PHYSICAL ASPECTS iocj
precise limits are as yet undetermined ; and the hold over its northern
end, peopled by the most backward of all the wild communities that
inhabit the Province, the Was, is at present of the lightest.
With reference to rainfall and population, Burma falls into four main
natural divisions: the Upper Burma wet, the Upper Burma dry,. the
Lower Burma littoral and deltaic, and the Lower Burma sub-deltaic,
The Upper Burma wet division, with a rainfall of over go inches,
comprises the Shan States, the Chin Hills, and the Districts of Kàthâ,
Bhamo, Myitkyinâ, the Upper Chindwin, and the Ruby Mines : i.e. por-
tions of the Mandalay and Sagaing Cotnmissionerships. This mass of
hill country is the home of the Shans of the Shan States, the Shans
of Burma proper, the Kachins, the Chins, and a host of other hill tribes,
and may be said, roughly speaking, to comprise the whole of the non-
Burman areas of Upper Burma.
The Upper Burma dry division is an arid zone which extends across
.the valley of the Irrawaddy from the loth to the 23rd parallel of
latitude, and consists of plain land with a few sporadic hill masses
dotted over its surface.', It embraces the Districts of Minbu, Magwe,
Pakokku, Mandalay, - Shwebo, Sagaing, Lower Chindwin, Kyaukse,
Meiktila, Yamethin, and Myingyan-i. e. portions of the Mandalay,
Sagaing, and Minbu Commissionerships, and the whole of Meiltila-
being more. or less conterminous with the limits of She old kingdom
of Ava. Most of the old Burmese capitals-Pagan, Sagaing, Ava,
Shwebo, Amarapura, and Mandalay-are situated withiir its limits, and
the preponderating. element of its population is still Burman. The
rainfall is slight, save at its fringes.
The wet division.of Lower Burma stretches down the entire length
of the coast, including the whole of the Arakan and parts of the
Tenasserlm, PtVu,- arid;- Irrawaddy Commissionerships. North and
soûth -of the déifat country hill ranges approach the sea,-face, islands
Abound, and. such -lowlanders as there are have found a footing only
ii tlfe nllejs -tigaous fetches of plain land that occur here and
tire alb* seed. litre Burnians are comparatively scarce
in this-ar a; Aritü ése, Bengalis; and Chins form a large proportion
-ï6 tfie-Arakan portion; while to the south the Karens, Taungthus,
1Wngs; Siamese, Salons, and- Tavoyans make up a considerable sec-
tion of the community. The rainfall is ordinarily far in excess of roo
inches per arintim. The Districts of Akyab, Sandoway, Kyaukpyu,
Amherst, Tkaton, Tavoy, and Mergui belong to this division, as also
the Hill Tracts of Northern Arakan and Salween.
In the delta proper-i.e. in the Districts of Bassein, Pyapon,
Myaungmya, Maubin, Hanthawaddy, and Tegù-tht Country is. prac-
tically alf a. dead level. Such- rising ground -as- is found at its limit
is of iruxuiderable height: ` The population is -relatively dense; and
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