christ religion with my whole mind1 and ,i was determined to be baptized4 ,this was no idle boast4 ,he meant just what he said1 and1 like ,paul1 was ready to suffer the loss of everything1 that he might gain ,christ1 and be found in ,him4 ,his example1 so unlike his former self1 soon softened his wife's heart1 and she now said3 ,never mind1 do as you like1--we will live together4 ,not long afterwards she too became a ,christian4 ,wherever ,u ,po ,hline went he fearlessly preached ,christ4 ,but it was in his own village that his influence was specially felt4 ,his faithfulness and success seemed sufficient evidence of a call to the ministry4 ,greatly needing such helpers1 ,i soon arranged for him to give his whole time to evangelistic work4 ,his ordination1 at the ,pegu ,association held in ,toungoo in #ahid1--will long be remembered by the missionaries present4 ,a missionary at a frontier station sent a request that an ordained preacher be furnished to baptize several converts already gained1 and to accompany his young preachers on a tour among the villages4 ,the matter was laid before ,u ,po ,hline1 and left for him to decide whether he wished to go1 or could stand the long hard journey over the mountain ranges4 ,accepting it as a call from ,god1 and trusting to ,him for strength1 he got ready and started at once4 ,after spending a month in that distant field1 he prepared to return to his home4 ,it was a long tramp of sixteen days4 ,the missionary gave him money to hire a coolie to help carry his load4 ,besides his roll of bedding1 cooking utensils and food1 one of the young preachers had given him three lacquer-ware vessels1 as presents for his former teachers4 ,the coolie must be paid in advance1 according to the custom of the country4 ,after going a few miles the coolie found an excuse to get out of ,u ,po ,hline's sight1 and ran away1 taking the money with him4 ,at the next village another coolie was engaged1 who must also be paid in advance4 ,they had gone but a short distance when he too ran away4 ,u ,po ,hline was now without money to pay for help1 so he trudged on alone1 carrying the load of two4 ,he got along very well so long as his path lay along the mountains4 ,but when he descended into the plains his strength gave out1 and he found himself burning with fever4 ,there was no other way than to plod on1 as he was now far from any village4 ,finding himself unable to carry all of his double load1 he first threw away some of the cooking utensils4 ,growing weaker1 he threw away the bottle of oil and part of the rice4 ,he would not part with the presents that had been entrusted to his care for the teachers1 whom he loved4 ,to give the rest of the story in his own words3--,i would plod on until my legs would sustain me no longer4 ,then on my knees ,i would pray3 ',o ,father1 ,i have been away doing ,thy work1 ,i did the best ,i could1 now give me strength to reach my home4' ,then ,i would get up and go on again until1 from weakness1 ,i fell down in the path4 ,then ,i would pray again3 ',o ,father1 ,i have been away to do ,thy work4 ,i did the very best ,i could4 ,now do give me strength to reach my home4' ,so ,i went on1 falling1 praying1 struggling on again1 until at last ,i reached the cart-road1 and joined some cartmen4 ,i had carefully saved my last rupee to pay my fare when ,i should come to the railroad4 ,i thought1--if ,i must1 ,i can sell my silk turban4 ,but the cartmen were kind1 and gave me food1 while ,i preached to them4 ,as he finished his story he untied the bundle1 and laid the lacquer-ware presents at our feet1 utterly unconscious of the fact that by his devotion to his teachers1 and to what seemed to be his duty he had shown a spirit of true heroism1 worthy to be told as a memorial of him4 ,a short time before ,i left ,burma ,u ,po ,hline came to me and said1 ,saya1 ,i have been thinking like this3--,the ,apostle ,paul said to the ,corinthian ,christians1 ',paul planted1 ,apollos watered2 but ,god gave the increase4' ,when ,saya came to ,pyinmana thirteen years ago there was not a ,christian in this town nor in all this great jungle4 ,no nor ever had been4 ,it was all wild1 the dwelling place of dacoits1 tigers1 bears1 and snakes4 ,saya has been planting all these years4 ,there has been some reaping1 to be sure1--but much more is ready for reaping4 ,when ,i first came to ,pyinmana1 wherever ,i showed myself1 in ,bazar or street1 the people would call to one another3 ',come and see ,jesus ,christ1 come and see ,jesus ,christ4' ',yes1' ,i would say1 ',i am here to represent ,jesus ,christ4' ,sometimes they would listen to my preaching1 but often they would jeer so that ,i could not preach1 they were so ignorant and wild4 ,but now1 besides our little company of ,christians1 there are many in these villages who listen attentively1 and some are truly 'considering4' ,now ,saya must return to ,america1 and another ,saya will come4 ,don't go away discouraged1 ,saya4 ,we shall soon be reaping here4 ,you will hear about it1 and be glad4 ,if it is ,god's will that you return to ,burma1 you will 'come rejoicing4' ,when ,i first came to ,pyinmana1--he continued2 ,i had a dream4 ,in my dream ,i saw great fields of rice on three sides of this town4 ,these fields were turning yellow1 promising an early and large harvest4 ,how like the ,bible1 is my dream1 ,i thought4 ,this dream strengthened my faith and made me glad4 ,god's time is not yet full1 but ,i believe it will be full soon4 ,this ,pyinmana mission is ,corinth4 ,saya is ,paul4 ,saya has planted1 the coming missionary will be ,apollos1 to water the planting4 ,god will give the increase4 ,may this noble ,christian hero live many years1 to cheer and help the missionaries1 in their common effort to dispel the heathen darkness4 ,this faithful native pastor is but one of many who hold not their lives dear to themselves that they may accomplish their course and the ministry which they have received from the ,lord ,jesus1 to testify the gospel of the grace of ,god4 ,nan ,paw was born in ,ya-bok-kon village1 in the year #ahgg1--so she thinks1 but is not certain as to the village or the date4 ,when we first saw her she was an orphan1 as to her father2 worse than orphaned as to her heathen mother4 ,both ,nan ,paw and her elder sister had already been several years in the mission school4 ,the sister1 ,mai ,lone1 came first4 ,now and then she returned to her village home with such wonderful stories of tidy white jackets1 pretty longyis 7skirts71 clean beds1 and nice new books1 that little ,nan ,paw wanted to come too4 ,she wanted to see the big white mamma1 and enjoy the life that her sister was leading4 ,mai ,lone had learned to read1--a wonderful thing for a girl to do4 ,not a girl in the whole village could read1 no1 not even her own mother6 ,and ,mai ,lone could sing1 too6 ,little ,nan ,paw sighed for these privileges and accomplishments1 and was a heathen no longer4 ,never again could she know contentment among the dogs and filth and degradation of her own village4 ,but in vain she entreated her mother to let her go with ,mai ,lone to live at the mission school4 ,finding that her pleadings were of no avail1 she took the matter into her own hands1 and ran away4 ,the mother finding her little girl settled down in the mission dormitory to stay1 finally gave her consent4 ,when we came to take charge of the school ,nan ,paw had already overtaken the older girls in her studies4 ,the smallest in the class1 she was head and shoulders above them all in brightness and winsomeness4 ,to see her was to love her4 ,it would not do to make a pet of her1 for petting spoils native children as quickly as kittens4 ,quick to see what needed to be done1 and how to do it1 she soon became very useful about the house4 ,a little later a ,christian ,endeavour ,society was organized4 ,nan ,paw may have learned to love ,jesus before this2 but now1 with several others she gave herself to ,him fully and openly1 and to the great joy of all1 was baptized4 ,the years rolled by1--and ,nan ,paw1 having passed through all the grades of the mission school1 became a teacher4 ,during a vacation she made a visit to some of her heathen relations in a distant village4 ,when the school reopened she did not return to her duties4 ,several weeks had passed when we learned that she had returned to her mother's village4 ,we sent word to her two or three times1 urging her to return to the school1 though we could not compel her to do so4 ,at last one of the ,christians went to her home to ascertain1 if possible1 why she had become unfaithful to her duties as a ,christian teacher4 ,he brought back word that something was the matter with ,nan ,paw4 ,when he tried to talk with her she would keep her hands covered1 and try to conceal her face behind her scarf4 ,with a sad face he said1 ,i think our ,nan ,paw is a leper4 ,measures were taken at once to ascertain the facts4 ,alas it was too true4 ,in some way or