Progrès
si ye G eo
grap hy.
liftied id Cplohel Syrnè’s work, and from the additional labotïrs<of Mr.
Arrowfmith which give a différent afpedt to j thë • ri vérs-in this*, qoarter,
from what , they bore in maps iü'1790, when Goffeliihrptfblifhed his
Analyfis of Greek Geography. As the river Berhampoota’ was totally
unknown to Ptolemy;* his ignorance of the- northern part of Bengal
may eafxly bè conceived by the omiffion of that important and ftribing
fiâture. 'The rivers he fays down between the mouthfe of the Ganges;
add the Delta of the Golden Gherfonefe, amount to- five*; of which
three appear-in our maps, but we are ignorant of-the fputh'ern part of
Aracan, which probably contains the two others. The - three-».chief
mouths of the Irrawaddy, in Mr. ■ Dalrymple’s-map, faithfully corre-.
fpond, even in the form and manner of' divifioa,1 with thofe in the
Golden. Cherfonefe of Ptolemy; and the bay to* the fouth of Dalla
feems; the Perimulicus Sinus of the-Greek geographer, the finall river
to the eaft of whBfo is that of Sudan, or Pegu. It wilîàÿÉfeSw that the
large river Daona is that of Sitang : and the other’ fix fivers,ngr^at; and-
fmall, mighrtre equally indicated‘down to the.; Coteiris ofTtbl'emy, that
of Tahaferim in modern maps, which flowed to-the'fouth ofrthe'Sinaak
It is-alfo evident that the ancient geographer knew' nothing, of the-ftraits;
of Malacca, nor of thé northern' part of -the great3'ifland’ofjgSumatra;-
.which' muft botht have been well known, 'if the Màlaian- pisninfulâ^ had -
hUen-thé Golden Gherfonefeof thë ancients«
r The ifledf Iabadiunr M; GOffefiin föppbfës tO-Be fhht coifed DômmeF-
m modern maps ; but by DbAnville*,* irtthe'Pórtugaefeform-, IM>h, do-Mel.
A curions queftton remaiiis; whether the people ! to'Àhf3' fouth erf.
Martaban, along' the flrbre towards Merghi; foe noted iHs';Ifindöó tra--
dition for fuch advantages-- as diftinguifhed the SKnae Jof -aiatiqnity';:
while the city of Tanaferim (a word which means -the ‘tribe of T-ana)
' corréfponded with Thiirie. : The violence of oriental.revolutions •- will
ffpeedily ruin'even the remains -of fonder opulence, as is exemplified in
the prefeat ftate of Pegu ; but as even when-D’Anville publilhed his
map of Alia this- country was called: Lower-.‘Siam-,- it muft hàivé-;partaken
in. the advantages of that ancient and civilized kingdom, the inhabitants
o f which are. j.uftl y cpnclixdedi to have been the.Sinæ of ...an--
tiquity.
After
- After this" long/&fcu-Jfon it may feem unheceflarytO' d-welUpn any
faint and dubious-hints tafoefound inlMarco- P5lo„ and otfier writers of
i^the middle kg’esifo.Thedfirft ptecife ideas,-concerning this-part1 of.the
globe - were derived -from' the -difcQjfeepes - of -foe -Portuguefe, fout the
geography remains^' imperfect1 that even-JD’Anville has erred, in the
delineation;;; and. Mr. S.yme’s work leaves room for many illuftratipns
arrd improvements,; when future travelerstfhall inveftigate with, ,eare
ythe^'chuhtr-ies beyond^ithe Ganges.*
The ‘hiftory of;thc--Birman. empire,|is-detailed' at fome length in the
-introdudory part ofrt^e- recent publicationand.,as it difplaysf.the
,origin of a. new and great-Afiatic power jj/mayfoe ^terel|ing_<tQjpxefent
an ahtt^aiShy-* AolondtSy-mles j uftly obfe-rv.es;-ibat little was* known coq-
^erniqgc»i^cfo,!'cpun|^e%'Ani ’ the“ Beer,tqguefe, ,mad^' th|m{Hy^s/ matters or
xjgvl-a-l a go 3f - earlyt in the-fixteenth cenitu^y-, .and .were aft^x^rds fuccepded
by^the.Dutch,"who \foecame matters of the whqlApeninfula,-and had,a
(-factory eyen-'af .Ligqr, which prop^rly'-belqnged to Siapn' f The^qr-*
' toiguefo -foiftorians are ,prQqe;to exaggeration, and »their ^cco,unt§‘ h^xe
diftlfe-,claim to precifion, while the Dutch are, comijioqly, dull and un-
fci-entiftc. From fueh foturces however flowed« the-firft: knowledge #f
thefe -countries, of .Aracan, extending fouth ward- to-jd^pe. IN^egrais, and
„ofoAvaj, the ancient . capital o£nthevBirmansi,; while their jCqu.qtry, at
large called, -Miama,. jjeing" divided from'3 by ; A^ridge^f
jpfty mountains, called Anoupec-tou-miou, .qr tbe-great weftern hilly
country./ Pegu, qr BagoO extended as far as. .Martaban, thereby of
Prome being its northern limit; while Siam 'adjoined on. the,jC&ftj ey-
* tending . fouth to Junkfeilon a confiderable - ifte, the Siamefe, calling
themfelves TV1) while their capital w^s Yoodia.f From-the Portuguese
, aCf>min ts it appears -that, the Birmans, a brave and-warlike ra.ee, -formerly
'fubiedt, to the king..of Peg}?, became, afterwards .matters^of, Ava, .and
.caufed.-.a revolution in the forme? country about the. middle of..the
.fifteenth centuty, when they/took Martaban,, a fuhje.df.pfthe extra.va-
P rogr-ë s -
GRAPHY. ' '
Modern
Hiftory.
* The Pr^Beh; interGoutfe with Siam, towards "th&end-of the-Ceventeenth .feentury, occafiorf?i
many;'deferiptions .of that kingdom: but the accounts of Ava'and Pegu are rare. • 1 is one■'
o f Tiinquin’and.Laos, tranflated'&pm the Italian-pf Marini, Paris i66r,-|.'to- -
■ j- A lio called Siam. A s th e i; is’ in many countries prbnQU'fleedy,«(the real Orienta l'-formJ
-this name .became .the .Jnthea of.ttavellcrs, \ . j,
A A 2 ” gaftt