REMARKS ON CAMBODIA AND ITS RUINS.
REMARKS ON CAMBODIA.
A knowledge of Sanscrit, of “Pali,” and of some modern languages of
Hindostan and Indo-China, would be the only means of arriving at the
origin of the ancient people of Cambodia who have left all these traces
of their civilization, and that of their successors, who appear only
to have known how to destroy, never to reconstruct. Until some learned
archæologist shall devote himself to this subject, it is not probable
that aught but contradictory speculations will be promulgated. Some
day, however, the truth will surely appear and put them all to flight.
I myself, having nothing but conjecture to rest upon, advance my own
theory with diffidence.
Nokhor has been the centre and capital of a wealthy, powerful, and
civilized state, and in this assertion I do not fear contradiction from
those who have any knowledge of its gigantic ruins. Now, for a country
to be rich and powerful, a produce relatively great and an extended
commerce must be presumed. Doubtless, Cambodia was formerly thus
favoured, and would be so at the present day under a wise government,
if labour and agriculture were encouraged instead of despised, if the
ruling powers exercised a less absolute despotism, and, above all, if
slavery were abolished--that miserable institution which is a bar to
all progress, reduces man to the level of the brute, and prevents him
from cultivating more than sufficient for his own actual wants.[2]
[2] This is equally true of Cambodia and of Siam, the former country
being tributary to the latter.
The greater part of the land is surprisingly fertile, and the rice
of Battambong is superior to that of Cochin China. The forests yield
precious gums, gum-lac, gamboge, cardamoms, and many others, as well as
some useful resins. They likewise produce most valuable timber, both
for home use and for exportation, and dye-woods in great variety. The
mines afford gold, iron, and copper.
Fruits and vegetables of all kinds abound, and game is in great
profusion. Above all, the great lake is a source of wealth to the
whole nation; the fish in it are so incredibly abundant that when the
water is high they are actually crushed under the boats, and the play
of the oars is frequently impeded by them. The quantities taken there
every year by a number of enterprising Cochin Chinese are literally
miraculous. The river of Battambong is not less plentifully stocked,
and I have seen a couple of thousand taken in one net.
Neither must I omit to mention the various productions which form so
important a part of the riches of a nation, and which might be here
cultivated in the greatest perfection. I would especially instance
cotton, coffee, indigo, tobacco, and the mulberry, and such spices as
nutmegs, cloves, and ginger. Even now all these are grown to a certain
limited extent, and are allowed to be of superior quality. Sufficient
cotton is raised to supply all Cochin China, and to allow of some
being exported to China itself. From the little island of Ko-Sutin
alone, leased to the planters by the King of Cambodia, the transport
of the cotton produce employs a hundred vessels. What might not be
accomplished if these were colonies belonging to a country such, for
example, as England, and were governed as are the dependencies of that
great and generous nation?
Battambong and Korat are renowned for their silken “langoutis” of
brilliant and varied colours, both the material and the dyes being the
produce of the country.
A glance at the map of Cambodia suffices to show that it communicates
with the sea by the numerous mouths of the Mekong and the numberless
canals of Lower Cochin China, which was formerly subject to it; with
Laos and with China, by the great river.
INHABITANTS OF CAMBODIA.
These facts being established, whence came the original inhabitants of
this country? Was it from India, the cradle of civilization, or was
it from China? The language of the present natives is that of the old
Cambodians or Khendome, as they call the people who live retired at the
foot of the mountains and on the table-lands, and it is too distinct
from Chinese to render the latter supposition possible. But whether
this people originally came from the north or from the west, by sea,
and gradually making their way up the rivers, or from the land, and
descending them, it seems certain that there must have been here other
ancient settlers, who introduced Buddhism and civilization. It would
appear as though these had been succeeded by some barbarous race, who
drove the original inhabitants far into the interior, and destroyed
many of their buildings. At all events, it is my belief that, without
exaggeration, the date of some of the oldest parts of Ongcor the Great
may be fixed at more than 2000 years ago, and the more recent portions
not much later. The state of decay of many of these structures would
indicate even a greater age; but they probably date from the dispersion
of the Indian Buddhists, which took place several centuries before
the Christian era, and which led to the expatriation of thousands of
individuals.
All that can be said respecting the present Cambodians is, that they
are an agricultural people, among whom a certain taste for art still
shows itself in the carved work of the boats belonging to the better
classes, and their chief characteristic is unbounded conceit.
SAVAGES OF THE EAST.
