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BIRMAH. 117
RANGOON.
THE river of Rangoon is to the Irrawaddy, what
the Hoogly is to the Ganges : it forms the grand en-
trance to the Birman empire. The general appearance
of the river and its banks resembles that of the
Calcutta river; the navigation, however, is much
more commodious. The land on each side is low and
swampy, and the banks are skirted with high weeds
and brushwood; but the channel is bold and deep.
Before a vessel is quite land-locked, Dagon pagoda,
with its gilt spire and tee, is seen towering above the
trees; and, a little beyond, Syriam pagoda, which is
of similar shape, but less lofty. Syriam, where the
first British factory was established, lies up a branch
of the river that comes from the N. N. E. ; it stands in
lat. 16 49' N., long. 96 17' E. The Rangoon branch,
called also the Panlang, comes from the N.W. The
town is situated on a tongue of land about a mile and
a half above its confluence with the Syriam river, in
lat. 16 47' N., long. 96 9' E * The river, thus far,
is perfectly commodious for shipping ; it is about 600
yards wide at Rangoon; the water in general deep
from shore to shore, the bottom good, and the current
moderate. The spring tides rise twenty feet. The
banks are soft, and so flat, that there is need of little
labour for the formation of docks, although they can
receive ships of 8 and 900 tons.
The town, as seen from the river, has a rude ap-
pearance, being composed of straggling huts of cadjan
(palm-leaf) and bamboo, raised on piles close to the
* Where not otherwise mentioned, the longitude and latitude
are given on the authorities of Symes, Buchanan, and Hamilton's
East India Gazetteer.
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