from the court-house, which stands on the fringe of
the impenetrable jungle, is one of superb beauty; for
the Chindwin may be seen from there, windings away La.
great loops, yet still as if life had never moved upon
it; a water of infinite calm, painted with every glory of
mountain shadow, and cloud aflame. But Paungbyin
is unwholesome, lonely, and fever-stricken ; a place
of bitter memory to Englishmen who have spent
a year or two of their lives there. It has been
supplanted now by Homalin, at the junction of the two
principal rivers of the district, and the task of ruling
the wild country that spreads away to an indefinite
border beyond it has been confided to a Burmese
officer. It is not the least interesting feature of
Paungbyin to-day, that its headman is a woman—a
pleasant-looking girl, who has succeeded her father in
that office.
After leaving the hilly crests of Paungbyin, the
river runs a long straight course, like some noble
canal, between grassy banks and forest, till at Minya
there appears a great island in mid-stream, and the
approach to Mingin .is repeated. Above the island,
the river, very wide to the eye, curves slowly through
a dark forest, whose summits, helped by the natural
elevation of the banks, rise to very stately heights.
On a little rock at Letpantha, the golden spires of a
cluster of small pagodas gleam in the forefront of the
forest masses.
Thaungdut, capital of a principality, lies on the
mid-curve of the river, where it makes a great sweep,
v o l . ii. 4 3 3 c