05 
 1^00 
 
 CORNELL 
 
 UNIVERSITY 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 Gift of 
 
 Professor Milton Barnett 
 
 /l^/^2> f-^oA; -//<> 
 
CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARV 
 
 3 1924 067 074 405 
 
 CORNELL UivJlVERSIT^ 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 ITHACA, i^I / 14853 
 
 Charles W. Wason Collection 
 on East Asia 
 
Cornell University 
 Library 
 
 The original of this book is in 
 the Cornell University Library. 
 
 There are no known copyright restrictions in 
 the United States on the use of the text. 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924067074405 
 
JEM 
 
AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 BY THE 
 
 REV. JAMES GILMOUR, M.A. 
 
 r 
 
 LONDON MISSION, PEKING. 
 
 -'^ 
 
 
 ;-_=-__.j| r ^ 
 
 MONGOL GIItLS. 
 
 LONDON : 
 
 THE EELIGIOUS TEACT SOCIETY, 
 56 Patbenostek Kow, and 66 St. Paul's Chtteohtabd. 
 
^^im 
 
 ^^«MJi 
 
PREFATORY NOTE. 
 
 In its original form this book had a large circulation, 
 and excited an unusual amount of interest. It was 
 felt that the writer was a man of fervent missionary 
 enthusiasm ; it was evident also that he was a man 
 of strong and decided views, fully equal to the task 
 of making those views clear to the mind of the reader. 
 
 But Mr. Gilmour possessed also a very marked literary 
 style. In fact the reviewer of the book in the Spectator 
 went so far as to compare it to the writings of Daniel 
 Defoe, and to say : " The newness and value of the 
 book consist solely in its Defoe quaUty, that when 
 you have read it you know, and will never forget, 
 all Mr, Gilmour knows and tells of how Mongols 
 Uve." 
 
 The book is now published in this new and cheaper 
 form in the hope that it may continue to do good. 
 It is full of incidents and adventures, and they are 
 
vi PREFA TOR r NOTE. 
 
 all "real true"; it is full of valuable and novel 
 information; it can be read simply for amusement of 
 a high type ; or — and this is the chief end for which 
 it is re-issued — it can be read as one example out of 
 many of the noble, earnest, godly men who are bravely 
 fighting heathenism and sin in the dark places of the 
 earth, and who should be sustained by our sympathy 
 and our prayers. 
 
 It has been thought well to let Mr. Gilmour's own 
 account of his book stand, and so the original preface 
 follows this note. Mr. Gilmour, after a life of heroic 
 self-denial and strenuous effort to bring the Gospel 
 to the Mongols, died at Tientsin on May 21, 1891. 
 Those who desire to know more fully what manner 
 of man he was, and what he endured in the service 
 of Jesus Christ, should read the story of his life, 
 entitled, James Gilmour of Motigolia. 
 
PEEPACE TO THE FIEST EDITION. 
 
 This book aims at representing to the western reader 
 whatever is most noteworthy and interesting in the 
 home life, manners and customs, occupations and 
 surroundings, modes of thought, superstitions and re- 
 ligious beliefs and practices of the Mongol tribes who 
 inhabit the eastern portion of the plateau of Central 
 Asia lying between Siberia on the north and China 
 on the south. 
 
 It is not a missionary's report nor a traveller's diary, 
 nor a student's compilation, but has for its source 
 things seen, heard, and experienced by me while 
 travelling with natives through the desert, sharing 
 with them the hospitality of the wayside tent, taking 
 my turn in the night-watch against thieves, resting in 
 the comparative comfort of the portable cloth travelling 
 tent, or dwelling as a lodger in their more permanent 
 abodes of trellis-work, and felt while engaged first of all 
 in learning the language and acquainting myself with 
 the country, and afterwards in the prosecution of my 
 missionary duties. 
 
vlii PREFACE. 
 
 Starting from Peking as head-quarters, I first saw the 
 plain in August, 1870, and during most of the inter- 
 vening years have spent the summer months itinerating 
 among the tribes to the west, north, and east of Kalgan ; 
 and have had the opportunity during the winter months 
 in Peking of meeting Mongols who come to that great 
 centre on Government duty from nearly all the tribes 
 scattered over the vast extent of desert territory which 
 acknowledges the Chinese rule. 
 
 Knowledge of the language and familiarity with the 
 people, combined with carefulness of observation and 
 caution of statement, lead me to believe that the 
 information contained in the book is correct and 
 reliable. 
 
 With regard to the Buddhism spoken of through- 
 out the work generally, and especially treated of in 
 the eighteenth chapter, it should be remembered that 
 this is not the theoretic system of that ancient religion, 
 but the development of it which now obtains in the 
 practical life of the present-day Mongols, namely, the 
 old doctrines mixed up with extraneous beliefs and 
 superstitions native and imported, and for which 
 perhaps the best name would be Lamaism. 
 
 The engravings which are described as native sketches 
 are the work of a Chinese artist in the border town of 
 Kalgan, and his pictures, though a little at fault in 
 some minor details, are correct enough in the general 
 impression they give of the scenes represented. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 FIRST ACQUAINTANCE WITH MONGOLIA. 
 
 PAOK 
 
 Landed on the plain in the dark. Morning on the plain. Boiling 
 tea. Russian soldier's adventure with dogs. Fellow-travellers 
 arrive in the night. Start in morning. Midday halt. Parting 
 feast. Russian manner of adieu. Fairly away into the desert. 
 Members of the caravan. Order of march. Difficulty of 
 intercourse. Pocket-dictionary. Shooting ducks and geese. 
 Commissariat department. Fresh camels. Urga. North of 
 Urga mountainous and wooded. Cross mountain range. 
 Accident. Eiachta in sight. Devotions in Russian church. 
 Mongol lama's present 19 — 28 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 PICKING UP MONGOLIAN. 
 
 Mongolian Phrase-book. Mongolian teacher in Kalgan. Mis- 
 taken sentence. Note-book and pencil in Buriat tents. An 
 object of suspicion. Buriat teacher in Kiachta. Progress 
 unsatisfactory. Take to the plain. Lama at his prayers. 
 Mongolian lodgings. Suitability of the tent. Manner of 
 study. Progress. Lessons not a success. Purity of the 
 language in the tent. Corrupt nature of general Mongolian 
 conversation. Mode of life in the tent. " Steam of the cold." 
 Tea. Porridge for "Our GilmouT." Dinner. Tripe. Bed. 
 Charcoal. Wood fuel. Tent on fire. Snow and ice melted 
 for water. Lama host goes home. New Mongol lodgings. 
 Quarrel between father and son. Night alarm. Flight. 
 Lodgiugs in South Mongolia 29 — 45 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 THE BAIKAL IN WINTER. 
 
 The Baikal regarded as saored by the Russians, Date of freezing. 
 Affects the felt cold of the atmosphere. Marine boiler. Snow 
 near the Baikal. Ridges and hills of ice. Ice on edge. 
 Transparent ice. Thickaess of the ice. Track across the lake 
 
X CONTENTS. 
 
 PAtlE 
 
 marked out by trees. Kestaurant on the middle or the lake. 
 Boats on the beach. Customs barrier. Baggage searched. 
 Irkutsk. Curious honey casks. Chinese in Irkutsk. Irkutsk 
 in a thaw. Snowstorm on the Baikal. Racing on the ice. 
 Change of horses. Sledge upset. Expansion and contraction 
 of the ice. Effect of thaw on the Baikal. Change of season 
 troublesome in crossing the Baikal .... 46 j5 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 TEACES OF THB OLD BUEIAT MISSION. 
 
 Tombs at Selenginsk. Tombs at Onagen Dome. Log-built 
 mission houses. Siberia of the present day. Deyoteduesa 
 of the missionaries. Russians think the missionaries dirty. 
 Russians do not understand religious enthusiasm. Modes 
 of caiTyiug on mission work. Translation of the .Scrip- 
 tures. An energetic Buriat. The mission closed by order 
 of the Emperor. Converts compelled to join the Greek 
 Church. Results of the mission .... 56 — 72 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 LEAKNING TO RIDE. 
 
 First lessons. Mongols ride with short stirrups. A six hundred 
 mile ride. Buying a whip. The start. Crossing the Tola in 
 flood. A Mongol's exhortation. Camping out. Dreams. Fall. 
 Rat pits. Mending harness. Mode of journey. Hospitality 
 of the poor better than that 'of the rich. Inhabitants. 
 Influenza. Animals in tents. We prefer to camp out. Guide 
 bewildered at his native place. Find a trail. Guide's home. 
 Character of guide. Reputation among his countrymen. 
 New guide. Rainless district. Change to camels. Camels 
 and horses compared. " Have you a revolver ? " Mending a 
 camel's foot. Gobi. A hill with one side. A thirsty ride. 
 Stones of Gobi. A tent at last. Tea in the desert. Enchanted 
 land. Stony illusion. Recollection of Gobi like a' nightmare. 
 Progress in learning to ride. Snatches of sleep. A green 
 land. Miss our way. ""What shop do you belong to?" 
 Kalgan 73—98 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 A NIGHT IN A Mongol's tent. 
 
 A dust storm. Tents. Hospitality. Quarters for the night. A 
 reading lama. Reading the gospel by fire-light. " Yes, I have 
 spent a good night " 99 — 103 
 
CONTENTS. jji" 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 ■ING BXPBEIENCE. 
 
 PAOB 
 
 Preliminary preparations. "Waiting for a Mongol. My first camel. 
 Load up and start to look for a servant. Upset. A Mongol 
 manufacturing gunpowder. Hire a servant. Chanting prayers 
 for the dead. A runaway camel. Fit oat and start. Camel 
 driver incompetent. Camel sticks. Put back and lightened. 
 Dog carries off mutton. Camels unsuitable for my purpose. 
 Sell off. Poetical justice. Ox-carts. Oxen. Camels and oxen 
 compared. Tents. Mongols thoughtless and careless . 104 — 117 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 now TO TEATBL IN MONGOLIA. 
 
 How Mongols travel. On camels with a tent. On horseback. In 
 ox-carts or horse-carts. On foot. Incidents eii route. How 
 Chinamen travel. Camel cart travelling for foreigners gener- 
 ally. Requisites. Scenes on the plain. Pleasantost part of 
 the ride. Customs to be observed by travellers. Mongols 
 hospitable and desire reciprocity .... 118 — 129 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 , DINING VflTH A MONGOL. 
 
 The invitation. My host preparing himself for dinner. Conversa- 
 tion under difficulties. Arrival of a congenial companion. 
 Dinner ready and served up. The piece of honour. The 
 proper custom. The second course. Early hours. Why the 
 rum'p is the piece of honour. Paying a Mongol in his own 
 coin. A live dinner 130 — 134 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 APPEAL TO A MONGOL MANDAKIK. 
 
 The use of a passport. Hiring horses. Stopped on the highway. 
 A horse left on our hands. Asking advice of a local mandarin. 
 The mandarin's settlement of the case. Another quarrel over 
 a horse. A broken head. Fight in the tent. He would 
 leave his coat with me." " Ne exeat regno.'' Asking a 
 mandarin's advice. His official utterance. His private 
 opinion. Nothing private in Mongolia. Eeconoiliation. Tit 
 for tat 135—14:4 
 
XU CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 LAMA MIAO. 
 
 Situation. Meaning of name. Trading centre. Man being 
 starved to death. The cage. Demeanour of the criminal. 
 Tantalising the sufferer. The " Mirth of Hell." Jeering of 
 the crowd. Death. Hardheartednesa of the Chinese . 145 — 149 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 UEOA. 
 
 Religious capital of Mongolia. Situation. Mongol name. The 
 " Green House." View from behind the Russian Consulate. 
 Wind. The Chinese trading town. Chinese cash currency 
 introduced. Chinese not allowed to take their wives to IJrga. 
 Temples in the Mongol settlement. Praying- wheels at street 
 corners. Worship by prostration. Mongol reason for it. 
 The open market. Audacious eagles. The priestly part of 
 Urga. The trade of TJrga. Tea agencies. Beggars in the 
 market-place. Wickedness of Urga . , . 150 — 158 
 
 CHAPTER Xlll. 
 
 V7C" t'aI SHAN. 
 
 The great sacred place of Mongol pilgrimage. Advantages 
 secured by pilgrims. Surrounding scenery. "The hamlet 
 in the bosom of the mountains." Temple on hill- top. 
 Beauty of scenery. Temple above a gateway. Three 
 hundred praying-wheels. Immense praying- wheel. P'u Sa 
 T'ing. Pneumatic praying-wheel. *' The ice that never 
 melts." Shrines on hill- tops. Hardships of Mongol 
 pilgrims. Worn-out pilgrims escorted home. Expeditions 
 of lamas from Wu T'ai to Mongolia. System of granting 
 annuities , 159 — 171 
 
 CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 KALGAN. 
 
 Meaning of the name. A table-land eaten away by water. 
 Picking the bones of the skeleton. Picturesciue rocks. 
 " Heavenly fish." Houses perched on the hillside. Difficult 
 entrance. Custom of dismounting at the gate. Upper 
 Kalgan. Lower town. Building land scarce. Falling 
 stones. Thunderstorm at dark. Kalgan a great market for 
 Mongol wants. The Chinese trade. The tea trade. Tea 
 villages on the plain. Transport of tea to Siberia. Imports. 
 Soldiers' quarters. Governmeat oifices. American mission- 
 aries 172— 18i 
 
CONTENTS. ^jjf 
 
 CHAPTER XV. 
 
 DOCTORING THB MONGOLS. 
 
 Mongol doctors numerous. Mostly priests. They live in their 
 patient's house. Mongols make good patients. Belief in 
 water cure. Almost all Mongols suffer from disease. The 
 missionary swamped in the doctor. Mongol admiration for 
 the missionary doctor. The successful eye operation. Mongol 
 suspicious of morning walk. About an evening ride. About 
 writing. Missionary must not be a sportsman. Diseases 
 prevalent in Mongolia. Religious element in medicine. 
 Feeling the pulse. Swallowing medicine for external appli- 
 cation. Patients duped by Chinese traders. Curious oases. 
 Dying Chinaman. Mongol views on the galvanic battery. 
 Divination. The doctor taking his own medicine for example 
 sake. Medical knowledge helps to gain the good-will of the 
 Pi^ople 185—208 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 THE GOSPEL IN MONGOLIA. 
 
 Halt at tents. Scripture pictures. Books. Utility of tracts as 
 compared with Gospels. Difficulty experienced by a heathen 
 in understanding Scripture. Bibles and tracts should be sold 
 together. Mongols despise our Scriptures as small in extent. 
 Buddhism not to be successfully attacked through its deficient 
 astronomy and geography. The hope for Christianity among 
 the Mongols 209—215 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 Mongols' diffiottlties about Christianity. 
 
 Christianity regarded as superfluous. The grandeur of Buddhism. 
 If Clmstianity is true, Buddhism is false. The various forms 
 of Christianity. Paucity of Christian Scriptures. No liturgy 
 in our Bible. The Tiinity. Resurrection. Suilering. How 
 do we know our Bible to be true ? Mongols as a rule admit 
 that they are sinners. Counting beads. Buddhism says a 
 man can save himself. Thinks Christianity too easy. Finds 
 Christianity too difiioult. Answers to prayer. Some of the 
 objections are earnest, some are frivolous. Answer to many 
 objections. Material difficulties in the way of Mongols wUliug 
 to ficcept Christianity 216 227 
 
XIV CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 MONGOLIAN BUDDHISM. 
 
 PAOB 
 
 Buddhism as it exists now in Mongolia. Power of Buddhism over 
 its votaries. Noble 'ideas it has given the Mongols. Im- 
 mortality of the soul. Ten black sins. Five Zabsar ugwd 
 sins. Rewards and punishments. Humanity. Heaven and 
 Hell. Power of prayer. Adaptation to the capacity of its 
 votai'ies. Motives are recognised. Resemblances between 
 Buddhism and Christianity. Buddhism hinders material 
 prosperity. By the number of lamas. By its an'ogant self- 
 suUioiency. Hinders learning. Oppression exercised by the 
 lamas. Deceit practised by them. The living Buddha system. 
 The lama system a curse. To the lamas themselves. To the 
 people generally. Buddhism has no intelligent worship. 
 Buddhistic worship is debasing. Buddhistic good works 
 often do harm. Buddhism makes men sin in actions 
 which are indifferent. Buddhism fails to produce holiness. 
 Buddliism is a usurper 228 — 261 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 THE nnST OF THE WHITE MONTH. 
 
 Preparations, Mongol mode of eating. Amazement at the size 
 of foreigners' noses. Seven dinners ■ on the last day of the 
 year. Reflections suitable to the season. Embracing. 
 Salutation. "Lucky airt" for the year. Duration of the 
 feast and time of aeremonies 262 — 270 
 
 CHAPTER XX. 
 
 NOEBO'S MAERIAGl!. 
 
 Making a mistake. All hands at work. The silversmith. 
 Broken-legged brother of the bride. Cart-load of ladies. 
 Bridegroom and party arrives. Fight. Adorning the bride. 
 Ceremony at starting. A true weeper. Bridegroom's tent 
 barricaded. Homoeopathic remedy . . . 271 — 279 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 
 FRIENDLY MONGOLS. 
 
 Mongol dogs. Snuff-bottles Running the gauntlet. Furniture 
 and appearance of tent. Swallows' nest in tent. Common 
 sense versus Buddhism, "White food. Home-made fiddle, 
 ^longol song. PJea§ant rocollect}ojis, A suffering inhabitant. 
 
 280—289 
 
CONTENTS. XV 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 THIEVES IN MONGOLIA. 
 
 PAOB 
 
 \ dangerous man. Successful thieves respected. DifEoulties of 
 cattle-lifters. Famous locality for tliieves. Bold daylight 
 theft. Pilgrim's horse stolen. Strange adventure. A bow 
 at a venture. Hiding cattle. Way of transgressors is hard. 
 A good word for the Mongols. Buddhism does not repri>ss 
 stealing . 290—297 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 A MONGOL COURT OP JtrSTICE. 
 
 " Have you medicine good for wounds ? " Mental tonic wanted. 
 The justice-tent. The court opened. Onlookers. A row of 
 prisoners waiting trial. Punishment. Marnier of counting 
 the lashea. Various cases. Conditional confession. The 
 Governor-general. Fatality ahout confessing. Departure of 
 the judge. Defiant prisoner 298 — 307 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 A MONGOL PHISON. 
 
 Deputation from patients in prison. The staff of prison officials. 
 A prison with open doors. An-ival of turnkey with candle. 
 Appearance of turnkey. Chess-playing. Thunderstorm. 
 The dungeon. Mongol piisoners not in danger of escaping. 
 A feast in prison. Parting ceremonials. Irksomeness of 
 confinement to Mongol prisoners .... 308 — 316 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 WHISKY IN MONGOLIA. 
 
 " Have you caught the mares ? " " Is the airak good ? " The 
 taste of airak. The distillation of whisky. Milking of mares 
 not profitable. Leads to drunkenness. Fewness of teeto- 
 tallers. Behaviour of a good man when drunk. Evils of drink. 
 A whisky-loving living Baddha . . . 317 323 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 THE MIDSUMMEK FESTIVAL. 
 
 Summit-spring temple. Worshippers and traders encamped. 
 Carrying sacred books round the temple. Chinese traders. 
 Chinese restaurant. Arrival of worshippers. The Dault. 
 My turns comes. The OKam described. The Ch'am is a 
 representation in pantomime of the early history of Buddhism. 
 Passing under the Sawr. Carrying forth the Sawr. The 
 Bahel of dispersion. Thunderstorm. Carrying round 
 Maitreya . . 324—337 
 
xvi CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 MONGOL TOILET. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Difference between the dress of men and women. A Mongol's 
 
 rote is his room. Slovenly appearance of women's dress. 
 
 Dressing. "Washing. Mongols do not bathe. Snuff-bottle. 
 
 Women's hair ornaments. Men's dress very becoming. 838—343 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 mSOY IN MONGOLIA. 
 
 The hare and the lion. The tortoise in the well. The seven lice 
 and the flea. The trader and the madman. The crow and 
 the lama. The parrot and the king. The reformed cat. 
 Pebbles for jewels. The mouse and elephant. The pearl- 
 borer. The bad-tempered monkey. Fox and bird. The 
 painted fox. Strain at a gnat and swallow a camel. The 
 frog and the two geese ...... 344 — 354 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 MONGOL STORIES. 
 
 The recluse. The good king and the bad king. The wizari The 
 painter and the joiner 355 — 365 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 WOLVES IN MONGOLIA. 
 
 Sometimes not seen for a long time. Adventure. Wolves fear 
 Mongols. Wolves attack Chinamen. Encounters with wolves. 
 Wolf hunts. Oxen heading off a wolf. Wolves in the fold. 
 Wolves called " M)i7d dogrs " 366—374 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 THE MONGOLS IN PEKING. 
 
 Attractions ofifered to Mongols by Peking. Resident lamas. 
 Temples in Peking. Book-shops. Mongols come to Peking 
 on Government duty, on pilgrimages and to trade. The Wai 
 Kuan and the Li' Kuan. Christian books. Duration of the 
 Mongol season 37.5 — 383 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Hunting wolves in Mongolia . Frontispiece 
 
 Eussian soldier pursued by dogs . . 22 
 
 Mongol knife and sheath. 44 
 
 The sledge race . . 54 
 
 Selenginsk ... .... 57 
 
 Sheep crossing the Tola . . 75 
 
 A Mongol camp . . . 82 
 
 Catching horses on the plain 85 
 
 "Women gathering fuel . 91 
 
 Approaching the Great Wall by night 95 
 
 A runaway camel ... 110 
 
 Travelling tents . . 115 
 
 Mongol cart with shafts fastened to poles borne by two riders . 120 
 
 Travelling in a camel cart . . 124 
 
 Mongol mandarin and attendant 138 
 
 Pilgrims approaching a temple . 160 
 
 ■Mongol pipe and pouch .... . 175 
 
 Mule litter for mountain travelling . . 179 
 
 'Going for the doctor . , . . . . . 187 
 
 'Mongol chaim 23Q 
 
 B 
 
xviii LIST OF ILL USTRA TIONS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Praying-mills driven by wind 238 
 
 Mongol Lama of high rank . . . . . . ■ 245 
 
 Lama's cap when officiating .... 251 
 
 Mongol wooden image of Buddha . . 254 
 
 Mongol Lama ..... . 264 
 
 Scales for weighing silver . . . 272 
 
 Narrow escape of the little dog 282 
 
 Mongol girls . ... . 286 
 
 Mandarin of rank travelling in sedan carried by four horses and 
 
 preceded by his seal-bearer . . 306, 307 
 
 The Yellow Temple, Peking . . 332 
 
 Mongol tents and camels . . 378 
 
 Camel caravan an route . . . 382 
 
AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 FIHST ACQUAINTANCK WITH MONGOLIA. 
 
 Landed on the plain in the dark. Morning on the plain. Boiling tea. 
 Eussian soldier's adventure with dogs. Fellow-travellers arrive 
 in the night. Start in morning. Midday halt. Parting feast. 
 Eussian manner of adieu. Fairly away into the desert. Members 
 of the caravan. Order of march. Difficulty of intercourse. Pocket- 
 dictionary. Shooting duclcs and geese. Commissariat department. 
 Fresh camels. Urga. North of Urga mountainous and wooded. 
 Cross mountain range. Accident. Kiachta in sight. Devotions 
 in Eussian church. Mongol lama's present. 
 
 It had been dark some hours, and though late we 
 wore still travelling on, when suddenly a great outcry 
 of several voices was heard on our right, then the cart 
 could be felt diverging from the road on to the grass, 
 and a few minutes later we came to a standstill. 
 Crawling to the mouth of the cart and drawing back 
 the curtain, there could be seen dimly in the darkness 
 a Russian soldier on his knees blowing at a smoky fire 
 which now and then emitted a feeble flicker of flame, 
 just enough to reveal for a moment the face of the 
 
 B 2 
 
25 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 soldier and a gleam of the white inside of the half- 
 erected tent behind him. A number of people speaking 
 Mongolian in a loud voice gathered round the cart; 
 and as the eye became more accustomed to the sur- 
 roundings it was possible to discern the dark outline 
 of camels and baggage lying around in confusion. My 
 Chinese carter, in place of taking me to a Chinese 
 inn, as had been arranged, had taken me out on to 
 the open plain, and unhitching his two niules, went 
 off and left me in the encampment of the caravan of 
 Mongols who were to take me across the desert. 
 
 We had left Kalgan shortly after noon, and travelled 
 without stopping for refreshment. Part of our road 
 had been over a lofty mountain pass, where the keen 
 air gave edge to a keen appetite ; and after it was too 
 dark to read, the imagination had conjured up a very 
 charming picture of the array of dishes with which it 
 would be proper to celebrate the hospitality of the last 
 inn I could hope to see for a month. It was a surprise 
 to look out and see, not the courtyard of an inn, but a 
 caravan encamped on the open plain. The visionary 
 feast vanished, I was to have no more to do with inns, 
 I had already entered on the desert journey. 
 
 I had come fully equipped with provisions and cook- 
 ing utensils, and though everything was among the 
 baggage of the caravan it was not easy to find things 
 in the darkness. In addition it was already very late, 
 and the fire was slow to burn up. The rest of the 
 caravan had not dined, so that rather than cause delay 
 I declined the use of the fire which was offered me, and 
 accepted the invitation to share in the common meal. 
 This settled, we gathered round the fire to watch the 
 progress of the cooking. The large shallow iron pot 
 
SUNDAY ON THE PLAIN. 21 
 
 that -was produced was new, and the first process was 
 to clean it, but this cleaning was performed in such an 
 unsatisfactory way that I gave up the idea of sharing 
 the food cooked in it, bethought myself of a cold chicken, 
 with which a missionary lady, herself experienced in the 
 exigencies of Mongolian travel, had kindly and thought- 
 fully provided me, ate part of it by the light of the 
 fire, and leaving the Mongols and the Eussian soldier 
 filling their wooden cups from the pot which had just 
 been lifted from the grate, retired to my cart for the 
 night. The cart was long enough for a man to lie 
 stretched out at full length, and the fatigues of the 
 day and the strange surroundings of the place were 
 soon forgotten in sleep. 
 
 Next morning, on putting my head out of my cart, 
 I found that the sun was high in the heavens, the 
 Mongols were sitting round the fire watching the same 
 pot I had left them engaged with last night, this time 
 filled not with rice but with tea, the furious boiling 
 of which they were moderating by dipping it up and 
 pouring it back again from a height ; the camels were 
 dispersed at no great distance, grazing among the 
 profusion of vegetation and flowers that covered the 
 plain,; a little way off were some Mongol tents ; behind 
 was the green range of hills over which we had come 
 last night; before, the open plain over which we were 
 to start to-morrow. It being the middle of August, the 
 weather was at its best, and the plain in all its glory. 
 
 The day was Sunday, and as no one had anything to 
 do but wait for the arrival of the travellers who were to 
 complete the number of our caravan, all spent a day 
 of delicious repose. At one time the repose was 
 suddenly broken by a stirring incident. A great cry 
 
22 
 
 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 made us look towards the Mongol tents, and there we 
 saw our Eussian soldier running full speed, pursued by 
 the dogs of the place, which were rapidly gaining on 
 him. For a moment the issue seemed doubtful, but 
 the distance was not great, and he had time to dart in 
 at the low door before the baffled brutes overtook him. 
 
 RUSSIAN SOLDIER PUilSI/ED UY DOOa. 
 
 He had sauntered carelessly towards the tents with no 
 thought of danger, when the dogs, which had been a 
 little way off on the plain, suddenly spied him and gave 
 chase. But for the friendly warning of some one who 
 had noticed them, they would have been upon him 
 before he was aware. As soon as the pursued made 
 good his escape, the feelings of spectators, natives, and 
 
THE START. 
 
 23 
 
 the pursued himself found vent in laughter ; but tlie 
 adventure, though trivial in itself, was useful as teach- 
 ing, in a very graphic manner, the care that a stranger 
 must exercise in approaching Mongol habitations. 
 
 The evening came, but not our expected travellers, 
 and it was not till some time during the night that 
 their arrival broke the slumbers of our company. 
 
 The following day, after early breakfast, some friends, 
 who had come to convoy the Russian family in whose 
 company I was to cross the desert, went off for a 
 forenoon's shooting, while the Mongols set seriously to 
 work to arrange and load the camels for the first half- 
 day's march. Soon after we had encamped for the 
 niid-day halt, the sportsmen turned up, a feast was 
 prepared and discussed, the final adieus were said, the 
 parting being made all the more impressive by the 
 Russian men kissing each other, and, about an hour 
 before sunset, the separation took place, our friends 
 turning southwards towards China, we turning north- 
 wards towards Russia ; and feeling much as if on board 
 a ship starting on a voyage, when the pilot has just left 
 taking letters with the last salutations to our friends. 
 
 We were now fairly started on the journey of a month, 
 which was to take us from Kalgan, a town on the north 
 frontier of China, to Kiacnta, on the south frontier of 
 Russia, a distance of about eight hundred and forty 
 English miles. 
 
 The caravan consisted of the Russian postmaster, who 
 had been stationed some years at Kalgan, and was now 
 with his wife, four children, and a soldier — who spoke 
 of his master as the " Commandant," returning to his 
 native Siberia — myself, and four or five Mongols, to 
 manage the camels and camel-carts. 
 
24 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 The postmaster had two camel-carts for the personal 
 accommodation of himself and family, and several camels 
 carrying his provisions and goods. I had a camel-cart 
 and one loaded camel. The Eussian soldier perched 
 himself upon a camel load, and there were in addition 
 a string of camels carrying grain, the private trading 
 venture of the Mongols whose camels we hired. 
 
 The order of march was nearly as regular and mono- 
 tonous as the features of the desert itself At sunrise 
 all got up and cooked and ate breakfast. Then the 
 march began and lasted usually till noon, when, at some 
 favourable camping place, a halt was called, the camels 
 turned adrift to pasture, the main meal of the day 
 cooked and eaten, and a fresh start made about an 
 hour before sunset. This night march was the longest 
 continuing usually till after midnight, sometimes even 
 till dawn of next day. The desert roads for the most 
 part are not rough, and the motion of the cart did not 
 often disturb our sleep, but it was remarked that we 
 usually awoke when the cart came to a stand, just as 
 passengers in a steamer at sea wake up when the screw 
 stops. 
 
 As we travelled long stages, and were a good deal 
 occupied during the halts, — the Russian father and 
 mother with their children, I with my cookery, having 
 no servant, — we had scant leisure to faternise with each 
 other. Even when we had time and opportunity, we 
 could do little in the way of conversation. The Russian 
 lady knew no language but her own, of Russian I 
 knew nothing, so exchanges of courtesies between us 
 had to be conducted in dumb show. Her husband, the 
 " Commandant," knew some Chinese, of which I also 
 IfTiew a very little, and sometimes, whe#i our Chinese 
 
CONVERSATION UNDER DIFFICULTIES. 25 
 
 failed, the soldier was called upon to make a vain 
 attempt at communicating with me by means of 
 Mongolian, of which I know even less than of Chinese. 
 
 Almost the only time of day the postmaster and 
 I had for attempts at conversation was between sunset 
 and dark, when the children being quiet he and I would 
 walk together in the cool alongside of the caravan, and 
 hold what intercourse was possible. In desperate 
 extremities he had one resource. Diving into the depths 
 of his trouser-pocket, he would produce from that 
 receptacle a Russian-Chinese phrase-book, turn over the 
 leaveS; and point out to me the Chinese characters, 
 hoping that I might recognise them. Sometimes I 
 recognised them, sometimes I did not. 
 
 The postmaster, like most Russians that came to 
 Kalgan, was a sportsman and a very good marksman, 
 and frequently gave a pleasant variety to our table 
 by shooting wild ducks and geese. On one occasion he 
 bagged four out of a flock of geese that had alighted on 
 the bank of a small river. This was all the more to 
 his credit as he was short of shot, and had taken to 
 gathering minute pebbles from the road with which to 
 eke out his failing ammunition. 
 
 In the matter of provisions we each had our own 
 supply, the only real difficulty being meat. In starting 
 for Kalgan I had a stock of dried mutton, the post- 
 master had a crateful of chickens. The chickens and the 
 dried mutton ran out simultaneously, when we bought 
 sheep as we found necessary, the postmaster taking the 
 largest share for his numerous family, a smaller portion 
 being alloted to me, and the Mongols coming in for 
 the entrails, which they seemed to consider a great 
 delicacy. 
 
26 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 After travelling about three hundred miles, the 
 Mongols made a detour from the straight road to their 
 own home, and furnished us with fresh camels and 
 men, who took us on to Urga, about six hundred miles 
 from Kalgan, where their contract ended. Here, 
 through the kindness of the postmaster, I was hospit- 
 ably accommodated in the consulate premises for the 
 two days that elapsed before Mongols and camels could 
 be found to take us the remaining third of our journey, 
 to Kiachta. 
 
 North of Urga the aspect of the country entirely 
 changes. In place of a great plain destitute of trees, 
 we found a mountainous region clothed with forests, 
 and intersected with streams running through fertile 
 valleys. On leaving Urga we had to provide ourselves 
 with bricks of tea for the purpose of hiring oxen to drag 
 our carts over a mountain pass too steep and too lofty 
 to be accomplished by camels. The loaded camels got 
 over the pass without much difficulty, but so steep were 
 the hills that our carts proved a heavy pull for the 
 strong oxen even that are kept and hired out to assist 
 travellers in crossing the mountains. The whole journey 
 was accomplished in nearly the stipulated time and 
 without serious misadventure. 
 
 But lesser accidents were not wanting. One nisrht 
 I woke up feeling involved in a kind of chaos. My 
 cart had upset, and I was mixed up under most of the 
 things that were inside. It took me some time to 
 scramble out, and when I succeeded I found the Eussian 
 soldier making a vigorous assault on the Mongol by 
 whose carelessness the accident had happened. Seeing 
 the " Commandant " coming up to reinforce his sub- 
 ordinate, I hastened to interpose, and found I was none 
 
PlJiSr SIGHT OF KIACHTA. 
 
 37 
 
 too soon, for the Mongol had proved no match for the 
 Russian, and had akeady been severely handled. 
 
 One morning, at the end of the stipulated month, we 
 suddenly emerged from a belt of pine forest, and straight 
 before us, seemingly at no great distance, on the other 
 side of a broad, shallow valley, stood Kiachta. The 
 most prominent feature visible was the church, the 
 dazzling whiteness of whose lofty dome is seen from 
 a great distance, and is the first indication to a traveller 
 crossing the desert from China that he is again nearing 
 civilisation. 
 
 Kiachta and its white church seemed near, but the 
 distance was greater than it seemed, and some additional 
 delay was caused by a stream in the bottom of the 
 valley, which had too soft a bed to be crossed by camel- 
 carts, and had to be circumnavigated. When Kiachta 
 was at last reached the whole caravan drew up in front 
 of the church, and all the Russian travellers entered to 
 pay their devotions. This done, we marched about a 
 couple of miles into Russian territory, to Troitsko 
 Safska, a town of some three or four thousand inhabit- 
 ants, where my travelling companions put up at the 
 quarters there prepared for Russian officers on travel. 
 In a few days they continued their journey to some 
 inland part of Siberia. 
 
 After the Mongols had been paid and dismissed with 
 suitable presents, one of them, a lama,^ came back and 
 presented me with a Russian copper coin. The coin 
 was of little intrinsic value, but I was pleased with the 
 gift, taking it as an indication of the man's gratitude 
 for what had been given him. A friend, however, con- 
 strued the action differently, regarding it not as an 
 
 ^ A lama is the Mongol name for priest. 
 
28 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 acknowledgment of what had been given, but as an 
 advance towards friendship on the part of the Mongol 
 which I would be expected to meet by returning a 
 silver coin. The conduct of the lama seemed to agree 
 with this supposition, and as he had already received 
 more than he deserved, I made an end of the case by 
 returning him, with many gestures of politeness, his 
 own copper coin. He took it and departed, seemingly 
 not in the least disconcerted or annoyed by the rejection 
 of his gift. 
 
CHAPTEK n. 
 
 PICKING UP MONGOLIAN. 
 
 Mongolian Phrase-book. Mongolian teaclier in Kalgan. Mistaken 
 sentence. Note-book and pencil in Buriat tents. An object of 
 suspicion. Buriat teacher in Kiacbta. Progress unsatisfactory. 
 Take to the plain. Lama at bis prayers. Mongolian lodgings. 
 Suitability of the tent. Manner of study. Progress. Lessons not 
 a success. Purity of the language in the tent. Corrupt nature of 
 general Mongolian conversation. Mode of life in the tent. "Steam 
 of the cold." Tea. Porridge for "Our Gilmour." Dinner. 
 Tripe. Bed. Charcoal, Wood fuel. Tent on fire. Snow and 
 ice melted for water. Lama host goes home. New Mongol 
 lodgings. Quarrel between father and son. Night alarm. Flight. 
 Lodgings in Sowth Mongolia. 
 
 Before leaving Peking I had been presented with a 
 "Road Map of the Route from Peking to Kiachta." 
 Between Peking and Kalgan this map was useful, but 
 beyond that its use ceased, for the simple reason that 
 of the many roads from Kalgan to Kiachta the map 
 delineated one, and our caravan followed another. 
 
 On the margin of the map, however, were printed 
 little groups of Mongol words and phrases, designed to 
 assist the studious traveller in holding communication 
 with the natives of the desert. These served as my 
 first phrase-book of Mongolian. During the two weeks' 
 delay that occurred in Kalgan before Mongols and 
 
30 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 camels could be found for the desert journey, I took 
 lessons from a Mongol who occupied the post of teacher 
 to the American missionary whose guest I was. In 
 addition to these two helps — the road map and the 
 Mongol teacher — I had paid some attention to Schmidt s 
 Mongol grammar. Before leaving Kalgan I had, through 
 tlie medium of Chinese, got the Mongol teacher to drill 
 me in the Mongol sentence equivalent to " I don't speak 
 Mongolian ; I am learning it ; " and I hoped this would 
 serve me as an introduction to such Mongols as I met, 
 and would perhaps induce them to tell me the words for 
 the common objects and actions of everyday life. These 
 words I was prepared to secure by means of a pencil and 
 a small note-book, always at hand for the purpose. With 
 these slender preparations, linguistic and material, I 
 entered on the desert, eager to pick up any words I 
 could find. 
 
 I soon found good reason to remember my Mongol 
 teacher. As I began to understand more of the lan- 
 guage, I became aware that in using the sentence which 
 he had given me, and which I had been in the habit of 
 repeating with great satisfaction to most of the Mongols 
 who saluted me, I had not been expressing my desire 
 to learn the language, but had been telling all and sundry 
 that I knew and spoke Mongolian ! 
 
 Of the words on the margin of the map some proved 
 useful, some the Mongols could hardly recognise from 
 my pronunciation, which was not to be wondered at, 
 considering the difficulty of representing their words by 
 English spelling ; while some phrases there given were 
 idioms current among a distant tribe, but not commonly 
 used in the native place of the Mongols with whom we 
 were travelling. 
 
AN OBJECT OF SUSPICION. 3 1 
 
 The first month after arriving in Siberia was spent in 
 a Buriat-speaking district. I lived in a Russian house 
 and tried to pick up the language by the help of a 
 teacher, and by going about among the people with 
 a note-book and pencil. In this latter department my 
 success was varying. Some days I picked up many 
 useful words and phrases, on other days I was less 
 successful. I used to enter the tents of the Buriats, 
 who are Mongols settled in Siberia, and, though for 
 the most part politely received, I was in some places 
 regarded with suspicion. 
 
 One snowy day I entered a tent, and was getting on 
 well, taking down a number of words from the frank 
 young Buriat who was the owner, when three or four 
 dark -looking men entered, said something to my host, 
 tried to question me, and produced such an impression 
 on the young Buriat that when I attempted to resume 
 the work which their entrance had interrupted he 
 would make no reply but " Don't know." It was quite 
 evident that something was wrong, and finding I could 
 do nothing more in that tent, I rose to go. I was aware 
 that my movements were observed, but thought no more 
 of the matter till some time afterwards, when my host 
 came home with a good story of how some Buriats having 
 fallen in with a nondescript individual, who would give no 
 account of himself, had been on the point of seizing him 
 and forwarding him to the governor of the district. They 
 had not ventured to carry out their intention, but 
 communicated with the local authority, describing the 
 man and stating their own suspicions. He, being aware of 
 my presence in the district, was able to set their minds 
 at rest. I experienced no more suspicion in the course 
 of my word hunting, and on some days I came home 
 
32 AMONG THE MONGOLS, 
 
 more proud of half a pageful of words and phrases than 
 ever was sportsman of a good bag of game. 
 
 After a month spent thus I returned to Kiachta, 
 established myself in lodgings, and pursued the study of 
 Mongolian, turning my attention mainly to the reading 
 of the Scriptures, which had been translated into Buriat 
 by Messrs. Stallybrass and Swan. But it was difficult 
 to find a competent teacher, and the incompetent 
 teacher who could be found could come only at an 
 inconvenient time of the day, when he himself seemed 
 exhausted and half asleep. Notwithstanding severe 
 application, it was evident I was not making satisfactory 
 progress. 
 
 Matters came to a crisis one night when a friend, 
 after hearing me talk with two lamas who happened to 
 call, remarked that if he had studied Mongolian as long 
 as I had he would have spoken better than I did. I had 
 for some time been dissatisfied with hard work and 
 little progress, and this remark, though made laughingly 
 and without any purpose of influencing my movements 
 proved the last straw that broke the camel's back. 
 
 Next morning, taking my "Penang lawyer," ^ to 
 defend myself from dogs, I set out for Kiachta, crossed 
 the frontier into Mongolia, and, after a two hours' walk, 
 reached the tent of a lama whose acquaintance I had 
 made some time before. As I approached the tent I 
 heard the sound of the lama's voice, and when I entered 
 he still continued his devotions, interrupting himself 
 only to say " Sit " and, with his hand, motion me to 
 a seat. I sat down, and no further notice was taken of 
 my presence for ten or fifteen minutes, when, having 
 
 ' A " Penang lawyer " is a heavy walking-stick, supposed to be jo 
 called from its usefulness in settling disputes in Penang. 
 
MONGOLIAN LODGINGS. 
 
 33 
 
 finished bis prayers, he hastened to salute me as if I 
 has just entered. 
 
 After tea had been produced and we had talked some 
 time, I told him the object of my visit, namely, that I 
 wanted to live in his tent aud learn Mongolian from 
 him as my teacher. He was quite willing, his main 
 difficulty being that his tent was a poor one ; he was 
 afraid that T would freeze, and that he could furnish 
 me with nothing better than Mongol fare, which he 
 supposed I would not relish. In reply to his question 
 when I would begin, I said "At once," and receiving 
 his assent I felt that I was established as an inmate of 
 a Mongol tent. 
 
 Next morning he accompanied me to my lodgings in 
 Kiachta, that I might bring some bedding, etc., and on 
 the road we came to an arrangement as to terms. He 
 agreed to board, lodge, and teach me for a sum that 
 amounted to a little over one shilling a day. From 
 that time I used to divide the week between my 
 Russian and Mongolian lodgings, spending three, or 
 four, or five days in the tent, and the remainder in 
 civilisation. 
 
 Everything about the tent was wonderfully suited to my 
 needs. The lama who owned it was some two hundred 
 miles from home, so we were not troubled by superfluous 
 members of his family. He was only temporarily 
 located there, and had no dog, so I could go out and in 
 as I liked. He was rich, so could afford to keep a good 
 fire burning, a luxury which could not have been 
 enjoyed in the tent of a poor man. His business 
 required him to keep two or three men servants about 
 him ; and as a man of his position could not but have 
 good tea always on hand — a great attraction in the 
 
 
 
34 
 
 AMONG TB£ MONGOLS. 
 
 desert — the tent was seldom without conversation going 
 on in it between two or three Mongols. 
 
 This last— conversation carried on by Mongols just 
 as if no one had been listening — was exactly what I 
 wanted, and I used to sit, pencil and note-book in hand, 
 and take down such words and phrases as I could catch. 
 Exclamations and salutations made by and to persons 
 entering and leaving the tent ; remarks made about and 
 to neighbours and visitors ; directions given to servants 
 about herding, cooking, and mending the fire, were 
 caught in their native freshness and purity and trans- 
 ferred to my note-book. In the quiet intervals of the 
 day or evening, I would con over again and again what 
 I had caught. 
 
 Learning the language in'this way, I soon could speak 
 a good deal more than I could understand or my teacher 
 could explain to me. Though I could not parse the 
 phrases, nor even separate out the words of which they 
 were composed, much less understand the meaning of 
 what I said, I knew when and how to use them, and 
 could hardly help having the accent correct, and could 
 not avoid learning first those words and phrases which 
 were in most common use. Thus, with only a fraction 
 of the labour I had spent over books, I soon began to 
 feel that I was making good progress. 
 
 I fear that my teacher did not find my conduct at all 
 satisfactory. I had anticipated great benefit from his 
 instruction, and one of the inducements that took me 
 to his tent was the fact that I knew him to be a good 
 Mongol scholar, able to read, write, and explain well. 
 He too had conscientious ideas of the duty he owed me 
 as teacher, and a few days after taking up my residence 
 with him, he called vipon me to receive my first formal 
 
Nature op mongol conversation. 
 
 3S 
 
 lesson. This and the one &r two following attempts 
 that were made did not prove a success. As soon as he 
 began to teach me he spoke in such a stilted fashion 
 that I could make nothing of it ; my not understanding 
 annoyed him, his insisting in speaking in that style 
 annoyed me, we both got vexed with each other, and had 
 to give it up. Subsequent attempts proved no better, and 
 after a few such lessons I avoided them. Whenever I saw 
 him getting ready to teach me, I used to pick up my 
 " Penang lawyer " and go for a two hours' walk. By the 
 time I returned he either was busy or had forgotten his 
 intention, and I escaped for the day. To those who 
 had mastered the colloquial there could not have been 
 a more eflficient teacher of the written language, but his 
 attempts then to teach me the mysteries of writing were 
 premature and labour spent in vain. 
 
 A slight drawback to learning a language by re- 
 peating everything that any one happens to say, is that 
 some of the phrases so . picked up are not very choice. 
 As the language begins to be understood any impropriety 
 in a phrase soon becomes apparent, and can be avoided. 
 It is something to say for the purity of the ordinary 
 conversation carried on in that tent, that of all the 
 numerous sentences thus learnt indiscriminately, I found 
 only two, on fuller acquaintance with the language, to 
 be unfit for use. Of these the more objectionable was 
 after all very harmless, and the other was more absurd 
 than objectionable, while both were perfectly free from 
 any taint of impurity. 
 
 Yet it would be a great mistake to suppose that the 
 ordinary conversation of Mongols is pure. Very far from 
 it. In addition to a great many sayings and expressions 
 that would shock civilised ears, but which are due more 
 
 c 2 
 
,6 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 to the unsophisticated nature of their manners and 
 customs than to any impurity of mind and thought, 
 there is in daily use a vast amount of impure language 
 for which no excuse can be found, and which is simply 
 the expression of corrupt thought. Often in after 
 years, when hearing loathsome language, I have wondered 
 how it was that I heard so little of it when living in 
 the lama's tent. One reason doubtless was that vile 
 conversation frequently hides itself under inuendo, and 
 for the most part is indirect, so that a learner would not 
 be likely to catch it sufficiently clearly to be able to 
 write it down. Another reason may have been that 
 seeing there was " a chield among them taking notes," 
 they were somewhat on their guard. But both these 
 reasons taken together are not sufficient to account for 
 the purity of their talk, and I am fain to believe that it 
 was mainly owing to the good sense and decency of my 
 lama host, whose general bearing and presence were a 
 rebuke to such iniquity, and who ruled his house better 
 than to allow its inmates to indulge in the sin of wicked 
 conversation. 
 
 A few words about our mode of life in the tent will 
 illustrate the manners and customs of the northern 
 Mongols. At dawn the serving-lama rose and lit the 
 fire. As soon as the flame blazed up, slow streams of 
 white mist became visible converging towards the fire 
 from holes and seams in the felt sides of the tent. The 
 Mongols called this the " steam of the cold," and they 
 were correct enough, for this phenomenon was visible 
 only in the intense cold of the depth of wintei. The 
 question is, what caused it ? Had it been viM versd, the 
 vapour in hot air condensing in colder air, it would not 
 have been at all mysterious. In Kiachta, when the door 
 
MONGOL BREAKFAST. 
 
 37 
 
 of a warm room communicating directly with the cold 
 atmosphere outside is suddenly opened, the hot air is 
 seen to flow out like a cloud of steam, and this is just 
 svhat might be expected; but why should cold air 
 entering a tent condense its moisture to the point of 
 visibility ? It was remarkable too that this phenomenon 
 was never witnessed except in the morning, and lasted 
 only for a few minutes, say ten or fifteen, after the fire 
 first blazed up. 
 
 As soon as the fire had somewhat warmed the tent, 
 the other inmates got up and dressed. Meantime, the 
 servant put the pot on the fire, and placed in it a block 
 of ice or a pyramid of snow. When this had melted, 
 the scum and sediment were removed, and the water 
 thus purified put on to boil, a handful of pounded brick 
 tea being thrown on the surface. After ten or fifteen 
 minutes' hard boiling, kept in check by occasional use 
 of the ladle, the tea was poured into a pail, the pot 
 swept out with a wisp of the hairs of a horse's tail, 
 a little fat melted in the pot, the cracklings carefully 
 removed, enough meal added to make the compound into 
 a kind of porridge, after a time more meal added and 
 well stirred till the mass seemed brown and dryish, then 
 the tea, cleared from the sediment, poured in and boiled 
 up, and the " meal-tea " was pronounced ready. This 
 rather elaborate process of adding fat and meal was gone 
 through to supply the lack of milk. The lama had no 
 cows with him, and I think that during the whole of 
 that winter I saw milk in his tent only once, when some 
 one presented him with a frozen piece of it, looking very 
 much like a small cheese. 
 
 This meal-tea in the morning, and again at noon, was 
 the only food partaken of by the Mongols till gunset, an/1 
 
38 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 tHe only exception I had them make in my favour was 
 to secure for myself a cupful of the flour when it had 
 reached the stage in which it resembled porridge. This 
 they called " Scotland," and set aside for the use of " Our 
 Gilmour." 
 
 About sunset the servant, glancing up to the hole in 
 the roof as to a clock, would say, " Shall I make dinner ? " 
 The lama, nothing loth, would say, " Make it." The 
 servant needed no urging, and I as guest looked on with 
 interest. Outside the tent was a strong dog-proof kind 
 of cage, into which had been put the whole winter's 
 stock of beef, mutton, and tripe. There it needed no 
 salting. The frost kept it perfectly fresh, and so hard 
 that the portions used for each meal had to be hewn off 
 with a hatchet. Enough to serve the wants of the lama 
 and myself was hewn off and boiled, then fished out 
 with the fire-tongs and put into a basin or on a board. 
 My host and myself appropriated pieces, which we ate by 
 the help of a knife only, in true Mongol style. 
 
 While we were thus having our first course, some 
 millet was thrown into the pot in which the meat had 
 been boiled, in a short time was pronounced cooked, and 
 formed our second course. The meat was frequently 
 tough and difficult to manage, but this second course of 
 millet boiled in soup and served up rather thin was 
 always grateful, and I have seldom before or since 
 tasted any preparation of civilised cookery that proved 
 so delicious. The excellence of this soup consisted, I 
 suppose, not so much in itself as in its surroundings. 
 Among the most ordinary articles of civilised diet it would, 
 I doubt not, rank low indeed, but with desert hunger, 
 one meal a day, and everything else dirty and badly 
 cooked, this well-cooked millet was indeed a delicacy. 
 
LIFE IN A MONGOL TENT. 3g 
 
 As soon as our meal was over the servants set about 
 theirs. A huge mass of tripe, wrapped up in the 
 stomach of a sheep and frozen solid, was brought in 
 from the outdoor larder, attacked vigorously with a 
 hatchet, and the detached fragments put on to boil 
 in the pot. To see what it was like, I insisted one 
 evening in taking my dinner with the men, but I must 
 say it did not prove a very satisfactory adventure. The 
 men, poor fellows, seemed to relish it greatly, and used 
 to devour large quantities. 
 
 However cold the weather might be, these evening 
 dinners were always a hot time both for master and 
 men. The fire was piled up to give light, the food 
 taken was excessively hot, and under these circum- 
 stances it was not easy to keep cool. A Mongol, indeed, 
 does not seem to suppose that he receives fuU benefit 
 fi-om his dinner if the eating of it does not make him 
 perspire profusely. 
 
 Most Mongols retire to rest immediately after the 
 evening meal, but my host was a great exception to the 
 rule in this respect, and used to sit by the fire till ten 
 or eleven o'clock, sometimes even till midnight. When 
 at length he did go to bed, it was the duty of the 
 servant to see him snugly tucked into his sheepskin 
 coat, and it used to sound strange to hear the master 
 indicating, in Mongol fashion, by the points of the 
 compass, the places where the tucking in was deficient. 
 
 After the master had been properly tucked, and I 
 had drawn on sheepskin boots, buttoned up my great- 
 coat to the chin, tied down the ear-flaps of my fur cap, 
 and been covered up with a couple of Scotch plaids, 
 the last act of the day was performed. The tent was 
 cjog^d above, the door was made fast, and a lar^e jar 
 
40 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 filled with charcoal was produced. The charcoal was 
 made by the care of the men throughout the day, who, 
 during their spare time as they sat by the fire, kept 
 rescuing and quenching the glowing embers of the 
 wood as it burned in the grate. Each piece, as it was 
 quenched, was thrown into this jar, and after everything 
 was made fast at night the whole contents were piled 
 in one heap on the fire. In a few minutes there was a 
 splendid glow, and, for the only time perhaps in the 
 twenty-four hours, the atmosphere of the tent was 
 really hot. Every one used to lie and look at it with 
 a glow of satisfaction and gradually drop off to sleep. 
 In a room such a proceeding would have been dangerous, 
 but in our tent danger there was none. Even after 
 every exertion to stop draughts and close up holes, 
 there was more than sufficient ventilation to have 
 frustrated a much more determined attempt to produce 
 asphyxia. 
 
 Argol, the dried dung of animals, is the common fuel 
 of Mongolia. In our tent wood was used exclusively, 
 because we were near a forest, and my teacher, having 
 men and horses at command, could have the wood 
 carted more easily than he could have had the argol 
 gathered. Wood is in some respects nicer to use as 
 fuel, but it has one disadvantage — it gives oflf little 
 explosions, which drive sparks on to the clothes of those 
 sitting around, and even sometimes sets fire to the roof 
 of the tent. 
 
 One night, when a stranger lama, who was our guest, 
 was talking with me about Christianity, I had occasion 
 to point upwards, and in a moment the whole tent was 
 in an uproar. Following the direction indicated by my 
 hand, thev had looked un and seen that a spark had 
 
TENT ON FIRE. 4 1 
 
 ignited tne roof, and spreading over the soot-covered 
 felt, had made a glowing patch as large as a man's hand. 
 The fire was rapidly spreading, and every one instan- 
 taneously proceeded to put into execution a method for 
 extinguishing it, at the same time shouting lustily 
 to the others to hand him such things as he wanted. 
 Unfortunately, all the Mongols present were short of 
 stature, and, though the tent was not a tall one, none 
 of them could reach the burning spot, all the more so, 
 as it was directly over the blazing fire. Several at- 
 tempts made at extinguishing it had been ineffectual, 
 the glowing patch was rapidly spreading, and the ex- 
 citement in the tent every moment increasing, when 
 our lama guest in the confusion seized a ladle and 
 began to dash water on the sooty roof. For the most 
 part he missed his aim, and the inky water descending 
 in a shower drove everybody else off the field, and sent 
 them cowering into the sides of the tent, uttering shouts 
 of protestation, and vainly endeavouring to protect their 
 clothes. The burning soot was finally scraped down 
 with a stick, and the lamas again resumed their places 
 round the fire, regarding with rueful looks the black 
 marks spattered all over their red coats. 
 
 The water used in the tent throughout the winter 
 was procured by melting ice or snow. As the snow is 
 gathered at no great distance from the tent, it is iiable 
 td contain all manner of impurities, and sometimes at 
 the bottom of the pot in which the melting has taken 
 place are found things which anybody but a Mongol 
 would consider very objectionable. 
 
 The ice- water is much more satisfactory. It is 
 usually brought from some lake where the water is 
 clean, and being transparent any piece containing 
 
42 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 impurity can be seen and rejected. One of the pretty 
 sights to be seen in the courtyards of Chinese places of 
 business in Kiachta is the great square stacks of clean, 
 transparent, crystal-looking ice, piled up in the shade of 
 some -wall, and forming the water supply of the firm 
 during winter. 
 
 Russians out of doors, and Mongols always, protect 
 themselves by wearing skin robes. I neglected this 
 precaution, and, even in the Mongol tent, deemed warm 
 underclothing and a great-coat sufficient. I had to pay 
 for my temerity afterwards, and should have spared 
 myself much discomfort if I had only followed the 
 sensible advice and example of Russians and Mongols, 
 and encased myself in a sheepskin. Even in my noon- 
 day walks a damp handkerchief would freeze in the 
 pocket, and I would return to the tent with beard and 
 moustache a mass of icicles, formed by the congealed 
 moisture of the breath. The nights were of course 
 much colder, but in their great sheepskin robes and 
 shaggy goatskin overcoats the Mongols seemed to stand 
 it well, and might be heard singing cheerily in the 
 middle of the night, as the long strings of tea-laden 
 camels defiled past our tent, crunching the frozen snow 
 under their broad feet. 
 
 Towards spring my lama teacher finished his business, 
 broke up his establishment and returned home. Cir- 
 cumstances prevented me accepting his invitation to 
 accompany him to TJrga. I was very sorry not to be able 
 to go with him, but it was well I did not. I learned after- 
 wards that they had an exceedingly hard journey, and, 
 notwithstanding their skin coats, suffered much from 
 the cold. It is needless to say that had I accompanied 
 them without furs I would have suffered much more 
 
A FAMILY QUARREL. ., 
 
 We parted with deep regret and kindly feelings ; we had 
 all got to like each other, and I have no doubt that the 
 Mongols often look back to that winter with pleasure, 
 and tell with glee doings and sayings of the foreigner 
 whom they always spoke of as " Our Gilmour." 
 
 After experiencing how easy it was to get on with 
 Mongolian by living in a Mongol tent, I could not rest 
 till I had installed myself in another. The circumstances 
 and surroundings of this second tent were much less 
 favourable for my purpose than those of the first, but 
 after all I had not much reason to complain, when an 
 unlooked-for incident put an end to my residence there, 
 and sent me back to Kiachta. 
 
 My teacher was a young layman, who held some 
 small appointment in the yamen} and lived in a tent 
 close to the father who had adopted him. The two did 
 not get on harmoniously. The wife of the father stirred 
 up mischief, and, primed from this source, the old man 
 would come into his son's tent and scold him by the 
 half-hour together. Though unpleasant in one sense, 
 this was not without its benefit for me in helping me to 
 acquire the language, and during those scenes I used to 
 enrich my note-book with a number of energetic phrases 
 and sentences. 
 
 One night the quarrel assumed a more serious shape, 
 the father was more excited and determined, and 
 because the son refused to manoeuvre matters in the 
 yamen so as to let the father have some advantage 
 about an old horse, he declared he would not leave his 
 son's tent, but live there and be a burden to him, and 
 pointing to the dinner cooking in the pot, declared his 
 intention of beginning by eating that. 
 
 * yamen is the Chinese wprd fpT Govermrjeot offioet 
 
44 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 Just when the dinner was ready he got up and left, 
 threatening, however, to come back and end the quarrel 
 by means of the knife. I thought that it was all empty 
 bravado, but the son was alarmed, said I did not know 
 his father, and assured me that the old man was in 
 earnest, and meant what he said. Under these circum- 
 stances the meal went off so poorly that it would have 
 been small loss if the father had remained and carried 
 out his threat of eating it. After dinner the young man 
 could not rest, but kept pacing about on a little piece 
 of felt, talking most seriously and philosophically about 
 death and its consequences. By-and-by he settled down, 
 and, as things seemed quiet, we all retired to rest. 
 
 UONQOL KNIFE AND SHEATH, 
 
 We had not been long in bed when the stillness of the 
 night was broken by a great uproar in the tent of the 
 father — he had got his knife, and was coming to finish 
 the quarrel, but was meantime being detained by the 
 females of his household, who clung to him and shrieked 
 with all their might. Instantly the son sprang up and 
 darted out, and I, thinking that the infuriated Mongol 
 with his knife in his hand in the small tent, and without 
 a light, might mistake me for his son, soon followed him. 
 Without waiting for my boots — the only particular in 
 which I was undressed — I rushed out, and found my 
 
A HURRIED FLIGHT. 45 
 
 companion standing in a fierce north wind, with nc 
 covering but a sheepskin, and, as the uproai still con- 
 tinued, I started at a run for the nearest tents, which 
 were not far off. Before I had gone far I became 
 conscious that some one was behind me, and could not 
 make out whether it was the son following my example, 
 or the father mistaking me for his son. As soon as I 
 reached the tent, in place of entering, I ran round to 
 the back of it, and waited till my pursuer came up. He 
 called to the inmates, and, recognising the voice as that 
 of the son, we entered together. A skin was offered 
 me, my boots were brought, and I was soon asleep. In 
 a little while I woke up to hear the voice of the father 
 in the tent. He was borrowing an ox and cart to move 
 his tent and goods. In the morning I learned that the 
 son had gone into hiding ; and when,v in the afternoon, 
 I came with a conveyance to remove my things, I found 
 that the father had carried off his tent and all his be- 
 longings, and disappeared from the neighbourhood. In 
 this abrupt way closed my second term of tent life in 
 Mongolia. 
 
 After I began making evangelistic tours, I had good 
 opportunities of picking up further acquaintance with 
 the language, while yet enjoying the comparative clean- 
 liness and comfort of my own travelling tent ; but these 
 opportunities are not for a moment to be compared to 
 those that I enjoyed as a silent listener in another man's 
 tent. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 THE BAIKAL IN WINTEE, 
 
 The Baikal regarded as sacred by the Russians. Date of freezing. 
 Affects the felt cold of the atmosphere. Marine boiler. Snow 
 near the Baikal. Ridges -and hills of ice. Ice on edge. Trans- 
 parent ice. Thickness of the ice. Track across the lake marked 
 out by trees. Restaurant on the middle of the lake. Boats on 
 the beach. Customs barrier. Baggage searched. Irkutsk. 
 Curious honey casks. Chinese in Irkutsk. Irkutsk in a thaw. 
 Snowstorm on the Baikal. Racing on the ice. Change of horses. 
 Sledge upset. Expansion and contraction of the ice. Effect of 
 thaw on the Baikal. Change of season troublesome in crossing 
 the Baikal. 
 
 Ajsiy one living at Kiaclita may learn that tlie Russians 
 of Siberia hold Lake Baikal in great veneration, and 
 ascribe to it something of a sacred character, speaking 
 of it as the Holy Sea ! During the winter the Baikal 
 is sometimes referred to in a way that makes it difficult, 
 especially for a foreigner, to regard it with veneration. 
 Though rivers generally in the region about Kiachta are 
 sealed up and frozen strongly enough to be crossed even 
 by cattle and carriages on the first of November, the 
 Baikal, 150 miles distant, resists, it is said, all the cold, 
 and keeps obstinately open till about the twenty-seventh 
 of January. The consequence is that the moisture 
 rising from this great sheet of water imparts a dampness 
 
HOAD PROM KIACHTA TO THE BAIKAL. 47 
 
 to tte air which much intensifies the feeling of cold. As 
 soon as the Baikal freezes over the air gets dry, and the 
 cold, though perhaps quite as intense as before, is 
 supposed to be much more endurable. 
 
 In travelling from Kiachta towards the Baikal, the 
 first sign of navigation which met our eyes was a great 
 gaunt house-looking spectre, which loomed through the 
 twilight before us on the road one morning at early 
 dawn. At first we could not guess what it was, but 
 coming up close to it, we found that it was the boiler of 
 a steamship, evidently intended for the steamer on the 
 Baikal, and said to be en route, from England md the 
 Amur to that distant inland sea. One of the four wheels 
 of the great truck on which it rested had given way, and 
 its escort, carrying off all the movable fittings of the 
 car, had for the time being abandoned it where we 
 saw it. 
 
 As we drew near the Baikal we found the country so 
 deeply covered up with snow that we had to leave the 
 tarantass and take to the sledge. The south shore of 
 the lake was a confused mass of ice heaped up in ridges 
 and hills, evidently the work of a storm which had 
 blown from the north after ice began to form on the 
 surface. A little further on we found more evidence of 
 •the action of the wind in a part of the lake covered 
 with thin ice broken up, and for the most part on 
 edge, looking exactly like the tops of walls that are 
 defended by having pieces of glass set in lime. Through 
 this a road must have been cut before horse or sledge 
 could pass. After a little we came to ice smooth but 
 covered with snow ; and it was not till we were well out 
 that we came upon pure transparent ice, on which one 
 could stand and feel almost insecure, as if nothing but 
 
^8 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 water was underfoot. The thickness of the ice can be 
 seen by the great cracks that run down through it, and 
 appeared to be ten or twelve feet. 
 