It is not so among the savages of the east, called by the Cambodians
their elder brothers. I passed four months among them, and, arriving
direct from Cambodia, it seemed like entering a country comparatively
civilized. Great gentleness, politeness, and even sociability--which,
to my fancy, bore evidence of a past refinement--struck me in these
poor children of nature, buried for centuries in their deep forests,
which they believe to be the largest portion of the world, and to which
they are so strongly attached that no inducement would tempt them to
move. At the risk, then, of this portion of my notes being passed
over by many readers, I shall enlarge a little upon these people, my
own observations being aided by the information afforded me by the
missionaries who have for years resided among their different tribes.
When looking at the figures in the bas-reliefs at Ongcor, I could not
avoid remarking the strong resemblance of the faces to those of these
savages. And besides the similar regularity of feature, there are the
same long beards, straight langoutis, and even the same weapons and
musical instruments.
Almost all the fruit-trees of the neighbouring countries are found,
though in small numbers, among them; and they have some good species of
bananas, which are unknown beyond the limits of their forests.
Having a great taste for music, and being gifted with ears excessively
fine, with them originated the tam-tam, so prized among the
neighbouring nations; and by uniting its sounds to those of a large
drum, they obtain music tolerably harmonious. The art of writing
is unknown to them; and as they necessarily lead a wandering life,
they seem to have lost nearly all traditions of the past. The only
information I could extract from their oldest chiefs was, that far
beyond the chain of mountains which crosses the country from north to
south are other “people of the high country”--such is the name they
give themselves; that of _savage_ wounds them greatly--that they have
many relations there, and they even cite names of villages or hamlets
as far as the provinces occupied by the Annamite invaders. Their
practice is to bury their dead.
THE BANNAVS.
I extract the following account of the Bannavs--which applies to
most of the tribes inhabiting the mountains and table-lands between
Tonquin and Laos, Cochin China and Cambodia--from a letter of M. Comte,
missionary in Cochin China, who recently died amongst them after a
residence of several years:--
“To what race do the Bannavs belong? That is the first question I asked
myself on arriving here, and I must confess that I cannot yet answer
it; all I can say is, that in all points they differ from the Annamites
and Chinese; neither do they resemble the Laotians or Cambodians, but
appear to have a common origin with the Cédans, Halangs, Reungao, and
Giaraïe, their neighbours. Their countenances, costumes, and belief
are nearly the same; and the language, although it differs in each
tribe, has yet many words common to all; the construction, moreover,
is perfectly identical. I have not visited the various tribes of the
south, but from all I have heard I conclude that these observations
apply to them also, and that all the savages inhabiting the vast
country lying between Cochin China, Laos, and Cambodia belong to the
same great branch of the human family.
“The language spoken by the Bannavs has nothing in common with that of
the Annamites. Very simple in its construction, it is soft, flowing,
and easy.
“These people manufacture the saucepans in which they cook their rice
and wild herbs, the hatchets, pickaxes, and pruning-bills, which
comprise all their agricultural instruments, the sabres which serve
them as weapons, and the long-handled knives used for various kinds of
work in which they excel. Their clay calumets, tastefully ornamented
with leaves or other devices, are the production of the most skilful
among the tribe. The women weave pieces of white or black cloth,
which they use for coverings, and which, coarse as they are, form the
principal article of commerce between the Bannavs and the Cédans.
“The villagers who live on the banks of the river Bla make light
canoes, which are both solid and graceful, out of the trunks of trees.
Such are the principal articles produced by the Bannavs, who are more
backward than any of the other tribes, having little inventive genius.
“The Giaraïe, their neighbours on the south, show much taste and
aptness in all they do; their clothes are of a finer texture than those
spun by the Bannavs, and are sometimes embellished with designs which
would be admired even in Europe. The iron which they forge is also
wrought into more elegant forms, and is more finely tempered; and they
manufacture some articles in copper. Very superior to the Reungao, they
do not perhaps surpass the Halangs.
“The Cédans are a tribe of iron-workers, their country abounding in
mines of this metal. The inhabitants of more than seventy villages,
when their agricultural labours are over, busy themselves in extracting
and working the ore, which they afterwards dispose of in the shape of
hatchets, pickaxes, lances, and sabres.
