The Washington times., 1904-04-24

fcult than any We had seen in the
past, and great wastes of barren
country still to traverse. But we never
thought of our hardships. so great was
our thankfulness and relief. We final
ly reached the known country. and
brought up at Ladak formerly the
capital of Western Tibet. but now I'M
der the dominion of the Maharajah OF
Kashmir.
From Ladak We crossed over the
Himalayas to RawaI Pindi. where we
struck the railway. i've months after the
departure OF the caravan from Andijan,
in Russian Turkestan-"
The Pilgrims to Mecca.
After the. meeting with the Kirghsz
the party began TO run across occa-
sional travellers. some of the nomadic
tribe Of their rescuers and others native
inhabitants OF Tibet. Occasionally. too,
other travellers were encountered.
Among the last were n Chinese mer-
chant and his wife, both Mohammedans
from Manchuria, and then engaged in
making the holy pilgrimage 10 Mecca
They were mounted on the little
mountain ponies" said Mr. Crosby,
and had been already more tran. three
months on their way. The end of their
pilgrimage was at least five months
ahead. but they were not discouraged,
and went confidently and bravely on.
the wife no less enthused than her hus-
band, though she perhaps thought she was
barred from the delights of Paradise. an
entrance into which the man was to
make certain by his pious zeal We fur
nished them directions for their jour-
ney and all the help we could give-and
they passed out of our sight across the
SLOWS.
we met with nothing but Kindness
wherever We went. The savagery and
hostility To strangers of the Tibetan
people exists almost entirely in the
IMAGINATION of novelists and unfriendly
political writers. True, they do rot de-
sire the western civilization and they
resent the intrusion of white men in
their domestic affairs. They are salts
FED with their lot-even if the rest OF
the world Is nos-and desire nothing bet
ter.
Chinese Influence Exclusive.
"As a matter OF fact the excluSiveness
is more Chinese than Tibetan, for the
Chinese exercise a wide influence in the
country. They feel the incursion OF for
eigners into China has not been alto
gether happy in its results. ana the
tales the Chinese ENJOYS and other rep
resentatives have told have alarmed the
timid Tibetans and made them pitifully
anxious 10 avoid the same fate.
Il have never felt there existed any
real danger to England's sway in India
from a Russian descent across the Tibe-
tan plateau. but il is not the Tibetan
army. but its climate and structural
peculiarities that would prevent it, Ny
! own experience mas convinced me that
no army of men. unaccustomed 10 living
/ in the high attitudes OF the pIareau,
| could be maintained in that region. They
/ could not live ay.d certainly they could
not march or cot The difficulties Of
! transport are p. .fectly insuperable.
As the expedition Of Colonel Young
husband has s.monstrated. it is much
easier TO get into Tibet from India than
from Russia, and it has also shown
4 what weak resistance the soldiers OF tbs
/ Grand Llama are able to offer any mou-
ern ana well-disciplined force Armed
with matchlocks, swords and knives. and
similar weapons of medieval warfare.
4 they are as helpless as so many chill
dren with toy guns. They can be shot
/ down in heaps, as Younghusband has
/ also cenelusively shown.
"A Russian staff officer of my ac-
| quaintance, who seemed TO speak with
the utmost frankness, assured me his
country had no designs upon Tibet. The
same officer assumed that Russia would
/ extend and rivet her influence over all
] Turkestan, and this seems indicated by
/ the logic OF the situation and recent
/ events. But its climate will save Tibet
even from the ruthless paw OF the
| bear"
Trophies Of His Travels.
Many are the trophies Of his travels
i that Mr.. Crosby has brought back to
! Washington. The most valuable are
fragments Of ancient manuscripts. found
Continued on Fourth Page, this sectiOa.l