Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1901-10-28

raised the water bottle.
Your change, Tom" said I.
"Yes, of course said Tom, who was
absorbed in the story he was telling
me. He put out his hand as If to
pick the money up, but seemed to re-
member something, for he drew his
hand back suddenly.
"Good heavenw said he, "and I had
forgotten that"
He took out his handkerchief and
wrapped it around the forefinger of his
right hand. and then, with the fore
finger so covered, gently scraped the
money toward him, piece by piece,
and earnestly looked at each coin.
a, "Now, look here, Tom," said I. "this
Is very pretty story that you have
been telling me, but don't try and
give it an air of reality by a perform
ance like that"
"You can believe 1t or not, Just
as you like" said Tom, "but I tell
you, Fred, that piece of money is
coming along this way some day. I
have seen it once, and-I left it on
the table. You don't catch me touch
ing any coin while 1 am certain that
one is in circulation. But let me con-
clude what / was telling you.
"Urga Is one OF the most peculiar
places you could think of, and one of
our first duties was to present our
selves to the Grand Llama. We had
to get n palanquin, for it was only
meet that Europeans of our import
ance should go in state, and it was
while en- route that we suddenly came
TO the praying mill. This was a sort
Of roundabout with huge wooden
posts sticking out at the side, which
every Buddhist passing was supposed
% take hold of. and push the mill
,ound at least once.
"What caused Phil to do what he
lid then don't know, but something
he palanquin, make n run over to
| he mill, catch hold OF one of the
wooden posts and commence to push
t around Mt its topmost pace. The
lquare where the mill was erected
vas pretty well filed with people,
Ind when some Of those saw what
had been done they came rushing
.oward us, shouting and gesticulating.
Phil had undoubtedly committed n
,acrilege, and l was fearful for his
lafety. These fanatlcal Mongolians,
once their religion is assailed in any
shape or form, would certainly have
90 mercy upon the assailant.
Phil came hurriedly back to ME,
Jumped into the palanquin, and or
lered the bearers to get on. The
mob came to us, smashed in the doors
of the palanquin, dragged us out, and
for two minutes there was the live
Dlest fight on record going on. We
rot the worst of it, and bruised, bleed
Ing and insensible, were carted off to
prison.
eve were taken before the Grand
Llama, and then and there he Or
lered Us To be sent across the 81
berian frontier with the utmost dis
patch. The next day we were hur-
'ied along under an escort OF soldiers,
and it was not long before we arrived
1t the frontier, the town Of Miamat-
,hin, which really is the Mongolian
portion of Kiakta. We were taken
10 the yellow posts which marked
the actual frontier, and there the
folders of Llama stopped. We were
removed from the palanquin in which
we had been carried, and were COM
manded to sit down n few yards
from the posts. Not twenty feet away
were the black and white posts of
the Russians. and it was indeed some
thing to gladden. our eyes to see the
brown coat and the astrachan fez o1
the Russian Cossack who stood there
on sentry.
"Our guards spread themselves out
then there came forward a Bhuddist
priest, who began to talk to us in
iargon which, of course, we could
not understand. He finished at length
and produced from his robe a wire
on which were threaded some hun
dreds of brass cash. which the Chi
nese always carry. He took two OF
the cash off the wire and laid them
In front of us on the ground.
"Then the priest began waving his
arms about, and the Mongolians tool
out their hand prayer mills and be
gan turning them for all they were
worth. The voice of the priest ther
rose on the air. He said three OIL
four words and spat deliberately a
each of the coins, which had beer
put on the ground before us.
THAT was all. The priest depart
ed, the soldier escorted us to the
posts, the Russian sentry presented
his rife and we presented our pass
ports. We passed over and breathe(
the comparatively free air of Russia
Our first duty when we were in Kia
kta was to go straight to the Gov
ernor and lay our complaint befort
him. He was agitated when he heart
OF the ceremony at the frontier. ant
told us that the Bhuddist priest hat
put into circulation two coins whicl
had received the sun gods curse, ant
that these coins would circulate