other1--whether by heredity or contagion we could not learn1--our dear ,nan ,paw had become a victim to that terrible disease4 ,how our hearts ached for her4 ,now we knew why she had not returned to the school4 ,while we were fearing that she was yielding to heathen influences2 and that she was making a poor return for all the affection we had bestowed upon her1 the dear girl's heart was nearly breaking4 ,she knew that she must bid farewell to her pleasant life in the mission1 and to her beloved associates4 ,all aspirations to support herself1 to rise in her chosen work1 to be respected1 to marry well--were utterly crushed4 ,henceforth she must be an outcast1 despised by her own people4 ,nothing before her but a living death1 the disease steadily growing upon her1 until fingers and toes would waste away1 her whole body become covered with repulsive sores1--and no power on earth could help her4 ,after a time arrangements were made to send her to the ,leper ,asylum at ,mandalay1 over two hundred miles away4 ,there1 under the direction of the missionary in charge ,nan ,paw became a teacher of others--afflicted like herself4 ,it would not have been strange had she utterly given up to despair1--and sought release by death4 ,but with wonderful submission she gave herself to ,christian work1--the only woman in the asylum who could read and teach the ,word of ,god4 ,here is a translation of one of ,nan ,paw's letters to her sister3 ,sister1 to you a letter do ,i send4 ,by the kindness of ,god ,i am come to the ,home for ,lepers1 in ,mandalay4 ,here am ,i to teach ,his law1 and in teaching it ,i am glad4 ,for this purpose1 ,i am persuaded1 has ,he brought me here4 ,whether ,i am to remain all my life1 or for a little while ,i know not4 ,my prayer is that ,god may quickly take me to ,himself4 ,why ,he has brought this affliction upon me ,i do not know4 ,when ,i consider 7my condition7 my heart is exceeding sorrowful4 ,the teacher has been very kind1 and spent much money upon me4 ,the physician is good4 ,now in all things1 my sister1 ,i place myself in the hand of ,god4 ,in so far as ,i am able ,i will strive to do ,his will4 ,that ,i may be happy in proclaiming ,his law1 will you ever pray4 ,your affectionate sister1 ,,nan ,,paw4 ,but after a year in the asylum ,nan ,paw longed to return to her native village4 ,this she was permitted to do4 ,the disease grew worse and worse4 ,her people1 backed by the village priest1 then made a determined effort to break down this poor girl's faith in ,christ1 and turn her again to ,buddhism4 ,they knew how to cure the disease1 they claimed1 and would cure it if she would worship the priest4 ,pressed beyond endurance she at last in sheer despair prostrated herself before the priest in the attitude of worship4 ,they then gave her medicine several months1 the disease all the time growing upon her4 ,not only the terrible leprosy of the body1 but her soul was troubled with the thought that by dishonouring her ,lord she had become leprous with sin4 ,one day when they wanted her to join them in their heathen worship she broke out in great indignation3 ,no ,i never will worship like that again4 ,by your false and useless promises you made me deny my ,lord4 ,but from this time ,i do it no more4 ,i turn again to my own ,god1 who can at least save my soul4 ,again ,nan ,paw sent word that she wished to go back to the asylum4 ,she was an outcast in her own village1 and in her own mother's home4 ,no one dared to see her4 ,she cared to see no one4 ,at the ,asylum she could be no unhappier4 ,there all would be alike unfortunate1--birds of a feather flock together4 ,i immediately arranged for her return4 ,the native ,christians contributed generously to make up the required sum4 ,as ,nan ,paw would be a teacher1 the superintendent kindly offered to provide special quarters for her1 apart from the other lepers4 ,i sent word to ,nan ,paw that ,i wished to see her before she went away1 for ,i was soon to return to ,america1 and might never see her again2 that ,i loved her as a daughter1 just the same as before her misfortune4 ,but she sent back the pathetic reply3 ,to dear teacher this brief letter ,i write4 ,that ,god may pour a blessing upon teacher and all the church members ,i am praying4 ,but ,i am not fit to be seen4 ,to show my face ,i am ashamed4 ,i do not even meet my friends in the village4 ,therefore please excuse me4 ,by the half-past eight train ,i am going to ,mandalay4 ,there is with me a very great sorrow4 ,in no place is there any gladness4 ,only sorrow's tears are ever falling4 ,now because teacher1 by the favour of ,god1 is trying to help me1 it is a great kindness4 ,and teacher has written favourably to ,mandalay in order that ,i may go4 ,that ,i may be set free from my great sorrow1 and that ,god may speedily gather to ,himself my soul1 ever pray4 ,but when circumstances made it necessary for her to come to my house she overcame her fears1 and in the dim light let me talk with her1 face to face4 ,again ,i assured her that ,sayah and ,mama loved her the same as before2 that her ,saviour's love was just the same2 that by and by we would be together in heaven1 and all be alike1 with all these earthly distresses left behind4 ,in the asylum ,nan ,paw is the only ,christian woman among about seventy-five of her own sex and race4 ,every day she conducts religious exercises2 and every ,sunday she stands by the pulpit in the chapel to set forth ,christ as ,saviour4 ,after she had been there a few weeks she sent back this letter3 ,dearly beloved teacher4 ,i reverently greet you1 and pray that ,god may pour ,his ,spirit upon you and all the ,christians1 to do ,his work4 ,especially1 according to teacher's efforts1 in order to do the divine work in this place1--by ,god's guidance ,i have come4 ,there have now been three ,sundays1 and ,i have preached4 ,the first ,sunday ,i explained ,matt4 #e3a-ab4 ,the second ,sunday ,i explained ,john #c3a-ba4 ,the third ,sunday ,i explained ,acts #ac3a-ab1--;about the ruler's faith and ,god's power4 ,god planned that ,i should be brought to this place4 ,nevertheless1 teacher1--though ,i seek ease of mind in this world1 ,i find only distress4 ,therefore pray that ,god may speedily take my spirit4 ,because teacher1--according to the will of ,god1 has helped me1 ,i praise ,god's mercy4 ,your daughter1 ,,ma ,,nan ,,paw4 ,in this child of the jungle1 brought to ,christ through the agency of the mission school1 stricken with a loathsome disease in the prime of life2 submissively bowing to the will of ,god1 and striving to show others how to escape from the leprosy of sin1 we see the true martyr-spirit4 ,one day the ,master will come and touch her with ,his finger1 saying ,be thou clean1 and receive her into ,his ,paradise above4 ,,xi ,,peculiar ,,experiences ,it is well for the weary worker in a strange land that with the austere and sublime1 there is now and then a spicing of the ridiculous4 ,happy the man who is so constituted as to appreciate the ridiculous when it happens4 ,a few such instances will serve to illustrate the many-sidedness of missionary life4 ,the first was when the writer was a new missionary2 otherwise it might not have happened4 ,the boarding-school occupied the ground floor of the mission bungalow1 the missionaries living above it4 ,one day a great commotion was heard in the schoolyard4 ,looking out of the window1 the school children could be seen scattering in all directions4 ,the old saying ,every man for himself1 and the devil take the hindmost1 was being enacted in a very realistic manner4 ,hard after the hindmost was a demoniac1 a crazy ,karen woman4 ,evidently the children had been teasing her1 but oh how they did repent1 as they ran6 ,this terrible creature had seized a short bamboo1 and was rushing after them in insane fury4 ,poising it like a spear1 she hurled it endwise4 ,happily it missed its mark1 or there would have been a name or two to strike off the school roll4 ,advancing at double-quick ,i got between the children and the enemy before she could make another charge4 ,whether by faith or by force ,i must now cast out a demon4 ,pointing to the gate1 ,i said go4 ,she went not4 ,go1 ,i repeated1 and suiting the action to the word1 started for the gate with my incumbrance4 ,started1--only that and nothing more4 ,there seemed to be two opinions as to ways and means4 ,i recalled a remark--,the natives are coming to think for themselves4 ,it must be true4 ,this particular native suddenly collapsed1 sinking to the ground1 in a disgusting heap of obstinacy4 ,filthy beyond description1 hair matted and tangled1 her whole person so covered with vermin that she was scarcely responsible for her movements1--what to do with her ,i was at a loss to know4 ,it was a larger contract than had been bargained for4 ,something must be done1 or the missionary would lose prestige with the school1 and be subjected to repeated annoyances by this crazy woman4 ,picking her