CEYLON.

Situation.] Ceylon is an island in the Indian ocean separated from the coast of Coromandel by Palk's straits, and the gulf of Manaar. It lies between 5° 53′ and 9° 57' N. lat. The length from N. to S. is 280 miles, and the number of square miles is estimated at 38,000. Its shape is that of a pear.

Face of the Country and Climate.] The general aspect of the country somewhat resembles that of Southern Hindoostan; a high table land intersected with mountain chains occupying the whole inteor, while the shores, for the breadth of 6 or 8 leagues,are everywhere low and flat. The climate on the coast is more temperate and healthy than on the continent of India, but the interior of the island is very unhealthy, and has proved extremely fatal to the European armies which have occasionally been sent thither.

Productions.] Ceylon is highly distinguished for its productions in the mineral, vegetable and animal kingdoms. Tin, lead and iron in abundance, are found here; and precious stones are probably more numerous and diversified than in any other part of the world. The most extensive pearl fishery on the globe is carried on in the gulf of Manaar; the beds commence about 15 miles from the Ceylonese shore, and occupy a space about 30 miles long by 24 broad. Among the infinite diversity of vegetables and fine fruits are oranges, lemons, cocoa-nuts, peper and coffee; but the mos tvaluable of all the Ceylonese plants is the cinnamon tree, the principal plantations of which are on the western coast near Colombo. The elephants of Ceylon are highly celebrated for strength and sagacity, and the great snake called the boa constrictor attains bere a length of 30 feet.

Chief Towns.] Colombo, the capital and the seat of the British government, is on the western coast in lat. 7° 4' N. It has a poor harbor and 50,000 inhabitants. Candy, the capital of the kingdom of Candy, is situated near the centre of the island about 100 miles E. N. E. of Colombo. Trincomalee is on the eastern coast, in lat. 8° 33′ N. It has a fine harbor, which is of great consequence to the British because there is none on the eastern coast of Hindoostan. Point de Galle, at the S. W. extremity of the island, is a fortified town and ranks next to Colombo in respect to trade.

Population.] The population is estimated at 1,500,000. The prevailing religion is Boodhism, but the number of native Protestants is about 150,000, and of Roman Catholics 50,000. Formerly the number was much greater, but of late multitudes have relapsed into idolatry.

Missions.] There are about 30 missionaries in the island sent out from England and America by different religious denominations. In 1816 the American Board of Commissioners commenced an establishment in the district of Jaffna, in the northern part of the island. In 1820 it consisted of 6 ordained ministers

and a physician, who occupied two principal stations, Tillipally and Batticotta, and had under their charge 15 free schools, in which about 700 children were instructed in the common branches of education, and the principles of Christianity.

History. The coasts of this island were occupied by the Portuguese in 1505, who maintained their superiority here during 153 years, when they were expelled by the Dutch, who in their turn were conquered by the British in 1796. The whole interior of the island, however, was in possession of the king of of Candy, a despotic monarch, whose territories reached on all sides nearly to the coast, till the year 1815, when a British army of 3,000 men took the capital, and annexed the whole kingdom to the British dominions.

Islands.] The Maldives are a cluster of islands formed from coral, lying a considerable distance west of Ceylon, between the equator and 8° N. lat. and between 72° and 74° E. lon. They produce cocoa nuts and the shells called cowrie,but are now little frequented on account of the dangerous navigation. The Laccadives are cluster of low islands lying off the west coast of Hindoostan between 8° and 13° N. lat.

FARTHER INDIA.

Situation.] Farther India or India beyond the Ganges includes all the countries between Hindoostan and China. It is bounded N. by Tibet and China; E. by the China sea; S. by the straits of Malacca, which separate it from the island of Sumatra; and W. by the bay of Bengal and Hindoostan.