 The track over the lake is marked out by a line of 
 young Scotch fir trees, about five feet high, fixed up- 
 right as if planted, a precaution necessary for the 
 guidance of the sledge drivers, not only during the 
 night, but also in the daytime, when a blinding snow- 
 storm may descend at any time and obliterate all traces 
 of the road. I had heard that about the middle of the 
 lake there was a restaurant for the refreshment of 
 travellers, and had pictured to myself a neat inviting 
 little place, snugly furnished and tempting to passengers. 
 In due time we reached it, but the reality was very 
 different from the picture. It was a hut of boards, and 
 the accommodation was designed to supply the wants 
 of sledge drivers employed in the transport of goods, 
 rather than meet the fastidious tastes of the romantic 
 traveller. On entering we found it a mere hovel, kept 
 by two disreputable-looking men, and filled with 
 brawling carters, who were busy drinking tea and 
 devouring black bread. One corner was a little better 
 than the rest, and retiring to that we were supplied 
 with a leaking samovar, drank a hasty tea, and continued 
 our journey. 
 
 The ice towards the north shore was clear of snow, 
 and' admitted of rapid travelling ; and though the road 
 does not go straight across, but slopes away westward, 
 the whole distance from shore to shore can be easily 
 accomplished in about three hours, exclusive of the 
 delay which takes place while the horses are being 
 rested at the half-way house. On the north side, high 
 up on the beach, were some boats whose appearance 
 
A RUSSIAN CUSTOMS HOUSE. ^g 
 
 would excite the mirth of a British sailor, but which 
 were doubtless well calculated to meet the exigencies 
 of the ferry traffic on this great high road of Central 
 Asia. After crossing the lake the post route follows the 
 shore for two stages, which were done on the ice. 
 
 Leaving the ice, we were transferred to a very small 
 and very uncomfortable tarantass ; and the open water, 
 marking the point where the Baikal discharges its sur- 
 plus waters into the Angara, had begun to be visible, 
 even in the darkness, when our attention was directed 
 to a closed barrier in front of us. We were at the 
 customs house, our things in the carriage were pulled 
 about by Cossacks, the straw rummaged, and the key 
 of my portmanteau demanded. On my suggesting that 
 if they wanted to examine my luggage at midnight, it 
 should not be done out on the highway, but in the 
 station house, a procession was at once formed, and my 
 things led captive. Arrived there, a group gathered 
 round to see the contents of my portmanteau, and such 
 a thorough and minute search was made that I sug- 
 gested the searcher had better look into the letter 
 packet also ! This settled the case, it was hastily closed 
 up, the officer declared himself satisfied, I was escorted 
 back to my carriage, and not troubled to open my hand- 
 bag, which also had been carried in for inspection. 
 
 As it was my first experience of passing a custom."? 
 barrier in Russia, I thought the proceedings both un- 
 necessarily rude and high-handed, but was convinced 
 that no disrespect was meant to me, when I saw a 
 Russian officer subjected to exactly the same treatment. 
 Nothing contraband was found, the signal was given, 
 the barrier, painted with stripes like a barber's pole, 
 which had hitherto blocked the road, was raised, and 
 
 D 
 
50 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 we went on our way, and saw no more of the Baikal for 
 some days. \ 
 
 It is not needful to say much of Irkutsk, the capital 
 of Siberia. It looks well in the distance, with its 
 numerous and imposing public buildings ; it bears close 
 inspection, with its trade, its stores, its streets, its car- 
 riages for hire waiting at the stands, and its public 
 market, the most curious, at least to unaccustomed eyes, 
 sort of goods exposed for sale in which are sections of 
 the trunks of trees hollowed out and filled with honey, 
 coming, it is said, from the Amur. In the museum 
 a set of brass idols were pointed out to me, procured 
 from the Buriats, who, it is said, had piously stipulated 
 that their lamas should be allowed to visit them and 
 offer them worship from time to time. In the streets 
 I met three Chinamen engaged in the paltry business 
 of peddling sweetmeats. My visit being near the end 
 of March, the streets of Irkutsk were in a deplorable 
 state with the cold slush of melted ice and snow. Many 
 of the poorer Siberians are but poorly housed, clad, fed, 
 and shod, and it is not surprising to learn that this 
 beginning of the return of spring, giving damp feet 
 and thawing abominations that have been frozen up 
 all winter, is signalised by the increased prevalence 
 of disease. 
 
 Having fallen somewhat into Russian habits of travel- 
 ling, we left Irkutsk at nightfall, untied, after a little, 
 the tarantass bell, which, on approaching Irkutsk, had 
 been silenced out of respect to the dignity of the 
 governor resident there, and after a night's journey, 
 against the dangers of which we had been warned in 
 vain, arrived in safety and at an early hour at the 
 statiop ow the shore pf jbhe lake, As the journey along 
 
A SLEDGE RACE. 5 I 
 
 the northern shore of the lake in going had been made 
 in the dark, I hoped to perform tihe return journey in 
 dayhght. My wish was gratified, and more too, for I 
 was destined to see this part of the lake not only by 
 daylight, but under a furious snowstorm. The sledge 
 used in that part of the country is simply a deep box, 
 in which the passengers recline on their bedding and 
 luggage, and it proves moderately warm, as no part 
 of the person is exposed but the head, and in a storm 
 even that can be covered up. 
 
 At the first station on the lake we had seen a Russian 
 and his wife start out on a sledge some little time before 
 us, and by avoiding all delay on the way, and using all 
 expedition at the second station, we got off in our sledge 
 at no great distance behind them. After some good 
 running in the snowstorm we overtook them, and had 
 drawn a little way ahead, when we were met by two 
 sledges, with which both our own sledge and that of 
 our competitor changed horses. We thus lost the small 
 advantage we had gained, and the race began afresh. 
 We both were anxious to be first at the station from 
 which the crossing of the lake is made, fearing that 
 whoever came in second might have to hire outside 
 horses, which, in so long a stage, would entail a very 
 considerable extra expense. The passengers were thus 
 eager in the race, and the drivers well knew that the 
 ■winner was likely to have a larger gratuity than the 
 loser, so they were fully as eager as the passengers. So 
 away we \vent with our fresh horses over the smooth 
 surface of the lake, caring nothing for the storm, and 
 meeting trains of goods-laden sledges, moving slowly in 
 long lines, apparently as regardless of the snow as our- 
 selves. Occasionally the one driver would shake out 
 
 P 2 
 
t2 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 his reins, give the suppressed wolf-like howl peculiar to 
 the Kussian coachman, and, with horses at full gallop, 
 dash ahead of his opponent ; then the other driver would 
 shake out his reins, utter his suppressed howl, and shoot 
 ahead. We were happy in having the best horses, and 
 had finally taken and kept the lead, but the other sledge 
 was slowly overtaking us, the station-house was not far 
 distant, both teams were flying at full speed, the pas- 
 sengers were eager, the drivers excited, and the horses 
 warmed to their work, and with blood thoroughly up 
 seemed to enter into the spirit of the contest as heartily 
 as the men, the pace was already furious, and the final 
 effort was about to be made, when one of our number 
 uttered an exclamation, and looking back we saw the 
 sledge behind us had upset and scattered the Russian, 
 his wife, and their belongings over the frozen and snowy 
 surface of the deep. Happily no one was hurt, but the 
 race was over, and soon after we reached the post-house, 
 the Russian entered smiling at his misfortune and defeat, 
 called for the samovar, and when last we saw him he 
 was seated with his wife at the tea-table stirring up a 
 tumblerful of hot tea, the strong deep colour of which was 
 all the more striking from the melting lumps of loaf-sugar 
 that shone white as they were driven round in the glass. 
 In crossing the lake we had a strong wind behind us, 
 and felt warm enough as long as we kept running, but 
 the cold felt very piercing whenever our driver had to 
 stop at some of the great cracks, and probe with a pole 
 for firm footing for his horses among the crushed ice- 
 These great rents and the crushing of their edges were 
 said to be caused by the ice expanding and contracting 
 as the temperature varied. They were not numerous, 
 but in some cases were difficult of passage. 
 
THE BAIKAL IN A THA W. 55 
 
 Going northwards I had crossed the Baikal on 
 March 23, returning southwards on March 28, and 
 there was visible a great change, which had been 
 wrought by the few days of thaw which had intervened. 
 The ice had lost its clear black appearance, sharp angles 
 were melted down, and the general surface looked 
 weather-beaten and mouldered. 
 
 The Baikal when frozen is passed rapidly by sledge, 
 when free from ice is crossed easily by steamer, and in 
 either case causes little hindrance to traffic and pas- 
 sengers. The troublesome times are before the ice is 
 safe to cross and after the tnaw has broken it up without 
 melting it. In both these cases the traffic has to pass 
 round the south end, thus increasing the length of the 
 journey very considerably. 
 
CHArXER IV. 
 
 TRACES OF THE OLD BURIAT MISSION. 
 
 Tombs at Selenginsk. Tombs at Onagen Dome. Log-built mission 
 liouses. Siberia of the present day. Devotedness of the mis- 
 sionaries. Russians think the missionaries dirty. Russians do 
 not understand religious enthusiasm. Modes of carrying on 
 mission work. Translation of the Scriptures. An energetic 
 Buriat. The mission closed by order of the Emperor. Converts 
 compelled to join the Greek Church. Results of the mission. 
 
 " A MISSION among the Buriats, a Mongolian tribe living 
 under the authority of Russia, was commenced by the 
 Rev. E. Stallybrass and the Rev. W. Swan, who left 
 England in the year 1817-18. The mission was 
 established first at the town of Selenginsk, and 
 afterwards also on the Ona ; but in 1841 the Emperor 
 Nicholas broke up the mission, and the missionaries 
 retired from the field." 
 
 Such is the brief official record which the London 
 Missionary Society is wont to produce, when occasion 
 arises to refer to its first endeavours for the conversion 
 of the Mongols. The history of this most interesting 
 mission has never been written, — probably never will be 
 written. No attempt at a history is made here ; but 
 as this old mission is often asked about, perhaps the 
 few particulars that have in various ways come to the 
 knowledge of the present writer may have interest for 
 some of his readers. 
 
REMAINS OP THE MISSION. 
 
 S? 
 
 Among the traces of this mission may be mentioned 
 the tombs of the dead. On the banks of the Selenga, 
 and within easy reach of the town of Selenginsk, is a 
 substantial stone-built inclosure containing four graves, 
 — those of Mrs. Yuille, two of her children, and one 
 of the Eev. E. Stallybrass. There is also inside the 
 protecting wall a stone pyramid of decent height. 
 
 SELhNOIvaK. 
 
 With a Latin inscription, So obliterated as to make it 
 impossible to discover whether it marks the resting- 
 place of Mr. Yuille, or merely commemorates the 
 erection of the monument by him. In 1871, the wall, 
 the pyramid, and the graves, were in a state of good 
 preservation. 
 
eg AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 About three days' journey from Selenginsk, at a place 
 called Onagen Dome, are other two tombs. Originally 
 they had been surrounded by some inclosure, but latterly 
 all traces of the inclosure had disappeared, and the tombs 
 stood in the open field unprotected from the cattle, 
 which used to come and rub themselves against them. 
 They were simple brick erections, two or three feet high, 
 and covered with full-length cast-iron plates, the one 
 bearing a Latin, the other a Russian, inscription. The 
 Latin inscription runs as follows : — 
 
 IN HOC SEPULCHRO CONDtJ 
 Nl UR RELIQUIAE M0RTALE3 
 
 SARAE STALLYBRAS3 
 CX0RI3 CARISSIMAE FIDE 
 
 LISSIMAE QUE 
 EDUARD: STALLYBRAS3 
 
 EMISSVRn A SOCIETATE 
 
 LONl>INENSI PRO EVAN 
 
 GELIO INTER ETHNICOa 
 
 PROPAGANDO 
 OBT KLBRUARII 10 DIE 
 
 A 3 H 1833 
 
 AFTAT 49 
 
 UBI L3T MORS 3TIMa 
 
 LU3 TUU3 
 
 TBI EST SEPULCURUM 
 
 VICTORIA AT(J 
 
 The grave with the Russian inscription is that of 
 another Mrs. Stallybrass, Avho died in 1839, aged 32. 
 
 Both at Selenginsk and at Onagen Dome the mission 
 houses stood close to the graves; the graves in fact 
 being within the inclosures of the premises. Two or 
 three years ago, the mission house at Selenginsk was 
 standing, in good repair, and occupied by a Russian 
 official. The house at Onagen Dome had been sold to 
 some one, who removed it to another locality. 
 
 Some miles from Onagen Dome stood another mission 
 house, which, when the missionaries left, fell, I think, 
 into the hands of a Buriat chief. It was finally acquired 
 by the Russian government, and transported to Onagen 
 
LOG-BUILT HOUSES. 59 
 
 Dome, where it served for the parish school and school- 
 house ; the teacher, not long ago, being a young Buriat 
 who was proficient in both the Mongolian and Russian 
 languages. 
 
 ihese houses, built and inhabited by the missionaries, 
 were the ordinary dwellings used by the Russians in 
 Siberia. They are log-built, the seams being caulked 
 with moss. Such houses are very strong and substantial, 
 and well calculated to resist the violence of the earth- 
 quakes which are said to visit the country. An earth- 
 quake occasionally shatters a brick -built church, but a 
 log house is as safe as a basket, and could scarcely fall 
 in, though it were pretty well tilted on its side. It is 
 no uncommon thing to see houses, whose foundation has 
 given way, leaning over in an alarming degree ; but 
 beyond looking laughable, they are as good as ever, 
 and the inhabitants go in and out as if the house were 
 newly built and squaxe up. This log structure of the 
 houses affords exceptional facilities for removing the 
 building. The logs are merely taken down one by 
 one, carted to the new site, and a few Buriat carpenters 
 soon put them up again as they were. The mission 
 house, after being removed to Onagen Dome, was in all 
 particulars the same as it had been when standing in its 
 original place. 
 
 Both at Selenginsk and at Onagen Dome the 
 missionaries displayed great good taste in the selection 
 of localities. At Selenginsk their abode looked straight 
 out on a reach of the river, where they could see the 
 broad flood flowing away from them. Close to the 
 house on the left hand was a huge bluff; away to the 
 right they looked up the river. On the other side of 
 the river was abroad expanse of field and forest, gradually 
 
go AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 rising up towards the mountains, which formed the 
 background and bounded the view. 
 
 At Onagen Dome also, the main feature of the land- 
 scape seen from the mission house was the river 
 winding along the level bottom. There was a broad 
 expanse of level land, and the scene was finely shut in 
 by well-wooded hills. Any one who had to live in Siberia 
 could hardly have made a better choice of scenery. 
 
 But the missionaries, though perhaps they had an 
 eye for the beautiful when they decided on the exact 
 site of their dwelling, were evidently guided by the 
 interests of their work when they selected the locality. 
 Selenginsk was a conveniently central situation, and a 
 missionary could hardly have done better than settle 
 on the wide and well-peopled (for Siberia) plain at 
 Onagen Dome. 
 
 And there they were, those heroic men, and more 
 heroic women, fifty years ago ; for the gospel's sake, 
 toaking their homes in the country to which Russia 
 banishes her criminals. There they lived, there they 
 laboured, and there three of the ladies died. Banishment 
 to Siberia ! Exile in Siberia ! Death in Siberia ! 
 
 Siberia, nowadays, and under some circumstances 
 is not at all a bad place to live in. A Russian peasant 
 or a Buriat thinks it rather a fine country. The climate 
 is severe, the winters axe hard and long ; but there is 
 plenty of work, good wages, and abundance of cheap 
 food. The distances are great, there are tracts of bleak 
 desolate country, the forests are gloomy, and people few • 
 but these things the natives are used to, and do not seem 
 to mind them. Even educated and refined Russians find 
 the country quite tolerable now. There are telegraphs 
 reaching to every large town ; there is a complete aad 
 
HARDSHIPS OF THE FIRST MISSIONARIES. gj 
 
 cheap postal system ; and travelling is more easily 
 accomplished than perhaps in any other country not 
 possessing the facihties of railways. These things 
 at the present date make Russian existence in Siberia 
 quite tolerable. 
 
 But the missionaries were not Russians, and lived, not 
 in the ameliorated Siberia of to-day, but in the old dismal 
 Siberia of half a century ago. To be in Siberia then 
 was to be pretty well out of the world ; and for Englishmen 
 and Scotchmen to be there meant a degree of isolation 
 and solitanness that must have been hard to bear. No 
 telegraphs then, and postal facilities were very meagre. 
 They were foreigners in a strange land, looked on with 
 suspicion by the government, the ecclesiastics, and the 
 people ; and, above all, were utterly beyond the range of 
 Christian sympathy. And there they were year after 
 year, learning the language, translating the Scriptures, 
 preaching the gospel, and instructing the ignorant adults 
 and children. 
 
 They had gone to Siberia, not to seek to bring men 
 over from the faith of the Greek Church, but to seek the 
 conversion of the Buddhistic Buriats ; so, rememberiiig 
 their aim, they removed themselves as much as possible 
 from the Russian inhabitants, and surrounded themselves 
 with, and sought friendships among, the Buriats. This 
 was severing the last link that bound them to the civilised 
 world, and rendering their isolation nearly complete. 
 There was some romance in their situation, but the 
 sustaining power of romance is feeble when it is a year 
 or two old ; they had a noble aim and a strong enthaisiasm, 
 which no doubt sustained them well ; but even then there 
 Tmist have been times when they thought fondly of their 
 native lands and home friends, ^ad when the depressing 
 
52 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 effect of their intercourse with the degraded Buriats, 
 and the bleak gloom of the desolate distances of Siberia, 
 must have weighed down on their spirits like a mill- 
 stone. 
 
 To the ability, devotedness, and perseverance of the 
 missionaries good testimony has been borne, even by 
 those who had no sympathy with them in their 
 endeavours to convert the Buriats. One of the 
 missionaries, after spending a term of years in Siberia, 
 revisited his native land. When he returned to his 
 field of labour, he did not go alone, but was accom- 
 panied by a youthful bride, who had been reared in the 
 enjoyment of all the elegances and refinements of 
 one of the most refined of British cities. Turning her 
 back on so many things and friends that were dear to 
 her, she set her face towards Siberia, and arriving there 
 in due course, so mixed with the people, and so applied 
 herself to the acquisition of the language, that not only 
 could she speak it well among the natives, but could 
 read and write it, so as to be able to conduct a 
 correspondence in it, upwards of a quarter of a century 
 after the missionaries had left the country at the 
 command of the Emperor Nicholas. 
 
 A strange spectacle were those missionaries in Siberia 
 to the Russians who dwelt in the various towns. The 
 Russians could not understand them, and seem never to 
 have been weary of talking about them, and wondering 
 and laughing at them. One curious instance of how 
 the missionaries were misunderstood has reached us. 
 The Russians declared they were not clean, — that they 
 liked to be dirty ! Now, to understand the full meaning 
 of this charge, it must be remembered that most 
 Russians in Sibena now, and perhaps a greater portion 
 
HUSSIAN MISCONCEPTIONS. g^ 
 
 then, would not be by any means considered models of 
 cleanliness. The peculiar wooden architecture of the 
 houses, the moss packing between the logs, the cracks 
 and chinks in the timber walls, combined with the 
 universal lack of plaster, puts the housewife at such a 
 disadvantage, that, in most cases, she seems to give up 
 the contest with enemies to domestic comfort, whose 
 appearance in a clean English home would cause a 
 war of extermination or a change of quarters. The 
 Russians, perhaps partly from necessity, accept the 
 situation very placidly, and this gives rise to a state of 
 matters that causes not a little astonishment to Eno-lish- 
 men who happen to go into Siberia, and take their 
 native ideas of cleanliness with them. This is only 
 one particular, but it is perhaps enough. And yet 
 these Russians, so deficient in cleanliness themselves, 
 used to think that the missionaries were not clean! 
 It seems strange at first, but the cause is not far to 
 seek. 
 
 Remembering that they had come to Siberia for the 
 sake of the Buriats, they, as far as possible, discarded 
 Russian servants, employed Buriats about them, and 
 cultivated the society of Buriats. Who — a Russian 
 would ask — would prefer to live with Buriats ratlier 
 than with Russians ? And who but a man that loves 
 dirt would rather frequent dirty Buriat huts than 
 drink tea and vodka and play cards in an elegant 
 Russian house ? And so it came to pass, that people 
 who hardly knew what the rudiments of cleanliness 
 were, decided that the missionaries were not clean 
 enough to please them ! 
 
 Another thing also must have told agamst the 
 missionaries : namely, the inability of the Russians to 
 
6^ AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 understand religious enthusiasm or earnestness. Religion 
 with them is taken very easily. It seems with most to 
 consist of the observance of saints' days, attendance on 
 services, crossing before pictures, etc. They may be 
 bigoted enough, and hold firmly enough to the rites 
 and ceremonies of the Greek Church, but thousands of 
 idolatrous Buriats about them would not disturb them 
 much. They are Buriats, why should they not be and 
 remain Buddhists ? Is not their religion as good for 
 them as ours for us? To be a Buddhist is to be a 
 Buriat, to be a Christian is to be a Russian; if the 
 Buriats want to become Russians, let them be baptised 
 and take a Christian name ; if they do not, let them be 
 as they axe, — who cares ? " Was born a Buriat ; 
 became a Russian," is a phrase sometimes used to 
 denote a converted Buriat. 
 
 Loyalty to Christ, — love to Jesus, — a feeling of 
 anxiety in one's own heart because men do not trust in 
 Christ for salvation, — an earnest desire to bring men to 
 Christ; these are emotions such as perhaps most 
 Russians do not understand for themselves, and would 
 be slow to credit others with the genuine possession of 
 There may be happy exceptions, but it is to be feared 
 that this is true of the great mass of th& Siberian 
 adherents of the Greek Church. 
 
 What then were they to make of the missionaries ? 
 Unable to understand their motives, could they do 
 anything but misconstrue their aims and actions ? cA.nd 
 so it happened that evil reports were continually finding 
 their way to the authorities, who, perhaps, were not so 
 far ahead of the people in enlightenment of ideas and 
 friendliness of feeling toward such intruders as English 
 missionaries in Siberia. 
 
TRANSLATION OF THA BIBLE. g^ 
 
 fiut the missionaries had come authenticated from 
 St. Petersburg itself; and though they might think 
 and speak evil of them, none could inteiTupt them. 
 And so things went on for years. 
 
 Of their modes of carrying on mission work there is 
 not much to say particularly. They travelled much, as 
 might be supposed, seeing that the Buriats live scattered, 
 a few here, a few there, over a wide space. Medicine 
 they used, perhaps because they could hardly help it. 
 Doubtless the Buriats then, like the Mongols now, 
 credited them with the possession of medical skiU ; and 
 the little that an unprofessional foreigner may happen 
 to know about a few cures is often a wonderful improve- 
 ment on native means and methods. At any rate, 
 their fame as doctors got established, and long journeys 
 were often undertaken in the hope of being benefited 
 by their treatment. 
 
 Daily services were held at each of the stations, con- 
 sisting of singing, reading the Scriptures, exposition ot 
 the same, and prayer. Thirty to forty were often present 
 at these meetings. Schools too were established, with the 
 hope of raising up an instructed Christian generation. 
 
 But the great work which they ever returned to, as 
 their other missionary duties permitted them, was the 
 translation of the Bible into the language of the 
 Buriats. This was no light task for two men to accom- 
 plish; but they did complete it, and printed and 
 published the Old Testament in Siberia, under an 
 imperial licence dated St. Petersburg, 1840. 
 
 The New Testament was not published till 1846, and 
 then it was done in London. The type with which the 
 Old Testament was printed is of the proper Mongol 
 shape ; but the New Testament was printed with Manchu 
 
 E 
 
66 ' AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 type adapted. The Manchu type does well enough; 
 though very different in appearance from real Mongol 
 type, it is yet quite as legible as the true Mongol shape. 
 But to return ; — the Old Testament had been printed and 
 published in Siberia, and the missionaries were proceed- 
 ing with the preparation of the translation of the New 
 Testament. They were in good spirits, and were more 
 hopeful than they had been. 
 
 One man, a Buriat, had opposed them and their 
 doctrine much. He was a man of intelligence and of 
 great energy. Many were the long arguments and 
 contentions he had entered into with the missionaries 
 about their religion and his. Many a stem duel had he 
 challenged them to in controversy, and in most, if not 
 all, of these contests he considered himself, if not victor, 
 at least not defeated, and certainly not convinced. One 
 man of this stamp counts half a host. Suppose a 
 Buriat had half resolved to become a Christian, perhaps 
 one of his most serious obstacles to open declaration 
 would be the thought of this man. If the missionary 
 hardly silenced him, what could he, the feeble convert 
 do ? And so one man may keep back a large number 
 of would-be converts. Doubtless this man did. 
 
 At length this man of a thousand showed signs 
 of giving in. He was a man of no half-measures, and, 
 if he became a Christian, would help as energetically as 
 he had opposed. Well might the missionaries be glad 
 and hopeful. They had gathered a few converts about 
 them already ; could they but secure this man for a 
 Christian, his thorough-going temperament would be a 
 strength to them, and the mission, which had progressed 
 so laboriously slow, might now be expected to begin to 
 reap in joy. 
 
RECALL OP THE MISSIONARIES. Qj 
 
 About this time, one day a notice was sent from the 
 local government office, summoning the missionaries to 
 hear an imperial order from St. Petersburg read to 
 them. It had come at last ; — they were ordered to 
 leave the country. 
 
 The order was not couched in respectful language, 
 nor was it in any sense complimentary to the mission- 
 aries ; it certainly did not order them out of the country 
 in so many words ; not at all, it only said that they 
 could not remain where they were, except they 
 bound themselves not to teach religion ! I think — 
 but cannot be sure about this — there was even mention 
 made of the fact that they might remain so long as 
 they confined themselves to secular instruction and 
 efforts directed towards the social elevation of the 
 people ; but Stallybrass and Swan had come to preach 
 the gospel of salvation, and if not permitted to do 
 that, could not remain. Sorrowfully they settled their 
 affairs, packed their things, took tearful farewells of 
 their few converts, and feeling that they were leaving 
 them as sheep in the desert without a shepherd, entered 
 the sledge, and were driven stage by stage Europe- 
 wards, over hills and desolate plains, and through 
 hamlets they were never again to be allowed to visit; 
 — banished from Siberia. 
 
 Besides Stallybrass and Swan, there was a Mr. Yuille 
 connected with the mission. John Abercrombie, a 
 Kabardian who had been rescued from slavery by the 
 Scotch missionaries and trained in their printing office, 
 joined the mission as printer in 1834. He also left 
 with Stallybrass and Swan in 1841. A traveller passing 
 through Selenginsk in 1863 heard of Mr. Abercrombie 
 having been in that neighbourhood. He was known as 
 
 E 2 
 
68 AMONG TH£ MONGOLS. 
 
 the Englishman, probably because he could speak 
 English. Mr. Yuille, who had charge of the press, 
 remained in Siberia after his colleagues had returned to 
 England. The convert Shagdur, in a letter written to 
 Mr. and Mrs. Swan, a year after their departure, speaks 
 of having met Mr. Yuille at Udinsk, and says he had no 
 intention of leaving soon. He was pledged not to teach 
 religion ; but to work for the education and elevation of 
 the people ; but after a short time he too was with- 
 drawn, and so ended the labours of the missionaries in 
 Siberia. 
 
 The few Buriat converts had, nolens volens, to join the 
 Greek Church ; and the energetic Buriat who contested 
 and held out so long, but gave in at last, and who, bold 
 as ever for his convictions, declared himself for Christ, — 
 if I mistake not, after the order removing the missionaries 
 came, had to be dealt with specially. His energetic 
 character and name were so feared, that he was ordered 
 by the paternal government to remove from the neigh- 
 bourhood, and take up his abode at quite a distance. It 
 was not expressly stated that this banishment was in 
 consequence of his having become a convert ; but both 
 he himself and everybody else knew all about what it 
 meant. His determination and influence were so 
 dreaded, that it was thought safer to send him out 
 of the way to a place where he was not likely to do any 
 harm ; and there he remains till this day, or at least did 
 remain till a recent date. 
 
 What argument was advanced against the continuance 
 of the missions perhaps cannot now be known, but one 
 thing can be mentioned, which may have something to 
 do with it. Even a quarter of a century after the 
 missionaries left Siberia, all converts were spoken of as 
 
J!ESULTS OF THE MISSION. Qg 
 
 belonging to the English, or rather as being Englishmen. 
 The converts themselves knew better ; but the mass of 
 the people, Russians and Buriats, seem to have regarded 
 conversion to Christianity as a desertion of Eussia and 
 a going over to England. It is easy to see how power- 
 ful an argument this could become in the mouth of a 
 person inimical to the mission, and how ready a Russian 
 ruler would be to listen to advice which urged him to 
 quash the beginnings of an English faction in Siberia. 
 
 It is hardly probable that the mission was broken 
 up from religious motives on the part of the Russian 
 government. A government which, at least, provides 
 for the religious wants of its subjects according to 
 requirement, managing, controlling, and providing for 
 the appointments in the Greek, Lutheran, Roman 
 Catholic, and Buddhist Churches, could hardly have 
 very serious religious scruples about a few Protestants 
 more or less. Perhaps, though, it may be that one 
 element of aversion to the mission was the fear that, 
 at some future time, there might be another added to 
 the many sects, for which the government would have 
 to provide worshipping facilities in Siberia. 
 
 Despotic governments do not usually burden them- 
 selves with giving extended reasons for their actions; 
 so, in its own summary way, Russia spoke the word and 
 the mission ceased in 1841. 
 
 It may be asked then, what did all the zeal, labour, 
 and ability of the old missionaries accomplish ? The 
 answer is, — :a score or so of converts, the translation of 
 the Bible, and an indefinite moral influence. 
 
 As to the converts, some remain to this present day 
 members of the Greek Church, and apparently good, 
 Wfinij-bearted, intelligent Christians. As to the original 
 
JO .AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 number, perhaps there were not so many as twenty ; 
 perhaps there were more. But even though there were 
 a few more than the larger number, that were a small 
 harvest to reap after twenty years labour of two or 
 three men. 
 
 The translation of the Bible into the Mongolian 
 language opened up the sealed book of the Scriptures 
 to the Buriats of Siberia and to the Mongols of Mongolia. 
 No smaU result this. The translation is not by any 
 means perfect, partaking of the imperfections of all first 
 Versions of the Bible in any language ; but the work has 
 been well understood in Siberia, and, for the most part, 
 quite serviceable in the various regions of Mongolia in 
 the Chinese empire. 
 
 Superficial judges have sometimes condemned it, 
 because frequently a Buriat or a Mongol will look at it, 
 read a little, shut up the book, and hand it back saying 
 he cannot understand it. A little more experience often 
 leads to the conviction that it is not the language that 
 is the difficulty, but the subject-matter. This is not the 
 place to enter on a discussion as to how far the Bible 
 without note or comment is likely to reach the under- 
 standing of a previously heathen people. There are 
 perhaps instances which can be quoted, in which the 
 Bible alone, unassisted, unexplained, has done, and done 
 well, its wonderful work of convicting and converting 
 men, and even of originating a little company of devout 
 Christians. These instances, it is said, can be quoted, 
 but they are rare ; and perhaps the old Siberian 
 missionaries would have done better, had they first 
 prepared and published (that is, if the Russian govern- 
 ment would have allowed them) some little compendium 
 of Christian truth and doctrine, couched in the common 
 
NE W TESTAMENT IN MONGOLIA. 7 j 
 
 language of the people. The peculiar relation in which 
 they stood to the Eussian government may have some- 
 thing to do with determining them to seek first the 
 translation of the entire word of God. 
 
 The New Testament has been circulated quite ex- 
 tensively in Mongoha. No-W and again, in out-of-the- 
 way places, an English traveller may be informed that 
 so and so has a foreign book ; and when it is called for, 
 out comes a New Testament in Mongolian by Stally- 
 brass and Swan. On inquiry, it frequently turns out 
 that the said copy has been brought from Kiachta 
 on the Russian frontier, by some friend who had gone 
 there with camel-loads of goods. In not a few cases, — 
 perhaps in all where the book has come from Kiachta 
 — the English title-page has been torn out. 
 
 In addition to the gathering of a few converts, and 
 the great work of translating the entire Bible, the 
 Siberian missionaries have exerted a moral influence of 
 no small extent. The picture of these men away among 
 the remote tracts of Siberia, searching out the few and 
 scattered inhabitants, and seeking to impart to them the 
 truths of the gospel, is well calculated to sustain flagging 
 missionary zeal in other less diflScult fields. This of 
 itself is a good deal ; for such pictures are not usually 
 lost on the world. 
 
 But the most practical outcome of this influence 
 seems to be the fact, that the Greek Church has started 
 mission work for the Buriats. About the extent or 
 nature of the work no details are forthcoming; but 
 that it exists at all is something; and the great 
 probability is, it owes its origin to the example set by 
 the English missionaries, who began their work in 
 Siberia more than half a century ago. It is a pity that 
 
72 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 the Buriats who embrace Christianity should be under 
 the necessity of embracing, at the same time, all the 
 many errors and superstitions with which the Greek 
 Church has adulterated the truth. On the other hand, 
 many good things can be said of the Greek Church ; one 
 is that she extends the open Bible to her followers. 
 
 It is a matter for devout thankfulness, that she can 
 hold out to the Buriats who join themselves to her, 
 the complete word of God in their own language. 
 
 The other missionary labours of the translators were 
 condemned and stopped long ago ; they were not allowed 
 to preach and teach ; they had to leave the country ; but 
 this enduring monument still remains. In time to come 
 it may be revised, corrected and improved, as all first 
 versions have to be ; but still, after all, it wiU be 
 essentially their work ; and perhaps the time may yet 
 come, when there shall be many Mongol-speaking 
 Christians to bless the labours of the early missionaries, 
 and read the Bible translated by them. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 LEARNING TO RIDE. 
 
 First leasoiig. Mongols ride with short stirrups. A six hundred mile 
 ride. Buying a whip. The start. Crossing the Tola in flood. 
 A Mongol's exhortation. Camping out. Dreams. Fall. Kat 
 pits. Mending harness. Mode of journey. Hospitality of the 
 poor better than that of the rich. Inhabitants. Influenza. 
 Animals in tents. We prefer to camp out. Guide bewildered at 
 his native place. Find a trail. Guide's home. Character of guide. 
 Reputation among his countrymen. New guide. Rainless dis- 
 trict. Change to camels. Camels and horses compared. "Have 
 you a revolver 1 " Mending a camel's foot. Gobi. A hill with 
 one side. A thirsty ride. Stones of Gobi. A tent at last. Tea 
 in the desert. Enchanted land. Stony illusion. Recollection of 
 Gobi like a nightmare. Progress in learning to ride. Snatches 
 of sleep. A green land. Miss our way. "What shop do you 
 belong to ? " Kalgan. 
 
 As a traveller in Mongolia must be something of a 
 horseman, I was eager to take lessons in riding, and a 
 Mongol friend used to indulge me occasionally, by 
 causing to be caught and saddled for me such an old 
 quiet beast as the aged grandmother or the very young 
 children of the family were in the habit of riding. 
 
 In a country where children are sometimes expert 
 riders soon after passing the age of infancy, a man who 
 could not ride was considered a great novelty, and when 
 ^he steed was led up, the whole community would turn out 
 
74 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 to enjoy the spectacle of my awkwardness in mounting. 
 As the Mongols ride with the stirrup straps so short that 
 a foreigner's legs became cramped, I used, when practic- 
 able, to have them lengthened, and then their wonder 
 was not that I should find difficulty in mounting, but 
 that I should be able to mount at all. 
 
 These occasional rides, however, did not go far 
 towards making me a horseman ; so being at Urga, and 
 under the necessity of crossing the desert to Kalgan, I 
 got a Mongol to contract to convey me thither on horse- 
 back, hoping, among other things, that a ride of this 
 length, six hundred English miles, would do something 
 towards making me feel comfortable in a saddle. 
 
 My Mongol contractor was to provide a saddled horse, 
 but I had to find my own whip. Giving a lama a brick 
 of tea, I sent him out to the market to make the best 
 bargain he could. He soon returned with a heavy club- 
 looking piece of wood, about twenty inches long, tapered 
 a little, with a cowhide lash attached to the lighter end 
 and a loop of light thong running through a hole in the 
 heavier end. The hand is thrust through the loop, and, 
 when not in use, the whip hangs from the wrist, leaving 
 the hand free. When the whip is wanted it is thus 
 always ready, simply close the hand, and the whip ib 
 grasped. 
 
 I was a little astonished at the weight of the thing 
 at first, but the Mongols assured me it was all the better 
 for that. Should a robber come, I was just to grasp the 
 lash and the thick end of the whip, give him a good 
 crack on the head, and the robber would have the 
 worst of it. They were not far wrong. One good blow, 
 delivered as directed, would almost have smashed a 
 man's skulL 
 
Mm 
 
 Vif'^^f'^-^ 
 
CKOSSTNli TSn TOLA. 77 
 
 After naany delays everything was declared ready for 
 the start, the horses were led out, I scrambled up, and 
 we rode slowly off, among the last words I hecri 
 uttered being expressions of opinion from the spectators 
 to the effect that, if I could not mount a horse better 
 than that, I was not likely to reach Kalgan by horseback. 
 We soon reached the north bank of the Tola, and found 
 that river in flood, not very high, however, flowing with 
 a beautiful clear stream, but rather cold to the touch, as 
 most of the increase in its volume was caused by the 
 melting of snow. The ordinary ford was a little too 
 deep, so we went a little higher up, to a place where 
 the river was broader and more rapid, and therefore 
 shallower. Here we found a flock of sheep being 
 transported over the river in a fashion truly Mongol, but 
 perhaps the only way possible under the circumstances. 
 They were tied two and two, dragged a little beyond 
 the centre of the river by a man mounted on a camel, 
 then let go. They drifted rapidly down with the 
 current, but struggled towards the bank, and were finally 
 secured dripping and shivering. After looking to our 
 saddle-girths, and drawing up our feet till we were 
 almost kneeling in the saddle, we pushed in. The water 
 came high up the horses' sides, but my guide was used 
 to such things, and I got on very well oy keeping my 
 horse close under the lee of his. As soon as we got 
 over we dropped our feet into the stirrups, laughed at 
 the adventure, and rode on, knowing that, whatever 
 difficulties we might meet, we had no more rivers to 
 ford for the rest of the six hundred miles. 
 
 That evening we had dinner in the tent of a mutual 
 friend, who escorted us for some miles in the dark, and 
 then proceeded to take. a most afi'ectionate and pious 
 
yg AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 farewell of us, exhorting me to pray to my God, and he 
 would pray to his. "When in his tent my contractor 
 had vainly endeavoured to buy horses, and when our 
 friend impressed upon him the necessity for prayer and 
 its helpful nature in a journey like that on which we 
 were entering, adding that he would pray for us, the 
 disappointed man turned himself round in his saddle, 
 and said, with great energy, " If you had sold us a couple 
 of horses cheap, it would have helped us on our journey 
 a great deal better than praying. " 
 
 In the contract, which had been carefully drawn out 
 and signed, it had been stipulated that my guide was to 
 find tents in which i could sleep at night. We rode on 
 till about eleven o'clock, when suddenly my guide's 
 horse left the road and began to describe a semicircle. 
 On my calling out and asking what all this meant, it 
 appeared that the rider had been fast asleep in the 
 saddle ; he woke up with a start, looked about him in 
 a bewildered manner and asked, " Where are we ? 
 From what direction did we come ? " A little after we 
 came to a knoll near which was some good grass. Here 
 I was called upon to dismount, the saddles were taken 
 off, the horses fettered, and thus, sheltered from the 
 north wind, we were to sleep out on the wUd. The 
 proper way of " retiring to rest " in such circrmstances 
 is to place the saddle for a pillow, set up the saddle- 
 bags as a screen from the wind, spread the saddle felt 
 for a mattress, put on all warm gloves, cravats, etc., 
 that come to hand, cover up with any rugs you may 
 have, and wish for the morning. 
 
 A hungry man, it is said, dreams of feasts ; I was a 
 cold man that night, and my dream was of a nice warm 
 bedroom with a good bed and a cheery fire. So real 
 
MV FIRST FALL. Jg 
 
 was the vision that I awoke saying, " If I had only had 
 this some time ago coming from Urga." I looked about, 
 and saw the dim horizon over the distant mountains, 
 heard the horses grazing near, listened to the snoring 
 of the Mongol, and realised that we were out on the 
 desert. 
 
 When daylight came we caught our horses and 
 started, but had gone only a very short distance when 
 my horse's fore-feet sunk into the earth, and as we were 
 going at a smart pace and down hill he was unable to 
 recover himself. For some yards he staggered along 
 and then came down, throwing me on my head with a 
 shock that was all the more painful on account of the 
 chill and stiff state I was in, through not having got 
 warmed up after the cold of the night. 
 
 The fall was occasioned by my having allowed my horse 
 to ride over a hollow piece of ground. These treacherous 
 parts are the trouble of riders in Mongolia. A little rat- 
 like animal excavates galleries under ground, and a horse 
 passing over one of these must go through. These 
 dangerous spots are usually distinguished by a different 
 colour and appearance from the rest of the ground, but 
 sometimes even a practised eye may be at fault, and a 
 few moments' inattention is enough to bring down the 
 best horse and rider. 
 
 Just before spring, sometimes, large tracts of the 
 desert are fired accidentally from the unextinguished 
 fires left by passing caravans, and purposely by the natives, 
 that the new grass may grow up better and free from 
 the old. In these burnt tracts it is almost impossible to 
 distinguish the hoUowed spots, and a few days later in 
 this ride, while passing over a burnt district, my guide 
 had his fall. He was before me, and we were going at 
 
So AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 a rapid rate when, all of a sudden, T saw his horse with 
 its head towards me, its four feet in the air, and its rider 
 undermost! My guide was a large man, and was consider- 
 ably crushed, but it is strange that he was not more 
 hurt by so bad a fall. Both the saddle-girths were 
 burst, but, true to his Mongol instiact, the rider held fast 
 to the halter, and did not let his horse go. 
 
 After a little he recovered from the effects of his 
 fall, picked up his scattered belongings, and set about 
 repairing his broken saddle-girths. As we had no spare 
 strings or straps with us, and were far away from human 
 habitations, I wondered how he would make good the 
 damage. I was not left long in suspense ; without 
 hesitation he at once took a handful of hair from the tail 
 of his horse, twisted and plaited it together, and in a 
 few minutes the straps were as strong as ever. As the 
 tails of the horses are allowed to grow to the ground, 
 a Mongol horseman on a journey is never at a great 
 loss for a string ; careless in the extreme, he is apt to 
 forget anything that can be left behind, but when 
 needed the tail of his horse is never far to seek. 
 
 For some days we rode oii, sleeping out on the 
 plain, dismounting about midnight to feel the grass 
 with our hands, hobbling our horses, and " turning in " 
 as soon as we found good pasture. About dawn we 
 resumed our journey, drawing up at some tent about 
 sunrise for our morning tea. Later on we stopped 
 at some tent for breakfast, and towards evening again 
 halted for dinner. With about two exceptions we were 
 treated with great kindness. The " pot and ladle " 
 were put at our service, and in most cases our tea made 
 and our food cooked for us, no remuneration being 
 expected, asked, or given, beyond a little tea, or the 
 
MONGOL HOSPITALITY. gj 
 
 lea-vings of our meal, which, with this object in view, 
 was always more abundant than was necessary to supply 
 the wants of two travellers. We found that we fared 
 much more economically, and were better treated, and 
 received with a much warmer welcome, in the tents of 
 the poor than in the abodes of the rich. A rich man 
 would make us wait his convenience, and expect us to 
 make extra good tea or a meal which, both as regards 
 quantity and quality^ would be in keeping with his 
 dignity and status, and even then we left feeling that 
 our visit had been something of an intrusion. In the 
 tents of the poor, on the other hand, we were warmly 
 welcomed, our tea or food was prepared at once and in 
 all haste, our animals were looked to as they grazed, the 
 share of food which we left in the pot was considered a 
 rich reward, and when all was over we were conducted 
 forth and sent on our way again with many expres- 
 sions of friendship and good wishes for the prosperity of 
 our journey. 
 
 Some of these tents at which we put up seemed very 
 poor and very lonely. One contained almost nothing 
 but the skins of sheep which had died through hard 
 weather ; another was the abode of a man suffering and 
 bent down by a spinal disease, but who had a quick and 
 eager mind, which made him welcome us, as sources of 
 information and news about the places we had come 
 from and passed through \ many of them were the 
 abodes of women whose husbands were away on distant 
 caravan journeys, while they themselves remained at 
 home caring for the children and a small flock of goats, 
 the kids of which, finding nothing to satisfy their 
 climbing instincts in the flat desert, kept continually 
 leaping on to the roof of the tent, only to be chased off 
 
LIFE ON THE PLAIN. §3 
 
 liy one of the children ; and almost all of the poorer 
 Bort seemed destitute of tea, a want which they sought 
 to supply by boiling again the spent remains of the 
 pounded leaves and twigs of which brick tea is 
 composed. 
 
 In one district we had to ride a long stretch of many 
 miles without entering a tent. As often as we drew up 
 at a tent a woman or man would come out and say, 
 "Dismount at my tent at another time, we have the 
 cough." This cough seemed to be a kind of influenza 
 much dreaded by the Mongols. As far as I can learn, 
 it seldom proves fatal, but travellers are careful to avoid 
 it, and no one would think of using 'the "pot and 
 ladle " of a family suffering from this sickness. 
 
 We slept a few of the nights in tents, but I soon 
 ceased to find fault with being compelled to sleep out 
 in the wild. Every day took us farther into summer, 
 and fifty or sixty miles nearer to the equator; the 
 weather was mild, and the temperature soon became 
 sensibly warmer. There is, moreover, one phenomenon 
 of tent life which is not agreeable to a foreigner — the 
 presence at night of calves, lambs, and kids. A poor 
 Mongol shares his tent at night with the young of his 
 animals, and, for the most part, finds it agreeable. With 
 them the tent is warmer, and he and his family can 
 sleep with less to cover them, and so little repugnance 
 seems to be felt towards them that the tents of the rich 
 even are seldom without two or three young calves 
 tethered near the door, which seem quite at home, and 
 spend most of their waking hours in licking everything 
 within their reach. In cold and stormy weather any 
 tent, even with calves, lambs, and kids, is better than 
 outside, but in summer, with no rain and a mild 
 
 F 2 
 
§4 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 temperature, a traveller moderately provided with 
 warm clothing finds the coolness and freshness and 
 freedom of the open plain preferable, at least for the 
 few nights he is engaged in crossing it. This feeling 
 grew as the journey went on, and towards the end of it, 
 on the southern side of the desert, I was quite as 
 enthusiastically in favour of outside lodgings as my 
 guide. 
 
 After five days' ride we reached the native place of 
 the lama who was conveying me through the desert. 
 We did not arrive till nearly midnight, and though, as 
 it afterwards proved, we were within about a couple of 
 miles of his tent, we narrowly escaped sleeping out in 
 the wild. A day or two before we had been rescued 
 from a similar difficulty by the bark of a dog, but 
 though we shouted no dog would answer, the night was 
 dull, and we could find no mark of any kind that 
 indicated where we were or where we should go. To 
 make matters worse, we had left the great road in the 
 afternoon, and for some time had been running across 
 country. Though close to his own home, the lama was 
 quite bewildered. In Gobi no wood grows. The Mongols 
 have, therefore, to buy in Kalgan or Urga the long 
 fishing-rod-like birch poles used in catching their horses. 
 As these poles are too long to carry on a camel, it is 
 usual to tie them up into a bundle, fix one end to a 
 camel, and let the other trail on the ground. A day or 
 two before we had noticed a caravan with such a bundle 
 of rods, going south, and the Mongol, as he rode hither 
 and thither in the dark, detected in the sand the trail 
 of this bundle of rods, and shouted out, with great 
 glee, that we were all right, he knew all about it. 
 Taking his bearings from that slender trail, we set off 
 
CHANGE GUIDES. 85 
 
 at full speed, and were soon in his home, the lama the 
 centre of a rapidly increasing company, which hastened 
 to greet him on his return from a lengthened resi- 
 dence in the temple in which he held office in Urga, 
 I drinking milk fresh from the cow, to the amazement 
 of the on-lookers, who here, as everywhere else, were 
 loud in the expression of their astonishment that any 
 
 >j,M*//!:^^ j^, ^ ,,,^i/5^j 
 
 ^ni^^^^^M' 
 
 '■*/?5^^^ 
 
 r^ 
 
 .^^_^h^j\0\^^V^^^>^ fr^^^i 
 
 ^^""^j^ ,^^\ 
 
 ^^"^"^^.-^ ^mt'i'i'J^^ '"^^ 
 
 \^^ ^^AW J 
 
 -^^ 
 
 CATCHING H0E3E8 ON THE PLAIN. 
 
 \¥rom a Native Sketch. 
 
 one should drink milk "raw," and not. boiled, as their 
 universal custom is. 
 
 We had been but a few minutes in wh-in the lama 
 told me he was done up, that he could not go farther 
 with me, and that he would send me on in the care of 
 his younger brother, who was not a lama, but a " black 
 man," as the Mongols denominate a layman. I called 
 
§6 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 upon him to produce the man for my inspection, wlien 
 he arrived drew him close up to the fire till the light fell 
 full on his face, asked him a few questions, and, amid 
 the laughter of the whole assembly, pronounced him 
 " passable," and said I was willing to go on under 
 his care. 
 
 This change of guides was directly contrary to the 
 expressed terms of the contract, in which it had been 
 stipulated that the lama was himself personally to escort 
 me all the way to Kalgan. Though I had, for the saks 
 of appearances, to grumble a little at this open violation 
 of the bargain, I was secretly so exceedingly glad of 
 the change that I could with difficulty conceal my 
 satisfaction. 
 
 Soon after leaving Urga I had, thinking to expedite 
 matters, on one occasion caught and saddled my horse 
 myself. From that time onwards the lama took it for 
 granted that I would in future make no calls upon him 
 for help in the many menial attentions that have to be 
 paid to a traveller's horse. 
 
 When we happened to stop for tea or a meal at tents 
 with the inmates of which he was acquainted, he would 
 relate to them how he had bought at Urga for them tea, 
 tobacco, matches, etc., but that through my niggardliness 
 he had been compelled to part with them in bartering 
 for herses to carry us on our journey, always taking care 
 in his narrations to let it seem as if his taking me 
 through the desert was not a commercial speculation, on 
 which he had ventured in the hope of making a profit, 
 so much as a deed of charity which he was performing 
 for my benefit. 
 
 Most Mongols are in the habit of lying more or less, 
 but this man seemed to have so steeped himself in 
 
A LAMA'S VIEWS OF TRUTH. 87 
 
 untruth as to be unable to suppose that any one else spoke 
 the truth in circumstances where a lie would be advan- 
 tageous. Before leaving Urga I had provided myself 
 with a pair of spectacles, pieces of common blue glass 
 set in wire gauze, poor cheap things that even in remote 
 regions, such as Kiachta and Urga, cost only a trifle, but 
 which are of great use in shading the eyes from the 
 glare of the sun on snow or desert. For convenience 
 sake I carried them fastened with their elastic band on 
 to my hat. Soon after leaving Urga, either in a fall 
 from my horse, or in a tent where we had rested, the 
 spectacles were lost. I was grieved at the loss, and the 
 firece glare of the sun on the sandy soil was so strong 
 that it brought on an affection of the eye that did not 
 leave me .for months after the ride was finished. 
 
 My lama had tender eyes and sufifered a good deal on 
 the ride. He called for the spectacles. I told him they 
 were lost. Measuring me by himself he supposed that 
 I was merely telling a lie to avoid lending them to him, 
 and throughout the remainder of the time that we were 
 together he lost few opportunities of complaining to 
 people of the badness of the man he had with him, 
 asserting that I had in my baggage a good pair of 
 spectacles which I would not lend him though I was not 
 using them myself. From the frequency and earnest- 
 ness with which he repeated this tale, I have no doubt 
 that he sincerely believed it, and after a few remon- 
 strances I gave him up and let him believe his own Ue. 
 By telling this story perhaps he secured the sympathy of 
 the listeners, and he had such a fund of falsehood with 
 which he used to set himself off in a good light, that 
 any hearer who believed one half of what the lama said 
 could hardly help having the feeling which one of them 
 
8g AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 gave expression to when he remarked, " There goes a 
 meritorious lama." 
 
 It might be supposed that a man like this would soon 
 be seen through and despised by his countrymen, but, on 
 the contrary, it seemed that he was held in high esteem. 
 He was ignorant and uneducated, so much so that he 
 could not sign his own name in Mongolian, or even in 
 Tibetan, though every lama pretending to any standing 
 at all is supposed to be familiar with the latter language, 
 yet he held quite an honourable office in a temple in 
 Urga. 
 
 I was glad to hear that I was now to part company 
 with this man who had made himself so disagreeable ; 
 and realising the fact that I had ridden out one Mongol, 
 and was in the ■ morning to continue my ride pitted 
 against a fresh man, I called for silence in the tent, 
 ordered a sheep to be bought, killed, and put into shape 
 for carrying, fixed the hour at which we were to start 
 and turned in to sleep. 
 
 Next day I was careful to render no assistance to my 
 guide in the matter of managing the horses, and I was 
 glad to find that throughout the journey he never 
 expected me to do anything but allow myself to be 
 looked after and cared for. I soon found, however, that 
 another article of the contract was to be infringed. It 
 had been stipulated that horses alone were to be used, 
 but no rain had fallen in Gobi, and it was pleaded that, 
 not having foreseen this, it was impossible without 
 suffering great loss to cross Gobi with horses. With my 
 consent, therefore, camels were procured, and mounted 
 on these lofty steeds, we for some days and nights paced 
 slowly through a dry and barren land, where no new 
 grass had grown, where there seemed little old grass, 
 
Mo heVolver. 89 
 
 aud where the cattle gladly picked up such stray pieces 
 of withered grass as were blown about over the desert, 
 and collected in hollows and little ravines. 
 
 The camels were very sure-footed, so much so that 
 though they frequently stumbled they never once fell^ 
 even when they sunk into a rat-gallery ; and, though the 
 motion was unpleasant and the progress slow, they were 
 very comfortable at night. Unlike horses, camels do 
 not feed at night, so when we wanted to go to sleep we 
 had only to draw them up broadside to the wind, make 
 them lie down, and lie down ourselves on their lee-side, 
 sheltered by their friendly protection. 
 
 My first guide had been much annoyed at what he 
 believed to be the lie I told about my spectacles ; my 
 second guide soon complained of what he believed to be 
 the truth which I told about my revolver. I had none, 
 and, whenever asked, said frankly that I travelled un- 
 armed. My guide being timid, remonstrated with me for 
 thus betraying my defenceless state to all inquirers, and 
 urged me to tell a lie about it and say that I was armed. 
 On my declining to do this he rode on for a time in 
 silence and apparently in deep thought, then proposed, 
 as the result of his cogitations, that when asked if I had 
 a revolver I should reply, " Supposing I have, what 
 then ? supposing I have not, what then ? " I saw no 
 harm in this form of answer, agreed to use it, and have 
 often since staved off in the same manner impertinent 
 questions of troublesome Mongols. 
 
 I have no doubt that by frankly saying I had no 
 revolver I reaped the full advantage of protection that 
 the possession of firearms is supposea to confer on 
 a traveller in the desert. Most Russians whom the 
 Mongols meet carry revolvers, and when the Mongols 
 
QO AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 heard me denying that I had one, most of them supposed 
 that I was simply following their custom, and telling a 
 lie to avoid the trouble of showing it, or to escape being 
 importuned to give them powder ; and one man, in whose 
 tent we drank tea towards'the close of our journey, made 
 an earnest and persistent attempt to overcome what he 
 regarded as my reluctance to oblige him by supplying 
 him with foreign gunpowder. 
 
 After the camels had travelled some days the soles of 
 their feet began to wear through to the quick in one or two 
 places, and had to be mended ! The animal was thrown 
 over on his side his feet put up on a low stool, and the 
 tender part covered by a patch of leather, which was 
 held in its place by thin thongs drawn through the ad- 
 jacent callosities of the sole. The animal's foot was 
 mended very much as a cobbler mends a shoe. 
 
 Before dismissing Gobi a few words of description may 
 aot be out of place. One day as we rode along we found 
 a high hill straight in front of us. The summit seemed 
 a good way off to look at, but proved even more distant 
 to reach. Near the top were some women gathering 
 argol, and it appeared rather strange that they should 
 be so occupied so high up above the plain. When the top 
 was reached it was found that there was no descent on 
 the other side ; by this sudden rise we had ascended to 
 a table-land, and it was explained to me that we were 
 now in Gobi. 
 
 I saw Gobi under the most disadvantageous circum- 
 stances. No rain had fallen, no grass had grown, there 
 was nothing but sand and stones with last year's grass 
 dried and brown, and very little even of that. Here 
 and there were the ghost-like remnants of last year's 
 growth of spear-grass, scorched with the sun and bleached 
 
GOBI. 
 
 91 
 
 with the weather ; and the general desolation of the 
 scenery was, if possible, enhanced by the appearance 
 of black rocks which cropped up in perpendicular 
 layers. 
 
 Not only was the dryness of the season apt to leave 
 an unfavourable impression of the place, but, through 
 the mismanagement of my Mongol guide, our ride over 
 
 ' ^,,-' 
 
 ^l--'.4• 
 
 
 
 woMBN GATHERING FUEL. \From a, t^iativi UlittcK 
 
 the part which remains most vividly imprinted on my 
 memory was performed in great discomfort. 
 
 We had eaten no food and drunk no tea since the day 
 before, and found ourselves, late in the morning, riding 
 from one scene of desolation into another, if possible, 
 still more desolate, and hour after hour we seemed to 
 be coming no nearer the end. The sun mounted higher 
 
^2 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 and higher, till, blazing in his strength, the heat became 
 oppressive. My sun-hat was a protection from above, 
 but from the grassless gravel and sand beneath there 
 glared up a fierce light and heat from which there was 
 no protection. Stretch after stretch of country we 
 passed, but still no wells, no tents, no inhabitants. At 
 last we left all traces of man and beast, left the road 
 even, and entered on fresh scenes of more intense 
 desolation, passing among rocks rough and black that 
 broke through the ground in all directions, rugged and 
 frowning. 
 
 Emerging from this we suddenly came upon a stretch 
 of ground almost literally covered with the far-famed 
 stones of Gobi. The prevailing colour was a kind of 
 misty, half-transparent white, exactly like arrowroot or 
 cornflour prepared with water only. Besides these were 
 stones of other colours, including, if I remember aright, 
 red, green, and blue. It was like a fairy scene. The 
 stones were strevni almost as thickly as they could lie. 
 Seen under other circumstances we might have brought 
 , away samples of them, but, as we then were situated, 
 neither of us cared a straw for them. The Mongol 
 muttered something about a place where better stone 
 could be found. This he did, I suppose, afraid lest I 
 should dismount to pick up specimens. If so his device 
 was superfluous. It was not stones I wanted, but the 
 delicious dirty Mongol tea. Just when I began to fear 
 that the utmost limit of endurance was almost reached, 
 having drunk nothing for eighteen hours, the roof of 
 a tent was espied at last, and we were soon seated 
 inside drinking tea. 
 
 To any one who has not experienced a long-continued, 
 fierce, burning, desert thirst, it is quite impossible to 
 
THIRST-QUENCHING POWER OF TEA. 93 
 
 convey any idea of the relief that tea brings. Its 
 virtues are wonderful. It is itself wretched stuff. No 
 civilised man in any civilised country would drink it. 
 But in the desert it is a different thing. The frank 
 welcome and the tea, which is given unasked and as a 
 mattei of course, seem to revive nature's exhausted 
 powers, and speedily put to flight the remembrances 
 of a painful ride. It may seem strange that a hungry 
 man should sit down and drink mere tea, " empty tea," as 
 the Mongols would call it, without bread or accompani- 
 ments of any kind, but it is the proper thing to do. 
 It removes fatigue, restores vigour, and takes off the 
 rage of hunger without imparing the appetite. In 
 China or Mongolia a traveller exhausted by a long stage, 
 and suffering from heat or cold, should never think of 
 sitting down to a meal, but should address himself to a 
 teapot filled with hot tea. By drinking away at this he 
 soon finds himself veering round into a comfortable 
 frame of mind, and is enabled not only to wait patiently 
 till his dinner is ready, but also to do ample justice 
 to it when it comes without danger of unpleasant con- 
 sequences afterwards. 
 
 There is another element that goes to compose my 
 recollections of Gobi. One morning, when we must 
 have been in Gobi or near it, we found ourselves in a 
 land that seemed enchanted. It abounded with boulders 
 which, in size, shape, colour, and often in arrange- 
 ment, so closely resembled human habitations, that we 
 were sometimes puzzled to distinguish between stones 
 and houses. Kiding up to what seemed the abodes 
 of men, we would find that we were in a solitude 
 among rocks ! At other places where it seemed as 
 if we were alone, we voujd behold people moving 
 
g^ AflfONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 about and disappear into what we had supposed to 
 be grey boulders ! 
 
 Another morning at early dawn we had a similar but 
 more perfect deception. Ahead of us there appeared a 
 tent with a flock of camels lying beside it. We con- 
 gratulated each other on finding so convenient a place 
 for our tea, and rode up to it cheerily, when, to 
 our amazement, we perceived as we neared it that 
 what we had seen was neither tent nor camels, but 
 a group of boulders, among which was one larger than 
 the rest. 
 
 The weird feeling produced by climbing a high hill 
 and finding it had only one side, and of riding among 
 what seemed to be habitations and finding that they 
 were rocks, and then coming upon what looked like 
 rocks and finding that they were human habitations ; 
 the depression produced by riding over long stretches of 
 country with nothing but a desolation of rough rocks 
 surrounded with barren sand mixed with gravel ; 
 the lonely feeling of travelling through a land in 
 parts destitute of inhabitants, and the pity that could 
 not but be felt on discovering that most of the few and 
 far between dwellers of that sparsely peopled region 
 were at that particular time suffering from influenza; 
 commiseration for man and beast living in a land where 
 no rain had fallen, where no grass had grown, and where, 
 consequently, many of the natives with their flocks and 
 herds were travelling about in search of pasture and 
 water; and the great fatigue of travelling that arose 
 from the unnatural and scorching heat produced by the 
 drought; the combination of all these feelings conspired 
 to leave an unfavourable impression of Gobi, and it 
 was with great joy that at length we found ourselves 
 
THE GREAT WALL. gy 
 
 beyond the bounds of that afflicted country, and once 
 more journeying over a land green with grass and herbs, 
 where we could dismiss our camels and take again to 
 horses. 
 
 South of Gobi the journey was uneventful. Eain had 
 fallen, the plain was green, inhabitants were plenty, 
 and, for the most part, gave us a hearty welcome. The 
 only adventure worth recording was at the close of the 
 journey and at night. We were following along the 
 road when, dark in front of us, rose a great black ridge. 
 I asked my guide what that was. He repUed it was a 
 mountain. A nearer approach showed that it was the 
 great wall of China. It was such a marked feature of 
 the landscape that no one who had once seen it could 
 forget it, and on questioning my Mongol I found that 
 he had never been to Kalgan or to China before. 
 Previously he had said that he had been to Kalgan and 
 knew the way, now it appeared that he Icnew less about 
 it than I did. We passed the wall at a gateway, and 
 followed the road till we found ourselves on a lofty pass, 
 and so surrounded with yawning precipices that came to 
 the very edge of the road and went sheer down into 
 the darkness that it was dangerous to go on without 
 light. We lay down and waited for the dawn, when 
 pursuing our way we descended into China along the dry 
 bed of a mountain torrent, and found that somehow or 
 other we had taken the wrong road, came over the 
 wrong pass, and given ourselves some ten miles extra 
 travelling. 
 
 We reached Kalgan in due course, and in such good 
 time that my conductor was entitled to quite a little 
 sum of money as reward for ending the journey before 
 the. stipT;l3.ted date. After a few days' rest he went 
 
gg AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 home with his well-earned money and his worn-oiii 
 steeds. For days afterwards I indulged in copious 
 draughts of tea, and ever since this pretty thorough 
 lesson in riding have never had any difficulty in per- 
 forming, either with an attendant or alone, such journeys 
 in the saddle as have been entailed upon me by the 
 prosecution of my missionary duties. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 A NIGHT IN A MONGOL'S TENT. 
 
 A Just storm. Tents. Hospitality. Quarters for the night. A 
 reading lama. Reading the gospel by fire-light. "Yes, I have 
 spent a good night." 
 
 We had been travelling, uncertain both as to the time 
 of day and the proper direction of our route. If we 
 could have seen the sun, we should have known both the 
 time and the points of the compass ; but the air high up 
 was loaded with very fine dust, which hid the sun and 
 covered the earth with a dull twilight. At last the 
 darkness began to thicken, and we knew night had come, 
 and a short time afterwards we struck the great road, 
 and my guide assured me we were not far from tents. 
 Both our camels and ourselves were fairly tired out, and 
 the hope of rest soon seemed pleasant ; but on and on 
 we went, and still no tents. 
 
