THE LOLOS OF KIENTCHANG, WESTERN CHINA—LEGENDRE. 58] 
that I had with the chief of a large tribe in the valley of Ngan Ning, the 
seignior os noir, Vou Ka. I had won his confidence, which is the reason 
why on one fine day he confirmed or corrected a series of important 
statements that I had recorded during a preceding journey. These 
are only brief résumés but are very instructive. 
Utensils. —It is said that there is one industry of the greatest neces- 
sity that is found among all races of men in every region on the face of 
the earth; that is pottery. The peoples of Africa and Oceanica, even 
m a savage state, fashion all sorts of earthenware receptacles from 
clay or sandy material. Among the Lolos, however, there is not a 
trace of native pottery. The bowls and teapots that are occa- 
sionally seen at the home of an os noir are of Chinese make, either pur- 
chased or presented. In the houses of Leang Shan or Mao Nieou 
Shan, you sometimes see a wooden bowl in the form of our soup 
tureen or fruit dish. It is generally well shaped and carefully turned, 
and I have recognized in this important detail the Chinese influence. 
Money.—The Lolo, for commercial transactions, has no kind of 
nativemoney. Though you may see some brass and silver coins, they 
are of Chinese origin. All he knows is to trade by direct exchange of 
merchandise, common barter. 
Weights and measures.—There are no weights or measures among 
the Lolos. When he sells grain he gives you 1, 2, 10 loads, each rep- 
resenting the quantity that a man of ordinary strength can carry on: 
the head, or, more rarely, in a basket. When he sells you any com- 
modity he poises it in the hand or in both hands and tells you its 
value according to the weight estimated, which corresponds to no 
definite unit. 
Professional trades.—There are but few trades. The only definite 
ones are weavers, carpenters, and blacksmiths. What partic- 
ularly astonished me was that there are no tailors or dressmakers, 
properly speaking. Their clothing is made by the adults them- 
selves. The servants may work for their mistress, the ‘‘ouatze” for 
the seignior, but there is no specializing of work in the ordinary 
meaning of the word. 
Clothing.—Before the coming of the Chinese and their attempts at 
conquest, dating from the fourteenth century after Christ, before 
the Chinese had influenced the aboriginal customs and effected com- 
mercial exchanges, the Lolo dressed in the simplest, most primitive 
fashion. The women’s skirt, the men’s trousers, were merely a 
piece of very coarse woolen cloth, draped around the hips and reach- 
ing to the knees in numerous vertical folds. A cord held this cloth 
around the waist. The costume was completed by the mantle so 
characteristic of the Lolo people, the part of its dress that without 
alteration has come down to the present time. The mantle is also 
made of a large piece of coarse cloth. It is nearly square, and not 
