Page:History of the Indian Archipelago Vol 3.djvu/189

 ASIATIC NATIONS. 173 The state of the arts of ship-building and navi- gation among nations afford us at once an easy and certain criterion to judge of their comparative civi- lization and barbarism. This applies as well to the nations of Asia among themselves, as to those of Europe among each other. The vessels and ships of the Chinese are, notwithstanding their imperfec- tion, greatly superior in construction, size, and utility, to those of all other Asiatic people, who have not had the assistance of Europeans, or their example. The common Chinese name for these vessels, which perform foreign voyages, is Tcheou. The Portuguese call them Soma, the Indian island- ers U'angkang, and we name them Junks, a cor- ruption of the word Jung, meaning a large vessel, in contradistinction to boats or canoes, in several of the languages of the western portion of the Ar- cliipelago. Almost all the junks employed in the commerce between the Indian islands and China are built at Bangkok, on the great river of Siam, and the capital of that kingdom. This is chosen for its convenience, and the extraordinary cheapness and abundance of fine timber, especially teak, which it affords. The parts of the vessel under water are constructed of ordinary timber, but the upper works of ieak. Iron bolts are used in fixing the frame and planking. The seams are very neatly caulked, with an oakum made from the bamboo, and the bottom is payed with the sort of rosin which the