1849.] Journal of a trip to Si/am. 511 



Lloyd at the Took Ghat, 12 years ago, the meeting took two years to 

 arrange ; and, lastly, — yet I think that was the last reason, — the Boota- 

 nese may be jealous, and annoyed at his friendliness with me, and come 

 down upon him for it accordingly.* Certainly this Dewan is the 

 aptest story-teller I know of, — a pattern minister, I reckon, for a Bhotia 

 Raja. His qualifications may get him promotion across the snows, and 

 I hope he may get it soon. I think he is not likely to come by much 

 honor in his connection with the British government ; as yet he has 

 always done the reverse. f I am right glad for the sake of my temper, 

 and patience that I am not entrusted with any special matter of busi- 

 ness to be transacted on this occasion ; as it is, I can wait to see the 

 end of his lies, and be none the worse. I have information however, 

 which leads me to think that his position is just at present none of the 

 easiest to maintain ; and is a precarious one for the future. He is not 

 at all in favor with the lately married Lama, the Raja's eldest son, and 

 who is now acknowledged by all the chiefs and people as the heir- 

 apparent, If the old Raja dies before the son, farewell to the Dewan- 

 ship of my hopeful host. He got his present influence over the Raja, 

 through the ladies, one of them a relation of his wife's, and by alienating 

 the Raja from his eldest son, to whom he has not even spoken for years. 

 The marriage lately effected took place in spite of the Dewan, and was 

 all arranged in Thibet by Aden Chiboo, his enemy, the right hand man 

 of the heir -apparent, and the present destined Dewan for the new 

 reign ; but he puts his trust in princes, and has a crafty fellow to deal 

 with in the meantime, and that is the present minister, who is backed 

 by the Raja, and all the female interest of the household, in his purpose 

 of putting the illegitimate son on the throne at the death of his father, 



* To all this, I replied, that I needed proof of the Raja's own inability or unwill- 

 ingness to see me, and that I would wait for it at the Teesta, or go to the Durbar, if 

 he would let the passage of the river be as free to me as it was to every one else. 



Late at night he sent me a letter bearing the Raja's seal, and dated from the Dur- 

 bar, in which he excused himself from seeing me ! I pronounced it to be none of 

 the Raja's, and avowed my purpose of regarding it as a manufacture of the Dewan's 

 until I had assurance from the Raja of the contrary. This resolve decided him on 

 leaving matters alone, and he accordingly produced the Raja, who at the very time 

 I got the letter had been two days en route to the ghat to see me. The purpose of 

 the Dewan was to drive me away in anger at the Raja. 



t See Review of Sikim Politics, Nov. 184G. 



