Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1910-01-27
CRUISE AROUND
THE WORLD.
NEARING HOME CRUISE
Interes ting Letters from Hon. George
j. LaBdr and Wife.
December 4th, 1909.

selves entering and passing up the Ira
wadi river, on our way up to Rangoon,
Burma. We get our breakfast as soon
as possible and repair to the deck
with our glasses to view the scenes on
shore, as we pass up the river, and
what beautiful sight greets the eye,
wide level fields, as far as the eye can
see, covered with green and pretty fair
looking houses, large herds of cattle,
with many sheep and goats, all looking
nice and clean, as if someone lived
there, that must be prosperous and
contented. Many Of our company said
it looked SO home-like. We pass up
through the same kind Of scenery, now
and then a shrine or pegoda to break
the monotony. Finally we drop an
chor at Rangoon and find a feet of
tenders waiting to transfer rs to shore,
where we find a LOT of carriages, suffi-
cient to accommodate the whole band,
into which we soon scramble and are
soon on our way around the city. AS
ubudl WS uI5I 'Ioip tiC JetL AS anu lliOy
certainly are beautiful. We next visit
the zoo, and after stirring up the ami
mails in proper shape, we repair to the
Strand Hotel for lunch and | don't
think the proprietor has any reason to
complain, that we did not do justice to
to his oriental cooking. Well, after
lunch, we again entered carriages and
drove to the shore. Dagon Pagoda,
built over 1900 years ago, and about
the finest thing in the line of temples
we had yet seen. 1t is claimed to be
the largest Pagoda in the world, as
we'll as the Oldest. We got out of our
carriages at the entrance end started
up the steps, up, up, and up some
more; lined on both sides with shops
and booths and individuals, single and
in groups, all eager to sec and more to
sell to the American visitors. They
are the most polite, pleasant and jolly
people that we have met yet, and it
took some time TO look at the pretty
women and their wares. The women
and girls, as well as the men, looked so
pleasant and we'll fed, that we began
to inquire the reason why. We found
out that they were on an equal, one
with the other, no caste in India, to
keep them apart. The man and his
wife are equal, one had no rights that
the other did not have. ALI worked,
kept shop or did what they pleased.
At last we arrived at the top step and
what sight presented itself to our
view. The center piece was the large
Pagoda rising to the height of some
800 feet, from large base to point
on top, all covered with gold from top
to bottom and all around it erected
private and public shrines and pepodas
of every shape and kind and in them
all sorts of gods to suit the fancy of
the builder, all covered and inlaid with
small pieces of glass in every possible
shade, running up to points and peaks
too numerous to count. Candles were
burning everywhere and never ceases,
day or night, for the worshipers as
they came kept lighting new ones to set
in front of their particular gods, and
so it has been going on all these ages
and don't think the place has ever
been cleaned of the dropping tallow,
or perhaps anything else, 80 you can
ed our nostrils, when we first went in.
No one seemed to care where we went
so we wandered around at our own
sweet will until we got tired and die
not see the half. We finally got into
a place near or under the main dome
that seemed to have more worshipert
and more candles than anywhere
else. We kept going on until we seem
ed to come to an end;in front of US wa'
an iron grating we went up and looked
in and there we beheld buda ofpurt
gold. The figures, about twice al
large as good sized man. No one
may enter there and the lights never
go out. We got tired of looking a
80 much splendor and color and we re
turned to our carriages and ride
through a section Of beautiful homes
large yards and full of trees and flow
ers. We reached the hotel and gather
ed up our traps to go to the ship fol
the night.
This is Sunday morning; up agair
and off for town and go and see th'
big elephants at work handling lum
Der. We only found one at work anC
was told by the owners that the other
would not work on Sunday and coulC
not be coaxed to come out, as they ut
terly refused to work on that day