A VIEW OF COCHIN CHINA AND SIAM
The ship sailed at six o'clock in the morning, but nearly all the
passengers 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!" finishing 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 ships 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 ships 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 canals, 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. Massive 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 Thái_, 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 relationship 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 glass 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 principal 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 quantities, 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 shining.
"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 superstitious, 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 principal 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-shells, 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 noble 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 principal 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 ship to see the shores, which were still in sight.