52 SIKHIM LAWS, 



killed, the poisonous snake should not be thrown down, the raven 

 should not be stoned, and the small turquoise should not be defiled. 

 Thus pure Lamas and monks should not be sworn. 



Magicians, shameless persons, women, fools, the dumb, and children 

 should, not be sworn. 



Men should be emj^loyed who know both parties and are intelligent 

 and truthful. Those willing to take an oath should be of equal rank. 

 When all are present, the case should fii'st be settled, if possible, by 

 arbitration. If this fails,, the ordeal either by hot stones or boiling oil 

 is resorted to. That by oil : The oil must be supplied by Government 

 and must be pure. It is boiled in a pan at least 3 inches deep. 

 In the oil a black stone and a white stone are placed of equal size and 

 weight. He who has to take the oath must first wash his hands 

 in water, in milk, and in widow's urine. His hand is then bound in a 

 cloth and sealed. This is done a day or two before the ordeal in order 

 to give him a chance of confessing. The vessel with the boiling oil is 

 then placed so that the stones cannot be seen, and he has to take one 

 out. If he takes out the white one without any burn, he wins his case. 

 He who gets the black stone is sure to be burnt and loses his case. 

 Should he who gets the white stone be slightly burnt, it means he has 

 partially spoken the truth and wins half his case. 



That by hot stone: The stone is made hot by the blacksmith, 

 taken out of the fire with tongs, and placed on a brass dish. The 

 man's hands are washed as before, examined to see what marks there 

 are on it produced by labour, and the hot stone placed in the palm. 

 With the stone he must walk 4 to 7 paces. His hand is then bound up 

 and left for 3 to 7 days. On examination if there are no marks, or if 

 there is a long mark called rdo-lam, he wins his case. He also wins 

 his case if the stone bursts three times in being heated. It depends on 

 the number of marks how much of his case he wins, 



A cloth and a rug have to be paid as expenses, and the brass 

 vessels go to the blacksmith. In order to test the oil for boiling, a 

 grain of barley is thrown in : if it flies into the air, the oil is ready. 



Whilst placing his hand in the oil or holding the hot stone, a state- 

 ment in writing of the case is placed on the person's head. 



The ordeal by oil may be gone through without using the stone. 



Mud and water can be used in place of oil. Hot iron used to be 

 employed in place of the stone, but is now discontinued. 



No. 12.— Theft, 



For taking a Jongpen's or other great man's things, 10,000 times 

 their value has to be given in return. For taking a Lama's things 



