T1BBT. 



j part Katehi. Ha boundaries are UM range of Karakornm on 



UM mat; UM Kuenlun Mountain* on UM north; UM Snowy Moun- 

 tain* arond UM sooroa* of UM Kincha-kUng, the Om-Uiu, an.l tho 

 Lake of Tongri-nar IB UM *a*t ; and UM mountain* of Dzang and 

 Ngari ia the eouih. Katchi ia traversed by tho great road which 

 "Usm to Yarkaad, in Chinese Turkistan. The third 

 if Tibet contains the remainder of this country, which 

 _* o** awl oath of Kaor and KatoU. 

 The rood aad third natural division* have the common name of 

 Eastern Tibet, or Tibet proper. Eastern Tibet m subject to China. 



Kaor aad Katehi are an immeoae table land, some part* of which 

 are 10,000 feet above UM Uvel of th* sea. This table-land however 

 i* not a level plain. It is a country traversed by chains of mountains, 

 which have a height varying from 3000 to 4000 feet above their base, 

 or from 18,600 to 14,000 feet above the sea. The middle part seems 

 to be l**s elevated thaa UM boundarits, as the country contains several 

 riven which terminate in UM table-land ; and the southern and western 

 part* are higher Una the eastern and northern parts, the direction of 

 UM greater number of thote riven being from th* west to the east, 

 aad (rom the south to the north. 



The a*p*ct of the southern and eastern part* of Tibet proper, is 

 very diftVrent from that of Khor and Katchi. It is traversed by 

 liaiimniai image* of lofty mountain., the direction of which is from 

 west to east and from north-west to south-east From these range* 

 lateral branches run out in different directions, and contain deep 

 valley* between them. In proportion as the principal chains advance 

 towards the south-east, they converge towards one another, and thin 

 the valley* between them gradually become narrower, until at last, on 

 the frontier* of Yunnan and Burma, they are mere mountain-passes. 

 OB thai spot there are four parallel valleys, traversed by four of the 

 gisalsat riven of the world, and the breadth of these four valleys 

 together (Mm* not to be more than 100 miles. But the range of the 

 mountain* of Ngari and Dxang diverge* from the Himalaya ; and the 

 valley between them, which ia traversed by the Dzangbo, becomes 

 broader a* it advance* toward* the east The chain which, in the 

 sooth-eastern corner of Tibet, separates the Kinoha-kiang in the east 

 from the Langtaang-kiang in the west, has the name of Ning-teing- 

 han, or Man-li (Monng-Un), the summits of which are covered with 

 perpetual anow. The height of the mountains iu southern and eastern 

 Tibet ia much greater than in the northern and central parts of the 

 country, aad the whole tract towards China, Nepaul, and Bootan, is 

 nae alpine country. Several pass** in the Mang-li Mountains 

 i 10,000 to 11,000 feet above the sea; the region of perpetual 

 ms to begin at 12,600 feet, and the number of summits which 

 have an absolute elevation of above 12,600 feet must be very con- 

 siderable. Some of them probably attain the height of 26,000 feet 

 above the sea. The extent of the Mang-li Mountains between Bathang 

 en the Kincha-kiang, and Tsiamdo on the Lang-Uan-kiang, according 

 to UM Chinese itinenrie., is 1405 li, of 250 to a degree. All this 

 country b intersected by deep valleys and chasms. The summits of the 

 mountain* are covered with perpetual snow, and the traveller crosses 

 the h*ns by mean* of bridges, which are enveloped in the cloud*. 

 Th* mountains north of the Mang-li, around the sources of the Lan- 

 tean-kiang, ia the province of T.iamdo, are no less elevated. A very 

 extensive range begin* at Mount Kailasa in the Himalaya, and stretches 

 to the eaat a* far ai DO" E. long. These ore the mountains of Ngari 

 aad Daang, the most western part of which is called Gangdisri, or the 

 country of th* snow mountain*. At the beginning of this western- 

 most part, and in the north-eastern part of the province of Ngari, is 

 Moated the celebrated Mount Kailasa, or Oneuta, which is said to be 

 higher than th* Dbawalagiri. The Kailasa is steep on all sides, and 

 ia 140H (above 50 miles) in cii cumference ; its summit is always 

 covered with snow, and the water tumbles down from it in cataracts 

 into the sorroondinf; valUya. Eaat of the Kailasa are situated four 

 mountains, or perhap* groups of mountain., the K'habhabhs, each 

 f which resembles a different animal. The length of these four 

 mountain* is said to b* 800 11 (800 miles), and with respect to the 

 valleys which begin at their foot and stretch in different directions, 

 thry resemble Mount St. Oothard in Switzerland. 