“Amongst all the dwellers in a Bannav village, even more than among the
other natives, there exists a very decided spirit of community. Thus,
no family will drink wine without inviting others to join them, as long
as the quantity will hold out; and on killing a pig, goat, or buffalo,
the possessor divides it into as many portions as there are families,
reserving for himself a share very little larger than the others. No
one is forgotten in this distribution, from the youngest child to the
oldest man. The deer and wild boar taken in the chase are divided in
the same way, the hunters retaining only a rather larger portion in
consideration of their labour and fatigue. I have actually seen a
fowl divided into forty or fifty parts. Even if the children catch a
serpent, a lizard, or a mouse in their little expeditions, you will see
the oldest of them, on returning, portion it with strict impartiality
amongst the party. These customs might have been borrowed from the
early Christians had these savages ever heard of them. The other tribes
also observe them, but less scrupulously.
“Not only does general censure follow any criminal act, but severe
penalties, such as slavery or exile, are imposed for lying. Even
suicide--instances of which you occasionally find among them--has a
stigma affixed to it in their penal code; any one who perishes by his
own hand is buried in a corner of the forest far from the graves of
his brethren, and all who have assisted in the sepulture are required
afterwards to purify themselves in a special manner.
“This legislation is far from being deficient in morality and wisdom,
but unfortunately on certain points it is tainted with superstition,
and has opened a large door to numberless injustices, and sometimes
provoked cruel strife. On the subject of witchcraft they are
particularly credulous: nearly every misfortune is attributed by them
to the malice of certain persons whom they believe gifted with the
power of influencing their fate; superstition serves as a guide to seek
out the guilty individual, and when he is supposed to be discovered, he
is usually sold for a slave, or a heavy ransom is exacted.
“The Bannavs believe in the existence of a multitude of spirits, some
mischievous to man, others beneficent. According to their creed, every
large tree, every mountain, every river, every rock, almost everything,
has its particular genius; but they seem to have no idea of a superior
being, sovereign and Creator of all things.
“If you ask them respecting the origin of mankind, all they tell
you is, that the father of the human race was saved from an immense
inundation by means of a large chest in which he shut himself up;
but of the origin or creator of this father they know nothing. Their
traditions do not reach beyond the Deluge; but they will tell you that
in the beginning one grain of rice sufficed to fill a saucepan and
furnish a repast for a whole family. This is a souvenir of the first
age of the world, that fugitive period of innocence and happiness which
poets have called the golden age.
“They have no very fixed ideas on the subject of rewards and
punishments in a future life. They believe in the immortality of the
soul, which, after leaving the body, they imagine wanders about the
tombs and adjacent mountains, often terrifying the living by nocturnal
appearances, and finally loses itself for ever in the shadowy depths of
the regions of the south.
“All their religion consists of sacrifices and vows, vain and
endless observances performed in the hope of warding off misfortune,
alleviating suffering, and retarding the hour of death; for, as with
all Pagans, the foundation of their religion is terror and egotism.”
DIALECTS OF THE SAVAGE TRIBES.
On my return from my excursion amongst the Stiêns, M. Fontaine, whom
I met at Pinhalú, was so kind as to present me with his journal, kept
during a residence of twenty years among various savage races, and
which I hope some day will see the light; and he likewise favoured me
with the following remarks on the dialects of several of these tribes:--
“The language of the Giaraïe and that of the Redais bear a strong
resemblance to each other: the two tribes are only separated from
each other by the river Bong, which flows between them in a westerly
direction, after running for some distance from south to north and
watering the lands of the Candians or Bihcandians, whose language also
resembles in some degree that of the tribes just mentioned. The dialect
of the Bonnavs or Menons does not appear to me to have any similitude
to the others, nor even to those of the tribes farther north.
“After a sojourn of several years among these tribes, I was forced,
on account of my health, to go to Singapore. I was astonished, after
a little study of Malayan, to find in that language a number of
Giaraïe words, and many more bearing a strong resemblance to words in
that dialect; and I doubt not this similarity would be found still
more remarkable by any one who thoroughly studied both languages.
The resemblance also of the language of the Thiâmes, the ancient
inhabitants of Isiampa, now in the province of Annam, to that of these
tribes, leads me to believe that they must all have sprung from the
same root.”
The information I obtained from the Stiêns accords perfectly with these
remarks of M. Fontaine:--“The Thiâmes,” they said, “understand our
language very well, but the Kouïs, who live beyond the great river,
speak exactly the same language as ourselves.” M. Arnoux, another
missionary in Cochin China, who has long resided amongst these savage
tribes, speaks in the same way respecting the language. To M. Arnoux
also I owe the exact latitude of many places on the map, and a great
deal of topographical information about the whole country; and it
affords me great pleasure here to express my gratitude and my esteem
for his character.