 ■ My guide, being mounted on a swift young camel, 
 kept so far ahead of me that I could just distinguish a 
 dark mass away before me. After following the road a 
 long time, I urged my camel on, overtook the guide, and 
 asked him where these tents were ; he simply pointed 
 forward, and said, probably they were there. This was 
 
 G 2 
 
ICO AMONG THE MONGOLS 
 
 little comfort, but it was all that was to be had ; his 
 swift camel soon drew ahead again, and left my old 
 animal far behind. Still no tent ; still the distant black 
 mass loomed in the darkness before, and I felt convinced 
 that my guide knew little more about the tents than I 
 did. Suddenly the black mass seemed to become 
 broader. Was it the camel with his length across the 
 road ? Then it moved a little to the right. Had my 
 guide spied tents ? A very little urging now brought 
 my camel alongside his swifter companion. 
 
 We had left the road, certainly, but where were the 
 tents ? Some distance off there was a streak slightly 
 blacker than the rest of the darkness. The quick eye 
 of the Mongol had noticed this. As we approached it, 
 dogs began to bark, tent doors opened, and fires gleamed. 
 We had found inhabitants at last. We were soon seated 
 by the bright fire of a lama's tent. The lama was about 
 twenty-seven years of age, and lived with his mother, 
 an old woman over fifty, and another little lama, about 
 fifteen. They were just at dinner, which seemed to 
 consist of boiled millet, flavoured with a very acid kind 
 of sour milk. The old woman urged the two lamas to 
 finish their dinner quickly, that she might heat some 
 tea for the two travellers. After snuff bottles had been 
 exchanged, and the customary questions asked and 
 answered about the personal health and comfort of our 
 host, and the peace and prosperity of his flocks ; and 
 he, on the other hand, had been informed who we were, 
 where we were going, and how our cattle stood the 
 journey, my lama guide ventured to ask if there would 
 be room for us to sleep in his tent. 
 
 Our lama host did not seem altogether pleased at the 
 request, and answered, " I am afraid not." His fear 
 
AN iNTkLLtGENT LAMA. y q 1 
 
 seemed quite natural. The tent was small, and prelliy 
 well filled up round the north part with boxes, and the 
 altar on which a butter-lamp was then burning. Most 
 of the west side was taken up by a lamb-fold, and the 
 east side, in addition to the usual quantity of pots, 
 water-holders, milk-vessels, that cumber that part, had 
 a thriving calf tied up, which for lack of something 
 better to do, kept licking with evident relish everything 
 it could reach. There seemed to be little enough room 
 for three people to sleep, how then could other two find 
 room? 
 
 My lama, nothing daunted, replied that I was not 
 proud or troublesome, and could do with very little 
 room J and it was finally settled that I should sleep 
 where I was, and my guide should sleep in a neigh- 
 bouring tent. This arranged, we drank our tea, the 
 neighbours came in to see us, our host soon thawed, 
 and he and I engaged in conversation, while my 
 guide superintended the cooking of our dinner. 
 
 Our host proved more intelligent than lamas usually 
 are, and could read Mongolian — a very extraordinary 
 thing for a priest. When I produced my satchel of 
 gospels, catechisms, and tracts, he handed me a book he 
 had been reading just before dinner. It was not printed 
 but written in a small character, and much thumbed 
 and worn. It was some old historical legend, and the 
 lama pointed to the place where he had been reading, 
 and asked me a word in it he could not make out. 
 He next asked me to read the whole passage, which 
 I did. 
 
 It ran thus : — " The hero (I forget his name) stuffing 
 the mouth of the hole with his white bonnet, took a 
 large stone, and ' toong, toong,' beat the gfiound above. 
 
I02 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 The fox alarmed, rushed out, and ran off with the white 
 bonnet on his head." 
 
 I had got thus far when a neighbour came in to let 
 me see a Mongol prayer-book, used in presenting offer- 
 ings to the god of the fire. I had to read a piece of 
 this also, and then our dinner was ready. 
 
 While we ate, our host applied himself to the Gospel 
 I had given him, and he could make it out very well 
 indeed. He asked many questions about Christ and 
 our religion, and this gave ample opportunity of ex- 
 plaining to him and to all in the tent the way of 
 salvation through Christ. 
 
 After a good deal of interesting conversation on this 
 subject, the time for sleep arrived. My guide went off 
 to the other tent, and my host pointed out my place of 
 rest between the lambs and the fire. I rolled myself in 
 my sheep-skin blanket, and found that the place given 
 me was just large enough; no more. I could see no 
 place for the lama to sleep ; and on asking him what he 
 meant to do, he said he had to sit up and watch a cow 
 that was expected to calve. The cold is so great, even 
 m April, that a newly-born calf exposed all night is 
 frozen to death. The lama settled himself on the south- 
 east of the fire, took the Gospel in his one hand, and 
 with his other hand from time to time kept throwing 
 argols on the fire to keep up light enough to read with. 
 Though very tired, I could not sleep except for a few 
 minutes at a time, and always when I woke up there 
 was the lama reading slowly away at the Gospel, and 
 always adding a few more argols to keep up the light. 
 Happily, the book was printed from wooden blocks by 
 ■i Chinaman in Peking. This made it less neat than 
 .'.ovable tvee would have been, but at the same time 
 
" I HA VE SPENT A GOOD NIGHT." 103 
 
 made it much larger and rounder, and much better 
 adapted for the bad eyes of the Mongols and the dim 
 light of their tents. All night through this man kept 
 reading, going out at intervals to see his cow ; and when 
 dawn began to come, and people from the other tents 
 began to move about, he went off to sleep, and we got 
 up and prepared to depart. 
 
 While the old woman was boiling tea for us, I read a 
 chapter in Mongolian, and when I had finished this, and 
 we were drinking our tea, the lama roused himself and 
 asked why we called the Gospel " the Joyful News." 
 The reason, I told him, was that all men are sinful. 
 This he admitted at once. I then reminded him of how 
 the Mongols sought to wipe away sin, and escape hell by 
 penance, pilgrimages, fastings, offerings, and other diffi- 
 cult works. Now this book says that when a man wants 
 to get rid of his sin, he has only to look to Christ, and 
 his sin clears away ; that when he wants to escape hell, 
 he has only to come to Christ and Christ saves him by 
 making him meet for heaven. Is not the book, then 
 rightly named "the Joyful News"? He at once as- 
 sented, got up, expressed many friendly wishes, escorted 
 us beyond the range of the dogs, and made me promise 
 that if I came back that way I would call on him. As 
 I left his friendly abode I could not help feeling that 
 notwithstanding the cold reception at first, the lambs 
 on the one side, the fire on the other, and the sleep- 
 lessness, I had spoken the truth, when, in reply to the 
 pleasant Mongolian salutation on waking, I replied, 
 " Yes, I have spent a good night," 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 BUYING EXPERIENCE. 
 
 Preliminary preparations. Waiting for a Mongol. My first camel. 
 Load up and start to look for a servant. Upset. A Mongol manii- 
 factming gunpowder. Hire a servant. Chanting prayers for the 
 dead. A runaway camel. Fit out and start. Camel driver in- 
 competent. Camel sticks. Put back and lightened. Dog carries 
 off mutton. Camels unsuitable for my purpose. Sell off. Poetical 
 justice. Oz-oarts. Oxen. Camels and oxen compared. Tents. 
 Mongols thoughtless and careless. 
 
 Having picked up some knowledge of the language, 
 taken a long lesson in riding, furnished myself with a 
 box of medicines necessary for the treatment of a 
 number of the diseases most common in Mongolia, the 
 proper cures for which had been pointed out to me by 
 the kindness of a medical missionary in Peking, and 
 packed a box with such Scriptures and tracts as I found 
 ready to my hand in the dep6ts of the British and 
 Foreign Bible Society and the Religious Tract Society, 
 I found myself the guest of an American missionary 
 located in Kalgan, a Chinese town, situated on the 
 south frontier of Mongolia. 
 
 My plan was to get a tent, buy camels, hire a Mongol 
 servant, and travel about the country, camping here 
 and there at inhabited places, in the hope th^t I might 
 
Waiting for camels. to5 
 
 be enabled to dispense medicine and preach the Gospel 
 to the natives who would be attracted to visit me. 
 
 The first thing was to find camels ; but I could get 
 none for hire or sale, and at last had to give up the 
 attempt and endeavour to wait quietly the coming of a 
 Mongol friend, who was expected to arrive in a few 
 days. Endeavour to wait quietly, I have said, for I don't 
 think the endeavour was very successful ; and I may 
 here lemark that of all the things I- have had to do in 
 connection with Mongolia and Mongols, waiting has 
 been that which proved most difficult. When per- 
 forming hard journeys, when baffled in attempts at 
 mastering the language, when poorly lodged and badly 
 fed on native fare, when treated with suspicion, and 
 even when openly opposed, there is comfort and stimulus 
 in knowing that perseverance will end the journey and 
 conquer the language, that endurance will make up for 
 deficiencies in board and lodgings, and that openness and 
 eff'ort will overcome unfriendliness and hostility. Any 
 one in good health and spirits can get through such 
 difficulties well enough. But to have to sit down and 
 simply wait the coming of a day, or a man, whose advent 
 no eff'ort can hasten, this to me has always proved the 
 hardest task that could be set, and it is one that has 
 often fallen to my lot in connection with Mongolia. 
 
 The day came, and so did the man at last, and, learning 
 what I wanted, in a very short time he reappeared, 
 blocking up the gateway with a tall, gaunt camel, 
 the first of that tribe of cattle which I was destined 
 to possess. In a day or two he found me another, 
 but that was all he could do for me ; duty called 
 him away, and he had to go on to Peking in the 
 service of his government. Before going, however, he 
 
Iq5 among the MONGOLS. 
 
 furnished me with the name of a man whom I might 
 find it possible to hire to act as my servant. This 
 man lived away in Mongolia, and could be reached 
 only by taking a journey of about a hundred English 
 miles ; but anything was better than inaction, and having 
 procured the felts and frames that compose the uncouth 
 camel pack-saddle, I loaded up one of my two recent 
 purchases, led him clear of the Chinese town, and, after 
 an unsuccessful attempt in which, to the great mirth of 
 the Chinese spectators, I came down by the run, suc- 
 ceeded in perching myself on the top of the load, and 
 took my way northwards to find my possible servant. 
 
 The journey took four days, and was uneventful, with 
 the exception of an upset which happened on the first 
 day, and an adventure which closed the third day. 
 Shortly after entering Mongolia proper, my camel in- 
 sisted on disregarding my attempts at guiding him, and 
 walked along a sloping bank wet with water, which ran 
 from some snow that was melting higher up. As might 
 be expected, his great broad flat feet slipped trom under 
 him, and, with a scream, he landed on his beam ends, 
 where, held down by his load, he lay entirely unable to 
 recover himself. I managed to tilt him up, there was 
 no material damage done, and we continued our journey. 
 
 The third day, misdirected by a .Mongol, whose in- 
 tentions were doubtless honest and friendly enough, I 
 got into a country I knew nothing about, and had to 
 put up for the night at a tent "where I was a stranger, 
 and whose inhabitants seemed a rather rough set. The 
 unsatisfactory feeling I could not help entertaining about 
 my surroundings was increased by the fact that a young 
 man was busy manufacturing gunpowder in an iron pot 
 close beside an open fire. He was grinding it with a 
 
A KECk'LESS MONGOL. I07 
 
 stone, and as long as it was moist there was no danger. 
 As it got dry and the process was nearly finished, it was 
 alarming to see how reckless he was ; and his rashness at 
 last reached such a pitch that the women of the com- 
 munity remonstrated and compelled him to remove to 
 a safe distance from the fire. Though their looks and 
 surroundings were against them, this family proved 
 honest enough, treated me well, and next day set me on 
 my way again with such correct and clear directions 
 that I had no difficulty in reaching my destination. 
 
 The man whom I sought was at home, received my 
 offer cautiously, took a day to think of it, came to report 
 his acceptance of the situation and got very drunk, an 
 example which was followed by my landlady, an old 
 woman of about sixty. 
 
 Having bought another camel I proposed to start 
 back to China, but my servant would not hear of it. 
 He was a lama, and at that time was engaged with 
 others in chanting prayers for the good of the soul of a 
 well-to-do neighbour who, when drunk, had met his 
 death by falling from his horse and breaking his neck. 
 My servant, though he could absent himself for a day or 
 two from the prayers, declared his intention of waiting 
 till the final day of the services, when he, in common 
 with the other lamas, would receive the presents of 
 money, or goods, or both, that would reward -them for 
 having assisted, as was supposed, in forwarding the soul 
 of their dead neighbour to a place of freedom from 
 suffering. 
 
 After a short delay my lama got his gratuity, and we 
 set out on our return journey. On the second day, 
 when encamping for our midday halt, one of our camels 
 got alarmed by the load becoming loose, began to jump 
 
I08 AMONG THE' MONGOLS. 
 
 and kick, persevered till it kicked itself clear of every- 
 thing, and started homewards at a smart trot. In a 
 short time it was a long way off, and had I not paid a 
 Mongol to moui.t a horse and bring it back, we might 
 never have seen >. again. 
 
 Arrived in China, a few days sufficed to procure a 
 tent and aU the other things necessary, and our caravan 
 of three camels, one lama, and one missionary, set out 
 for Mongolia. We had gone but a short distance when 
 I discovered that, through improper loading, the boxes 
 were rubbing through the camel's skin, and on having 
 this pointed out to him, my servant admitted that he 
 was not used to camels, and did not know how to load 
 them. Having been assured that he knew all about 
 camels, I had left the arrangement of the loads to him ; 
 but now, finding that he knew nothing about them, I 
 took the thing into my own hands, and soon had the 
 burden fixed up more satisfactorily. 
 
 All went well till we came to the foot of the great 
 pass that has to be crossed to reach the plain. It is a 
 high mountain, scaled by a rough road which owes more 
 to the wheels of carts than to the tools of road-makers, 
 and is very steep in some parts. As soon as we came 
 fairly in sight of this pass, one of the camels stopped 
 and refused to go on. Urging it produced nothing, and 
 we finally put up for the night at a Chinese inn. An 
 attempt made the following day was not more successful, 
 and for another night we had to put up in the same 
 inn. It was now apparent that the camel, originally a 
 poor one, had been over-exhausted on the preliminary 
 journey undertaken to find my Mongol servant, and was 
 not in a condition to travel. 
 
 I made another discovery at the same time, namely, 
 
ffiBirillilpKWWi^'TF^'^ 
 
 :t)i'-f,< 
 
 ifi0f 
 
 ■kmiMii'iii 
 
B UYING EXPERIENCE. 1 1 1 
 
 that my camels were too heavily laden. I had loaded 
 them up to about what I had learned was the usual 
 amount of a camel's burden, but I now found that, to 
 travel well, such animals as I had would not carry above 
 half of their present load. To get on at all, I was under 
 tl^e necessity of completely reconstructing my whole 
 appointments, and, in place of three camels with full 
 loads, I had to arrange for journeying with two camels 
 with half loads. The disabled camel was left behind, as 
 was also the greater part of my goods ; and, following my 
 reduced caravan on foot, we again faced the pass, got 
 over it all right, and at length had the desire of my 
 heart gratified by finding myself encamped in my own 
 tent on the plain, healing the diseases of the Mongols 
 and telling them of salvation through Jesus. 
 
 One of the first nights that we spent in Mongolia, a 
 dog entered our tent and carried off a leg of mutton, 
 nearly our whole stock; and from this adventure I 
 learned always to hang up mutton at night beyond the 
 reach of these prowling thieves, who seldom failed to 
 pay us nocturnal visits. 
 
 In the course of two summers I gained a good deal of 
 experience of camels' flesh, and came to the conclusion 
 that camels were not the animals best suited to my 
 travelling needs. The main difficulty was that great 
 part of my travelling was in summer, the season of the 
 year when camels are generally disused, and turned 
 loose on the plain to pasture, and gather up a supply of 
 fat and strength, which is essential to their endurance 
 during the rest of the year. So, after having owned 
 quite a number of these animals, which some one has 
 described as "deformed in the very structure of their 
 being," and Laving performed a number of journeys 
 
JJ2 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 with them, I had become fairly well acquainted with 
 their capabilities, their excellences, their defects, and 
 the proper method of treating them. Finding, however, 
 that I could do better with other means of locomotion 
 I sold off the whole lot, and have never owned one camel 
 since. It would seem that a kind of poetical justice 
 attended the issue of this final selling off, on my part, 
 of my whole interest in Mongolian camels. 
 
 During one of my journeys I had been under the 
 necessity of hirmg for a short period two camels from 
 a wealthy Mongol. The bargain had been concluded 
 by the Mongol who was then my servant. Through 
 some oversight or carelessness on his part, some of the 
 terms of agreement had been left rather indefinite, and 
 when I came to give back the animals, their owner not 
 ■only seized the opportunity to interpret these inde- 
 finite terms to the full to his own advantage, but, in 
 order to force me to accede to his demands, treated me 
 in a manner that was an outrage on all justice and 
 uprightness. I had no resource but to submit, and, 
 acting on the principle of never taking offence at the 
 conduct of a heathen, however bad it might be, parted 
 from him on terms of perfect amity. This same man, 
 hearing that I wanted to sell my caniels, and evidently 
 encouraged by his former transactions with me, came 
 forward as a purchaser. The price was soon agreed 
 on, and this time, making the bargain myself, the terms 
 were definitely settled. I took the money. He took 
 the animals and departed. Report says that the half of 
 them died, so that in place of making a good sum of 
 money by them, as he intended, he barely realised the 
 sum he had paid for them. If he had been a poor man 
 he would hfive merited some pommisepation on the 
 
OX-CART^. itj 
 
 disappointment of his hopes, but he was wealthy, and it 
 was some consolation to me to think that though in our 
 first business transaction he had over-reached me badly, 
 he had, though quite unintentionally, in this case paid 
 me the full value of my camels. 
 
 Having given up camels, my next travelling ex- 
 periences were with ox-carts. These carts are veiy 
 rude affairs, and, with the exception of two small pieces 
 of iron, are made entirely of wood, the price of cart and 
 wheels, brand new, varying according to quality from 
 two to three taels, that is, from eleven or twelve to 
 sixteen or eighteen shillings sterling. Each cart is 
 drawn by one ox, and carries a load of about five 
 hundred catties, or between six and seven hundred 
 pounds. The wheels are fixed to the wooden axle, 
 which revolves with them, and the two pieces of iron 
 are small plates of cast metal let into the wood of the 
 cart-frame exactly over the axle, which thus in contact 
 with iron, turns more easily and with much less tear 
 and. wear than would be possible if subjected to the 
 friction of wood to wood. 
 
 The construction of the carts and especially of the 
 wheels is ingeniously simple. Into one thick beam, 
 called the shull, are let, cross-wise, the smaller wooda 
 called arrows; to each of the six extremities of these 
 three pieces of wood is fixed a felly, everything is 
 driven tightly home, and held in its place by wooden 
 wedges, and the wheel is complete. When both wheels 
 are cojnpleted they are firmly wedged on to the axle, 
 and the whole fabric is held together by the power of 
 water. As soon as the wood gets dry the wedges get 
 loose, and the separate pieces of the wheel are in 
 danger of falling asunder. As long as the whole thing 
 
 H 
 
J J . AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 is kept damp it keeps moderately well together, and an 
 essential preliminary to starting on a march is to see 
 that the wheels are wet. It was -some time, and not tiU 
 after some misadventures, that I came to know the 
 " points " of a cart. 
 
 On the whole my experience of oxen was very favour- 
 able, and I learned to admire their strength, powers of 
 endurance and docility. The camel is doubtless the, 
 beast of burden in Mongolia. There are regions where 
 without the camel travelling would be well nigh impos- 
 sible ; there are seasons of the year when the camel 
 alone is available, and for the rapid transport of goods 
 at all times and places the camel is indispensable. 
 Yet over almost the whole of Mongolia, oxen and ox- 
 carts are largely used, and between some of the large 
 trading centres by far the largest part of the traffic 
 is carried on by ox-carts, the merchants being able to 
 afford the higher rates of camel-freight on only a small 
 proportion of the goods which their business makes 
 it necessary for them to transport. 
 
 There were also a few things to be learned about 
 tents. The ordinary travelling tent of the Mongol 
 is shaped exactly like the roof of a gableless house, and 
 is made of two thicknesses of Chinese cloth, being white 
 inside and blue outside. The tent has no door, its 
 " month" as it is called, standing open night and day. 
 Moreover it is so constructed that it does not reach 
 quite to the ground, but leaves a space of a few inches 
 all round, by which the wind blows through at pleasure. 
 The first improvement that suggested itself was to stop the 
 draught by sewing a fringe of cloth all round the bottom 
 of the tent ; the next was to make a cloth door which 
 could be buttoned up at night. Later on, in place of two 
 
H 2 
 
Il6 AMONG THE. MONGOLS. 
 
 tent poles three were used, which added much to the 
 apparent size and real capacity of the tent by leaving 
 the centre space unincumhered ; and the final and 
 crowning device was to have two ridges and a double 
 roof, by which means the excessive heat of the tent, 
 during the cloudless blazing days of summer, was very 
 much reduced. So fierce was the sun that its rays 
 pierced the double Chinese cloth, and penetrated so 
 strongly that opaque objects in the tent used to cast 
 distinct shadows on the tioor; but with two roofs 
 separated by a sufficient air space, the brightness and 
 heat were much reduced and the interior of the tent 
 rendered cool and pleasant. 
 
 The only drawback connected with these improve- 
 ments arose from the remarks of some of the Mongols, 
 who seemed to think that any one who took trouble to 
 make a travelling tent comfortable must be very careful 
 of himself. Many of the Mongols admired the double 
 roof as a device that they had not been clever enough 
 to think of for themselves, but some few men seemed to 
 bestow a sort of commiseration on a man who was afraid 
 of sun and wind. One would almost rather broil in the 
 sun and shiver in the wind than be considered effeminate 
 by a Mongol. It was manifest, however, that notwith- 
 standing any remarks Mongols might have to make on 
 this subject, they were very glad of the good shelter 
 afforded by the tent, and some of them would pay me 
 long visits and be very slow to leave, simply because 
 they liked the coolness of the tent on hot days, and the 
 warmth of the tent when a cold wind was blowing. 
 
 Any one but a Mongol would perhaps have given me 
 hints that would have saved much trouble on these 
 points ; but, thoughtless in their own concerns and 
 
EXPERIENCE ONLY TO BE BOUGHT. wj 
 
 careless of their own interests, it was perhaps too much 
 to expect that my servants should be thoughtful and 
 careful about my affairs. Hence it came to pass that 
 not only in th<j things mentioned, but in many others, 
 having the example of no predecessor, and receiving 
 little aid from the natives, I could only be guided by 
 what seemed feasible, and had no other way of gain'.ug 
 experience but by buying it. 
 
CHAPTER Vlll. 
 
 HOW TO TRAVEL IN MONGOLIA. 
 
 How Mongols travel. On camels with «. tent. On horseback. In 
 ox-carts or horse-carts. On foot. Incidents en route. How 
 Chinamen travel. Camel cart travelling for foreigners generally. 
 Eequisites. Scenes on the plain. Pleasantest part of the ride. 
 Customs to he observed by travellers. Mongols hospitable and 
 desire reciprocity. 
 
 Mongols usually travel on camels with a tent. This 
 is their usual mode when they are numerous enough to 
 form a company, and when the journey is to some 
 distant place. Northern and Central Mongols, going 
 to Wu-t'ai or Peking, to worship at the famous shrines 
 there, usually travel thus. A spare sheep-skin coat for 
 bedding ; a few calf-skin bags (looking like the original 
 calves themselves), with provisions ; a small blue cloth 
 tent, black with smoke and a good deal patched ; a pot, 
 a grate, two water buckets, and a few odd pieces of felt, 
 are about all the things that are needed. When they 
 go thus lightly encumbered, with no goods to barter, 
 they can travel quickly, the exact length of the daily 
 march depending a good deal on the condition of the 
 camels, the season of the year, and the power of 
 endurance of the travellers themselves. One hundred 
 and twenty U, or forty English miles, would be a good 
 day's march ; sometimes more would be accomplished, — 
 
MONGOL WA Y OF TRA VEILING . 1 1 p 
 
 often mucli less. The Mongols like to be careful of 
 their camels, even when they are fat and strong, aad 
 would rather lengthen the journey by a good many 
 days than spoil their animals. 
 
 But a Mongol is always glad when he can get down 
 from a camel and mount a horse. The motion of a 
 horse, they say, is pleasanter, and then too a horse goes 
 so much faster. They often perform journeys on horse- 
 back. The drawbacks to this kind of travelling are, 
 that on a horse they can take only a few pounds of 
 luggage if the journey is at all long, and the horse 
 needs a good deal of care. It is not as in China, where 
 you get into an inn, buy so much fodder, and let the 
 animal munch away at it half the night. In Mongolia 
 you come to a tent and get lodging readily enough, but 
 the horse must be turned adrift to shift for himself. In 
 summer he in.ast not be let loose while the sun is hot ; 
 allowing him to eat then would make sores on his 
 back, they say ; in the evening and in the early morning 
 he must be allowed time to feed. Then again the 
 pasture in the neighbourhood of tents is usually poor, 
 being eaten down by the cattle of the place. 
 
 A common and comfortable way of horseback travel- 
 ling, is for a horseman to join himself on to a camel 
 caravan. The caravan has its own tent, camps away 
 from settled habitations in the midst of good grass, 
 and the horse finds pasture without trouble. 
 
 The carts commonly used in Mongolia are simple 
 and rude in construction, and though a little clumsy, 
 are light. Carts for passengers are roofed in with a 
 frame covered with felt or cloth. Inside there is room 
 enough for a man to sit or lie down and sleep. Horses 
 travel at a moderately good speed, but are seldr^m used 
 
A DIMINUTIVE TENT. 121 
 
 in carts for long journeys. Long journeys are usually 
 performed by oxen, and of all means of locomotion in 
 Mongolia, they are the slowest, sometimes not ac- 
 complishing much more than ten miles a day. 
 
 The Mongols like above all things to ride, but many 
 of them cannot find steeds, and a vast deal of foot 
 travelling is done. A large proportion of the travelling 
 on foot is that of poor men who go on religious pil- 
 grimages. Foot-travellers, for the most part, trust to 
 the hospitality of the inhabitants of the districts through 
 which they pass for lodgings, but occasionally they 
 carry a tent with them. On one occasion in the south 
 of Mongolia, I found two men encamped in a tent 
 which weighed only a very few pounds. The frame of 
 the tent consisted of a ridge pole supported in the 
 centre by a stake about the height and strength of a 
 walking-stick. They had a little pot, a little water 
 bucket, a ladle, a piece of felt and a skin. One of the 
 two inhabitants had received medicine from me the day 
 before ; so when I presented myself at the tent door to 
 ask for my patient, one of the two hurried out and 
 invited me to enter. There was no room for three, so 
 he remained outside till I left. There was no room to 
 sit up, and certainly no room to stretch oneself out in it ; 
 but these two lamas lived in it, and seemed well pleased 
 with their accommodation. They belonged to Urga, and 
 had been to Wu-t'ai ; at least they said so. They had 
 been some months on the road, and were then about 
 five or six hundred miles from home. The tent and 
 fittings seemed so unique that I have ever since 
 regretted that I did not buy it all up as a. curio. 
 
 At another place I fell in with four men going to 
 Aodo, a place.gomewhere to th^ soutb-w^st. They ha4 
 
122 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 a tent and travelled heavily loaded. They had been a 
 
 month on the road, and still had about three or four 
 
 months' travel before them. They were all young, about 
 
 twenty-four, and were going west to study at some 
 
 famous seat of learning, hoping to come back with their 
 
 degrees and a reputation for scholarship, that would 
 
 secure them rank and position among the lamas of their 
 
 native place. As they intended to be away some years, 
 
 they doubtless had each a store of silver in the baggage, 
 
 but their travelling expenses cost them little, as they 
 
 begged most of what they needed. They evidently had 
 
 the sympathy of the people with them, and found little 
 
 difficulty in getting gifts. They fared plainly too. I 
 
 saw them set on the pot, fill it up to the brim with 
 
 water, and proceed to add the requisite quantity of 
 
 millet. The cook on this occasion was evidently the 
 
 hungry man of the party: so, chuckling at the absence 
 
 of two frugal lamas of the company, he coaxed his 
 
 companion into a laughing consent to add a little more 
 
 millet than usual, on the pretext that the particular 
 
 millet in question "did not swell!' They were preparing 
 
 to dine on millet and water, but a small piece of poor 
 
 cheese having been obtained, a few slips were thrown 
 
 into the pot to give a flavour. 
 
 Lamas and laymen sometimes go hundreds of miles 
 on foot to famous shrines, and occasionally break down 
 on the way. In such cases they usually apply to the 
 temple for assistance, and not unfrequently get it. On 
 one occasion, some men from the Sunite country started 
 for Wu-t'ai on foot, and arrived there foot-sore and 
 weary. They applied to the temple, and as some men 
 from their quarter of the country were on the temple 
 roll, for handsome donations given some years before, 
 
CAMEL- CA R TS. 1 2 3 
 
 the worn-out travellers were well treated and sent home 
 on horses. Of course the travellers thus assisted were 
 expected to make some return, and doubtless this 
 example of kindness won for the temple a good many 
 adherents and a good many suhscriptions. 
 
 Chinamen travel in camel carts. This is the common 
 method adopted by rich merchants. The camel cart is 
 closed in all round, is long enough to sleep in stretched 
 out full length, and is just as broad as you like to set 
 the wheels. It is very comfortable. The camel caravan 
 usually does a good part of its travelling at night , 
 that is no affair of the traveller's ; he goes to bed and 
 sleeps till morning 
 
 Ordinary travellers find the camel cart the most 
 comfortable mode of transit. After securing cart and 
 camels, the next thing is to lay in a stock of provisions 
 and get other requisites together. 
 
 For the cart it is necessary to have a small wicker jar 
 of oil with a brush to apply it to the wheels ; an iron 
 lantern, a stock of Chinese caudles to burn in it, a fev/ 
 extra sheets of paper to renew its coverings ; and two 
 little pieces of wood fastened together by a cord to 
 block the wheels when the camel is taken out of the 
 shafts, and the cart is left resting on the support in 
 front with which it should be furnished. 
 
 Travelling in Mongolia has many pleasures, but 
 ordinary travelling is so slow that the tedium threatens 
 to swamp them all. Horseback travelling does away 
 with the tedium as far as possible, and presents the 
 greatest number of new scenes and circumstances in 
 rapid succession. Night and day you hurry on ; sunrise 
 and sunset have their glories much like those seen at 
 sea ; the stars and the moon have a charm on the lovely 
 
MONGOLIAN LANDSCAPES. _ 125 
 
 plain. Ever and anon you come upon tents, indicated 
 at night .by the barking of the dogs, — in the daytime 
 seen gleaming from afar, vague and indistinct through 
 the glowing mirage. As you sweep round the base of 
 a hill, you come upon a herd of startled deer and give 
 chase, to show their powers of running ; then a temple 
 with its red walls and gilt ornamented roofs looms up 
 and glides past. Hill-sides here and there are patched 
 with sheep ; in the plains below mounted Mongols are 
 dashing right and left through a large drove of horses, 
 pursuing those they wish to catch, with a noosed pole 
 that looks like a fishing-rod. On some lovely stretch 
 of road you come upon an encampment of two or 
 three, hundred ox-carts, the oxen grazing and the 
 drivers mending the wooden wheels, or meet a long 
 train of tea-laden silent camels. When the time for a 
 meal approaches and a tent heaves in sight, you leave 
 the road and make for it. However tired the horses 
 may be, they will freshen up at this. They know what 
 is coming, and hurry on to rest. 
 
 The greatest pleasure attending such a ride is the 
 finish. After ten days or a fortnight of discomfort, 
 fatigue, sleeplessness, and hard fare, to take a bath, 
 change clothes, sit down to a foreign meal spread on 
 a white table-cloth, and go to sleep in a comfortable 
 bed, is a luxury that can be fully appreciated only by 
 those who have performed the ride. 
 
 In connection with travelling, it may be in place to 
 speak of the proper manner of entering a tent. Some 
 travellers, from mere ignorance, maike grave blunders, 
 and though the Mongols are the first to forgive people 
 ignorant of their ways, yet it is better to know some of 
 the more important customs to be observed. 
 
126 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 From whatever side the tent is approached, be sure 
 to ride up towards it from the front. If you come upon 
 it from behind, ride round it at some distance, so as to 
 come up in front. If on foot it is more important still 
 to observe this rule. When within a short distance, — 
 say speaking distance, — of the tent, stop and shout 
 ndhoi (dog), and if the dogs have not come out against 
 you before this, they will be pretty sure to come and 
 come in force now. But the nohoi is not meant to 
 challenge the dogs to combat, but to warn the people 
 in the tent to come out to restrain them. The Mongol 
 dogs are very savage, and without the protection of the 
 tent people it would be rash and dangerous to attempt 
 to advance. At the cry of ndhoi, or nohoi hurae, the 
 people in the tent are bound by law to come out and 
 protect the traveller. Until they receive this protection, 
 horsemen remain in the saddle ; foot travellers keep the 
 dogs at bay as best they can with a couple of sticks- 
 The idea of the two sticks is, I suppose, that when one 
 of them is laid hold of by a savage animal of the pack, 
 there is another stick still left free to lay about with. 
 Two or three women and children probably come out, 
 scold off the tamer animals and sit down on the fiercer 
 ones, while the traveller hurries in. He should be 
 careful, however, to leave his sticks or whip outside the 
 door. This is a unive rsal custom in Mongolia, as far as 
 I have observed, and is seldom or never violated by 
 Mongols. So far is it carried, that a child who brought 
 the stalk of a tall reed into the tent where I was visiting, 
 and played by striking the ground with it, received a 
 severe reprimand and narrowly escaped chastisement. 
 
 The idea of leaving the sticks and whip outside, as 
 explained by the Mongols themselves, is that any one 
 
■MONGOL SALUTATIONS. 12/ 
 
 who comes into a tent carrying a whip or stick, insults 
 the inhabitants by conducting himself as if he had come 
 to whip or beat them like dogs. " What use have you 
 for your whips and sticks inside the tent ? Outside you 
 keep off the dogs ; here are you going to beat us in our 
 own tents?" Having left his stick outside, then the 
 traveller, on getting through the low doorway, may say 
 mendu to the people inside, and proceed to sit down on 
 the left side of the fireplace, about halfway between the 
 door and the back of the tent. If no demonstration is 
 made, the traveller may sit there ; but if asked to go 
 higher he can either accept the honour or decline it, as 
 may seem best to himself. It is not usual to take off 
 the hat on entering, but most roadside Mongols are used . 
 to the foreign custom of uncovering, and it does not 
 shock them. If the hat be taken off, it should be laid 
 higher, — that is further up towards the back of the tent, 
 — than the visitor himself. Either this, or it may be laid 
 on the top qf a chest, but in no case should it be laid 
 towards the door. The traveller should sit cross-legged ; 
 but if he cannot do this, he should be careful to stretch 
 his legs towards the door. The feet pointed inwards 
 towards the back of the tent would be considered great 
 rudeness, even in a foreigner. The next thing is the 
 interchange of snuff bottles. A Mongol visitor offers his 
 first to the host and the people of the tent, and receives 
 theirs in return; but foreigners do not carry snuff 
 generally ; so the Mongol host offers his to the foreign 
 visitor. The bottle should be received in the palm of 
 the right hand, carried deferentially towards the nose, 
 the stopper should be raised a little, then a sniff, the 
 stopper may be readjusted, and the bottle handed 
 slowly and deferentially back to its owner. Those who 
 
128 AMOna THE MONGOLS. 
 
 speak the language, while receiving and fetutning the 
 bottle, make and answer inquiries about their host's 
 and their own health. People who don't speak Mongol 
 can make a few nods and give a pleased smile or two, 
 which will be taken as an equivalent for the customary 
 phrases of politeness. 
 
 Meantime the women have been warming tea, and 
 soon a little table is set before the visitor ; then he is 
 handed a cup of tea, which he should receive with both 
 his hands. He may set it down on the table for a little, 
 or he may drink it off, if it is not too hot. Tea in 
 Mongolia is not the mere formality it often seems to 
 be in China. The visitor is expected to drink it and 
 hand back his cup, with both hands as before, to have 
 it refilled several times. When he has had enough he 
 should say so or indicate it, that the cup may not be 
 refilled. While he has been drinking tea, a plate of 
 white food is usually set on the table or handed to him, 
 to be received with both hands. As a rule, this is not 
 expected to be eaten, but must be tasted. Taking a 
 mere crumb is sufiicient ; then the plate should be 
 deferentially delivered back with both hands. 
 
 On leaving the tent there are no very special for- 
 malities to be observed. The Mongols do not usually 
 have any custom equivalent to our hand-shaking and 
 " good-bye." A bow and a smile outside the tent door 
 before mounting will be sufiicient. 
 
 As to entering tents on the plain, there need be no 
 bashfulness. Any traveller is at perfect liberty to alight 
 at any village he may wish and demand admittance ; 
 and any Mongol who refuses admittance, or gives a cold 
 welcome even, is at once stigmatised as not a man hit a 
 ■dog. Any host who did not ofi'er tea, without money 
 
MONGOL HOSPITALITY. 
 
 129 
 
 and without price, would soon earn the same reputation, 
 the reason being, I suppose, that Mongolia has no inns, 
 and all travellers are dependent on private houses for 
 shelter and refreshment. At first sight it seems rather 
 exacting to leap oft your horse at the door of a perfect 
 stranger, and expect to find tea prepared and offered to 
 you free ; but probably the master of the tent where 
 you refresh yourself is at the same time sitting likewise 
 refreshing himself in some other man's tent some hundred 
 miles away ; and thus the thing balances itself. The 
 hospitality received by Mongols in travelling compensates 
 for the hospitality shown to travellers. 
 
 Not a few tents are at one time or other under 
 prohibition. Sickness, a newly-born child, the children 
 being inoculated, and a few other things happen to 
 make it impossible to allow strangers to enter. In the 
 case of a single tent standing alone, the traveller under 
 such circumstances would have to go on ; but in a 
 village, not more than one or two tents are likely to be 
 forbidden at the same time, and shelter can be found in 
 the others.- 
 
 Mongols sometimes complain of the Chinamen, who 
 come to Mongolia, enter their tents, and receive their 
 hospitality, but who, when their Mongol friends go to 
 China, will not let them enter their dwelling-houses. 
 Sometimes when I am among them in their tents, they 
 ask incredulously if I would let them enter my house, 
 and I of course say I would, and keep my word to such 
 as visit me at home. Mongols in Peking, who have 
 entertained foreigners in Mongolia, sometimes complain 
 of the manner in which they are driven away from the 
 gates of foreign residences iri Peking. 
 
 I 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 DINING WITH A MONGuI.. 
 
 Tlie invitation. My host preparing himself for dinner. Converiwtion 
 under difiioulties. Arrival, of a congenial companion. Dinner 
 ready and served up. The place of honour. The proper custom. 
 The second course. Early hours. Why the rump is the piece of 
 honour. Paying a Mongol in his own coin. A live dinner. 
 
 One afternoon towards evening, when sitting in my 
 teacher's tent, a horse-herd appeared inside the door, 
 and said that the mandarin desired my company to 
 dinner. On asking when I should go, the reply was 
 " Now," so I got up and accompanied the messenger 
 back. I was ushered into the presence of my host, and 
 found that the dinner was only a semi-official one, and 
 as such was to take place in the second-best tent. The 
 mandarin was preparing himself for the repast by 
 drinking, out of small cups, Chinese whisky, which he 
 heated by inserting the conical metal wineholder into 
 the fire, or standing it in the boiling pot. How long he 
 had been so employed, or how much whisky he had thus 
 consumed, was doubtful, and he seemed so intent on 
 imbibing more, that he did not care to talk much. 
 
 When he did speak it was only to ask formal questions 
 which he had asked and heard me answer before, and 
 
CONVERSA TION UNDER DIFFICULTIES. \ 3 1 
 
 when I attempted conversation, he, for the most part, 
 simply stared at me in a blank manner, and, if he 
 replied at all, uttered little more than monosyllables. 
 Frequently when I- spoke, he would look at me intently 
 till I had finished, then, gulping down the whisky which 
 he had meantime been holding in his mouth, he would 
 utter an inarticulate grunt by way of assent, and busy 
 himself heating or pouring out more whisky. 
 
 In the face of such a display of intelligence it was 
 useless to prolong attempts at conversation, and I was 
 about to follow the example of my host and relapse into 
 silence, when his married daughter, a comfortable-look- 
 ing, plump, broad-faced matron, who happened to be 
 home on a visit, came to the rescue, and attempted to 
 interest her father by showing my watch, and question- 
 ing me about our foreign marriage customs. But it was 
 all in vain. The man seemed to have no capacity for or 
 interest in anything but Chinese whisky. 
 
 Having invited me to dinner, I was a little suiprised 
 that he made no attempt to entertain me with conversa- 
 tion, and we were feeling a little awkward (by we I 
 mean all the occupants of the tent except the hopt, who 
 seemed quite happy as long as his whisky held out), 
 when a neighbour, a poor old man blind of one eye, 
 came in and seated himself between the fire and the 
 door, the humblest place in the tent. 
 
 The mandarin commanded a servant to supply the 
 new-comer with a measure of warm whisky and a cup, 
 when the poor old man's tongue was loosed at once, and, 
 to our great relief, so was the mandarin's, and these two 
 men, dissimilar in everything but their love of drink, 
 had a long and lively talk together. There was no need 
 to force a conversation between them, and for a long 
 
 I 2 
 
132 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 time they rattled away speaking of horses, cattle, and the 
 general affairs of the country-side. The children, both 
 of the house and of the neighbouring tents, got out dice 
 and had a regular game, which I watched till dinner was 
 almost ready. When that time arrived a Tibetan lama, 
 who happened to have come that evening, was sent for. 
 He came and shared the place of honour with me. This 
 yellow-coated individual was to me what the poor tippler 
 was to my host. He was intelligent and inclined to talk, 
 and we did talk together, and I was feeling quite at 
 home, till some food was brought in for the mandarin's 
 inspection, — my lama's half-uttered sentence was left 
 unfinished, his countenance became fixed, his gaze 
 abstracted, his whole attention centred on what was in 
 the great man's hands. I seemed to have faded altogether 
 from the region of his consciousness, and our conversa- 
 tion came to an end. 
 
 But the silence did not last long, for soon the mutton 
 was pronounced " done," and the serving lama who held 
 the keys and acted in general as butler to the mandarin 
 produced two great brass flat dishes. One of these he 
 heaped up with meat for his master. The other was 
 filled with one huge piece of mutton, the hinder part of 
 the back bone, including the great, broad, fat tail, 
 several smaller portions, such as ribs, etc. We set to 
 work, the lama explaining that to present the rump 
 and tail was the highest honour that a host could offer a 
 guest at a feast. 
 
 Armed only with a knife, we soon made havoc of the 
 steaming mass, when the mandarin remarked that 
 evidently I was not aware of the proper custom. The 
 lama explained that a portion should be given to all in 
 the tent, which was now nearly full of neighbours and 
 
iVAY TO HONOUR A GUEST. 13^ 
 
 children who had collected for the occasion. At my 
 request, he kindly undertook to perform the office of 
 dissection and distribution for me. His knife knew all 
 the joints and turns among the bones, and in a short 
 time all in the tent were eating. While we were going 
 on with this first course, millet was added to the water 
 left in the pot in which the mutton had been boiled, and 
 by the time that we had finished the tail and picked 
 the bones the millet was ready, and was dealt out to all 
 who could hold out a cup. As soon, as the miUet was 
 finished, cushions were talked of, and I was politely 
 invited to sleep where I was. The lama had gone a 
 tew minutes before, and I took the hint and departed, 
 leaving the family going to bod at half-past six o'clock. 
 
 Setting the rump and attached taU. before a guest is 
 honouring him, because a sheep having but one tail, the 
 presentation of this dish necessitates the slaying of a 
 sheep, and it must also be a good one, for none but a fat 
 one has a tail that is fit to be seen. It is rather 
 awkward for a foreigner to feast comfortably, having to 
 attack, with no assistance but that of a knife, a great 
 expanse of fat mutton spread on a brass dish nearly two 
 feet in diameter; but I used to feel that I had quite repaid 
 my Mongol hosts in their own coin when, in Peking, I 
 invited them to take their place at my table and wield 
 a foreign knife and fork. 
 
 The multitudinous dining appliances of civilisation 
 are as bewildering to a Mongol, as their absence is 
 embarrassing to a foreigner in a tent feast ; and perhaps 
 the guest in each case fares about the same, and feels 
 that the feast ministers more to his dignity than to his 
 appetite. 
 
 Id the case of a lady a tent feast is not a success. On 
 
134 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 one occasion a Mongol who had been a guest at our 
 table in Peking, wishing to feast my wife and myself at 
 his own home, and yet not knowing how to make food 
 that we could enjoy, solved the problem in a very 
 sensible way. He sent us the sheep alive, apologising 
 for his ignorance of cookery, and requesting us to dress it 
 in the way that we liked be<t.. 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 APPEAL TO A MONGOL MANDARIN. 
 
 The use of a passport. Hiring horses. Stopped on the highway. A 
 horse left on our hands. Asking advice of a local mandarin. 
 The mandarin's settlement of the case. Another quarrel over a 
 horse. A broken head. Fight in the tent. "He would leave 
 his coat with me." "Ne exeat regno." Asking a mandarin's 
 advice. His official utterance. His private opinion. Nothing 
 private in Mongolia. Reconciliation. Tit for tat. 
 
 In travelling in Mongolia it is necessary to be furnished 
 with a passport, in order to be able to satisfy suspicious 
 mandarins as to who and what the strange traveller 
 may be, and, in case of trouble, to be able to claim the 
 good offices and assistance of the local authorities. I 
 never had my passport demanded by suspicious mag- 
 nates, but I had, on two occasions, to ask advice from 
 Mongol officials. The first case was as follows : Having 
 intimated that I wanted to hire a horse for a journey, 
 a Mongol came to my tent, bargained and settled as to 
 the price, and arranged definitely to let me have it if, 
 on inspection, I found it suitable. The horse was 
 away on the plain feeding, and was to be shown when 
 the drove was brought home in the evening. When the 
 drove came I deputed my Mongol servant to examine 
 the animal, and he reported it as quite unfit for use. 
 
1^6 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 Hearing this I told my servant to bargain for some one 
 else's horse ; he soon returned to say he had found 
 another, and, supposing the matter all right, we retired 
 for the night. 
 
 Early next morning the horse was brought, my 
 servant mounted, and hearing him ride off I put my 
 head out of my tent to see how he looked on his steed. 
 It was a misty morning, and he was already some 
 distance away, but I could see that he was pursued, 
 and finally overtaken and stopped by a horseman, 
 who, with a deal of shouting and noise, accompanied 
 him back to my encampment. The cause of the 
 trouble was soon explained. The hindering horseman 
 was the owner of the horse first bargained for, who, 
 eager for the hire, insisted on his horse being taken. 
 It was explained to him that his horse was hired only 
 on condition that, on inspection, it proved suitable, and 
 that, being found to have a sore back, it had been 
 rejected and another hired in its place. A great amount 
 of talking ensued, the upshot of which was, that the 
 owner of the horse with the sore back sullenly and 
 silently agreed that the other horse should be taken, 
 and my servant accordingly departed. 
 
 The disappointed man remained at our encampment, 
 and, seeing him look unhappy, I spoke to him in a 
 friendly way. He seemed pleased enough at first, but 
 suddenly changed his manner, said, " You hired my horse, 
 I have brought him, here he is, ride him or not ride him, 
 you must pay for him, I leave him with you tied here," 
 ajid, suiting the action to the word, he tied the horse to 
 the wheel of one of my carts and went off. 
 
 The morning passed on and there the horse remained. 
 What was to be done ? " Do nothing. Let him remain 
 
A MANDARIN'S "CITY." 137 
 
 tied there. It is none of your business," said my 
 Mongol servant ; but I could not well leave the beast 
 tied up without food or drink simply because his master 
 had a dispute with me. If, on the other hand, I let 
 him loose, or if he took fright at anything, broke away 
 and went off, I should be held responsible, and have to 
 replace him if lost. I was unwilling to run the risk of 
 being involved in farther complications with such a 
 man as his owner had shown himself to be. To have 
 quietly submitted and paid the hire would have been to 
 make myself a proverb for incompetence, and would 
 probably have rendered it extremely difficult for me 
 afterwards to buy sheep, and hire men, oxen, or horses, 
 at anything like reasonable figures. 
 
 The best thing I could do seemed to be to ask the 
 advice of the local mandarin, whose abode was visible 
 about a mile away. He was one of the sons of a wealthy 
 family, the head of which was of high rank, and, at that 
 time, held an important office. Arrived at his " city" 
 as any cluster of tents belonging to two or three 
 famihes is called in Mongolia, I found the dogs tied up 
 to stakes driven into the ground, and was conducted 
 into a small clean tent, spread with good cushions, but 
 destitute of almost every other kind of furniture. This 
 tent was evidently his office for the transaction of 
 business, tea was set before me, and I was desired to 
 wait till the mandarin should appear. 
 
 As I approached the place I had noticed several men 
 busy among a large drove of horses, and among them the 
 owner of the horse about whose disposal I had come to 
 ask advice. When the mandarin appeared I recognised 
 him as one of the group of men I had seen among the 
 horses, and, after the ordinary forms of salutation had 
 
J 28 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 been gone through, I stated my difficulty, explained 
 shortly how the trouble had arisen, and said that I had 
 come to ask him what was the right thing for me to do 
 in such circumstances. He was a young man, listened 
 
 MONUDl. MANDAlflN AND ATI KM»AN'l . 
 
 quietly to what I had to say, and, before he had time to 
 speak, an elderly lama, probably his uncle, who had 
 been diligently counting his beads, suddenly broke out 
 in a storm ag;iinst the owner of the horse, who was 
 
MANDARIN JUSTICE. Ijg 
 
 present among the crowd that filled the part of the tent 
 about the door. 
 
 " What kind of a sinful creature are you that would 
 saddle and ride a horse with a sore back — are you a 
 human being or a dog ? " The mandarin joined in the 
 invective, and between them the poor fellow got such 
 a rating that I had to intercede for him. On asking 
 what I was to do with the horse, which the owner still 
 declined to promise to remove from my encampment, 
 the mandarin said, " Turn it loose, and I'll be responsible 
 for all consequences." 
 
 After some general friendly conversation the mandarin 
 suggested that as the owner of the horse was poor, 
 and was doubtless disappointed at not receiving the 
 hire he hoped his horse would earn, perhaps it would 
 be as well for me to make him a small present to 
 soothe his feelings. I asked him to name what sum 
 li? considered proper, but this he utterly declined to do, 
 sajing that the man had no claim to anything, but had 
 behaved badly, and that if I gave anything at all I 
 gave more than he deserved. My business being now 
 finished, I presented the mandarin with a small leather- 
 bound note-book, was escorted a little distance beyond 
 the "city," retumed to my tent, handed a small present 
 to the man who had caused all the trouble, and saw 
 the steed led away. 
 
 My next appeal to a Mongol mandarin was made 
 some years later, and was also connected with horse 
 hiring. While encamped at the hamlet which was 
 the home of my two Mongol servants, I had occasion 
 to hire two horses, and somehow or other the natives 
 laid their heads together to raise the price. I re- 
 {.ented this by calling my servants into my tent, and 
 
t^O AMONG THM MONGOLS. 
 
 saying that, however badly I might be treated else- 
 where, I had hoped for fair play at their native place. 
 This was in the evening after all visitors had left. 
 
 Next morning, as I was just finishing my toilet, I noticed 
 five or six people coming towards my tent, and as I had 
 one visitor already, an old man sitting with his young 
 child in his arms, I was much pleased to find the day 
 beginning so well, and hoped I should have a good time 
 with them conversing on Christian topics. Just as I sat 
 down in my place, several of the men entered, and one 
 of them, without waiting to seat himself, addressed 
 a few words to the old man already in the tent, and 
 almost simultaneously dealt him such a blow on his 
 bare and closely-shaven scalp (he was a lama) that the 
 stick with which the blow was given broke short off, and 
 the old man's head swelled up visibly till there was a 
 lump almost as large as a hen's egg. It was the work 
 of a few moments, and was all over before any one had 
 time to interfere. A loud and angry altercation followed, 
 which ended by the old lama slapping severely the face 
 of his assailant, who was also a lama, but young. They 
 flew at each other's throats, clutched the neck of each 
 other's coats, and pushed and tugged violently; the 
 spectators laid hold on the combatants and tried to pull 
 them apart, the swaying and struggling mass of excited 
 and shouting men reeled hither and thither in the 
 narrow space of the tent, till a more violent lurch nearly 
 carried away the pole, and narrowly missed bringing my 
 abode down about their ears. 
 
 The noise and shouting attracted the other inhabitants 
 of the hamlet, and by the time that we had separated 
 the two wrathful and bleeding lamas the small popula- 
 tion of the place had turned out in force, and the women 
 
"HE WOULD LEAVE HIS COAT WITH ME." i^x 
 
 of the Community were running about talking, several 
 of them simultaneously, and all of them with rapid 
 utterance and in high-pitched tones. Excepting the 
 first blow with the stick there was little damage done, 
 the blood having come from some scratches of little con- 
 sequence. The young lama was taken to my servants' 
 tent, the women advised to stop talking and go home, 
 and the old lama, placing again in his lap his young 
 child, which he had disposed of in some way I bad not 
 noticed when the scuffle began, resumed his seat in my 
 tent, and keeping all the while in his mouth a Chinese 
 spherical brass button, which had been torn from his 
 coat in the encounter, proceeded to call me to witness 
 how that, while seated quietly in my tent with his child 
 in his arms, he had been violently assaulted without 
 offering any provocation. 
 
 After a little he rose to go, and a few minutes after 
 there was an outcry among the tents of the community. 
 It would seem that as soon as he reached his tent his 
 senior wife (for though old and poor, and the owner of 
 only one tent, not only was he married, but actually had 
 two wives), really alarmed, or feigning to be alarmed at 
 his swollen head, bruised face, and disordered garments, 
 raised a great storm, invaded the quarters of the young 
 lama who had been the assailant, said her husband was 
 disabled, and gave warning that should he die within 
 the year the young lama would be held responsible for 
 his life. 
 
 At her instigation the old lama reappeared in my 
 tent, said he was a poor man and had been hurt, and 
 that " he would leave his coat with me." Suiting the 
 action to the word, he pulled off his outer garment, left 
 it on my box, and Wgot away. Soon after he sent me a 
 
142 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 message to say that I must find a new servant, as one 
 of my men, brother to the young lama, could not be 
 permitted to leave the neighbourhood. A still later 
 intimation warned me that I myself must not leave the 
 place till this quarrel had been settled. The assault 
 had taken place in my teat and I was an important 
 witness in the case. 
 
 Now it happened that I wanted to make a journey on 
 horseback with this very servant, who, according to the 
 old lama, must not leave the place, and when the coat 
 so ostentatiously deposited in my tent had lain some 
 twenty-four hours unclaimed, I began to be curious as to 
 what it all meant, and wished to know what truth was 
 in the intimation that I was not at liberty to travel. So 
 I made my way to the abode of the mandarin Happily 
 he lived in the hamlet beside which I was encamped, 
 and he had actually been in my tent when the assault 
 took place, so that he was well acquainted \yith all that 
 had happened. As to the coat, he advised me to return 
 it by the hands of my servant, and ask what was meant 
 by leaving it with me, and then the old lama would 
 doubtless say what his intentions were. As to travelling, 
 both I and my servant might go anywhere we liked till 
 we were forbidden to do so by orders from the govern- 
 ment office of the tribe ; and, he added, as a day and a 
 half had elapsed since information of the case had been 
 forwarded to the governor, and no reply had yet arrived, 
 it was not at all likely that either I or my servant would 
 be troubled by a summons. 
 
 Having thus delivered his otticial opinion he proceeded 
 in a friendly informal way to tell me his private opinion 
 of the whole affair. It was this. The old lama beinor 
 greedy had reviled my servant for trying to hire me 
 
MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING. j^, 
 
 horses cheaply. My servant's lama brother had hoard of 
 this, and coming to my tent to resent it had, in a 
 moment of passion, broken the old lama's head, who, 
 mounting his horse, had ridden over the plain to wheie 
 the young lama's horse was pasturing, had carried it oif, 
 and placed it for safe keeping in the hands of a third 
 party. He said the old lama was making much ado 
 about nothing, as a Mongol's head was not likely to 
 suffer much from such a knock as he had received, and 
 that it was evident that he had not suffered much, as he 
 had ridden about for a great part of the day on which 
 the attack had been made. 
 
 In Mongolia all tents, even those of mandarins, 
 seem open to everybody, so that anything that is said 
 is soon known to all. The old lama had evidently 
 heard what had been said. He took his coat, said that 
 if the mandarin approved of my going I was at liberty 
 to travel, but persisted that my servant must on no 
 account leave the place. Nevertheless, when the time 
 for departure came, we mounted and rode off slowly, to 
 give opportunity to any one who should pursue us to 
 overtake us easily ; but no one hindered our going, and 
 on our return we were glad to learn that the attempts 
 at reconciliation, which had been made in vam before 
 we started, had proved successful in our absence, and 
 that the two lamas were once more good friends. The 
 young lama had broken the old lama's head, the old 
 lama had seized and ridden the young lama's horse, and 
 though two wrongs don't make a right, on the young 
 man making an apology, the old man had been content 
 to cry quits ; peace was once more restored to the little 
 community. The vexation and expense of a tedious 
 lawsuit were thua avoided. 
 
144 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 Such is the sum of my experience in appealing to 
 Mongol mandarins. I have kept aa clear of them as I 
 could, and I find that for the most part they are not 
 anxious to interfere. They avoid interference as much 
 as possible, and their attitude towards missions seems 
 to be much the same as that of the Japanese official, 
 who is reported to have privately advised missionaries 
 in that country to go on with mission work as much as 
 they liked, " only dou't bring yourselves and your work 
 before our official notice 
 
CHAPTER XI. 
 
 LAMA MIAO. 
 
 Situation. Meaning of name. Trading centre. Man being starved 
 to death. The cage. Demeanour of the criminal. Tantalising 
 the sufferer. The " Mirth of Mell," leeiing of the cvovid. Death. 
 Hardheartedness of the Chinese. 
 
 Lama Miao, as the Chinese call it, Dolon Nor, as the 
 Mongols call it, is a great trading settlement in Mongolia, 
 lying about a hundred and fifty English miles north-east 
 of Kalgan. " Lama Miao " means " The Lama Temple," 
 and this name it owes to the fact of there being two 
 large Lama Temples about half a mile from it ; " Dolon 
 Nor " means " Seven Lakes," and this name it owes to 
 the abundance of little pools or lakes in its neighbour 
 hood. It has a large population of Chinese traders, 
 and is famous as a market for oxen, and especially 
 famous for horses. But it is not my purpose in the 
 present chapter to speak of the lakes, the temples, the 
 large Chinese population, or the flourishing barter trade 
 that characterise the place. The name of Lama Miao 
 is always associated in my recollection with a spectacle 
 that I have witnessed nowhere else, namely, that of a 
 man being slowly and deliberately put to death by 
 being starved in a cage. 
 
 K 
 
146 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 Near one end of the main street, and fornaing one 
 of the boundaries of an open space used as a market, 
 is a great wall forming the screen in front of the 
 government office. As we passed with our caravan we 
 noticed a crowd collected there, and after getting into 
 an inn, on returning to the place we found that the 
 object of interest to the spectators was a man, said to 
 be a robber, who was fixed into a cage in such a way 
 that only his head protruded. The frame fitted closely 
 to his neck, and the cage being too low for him to 
 stand up in, and too high for him to sit down in, he 
 had to maintain a kind of half-crouching half-kneeling 
 posture, which must have been very painful. We 
 learned that being condemned to death he was fixed in 
 that cage, and was to remain there until death ter- 
 minated his sufferings. He had not the look of a man 
 who had been kept without nourishment, and had 
 endured the torture of a cramped position for two 
 days, and his demeanour was as far as possible removed . 
 from that which might have been expected of a man 
 undergoing sufferings which he knew must, in a day or 
 two, culminate in his death. 
 
 As we came near we found him keeping up a 
 brisk and bantering conversation with the crowd of 
 Chinamen, who, in the slack of business and the 
 cool of the evening, had come out to have their walk 
 and a look at the doomed man. We made our way 
 through the crowd, and he noticed us, spoke to us, made 
 faces at us, and passed jeering remarks about us as 
 being foreigners. Prominent among the loungers was a 
 burly Chinaman, who, as he kept pouring cash from his 
 one band to the other, pointed to the tea-shops and 
 eating-houses near at hand, and seemed to confine his 
 
" THE MIRTH OF HELL." 147 
 
 Conversation with the starving man to remarks about 
 food and drink. The lively and careless appearance of 
 the man, and the levity and mirth not only pervading 
 the crowd, but which the caged man seemed to partici- 
 pate in as eagerly as any one of the bystanders, made it 
 impossible to believe that the assembly gathered there 
 was composed of men who had come to see a fellow 
 being in the process of being starved to death before 
 their eyes. 
 
 In China many things are not what they profess to 
 be, and the most reasonable conclusion to be drawn 
 from the man's appearance and the tone of the crowd, 
 was that though nominally being starved to death he 
 was being fed. We were assured, however, to the 
 contrary, and while amazed at the apathy of the crowd 
 could account for the boisterous conduct of the prisoner 
 himself, only either by supposing that it was a striking 
 instance of that hilarity of misery which some one has 
 called the " mirth of hell," or by the more charitable 
 supposition that the sufferings he had already endured 
 had affected his brain, and that he was not responsible 
 for his sayings and doings. 
 
 The following day I spent in my tent encamped at 
 the Yellow or West Temple, and did not see the caged 
 man myself, but as I returned with my camels in the 
 evening I saw the cage being carried into the yamen 
 amid the happy and jeering remarks of the crowd, and 
 my companion, who had seen him during the day, 
 reported a great change for the worse in the man's 
 appearance since the previous evening. 
 
 The fourth day of his torture terminated the wretched 
 man's sufferings, somewhat to the surprise of the in- 
 habitants, who, probably from previous experience, 
 
 K 2 
 
148 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 expected that this horrible exhibition would have afforded 
 them a rendezvous in their leisure and relaxation for a 
 day or two longer. The man died, the cage was no 
 longer exposed, and doubtless the whole circumstance 
 soon passed away from the minds of the Chinese who 
 had stood round the doomed man smoking their pipes 
 and jesting with and at the poor wretch. But truly the 
 tender mercies of the wicked are cruel. 
 
 China hoasts, and with great right too, of her civili- 
 sation, but no particle of humanity can he claimed by 
 that government, which, in exacting the forfeited life 
 of a subject, condemns him to days of preliminary and 
 entirely gratuitous agony, and, not content with simply 
 starving him to death, exposes the famishing wretch in 
 full view of the tea-shops, where he is tantalised by 
 seeing thirsty men seated at tables leisurely drinking 
 refreshing tea, and can smell the savoury viands with 
 which hungry men satisfy their appetites. Government 
 and people, too, are well matched. It was natural 
 enough that Chinamen in such a place as Lama Miao 
 should direct their walk in the leisure of an evening to 
 such an exhibition as that in front of the yamen ; and 
 when it is remembered that the conducting of such a 
 trade as that on which the Lama Miao depends, frequently 
 necessitates the travelling of lone men with money 
 through sparsely peopled regions, it is not to be won- 
 dered at that public 'indignation should bum strongly 
 against such highway robbers as may fall into the 
 hands of justice. Yet the amount of even dormant 
 humanity must be but small in the breast of any man, 
 whom even a justified and strong indignation could 
 render perfectly callous to such sufferings as were endured 
 by the miaerable prisoner in the cage. 
 
FRUIT OF CONFUCIANISM. i^g 
 
 In a promiscuous crowd it would not have been 
 strange had there been a proportion of heartless men, 
 who, destitute of all proper feeling, could see nothing 
 in the punishment of sin but subjects for jesting; but 
 the remarkable featjire of that Lama Miao crowd was 
 the apparently entire absence of any trace of com- 
 miseration or compassion in every one, young or old. 
 While it was impossible to look without horror on 
 the condition of the poor dying wretch whose suffer- 
 ings rendered him delirious, it was impossible to look 
 on the multitude around him showing symptoms of 
 being dead to all compassion, and not pity the hardness 
 of their hearts. 
 
 Much has been said by scholars in favour of Con- 
 fucianism. "By their fruits ye shall know them." 
 Here we have a government which for centuries has 
 professed to follow and to teach to its people the 
 doctrines of Confucius, and a people who as far as 
 they are anything are Confucian, and yet the govern- 
 ment in carrying out the extreme penalty of its law, 
 divesting itself of dignity and compassion, deliberately 
 revels in ingenious cruelty, and the people, seemingly 
 dead to all humanity, stand by pleased and applauding. 
 If this is the fruit of Confucian teaching, it is high time 
 that China had something better, and it will be a happy 
 day for China and her people when Confucianism pales 
 before the rising light of Christianity, and the govern- 
 ment, ashamed of past cruelties, when compelled to 
 exact the penalty of a forfeited life, shall be ingenious 
 to mitigate the horrors of execution, and the people 
 shall learn to have compassion and sympathy for misery 
 even in the case of those whose sufferings are the just 
 punishment of their sins. 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 URGA. 
 
