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Show The Wat Temple Phra Keo. (Prepared by th National Owiraphio Bo-1 and Is greater by nearly 100,000 thin eletr. Washington, D. C) I Slam, known In tho past as "Tl Kingdom of tho White Elephant" stl Is associated In many minds with thi plcturasquo and romantic symbc Tucked away as this country Is I southeastern Asia, far from tho wor aday western world, It Is not genorall known that It has advanced far fro the conditions In force when tho fir pioneer travelers from Europe wei charmed by Its quaint customs nnd 1 Bcml-barbarlc splendor. In reality tl development of Slam nlong model lines may well bo likened If tho cot pnrlson Is not pushed too closely I that of Japan since Commodore Pen opened up that empire to tho worl It Is typical of changed conditions tin n one-timo elophant path In its cnplt Is now traversed by an electric strec car lino. Slam has its peculiar Interest fro tho religious point of view, for It tho only independent nation In whlc Buddhism Is the stato religion (Tib being eliminated from constderatk because Its political status is In que tlon and because Its BuddhlBm is of markedly degenernto type). But thout Buddhism Is tho established rcllglo Slam Is unsurpassed In Its tolcranc I Not only Is tho practice of all oth religious beliefs freely permitted, bi ? tho government has accepted tho prt ' clplo that a man's religion shall not bi him from even Uio higher ndmlnlstr . Uro and Judicial positions. Physically tho chlof region of Sla may bo compared to Lower Mosop '. tnmla In tho days when a complox bj - tem of canals connected Its famoi rivers. But Uio comparison must st with, Uio elaborate network of water ' for whllo tho canals of the Tigris ai : Euphrates delta were prlmnrllyto su ply water to tho fields of ihe countr thoso connecting tho Monnm, Slam . chlof river, with Its nearby stream are first of all highways, nnd ha' only In Into yoars becomo Increasing Important ns sources of Irrigation w ter. For the most part annual lnund , tlons have been depended on to wat 1 tho rlco crops. 1 Dominates Life of Slam. 9 Tho great flat dcltn basin of t! Mennm dominates tho llfo of Slai 8 Thero aro tablelands In the countr 8 nnd hills nnd mountains. But they a but the rlra which sweeps round thr (" sides of tho central plain, leaving tl ' fourth open llko tho broken edge 8 a plate to Uio Gulf of Slam. Into tl ' gulf flows the Mennm and a notwo: of other streams, and near Uio mou 8 of tho great waterway, dominating ' as Now Orleans dominates the Miss! slppl, Is Bangkok, Slam's capital ai 1 metropolis, and ono of Uie chief clU of the Far East. Tho great importance of the lc 1 delta country tho heart of Slam J as a gigantic rlco field. The river, 111 1 those ot all alluvial countries, Is high than Uie plain It travorsos. In the w ' season It overflows Its banks, makli ' a great lake of the entire countrysl T for mllos from tho river-bed. As t floods recede tho overflowed land t transformed Into rice fields and In f few months has contributed Its nnnu t hnrvest of millions of pounds of t i bread of tho East That Slam prosperous and Its people well fed , shown by tho fnct that tho count i has boon n consistent exporter of hi i dreds of thousands of tons of rice. To such an extent Is rlco tho don s nnnt crop of Slam that It may bo sn a to be a "one-crop country" more tni I than are the southern states of Aim lea, whero cotton Is king. Hardly ar ono thinks of robing other crops, a: a wealth, social position,, nnd many ol b er phases of life aro conceived of terms of this all-Important grain. T only other economic activity of Sit propor that Is worthy of mention 1 sides rice culture Is tho teak-wood dnstry, carried on In the forests of t north. Though the nnnunl value of t il teak exports has amounted ta.arou " fS.OOO.OOO lu recent yenrs, It hns rcpi ', sentcd only about ono-tcnth the val It of tho rice exerts. In addition to t a rlco exported, a larger quantity is c sumed In tho country. In n sense It may be Bald that "Bai kok Is Slam" much more truly th Paris may be said to bo Franco Buenos Aires to bo Argentlnn In country of 0.000.000 Inhabitants It virtually the only city. Its populatl Is more than half n million, so that Is roughly Uio size of San Frand! HI est rlco lands ; to It como, on the cm I ttt hand, boats laden with tho product! of I the country, and on tho other oceu. I ln going vessels to unload Imports tnd k. load exports ; and from It In turn art 'I ly distributed the supplies for the Interior, 'H m In Bangkok tho king nnd his court Urt gt nnd thero Is operated tho machinery r0 of tho country's highly centralized iw ' la crnment 10 About- 8lxo of France. ra Slam is about Uio slzo of France. Il . H u. Is a tropical country, lying In the sunt B t0 latltudo with Uio Egyptian Salts, H ry southern India, tho Philippines aid B Qa Ccntrnl America. But thanks to pleo B t ant breczos It doos not experience lie B ai extremes of heat known to tho Indlu :B ,t. plains. In Bangkok tho heat durinf iB tho dry soason seldom exceeds 100 to B m grces Fahrenheit in tho shade. In tit B ls sun It Is of course much warmer and B ;n paper parasols aro to bo Been ever;- B "ot where. For tho thrco months, Notwv B , n ber, December and January, the ntrbti -fl l3. nnd early mornings aro crisp and cool, H u but the days are comfortably warm. H ;h Llttlo or no clothing ls worn by Ut B R small children among the Siamese lv"M .e Bangkok during tho most of the jetf B Cr As tho children npproach school aft, , ut both boys and girls don the panoBi'B n. the unlvorsal garment of the countr;. nr It consists of a length of cloth wrappd a. about tho dps, tho lower edgo extnd- Ing to-about Uie knees. The end of tit m cloth ls thrust between the knees asl m io. hitched up behind, so forming a Ioom 1 1 rB. knlckcrbocker typo of garment TM I u8 coolies often wear nothing above tin I 11 ap waist but Uio costume ls completed for 111 a . others by tho addition of a Jacket t I ill women and a European typo coat (of I il' p. men. Many of tho young girls and I 'I y( women wear above Uie pnnung brigtit- M (b colored scarfs wrapped about tt I )S breasts. 1 vu naif a century ago Bangkok wu I ly called "Tho Venice of the East" sad 1 a. fully deserved Uio title, for almost " 1 la. transportation and movement about thi I or city was by tho rlvor or the numeroM I lateral canals. Even now, thonji streets and highways havo been bnUt, I1U bridges constructed and tramways laid, m. the waterways aro still of trnnsccnde&l T Importance In the llfo of the dir. ro This Is especially truo daring the rater ee soason when the streams are fl0''! be full nnd contact may be mnlntabM of by water with the northern part J ho Uie country. A continual stream -rif heavy rice boats bring their carroeiw th grain to the city's rice mills and ar It chants, and great rafts of teak leg Is- float In from the hill country. In tM nd center of the Btream are anchored t es sels from many foreign ports, wi ' swarm of lighters busy about then As In many Chinese rivers, -Is bouts lino Uie shores of the MenaflM m ko Bangkok, being tied In tiers fonr m er Are deep In places. ret Power of Monarch Limited. ng Theoretlcalty Slam 1b an absoiw' sh do monarchy nnd In addition tho IM ho the supreme spiritual head. In prjf Is tlce, however, tho power of the o arch Is limited, ne Is surronndMW H ial a council of ministers, suggests Wf H he Intlon to n council of state, fa B Is colves the advice of a privy H Is European methods of government w n ry boon introduced nnd courts nave o H m- established on British models. government postal systm Is In w m ul- tlon nnd telegraphic lines c01"1., lid capital with tho provinces b lly with tho outsldo world. er- Through nn education iy- the stato has established pwj'c ,M m. nd throughout tho kingdom, lh- system Is. nnturnlljH best In tne m H In Tho old system of education w H j he Buddhist priests In tho tempi ft( H i mi tlnued, however, nnd thousanoi bo- boys of tho country receive h, in- mcntnry training In thnr way. H he the primary educational fnclll iw H ;ho those of the hlghor branches a". sh nd rlnlly supplemented by schools re- talncd by Christian mMlonrtJ lue But though Slam. :ho absorbed woatern Ideas m rr on- government and clvi llsnttoo. , frf H like the Island Empire roc". ffl bn, ng. Itself along the new 1 ,an so far, retained B or practically nil branches o : w H , a mental activities SbliB: ls may depend much onjYndftnllW " fl Ion icy Is to be followed Indefl H ; it Tbether the kingdom shall " H sco follow the Plan of Jopnn, Hi |