of cocoa-nut trees, making a most agreeable shade.  The houses are all of wood, covered with a kind of tiles, in the form of cups, very necessary and useful in that country.  The palace is in the middle of the city, walled round like a castle, the lodgings within being built of wood, all over gilded, and richly adorned with pinnacles of costly work, covered all over with gold, so that it may truly be called a king’s house.  Within the gate is a large handsome court, in which are lodges for the strongest and largest elephants, which are reserved for the king’s use, among which are four that are entirely white, a rarity that no other king can boast of; and were the king of Pegu to hear that any other king had white elephants, he would send and demand them as a gift.  While I was there two such were brought out of a far distant country, which cost me something for a sight of them, as the merchants were commanded to go to see them, and every one was obliged to give something to the keepers.  The brokers gave for every merchant half a ducat, which they call a tansa, and this produced a considerable sum, as there were a great many merchants in the city.  After paying the tansa, they may either visit the elephants or not as they please, as after they are put into the king’s stalls, every one may see them whenever they will.  But before this, every one mast go to see them, such being the royal pleasure.  Among his other titles, this king is called King of the White Elephants; and it is reported that if he knew of any other king having any white elephants who would not resign them to him, he would hazard his whole kingdom to conquer them.  These white elephants are so highly esteemed that each of them has a house gilded all over, and they are served with extraordinary care and attention in vessels of gold and silver.  Besides these white elephants, there is a black one of most extraordinary size, being nine cubits high.  It is reported that this king has four thousand war elephants, all of which have teeth.  They are accustomed to put upon their uppermost teeth certain sharp spikes of iron, fastened on with rings, because these animals fight with their teeth.  He has also great numbers of young elephants, whose teeth are not yet grown.

In this country they have a curious device for hunting or taking elephants, which is erected about two miles from the capital.  At that place there is a fine palace gilded all over, within which is a sumptuous court, and all round the outside there are a great number of places for people to stand upon to see the hunting.  Near this place is a very large wood or forest, through which a great number of the king’s huntsmen ride on the backs of female elephants trained on purpose, each huntsman having five or six of these females, and it is said that their parts are anointed with a certain composition, the smell of which so powerfully attracts the wild males that they cannot leave them, but follow them wheresoever they go.