 Religious capital of Mongolia. Situation. Mongol name. The " Green 
 House." View from behind the Kussiau Consulate. "Wind. The 
 Chinese trading town. Chinese cash currency introduced. Chinese 
 not allowed to take their wives to Urga. Temples in the Mongol 
 settlement. Praying-wheels at street corners. Worship hy 
 prostration. Mongol reason for it. The open market. Audacious 
 eagles. The priestly part of Urga. The trade of Urga. Tea 
 agencies. Beggars in the market-place. Wickedness of Urga. 
 
 Urga is the great religious centre of North Mongolia, 
 and a place of considerable trading importance. It is 
 about six hundred miles from the north frontier of China 
 at Kalgan, and about two hundred miles from the south 
 frontier of Russia at Kiachta ; it is situated on the north 
 bank of the river Tola, and is called by the Mongols, 
 Hurae, "Hurse" meaning "enclosure" or "encamp- 
 ment," the full Mongol name of the place being " Bogdt 
 Lama en Hurae," the enclosure or encampment of the 
 supreme lama. The Chinese call it " The Great En- 
 campment," and the Russians call it " Urga," which is 
 possibly a corruption of the Mongol Hura3. 
 
 On approaching it from the south, one of the most 
 prominent objects is the " Green House," as the Russian 
 consulate is called, which stands on elevated ground, axjd 
 
SITUA TION OF URGA. I 5 1 
 
 IS visible from afar. Perhaps the finest view of the 
 neighbourhood is to be had from a stony hill which 
 rises behind the consulate. Standing on this hill, the 
 consulate is immediately below in front. The Chinese 
 trading town lies some distance to the left or east, the 
 Mongolian settlement and temples to the right or west. 
 The view is closed on all sides by mountains, some of 
 which are high, and one, the large one right in front on 
 the side of the valley, opposite to the consulate, is 
 heavily wooded. The wood does not come to the base 
 of the mountain, and seems darker at the top than 
 lower down, owing probably to a different kind of tree 
 preferring the greater altitude. This wood-clothed hill 
 seems very beautiful, and its beauty is sometimes en- 
 hanced by great clouds which rest on it, hiding the 
 top and coming some distance down its side, then clear 
 away, leaving the submerged part of the forest white 
 with the vapour frozen on the trees, the line marking 
 the cloud lipiit being almost as level and distinct as the 
 high-water mark on the sea-shore. 
 
 The sombre monotony of the valley is relieved by the 
 gleaming waters of the Tola, which emerge from between 
 mountains on the east, and flowing past disappears into 
 a broad plain partly visible through a wide gap in the 
 belt of hills which closes the view on the west. 
 
 XJrga is a great place for wind, which during most of 
 the months of the year is so cold as to make a spectator 
 on the stony hill behind the consulate glad to descend to 
 some less exposed position. The Chinese trading town 
 on the east is well worthy of a visit. The population 
 may be about five thousand, and there seem to be 
 some wealthy firms doing a large business. Almost 
 every courtyard is bounded by a high fence of the 
 
152 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 stems of young trees placed close together, and often 
 plastered over with mud, and in nearly every establish- 
 ment is visible from the street the brazen sheen of the 
 brightly-polished Russian samovar. The streets are 
 moderately busy, with Chinese going hither and thither, 
 and with Mongols bent on shopping expeditions. It is 
 said that recently Chinese brass cash has been intro- 
 duced as the circulating medium for the retail trade 
 but till within a few years ago buyers in the market 
 used to be conspicuous from the clumsy bricks of tea 
 which they carried in their arms or lashed to their 
 saddles. The whole of the Chinese employed in trade 
 at Urga live a life of self-imposed banishment, being 
 prevented by law from bringing their wives and families, 
 and for the most part revisit their native land at in- 
 tervals of from five to ten years. Some of them return 
 oftener, some of them stay away longer, but very few 
 settle permanently, and thus the law forbidding the 
 taking of their families is successful in its evident in- 
 tention, namely, in keeping the traders attached to 
 China and Chinese interests. The Mongol settlement 
 is to the westward, and distant some two or three miles, 
 the Eussian consulate being situated between the two 
 centres. 
 
 The most conspicuous objects in the Mongol town are 
 the temples, which from afar look lofty and grand, but 
 lose much of their imposing effect when approached 
 and examined closely. In these temple premises, and 
 at many street corners and busy places, are erected 
 numerous praying-wheels, supposed to be filled inside, 
 many of them decorated outside, and some of them 
 almost literally covered all round, with prayers, the idea 
 being that any devout believer who turns the wheel, by 
 
PR A YINC-MA CHINES. 
 
 IS3 
 
 80 doing acquires as much merit as if he or she had 
 repeated all the prayers thus set in motion. These 
 praying-cylinders seem to be seldom left long at rest. In 
 the quiet deserted-looking precincts of the temple may 
 be heard the creaking of the rusty spindle, as it is turned 
 in its unoiled socket by worshippers, who most likely 
 have come from the country to perform their devotion 
 at tliis great religious centre. Many, both lamas and 
 laymen, male and female, as they pass along the streets, 
 lay hold of the inviting handle and give a turn to such 
 praying-machines as they find standing in their path. 
 
 In front of temples may be seen sloping wooden 
 platforms, at which men or women are busy making 
 rapid prostrations towards these holy places ; and all 
 about the stony environs of this great stronghold of 
 Buddhist faith may be met devotees painfully and 
 slowly travelling round great circuits, measuring their 
 way by "falling worship,'' that is, lying down flat on their 
 faces and marking the place of their next prostration 
 by their forehead or by a piece of wood held in their 
 hand. This falling worship is very exhausting, and soon 
 wears out the clothes and the hands; and those who 
 perform long journeys in this way usually fit wooden 
 sandals to the hands and sheepskins to the knees. 
 
 Ask the Mongols what is the supposed benefit of 
 this bodily worship, and they have a very plausible 
 answer at hand. They divide the sins which men com- 
 mit into three classes, those of the body, the tongue, 
 and the mind, and, say they, since the sins are com- 
 mitted by the body, the tongue, and the mind, it is 
 only fair that these three should bear each their proper 
 share in expiatmg the sins, so while they prostrate 
 themselves they keep repeating prayers with their 
 
1^4 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 tongue and endeavour to fix their minds on sacred 
 objects. 
 
 It is common in some quarters to bestow high praise 
 on Buddhism, and there are not wanting men who, as 
 far as they are anything, are Christians, and yet profess 
 to doubt the necessity for attempting to supersede 
 human religions by the Divine teachings of Christianity. 
 But though full credit be allowed to all such doctrines 
 of Buddhism as are good, the most indifferent and un- 
 enthusiastic Christian could not walk about the environs 
 of Urga without wishing that these deluded people were 
 taught a more excellent way of salvation. 
 
 The great Chinese trade is in the Chinese town, but 
 there is a brisk retail trade in the Mongol town, in 
 shops both Russian and Chinese, and in the market 
 which is held daily in the great open square, where 
 provisions and necessaries of all sorts are sold. Over 
 the outskirts small eagles soar about, whistling and 
 wheeling, watching for an opportunity to swoop down 
 
 rxr\t\ HPi'7fi f.ViA fpw minnt^s nf TYmf.tnn nr l^ppf ^arrioi^ in 
 
THE TRADE OF URGA. I 55 
 
 caiTied off, apply to the retreating bird the epithet 
 " Patricide," and quickly go on their way counting 
 their beads and looking about them as if nothing had 
 happened. 
 
 On the extreme west of Urga, and on a higher level 
 than the other parts, stands a town, consisting of a 
 temple and a cluster of houses, which is regarded as 
 peculiarly holy. It is said that no layman and no 
 woman is allowed to live there, and this forms perhaps 
 the most sacred part of Urga. 
 
 As to the population of Urga, one who has seen it 
 for only a day or two is hardly in a position to hazard 
 a guess, as temple buildings and lama residences are 
 very misleading when relied on as affording indications 
 as to the number of inhabitants. We may reckon the 
 Chinese traders as numbering probably about five 
 thousand, and the Mongols may exceed them by a 
 thousand or two; but it should be remembered that 
 Urga, being a sacerdotal town, the number of inhabi- 
 tants fluctuates with circumstances. When I was there 
 the residents of the place may have been fewer than 
 usual, owmg to the fact that the Supreme Lama had 
 some time before died, and had not yet been recovered 
 in his " transmigrated " form. 
 
 The main exports of Urga are hides from the wide 
 districts of surrounding country and timber from its 
 great hill forests. Its chief imports are tea and 
 materials for clothing, which are distributed from here 
 as a centre ; but it depends for no small part of its im- 
 portance on the fact that it is a great stage in the tea;? 
 carrying trade between China and Russia. It is true 
 that some of the tea which goes north from Kalgan is 
 99J)tracted for by Mongols, vvho ijpdeftake to copvev it 
 
156 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 right across the desert and deliver it in Kiachta, but 
 the greater part is contracted for only as far as Urga, 
 where new carriers have to be found to forward it over 
 the remaining two hundred miles of desert. And it is 
 not at all surprising that this should be so. In addition 
 to the great distance from China, six hundred miles, 
 which most carriers doubtless suppose a sufficiently 
 long stage, the country north of Urga is so different 
 from that to the south, it is not strange that one set 
 of men should accustom themselves to the exigencies 
 of travelling on the great plains of South Mongolia 
 and Gobi, while another set of men should accustom 
 themselves to the ascents and descents of the hills 
 and valleys that lie between Urga and Kiachta. The 
 Russian establishments at Urga seem to be mostly 
 those of agents whose duty it is to receive consign- 
 ments of tea from the south, examine into its condition, 
 to see whether it has been allowed to get wet or 
 been broken into during its transport, settle with 
 the carriers, and arrange for its further transport to 
 Kiachta. The presence of a consul is required to 
 preside over this trade, and thus it comes that the 
 Russians have a settlement at Urga. For the most 
 part, the number of Russians at Urga is small, but 
 when the unsettled state of the country demands it, 
 armed force is sent sufficient to protect the consulate. 
 In 1871 quite a formidable little detachment was 
 moved from Kiachta and took up its position beside 
 the "Green House." It would appear, however, that 
 when the danger passed these troops were withdrawn, 
 and Urga relapsed into its normal condition. 
 
 Urga is in many respects a remarkable place, and 
 there are some grand and many strange sights to be seen 
 
BEGGARS IN URGA. 
 
 157 
 
 in it, but in all probability the deepest impression will 
 not be made by the grandly-wooded hill, the gleaming 
 Tola, or the gilded temples ; most likely the mind of 
 the visitor will be haunted for years after by the sight 
 of the beggars in the market-place. Urga swarms 
 with beggars, both in the market-place and everywhere, 
 but the ordinary beggar seen there is not much out 
 of the usual run of mendicants, and does not elicit 
 more than usual compassion. 
 
 There is a class of beggars to be seen in Urga, how- 
 ever, whom having once seen it is not easy to forget, and 
 that is those who are too far gone and too helpless to beg 
 more, and take up their abode out on the open, stony, 
 cold market-place, live on what is offered them, and 
 die when their time comes. It is a bleak, cold place, 
 seemingly seldom free from wind, and though the able- 
 bodied among the beggars manage to put up something 
 behind which they lie down partly sheltered, the help- 
 less ones lie exposed to all the blasts that blow. They 
 are usually covered with an accumulation of pieces of 
 old felt and skin-coat rags, and there they lie in all 
 weathers, regarded with seemingly perfect indifference 
 by those who pass, eating such things as charity may 
 put into their cup, till some morning their lair is found 
 empty, and any of the rags that are worth having be- 
 come the property, of such of the survivors as may be 
 able to appropriate them. Considering the seemingly 
 perfect indifference with which these dying creatures 
 are regarded, it is a relief and almost a surprise to find 
 that they are removed when dead. They are not carried 
 far, however. A very short distance from the Russian 
 consulate numerous skulls, many of them fresh, may be 
 found lying about in the water-worn ravines, where they 
 
158 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 have been left after being picked as clean as canine teetJi 
 and perseverance can make them. 
 
 The visitor, on first walking about Urga, will be ex- 
 ceptionally indifferent if he has not his spirit stirred 
 within him at the superstitions practices and devices 
 that meet his eye. Should he happen to know the 
 language and remain, especially in native lodgings, for 
 a day or two, he will have his spirit much more deeply 
 moved by the wickedness that comes under his notice. 
 Urga is the head-quarters of the Buddhism of North 
 Mongolia, it is also a stronghold of unblushing sin. Its' 
 wickedness does not spring from any one source, but 
 the full tide of the stream of iniquity that rolls through 
 it is fed by several tributaries, which uniting make up 
 the dark flood of its evil. Thus it happens that the en- 
 campment of the Supreme Lama of Mongolia is reputed 
 to be the most supremely wicked place in the whole of 
 that wide country. 
 
CHAPTER XITT- 
 
 WU T"AI SHAN. 
 
 The great sacred place of Mongol pilgrimage. Advantages secured by 
 pilgrims. Surrounding scenery. " The hamlet in the bosom of 
 the mountains." Temple on hill-top. Beauty of scenery. Temple 
 above a gateway. Three hundred praying-wheels. Immense 
 praying-wheel. P'u Sa T'ing. Pneumatic praying-wheel. "The 
 ice that never melts." Shrines on hill-tops. Hardships of 
 Mongol pilgrims. Worn-out pilgrims escorted home. Expeditions 
 of lamas from Wu T'ai to Mongolia. System of granting annuities. 
 
 As Jenisalem to the Jews, as Mecca to the Mahometans, 
 so is Wu T'ai Shan to the Mongols. All over Mongolia, 
 and wherever Mongols are met with in North China, 
 one is constantly reminded of this place. It is true that 
 the mania which possesses the Mongols for making 
 pilgrimages carries them to many other shrines, some 
 of which are both celebrated and much frequented, but 
 none of them can be compared to Wu T'ai. At all 
 seasons of the year, in the dead of winter, in the heat of 
 summer, pilgrims, priests, and laymen, male and female, 
 old and young, rich and poor, solitary and in bands, on 
 foot and mounted, from places far and near, may be seen 
 going to and returning from this, the most sacred spot 
 on earth to the Mongol Buddhist, the object of his 
 devout aspirations during life, the place where he desires 
 
BENEFITS SOUGHT BY GOING TO WU T'AI. i6i 
 
 nis bones to be thrown at death. The Mongols speak 
 of it as one of the blessed spots of the earth, holy, 
 purified, everlasting, indestructible, and destined to 
 survive the otherwise universal ruin that is to ensue at 
 the close of the present stage of the world's existence. 
 They say that any beast which eats the grass and drinks 
 the water of the place is sure to be born hereafter into 
 a higher state. One visit made to it by a pilgrim is said 
 to ensure him happiness for the period of one of his 
 future lives, two visits for two lives, three visits for 
 three lives, and so on. In this way every devout 
 Mongol endeavours to make at least one pilgrimage to 
 this mountain during his lifetime, a number of them go 
 frequently, and there are some who endeavour to visit 
 it every year. 
 
 In addition to this promise of happiness after death, 
 a journey to Wu T'ai is frequently prescribed as a cure 
 for disease, and the merit of making these journeys is 
 supposed to be transferable, so that it is no uncommon 
 thing to meet Mongols going to Wu T'ai, not on their 
 own account, but for the benefit of others. 
 
 This mountain is situated, not in Mongolia, but in 
 China, in the province of Shansi, and having heard a 
 great deal about it, I, in company with two other 
 missionaries, set out to visit it. On the afternoon of the 
 eleventh day after leaving Peking, we found ourselves 
 going up a valley, which became narrower and narrower 
 as Ave went on. Temples began to be numerous, and 
 just as the sun set we came upon an image cut out in 
 the solid rock and painted with bright colours. On the 
 same rock also were cut Tibetan characters, and from 
 these and other signs we knew that we were coming 
 near the famous Wu T'ai. 
 
 L 
 
1 62 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 Darkness gradually settled down upon us, and the few 
 people we met kept telling us that we were still a mile or 
 two from the end of our journey. We would ask a man, 
 " How far ? " he would say, " A mile or two." We would 
 go on, and still thts uext man wuula say as before, " A 
 mile or two." At last we saw, a little ahead, the lights 
 of the small Chinese village where we were to put up — 
 " The hamlet in the bosom of the mountains." 
 
 Next morning we found that the name described the 
 place very well AU round were hills, some of them so 
 high that the morning light shone clear on their tops, 
 while in the village below all was shade and gloom, and 
 it was not till late in the forenoon that the sun was able 
 to climb the east hill and look over the ridge down into 
 the court of our inn. 
 
 Close to the village a hill rose steeply up, like a cone 
 of loaf-sugar, and, seeing a temple on the top, we found 
 it to be a shrine to which Chinese resort to pray for 
 children. It seemed to be quite a famous temple, and 
 was hung almost full of its own praises, written on red 
 cloth and silk, the grateful offerings of votaries, who in 
 this way returned thanks for having their prayers 
 answered. In the temple we found only one priest, a 
 Chinaman. He was old, deaf, could not read, and spoke 
 a dialect so different from that of Peking that we could 
 not talk much with him. 
 
 From the hill-top we counted about thirty temples. 
 We could see almost no level land, but all up the hill- 
 sides, nearly to the very summit, the Chinese had made 
 terraces and sown them with oats. 
 
 The month was October, and the oats had been 
 reaped, carried down, and piled up around the threshing- 
 floors, where men were busy with flails threshing out 
 
LAMA MIRACLES. 1 63 
 
 the grain. There seemed scarcely enough level land to 
 make threshing-floors, yet from the hill-sides good crops 
 had been gathered, and there was abundance of food all 
 along the valley. 
 
 While the brawling of the torrent rose mingled with 
 the sound of the flail, it was a striking view to behold 
 the encircling belt of mountains, the valleys with their 
 streams, the forest on the south, the snow on the north, 
 the temples flashing back the sunlight from their golden 
 towers, the trains of camels winding slowly along, and 
 the groups of worshipping pilgrims, sacred staff in hand, 
 going the round of the temples. 
 
 One of the first temples we visited was a curious httle 
 upper chamber over the gate of the village. In the 
 shrine, among the other images, was pointed out to us 
 one, which, said the priests, had wonderful virtue. 
 From a little mark on its brow could be drawn out 
 a hair a thousand miles long, and from the body of the 
 image a blaze of light shone out regularly three nights 
 every month. So said the lamas. On the altars before 
 the images were numerous little lamps trimmed and 
 burning. The butter for the lights is supplied from the 
 gifte of devout pilgrims. To give butter for the lamps 
 is a common way of making an offering to the gods. 
 
 The priests lived in a little court below, and we had tea 
 offered us in a very neat quiet room. The lamas of this 
 temple were educated men, and we found them engaged 
 in copying a large sacred book, in letters of gold, on blue 
 cardboard. The Mongols believe that to write out a 
 sacred book in black ink brings much merit, to write it 
 in red ink brings more merit, but to write it in gold 
 brings most merit. 
 
 Among the other temples which we visited was one 
 
 L 2 
 
1^4 AMONG THE MOI^GOLS. 
 
 with a large tope or mound. At the base of the top8 
 were mounted more than three hundred praying- wheels, 
 which the worshippers set in motion one after the other 
 as they passed round. Inside a building of the same 
 temple, we came upon an immense praying- wheel, about 
 sixty feet high, containing shrines, images, books, and 
 prayers. To the devout Mongol, such a wheel is a 
 most useful invention. It is filled with books and 
 prayers which would take him a lifetime to read and 
 repeat. Most likely he cannot read, or if he can read, 
 he cannot find time to read so much, so he comes to the 
 temple ; two or three together go down to the cellar, lay 
 hold on the hand-spokes, a,nd with a long pull, a strong 
 pull, and a pull all together, round goes the wheel, and 
 each one of them believes he gains just as much merit 
 as if he had read the books, repeated the prayers, and 
 knocked his head to all the gods that grin from the 
 shelves and shrines of the wheel. No wonder that the 
 Mongols travel hundreds of miles to reach so quick a 
 method of making merit ! 
 
 But the temple of all the temples at Wu T'ai is P'u 
 Sa T'ing. It stands central among the others, and in it 
 lives thie Zassak lama, who rules all the other lamas. 
 The P'u Sa T'ing is built along the ridge of a hill, and 
 is reached by a very steep path, at the top of which rises 
 a flight of over one hundred steps. We climbed up and 
 entered. We found a street lined on both sides with 
 houses built in the Tibetan style, and evidently crowded 
 with lamas and pilgrims. The houses and the people 
 did not look clean, and the street looked worse thail 
 either, being jiattly blocked up with piles of wood and 
 argol, to be used as fuel. We were taken to the room 
 of the attendant of the great lama, and a snug room it 
 
ICE THAT NEVER MELTS. 165 
 
 was. being clean, comfortable, and kept wariu by a 
 charcoal fire in a well-polished brass brasier. Near the 
 ceiling, just above the charcoal fire, hung a paper 
 cylinder, like an inverted wheel of life, which kept 
 constantly turning. This also was a praying-wheel, and 
 was kept in motion by the hot air ascending from the 
 fire. In this way, whether the lama slept or ate, was at 
 home or abroad, entertained his friends or attended to 
 his superior, the wheel kept continually turning, and 
 merit was always coming to his abode. Such was his 
 idea. 
 
 We sent in a present of a New Testament and some 
 tracts in Mongolian to the Zassak lama, and said we 
 would call on him if he wished to gee us. He sent back 
 a polite message, asking for our welfare and coprifort on 
 the journey, begging us to accept a sraall present ip 
 return, and saying he was sorry he could pot see us, as 
 he was engaged in preparii^g for a great festival called 
 tiie Ch'am Haren, or §acred Dance. 
 
 Our last day at the T'aJ I spent on the mpuntains. 
 On que mountain — the central teryace — there is ^yhat 
 the Chinese call, " The ten thousand years' ice," what 
 the Mongols call, " The ice that never melts." This icp 
 is held in high esteem by the simple-mipded pilgrims, 
 and when at Wu T'ai some of them go up the hiU and 
 carry off a piece to work cures on their sick friend§ at 
 home. The place was not difiicult to find. It is at the 
 foot of a precipice high up on the north sjdp of a stppp 
 bill. A spring issues from the roqk, the water freezes 
 up in winter, and part of the ice, yntpuche^ by the sup's 
 rays, lasts all the summer through. It is quite easy to 
 see why the ice does not melt : but the Mongols are 
 taught that it is a n^iracle, and al§p believe thft^, the ics 
 
1 66 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 can work miracles. One lama assured us that the ice 
 was a cure for all disorders and a preserver of general 
 health. If what he said had been true, I could not have 
 been in danger of any sickness for some time to come, 
 because my lunch for that day consisted of Chinese 
 biscuit and a lump of the ice that never melts. 
 
 Leaving the ice I climbed the north terrace, perhaps 
 the highest of the five hills. The crest of the hill was 
 speckled with .snow, and the view from the top was 
 grand. On every side, as far as the eye could reach, 
 was one vast sea of mighty mountains, some of which, it 
 is said, rise ten thousand feet above the level of the sea. 
 Only one thing was out of keeping — the temples in the 
 valley below, and the gods in the shrines on the hill- 
 tops. Wherever there is a pretty spot in China or 
 Mongolia, there the Buddhists build their temples and 
 bow themselves to their idols. The ' shrines on the 
 hill-tops were very rude affairs, enclosures formed by 
 rough stone walls, and containing ragamuffin gods — ■ 
 stocks of weather-beaten wood, blocks of battered stone, 
 and lumps of rusty old iron. The carved wooden gods 
 were so much the worse for the weather, that their 
 features, if they ever had any, were altogether defaced. 
 One, not made of a single piece, like the rest, but built 
 together by joiner work, had fared worse than its more 
 humble neighbours. His arms were gone, and his 
 breast, heart, and stomach had all fallen out, strange to 
 say, his head remained ; and it was laughable to see 
 such a hollow mockery stare at you with a solemn face. 
 The stone images were sadly battered by tumbling 
 about among the rubbish, and the cast-metal gods 
 mostly had their heads broken off and set carefully on 
 again, to stand there till the next storm would send 
 
CHINESE INNS FOR MONGOLS. xQj 
 
 them rolling. Thus God is not only robbed in the 
 valley, but men climb up as near to heaven as they 
 can, and insult Him to His face. They put up their 
 wretched images and say, " These are the gods of the 
 hills." It is to these and such-like gods that the 
 Mongols come from far to pay their vows and offer their 
 donations ; and all along the road, going and returning, 
 the Mongols asked us if we were going to Wu T'ai to 
 worship ; the Chinese, if we went to burn incense. 
 This always gave us an opportunity to tell them about 
 the true God and the true worship. By selling books 
 and distributing them, by preaching and conversation 
 at the T'ai, and on the way, we sought to teach Mongols 
 and Chinese to know and love the God who is not to be 
 represented by images, and who is to be worshipped 
 neither on Mount Wu T'ai, nor in Peking, but in spirit 
 and in truth. 
 
 We returned by a route different from that by which 
 we went, but along both roads we found evidences of 
 Mongol pilgrimage in Mongol notices printed on the 
 front of the inn, saying that — " The men of this inn are 
 honest and mild, everything is ready and cheap, therefore, 
 ye Mongols, our brothers, you could not do better 
 than rest here." We put up at one of these inns, and 
 the men may have been honest and mild, but certainly 
 things were neither ready nor cheap, we had to wait a 
 long time for a poor dinner, and pay a long bill for it 
 when it came. 
 
 Though the Mongols seem to take naturally to 
 pilgrimages, and travel long distances in their own 
 country without much inconvenience, the travelling 
 through the Chinese territory that separates Wu T'ai 
 from Mongolia is a great hardship to them. In Mongolia 
 
1 68 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 they feed their cattle on the plain and pay nothing for 
 lodging, in China they have to pay for lodging, cooking, 
 fodder, and, in many cases, even for the watering of 
 their animals. In some cases a large company of 
 pilgrims travel with carts and cattle along the plain till 
 they reach the point nearest to Wu T'ai. Arrived there 
 they leave their carts and most of their cattle in the 
 keeping of Mongols, and thus, in light marching order 
 as it were, make the best of their way to Wu T'ai, 
 avoiding in this way the heavy demands that would be 
 made upon their slender stock of money if accompanied 
 by many beasts of burden. On returning once more to 
 Mongolia, they heave a sigh of relief, pay a small fee 
 for the keeping of their cattle, and journey homeward 
 joyously through their own inexpensive country. There 
 is no more severe test of the earnestness of the religious 
 devotion of the Mongols than their being willing thus 
 to journey for days through the country of unsympa- 
 thetic Chinamen, whose language they do not understand, 
 and who lie in wait for their money, ready to fleece 
 them at every turn, charging them even for the water 
 that their horses drink, which, though fair and just 
 according to Chinese custom, the Mongols regard as the 
 height of extortion. 
 
 The lamas of Wu T'ai seize every opportunity of 
 strengthening and extending their connection with the 
 Mongols of the plain. Sometimes a party of pilgrims 
 reach Wu T'ai on foot, but are so worn out by the 
 journey that they feel unable to return home. The 
 temple they lodge at sends them home under the care 
 of one or two of its lamas, who receive gifts for their 
 temple not only from the families of the pilgrims they 
 have thus a,ssisted, but £|,lso from the devoT;t inhabitants 
 
LAMA DEPUTATIONS. jQg 
 
 of the neighbouring country, to whom the assisted 
 pilgrims introduce them as their benefactors. In many 
 cases the succouring of a company of distressed pilgrims 
 proves a paying speculation. 
 
 Not content with this, the temples at Wu T'ai are 
 in the habit of fitting out annual collecting expeditions, 
 which, consisting of several lamas, start in spring, travel 
 about with carts and tents in summer, and return 
 before winter, carrying with them sometimes large sums 
 of money and driving before them flocks and herds, the 
 offerings of the faithful. These expeditions are numerous 
 and indefatigable, and perhaps there is no tent, rich 
 or poor, throughout the whole length and breadth of the 
 eastern half of Mongolia, which is not visited by such 
 deputations every year. These collectors penetrate 
 even beyond the bounds of the Chinese empire, and 
 carry off rich offerings from the Buriats, who, compared 
 with Mongols, are wealthy. Food, tea, skins, cattle, 
 money, all are eagerly received, and one of the consider- 
 ations that induce men to make these offerinss 
 is, that the names of donors are entered on the 
 subscription list ; they thus become in some sense 
 patrons of the temple, and tiiey are pleased to think that 
 they have connections y'ith Wu T'ai, and that the next 
 time they visit that sacred place, they will not be going 
 among strangers, but will be received as old acquaint- 
 ances by those who experienced their hospitality in the 
 desert, and were the recipients of their pious gifts. 
 
 The lamas of Wu T'ai also seek to increase their 
 influence by a practice which resembles the granting of 
 annuities. When a Mongol has been rich in his 
 younger days, but in his old age is somewhat reduced in 
 cij:cumsta.wces, e^nd has no son on whom he cg,n devolve 
 
lyo AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 the managennent of his affairs, he sometimes seeks to 
 escape from the losing battle of life by transferring all 
 his property to some temple at Wu T'ai, on condition 
 that the temple will feed, lodge, and clothe him and his 
 for the term of their natural lives. This arrangement 
 has a great fascination for some ; it relieves them from 
 anxiety about their temporal affairs, frees them from 
 the necessity of labour in their declining years, and 
 permits them to devote the close of their life, without 
 distraction, to the duties of religion. It is not uncommon 
 for Mongols, suffering from some disease that is con- 
 sidered mortal, to leave their homes, and await death 
 in the temple belonging to their native place ; but 
 happy above 'all others is he considered, who, before 
 sickness has laid its hand upon him, can leave the 
 turmoil of the world, and withdraw himself to the 
 longed-for sanctity and peace, which he hopes to find in 
 the holy temples among the sacred valleys of the 
 blessed Wu T'ai Shan. 
 
 Knowing the intense worldUness, the unblushing 
 wickedness, the thievish dishonesty, and the envy and 
 strife that characterise, with but few exceptions, almost 
 the whole tribe of lamas, one cannot but pity decent, 
 quiet old men, who, for the peace of their souls, retire to 
 such dens of iniquity. But they do it with their eyes 
 open, after life-long experience of lamas and temples, 
 with all their faults and wickednesses, and, to tell the 
 truth, the abominations do not seem to disturb them. 
 
 Mongol Buddhism and holiness have long ago parted 
 company, and it seems possible for men and women 
 living among and partaking in scenes of unblushing 
 evil, to be at the same time experiencing in their souls 
 the effectual consolations of their religion. Thi.s seems 
 
PRACTICAL EFFECT OF BUDDHISM 
 
 171 
 
 at first sight almost incredible, but I am convinced it is 
 true, and perhaps no more serious charge could be 
 brought against any religion than this, which holds true 
 of Buddhism, that notwithstanding many excellent 
 doctrines that characterise it as a theory, its practical 
 effect is to delude its votaries as to moral guilt, to sear 
 their • consciences as with a hot iron, to call the wicked 
 righteous, and send men down to the grave with a lie 
 in their right hand. 
 
CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 KALGAN. 
 
 Meaning of the name. A table-land eaten away by water. Picking 
 the bones of the skeleton. Picturesque reeks. " Heavenly fish." 
 Houses perched on the hill-side. Difficult entrance. Custom of 
 dismounting at the gate. Upper Kalgan. Lower town. Building 
 land scarce. Falling stones. Thunderstorm at dark. Kalgan a 
 great market for Mongol wants. The Chinese trade. The tea 
 trade. Tea villages on the plain. Transport of tea to Siberia. 
 Imports. Soldiers' quarters. Government ofices. American 
 missionaries. 
 
 Many Mongols live and die without seeing any 
 Chinese town but Kalgan. The Chinese call this place 
 Chang Chia K'ou — or the pass of the Chang family, but 
 as it is entered from the north by a gate through which 
 Mongols pass the Great Wall and thus enter China, 
 they habitually speak of it as "the gate" or " Halga," 
 and the term Kalgan has been introduced to the foreign 
 world generally by the Russians, who adopted it as 
 shorter and more easy to pronounce and write than the 
 corresponding Chinese term. 
 
 Travellers from the plain before reaching this Chinese 
 mart have to cross a mountain range, the highest part 
 of which is said to reach an elevation of 5,400 feet 
 abov^ the level of the g^a. The vjew from this part of 
 
TA BLE-LANJb EA TEN APVAY SY tVA TER. \ 7 ^ 
 
 the road is grand, and embraces a vast panorama of 
 mountains and dry torrent beds, with one permanently 
 flowing river, gleaming away far off in the west and 
 looking narrow, as the actual stream at any one time 
 occupies only a small portion of the broad belt of 
 desolate gravel which marks the area within which the 
 wanderings of the stream are confined. 
 
 Standing on the pass above Kalgan, the nearer land- 
 scape presents only one feature — the long-extended edge 
 of a high table-land in process of being eaten away by the 
 action of water. Grand and striking as the view at first 
 appears, closer examination soon makes it manifest that 
 there is little but uniformity in the whole landscape, 
 and that the vast bed of the distant river and the great 
 valley close below are nothing more than magnified 
 exhibitions of the little stream close at hand, and the 
 little ditch worn in the ridge by the last rain. This 
 process of eating away has gone on till its progress was 
 suddenly arrested by the great rocky barrier which 
 forms the edge of the plateau. 
 
 Slanding on the top of the pass, it is not difficult, 
 even for an unimaginative spectator, to conceive that 
 the great low-lying plain visible before him was for- 
 merly a table-land, and that the untired energy of the 
 floods of successive summers kept washing away the 
 gravel and loess composing it, leaving as mountains 
 anvthins: hard enough to resist the action of water. 
 
 From the plain great valleys run up into the 
 present edge of the remaining table-land, their course 
 being detertnined by rocks which defied the streams. 
 These great valleys have running off from them many 
 smaller valleys, these again have their numerous 
 smaller branches, which again ramify into numerous 
 
174 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 subdivisions, the whole system resembling much the 
 trunk, limbs, branches, and twigs of a tree. The great 
 period of rapid and unimpeded disintegration has long 
 since passed, and though the wearing away still goes on, 
 it is on a scale small as compared with what it must 
 have been ages ago. The waters are now for the most 
 part working out the soil and gravel from rock- 
 bound situations — picking the bones of the skeleton, 
 as it were. 
 
 Mongols, however, bound from their homes to Kalgan, 
 do not lose time viewing the landscape or indulging in 
 geological theories as to changes on the earth's surface. 
 Dismounting and leading their horses, they scramble 
 down the steep as best they can, re-adjust their saddles 
 on reaching the bottom, have a smoke, and, sticking 
 their pipes into their boots, remount and hold on their 
 way down the stony torrent-bed which leads to Kalgan. 
 The valley varies in width, and is, along most of its 
 course, hemmed in by steep hills, some of them many 
 hundreds of feet in height. Clinging to the hill-sides 
 in two or three places, where the valley widens out a 
 little, are villages, and many of the houses are simply 
 excavations in the cliff, with doors and windows fitted 
 in to form a front. The washing away of the soil has 
 in places brought out curious-looking rocks into bold 
 relief, to one of which, shaped something like the 
 handle of a cup, the Mongols say that one of their 
 legendary heroes tied his horse, from which this avenue 
 to Kalgan is named the " Handle Pass." 
 
 Except during floods at the rainy season there is 
 little water in this valley. About half of its course 
 is dry, the permanent stream being so small that it 
 disappears among the stones and comes to the surface 
 
MOUNTAIN TORRENTS IN FLOOD. 
 
 175 
 
 again a long way farther down. When a flood does 
 come, which is but seldom, perhaps once or twice a 
 
 UONOOL PIPE AND POUCH. 
 
 year, it fills the broad bed of the torrent from shore to 
 shore, sweeping everything before it, carrying down with 
 
ty6 AMOMG THE MOMGOLS. 
 
 it in its headlong course thousands of tons of gravel and 
 stones, which strike against the rocks with such force 
 as to leave them marked with fresh bruises to a height 
 of several feet. 
 
 A curious phenomenon which follows floods in this 
 valley, is the presence of little fish, which are found in 
 the stream when it has become clear and quieted down 
 to its ordinary limits. The Chinese come out with 
 bowls and catch them, taking them home to their shops 
 as a curiosity, and calling them " Heavenly Fish." 
 They are tiny little creatures, and the question is, where 
 do they come from ? It is not to be supposed that they 
 are in the stream while the flood lasts — the violence of 
 the torrent and the gravel would dash them and grind 
 them to pieces. They must emerge then afterwards. 
 But whence ? And why do they come only after a flood ? 
 Can their home be in some subterranean cavern, from 
 which they can escape only when its waters overflow 
 from the replenishment of a flood ? 
 
 The traveller coming from the north by the zigzag " 
 course of the torrent-bed leading down from the 
 "Handle Pass," travels ten or twelve miles without 
 seeing anything of Kalgan, till, turning a corner, he 
 comes upon houses so crowded upon insufficient standing- 
 ground in a recess of the valley, that some of them are 
 perched high up on natural or artificial terraces on the 
 hill-side. This may be called the north-west suburb of 
 Kalgan, and here it is that the Russians engaged in the 
 tea trade are located. From this point down to Kalgan 
 proper, the traveller passes between two almost con- 
 tinuous lines of Chinese shops, defended from the river 
 by substantial masonry, and pressed back close to the 
 steep hill, looking like spectators forced up against the 
 
BLOCK IN THE ENTRANCE TO KALGAN. \yj 
 
 walls when the street is cleared to allow a procession to 
 pass along a narrow road-way. The great highway from 
 the river-bed into Kalgan goes straight up a break- 
 water, rising so high and so abruptly, that it is only with 
 great difficulty that loaded carts can ascend or descend. 
 Attempts are made from time to time to make the 
 ascent more gradual by heaping up gravel, but it seems 
 to be no one's duty to keep this part of the road in 
 permanent repair; the continual traffic, or a flood in 
 the river, wears down, or carries away, this temporary 
 embankment, and the strurrfflin? of horses and oxen to 
 drag their loads up this breakwater are painful to 
 witness. Most likely, when this point is reached, the 
 traveller finds the way blocked by some disabled team, 
 which makes repeated and ineffectual efforts to scramble 
 up the steep, the obstruction thus offered to the traffic 
 not only causing a crowd of carts to collect in the river, 
 but packing up the narrow street leading to the gate in 
 such a way as to make it difficult even for a horseman 
 to pass. At the gate itself, it seems to be the custom 
 for riders to dismount, probably as a means of showing 
 respect to, and thus in a manner propitiating, the 
 officials and underlings who watch the traffic in the 
 interest of the inland revenue. 
 
 Upper Kalgan, for it is divided into two parts, upper 
 and lower, is a busy, crowded place, with streets not much 
 too wide for carts to pass, and paved with great blocks 
 of stone. When first laid, these stones were doubtless 
 smooth and made a good road, but long wear has made 
 havoc of them. In some places they are worn into 
 deep ruts, in some places large parts seem to have 
 disappeared, and there could be no greater proof of the 
 excellence of the Chinese wheelwright, than the fact 
 
 M 
 
I7S AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 that there ase carts, day after day all the year round, 
 plying for hire, carrying passengers and conveying 
 merchandise along these terrible streets, and yet the 
 wheels do not seem to suffer much. 
 
 Should the weather be at all wet, great parts of 
 this causeway swim with deep black mud, which the 
 horses and carts as they struggle along splash up 
 plentifully upon the foot passengers on the high side- 
 walks. Peculiarly fatal is this rough road to the 
 wooden axles of the soda carts, which come in from 
 Mongolia in long trains, and a very common sight in 
 Kalgan is that of a man sitting watching such a cart, 
 which has been wrecked by the shock of plunging into 
 a hole deeper than ordinary. 
 
 The mountains come close down to Kalgan, and by 
 climbing one of the lower heights the traveller will 
 realise that the Mongol was not far from the mark who, 
 sitting on a bank and watching a swarm of men 
 building a river- wall, exclaimed, " Kalgan is badly 
 situated, right in the middle of the waters." 
 
 A mile oi two down the main river is situated the 
 lower town, and between the upper and lower towns 
 are situated the Government offices and the rectangular 
 encampments of the Manchu garrisons. About midway 
 between the upper and lower towns, and in perilous 
 proximity to the abodes of the soldiers, is another great 
 torrent-bed, the dread of whose floods is sufficiently 
 attested by the immense breakwaters erected to restrain 
 their fury and guide their course. Great as these 
 breakwaters are, they are not more than sufficient. 
 
 The dangers of tii? surrounding waters make land 
 suitable for building hard to obtain in Kalgan ; but in 
 Jthe upper city at least there is aij.Qther danger to be 
 
■^T ^ 
 
l80 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 guarded against, that of the mountains. Bounded on 
 one side by the river, the houses are built so closely 
 into the foot of the steep hill that forms the limit of 
 the town on the other side, that some considerable 
 danger is to be apprehended lest masses of rock, dis- 
 integrated by frost and rain from the precipices that 
 frown above, should rush down the hill-side and 
 crush the houses beneath. One night in summer 
 people in bed heard the rush as of an avalanche on the 
 side of the hill, and the light of next morning revealed 
 a mass of stones that had descended from a position high 
 up the cliff. Many of the stones were large, but one 
 larger than the rest, and of a shape somewhat re- 
 sembling that of a block from which a millstone nine 
 feet thick and twelve feet in diameter could be con- 
 veniently hewn, had bounded away far beyond them all, 
 and had been brought up only by having happened to 
 leap down into a water-cut gully, where it stuck fast. 
 Had this boulder not been stopped here, it would have 
 leaped crashing down through the roofs of the outhouses 
 of a Chinese merchant's store. The story goes that 
 some time before a missionary had made some attempt 
 at buying or renting the premises in question, but 
 unsuccessfully. The sight of the stone, however, and 
 the narrowness of the escape, were not without effect on 
 the Chinaman's mind, and it is said that a few days 
 afterwards word was sent to the foreigner that he might 
 have the place if he wished it. 
 
 In some places the houses come so closely into the 
 foot of the mountain that in climbing it is needful to be 
 careful lest the foot should dislodge a stone that mio-ht 
 fall down, endangering life a.nd property. The houses 
 so situated, however, are for the most part those of 
 
PREPARING FOR A IflGItT FLOOP). igi 
 
 the poorest class, but the shops and establishments of 
 many wealthy firms, though situated on the main street, 
 do not consider themselves safe from the dangers of the 
 floods; and the observing stranger on his first arrival 
 may be puzzled by noticing grooved stones or timbers 
 standing on either side of the front entrances of places 
 of business. A set of planks are kept in readiness 
 somewhere inside, and when a dangerous inundation 
 seems imminept, these planks are brought out, let into 
 the grooves, and driven home, thus forming a barrier to 
 the flood, should it come surging down. 
 
 One of my most weird recollections of Kalgan, is 
 that of making my way to an inn along the great 
 length of its streets one summer evening, fording or 
 being carried across the yellow streams that flowed 
 from a thunderstorm in which I had been caught when 
 out on a visit. The light of day was prematurely ex- 
 tinguished by the great clouds that were fast gathering, 
 black and thick among the mountain-tops, belated 
 travellers hurrying homewards clambered eagerly on 
 the backs of bare-legged men that stood on the edges 
 of the streams ready to transport passengers for a few 
 cash, and from end to end the street resounded with the 
 din of the shopmen hammering in their water-boards, 
 afraid of a flood in the night. The weirdness of the 
 situation was heightened by the recollection of the 
 flood which a year or two before had broken its bounds, 
 and, amid the horrors of storm and darkness, had 
 swept to destruction some scores of panic-stricken 
 people. 
 
 To many of the Mongols, Kalgan is important only 
 from its being a great mart where all the wants arising 
 from what civilisation they have can be supplied. AH 
 
1 82 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 kinds of fiarinaceous food ; cotton fabrics, both native 
 and foreign, Chinese silks and Russian woollens ; saddles, 
 bridles, and all kinds of riding gear; crockery, iron, 
 and copper-ware ; and the numerous odds and ends of 
 every- day needs, such as needles, buttons, fiddle-strings, 
 and lucifer matches — all these and many more, the 
 Mongols resort to Kalgan to purchase, and find them 
 both superior and cheap. Some come to Kalgan with 
 carts on which to carry back their goods, but the 
 majority pack their purchases in leather bags, throw 
 these across the saddle, perch themselves on the top, 
 and thus return home, the rider being only part of the 
 load which the horse has to carry. 
 
 But the Chinese do not simply wait to supply such 
 customers as come to their shops, they send out trading 
 expeditions which travel about Mongolia, and a great 
 number of small traders make a living by buying an 
 ox-cart load of goods in Kalgan, dragging it over the 
 pass as best they can, and disposing of their merchandise 
 by going round from tent to tent, taking most of their 
 payment in articles of barter. This supplying of the 
 domestic wants of the Mongols who live within reach 
 is no inconsiderable trade, but after all it is only a small 
 part of the business done in Kalgan. 
 
 The trade of Kalgan is the tea trade. Tea in Mon- 
 golia ranks, not as a luxury, but as a necessary of life ; 
 the quantity consumed is immense, and the whole of 
 this article used in vast districts of Mongolia finds its 
 way into the country through Kalgan, coming from the 
 south to Tientsin by sea, from Tientsin to T'ung Chao by 
 Chinese river boats, and from T'ung Chao to Kalgan on 
 the pack-saddles of donkeys, mules, and camels. From 
 Kalgan it is distributed over Mongolia, being conveyed 
 
TEA VILLAGES. 1 83 
 
 to such trading centres as Urga by camel-caravans or 
 trains of ox-carts. This business of carrying tea 
 attracts Mongols, with their travelling cattle, from all 
 parts of Mongolia. 
 
 In addition to what is used in Mongolia, there also 
 passes through Kalgan the whole of the tea which finds 
 its way into Siberia and Russia through Kiachta. A 
 part of this trade is in the hands of the Russians them- 
 selves, who always maintain agents at Kalgan to receive 
 the tea as it comes from the south, and forward it to 
 the north. These agents live in Kalgan outside the 
 gate, but space is so scarce in the mountain gorges 
 where their abodes are, that a great part of the tea has 
 to be sent up over the pass and stored out on the open 
 plain. Poles are laid under to keep it clear of the 
 ground and free from damp, the chests are piled up in 
 long broad ridges, which are carefully covered in with reed 
 mats, two or three thicknesses of which are practically 
 waterproof, and the quantity sometimes stored up thus 
 waiting for transport is so immense, that at a distance 
 it looks like a village, with streets and lanes. Should the 
 quantity of tea be unusually large, or should it need to 
 be sent off quickly, a higher price is offered for tran- 
 sporting it ; and one season not long ago, the number of 
 chests waiting for conveyance was so great, and the 
 price offered for carrying it so bigh, that for a few 
 months oxen and ox-carts were bought and sold at 
 nearly double their ordinary value. The tea thus for- 
 warded by ox-cart is for the most part the coarse brick 
 tea used in North Mongolia and Siberia, the finer sorts 
 of overland tea used in Russia being usually transported 
 across the desert on camel-back. 
 
 The main imports received in Kaltran from Mongolia 
 
IS4 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 are suit ; soda, for the refining of which Kalgan possesses 
 many wealthy-looking establishments, which seem to vie 
 with each other as to the size of the coal-hill, faced with 
 a neatly built wall of great blocks, which they display 
 in some part of their yard, visible to any one who passes 
 their great gate ; hides and skins, for the preparation of 
 which Kalgan possesses exceptional facilities in her 
 streams ; and timber, which for the most part comes 
 across the desert from Urga, forming the return cargo of 
 a large proportion of the carts that go north with tea. 
 
 Kalgan owes part of its 75,000 of population to its 
 garrison of Manchu soldiers, who, with their wives and 
 children, occupy several permanent encampments of 
 built houses, each encampment being surrounded by a 
 wall, and distinguishable from a village mainly by the 
 too great regularity and uniformity of the buildings. Its 
 dignity is considerably enhanced by the presence of the 
 government oflSces, where the official business of a great 
 part of Southern Mongolia is conducted ; and no small 
 number of the better class of Mongols seen about the 
 streets, will be found on inquiry to have come to Kalgan 
 on matters connected with their government duty, or 
 for the purpose of prosecuting before the higher courts 
 law pleas in which they may be engaged with their 
 neighbours. 
 
 Since 1865 Kalgan has formed one of the stations of 
 the American Board of Foreign Missions, whose agents 
 have not confined their attention to the city alone, but 
 have endeavoured to propagate the gospel in the regions 
 lying around, including in the sphere of their operations 
 the nearer districts of the plain of Mongolia. 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 DOCTORING THE MONGOLS. 
 
 Mongol doctors numerous. Mostly priests. They live in their patient 3 
 house. Mongols make good patients. Belief in water cure. 
 Almost all Mongols suffer from disease. The missionary swamped 
 in the doctor. Mongol admiration for the missionaiy doctor. 
 The successful eye operation. Mongol suspicious of moruingwalk. 
 About an evening ride. About writing. Missionary must not be 
 a sportsman. Diseases prevalent in Mongolia. Religious element 
 in medicine. Feeling the pulse. Swallowing medicine for external 
 amplication. Patients duped by Chinese traders. Curious oases. 
 Dying Chinaman. Mongol views on the galvanic battery. 
 Divination. The doctor taking his own medicine for example's 
 sake. Medical knowledge helps to gain the good-will of the 
 people. 
 
 Native doctors swarm in Mongolia, if swarm is a proper 
 term to be applied to any class of men in so sparsely 
 peopled a country. They are mostly lamas. There 
 are a few laymen who add medical practice to their 
 other occupations, but the great majority of doctorsj are 
 priests. That this should be so is not strange. In the 
 first place, the lama life is an idle kind of existence, 
 affording opportunities of acquiring what medical 
 knowledge is to be had. In the second place, a lama in 
 riper years, being free from family cares and government 
 duty, has his time more at his own disposal than in the 
 
1 86 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 case of the layman, and so can make more opportunities 
 of using bis medical skill. In the third place, Mongol, 
 seldom separate medicine and prayers, and a clerical 
 doctor has the advantage over a layman in that he can 
 attend personally to both departments, administering 
 drugs on the one hand and performing religious cere- 
 monies on the other. 
 
 How much real knowledge these men possess would 
 be difficult to decide. They seem to have a rather 
 elaborate medical system, but part of it at least has no 
 better foundation than ignorance or superstition. One 
 curious practice is, that when they have a man under 
 treatment, they go and live at the house of the patient, 
 remaining there till the cure is accomplished, or the 
 doctor confesses he can do no more. 
 
 Mongols make, on the whole, good patients. They 
 are credulous, have great faith in medicine, are ready to 
 swallow great quantities of drugs, and the more nauseous 
 the drugs are, the more faith have they in them. On 
 one point Mongol doctors are sound, and Mongol patients 
 are sensible. They believe greatly in the water cure. 
 They often advise their patients to try the effect of such 
 and such a hot or cold spring, and the celebrated springs 
 in North China and in Mongolia count, among the 
 sufferers that resort to them, many natives of the plain. 
 Some patients, of course, receive no benefit from these 
 rude hydropathic establishments, but the majority go 
 away feeling benefited — a fact not to be wondered at, 
 when it is remembered that a great proportion of 
 Mongol suffering arises from skin diseases, contracted or 
 aggravated by want of cleanliness. 
 
 The inhabitants of Mongolia are few and far between, 
 and in this sense Mongolia is not a favourable field foi 
 
THE FOREIGN DOCTOR. 187 
 
 a foreign medical missionary. But it must not 
 be forgotten that when at length you do meet an 
 inhabitant, he or she is almost sure to be suffering 
 from some disease or other, and it is almost true to 
 say that the number of possible patients to be found 
 in any one place is equal to the total number of the 
 inhabitants. 
 
 When a foreign missionary, speaking Mongolian and 
 carrying a medicine chest, appears on any part of the 
 
 ^j\Aw 
 
 
 GoiNO FOR nnF TiocTnR. [Trom n Niilive Sketch. 
 
 plain, the news spreads far and wide. The story too 
 gathers as it rolls, and in a few days he is credited with 
 the most extraordinary powers of healing, the exaggerated 
 stories about his abilities being equalled only by the 
 exaggerated stories of the virtues of the medicines and 
 appliances. It is in vain that the missionary insists he 
 has come not merely to heal, but to teach Christianity. 
 Christianity they can do without. They don't feel the 
 neeil of it. They are eager to get rid of their pains and 
 
1 88 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 aches. They apply to the missionary in his capacity of 
 doctor, they talk of him as a doctor, and the real truth 
 of the matter is, that they want him only in so far as he 
 is a doctor. In the case of some places where Mongols 
 are numerous, such as at populous temples, government 
 gatherings, and religious festivals, the number of patients 
 that present themselves in one day is so great, that 
 while attending them very little religious instruction can 
 be imparted. Some of them have come a long way and 
 can ill spare time, and are in a hurry to get home again ; 
 some of them have run out in the interval between 
 services and must be back in time ; some of them have 
 waited long and patiently, or impatiently as the case 
 may be, while earlier comers were being treated, and 
 are eager to be attended to when their turn comes ; and 
 in these cases the missionary is in danger of being 
 swamped in the doctor. 
 
 But the reception accorded to the missionary is not 
 the same in all places. In most cases when a locality is 
 visited for the first time there is a great crowd of people 
 eager to be patients ; but as a great proportion of them 
 have diseases which are incurable, they soon learn that 
 the report that the foreigner can cure everything is not 
 true, and, finding he can do little or nothing for them, 
 they gradually drop off. The second time the place is 
 visited matters mend a little, and by the third visit the 
 people's ideas have become pretty correct, and, for the 
 most part, only such cases as can be helped are pressed 
 upon his attention. 
 
 For a man who carries medicines and can cure a few 
 diseases, and who lays himself out patiently and atten- 
 tively to benefit his patients, for one especially who 
 cleans and attends to neglected, loathsome sores on 
 
TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE. jgg 
 
 dirty unwashed persons, showing the same attention to 
 the poor as to the rich, for such an one the Mongol 
 admiration is unbounded. It is long before they can 
 convince themselves that money or recompense is not 
 wanted, and if they could only believe that these things 
 were done, as they profess to be, for nothing else but 
 for Christ's sake, those who saw them would be doubt- 
 less inclined to think highly of a religion which pro- 
 duced such fruits But, in the opinion of the Mongols, 
 it is too good to be true. They cannot believe it. 
 That men should be sent out from distant lands, fitted 
 out with travelling appliances and furnished with 
 medicines, and go about ready and willing to cure and 
 heal, and want no money for it, no reward of any kind 
 — a Mongol's faith staggers at that. Explain to him 
 the religious sanction and motive for it all, the theory 
 of such a thing he could understand, but in practice it 
 staggers him. If he read it in his sacred books as a 
 thing related of old Buddhist saints, who lived in dis- 
 tant countries and in old times, he would accept it, but 
 to see it with his own eyes, in this his own time, and in 
 his own country — that is too much for his faith. So he 
 sets himself to invent a reason. If he is near China, 
 or if himself or friends have had much intercourse with 
 China, he perhaps has heard the stories of foreigners, 
 digging out people's eyes to make photographic chemi- 
 cals, or perhaps he has heard of the operation of 
 couching for catara,ct, perhaps he has seen it performed, 
 and though he himself may know and believe that it is 
 all right, the friends and neighbours, who did not see 
 the operation but only heard his report, find in it 
 plenty to confirm their suspicions. Very great care is 
 needed if a Mongol missionary wishes to avoid giving 
 
igo AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 rise to rumours among the Mongols which will prove 
 prejudicial to his iniluence and work. 
 
 On one occasion I was living some weeks in a Mongol's 
 tent. It was late in the year. Lights were put out 
 soon after dark. The nights were long in reality, and, 
 in such unsatisfactory surroundings as the discomforts 
 of a poor tent and doubtful companions, the nights 
 seemed longer than they were. At sunrise I was only 
 too glad to escape from smoke and everything else to 
 the retirement of the crest of a low ridge of hills near 
 the tent. This, perhaps the most natural thing in the 
 world for a foreigner, was utterly inexplicable to the 
 Mongols. The idea that any man should get out of his 
 bed at sunrise and climb a hill for nothing ! He must 
 be up to mischief ! He must be secretly taking away 
 the luck of the land ! This went on for some time, the 
 Mongols all alive with suspicion, and the unsuspecting 
 foreigner retiring regularly morning after morning, till 
 at length a drunken man blurted out the whole thing 
 and openly stated the conviction that the inhabitants 
 had arrived at, namely, that this extraordinary morning 
 walk of the foreigner on the hill-crest boded no good 
 to the country. To remain among the people, I had to 
 give up my morning retirement. 
 
 On another occasion, a missionary, who had a turn 
 for geology, was in the habit of strolling about on 
 summer evenings- after sunset and picking up a few 
 specimens of stones. This gave rise to the most 
 wonderful stories that spread far and wide over the 
 plain. Among other things he was actually supposed 
 to have discovered and dug out of the earth immense 
 masses of silver of almost untold value, and these 
 stories obtained such credence among the people, 
 
LYING REPORTS. I9I 
 
 affording as they did a very plausible explanation of how 
 men could travel about healing and asking no fees, that 
 m one neighbourhood to which I and my medicine had 
 been specially invited, no one would have anything 
 whatever to do with us, simply because these prejudicial 
 stories had arrived a few hours before us. 
 
 On one occasion my wife and I, while encamped at a 
 large temple, after having our tent crowded with 
 visitors and patients all the hours of the long summer 
 day, used to have oui horses saddled up, and go for a 
 short ride at sunset, returning at dusk. This, it after- 
 'wards appeared, produced a great ferment among the 
 lamas, who, voluminous with lies as usual, concocted 
 and circulated all manner of absurd reports about our 
 searching for treasure in the night ; so much so, that 
 after a few days a messenger appeared and in the name 
 of the government authorities and ruling lamas ordered 
 us to leave the place. 
 
 At first sight it might be supposed that a tr.iveller 
 would be so free nowhere as in the thinly peopled, far- 
 reaching plains of Mongolia. And, as far as a mere 
 traveller is concerned, this is the case. But with the 
 missionary it is different. To have any prospect of 
 success among the Mongols, the missionary must avoid 
 raising suspicions, and, if he is to avoid raising sus- 
 picions, he must climb no hill, pick up no pebble, never 
 go for a walk, and never manifest any interest or 
 pleasure in the scenery. If he does any of these things, 
 stories and rumours are at once circulated, which 
 effectually close the minds of the inhabitants against 
 his teaching. 
 
 Another thing that must be refrained from is writing. 
 The Mongols are very suspicious of seeing a foreigner 
 
102 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 •writing. What can he be up to t they say among them- 
 selves. Is he taking notes of the capabilities of the 
 country ? Is he marking out a road map so that he can 
 return guiding an army ? Is he a wizard carrying ofif 
 the good luck of the country in his note-book ? These, 
 and a great many others, are the questions that they 
 ask among themselves and put to the foreigner when 
 they see him writing, and if he desires to conciliate the 
 good-will of the people, and to win their confidence, 
 the missionary must abstain from walking and writing 
 while he is among them. In both of these respects 
 the minute the border is crossed and China entered, a 
 delicious sense of freedom is experienced, and a man 
 feels that his legs and his pen are once more of some 
 use to him again. 
 
 On another point, too, care must be exercised. 
 Shooting has to be avoided. Killing beasts or birds the 
 Mongols regard as peculiarly sinful, and any one who 
 wished to teach them religious truth would make the 
 attempt under great disadvantage, if he carried and 
 used a gun. This, however, is a prejudice that it is not so 
 difficult to refrain from offending. It is true that a gun 
 would, on many occasions, add a pleasant variety in the 
 shape of ducks, geese, and hares to the pot, but for the 
 most part mutton can be obtained without much diffi- 
 culty, and as the wild deer are very difficult to stalk on 
 the open plain, the temptation to carry a gun is not so 
 great as might at first be supposed. 
 
 One of the most prevalent diseases in Mongolia is 
 itch. The Mongols very seldom change their clothes, 
 and practise the least possible amount of washing, either 
 of their persons or their garments, having a super- 
 stitious belief that if they use too much water, after 
 
ROW DISEASES ARE CONTRACTED. I93 
 
 death they will become fishes. In their tents they live 
 so closely huddled up that when one gets itch, all soon 
 have it. Travellers and visitors, who pass the night in 
 an infected family, are pretty sure to catch the disease 
 too, as they have to borrow a garment to serve as a 
 blanket. Everything is in its favour, and it flourishes. 
 Many of the Mongols go on religious pilgrimages, and 
 many of them roam about merely for the pleasure of 
 the thing. These catch the disease and spread it ; and 
 as the Mongols know of no effectual cure, the wonder is 
 not that it is so prevalent, but rather that it is not 
 universal. 
 
 Other skin diseases are also prevalent, and from 
 pretty much the same causes as mentioned above. A 
 scratch or something makes a small beginning, dirt and 
 hair from their sheepskins irritate and increase it, and 
 it goes on from bad to worse. 
 
 Bheumatism is perhaps the most prevalent disease. 
 It is induced by the climate of the country and the 
 manner of life. Some fine morning a man debates with 
 himself whether he will wear his summer coat or his 
 sheepskin. If he thinks it will be a warm day he puts on 
 his summer coat and rides off. Suddenly a cold wind 
 blows, and he must endure the cold till he reaches home 
 again in the evening. Or, perhaps, he is the night 
 watcher of a drove of horses, and tired out, lies down 
 on the damp ground and soon feels it cold, even through 
 his sheepskin. 
 
 Even at home in a well-to-do tent it is not much 
 better. In winter there is a fire in the centre ; all sit 
 round it and are warm enough in front, but cold at the 
 back ; and there is always a current of air coming from 
 the sides of the tent towards the fire. In summer it ia 
 
ig,j. AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 even worse. The cow-dung basement round the tent, 
 which was intended to keep out the cold, is now 
 removed, and a clear space of from four to six inches 
 left, through which the four winds blow at their sweet 
 pleasure. During the day it is not so bad, but at night, 
 even in summer, the air is not warm, and the tent is 
 never without a cold draught. Add to this the fact 
 that the Mongol's Uanket is his coat, which, being 
 rather short to cover all his person, is apt to leave the 
 shoulder exposed, or, at least, not well protected, and it 
 is not difficult to understand why almost every man and 
 woman in Mongolia suffers from rheumatism. Not only 
 men and women, but youths even, suffer from it, and this 
 is partly to be accounted for by a notion the Mongols 
 bave, that it is good for a youth to sleep with insufficient 
 covering. Thus rheumatism runs riot among them, and 
 will do so till they change their mode of life and can be 
 taught to take some care of themselves. 
 
 Their own faculty have no remedy for this disease. 
 Kneading, as a baker kneads dough, gives a little relief 
 at the time, and the boys and girls are in pretty constant 
 requisition to perform this operation on the backbones 
 and shoulders of the elder members of the family. Old 
 people who have no young folks in their tents manage 
 to knead themselves by means of a stick with a great 
 V-shaped crook. This stick they call the " Rheumatism 
 curer." Holding it in front, they can knead their own 
 shoulders almost as effectually as by the knuckles of the 
 youngsters. 
 
 Eye diseases are very common. The glare of the sun 
 on the snowy expanse in winter, and on the plains in 
 spring and autumn, is very trying. Summer is more 
 f^greeable, as the eye can then rest with pleasure on the 
 
EYE DISEASES. CURES. 195 
 
 soft green of the grass and herbs. In spring and 
 autumn the grass is withered and brown — often 
 bleached till it becomes of a whitish hue, which can be 
 comfortably looked at only when the eyes are furnished 
 with protectors. Riding through Gobi, I had the mis- 
 fortune to lose my tinted spectacles. The consequence 
 was an affection of the eye, which did not quite leave me 
 for a twelvemonth afterwards. 
 
 In addition to the sun out of doors, there is the smoke 
 indoors. The argol smoke has no offensive smell, as 
 some suppose, but it is bad enough and bitter enough, 
 and has much the same effect on the eyes as is produced 
 by the smoke of wood. 
 
 To an inflamed or bad eye, a Mongol doctor can do 
 next to nothing; and some of the simplest and com- 
 monest remedies known to western science work cures 
 which to them seem wonderful. 
 
 On one occasion I was taken to see a lama of rank 
 who was suffering from an eye disease which rendered 
 him almost entirely blind. I found he was troubled 
 with the lashes of the lower eyelid growing into the 
 eye. I removed them, taught a man how to do it again, 
 if it should become necessary, and when next I heard 
 of the lama, he was collating the Ganjore. When I 
 passed that way the following year, he came and 
 acknowledged that he owed his eyesight to me, and 
 was profuse in his thanks. 
 
 Spring diseases is, perhaps, not a proper term, but it 
 indicates a feature in Mongolian life. Many people tell 
 you they are well all the year round except in spring. 
 When winter leaves, and the year begins to open, they 
 are ill. Others again who are slightly indisposed always, 
 are much worse in spring. Cattle suffer in the sam$ 
 
 N 2 
 
jg5 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 way. Many sheep and horses that weather out the 
 winter succumb to the bleak cold winds of spring. 
 Perhaps the damp of the thaw has something to do 
 with it. 
 
 Ague is not common, but not altogether unknown. 
 It greatly alarmed a part of a tribe once by spreading 
 itself among them. The lamas did not know what to 
 make of it, and at last concluded that it was a con- 
 tagious disease, introduced into the country by the 
 Mongol soldiers who had gone on government duty into 
 Cliina. The popular account of the visitation proceeds 
 to say, that, when Mongols got so ill under it as to be 
 delirious, they raved, in Chinese. 
 
