BUR'MA (corrupted from Mrumurel.
llyannaa, Barnua. Banta, probably connected with the introduction of Brahmanism). The largest and easternmost province of British India. It is included within the parallels of 10° and 2S° N., and the meridians 92' and 101° E., and ex tends from the southern border of Tibet far down into the Malay peninsula, with a total length of 1250 miles. eastern boundary of lIunna follows a meridian throughout the whole extent from north to south. The east and west extent. however, varies extremely, the country beginning at the south as a strip of territory 30 or 40 miles wide, and broadening toward the west, at about latitude 16° or 17° N., to a width of 200 miles. Above latitude 20° it again broadens slightly toward both cast and west, reaching its greatest width of about 550 miles in latitude 21° N. North of latitude 24° the breadth rapidly decreases to about 125 miles on the northern border. Burma has an area, exclusive of dependent native States, of 168,550 square miles, and is divided for ad ministrative purposes into Upper and Lower Burma. Lower Burma occupies the narrow strip of coast south of about latitude 22°, and Upper Burma occupies the remainder of the country ex tending inland as far south as latitude 18° 30'. Lower Burma comprises the former King dom of .:1rakan (q.v.) in the north and Ten asse•im (q.v.) in the south tooth acquired by the British at the close of the first Burmese War in 1826), and between these two the terri tory of the old Kingdom of Pep] (q.v.), acquired by the British at the close of the second Bur mese War in 1852. Upper lIfirma corresponds to the Kingdom 'of Burma as it existed at the time of the British conquest in 1885. Burma is bounded on the north by Assam and Tibet: on the east by China, French Indo-China, and Siam; on the south by the Bay of Bengal; and on the west by the Bay of Bengal, Bengal. and Assam. It extends from the lower waters of the Bay of Bengal on the south to the eastern end of the Himalayan Mountains on the north, tt is tray erred by a series of mountain ranges lying nearly north and south, while in the intervening Val leys flow the waters of the two great rivers, the Irrawaddy and the Salwin. with many large branches, and also several smaller rivers reach ing the coast. Thus the surface consists of many mountain ranges alternating closely with val leys, most of which are narrow, the valley of the Irrawaddy being by far the broadest and most important economically.
The mountains on the northern boundary, separating Burma from Tibet. Teach a height of 15„000 feet. The ranges which traverse the country in general diminish in height south ward, ranging. from S000 to 10,000 feet in the north to 6000 to 8000 feet in the latitude of Mandalay, and to 4000 to 6000 feet between the parallels of 18° and 20°. The Irrawaddy and
Salvia rivers rise in Tibet and are large streams at their entrance into Burma. The upper part of the valley of the Irrawaddy is narrow, as are the valleys of its upper tributaries. Indeed, above Mane, at the month of the Taping. the main river flows in a mountain gorge, and im mediately below this point, in cutting through a mountain range, it flows in a narrow cation. A few miles above Mandalay it enters a broad plain, through which it passes; a hundred miles below Aland:day it is joined by the Chimlwin, its largest branch. Its delta is very extensive, being nearly 200 miles in length, with an area of 18,000 square miles. These delta lands are extremely fertile. are densely populated. and are highly cultivated. The mean discharge of the river at its mouth is estimated at 480.000 cubic feet per second, or about the same as that of the e:anges. It is subject to great floods in the rainy season, the flow at this time being often eighteen times as great as at low water. It is navigable for large river steamers as far as Mandalay, and for smaller craft some distance above Bhamo.
The Salwin is second only to the Irrawaddy in volume. This river throughout its course in Bur ma flows in a narrow valley, hemmed in by moun tains, and affording little level land for cultiva tion. It is navigable for only a short distance, owing to frequent rapids. The Sittang heads south of Mandalay, and flows in a broad valley between the Irrawaddy and the Salwin. Thereare hundreds of minor streams in this well-watered country, but as they partake of the nature of mountain torrents. or are fed by them, they are useless for navigation, at least during the dry season. After the rainy season has begun the larger rivers are crowded with the native boats, for the waterways are the highways of the coun try. Even before the rain sets in the great riv ers begin to swell, owing to the melting of the Himalayan snows. Toward the beginning of July the rivers and their tributaries usually rise ten to twenty feet, submerging their banks and flood ing the low lands. In many places, where in dry weather a •art-track is found, there is. dur ing the wet season, a creek navigable by heavily laden boats. The whole aspect of the country and the mode of life are thus changed with the alternations from dry to wet seasons. The vil lages of the delta are accessible by water, and it is at this season that the heavy traffic of the country is carried on. At Mandalay, where the Irrawaddy is about 2 miles wide, the water rises 30 feet, and in the Salwin there is a rise of 50 feet. These high-water levels are maintained with some flurtuations till September.