Chiang Rai province (Thailand), raft carrying men across the river

This set of images of Thailand was acquired by the American Geographical Society from Robert Larimore Pendleton (1890 -1957), soil scientist and Professor of Geography at John Hopkins University. The pictures were taken during Pendleton's research visits to Thailand from the mid 1930s to 1950s. Pendleton served as agricultural adviser to the United Nations FAO Mission to Siam [Thailand] in 1947-1948 and as the soil scientist at the US Mutual Security Agency's Special Technical and Economic Mission to Thailand in 1952-1953.Though this river, the Mekok [Maekok], had broken through this mountain range, we failed to find saddle trails across the mountains. So we had to leave our horses and have rafts made to carry us. Here our second raft is passing through a region of regrowth forest, following kaingining [slash-and-burn agriculture]. Chieng Rai province [Chiang Rai province], northern Thailand. December, 1938.Grayscal