sturdy and well-shaped, small ears and clean legs, and
at this time of the year as fat as pigs. The baggage
is fastened on a small wooden saddle, with a thick pad
of felt beneath to protect the animal’s back, and the
whole is then lashed firmly o n ; then away they go at
their best pace in one jostling crowd, and since the
road consists in many places only of a mere ledge cut
out of the cliff, with a sheer drop into the river below,
it is wonderful how, in the numerous scrimmages which
take place, so few accidents occur.
The Brahmaputra (known to these people as the
Matsang, or Horse’s Mouth) now rushed through a gorge
between steep and sometimes precipitous cliffs, and
though this was the dry season, the volume of water
was still considerable. Pretty little hamlets, surrounded
by trees and cultivated land, were dotted along both
banks, and occupied all the gentler slopes at the mouths
of the nullahs. Just before reaching the camp at
Chap-trang, a small village containing only four
inhabitants, we were met by the two chief men, who
came running along to greet us, bowing to the ground
every few yards. They were much excited, and not
knowing to whom to give the inevitable white scarf of
greeting, concluded that the Gurkha orderly who
carried the flag must be the most important individual,
and insisted, despite the Gurkha’s protests, in presenting
it to him. On arrival we found that Ka Sang had
already made himself at home in the best rooms of
the house.
The reception rooms of a Tibetan house are far
from uncomfortable, and when clean and swept present
many advantages over the more pretentious buildings
of other lands; at any rate, they appear to after a long
and tiring journey, when the rather grimy walls are
found to be hung with cotton prints and embroideries,
P in -d zo -l in g T e m p l e a n d M o n a s t e r y .