“This being eleven days shorter than their solar year, in order to make the beginning of Ta-goo coincide with our 18th of April, the first day of their solar year, the Burmas every third year add an intercalary moon. This seems to have been the extent of chronological science in Hindustan, during the prevalence of the doctrine of Bouddha, as the Rahans will go no further. But it was soon discovered by the Brahmens, that this contrivance would not make the commencements of the lunar and solar years coincide. They, therefore, wish from time to time to introduce other intercalary moons, in order to make the festivals occur at the proper season. The present king, who is said to be a studious and intelligent prince, was convinced of the propriety of the Brahmens’ advice, and persuaded the Rahans of the capital to add an intercalary moon during the year we were there. He had not, however, the same success in the more distant provinces; for, although very strong measures were taken at Rangoun, such as ordering the people for some days not to supply the Rahans with provisions, yet, in the end, the obstinacy of the clergy prevailed, and they celebrated a great festival a month earlier at Rangoun than was done at Amarapura. To this obstinacy the Rahans were, probably, in a great measure, instigated by a jealousy, which they, not without reason, entertain against such dangerous intruders as the Brahmens; and they were encouraged to persist by the ignorance of those about the king. Of this ignorance his majesty was very sensible, and was extremely desirous of procuring from Bengal some learned Brahmens, and proper books. None of those I saw in the empire could read Sanscrit, and all their books were in the common dialect of Bengal.
“The 1st of October, 1795, was at Amarapura, Kiasabada, the 19th of Sadeengiut, in the year of the Burma æra 1157, so that the reckoning, at that place at least, agreed very well with the solar year; but I observed, that the Burmas in general, if not always, antedated by one day the four phases of the moon, which are their common holidays. I did not, however, learn, whether this proceeded from their being unable to ascertain the true time of the change of the moon, or if it was only an occasional circumstance, arising from some further contrivance used to bring the solar and lunar years to coincide. In the common reckoning of time the Burmas divide the moon into two parts, the light and the dark moon; the first contained the days, during which the moon is on the increase; and the second, those in which she is in the wane. Thus, for instance, the 14th of Sadeengiut is called the 14th of the light moon Sadeengiut; but the 16th is called the 1st of the dark moon Sadeengiut.
“Whence the Burmans date their æra I could not from them learn. Joannes Moses, Akunwun or collector of the land-tax for the province of Pegu, the most intelligent man with whom we conversed, did not seem to know. He said that whenever the king thought the years of the æra too many, he changed it. The fact, however, I believe is, that this æra, commencing in our year 638, is that used by the astronomers of Siam, and from them, as a more polished nation, it has passed to the Burmas, whose pride hindered them from acknowledging the truth.”[151]
The common lunar year consists, however, only of twelve months; consequently they are obliged to add an intercalary month every three years, as the year is only three hundred and fifty-four days in length. Even this, however, does not supply all deficiencies, and the further rectifications are made by public proclamation. Their worship days are four every month, viz., at the new and the full moon, and half-way between these; so that sometimes the interval is seven days, and sometimes eight. Day and night are divided into four equal parts. At Rangoon, however, the European mode of reckoning the hours is much in use, and timepieces are not wholly unknown.[152]
CHAPTER V.
Currency—Weights—Commerce—Ports—Teak-wood—Houses—Tanks—Dress—Food—Marriages—Childbirth—Funerals—Arts—Slavery—The drama—Chess—Games—Music—Fireworks.
The Burmese have no coined money. At every payment the money is assayed and weighed, to ascertain its value. When a bargain is to be concluded, very often the seller asks to see the money the purchaser has to offer him. The circulating medium is lead, for small payments. Silver, however, is the standard, although gold is also in use; it is considered seventeen times as valuable as silver. The frequent assaying process that the money undergoes has given rise to a business; the persons following it are named Poë-za, and for a commission of two and a half per cent. they will assay the money. One per cent. is lost in the operation, so that if “that operation be repeated forty times, it follows that the original amount is wholly absorbed,—a fact which shows the enormous waste of the precious metals which attends this rude substitute for a currency.”[153]
Of course, the value of money is continually fluctuating, and Crawfurd informs us, that the alloy in silver varies from two to twenty-five per cent.! “The finest gold,” he says, “in circulation is, according to this scale, of nine and three-quarters touch, or twenty-three and a quarter carats fine. Between this and that which is only twelve carats, or contains one-half alloy, is to be found in use almost every intermediate degree of fineness.”