The New York herald., 1878-10-05
OBITUARY..
xxSo-pos-MENG, KING or BunMAH.

NESG-DoN-MENG, KING OF BURMAH.
The King Of Burmah, Meng-don-Meng. whose death
vas premalurely announced three weeks since, died
after a long illness the I'd INST. already an
nounced by a cable despatch in these columns The
late King called to the throne in 1883, the de-
position OF his lfbroiher Pagan Meug, who had in
surred great unpopuary oy his failure IN tie second
Burmese to drive the British out OF AraKan and
Ten asscrim. ON his accession Lord Dalhousie, the
then Governor General Of India, made propositions
for formal treaty peace, granting considerable con-
csssions Of territory TO the English, but the new
King, though offering no resistance TO the occupation
ef the province OF Pegu which was demanded by HIS
Lordship, refused to sign document by which his
name should be dlsgraced In the ewes Of
pcsterity. During the lato Kings reign Bur-
nah has been good deal before tho British
public in connection with projected overland trade
route China. Previous to 1885 there had been
considerable amount Of traffic between Burmah and
the provinces OF the Celestial Empire, but in
that year the Panthays established Mohammedan
kingdom In Y Yunnan which followed by an almost
entire cessation OF the old trade In the carly part Of
1865 expedition started under Major Sladen TO
make TO the cause OF ths ana to see
II the ravva oil the trade might not be made practi-
cable The King at first proiessed great enthusiasm
Tor the scheme but when the party about TO start
he seemed become possessed with the fear that
commercial in ter course but nother name for
nexation. The result was that, though he DID not
openly oppose the mission, he yielded with avery bad
grace, ana IL suspected of having thrown many
obstacles in the way OF The explorers. lhe amount
OF success gained by the expedition open to DEBATE
but fell tar below the cxpecta
lions OF its projectors. jealousy al Mandalay also
suspected TO have had a good deal to do with the
s,lure OF he under The leadership
OF Colonel Browne, which has been described oy Dr.
Anderson, in MS .,Mandaay ana Momein - and there
were circumsances attending the murder oil Mr.. Mar
gary, Manwyne, which seemed 10 point at the sym
paIhy II not completely, OF the Burmese authorizes
III
difficulty has alse, appears been found recently In
Vetting Justice done on the murderers Mr. Cooper
n Bhamo, though there is good TO suppose
Ihat tie crime any way connected with Bur-
mese hatred Of the foreigner
During his reign OF a quarter OF q century Meng-
Son Mcng showed himself decidedly superior 10 any
OF his predecessors on the throne Previous TO his
accession the history Of Burmah long record
OF revolution and massacre; but his reign has been
mpararyey Tree from the intrigues ana atrocities
that characteristic OF Eastern despotisms rhis
10 the more remarkable when IL is rememb bered that
his early wears TO the time OF his accession were
passed wilhin the walls OF a Buddhist monastery.
He haa thus to learn the art OF ruling almost en-
tirely IRON his own experience. Nevertheless he
had acquired considerable knowledge OF the AFFAIRS
oi and OF the history and statistics OF other
countries besides his own he was an eager 1rades-
man, claimed monopoly OF the timber OF Upper
Burmah and had vast mercantile depots at his capi
tai and al otner Burmese Cities HIS desire after q
higher form OF civzaton was shown by the fact OF
bis employing European officers TO driil hts army.
The experiment, however, DID not prove success;
she Burmese troops, having been SO long accustomed
10 purely predatory system oil lighting are not to be
easily restrained by our more refined ideas OF what
honorable should be. HIS was OF course,
OF absolute despotsm: he was under no restraint
except iu lar he had respect Tor the Buddhist
code OF morality. Still, the fact that he AIMED at i'm
provement proves that the late King was nos OF such
savage temper as the majority Of his predecessors
have been.
PROFESSOR NIELs LUDWIG wEsTEhGAARD,
DANISH oRIENrALIsT.
