Geographical Journal (Journal of the Royal Geographical Society): Volume VIII, No. 5 [‎13v] (29/154)

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JOURNEY" ROUND SIAM.
peak—Sai Dao—is passed on the route which, judging roughly, must be
5000 feet high. It will thus be observed that Chantabun is not, as
has sometimes been erroneously supposed, the port and outlet of the
provinces of Battambong and Siamrap. These provinces drain into the
Talesap Lake, and finally into the Mekong, whilst the province of
Chantabun drains into the Gulf of Siam. Indeed, there would be little
or no communication between the two places were it not for the fact
that the sapphire mines are situated near the frontier of Chantabun.
Pailin is the name given to that place, and the journey thither, which
is done by pack-bullock or elephant, occupies about four days. The
narrow footpath—impassable for bullock-carts—winds its way through
dense forest, and rises to a height of about 1000 feet. Though the
scenery is rugged and varied, it is not nearly so impressive and pic
turesque as what I was yet to see amongst the wild and solitary grandeur
of the Mekong gorges or the rapids on the Menam. At Pailin my duties
detained me twelve days, and then I passed on to Battambong.
Battambong and Siamrap are provinces which have somehow gained
the reputation of being extremely rich, fertile, and populous. In recent
times these provinces have hardly ever been referred to except in
euphuistic language describing their wealth, population, and mag
nificence. As no Consular official had ever been in this direction before,
I was naturally anxious to explore this unusual land flowing with milk
and honey, and scrutinize, if necessary, these vague and glowing accounts
in the light of cold and relentless statistics. I must confess that any
sanguine expectations I possessed were considerably shattered after I
had traversed the province, seen Battambong the capital, and succeeded
in getting a few figures about trade and population. It does not strike
one at all as the richest and most populous province of Siam. In fact,
in its present condition, it by no means comes up to the general standard
of wealth of the Menam valley.
I do not speak of the potentialities of the place—far from it—as
almost every part of Indo-China is capable of enormous development
under proper European management, but I take things as they now
stand. And what do we find ? The population of the combined provinces
of Battambong and Siamrap I estimate at about eighty thousand, and
the import and export trades combined may be valued at about £80,000
per annum. I must state that these figures are only approxi
mations, as bona, fide statistics are not to be obtained in any part
ot Indo-China, and the data upon which even the most painstaking
inquirer bases his results are necessarily very imperfect. My figures of
trade were obtained from individual merchants and from calculations
based on the amount ot taxes, and population from rough guesses at the
number of able-bodied men in the different subdivisions. In any case,
the statistics are accurate enough to show that the terms of “rich,
fertile, and populous ” are hardly applicable to this part of Siam.