270 BANGKOK BANGOR dras; pop. in 1867 estimated 140,000, mostly Hindoos. It was founded by Hyder Ali, under whom it rose rapidly. Lord Cornwallis took it by assault in 1791, and after the English withdrew Tippoo Saib partially dismantled the fortress and drove away the wealthy merchants by his heavy exactions. On the death of Tip- poo the territory, though ruled by a native sovereign, came under British protection, and revived rapidly. The town has considerable trade with all parts of S. India in salt, sugar, spices, metals, dyestuffs, silk, cotton, and wool. Silk and cotton tissues are woven for home consumption. The town is on an elevated site, and is a place of resort for invalids. BANGKOK, the capital of the kingdom of Siam, situated on the river Menam, about 20 m. from its mouth, in lat. 13 58' N., Ion. 100 34' E. ; pop. about 500,000, more than one third of whom are Chinese, 120,000 Siamese, and the rest Malays, Burmans, Arabs, and Hin- doos. The Menam is here about 1,300 ft. wide, and sufficiently deep for vessels of large size. When the capital was first established at Bang- kok the houses were built on the banks of the river; but so frequent were the invasions of the cholera that one of the kings commanded the people to build on the river itself for the purposes of better ventilation and drainage. The privilege of building on the banks now is reserved to the members of the royal family, the nobility, and persons of political influence. A double and sometimes a triple row of float- ing houses extends for miles on the river. These are wooden structures built on rafts of bamboo linked together with chains, which are made fast to piles planted in the bed of the stream. The stores are situated together with the houses or form parts of them, and every house has a canoe attached to it. Some of the prisons are grated and hung like bird cages over the water, and in those on land the pris- oners are chained together in gangs. In Bang- kok there are 20,000 priests supported by the voluntary contributions of the public. There are also American and Roman Catholic mis- sions here. On the land the pagodas and the phra-cha-dees or minarets that crown some of the temples are elaborately ornamented with mosaics of fine porcelain inlaid with ivory, gold, and silver, while the doors and windows are overlaid with sculptures of grotesque figures from the Buddhist and Brahminical mytholo- gies. Near the grand palace are three high columns of elegant design inlaid all over with variegated stones, and very richly gilt. These monuments mark the graves of several kings of Siam. The royal palace is a citadel sur- rounded by triple walls and fortified with bas- tions. Each of the separate buildings is cruci- form, and the new palace forms with the old one the arms of a cross. On one side of the palace are the temples and monasteries dedi- cated to the sleeping idol, and on the other the palace and harem of the second king. The sleeping idol is a reclining figure 150 ft. long and 40 ft. high, entirely overlaid with plate gold, and the soles of its feet covered with bass- reliefs inlaid with mother-of-pearl and chased with gold, each separate design representing one of the many transmigrations of Buddha. Near this temple is the palace of the white elephant, and further on the temple of the emerald idol. The latter is a remarkable and beautiful structure, with Gothic doors and win- dows richly ornamented with gold, and the roof supported by lofty octagonal columns, the ceil- ing covered with mythological symbols and figures; the altar is a pyramid 100 ft. high, terminating in a fine spire of gold. The eme- rald idol is about 12 inches high and 8 in width. The gold of which its hair and collar are com- posed is mixed with crystals, topazes, sapphires, diamonds, and other precious stones. Three miles below the capital are the royal dockyards, under the supervision of English shipwrights. The heat in the summer months is intense. Trade is mostly carried on by water. The prin- cipal articles of commerce are lac, ivory, rice, cotton, opium, silk and silk stuffs, sago, sugar, guava, birds' nests, mungo, dauries, coffee, co- coanuts, black pepper, hides, horses, tobacco, gums, teak, tin, sandal, rosewood, and eagle- wood. There are numerous factories of tin, iron, and leather. The foreign trade is nearly monopolized by the government. The value of the exports in 1869 was $5,905,880, of which $2,278,860 was carried in Siamese and the rest in foreign vessels. The invoice value of cargoes imported was $8,759,350, of which $2,722,715 was carried in Siamese vessels. The country surrounding Bangkok contains rich iron mines and extensive forests of teak. BANGOR, a city, seat of justice of Penobscot county, Maine, and a port of entry, on the W. bank of the Penobscot river, at its junction with the Kenduskeag, about 55 m. from the ocean and 60 m. N. E. of Augusta; pop. in 1860, 16,407 ; in 1870, 18,289. It has a safe and capacious harbor, accessible at the highest tides, which rise 17 feet, to the largest vessels. The city is situated on both banks of the Kenduskeag, and several convenient bridges across that river connect the two divisions. There is also a bridge 1,320 ft. long across the Penobscot, connecting Bangor with Brewer. Many of the streets are broad and well shaded with elm trees. The chief public building is the custom house, a handsome granite structure, which cost $100,000. Bangor is, next to Chi- cago, the greatest depot of lumber on the conti- nent, 200,000,000 feet being frequently received in a year. The head waters of the Penob- scot traverse immense forests of pine, spruce, and hemlock. The cutting and hauling of this timber to the river in the winter, driving, booming, sawing, and rafting it, and loading it on vessels in the harbor, give employment to a large number of men. About 2,000 ves- sels are annually engaged in this trade, during the eight or nine months in which the river is free from ice. The city is also the centre of a