“The languages of the Sedans,” says he, “of the Reungaos, and of the
Italhans are almost identical, although often varying slightly even
in the same tribe: the dialect of the northern Sedans is somewhat
different from that of the southerns, and the Stiengs of Brelum speak
differently from those farther to the east.
“The Bannav and the Bannam are nearly the same; the Bannav and Sedan
much alike; generally only the terminations differ, but there are
words in each not to be found in the other. M. Fontaine found that
the Ieboune and Braon strongly resemble the Bannav. I cannot speak
personally about the Giaraïe, Nedais, Bonous, and Bih; but doubtless
others can.”
I myself remarked many Stiên words like the Cambodian, especially in
the western districts, where there exists some commerce between the two
countries. To all this must be added that the Siamese, Laotian,[3] and
Cambodian seem to be sister languages: more than a fourth part of the
words, especially those expressing intellectual things, are exactly the
same in each.
[3] Lao means ancient.
In the course of this work I have cited several passages from the Life
of the Abbé Gagelin, who died a martyr in Cochin China, and which was
published by Abbé Jacquenet: in it mention is made of savage races
on the coast of Siam and in the environs of Kompat (Cambodia). I
have sought in vain for them, and no one has ever heard them spoken
of. Probably the missionary was deceived by his servants, who were
Annamites, and they always call the Cambodians and Siamese savages
(Noye Uhen, inhabitants of the woods), while they give themselves the
appellation of citizens.
Notwithstanding all my efforts to discover the traces of the probable
migrations of the Jewish people through Siam and Cambodia, I have
met with nothing satisfactory excepting a record of the judgment of
Solomon, which, as I before stated, was found by M. Miche, Bishop of
Laos and Cambodia, to be preserved _verbatim_ in one of the Cambodian
sacred books. To all my questions on this subject I received the same
answer, “There are no Jews in the country.” Nevertheless, among the
Stiêns, I could not but be struck by the Hebrew character of many of
the faces.
LIMITS OF CAMBODIA.
In 1670 Cambodia extended as far as Isiampa; but the provinces of
Lower Cochin China, as Bien-hoa, Digne-Theun, Vigue Laon, Ann Djiann,
and Ita-Tienne--all at one time conquered and annexed--have, for more
than a century, shaken off their dependence on Cambodia; and the
language and ancient Cambodian race have entirely disappeared in those
districts. The different states have now their limits and sovereigns
entirely independent of each other. Cambodia is, however, to a certain
extent tributary to Siam, but in no degree to Annam; and I cannot
understand how, at the present day, the French newspapers, even the
‘Moniteur de la Flotte,’ still less how our admiral in those seas,
should habitually confound these two countries.
RELIGION OF THE THIÂMES.
The suppositions of the Abbé Jacquenet, which I have already quoted and
to which I was disposed to give credence, seem to fall before the more
accurate information which I have obtained concerning the religion of
the Thiâmes or Isiampois. It must be allowed that the only vestiges of
Judaism found among them are equally met with amongst Mahometans. They
have priests, temples, practise circumcision, abstain from pork, and
frequently pronounce, with the greatest veneration, the words Allah
and Mahomet. They themselves declare that their present religion was
brought to them from Malaisia--that priests still come to them from
thence and visit them from time to time. I had this information from
some Cambodians of Battambong, who, having been taken prisoners in the
wars with the Cochin Chinese, passed eight years in Isiampa. One of
them, a blind man, who appeared to me to be remarkable for good sense
and judgment--an exceptional case in this country--seemed especially to
merit confidence. These facts, and others which I collected regarding
the religion of the Thiâmes, who until 1859, the time of their flight,
inhabited Cambodia, lead me to infer that the Abbé Gagelin was in
error. I was certainly told of two sects into which the tribe was
divided; but the only distinguishing point between them was that one
ate pork and the other did not.
The Thiâmes must formerly have occupied several important districts
in Cambodia, principally on the banks of the tributary of the
Me-kong. Thus, on the shores of Touli Sap, or the great lake, not
far from Battambong, is a place called Campong Thiâme (shore of the
Thiâmes). More to the south, near Campong Tchnam, the village where
the custom-house of Cambodia is erected, is an island called Isle of
Thiâmes. According to tradition, the whole banks of the river, as far
as Penom-Peuh, were formerly inhabited by these people; and to this
cause is to be attributed the complete absence of remains in these
localities.
MOUNTAIN AND LOWLAND RACES.
