generally accepted in ecclesiastical treatises and paintings, though the educated Siamese may smile at it, and when the topknot of a Siamese prince is cut off, part of the ceremony consists in his being received by the king dressed as Śiva on the summit of a mound cut in the traditional shape of Mt. Kailâśa. Like the Nâts of Burma, Siam has a spirit population known as Phís[238]. The name is occasionally applied to Indian deities, but the great majority of Phís fall into two classes, namely, ghosts of the dead and nature spirits which, though dangerous, do not rise above the position of good or bad fairies. In the first class are included the Phí Prẽt, who have the characteristics as well as the name of the Indian Pretas, and also a multitude of beings who like European ghosts, haunt houses and behave in a mysterious but generally disagreeable manner. The Phíăm is apparently our nightmare. The ghosts of children dying soon after birth are apt to kill their mothers and in general women are liable to be possessed by Phís. The ghosts of those who have died a violent death are dangerous but it would seem that Siamese magicians know how to utilize them as familiar spirits. The better sort of ghosts are known as Chào Phí and shrines called San Chào are set up in their honour. It does not however appear that there is any hierarchy of Phís like the thirty-seven Náts of Burma. Among those Phís who are not ghosts of the dead the most important is the Phí ru̓en or guardian spirit of each house. Frequently a little shrine is erected for him at the top of a pole. There are also innumerable Phís in the jungle mostly malevolent and capable of appearing either in human form or as a dangerous animal. But the tree spirits are generally benevolent and when their trees are cut down they protect the houses that are made of them. Thus the Buddhism of Siam, like that of Burma, has a certain admixture of Brahmanism and animism. The Brahmanism is perhaps more striking than in Burma on account of the Court ceremonies: the belief in spirits, though almost universal, seems to be more retiring and less conspicuous. Yet the inscription of Râma Komhëng mentioned above asserts emphatically that the prosperity of the Empire depends on due honour being shown to a certain mountain spirit[239].