THE ARROGANCE OF TIBET. 357 



out of their apathy." Russia, of course, took violent 

 and unreasoning exception to the action of the British 

 Government, so much so that Lord Lansdowne felt con- 

 strained to remark to the Russian Ambassador that it 

 seemed to him " beyond measure strange that these 

 protests should be made by the Government of a 

 Power which had, all over the world, never hesitated 

 to encroach upon its neighbours when the circumstances 

 seemed to require it," and to ask " if the Russian 

 Government had a right to complain of us for taking 

 steps in order to obtain reparation from the Tibetans 

 by advancing into Tibetan territory, what kind of 

 language should we not be entitled to use in regard 

 to Russian encroachments in Manchuria, Turkestan, 

 and Persia ? " The one people who regarded the 

 whole advance with unconcealed derision and con- 

 tempt were the one people whom it really concerned 

 — the Tibetans. 



Past experience was no doubt largely responsible for 

 the arrogant demeanour of Tibet, but there was another 

 reason too, and that was their reliance upon another 

 Power. Whatever the attitude of Russian diplomatists 

 at St Petersburg and London, there is no room for 

 doubt that the Russian agent Dorjieff at Lhassa had 

 given, and continued to give, promises of Russian aid. 

 Colonel Younghusband, in whose experienced hands the 

 conduct of the mission had been placed, received infor- 

 mation from various independent sources that the 

 Tibetans were relying on Russian aid, and that Russian 

 arms had been introduced into Tibet. The Chinese 

 official. Colonel Chao, himself complained of the 

 Tibetans having openly taunted the suzerain Power, 

 and proclaimed their reliance upon a stronger and 

 greater nation ; and in January of the present year the 

 emissaries from Lhassa themselves informed the British 



