Tie Foreign Office has recently published a report of a journey in the district of Chieng-mai, Siam, by Mr. W. J. Archer. That gentleman started from Chieng-mai in the month of January last year, travelled due north to Muang Ngai, from thence eastward to Chung-sen and after a short detour proceeded to Nan, the capital of the most extensive of the Lao states. not seem to have disclosed ow markets for trade, which, indeed, was found to be rather small. The chief natural te-source of the country is teak, bit shine parts of Mr. Archer's route lay ay the forests, and in others the rapids on the Cambodia form a serious check. to-the development of the country, and, consequently, extensive and virgin teak forest are left unnoticed, But in the watershed of the Menam' the tree was comparatively abundant, The chief production of the country is rice, and it is the custom of the Laos, when establishing settlements or towns, to choose a site situated in the midst of a flat, low country, but on ground sufficiently elevated to secure them from high floods. It is of primary importance that the surrounding country should be fertile and suited to rice cultivation. Mr, Archer's description of the foundation of a new place is "Where the new Settlement is on the site of a former city, the old embankment or wall, if any such remain, is kept as the boundary of the new town,: and, about 12 feet high, is put up; Titer if in time, a wooden palisade, perhaps the new city has greater pretensions, this is replaced by a high brick wall, either entirely, as in the case of Nan, or partly, as in Chiengmai and Lakhon The site having been fixed upon, the laborious task of clearing the jungle is in; all, or nearly all, the trees are felled, the roads are marked out, and alongside the settlers are allowed to choose a piece of ground. A rough shanty is generally put up at first, and round it are planted bananas and other guiek- growing plants; the grounds of old temples are not encroached upon, and the principal wats' are often reoccupied by priests. Many of the newcomers first reside in the capital, but as by degrees they have opportunities of becoming better acquainted with the surrounding country, they begin by cultivating the most promising land in the neighbourhood; others join them, and thus vill are founded, and when a longer residence and increased population have given a feeling of greater confidence and security, settlements are gradually formed further from the capital. A large body of immigrants, or a number of families from the same locality, generally form a separate settlement, especially if they are of different race from the original settlers; and if they settle in the capital they' usually have separate quarter allotted to them." But other settlements are going on in the country. On the frontiers: the families of the unfortunate people who are accused of being pi ka," or evil spirits, are usually banished from Chiengmai to Chiengdao; this is perhaps amongst: the first signs. of the policy of encouraging settlements on the frontier districts, which has since undergone such great development. Again, ce of aliens are settled all over Siam. In Bangkok the inhabitants of the different quarters have becoing amalgamated, but
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.