The mountains of Dom-rêe, situated a little way to the north of Ongcor,
are inhabited by the Khmer-dôme, a gentle and inoffensive race,
although looked upon as savages by their brethren of the plain. These
latter are the Somrais: they speak the Cambodian language, but with a
different pronunciation. Beyond are the provinces, formerly belonging
to Cambodia, but now Siamese, of Souréne, Song Kac, Con Khan, Nan Kong,
and Ongcor-Eith or Korat.
According to popular belief, the king, if he should cross the great
lake, is sure to die in the course of the year.
Whilst the present sovereign was prince he paid a visit to Ongcor, and
seeing some of the Somrais, said, “These are my true subjects, and the
stock from which my family sprang.” It seems that, in fact, the present
dynasty did so.
The Cambodians give the following account of the introduction of
Buddhism among them. Samanokodom left Ceylon and went to Thibet, where
he was very well received; from thence he went among the savages, but,
not meeting with encouragement from them, he took refuge in Cambodia,
where he was welcomed by the people.
A circumstance worthy of remark is that the name of Rome is familiar to
nearly all the Cambodians: they pronounce it Rouma, and place it at the
western end of the world.
THE KINGS OF FIRE AND WATER.
There are among the Giaraïe two great nominal chiefs, called by the
Annamites Hoa-Sa and Thorei-Sa, the king of fire and the king of water.
The kings of Cambodia and Cochin China send to the former chief, every
four or five years, a small tribute as a token of respectful homage,
in consideration of the ancient power of which their ancestors have
despoiled him. The king of fire, who appears to be the more important
of the two, is called Eni (grandfather) by the savages, and the village
where he resides bears the same name. When this “grandfather” dies,
another is chosen, sometimes one of his sons, sometimes a stranger, the
dignity not being hereditary. His extraordinary power is attributed,
according to M. Fontaine, to Beurdao, an old sabre wrapped in rags, and
having no other sheath. This sabre, say the Giaraïe, is centuries old,
and contains a famous spirit (Giang), who must certainly have a good
digestion to consume all the pigs, fowls, and other offerings brought
to him. It is kept in a certain house, and whoever ventures to look at
it dies suddenly, the sole exception being Eni himself, who has the
privilege of seeing and handling it unharmed. Every inhabitant of the
village has to act as sentinel in turn at this house.
Eni wages war on no one, and is assailed by none; consequently his
attendants carry no arms when they go round to collect offerings.
Most of the people give something, cloth, wax, pickaxes; anything is
accepted.
I have written these few notes on Cambodia, after returning from a long
hunting expedition, by the light of a torch, seated on my tiger-skin.
On one side of me is the skin of an ape just stripped off; on the
other, a box of insects waiting to be arranged and packed; and my
employment has not been rendered easier by the sanguinary attacks of
mosquitoes and leeches. My desire is, not to impose my opinions on any
one, especially with regard to the wonderful architectural remains
which I have visited, but simply to disclose the existence of these
monuments, which are certainly the most gigantic, and also to my mind
display a more perfect taste than any left to us by the ancients; and,
moreover, to collect all the facts and traditions possible about these
countries, hoping they may be useful to explorers of greater talent
and fortune. For, I doubt not, others will follow in my steps, and,
aided by their own government and by that of Siam, advantages denied to
myself, will gather an abundant harvest where I have but cleared the
ground.
LOVE OF NATURAL HISTORY.
But, after all, my principal object is natural history, and with that
study I chiefly occupy myself. I have written, as I said before, in
leisure hours, when resting from my fatigues, with a desire to implant
in the breasts of others a love for the great works of Nature, and to
benefit those who, in the quiet of their homes, delight to follow the
poor traveller; who, often with the sole object of being useful to his
fellow-men, or of discovering some insect, plant, or unknown animal,
or verifying some point of latitude, crosses the ocean, and sacrifices
family, comfort, health, and, too often, life itself.
THE AUTHOR’S OCCUPATIONS.
But it is pleasant to the man devoted to our good and beautiful mother,
Nature, to think that his work, his fatigues, his troubles and dangers,
are useful to others, if not to himself. Nature has her lovers, and
those alone who have tasted them know the joys she gives. I candidly
confess that I have never been more happy than when amidst this grand
and beautiful tropical scenery, in the profound solitude of these dense
forests, the stillness only broken by the song of birds and the cries
of wild animals; and even if destined here to meet my death, I would
not change my lot for all the joys and pleasures of the civilised
world.