up by main strength1 we started again4 ,there was a short struggle at the corner of the house1 where she grasped a post with both arms1 and held on with the tenacity of an octopus4 ,disengaging her from the post1 ,i thought to get up sufficient momentum to carry her safely through the gate1 but failed4 ,again there was a tug of war4 ,again might made right1 and our unsavoury guest gave up the struggle4 ,casting back a wild but vanquished look1 she departed1 never to come back4 ,we will pass to the hot season of our second year4 ,the missionaries of the station were spending a few weeks of it on a mountain twenty miles from town4 ,one mission building was in process of construction1--work that demanded frequent inspection4 ,to look after this work ,i must make the round trip of forty miles once a week1 while resting4 ,at one time1 passing through a ,karen village1 the pastor lent me his pony for the journey4 ,on reaching town ,i threw the lines to a schoolboy1 who unsaddled the pony and turned it loose in the compound4 ,when ready to return to the mountains it was found that the pony had walked out through an open gate1 and was missing4 ,search was made1 but the pony was nowhere to be seen4 ,while waiting for the day to cool1 the pony returned of his own accord1 and came trotting into the compound4 ,this was luck indeed4 ,the schoolboy quickly saddled and bridled the pony1 and away ,i went1 anxious to make up the time ,i had lost4 ,arriving at the ,karen village ,i hitched the pony under the owner's house4 ,a grown-up daughter sitting on the stairs1 modestly inquired ,where is our pony8 ,what's the matter with this pony8 ,i asked4 ,our pony is a male1 she said4 ,the missionary took off his hat4 ,he scratched his head4 ,it was dawning upon him that he was in a pretty mess4 ,if this is not the pony ,i borrowed1 then where is he8 and whose pony have ,i stolen8 ,and where shall ,i find the money to pay for the other pony1 if not recovered1--which is an even chance8 how shall ,i explain being in possession of this one1 if called to account8 ,it did not take long for these questions to go through my mind4 ,the case called for prompt action1 but my empty stomach was calling for food4 ,mounting the stolen pony ,i proceeded up the mountain4 ,before reaching camp1 the ,karen pastor's son came hurrying up the path1 riding on the lost pony4 ,the pony had returned to his own village1 fifteen miles1 afoot and alone4 ,one problem was solved1 and my mind relieved to that extent4 ,but in the eye of the law1 should the law find it out1--,i was a criminal1 for my explanation might or might not be accepted4 ,as the sun was going down1 one of the larger schoolboys who was at the camp1--started back to town with the other pony4 ,i gave him a letter addressed to the police1 taking upon myself the responsibility4 ,the boy was not to trouble the police if the police did not trouble him4 ,going by the most unfrequented roads1 he arrived in town before midnight4 ,turning the pony loose where first seen1 he hurried back to the mountain as fast as his legs would carry him1 reaching camp before sunrise4 ,the missionary never knew whose pony he had taken4 ,it is doubtful whether the owner ever missed it4 ,at one time ,i was passing through an unfamiliar jungle accompanied by a coolie1 who also acted as guide4 ,darkness was coming on and good time must be made1 or we must spend the night in the jungle4 ,coming to a place where two roads met1 ,i chose the right hand road but the guide insisted that the left hand road was the one to take4 ,the missionary reluctantly yielded to the coolie's better knowledge of the jungle paths4 ,we went on and on1 but instead of coming out into open country1 the jungle grew more and more dense4 ,we were lost4 ,it was now pitch dark1 so that even the wrong road could no longer be followed4 ,there was nothing left but to spend the night where we were4 ,just as we had made up our minds to this1 ,i caught sight of a light1 through the trees4 ,groping our way ahead we discovered that we were near a small ,karen village4 ,in response to our shouts two men came to meet us1 with guns and torches4 ,they were ,christian ,karens1 and glad to find that the belated guest was a missionary1 rather than a dacoit4 ,i soon made myself at home with the family and until a late hour friendly conversation was kept up1 through the medium of ,burmese4 ,the children were brought to be inspected and praised4 ,the baby1 several months old1 had not been named4 ,wouldn't the teacher please give the baby a name8 ,it is quite customary for the ,karens to ask their missionaries to name the babies4 ,to this particular missionary1 whose work was wholly among ,burmans1 it was a unique experience4 ,he had a dear relative in the home-land1 named ,julia4 ,she should be honoured with a namesake4 ,please write it out1 because we might forget it1 they said4 ,but there was not a scrap of paper in the house4 ,taking the cover from one of my lunch cans the name was carefully scratched on the inside with a pocket knife1 and handed over to be laid up in the family archives4 ,at last the baby had a name1 and the mother was happy4 ,now it was time1 and long past time1 to get a little sleep4 ,the best mat was unrolled and spread in the open front1 for the teacher4 ,in the coolie's baskets was a change of clothing1 greatly needed after the dust and perspiration of this long day1--but how could clothing be changed8--,nor husband nor wife nor daughter would retire until they should see how the teacher did it4 ,the natives themselves usually sleep in the same clothes they have worn all day4 ,is a change desired they have only to put on an extra longyi--skirt1 and let the inner skirt fall to the floor4 ,they have no idea how the white people are dressed1 until they see them undress4 ,such an event is too rare to be missed4 ,husband1 wife1 and grown-up daughters will stand by1 with all the interest of a medical class in a dissecting room1 while he takes himself apart1 picking up each piece as he lays it off1 with comments such as only the untutored child of the jungle would ever think of4 ,there was no help for it1--so1 kicking off my shoes1 ,i stretched out as ,i was1 with my saddle for a pillow4 ,the family then retired1 but evidently feeling that they had not seen their money's worth4 ,wishing to enjoy the luxury of a bath in a stream1 one is sometimes obliged to wander off in the opposite direction1 to throw the villagers off the scent4 ,were his purpose known1 he would have so many of the native maidens at his heels1 as to render the situation somewhat embarrassing4 ,at break of day we were conducted through the jungle by a short cut to the path we should have followed4 ,having no opportunity to revisit that village1 ,i never knew what became of little ,u-lee4 ,another experience was certainly interesting at the time1 and might have been the last1 with no one to describe it4 ,returning alone from a jungle tour1 ,i reached a river at nine o'clock at night4 ,there was no moon1 but the stars were shining4 ,the opposite bank1 high and steep1 could be dimly seen against the sky4 ,during the floods of the rainy season the bank had caved off1 so that neither man nor beast could ascend it4 ,the natives had dug out a narrow path diagonally up the bank4 ,in the darkness this path could not be seen from the other side4 ,two ,burmans1 who were fishing by torchlight1 pointed out the direction in which the path would be found4 ,taking a star to steer by1 ,i forced the pony into the river4 ,soon the water became too deep for fording1 and ,i felt the rather uncomfortable sensation of riding in the saddle on a swimming pony4 ,by daylight it would not have been so serious1 though the current was strong4 ,in the darkness and alone1 it was not so pleasant to be in deep water1 in mid-river4 ,the pony struggled bravely on until he reached the bank1 and scrambled up on a ledge of joint-clay4 ,there was no path to be seen4 ,the pony had landed in a little cove where the perpendicular bank rose from the water's edge4 ,back into the river he must go4 ,this he refused to do4 ,getting between the pony and the wall ,i pushed him off the ledge1 springing into the saddle as he went down4 ,the pony was then headed up stream1 first swimming around a tree that had fallen into the river4 ,no path to be found in that direction4 ,returning down-stream1 now wading1 now swimming--the path was found at last4 ,a thankful missionary sat down on the bank under the twinkling stars1 and wrung the water out of his clothes as best he could1 before continuing his journey4 ,the missionary candidate dreams of the time when he will break the bread of life to the heathen4 ,his dream will be realized1 in time1--but he will do a great many other things1 of which he never dreamed4 ,he may not know a plane from a plummet1 yet there are houses to build1 and he must be both architect and superintendent4 ,he must understand1 or