Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1885-11-28
What q British Engineer Saw in
Burmah.

From the St James Gazette.
It was my heavy task to do with the crop
destroying Irrawaddy what Cauute admitted
his inability to do with the sea; in other words
1 was told Off to construct an embankment
against a river that destroyed on an average
one crop in every three.
had 16, 900 Burmese working for me- men,
women and children. The embankment was
seventy miles, the swollen water would have
run over 1t had 1t been less than twenty feet
high; and would have whirled it into the plain
Ii its base had not been q hundred feet broad,
Then we could only work by snatches even in
the dry months. and not at all during the long
turned to their homes for the wet months, but
stayed on 10 see that our foundation was not
washed away.
My best laborers were the women. The mass
of them were not from British Burmah, but
slaves of the king of kings, the Burmese Of the
these that the king of Burmah will draw his
army. Had they their own way, I am quite
certain that there would be no war. They have
not tho practical experiences OF the English
possessed by the natives of British Burmah; but
they know them by repute and by their works.
the oueson navy with WAS S% Of
ma Py TO their talk the
the mandates of the king was inconceivable to
them.
i have said that my wofkpeople returned to
their homes during the wet season. There was
king takes a fatherly interest in Them and sees
voritef method is u keep hostages, and nv la
borers had to leave their families In his hands
before they came TO me- Had they failed to
render an account OF themselves by the stipu-
lated tinie the hostages would have been given
over to the state, and, If the king desired it,
Burmah discharges the duty Of public execu-
toner. Out OF every rupee / paid my laborers
part had to be laid aside for the king.
L Tue Burmese smoke to man. to u woman
might almost say to u child. l was physician
ir-chtef to those under me, and soon learned
smoking he or sne was really iii. The Burmese
ladies have q very peculiar cigar case. But
there are two objections to its ever becoming
that each cigar case only holds one cigar. And
then the cigar case is the lady's ear. Instead of
wearing ordinary earrings.th Burmese women
have u large hole In their ears and wear O che
root in 1t ILL wanted. The really greut advan.
tage Of this cigar case Is that IL Is never left be-
hind. The men would think Il beneath Their
dignity to carry cheroots in this manner. nut
they do not mind helping themselves from the
wiie's case. When the King OF kings wants to
them, he strings thems 90 10 speak, by the ear
/ A long cane Is passed through the holes made
for cheroots. a dozen women OF even more going
OF lata years there have been attempts ON n
small scale 70 grow tobacco In Burmah: but
Of tobacco leaf. The climate is not cold enonrh
for growing pOtatOes and other vegetables and
the trade e ivory &c. 4 90 slight INA. the ma.
/ their rice. The German speculat0fs in Ran.
goQn, who are always on the spot TO relieve the
their worst friends The course OF affairs n this
A food destroys the rice crop, and the native
have no money to raise another. Then the
/ SO much fof the next crop In advance. The rn-
PEGS they get are nothing like an equivalent for
the crop, but the native II glad to take thein
So fhr as could learn no fespectabIe Enelish
merchant lent rupees to the Burmese on those
principles.