Four Young Explorers Part 23

The party landed, and walked to the temple. It looked like an exaggerated bell, the spire being the handle, and the lower portion looking like an enormous flight of circular stairs for the roof. It was over two hundred feet high. Attached to it in the rear was a structure with a pitched roof. They bought photographs of it at the stand of a native who spoke a little French. At this point Achang procured a guide who spoke French, and he conducted them to the Temple of the Sleeping Idol.

"It is not much of a temple compared with the one we have just visited,"

said the professor. "We must go into it."

They entered, conducted by the guide. The building looked like three pitched-roof structures set together, the middle one into the largest at the bottom, and the smallest into the middle one. It contains an enormous figure of Buddha, one hundred and sixty feet long, which about fills the interior of the temple. It is constructed of brick, plastered and then gilded, so that it looks like a golden statue in a reclining posture. The feet are sixteen feet long, and the arms six feet in diameter.

The party looked in at another temple, which contains a bra.s.s statue of Buddha fifty feet high, with other smaller statues, and a variety of objects that were unintelligible to the visitors. Various other temples were examined hastily on the way to the royal palace, but they were only a repet.i.tion of what they had often seen before.

The palace was a magnificent building, or series of buildings, for a half-civilized country. The tourists were permitted to enter at the gate, though the guide was excluded. They saw a squad of the royal guards who were drilling on the pavement, and they regarded them with great interest. They wore a Zouave uniform, though with a short frock-coat b.u.t.toned to the chin, with round caps in cylindrical form, and visors. They were armed with muskets, and commanded by native officers.

"This palace is a big thing," said the professor, "and is a mile in circ.u.mference, surrounded by walls."

It contained, besides the palace of the king, the public offices, temples, a theatre, barracks for several thousand soldiers, and apartments for three thousand women, six hundred of whom are the wives of the king. But what interested them more than most of the sights was the famous white elephant. He is said to be of equal rank with the king, and is treated with all possible deference and respect. He has a palatial stable; and being a king, he lives like one. His servants and attendants are all priests. But he is not a pleasant sprig of royalty, and the visitors were warned not to go too near him.

But it was time to return to the s.h.i.+p, and they found the boat in the ca.n.a.l which Achang had indicated. At dinner the conversation was concerning the city, and the party mentioned many things the Nimrods had not seen. On Tuesday morning the s.h.i.+p sailed on her voyage to Saigon.

CHAPTER XX

A VIEW OF COCHIN CHINA AND SIAM

The s.h.i.+p sailed at six o'clock in the morning, but nearly all the pa.s.sengers were on deck as soon as the screw began to turn. They were still in the Torrid Zone; and they saw the sun rise, though the days had become a trifle longer. The Menam River is the great thoroughfare of Bangkok, and the floating houses lined the river three or four deep for a considerable distance below the city. The party found plenty of objects to engage their attention as the steamer slowly made her way towards the Gulf. Breakfast was served at the usual hour; and as soon as the pilot was discharged, the company gathered at Conference Hall for the lecture.

The siamangs and the baby were still great favorites with all on board; and Mr. Mingo, Mrs. Mingo, and Miss Mingo, as they had been named, had made great progress in civilization. All of them were regular attendants at the meetings in Conference Hall, and always behaved themselves with the greatest propriety. The mother usually occupied one of the arm-chairs, while the baby was held in the lap of one of the ladies.

They looked at the speaker just as though they understood what he was saying. They joined in the applause when the lecturer presented himself before his audience with their "Ra, ra, ra!" finis.h.i.+ng with the squeak which was a part of their language.

General Noury took his place on the platform after he had shaken hands with Mrs. Mingo, who gave him an encouraging smile as he mounted the rostrum. The Sumatra lady looked at him very earnestly, and Miss Blanche declared that she understood everything that was going on. Mrs. Noury, the Princess Zuleima, had the baby; and the little siamang seemed to take as much interest in the proceedings as her mother. Mr. Mingo was not literary, and perched in the fore-rigging.

The great map seemed to have been drawn and colored with even unusual care, perhaps because Mr. Gaskette had had more time to attend to it. It was displayed on the new frame which the carpenter had built for it, and included the entire peninsula east of the Burmese possessions, and south of China and the Shan States. When the applause which greeted the general had subsided, he directed the pointer at the map.

"Perhaps some of you will be considerably confused by the various names of the territory we are engaged in visiting at the present time," he began; and Mrs. Mingo gave a louder squeak than usual as a special greeting to the distinguished gentleman. "Cochin China, I think, is the most common name, though Indo-China is very generally used. It is also called Farther India and Annam. Its various divisions are the Shan States, tributary to Siam, taking their name from a race of people who are of the same descent as the natives of China. You observe that there are more of these states in the territory of Burma, to which they are subject. These states tributary to Siam contain a population of about two millions.