learn to understand everything that pertains to the upkeep and conduct of a large mission1 with its many-sided work4 ,he may not know the use of the simplest remedies1 but must be doctor for scores1 and perhaps hundreds of people4 ,the writer had this to go through1 and some of his earlier patients still live to tell how much quicker they might have recovered if the teacher had not treated them4 ,on one occasion a boy came for medicine4 ,he looked very thin and weak4 ,he wanted medicine for fever and diarrhoea4 ,the usual questions were asked as to frequency of attacks1 etc4 ,when the medicine had been prepared the missionary said3 ,you take one dose now1 and another when you retire---- when the boy spoke up1 ,oh1 no1--it is not for me1 it's for mother4 ,a pupil in the school had frequent fits4 ,the ,buddhist priest said that an evil spirit had taken up his abode in the boy4 ,his people came to me1 saying that the priest had tried to cast out the evil spirit1 but had failed4 ,bring him to me1 ,i said1 ,i will cast the spirit out4 ,he came1 swallowed a strong vermifuge1 and a dose of castor oil1 putting an end to his demoniacal antics4 ,one of the saddest times in the missionary's life is when he must lay down his work1 and take an imperatively needed change in the home-land4 ,that it will be no small loss to himself1--in the inevitable sacrifice of household effects1--is the least of his anxieties4 ,but even in this experience he will find a silver lining to his cloud1 as he turns it over4 ,a fellow-worker once unwittingly helped us to a hearty laugh1--just when we were most needing such a reaction4 ,boxes had been packed1 and were being duly labelled for the home voyage4 ,one piece1 to be stowed in the hold of the steamer1 had just been marked with black paint4 ,our friend sat down on this box during his brief call1 none of us thinking of the fresh label4 ,as he turned to go we saw plainly stamped in reverse order across his white duck pants--,,not ,,wanted4 ,,xii ,,obstacles ,to many minds there is great fascination in the thought of self-sacrifice4 ,separation from native land and loved ones1 to spend one's life in a strange land1 among uncivilized people savours of renunciation more than human4 ,the high plane of spirituality1 already attained1 would be easily perpetuated4 ,cut off from everything that had stood ready to prey upon one's weaknesses1 those weaknesses would no longer have to be guarded against4 ,in a life devoted to ministering spiritual things to people who have as yet no spiritual conceptions there would be reflex blessings furnishing all the spiritual help one would need4 ,in short1 the missionary is looked upon as belonging to a peculiar order of beings1 almost supernatural1 dwelling in a sort of seventh heaven of immunity from difficulties against which the ordinary soul must contend4 ,in calling attention to certain hindrances1 it is to guard against romantic notions4 ,the depressing influence of life among a heathen people hangs over one like a cloud4 ,the natives are so sodden in vice1 so wedded to their idols1 so prejudiced against all foreign religions1 so dull of head and slow of heart to understand and believe4 ,at times it may seem to be all sowing and no reaping1--enough to dishearten the most faithful worker4 ,to sit in the shade of a palm-tree1 and break the bread of life to hands eagerly outstretched to receive it--is not an every-day experience4 ,sunday by ,sunday the native ,christians assemble in the chapel for worship4 ,the new missionary joins them4 ,here he will not be distressed by the degradation of the heathen without4 ,his heart will be glad as he sees these people1 rescued from idolatry1 worshipping the true ,god4 ,he cannot understand what is said1 but he can join in silent prayer4 ,it is intensely interesting1 for a few ,sundays4 ,but after a time these services1 in which he is utterly unable to take other than a silent part1 will be found inadequate to meet his spiritual need4 ,it will be two years or more1 before the missionary can join in all parts of their worship4 ,during this time he will often remember with deep longing the privilege of his own church in the far away home-land4 ,in fact1 worship with people of another race and tongue never quite meets one's spiritual requirements4 ,constant outflow1 without corresponding inflow will run any pool dry4 ,then he will find himself so overwhelmed with work1 perplexed by financial cares1 hindered by innumerable interruptions that it will seem almost impossible to find time to put forth special effort by reading1 meditation1 and prayer1 for the maintenance and upbuilding of his own spiritual life4 ,one's very zeal for the kingdom of ,christ may dwarf one's fellowship with ,christ4 ,no matter how sound in theory1 loyal in spirit1 or vigorous in action1 there will come periods of reaction1 though not of discouragement4 ,tired in1 not of the work4 ,the discouraged missionary is yet to be found4 ,he shall not fail1 nor be discouraged--till ,he has set judgment in the earth4 ,often enough to keep him keyed up to his work he will be blessed with the privilege of witnessing that which never loses its fascinating interest1--the wonderful transformation of human souls1 by the power of the ,holy ,spirit4 ,other matters however interesting1 are but side-lights2 other experiences1 however trying1 are soon forgotten in the joy of seeing1 and in a measure being instrumental in the advancement of ,christ's kingdom4 ,with a heart warm with love for ,christ2 warm with love for souls2 full of zeal for soul winning2 the missionary is safe4 ,but all these passions he must bring with him1 rather than depending upon their being developed in and by service in a foreign land4 ,dr4 ,judson1 after nineteen years in ,burma1 writing to a foreign missionary association of young men said3 ,beware of the greater reaction which will take place after you have acquired the language1 and become fatigued and worn out with preaching the gospel to a disobedient and gainsaying people4 ,you will sometimes long for a quiet retreat1 where you can find a respite from the tug of toiling at native work1--the incessant1 intolerable friction of the missionary grindstone4 ,and ,satan will sympathize with you in this matter1 and he will present some chapel of ease1 in which to officiate in your native tongue1 some government situation1 some professorship or editorship1 some literary or scientific pursuit1 some supernumerary translation1 or1 at some system of schools2 anything1 in a word1 that will help you1 without much surrender of character1 to slip out of real missionary work4 ,such a temptation will form the crisis of your disease4 ,if your spiritual constitution can sustain it1 you recover2 if not1 you die4 ,missionary views have undergone some change since ,judson's time1--for instance1--some system of schools has come to be regarded as a necessary and fruitful part of missionary work4 ,moreover1 instead of furnishing sweet release from the friction of the missionary grindstone1 in the school its rubs are hardest4 ,the great temptation now is to abandon school work1 to engage in direct evangelistic work exclusively4 ,but the principal remains the same4 ,talk about the hardships of pioneering2 pioneering is a picnic as compared with the year-in-and-year-out routine of school work4 ,in boarding-schools there is added to the all-day work the all-night anxiety concerning the moral welfare of the pupils4 ,sick or well1 strong or weak and weary1 the work is there1 and must be accomplished4 ,the dormitories are full of boys and girls1 and constant care is the price of discipline4 ,nearly every day some are on the sick list1 and must be visited1 and remedies administered under the missionary's own eye4 ,in serious cases the missionary becomes the watcher4 ,i have in mind an instance when the cholera broke out in a neighbouring mission school4 ,the lady in charge of the school took several girls into her own house1 nursed them day and night1 in addition to her regular work1 and brought them safely through the crisis4 ,but at what a cost4 ,a few days later a company of sorrow-stricken missionaries were gathered around her grave1 with difficulty restraining their emotion to conduct the burial service4 ,a beloved sister had fallen1 as truly a martyr as ever gave a life to the ,master's service4 ,the climate of ,burma is peculiarly trying4 ,arriving in ,november1 as most all newcomers do1 everything is seen at its best4 ,the rainy season has passed1 leaving a placid smile on the face of nature4 ,the nights are cool4 ,friends will see that the newcomer keeps in the shade from eleven o'clock in the morning until five in the afternoon1--for a tropical sun can be depended on to do his duty at that time of day1 the year round4 ,as the season advances the nights become cooler1 and towards morning a chilling fog sets in4 ,the preceding afternoon having been hot1 one retires in a