Divisions.] Farther India is divided into 1. the Birman empire. 2. Assam. 3. Malacca. 4. Siam. 5. Cambodia. 6. Cochin China. 7. Tonquin. 8. Laos. This part of Asia is but imperfectly known to Europeans, and other names sometimes appear on the maps. Its political condition is very fluctuating, and the four last countries are said now to be united in one kingdom called the kingdom of Anam.

1. THE BIRMAN EMPIRE.

Situation.] The Birman empire, sometimes called Ava, is composed of the four ancient kingdoms of Ava, Pegu, Aracan and Cassay. It is bounded N. by Assam, Tibet and China; E. and S. by Siam; and W. by the bay of Bengal and Hindoostan.

Face of the Country.] The northern part of the country is mountainous, and the southern level. The principal river is the Frawaddy which rises in the mountains of Tibet, and running

south divides into numerous streams, all of which discharge themselves into the bay of Bengal.

Climate, Soil and Productions] The climate is more salubri ous than that of Hindoostan. The southern provinces are finely watered and produce luxuriant crops of riee, and in the northern districts wheat of an excellent quality is raised. All the trophical fruits also grow here spontaneously; but the most valuable production for exportation is the celebrated teak timber or Indian oak, which is said to be more durable, and to resist the worms better than any wood that is known, and is now much used by the British in ship building.

Chief Towns.] Ummerapoora, the capital, is on the Irawaddy, 400 miles from its mouth. It was founded in 1783, and in 1800 the population was estimated at 175,000. Ava, the former capital, is four miles from Ummerapoora, and is now almost deserted. Pegu, on one of the outlets of the Irawaddy, was formerly a splendid city and capital of the ancient kingdom of Pegu, but was destroyed by the Birmans, when they conquered this country in 1757. Rangoon, the principal port of the Birman empire, and the only place where Europeans are allowed to trade, is on one of the outlets of the Irawaddy, 30 miles from its mouth. The population is about 30,000, and is composed of persons from many different nations. Arracan, formerly the capital of a kingdom of the same name, which was conquered by the Birmans in 1783, is situated near the mouth of a river which discharges itself into the bay of Bengal in about 20° N. lat. It has a fine harbor, but no ships are allowed to enter it. Mergui is a seaport in lat. 12° 12′ N. It gives name to a large cluster of islands in the adjacent sea, called the Mergui archipelago.

Population and Character.] The population is estimated at 17,000,000. The Birmans are entirely different in their character from the Hindoos. They are bold, active, fiery, enterpris ing and full of curiosity. The fair sex in this country are ex empted from that restraint and confinement which they suffer generally in the East. Yet they are not respected, but are subjected to severe labor, and often bought and sold almost as slaves.

Religion] The religion, as in all the countries of Farther India, is that of Boodh or Buddha, who is universally the object of worship. He is represented as a young man with a placid countenance, and usually sitting cross-legged on a throne. The im ages are in some cases of the most gigantic magnitude. Monasteries, the inmates of which devote themselves to celibacy and seclusion from the world, are characteristic of this religion. The literature of the Birmans, like that of the Hindoos, is founded almost entirely on their religion.

Punishments.] The mode of punishing crimes among the Birmans is of the most horrid kind. Among the modes of inflicting capital punishment are, beheading, crucifying, starving to death, ripping open the body, sawing it in two, pouring red hot lead down the throat, plunging into boiling oil, and roasting to death

by a slow fire. The milder punishments are putting out the eyes, cutting off the tongue, the hands, feet, ears, nose, &c.

Government.] The government is entirely despotic; the will of the sovereign is the supreme law, and is subject to no check either from the aristocracy or the people. The administration, however, appears to be mild, and property is respected. There are a considerable number of conquered princes, who are allowed to retain the internal government of their own states, upon paying military service and tribute, and residing a certain portion of the year at Ummerapoora.