Am*. The sources of th* fhangbo, or .San-poo, are on the east 

 aid* of the K'babhabha, in the province of Ngari. Its complete 

 name I* Yarn-dangbo-Uu, that ia, the pure frontier river of the west 

 According to UM C'niae*. geographers, the source of the Dzangbo is 

 oa Mount Tamtaiogb, ia SO" 10- N. lat, 81' 65' B. long. It flows in 

 an *a*t south-eastern direction, through the whole of southern Tibet, 

 istaao* of about 700 miles, aad waten the provinces of Ngari, 

 Dnag, and Wet The valley of this river i* formed by th* Himalaya 

 OB UM aouth. aad th* monnUina of Ngari and Dfang on the north. 

 Th*oatry through wtich H flow* being very extensive, and all the 

 MM being covered in winter with toow, of which an immense 

 nnawity mlu la UM rumnmr, UM volume of water in this river must 

 b. my eoMtjbrabU. Th. tributary riven of the Dmangbo, on its 

 V., CI> *"' ~- h Nauk-dzangbo; the Dtang-tou, or 

 GaMjao-mur.ii, which has it* aourres about 200 mile* to the north- 

 Mr H'Laeaa, aad which ia sometime* confounded with tho 

 ' Th*r* are five considerable riven between the Nauk- 



d-aAo aad UM Driang-teu. The tributary riven on the right or 

 MttiMn aid* ar the Gujang, which ha* iu source near Mastang, in 



TIBET. 



MI 



the Himalaya, and the Pai-nom-tsu, or Fuang-dze, along which Turner 

 travelled, from it* source at Phari to its junction with the Dsacgbo, 

 and which has a fine iron bridge of thirteen arches. An iron auspen- 

 him i -bridge is thrown over the Dznngbo, south of H' Lasso, on the 

 great road from the west to this town. The course of the Dzangbo 

 ii known ai far as a point which is situated about 100 miles east of 

 H'Lassa. It bos been conjectured that the Brahmaputra is the con- 

 inuatinn of the Dzangbo [BRAHMAPUTRA], but according to Klaproth 

 the continuation of the Dznngbo is the Irawaddy. The Nu-kiang U a 

 northern tributary of the Dzangbo. 