perspiration1 every pore open1 finally dropping off to sleep--without any covering1 save his pajamas4 ,with the coming of the fog there is a sudden drop in temperature1 and one is fortunate if he does not wake up in a chill1 and have the doctor for his first morning caller4 ,persons with weak lungs find this the most trying season of the year4 ,but this is the cold season1 and the time when missionary work out in the district must be vigorously pressed4 ,away through the ,karen1 ,shan1 ,chin1 and ,kachin hills1 missionaries push their way4 ,in the plains other missionaries are doing their best to reach as many villages as possible before the hot season sets in4 ,work which ought to close early in ,march1 if the missionary's health is considered1 is often continued until ,april4 ,but this is done at the expense of health1 and shortens one's term of service4 ,at least one month of the hot season must be spent at some mountain resort to escape the heat1 secure needed rest1 or for neglected literary work1 if strength permits4 ,it is not in the power of flesh to work on twelve months in the year1 in the heated plains1 without sacrificing strength that might be more wisely conserved4 ,after a serious illness1 ,i spent a few weeks alone in a mountain camp1 during my last hot season in ,burma4 ,several great vultures kept me company by roosting in a tree close by1 every night for a week4 ,my rapid improvement did not furnish an encouraging prospect1 and they left4 ,the fact that they had occupied the tree before ,i came to occupy the camp1 did not make their presence much less suggestive4 ,by the middle of ,may the ,southwest monsoon sets in4 ,then for five months it is rain1 rain1 rain4 ,but though enough rain falls to inundate a country less amply provided with natural drainage1 the awful heat continues4 ,clouds shut out the sun much of the time1 but the steamy heat is exceedingly enervating4 ,clothing and bedding are clammy from the excessive dampness4 ,shoes taken off at night are mouldy in the morning4 ,the unavoidable ruin of shelves of fresh new books from the home-land is enough to break one's heart1 unless he has grace to take joyfully the spoiling of his goods4 ,but as a merciful provision against allowing the mind to dwell on such misfortunes1 the prickly heat 7lichen tropicus7 with which one's body is covered1 will demand frequent attention4 ,the rainfall varies in different parts of the country4 ,in ,maulmain and ,sandoway the annual rainfall is about two hundred and fifty inches4 ,in ,rangoon the precipitation is about two thirds of that amount4 ,mandalay is in the dry belt where the rainfall is very light1 and irrigation is resorted to for cultivation4 ,but still farther north1 at ,bhamo1 the rainfall is heavy4 ,the every-day display of wild beasts1 reptiles1 and insect life is rather disappointing to the newcomer4 ,in the year #aijb only seventy-three people were reported as killed by wild beasts1 and #a1abc by snakes and poisonous insects4 ,but we find that #d1aid cattle were killed by tigers2 #a1chf were killed by leopards2 six by bears1 twenty-eight by wolves1 and #d1ihf by snakes4 ,more cattle were killed by snakes in ,burma than in all the rest of ,india4 ,doubtless many such deaths in remote places1 are not reported at all4 ,under a certain ,christian chapel when the ground was covered by a flood1 an average of six centipedes were counted on each post4 ,other localities are equally favoured1 but they are scattered about1 in piles of lumber1 under old boxes1 and wherever they can secrete themselves1 now and then one appearing in a corner closet or crawling on the floor4 ,on one occasion when about to take my family out for a walk two scorpions must first be dispatched4 ,they were found on the inside of our little boy's jacket1 taken from a nail on the wall4 ,cobras and vipers sometimes find their way into houses1--but this happens more frequently in ,india than in ,burma4 ,these reptiles1 though not often seen1 are known to be about1 so that some degree of caution is in order at all times4 ,the general practice of elevating the house-floor several feet from the ground greatly lessens the number of these unwelcome visitors4 ,not even the newcomer complains of a scarcity of the far-famed white ants4 ,should he fail to appreciate their numbers and powers1 an experience similar to that recorded in ,the ,bishop's ,conversion will make him wish he had heeded the warnings of older residents4 ,each queen is said to deposit about three million eggs a year4 ,as they do their housekeeping and rear their antlets underground1 a tropical sun making the hive a first-class incubator1 the success of each colony is well assured4 ,during the day myriads of other kinds of ants may be seen1 but not a white ant shows his head4 ,leave an old box on the ground over night1 and in the morning thousands of these destructive insects will be found underneath1 eating the bottom out of it4 ,some of the houses built by the early missionaries1 who had not learned the likes and dislikes of the white ant1 were destroyed in a few years4 ,but a house made wholly of ant-proof timber does not insure one against their ravages4 ,under cover of the darkness they send out their spies4 ,the house is searched from foundation to garret4 ,they make careful note of the location of deal-boxes1 book-shelves and other tempting articles1 smack their lips1 and return to give their report4 ,the floor of nearly all residences is ten feet or more above the ground1 the lower part being left unoccupied4 ,the ants1 directed by their engineers1 select a post1 and rapidly build a covered way1 about the size of half a split lead-pencil1 up its side4 ,sand1 made sticky by glue from their mouths1 is the material used4 ,reaching the floor the path is continued along a crack in the floor1 finally coming out under or behind the article selected for destruction4 ,unless something wanted leads to their discovery1 their work will go on until chest and contents are utterly ruined4 ,returning from a three weeks' absence1 ,i found several of my choicest books riddled by these pests4 ,in place of valuable marginal notes that could not be restored was a paste of sand4 ,such an experience is not1 at first flush1 conducive to spirituality4 ,rather it makes one sigh for a more expressive vocabulary1 adapted to his profession4 ,while superintending the work of demolishing an old mission house five heavy timbers fell all at once1 on as many sides of me4 ,these timbers appeared to be securely fastened1 but white ants had eaten away the wood so that nails and bolts had no hold4 ,the building had been condemned as unsafe over and over1 but for want of other shelter had been occupied by a missionary family until the day before4 ,it was little less than a miracle that the heavy roof had not crushed down over their heads4 ,the most dreaded diseases are cholera and fever4 ,in the first ,burmese war seventy-two per cent4 of the ,british troops died1 only five per cent4 being killed in action4 ,after the annexation1 railroad and steamship companies revolutionized transportation1 substantial barracks and bungalows have taken the place of bamboo-and-thatch shanties1 for the accommodations of ,europeans4 ,improved sanitary arrangements in the towns have greatly decreased the mortality among natives4 ,compulsory vaccination is stamping out smallpox4 ,each large town has its hospital and civil surgeon4 ,in six or eight different places medical missionaries are stationed4 ,many improvements have been made since the time of ,judson1--but the climate has not changed4 ,as organized mission-work develops1 the strain on the missionary increases4 ,to the care of all the churches the mission schools have been added4 ,work enough for four falls upon one4 ,breakdowns are inevitable4 ,careful inquiry has established the fact that the average term of missionary service is considerably longer than that of ,europeans in civil1 military or mercantile pursuits1 though the missionary lives by far the more strenuous life4 ,if it is desirable that the missionary should render a long life of service1 this extension of each term beyond the limit of his strength is very poor economy in the society which he represents4 ,but in the majority of cases the mistake is made by the missionary himself4 ,body and soul he is wedded to his work4 ,there never comes a time when he is not making some special effort1 that he shrinks from entrusting to another1--for the advancement of the kingdom4 ,if another is not available to take up the work he will almost die at his post rather than leave his people as sheep having no shepherd4 ,the remedy is in the hands of ,god's people in the home-land4 ,had he not learned to possess his soul in patience the missionary might feel disturbed by unfriendly criticisms directed against missionaries and their methods by that worldly-wise individual known as the globe-trotter4 ,entertained at the missionary's