Siam
2 of the 7 encyclopedias on this shelf carry an entry for Siam. Both are reproduced below, so you can see where they agree and where they differ.
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
a kingdom embracing a great part of the Indo-Chinese Peninsula and part of the Malay Peninsula, and lying between Burma on the W., and Annam and Cambodia on the E. and S. E. Its boundaries are ill defined on the N. and N. E., but its area is estimated at about 195,000 square miles, and its population (1919) at 8,924,000. Capital, Bangkok. Pop. 630,000. Topography. A large part of the territory is not well known. Siam proper consists mainly of the low-lying alluvial basin of the Menam and its numerous tributaries, which flows S. into the Gulf of Siam, forming an extensive and intricate delta. This alluvial plain, intersected by numerous streams and canals, is extremely fertile, producing crops of rice, sugar, cotton, maize, and indigo. Both sides of the Manam basin are skirted by densely wooded ranges of hills, forming the water partings toward the Salwin and Mekong, the latter of which is the great river of eastern Siam. The minerals include gold, tin, iron, copper, lead, zinc, and antimony, besides several precious stones, such as the sapphire, Oriental ruby, and Oriental topaz. Mining is chiefly in the hands of the Chinese. Much of Upper Siam seems incapable of being cultivated. During the dry season, which lasts from November to May, there is an utter absence of rain in this region, which again is so flooded by rain during the wet season as to be converted into a vast swampy forest. Cocoa and areca palms are numerous in Siam; fruits are abundant and of excellent quality; black pepper, tobacco, cardamoms, and gamboge are important products. The forests produce aloes wood, sappan wood, teak timber, bamboos, rattans, gutta percha, dammar, catechu, benzoin, etc. Among wild animals are the tiger, leopard, bear, otter, ourang-outang, single-horned rhinoceros, and elephant, which here attains a size and beauty elsewhere unknown. The last, when of a white color, is held in the highest reverence. The forests abound with peacocks, pheasants, and pigeons; and in the islands are large flocks of the swallows that produce the famed edible birds' nests. Crocodiles, geckoes, and other kinds AA-Cyc of lizards, tortoises, and green turtles are numerous. The python serpent attains an immense size, and there are many species of snakes. Commerce and Finances. Practically the entire trade of the country is in the hands of foreigners and in recent years many Chinese have settled in the country and have become important in commercial activities. The total imports in 1918 and 1919 amounted to £7,930,147, and the exports £12,469,956. The principal imports are cotton goods, foodstuffs, raw material, metal manufactures and machinery, mineral oils, silk goods, and tobacco. The chief exports are rice and teak. The total revenue in 1919-20 amounted to £5,853,- 846 and the expenditure to £5,850,526. The total national debt in March 31, 1920, was £6,630,960. A British officer holds the position of financial adviser, and other British officers hold advisory positions in the government, especially in the departments of finance, revenue, forests, and police. Army and Navy. - Military service is compulsory and the army is organized along European lines. The peace strength is over 20,000 men. The navy consists nominally of 21 vessels, but they are of little effective value. Government. The executive power is in the hands of the king who is advised by a cabinet consisting of the heads of the various departments of the government. There is also a legislative council composed of not less than 12 members, appointed by the Crown. The total membership in 1920 was 40. The kingdom om vided into 18 provinces, of which 17 have each a lord lieutenant, taking their authority directly from the king, who in 1920 was Chao Fa Maha Vajiravudh, who succeeded his father in 1910. His official title is King Rama VI. People. The Siamese are members of the great Mongolian family, and of the same race as the people of Burma and Annam. In stature they do not average more than 5 feet 3 inches in height; they have a lighter colored skin than the Western Asiatics, but darker than the Chinese. Elementary education is general, most of the Siamese being able to read and write. The houses are mostly constructed of timber and bamboo, and in localities subject to inundation are raised on piles. The Siamese profess Buddhism, introduced into the country about the middle of the 7th century. Christianity is now making some progress in the country. Some of the temples are large and elaborate structures richly decorated. The language forms a connecting link between the Chinese and Malay. The written characters seem to be derived from a form of Sanskrit. The literature is Vol 8 meager, uninteresting, and in point of imagination and force of expression much below the Arabic, Persian, or Hindustani. The language of the chief Buddhist works is Pali. The printing press has been introduced in recent years, and many of the best Siamese works can now be had in a printed form. History. Siam appears to have no place in history prior to A. D. 638, and the credible records go back only to 1350, the date of the foundation of Ayuthia, the old capital. The Portuguese established intercourse with Siam in 1511, but in the 17th century were gradually supplanted by the Dutch. English traders were in Siam very early in the 17th century, but in consequence of a massacre their factory at Ayuthia was abandoned in 1688. The French were expelled about the same time, and the trade was neglected till 1856, when Sir J. Bowring's treaty again opened up Siam to Europeans. The French, desiring access to China by means of the river system of the peninsula, accused Siam of encroaching on the territory of Annam, and in 1893 sent a fleet to Bangkok, where peace was dictated. Cambodia and the territory E. of the Mekong river were placed under French protection. A belt extending for a distance of 25 kilometers W. of Mekong was neutralized and valuable trade privileges were conceded to France. From that time the French sphere of influence gradually extended still further west and by a treaty made in 1904 France obtained control of about 8,000 square miles to the W. of the Mekong and the S., as well as other territory. By a treaty between France and Great Britain made in the same year, the territories to the W. of the Menam and the Gulf of Siam were recognized as in the British sphere of influence, while those to the E. were in the French. France and Great Britain guaranteed the future integrity of Siamese territory. In 1907, however, more territory was ceded to France and in 1909 three states were ceded to Great Britain. A conspiracy against the king was discovered in 1912, which was put down with great severity. Siam remained neutral in the World War until July 22, 1917, when war was declared against the Central Powers. At the invitation of the Allied governments a force of volunteers were sent to France in 1918. These comprised chiefly aviation troops. In recent years Siam has developed greatly commercially and economically. The government has been well administered and there has been notable improvement in the condition of the people.
