by spells, in one day. Not only has he a great reputation
in these parts, but this gentleman himself had
been once previously treated by him with success,
for some years ago, at Taklakot across our border in
Tibet, when he had been suddenly attacked by a pain
in his abdomen and a fainting sensation in the head,
the “ Lama,” who chanced to be there at the time,
cured him by incantations in one night, and he became
quite well. So on this present occasion, being ill with
fever and ague, he was perfectly willing to use European
medicines, but the faithful “ Lama ” was also summoned.
The diagnosis proved that, when the fall
had taken place, a wind (Hawa) had struck the patient,
and this had been made more serious by the fact that
a demon on the road had overlooked him. This demon
is abroad both by day and night, and generally rides
some steed, and is always accompanied by a dog with
a bell fastened round its neck. The cure lay in enchantments,
the rubbing on of butter over which a
spell had been cast (I saw the butter), the use of mesmerism,
in which the Lama was a proficient by popular
report, and massage of the limbs from the upper part
of the body down towards the legs. Last, but not
least, there was fetched a white goat, and the pain and
the devil were massaged down to the foot, and thence
into the goat, which was then immediately removed to
some distance. The subtle humour of the situation lay in
the fact that the “ Lama” subsequently ate the g o a t!
The whole of the above took place as described,
for we were frequently seeing the patient, and
there can be no question that, for the time being,
the pain was removed and the fever reduced, the
patient becoming immensely better, although subsequently
there was a relapse. Now no preaching in
the world will persuade the camp that there is no
potency in spells ; they have seen with their own eyes,
and against this reasoning what arguments will prevail
?
ALONG THE KALI RIVER
To Garbyang there came a havildar, a non-commissioned
officer in the army, who went out shooting
and saw a phantom girl, whom he chased attracted by
her beauty, and every time he tried to catch her she
became a rock in his embrace. He was led by this
siren on to a terrible precipice, and in the darkness
that came on he lost his way, and a search party had