home1 and in much better style than the missionary can afford or indulges except on such occasions1 he sits in the best room1 and by the light of the only table lamp in the house dashes off an article on ,missionary ,luxury4 ,he travels three thousand miles1 and visits fifty stations in three weeks1 then goes home to pose as an authority on missionary methods1 life in the tropics1 etc4 ,it is simply incredible what a variety of misconceptions one can pick up in three weeks in a strange land4 ,representatives from churches and societies in the home-land are gladly welcomed1 if they purpose to remain long enough to form correct views of the situation4 ,it takes the missionaries themselves at least two years to form such views4 ,not long ago a noted ,christian worker visited ,burma4 ,he was very earnest in his desire to see much in a little time1 and yet get at the real heart of things4 ,to further his desires two missionaries arranged a jungle trip1 that the visitor might see the people in their native haunts4 ,the last stage of the journey must be made by ox-cart4 ,as they were loading up for the start he turned and said1 ,now brethren1 you know1--,i want impressions4 ,then again1 more emphatically as he stepped in front of the wheel to put a bundle on the cart--,you understand now1--,i want impressions4 ,the off-ox seemed to sympathize with him1 for he gave him an impression then and there1--on the right knee-cap4 ,then another on the left knee-cap4 ,in great pain the young enthusiast staggered to a log and sat down4 ,helped into the cart1 he rode the rest of the journey4 ,the lameness lasted him several days4 ,doubtless the memory of these first impressions will last much longer4 ,the visitor will learn more in three days of ,burma fever than in an entire cool season4 ,true1 he will have sincere sympathy1 and the best attention possible4 ,but everybody knows that if true conceptions are to be gained1 to be disseminated in the home-land1 it is a good investment4 ,visitors1 like new missionaries1 will not be guided by the advice of the more experienced4 ,that disasters are not more frequent is largely due to the fact that ,burma is visited when the climate is at its best4 ,an exception to the rule was the visit of a lady who had for many years been actively interested in foreign missions4 ,warnings as to the deadly effects of a tropical sun1 and the danger of contracting fever from undue exposure had no influence4 ,repeated cautions that the head must be protected with the customary sola tope in place of the black straw hat were disregarded4 ,quinine1 the universal and only effective remedy in first symptoms of malaria1 was rejected4 ,she was not subject to these things4 ,in short1 the missionaries were unnecessarily cautious in matters of health4 ,malaria changed to settled fever1 and went beyond the power of the best medical skill and nursing to control4 ,this noble worker1 who had served long and well here below1 and might perhaps have served yet longer1 went to a happier service above4 ,notwithstanding the many disasters1 experience still remains the only teacher whose voice commands attention4 ,to meet every obstacle and trying experience the consecrated worker girds up his loins1 strong in the consciousness of the fact that he is an ,ambassador for ,christ the highest office in the gift of the ,king of ,kings4 ,his very obstacles may become stepping-stones to higher attainments4 ,,xiii ,,what ,,hath ,,god ,,wrought ,adequately to answer the question1 at any given time1 ,what hath ,god wrought8--is beyond the power of short-sighted human comprehension4 ,as one studies the history of ,christian missions in this land1 comparing the present with the past1 the question becomes an exclamation2 yea1 what hath ,god wrought6 ,in #ahai1 after six years of seemingly fruitless labour1 ,judson baptized the first ,burman convert from ,buddhism4 ,in #ahbh ,boardman baptized the first ,karen convert from spirit-worship4 ,now about forty-five thousand baptized ,christians1 in ,baptist missions alone1 chiefly ,karen1 but with the ,burman and several other races strongly represented assemble in ,christian chapels1 without fear1 or hindrance4 ,including adherents1 this number may be multiplied threefold4 ,including the mission work of the ,roman ,catholics1 ,church of ,england1 and other societies and their adherents2 ,european officials1 traders1 and troops2 ,eurasions1 and immigrants1--the census of #aija gives a total of #adg1ebf returned as ,christians4 ,calculated on the same basis as the ,roman ,catholics and ,church of ,england three-fourths of this grand total should be assigned to the ,baptists4 ,and as a result of actual mission work among indigenous races1 a much larger proportion must be credited to these ,american ,baptist missions4 ,in casting up results as represented by present numbers1 we should not lose sight of the thousands who have died in the faith during the ninety years of ,christian missions in ,burma4 ,and ,i fain would believe that a good number who never witnessed the good confession have died believing unto the saving of the soul4 ,i will give one such instance among the many1 as related to me by one of my preachers1 himself a ,buddhist1 at the time4 ,they told me that an old man in the village where ,i was staying1 was dying4 ,i went to see him4 ,sure enough1 he was near the end4 ,his people were giving him very little attention1 being angry because he declared that he would die as a ,christian1 not as a ,buddhist4 ,a ,christian preacher had been through the village a long time before1 and left a tract with this old man4 ,he read it1 pondered on it1 and believed it4 ,as ,i sat beside the mat on which he was lying he said to me3 ',i am not a ,buddhist1--,i have cast that all away4 ,i believe in the ,eternal ,god this tract tells me about4 ,i am going to ,him4 ,when ,i am dead1 don't let them bury me according to the ,buddhist custom4 ,just roll me in my mat1 and cover me in the ground4' ,then he looked upward1 his face brightened1 he raised his feeble hands and exclaimed1 ',i can see ,celestial beings up there1--they are calling me4' ,he did not say angels1--he never had heard anything about angels4 ,and ,i did not know what he was talking about4 ,i was not a ,christian then4 ,his relations said his mind had gone bad1 but he paid no attention to what they said1--only kept on talking about his vision of celestial beings beckoning him from the sky4 ,in that way he died4 ,they buried him according to the ,buddhist custom1 but ,i think he was a true disciple4 ,the wife of one of our jungle ,christians rejected all attempts to win her to ,christ4 ,it seemed to be a case of ignorance and indifference rather than the bitter prejudice shown by the majority of ,burmese women4 ,during the last two years of her life she was an invalid4 ,when the end came her husband was the only ,christian in the village4 ,suddenly turning her eyes towards the mountains1 as if hearing something--she said to her husband1 ,there is a great company of disciples there on the mountainside4 ,sayah ,gyi and ,mama 7the missionaries7 are with them1--and they are calling me4 ,with a smile on her face she passed away4 ,in life she had not confessed1 but in death1 as her spirit hung between two worlds her vision was not of the spirits of her lifelong superstitions1--but of the missionaries and disciples saved by the blood of ,christ4 ,you have the story1--interpret it as you like4 ,in all the old mission stations the native evangelists report a good number who secretly declare their conviction that ,christianity is right1 the ancestral religion wholly wrong4 ,some go so far as to assert that they no longer worship idols1 but do1 secretly1 worship ,christ4 ,but no amount of urging or encouraging will induce them to break utterly with ,buddhism1 and openly confess ,christ4 ,they will not even risk the consequences of attending services in the mission chapel4 ,that some are in a measure1 sincere1 there is no doubt4 ,imagine1 if you can1 what would be the social standing of a hitherto orthodox ,christian in ,america1 should he renounce ,christianity and go over to gross idolatry4 ,from ostracism he would suffer no more1 from persecution far less than the poor native who renounces ,buddhism1 for ,christianity4 ,whether any of them are numbered among the saved1 is not for me to say4 ,illustration3 ,,baptist ,,church1 ,,rangoon ,there is another thought which throws a bright ray of light on the great dark wall of paganism4 ,it is not one of the results of ,christian missions1 but it is a result of the work of the ,christ of missions4 ,i refer to thousands and millions of infants and little children who die in pagan lands4 ,if little children in ,christian lands are immortal1 why are not little children in pagan lands also immortal8 ,if little children are included in the saving work of ,christ1 are they not so included the world over8 ,it is hardly