THE HARBOR OF OODONG, CAMBODIA.
The boys made good use of their time up to the last moment. Fred found a copy of the book of M. Mouhot, who has been mentioned heretofore, and the last hour of his stay in Saigon was devoted to writing out the description which that gentleman gives of Oodong, the former capital of Cambodia. The visit of M. Mouhot was made in 1860, and is thus described:
"On approaching the capital the prospect becomes more diversified; we passed fields of rice, cottages encircled by fruit-gardens, and country-houses belonging to the Cambodian aristocracy, who come here in the evening for the sake of breathing a purer air than they can find in the city. As we drew closer to the gates, I found the place to be protected by a palisade three metres high—about ten feet. The houses are built of bamboo or planks, and the market-place occupied by the Chinese is as dirty as all the others of which I have made mention. The largest street, or, rather, the only one, is about a mile in length; and in the environs reside the agriculturists, as well as the mandarins and other government officers. The entire population numbers about twelve thousand.
A GIRL OF OODONG.
"The many Cambodians living in the immediate vicinity, and still more the number of chiefs who resort to Oodong for business or pleasure, or are passing through it on their way from one province to another, contribute to give animation to the capital. Every moment I met mandarins, either borne in litters or on foot, followed by a crowd of slaves carrying various articles; some yellow or scarlet parasols, more or less according to the rank of the person; others, boxes with betel. I also encountered horsemen mounted on pretty, spirited animals, richly caparisoned and covered with bells, ambling along, while a troop of attendants, covered with dust and sweltering with heat, ran after them. Light carts, drawn by a couple of small oxen, trotting along rapidly and noiselessly, were here and there to be seen. Occasionally a large elephant passed majestically by. On this side were numerous processions to the pagoda, marching to the sound of music; there, again, was a band of ecclesiastics in single file, seeking alms, draped in their yellow cloaks, and with the holy vessels on their backs."
