India and Tibet : vol.1 / Page 379 (Color Image)

0379	India and Tibet : vol.1

CHAPTER XIX

IMPRESSIONS AT LHASA

WITH the signature of the Treaty a tense strain was

a released, and as I rode down from the Potala I felt at

last at ease. That evening General Macdonald, Major

Iggulden, his chief staff officer, and the rest of the military

staff entertained the Mission at dinner, and among the

memories of that eventful day will always be included the

M recollection of the warmly appreciative speech which

General Macdonald made on that occasion.

On the day following two Councillors visited me, and

I informed them that General Macdonald had agreed to

my request to release all prisoners of war. These were

paraded in front of the house, and General Macdonald

sent a staff officer to order their release and to give each

man R.s. 5 for work he had done.

The Sha-pés then produced two men who had been

imprisoned owing to assistance they had given to Sarat

Chandra Das, the Bengali traveller, and two men who

had been imprisoned for helping the Japanese traveller,

Kawaguchi. The two first men had been in chains for

nineteen years, and showed signs of terrible suffering. All

were in abject fear of the 'Tibetans, bowing double before

them. Their cheeks were sunken, their eyes glazed and

staring, their expression unchangeably fixed in horror,

and their skin as white and dry as paper. Their release

was entirely due to the exertions of Captain O'Connor.

I thanked the Sha-pés for their action, which I looked

upon as a sign that they really wished to live on friendly

terms with us. I trusted that they would never again

imprison men whose only offence was friendliness to

British subjects.

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