In these places, there are never more than from two
to four coffins, which are placed upon wooden benches two feet high:
the coffins themselves consist of massive trunks of trees hollowed
out.
The villages through which we passed presented an animated
appearance, but appeared poor and dirty. We were often obliged to
hold our noses in passing through the lanes and squares, and very
frequently would fain have closed our eyes as well, to avoid the
disgusting sight of people covered with eruptions of the skin,
tumours, and boils.
In all the villages I saw poultry and swine in great numbers, but
not more than three horses and a buffalo-cow; both the horses and
the cow were of an extremely small breed.
When we had nearly reached the end of our excursion, we met a
funeral. A horrible kind of music gave us warning that something
extraordinary was approaching, and we had hardly time to look up and
step on one side, before the procession came flying past us at full
speed. First came the worthy musicians, followed by a few Chinese,
next two empty litters carried by porters, and then the hollow trunk
of a tree, representing the coffin, hanging to a long pole, and
carried in a similar manner: last of all, were some priests and a
crowd of people.
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