Army.] The Birmans are a nation of soldiers, yet no regular army is maintained, except about 4,000 royal guards, but on an emergency every village is obliged to furnish a certain number of soldiers. The principal dependence, however, is on the war boats, which are built very long and narrow, and each carries from 50 to 80 armed men. Of these, the king, on a short notice, can command about 500. The Birmans are frequently at war with the Siamese, and have sometimes almost conquered them. The two nations cherish an inveterate enmity towards each other.

2. ASSAM.

Assam is a country lying between Bengal, Bootan, Tibet and the Birman empire, and intersected by the river Brahmaputra. It is a very fertile country, and produces gold, ivory, pepper, silk and cotton, but the climate is very unhealthy. The inhabitants are jealous of foreigners, and the country has seldom been visited by Europeans, although some commerce is carried on with Bengal by means of the great river Brahmaputra. Ghergong is the capital. The population has been estimated at 1,800,000.

3. MALACCA.

Situation.] Malacca consists of a large peninsula, extending from 1° to 11° N. lat. and connected with the kingdom of Siam on the north by a narrow isthmus. It is bounded E. by the gulf of Siam, S. by the straits of Malacca, which separate it from the island of Sumatra; and W. by the bay of Bengal

Face of the Country.] The country is traversed by a chain of very lofty mountains, and is covered with extensive forests and marshes, so that it is very difficult to penetrate into the interior.

Political Condition.] Malacca is divided into 10 or 12 separate states, all of which were formerly subject to the king of Siam, but since the wars between the Siamese and the Birmans, all the southern part of the peninsula has shaken off the yoke, while the northern states pay only a moderate tribute.

Inhabitants.] The inhabitants of the coast are of the race called Malays, who are well known and widely diffused throughout all the Eastern seas. They are of a ferocious and restless dis

position, strongly attached to a seafaring life, and fond of war, plunder and desperate enterprises. The love of piracy is deeply rooted in their nature; they often attack European ships, and murder all the crew. The inhabitants of the interior are a race of negro savages, who subsist entirely by hunting, and are frequently engaged in war with each other.

Running amok.] The Malays carry the point of honor to the most romantic excess: every thing which they can construe into an insult drives them to a fury bordering on desperation. An accumulation of such treatment impels them at last to those deeds of frenzy, which are known by the name of running amok. The Malay who has resolved upon this step, begins by taking a large dose of his favorite opium, till he is half intoxicated; he then throws loose bis long black hair, draws his deadly crise, and rushes into the streets. crying "kill, kill;" and in fact kills every one that encounters him in his furious career.

Language. The Malay language is distinguished above all others in the east for its smoothness and softness, in which respect it has been compared to the Italian. It has become a sort of current and universal language over all the sea coasts of Eastern Asia. This distinction it has attained in consequence of the extensive traffic which the Malays carry on throughout all these countries.

Chief Towns.] Malacca, situated on the straits of the same pame, formerly belonged to the Portuguese, and was the centre of their trade in these seas. In 1640 it was taken by the Dutch, and in 1795 fell into the hands of the English. Since the formation of the settlement at Pulo Penang or Prince of Wales' island, however, Malacca has been almost deserted. Pulo Penang is an island belonging to the British, in lat. 5° 25′ N. lying off the west coast of the Malay peninsula from which it is separated by a narrow strait about two miles broad, which forms the harbor, and affords excellent anchorage for the largest ships. A settlement was begun in 1786, and has since rapidly increased. The commerce is now extensive, and the population is composed of a great variety of nations.

4. SIAM.

Situation.] Siam is bounded N. by China; E. by Laos, CochinChina, and Cambodia; S. by the gulf of Siam and the peninsula of Malacca; and W. by the Birman empire.

Face of the Cauntry.] Siam consists almost exclusively of the valley of the Menam, a great river which rises in Tibet and running south through the whole length of the kingdom, discharges itself into the gulf of Siam. The land on the banks of the river is perfectly level and fertile, but at a little distance on each side it rises into mountains, which separate Siam from the Birman empire on the west, and the countries composing the new kingdom of Anam on the east.