1839.] Capt. Pemberton's Mission to Bootan, 1837-38. 267 



every thing is thrust, from a handful of rice to a walnut, from a live 

 fish to a bit of half putrid dried meat. Tobacco is carried in a small 

 pouch suspended from one side. 



A dha, or straight sword of a heavy description, is worn by all who 

 can afford it, and the belt of this secures the loose doublet about the 

 waist, and prevents the innumerable deposits therein from falling down. 

 Those who cannot wear dhas from poverty, wear ridiculous looking 

 knives, which dangling from the belt have a very absurd appearance. 

 It is lucky that the people are not quarrelsome, and not inclined to 

 resist the followers of chiefs, otherwise from the men being so generally 

 armed, and so generally addicted to drinking, assaults might be ex- 

 pected to be of common occurrence ; I only saw however one instance 

 in which a man had been wounded. I certainly shuddered at times, 

 expecting every moment to see adverse parties multiply each other by 

 division ; but latterly I was persuaded that cutting blows were rarely 

 resorted to. The end of these disputes, which barring the blows 

 were very fierce, was always brought about by the arrival of some 

 third person, who by espousing one, espoused the stronger cause, and 

 when this was done the weaker withdrew, or was made to withdraw 

 by blows with the flat side of the weapon. 



The accoutrements of a man of war differ, so far as his mere dress 

 goes, in nothing. His defences consist of a well quilted iron skull-cap, 

 which, when out of danger, is worn slung on the back ; lappets are 

 attached to it which defend the face — perhaps from cold. They also 

 carry circular leathern shields, apparently of rather good manufacture. 

 Their weapons of defence are first the dha, which is a heavy unwieldy 

 weapon, without any guard. They are worn on the right side, 

 but this to us awkward mode of wearing does not hinder a Bootea 

 from disengaging his weapon readily, the sheath being first seized by 

 the left hand. A blow from this weapon must cause a desperate 

 wound, and judging from their quarrels, in which not a vestige of any 

 skill in self-defence was shewn, the first blow, when actually struck, 

 must decide the matter. Their fire arms, which are all matchlocks, 

 and which vary in size from musketoons to huge wall pieces, are con- 

 temptible : they are of Chinese manufacture. Their powder, which 

 they manufacture themselves, is powerless ; indeed in one sense it may 

 be considered as positively lessening power, for Captain Pemberton 

 and Lieut. Blake ascertained that in ordinary charges it could not cause 

 the discharge of the wad, and hence it actually weakened the cap. 

 To remedy this badness they put in very large charges, but after all they 

 seem to depend more on the effect of the noise than on that of the 

 missile, for so little reliance is placed on this, that the marksman is 



n n 



