CHAPTER VIII.

Description of Shan houses—Cabalistic charms—Superstition—Ancestral and demon worship—Shan dynasties in Burmah—Zimmé under the Burmese—Rules for house-building—Possessing a ghoul—The shadow spirit—Kissing with the nose—Furniture—Meals—Chinese chop-sticks—Spinsters—Weaving and embroidery—Dyes—Chinese hongs—Fishing—Revolt against Burmah—Zimmé and Lapoon deserted—A rest-house—Shan dialects—Entrance of the Meh Hkuang—Musical water-wheels—Brick and tile works—Houses for the demons—Houses imbedded in gardens—Light-coloured buffaloes—My first hunt in Burmah—A fine pagoda—Approach to the city—Arrive at Zimmé—American Presbyterian missions in Siam and Zimmé, 80