FROM MONGTSE TO SSUMAO 



have stayed with us of their own choice. The goitred one even 

 gave us guttural thanlcs, prefacing every word with a sort of 

 bellow. 



Again we were in the vicinity of Lolos ; and by showing 

 those that we had already, made purchase of more manuscripts. 

 I was promised one upon linen, which would have been valuable 

 as older than the others, but, unhappily, this I never got. Sao 

 saw in a house a belt made of the skin of a tiger, cut off the 

 chest from paw to paw, leaving one claw on each. Such a 

 waistband, the Annamites say, is a good preventive to stomach 

 ills, and the Lolos attach the same efficacy to it. These tribes- 

 men were still of the Koua Lolos. They came in a century 

 ago from Chiping on the Yiinnan-Sen side, and maintained a 

 worship of the P^ti (Deity). Their garments were of home- 

 • made cotton, stained with a blue dye froni Lotsen. From them 

 we heard of " black dogs " in the neighbouring mountains that 

 climbed trees : query, bears ? 



On the 22nd (March) we came to the right brink of a rushing 

 torrent called the La-niou-ho, which was pronounced impassable by 

 the guide, who found the water up to his neck at the ford. The 

 sight of a collection of armed villagers on the far side did not serve 

 to encourage our men, and the makotou was for staying where we 

 were till the waters should decrease. As I saw no reason for ex- 

 pecting this, but rather the reverse, Roux and I put our animals at 

 it, and got over with some difficulty. The mules were then dragged 

 through by strings of five at a time, the men keeping on their lee 

 side to push their heads up stream. Only one broke adrift and was 

 swept down a rapid which was below : we hardly thought to recover 

 him, but being without his load he came through somehow, and at 

 the end of three-quarters of an hour we all mustered safe on the left 



67 