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
si-am', an independent kingdom situated in southwestern Asia. It lies in that part of the continent, which, from its intermediate position, is called Indo-China. France claims the eastern part of Indo-China; Great Britain claims the west. Siam retains the territory between them that these two powers have been pleased to leave it. It includes a part of the long Malay peninsula. On a school map Siam seems a small country. In reality it is larger than France, and has a population greater, it is thought, than that of Sweden. From June to November, the Menam River overflows its valley. It is sometimes called the Nile of Siam. The valley of the Nile is famous for wheat; that of Menam for rice. Rice is the chief food of the people. The rice crop is entirely dependent on the annual overflow for its success. Siam has three regions of interest--the uplands and mountains, the river plains, and the city of Bangkok. Minister John Barrett crowds a volume of description into the following brief paragraph: For eight hundred miles the mother of waters flows through dense jungles where Englishmen in khaki helmets go to hunt for elephants; through broad paddy fields, where little brown men in bamboo hats snare rice birds; then it divides the city of Bangkok in two parts, and goes outward in majesty to the sea. It is the good and evil of Siam, and the priests watch it as they watch for the nod of Buddha. The sapphire, ruby, and the topaz, tin, iron, copper and lead, zinc and antimony, are found in the hills and mountains of Siam. Cocoa and other palms are found in the dense jungles. Vast quantities of teak wood are sent down to the river. The work of carrying the timbers out of the jungles is performed by trained elephants who balance the logs on their tusks. Rice, as stated, is the chief crop. Indian corn, sweet potatoes, the mango, pomegranate, guava, pineapple, and black pepper, as well as tobacco and cotton, are produced in considerable quantities. There is really little limit to the future possibilities of Siam in this direction. The Menam is full of fish. Cormorants, kingfishers, storks, and pelicans take their share. Crocodiles, lizards, tortoises, and green turtles bury their eggs on the shore. Geese and ducks nest in the reeds and swim about on the waters, unless they are pulled under by a hungry crocodile. Rats and mice, squirrels, and porcupines, are the chief gnawing animals. The tiger, the leopard, the bear, the wildcat, and a wild dog, with several species of deer, are found in the forests. The one-horned rhinoceros is common. There are many large serpents, including the python. In the remotest jungles, the largest elephants known may be found. They are not very wild. The natives make a practice of capturing them and training them to work. There are a few white specimens--mere huge albinos--which are regarded by the inhabitants as sacred. They are kept in the temples, none but royalty may ride on one. The reverence paid this animal has gained for Siam the name of the "Land of the White Elephant." Bangkok is a picturesque city. The number of its inhabitants can only be estimated, but its population is believed to equal to that of St. Louis, Boston, or Baltimore. It is built on islands near the mouth of the Menam River. The houses are of light bamboo construction and stand on piles. A large number of temples, with lofty, gilded spires, and palaces surrounded by large gardens, give the city a picturesque appearance. A large part of the population lives in house-boats, which are moored, seven or eight deep, along the shores. The boatmen are engaged in fishing, and in carrying goods up and down the river from the head waters of the Menam to Singapore. They and their families have no other homes. The people of Siam belong to the yellow race. They are short in stature, averaging but little over five feet. In religion they are followers of Buddha, in whose service there are 5,000 temples and 60,000 priests. Ordinary laborers earn about fifteen cents a day. The principal exports of the country are rice, teakwood, dried fish, and pepper. Cloth, kerosene, opium, and hardware are the chief imports. There are telegraph lines and a few railroads. Bangkok has two electric street-car lines and electric lights. Siam is a member of the postal union. It costs but five cents to pay the postage on a letter to Bangkok from any postoffice in America. The lowest temperature known at Bangkok is 54 deg. F.; the highest 97 deg.; the mean average for the year is 81 deg. Frost is unknown. When the Siamese first came into contact with Europeans, they did not understand what snow and ice were. Two English travelers once told the king that in their country water grew so hard that people could walk and slide on it. He took grave counsel with his wisest advisers, and informed the foreign scientists, at least so the anecdote runs, that the presence of such accomplished liars was not desired in the kingdom of Siam. A feature of Siamese life of great interest to outsiders is the royal elephant hunt, the greatest hunt in the world. Unless interrupted by other matters, the king, accompanied by his court and a great number of tame elephants, beaters, and hunters, goes up each year to the interior of his country to drive wild elephants. A stockade or kraal has been built at a convenient place near the bank of the Menam River. A great extent of jungle is surrounded by a cordon of elephants and beaters. They advance toward the center, driving the wild elephants before them. As the hunt nears the center, droves of from ten to twenty-five of these immense beasts with their young may be seen fording the streams or threading the jungles, seeking to escape. The kraal is formed of immense timbers set on end after the manner of an American stockade. Openings are left for the elephants to enter. The elephants come plunging wildly through the forest and find themselves in the stockade before they are aware. The jam at the passages is not infrequently so great that some of the weaker elephants are injured or killed. When two terrified elephants attempt to pass through a narrow opening at the same time, neither will back out. A roundup of this sort brings not infrequently as high as 250 elephants, large and small. When they come from the forest the old elephants are, as a rule, gaunt and wrinkled. They are encrusted with mud or even covered with moss. They are sorted by their captors. The finest are taken for royal service or for use in the cities. The great bulk, however, are tamed by hunger and trained to carry teak through the forests and load timbers at the wharves. After a few months of captivity, food, and currying they become sleek, contented, intelligent fellows, much attached to their keepers.