"Next south comes Siam proper. Lying east of the Shan States and Siam is a territory called the Little Lao States, which are subject to the several countries around them. On the east, bordering on the China Sea, is Annam, a part of which is sometimes labelled Cochin China. A part of Annam is Tonquin, in the north, next to China. What is called Cambodia, next south of Siam, and appearing to be a part of it, is an indefinite factor of Cochin China, and may properly enough be counted in with Siam.

What is called Independent Cambodia, if it is independent, is a triangular country south-east of Siam. French Cochin China occupies the most southern portion of the peninsula.

"Nearly the whole of the territory of Cochin China is under the protection of France; and in my judgment, which you can accept for what it is worth, the whole peninsula will eventually become French, under whatever form it may be accomplished. Very recently the relations between France and Siam were very much strained over a disputed boundary question. France had s.h.i.+ps of war at the mouth of the Menam, and sent some of the smaller craft up the river. It looked very much like war; but before the s.h.i.+ps bombarded Bangkok, Siam yielded, and gave up the portion of territory claimed; and no doubt it will be the same story told over again from time to time, until Siam exists only as a dependency of France.

"Though you see mountains laid down on Mr. Gaskette's map, the elevations hardly deserve that name; for nearly the whole of Cochin China is low ground, almost flat. The Mekhong River is the largest in the peninsula, being 2,800 miles long. It rises in Thibet, and is navigable only in its lower waters. On account of the low level of the country there are many ca.n.a.ls, or bayous as you call them in Louisiana, which connect many of the rivers. Let us now return to Siam. By the way, I find the latest map I have seen of this region in Chambers's, published last year; and it is quite different from the one before you."

"But not from the one that will be before you in half a minute more,"

interposed Mr. Gaskette, as he unrolled and hung up a smaller one which he had just completed. "I made this one this morning, after the commander had shown me the one to which you allude; and you can see that it is a very crude one."

"I thank you, Mr. Gaskette, for the new map; and though you took it from a book not more than a year old, I am afraid that it is not entirely correct for to-day. You observe, my friends, that Siam occupies nearly the whole of the peninsula east of Burma. Annam is cut down to a very thin slice on the China Sea; and Tonquin, where France has kept many soldiers employed for several years, is swelled into a considerable territory. I doubt if the last change in the boundary of Siam is shown before you. The limits of Cambodia are closely defined.

"Nearly the whole of the peninsula was included in the ancient kingdom of Cambodia, existing at the Christian era; and Buddhism is believed to have been introduced into it in the fourth century. Some remarkable ruins, with interesting sculptures, have been found as testimonials to the greatness of this ancient country. The Temple of Angkor had 1,532 columns, and the stone for the structure was brought from a quarry thirty-two miles distant. Ma.s.sive bridges, so solidly built that they have resisted the ravages of time and the inundations of more than a thousand years, are still to be seen. One of them is four hundred and seventy feet long, and has thirty-four arches. An account of these wonders was given by a Chinese traveller of the thirteenth century, and they seem to bear some comparison with the works of the ancient Egyptians.

"The native name of Siam is _Muang Thai_, which you will please to remember; and I mention it only to tell you that it means 'The Land of the Free,' and it must be a first cousin of your country, Mr. Commander; but I suppose you will not accept the relations.h.i.+p because 'The Home of the Brave' is not included. Siam has an area of about 250,000 square miles, as estimated by geographers; and one authority gives it a population of 6,000,000, and another 8,000,000, but they agree in giving it 2,000,000 Siamese, and 1,000,000 Chinese. The rest of the number is made up with Malays, Laosians, and other tribes.

"The Menam River is six hundred miles long, and it has several branches.

On the banks of these streams very nearly all the people live, for the regions away from them are a wild jungle which is not cultivated. The country is healthy enough for a tropical region, though malarial fevers are very trying to European residents and visitors. The wet season is from May to November, when it rains about every day; and the rest of the year it does not rain at all. The average rainfall is fifty-four inches a year, and the average temperature 81, though the gla.s.s goes up to 94 in April; but New York beats that in summer.

"Agriculture stands at a low ebb; but the abundant rains and the rich soil produce very large harvests of rice, the princ.i.p.al crop, and all the productions of the Torrid Zone thrive. The labor of Siam is done by Chinese coolies; for the native workers are hampered by a law which requires them to give one-fourth of their labor to the state. Domestic elephants are used in hauling timber,--for teak is one of the products of the forests,--and also for travel and as bearers of burdens. Wild elephants are hunted and trapped in Siam; and tigers, bears, deer, monkeys, and wild pigs abound in the jungles. Crocodiles live at the mouths of the rivers; and the cobra, python, and other reptiles are plentiful enough.

