Captain Webb's Journey in Thibet. 63 



to proceed in a state of all but nakedness, till he reaches its 

 boundary, a tremendous and perpendicular precipice, whence 

 he is directed to spring into the horrid abyss below. A few 

 days only prior to my arrival, three females of middle age had 

 dared this fearful essay, and strjuige to relate, returned to the 

 temple alive, after having sought death in vain for three days 

 and three nights, amidst the snow and without food. They did 

 not find the precipice, the existence of which is probably a mere 

 fable*. One of these infatuated women died in a few hours 

 after her return to KedAr-Ndt'h. The other two had been placed 

 under a shed by the way-side, and asked for charity as I passed. 

 One of them was likely to recover with the loss of both feet and 

 one hand ; but the extremities of the other were in such a 

 terrible state of mortification, that a few days must have ter- 

 minated her misery, enhanced as it was by the conviction, as she 

 told me, that God had rejected her sacrifice and her prayer. 

 -Does not your blood chill at this story of woe and wretchedness? 

 Let us hasten on to less painful subjects. 



While returning from this pilgrimage, I received the number 

 of the Quarterly Review which contains a critique, not very 

 flattering nor encouraging to my labours. The reviewer sweeps 

 aside results which I continue to believe are sufficiently exact, 

 and substitutes for them a series of conclusions deduced from 

 a speculative and, I will venture to add, erroneous theory, com- 

 bined with facts contained in a narrative of Mr. Moorcroft's 

 Journey to the Table-Land of Tartary, or at least to that part 

 of it known to the Hindus by the Hindee name of Oon-des, 

 (Uin-des,)'or the region of wool, it being from that neighbourhood 

 that the Cashmir market is principally supplied with the ma- 

 terial from which shawls are fabricated. I had before deter- 



* Religious suicide, by fanatics casting themselves from a lofty preci- 

 pice, is in like manner perpetrated at a place esteemed by Hindus holy, 

 uear Mil-td]>l, the source of the Tdpl river, in the centre of India. Being 

 in the vicinity of that place many years ago, I was solicited for alms by a 

 Hindu, who was proceeding to the spot for the purpose of precipitating 

 himself from the devoted rock, in fulfilment of a vow made some years 

 before, as he informed me. I was subsequently assured, that lie completed 

 the self-sacrifice in the manner intended ; and that instances of such sui' 

 «idc» at the same place were not unfretiiient. H T, C. . 



