pandal, or reception pavilion,
erected at the dock where the viceroy landed and where he was received
with a salute of thirty-one guns, had been filled that morning by the
elite of Burman society, fifteen hundred in number, and the address of
welcome had drawn from the viceroy a fitting response. All Rangoon was a
wonder of decoration. Arches with Saracenic domes built by the Moslems,
pagodalike structures built by the Buddhists, Parsee towers, and Hindu
temples, appeared at many street-crossings, and one long avenue was
lined on either side with elevated rows of benches upon which were
seated thousands of children from the schools. The viceroy passed in
triumphal procession between files of soldiery, with cavalry for a
body-guard and a dense mass of humanity thronging the sidewalks, looking
on and cheering. At night, the streets and public buildings were
brilliantly illuminated, and the great pagodas glittered like gems from
top to bottom, encircled with rings of electric lights.

We reached the Government House, the scene of the afternoon lawn-tea,
through clouds of dust raised by four lines of vehicles that struggled
for precedence. At last we emerged in the grounds before the stately
edifice where the lieutenant governor resides, and we were presented to
Lord and Lady Chelmsford. The viceroy and his wife were simple and
gracious in manner, and they made us feel that we were conferring as
well as receiving honor. A group of forty dancing-girls, in antique
Burmese costumes, were giving a performance on one part of the emerald
lawn, while on another white-robed servants were setting before the
guests all manner of refreshments. So, amid music and feasting, the
day ended. With the oncoming darkness the viceroy and his lady retired
to their apartments in the great government residence, and at the same
time the whole company joined in singing "God Save the King!" It was a
striking close to our experiences in Burma, for fully half of the
guests that day were Hindus and Mohammedans, each one of them arrayed
in gorgeous garments and decorated with jewels. It left in our minds
the fixed impression that the hold of Great Britain upon Burma and
indeed upon all India is largely due to the Christian character of
British rule, and that missionary work of evangelization and of
education is to be given large credit for India's present universal
loyalty to the British Crown.

This chapter would not be complete without special mentio