Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1900-06-04
TORTURED IN THIBET.
landor's Fearful Experience In the
Centre of Asia.

ATtnur 1enTy savage LanQOr, the
great Thibetian explorer now in this
country, has excited general interest
in his remarkable attempt to get to
the sacred city of Lhassa. Mr.. Landor
is a grandson Of the famous poet and
author, Walter Savage Landor. The
account Of his attempt to reach Lhas-
sa the capital of Thibet, and the
stronghold of Lamaistic Buddhism,
where no white man has ever been, is
deeply interesting,
A non-Buddhist is forbidden under
penalty of torture and death to enter
Lhassa. 1t is the most mysterious
city In the world. Thibet Is ruled by
the Grand Lama, a priest of the high
est orders. Some of the tales told
by the explorers are thrilling in the
extreme. There is much in them to
excite skepticism among those who
have neither had f1rst-hand acquaint-
ance with the Thibetans nor suffered
similar hardships. They have, how
ever been fully Investigated by per-
sons appointed for that purpose, and
while these have in a great measure
been obliged to depend for informa-
tion on the statements Of the traveller
himself, the confirmatory evidence is
overwhelming.
Mr.. Landor's objective was Lhassa.
He reached India in April, 1897, and
Garbyang toward the end of the fol-
lowing May. He had with him as at
tendants native following Of thirty
men. What he desired to do was to
enter Thibet by the Lippu LEX Pass,
but the Jong Pen, of Taklakot, pre-
vented him, and he was obliged to
oh hn 1f
the country and attempt to go through
the Lumpia Pass, which is at an alti-
tude of 1880 feet.
His guides, according to all ac-
counts, were bad lot, and with dis
missals and desertions their number
was presently reduced to two. Chan
don Sing and Mansing. With these
two and two yaks Mr.. Landor crossed
the Marian La Pass, and one of the
animals went down In the Mo Tsambo
River with the various provisions
and personal chattels which 1t carried.
Up to this time Landor doggedly kept
aloof from the inhabitants, but hun.
cry man doesn't wait on ceremony,
and finally he was obliged to go to the
village of TOKEN in search of food.
Here on August 20, while engaged in
bartering for fresh animals and sup
plies he and his companions were
overpowered and bound
Bound limbs and body with ropes,
he was knocked three times to the
ground. The natives stamped and
trampled upon him with their heavy
boots. With his two guides he was
dragged by the rope around his neck
to nearby camp. where a number of
soldiers surrounded him. He was taken
to tribunal composed Of a number
high Lamas, who ordered him to
kneel. He refused, and they castigat.
ed him with knotted and loaded leath-
er thongs. They they took his note
book and maps and demanded to
know why he had made sketches of
the holy land.
Following a nights confinement in
a loathsome and vermin.infested tent,
the explorer was brought forth by
number of soldiers What happened
after that Mr.. Landor tells in his own
graphic style as follows:
ooh shouted he, striking me on
the shoulder with his heavy hand, the
usual way Of addressing people in Thi-
bet. Oh repeated he again, before
the sun goes down to-day you will be
fiogged; they will break both your
legs; they will burn out your eyes and
will cut off your head. He accom-
panied each sentence with a gesture,
well illustrating his words. roared
with laughter. l could but think that
this merely said to intimidate me,
though the man seemed quite in earn
est, and this made me laugh all the
more"
Finally, after such suffering as led
him to believe that they were in earn
est. he was calmly informed that he
was to be beheaded Immediately. The
natives secured him to a prism-shaped
log on the ground his legs as wide
apart as they could be stretched, and
a man gripping him by the hair. Then
the explorer was subjected to further
tortures.
"The Pombo raised his arm and
placed a red-hot iron bar parallel to
and about an inch or two from my
eyeball," Mr.. Landor says, "and all
but touching my nose. Instinctively
/ kept my eyes tightly closed, but the
heat was SO intense that 1t seemed as
If my eyes, the left one especially,
were being desiccated and my nose
scorched. Though the time seemed
interminable, do not think that the
heated bar was before my eyes ac-
tually more than thirty seconds or so.
Yet it was quite long enough, for
when lifted my aching eyelids | saw
everything as in red mist. My left
eye was frightfully painful, and every
few seconds 1t seemed as If something
in front of 1t obscured its vision. With
the right eye | could still see fairly
well, except that everything, as I
have said, looked red instead of its
usual color"
THE executioner, now close to
explorer, held the sword with his
nervous hands lifting 1t high above
his shoulder. He then brought 1t
down to my neck, which he touched
with the blade, to measure the dis
tance as it were, for a clean, effective
stroke Then, drawing back a step, he
quickly raised the sword again and
struck blow at me with all his
might. The sword passed disagreeably
close to my neck, but did not touch me.
Apparently against his will, the exc
cutioner went through the same kind
OF performance on the other side of
my head. This time the blade passed
SO near that tho noint rappnt hoyo