conceivable that ,christ would have said1--with children of non-,christians around ,him3 ,suffer the little children to come unto ,me1 and forbid them not1 for of such is the kingdom of heaven1 had ,he not considered them choicest material for ,his kingdom4 ,otherwise the words ,except a man become as a little child--would have been incongruous4 ,now when we consider that probably one-third of the children born in heathen lands die before they come to the period of moral responsibility1 a new factor enters into our conception of heaven4 ,now for a case in point4 ,a little child died in my mission4 ,the father was a ,christian1 the mother a heathen4 ,one insisted that the child should be buried according to ,christian custom1 the other insisted that the burial should be according to ,buddhist custom4 ,the father1 backed by the ,burman pastor1 prevailed4 ,on the way to the cemetery ,i had to stop the procession to drive a snake out of the road4 ,just as the service at the grave began1 another snake passed between the native preacher and myself as we stood side by side4 ,it seemed as if ,satan himself was siding with the heathen mother and would snatch away the soul of this innocent child4 ,while the little grave was being filled1 ,i tried to cheer the father1 by telling him that ,jesus had1 in love1 taken the child to ,himself4 ,he knew that the mother would do her worst to bring up her child in heathenism1 so ,he had graciously transplanted it to ,his paradise above4 ,accepting this view of the case1 the father was comforted4 ,there are many such encouraging factors which form no part of mission reports4 ,before proceeding to the more palpable triumphs of ,christian missions1 ,i would point out that much has recently been said and written of a ,revival of ,buddhism4 ,i do not share in the impression that ,buddhism is becoming stronger than in former years4 ,the presence of a ,european clad in yellow robes1 parading through the chief towns of ,burma1 making great pretensions1 and reviling the ,christian missionaries1 created a sensation for a time4 ,but his claim to be the head of ,buddhism was not quite to the taste of the many native priests who1 locally1 or for the province1 aspired to that position4 ,hardly more to their taste was his departure1 taking with him a generous sum of money collected during his tours4 ,every now and then one hears of new societies for propagating ,buddhism4 ,but much of this is mere pomp and show4 ,a few of the more popular pagodas are periodically treated to a coat of gold-leaf4 ,the bulk of this great expense is borne by men who have amassed fortunes under ,british rule1 and is more to add to their renown than from real religious zeal4 ,but where one pagoda is now regilded1 scores were built and gilded1 under ,burman rule4 ,wealth and education have raised many ,burmans to prominent positions4 ,each one of these gaily attired lords would like to have it said1 ,he loveth our nation1 and has gilded our pagoda4 ,in this they are encouraged by the friendly attitude of the provincial government towards the religion of the land4 ,in ,june1 #aijc1 the trustees of the ,shwe ,dagon pagoda issued to prominent ,europeans and others the following invitation3 ,the trustees of the ,shwe ,dagon pagoda will have the pleasure of ----1 on ,sunday1 the #gth ,june1 #aijc1 on the platform of the pagoda1 to witness the most sacred ceremony of unveiling the covering of the upper portion of the pagoda as the plating of the same with beaten gold sheets has now been completed4 ,sir ,h4 ,thirkell ,white1 chief judge of the chief court of ,lower ,burma has kindly consented to perform the duty of unveiling4 ,u ,shwe ,waing1 ,managing ,trustee4 ,shwe ,dagon ,pagoda4 ,the ,rangoon ,gazette thus described the event3 ,he arrived at nine o'clock1 and was received by the trustees of the pagoda1 who conducted him to a platform where a small pagoda about two feet high and studded with rubies1 diamonds and sapphires1 was resting on a massive silver ,burmese carved stand4 ,this pagoda was hollow and on being opened was disclosed another pure gold miniature pagoda resting on a beautifully cased gold vase4 ,this miniature pagoda also came to pieces and contained a nugget of pure gold1 part of the gold plates used in regilding ,shwe ,dagon4 ,two of the trustees1 ,maung ,po ,aung and ,maung ,po ,tha1 then each read an address and the signal was given to the man on the top of the pagoda1 and ,sir ,h4 ,thirkell ,white pulled a handle which was connected by wire with the cloth frame on the ,hti1 and the frame thus fell apart and disclosed to view the massive pinnacle of gold4 ,the people broke out in cheers1 and the band of the king's regiment played the national anthem1 and this closed the proceedings4 ,it has taken over #adj viss of gold-leaf for the regilding1 the cost being between seven and eight lacs of rupees1 over #bej1jjj4 ,this event1 in which the most conspicuous figure was a prominent ,english official1 though in unofficial capacity2 and closing with the strains of ,god ,save the ,king1 is heralded far and wide as another indication of a revival of ,buddhism4 ,were ,buddhism wiped out of existence the pagoda would still be preserved1 as at once the most ancient and most conspicuous object in the city1--the first seen as one approaches the shores of ,burma4 ,buddhism never has lost its strong-hold on the races of ,burma that many centuries ago adopted it4 ,these spasmodic outbreaks of seeming zeal1 interpreted by many as indications of increasing life1 ,i interpret as signs of increasing weakness4 ,as in ,india1 these people are becoming alarmed by the headway that ,christianity is slowly1 steadily gaining in their land4 ,it is a struggle against the irresistible tide of ,christian missions4 ,something more than flaming pagoda tops1 and societies with high sounding titles will be required to stay the tide1 and ,buddhism has nothing else to offer4 ,one hundred and fifty ,protestant missionaries1 with hundreds of native evangelists and teachers constitute a force1 which under ,god1 is undermining false systems and establishing the kingdom of ,christ4 ,the unveiling of the gilded pagoda top was a great event1 such as happens once in a decade4 ,the place was crowded with ,burmans1 and many sightseers of other races4 ,but on that ,sunday1 and every ,sunday1 nearly if not quite an equal number assembled in the many ,christian churches in that city4 ,judson1 forbidden by the king to preach the ,jesus ,christ religion1 had faith that the future of missions in ,burma was as bright as the promises of ,god4 ,if in the year #aijc he is permitted to look down upon the land of his toil and suffering1 he can see ,american missions firmly established in thirty different stations1 and more than one hundred missionaries in actual service1 all under the protection of the flag of a ,christian nation4 ,buddhism is reviving1 as the serpent revives to strike the rod from which it is receiving its death-blow4 ,among the far-reaching results of mission work stands ,judson's translation of the ,bible into the ,burmese language4 ,from the time when he triumphantly held aloft the last leaf of this translation1 until the present time1 ,judson's ,bible has been used by all ,protestant societies doing mission work among the ,burmans4 ,it has been revised by later missionaries2 but so scholarly1 and so loyal to the ,greek text was it1 that comparatively few changes have been found necessary4 ,some have criticised it as containing interpretation1 at certain points1 in place of literal translation4 ,but in so far as this is true it seems unavoidable1 it being impossible to reproduce the meaning word for word4 ,failure to reproduce the meaning would not be1 in the highest sense1 a translation4 ,but the severest criticism passed upon it is because literal translation was adopted where the critics would have a transliteration4 ,of scarcely less importance than ,judson's ,burmese ,bible are the translations1 by later missionaries1 of the ,bible into ,shan1 ,sgaw ,karen1 and ,pwo ,karen4 ,the ,american ,baptist ,mission ,press1 at ,rangoon1 is turning out vast quantities of ,christian literature4 ,bibles1 tracts1 hymn books1 and a great variety of other useful material for evangelistic work find their way to the remotest corners of the land4 ,karens and ,talaings in ,southern ,burma1 even into ,siam2 ,shans and ,kachins on the ,chinese border1 to the east and north2 ,chins in the northwest2 ,burmans and ,karens throughout the land may have this ,christian literature in their own tongue4 ,it can almost be said that the ,mission ,press is evangelizing ,burma by machinery4 ,at each of the thirty stations of the ,american ,baptist ,mission a school has been established4 ,where work for different races is carried on at the same station there is a school for each race4 ,there are scores of out-station schools1 but the station school is the centre of influence4 ,here it