ELEPHANT

76 THE LAYD OF TIIE IWXI"HI LUPHANT
from the init~es near Purim, on the frontiers of China-
su~l~>l~ur, S t-re, innrble, arid amber, aid are wcered (the
hills) wit11 valr~ablc teak and oak timber ; t-he topaz, ruby,
sapphire, nmetliyst., and other gems arc found in t-hc beds
of l-i.r-u11ct.s ; while the valle~s and plains offer, with mode-
1xt.e cu1tiv:~tion (the soil being remarkably fertile),
millet., ~lldze, wheat, cotton, thbacco, a d the ~11~mcane.
The produce of cart.h-oil (put.rdetun) in wclIs,
some of t.hern t.l~ree hundrcd feet in depth, dong the
hmks of the Il~d~addj- is very great., mounting to
more than eight million pounds per milurn.
The okd trade route bctn-een Burma and westc1-n
China lay through Bliarno, but. for the past t-wenty years
it. has beell closcd, owing to n rebellion in t.he province
of Ywan (China). It appe:iru that some Hussulu1a.n
Chinese, called Panthays, suddenly broke out in rcbcl-
lion; defeated the Chinee authoritim and =oops sent
against them, and established thcmseIves in a separate
colony, with Tali-foo for t-heir capital city and the
residence of their king, who is styled Suleiman t-he
First.' Rut although the Chincse cannot muster in
sufficient force to put down these rebels, still they are
conti~ldly harassing them, carrying on a- ' dacoity
war ;' they devastate the country, keep the roads closd,
and thm detroy commerce ; and not- un ti1 the Pmthay