The Bon Homme County independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1904-1913, 1905-04-20

II there Is any place in the world
odder than the country described by
Mr.. Pcrcevai Landon In The Opening
OF Tnibet." published an. copyrighted
by Doubleday. Page 4 Co. explorers
ought to be set upon It's trail.
The country begins nj the level OF
the top OF Pixies Peak and runs mucn
higher. II Is 90 high that tea hollis
moro easily than ON the plain; that
sores on horses back heal with diff
fculty; that the natives. and even
visitors. are made III by air pressure
when they 60 down to the plains.
The highest town In the world Is
Phagri. whose inhabitants are also
the dirtie1t OF people. II Is too cold
10 keep clean. A battle was fought In
part $4,000 feet above the sea. where
u Is almost impossible even To walk.
Lhasa IN q city In the clouds. The
I-ama's palace Is q 'skyscrapcr" 800
feet long. II n seventy feet higher
than the golden cross Of St. Paul's
Cathedral: far taller than any build.
ing In New York.
Game birds are tame In Thibet even
when nominaily wild" The same
birds that the gun-shy IN Hindoostan.
where the Englishman has introduced
sport" are not afraid of man in TIL
bet. whose religion forbids the taking
of life.
Perhaps the prayer wheels are as
odd rs anything. You gain merit by
recitlng ON mani padmi hum" IL
Is easier To write IL out many times,
inclose the writing In n rattle like n
watchman's and twirl II as you walk.
Easier still to print II In fine type on
the thinnest paper and stun with
these prayers great water wheel
eight feet In diameter. Every time it
turns all those millions OF prayers are
prayed.
The TLibetan tells an arriving
guest TO sit and stick u the carpet"
The going guest Is asked To walk
slowly
The Thlbetans believe that when
the country was young Buddha saw
IL and observed that the people were
al monkeys. Why, ne asked. were
they not men and goou Buddhists!
What chance was there In such. a
country. they asked In reply, for men
TO cultivate their bo1ies, let alone
their souls? Then said Buddha: III
you will promise 10 become men and
Buddhists ! will give you a good and
fertile isnd to live In" or course
they promised. and Thibetans say
buuona made good; but visitors
doubt Il.
The 1hibetsns have discovered that
the present Car of Russia IL a rein
carnation OF Tsong-kapa. the reform
err; but this, though an odd role for the
Gar. is not half so odd AZ the rein.
carnation which they have thought.
fully arranged for the late Queen Vic
toria. She IL really Paldenlhamo. a
dark blue lady with three eyes. who
sits upon n chestnut mule, drinking
hood from a skull and trampllng IN
der foot the torn and mutilated bodies
Of men and women. Her crown Is
composed of skulls. her eye teeth are
four inches long. and the bride. girth
and crupper are living snakes kept in
position by the dripping skin OF n re.
Gently fiayed man" by this reincar.
nation idea the Thibetans mean 10
convey "the highest possible personal
compliment"
II a Thibetan woman marries q
man she marries also his younger
brothers. but not older ones. Under
this system. which has not its like
anywhere else in the world. population
steadily declines.
When there Is an earthquake the
Thibetans know just how It happened.
There are evil spirits: some OF
them are gigantic brutes mile in
height. with tiny mouths which pre-
vent them swallowing even the small.
est crumb; naturally they suffer from
hunger, and In their agonized with.
ings they are the immediate cause Of
earthquakes"