"The Siamese are peaceable people, lazy, and without what you call 'snap.' They are fond of jewelry and high colors. They are rather small in stature, and very like the natives of the several islands you have visited. They live for the most part on rice, used largely in various curries, dried fish in small quant.i.ties, though the rivers and sea swarm with fish. Tea is the favorite beverage, taken without sugar or milk.

Though they distil an intoxicating liquor from rice, a tipsy person is rarely seen. They chew betel-nut, males and females; and their teeth are always black, which is their ideal of beauty, and they use other materials to make them black and s.h.i.+ning.

"The worst vice of the Siamese is gambling; but it can be practised only in houses licensed by the government, though on certain holidays, New Year's in April especially, the people are privileged to gamble at home, or even in the streets. Marriages are arranged by women of mature age.

The birthdays of the contracting parties must be agreeable; for the people are superst.i.tious, and consult the stars for their horoscopes.

The old ladies agree upon the amount of money the parents of the bride and groom must pay to set up the young couple in life. The ceremonies last three days or more; and the princ.i.p.al observance is the chewing of betel, winding up with a feast to all the friends. Priests are sometimes called in to say prayers, and sprinkle the couple with consecrated water.

"The Siamese believe that the arteries of the body are filled with air, and that disease is caused by some disturbance in these internal breezes. A wind blows on the heart, and bursts it, causing death by 'heart failure.' Almost everything is pressed into the _materia medica_ for service, including such things as cats' eyes, the bile of snakes, sea-sh.e.l.ls, horns, and probably dogs' tails, kittens' teeth, and monkeys' tongues. Doctors are paid by the job, and not by the number of visits. The price of a cure is agreed upon; and if the patient dies, or fails to get better, the physician gets nothing.

"After poor people, dying, have been kept a few days, they are cremated, as in India; but they keep a high n.o.ble nearly a year before they commit his remains to the fire. When called upon, a Siamese farmer or other person is compelled by law to furnish transportation and board to travelling officials. The law of debit and credit is curious, and amounts to actual slavery. A man may borrow money, and give his person for security. If he fails to pay as agreed, the creditor can put him in irons, if need be, and compel him to work for him till the debt is discharged,--the princ.i.p.al only, for his labor is the equivalent of the interest.

"Missionaries are sent here from America, including many female physicians; and they have a great deal of influence among the natives.

"The present king of Siam is Chulalongkorn I. The former system of having the country ruled by two kings has been abolished, and the present monarch is the only king; and I never could find out what the second king was for. The throne is now hereditary, but the king formerly had the privilege of naming his own successor. Chulalongkorn is an amiable and dignified ruler, well educated, and speaks English fluently.

The laws are made by the king in connection with a council of ministers.

The forty-one provinces of the kingdom are in charge of commissioners appointed by the king. Such a thing as justice is hardly known, and what there is of it is very badly managed. Thieving and plundering are carried on almost without check in Bangkok, which includes about all there is of Siam except a great deal of spare territory, and property is very unsafe there. I think I have wearied you, Mr. Commander, and ladies and gentlemen."

"Not at all!" shouted several.

"Did you ever see the Siamese twins, General Noury?" inquired Uncle Moses.

"I never did; but I have read about them, and looked them up this morning," replied the lecturer. "They were born in Siam in 1811, but their parents were Chinese. I don't quite understand in what manner they were united."

"There was a ligament, which looked something like a small wrist, reaching from one to the other at the breast-bones. Their garments were open enough to enable the spectators to see this connection. There was a great deal of speculation among the doctors about them, I remember, and it was even proposed to separate them with the knife; but that was never done, for it would have spoiled the exhibition business," the trustee explained.

"They were purchased of their mother at Meklong by an American in 1829, and taken to the United States, where they were exhibited all over the country, and then taken to England. It was a good speculation to Mr.

Hunter and to Chang and Eng, the twins; for they all made their fortunes. They were married to two sisters, and settled in North Carolina, where they had children. They lost their property in the Civil War, and again exhibited themselves in England in 1869. They died in 1874, one living two hours and a half after the death of the other."

The general retired from the rostrum; and the party separated, Mrs.

Mingo ascending the fore-rigging, while the others went to various parts of the s.h.i.+p to see the sh.o.r.es, which were still in sight.

CHAPTER XXI

ON THE VOYAGE TO SAIGON

The steamer was obliged to descend the Menam at less than half speed, to avoid running down any of the mult.i.tude of boats and vessels that thronged the river, and because the stream was so crooked.

"How far do you think Bangkok is from the Gulf, Captain Ringgold?" asked the general, at the close of the session.