t  "  Kien  "  seems  to  be  the  same  word  as  "  Keng,"  in  Keng-tung
(pronounced  Tsing  by  the  K'ons  of  that  place);  "Tchen,"  in  Tchen-
Tching  ;  and  "  Chieng,"  in  Chieng-mai.
26  THE   SHANS

Chieng-mai,  they  did  not  need  to  enhance  their  beauty.  The
noble  ones  among  them  then,  as  now,  had  satin  embroidered
petticoats,  with  strips  of  embroidery  upon  their  jackets.
There  has  been  Httle  change  also  in  the  way  they  dressed
their  hair,  which  they  gathered  into  two  locks  and  braided
into  a  chignon.  That  describes  the  present  custom  of  the
Shan  women  over  there  very  well,  and  shows  how  observing
these  Chinese  writers  were.  Then,  as  now,  their  ears  were
ornamented  with  pearls,  greenstone  (?  jade),  and  amber.
The  next  is  a  libel  on  the  maidenly  modesty  of  the  girls  who,
we  are  told,  gadded  about  in  the  evenings  on  the  sly,  but  those
who  had  promiscuous  relations  were  permitted  to  marry."
There  is  no  such  "  gadding  "  now.  When  once  married,  the
penalty  for  adultery  was  death — and  still  is,  in  some  cases,
among  the  Shans  of  western  China.  They  made  a  condi-
ment, as  they  still  do,  of  fi^,  pepper,  and  ginger,  with  a
little  salt,  and  called  it  "  nga:HHieh."  "  Nga  "  was  an  old
Shan  word  for  fish,  and  is  still  used  in  some  sections ;
**  kueh  "  is  the  Shan  for  any  granulated  substance,  as  salt  or
sugar  ;  so  the  name  meant  simply  "  salted-fish."  Where  fish
are  scarce  or  hard  to  get,  beans  are  now  used  instead.
