An Embassy to the Court of the Teshoo Lama in Tibet - Prajna Quest

;liO OT AN. 185descended, in a pacific train, from one possessor to another, and tohave sufFered their chief injury, from the impairing influence of time.Tliere was an industrious appearance in this Httle village : manypeople, sitting before their doors, were busied in weaving their narrowwoollen cloths, with the hand and shuttle :they are extremely coarse,and bear a very long knap. We saw other villagers mounted upon a largestone, who were thrashing wheat in the following manner.Each persontook at a time, as much as could be conveniently grasped in the handand, having set fire to the beards, first shook, and afterwards struckthe ears against the stone;when what remained of the grain, after theshaking, fell out, and was received upon mats spread beneath ; this isthe third mode of practice Ihave observed in Bootan, for disengagingcorn from the ear.At six o'clock in the morning of Saturday, the 13th of September,the thermometer fell, in the open air, to 46°. It was never lower atTassisudon than 60°.We set out early, and found, by the river side, a guard-house, wherea party of Booteeas were stationed, who permit no one to pass theirfrontier, without a passport from the Daeb. We crossed the bridgethrown over the Patchieu here, and on the opposite side saw several ofthe black chowry-tailed cattle;their backs were lightly whitened withhoar frost, which gave them a very remarkable appearance, as theirbodies were covered allover with thick lone; black hair.This very singular and curious animal deserves a particular description.The bull is denominated Yak, the cow Dhe. |