Ox drawing timber in forest.
The Siamese word “Chedi,” for a pagoda, is derived from the Pali word “Chaitya,” and means the offering-place, or place of prayer; and the Shan word “Htat,” or “Tat,” and the Siamese “Săt-oop,” for a pagoda placed over portions of Gaudama’s body, such as his flesh, teeth, and hair, is derived from the Sanscrit “Dhatu garba,” a relic shrine. In Siam there are three classes of pagoda: the Pra Săt-oop, which is placed over remains of Gaudama; the Pra Prang, placed over his utensils; and the Pra Chedi, placed over his personal apparel and that of his disciples. The pagodas are made of either brick or stone masonry, plastered over with a cement formed of lime, sand, and molasses, the latter rendering the plaster very hard and durable. Sometimes it is built over a core of earth, which is apt to cause the brickwork to crack as the earth settles. The bases of these pagodas are either square, circular, hexagonal, or octagonal. The structure rises in a taper form by regular square or rounded gradations to a small spire, from 20 feet in height to 150, and the apex is surmounted by a handsome htee, or gilded series of tapering umbrellas.
Leaving Ban Pang Kai, we struck eastwards, and after crossing the rice-fields of the village, ascended 90 feet to the crest of the plateau which divides the valley of the Meh Low from that of the Meh Wung. The crest lies only three-quarters of a mile from the village, and 2148 feet above the sea. A branch line could be run without difficulty from Lakon, up the valley of the Meh Wung, and over this plateau into the upper valley of the Meh Low, which will be able to support a large population when the fine plains and plateau are again brought under cultivation, and irrigated from the neighbouring streams.
At 51 miles I sketched the head of the basin of the Meh Wung. Loi Mok, and its spur, Loi Pa Kung, lay about 15 miles due north, and the pass over the Kyoo Hoo Low, which leads into the valley of the Meh Ing, about the same distance to the north-east.
View of the head of the basin of the Meh Wung.
After crossing a valley in the plateau drained by the Meh Kee-ow,—a stream with slate and shale in its bed,—we passed some large blocks of limestone piled up like Druidical remains, close to the head of the valley. Here a thunderstorm commenced, and the rain began to pour down in torrents, soon making my followers look like drowned rats. From 53 miles the path passed for a mile amongst a series of limestone peaks, which stand up like skittles from the plateau, and are called Loi Pa Chau. These ended at the edge of the plateau, which was wooded chiefly by pine and teak-trees, some of the latter being 16 feet in girth. The trees must be of great age, as a circumference of 6 feet denotes a life of one hundred years. At the point where the path commences to descend from the plateau, a road leading to Penyow, viâ Loi Mun Moo, leaves to the right. Descending the slope for a mile and a half through a forest of great teak-trees, many of which had been lately girdled, we reached the fields of Ban Huay Hee-o. A mile and a half farther across the plain brought us to Ban Mai, the headquarters of the governor of Muang Wung, which is a province of Lakon.
View of the Kyoo Hoo Low and hills east of Meh Wung.
