Leave Penyow—Wild roses—An inundated country—Royal funeral buildings—Posts two hundred feet long—Collection and uses of wood-oil—Description of daily meals—Water-parting between the Meh Kong and Meh Nam—Path for railway—A dead forest—Reach Muang Ngow—Settled by Lakon—Karen villages—Teak-forests—Four thousand Burmese destroyed—A distributing centre for Muang Nan and Muang Peh—Deficient rainfall—Burmese pedlars—Immigrants from Kiang Hung—A terrible din—The eclipse—Buddhist legend—Elephants should rest after noon during hot season—Leave Muang Ngow—Railway from Bangkok to Kiang Hung crosses no hill-range—Battle-field—The stone gate—Water-parting between the Meh Ngow and Meh Wung—A jolting elephant—Ban Sa-det—Offerings for the monks—Presents for the children—The Buddhist Lent—Lights for evil spirits—The demon’s lent—Offerings to the naiads—Illuminating the river—King of Siam lighting fireworks—Scaring the spirits—Offerings to naiads and demons in case of sickness—Trial by water—Superstition against saving drowning folk—Descent of the rain-god Indra—Libations—The water-feast—Bathing the images—Scene in the temple—Waking the gods with water—Propitiating the Lawa genii—The warming of Buddh—A dousing—A compliment—Calling the spirits to witness—Leave Ban Sa-det—Ruby-mines—Reach Lakon, 246 CHAPTER XXII. Lakon and Lapoon date from the sixth century—Description of Lakon—A Christian judge—Law and justice—Punishments commuted to fines—Legend of the dipped prince—Legend of Lakon—A modern joke—Legend of the ring lake—The god of medicine—The Aswins mending an old man—Origin of quack-doctors—A Siamese doctor—Theory of disease—Medicines—174 ingredients in a dose—Draughts for the poor, pills for the rich—Medicines by pailful—Empirics—Belief in demons and witches—Mode of payment by the job—No cure, no pay—Fee to the god of medicine—Priests to the demons—Sacrifices—Contamination from lepers—Smallpox and vaccination—Filthy dwellings and furniture—No pillow-cases or sheets—Killing bugs—Villages on the Meh Wung—Dr Neis’s survey—Karen Christians—Rev. D. Webster—Dr Cushing ill—Eagerness for work—Malarious fevers—Numerous Karens in British Shan States—Trade of Lakon—Visit the chief—Cheap labour for the railway—Great heat—Burst of the monsoon, 267 CHAPTER XXIII.