 Narry is the Mongol name for the disease which is 
 brought on by drinking whisky. The stomach is burnt 
 to such an extent that almost nothing will enter it, or 
 entering it, cannot remain. It is soon returned, and the 
 patient gets thinner and weaker day by day, till he dies 
 of starvation. I have no means of getting statistics, 
 but, from subjects I have seen, and from the many eager 
 inquiries I have heard made about the possibility of 
 curing it, it would seem that a good number die of this 
 disease. 
 
 The women of Mongolia are hardy and capable. 
 They look ruddy and strong-limbed. They work hard, 
 and are badly treated. Woman's place in the tent is 
 next the door; the felt she sleeps on is the thinnest 
 and poorest. She does the milking and drudgery 
 generally, and when she sits in the tent, usually has 
 nothing better than a worn cow-hide to protect her from 
 the damp and cold of the ground. She jumps into the 
 saddle and rides over the plain as recklessly as a man. 
 She takes little care of herself, and has little care 
 
DRUGS AND PRAYERS. igy 
 
 bestowed upon her. An old woman spoke some truth, 
 at least, when she said to me, " The women are treated 
 like the dogs which are fed outside the tent." 
 
 The result is as might have been expected : — strong, 
 hardy, and healthy as the women look, almost every one 
 who has passed the stage of girlhood has some chronic 
 malady or suffering. There are many exceptions, 
 especially among the richer class, but, as a rule, women 
 suffer more, age sooner, and die younger than the men ; 
 and there is little prospect of a change for the better, 
 in this respect, till women are treated more considerately, 
 and have accorded to them a fair share of the meagre 
 comforts of tent life. 
 
 Mongol patients and Mongol doctors believe in the 
 efficacy of prayer as a curative agency. When a man 
 puts himself under medical treatment, he usually starts 
 temple or lama services, giving gifts according to his 
 means, and knowing that the nature and extent of the 
 services will depend on the value of the offering pre- 
 sented. There are numbers of people wlio believe that 
 their recovery from sickness was through the power of 
 the services performed ; and it is worthy of note that 
 they do not consider the prayer and medicine as two 
 rival methods of cure, but rather the two sides of the 
 same thing. Medicine is the human means, the praying 
 is the appeal to the superhuman. 
 
 People who cannot afford temple services, or patients 
 suffering from a minor affliction, usually have a lama 
 come to their tent and recite the necessary prayers. 
 Throwing about small pinches of millet seed is a usu«.l 
 part of such a service. A man who had called a lama 
 to say prayer to reduce the inflammation of his eye, had 
 his purpose frustrated in a singular manner. The lama 
 
igg AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 threw the millet towards the patient, one of the seeds 
 struck the eye and produced an ulcer, or cloud, as the 
 Mongols call it, which dimmed his vision ever after. 
 The precise nature of the service appropriate to the 
 occasion is usually determined by some lama of high 
 standing. Some of the living Buddhas have a great 
 reputation, from the responses they give when consulted 
 as to whether a patient will recover, and what means he 
 should use. A very common response is, " Not alarming ; 
 drink medicine, and have prayers said." Pilgrimages 
 are often prescribed, and have the reputation of being 
 effectual. I once heard it seriously proposed to send a 
 man who had lost the use of his legs on a pilgrimage 
 of some hundreds of miles. His advisers seemed 
 seriously to think that if he could crawl there and back, 
 he would stand a good chance of being cured ! 
 
 On another occasion I met a man just reaching his 
 home after accomplishing a long pilgrimage for the cure 
 of tooth-ache. He was no better; and a few seconds 
 with a pair of forceps did more to relieve him than all 
 the hundreds of miles he had walked. 
 
 Mongols don't believe much in prophylactics. When 
 they come and say a certain kind of food disagrees with 
 them, they think you are making fun of them when you 
 tell them to avoid that article of diet. Cure a man of 
 his rheumatism, and he will think you are admitting 
 the feebleness of your remedy, when you instruct him 
 to avoid damp and cold in future. If inaction or 
 sedentary occupation has made him ill, he thinks you 
 are a poor doctor if, in addition to your medicine, you 
 prescribe exercise. Their habitual contempt and dis- 
 regard of precautions makes it a thankless task to 
 attempt to relieve them from some kinds of suffering. 
 
SUPERSTtTlOtf AS TO DISEASES. \gg 
 
 In a short time their carelessness makes them as bad as 
 ever again. 
 
 In many cases when a Mongol applies to his doctor, 
 he simply extends his hand and expects that the 
 doctor, by simply feeling his pulse, will be able to tell 
 not only the disease, but what will cure it. As soon as 
 the doctor has felt the pulse of one hand the patient at 
 once extends the other hand, that the pulse may be felt 
 there also, and great surprise is manifested when a 
 foreigner begins his diagnosis of a case by declining 
 the proffered wrist and asking questions. No less sur- 
 prise is manifested when, in cases where it is necessary 
 to feel the pulse, the foreigner contents himself with 
 feeling the pulse at one wrist. 
 
 The question of " How did you gst this disease ? " 
 often elicits some curiously superstitious replies. One 
 man lays the blame on the stars and constellations. 
 Another confesses that when he was a lad he was 
 mischievous and dug holes in the ground, or cut shrubs 
 on the hill, and it is not difficult to see how he regards 
 disease as a punishment for digging, since by digging 
 worms are killed, but what cutting wood on a hill can 
 have to do with sin it is harder to see, except it be 
 regarded as stealing the possessions of the spiritual 
 lord of the locality. In consulting a doctor, too, a 
 Mongol seems to lay a deal of stress on the belief 
 that it may be his fate, to be cured by the medical 
 man in question, and if he finds relief, often says that 
 his meeting this particular doctor, and being cured, is 
 the result of prayers made at some previoiis time. 
 
 One difficulty in curing Mongols is, that they 
 frequently, when supplied with medicines, depart 
 entirely from the doctor's instructions when they apply 
 
200 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 them ; and a not unfrequent case is that of the patient 
 who, after applying to the foreigner for medicine and 
 getting it, is frightened by his success, or scared by 
 some lying report of his neighbours, or, staggered at 
 the fact that the foreigner would not feel his pulse or 
 feel it at one wrist only, lays aside the medicine care- 
 fully and does not use it at all. 
 
 As the inhabitants of Mongolia are few and far 
 between, it is seldom possible to make long halts at 
 any one place, and, in consequence, it is often neces- 
 sary to leave behind medicine for the cure of diseases 
 that require continuous treatment. 
 
 One evening, when sitting in my tent door, looking 
 towards an encampment where I had given some 
 medicine to be used after my departure, I noticed some 
 children rush out and come straight towards me at full 
 speed. Long before they reached me I guessed that 
 what I had often feared had happened at last. I was 
 not mistaken. The children came first, and after them 
 a woman, all out of breath, to say that the younger 
 children had got hold of the medicine bottle, and, 
 thinking it whisky, had drunk it ! Finding what they 
 had done, the anxious mother had also tasted it, to see 
 what it really was that they had taken, and now they 
 wished to know if they as a family had poisoned them- 
 selves, and what was to be done ! Happily the 
 medicine was not deadly, and the quantity drunk 
 small, and no harm followed, but this incident shows 
 a danger which has to be constantly guarded against ; 
 and it is often difficult to heal diseases simple enough 
 in themselves, because it would be unsafe to leave, in 
 careless hands, medicine in sufficient quantity to com- 
 plete the cure. 
 
DOCTORS' BILLS. 20I 
 
 A foreigaer is often asked to perform absurd, laugh- 
 able, or irnpossible cures. One man wants to be made 
 clever, another to be made fat, another to be cured of 
 insanity, another of tobacco, another of whisky, another 
 of hunger, another of tea, another wants to be made 
 strong so as to conquer in gymnastic exercises, most 
 men want medicine to make their beards grow, 
 while almost every man, woman, and child wants to 
 have his or her skin made as white as that of the 
 foreigner. 
 
 The fee of the Mongol doctor is an important matter. 
 Sometimes it is a stipulated sum of money, more fre- 
 quently a sheep, or so many head of cattle — in almost 
 all cases payment depending to a certain extent on 
 cure. Comparatively speaking, medical attention is 
 very expensive, and well-to-do families are often greatly 
 reduced in circumstances by some visitation of sickness, 
 which entails heavy doctors' bills. Though it is known 
 that I take no fee, I am usually offered the "hatug," a 
 kind of sUk handkerchief worth about three farthings, 
 an offering which seems to be the preliminary to nearly 
 every request preferred by one Mongol to another. This 
 I at first accept, then return, saying that they by giving 
 it have conformed to their custom, and I by restoring it 
 have conformed to mine. 
 
 Occasionally a rich man offers me a large sum of 
 money to induce me to effect a cure, and even the 
 poorest seldom fail to offer something in addition to 
 the inevitable " Jiatug!' 
 
 The most common offering is a small rectangular 
 cheese about an inch thick — an article of diet much 
 appreciated by Mongols, but in reality a very poor affair, 
 diity, tasteless, and, to a foreigner, indigestible. 
 
205 AMONG THE MONGOLS^ 
 
 A degree less objectionable than the cheese Is a 
 lump of salt " for my tea," an offering frequently made, 
 but which I can decline without hurting the donor's 
 feelings, seeing that I can truthfully say that I drink 
 my cea without salt. 
 
 At temples, during the festive season, a young lama 
 will sometimes produce from his bosom a " scone," 
 a hard solid-looking, glisteiiing disc of flour, which it is 
 impossible to look at without thinking of indigestion. 
 One man, judging, probably, from his experience of 
 Mongol doctors, thought he was offering me a great 
 inducement to undertake a case, when he assured me 
 that at his place and under his care I should want for 
 nothing, but might pass my time in drinking, feasting, 
 and gambling ! 
 
 When a Mongol is convinced that his case is hopeless 
 he takes it very calmly, and bows to his fate, whether 
 it be death or chronic disease ; and both doctors and 
 patients, after a succession of failures, regard the afflic- 
 tion as a thing fated, to overcome which implies no lack 
 of medical ability on the doctor's part. 
 
 Mongol patients are very credulous, and fall an easy 
 prey to designing Chinese traders and doctors, who 
 go about the districts nearer China, vending plaisters 
 many and various, of which they do not' scruple to tell 
 round lies, warranting one plaister to preserve all a 
 man's teeth from decay for the whole period of his 
 natural life, and affirming of another that it needs only 
 to be placed on the body of the patient anywhere, when 
 it would of itself find out and move away to the affected 
 part and heal the disease. These plaisters cost a little 
 money, but are harmless. 
 
 A more serious case was that of a lama, who, disap- 
 
CURIOUS CASkS. 
 
 ioi 
 
 pointed at a foreigner's refusal to perform in Peking 
 an impossible operation on the eye, went back indignant 
 to his home in Mongolia, and fell into the hands of a 
 plausible Chinese doctor, who took the lama's money, per- 
 formed the desired operation, and completely destroyed the 
 eye. This lama's misadventure with the Chinese doctor 
 raised his opinion considerably of the skilful foreigner, 
 who pronounced the proposed operation impossible. 
 
 A few curious cases are met with now and again. 
 A woman afflicted with disease of the jaw-bone, had 
 allowed it to heal up in such a position that the teeth 
 were tightly closed. She could not open her mouth at 
 all, and for years she had subsisted upon liquid food 
 sucked into the mouth by way of the interstices be- 
 tween the teeth. She wished one or two teeth removed, 
 so as to allow of a free avenue for food entering the 
 mouth. All the teeth were well set and in beautiful 
 condition, and the mouth was so tightly closed that it 
 was a work of some difficulty to get sufficient hold of 
 any one tooth, but the old woman's courage was good, 
 and a road was eventually opened for the passage of 
 solid food, for which she had before longed in vain. 
 
 An old man, who was a very long distance from 
 home, was conspicuous as he rode about the country, 
 by a curious stick hanging from his saddle-bow. It 
 turned out that this baton was used lever-wise, to 
 reduce a rupture, and, by long habit, he had become so 
 accustomed to its use that he could operate quite deftly 
 as he sat in the saddle. 
 
 One old lama, who had been severely bitten by a dog, 
 had stopped the wounds with fur from the animal's hide, 
 evidently believing in the healing efficacy of " a hair 
 from the dog that bit him." 
 
204 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 I met once a deaf and dumb man. He was unedu- 
 cated, but of great quickness and intelligence. He 
 could converse easily and readily with bis fellow 
 Mongols by signs, and I could ask many simple ques- 
 tions and understand his answers without trouble. His 
 perception was remarkable. While sitting in the dusk 
 outside my tent, a messenger came from his father's 
 tent to tell him that some of the sheep were missing- 
 A single turn of the hand followed by a puzzled glance 
 around as if searching for something, was all that was 
 required. He had been sitting quietly in the circle 
 looking at us talking, but the moment the communi- 
 cation was made he uttered an inarticulate sound 
 betraying great excitement, knocked the ashes out of 
 his pipe, stuck it into his boot, threw himself into the 
 saddle, and rode off into the gathering darkness to 
 search for the lost sheep. All agreed that he had 
 an extra share of intelligence, and he was rightly 
 regarded as a capable and useful member of the 
 community. 
 
 At another place I was astonished to see a man, 
 looking about fifty years old and four feet high, walk 
 into my tent and sit down. He walked on his knees. 
 He had lost both his feet by the ankle when about 
 nineteen, and by long practice could now get on very 
 well without them. He could walk quite cleverly ; but 
 I was curious to see how he mount6d his horse. It was 
 a quiet animal. Going up to it he tightened the saddle- 
 girth, put up one knee into the stirrup, and in another 
 second was in the saddle all right. His footless stumps 
 terminated in boots stuffed with camels' hair, so that 
 when he rode with his boots in the stirrups, his de- 
 formity was not noticed. 
 
SEEKING A PLACE TO DIE IN. 205 
 
 At one place I mot a man with two thumbs on his 
 left hand. One was of the proper size and in its 
 normal position. The joint was a little stiff. The 
 smaller thumb shot off like a branch from the side of 
 the larger one, and, though seemingly perfect, had no 
 movable joint. A few days later a boy came to my 
 tent with the same monstrosity. His mother, who came 
 with him, was anxious to have the superfluous finger 
 amputated. In both cases the peculiarity was confined 
 to one hand, the other hand and the feet were quite 
 normal. 
 
 One of the sad sights seen was that of a sick China- 
 man near his end. He was one of a company of four, 
 who went about dressing skins of which the Mongols 
 make garments. He had been an opium taker, and an 
 incurable diarrhoea had seized him. At the time he was 
 lodging with the Mongol for whom the party had come 
 to dress skins, but the Mongol, seeing he would die, and 
 fearing trouble and expense over his death, ordered him 
 off the premises. Borrowing an ox-cart, his companion, 
 bad him conveyed away some five or ten miles, jolted in 
 the rude vehicle and suffering from the blazing sun, to a 
 place where some Chinese acquaintances were digging a 
 well. They had a tent of their own, most likely a poor 
 ragged white cloth affair, open to the winds and pervious 
 to the rain, and m this the poor man hoped he might 
 be permitted to die. It was the dark side of the 
 picture. The glorious summer, the green and flowery 
 plains, the fattening flocks, the herds exulting in the 
 deep pastures, the gay Mongols riding about, the white 
 tents bathed in the sunlight and gleaming from afar 
 In the midst of all this, a feeble man far from 
 home and kin, sick unto death, cast forth from his poor 
 
2o6 AUrONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 lodging, and seeking for a place to lie down and die in. 
 The Mongols are a hospitable race, but pray ye that ye 
 may not get sick on their hands. 
 
 Of all the healing appliances in the hands of a 
 foreigner, none strikes the fancy of a Mongol so much 
 as the galvanic battery, and it is rather curious that 
 almost every Mongol who sees it and tries its effect 
 exclaims, what a capital thing it would be for examining 
 accused persons. It would far surpass whipping, beating, 
 or suspending. Under its torture a guilty man could 
 not but " confess." Some one in England has advocated 
 the use of the galvanic battery in place of the cat in 
 punishing criminals, and it is curious to note the 
 coincidence of the English and Mongol mind. 
 
 The Mongol doctors are not, it would seem, quite 
 unacquainted with the properties of galvanism. It is 
 said that they are in the habit of prescribing the 
 loadstone ore, reduced to a powder, as efficacious when 
 applied to sores ; and one man hard of hearing had been 
 recommended by a lama to put a piece of loadstone into 
 each ear and chew a piece of iron in his mouth ! 
 
 Divination is a point on which Mongols are trouble- 
 some. It never for a moment enters their head that a 
 man so intelligent and well-fitted out with appliances 
 as a foreigner seems to them to be cannot divine. 
 Accordingly they come to him to divine for them where 
 they should camp to be lucky and get rich, when a man 
 yrho has gone on a journey will return, why no news has 
 ' been received from a son or husband who is serving in 
 the army, where they should dig a well so as to get 
 plenty of good water near the surface, whether it would 
 be fortunate for them to venture on some trading 
 speculation, whether they should go on some projected 
 
TAKING MY OWN MEDICINE. 207 
 
 journey, in what direction they should search for lost 
 cattle, or, more frequently than any of the above, they 
 come, men and women, old and young, to have the 
 general luck of their lives examined into. .Great is 
 their amazement when the foreigner confesses his 
 ignorance of such art, and greater still is their 
 , incredulity. They simply disbelieve him when he says 
 he cannot divine, and think that he is merely lazy or 
 disobliging, and return again and again to the charge, 
 begging and entreating, hoping thus to overcome his 
 unwillingness. One foreigner, not a missionary, tells 
 the story of himself, that, yielding to the Mongol 
 "importunity, he consented to divine for lost camels, 
 And, judging that the beasts must have retreated before 
 a gale of wind the previous day, sent the Mongols to 
 look for them in that direction. The camels were 
 actually found there, and the foreigner's reputation 
 established for divination. 
 
 On the whole I have been very well received 
 everywhere, and have been treated with great confidence. 
 I have sometimes wondered at the readiness with which 
 they take medicines which they know nothing about, 
 from the hand of an utter stranger, though this confi- 
 dence is not universal. Once or twice, when anxious to 
 effect a cnre on a timid patient, T have found no means 
 of inspiring courage but by taking a dose of the 
 medicine myself, by way of example, and as proof that 
 it was not deadly. One reason why they are ready to 
 trust me, doubtless, is that going among them, they can 
 go round my tent and see that there is nothing secret 
 and terrible behind it ; they enter it and see all that is 
 in it. They know and see that I am utterly in their 
 power, and, perhaps, reason that I am there with ng 
 
208 AMONG TBE MONGOLS. 
 
 intent to harm, because if I made trouble I could, not 
 move another step without their consent. There are. of 
 course, sHght disadvantages and annoyances, such as 
 people coming to get medicine to make them intelligent 
 and clever, to have spots and marks on their bodies 
 removed, to have imaginary diseases cured, and to have 
 divinations performed to assist them in the recovery of 
 lost cattle. Drunken Mongols too, who come and wojit 
 be reasonable in their conduct and demands, and who 
 worUt go away, are a trouble. The perpetual restraint, 
 too, imposed on one's actions and movements by the 
 superstitious fears of the natives, proves irksome in the 
 long run, but in a missionary point of view these are 
 as nothing compared with the great advantage of gaining 
 the confidence and good-will of a people. 
 
 I have as yet seen no converts from among the 
 Mongols, but it has been my privilege to tell many of 
 them of the way of salvation, and the seeming interest 
 and apparent friendliness with which many of theln 
 have listened to the Gospel message, has, under God, 
 been mainly owing to the fact that I tried to heal their 
 diseases while I said that the kingdom of God had 
 come nigh unto them. 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 THE GOSPEL IN MONGOLIA. 
 
 Halt at tents. Scripture pictures. Books. Utility of tracts as com- 
 pared with Gospels. Difficulty experienced by a heathen in under- 
 standing Scripture. Bibles and tracts should be sold together. 
 Mongols despise our Scriptures as small in extent. Buddhism 
 not to be successfully attacked through its deficient astronomy 
 and geography. The hope for Christianity among the Mongols. 
 
 When a missionary travelling in Mongolia reaches a 
 cluster of tents, a halt is called, the tents are set up, 
 the goods unloaded, a fire of the quick argol is started, 
 and soon master and men abandon themselves to tea- 
 drinking. Meantime natives of the place have gathered 
 round. Sometimes they are very friendly and assist in 
 setting up the tents, sometimes they stand by counting 
 their beads and looking on, but almost always they are 
 ready and wilHng to join in the tea-drinking. Some oi 
 them are attracted by the medicine, which they have 
 heard by report going before is dispensed gratis, some 
 are drawn merely by idle curiosity, some few come in 
 the hope of getting a Mongol book. For the most part 
 they are a little distant at first. Tea even fails to thaw 
 completely their reserve, and it is not till a case of 
 Scripture pictures, gaudy with colours, is produced, that 
 
 O 
 
2io AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 old and young find their tongues, and crowd afound, all 
 eye and ear. A selection of the pictures gives a 
 good opportunity for stating the main doctrines of 
 Christianity, and in the case of the picture, the eye 
 assisting the ear, even people of small intellectual 
 ability often apprehend clearly the teaching, and 
 remember it distinctly. 
 
 The pictures exhausted, then come the books. These 
 comprise three or four tracts, some of which have 
 illustrations, a catechism, and the Gospel by Matthew. 
 The tracts, being written in an easy style and free from 
 proper names, present no difficulty to a moderately good 
 scholar ; the catechism does not run so smoothly, but 
 when he comes to the Gospel, any but a very exception- 
 ally good reader stumbles badly, and frequently lays 
 down the book, saying it is too much for him. Indeed, 
 long experience of many different Mongol scholars 
 attempting to read the Gospel in the tent, leads to the 
 belief that the portions of Matthew's Gospel of which 
 an unassisted Mongol can make sense at all are com- 
 paratively few. In justice to the translators it is only 
 fair to state that the fault does not seem to lie with the 
 translation. The difficulty seems to arise from the want 
 of acquaintance, on the part of the reader, with Gospel 
 truths and doctrines, from a slight indefiniteness in- 
 herent to Mongol writing, and, perhaps mainly, from 
 proper names. Old Testament references, and Jewish 
 customs occurring or referred to in this Gospel. 
 
 From the combination of all these causes it happens 
 that a Mongol, although a good scholar, seldom, even 
 after a good deal of trying, succeeds in extracting much 
 meaning from Matthew's Gospel, and one is forced, 
 rather unwilUngly it must be confessed, to the opinion, 
 
The bible or tracts? 21 f 
 
 that in propagating Christianity among the heathen 
 tracts and other books of elementary Christian teaching 
 are, in the initial stages at least, a necessary introduc- 
 tion to the Bible itself. Of course, after a man has 
 been taught somewhat of the doctrines and facts of 
 Christianity, the most useful book that can be put into 
 his hands' is the Bible, but it seems very doubtful, if, in 
 many cases, much good is accomplished by placing the 
 Bible in the hands of a heathen as a first step towards 
 his enlightenment. This refers first and mainly to 
 Mongolia, and if tracts and treatises are understood 
 more easily than the Bible in Mongolia, may not the 
 same thing hold true in China ? Granting that the 
 Chinese language is free from the indefiniteness inherent 
 to the Mongol, do not heathen Chinese in reading the 
 New Testament stumble at proper names, references to 
 the Old Testament prophets, and allusions to Jewish 
 manners and customs ? In selling Bibles in China, for 
 the most part, the reader takes his purchase and disap- 
 pears, and the colporteur or missionary hopes the best 
 from the transaction ; but if, as in Mongolia, the 
 missionary or colporteur had the opportunity of sitting 
 with the purchaser for half an hour or a whole hour 
 and helping him to read his book, it is just possible that 
 by-and-by the earnest Christian evangelist would hope 
 more for the spiritual enlightenment of the man who 
 bought a Peep of Day, for example, than of the man who 
 bought a Gospel or even a New Testament. The great 
 Bible Societies sell their Bibles far and wide over China. ' 
 They do well. But it is scarcely possible to escape the 
 conviction that they would do much better if they 
 allowed their colporteurs to sell tracts along with the 
 Bibles. If the nature and constitution of the Bible 
 
 o 2 
 
212 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 Societies make this impossible, could not it be arranged 
 that a Bible man and a tract man should go together ? 
 It is known and admitted that there are instances of 
 men converted from heathenism to Christianity, men 
 who never met a Christian, and who never handled a 
 Christian book except the Bible, but these men are 
 very rare, and in the general circulation of the Bible 
 it would very much increase the number of those 
 who get to understand the Sacred Word if it were 
 accompanied by treatises and explanatory tracts. 
 
 After a Mongol has received s ome idea of Christianity, 
 he for the most part expresses himself entirely satisfied. 
 He says it is good. It is like his own religion. It is 
 the same. And he says this, though what he has read, 
 or what he has had told him, includes prominent and 
 pointed statements of Christian doctrines diametrically 
 opposed to the fundamental beliefs of his own Buddhism. 
 It is then necessary to go back with him and point out 
 the differences, and if he at last understands that a man 
 cannot be a good Buddhist and a good Christian at the 
 same time, his next thought is that it is quite super- 
 fluous to bring any other or any new religion to him who 
 is supplied with what he regards as such an excellent 
 one already. 
 
 When a Mongol understands that Christianity is 
 intended to supersede Buddhism, his first thought 
 seems to be a tendency to despise the smallness of our 
 Scriptures as compared with his own. Their Scriptures- 
 form a library of large volumes which it takes a good 
 string of camels to carry. The idea of such Scriptures- 
 being superseded by a small book which a child can carry 
 in one hand ! -When, too, it comes to a comparison of the- 
 doctrines contained in the two Scriptures, the Buddhists 
 
B UDDHTSTIC SCRIPTURES. 2 1 3 
 
 can, if he is well up,' produce no mean list of excellent 
 doqtrines ; and when it comes to miracles, the Buddhist 
 thinks that those he can quote are not a whit behind 
 those of our Scriptures. It is true that there is a vast 
 difference in the tone of the teaching, and the spirit, 
 aim, and circumstances of the miracles of the two 
 Scriptures. It is also true that a Christian man, of fair 
 intelligence, can see the difference of aim and bent and 
 tone of the inspired writing and the Buddhistic com- 
 positions, as plainly and readily as an ordinary man of 
 common intelligence can tell a wall raised by the hands 
 of a competent builder from the attempted imitation of 
 a bungling amateur. This is all true. And in the 
 case of a man educated in Christianity and intelligent 
 as to Buddhism, this palpable difference would carry 
 overwhelming weight with it in favour of Christianity. 
 But blindly and enthusiastically bigoted for Buddhism 
 as they are, the Mongols are hardly in a position to feel 
 the force of arguments drawn from this source. 
 
 It might be thought that the erroneous astronomy and 
 geography mixed up in, and forming an integral part of 
 the Buddhistic Scriptures, wojild lay these Scriptures 
 open to successful attack. But the truth seems to be 
 that a devout Buddhist is no more disturbed as to the 
 reliability of his Scriptures, when their false geography 
 and astronomy are attacked, than a devout Christian is 
 alarmed for the stability of his Bible when he hears a 
 geologist lecturing on the first chapters of Genesis. 
 
 Superadded to these intellectual difficulties, which are 
 met with in attempting to propagate Christianity in 
 Mongolia, is another difficulty, grosser in its nature, and 
 only less powerful in its operation than those mentioned 
 above. This is the almost all-powerful sway that 
 
214 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 Buddhism has Over its Mongol votaries, and the intensity 
 of the bigoted enthusiasm with which the Mongols cling 
 to their religion. Considerable acquaintance with Mon- 
 golia, with Mongols, and with Mongolian habits and 
 arrangements of life, lead to the conviction that any 
 one Mongol coming out of Buddhism and entering 
 Christianity would lead a very precarious existence on 
 the plain, if in fact he could exist there at alL It is 
 perfectly true that were a Mongol really impressed with 
 the truth of Christianity he, like many other martyrs, 
 would not confer with flesh and blood, but still the 
 hardship that would follow a confession of Christianity 
 must not be forgotten in stating the difficulties that lie 
 in the way of Mongols becoming Christians. 
 
 But there is one point where the superiority of 
 Christianity can be made manifest to the Mongols, that 
 is, by its fruits. Buddhism is an elaborate and in many 
 respects a grand system, but in one thing it fails 
 signally, that is, in producing holiness. A Mongol when 
 attacked on this point, for the most part, does not make 
 much of a defence. He knows and admits that his 
 religion does not purify the heart and produce the fruits 
 of holy living ; on the contrary, the commercial view 
 taken of the relation of sin and merit militates against 
 morality, and if he be not one of the ignorant devout, 
 but a man of good information, he will admit that the 
 temples are often little more than cages of unclean 
 birds. Here then is the hope for Christianity. If it 
 can be made manifest to the Mongols that Jesus can 
 cleanse a man's heart and reform his conduct, can make 
 the vile man pure and the thief honest, that would be 
 an argument which they would find it difficult to answer 
 Xhcir own lamas make plenty of fuss and mystery over 
 
THE HOPE OF SUCCESS. 2 1 5 
 
 their medical system, but there are things that with all 
 their fuss and mystery they cannot cure. And when a 
 little foreign medicine is applied and a cure follows, no 
 carefully reasoned-out argument, no erudite chemical 
 lecture is required to convince them of the efficacy of 
 the remedy. In the same way it is to he hoped that a 
 closer acquaintance with the effects of Christianity, will, 
 when they see its purifying power, convince the Mongols 
 of its superiority, in a way that arguments and discus- 
 sions on its internal, external, and historical evidences 
 never could do. In this seems to lie the only hope for 
 the success of Christianity in Mongoliq, 
 
CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 MONGOLS' DIFFICULTIES ABOUT CHRISTIANITY. 
 
 Christianity regarded as superfluous. The grandeur of Buddhism. If 
 Christianity is true, Buddhism is false. The various forms of 
 Christianity. Paucity of Christian Scriptures. No liturgy in our 
 Bible. The Trinity. Eesurrection. Suffering. How do we 
 know our Bible to be true ? Mongols as a rule admit that they 
 are sinners. Counting beads. Buddhism says a man can save 
 himself. Thinks Christianity too easy. Finds Christianity too 
 difficult. Answers to prayer. Some of the objections are earnest, 
 some are frivolous. Answer to many objections. Material 
 difficulties in the way of Mongols willing to accept Christianity. 
 
 The first and one of the greatest difficulties that a 
 Mongol feels about Christianity is, that it seems to him 
 to be superfluous. He has his Buddhism, and what 
 else does he want ? In what is it defective that he 
 should want another religion ? It seems to satisfy all 
 the wants of his soul, and his reverence for it is un- 
 bounded. Buddhism as referred to here is not that 
 religion pure and simple in the abstsact, but the version 
 of it now extant in Mongolia, which seems, in some 
 things, to have adapted itself to meet human wants 
 more fully than is possible if the rigid letter of the 
 theory be adhered to.. 
 
 Buddhism, as the Mongol knows it, is a magnificent 
 system in its abstract doctrines, in the size of its 
 
TVJIV SO L ONG m COMING ? 21/ 
 
 Scriptures, in the grandeur and number of its temples, 
 in the imposing nature of its ceremonials, in the 
 antiquity of its history, in the extent of its empire in 
 the world, in the number and reputed power of its 
 living Buddhas, and in the prominent part it plays in 
 his native country. It strikes his senses with an over- 
 whelming power ; almost no one disbelieves its creed, 
 almost no one is remiss in the practice of the duties it 
 enjoins. Christianity is, in his opinion, quite superfluous. 
 
 But to any one who gets over this preliminary 
 difficulty, and listens to the doctrines of Christianity, 
 there soon arises a much more serious consideration, 
 namely. If Christianity is true. Buddhism is false ! 
 This staggers him. Buddhism false ! with its cart-loads 
 of Scriptures, with its hosts of miracles in the olden 
 times, with its hosts of miracles in the present times, and 
 its crowds of constantly reincarnating living Buddhas ! 
 False ! Is it possible, he asks, that a religion can be 
 false which has lived so long, spread so far, flourished so 
 greatly, and struck its roots so deeply into human 
 nature, that millions live in it enthusiastically and die 
 in it happily ? Can falsehood be so prosperous ? Can 
 falsehood be so powerful ? 
 
 If too, he says, of all the religions, Christianity alone 
 is true, how is it that it has been so long in coming to 
 us ? It has been established eighteen hundred years^ 
 and we are only now for the first time hearing of it ! 
 If it alone is true, and if its doctrines are so important, 
 how comes it that we have been left in ignorance of it 
 so long ? Would it not have spread itself more rapidly, 
 and, in virtue of its being true, have long ago conquered 
 every other false system ? 
 
 Then again when a Mongol is pressed to accept 
 
2l8 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 Christianity, he professes himself bewildered by the 
 various forms of it with which he comes into contact. 
 Of old he has known the Russian Christianity of the 
 Greek Church. Most probably he has heard or seen 
 something of the Roman Catholic religion, which has 
 large colonies of Chinese adherents inhabiting localities 
 either in, or bordering on, Mongolia, and now he is 
 presented with a third form of Christianity. The 
 Russian says his is the best form, the Roman Catholic 
 advances as stout a claim for his system, and the 
 Protestant not only makes a similar claim, but offers 
 to prove that his is the best of the three. 
 
 In addition to Christianity, the Mongols come into 
 contact with Mohammedanism, in the persons of many 
 Chinese traders, who, of course, stand up for their 
 particular religion ; and thus, among " Black Lamas " 
 (as the Russian clergy are called in Mongolia), Romish 
 priests, Protestant missionaries, and "White Hats" 
 (Mohammedans), the Mongol pretends that his head is 
 turned, and he knows not whom to believe. It is fair 
 to add that this last difficulty is not a common one, but 
 is urged ^ only by the few men of inquiring minds who 
 have put themselves in the way of learning something 
 of these four systems. 
 
 A difficulty that seems to be generally felt is the 
 paucity of the Christian Scriptures as compared with 
 the voluminous Buddhistic writings. Very few, even 
 among the learned Mongols, have I found able to tell 
 exactly to how many volumes their sacred books 
 extend. The explanation perhaps, is, that in different 
 places and editions they are put up differently, 
 but the Ganjore, one of their sacred collections, is 
 usually stated to coutaio * little ovey a hupdre^ 
 
NO " NOM." 219 
 
 volumes, and the Danjore, represented to be a kind of 
 commentary on the former, a little over two hundred 
 volumes. 
 
 Visitors to Buddhist temples usually have these 
 collections pointed out to them, standing ranged up 
 frequently one on each side of the great service hall. 
 The volumes are about two feet long, seven or eight 
 inches broad, and four or five inches deep, and care- 
 fully swathed up in their yellow wrappings. They 
 present a most imposing appearance, and when a rich 
 man or a community has occasion to borrow them, 
 a string ol camels or a small train of carts is necessary 
 for their transport. Kemembering this, it is not 
 difficult to understand the amazement of the Mongol 
 when he hears that the Christian Scriptures are con- 
 tained and complete in the one moderately sized volume, 
 which the missionary lifts from his side, and hands 
 across the tent to the visitor for inspection. 
 
 By nothing is the Mongol more surprised than to 
 find that our Bible and our religious system has no 
 set form of liturgy to be got off by heart and repeated, 
 as in his services and prayers. His idea of Scriptures 
 seems to be something to be learned off and repeated 
 by rote, and he is much astonished to find that we have 
 nothing resembling even in a distant way his " Nom," 
 except the Lord's Prayer. 
 
 The idea of the Trinity is apt at first to prove a 
 difficulty, and many questions are asked about the 
 various persons, and their relations to each other, and 
 how .Father and Son can be of the same age. Some 
 part of the difficulty is removed by explaining that 
 human nomenclature can only inadequately represent 
 Divinity ; and i» his pwn religion he is accustomed tO 
 
220 AMO^^G THE MONGOLS. 
 
 find things hard to understand, and thus, when he 
 meets with anything in Christianity which he cannot 
 fathom, a Mongol can lay it aside with the remark that 
 the " doctrine is deep." 
 
 A question frequently asked is, " How about those 
 who lived and died before the coming of Jesus ? If it 
 is only Jesus who can save men, are all those lost who 
 died before Jesus came ? " 
 
 Vicarious suffering too seems strange to them, their 
 own system teaching that for his sin a man must suffer, 
 and there is no escape ; but when explained to them, 
 this doctrine presents no difficulty. 
 
 The Christi an doctrine of a future state involves an uttei 
 denial of the Buddhist theory of transmigration, which 
 is interwoven with almost every other doctrine of that 
 religion, and is perhaps the tenet of all his theological 
 system which is most firmly believed by a Mongol, and 
 which seems ever most vividly present to his mind. 
 To deny this doctrine dissipates at once any idea that 
 the two religions may be one and the same, and gives 
 rise to a whole host of difficulties. 
 
 If souls do not transmigrate, where do they come 
 from at birth, whither do they go at death ? If they 
 did not exist before this life, does their existence cease 
 at death ? The idea of an eternal heaven seems to be 
 easily enough received, but a Buddhist, though familiar, 
 through his own religion, with inconceivably long 
 periods of punishment for sin, seems to stagger at the 
 idea of a hell, to the duration of which no period is 
 assigned, and from the sufferings of which no efforts of 
 the sinner or his surviving friends avail to open a way 
 of escape. 
 
 Admitting, for argument's sake, the Christian doctrine 
 
THE FUTURE LIFE. 22 X 
 
 that we can recognise and expect to meet such of our 
 friends as go to heaven, he asks, How about those whom 
 we do not meet there, and who are gone to the place of 
 torment ? Knowing that they are suffering, can we be 
 happy ? And how does God regard them and their 
 sufferings ? Can He see them and be happy ? And if 
 God knows everything, and knows before He has created 
 them, that such and such men will be sinners and not 
 be saved, but go to hell, why, knowing all this, does He, 
 who is goodness and love, make such men at all ? And 
 why did God, who made the world and rules it, and 
 knows all and can do all, why did not He prevent the 
 serpent from deceiving our first parents, and keep sin 
 from entering the world at all ? 
 
 Then again, asks the Mongol, How can a man's body 
 live again 1 It is taken out to the plain, and thrown 
 'down on the ground ; the dogs, wolves, and birds devour it 
 •and where is it, or how can it be again gathered together ? 
 
 But this is not all. How, he asks, if souls do not 
 transmigrate, is the presence of suffering animals in the 
 -world to be accounted for ? That dog, starving, diseased, 
 miserable, enduring, in short, a living death, what about 
 it ? If souls do not transmigrate, and if this suffering 
 now be not the punishment of sin committed in a 
 iformer life, what then is it ? 
 
 A Mongol sometimes asks how we know aU that our 
 Bible tells us of a future state to be true ? Has any 
 ■one among us died, gone to the world to come, seen 
 ■these things, and come back to life to report on them ? 
 .Not only does he ask this question, but seeks to establish 
 the truth of his own tenets, by affirming that the 
 ■doctrines of Buddhism have been corroborated by the 
 (testimony of men who have risen from the dead. 
 
222 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 Some difficulty too is occasionally made on the 
 doctrine that all are sinners, by men who maintain that 
 in Mongolia there are individuals, admittedly very few, 
 who are not sinners. The speakers do not, openly at 
 least, claim this saintship for themselves, but usually 
 for some other man known or reported to exist, whose 
 place of abode, when minutely asked for, is commonly 
 stated in a very indefinite sort of way, as for example, 
 " north-west," and at a very great distance, and whose 
 existence is evidently, even in the mind of him who 
 brings up the case, theoretical. 
 
 As a rule, Mongols do not need to have the doctrine 
 that men are sinners pressed upon them. That they 
 admit. They also admit the necessity for cancelling 
 guilt. It is the peculiar method of cancelling it 
 advanced by Christianity that they hesitate to receive, 
 and one of the greatest objections they have to this 
 method is, that, in their opinion, a sufficient value is 
 not attached to good works in wiping away sin. 
 Buddhism does not fail to inculcate good works and 
 virtuous actions, and, as an incentive to the performance 
 of them, teaches a doctrine of sin and forgiveness, which, 
 stated in simple language, amounts to this, that at death 
 all a man's good actions are balanced against his bad 
 actions, and if his good actions preponderate he is 
 entitled to reward, and if his bad actions preponderate 
 he has to suffer punishment. A man who has been 
 thus taught to think and act does not like to be told 
 that all his good works and virtuous actions are no more 
 than his simple duty, and that no amount of such works 
 and actions can wipe away sin. 
 
 Then again Buddhism puts into his hand a rosary, 
 and tella him that each prayer repeated has a certain 
 
THE EASY YOKE. 2±% 
 
 talue in cleansing away sin, and sends him on long 
 pilgrimages to famous temples, assuring him that 
 all such journeys are added as large items to the 
 account of merit by which he hopes after death to 
 do away with the accumulated . sins of his life. 
 Christianity tells him that counting beads and making 
 pilgrimages can do nothing towards taking away his 
 sin, and he i-s greatly shocked to find that if he admits 
 Christianity as true, he must be content to learn that 
 he has wasted a great accumulation of attention and 
 persevering energy on what is useless ; but when he is 
 told that he can do absolutely nothing to wipe away his 
 sin, he is more shocked still, and many a man who 
 might be content to let the labour he has spent on his 
 beads and pilgrimages go for nothing, if some other 
 better way of making merit were shown him, is not only 
 staggered but entirely offended, when he has pressed 
 upon him the doctrine of human helplessness. 
 
 It frequently appears to a Mongol that salvation, 
 according to Christianity, is altogether too easy. He is 
 surprised to find that a Christian, a teacher of Christianity 
 even, may kill vermin, eat flesh, nay even marry a wife 
 without infringing any of the doctrines of his religion ; 
 his surprise is much increased when he learns that 
 Christianity is free from the almost endless prohibitions, 
 restrictions, vows, and rites with which Buddhism 
 abounds ; and when the freedom of Christianity dawns 
 upon him he sometimes expresses himself in terms 
 which are an unconscious echo of the words of Christ, 
 " My yoke is easy and My burden is light." 
 
 A little more knowledge, however, is sufficient to 
 change his opinion. When he learns that salvatijn, 
 according to the Christian idea, is not merely the 
 
224 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 cancelling of a long score of old sins, and of the current 
 sins of the present, but purification from sin itself, and 
 the renewal of the heart, he thinks the aim an impossi- 
 bility, and regards the purification as a process which he 
 is not willing to be put through. To enter upon a 
 contest with evil, and strive to eradicate it from the 
 heart, this is a task from which he shrinks. He is 
 discouraged by the thought on the one hand, that as far 
 as he succeeds, he can claim no merit ; and on the 
 other hand, by supposing that he has to maintain the 
 unequal strife in his own strength, an error into which 
 it is quite natural for him to fall, seeing that in working 
 out his own salvation, according to the Buddhistic 
 method, he is not accustomed to rely on any power 
 higher than his own. 
 
 Oue great difficulty in explaining Christianity to a 
 Mongol is that all his life, having looked upon salvation 
 as a thing to be accomplished by him, he is very slow to 
 take up the idea that it is something that has been done 
 for him, and is to be done in him, by an omnipotent 
 Saviour, and that the part he himself has to play in the 
 process is the very subordinate one of yielding a willing 
 submission to the power of God which operates upon 
 him, and of humbly following the footsteps of One who 
 treads the path before him, shelters him in all dangers, 
 supplies all needed strength, and guarantees that every 
 true-hearted follower shall, in good time, arrive at the 
 desired goal of that heavenly joy which springs from the 
 consciousness of forgiveness, and the felt freedom of 
 purity from sin. 
 
 Answer to prayer is now and then brought up as a 
 difficulty by men who profess to think that a man mio-ht 
 pursue a premeditated course of deliberate sinning, and 
 
THE BIBLE A GUIDE BOOIC. 22^ 
 
 Dy means of prayer obtain forgiveness, and so go on in 
 iniquity with impunity — a difficulty to be traced directly 
 to the demoralisation produced by the theory of a man's 
 future state depending simply on the preponderance of 
 his good or bad actions. 
 
 Sometimes a man wants to know how far satisfactory 
 would be the state of one who, disregarding Christ, con- 
 fined his worship to reverencing a supreme God in an 
 indefinite sort of way ; and nearly every man who con- 
 verses much about Christianity wishes to know what 
 has become of all the heathen who have died without 
 hearing of Christ. 
 
 Did Buddha live at all ? it is sometimes asked, ana 
 if the Buddhist writings are not received as true, how 
 can the authenticity of the Christian Scriptures be 
 established ? 
 
 Such are the intellectual and spiritual difficulties 
 raised in the minds of Mongols by the doctrines of 
 Christianity. Of these some are brought forward by 
 men who seem to be earnest enough, and who may 
 perhaps be really in perplexity, but it is to be feared 
 that the greater part of them are advanced merely for 
 the sake of argument, and are welcomed rather as 
 subjects of debate than felt to be barriers to the 
 acceptance of Christianity. 
 
 Many of these questions admit of answers and 
 explanations which seem to recommend themselves as 
 satisfactory to the Mongol mind, and as to subjects not 
 treated of in the Bible, and doctrines difficult to fathom, 
 perhaps the most successful method of dealing with an 
 objector is to explain that the Bible does not claim to be 
 a complete set of treatises explaining everything, but a 
 guide book pointing out clearly the way to heaven. 
 
226 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 infonning tlie traveller of everything which it is needful 
 or helpful to him to know, but leaving a multitude of 
 things to be seen and learned by him when he arrives at 
 his destination. Many Mongols go to Peking, and every 
 one can understand that a handbook for the road might 
 be perfect, although of thousands of things in the capital 
 it made no mention at all, and only made vague allusions 
 to others. 
 
 There is another set of difficulties which meantime 
 form the real barrier to the acceptance of Christianity, 
 and these are material. For a Mongol to profess 
 Christianity would be to face ruin. It is very doubtful 
 if a consistent native Christian could subsist on the 
 plain among his Buddhist countrymen. So great is the 
 power of the lamas, and so intense seems to be the spirit 
 of bigotry that pei-vades the whole community, that any 
 one who refused to conform to the requirements of 
 Buddhism would perhaps find it impossible to remain in 
 his native country; and men who knew something of 
 Christianity, when pressed to accept it, have offered to 
 do so if the missionary would undertake to support 
 them, adopting and protecting them as part of his own 
 establishment. Parents, too, offer their children on the 
 same condition, namely, that the missionary feeds and 
 clothes them for the present, and makes himself 
 responsible for their future career. 
 
 A man thoroughly convinced of the truth of Chris- 
 tianity, and powerfully moved by the Holy Spirit, would 
 not be deterred by considerations of hardship from 
 professing Christ, and a simultaneous profession by even 
 a small nuniber would lessen the difficulty immensely. 
 There are not wanting in Mongolia men who, not endowed 
 with any official authority, but possessing great natural 
 
MEN OF CHARACTER. 227 
 
 force of character, exert a powerful influence on the 
 communities in which they live. Should such a man 
 be among the first to declare for Christ, he might greatly 
 lessen the difficulty in the way of others. But it is 
 useless thus to speculate. If only the truth can be made 
 to reach their understanding, it is not to be doubted that 
 God will in His own time and way, even among the 
 Mongols, and notwithstanding all difficulties, apply it 
 with living power to the hearts of men, and call out from 
 among them those who will confess Him before their 
 countrymen, and smooth the way for those who after 
 wards shall follow their example. 
 
CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 MONGOLIAN BUDDHISM. 
 
 Euddhism as it exists now in Mongolia. Power of Buddhism over its 
 votaries. Noble ideas it has given the Mongols. Immortality of 
 the soul. Ten black sins. Five Zabsar iigwei aina. Eewards and 
 punishments. Humanity. ' Heaven and Hell. Power of prayer. 
 Adaptation to the capacity of its votaries. Motives are recognised. 
 Hesemblances between Buddhism and Christianity. Buddhism 
 hinders material prosperity ; by the number of lamas ; by its 
 arrogant self-sufficiency. Hinders learning. Oppression exercised 
 by the lamas. Deceit practised by them. The living Buddha 
 system. The lama system a curse ; to the lamas themselves ; 
 to the people generally. Buddhism has no intelligent worship. 
 Buddhistic worship is debasing. Buddhistic good works often do 
 harm. Buddhism makes men sin in actions which are indifferent. 
 Buddhism fails to produce holiness. Buddhism is a usurper. 
 
 This chapter does not profess to give a systematic 
 account of Buddism. On that subject numerous and 
 learned treatises have been -written, with which most 
 people are more or less familiar. What I propose here 
 to do, is to consider the superficial aspects of Buddhism 
 — the practical part of it, as embodied in the life and 
 habits of the Mongols at the present day. 
 
 One of the first things the missionary notices in 
 coming into contact with the Mongols, is the complete- 
 ness of the sway exercised over them by their religion. 
 Meet a Mongol on the road, and the probability is, that 
 
OUTWARD SIGNS. 229 
 
 he is saying hig prayers and counting his beads as he 
 rides along. Ask him where he is going and on what 
 errand, as the custom is, and likely he will tell you he 
 is going to some shrine to worship. Follow him to the 
 temple, and there you will find him one of a company 
 with dust-marked forehead, moving lips, and the never- 
 absent beads, going the rounds of the sacred place, 
 prostrating himself at every shrine, bowing before every 
 idol, and striking pious attitudes at every new object 
 of reverence that meets his eye. Go to the quarters 
 where Mongols congregate in towns, and you will find 
 that quite a number of the shops and a large part of 
 the trade there are dependent upon images, pictures, 
 and other articles used in worship. Go to Mongolia 
 itself, and probably one of the first great sights that 
 meets your eye will be a temple of imposing grandeur, 
 resplendent from afar in colours and gold. Approach 
 tents, and the prominent object is a flag-staff with 
 prayer-flags fluttering at the top. Enter a tent, and 
 there right opposite you as you put your head 
 in at the door, is the family altar with its gods, its 
 hangings, its offerings, and its brass cups. Let them 
 make tea for you, and before you are asked to drink it 
 a portion is thrown out by the hole in the roof of the 
 tent, by way of offering. Have them make dinner for 
 you, and you will see a portion of it offered to the god 
 of the fire, and after that perhaps you may be asked to 
 eat. Wait till evening, and then you will see the little 
 butter lamp lighted, and set upon the altar as a pure 
 offering. When bed-time comes, you will notice as 
 they disrobe, that each and all wear at their breast 
 charms sewn up in cloth, or pictures of gods in metal 
 Q^s^s with glass fronts, Ip the act of disrobing, prayers 
 
230 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 are said most industriously, and not till all are stretclied 
 on their felts does the sound of devotion cease. Among 
 the first things in the morning you will hear them at 
 their prayers again, and when your host comes out with 
 
 WFfmpiWTOpf' 
 
 HONOOL CB^BH. 
 
 you to set you on your way, he will most likely give 
 you as your landmark some cairn, sacred for the three- 
 fold reason that its every stone was gathered and laid 
 
INWARD POWER. 23 1 
 
 with piayer, that prayer-flags flutter over the sacred 
 pile, and that it is the supposed residence of the deity 
 that presides over the neighbourhood. 
 
 Nor is this all. The Mongol's religion marks out for 
 him certain seemingly indifferent actions as good or bad, 
 meritorious or sinful ; he has days on which he will 
 not give, days on which he may bargain but may not 
 sell, places to be avoided and places to be frequented, 
 times to perform certain works, and times to refrain 
 from works. There is scarcely one single step in life, 
 however insignificant, which he can take without first 
 consulting his religion through his priest; and the 
 result of the consultation is probably an answer v/hich 
 will cause him great trouble and annoyance. But he 
 submits to it. Not only does his religion insist on 
 moulding his soul and colouring his whole spiritual 
 existence, but it determines for him the colour and cut 
 of his coat. Perhaps no other religion on the face of the 
 earth holds its votaries clutched in such a paralysing grip. 
 It would be difficult to find another instance, in which 
 any religion has grasped a country so universally and 
 completely as Buddhism has Mongolia. The Mongols 
 themselves say that some of them have more piety, some 
 have less, but that throughout the length and breadth of 
 the country there is not a single infidel. I partly believe 
 it, and it is this universality of dominion which enables 
 the religion to build such rich and costly temples, in 
 such a poor and thinly-peopled country. 
 
 The Mongols themselves are in the habit of saying, 
 that before Buddhism came to them, they were in 
 ignorance and darkness, given up to deeds of supersti- 
 tion and cruelty, and addicted to such practices as 
 putting their mother to death when she reached tho 
 
232 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 age of fifty. Now, they say, see what we are and how we 
 act — all this has been brought about by the sacred books. 
 
 The most prominent doctrine in their religion is the, 
 immortality of the soul. This their mind grasps firmly 
 and clearly. I never yet met a man who for a moment 
 doubted it, or hesitated in the least when asked to tell what 
 he knew about it. They scorn the thought that the soul 
 began its life with the body, and scorn the idea that its 
 life should end with the death of the body. For countless 
 thousands of ages the soul has been living on, some- 
 times taking one birth, sometimes another ; for countless 
 thousands of ages it shall live on, taking higher or lower 
 births, according to its merits or sin ; but still the same 
 individual soul, the same unchanged spiritual being. 
 There never was a time when the soul was not alive, 
 and there never shall be a time when it shall not be 
 alive. And this is not a doctrine that is held simply as 
 an article in their creed, and referred to by the learned 
 only in their discussions ; it is an ever-present feeling 
 with young and old, learned and illiterate, with man, 
 woman, and child. The body is merely the case or shell 
 in which the soul lives ; it is not the man, any more than 
 the house is the inhabitant ; and nowhere is their faith 
 in their soul's distinctness and independence more 
 apparent, than in the manner in which they take the 
 dead body which has been vacated by the soul, and 
 cast it out on the waste, to feed the wolves and the 
 birds. 
 
 Moreover, they acknowledge souls not in men merely, 
 but also in every living thing. The beast, the bird, the 
 insect, the reptile, axe animated by souls as everlasting, 
 and as capable of great things as their own. The 
 \)odies of these beings are, iq fact, only soul-cases ; and 
 
BUDDHIST SINS. 233 
 
 at a former period their own souls, as they suppose, may 
 have taken such births, and may take such births again. 
 Mongolia is thinly peopled, and Mongols have much 
 solitary travelling and herding, but they are not alone, 
 as we should be. Everywhere around them, in the 
 flocks they herd, in the beasts Ihey ride, and in the 
 birds that flit past them, and in the insects that annoy 
 them, they recognise spiritual existences. 
 
 The Mongol's religion has its Decalogtie ; not that of 
 Moses, but a list of ten black sins, divided into three 
 classes, according as they are committed by the Body 
 the Tongue, or the Mind. Those of the Body are three 
 in number, viz. : — killing ; uncleanness ; theft. Those 
 of the Tongue are four in number, viz. : — the false word ; 
 the harsh word ; the slanderous word ; the idle word. 
 Those of the Mind are three in number, viz. : — covetous- 
 ness; malevolence; heresy. Killing includes not only 
 the taking of human life, but also the taking of the life 
 of any animal, even to the insect or reptile. 
 
 But the list is not yet complete. In addition to the 
 ten black sins there are five Zdbsar ugwei sins. Zdbsar 
 is a split, crack, little opening — an interval of space or 
 time. The black sins are bad enough, and are to be 
 followed by terrible punishments in purgatory, which, 
 however, may alternate with periods of comparative 
 comfort. The Zahsar ugwei sins are worse, and to be 
 followed by a hell of intense suffering, and that without 
 cessation. 
 
 The five Zahsar ugwei sins are patricide ; matricide ; 
 killing a Doctor of Divinity ; bleeding Buddha ; sowing 
 hatred among priests. By a Doctor of Divinity is 
 meant, a lama of exalted learning, and who is under 
 more apd stricter vows thaii the common priests. 
 
234 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 Drawing blood from the body of Buddha is a figurative 
 expression, after the manner of Hebrews vi. 6 ; which 
 speaks of backsliders " crucifying the Son of God afresh, 
 and putting Him to an open shame." 
 
 No religion could promise more in the way of rewards, 
 and scarcely any religion could threaten more in the 
 way of punishments. The Mongol believes that his 
 future state depends on his actions in his life. At 
 death his good and bad actions are balanced against 
 each other. If the good are more, he rises in the scale 
 of existence, if the bad are more, he sinks. Hence it 
 is that his religion has such a practical effect on him. 
 He goes on long, difficult, painful, and expensive 
 pilgrimages, because he is taught that this is meri- 
 torious. He makes costly offerings to temples and to 
 the lama class, because he believes this has its reward. 
 He feeds the hungry, he clothes the naked, gives tea 
 to the thirsty, and relieves the oppressed, because these 
 things have their reward, and go into the scale that 
 decides his fate. He endeavours to eschew evil ' and 
 follow righteousness, because these things have their 
 reward. Evil in all its forms he tries to avoid, because 
 he believes that every sin will weigh against him, and 
 drag him down in the scale of being. As surely as 
 plants grow according to their kind from their seeds, so 
 surely shall joy grow from good, and pain from evil. 
 Making merit occupies a large part of a Mongol's 
 thought, and all animated existence that comes within 
 his reach is the better treated, because his religion 
 teaches him that kindness shown to the meanest 
 creature receives the same reward as if the recipient 
 had been the most exalted in the universe. 
 
 Thus it comes that his religion teaches the Mongol 
 
HUMANITY. 23s 
 
 the notle lesson of TiumanUy. Perhaps nowhere will 
 you find less cruelty than in Mongolia. Not only do 
 their cattle and flocks receive expressions of sympathy 
 in suffering, and such alleviation of pain as their owner 
 knows how to give; hut even the meanest creatures, 
 insects and reptiles included, are treated with consider- 
 ation. One of the best proofs of the habitual kindness 
 of the Mongol, is the tameness of the birds on the 
 plateau. Crows perch themselves on the top of loaded 
 camels, and deliberately steal Chinamen's rusks and 
 Mongol's mutton, before the very eyes of the vociferating 
 owners ; hawks sweep down in the market-place at 
 XJrga, and snatch eatables from the hands of the unwary, 
 who simply accuse the thief of patricide and pass on ; 
 and swallows, year after year, build their nests and rear 
 their young inside the very tents of the Mongols. A 
 Mongolian's pity seems to flow out freely towards the 
 suffering of all creatures, even the meanest and most- 
 vexatious. My bald-headed camel-driver was nearly 
 driven to distraction one evening by a cloud of 
 mosquitoes, which kept hovering over and alighting on 
 his shining pate. During the night there came a touch 
 of frost, and when we rose in the morning not an insect 
 was on the wing. Looking at them as they clung 
 benumbed to the sides of the tent, he remarked, " The 
 mosquitoes are frozen ; " and then added, in a tone of 
 sincere sympathy, the Mongol phrase expressive of pity, 
 " Hoarhe Hoarhe." There was no sarcasm or hypocrisy 
 about it. 
 
 The -popular idea of heaven is, that it is a place where 
 
 . hunger and thirst are felt no more, where there is no 
 
 more sickness or weariness, no more suffering or pain, 
 
 no scorching heat, no biting cold; a place where the 
 
236 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 holy in perfect bliss rejoice in the shade of trees green 
 with perpetual spring, and pluck fruits mellow with 
 perpetual autumn ; a place where old friends meet and 
 pass their existence for ever, within sound of ceaseless 
 prayers, which are said for the benefit of all animated 
 beings. The tortures of hell, or purgatory, whichever 
 you may prefer to call it, are described with a minute- 
 ness and detail too horrible for us to dwell on ; but 
 there is one thing worth remarking, that is, the fitness 
 of the punishment to the sin. Just take one example. 
 A man has lived and died a glutton. The consequence 
 is, that he is punished by hunger. He is bom with 
 perhaps a body as large as a mountain, and a stomach 
 capacious as a cavern ; food is within his reach, and he 
 is as hungry as all the wolves in Siberia ; he would eat, 
 but his mouth is as small as a needle's eye, and his 
 throat is as narrow as a hair. Gluttony was his sin, and 
 hunger is his punishment. It is the same all through ; 
 a man's punishment springs directly from his sin. 
 
 Another of the good things of Mongol Buddhism is 
 the ipower it ascribes to ^prayer. On one occasion a 
 lama came to my tent, and asked me to divine for him. 
 I said I could not divine, and asked him what the 
 matter was. He said that the other day his temple 
 had been robbed, ani he wanted me to discover in what 
 direction the thief had gone. Next morning I pitched 
 my tent at the temple, when, hearing the sound of long- 
 continued services, I asked what it meant, and was told 
 that they were holding services, in the hope that their 
 god would have the thief apprehended. That very day 
 the thief was brought in, and still the sound of service 
 went on. Asking again, I was told that they were now 
 Jjolding a thanksgiving service, 
 
WORKS OF MERIT. 23/ 
 
 Every Mongol believes most devoutly in the value 
 of prayer. Many of his prayers are mere charms, 
 perhaps, or simple repetitions; but no concurrence of 
 circumstances can arise in which he does not believe it 
 advantageous to say them. As to the decision of the 
 nature of his future state,he believes not onlythat he'must 
 pray, but also that he must work. Many instances of 
 works could be quoted. I heard of a man who kept 
 silver beside him bound up in little parcels of three 
 mace, and gave one of these packets to every lama, 
 good, bad and indifferent, who came and asked for it. 
 I have seen miles of stony road cleared and smoothed, 
 and the stones piled up in pyramids by the pious hands 
 of one man. 
 
 Mongol Buddhism affords doctrines and speculations 
 whose depth and magnitude surpass the grasp of the 
 greatest minds. For the understanding of the weak, 
 it veils its glory, comprehends itself in the smallest 
 possible compass, and gives the ignorant six syllables, 
 Om mani padmi hum, to pronounce, as the sum and 
 substance of all. If a man's spirit is of a wandering 
 nature, or disinclined to devotion, it puts into his hand 
 a wheel filled with prayers, and tells him to turn that, 
 and it will count as if he had repeated the whole of 
 the printed formulse contained in it ; and if even this 
 is too much for him, he can depute the duty to the 
 flutter of a flag or the crank of a windmill. 
 
 It is scarcely possible to believe that the present 
 Mongols are the descendants of those who rode behind 
 Genghis Khan in his wild career of bloodshed and 
 slaughter. Their bravery seems completely gone. Not 
 long since a perfect stampede was created in Central 
 
238 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 Mongolia, by the report that robbers had been seen 
 travelling together in a body. Everybody fled ; flocks 
 and herds were driven off, heavy goods abandoned, and 
 a large district left without inhabitant. The panic 
 overtook a caravan in which were some travellers in 
 
 PRATING-MtLr^ DRIVEN BV WIND. 
 
 camel-carts. The camel-carts were left in the desert, 
 and the whole compnny fled to the hill country. For 
 some weeks the Eussian post was interrupted, and 
 things looked serious. It was afterwards discovered 
 that it was all a mistake. The supposed robbers were 
 a few people going to Urga to pray ; so few that even 
 
MOTIVES. 239 
 
 had tliey been robbers of the bravest, a tithe of the men 
 who fled might have driven them off; and the whole 
 flight might have been prevented, had there been found 
 one man with bravery enough to reconnoitre the 
 supposed enemy. More than the half of the male 
 population now are lamas, who of course from their 
 vows could never be warriors. 
 
 Mongol priests recognise the power of motive in 
 estimating actions. One night a hungry dog entered 
 my tent, and stole nearly my whole stock of mutton. 
 A day or two afterwards, in talking of the event to a 
 lama, I asked him, in joke, if he would consider that 
 I had any merit in thus feeding the starved animal. 
 " No," said he keenly, " you did not mean to do it, and 
 you were sorry for it when it was done. If you had 
 voluntarily taken the mutton and fed the dog, your act 
 would have been meritorious ; but as you did not mean 
 to do it, you get no merit by the event." And so 
 throughout all their actions. The attitude of the mind 
 decides the nature of the act. He that offers a cup of 
 cold water only, in a proper spirit, has presented a gift 
 quite as acceptable as the most magnificent of donations. 
 The theory of the religion, and even the popular notion 
 of it, lays stress on the attitude of the spirit in prayer 
 also; but the practice so notoriously disregards the 
 spirit and exalts the letter, that on this point it is 
 impossible to say a friendly word. 
 
 Many of the teachings of Buddhism resemble those 
 of our own Christianity. To enumerate them all would 
 take up too much time and space. It will suffice to 
 speak of a few. The flood. The teaching of this 
 narrative — the destruction of the wicked, and the 
 escape of men and animals for the sake of one 
 
240 AMONG THE MONCOLS. 
 
 righteous man — agrees quite with Mongol doctrine. 
 Abraham, a man the result of whose faith and piety is 
 felt to the latest ages ; Joseph and David, men whose 
 faith carried them through the mightiest adversities, up 
 to the highest rank of honour ; these three the Mongols 
 hail almost as heroes of their own religion, while 
 the story of Elisha multiplying the widow's oil 
 (2 Kings iv.), they say is exactly like their own 
 legends. The parable of the prodigal — sin followed by 
 suffering, and repentance by forgiveness — and of the 
 Pharisee and publican, they also welcome as orthodox ; 
 but that which delights their hearts most of all, is the 
 picture of the Good Samaritan beside his kneeling- 
 camel, pouring medicine on the wounds of the sufferer. 
 When they see how he has bound up the wounded parts, 
 and hear how he conveyed the wounded man to the 
 inn, paid his reckoning, and gave him something to go 
 on with, their enthusiasm rises, because they recognise 
 in the Samaritan the ideal of ^heir own religion — 
 self-denying help to the distressed. Though the listeners 
 are frequently lamas, they never fail to express their 
 hearty disapprobation of the red-coated priest who" 
 passed . by on the other side. " The religions are one. 
 The dress is different. The meaning is the same. Exactly 
 alike." These and similar phrases are constantly on the 
 lips of Mongols who listen to such parts of our Bible as 
 are mentioned above. These phrases are often uttered 
 unthinkingly, and sometimes by men who wish to draw 
 the conversation to a close, that they may ask what your 
 coat is made of, or if you have a telescope ; but such 
 expressions are not always the result of indifference. 
 Even the Christian student of their literature is often 
 struck with points of resemblance, and finds cause 
 
POINTS OF CONTRAST. 24 1 
 
 to be glad that Mongol Buddhism has such noble 
 teachings. 
 