Nicis Ludwig Westergaard, professor of o rental
languages the University of Copenhagen, and one
the master builders OF SansKrit scholarship died
In that city, September 9, after protracted and
painful illness. The younger generation OF Oriental
lists heard but little Of him, for his great work was
finished twenty years ago. and time failing
health kept him IRON continuing the labors oil his
youth But the 0rientaists OF a generation
Westergaard was known as Zone who had worked on
the frontiers of human knowledge, where no prece-
cossor could have come his assistance;" and, as
Max Muller remarks in the Acddemy he had earned
the title OF which ancient emperors used to DO so
proud-M shrer dcs Reicns-"Increaser OF tho Em-
pire." He was born at Copenhagen October -, lsl5
being the son OF Joiner and builder. From lis
school days ielt such deep interest In the Ara
bian and Persian languages that he INDUCED in
hts ardent wish university education and grad
pated at the carly age OF eighteen years. He
next up the Sanskrt language. and the libra.
ries Copenhagen fortunately rich In the Asia
nc manuscripts brought from Inaia by Rosmus Chris
Aan Rork, he read within six or eight years the
Ing from for the first time passages iilustra.
ton OF the meaning OF all Sanskrit verbs, had coin
pletey mastered the sy stem native GRAMMAR
pushed his researches into the known jun
Eies OF Vedic man nuscripls lie was one OF the nrst
VINO studied Sayanas tary u Sanskrit roots,
and first after Rosen TO study That grammaran's
commentary he ''Rig "of whch poem only
Arst book was puoiisnsu Dy Rosen IN 1888, While Wes-
teSgaard copied out from anuscripts most I'M
portant later books and also considerable por
Diou The ..Yajur-t eda." In 1888 he Cn
vsrsty OF Bonn, where he remained ior three years
engaged upon me preparation OF MS 'Radices lnguae
Eanscritae'i (IS4l or .'Verbal Dictionary BOOK
which, says Max Muller. excites amazement not only at
the OF the prepartons necessary or H. but at
the elaccuracy with which tne work done
He then only twenty-six years OF age, but
had already, in 1889 visited the oriental libraries
museums OF Paris, Oxford aud London,
after seeing book through the press at Eonn,
set out IN the spring OF ls4I upon pniioogca visIt
10 Inda at the expense OF The Danish government and
ihe University OF Copenhagen. He went by way Of
the Cape bombay and alter three years reached
home by vi Persia, the Caucasus. Moscow anu ST.
Petersburg richly laden with manuscripts OF the
writings o the Parsees ana new and accurate
copies Of the Persian cunsiorm ptons The latter
he generously at Bonn, Pro-
lessor Oh risian Lasen VINO had already discovered
she key their aecphermcnt, coutentiIg himself, IN
this de tmeBt with pubiIsning the second Achae-
msnian or Medan cuneiiorms, which he was the hrst
70 trace 10 a uon-Aryan '.Turaoisn" source Ap-
pointed In lS45 Professor OF InieO Phiiology
and Literature n the University oi Copenhagen, be
devoted himself Tor ssvere1 years coiating Par
see manuscripts, 1924 published his ed Of
the 'Zena- the Regiou Books OF the Zoroas
trans which was TO be followed by "a Translation n
grammar a dictionary. These latter works, now
ever, never appeared, as The labors oil Haug and
others having proDaby forestaled them. Professor
Westergaard also published In Latin complete cata-
eguc OF the lndiaa IN the hurares OF Copen
nagep, treatise on the connection between SansKrt
lcelandtc some elucidstions oil tue Gtrnar rocK
inscriptions OF the Budcnist King Asoka aud various
contributions to Persian mythology aud history. IL
n known that his preparations Tor ZeDd dictionary
occupied most OF his time for several years and Pro-
lessor George Stephens gave IN the Gentcmdn's Mug
Tor 1856 Interesting details a. to this work.
which II Is hoped may nos appear. Besides hs lin
guisLc labors Professor Wesiergaard for some
years in political lie. He was Deputy tho
Riasdag of 164S which voted tue LIBERAL charter slil
serving as the Danish constitution; acted secre-
tary Inat Assembly, and was 50 passonaely Dapisn
In his sentiments concerning the vexed question Of
the Duchies OF schieswig and Hosten 10 DO alien
nio Ia hts literary sympsthIes with his
friends and colleagues at Bonn Professor Wester-
snard a corresponding MEMBER OF the French