152.—TOMB OF A BONZE, AT LAOS.
The town of Bankok, the capital, was formerly called Siam, whence the name of the country.
153.—CAMBODIANS.
An absolute sovereign, looked upon as the incarnation of Buddha, rules over the kingdom of Siam, which is divided into four provinces; Siam, Siamese Laos, Siamese Cambodia, and Siamese Malacca. At one time a tributary of the Burmese Empire, the kingdom of Siam recovered its independence in 1759, and in 1768 even increased its territory by conquest.