IN THE HIMALAYAS 85 



cowshed, but we were very glad of them, and we 

 could have a fire lighted to dry ourselves, though 

 there was no proper outlet for the wood smoke, 

 which made our eyes smart. My bedroom was 

 very dark and the frame of the glassless window was 

 only about six inches square; the servants had a 

 room as well, and we all thought we were in luxury. 



Two of the servants wished to leave on account of 

 all the bad weather we were having. One man gave 

 of course the usual reason for wanting to go : his 

 mother was just dead and he must go and bury 

 her we have had a servant whose mother died 

 seven times and his father thirteen the other man, 

 Ganga Din, said he was going to die, and if we did 

 not give him more coats and blankets and clothes 

 generally he certainly would die. We had given 

 him and all of them the usual supply at starting, 

 but he continued to warn us daily about his approach- 

 ing end, till at last Ned told him that he caused us 

 so much anxiety by his constant deaths that he 

 had better go, but if the worst came to the worst, 

 and he died before he could start for home, we 

 would make all suitable arrangements for his decent 

 burial. The weather improved and Ganga Din 

 thought better of it. 



We went over the Bhot Kol pass and down to 

 Suru and Parkatze and camped, after a fortnight's 

 marching, under the Gonpa, the monastery of 

 Rangdum. The Gonpa stood on a hill, and the hill 

 on an island, as just above it the river branched 

 into two and then joined again below. To reach 

 mainland one had to wade or go on pony-back. 