Tho sources of the Gakbo-dzangbo-tsu, or the Clear River of Oakbo, 

 .re situated in 31 80* N. lat, on the frontiers of tho provinces of 

 Cham and of Wei. Its upper course has the name of Saug-chu, or 

 >ziangbo-tsiu. Its direction is at first south-east. The great road 

 rom China to L'HaMa crosses this river some distance east of tho 

 celebrated temple of H'Lari. Dzangbo-tsu then enters the country of 

 kbo, where it receives a considerable river called Bo-dzangbo, which 

 enters it on the left or eastern side. After having entered tho country 

 of H'Lokbo, it probably takes a southern direction as it enters the 

 .'hinese province of Yunnan, and there receives the name of Lung- 

 chuau-kiaug. The Om-tsu ia formed by the junction of three rivers 

 the Ser-sumbu, or Ser-tsu, in the east, the Uir-cuu in the west, and 

 the Kiini-us-su, the largest of the three, iu the middle. It has a 

 south-east course, through a very deep aud narrow valley, inclosed 

 >y steep rocks of an immense height, whence it flows into the province 

 of Yunnan in China, where it receives the Chinese name Nu-kiang, 

 that ia, ' the river of the barbarians.' The Loug-tsang-kiang traverses 

 almost the whole extent of Eastern Tibet from north-west to south- 

 east Two rivers, the Om-ohu in the west and the Dzo-chu iu the east, 

 .he sources of which are situated north of the upper part of tho Orn- 

 sn, iu the province of K'ham, join at Tsiamdo, and thin form tlio 

 Lang-tsang-kiang, the direction of which is from north-west to south- 

 east. This river is also called La-chou and Lo-tsu. After having 

 traversed Yunnan, it enters Lao, forma the frontier between Siam and 

 Cochin-China, and flows into the Chinese Sea in 10" N. lat., after 

 a course of more than 1700 miles. The sources of the Kiucha kiaug, 

 or Yang-tse-kiang, which traverses China from west to east, are situated 

 between 37 and 88 N. lat, 89 and 92 E. long., on the taulr 

 towards the north-western frontiers of Eastern Tibet. Its upper part 

 is called Muru-ua-su by the nomadic Mongols of that country ; its 

 middle part has tho Tibetan name of Bourei-tsu, and it is only in 

 China that it is called Kincha-kiang. Its direction is east as far oa 

 95 E. long. ; from this point to Batang the direction ia south-east and 

 south ; from Batang to its junction with the Litchou (the oltt frontier 

 of Tibet), it is ngain south-east This latter part of the Kiucha-kiang 

 forms a part of the present frontier between Tibet and China. Tho 

 Ya-long-kiang is an important tributary of the Kincha-kiang. Its 

 sources arc iu the Bayau-Khara Mountains. Its direction is generally 

 south-east. The Hoang-ho, or Yellow River, has its sources north of 

 the Bayan-Khara, in the province of Sifan. [HoANQ-uo.] The country 

 between the upper port of the Hoang-bo iu tho north-west, the Ya- 

 long-kiang in the south-west, and the frontier of China in the east, or 

 the eastern parts of Sifan and Kliu-khu-nor, is traversed by ranges of 

 high mountains covered with perpetual snow. Very little is known 

 about it in Europe. 



lakes. The Tengri-nor, the largest lake of Tibet, is nine days' 

 journey north of H'Lasso. The Chinese call it Thian-chhi, or the 

 Celestial Lake. This lake appears to be surrounded by high moun- 

 tains aud rocks covered with snow and ice. It receives the Tarku- 

 dzangbo, a river which comes from the west The Lake of I'altc, 

 which is situated south-west of H'Lossa, in the valley of tho Dzangbo, 

 resembles a large ditch surrounding an extensive island which fills up 

 the middle of the lake. On the Tibetan maps it hag the name of 

 Bhaldi-Yumtso, and the Chinese call it Yar-brok-Yumtao. It is said 

 that north of this lake there is a high mountain called Kambala, from 

 the summit of which extensive high snowy ranges may be seen to the 

 north. In the extreme north of Tibet is situated the Lake Khu-khu- 

 nor, or Koke-nor, that is, the Blue or the Celestial Lake, which name 

 has been given to all the surrounding country. 



Climate. Tibet is known in India and China as a country of hunger 

 and misery. The climate of the valleys, and especially of the valley 

 of the Dzangbo, is hot. From March to September tho weather is 

 fair. In H'Lawa the trees bud at the end of April and iu the begin- 

 ning of May. The harvest is reaped in August and September. Dew 

 falls in the summer nights; it hails often; the snow is not deep iu 

 winter. On the high table-lands the climate is very different. From 

 May to October the sky is always clear, and tho mm shines with 

 uncommon brightness. From October to May there are violent gales. 

 The surface of the weather-beaten rocks breaks in pieces, which the 

 air dissolves into fragments as small as dust ; and clouds of this dust, 

 raised by whirlwinds, are driven from the plain to the summits of the 

 mountains, and from the mountains down to the houses of the inhabit- 

 ants. The air is excessively dry, and its effects resemble those of the 

 dry heat of the Sahara. The cold in winter is intense. The mouu- 

 tains and table-lands are characterised by cold and barrenness. 



Production*. Among the minerals there re gold, silver, copper, 

 tin, salt, corundum stone, lapis lazuli, turquois, and agate. Beside* 

 a great number of grasses which arc common in Europe, Tibet pro- 