 The great points of contrast are — the Christian doc- 
 trine of one life of probation, the resurrection of the 
 body, salvation by faith on Christ, as opposed to their 
 doctrine of escape by works, creation by a pre-existent 
 Creator, and government of the world by the same all- 
 powerful Creator. On these points, the two — Christianity 
 and Buddhism — are diametrically opposed ; but, with 
 the exception of these and a few others, the teachings 
 of the two religions bear a striking resemblance. 
 
 This then is what is to be said in favour of Buddhism 
 as now existent in Mongolia. It is a religion of mighty 
 power, of noble teachings, adapting its precepts and 
 exactions to the meanest capacities and the most com- 
 prehensive intellects ; searching behind the actions of 
 men, and trying their motives ; quenching the thirst for 
 blood in fierce tribes, and moderating them into kindness 
 and hospitality ; a religion some of whose teachings rise 
 nearly to the level of inspiration itself ; a religion which 
 has perhaps more redeeming qualities than any other false 
 system of worship which the world has yet seen. 
 
 Having thus spoken as far as I could, justly and 
 impartially, in favour of the religion, it is only fair that 
 '\\&fwu,lts and defects should now be discussed. 
 
 Buddhism hinders the material prosperity of the 
 country by the lamas swarming in Mongolia. Young 
 and old, rich and poor, outwardly devout and openly 
 wicked, you meet them wherever you meet human beings 
 at all. Diligent and lazy, intelligent and stupid, men of 
 prayer and men of trade, they are continually coming 
 across your path From personal observation, I am 
 inclined to think that sixty per cent, of the niaie 
 
 Q 
 
2^2 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 population of the country is quite a moderate estimate. 
 The ambition of these men is to live by their religion. 
 Most of them try, many succeed, and thus the energy of 
 the country is clogged and crushed by the incubus of just 
 as many men as can manage to find standing-room on the 
 superstition and piety of the people. As for the lamas 
 who cannot get a footing to support themselves on the 
 religious needs of the people, they have to betake them- 
 selves to trade, work, herding cattle or performing the 
 most menial offices. Even by them the country is little 
 benefited, because, having no families to support, they 
 have no great stimulus to exert themselves much in any 
 line, and, as a matter of fact, do just as little as they 
 can — nothing more than hunger and cold compels them. 
 Buddhism hinders the material prosperity of the 
 country "by its arrogant self -sufficiency. Said a lama to 
 me once : " You foreigners are very clever in your way. 
 Your telegraphs, steam-boats, railways, postal system, 
 newspapers, manufactures, trade and medical and scien- 
 tific knowledge, are very well in their way ; but you lack 
 one thing — the knowledge of our religion and sacred 
 books. Notwithstanding all you know, your mind is but 
 like the mouth of this flour-bag, bound up and drawn 
 together, and so contracted that nothing can enter. 
 Read our books, and then" — shaking out the untied 
 mouth of the flour-bag — "your minds will become 
 enlarged in breadth and grasp, and you will have 
 intellectual capacity enough to take in all the wonders 
 of heaven and earth. You send letters and telegrams, 
 and run to and fro to know things distant. The student 
 of our books sits in his tent, and by the power of his 
 attainments in learning, knows all things in all parts of 
 the universe." 
 
BUDDHISTIC PRIDE. 243 
 
 This kind of assumption, which is perhaps more 
 generally felt than expressed, has something to do with 
 the repression of the spirit which prompts men to visit 
 unknown countries, establish new lines of commerce, seek 
 out unexplored knowledge, and generally improve the 
 mental and material prosperity of a people. They have 
 everything already ; what more do they want ? Let the 
 English make, and the Russians and Chinese sell, their 
 every article of dress and household furniture. These 
 benighted peoples, whose only thought is wealth and 
 pleasure, who in fact live like the beasts ; let them busy 
 themselves with these earthly trifles. A Mongol knows 
 something better. He should occupy himself with his 
 religion. This is the kind of feeling with which they 
 regard us outsiders. To insinuate that their religion 
 lacked anything that was really worth a man's while to 
 search after, would be heresy. On the same level of 
 authority with which it speaks of the soul, sin and merit, 
 reward and punishment, their Buddhism also settles, 
 distinctly and definitely, all points of medicine, 
 geography, and astronomy. If any man wants to study 
 any one of these subjects — to the sacred books — what 
 should he want outside of them 1 If a man has money 
 to spend, let him spend it in acquiring merit ; and not 
 seek to increase it by trade, like a worldly-minded 
 Chinaman. If a man has time, money, and inclination 
 to travel, let him go the round of the Buddhist sacred 
 places and temples, and not ramble aimlessly over the 
 world, like a demented Englishman. In this way, their 
 religion always, tacitly at least, and often outspokenly, 
 frowns upon any attempt at adding to knowledge, or 
 advancing in any way from their present state. If a man 
 prepares to venture on oew fields of study or enterprise, 
 
244 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 he will find himself beaten back, or at least formidably 
 opposed, by the united power of the piety, learning, and 
 superstition of his country. The consequence is just 
 what might have been expected. The Mongols can do 
 nothing. They are dependent on others for everything. 
 It might be supposed that Mongols would know at least 
 how to fatten cattle ; perhaps they do, but one thing is 
 certain, that the fat carcases displayed in butchers' shops 
 in North China, though originally Mongol sheep, weie 
 not fattened by Mongolians. Chinamen go to Mon- 
 golia in spring, buy up likely animals, lead them till 
 autumn in green pastures, tend them well night and day, 
 and after that, the original Mongol would not know his 
 own sheep. Even in the very thing which is a Mongol's 
 born profession, he is outdone by the superior intelli- 
 gence and enterprise of the Chinaman. Ask a Mongol 
 why this comes about, and he will tell you it is because 
 his countrj'men are deficient in ability. Examine and 
 investigate the cause of this lack of ability, and you 
 will find that much, if not all the blame, is to be laid 
 at the door of his religion, which systematically and 
 persistently frowns upon and opposes everj' attempt at 
 increasing knowledge and enterprise, without which 
 increase of prosperity is an impossibility. 
 
 Mongol Buddhism hinders learning. About three- 
 fourths of the Mongol children go to school, but not 
 more than about one-tenth of them ever learn to read. 
 Those who can write decently are fewer stiU. The 
 reason of this is, that their Buddhism insists on their 
 learning Tibetan ; that is, learning the pronunciation of 
 words, so that they' may be able to read, that is pronounce, 
 the words of the sacred books. Arrived at this state of 
 perfectipR, they think they know enough, and rest 
 
MONGOL LAMA OF HIGH KANK, 
 
 From a plwtograph. 
 
LAMA OPPRESSION. 247 
 
 content. Priests, lamas, seldom can read a word of their 
 own language. Most of the few laymen who can read 
 Mongolian have studied it in the hope of government 
 employment. A few lamas do read, say three or four per 
 cent. Of the laymen more can read, say thirteen or 
 fourteen per cent. This is a lamentable state of matters. 
 It is much worse than if only the same percentage of 
 Chinamen could read ; for while the Chinese character 
 is difficult; the Mongolian, having an alphabet like our 
 own, is very easy, and it is much easier to learn to read 
 Mongolian than English, because the words are spelt 
 much nearer their pronunciation than in our own 
 language. That so few people can read is therefore a 
 heavy charge against Buddhism; because the whole 
 effect of its influence is to deter men from learning. 
 
 The oppression of the lamas is another charge I 
 have to make against Mongolian Buddhism. The lamas 
 oppress the people by their exactions. Suppose a man 
 gets sick. He sends for a doctor. He is a lama. He 
 must have his fee. Be the patient rich or be he poor, the 
 money, or the sheep, or the ox, or the horse must be 
 forthcoming, else the medicine is not forthcoming. The 
 only oppression about this is in the case of the poor, from 
 whom medical help is withheld, if they cannot make 
 some return. But this is not all. Work without prayer 
 is of no avail. The patient has medicine, he must also 
 have lama services, or perhaps temple services even. 
 What then ? Does the temple — do the lamas exact fees 
 for praying ? No, they don't exact them ; but they 
 expect them, and the people are trained to believe that 
 they need expect no good from their prayers, except they 
 make handsome donations to the lamas or the temples 
 employed. If he is rich, he spends sheep, camels, horses, 
 
248 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 oxen, money. If he is poor, he must still find some- 
 thing. If he gets better, all right, the lamas have the 
 gifts and the credit of the recovery. If he dies, so 
 much the worse for him, and so much the better for the 
 lamas. They merely say, " Oh, his true time to die 
 had come, and when that comes there is no escape." 
 But they are not yet finished. Prayers must be said, 
 and services held for the benefit of the departed soul. 
 More gifts miist be made, more money must be spent. 
 When sickness and death enter a Mongol's tent, they 
 come not alone ; they often come with poverty and ruin 
 in their train. I know a man who was once rich in 
 cattle and herds. He had flocks of sheep, herds of 
 cattle, droves of horses, and strings of camels. Now he , 
 has not a sheep to bleat at his door. It is the old story 
 too common in Mongolia. Sickness came, then death ; 
 first of one child, then of another ; till of a large family 
 only one son and one daughter remain. The stricken 
 parents spared no expense on doctors and prayers to save 
 their children ; then, after death took their sons and 
 daughters, lavished out their means on prayers and 
 services on behalf of the departed souls. Now they are 
 old, poor, head-and-ears in debt, and he who once was 
 famous, and rich, and regarded the countenance of no 
 man, is fain to eke out his unhappy existence on the 
 proceeds of begging, borrowing, teaching, and a govern- 
 ment office worth twelve taels a year. No language is 
 too strong to use in the condemnation of these merciless 
 robbers, who " devour widows' houses, and for a pretence 
 make long prayers " ; and no terms are too severe for the 
 reprobation of a system which fattens and gorges itself 
 by torturing the feelings of natural affection, when laid 
 bare and bleeding from sorrow and bereavement. 
 
LIVING BUDDHAS. 249 
 
 Many lamas are, I doubt not, quite sincere. They 
 are not so much deceivers as deceived. But the whole 
 system is founded on deception, and the wires are pulled 
 by lamas fully conscious of the frauds. Take three 
 instances. 
 
 At Wu T'ai, there is an image in a little temple over 
 the gateway of the village. From this idol, we were 
 told quite seriously, light streams far and near on certain 
 days of the month. This of course raises the fame of 
 the temple, and brings revenue ; and most lamas 
 perhaps believe it, but tho.se who carry on the deception 
 know all about it. This is merely one case of a class, 
 and it is on devices like this that the lamas rely, to keep 
 up the reputation of themselves and their temples. 
 
 When famous lamae die and their bodies are burnt, 
 littlewhitepills are reported as foundamong the ashes.and 
 sold for large sums to the devout, as being the concentrated 
 virtue of the man, and possessing the power of insuring 
 a happy future for him who swallows one near death. 
 This is quite common. I heard of one man who 
 improved on this, by giving out that these pills were in 
 the habit of coming out through the skin of various 
 parts of the body. These pills called sharil, met with 
 a ready sale, and then the man himself reaped the 
 reward of his virtue, and did not allow all the profit 
 of it to go to his heir. 
 
 The living Buddha system — living Buddhas, Gegens, 
 as they are called, abound in Mongolia. Peking boasts 
 two inside the walls, and another outside, at the Yellow 
 Temple. The current belief is, that these men when 
 they die take another birth, remember their former 
 state, and prove their identity by using phrases charac- 
 teristic of the former Buddha, selecting things that 
 
^50 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 belonged to him from among a heap of things that 
 were not his, describing the temple, lamas, etc. Great 
 parade is made of the testing of the child. The truth 
 of the matter is, that the head lamas arrange everything, 
 and " coach " up the child ; but the common people, 
 perhaps the majority of the lamas even, believe the 
 hoax most implicitly. Those who manage the business 
 are as conscious of the fraud as they are of their own 
 existence, and it is even whispered that the Gegen is 
 not only their dupe, but their victim, ruled with a rod 
 of iron, honoured and made much of as long as he is 
 yielding to the board of lamas, but quietly poisoned or 
 otherwise murdered when he begins to be refractory, or, 
 discovering his power, tries to exercise his own will. 
 The living Buddhas are the pillars of the present 
 Mongol religious system — a system that owes its support 
 to deliberate fraud and falsehood, and that on the part 
 of its highest lamas. 
 
 The great sinners in Mongolia are the lamas, the 
 great centres of wickedness are the temples. It is the 
 system which makes the lamas, and places them in 
 hot-beds of vice. Few lamas have any hand in their 
 assuming the sacred garb. When children of six or 
 ten years of age, their parents or guardians decide that 
 they shall be lamas. The little fellows are pleased 
 enough to put on a red coat, have their heads shaven, 
 carry about the leaf of a Tibetan book between two 
 boards, and be saluted as lama. It is all very fine at 
 first. As mere children they do not know how much 
 the full extent of their vows means. After some years 
 they do know, but then it is too late to turn back. 
 They cannot get free from their vows — they cannot 
 keep them ; so they break them repeatedly and syste- 
 
SATAN'S SEAT. 
 
 251 
 
 matically ; their conscience is seared, and now that they 
 are started they do not stop with merely violating 
 vows they cannot keep, but, having cast aside restraint, 
 and acquired a momentum in sin, they go on to the 
 most unthought-of wickedness. Thus it comes that 
 the great lama religious centres are the great centres of 
 sin. The head-quarters of Mongol Buddhism is TJrga, 
 where Satan's seat is. If you go there you will be 
 
 
 aA S CAP WH13N OrFICIATlHG. 
 
 warned never to go out after dusk, except you ate Well 
 armed ; and a foreigner who knew something of the 
 place once remarked that he believed that the lamas 
 there lived in the daily practice of all the sins known 
 among men, murder alone excepted. Most of these 
 men, had they not as children become the victims of 
 this cursed system, might have lived useful lives, free 
 
252 AMdNG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 from at least the grosser forms of iniquity, which as 
 lamas they drink up like water. 
 
 The lama system is a curse to the people generally. 
 Like priest, like people. The influence of the wicked- 
 ness of the lamas is most hurtful. It is well-known. 
 The lamas sin not only among themselves, but sow their 
 evil among the people. The people look upon the 
 lamas as sacred, and of course think that they may do 
 what lamas do. Thus the corrupting influence spreads, 
 and the state of Mongolia to-day,' as regards uprightness 
 and morality, is such as makes the heart more sick the 
 , more one knows of it. I suppose there are good lamas 
 here and there, and I do not forget that the guilt of 
 sin lies upon the sinner himself, not upon a system ; but, 
 nevertheless, the guilt of the tempter is as great as that 
 of the sinner ; and ihis guilt must be laid at the door 
 of the system of lamaism, which Mongol Buddhism 
 regards as one of her brightest ornaments. 
 
 Mongol Buddhism has hardly any intelligent worship. 
 Most of the prayers are Tibetan ; but there axe a few 
 Mongol prayers in use also, which the users seem to 
 understand more or less. Make allowance for this — say 
 one per cent., to be very liberal — and then it is safe to 
 say, that Mongol Buddhism has no intelligent worship. 
 The reason the Mongols themselves give for using 
 Tibetan in preference to Mongolian is, that as water 
 when poured from one cup into another becomes less 
 in quantity and loses its purity, so the prayers suffer in 
 translation from one language to another. So they 
 keep to the Tibetan, and maintain that the merit lies 
 in saying the prayer, not in understanding it. They 
 carry this out to its legitimate results. 
 
 I once saw a huge pile of a ten-volume work ia a 
 
TEN PRIESTS A T WORK. 253 
 
 Mongol's tent, and asked what use was made of it. 
 I was told it was read through once a year. As this 
 would have been a good task for the owner, who was 
 fonder of whisky than piety, I asked a little more about 
 it, and was tolu there was no difficulty in the matter. 
 Ten lamas were sent for to the temple, entered a tent 
 prepared for their use, took each man his volume, and 
 the whole ten rattled away simultaneously till the task 
 was completed. This is no exaggeration. Ask almost 
 any lama the meaning of his prayer, and he will think 
 you a queer fellow, even to ask such a thing. Remember 
 the windmills and the prayer-wheels, and there you 
 have proof that the worship is neither intelligent nor 
 spiritual. It is simply mechanical, whether performed 
 by the mouth, the hand, or the windmill. The worship 
 is simply a hollow form — nothing more. 
 
 There is an improvement on mechanical worship even. 
 In the cupboard under the altar in a Mongol's tent, I 
 once came upon a bundle nicely done up. I was 
 curious to see what was in it ; but the very mention of 
 opening it threw the Mongol into a state of excitement 
 and he hastily explained to me that it had been put up 
 by a celebrated lama, and that its very existence there 
 was sufficient to bring luck to the tent and merit to the 
 inhabitants. 
 
 Tlw Buddhistic worship is debasing. The lamas 
 make much of the attitude of the mind in devotion, 
 they say, indeed, that m offerings and worship the state 
 of the mind is everything. They also maintain that in 
 bowing before idols, the worship is not directed to the 
 image, but to that which the image represents. This 
 is all very well in theory, but as we are now dealing 
 with the practical aspects of Buddhism, it is impossible 
 
2S4 
 
 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 to overlook the fact, that the great mass of the people 
 worship the lumps of brass, wood, or mud -before which 
 they bow. A devout Mongol has to worship not only 
 images, but must also pay his devotion to books, father 
 and mother, and above all his Bakshi or teacher. His 
 teacher he esteems more than father and mother ; to 
 the latter he owes his body ; to his teacher he owes the 
 
 enlightenment of his soul. Nay, he ranks his teacher 
 as high as Buddha himself. Buddha's revelations are 
 great and good, he says, but except through his teacher 
 he would never have known them ; and thus it is that 
 he ranks his teacher on a level with Buddha. Some 
 even speak more boldly, and hold that the teacher does 
 
GCOD WORKS. 251; 
 
 more for them than Buddha, and therefore deserves 
 more honour. In this way it comes about that 
 Buddhism takes a man, sinful, vile, passionate, full of 
 lies and duplicity, a man whose imperfections and sins 
 you are perfectly acquainted with, and sets him up as 
 your highest object of reverence. 
 
 Buddhistic good works often do more harm than 
 good. To relieve distressed animals is meritorious, say 
 the Buddhist books. Country Mongols sometimes, on 
 going out at the gate of the great lama temple in the 
 city of Peking, find a Chinaman sitting with sparrows 
 cooped up in cages. The sparrows are for sale cheap — 
 a cash or two each. He appeals to the Mongol, and not 
 in vain. It is a chance to make merit cheaply, so the 
 latter buys one or two birds, sets them at liberty, and 
 goes away with the comforting feeling that he has done 
 a meritorious action. He has let two sparrows free, 
 and by that fery act causes other three to be trapped. 
 Indeed, it was simply to meet the Mongol demand that 
 these sparrows were caught ; and thus from want of a 
 little reflection, he causes birds to be distressed by the 
 very act of relieving them. This is a small matter, and 
 the thing is so apparent that most of the town Mongols 
 are not to be caught thus. A more serious matter is 
 the giving of alms. Almsgiving is a splendid virtue in 
 itself, blessing him that gives and him that takes, when 
 carried on with discretion. When carried on without 
 discretion, it becomes, as in Mongolia, a blast and 
 a curse to the land and the people. 
 
 Indiscriminate charity has flooded the country with 
 beggars. Not only do you find sturdy fellows begging 
 round the country, under the shallow pretence of praying 
 for the good of the land, but mounted beggars are quite 
 
256 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 common. Beggars ride in Mongolia, and sometimes 
 ride good horses too. THey come and live on the best 
 the tent affords, and, not contented with this, expect a 
 gift in money or kind when they leave. No one likes 
 to refuse admittance or withhold the gift, lest the lama 
 should blast them with his curse. The clover in which 
 beggars revel induces many to adopt the profession 
 who have not the excuse of helpless poverty ; and not 
 only do these fellows ride about on horseback, but some 
 of them band together in companies, and travel about 
 with camels and a tent. However, there is another side 
 to this picture. One of the saddest pictures to be seen 
 anywhere is in the market-place of Urga, where human 
 beings lie night and day on the stony ground, covered 
 with a few scraps of filthy skins and cast-off felts. Most 
 of them have no fire, and there they lie exposed to the 
 intense frost that prevails five or six months of the year, 
 and to the piercing night winds which blow all the year 
 round. Said a Buriat once to me, as we stood looking 
 at them : " These are worn-out creatures ; the half of 
 them die." The truth of his words was manifest, when 
 morning after morning one lair after another was found 
 empty. Such is the end of the Mongol beggar when he 
 becomes too weak to beg more. 
 
 The inducement to go to the Urga market-place is 
 the fact that people of the place, and pilgrims, with an 
 eye to merit, prepare food by the pailful, and have it 
 distributed to the famishing. The manner of distribu- 
 tion is unique. One man takes the pail and a ladle ; 
 the instant he is seen approaching, men, women, and 
 children, producing from the breast of their garments 
 the ever-present cup, rush at him, and he would never 
 reach the helpless creatures at all, did not bis 
 
FEEDING THE HUNGRY. 25/ 
 
 companion, a stalwart lama, lay about him with a pole 
 about eight feet long, and keep back the eager crowd. 
 Skirmishes and fights ensue over the spoil, and the 
 whole crowd behave more like a pack of savage dogs 
 than human beings. This is one of the deplorable 
 fruits of that charity without discretion which has 
 some attractive things about it, but which in reality 
 causes more suffering and misery than it relieves. 
 
 Mongol Buddhism makes men sin in actions that are 
 really indifferent. To kill sheep, for instance, as food, 
 is right enough in itself. Buddhism says, "Thou shalt 
 not kill." But a Mongol must have mutton, so he 
 invents all manner of excuses. If he is within reach 
 of a market, he goes there and buys, persuading him- 
 self that he has no hand in the killing of the animal. 
 He pretends not to see that by purchasing the flesh he 
 makes himself partaker in the sin of killing. The 
 lamentable thing is, that the Buddhist finds himself 
 hampered with so many impossible commands, which 
 he finds he cannot keep, that by a constant practice of 
 juggling with his conscience, he at last comes to have 
 very vague ideas as to what he is responsible for, and 
 what he is not responsible for. When religion has 
 succeeded in blinding a man, so that he cannot tell 
 right from wrong, it has well-nigh prepared him for 
 any sin, even the most atrocious. 
 
 There are, however, right-minded men in Mongolia, 
 who do not stoop to such juggling at all. They say it 
 is a sin, but mutton they must have ; they cannot help 
 it, so they go in for the sin, hoping to wipe out the 
 stain by extra diligence in making merit. I once met 
 such a man, and was the occasion of his being a good 
 deal grieved. He was a lama, and sold me a sheep, 
 
 H 
 
2c8 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 engaging as part of his bargain to find me a layman to 
 kill it. The sun set, and no layman turned up. If the 
 animal had only been killed, there were plenty of lamas 
 about who would have been only too glad to assist in 
 skinning it and cutting it up ; but no one would strike 
 the blow. He had to take his sheep away again, and, 
 in addition to being sorry at the loss of the money, he 
 seemed much exercised in his mind because he by 
 selling the animal for slaughter felt himself guilty of 
 killing it; and as the transaction had fallen through, 
 foresaw that he would have to sell it to some one else, 
 and thus be twice guilty of killing the same sheep ! 
 It is impossible not to have sympathy with such 
 straightforward men, in the superfluous dilemmas in 
 which they are placed by the unreasonable demands of 
 an over-exacting religion. 
 
 One day we pitched our tent near the abode of a 
 family, which I found to consist of one old man and two 
 old women. I asked for milk, and, as they were poor, 
 offered to give them some rice in return. We had been 
 living on rice and millet for days, and were eager to 
 taste milk. They had run out of grain, and for days 
 had been living mainly on preparations of milk. They 
 had plenty of milk and no rice ; we had plenty of rice 
 and no milk. Exchange was for the good of both 
 parties. The old women seemed to jump at the idea, 
 but referred the question to the man, put the end of a 
 fragment of a gun-barrel into her toothless mouth, 
 and set about blowing the fire. The old man made 
 short work of the question. He would like the 
 exchange, but there was a religious prohibition for 
 the day. It could not be done ; so they must drink 
 their milk, and we must boil our rice in water. So it 
 
PIOUS THIEVES. 259 
 
 seemed, at least ; yet in a few minutes we had a basinful 
 of good milk in our tent. The old women were pious, 
 but not destitute of common sense ; so sending off the 
 old man to look after the goats, they quickly brought 
 us milk, and carried off the rice ; and I hope did not 
 shock the old man's piety by offering him a share of the 
 spoil. This is only a sample of one among many 
 vexatious prohibitions and requirements, and of the 
 manner in which common sense often disregards them. 
 These ordinances, which the Mongols feel binding upon 
 them, cannot be thus disregarded, without doing 
 violence to the conscience, but, after all, the blame of 
 disregarding such meaningless commandments rests, not 
 so much with the offenders, as with the system which 
 appoints the ordinances. 
 
 Buddhism fails to produce holiness. It holds out 
 the greatest inducements to virtue, and shakes the 
 direst terrors over vice ; but it succeeds neither in 
 destroying vice nor producing virtue. Religious Mongols 
 steal, seemingly without the least sense of shame, 
 and do not hesitate to tell lies even when saying their 
 prayers. A Doctor of Divinity of my own acquaintance, 
 on one occasion deliberately and predeterminately lied, 
 that he might retain possession of a few inches of wood, 
 which he knew belonged to a Chinaman close by ; and 
 the fact may perhaps not be generally known that the 
 disciples of one of our Peking living Buddhas have 
 quite a widespread reputation for being notorious thieves I 
 It is unnecessary to multiply examples. Perhaps 
 discouraged by long failure, Buddhism seems to hate 
 given up trying to make men good and pure, and seems 
 to have no hesitation in extending her consolations and 
 
 R 2 
 
26o AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 countenance, even to those who professionally live by 
 the wages of iniquity. The great aim of religion is to 
 make men good and holy, and when a religion fails in 
 this so utterly that it gives up the attempt altogether 
 where, I would ask, can it find an excuse for its exist- 
 ence ? " It is henceforth good for nothing, but to be 
 cast out and trodden under foot of men." 
 
 Buddhism is a usurper. Apart from this, there is a 
 superabundance of charges against this religion, sufficient 
 to condemn it utterly again and again. But even 
 though there were no other charges, this one would 
 be sufficient to condemn it. It usurps haughtily and 
 with a high hand the worship and honour due to Jesus 
 Christ alone. By teaching that men can, unaided, free 
 themselves from sin, and pass to the life beyond, from 
 the regions of sorrow and suffering, it makes the Cross 
 of none effect, and says that the death of Christ 
 was superfluous. It not only usurps His rightful 
 dominion, but actually vaunts itself as greater and 
 mightier than He ; and this too, when it knows itself to 
 be an utter failure, quite incapable of performing the 
 smallest of its many boasts ; and is conscious, in the 
 person of its highest officers, that, foundation and 
 superstructure, it is a fabric of lies, warp and woof it is 
 a tissue of falsehood. Lamas are either deceivers or 
 deceived, or partly both; temples are gilded cages of 
 unclean birds ; the whole system is an utter abomin- 
 ation, an offence to God, and a curse to man. Let us 
 pray for the speedy destruction of this religion, which 
 haughtily robs God, and remorselessly pollutes and 
 crushes man. May it soon fall, and its oppressions be 
 replaced by the mild sway of that Master whose yoke is 
 
PURE RELIGION. 26 1 
 
 easy and whose burden is light ; and may we at length 
 see the Mongol leave off his pilgrimages and his vain 
 repetitions, being taught that " pure religion and unde- 
 filed before God and the Father is this, to visit the 
 fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep 
 himself unspotted from the world." 
 
CHAPTEE XIX. 
 
 THE FIRST OF THE WHITE MONTH. 
 
 Preparations. Mongol mode of eating. Amazement at the size of 
 foreigners' noses. Seven dinners on the last day of the year. 
 Reflections suitable to the season. Embracing. Salutation. 
 ' ' Lucky airt " for the year. Duration of the feast and time of 
 ceremonies. 
 
 This is what the Mongols call New Year's Day. 
 Having an invitation from a friendly lama to spend the 
 day with him, I took care to arrive at his tent, which 
 was mot far from the Russian frontier, on the afternoon 
 ■of the last 'dajy of the old year. This afternoon is always 
 ■alDusy ifllme with the Mongols. Enter a tent at this 
 time, and, as soon as youT eyes recover from the blinding 
 glare 'df the sun on the white expanse of snow outside, 
 ;and the Ibitterness -di the smoke-cloud inside, through 
 whidh you must pass before sitting down, you see all 
 (hands at work. They are ipreparing for next day's 
 feast. In the tent of my 'host they were making 
 hanch. This is made by mincing mutton very small, 
 mixing it with salt and chopped vegetables, and doing 
 it up in small nuts covered with a casing of dough. 
 
 The amount of manipulation necessary before the nut 
 i3 complete;, and the unusual <Jeajiness of the Mongolii' 
 
MONGOLS EATING. 263 
 
 bauds after making it, always made me shudder when 
 I saw them about to honour me with this delicacy ; but 
 the knowledge that they would feel much hurt if I 
 seemed not to appreciate their hospitality, always made 
 me swallow a little of it. They themselves consider it 
 a luxury to be indulged in only on great occasions, and 
 on this occasion prepared a large quantity. As soon as 
 a nut was finished, it was placed on a board near the 
 wall of the tent, where, notwithstanding the great fire 
 blazing in the centre, it fpoze through in a few minutes. 
 When frozen, the nut^ were put ^way in a bag ready 
 for to-morrow. 
 
 While the rest of {;hp company were making the 
 lanch, my host, t^e lapq^. fijmself, was m9,king repeated 
 attacks on a basinful of boileji meat which stood before 
 him. As soon as the hqndi, was finished, every man 
 pulled out his Jjnife and set to work on the meat. It 
 is a little alarming to see a Mongol eat. He takes a 
 piece of meat ii^ his left hand, seizes jfc with his teeth, 
 then cuts it off plosp tp his lips. The kpife flashes past 
 so quickly and so clpsp to t)ie face, tjiat a spectators- 
 seeing it for the first time, |ias his doubts about the 
 safety of the oper^tpf's nose. Practice makes them 
 expert, and their hand sure, and I never heard of any 
 one, even when drunk, meeting with an accident in this 
 way. ' The configuration, too, of the Mongolian face 
 makes this method of eating much safer for them than 
 for us. A Mongol's nose is not at all prominent, some- 
 times hardly projecting beyond the level of the cheeks, 
 and the greater prominence of a foreigner's nose lays 
 hira under a considerable disadvantage in dining after 
 the Mongol fashion. Next to the colour of the hair, the 
 size of the nos6 is the first thing that strikes a Mongol 
 
264 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 as peculiar in a foreigner ; and not unfrequently a group 
 of Mongols, after standing round and staring at some 
 newly-come foreigner, may be heard remarking among 
 themselves, as they disperse, "What a tremendous 
 nose ! " The alarm felt by a foreigner at seeing a 
 
 ?/IONGOL LAMA. 
 
 Prom a photograph. 
 
 group of Mongols eating meat is somewhat akin to that 
 experienced by a Chinaman when for the first time he 
 sees a party of foreigners at table, flourishing sharp 
 glittering knives and putting food into their mouths by 
 means of forks. He is astonished that the eaters do 
 
SEVEN MEALS IN ONE DA Y. 2C5 
 
 not cut themselves, and thinks his own harmless 
 chopsticks much the safer way of eating. 
 
 While we were at dinner, I expressed my surprise ai 
 finding them taking their meal so early in the after- 
 noon, and not after dark, as usual. The reason they 
 gave was that the Mongol fashion was to eat seven 
 dinners on the last day of the year. I rather liked this 
 idea at first, as the custom in the north of Mongolia, of 
 only one meal per day, and that after dark, with nol^laing 
 but tea, tea, tea, the whole day long, does not seem to 
 suit a European so well as a Mongol. My satisfaction, 
 however, was short-lived, for I soon discovered that they 
 had made up their minds that I should do justice to the 
 whole seven, and that a sly old yellow-coated lama on 
 my left had installed himself as tally-keeper to the 
 guests. As the day wore on, matters began to look a 
 little serious. The solemn voice of the man in yellow 
 had only pronounced tliree I What was to become of 
 the remaining four ? As I was wondering how I could 
 best get out of the difficulty, deliverance came in an 
 unlooked-for way. Some one sitting in a tent about a 
 dozen yards off shouted, " Ocher, come and drink wine ; " 
 and Ocher, though as a lama he had vowed to abstain 
 from wine, and just then was employed in counting my 
 dinners, at the summons disregarded his vow, threw up 
 his office of tally-keeper, and the next time we saw him 
 was in too genial a frame of mind to find fault with any 
 one for their shortcoming in the past. 
 
 During the course of the afternoon two large pails 
 were filled with tea and set aside. When all the pre- 
 parations were finished we had a pleasant time round 
 the blazing fire, talking of the customs of our respective 
 countries, etc., etc. Among other things we talked of 
 
266 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 the speedy course of time, and, in return for some of 
 our Christian metaphors, my lama gave me some wise 
 Buddhistic sayings, such as : 
 
 " From the moment of acquiring wealth, parting with it is our doom. 
 From the moment of union, separation is our doom. 
 From the moment of birth, death is our doom. 
 Moment by moment we approach death." 
 
 Next morning. New Year's Day, all were astir early, 
 and the every-day routine gone through as usual. The 
 customary question, " Have you slept well ? " was asked, 
 but no reference made to the new year. The only 
 manifest difference was, that the whole household 
 seemed to have got new caps. After a time, a neigh- 
 bour came in and asked, " Have you not embraced 
 yet ? " This seemed to stir up our host ; glancing at 
 the crescent of sunshine, which, streaming in through 
 the smoke-hole above, indicates the time of day as it 
 traces its way round the circumference of the tent, he 
 remarked, "It is time now." But he was not quite 
 ready. He unlocked a spacious box, and after bringing 
 out a pile of things, new and old, at last succeeded in 
 fishing out a new red coat and a fine fur cap, trimmed 
 with yellow silk. The cap cost perhaps as much as the 
 coat, and with the two our host looked quite imposing. 
 When all was ready, all stood up in the cloud of smoke, 
 and each embraced each, saying, " Sain O ? " (Are you 
 well ?) Their embrace is a very simple affair. When 
 two persons perform this ceremony they stretch out 
 their arms towards each other, and the one puts the 
 ends of his coat-sleeves under the ends of the coat- 
 sleeves of the other. When we had all embraced we 
 sat down again, and after wiping away the tears, which 
 
"LUCKY ATRT." 26/ 
 
 the bitter smoke, as we stood performing our ceremonies 
 in it, had forced from our eyes, each one ate a small 
 portion from a plate containing bread, fruits, roasted 
 millet, and a preparation of milk. This done, we 
 hastened to the next tent, in which a petty officer 
 lived. By the time we all got in, the tent was crowded ; 
 each one of us embraced the host, putting our sleeves 
 under his, in token of respect, asked, " Sain O ? " found 
 a seat where we could, drank his tea, tasted his fare, 
 were offered Chinese wine in small Chinese cups^ 
 conversed a few minutes, and returned to our tent to 
 receive visitors. They were not long in coming. Some 
 were near neighbours. These merely drank tea and 
 tasted bread, but when visitors came from a distance 
 the bag of banch was produced, a quantity of it boiled 
 and handed to the strangers. The ease and rapidity 
 with which this can be cooked makes it a very desirable 
 kind of fare to have on hand on a day when numerous 
 visitors are expected at different times. 
 
 As we had a gilling lama — a kind of doctor of medicine 
 and divinity all in one — for our guest, we soon had a 
 number of people iii our tent anxious to know their 
 "lucky airt" for the year. The gilling was nothing 
 loath to be consulted, produced his books, and soon 
 satisfied the inquirers. The process of determining this 
 lucky airt is simple. The visitor tells his age, the 
 gilling consults a table, and the point of the compass is 
 found at once. I tried for mine among the rest, and 
 found that I had a double airt, north-west and north- 
 east, as far as I remember. 
 
 During the course of the day we had many visitors. 
 Our tent possessed unusual attractions. My host was a 
 flian of influence ; his guest, the gilling, had a great 
 
268 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 reputation for learning ; the yellow-coated lama, Ocher, 
 presided over the wine, and made a very good master of 
 the ceremonies ; and then there was " the man from the 
 far country." 
 
 After we had for a time entertained the numerous 
 
 visitors whom these attractions drew to our tent, we 
 
 dispersed in various directions to make the round of our 
 
 several acquaintances. A young lama who had spent 
 
 the night keeping a vigil in a temple took me in tow, 
 
 and conducted me to all the tents within a reasonable 
 
 distance. In almost every instance we found the altar 
 
 decked out with a great displa)' of offerings. These 
 
 consisted for the most part of bread and mutton, the 
 
 broad piece of fat which forms the tail of the Mongolian 
 
 sheep often being the centre-piece. One of the great 
 
 injunctions of their religion is abstinence from flesh, 
 
 and on expressing my surprise at finding the forbidden 
 
 thing presented as a religious offering, an intelligent 
 
 Mongol replied, "It all happens through stupidity. 
 
 Stupid men among us Mongols are many." It was 
 
 noteworthy that on the altar of the man who made this 
 
 remark the offerings consisted of grain, fruit, and bread 
 
 only. In all the tents which we entered not only were 
 
 the altars furnished with a profusion of offerings, but 
 
 the altar-lamps — little brass cups filled with butter 
 
 — were lighted, and in some of the more pretentious 
 
 tents the altar was inclosed above and around with 
 
 silken hangings. The altar stands almost exactly 
 
 opposite the door, and a New Year's Day visitor, on 
 
 entering, turns first to the altar and worships; that 
 
 done, he may address himself to the human occupants 
 
 of the tent. I noticed only one departure from this 
 
 rule throughout the entire day. When we were in an, 
 
HORSEMANSHIP EXTRAORDINARY. 26'g 
 
 old woman's tent a dashing young Mongol entered, and, 
 dispensing with the worship, proceeded at once to 
 salute the old lady. The occasion for the manifestation 
 of his irreligion was unfortunate — the old lady was just 
 recovering from the effects of a broken limb, and her 
 beads and hand praying-mill were her constant com- 
 panions. In such circumstances it was not wonderful 
 that she should be incensed at such levity. She 
 rejected his proffered civilities with scorn, and with 
 Puritanical sternness ordered him to worship God. 
 The young spark did not relish his rebuke much, but 
 did not dare to disobey. 
 
 In addition to bread and tea, visitors are in most 
 cases offered wine ; and as every man is expected to 
 visit the tents of all his friends, and as very few refuse 
 wine when it is offered, there is some danger of a man 
 drinking more than is good for him. Two things tend 
 to keep the Mongol sober — the small size of the cups, 
 and the distance from tent to tent. "But sometimes the 
 Mongol gets tired of the minute Chinese wine-cup, 
 throws it aside, and pours a good dram into a large 
 wooden tea-cup. This, frequently repeated, produces 
 its effect, and then follows horsemanship extraordinary ! 
 A Mongol, long after he is too drunk to stand, can keep 
 his saddle very well, if he can be hoisted into it, and 
 one of the sights to be seen on the afternoon of a New 
 Year's Day, is that of half-a-dozen madcaps careering 
 in company over the snow, performing all manner of 
 antics, and apparently in momentary danger of breaking 
 their necks. Many of our visitors were a good deal 
 more than half-seas over, but throughout the whole day 
 we saw only two who could not take care of themselves. 
 
 The northern Mongols usually restrict the festivity to 
 
270 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 one day, but their neighbours, the Buriats, keep up the 
 celebration for a week or more, perhaps — as the 
 Mongols say, with some, scorn — in imitation of the 
 Russians. Should friends be beyond reach on the first 
 day of the year, the sacred duty of salutation is 
 performed on the first occasion of their meeting. Far 
 into the year it is quite common for Mongols meeting 
 in the desert to remark, " We have not embraced yet, 
 have we ? " and then duly perform the ceremony that 
 would have been appropriate months before. Southern 
 Mongols, on the other hand, say they cease embracing at 
 the end of the White Month. 
 
CHAPTER XX. 
 
 NOEBO'S MARRIAGE. 
 
 ilakiKg i mistake. All hands at work. The silversmith. Broken^ 
 legged brother of the bride. Cart-load of ladies. Bridegroom 
 and party arrives. Fight. Adorning the bride. Ceremony at 
 starting. A true weeper. Bridegroom's tent banicaded. HomcBO- 
 pathic remedy. 
 
 " You've just come in good time for the wedding," was 
 the greeting with which I was received in a small 
 cluster of Mongol tents, where I went to pass a few 
 weeks one autumn. I had heard nothing about it, but 
 was well pleased at the prospect of seeing so grand a 
 marriage as that of the daughter of a high Mongol 
 mandarin. The evening conversation in the tent was 
 all about the forthcoming match, the various things that 
 were to be made, the presents that would be given, and 
 the feasting that would take place. 
 
 Next moVning, before I had gone out, a tall young 
 girl came to our tent with a present for me from the 
 mandarin, and, as I was told she was his daughter, I 
 thought I was doing the polite thing when I referred 
 to her coming marriage. She looked confused^ and 
 soon left the tent, when I was informed that I had been^ 
 guilty of great rudeness, as no bride in Mongolia is' 
 
272 
 
 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 supposed to know anything about her marriage till she 
 is carried off to be delivered over to her husband. The 
 bride herself, of course, do&a know all about it, and even 
 assists in making the garments ; but still she is supposed 
 not to know, and my mistake lay in taking it for granted 
 that she did know. I did all I could to repair my error 
 by sending her two silver roubles to make buttons. 
 
 "When I got out about among the tents I found that 
 all hands were busy. Extra tents were being set up, 
 carpets, felts, boots, garments, cushions, were being 
 sewed, and, in short, everybody was so busy that, as the 
 brother of the bride said, they had not time to eat or 
 drink. Attracted by the " click, click " of a light 
 hammer, I entered a tent, and found a silversmith busy 
 making the sUver head ornaments. He was a lama, and 
 
"SCANTY" PROVISIONS. 273 
 
 explained to me that he had been accommodated in 
 another tent till the lama son of the mandaria was 
 brought home with a broken leg. The smith had then 
 to give place to the doctor, and shifted himself, his 
 scales, his clothful of tools, his blow-pipe, and his pieces 
 of silver, to a humbler tent, where he was the guest of 
 a married lama. I called on the broken-legged son, 
 and found him an intelligent and pleasing young lama 
 who, without the least reserve, was describing how he 
 had come by the broken limb. He had been intoxi- 
 cated, fallen from his horse, and actually made two 
 attempts to remount before he discovered what was 
 the matter. The eldest son, a layman, and married, 
 lived in a cluster of tents about a mile away. His 
 dependants also were busy at the same wedding outfit. 
 In the course of conversation I was repeatedly asked 
 how we managed such affairs, and the usual remark 
 made when I described our weddings was, " How easy ! " 
 In Mongolia it is a formidable business, lasting about 
 a week, more or less. 
 
 The first thing that arrived was a cart-load of pro- 
 visions from the nearest Chinese town, prominent 
 among the provisions being two piculs ^ of strong 
 Chinese whisky. On expressing my surprise at the 
 largeness of the quantity, I was told that it was rather 
 small, and that the amount of spirit provided at the 
 other end — that is, at the bridegroom's house — would be 
 much greater. The slaughter of an ox and several 
 sheep followed, and elicited grumbling rather than 
 admiration from the neighbours, who thought the 
 quantity of meat thus provided by no means sufficient. 
 However, they made the excuse that though the 
 ' A pioul is 133 Ibg. 
 
„„ . AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 z/4 
 
 mandarin was high in rank he was poor in purse, and 
 
 could not well afford more. The bridegroom's father, 
 
 on the other hand, was only a commoner, but very rich, 
 
 so they hoped to make up for the deficiency at home 
 
 by the extra abundance at the other end. 
 
 One afternoon a cart-load of ladies arrived. The cart 
 was of the Peking model, drawn by two spirited horses, 
 and guided by a driver on horseback. The ladies were 
 grandly dressed in embroidered robes, flaming with all 
 manner of figures, in- almost all the colours of the 
 rainbow. These first arrivals were near relations of the 
 family, and had come early to assist and superintend. 
 Some few days passed, the activity and excitement 
 getting greater. The mandarin drank whisky, took 
 snuff, and wrote requisitions borrowing horses, carpets, 
 and felts from his neighbours all round, while the women 
 of his family rushed about with sewing that had been 
 forgotten, half commanding, half entreating the neigh- 
 bouring females to help them to be ready in time. 
 
 Preparations were at length completed, and feasting 
 beo'an. I have now only an indistinct idea of how many 
 days the feast lasted, and as great part of the fun 
 consisted in drinking whisky, I did not join the revellers 
 often. I was once taken to see a tent full of ladies in 
 full dress. They were fully dressed indeed ! The most 
 striking thing was the gown, glaring with colours and 
 fierce with embroidered dragons, whose eyes seemed 
 ready to staxt from their heads. Though inside a tent, 
 they all wore great fur caps exactly like those worn by 
 men. At their side they each had a hanging of silk, 
 silver, and gilt ornaments, but the most curious part of 
 the adornment was the head-dress of beads, which 
 seemed to hang down all round, and made it a mattei 
 
CLAIMING HIS BRIDE. 275 
 
 of some difficulty for the fair dames to convey the cups 
 to their mouths. I watched the process of drinking tea 
 under difficulties for some time, then withdrew, trying 
 to calculate how many oxen each of these women carried 
 about on her person. The silver ornaments were of 
 native workmanship, the dresses, the caps, and beads, 
 were purchases from Peking, and, with Chinese inter- 
 preters, squeezes, merchants' profits, and allowance for 
 the time that th6 bill would lie unpaid, must have cost 
 a great sum. 
 
 One morning I was informed that the young bride- 
 groom would come that day. Soon after, when out 
 walking, I saw a troop of horses tied at some tents on 
 a rising ground about a mile off. Presently the riders 
 issued from the tents, mounted their steeds, and made 
 directly for our cluster of tents. They came on in 
 beautiful style, till brought to a halt by a steep-sided 
 ravine cut out in the plain by the water of the summer 
 rains. For a moment they halted, confused, on the 
 farther edge, till some one discovered the pass; they 
 then converged on one point, and one after another 
 disappeared below the level of the plain. A few 
 moments more, and bonnets, then heads, then horses, 
 rose up into view again. The troop widened out once 
 more, and the twenty horsemen, picturesque with their 
 bright costumes, and mounted on their best steeds, 
 swept past at full gallop. The bridegroom, conspicuous 
 by the bow-and-arrow case he carried slung from his 
 shoulder, seemed a mere boy, fourteen or fifteen years 
 old, but he was mounted on perhaps the finest animal 
 in the troop, and rode well, keeping side by side with 
 his father. 
 
 The company dismounted at the poles a little way in 
 
 S 2 
 
2/6 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 frotit of the tents, where horses are generally tied, put 
 themselves in order, and advanced formally towards the 
 principal tent. Every one seemed to carry something 
 in his hand, and I noticed that several, who carried 
 little open casks of whisky, asked eagerly what they were 
 to do 'with it. I suppose they brought it in bladders 
 oU horseback, then filled it into the casks when they 
 dismounted. As they stood before the tent, each man 
 holding his present with both his hands, the bride's big 
 brother, a tall, broad man, with a good-natured face, 
 came out and planted himself right in front of the 
 door, demanding of the strangers what brought them 
 thete. "We want to enter your tent," they replied. 
 " Then you'll have to fight for it ! " answered the giant, 
 and, suiting the action to the word, the strangers and 
 the mandarin's followers instantly began a scuffle, 
 pulling each other about a good deal, but, as I could not 
 help remarking, taking good care not to spill the whisky. 
 
 The sham fight lasted a few seconds, when the 
 defenders gave in and invited the assailants to enter 
 the tent. But now another struggle began. No one 
 would enter first. The two head men stood bowing 
 each other in, neither entering, till at last the stranger 
 SiUowed himself to be pushed in, and his host followed 
 The second pair had the same struggle, settled in the 
 same way, and finally after a great ado the whole 
 cro\vd entered, and business began. 
 
 I did tiot enter, but was told that the marriage 
 contract was there and then made, the bridegroom— or 
 his father rather — promising to treat the bride well and 
 make such and such provision for her. Consuming 
 whisky seems to form an important part of the ceremony, 
 as it was remarked that though all were able to mount 
 
^ HOWLING BRIDE. 277 
 
 and ride off when the bargain was concluded, several of 
 them rode only a mile to the nearest tents, and were 
 unable to go on till next morning. 
 
 That afternoon a great cry arose among our tents, and, 
 running out to see what had happened, there were half- 
 a-dozen women leading the bride, newly adorned with 
 her matron's ornaments, from the silversmith's tent to 
 her father's abode. Just at this stage she was supposed 
 to have discovered what all the preparations meant. 
 She howled most vigorously, very much after the 
 fashion of a distressed calf, but the Mongols said it was 
 all right, it was a part of the ceremony ! Still crying and 
 reluctant, she was dragged into the tent, and there set 
 aside in state. 
 
 Next morning all were astir early. The proper hour 
 for a bride to start depends on the year in which she 
 was born, and men skilled in such lore said that this girl 
 should have left her home at two o'clock in the morning. 
 When the proper time falls at such an inconvenient 
 hour, the difficulty is got over by starting her, going a 
 few yards, and alighting in another tent, the journey 
 being commenced in earnest — resumed, they would say 
 — at a more suitable time of day. In this case the 
 ceremony of starting was not performed at the proper 
 hour, but deferred till daylight. When all were 
 mustered and ready, the old mandarin stumped about 
 impatiently, saying repeatedly, " Why don't you start? " 
 The truth was, that, to have everything proper, all the 
 women of the place had to assemble in the tent and 
 weep over the poor girl, who was now crying away 
 most energetically. 
 
 The proper amount of weeping having been at length 
 accomplished by the tearful dames, a young man 
 
278 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 obeyed the command of the father, pushed aside the 
 women, drew back the curtain, took up the bride and 
 carried her along under his arm as a man would 
 carry a bundle of grass, taking care not to bump her 
 head ornaments on the lintel of the low door, and, by 
 the help of two others, hoisted her into the saddle of a 
 remarkably quiet horse, which stood ready to receive her. 
 In the hands of the men, the girl seemed a lifeless form, 
 and, but for her crying, and the fact that she covered 
 her veiled face with her hands, no one would have 
 supposed that she possessed the least command of her 
 limbs. She took no care to balance herself or keep her 
 seat, all that she left to the attendants ; her part in the 
 performance was to cry, and cry she did in the same 
 calf-like howl of yesterday. 
 
 The horse was led a step or two in the direction 
 determined also by the year of her birth, and then the 
 starting was an accomplished fact. She was taken 
 down from the saddle and stowed away in a Peking cart, 
 her mother got in beside her, the mounted driver called 
 on his two lively horses, and the whole party fell into 
 the line of march, while the crying of the disconsolate 
 girl became fainter and fainter in the distance. 
 
 As we turned to our own tent we saw one truly sorry 
 for the separation. The elder sister of the bride stood 
 weeping at the door of her father's tent, following with 
 tearful eyes the cart and the riders till they disappeared 
 over the hill. Her grief was not mere affectation or 
 compliance with custom, but the natural expression of 
 a sisterly affection. 
 
 The bridal procession, as we afterwards heard, had a 
 long ride over hiU and dale, and finally drew up late in 
 the day before some tents, within siglit of which were 
 
HOMCEOPA THIC REMED Y. 279 
 
 feeding flocks of sheep, herds of oxen, and droves of 
 horses, indicating the wealth of the possessor, and all 
 judiciously displayed for the sake of effect. 
 
 The door of the bridegroom's tent was barricaded, 
 and quite a war of words ensued, the strangers reproach- 
 fully asking, " What sort of people are you, to live with 
 doors inhospitably barricaded ? " The besieged re- 
 proachfully asked, " What sort of brigands are you, to 
 come riding up to any man's tent in that threatening 
 manner ? " The comers replied, " We have brought 
 So-and-so's daughter to be So-and-so's bride." " Oh, 
 that alters the case ! " answered the bridegroom's friends, 
 and after some more ado the door was opened and the 
 bride delivered over. 
 
 Feasting, drinking, singing, mirth, and quarrelling 
 followed, and late next day the friends of the bride 
 arrived home, reporting all well, with the exception of 
 the slight indisposition of the bride. The wonder 
 would have been if she had not been indisposed, after 
 the excitement, rough travelling, and vigorous crying 
 through which she had gone, but the Mongols accounted 
 for it by saying that she started at six o'clock in place 
 of two, and to cure her set a lama to read through the 
 almanack — quite a homoeopathic remedy. 
 
 The wedding was now over, but the interchange of 
 friendly visits and hospitalities lasted a long time. 
 The unintermittent feasting lasts about a week, but 
 there are feasts, rejoicings, ceremonies, or visits &t 
 intervals for several months. 
 
CHAPTER XXL 
 
 FEIEiSTDLT MONGOLS. 
 
 Mongol dogs. Suuff-bottles. Eunning the gauntlet. Furniture and 
 appearance of tent. Swallows' nest in tent. Common sense 
 versus Buddhism. "White food. Home-made fiddle. Mongol 
 song. Pleasant recollections. A suffering inhabitant. 
 
 When we got within two or three hundred yards of the 
 tent, the dogs set up the usual barking and began to 
 make for us. The noise soon brought out some one, 
 who gave the alarm that the Russians, as all foreigners 
 are called in Mongolia, were coming, and the whole 
 family defiled out for our protection. A little girl, swift 
 of foot, gave chase to the biggest dog of the community, 
 and overtook it just in time to head it off from us. He 
 was a huge brute with hanging jaws, and when pre- 
 vented from devouring us, walked slowly and sulkily 
 away, seeming never once to look towards us again. 
 This was rather dignified conduct, for Mongol dogs 
 usually make frantic endeavours to seize strangers, 
 increasing in outcry and veliemence as the object of 
 their ^vrath approaches the tent. Even after a guest 
 has been safely convoyed into a tent, it is no uncommon 
 thing to see a dog put his head into a door and growl 
 as if he felt he had been unjustly robbed of his due. 
 
RESTRAINING THE DOGS. 381 
 
 This great fellow, though, had better manners, and, when 
 driven ofif by the little girl, busied himself most actively 
 smelling at herbs and grasses, as if he had been a born 
 botanist. At various distances from the tent we 
 encountered various members of the family restraining 
 various individuals of the dog community. As we 
 passed them, they fell into rank behind, as forming a 
 kind of rear guard, so that when we got to the tent 
 door we were inclosed in a semicircular wall of men, 
 women, and children, outside of which barked, in baffled 
 rage, the sum total of the dogs belonging to the en- 
 campment. Etiquette demanded that we should make 
 a show of desiring the master of the house to enter 
 first ; etiquette also demanded that he should insist on 
 (yubr entering first, but the fury of the dogs; increasing 
 every moment, made it safer to cut this ceremony short, 
 and after only a momentary and feeble resistance, we 
 dropped our sticks, ducked our heads, and hurried into 
 the tent followed by the whole tribe of the family and 
 neighbours. The disappointed pack of yelling dogs 
 slowly dispersed, and peace and quietness ensued. 
 
 Snuflf-bottles were produced, and kind and pointed 
 inquiries were made as to the condition of the various 
 Mongols, the state of their cattle as to fatness, and our 
 peace and well-being as to travelling. All these for- 
 malities had been gone through the day before in our 
 tent, but custom seemed to require that they should be 
 gone through again, with as much apparent attention 
 and earnestness as if we had been in total ignorance of 
 each others' states. 
 
 We had just finished these salutation ceremonies, 
 when the barking and uproar of the dogs outside 
 indicated the approach of another visitor. A girl wa." 
 
282 
 
 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 being sent out to see who the comer was, when, to the 
 intense astonishment of the Mongols and our own great 
 amusement, in leaped our little white dog, and the door- 
 way was instantly blocked by the great heads and open 
 mouths of the dogs of the place, through which the 
 little adventurer had successfully run the gauntlet. We 
 
 NARROW ESCAPE OP THE UTTLE DOO 
 
 had left him tied up in our tent, but somehow he had 
 slipped his tether, run the blockade, and escaped by a 
 few inches only. The Mongols were so amazed at his 
 pluck in venturing among their pack of dogs, that they 
 were inclined to think him v/ncanny, a suspicion which 
 was manifestly increased when they learned that such 
 
SWALLOWS' NESTS IN TENTS. 283 
 
 adventures and escapes of our little companion were of 
 frequent occurrence. 
 
 In a pause of the conversation we had time to look 
 about us. The tent was large, and well floored with 
 clean white felts. In the centre stood the grate, inno- 
 cent of a fire. This tent being the " lest room" was 
 not commonly used, the roof felts and rafters were 
 guiltless of the usual smoke varnish, and, except at New 
 Year's time and other great occasions, a fire was never 
 lit in it. Round and round were ranged large red- 
 painted boxes, indicating the afHuent circumstances of 
 the family, and making good back-rests to lean against. 
 Suspended close to the roof and near to the door was a 
 tiny piece of board, on which a pair of swallows had 
 built their nest and reared their young. In a minute 
 or two both parent birds appeared at the hole in the top 
 of the roof with their mouths full of flies. Though the 
 nest is quite low down, within reach, the birds take no 
 notice of the Mongols, but go and come at their own 
 sweet will, and after eying us suspiciously for a little, 
 they ventured down to their clamouring young. 
 Swallows' nests in tents are quite common. The 
 Mongols like the birds, and the birds like the Mongols. 
 Building places are scarce, and when a little board is 
 hung up a pair of swallows are likely to come. Those 
 that fail to get "house accommodation" usually build 
 in sand-banks. As we were looking at the parents we 
 asked what they fed their young with. " Flies," replied 
 the Mongols. " They take life then, are they not sinful, 
 why do you harbour them ? " Said a lama : " They 
 have no udders, they have nothing but flies to feed 
 their young on, and what can they do ? Hoarlie, dear 
 little creatures." 
 
284 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 This is one of the many instances in which the Mon- 
 gol's common sense and natural feelings get the better 
 of his religious tenets. To take life is sinful, says 
 Buddhism. A swallow employs most of its time taking 
 life, and though, perhaps, theoretically, the Mongols 
 regard the swallow as very sinful, practically they make 
 a favourite of it and welcome it to their homes. 
 
 Meanwhile the women of the tent had been busy. A 
 little table was placed before each of us, and, as we had 
 protested against drinking tea, white food, in various 
 shapes and dishes, was handed over with due and 
 friendly formality. Most of the varieties of white food, 
 as preparations made from milk are called, are not 
 palatable, but here we found some extra good sour 
 cream, thick and clean, in glass cups, and served up with 
 the uncommon addition of brass spoons. This we did 
 ample justice to, but of course had to break off and 
 taste a crumb from the corner of one piece of a trencher- 
 ful-of hard sour masses of material for which there is no 
 appropriate name in English. This rite accomplished, 
 we were at liberty to clear the tables by handing back, 
 with due formality, the various dishes, etc., that had 
 been set before us. 
 
 Then followed conversation about the texture and 
 make of foreign clothes, about foreign customs, and 
 about the distance from Peking to foreign countries. 
 When these subjects were exhausted, a curious-looking 
 instrument lying on the top of one of the boxes attracted 
 notice, and one of the lamas volunteered to extract 
 music from it. It was a fiddle, but such a fiddle ! The 
 main parts of it were a hollow box about a foot square 
 and two or three inches deep, covered with sheep skin, 
 and a stick about three feet long stuck through the 
 
A MONGOL FIDDLE. 285 
 
 Bides of the box. It had only two strings, and these 
 consisted of a few hairs pulled from a horse's tailand 
 lengthened at both ends by pieces of common string. 
 The fiddle itself was uncouth enough, but the bow beat 
 it hollow. This last was a bent and whittled branch of 
 some shrub fitted with a few horse-hairs tied on quite 
 loosely. The necessary tension was produced by the 
 hand of the performer as he grasped it to play. 
 
 Fiddles are not uncommon in' Mongolia, but this one 
 seemed so rude atid primitive, that, even though we 
 were the guests of the maker and owner, it was utterly 
 impossible to refrain from laughter on beholding it. 
 The lama to whom it belonged was not in the least 
 annoyed or disconcerted at our mirth, but, smiling 
 quietly, took his bow, set the box on his knee, went 
 through the preliininaries of ttming with all the gravity 
 of an accomplished musiciau, prdduced from his purse a 
 small paper of resin, applied the minutest quantity to 
 the hairs of the bow, and, subsiding iuto a permanent 
 attitude, proceeded to entertain his guests with the 
 Mongol air of " Pinglang yeh." The strains of the fiddle 
 were soft and low, and pleasing in the extreme. Com- 
 pared with the high " skiflin^ " tones of many Chinese 
 and Mongol instruments, the sound of this one was more 
 like that of some good piano touched by a skilful hand. 
 The lama was a skilful player, as a few seconds sufficed 
 to show. He had made the fiddle himself, and knew 
 how to use it, and he soon showed that highly artistic 
 effects could be produced from a very clownish-looking 
 instrument. 
 
 The lama played a few verses, and it was then evident 
 that it was time to stop him. There was a daughter in 
 the tent, clad only in two garments of common rough 
 
286 
 
 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 Chinese clath, but graceful and beautiful in build and 
 feature. She was just reaching womanhood, and her 
 mouth was adorned by a set of milk-white and perfect 
 teeth. From the looks of the mother it was evident 
 she wished her daughter to be asked to sing. We did 
 ask her to sing, and, after the usual amount of refusing 
 
 UONOOL QIRLa. 
 
 and pressing, she overcame her bashfulness and began. 
 The mother looked on pleased and approving, one or 
 two more struck in, the lama scraped away on his two 
 strings, and we had quite a little concert. The burden 
 of the song was the praises of a maiden named Pinglang, 
 
A MONGOL SONG. 287 
 
 and the words are supposed to proceed from the mouth 
 of a disappointed suitor who is stricken with grief, when 
 the girl finally mounts her horse and rides off in pro- 
 cession to be the wife of a more fortunate rival. 
 
 The plan of the song is truly Mongolian. The various 
 birds singing on the temple roof, twittering on the 
 plain, and floating on the lakes, are each asked in turn, 
 and in separate verses, if they have seen the marriage 
 procession of the dear, the beautiful, the friendly Ping- 
 lang pass along. Even the rainbow, the five-coloured 
 and the nine-coloured rainbow, is interrogated. The 
 procession itself is described in a series of verses, the 
 burden ^nd refrain of each of which is that the little 
 Pinglang is conspicuous as she rides along solitary 
 in the centre. The song also enlarges on her beau- 
 ties and graces. Her skin is like cotton or snow, her 
 breath is like musk, even her perspiration is minutely 
 characterised in a manner which to Mongols may 
 be eulogistic, but which would seem ridiculous to 
 foreign ears. 
 
 It was a little difficult to start the singers in this 
 song, but it was more difficult to stop them. Different 
 versions seem to have different numbers of verses, and 
 it was not till a long list of them had been slowly gone 
 through that an opportunity could be found to terminate 
 the performance by praising its merits. All the while 
 that the singing went on the fond mother sat with 
 satisfaction beaming all over her pleased face, now cast- 
 ing proud glances at her daughter, now noticing the 
 effect of the display on the visitors. She was quite 
 satisfied with the praise awarded, and the playing and 
 singing were really so good that high commendation 
 could be given without any exaggeration. 
 
288 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 The impression of that visit dwells vividly in the 
 memory still. The pleasure derived from it was doubt- 
 less much increased by the fact, that after long travelling 
 in arid and parched places, sometimes among shy and 
 unfriendly people, the valley in which that family lived 
 was the first one we had entered, green and luxuriant 
 from the summer rains. After weeks of parching and 
 hot air for ourselves, and burnt and scanty pasture for 
 our travelling cattle, it was delicious to breathe in a 
 moist and kindly atmosphere, and to look with soothed 
 eyes on the cattle, roaming in the soft greenness of 
 fresh pastures. The well also, an essential feature in 
 the landscape and ealculations of a traveller in Mongolia, 
 was stone-built, capacious, and full nearly to the mouth 
 with clear cold water. 
 
 Behind, the valley ran up into a wedge-point im- 
 bedded in a great hill ; before, the valley stretched out 
 and away, widening as it went, for miles and miles, till 
 it became a great plain bounded by a lumpy horizon of 
 distant and indistinct bill-tops. Nearer, and to one side, 
 a low ridge was variegated and mottled by the different 
 colours of a drove of some hundreds of horses up there 
 to get coal. If there is a poetical spot in Mongolia, that 
 is it ; if there is a comfortably placed and happy family, 
 that seems to be the one. To the passing stranger there 
 seems little left to be desired. 
 
