314 A MARCH IN TIBET 



class among the Indian population. His companion be- 

 longed to a lower grade ; he was stupid, silent, morose^ 

 and bore a melancholy air, as if some secret grief weighed 

 him down ; but he read and said his prayers in the same 

 fashion as his companion. I bought Tandup's shepherd's 

 musical pipe, and presented him with some tobacco and a 

 pipe to smoke it. Tandiip was a much-married young 

 man, and his wives were the subject of much conversation 

 between the young man and Yakub. They were constantly 

 in Tandup's mind, and my servant managed in course of 

 the journey to collect some information about them. There 

 were four, and their names were as follows : — ( 1 ) Sonam 

 of Biar village ; (2) Tashi of Zarang; (?>) Dolnia of Tangi ; 

 (4) Thaften of Chiise. They all lived at their parents' 

 homes, where Tandup visited them periodically : the villages 

 are only a few miles apart. Mrs. Thaften was the favourite, 

 and consequently the best presents were reserved for her. 

 These little things — scissors, needles, knives, etc. — com- 

 pletely won Tandiip's heart. 



In the evening I took a walk up the valley joining the 

 main one on the left. I had not gone a hundred yards 

 from camp, round a bend, when I sighted a flock ; but I was 

 off my guard, and of course the animals saw me before I 

 saw them. They ran up the slope and stood among some 

 rocks within range ; I had one shot, a steady one, but 

 missed : this was aggravating, but I had only myself to 

 blame. I returned to camp late in the evening, after a 

 long trudge up the valley, having seen no rams after the 

 first misadventure ; but I saw ewes in several places. The 

 valleys about here are certainly good finds for wild sheep ; 

 they were close to the road just now, probably because the 

 people from below had not yet brought up their summer 

 encampments so far. The spring and autumn are certainly 

 the best seasons for a month's shooting in these hills ; but 



