242 
TIBET. 
symmetry in his features, and a sweetness of expression in his counte¬ 
nance, which was highly prepossessing. His language was plain and 
unaffected, neither inflated with the exuberancy of Asiatic diction, nor 
yet deficient in urbanity; it was delivered with that mild unassuming 
manner, which strongly characterises Tibetians of good education. 
His action was void of gesticulation; it consisted in a slight movement 
of the body forwards, and a bending of the neck, assisted by the 
variations of an expressive and enlightened countenance; his arms 
were almost constantly folded beneath his mantle. 
His voice appeared to be injured by the loss of his teeth, which oc¬ 
casioned, I thought, rather an indistinct articulation, or perhaps this 
effect might in some degree be produced by a defect in the roof of the 
mouth. My interpreter, however, had no difficulty in understanding 
him, as he spoke slowly, and commanded a ready choice of words ; his 
dress was that of the religious order, which seems to be the regular 
habit of every attendant on the court. This simply consists of a vest 
of woollen cloth, without sleeves, of a deep garnet colour, and a large 
mantle, either of the same, or of a thinner texture, somewhat resem¬ 
bling a shawl. A sort of philibeg, and huge boots of Bulgar hide, 
lined either with fur or cloth, and designed as well to promote warmth 
in travelling, as for substantial use within doors, complete the dress. 
But though it surprised me at first, to see my friends trudging about 
the house, in their massy boots, yet I soon became sensible of their 
utility, as a defence against the chill arising in this cold climate, from 
their marble floors. The great scarcity of timber in Tibet, not admit- 
ing them to board the floors of their rooms, hence possibly arise 