is that the young lady missionary finds her grandest opportunity for usefulness4 ,it is hard work1--this steady day-in-and-day-out routine1 nothing harder in the whole round of missionary endeavour4 ,but there is also fascination in it4 ,with a large body of ,christian pupils1 as in the ,karen schools1 there is stimulus in it4 ,here are scores of young men who are soon to go out as preachers and teachers1 in their native villages1 or as missionaries to unevangelized tribes4 ,young women1 too1 going out as teachers1 ,bible-women1 or perhaps as wives of some of these ,christian young men4 ,the missionaries report so many churches1 so many ,sunday-schools1 so many evangelists sent out1--but it is largely due to the faithful work of our young ladies from the home-land that these evangelists were first won to ,christ1 while pupils in the station schools4 ,to take these boys and girls when they came as children from distant villages1 untidy offspring of the great unwashed1 and under ,god1 mould them for ,christian service1 is as grand a work as ever fell to a consecrated missionary's lot4 ,thus the ,christian school is letting in the light1 arousing dormant faculties1 furnishing scores of mission helpers1 and paving the way for more glorious triumphs of the gospel in years to come4 ,at the close of #aijb the grand total of #ai1dcj pupils were under instruction in schools of the ,american ,baptist ,mission in ,burma4 ,of this number #ace were in the theological seminary at ,insein4 ,all are under ,christian influence1 and engaging in daily ,bible study4 ,but what of the character of native converts8 ,have the backward tribes sufficient intelligence and stamina to make trustworthy ,christians8 this question is often asked4 ,a missionary thus describes the first ,karen she ever saw1--,suspended from a yoke from the forehead1 hanging down the back of this ,karen was a large pig suspended in bamboo strips to keep him quiet1 and this pig had been brought by the man from the mountains4 ,the man himself was very untidy1 his single garment was after the shape of a pillow case2 his hair1 if ever it had been combed1 had not been for many a day1 and ,i said to ,dr4 ,c---- ',it hardly seems possible there is more soul in the burden-bearer than in the burden4' ,he looked at me in astonishment1 and said1 ',why1 that is the dearest old deacon in the mountains4' ,and ,i said1 ',if that is the dearest old deacon in the mountains1 then there is hope for everybody4' ,in a letter to the ,rangoon ,times an ,english traveller wrote as follows3 ,close to police barracks at ,myitta 7near ,siam7 is a native ,baptist church4 ,there are no missionaries in the neighbourhood1 but ,christianity has widely spread among the ,karens from the ,american ,baptist missions in the ,karen district proper4 ,the ,karen ,christians observe the ,sabbath with ,scotch precision2 no doubt its observance falls in with their happy indolent disposition which would embrace eagerly a creed that offered them seven days of rest in the week4 ,it is a little disconcerting for a keen sportsman1 who has lost all count of the calendar in this remote corner of the world1 to be told1 when ready equipped for a day's shooting1 that it is impossible to obtain beaters1 because it is ,sunday4 ,at a point not so remote from civilization an official whipped a ,christian ,karen for refusing to work on ,sunday4 ,the missionary's request for an explanation being ignored1 the matter was referred to the lieutenant-governor4 ,the official was reprimanded1 and an order issued that no ,christian should be compelled to work on ,sunday4 ,in his book ,the ,loyal ,karens1 ,mr4 ,smeaton1 late chief commissioner of ,burma1 says1 ,it is not often given to witness such a remarkable development of national character as has taken place among the ,karens under the influence of ,christianity and good government4 ,forty1 aye1 thirty years ago1 they were a despised1 grovelling1 timid people1 held in contempt by the ,burmese4 ,at the sound of the gospel message they sprang to their feet1 as a sleeping army springs to the bugle-call4 ,the dream of hundreds of years was fulfilled2 the ,god who had cast them off for their unfaithfulness had come back to them1 they felt themselves a nation once more4 ,their progress since has been by leaps and bounds1 all from an impetus within themselves1 and with no direct help from their rulers2 and they bid fair soon to outstrip their ,burmese conquerors in all the arts of peace4 ,by their fruits ye shall know them4 ,where only a few years ago were tribal wars1 child-stealing1 house-burning and savagery1 now are quiet1 orderly villages1 each with its preacher and teacher1 chapel and school4 ,rubbish and filth that they never saw while in paganism1 have been cleared away4 ,faces are brighter1 bodies better clothed1 rice-bins better filled4 ,many of the boys and girls are away in the town school for better training than the village school can provide4 ,here and there1 on the elevated bamboo verandas may be seen young wives who have had this better training1 evidenced by their absence of fear that a clean skirt will bring upon them the eyes of the entire village4 ,these are a few of the many changes forecast in the promise--,i will say unto them that were not ,my people1 ,thou art ,my people2 and they shall say1 ,thou art my ,god4 ,about eight hundred ,protestant churches1 with as many pastors and evangelists1 are among the more tangible results4 ,a ,christian college for all races1 theological seminaries for ,karens and ,burmans1 the latter open to ,burmese speaking candidates from other races2 and a ,bible training school for the young women are preparing pastors1 evangelists1 teachers and ,bible women1 to meet the ever increasing demand4 ,already native missionaries have gone out to work among the ,shans1 ,chins and ,kachins4 ,and still the finger of ,god is pointing onward1--to western ,china1 and the region around ,tibet1 sources from which the races of ,burma came1 and where kindred races still exist4 ,without dealing in uninteresting statistics1 ,i have tried to indicate some of the conditions amid which missionary work in ,burma has been1 and still is being conducted1 and some of the results of the work4 ,in spite of separations1 privations1 distractions1 effects of climate1 and other trying experiences1 missionary life has its compensations4 ,chief among them is the satisfaction of seeing the image of ,god reappearing in human faces1 hearts1 and lives1 and the privilege of helping to win a nation to ,christ4 ,this it is that keeps the missionary at his post1 or hurries him back to his field from a half-rest in the home-land2 while first1 last1 and all the time there is ringing in his ears the ,master's parting message--,go1 preach the gospel to the whole creation1--every word of which1 as ,dr4 ,ellis once said1 is a heart-beat of the ,holy ,ghost4 ,in the ,great ,commission1 and the great need he finds ample justification and obligation for vigorous and unceasing missionary effort4 ,after the battle of ,lookout ,mountain a dying soldier1 roused by a sound of shouting1 said to a comrade who was supporting him--,what was that8 ,why--that's our boys6 they have carried the heights1 and planted the flag upon them6 ,with a smile the dying soldier said1 ,i helped put it there4 ,all along the mission-front the great struggle with paganism is still going on4 ,but by and by the battles will have been fought1 the victory won1 and you and ,i will be standing with that great company which ,john saw at ,patmos1--for it is yet future4 ,burmans and ,karens1 and people of ,india and ,china1 and ,africa will be there1 just as it reads3 ,out of every nation1 and of all tribes and peoples and tongues4 ,and as we stand there in the presence of our ,saviour1--the ,lord of the ,harvest1--it will be a happy day for you and me1--if we can say like the dying soldier--,i helped put them there4 99 99 99 99 99 ,transcriber's ,notes ,minor punctuation errors have been silently corrected4 ,illustrations have been relocated to paragraph breaks4 ,page #gi3 seige may be a typo for siege4 7,orig3 immense army1 laid seige to ,syriam17 ,page #hj3 ,changed ,guatama to ,gautama4 7,orig3 pagoda was built1 and a costly image of ,guatama cast7 ,page #hg3 ,changed issed to issued4 7,orig3 ,oriental monarch would have issed such decrees7 ,page #aji3 ,changed guaged to gauged4 7,orig3 ,hospitality is guaged by the number of cups7 ,page #abd3 thalt may be a typo for shalt4 7,orig3 commandment1 ,thou thalt speak no false word1 gives this7 ,page #aca3 ,changed ,guatama to ,gautama4 7,orig3 relics of four ,buddhas1 including eight hairs of ,guatama47 ,page #adi3 ,changed it to its4 7,orig3 ,each community has it head-man1 who makes the bargain7 ,page #bjd3 ,changed beople to people4 7,orig3 stepping-stones heavenward for these benighted beople47 ,page #bcb3 ,ya-bok-kon has macrons over the a and second o in the original book4