It is not at such times of loneliness, nay, of
fellowship with elemental life, that the heart feels its-
isolation. The true home of loneliness is the great
city, as one of profound intuition long since pointed
out. Magna civitas, magna sohtudo.
C H A P T E R X X X
MOULMEIN
/r O U LM E 1N is the most beautiful town in Burma.
lVCL It is one of the oldest British settlements in the
country, for it passed into our hands three-quarters of
a century ago ; and for twenty-five years it bade fair
to be the capital. But the conquest of Pegu made
Rangoon a British possession ; the fitness of its site for
a great city far surpassed that of Moulmein, and in a
little while, Moulmein, unable to keep pace with its
powerful rival, fell back. It stands at the mouth of the
Salwin river, and commands the timber trade of the
interior; but Rangoon is supported by the Irrawaddy,
which bears nearly the whole of the trade of Burma.
Between the two cities there never can be any serious
competition. Yet, although the hopes of Modknein
were long since broken, and although its atmosphere
is one of decay, Moulmein has probably seen its worst
days. As time advances it must share in the general
movement that is taking place throughout the country.
It has practically no past. It is a product of British
rule, and it is less a centre of Burmese life than any
other town of its size in the country. And yet, no one