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182 BIRMAH.
Christians, who have a priest and a church. The Mergui
islands, an archipelago extending along this coast 135
miles, are uninhabited, although the soil is said to be
fertile. To the south of these is the island of Salanca,
or Junk-seylon, about 54 miles long, and 15 broad,
separated from the main land by a shallow channel, a
mile in breadth, which is nearly dry at low water. It
has a harbour at the north end, called Popra, which
may be entered over a mud bar, during the spring
tides, by ships drawing twenty feet of water. The
anchorage round the island is generally good. There
are valuable tin mines in the island, which are worked
by the natives ; and prior to the colonization of
Prince of Wales's Island, it was a place of considerable
trade. The chief town is Terrowa. The inhabitants
consist of Malays, Chinese, Siamese, and Birmans.
This island formed the southernmost point of the
Birman empire.
Tavoy (or Daway), like Tenasserim, is at once the
name of a town, a river, and a province. The town
is about eight leagues up the river, in lat. 13 13' N.,
long. 98 6' E. A pagoda stapds on the point which
forms the western side of the entrance of the river.
The country is stated to be extremely fertile.
The inhabitants of these provinces are said to be
a peculiar tribe called Meng.* The country produces
tin, sapan wood, stick-lac, corn, and marbao, a
timber fit for ship-building. From Martaban are
exported tin, rice, wild cardamums, edible birds' nests
from the Andaman and Nicobar islands, and a species
of caviare called balachong, compounded from the
spawn of fish and pounded shrimps, made into thin
cakes : great quantities of this article are consumed in
* Probably, Mong ; and if so, they are Talain or Peguans.