IrMhé-Bltm^ are iïö'hereditapy dignities©ïi employ«
ments; all- honours^ awd offiCeS,-®» the demise oft the possess©*, *evert.f®
the erówn. ■
af hfcfafc is the badge ©f the orde* ^ t e o M a ^ ö f whixis
H r e 'a r è < ^ É * e p t - degrees?, distinguished by the number of strings;, o*
Small chains, that com'postTthte ornament; these, strings are fastened, by
losses where they unite: three of open chain work is thilowsest rank ?
®rèë twisted wife is the next; thenofsbcyofnmie, an d o f twelve;
no su b jec ts'ev e r honoured with a higher degree than twelve; the King
alone wears twenty-four. ‘
It has a lre ady‘been öétited,- that almost every article of rise, as Well as
ornament, particularly in their dress, indicates the rank of the owner; - the
Shapë of thdheefle-bdx, which is carried by ain-attendant after a Birman of
distinction wherever he goes, his ear-ridgs, cap of eét^mony, hórsê’fof-
ïHturés éven the metal of which his spiuing-potand drinkihg-Mp ire made
{ which, if of gold, denote him to be a man of high eWsM^fahon)-, all'a re
indicative of the gradations of society;1 and woe be rBriOhnn-that assume*
the insiglia o f a ifegtee -which;is ilo{ his legitimate right.
The court dress ©f the J& in an nobility is verylbecoming ; it consists of
a longiroW^tlfer of S ó ^ é r^ ^ a tin - or velvety retehhig WT$0ta#Me», with
an - opeh feolfor1 dud loose- sleeves ; óver this there: is a 'sdarf, or Sowing
mantle, ifcat hangs1 from the shoulders, and on their heads they Wear
high Caps rwadft of velvet, either plain, or of silk embroidered with flowers
of gold, according to the rank of the wearer. Ear-rings are a part of male
dress -; persons of condition use tubes of gold about three inches long, and
as thick as a large qttill, which expands at oöe end like the month of a
speaking-trumpet; others wear a heavy mass of gold beaten into a plate,