1921.] Three Tibetan Repartee Songs. 293 
abandoned complains. A man is unfaithful. A woman 
hesitates between two claimants. man sings his own 
him 
(p. 152). This is one of the main types of the hain-teny. 
It is indeed remarkable to read this vivid description whic 
could not be improved upon as an analysis of the three speci- 
mens which we give below. And Mr. Paulhan surely had 
never heard of the gsung bshad.' — 
t strikes me that in the light of these productions from 
Tibet and Madagascar perhaps some new views may be arriv d 
at with regard to the vexed problem of the Malay pantun. 
But there is still another analogy which may be mentioned. 
It is that furnished by the songs of the Fins. There is a 
difference, of course, but there is also a similarity. 1 quote 
from Arthur Reade’s ‘ Finland and the Fins’ (London, 1915). 
In speaking of the ancient runo-singers, the author says 
(p. 113) :— 
“The songs were sung by two singers who sat opposite 
each other, clasped hands, and swayed forwards and backwards 
to the accompaniment of a harp. One sang a line, which the 
other repeated, thus giving the first one time to think out the 
next line. It is described in the opening lines of the poem 
{Kalevala] :— 
Let us clasp our hands together ; 
Let us interlock our fingers ; 
And our loved ones are instructed, ~ 
While the young are standing round us, 
Of the rising generation, 
Let them learn the words of magic, - 
And recall our songs and legends. 
It may be objected that the Finnish song is altogether on a 
higher level than that of the three gsung bshad here presented, 
1 The Merina term for the hain-teny, ohabolana, or word-example, is 
exactly the same as the Tibetan expression for proverb or maxim, 
45852" | gtam dpe, also word-example. Paulhan p. 2: 
