which are many "kyoungs" and "zeyats." Scattered over the
hill-sides are many others, gleaming white against the warm earth
tints and the foliage which surround them. This is old Sagaing, once a
capital of Burma; but the city has gone, and only its temples now
remain. Crossing the river in sampans painted red, blue, and yellow,
or landing on the pearly shingle of the beach, are crowds of
well-dressed Burmans from Mandalay and Ava, bent on a pilgrimage to
one or other of the many shrines, which are reached by long flights of
steps, whose entrance is guarded by enormous leogryphs.

A pretty legend gives the origin of these monsters, which, often of
enormous size, invariably guard the entrance to a temple. Long ago in
the dim past a Princess was stolen by "nats," and hidden away in the
dark recesses of the forest. The King made every effort to find the
hiding-place of his daughter, but without success, until one day a
lioness rescued the Princess, and restored her to her home. Ever since
then the lion, which in the course of centuries has gradually become
changed into the leogryph (or half-lion, half-griffin), has been
accepted by the people as the emblem of protecting watchfulness.

Close to Mandalay on the south is Amarapura, another of Burma's many
capitals, and though we cannot hope to see all the many interesting
monuments that remain, it has one pagoda in particular which well
repays us for our long and dusty journey.

This is the Arracan pagoda, one of the most famous shrines in Burma,
and the one most frequented by the Shans and other hill tribes, whose
time of pilgrimage occurs "between the reaping and the sowing."

There is no ascent to this temple, which, through a series of
ornamented doorways, is approached by a long flat corridor, which, as
usual, serves the purpose of a bazaar. Here perhaps the best Burmese
gongs may be purchased, and the stalls for cut flowers display a rich
profusion of blooms, whose scent fills the whole temple precincts. The
temple itself is different in design from any others we have seen,
being built in the form of a square tower, above which rises a series
of diminishing terraces, each beautified by carved battlements and
corner pinnacles, the whole being richly gilt.

[Illustration: THE SHWE ZIGON PAGODA, PAGAN. _Page 82._]

Beneath the central tower is the shrine, before which a constant
stream of devotees succeed each other in prayer. This contains an
enormous brass image of