HOUSE FOR DR CUSHING BUILT IN TWO DAYS—FUMIGATION AND DISINFECTION—BRIBERY AND EXTORTION AT FRONTIER GUARD-HOUSE—TRAVELLERS DELAYED—MR WEBSTER’S JOURNEY—TRADE BETWEEN ZIMMÉ, BANGKOK, AND MAULMAIN; ENHANCEMENT OF PRICES—COMPARISON BETWEEN RUSSIA AND SIAM—OPPRESSION AND TYRANNY CAUSES CUNNING AND DECEIT—SIAMESE THE GREATEST LIARS IN THE EAST—AN AMUSING INTERVIEW WITH A PRINCE—RELIGIOUS BUILDINGS IN ZIMMÉ—DESCRIPTION OF MONASTERIES—BARGAINING WITH AN ABBOT—PALM-LEAF BOOKS—EVIL PRACTICES OF MONKS—SENTENCING THE DESCENDANTS OF CRIMINALS TO SLAVERY—BEGGING FOR MEALS—GIVING, A PRIVILEGE—RULES FOR THE ACOLYTES—SHAVING THE HEAD AND EYEBROWS—TEACHING IN A MONASTERY—LEARNING MANNERS.
A few days before my return to Zimmé the Rev. Mr Martin arrived with his wife from Bangkok, and occupied the half of Dr M‘Gilvary’s house which had formerly been placed at my disposal. It was therefore arranged that Dr Cushing should be placed in a house in Dr Peoples’ grounds, where he could receive proper nursing and medical attendance. This building had been erected as soon as it was known that Dr Cushing was suffering from smallpox. With plenty of labour and materials at hand, such a house, built of bamboos, with mat walls and flooring and thatched roof, can be easily completed in two days.
A wealthy Chinaman who had for some years worked the Government spirit and opium farms, and owned a large vacant teak-built, shingle-roofed house near the Presbyterian Mission, had courteously placed it rent free at the disposal of Mr Webster on his reaching Zimmé with his wife and little girl from where we left them at the Shan frontier-post. The house being very roomy, and the Websters without fear of contagion, half of this building was handed over for my use.
On seeing my elephant halt outside his garden, Dr M‘Gilvary came out to bid me welcome and let me know what arrangements had been made. He advised me to have a grand fumigation of myself, servants, and things, and to be revaccinated as soon as possible. He had already been purified, and was going at once to Dr Peoples to be vaccinated.
On reaching the monopolist’s house, I was welcomed by Mr and Mrs Webster, and by little Sunshine their daughter, but would not shake hands with them until I had been fumigated and freshly rigged out. I at once sent out for sulphur, and with my boys was soon in a closed room, surrounded with its fumes. All of our things were disinfected by being washed with a strong solution of carbolic acid. After my short quarantine I had tea and a long talk with the Websters, who had been detained for a week after we left the guard-house, owing to their conscientious objections to bribing the official in command of the guard.
This Jack-in-office, therefore, instead of aiding them as was his duty, had purposely prevented the neighbouring Karen elephant-owners from hiring their elephants to Mr Webster, all the time telling him that he could not force the men to let him have the animals. The Christian Karens accompanying Mr Webster warned him that he would have to get the elephants through the grasping official, as part of the hire was looked upon by him as his perquisite, and the Karens dare not hire them without his leave. Such behaviour on the part of the frontier officials is a serious hindrance to trade and communication, and should be strongly represented to the Siamese and Shan Governments. Even when tired out by Mr Webster’s persistency, and threatened with being reported to the Zimmé chief and the King of Siam, the official only allowed the Karens to let him have elephants to carry his things for two short marches, at the end of which he had to halt for four days to procure a fresh relay. In the short journey from the guard-house to Muang Haut, he was thus obliged to change his elephants no less than five times. From a copy of Mr Webster’s journal, I found this route struck eastwards from the guard-house, and was the same as that followed by M‘Leod in December 1836.
After tea Mr Webster accompanied me to the Mission dispensary to call on Dr Peoples and be vaccinated. Although twice vaccinated during my stay at Zimmé, both operations proved ineffective. This could not have been due to the lymph, as it took well on Dr M‘Gilvary, notwithstanding that he had been successfully vaccinated the previous year. I was glad to hear that Dr Cushing’s attack was a slight one, and that the crisis was over. On visiting him, he seemed quite cheered up by being in cosy quarters and under medical supervision, and assured me everything had been done for his comfort, and that he hoped to be about in a few days, and able to leave for Bangkok.
Early the next morning I called on Mr Wilson, who had taken great trouble in finding out the prices of various articles at Maulmain, Bangkok, and Zimmé, and the cost of conveyance. From the written statement made by him it appeared, by the difference in prices, that articles sent from Zimmé to Maulmain were enhanced on arrival according to the following percentages: Elephants, 25 per cent; bullocks, 100 per cent; ponies, 70 per cent; embroidered silks (one grade), 122⅔ per cent; embroidered silks (another grade), 100 per cent; embroidered cotton cloth, 150 per cent. Imports to Zimmé from Maulmain were enhanced on arrival as follows: Gold-leaf, 75 per cent; gold cloth, 15 per cent; broad cloth, 100 per cent; flannel, 32½ to 50 per cent; copper chatties (or pots), 100 to 133⅓ per cent. Exports from Zimmé to Bangkok were enhanced on arrival as follows: Ivory tusks, 30 to 45 per cent, according to size; stick-lac, 42⁷⁄₂₃ per cent; gum-benjamin, 13⅓ per cent; opium, 41³⁄₁₇ per cent; cutch, 22⅔ per cent; hides, 46⅔ per cent; horns, 46⅔ per cent; bee’s-wax, 15½ per cent; honey, 100 per cent; nitre, 33⅓ per cent.
Imports from Bangkok to Zimmé include figured muslins, red muslins, bleached and unbleached muslins, guns, powder, shot, caps, lead, bar-iron, nails, sulphur, kerosene oil, candles, Chinese crockery, matches, cotton yarn, green flannel, which were enhanced at Zimmé by between 12½ and 67 per cent above their price in Bangkok—the percentage varying according to their value, bulk, and weight. Salt, which is a bulky, small-priced article, is enhanced 510 per cent.
After thanking Mr Wilson, I called on the missionary ladies who shared the house with him, and exchanged my light literature for some of theirs that they had read. Amongst the books I thus acquired was ‘Russia,’ by Sir Mackenzie Wallace, which I had not had the pleasure of previously reading. I found it a most interesting work, and was much struck with the strong resemblance that the superstitions and customs of the Finnish tribes bear to those of the Shan and other people in Indo-China.