100 
BOOTAN. 
frame is hung up till the sheet is nearly dry: it is then taken off, and 
suspended upon lines. The paper thus prepared is of a much stronger 
texture, than that of any other country with which I am acquainted, 
as it is capable of being woven, when gilt by way of ornament, into 
the texture of silk and satins, to which use I have seen it frequently 
applied in the manufactures of China. 
The season of the rains, in these regions, is remarkably moderate; 
there are frequent showers, but none of those heavy torrents which 
accompany the monsoon to the southward in Bengal; so that we were 
seldom interrupted in our exercise both morning and evening; and 
the weather continued so temperate, that we were occasionally abroad, 
even at this season, during every hour of the day, without experiencing 
any inconvenience from the heat of the sun. An equal exposure, in the 
same parallel of latitude, in the low lands, would, most certainly, not 
have been hazarded with impunity. Notwithstanding the quantity of 
stagnant water, confined upon the fields around us, to sustain the 
advancing crops, and the abundant vegetation, both on the hills and 
every part of the valley, which philosophers pronounce to be infallible 
sources of bad air, yet we cannot with justice, question the salubrity of 
this situation. 
During our journey and residence among these mountains, we lost 
but one man by sickness, and his death could not fairly be imputed to 
the climate. I thought him a bad subject in the beginning. He was 
immoderately addicted to the use of opium; and its inebriating qua¬ 
lity, had given to his features that heated, wild, and fixed appearance, 
which commonly distinguishes those who intemperately use it. In the 