 But there is another side to this picture. Of the ten 
 or twelve inhabitants of that place, not more than one 
 or two were free from disease and distress of body in 
 some shape or other, and the mind never reverts to 
 those scenes of beauty without seeing in the midst of it 
 all, the prone fof m of a young man so severely afflicted 
 by a common and easily curable disease, that the only 
 
BEA UTY AND MISER V. 289 
 
 posture he could assume with comfort was that ot rest- 
 ing on his knees and elbows. Beauties of nature are 
 often found in Mongolia, but beauty is only half the 
 scene. No picture of the plains is tnae to nature or 
 complete without the attendant miseries and distresses 
 which seem to be inseparable from the inhabitants. 
 
CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 THIEVES IN MONGOLIA. 
 
 A dimgerotis man. Successful thieves respected. Difficulties of cattle- 
 lifters. Famous locality for thieves. Bold daylight theft. 
 Pilgrim's horse stolen. Strange adventure. A bow at a venture. 
 Hiding cattle. Way of transgressors is hard. A good word for 
 the Mongols. Buddhism does not repress stealing. 
 
 One evening at sunset, as we were sitting round the 
 tent fire, picking mutton bones, and looking at the 
 millet as it boiled in the pot, an old lama, who lived 
 close by, hobbled into the tent counting his beads, sat 
 down where we made room for him, and, after glancing 
 at the boiling millet, remarked, "A dangerous man 
 came to-day." " Who ? " asked my camel-driver. " Why, 
 the lama who came with his son in the afternoon ; did 
 you not know him? Bajer, the famous thief." The 
 camel-driver had not recognised him, but, as soon as 
 his name was mentioned, said, " Oh, is tJiat the man ? " 
 His face he did not know, but he knew him well by 
 fame. After talking a little, the lama noticed that the 
 millet was ready, rose to take his leave, and said that 
 he had come to put us on our guard, as he was not at 
 ail easy in his mind when such a man appeared in the 
 
A " GOOD " THIEF. 2gl 
 
 neiglibourhood. As we went on with our supper, I had 
 a pretty full description of the dangerous visitor from 
 the camel-driver, who seemed to take a delight in going 
 over the many adventures connected with the name of 
 the man against whom we had been warned. This 
 celebrated thief was a lama. He was well known, as 
 were also his thieving propensities, yet he had his cattle 
 and his sheep, his home and habitation, and was allowed 
 to live undisturbed. He had been concerned in many 
 cattle-stealings for years before, but had managed so 
 well that he escaped with little damage. The whole 
 country-side knew him for a thief, but no one could, or 
 would, have him convicted. 
 
 In Mongolia known thieves are treated as respectable 
 members of society. As long as they manage well and 
 are successful, little or no odium seems to attach to 
 them; and it is no uncommon thing to hear them 
 spoken of in terms of high praise. Success seems to be 
 regarded as a kind of palliation of their crimes. A man 
 caught in the act, or a man convicted of theft, finds few 
 to speak for him ; but a man who can arrange to have 
 thefts performed in a business-like manner by others, 
 while he himself is ostentatiously at home, or at some 
 convivial party, is a good thief, and, it would seem, a 
 praiseworthy man. As for their religion, that does not 
 seem to 'deter them at all. The reputed thief who 
 visited me was a lama, and he had not lost caste. 
 Another lama, who died a year or two ago, had his" 
 funeral rites interdicted by a superior lama, on the 
 ground that the deceased had been in some way con- 
 cerned in the death of a man. " Had he been a thief," 
 said the superior, " that could have been passed over ; 
 but murder is a more serious affair." And so the able 
 
 T 2 
 
292 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 and business-like thieves pursue their course brazen- 
 faced and high-handed. 
 
 From the nature of the country, the operations of 
 thieves are confined mostly to cattle-lifting; and as 
 force is almost unheard of in stealing, it requires great 
 tact to take them, drive them off, and dispose of them 
 so as to elude detection. Almost anybody, any day or 
 night of the year, could run off with a few horses, or 
 oxen, or camels ; that is easy enough ; but the difficulty 
 is to convey them safely in a country where every friend 
 and stranger you meet has unbounded curiosity, and 
 asks all manner of questions, and to deposit them 
 safely till a market is found. Some parts of the coun- 
 try, too, afford protection against thieves from the 
 nature of the ground. One district of Mongolia is very 
 sandy ; it is in fact a vast billowy sea of sand, with 
 patched -vegetation. Stolen cattle could easily be tracked 
 through this ; so cattle-lifting is not common there. 
 
 Of all places, perhaps temples and their neighbour- 
 hoods are the most infested by thieves. The numbers 
 of people coming and going, and the numerous roads 
 diverging towards all parts of the country, make pursuit 
 more difficult. The temple Bandit Gegenae Heet, 
 which lies away to the north-east of Lama Miao, is the 
 best adapted for Mongol thieves. It stands in a wide 
 plain, which is covered over with sword-grass, tall and 
 high, so that even a horseman in a few minutes can 
 screen himself completely from view. We arrived 
 there one August afternoon. The sword-^grass had 
 reached its height, and was beginning to become dry 
 and white. Entering a road that ran winding through 
 the grass, we threaded our way towards the temple, 
 seeing little but its towering roof. We pitched our 
 
J BOLD THIEF. 293 
 
 tent among some other pilgrims on a piece of open 
 ground. We had many visitors, but one was especially 
 noted by us. He was a nondescript lama, had a nega- 
 tive enough account to give of himself, but there was 
 something about him, or his manner, it would be diffi- 
 cult to say which, that marked him out as one to be 
 remembered among many that would be forgotten. 
 
 In the evening, a girl, belonging, as her dialect 
 showed, and as she herself said, to a very distant tribe, 
 came into our tent and sat down. After a little she 
 requested us to permit her to sleep in our tent for 
 that night. The camel-driver, who usually decided on 
 such applications himself, referred her to me. I at 
 once told her we could not have her with us, because 
 that would lay us open to the suspicion of immorality, 
 gave her some supper, and sent her off. When she had 
 gone, my old lama laughed at me for giving such a 
 reason for refusing her lodgings, and said there was a 
 much more serious reason for dismissing her. Should 
 anything be stolen within a day or two, and that girl 
 not be forthcoming, we would be held responsible for 
 the thief, and the theft, because we had harboured her. 
 
 Next day about noon, some thief or other walked up 
 to a row of about a dozen horses tied in a public place, 
 mounted one and rode off before the eyes of numbers 
 of people ; horsemen were mounting and dismounting, 
 arriving and departing, at the time, and the thief ran 
 the greatest risk of being seen by some one who knew 
 the horse ; but no one noticed, and the thief got clear 
 off. Who the thief was, no one knew, but we remarked 
 that the girl was no more seen about the temple. Next 
 night, I think it was, a horseman rode up to the tent 
 next ours, where there was a very fine camel tied. The 
 
294 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 man oa watch, pretending to be asleep as before, let him 
 ride quite close up — then challenged him. The horseman 
 said he was looking for a tent that had arrived that day, 
 turned and rode slowly off, displaying against the sky 
 the dark outline of the nondescript lama. He was 
 foiled that night, but he, or some one else, succeeded 
 next day. 
 
 A pilgrim who had been to Wu-T'ai and back, and 
 was still a mouth's journey from home, hobbled his 
 horse and entered a tent to drink the usual cup of tea. 
 Going out again in a few minutes, no horse was to be 
 seen ; he had disappeared once for all among the roads 
 screened by the long sword-grass. The pilgrim came, 
 among other places, to our tent to ask if aught had 
 been seen. Some lamas belonging to the temple were 
 with us at the time, and one of them seemed disposed 
 to take an interest in the lost horse, when a companion 
 overawed him and cut the conversation short by saying 
 authoritatively, " No one here knows anything about it." 
 The words themselves were not amiss, but the look 
 seemed to mean that though they knew, they would 
 not tell him. That temple seems to be a paradise 
 of thieves. The Government gets all credit for activity 
 and zeal in attempting to put down stealing, but the 
 friendly screen of the sword-grass is too much for it. 
 
 On one occasion we had a strange adventure. We 
 were encamped at a solitary spot away from all dwellings, 
 and had just gone to bed for the night, when we heard 
 voices approaching, evidently those of two men on 
 horseback. They rode up softly, talking quietly as 
 they came. I poked my head out at the tent mouth, 
 and there they were, quite close on us ; the camel-driver 
 was in bed outside the tent, beyond the camels, and heard 
 
'A RANDOM SHOT. 593 
 
 them remark, " There is a head looking out from tbs 
 tent." He gave a slight cough, and the two men 
 dismounted, hailed us, and entered the tent. They had 
 come to ask me to go to see 3; sick man close at hand. 
 They described the symptoms minutely, and arranged 
 to bring me a saddled horse before sunrise next morning. 
 Sunrise came, but no horse ; we waited, still no horse ; 
 loaded our camels and started, still no horse. The 
 affair now looked suspicious, and whether they were 
 thieves or not, I am told that is how clever thieves 
 often do. They ride up talking softly, and throw the 
 watcher off his guard. If he is awake he coughs or 
 speaks; then the thieves come up and talk like honest 
 men. If no one speaks or appears, the probability is 
 that all are asleep, and they have a fair chance of 
 making a haul. 
 
 Thieves who visit caravan encampments usually come 
 early in the night, as that is the most likely time to 
 find the people asleep; a good dinner after a hard day 
 in the desert having a soporific effect. A story is told 
 of a Chinese thief who came a little too early. A 
 Mongol had been to China to buy grain, and coming 
 home with it on an ox-cart alone, pitched his tent one 
 evening, and after sunset, set about cooking his dinner. 
 Knowing the place was dangerous for thieves, as he 
 sat by his fire he kept calling out at intervals, " Ah ! 
 you thief, you let go that ox ! " Once, after shouting^ 
 he heard the sound of feet, and looking out, saw a 
 Chinaman running across the plain, leaving the ox he 
 had been just in the act of stealing. The Mongol's 
 random shot had just been in time, and scared the 
 Chinaman, who thought he had been observed. 
 
 Another trick frequently put upon travellers is, not 
 
296- AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 to steal the cattle alt gether, but to drive tliem off to 
 some place where they would not be easily found. The 
 owners, on discovering the loss, ride about looking and 
 asking for them. Those in the plot volunteer infor- 
 mation ; the owner follows it up and finds the cattle 
 in some one's keeping, who of course has found, them 
 and demands the usual finder's fee. The owner knows, 
 the finder knows, everybody knows, they have been 
 driven off intentionally ; but the driving off has been 
 so managed as to look like a case of straying; the 
 owner can bring no proof against any one, and, though he 
 knows it is a swindle, has to pay the redemption 
 money. The whole country-side understand the trans- 
 action exactly, but, in place of condemning the affair, 
 rather envy the cleverness and success of those who 
 managed it. 
 
 The way of transgressors is hard, and the main check 
 on Mongol dishonesty seems to be, the misfortune and 
 disaster which usually follow on the heels of dishonesty. 
 Honest men frequently come to poverty too, but openly 
 dishonest men, such as those who implicate themselves 
 in cattle-stealings, very seldom remain in prosperity ; 
 and this, the disaster which commonly follows dis- 
 honesty, goes a long way in securing to the Mongols 
 the protection to property that is afforded by the 
 righteous administration of good laws in other countries. 
 Though almost everybody has the heart to steal, every- 
 body is not always OMtuaXly stealing. The Mongols know 
 each other and take proper precautions ; and with a little 
 care a foreign traveller need not lose much among them. 
 
 The alarming thing about Mongol dishonesty is, not 
 the actual amount of stealing that goes on, but the 
 seemingly universal inchnation to steal in almost all, 
 
STORIES OF BUDDHIST HONESTY. 297 
 
 and tLe utter want of public sentiment against it. In 
 favour of the Mangols I must testify, that in my inter- 
 course with them I have lost very little indeed ; partly, 
 perhaps, because few things were left lying about in 
 my tent, and my Mongol attendants, considering them- 
 selves responsible, and knowing the native weakness, 
 kept a sharp look out. Often when going out, I would 
 be detained by them to put away this, that, and the 
 other thing, which they were afraid people who came in 
 might pick up ; and, as far as I am aware, my Mongol 
 servants never stole anything. On one occasion too, I 
 left a parcel of silver in a leather bag for some days in 
 a tent. I trusted moie to their ignorance than to 
 their honesty in this last particular, and the silver was 
 safe and sound. 
 
 In books, I have read some extraordinary examples of 
 honesty and integrity in Buddhists ; stories which, if 
 true, would almost cast the integrity of some Christians 
 into the shade. These stories may have been true, but 
 the state of things I have seen among the Mongols, 
 who are extremely pious, makes wonderful stories of 
 Buddhist truth and uprightness hard to believe ; and if 
 any one wants to exalt Buddhism as compared with 
 Christianity, the farther he keeps from Mongolia the 
 better. Thieves and stealing abound in Christian coun- 
 tries, but all Christians are not thieves ; and known 
 thieves are not regarded as respectable members of 
 society ; and it is not too much to hope, that one of the 
 fruits of Christianity in Mongolia will be the creation of 
 a healthy and bonest contempt for thieves and stealing, 
 among a people whom even the Chinese regard as per- 
 sonified dishonesty. 
 
CHAPTER XXIIT. 
 
 A MONGOL COURT OF JUSTICE. 
 
 "Have you medicine good for wounds ! " Mental tonic wanted. The 
 justice-tent. The court opened. Onlookers. A row of prisoners 
 waiting trial. Punishment. Manner of counting the lashes. 
 Various cases. Conditional confession. The Governor-general. 
 Fatality about confessing. Departure of the judge. Defiant prisoner. 
 
 One evening after sunset, a Mongol came furtively into 
 my tent, and, after a few commonplace remarks, asked 
 in an earnest whisper if I had any medicine good for 
 wounds. I said I would like to see the wounds before 
 giving medicine for them, and asked what sort of wounds 
 they were and who had them. It turned out that the 
 wounds were not yet inflicted, that the visitor was to be 
 tried for theft next day, and as part bf the examination 
 was by scourging, he wanted to be prepared for the 
 worst. In his own name, and that of a friend, he also 
 preferred a very earnest request that I would give him 
 some medicine to make his flesh able to endure scourg- 
 ing without feeling pain ! If I could not furnish him 
 with this, perhaps I might give him something to 
 "tighten up his mind," so that he would not confess 
 under torture ! After quite a long and confidential 
 conversation as to his guilt and prospects for the 
 
JUSTICE TENT. 299 
 
 morrow, he rose to go, asking me to tell no one of his 
 visit, because he was in custody, and allowed to go about 
 only by the kindness of his keeper. Next morning 
 early, I had another visitor on the same errand ; like his 
 neighbour, he wanted something to heal his possible 
 wounds, to harden his flesh, and to brace up his mind. 
 
 In the early morning a large tent of blue cloth 
 fluttered gaily in the breeze. It was pitched just 
 beyond the temple limits. The whole half-year's 
 secular business of the tribe had been transacted in the 
 temple buildings, but criminal proceedings could not be 
 taken against culprits within the hallowed ground. 
 Within the boundary it is not lawful to beat and whip 
 men ; so the thieves had to be examined outside the 
 little footpath made by devout Mongols, who travel 
 round and round the sacred precincts by way of religious 
 duty. No one appeared to know exactly when the 
 Court would begin ; but after a while stragglers seemed 
 to converge towards the conspicuous tent, and the 
 rumour got abroad that the mandarins had gone out to 
 begin business. 
 
 The tent was open at both ends, and, with the excep- 
 tion of a contracted space down the centre, was packed 
 full of mandarins of various ranks. Around the mouth 
 of the tent was the disorderly crowd of spectators, who 
 pushed each other about, and talked away among them- 
 selves without any seeming restraint. At the tail of 
 the tent was another and smaller crowd, kept in a little 
 better order by the angry commands of " stand back," 
 shouted at short intervals by one or other of the 
 dignitaries sweating under the heat that found its way 
 through the cloth of the tent. The tail of the tent had 
 been opened to secure coolness by circulation of air, but, 
 
300 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 blocked up by a sweltering crowd at both ends, the 
 circulation amounted to little ; and the discomfort of the 
 judges within was only exceeded by that of the trembling 
 culprits who were led up and made to kneel before 
 them. Behind the little table, on which were laid 
 official papers, sat two or three mandarins with buttons 
 of various kinds, but no one appeared to claim higher 
 rank than his neighbours, and no one was seen to be 
 specially presiding. Any one that liked seemed to say 
 anything he liked, and frequently more than one sjioke 
 at once ; and on more than one occasion a prisoner had 
 to attend to the different sets of remarks made to him 
 by two different mandarins at one and the same time. 
 The noise of the two crowds of spectators outside, and 
 the free and easy way of contemporaneous speaking 
 inside, made it difficult to keep track of what was going 
 on. It was hardly possible both to see and hear ; so a 
 good many of those really interested in the proceedings 
 did not attempt to see, but knelt down outside the tent 
 and with bended head listened attentively through the 
 cloth. Beyond the crowd in front of the tent sat a row 
 of laymen and lamas, all looking very solemn and sedate. 
 These were the prisoners waiting to be tried. No one 
 seemed to watch them, and they were not handcuffed or 
 bound in any way. They simply sat and waited till an 
 attendant came and called them forward. 
 
 One case tried was that of two lamas. The readino- 
 
 to 
 
 of some charge of evidence or other could be heard 
 indistinctly amid the hum and bustle, and then the 
 elder lama was led out in front of the tent and lay 
 down in full view of the court. As the crowd fell back, 
 a whip, a couple of rods, and the leather sole of a shoe, 
 became apparent. The lictor asked which he was to 
 
"TWENTY, TWENTY-ONE, THIRTY!' 30 1 
 
 use, and on being told to take the whip, proceeded to 
 administer thirty lashes. The -vyhip was really a 
 formidable weapon, and looked alarming ; but the 
 whipper stood so close in towards the culprit that 
 almost all the force of the thong was spent on the 
 grass. This was farce enough, but this was not all. 
 One, two, three, five, eight, nine, ten, eleven, thirteen, 
 seventeen, twenty — counted the sturdy lictor, bringing 
 up his whip with great display, and letting it gently 
 down — twenty he counted, and as he counted twenty- 
 one, an official standing near by shouted thirty. 
 Thirty, with tremendous emphasis shouted the lictor, 
 and then rested his whip, as if his arm had been 
 quite worn out with the great exertion. " Oi yoi, 
 yoi," sighed the victim as he got up, and the whole 
 crowd of spectators laughed aloud ; the sufferer join- 
 ing in the laugh as soon as he got his face turned 
 away from the court. Everybody seemed pleased, and 
 what seemed to please them most was the counting — 
 twenty, twenty-one, thirty. The turn of the younger 
 priest came next, but his was a more serious affair. 
 He was uncovered, and his infliction was with a rod 
 that left a mark at each stroke. The count too was 
 carefully looked to, and when it jumped from three to 
 five, the lictor was ordered to stop and be careful as to 
 how he counted. This lama got his full complement 
 of thirty strokes, and good strokes too. 
 
 Another case was that of cattle-stealing. Several 
 men were implicated, but the din and bustle made it 
 impossible to hear whether the accused confessed and 
 were punished for the deed, or did not confess and 
 were whipped to make them tell the truth. Doubtless 
 Mongols accustomed to the proceedings knew all about 
 
302 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 what was going on, but an unaccustomed spectator, 
 hustled about, could only guess. One of the culprits 
 was an old man with a decent dress and respectable 
 look ; and one of the judges inside the tent could be 
 heard shouting to him : " You are an old man, more 
 than sixty, your life is almost past, you should know 
 better by this time than to steal ; if you are poor and 
 hungry, beg ; begging is better than stealing ; if you beg, 
 people will give you food." Then after a little : " After 
 this will you be deterred (from stealing) 1 Will you be 
 careful ? Will you amend your ways ? " He was then 
 led forth, and had thirty slight lashes with the whip, 
 without being deprived of the protection of his trousers. 
 Concerned in the same case was a young lama who 
 came next in turn, and was punished severely with the 
 rod. No miscounting, — no laying it on light for him. 
 He was about twenty years of age, and, according to the 
 expressed verdict of the unofficial mob, just the sort of 
 fellow to steal. The officials were evidently of the same 
 mind, and took care that the scourging was no sham. 
 Once they stopped the lictor, and threatened to have 
 liim whipped if he did not hurt the prisoner more. The 
 young lama got fifty good ones, and seemed to get up 
 with difficulty. Perhaps too he was tenderer than his 
 neighbours, for he manifestly suffered severely. 
 
 Then came a compHcated business of the theft of a 
 single horse. Four or five prisoners were called up, and 
 a long examination ensued. Several persons were 
 beaten, among them the well-dressed, respectable-looking 
 son of a man of official rank. This young man was the 
 most decent-looking fellow among the prisoners. He 
 had his thirty lashes by way of examination, and might 
 have had more, if another man had not confessed under 
 
CONDITIONAL CONFESSION. 303 
 
 his torture, that he alone was the thief, and that the 
 decent-looking young man was falsely accused. The 
 man who confessed was the same who had come to me by 
 night for medicine. His confession admitted that he 
 had stolen the horse, and tied it up in the mountains 
 till he should be able to convey it away secretly ; but in 
 his absence the wolves had come and devoured it ; so 
 he was none the better for his theft ! His unsuccessful 
 experiment was the cause of no little mirth to the 
 official and unofficial spectators. 
 
 Another case was peculiarly Mongolian. A young 
 lama was brought up accused of causing a prairie fire, 
 which ran for miles and scorched a caravan of Halhas, 
 encamped with their camels and loads of tea in the long 
 dry grass. The accused admitted the charge, but 
 pleaded that it was unintentional ; and appealed to the 
 mercy of the court, reminding them that he was a quiet 
 and orderly subject, and the sole support of his father, 
 an old man aged eighty years. The court was evidently 
 satisfied with the explanation, but the law must be 
 magnified, which was supposed to be done when thirty 
 nominal lashes were laid on lightly, not even his coat 
 being removed ; and the count being so cooked that 
 though thirty was counted, hardly more than fifteen 
 were administered. 
 
 Another case elicited rather a curious confession. 
 An elderly man under examination said, that if his two 
 companions in accusation would not oiun up, he would 
 take the responsibility of the loss. The judges seemed 
 well satisfied with the arrangement, asked if he had 
 means sufficient to make good the loss, and dismissed 
 him without corporal punishment. 
 
 A few more cases followed, and then the greater part 
 
304 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 of the spectators dispersed, remarking that what was to 
 come next was a civil suit, at which they evidently did 
 not expect to see much beating and whipping, which 
 seem to form the main attraction. 
 
 It must not be supposed that these beatings consti- 
 tuted the sole punishment of the thieves. Sentences of 
 imprisonment were passed afterwards. 
 
 During the course of the proceedings, I had been 
 endeavouring to distinguish the governor-general of the 
 tribe ; but in the crowd of mandarins in the tent, no one 
 seemed to claim much higher rank than his neighbours. 
 Returning towards my tent, a fat Mongol in a greasy old 
 dress called me to him, passed salutations, conversed a 
 little, then let me go. He had a couple of attendants 
 hanging around near him, and an old lama came up 
 as we were speaking. Two days afterwards meeting the 
 old lama, I asked who that mandarin was who had been 
 talking to me. It had been the governor-general incog. 
 He had deputed his duties to the inferior mandarins ; 
 and while they were sweating in the crowded tent, 
 bullying thieves, and speaking down each other, he had 
 been enjoying himself lounging around. 
 
 A day or two afterwards, in my tent, I happened to 
 ask an aged lama of some small rank in the temple, if 
 he had been to see the trial of the thieves. Hitching 
 himself round, and looking at me as if he thought I was 
 taking some undue liberty with his dignity, he replied, 
 " No, no, no; do you think that a respectable man like 
 me would go to see thieves tried ? " This seemed to be 
 the universal feeling on the matter — that it was an 
 exhibition fit only for the eyes of boys and menials. 
 
 Towards sunset I had another visit from the prisoner 
 who, the night before, wanted medicine for his wounds 
 
RELIEVED BY CONFESSION. 305 
 
 and bracing for his mind. How chansred he seemed. He 
 had had sixty strokes, and was to be sentenced to some- 
 thing or other, he did not as yet know what ; but he 
 seemed happy and radiant, and smiled aR over. The 
 anxiety and uncertainty had gone, he had confessed and 
 been condemned ; but had he been acquitted, he could 
 not have seemed much more relieved. Though severely 
 beaten, he had not received wounds, his mind did not 
 now want any bracing, and it was evident that his con- 
 fession had been an excellent tonic for his mental 
 •constitution. 
 
 A good many cases of theft were left untried at the 
 ■close of the day, and how they were settled does not 
 appear. The tent was not pitched again, and next 
 m.oming early, the governor-general took his departure, 
 ■conspicuous in his two-horse cart guided by a mounted 
 ■driver, and preceded by a horseman carrying the seals of 
 ■office in a box strapped on between his shoulders. This 
 was the signal for a general scattering. Many Mongols 
 had returned to their homes before ; those that were 
 left now disappeared, the traders from Peking and other 
 places who had come for the occasion departed to travel 
 Tound the country ; and the temple, which for a week 
 had swarmed with men, and had its pastures adorned 
 with scores of hobbled horses, resumed its normally 
 ■deserted appearance, not to be again disturbed till the 
 summer sacred festival would attract its crowds of 
 traders and worshippers from the four quarters. 
 
 In travelling round the country afterwards, we met 
 ■several of the prisoners at their homes, and every two or 
 "three days were reminded of the court of justice by 
 hearing our Mongol servant counting, in a mock official 
 tone of voice, seven, ten, eleven, fourteen, nineteen 
 
 u 
 
306 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 twenty-one, Thirty, as he hammered the tent-pins into 
 the hard ground. 
 
 It turned out too that one of the prisoners at least did 
 not get off so easily as the trial we had seen might have 
 led a spectator to suppose. Another prisoner had taken 
 the whole guilt upon himself, and thus freed his neigh- 
 bour, who, at that time, was allowed to get off rather 
 easily. Some time after, the man thus freed was sent 
 for by the governor-general, and subjected to another 
 examination. The accused was a man of means, and he 
 was now charged with bribing his confederate to confess 
 and take the blame. A severe castigation was ad- 
 ministered to make him reveal the truth ; but the man 
 stood firm, and though there was a general feeling that 
 he was guilty, he could not be made to confess, and had 
 
 MANDARIN OF BANK TRAVELLINQ IN SEDAN CARRIED 
 
A CONFEDERATE TAKING THE BLAME. 
 
 '60'j/ 
 
 to be dismissed. The story goes, that after he had 
 received the severe infliction of over a hundred strokes, 
 and the examination was ended, he got up with the 
 bearing of an innocent man, showing his unbroken skin 
 as proof of his innocence. " You have broken several 
 rods on me," said he ; " see how I have stood it ; are you 
 satisfied now ? " The Mongols have great admiration for 
 a man who will thus dare and endure without con- 
 fessing ; and, however objectionable the examining by 
 torture of witnesses may be, it affords good opportunity 
 for inflicting pretty severe punishment under pretence of 
 questioning men who are pretty well known to be guilty, 
 but who cannot be convicted for want of conclusive 
 evidence. 
 
 "C^.J 
 
 
 BV FUUlt HORSES AND PBECEDED BY HIS SEAL BEAliLR, 
 
 [From a Native Sketch. 
 
CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 A MONGOL PEISON. 
 
 Deputation from patients in prison. The staff of prison officials. A 
 prison witli open doors. Arrival of turnkey with candle. Appear- 
 ance of turnkey. Chess-playing. Thunderstorm. The dungeon. 
 Mongol prisoners not in danger of escaping. A feast in prison. 
 Parting ceremonials. Irksomeness of confinement to Mongol 
 prisoners. 
 
 A LITTLE, stoop-shouldered, one-eyed, stiff-jointed, bare- 
 footed, elderly man, after being treated for some disease 
 of his own, said he had come as a deputation from some 
 patients who lived close at hand, and who were anxious 
 that I should visit them. On its being suggested that, 
 if the distance was not great, and the patients not 
 severely afflicted, perhaps it would be better for them to 
 come to me, a young man sitting by said that they could 
 not come ; that the men in question were criminals 
 confined in prison, and would not be allowed to come 
 out. Of course I agreed to go, and offered to do so at 
 once, but that would not do for the old man. He must 
 first go back to the prison, put on his boots, and escort 
 me over with proper formality. 
 
 He soon came with his boots on, and as we walked 
 towards the place, the old man gave a detailed account 
 
PRISON OFFICIALS. 3O9 
 
 of himself, his prison, and his prisoners. He was there 
 on duty for a month only, and was sub-governor. There 
 was a head-governor above him, a turnkey under him, 
 a couple of soldiers to supply any force or do any fight- 
 ing that might be needed, and six prisoners to be looked 
 after. The head governor did not live in the prison, so 
 that, keepers and criminals, the total of the inmates 
 was ten. 
 
 The two soldiers had gone out visiting, the turnkey 
 had gone to buy a candle, he himself was escorting me, 
 and the six prisoners, with open doors, had been left to 
 look after themselves ! There they were, the whole six 
 of them, five lamas and one black man, standing staring 
 at us over the low wall that surrounded the " black- 
 house," as the prison is called. The turnkey had not 
 arrived with the candle, and the old man was in a 
 dilemma ; it was too dark inside the house without a 
 light, so I suggested that we might sit outside. The old 
 man shouted his orders ; a commotion was visible among 
 the six prisoners, and by the time we arrived at the little 
 gate in the low mud wall cushions were spread on the 
 ground outside. All the usual formalities of salutation 
 had to be gone through. Though the half of them were 
 invalids and suffering more or less, when asked as to the 
 state of their bodies, they all replied, as politeness re- 
 quired them to do, that they were in perfect health and 
 comfort ; and when, also in deference to custom, the con- 
 dition and prosperity of their cattle were inquired about, 
 they all hastened to affirm that their cattle were fat and 
 flourishing, though the great probability was, that one 
 half of them had not a hoof to their name, and that 
 those who owned animals had not seen them for months. 
 
 Salutations over, the prisoners crouched in front q& 
 
3IO AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 ilie cushions, and the patients detailed their afflictions. 
 Meantime the turnkey, holding a candle inone hand, 
 and with his other steadying a couple of water-buckets 
 that hung from his shoulder, came through the low 
 doorway, staggering under the weight of his load. The 
 candle was lighted, and we adjourned inside. The first 
 thin? noticeable in the darkness was the candlestick. 
 Candlestick they had none ; the beer-bottle, which 
 in a civilised country would probably have supplied such 
 a lack, is a scarce article in Mongolia ; but cups and 
 millet abound, so a cup was filled with millet and the 
 candle stuck into the centre. Mongols very seldom have 
 candles to burn, but when they do find a candle, a cup 
 filled with millet is a common substitute for a candle- 
 stick. The next most noticeable thing in the house was 
 the turnkey, who still hovered around the newly-lighted 
 candle. The sub-governor wanted an eye ; the turnkey 
 was minus the nose, and a most lugubrious man he 
 looked. His affliction interfered with his speech, and 
 the depression in the centre of his face terminated in a 
 dark hole, which gave him such a repulsive yet fasci- 
 nating appearance, that it was almost impossible to 
 keep the eye from following him and resting on his 
 disfigurement. 
 
 Next day this turnkey escorted me to the prison. He 
 turned out to be a government servant there on duty 
 for a month, and so poor that he was glad to get 
 employment at anything. This time it was broad 
 daylight, and we surprised the inmates playing chess. 
 For a board they had taken down one half of a window- 
 shutter, and scratched the form of the chess-board on 
 it. Proper chess-men they had none, but the black 
 man, being a scribe, had written on little flat pieces of 
 
THE DUNGEON. 2 11 
 
 wood, camel, mandarin, child, and so on, thus indicating 
 the different kinds of men. With this makeshift board 
 and these makeshift men, they were playing quite a keen 
 game ; both players and spectators protested against the 
 positions being disturbed, and the chess-board was laid 
 carefully away, that the game might be resumed where 
 it was left off. A few minutes later, a terrible storm of 
 wind, rain, and hail beat against the front of the house. 
 The door was closed. One window had no shutters; 
 the other aperture had no window, but shutters only. 
 The one half of the shutter was under a pile of clothes, 
 keeping them from the damp of the kh'ang ; ^ the other 
 was laid away with the game of chess on it ; but as the 
 storm beat into the room, the clothes were thrown 
 aside, the chess-men were swept up, the shutters 
 fiKed, and with only one small window left, the hlack- 
 hmise was true to its name. 
 
 The storm soon passed over, light was re-admitted, 
 and the place once more became visible. There was 
 little but bare walls to be seen. Two Icliangs, one at 
 each end, without flues, and almost destitute of mats ; a 
 couple of broken-down-looking fireplaces, a pot, and a 
 couple of water-buckets, comprised nearly the whole of 
 the furniture in the place. All the floor, except two or 
 three feet at each side, was wood. Near the centre was 
 a trap-door with a little square hole cut in the middle. 
 When this door was raised, it disclosed an underground 
 room about ten feet deep, eight feet wide, and fifteen 
 or twenty feet long, with mud floor, plastered walls, and 
 the flooring of the prison for ceiling. This room had 
 no furniture, and contained nothing of any kind. There 
 seemed to be no air-holes or provision for ventilation, 
 ' A rai-sed brick platform used for sleeping. 
 
313 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 except the seams between the boards of the ceiling, and 
 the little hole, about four or five inches square, in the 
 trap-door. Outside the house there was conspicuous 
 from afar a clumsy Chinese ladder. By means of this 
 ladder, every night at dark, three of the prisoners were 
 let down with their bedding to pass the night in this 
 strong room. It was rather hard lines, even for a criminal, 
 to pass eight or ten hours of the twenty-four in such a 
 damp stagnant hole, which never gets warm all the year 
 round. It was summer time then; but the keeper 
 remarked, " In the morning the men come up shivering 
 with cold." 
 
 One thing the dungeon afforded — safe keeping for 
 the prisoners. Once let down into it, and the ladder 
 withdrawn and placed outside the house, the three men 
 were in no danger of getting out. The trap-door was 
 fastened down firmly ten feet above their heads, and to 
 mine themselves out they would have had to work 
 through the solid earth. Experienced breakers of 
 foreign prisons would doubtless have easily devised 
 means of escape, but Mongols were safe enough. Three 
 of the six were not compelled to sleep in the dun- 
 geon, but shared the comforts of the upper prison in 
 common with the sub-governor, the turnkey, and the 
 two soldiers. 
 
 The most remarkable thing about the prison was the 
 amount of liberty allowed the prisoners. It seemed to 
 be no uncommon thing for the keepers and soldiers to 
 be away at the same time ; when the prisoners were 
 left at perfect freedom. It is true that on these occa- 
 sions the keepers never went far, and kept continually 
 casting glances towards the jail ; yet it sounds strange 
 to hear of half-a-dozen criminals left to roam at will 
 
SAFE CUSTODY. 313 
 
 inside and outside of the prison and the prison yard. 
 The great distances and the naked solitudes of the 
 country doubtless accounted for this. Suppose a prisoner 
 ran away, where could he go ? If he travelled, his 
 track would not be difficult to find ; and if he did not 
 travel, where could he lie hid ? During the night he 
 might get away and baffle pursuit, but more care was 
 exercised after dark. Another consideration, too, that 
 makes jails easy to guard in Mongolia is this, that an 
 escaped prisoner would doom himself to perpetual 
 banishment. If he returned home at any time, he would 
 be instantly apprehended, and most Mongols would 
 prefer to endure two or three years' imprisonment, to 
 being compelled to skulk for life. The three prisoners 
 that were allowed to sleep in the upper prison had 
 almost completed their term of restraint ; a few weeks 
 or months more would make them free men ; and in 
 these circumstances they would not render themselves 
 liable to fresh punishment by attempting to escape. 
 The keepers knew this, and were not at all afraid to 
 give them plenty of liberty. 
 
 The prison was pleasantly situated on high ground, 
 overlooking a valley lively with flocks, herds, tents, and 
 a couple of large Chinese trading establishments. Close 
 at hand, but round the shoulder of a hill, and just out 
 of sight, but within hearing, was a large temple. The 
 monotony of prison life was much relieved by the sight 
 of all the life and activity in the neighbourhood. People 
 were riding to and fro, carts coming and going, flocks 
 pasturing, horse droves conspicuous on the hill-tops, 
 lamas in state coming to the temple and going ofif to 
 the country on religious business, and government 
 officials conspicuous with their buttons. These things 
 
314 
 
 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 the prisoners could see from their prison; frequently 
 they stood looking at them over the low mud wall ; but 
 more frequently still they were to be seen crouching on 
 the ash-heap in fi-ont of the gate. All prisons in Mon- 
 golia have not such a good prospect. Soine of them 
 are built in quiet situations, and have a wall about ten 
 feet high round them, which shuts out nearly every- 
 thing but the sky. Even then the fate of the inmates 
 is not so hard as it might be, because in most cases they 
 are allowed to go outside the inclosure. 
 
 The last time I visited the prison they were having 
 a feast. They had clubbed together and bought the 
 head and some other parts of an ox slaughtered at the 
 temple hard by, to supply rations to ten lamas engaged 
 on the great summer services. The tongue they had 
 slit and hung up to dry. The rest they were boiling. 
 The pot was much too small for even the moiety they 
 had in hand, but they piled it high above the rim, and 
 kept industriously turning the raw parts down into the 
 water. The fuel too was bad. They had a little argol, 
 but that seemed damp, and was utterly insufficient ; so 
 they had gone out to the hills and pulled up by the 
 roots a great quantity of southernwood, and that they 
 used as fuel. The day before, it was blooming in all its 
 August freshness and fragrance ; now it was cast into 
 the furnace, blazing a little and smoking a great deal. 
 The Mongols rather like their meat half raw, and on 
 this occasion they seemed to be having their taste grati- 
 fied to the full. "When one potful was pronounced to 
 be done, the same half shutter that had before acted as 
 a chess-board was now called into requisition as a 
 trencher, and covered with huge pieces of steaming meat 
 and bone With perfect liberty, fraternity, and equality, 
 
FRATERNISING WITH THE CRIMINALS. 315 
 
 prisoners and keepers gathered round and did their 
 best. Knives were " scarce " and the table small, so 
 they had to take it in turns ; and one poor fellow was 
 poorly that day, and had to sit apart and look at his 
 companions feasting. His was a hard lot ; they had 
 such a feast but seldom ; and to think that of all the 
 days of the year he should have been sick on that 
 day! 
 
 On the termination of the last visit, the inmates 
 offered hearty thanks for all the attention that had been 
 paid them, and lamented that they had not been able 
 to offer the universal token of Mongol hospitality — tea. 
 Wishing to set them at their ease, I said I would taste 
 their white food, which is the common compromise 
 adopted when it is difficult or inconvenient to get tea. 
 The sour white milk-cake was at once produced, and, in 
 addition, some white flour scones basted in butter, which 
 had come from the temple hard by. Though suffering 
 as criminals, the five lamas had not been neglected in 
 the temple ministrations, but a dole had been sent them 
 as if they had taken actual part in the services. 
 
 Prisoners in Mongolia seem to have a good time of it. 
 Perhaps they have, but it is not impossible that the 
 modified kind of restraint to which they have to submit, 
 proves to them as irksome as the severer discipline of 
 other nations proves to more civilised prisoners. 
 
 One of the inmates of the prison, when asked how 
 long he had been there, replied with exactness, stating 
 the number of days. This showed how he felt. 
 Mongols usually state time loosely, such as, more than 
 three months, about a month, less than a year. This 
 poor fellow was exact in his statement. He had been 
 wearying and counting the days of his confinement. 
 Our visits, for the time being, helped to relieve the 
 
3l6 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 monotony of their days, but this was only a temporary 
 relief. 
 
 Months after we left, perhaps most of them were 
 there still, crouching on the ash -heap, watching the 
 •riders as they came and went in the valley, and counting 
 the days that must elapse before they themselves could 
 again wander at their sweet will in the open plains. 
 
CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 WHISKY IN MONGOLIA. 
 
 " Have you caught the mares?" "Is the airak good?" The taste 
 of airak. The distillation of whisky. Milking of mares not 
 profitahle. Leads to drunkenness. Fewness of teetotallers. Be- 
 haviour of a good man when drunk. Evils of drink. A whisky- 
 loving living Buddha. 
 
 " Have you caught the mares ? " Travelling in 
 Mongolia, during the summer season, you will often 
 hear your followers address this question to those who 
 come about them. If " No " is the answer, the ques- 
 tioner is a little disappointed. If the mares have been 
 caught, the next question most likely will be, " Is the 
 airak good ? " Then, perhaps, the man questioned asks 
 the questioner to go and taste it. In Mongolia they 
 catch the mares for the purpose of milking them. 
 Properly speaking, they catch the foals, not the mares ; 
 but it comes to the same thing, because when the foal 
 is tied up the mare is secured, as she will not leave her 
 offspring. Camels, cows, sheep, and goats leave their 
 young and go to pasture ; but, as the Mongols say, the 
 mare is unable to desert her foal, and stands half the 
 day whisking her tail iu patient idleness beside her 
 tethered young. The foal is "-"cured to let the milk 
 
3i8 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 gather. During the night and part of the day the 
 mare and foal are allowed to roam over the plains with 
 the drove. The milk that the foal then gets is supposed 
 to be sufficient for its wants ; the owner, by separating 
 the foal from the mother, secures a part of the milk for 
 himself. All cattle, or, as the Mongols say, the five 
 tribes of cattle, are treated in the same way. 
 
 The Mongols milk anything they can lay hands on : 
 goats, sheep, cows, camels, and mares.. The milk of 
 these different creatures has different qualities and is 
 put to different uses. The number of different prepara- 
 tions of milk is great, but, as far as I am aware, mare's 
 imilk is put to only one use — making airah and arrihat. 
 A-irok is simply soured mare's milk stirred up. In 
 Southern Mongolia they have earthenware jars about 
 four feet high and a foot and a half diameter. In 
 Central and Northern Mongolia there are skin bags of 
 about the same dimensions. Into these each day's 
 freshly milked pailful is emptied, and the whole mass 
 frequently stiiTed up. Visitors have this served out to 
 them frequently in huge bowls, or basins rather, which 
 they empty rapidly and repeatedly. The drinkers are 
 all right for a while, but if they keep at it long enough 
 they get most decidedly drunk, and have a season of 
 discomfort which arises in no small degree from the 
 large quantity they have imbibed before reaching the 
 goal of intoxication. 
 
 At the risk of my reputation as a teetotaller, I on two 
 separate occasions tasted small quantities of this airak 
 and found it very much like " sour milk " (buttermilk 
 is the English name, I believe) which had been kept 
 too long. This airak is the mother of arrihae or 
 whisky. The airak is put into a huge pot, covered 
 
THE DR UNKAIiD'S PARADISE. 3 1 g 
 
 with what looks like a barrel with both ends knocked 
 out ; a vessel is suspended in the middle of the barrel ; 
 a pot kept filled with cold water is set on the top, and 
 after a few minutes' boiling, the vessel inside the barrel 
 is found filled with pure and good whisky. The spirit 
 thus distilled is much milder than that which the 
 Chinese manufacture from grain, but is intoxicating 
 when taken in considerable quantities. In districts 
 where large horse droves abound, the quantity of spirit 
 produced is large, and as it is consumed on the spot, the 
 number of drunk men to be met is proportionately great- 
 As far as I am aware, this Mongol whisky is never 
 exported ; much of it is drunk almost as soon as it is 
 made, and any that is left does not last long. Custom 
 seems to demand that it should be presented to every 
 visitor, and every visitor seems to think that custom 
 requires him to consume all that is set before him. 
 Rich men are proud of their droves, and like to indicate 
 their wealth by the number of the foals tied up to the 
 long rope, which is pinned down to the ground some 
 little distance off, in front of their line of tents. They 
 are proud of their whisky, the produce of their drove, 
 and if you call on them, you come in for no stinted 
 share of it. It seems quite poetical to see the simple- 
 minded herdsmen of the plains drinking the mild 
 whisky of their own making, costing them no money 
 and but little trouble. There are no excisemen, no 
 duties, no smuggling. It comes easily, and goes freely, 
 even to the hangers-on and poor dependents, who, at 
 the season, do not fail to present themselves frequently 
 on imaginary business, or to ask about their patron's 
 welfare. This seems all very poetical, quite Arcadian 
 indeed. Perhaps so, but it has its other side. 
 
320 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 The milking of the mares is in no sense a soaree o-i 
 profit. The milk they do not sell; and, as far as I 
 know, they do not sell the whisky made from it. It 
 never brings a single cash into the owner's pocket. 
 Neither the airak nor the arrihae can be called foodi im 
 any sense ; and poetical, primitive, and simple as it may 
 seem, it is a source of disaster and distress to the 
 country. From their youth up, Mongols are familiar 
 with the taste of the native spirit. They acquire a 
 liking for it ; a liking which the quantity produced in 
 the country can by no means satisfy. As a consequence, 
 they take to Chinese whisky, which is much stronger, 
 and every ounce of which they have to purchase from 
 Chinamen. It is not only when they go to Chinese 
 towns that Mongols buy Chinese whisky. They do 
 buy it then, perhaps ; a Mongol rarely returns from a 
 visit to the " inner country," as they call China, without 
 a jar safely stowed away among his baggage ; but, 
 unfortunately, whisky can be got anywhere, any day of 
 the year. Chinese traders on a small scale go about 
 the country in all directions. They have their little 
 stock of goods packed on ox-carts, and move slowly 
 along, going round from one cluster of tents to another, 
 trading mostly by barter, taking skins and produce in 
 return for their wares. Skins and produce do not come 
 handy for exact sums ; so in many cases the account 
 has to be adjusted by taking so many ounces of whisky 
 — an article which no trader ever seems to be without. 
 Even when there is not the flimsy excuse of an account 
 to be adjusted, the temptation is too great for the simple 
 Mongol. The pedlar comes into the tent, sits down and 
 talks. At last the Mongol asks, " Have you any whisky ? " 
 "Yes." "Good?" "Tip-top." This is more than the- 
 
A "GOOD" MAN DKUNK. 32 1 
 
 Mongol can stand. " Let me have some," he adds, " and 
 I'll pay it again." So he has it and drinks it, and is in 
 debt for it, and it is just the same old story of inattention 
 to business, things going to wreck, poverty, ruin. 
 
 All that the mare's-milk whisky is good for is to give 
 the Mongols an appetite for the stronger and more 
 expensive spirit made from grain. The milk-whisky 
 succeeds in educating most of the Mongols into drinking 
 habits, not excepting even the lamas, who, from their 
 vow to abstain from drink, might be expected to be 
 teetotallers. Teetotallers they are not. Among many 
 hundreds I have met only one who would not take 
 spirits ; the common run of lamas drink as much as 
 they can get. I do not remember ever having met a 
 layman who refused to drink ; and drunkenness is so 
 common among 8.U classes, that it is useless to make 
 sobriety one of the qualifications in a Mongol servant 
 you seek to engage. Mongols laugh and say, " We all 
 drink," and the only point to be careful about in hiring 
 a Mongol, as far as drink is concerned, is to see that 
 the man you have is not given to violence when he is 
 drunk. " A good man," say they, '' when drunk, goes 
 off to sleep; a bad man makes a disturbance." A 
 drunken man is about the only thing to be feared by 
 the lonely traveller in the desert. When sober, a 
 Mongol is good-hearted and friendly ; or, if suspicious, 
 he is careful and harmless ; but once let his head get 
 inflamed with drink, and he is reckless ; friend and foe 
 are alike to him, and his great knife is there at his 
 side, and can be drawn with alarming ease and rapidity, 
 Happy is it for all concerned, when the thoughtful and 
 clever-handed mistress of the tent steals the weapon, 
 and hides it among the furniture when she sees the 
 
222 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 quarrel coming. Several times I have been among 
 people unfriendly and suspicious, but the only serious 
 trouble or danger I have seen has been caused by men 
 inflamed by drink. 
 
 The Mongols themselves are fully aware of its evils. 
 They have instances every day. Gichick goes to a 
 gathering. He has a fine snufif-bottle, and valuable 
 silver ornaments, and rides a magnificent horse. He 
 comes back on foot, his bottle, his ornaments, and his 
 horse gone. Ask him, and he says, " I got drunk, did 
 not know what I was doing, struck Dimbril, wounding 
 him seriously, and here I am." Or a man drinks at a 
 friend's tent, then mounts and rides homeward. His 
 horse arrives riderless, and he is found dead on the 
 plain. " How did it happen ? " " He was drunk." Or 
 a man has been rich, the owner of droves, herds, and 
 flocks. Now he is glad to earn his bread as a hired 
 servant. " How does this come about 1 " " He is fond 
 of whisky." This explains all ; no more questions need 
 be asked. 
 
 The Mongols axe so sensible of the evils of whisky 
 that frequently the lamas in authority, though by no 
 means teetotallers themselves, forbid Chinese traders 
 to come within a certain distance of the temples. I 
 have often heard Buddhism praised, as a religion tending 
 towards temperance. It is not so in Mongolia. One 
 of the living Buddhas of high repute, and much sought 
 after on account of his supposed power to confer 
 blessings, has the reputation of drinking several catties 
 of Chinese whisky daily, and is followed by a crowd of 
 attendant lamas, who pass their lives drinking and 
 quarrelling over the rich offerings brought by the 
 devout to their whisky-loving master. The Mongols as 
 
PICTURESQUE BUT DEADLY. 323 
 
 a rule do not smoke opium. They have not money 
 enough for that, but I do not think that I am ex- 
 aggerating much, if at all, when I say that drink hurts 
 Mongolia just about as much as opium hurts China. 
 
 The line of mares in front of the tent, the bustle of 
 milking, the process of brewing, the hospitable welcome, 
 the conviviality of drinking, are picturesque and pleasing, 
 and have a charm to the eye of the cursory observer; 
 but look more closely, and you find that these things 
 ai-e but the gaudy colour on the skin of the deadly 
 serpent, the poison of whose bite brings calamity and 
 death. If Christianity is ever to do any good in 
 Mongolia, it must go hand in hand with teetotalism. 
 
 s 2 
 
CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 THE MIDSUMMER FESTIVAL. 
 
 Summit-spring temple. "Worshippers and traders encamped. Carrying 
 sacred books round the temple. Chinese traders. Chinese restaurant. 
 AiTival of worshippers. The Dault. My turn comes. The Ch'am 
 described. The Ch'am is a representation in pantomime of the 
 early history of Buddhism. Passing under the Sawr. Carrying 
 forth the Sawr. The Babel of dispersion. Thunderstorm. Carry- 
 ing round Maitreya. 
 
 This is the great annual religious festival of the Mongols, 
 and as large numbers of both sexes and all classes 
 resort at this time to the religious centres of the 
 country, we too bent our steps towards a temple. We 
 found the " Summit-spring temple," as it was called, a 
 very good sample both as to itself and its surroundings. 
 There was the usual large worship hall, lofty and re- 
 splendent with gilt ornaments that glittered from afar 
 in the sun, two or three smaller and less pretentious 
 chapels, a good cluster of little built houses inhabited 
 by the more wealthy lamas, and on the outskirts of 
 these a number of felt tents, the abodes of the poorer 
 sort of priests. 
 
 Behind was a range ot hills, at some little elevation, 
 in which rose the spring that gave name to the place ; 
 
CARkYING BOOKS. 325 
 
 m front was a typical Mongol lake, small, shallow, lialf- 
 dried up, and presenting to the eye little more than an 
 expanse of yellow slime ; great part of the view was 
 shut in by circular ridges of hills, but in one direction 
 the prospect was unlimited, stretching away across the 
 plain to a far-off dim horizon, affording glimpses of 
 flocks, herds, and Mongol encampments, one cluster of 
 tents standing in the foreground at no great distance 
 from the temple. 
 
 Our caravans arrived on the twelfth of the sixth 
 month. As we came near, a great, tall, blustering 
 Mongol came out of a tent — which seemed to be full 
 of women drinking tea — saluted me boisterously, invited 
 me to drink tea with him, and advised me to camp 
 beside him. A little further on we passed through a 
 line of Chinese traders, who recognised our caravan and 
 invited us to camp with them ; but, aware of the riot 
 and drunkenness that might be expected at the festival, 
 we went higher up the hill and pitched our tents where 
 no traders or worshippers were likely to come. It was 
 a spot which permitted of a little retirement, yet was 
 within easy reach of any who might wish to visit us, 
 and commanded a full view of the temple, the worship- 
 pers, the traders, and all the busy activity of the scene. 
 Even as early as the twelfth, there was a good deal of 
 coming and going, and riding to and fro, and a number 
 of worshippers were seeking absolution from their sins 
 by walking round the temple loaded, each of them, with 
 quite a heavy volume of the sacred books. The sacred 
 precincts are marked off by a series of little cairns of 
 stones, within which are included not only the temple 
 itself, but the residences of the lamas, the fuel stacks, 
 and even the rubbish heaps. Any one wishing to clp,%r 
 
226 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 away his sins has only to come to the temple, load him- 
 self (or herself, for this seems a method of merit- 
 making specially in favour among the women) with a 
 sacred volume, and, early and late, keep trudging round 
 in the beaten path that runs outside of the little cairns. 
 
 The number of lamas, young and old, moving about 
 in the temple garb was considerable. The services,* 
 which were to culminate on the fifteenth, had been going 
 on for about two weeks, and, as distributions of money 
 and food are made to all who take part in these servicesi 
 nearly every lama who had connection with the place 
 put in an appearance, and though the chanting seemed 
 to go on almost all day, there were never wanting 
 numbers of priests who, on some excuse or other, 
 absented themselves from one or more of the meetings. 
 
 Throughout the twelfth and thirteenth, Chinese 
 traders kept arriving with their wares, on one, two, 
 or three ox-carts. They drew themselves up in line 
 along the face of the hill, forming a kind of one-sided 
 street. Some had tents, others tilted up their carts, 
 fixed a straw mat or two above, and bestowed themselves 
 and their goods below. Their stock in trade consisted 
 mainly of such things as onions, turnips, cucumbers, 
 apricots, apples, dried meat, confections, black sugar, 
 buttons, thread, needles, thimbles, toys for the children, 
 and whisky for the grown-up. 
 
 The other articles of merchandise caused no trouble ; 
 but the whisky and the toys proved a perpetual nuisance. 
 Morning, noon, and evening, there were never wanting 
 men in all stages of intoxication, causing all manner of 
 disturbance and trouble; and morning, noon, and 
 evening, during the days that this fair lasted, there 
 never ceased the sound of the thlimla, a little section 
 
THE SQUEAKING " THLIMBA." 327 
 
 of bamboo about six inches long, furnished with holes 
 like a flute, with a slit in the mouth-piece to act as 
 a reed. Of these some were coloured, some were plain; 
 they cost about a halfpenny or three farthings a piece, 
 and were the heart's delight of the children and young 
 lamas. Mongolian children are very fond of Chinese 
 biscuits and sugar-candy, but whenever the number of 
 cash reached the price of a thliw.ha, it was promptly 
 purchased, and blown with great vigour and per- 
 severance. 
 
 Long afterwards, and in far different scenes, whenever 
 the thought reverted to the incidents of that midsummer 
 festival, shrill above the boom of the temple drums, the 
 hum of buyers, the trampling of horsemen, and the 
 shouts of the drunken, would come the squeak of the 
 thliniba, and the very temple itself seems to have become 
 inseparably associated in the mind with the piercing 
 sound of this little harmless-looking musical instrument. 
 
 One of the Chinese trading arrivals consisted of an 
 eating-house complete in all particulars. There was 
 one cart loaded with tent, utensils, and provisions; 
 another with fuel ; and behind both came a couple of 
 men driving a small flock of sheep. Soon after their 
 arrival the tent was set up, the cooking-range established, 
 the carcass of a sheep hanging from the shaft of a tilted- 
 up cart, and tripe supplied to all comers at three farthings 
 a b.isin. 
 
 This establishment drove a thriving trade, combining 
 us it did the threefold business of the butcher, the 
 dram-seller, and the restaurant-keeper. 
 
 By dawn of the fourteenth, the tale of traders' 
 encampments was complete, and about eight o'clock 
 that morning the worshippers began to arrive in force. 
 
328 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 Solitary and in companies, men and women, young and 
 old, lamas and laymen, respectable men and notorious 
 thieves, on horseback and in carts ; dressed, some well, 
 some poorly, but nearly all gaudily in yellow, blue, red, 
 white, or green, their garments in many cases contrasting 
 strikingly with their horses ; along roads, across plains, 
 over ridges, from mountain gorges, came the ever 
 increasing crowd of worshippers; some riding rapidly, 
 some riding cautiously, but all converging on one 
 centre, and many of them ending up with a furious 
 gallop, to show their fine horses at their best. Rich 
 men of consequence, and mandarins of rank, for the 
 most part came in carts with a train of outriders, 
 swollen by the joining on of all and sundry mounted 
 persons of their neighbourhood, and any others whom 
 they happened to fall in with on the road. 
 
 For an hour or two after arriving the visitors hunted 
 up their friends, looked in on the temple service which 
 happened to be in progress, went the round of the 
 traders asking prices, and perhaps drinking a little 
 whisky, and in many cases drew up at my tent ; such as 
 knew me greeting me in a friendly way ; all eager to 
 see my Bible-pictures, most of them willing to listen to 
 what I had to say, some of them ready to discuss the 
 differences between Christianity and Buddhism, a few 
 finishing up by buying a tract or two. 
 
 On a sudden the crowd gave way for two men, who 
 entered and sat down opposite to me. Each held in 
 his right hand an iron frame about two and a half feet 
 high, hung all over with sacred scarves, from among 
 which coald be seen a framed picture of Buddha and 
 other sacred things. At a glance I recognised the 
 visitors as two begging lamas, and knew I was "in for 
 
THE "DAULT." 329 
 
 it." 1 protested vigorously, but, as I had expected, in 
 vain ; the men vfere immovable. After sitting for a 
 little while motionless, they suddenly, one after the 
 other, shook the Dault, as the iron frame is called, and 
 jingled a multiplicity of iron rings hung all about it. 
 Meantime the spectators were all reverence and atten- 
 tion, and, after a few more shakes and jinglings of the 
 rings, one of the lamas started off with a sing-song 
 recitation which began by detailing one of the adventures 
 of Buddha. 
 
 The recitation lasted some minutes, and when lama 
 number one had finished, lama number two began. When 
 number two had finished, they both joined in a chant, 
 and when the chant was ended, they requested alms, 
 displaying a large cup which hung from their belt, and 
 about the bottom of which, when the lid was raised, 
 were visible traces of butter, a delicate means of sug- 
 gesting the kind of offering that would be most 
 acceptable. 
 
 As soon as the ceremony was over, all the Mongols 
 present in the tent in turn reverently inclined their 
 heads, and were touched on the brow by the lama 
 with the Dault, as a king might touch a suppliant with 
 a sceptre. 
 
 The eyes of all were now turned to me, to see what 
 I would do. I began by asking them what good they 
 supposed the repetition was calculated to effect. They 
 said it would make my flocks and herds prosperous. 
 On reminding them that I had neither flock nor herd, 
 they said it would bless me in all my concerns both of 
 body and soul. I told them that I sought blessings 
 from quite a different quarter and by quite different 
 means, and beginning from this went on to explain to 
 
330 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 them Christ and Christianity, and I think I seldom 
 saw a more attentive audience. 
 
 After a time, some one suggested that the Sawr was 
 doubtless by this time set forth, and young and old 
 trooped off to pass under it. 
 
 A little later, it was reported that the Gh'am had 
 begun, and immediately all the tents were deserted. 
 Flocks and herds were left to care for themselves, and 
 I soon followed the multitude. 
 
 Arrived at the main court of the large temple, where 
 the sacred dance was going on, I found a large circle of 
 spectators sitting three or four deep, and outside of 
 them a second circle standing, also three or four deep. 
 Inside the circle were two or three lads, in fantastic 
 dresses and immense head-coverings resembling skulls, 
 armed with short batons, keeping order and preventing 
 the spectators from encroaching too much on the open 
 space. Outside of the sitting and standing spectators 
 were, here and there, groups of women holding private 
 conversations, the interest of which seemed so absorbing, 
 that they paid no attention to anything else. 
 
 This festival is the great meeting time for the women. 
 Occasionally during the year Mongol women frequent 
 marriage festivals and other ceremonies, but this mid- 
 summer gathering is the only opportunity during the 
 whole twelve months that the women of a tribe have 
 of meeting each other in one great assembly. It is 
 only too probable also that this day is the solitary 
 holiday that many of them have all the year round. It 
 is not to be wondered at then that considerations of 
 worship and piety form only part of the attraction that 
 draws women together on this occasion, and it is not 
 strange that the interchange of friendly conversation 
 
THE "CH'AM." 333 
 
 should draw away the attention of many from be- 
 holding the performance of the religious dance. With 
 a few exceptions Mongol women are soft-hearted, and 
 some of them, on seeing each other at this annual 
 reunion, break down altogether, and for a time are 
 unable to express their feelings except by sobbing 
 and tears. 
 
 But whether the spectators talk apart in groups or 
 attend, the religious dance goes on. Ever and anon 
 two or more figures in uncouth masks, for the most 
 part resembling the heads of different animals, and 
 gaudy dresses, issue forth into the court and prance 
 about in the circle to the sound of music. The step is 
 a kind of stately leap from one foot to the other, and 
 the whole exhibition soon becomes monotonous in the 
 extreme, so much so, that Chinese masons and labourers 
 who reside at the temples every summer, building and 
 repairing houses and courtyard walls, seldom think it 
 worth their while to go and see it. 
 
 At some parts of the performance quite a number of 
 actors appear simultaneously, and at one stage of the 
 proceedings a grey-headed old man comes out and fires 
 off crackers. The antics of this individual are received 
 with shouts of laughter, which may be heard at a 
 distance over the plain. 
 
 One part of the exhibition is curious. A dough- 
 made miniature figure of a man is produced, and with 
 great solemnity cut to pieces. It is said that this little 
 image — to make the resembla,nce of the execution more 
 complete — is supplied with entrails, and it is also further 
 affirmed that this model is made some days before, and 
 has prayers read over it, to make it alive as it were. 
 
334 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 memory of an enemy who opposed Buddhism in tlie 
 ancient times. 
 
 Ask a hundred Mongols what is the meaning of the 
 performance of this religious dance, and the vast 
 majority can give no reasonable explanation ; but the 
 learned few who are conversant with the more recondite 
 things of their religion explain it to be a representation 
 in pantomime of the early history of Buddhism, the 
 various actors who take part in the exhibition being 
 representations of eminent men, friends and foes, who 
 helped or hindered Buddhism in its early struggles. 
 
 But the great finishing solemnity of the day is the 
 escorting of the Sawr. The Sawr seems to be a 
 triangular pyramid of dough, fixed on a frame of wood. 
 The dough is coloured red and moulded to represent 
 flames. On the top, as crown, is the representation of 
 a human skull. In the fore part of the day the Sawr 
 stands in the temple while a service is being held, and 
 before it is carried out, young and old crowd to pass 
 under it. By passing under it, men are supposed to 
 escape from disease, disaster, misfortune, calamity, or 
 trouble, that would otherwise befall themselves, their 
 enterprises, their cattle, or their country. After all 
 have passed under it, and the sacred dance has been 
 finished, the dancers, still wearing their masks and 
 robes, led by the head lama of the temple, in his most 
 imposing ceremonial costume, form themselves into a 
 solemn procession, and followed by the whole mass of 
 devout worshippers, and less devout pleasure-seekers, 
 drawn together by the events of the day, issue from the 
 sacred precincts, and lead the way to an erection of 
 bushes, straw, or other inflammable material, prepared 
 and set up on the plain a short distance from tlie 
 
THE "SAWR." 335 
 
 temple. The procession moves slowly along to the 
 sound of two immense trumpets ten or twelve feet 
 long. 
 
 Arrived at the spot selected, which seems almost 
 uniformly to be beyond the south-east angle of the 
 temple grounds, the chief lama takes his stand, the 
 other performers crowd around, the great body of the 
 temple lamas, and the spectators generally, close up 
 behind, and a service consisting of the chanting of 
 prayers and the blowing of trumpets is gone through. 
 Sometimes the chief lama, at a certain stage of the 
 service, waves repeatedly a black handkerchief towards 
 the skull-crowned pyramid. Sometimes this part of the 
 ceremony is not performed. After a time, at a signal 
 from the chief lama, the pile of brushwood is lighted. 
 As it blazes up, the pyramid is thrown headlong into it, 
 a man, who has been standing ready with gun in hand, 
 fires off his piece at it, the attendant lamas gather 
 round their chief to congratulate him, and he replies, 
 " It has become fortunate for the many." This is the 
 signal for the dispersion, and the whole crowd of lamas 
 and spectators hurry off without waiting to see the 
 doomed structure consumed 
 
 The ceremony is impressive, but there is only one 
 step from the sublime to the ridiculous. While the 
 others are hurrying off as fast as they can, a single lama 
 may be seen poking about the fire : he is trying to 
 rescue from the flames the few inches of board on which 
 the pyramid stood, probably with the hope that it may 
 serve again on the next occasion, and after this lama 
 has gone, two or three dogs lie down and wait quietly 
 till the fire subsides, when they fight for the possession 
 of t.lifi scnrchfid douffh. 
 
