RECORDS OF THE JOURNEY
of coral, glass beads or stones in various shades of violet. Below this they hang a whole series of shining copper rings, used by the Chinese as thimbles, and the whole thing is finished off by a large button-shaped metal ornament, from which a tassel hangs. This long headdress almost touches the ground. Below this they also often fasten a bunch of small pockets embroidered in Chinese fashion by the women themselves. They wear the same Mongolian fur caps on their heads as the men. They have very little in the way of clothes, no special clothes for great occasions nor even any change of clothing. A new garment is only made when an old one has to be replaced. It was difficult to make ethnographical collections. Women assume this headdress when they marry, and do not remove it until they die. The bits of cloth with the corals, silver ornaments and bone buttons are removed from the dead, but the copper rings are left.
On visiting any of the Yögur households, you usually find the man at home. The women, however, are busy out-of-doors, looking after the cattle, fetching water etc. I saw nothing in the way of handicrafts, except weaving, basket making and the knitting of stockings. The two latter are done by the men. The stems of a coarse species of grass are used as knitting needles. The basket-work is rough and incomparably inferior to the Chinese. Cloth is woven by the women in long, narrow strips reminiscent of the work of Kirghiz women both in quality and style. Their primitive looms stand in the yard, the warp being fastened to two pegs stuck into the ground and the finished material wound round a third. The cloth is coarse, but, as in the case of the Kirghiz, of excellent quality. It is almost the only commodity they can sell and it is disposed of in Suchow and Kan-chow for 7o tchok (goo tchok = t lan) per Chinese ch'ih ( = t /2 arshin). There is no forging of iron and the Yögurs do not even make blankets, a Chinese being employed for this purpose. A few of the men are addicted to opium smoking.
They are a pastoral people with fixed abodes. There is no agriculture. Their only source of livelihood is cattlefarming. A large part of the stock of cattle belongs to Chinese in neighbouring villages. The Yögurs receive wool and some flour for herding them. Thread is wound and cloth is woven from the wool and small quantities are sold in the nearest towns.
Their principal food consists of flour and meal. Tea is made with salt, butter, cream and milk, when obtainable, and roasted wheaten flour is mixed with the tea. They make a paste of flour and water and have it as soup. Rice is made into porridge. Meat is a rarity. Sheep are only slaughtered on festive occasions, at which there seems to be very little gaiety. They have no musical instruments, nor do they dance or sing in chorus. Now and again you hear a tune being sung in the fields, but when I offered to have a sheep killed and arrange a tomasha, I was told that they never sang together. Later I found out that they sit and sing during the festivities that accompany their weddings. At my request one of the lamas sang to me. The melody was monotonous and the only word pronounced was »ovr» (= he or she has come). The lama explained that there were no songs, the singer using any words that occurred to him. Altogether the people gave an impression of being dejected and readily complained of their money troubles. They also talk rather unrestrainedly about their condition.
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