202 IN TIBET AND CHINESE TURKESTAN.
Raju there with Dalbir Rai, who was in bad health. Raju had been ordered to go on quickly to Yarkand to buy ponies, but the Chow-Kuan had detained him to look after Dalbir Rai. After a brief rest I went to the Yamen and requested the Chow-Kuan to send on my letters to the Magistrate of Yarkand, informing him of my purpose to return to that town. The Khotan dignitary promised to comply with my request, and my anxiety on that point was set at rest.
Returning to my quarters, I was visited by three Pathan merchants trading with India. They gave me details of events which had happened at Yarkand since my departure from that town, and which showed the nature of the difficulties with which trade was hampered in that region. I had had in my service for a few months a man named Rastam, a Ladaki, who had asserted (I believe with truth) in the presence of Macartney that he was a British subject. This man had dealings with some Indian traders and, having become their debtor, could not, or would not, make payment. The traders complained to Macartney, who, as the Chinese officials invariably refused to take effective action in such cases, took the law into his own hands. Seizing Rastam's ponies, he had them sold by public auction, and the proceeds handed over to the creditors in part payment of their claims. As soon as Macartney left Yarkand, Rastam took his case to the Chow-Kuan, affirming that he was a Chinese subject, and that his ponies had been sold for much less than their value. The Chow-Kuan ordered the purchasers of the ponies to hand them over for re-sale at the next market, abused the Indian traders for having had recourse to Macartney, and for the attention and courtesy they had shown him, and forbade them to welcome him or any British traveller to Yarkand. Macartney at Kashgar could not undo the Chow-Kuan's work, but on his return to
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