^^6 ■ AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 The whole ceremony is solemn and suggestive, and 
 seems intended to avert evil on the vicarious principle. 
 The doomed pyramid is set forth in public, prayers are 
 chanted, and people pass under it, and thus, it is 
 supposed, the evils of country and inhabitants are 
 concentrated on it; it is carried forth to the desert, 
 the black handkerchief of the officiating lama seems 
 to wave maledictions towards it, and it is thrown into 
 the fire and shot at, as a thing accursed and to be 
 destroyed. 
 
 Immediately on the conclusion of the ceremony, a 
 rush is made for the booths of the traders, and all over 
 the temple grounds a perfect Babel of sounds arises. 
 Men, women, and children are hurryirig about and 
 calling to each other, confusing and confused. Not a 
 few have yet to buy at the traders' tents the Chinese 
 biscuits, which all Mongol children left at home expect 
 to receive from parents, friends, or neighbours who 
 have been to a fair or a Chinese town. 
 
 On this particular day the hurry and bustle of the 
 scattering was much intensified by a thunderstorm, 
 which, after threatening and growling for some time at 
 a distance, finally drew near and sent down dashing 
 showers of rain. Most of the Mongols covered their 
 gaudy garments with old weather-stained rain cloaks, 
 those who had no rain cloaks turned their more valuable 
 clothes inside out, and thus looked a good deal less 
 picturesque at their departure than at their arrival. 
 The storm, however, hastened their movements, and 
 made the riding of drunk men and sober more furious 
 and precipitate than it had been in the momino-. It 
 was wonderful to see how far a drunken man could lean 
 over his horse without falling off, and women and very 
 
AN IDOL PROCESSION. 337 
 
 small children, as they urged to still greater speed then 
 already galloping steeds, showed a horsemanship tha< 
 would have done credit to grown men. 
 
 The next day, the fifteenth of the sixth month, was 
 a repetition, to a great extent, of the same scenes, but 
 the concourse of visitors was much smaller. The cere- 
 mony consisted in carrying the image of Maitreya 
 -round the temple grounds. The idol was brought out 
 irf state, a grand procession formed, flags carried aloft, 
 drums beat, musical instrumeflts sounded, lamas chanted 
 sacred liturgies, and all the men, women, and children 
 who had come to worship turned out in their most 
 striking costumes and swelled the numbers of the great 
 crowd. By a strange similarity this day's proceedings 
 were also brought to an abrupt close by a thunder- 
 storm. Next morning we were early astir, and before 
 the sun was very high, not only we, but most of the 
 traders, had packed up and gone ofl' to other scenes, and 
 the temple lately so full of people and life subsided 
 into its normal quietness. 
 
CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 MONGOL TOILET. 
 
 Difference between the dress of men and women. A Mongol's robe is 
 his room. Slovenly appearance of women's dress. Dressing. 
 Washing. Mongols do not hathe. Snuff-bottle. Women's hair 
 ■ ornaments. Men's dress very becoming. 
 
 The dress of both sexes, as far as shape is concerned 
 is much alike. The main difference is that the men 
 gird themselves with a belt, while the women allow 
 their long garments to hang, loose from shoulder to 
 heel, and hence it comes that the common word for 
 " woman " in Mongolia is " beltless." The outer gar- 
 ment of both sexes is a wide roomy coat which reaches 
 down to the ground, with sleeves so ample that the 
 arms can be withdrawn from them and reintroduced 
 at pleasure, without disturbing the buttons. 
 
 This coat forms the blanket under which the wearer 
 sleeps. Surrounded by this ample covering, the Mongol, 
 withdrawing his arms from the sleeves, finds himself 
 for all practical purposes inclosed in a little private tent 
 from which his head only projects. Shrouded by it he 
 rises from his couch in the morning, covered by it he 
 sinks to rest at night, and the less happily sitiiated 
 foreigner cannot but envy the facility which this robe 
 
TOILET ON CAMEL-BACK. j^0 
 
 affords its wearer of dressing and undressing in perfect 
 privacy, though surrounded by the crowded inmates of 
 a full tent. 
 
 Mongol women on rising in the morning button uy> 
 their coats at once, and commence household duties. The 
 long wide robe hanging loose gives them a very slovenly 
 appearance ; in milking and cooking the great part of 
 the gown lies abput on the dirty ground, and in general 
 the women appear slatternly in the extreme. The loose 
 gown once appeared to advantage. A traveller crossing 
 the desert in a camel-cart, was for a time puzzled one 
 forenoon to know what the woman, who, mounted on a 
 camel, led his cart camel, was about. Her hands dis- 
 appeared, and inexplicable leanings and movements were 
 seen about the shoulders, till at last the gown slid off 
 and revealed another, more suitable to the increasing 
 heat of the day. The girl had managed to change her 
 dress while riding her camel and leading the cart, and 
 had done it so adroitly and modestly, that it was im- 
 possible to tell what she was about till the process was 
 complete. 
 
 Men on rising usually crouch down close to the fire, 
 open their coat and sit lazily warming themselves and 
 smokiQg. After a while they look about for a shor*i 
 cotton garment which is worn under the coat, and whicl 
 might by extension of courtesy be called a shirt. The 
 production of this garment is usually the signal for the 
 most unpleasant sensation that a foreigner is conscious 
 of in connexion with Mongol dressing, as the shirt was 
 probably new or washed six months ago, and has been 
 constantly worn since ! 
 
 Washing is another sight. The Mongols wash once a 
 
340 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 wooden cup, from which it is either emptied little by 
 little into the hand, or taken into the mouth and squirted 
 out as needed. Washing is usually confined to the face 
 and hands ; neck and everything else not being regarded 
 as standing in need of water. The washing itself is not 
 so bad, but the "drying" is a little out of the way. 
 With his ordinary want of forethought, a Mongol usually 
 begins to think how he is to get his face dried only 
 after he has got it washed. As he looks round, dripping, 
 most probably the first thing that catches his eye is the 
 " shirt " aforementioned, and it is pressed to do duty as 
 a towel. A more provident Mongol has a handkerchief 
 which is but a slight improvement on the shirt. There 
 is another method in vogue, mostly among girls. When 
 the washing is completed, the hands are rubbed slowly 
 over the face, gathering the moisture, which is sucked 
 from them as they pass over the mouth. The sound 
 and the idea are not pleasant, but it is undoubtedly the 
 cleanest method of wiping the face, and as such perhaps 
 the least disagreeable to the beholders. 
 
 Feet are never washed except by accident, as when, 
 herding sheep in the rain, or crossing, a stream on foot. 
 Bathing is not customary. Said a Mongol, " It is too- 
 cold in winter ; in summer the flies bite." This is of 
 course the sluggard's excuse. If they were alive to the 
 importance of it, nine-tenths of them could secure a- 
 bath with very little trouble. I once met an invalid,, 
 who, being a doctor, prescribed hot-bathing for his disease,, 
 and had fitted up a gem of a little bath in his tent. He- 
 had sunk into the ground a tub about three feet deep- 
 and big enough to sit in, and hung from the roof of the- 
 tent two felt curtains. All he had to do was to get in- 
 side, close the curtains, and then he was at liberty toi 
 
SNUFF-nOTTT.E. 34I 
 
 dress and undress in complete retirement ; and this is 
 probably the shape the Mongol bath ■will take, when the 
 Mongols are persuaded of its utility as a preventive 
 against disease. 
 
 The dress of the poor is wretched. Men and women 
 go about in rags, tatters, and filth, shivering in the cold. 
 The rich dress impressively. The men have beautiful 
 robes lined with the finest lambs' skin, and hang a pro- 
 fusion of massive silver ornaments from their belt. They 
 are also great on fur caps, and one may sometimes meet 
 a man wearing a cap worth r.s much as all the rest of 
 his clothes put together. But the true criterion of a 
 Mongol's wealth and standing is his snuff-bottle ; and as 
 custom requires him to hand it on introduction, one can 
 make a good guess as to the position of any man he 
 may meet. These bottles come from Peking, and range 
 in price from a few cents to eighty taels. The cheap 
 ones are made of glass ; the valuable ones are beautiful 
 stones skilfully hollowed out and nicely finished. 
 Women do not usually carry a snuff-bottle, but on 
 ceremonial occasions they also produce it from the box 
 where it is stowed away. Women's bottles are almost 
 uniformly small, thin, flat stones, with scarcely any 
 capacity; and, as far as I have yet seen, always empty. 
 The being empty does not matter. It is handed with 
 due ceremony and form, and the recipient, too polite to 
 seo that it is empty, smells it deliberately, and returns 
 it with dignity. 
 
 But the most remarkable parts of Mongol costume 
 are the hair ornaments and headdresses of the women. 
 Even a poor woman, if married, has a profusion of silver 
 ornaments and fittings on her head and hanging from 
 her hair w^hich cnntrasta stra.no'elv with the dirt and 
 
,^2 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 squalor of lier general appearance. The precise natuie 
 and shape of these ornaments vary with the tribes ; and 
 any one well up in this species of heraldry can tell a 
 woman's tribe at a glance. But though they vary, they 
 all agree in being cumbersome — perhaps a Mongol would 
 say impressive — and in necessitating a style of dressing 
 the hair, which, when once performed, will most likely 
 be allowed to stand undisturbed till growth disarranges 
 it and demands fresh attention. Perhaps one may think 
 a head not dressed for a month would look untidy. Not 
 at all. Though the hair from which the pendants hang 
 is not undone, the upper hair can be dressed so as to 
 look quite neat. They smear it with glue, and if one 
 does not know and does not examine too closely, it 
 looks well enough. 
 
 Some of the tribes have hanging ornaments, which 
 are suspended from a band running round the head, and 
 kept in place by a hook in the ear. As these pendants 
 are heavy, it is quite painful to see how the lobe is dis- 
 tended when the head is bent forward ; and the un- 
 pleasant feeling is increased by noticing that many of 
 the elder females have had their ears rent open, some of 
 them more than once. One tribe I am acquainted with 
 has a headdress for its matrons which projects up and 
 makes it impossible for a ca,p to sit on the head. On 
 occasions of ceremony, such as formal introductions, or 
 the meeting of friends after absence, a cap must be 
 worn. It is placed above the ornaments and tied on, 
 remaining all the while clear of the head, and looks so 
 absurd that it requires an effort to receive the lady's 
 snuff-bottle with becoming gravity. 
 
 The everyday gear permanently worn is sufficiently 
 cumbei'some, but on gala days a perfect curtain of 
 
ADORNED BEAUTY. 343 
 
 beads is superadded ; and when a crowd of women 
 arranged in flaming dresses and rich fur caps, enveloped 
 almost to the- waist in strings of red coral beads, and 
 fleasliing with the sheen of silver ornaments, take their 
 stand together in the veranda of a temple, the effect 
 is striking. In the presence of such a sight, none but 
 the blind and the prejudiced would refuse to admit that 
 the beauty of these women is enhanced by their orna- 
 ments. Mongol women, on seeing foreign ladies, are 
 struck by the absence of head-gear ; and we are in the 
 habit of trying to persuade ourselves that beauty is, 
 when •unadorned, adorned the most. Mongol women 
 when young are often beautiful, but always look best 
 in their ornaments; and perhaps their foreign sisters 
 might gain something, as far as mere look is concerned, 
 by an impressive headdress, though coral beads and 
 glue would hardly do. The difference between them 
 and us is this : the Mongol woman's field of attraction 
 is confined to her face and appearance, while we 
 estimate a lady's worth, not so much by her looks, as 
 by her mental qualities. The Mongol woman is scarcely 
 taught that she has a mind at all, and it is not strange 
 that, having nothing else to recommend her, she should 
 strive to excel us in making the most of her face. 
 
 The dress of the men also is more becoming than ours. 
 To be convinced of this, you have only to glance at a 
 foreigner in his tights and short coat, and a Mongol in his 
 ample robe flowing down to his heels. Let us not 
 grudge him his looks. If we had as little to do a,s he, 
 we might dress as well, 
 
CHAPTER XXVTII. 
 
 ^.SOP IN MONGOLIA. 
 
 The hare and the lion. The tortoise in the well. The seven lice and 
 the flea. The trader and the madman. The crow and the lama. 
 The parrot and the king. The reformed cat. Pebbles for jewels. 
 The mouse and elephant. The pearl-borer. The bad-tempered 
 monkey. Fox and bird. The painted fox. Strain at a gnat and 
 swallow i camel. The frog and the two geese. 
 
 The following fables are selected from a number which 
 a Mongol teacher dictated, in his attempts to familiarise 
 me with the language. It will be seen at a glance that 
 most of them are not native to the country, but come 
 from a land abounding with sights and scenes unknown 
 to Mongolia. The teacher afterwards committed them 
 to writing; but whether he copied them from a "book 
 or merely wrote them from memory, and added the 
 " Morals " " out of his own head," it is impossible 
 to say. 
 
 I. The Hare and the Lion. 
 There was a lion that used to vary his diet by eating 
 in turn one from all the kinds of the beasts of the 
 field. One day it was the hare's turn, and the lion 
 looking sorrowfully at the animal said : " A poor m€al 
 for me to-day. You're not worth eating; you won't 
 
IN THE WELL. 345 
 
 even fill up the chinks between my teeth. Little use 
 in eating you." The hare replied, " Do please con- 
 descend to eat me, I have just had a narrow escape 
 from being eaten by an animal as terrible-looking as 
 you." The lion, in a rage, demanded : " Where is there 
 any animal like me, let me see him ! " The hare led 
 him away to a well and told him to look down. Look 
 down he did, and there sure enough saw a beast that 
 twisted his face, looked daggers, set up his mane, and 
 showed his teeth as fiercely as he did. The lion could 
 not stand this, and leaping down to fight his rival, 
 perished in the water. 
 
 Moral. If a man has good intellectual powers, don't 
 despise him though his bodily strength may be small ; 
 and since powerful enemies can be overcome by mental 
 power, seek to develop the powers of the mind. 
 
 II. Th& Blind Tortoise tra the Well. 
 
 A blind tortoise lived in a well. Another tortoise, a 
 native' of the ocean, in its inland travels happened to 
 tumble into this well. The blind one asked of his new 
 comrade whence he came. " From the sea." Hearing 
 of the sea, he of the well swam round a little circle and 
 asked : " Is the water of the ocean as large as this ? " 
 " Larger," replied he of the sea. The well tortoise then 
 swam round two-thirds of the well and asked if the sea 
 was as big as that. " Much larger than that," said the 
 sea tortoise. " Well then," asked the blind tortoise, " is 
 the sea as large as this whole well ? " " Larger," said 
 the sea tortoise. " If that is so," said the well tortoise, 
 " how big then is the sea 1 " The sea tortoise replied : 
 " You having never seen any other water than that of 
 your well, your capability of understanding is small. 
 
346 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 As to the ocean, though you spent many years in it, 
 you would never be able to explore the half of it, nor 
 to reach the limit, and it is utterly impossible to com- 
 pare it with this well of yours." The tortoise replied, 
 " It is impossible that there can be a larger water than 
 this well ; you are simply praising up your native place 
 with vain words." 
 
 Moral. People of small attainments, who cannot 
 conceive of the acquirements of men of great abilities, 
 and who pride themselves on their own learning and 
 talent, are like the blind tortoise in the well. 
 
 III. The Seven Lice and the Flea. 
 
 A hermit had seven lice in hia coat, which used to 
 interrupt his devotions to such an extent, that, at last, 
 he made an agreement with them, that if they would 
 not bite him when he was at his exercises, he would 
 not banish them for biting him in his times of leisure. 
 This arrangement did well enough till a flea arrived. 
 " Ha, comrades," said the flea, " you are snug here, I'll 
 stay with you." The lice informed him of the compact 
 and asked him to observe it. The flea replied : " He 
 has bargained with you, he has not bargained with me, 
 devotions or no devotions I don't care, here goes." The 
 lama felt him biting. " Ah," said he, " the lice have 
 not kept their word." So saying he interrupted his 
 devotions, and opened his garment, whereupon the flea 
 jumped out and escaped. Seeing the lice all there the 
 lama reproached them with their bad faith. They 
 related to him the whole of the circumstances, but 
 thinking they were deceiving him, he caught them and 
 threw them far away. 
 
 Moral. Warned by this disaster brought upon th^ 
 
SPITEFUL CROW. 347 
 
 seven lice by the wicked flea, beware of bad 
 companions. 
 
 IV. Tlie Trader and the Madman. 
 
 A trader travelling alone, as be toiled up a mountain 
 pass, meeting a madman, asked if there were any 
 dangers on the other side of the hill. The madman 
 replied : " On the other side are fire and water, weapons 
 and robbers, from which there is no escape." The 
 trader, hearing this, turne4 back without accomplishing 
 his purpose. The madman's foolish words were no 
 good to himself, and were hurtful to the trader. 
 
 Moral. Avoid foolish words. 
 
 V. The Crow and the Lama. 
 
 A lama was in the habit of giving a handful of food 
 to a crow daily, when he drew his rations at noon. One 
 day the crow did not come. Next day, when noon 
 came, the bird expected double rations, but did not get 
 them, and, enraged at the lama, went off to some 
 robbers and said that the lama had a large number of 
 gold coins. Among the robbers was a man who under- 
 stood the language of the crows, so, hearing this report, 
 the robbers went to the lama and demanded his gold 
 money. 
 
 The lama denied having gold in his possession, and 
 asked who told them that he had such wealth. 
 Hearing that a crow told them, the lama related the 
 whole circumstances of the case, and the robbers per- 
 ceived that the lama had no gold, and that the crow 
 was a poor foolish creature. After this the crow got no 
 more food from the lama, and had to live op short 
 rations. 
 
348 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 Moral. Don't quarrel with your bread and butter. 
 
 Also ; If a man can thus, by learning, understand the 
 language of the lower animals, how much more will not 
 he understand human language ! 
 
 VI. The Parrot and the King. 
 
 Long ago a certain king went a hunting and caught 
 a parrot that could speak. The parrot said to the 
 king, " king, don't go a hunting, a chieftain has 
 meantime murdered your wives and your children, and 
 plundered your palace." "Evil words hast thou spoken," 
 said the king, then, having killed the parrot, he went 
 off to the abode of the chieftain, slew a number of men, 
 and returned to his palace to find that there was nothing 
 the matter. 
 
 Finding all quiet and peaceful, he then discovered 
 that the words of the parrot had been false, and felt 
 extremely sorry for what he had done. 
 
 Moral. False and idle words are disastrous, so beware 
 of them. 
 
 VII. The, Reformed, Gat. 
 
 A cat was in the habit of stealing many things from 
 a lama, and last of all stole his rosary. The lama gave 
 chase and seized the animal by the tail just as it was 
 entering a hole. Pulling lustily the tail gave way, and 
 the cat, in pain, and destitute of food, was soon reduced 
 to great straits. With a view to improve her condition, 
 she hung the rosary on her neck and went out to a 
 convenient place on the plain. By-and-by a field rat 
 saw her and was about to flee, when the cat hailed hei 
 and said. " Don't be afraid, my child, I am a cat that 
 
BELLING THE CAT. 345 
 
 has taken holy orders, I don't destroy life, I do nothing 
 wicked. I exhort you to lead a holy Hfe like me." 
 
 The news spread among the rat tribe, and they 
 gathered in great numbers to hear the cat chant 
 prayers (purring). At the conclusion of the service, 
 the cat told them to form in a procession, march round 
 her fi."om left to right in single file, and depart one 
 by one to their several holes. The last one she 
 devoured. 
 
 This continued some length of time, and the rat 
 tribe gradually decreased till it became a subject of 
 remark, and suspicions were excited. The leader of the 
 rats, taking a companion, contrived to keep a watch, 
 and finding hair and bones, their worst suspicions were 
 confirmed. Next day, after service, the leader of the 
 rats asked the cat, " teacher, on what sort of food do 
 you deign to live ? " "I live on dry leaves and grass," 
 the cat replied. The leader next called a mass-meeting 
 of the rats, related to them his suspicions, and gave 
 orders to have a bell and a rope stolen from the abode 
 of some man. The beU would be suspended from the 
 neck of the cat, and if on any occasion after a service 
 the bell should be heard to tinkle, they were all to 
 turn back and see what was up. The bell was procured, 
 and at next service the leader of the rats, in a com- 
 plimentary speech, presented the teacher with an 
 ■ornament, and, suiting the action to the word, hung 
 the bell from the cat's neck. After the close of the 
 •service, as all were going home, suddenly the bell sounded, 
 and hurrying back, the cat was seen in the act of devour- 
 ing a rat. The leader thus addressed her : " teacher, 
 you have fattened, but we have become few, and have 
 aiot flourished under this religion. We now invite our 
 
350 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 teacher to return to your own place, but before you go 
 tell us how it happens that, though you eat grass only, 
 there are so many traces of bones and hair." The rats 
 then left for their own abodes, and the cat, taking it to 
 heart that all the trouble arose from carelessness, took 
 to wiser ways. 
 
 Moral. Murder will out. 
 
 VIII. FebMes fiyr Jewels. 
 
 A set of half-witted people went to the sea to gather 
 precious stones. Not being well able to discriminate 
 between true and false stones, they took for precious a 
 lot of common pebbles, thinking they must be good 
 because they were of bright colour and heavy. The 
 really precious stones, being of uncertain colour and 
 light weight, they rejected as worthless. 
 
 Moral. The generality of people make the same 
 mistake with regard to religion. Wealth, fame, honour, 
 look brighter and better and are preferred to the fruits 
 of religion, but in reality those who reject religion for 
 worldly things are rejecting diamonds and choosing 
 common pebbles. 
 
 IX. The Mouse and Mephant. 
 
 A mouse fell into a pit and could not get out. An 
 elephant hearing its little piteous voice, looked into the 
 pit, and, seeing a mouse, lowered down his tail, which 
 the mouse laid hold of, and thus reached the surface. 
 The little animal thanked his great deliverer and said 
 he would never forget the kindness he received. The 
 elephant said he had helped him only because he had 
 been moved by pity, and disclaimed any hope of being 
 
A FATAL TAUNT. ,kj 
 
 repaid for his trouble, and dismissed the mouse with a 
 benediction. 
 
 Years passed by, and the same elephant, old and 
 infirm, fell into a ravine too narrow to permit him to 
 rise. This same mouse, seeing his distress, collected 
 all the mice in these parts, and scraped away one 
 side of the ravine, making it wide enough for the 
 elephant to rise. 
 
 Moral. Be helpful to others and you will be helped 
 yourself. 
 
 X. The Fearl-borer. 
 
 A lad learned to bore pearls, and priding himself on 
 the attainment learned nothing more. Other lads, his 
 companions, learned many things, and succeeded in life 
 to such afi extent that he who could bore pearls before 
 they could do anything was left far behind them, ^nd 
 was glad to hire himself out to them as their servant. 
 
 Moral. Don't be too proud of any attainment, and 
 always be diligent to learn more. 
 
 XI. Tlie Bad-tempered Monhey. 
 
 A sparrow had its nest half way up a tree, in the top 
 of which dwelt a monkey. After a heavy rain, the 
 sparrow, snug and dry in its nest, saw the monkey 
 shaking his dripping body and addressed him thus: 
 " Comrade, your hands are skilful, your strength great, 
 your intellect clever, why do you live in such a. 
 miserable state ? Can't you build a snug nest like 
 mine 1 " The monkey, angered at the complacency of 
 the sparrow, replied : 'Am I to be mocked by an evil 
 
352 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 creature like you ? Your nest is snug, is it I " So 
 saying he destroyed it and threw it down. 
 Moral. Don't talk with a passionate man. 
 
 XII. Fox and Bird. 
 
 A fox and a bird made friends and lived together. 
 While the parent bird was away searching for food, the 
 fox used to devour one of the young birds. This con- 
 tinued till all the fledgelings were gone. The mother 
 bird, then aware of the fate of her young, resolved to be 
 avenged, and, finding a trap set, decoyed the fox to it 
 and saw him caught. 
 
 Moral. Beware of an evil-intentioued man. 
 
 XIII. The Painted Fox. 
 
 A fox finding a deserted dyer's sink containing blue 
 colour, painted itself all over of a beautiful azure hue, 
 and went and showed itself to the other animals. They 
 did not recognise him, and asked him : "Who are you?" 
 The fox replied : " I am the king of the beasts." 
 
 The lions and other creatures then all did him 
 homage, and the tox, when he travelled, rode on the 
 lion's back, lording it over all classes of animals generally, 
 but carrying it with an especially high hand in the 
 assembly of the foxes. After a time the fox sent 
 provisions to his mother, who, hearing the whole tale, 
 sent back word to her son not to trouble himself about 
 her, but to occupy himself with the affairs of his 
 kingdom. The messenger foxes hearing this, filled 
 with envy, went to the other beasts and said : " This 
 king of yours is but a fox after all ; if you honour him, 
 why don't you honour us ? he is just like us." 
 
HYPOCRISY. 
 
 353 
 
 "Like you," said the other beasts, "why, he is a 
 different colour altogether." The foxes replied: "As 
 to the colour, wait till the first month of spring. In 
 that month, on the night of the star called Bos, we foxes 
 howl. If we don't howl our hair falls off. On that 
 night you can decide the question and know whether or 
 not your king is a fox." 
 
 When that night came all the other foxes howled 
 aloud, and the blue fox, afraid lest its hair should fall 
 off, howled in a low voice, but still loud enough for the 
 other beasts to hear him. They thus knew that their 
 pretended king was but a fox after all, and the lion, 
 enraged at being deceived, killed him with one stroke 
 of his paw. 
 
 Moral. Though you attain to high rank, don't oppress 
 your inferiors. 
 
 XIV. Strain at a Gnat and Swallow a Camel. 
 
 A traveller noticed a pan-ot clearing the water with 
 his wing, and asking what it meant, the parrot replied : 
 " I clear the water to avoid drinking flies, and 
 thus destroying life." The paiTot Hew off, and a little 
 further on the same traveller saw the same bird perched 
 on a wall saying his prayers. Taking a liking for such 
 a pious bird, the traveller went up to where he was, and 
 found him busily feasting on worms. 
 
 On the same journey the traveller entered an abode, 
 and found the master of the house feasting a priest whom 
 he had invited to perform services. On the ground, in 
 front of the priest, was a piece of gold. The priest 
 slyly stuck a piece of wax on his praying sceptre, and 
 thus, unnoticed, picked up the gold, and put it into the 
 
 z 
 
354 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 bosom of his coat. As the priest left the house he 
 happened to see a piece of thread sticking to his dress. 
 This thread he pompously returned to the master of the 
 house, saying that it would be sinful in him, a priest, to 
 take anything out of the house that had not been 
 given him. 
 
 Moral. Don't be a hypocrite. 
 
 XV. Tht Frog and the Two Geese. 
 
 T*o geese, when about to start southwards on their 
 annual autumn migration, were entreated by a frog to 
 take him with them. On the geese expressing their 
 willingness to do so if a means of conveyance could be 
 devised, the frog produced a stalk of strong grass, got 
 the two geese to take it one by each end, while he clung 
 to it by his mouth in the middle. In this manner the 
 three were making their journey successfully when they 
 were noticed from below by some men, who loudly 
 expressed their admiration of the device, and wondered 
 who had been clever enough to discover it. The 
 vainglorious frog, opening his mouth to say, " It was 
 me," lost his hold, fell to the earth, and was dashed to 
 pieces. 
 
 Morat. Don't let pride induce you to speak when 
 safety requires you to be silent. 
 
CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 MONGOL STOEIES. 
 
 The recluse. The good king and the bad king. The wizard. 
 The painter and the joiner. 
 
 I. The Recluse. 
 
 When the Mongols want to encourage any one in a 
 life given up to the pursuit of the higher things of their 
 religion, they sometimes tell the following story, which 
 is, of course, the popular version of one of their 
 multitudinous religious legends. 
 
 A lama once gave himself up to meditation, prayer, and 
 study, on a mountain side. For three years he prayed 
 assiduously, hoping that Borhan ' would reveal himself 
 to him, but the three years passed and no vision came. 
 Disheartened, worn out, and impoverished, he quitted 
 his mountain abode to return to the haunts and 
 occupations of men. On his way he came to the foot of 
 a precipitous hill of rock, where he beheld a man sawing 
 away at the hill with a hair. " What are you up to ? " 
 asked the lama. "I am going, to saw through this hill," 
 replied the man. "What," said the lama, "with a 
 hair ? It is impossible ! " "Ah no," said the man, " it 
 is not impossible ; patience and perseverance will enable 
 
 1 Buddlia. 
 
 z 2 
 
356 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 me to cut through this hill with a hair." At this the 
 lama wondered much, and turned away musing thus : 
 "This man is content to sit and work away at the 
 hopeless task of sawing through a hill with a hair. I 
 should not then be discouraged. I have striven for three 
 years to have a revelation of Borhan, and am discouraged 
 because I have not yet succeeded. Compared with this 
 man's case, my three years are nothing. I am ashamed 
 of myself for being discouraged. I'll go back, and try 
 for other three years." 
 
 Back he went, and had another three years' trial, with 
 all its many hardships, and still no revelation. Again 
 discouraged, he gave up the attempt, and set out to 
 return to the world. On his way he came to & hill 
 where he saw a man with an enormous cauldron, into 
 which, every now and then, a drop of water descended 
 from a rock. 
 
 " What are you doing ? " asked the lama. " Filling 
 my pot with water," said the man. " What," said the 
 lama, " fill such a pot with a stray drop of water that 
 falls now and again ? " " It's a slow process," said the 
 man, "but it will fill in time." 
 
 At this the lama wondered, and mused thus : " I 
 have spent six years striving for a revelation of Borhan, 
 and am discouraged because I have not got it. If this 
 man can contentedly wait till his pot is filled by this 
 slow process, I oiight not to be discouraged because I 
 have waited in vain six years. I'll go back, and have 
 another three years at it." 
 
 Back he went; three years passed, and stiU no 
 revelation. Utterly disheartened, he gave up the 
 whole thing finally, and took his way back to the world. 
 At; the foot of a mountain he saw a poor female do<T 
 
THE EVER-PRESENT. 357 
 
 covered with sores, which swarmed with worms. The 
 lama stopped and considered what he was to do. If he 
 freed -the dog from the worms and cast them on the 
 ground, fhmj would die. If he did not free the dog, it 
 would die. In this dilemma he conceived the idea of 
 giving half the flesh of his own thigh to the worms and 
 half to the dog. He was just in the act of doing so, 
 when, above him, there appeared a glory and an appari- 
 tion — it was Maitreya Borhan appeared to him at last ! 
 Looking towards the dog — it was gone ; it had only been 
 an apparition. 
 
 Maitreya asked the lama who and what he was. The 
 lama complained, that though an earnest seeker, he had 
 been left in the dark and without, any vision or revela- 
 tion for nine long years. Suddenly the splendid dress 
 of the apparition changed in appearance, and Maitreya 
 said, " Foolish man that you are, I have never been more 
 than two inches from you all these years. Look, don't 
 you see how your spittle and snuif have bespattered 
 all my robe?" Thus spake Maitreya, and the lama 
 suddenly and at once attained to the status of Borhan. 
 
 II. The Good King and the Bad King. 
 
 When they wish to encourage virtue and discourage 
 vice they tell such stories as the following :— 
 
 There was a good king, who was liberal to the poor 
 and to begging lamas. He was liberal to every 
 one, and gave away so much that, latterly, he had little 
 left. He had one only son, whom on his death-bed he 
 instructed to follow his example, and do as his father 
 had done. As long as he had anything at all he was to 
 be careful to give to those who had nothing. 
 
358 AUrONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 The father died, and the son succeeded to the kingdom. 
 His inheritance was a poverty-stricken one, and, by 
 following his father's precepts, the young king was soon 
 reduced to the most abject poverty. His father's in- 
 structions were explicit. " If you have a yard of cloth, 
 and meet a man who has none, give him half. If you 
 have two cups of millet, and meet a man who has none, 
 give him one." Following these instructions, the young 
 king had at last only ten cash left. A begging lama 
 came, and to him he gave five cash. Having now only 
 five cash left, he proposed to follow the fortunes of the 
 begging lama. The lama was well pleased, and tbe two 
 set out together. 
 
 There was a bad king who, by continual oppression 
 and robbery, had amassed great wealth. He had three 
 sons, and on his death he charged them to continue 
 his policy of robbery and oppression. He had grown 
 rich by it, and by it they would keep rich, as their 
 father had done ; they followed their father's advice and 
 example, and kept on increasing in wealth. 
 
 The poverty-stricken son of the good king, following 
 the fortunes and hardships of his master, arrived at the 
 court of the three sons of the bad king, and was an 
 object of curiosity and scorn to them all. They said 
 among themselves, " Our father was right to warn us 
 against the policy of the king whose son is now reduced 
 to the state of a beggar." So they called their father 
 wise and themselves happy. Meanwhile, an idea struck 
 the youngest, and he said to his two elder brethren ; 
 "Suppose I join the lama for a frolic, and travel with 
 him, to see the suffering of the penniless king ! Do you 
 approve or disapprove ? " " Capital," they said ; " by all 
 means do so, and come back and tell us all about it, 
 
PUNISHED. 
 
 3S9 
 
 that we may divert ourselves with the stoiy of his 
 sufferings." So the youngest brother joined himself to 
 the lama, and the party of three, the lama and his two 
 disciples, set out on their travels. They had the usual 
 hardships and consolations of such a lot — hunger and 
 thirst, and sore travel ; eating, drinking, hospitality, and 
 rest. Finally they came to a great mountain, at the 
 foot of which was a single tent, poor, ragged and black. 
 The only inhabitants of the tent were two old people. 
 There the travellers put up and rested. The old people, 
 having no children of their own, begged the lama to 
 give them one of his scholars. The lama ordered the 
 son of the good king to remain. To this the youth 
 would not agree. He had given himself up as a scholar 
 to his master, and from, his master he would not part on 
 any account. The son of the bad king, tired of the 
 roaming life, consented to remain there, and, leaving him 
 behind, the lama and his disciple began to ascend the 
 mountain. They had already gone a good way when 
 the lama said : "Ah, I have left my rosary in the tent, 
 it is on the west side ; go you and bring it ; don't enter 
 the tent, but stand a good way off outside and call 
 for it." 
 
 After a while the scholar returned to his master, 
 trembling and pale. " What's the matter ? " asked the 
 teacher. The scholar replied, " Oh, I saw the old man 
 and the old woman transformed into horrible creatures, 
 sucking the blood of the son of the bad king." " Jus* 
 so," said the lama ; " he came here to see your distress 
 and in place of that you saw his." 
 
 Arrived at the top of the mountain the lama said, 
 " I must now go away and leave you." The scholar 
 \yas in great grief, and begged his teacher to wait and 
 
36o AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 teach him something before he left. The teacher 
 consented, and spent some days in instructing his 
 disciple, and teaching him, among other things, the 
 art of flying. 
 
 After he had made good progress in the art of flying, 
 his teacher said : " Go away there to the eastward, see 
 what that is, and come again." The disciple went and saw. 
 It was a huge place, colder than cold, in which people 
 were being frozen hard, then broken across, this process 
 being repeated unceasingly on the same persons. Among 
 the sufferers he recognised the bad king being put through 
 his tortures. " Fly away now in the other direction," 
 said the teacher, "see what that is there, and come 
 again." The disciple went and saw a place full of trees 
 and green grasses, and flowers, and fruits, and delights. 
 He also saw his parents seated in yellow sedans, borne 
 along in state, followed by a crowd of adoring lamas. 
 He called to his father, but he would not regard him; he 
 addressed him, but he would not answer. He recognised 
 them well enough, but they would accord him no token 
 of recognition; so, having waited till he was satisfied 
 with seeing, he returned to his master. " Yes," said the 
 lama, "you have seen your parents enjoying the reward 
 of their virtuous and meritorious life on earth. For 
 their good deeds they have attained to the state of 
 Borhan, and are enjoying the happiness you saw." 
 " But why," asked the youth, " would they not recognise 
 me nor speak to me?" "Because," said the lama, "you 
 have not yet changed this body of yours." Thereupon 
 the lama left him. The lama was not the mere begging 
 priest he seemed, but Sakyamuni. 
 
COOLING ITIS TEA. 
 
 361 
 
 III. The. Wizard. 
 
 Wlien they want to impress any one who is sceptical 
 as to the power of their wizards, they tell such a story 
 as this : 
 
 The merits of a famous wizard were being discussed, 
 when a rash young man remarked that perhaps the 
 wizard had great power, and perhaps he could deceive 
 others, but he could never deceive him. The wizard, 
 hearing of this boast, had his fine saddle put on his 
 splendid black horse, and rode to the abode of the rash 
 young man. The conversation soon turned to the 
 supposed powers of the wizard, and the youth rather 
 wished to put them to the test. The wizard said that 
 was all right, but that meantime he was in trouble and 
 w.anted to get out of it. A Chinaman had come to his 
 house, and refused to stir from it till an old debt of ten 
 taels was paid up. Failing the money, the Chinaman 
 would be content with nothing less than the handsome 
 black horse, but he, the wizard, was unwilling to let an 
 animal worth thirty taels be sacrificed to clear a debt of 
 ten taels, and so had come to offer to sell the animal for 
 twenty taels to the young man. The wife was just in 
 the act of pounng out three cups of tea, one for the 
 wizard, one for her husband, one for herself, when the 
 husband went out to have a look at the horse. As he 
 looked at it he suddenly became unconscious, did not 
 know where he was, and wandered about in a land with- 
 out inhabitants, till, finally, he came to a single hut at 
 the foot of a mountain not far from the sea-shore. The 
 hut proved to be that of a lone woman who could give 
 no account at all of herself. The young man also found 
 that he too could give no account of himself, but 
 remamed a day or two under her roof. 
 
362 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 When the time came for him to go he did not want 
 to leave ; had, in fact, nowhere to go to, and proposed to 
 marry hia hostess. They did marry, and between them 
 managed to make hfe more endurable. The woman 
 gathered fuel on the mountain, drew water, and busied 
 herself with household concerns, while the husband went 
 , a-hunting and kept the house in provisions. In due 
 time a child was born, to the great delight of the parents. 
 *'Ah," said they, "we are three now, and don't need 
 to fear." Other two years passed away, and another 
 child was born. " Ah," said they, " we are four now, 
 and may live at ease." Six years in all elapsed, when 
 one day, as the father returned loaded with a deer, and 
 the mother was nearing the house with a bundle of fuel, 
 the youngest of the two children W9.s seen creeping 
 towards the sea, and suddenly fell in. Trying to save 
 him, the elder Mso fell in, and the mother, distracted, 
 trjfing to save her two children, fell in also. The father 
 threw down the carcase of the deer, and rushed to the 
 scene of the disaster, but he was too late, it was all over, 
 and he was all alone. For a month or two he had rather 
 a hard time of it. If he went for venison he had no 
 fuel ; if he- went for fuel he had nothing to cook. Even- 
 tually he found himself unconscious, and uncertain as 
 to his whereabouts, but saw a tent like his own with a 
 horse tied before it, and was recalled to consciousness by 
 his wife asking him, angrily, if he did not mean to drink 
 his tea before it cooled. 
 
 The truth flashed upon him. He had been under the 
 power of the wizard, and had experienced the joys and 
 sorrows of six long years and more, all in less time than 
 a cup of tea takes to cpoj. 
 
v/ SMOKE HORSE. 363 
 
 IV. The Painter and the Joiner. 
 
 When they wish to deter a man from plotting evil 
 against his neighbour, they tell such a story as the 
 following, to show the danger a schemer runs of falling 
 into his own snare : 
 
 At the time of the accession of a certain king to the 
 throne there were among his subjects a painter and a 
 joiner, between whom there was a bitter feud. One 
 day the painter went to the young king and said, " Your 
 royal father having taken a new birth, sent for me, and 
 when I went to him I found him in the enjoyment of 
 power beyond all imagination, and he gave me the 
 following letter." The letter was addressed to the 
 young king his son, and ran as follows : " Now that I 
 am in heaven I am happy. I am about to build a tem- 
 ple here, so, my son, send me from your city. Universal 
 Joy, the joiner. I will rejoice in the prosperity of the 
 kingdom under your rule, and from here will help you 
 in your endeavours for its good." 
 
 The young king was rejoiced at the contents of the 
 letter, and having called the joiner, said to him, " My 
 father, having been born into heaven, has sent for you to 
 build him a temple," and handed him the letter. The 
 joiner, seeing the letter, thought thus within himself: 
 " This is altogether absurd ; this painter is always plotting 
 mischief." Thinking thus within himself, he asked the 
 king, "How am I to get to heaven ? " The king asked 
 the painter, and the painter replied, " Place the joiner 
 and his tools in the centre, pile up fuel sprinkled all 
 over with oil, then, to the sound of drums, cymbals, 
 flutes, and fiddles, set fire to the pile, and the joiner 
 will go off 04 0/ smok§ horse, so says the king youf 
 
3^4 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 father." The joiner replied, "Before I go I want to 
 make a few preparations. I'll be ready to start in seven 
 days." He then went home and told his wife all about 
 the mischief the painter was plotting against him, and, 
 as a means of escape from the evil, dug a subterranean 
 passage from the inside of his house to the place where 
 he was to be burned, termina-ting the passage with a 
 stone, which again he covered with sand. 
 
 On the seventh day, the king, that he might send 
 the joiner to his father, exacted of all the people a 
 basket of fuel and a bottle of oil. This was all piled" 
 up, the joiner and his tools placed in the contra, and fire 
 applied. The drums beat, the cymbals clashed, the 
 flutes whistled, the flames leaped up, and the joiner, 
 under cover of the smoke, entered the subterranean 
 passage and went home with his tools on his back. 
 The painter, pointing to the thick volumes of smoke 
 that rose into the air, exclaimed, " There goes the 
 joiner," and the spectators dispersed joyfully, remarking, 
 " The joiner has got to heaven." 
 
 For the space of a month the joiner lay quiet, wash- 
 ing himself daily with milk to make his person white. 
 When the month was over he appeared before the king 
 robed in silk, and bearing a letter purporting to be 
 from the old king to his son. The letter was as 
 follows : " I am much pleased with your pious manage- 
 ment of the realm. Universal Joy, the joiner, having 
 built for me a temple here give him a suitable recom- 
 pense for his labour; and as the temple wants deco- 
 rating, send me up Eternal Joy, the painter, in the same 
 manner as you sent the joiner." The king asked 
 " When you got to heaven, was my father glad to see 
 you 1 " The joiner answered in all respects as if he 
 
IN HIS OWN TRAP. 365 
 
 liaJ been to heaven. The young king was delighted, 
 and giving a handsome reward to the joiner, sent for 
 the painter, who, seeing the white skin and silk robes 
 of the joiner, really supposed that he had not died, but 
 had been to heaven and back. Imagining that his 
 rival had really gone to heave a on a smoke horse, the 
 painter signified his willingness to go after the lapse of 
 seven days. The hour came and the man. The painter 
 with his paints and brushes was placed amidst the oily 
 fuel, fire was applied, the smoke rose, the flames leaped 
 upon him, in agony he plunged about and yelled aloud 
 but, drowned by the sound of the drums, cymbals, flutes, 
 and fiddles, bis cries were unheard, and he was burnt 
 to a cinder. 
 
CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 WOLVES IN MONGOLIA. 
 
 Sometimes not seen for a long time. Adventure. Wolves fear Mongols. 
 "Wolves attack Chinamen. Encounters with wolves. Wolf hunts. 
 Oxen heading off a wolf. Wolves in the fold. Wolves called 
 
 Some travellers expect to see wolves as soon as they 
 enter Mongolia. Wolves there are, but a traveller may 
 go from Kalgan to Kiachta and never see one. Some- 
 timfes, again, wolves are heard and not seen. A foreigner 
 was once travelling in winter with a single Mongol 
 attendant. The tent-cart broke down, and had to be 
 exchanged for a common open cart. On one occasion, 
 when the caravan was standing still, a sound was 
 heard ; the cart camel pricked up his ears and started 
 at full speed, carrying the foreigner away on the 
 cart, but leaving the Mongol and the other camel 
 behind. It was the Sound of wolves that raised the 
 alarm, and the camel, panic-struck, sped away and 
 away. The foreigner, watching his opportunity, seized 
 his pillows and leaped from the cart as he was crossing 
 some ice, when the camel, uncertain of foot, went more 
 slowly. The foreigner, escaped from one danger, began 
 to think that he had fallen into another ; what if the 
 
SUDDEN' UPROAR. 367 
 
 wolves shciuld attack him ! Out in the dark wood, 
 alone and helpless, what was he to do ? By and by a 
 sound as of something approaching was heard ; th'e 
 luckless traveller stared among the trees, expecting to 
 see the wolves appear, when to his great relief up rode 
 the Mongol on his Camel. The fugitive camel and cart 
 were found standing beside a tent. 
 
 The traveller's fear was superfluous ; for wolves do 
 not attack men in Mongolia. It is said they do 
 attack men in Eussia; and I knew of a Buriat Who died 
 of bites inflicted by a wolf which he brought to bay in 
 his fold at night. In China also there are numerous 
 stories of men being bitten, and of children being carried 
 off by wolves. Chinamen travelling and trading in 
 Mongolia have a great dread of wolves. Mongols hate 
 wolves, and dread their ravages on their flocks and 
 herds ; but they never seem to dreata of personal danger. 
 Wheti a Chinaman sees a wolf, he runs away from it ; 
 when a Mongol sees a wolf, he runs at it gesticulating, 
 shouting, screaming, and generally frantic. Sometimes 
 in the stillness of the aftjernoon, a terrible uproat and 
 clamour arise's suddenly among the tents. Everybody 
 knows what it is, and rushes out to join in and swell 
 the uproar. A wolf is among or making for the sheep. 
 Systematically treated to such a. terrible reception 
 wherever they approach man, it is not strange that 
 the wolves acquire habitual dread of Mongols, and run 
 even from a boy. 
 
 The reason for the difference between thte Russian 
 and Chinese wolves, which are said to eat men, and the 
 Mongolian wolves, which do not eat men, is, pethaps, 
 that the Mongol wolves are never driven to extremity. 
 All the year round they can get a lamb or a sheep 
 
368 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 abroad on the plains by day, or inside a badly defended 
 fold by night. Failing a sheep, which animal is the 
 most advantageous speculation, inasmuch as a single 
 wolf can perform the capture, the disappointed wolf can 
 join a hungry band of disappointed comrades, and compass 
 an ox, or a camel, or a horse, or as many oxen, or camels, 
 or horses, as may be necessary for the requirements of 
 the pack, and have a good feast. Why then should they 
 eat men ? — And they do not eat them. 
 
 The Mongols boast themselves not a little on their 
 superiority to the Chinese in showing a bold front to 
 wolves. They even say that the wolves know and dis- 
 tinguish Chinamen from afar, and do not hesitate to 
 pursue them. It is true that a practised human eye 
 can tell whether the diminutive outline of a man seen 
 afar on the plain, is that of a Chinaman or a Mongol. 
 There is something very different about the dress and 
 bearing which is manifest a long way off. Whether the 
 wolves notice the difference or not I cannot say ; the 
 Mongols affirm most stoutly that they do. If men in 
 blue wadded jacket and trousers invariably run away, 
 and allow themselves to be eaten when overtaken, and 
 men in long skin robes rush up howling like madmen, 
 and break the heads of any wolves their horses may be 
 swift enough to overtake, it would not be at all beyond 
 the bounds of credibility that wolves should note the 
 difference, and treat the two sorts of men differently. 
 
 The Mongols have many pleasant stories of con- 
 quering wolves which have proved the terror of 
 mean-spirited Chinamen. Here are samples. 
 
 A Mongol had been down to China trading. Kidinw 
 up towards home again, he saw a wolf lying on the top 
 of a wall, lashing its tail and ready to spring down into 
 
USEFUL SPORT. ^69 
 
 a court where a number of Chinese children were 
 playing. Undoing his gun from the baggage, he aimed, 
 fired, and killed his prey. The Chinese had not seen 
 the animal, and were not a little startled at hearing 
 the report of a gun, and seeing a huge wolf fall dead 
 into the yard. Learning how it happened, the Chinese 
 were profuse in their thanks, entertained their pre- 
 server to an impromptu feast, and loaded him with 
 presents. 
 
 On another occasion, a threshingfloor on the border 
 between Mongolia and China was frequented by a 
 huge wolf, which had already destroyed several men. 
 It raised such a panic, that men could not be got to 
 carry on the work of cleaning the harvested grain ; — no 
 Chinaman would go near the place. In the nearest 
 government town was a Mongol on yamen duty, who 
 was noted for his bravery, and was a good shot. A 
 deputation of farmers, shopkeepers, and country people 
 generally, waited upon him and begged him to help 
 them to rid the country-side of this terrible wolf. 
 Iriducement offering, he was nothing loth to go and 
 have a shot at a beast he heartily despised. He went 
 and slept on the floor among the grain. The wolf 
 appealed as usual to eat his man ; but somehow finding 
 a man who would not run, the wolf ran off, and would 
 not give the marksman a chance, Chinese guns handled 
 by Mongols being rather slow affairs. Several nights 
 he tried, but the cowardly beast would not stand fire. 
 At last he declared he would give up the attempt ex- 
 cept some Chinamen watched with him. When the 
 wolf appeared again, the whole of the Chinese took to 
 flight, stumbling and falling all about in their headlong 
 trepi4ation, Now was his chance. Standmg his ground, 
 
 A A 
 
370 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 wlieu the wolf came up he was ready and shot the 
 creature dead on the spot. 
 
 A numher of Mongols were on their way to Peking 
 one autumn. At night they put up at an inn at the 
 foot of Cock-crow Hill. Starting next morning with 
 the early dawn, one of the numher saw a shepherd 
 and flock of sheep in full flight, the sheep scattered all 
 about. The shepherd was a Chinaman leading a flock 
 of fat sheep to the Peking market. The practised eye 
 of the Mongol took in the situation at a glance. A 
 wolf had caught a sheep and was tearing it. The 
 shepherd was in full flight, afraid, as the Mongol said, 
 of being eaten himself. With the Mongol, to see and 
 understand all this was the work of an instant ; at once 
 his blood was up, and, as if he had been on his native 
 plains, howling and gesticulating frantically, he urged 
 his horse towards the wolf. It turned out to be an extra 
 large and fierce animal, and he had no weapon but a 
 small whip. But no weapon was needed; the bold 
 front and terror-inspiring cries put the beast to flight. 
 Dismounting, he took possession of his prize, strapped 
 the carcase on behind the saddle, and sold it for a 
 good sum at the first town he came to. 
 
 A Mongol once related to me an adventure he had 
 with a wolf. He was a lama, and was at the time 
 mounted on a camel, carrying a, mail over a very 
 desolate part of the country. Suddenly his camel 
 became alarmed, and soon after a wolf of the largest 
 size showed itself and kept abreast of him a little 'way 
 off. Such a companion was rather uncomfortable at 
 that particular time and place, and the lama for a time 
 pretended to take no notice of the beast, hopino- it 
 would sliflk ^•ly.a^- Then, I think, be resorted to the 
 
WOLF HUNTING. 3 7 1 
 
 usual method of shouting and gesticulating, but that 
 would not do. The lama began to think he had fallen 
 in with one of the very few wolves that are spoken of as 
 having attacked men ; and, as he had no weapon but 
 a light riding- whip, felt but poorly able to defend 
 himself should he be actually attacked. He kept his 
 wits about him, however, and making his camel kneel 
 took a stone and kept on striking it hard on his iron 
 stirrup. The hard metallic ring was quite a formidable 
 noise ; and the wolf slowly and with evident reluctance 
 drew off. Had this lama been mounted on a horse and 
 had a stick five or six feet long, he would have treated 
 the wolf very differently. 
 
 There are such things as wolf hunts in Mongolia. 
 On large plains, a rider on a good horse can harass a 
 wolf pretty severely ; and even when near hills, a couple 
 of horsemen, one to hunt, and one to head off, can be 
 pretty sure of killing their game. There is one tract of 
 country where the plains are wide, and good horses 
 numerous ; and woe betide the wolf that shows himself 
 rashly in the daytime. The ready natives throw 
 themselves into the saddles of the horses, which stand 
 ready at their tent doors, and armed with the " horse 
 catcher," soon hem in their victim. The " horse 
 catcher" is a strong fishing-rod looking apparatus, ten 
 or twelve feet long, and fitted with a large thong loop 
 strong enough to hold a wild horse by the neck. 
 
 Winter is the best time to hunt wolves on horseback. 
 The snow hinders the wolf much more than it hinders 
 the hoFse, and a hard ride does not tell so severely on 
 the horse as it would in hot weather. This wolf 
 huntincr is not by any means a common pastime. The 
 Mongols have plenty of horses, but are too careful of 
 
 A A 2 
 
372 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 them to chase wolves unnecessarily; if, however, they 
 think their flocks are in danger, they do not spare 
 their steeds. 
 
 One day we were encamped beside the tent of a 
 wealthy Mongol. Suddenly his whole drove of oxen, 
 which should have been grazing at a distance, were seen 
 running along in a compact column. "They are 
 chasing a wolf," said the serving men. The master was 
 called out to see, and at onc« ordered his men to mount 
 and pursue the beast. This order made every face 
 radiant with joyous excitement ; and in a few moments 
 the retainers were galloping over the plain, trailing 
 their great "horse catchers" behind them. It was 
 evidently a great treat to the poor fellows, but they 
 were disappointed after all. The sly old wolf seeing 
 them coming, put on speed and got into the hills before 
 he could be intercepted. Once into the hills, pursuit 
 was impossible. The master was a little annoyed at 
 missing the wolf, as he had sufifered a good deal from 
 the ravages of these animals; they having come one 
 night in force and devoured a camel tied not fax from 
 his tent door. 
 
 The wolves in their ravages are not very fierce or 
 formidable, and rely more on not being seen than on 
 their strength or courage. Very few instances can be 
 quoted of wolves destroying cattle which were properly 
 tended. Sheep are often thus destroyed, but the wolf 
 here relies on his own swiftness and the carelessness of 
 the shepherd. The shepherd is in a tent drinkinw tea 
 or sitting on the ground holding his horse, and looking 
 in some other direction ; or he has ridden away a few 
 hundred yards tp look at something or other ; this is 
 the wolfs chance. Running with great speed, he ia 
 
"C^l TCHE TH THE SHEEP. " 373 
 
 among the sheep before he is noticed, and in the few 
 minutes it takes the shepherd to come up, two or three 
 sheep have been torn, some blood sucked, and perhaps 
 a few fragments of the fatty tail devoured. The 
 shepherd comes up, frequently followed by most of the 
 near inhabitants ; the torn sheep are examined, and 
 opinions expressed as to whether they will live or die. 
 Meantime, the wolf has withdrawn himself to the 
 nearest mountain, or over the horizon of the plain, 
 followed by all the dogs of the neighbourhood. 
 
 People sometimes imagine that wild beasts make one 
 of the dangers of Mongolia, but personal danger from 
 wild beasts seems never to enter the head of a Mongol 
 about to travel. The wolf is the only formidable animal 
 that abounds in those parts of the country with which 
 I am acquainted ; and, as may be seen from what is said 
 above, he is glad to keep clear of men. I never heard 
 of them banding together into the large and fierce packs 
 that are said to appear in Eussia at times; and only 
 once have I heard of any place where wolves were said 
 to have attacked man. 
 
 Perhaps when the Mongols become as careful of their 
 cattle, and as painstaking over their folds as the Kussians 
 and Chinese are, the wolves may be starved into more 
 fierceness. Meantime they feed easily and behave well 
 to man; and if they would only refrain from eating 
 their cattle the Mongols would not much object to 
 them. But on account of their destructive ravages, 
 the Mongols do dread them, and superstitiously refrain 
 from pronouncing the word wolf. The term in com- 
 mon use is dog, which is shortened from the full 
 expression wild dog. I was once pulled up sharply 
 for venturing to say the proper word for wolf after 
 
374 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 dark ; and, once reprimanded, was careful always to 
 speak of wolves as dogs. 
 
 The only redeeming feature about the wolf is his skin. 
 The skin makes capital winter clothing, much too fine 
 and expensive for common people and every-day wear ; 
 but it is not the finest nor most expensive fur worn by 
 the wealthier classes. It keeps out the cold well, and 
 makes a respectable-looking garment. It is most com- 
 monly used for a short jacket worn outside all the other 
 clothing, and has a comfortable look on a horseman 
 braving the dry blasts of winter. 
 
CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 THE MONGOLS IN PEKING. 
 
 Attraations offered to Mongols by Peking. Kesident lamas. Temples 
 in Peking. Book-shops. Mongols come to Peking on Govern- 
 ment duty, on pilgrimages, and to trade. Tlie Wai Kuan and 
 the Li Kuan. Christian books. Duration of the Mongol season. 
 
 To the Mongols Peking is the city of the great king. 
 As the seat of the Government and the residence of the 
 Emperor it is an object of great reverence, and as the 
 largest city they know, it is regarded with wonder and 
 awe. Many of them during the course of their lives visit 
 it, either summoned by Imperial mandate to perform 
 Government duty, or attracted to it as a religious centre 
 by considerations of devotion ; while not a few resort to 
 it as a mart where they can sell most advantageously the 
 products of their native country, and purchase best and 
 most cheaply materials for clothing and the many other 
 appliances of civilisation for which they are dependent 
 on China. 
 
 Very seldom does a Mongol come to Peking on only 
 one errand. Now and again pilgrims come whose sole 
 object is to worship at the celebrated shrine of the Chan 
 T'an Ssii, but devotees like these are rare. In most 
 cases those who come to worship take the opportunity 
 
376 AMONG THE MONGOLS. 
 
 to do a stroke of trade, and those who come to trade do 
 not neglect to make the round of the temples when 
 their secular business is finished. Those who come to 
 perform Government duty find opportunities for both 
 traflSc and devotion. 
 
 There are some fifteen hundred Mongols permanently 
 resident in the capital. There are priests, lamas, who 
 are, distributed among a number of temples both inside 
 and outside the walls. They come for the most part to 
 Peking in early youth, and in language, diet, and habits, 
 so adapt themselves to the Chinese civilisation around 
 them, that it is sometimes difficult to be sure that they 
 are Mongols at all, and even at a distance they can be 
 readily distinguished from their up-country visitors when 
 walking together on the street. Some of these city 
 lamas are said to be supported by funds contributed by 
 their native tribes, but most of them seem to hold 
 oflSCeS to which are attached revenues derived either 
 directly frotn the Imperial exchequer, or accruing from 
 endowments besto'vved upon the temples by the piety of 
 former ageS. 
 
 These Peking priests have Government duty to per- 
 fOrili, part of which is to chant prayers for the prosperity 
 of the country, and for the happiness of the departed 
 souls of deceased members of the imperial family When 
 an emperot or an empress dies a temple of straw mats 
 is erectedj lamas are invited, and services for the benefit 
 of the dead kept up for two or three months. This so 
 cdurse brings the laftias an additional revenue. 
 
 Sometimes they are asked out to chant prayers in 
 rich families recently bereaved, when they may be seen 
 goiflg along the street resplendent in yello-tv coats atid 
 faultless hats ; but notwithstanding all this most of 
 

MONGOL BOOKS. 2>79 
 
 thum are very poor, arising in great part from the fact 
 that the poverty of the Government has made it neces- 
 sary to curtail the imperial allowances granted to these 
 agents of religion. Many a lama who has nominally a 
 sufl&cient income never receives much more than the 
 half of his due, and has yet to be content with what 
 he gets. 
 
 Some of the temples in which Mongol lamas reside 
 in Peking have acquired a considerable reputation for 
 sanctity, and are resorted to by pilgrims. The most 
 famous is the Chan T'an Ssii, round the main build- 
 ings of which is a path worn out in the pavement 
 bricks by the feet of devout worshippers, who walk 
 round these halls as a meritorious duty. 
 
 One great attraction which Peking offers to the reli- 
 gious Mongol is its book-shops. In other places, such 
 as Urga and Wu T'ai, there are books published, but 
 the great majority of sacred books used by the priesthood 
 and laity of Mongolia are produced in Peking. In close 
 proximity to two of the lama temples are two publish- 
 ing establishments conducted by Chinamen, which have 
 always on hand a stock of the most popular books of 
 the Buddhist religion both in the Mongolian and 
 Tibetan languages. They are always ready also to cut 
 blocks for and print any book that may be desired. 
 
 Some Mongols prefer to use editions of the sacred 
 works transcribed by hand, and the lamas resident in 
 the Peking temples are only too glad to eke out their 
 scanty allowances by undertaking contracts of this kind. 
 They tell with satisfaction the story of a Mongolian 
 prince who ordered, or, to put it as the priests would, 
 supplicated for, an extensive work of this kind, paid a 
 princely price for it when it was finished, and carried it 
 
3 So AMONG THE UrONGOLS. 
 
 away on a train of white camels, he himself in person 
 leading the first camel, as a token of respectful reverence 
 to the sacred treasure he had obtained. 
 
 Those who visit Peking in response to the summons 
 of the Government are usually of the higher ranks, are 
 mostly summoned in winter, and come attended by a 
 train bf followers. They receive a settled allowance 
 per head per day. Some of the princes summoned an- 
 nually to Peking have residences of their own at which 
 they put up during their stay in the capital, but those 
 of lower rank hire lodging-places from the Chinese. 
 
 The Government duty they have to perform seems to 
 be purely formal, the princes attending the emperor in 
 the early morning receptions given at the palace, the 
 Mongols of lower rank lending dignity to their superiors 
 by attending them to and from the palace. One set 
 of Mongols who visit Peking say their claim to be 
 summoned to the capital rests on the fact of their 
 being the lineal descendants of Genghis Khan, and that 
 as such they are admitted to feast with the emperor. 
 The feast, however, is only formal, consisting, according 
 to their own account, of a few eatables and a large 
 quantity of imitation viands, made of clay or some 
 such base material, and painted to look like real food. 
 It matters little to the guests whether the food is 
 imitjruon or real, etiquette Requiring them to remain 
 motionless at the board, as if it would be presumption 
 to eat in the presence of the emperor. They say that 
 though they dare not eat in the emperor's presence, they 
 manage to hide in their sleeves and bring away with 
 them some of these real or sham viands as mementoes 
 of the honour conferred upon them. 
 
 After dancing attendance on the court for a month or 
 
PANIC-STRICKEN CAMELS. 38 1 
 
 two they receive their dismission, are paid their Govern- 
 ment allowance, and within a few days are expected to 
 settle up their affairs and return to their remote abodes, 
 from which they are not again summoned to perform 
 this formal court service for a year, or perhaps two. 
 
 The great majority of Mongols, whose appearance 
 lends picturesqueness to the Chinese crowds that swarm 
 about the busy centres of Peking in winter, belong to 
 the trading class ; some few come with ox-carts, some 
 on horses, but most come with camels, trains of which, 
 numbering sometimes as many as sixty, may be seen 
 making their way along the crowded streets, the camels 
 taking fright at the, to them, unusual sights of the city, 
 and blocking up the roadway by crowding their unwieldy 
 bodies and loads together when panic-struck. The Peking 
 carters, seeing them come, good-humouredly revile 
 them, and give place till the caravan passes, for though 
 the Mongol is despised as ignorant, dirty, stupid, and 
 thievish, he is everywhere welcomed as a customer with 
 whom a Chinaman can trade profitably. In Peking 
 there are two principal lodging-places of the Mongols, 
 the Halha Kuan, situated about a mile beyond the 
 north wall of the city, hence called also the Wai Kuan, 
 or outside lodging, and the Li Kuan, or inside lodging^ 
 close behind the British Legation. 
 
 If any one wants to see Mongol life without going to 
 Mongolia, the Li Kuan is the place to see it. In the 
 open space that forms the market are seldom wanting a 
 few tents, 'standing at the door of which a spectator may 
 see the inmates boiling their tea, cooking their food, 
 washing their faces, and sitting about all in true Mongol 
 , style. Round the tents are placed creels of frozen game 
 and poultry, and outside these again are ranged the 
 
MONGOL SEASON IN PEKING. 383 
 
 camels, or oxen and carts, which formed tlielr means of 
 conveyance. A small crowd of Chinese idlers and petty 
 traders usually surrounds the tent door, and one member 
 and another of the tent's company keeps going and 
 coming to and from " the street," as the busy part of the 
 market is called. 
 
 The Li Kuan with its miscellaneous crowd of Mongols 
 hailing from almost all parts of their wide country, is a 
 good place to sell Christian books, which, carried home 
 by the travellers on their return, can thus penetrate to 
 remote and outlying places. Any one engaging in this 
 kind of bookselling will often find his customers desti- 
 tute of cash, and have to take in payment numerous 
 and strange articles of barter. 
 
 For two months in the winter the Wai Kuan and the 
 Li Kuan are lively with buyers and sellers. For a month 
 before and a month after the two busy seasons there are 
 a few buyers and sellers, but for eight months of the 
 year both places look deserted and dead. The Mongols, 
 disliking the heat of Peking, have retired to the colder 
 and more congenial habitats, and the Chinese have 
 either betaken themselves tb other industries, or, if of an 
 adventurous spirit, have made up a stock of goods and 
 gone out to the plains on a summer trading venture. 
 
 THE END. 
 
iiicHARU Clay & Sons, Limited, 
 
 LONDOJ] & BVSQA.^. 
 
Wife'i'^'^J^^Ilil