Southern Tibet : vol.3 / 102 ページ（カラー画像）

0102	Southern Tibet : vol.3
南チベット : vol.3

On Tieffenthaler's map there is, north of the Manasarovar, the likeness of a
mountain, obviously Kailas.¹

JOHN STEWART gives us in a letter to John Pringle the same feeling of un-
certainty about the mountains north of India. In his *Account of the Kingdom of
Thibet* he only tells us that this country lies to the northward of Hindostan, and
is all along separated from it by a range of high and steep mountains, properly a
continuation of the great Caucasus, which stretches from the ancient Media and the
shores of the Caspian sea, round the north-east frontiers of Persia, to Candahar and
Cassamire, and thence, continuing its course more easterly, forms the great northern
barrier to the various provinces of the Mogul empire, and ends, as we have reason
to believe, in Assam or China².² This description even reminds us of old Ptolemy.

Major RENNELL gives us another example of a desperate struggle to make the
best of the extremely meagre material existing at the time.³ We have seen that
he adopted the view of the Lama surveyors regarding the source of the Ganges
and still he had no confidence in their map. Discussing the position of Lhasa he
says: ³We have the history of the Lamas' map in du Halde, which is not altogether
favourable to its character; especially in the parts towards the source of the Sanpo
and Ganges. A close examination of its particulars, turns out still more unfavour-
able to it. For instance, the place where the Ganges enters the plains of Hindoo-
stan, is placed under the 28th degree of latitude; tho' it is known by our late ob-
servations, to be in about 30° . . . With respect to Hurdwar, the proof is positive
of its being 2 degrees farther to the south than it ought to be; and this furnishes
a strong presumptive one, that all the western parts of the map, are faulty in the
same proportion: and that the sources of the Ganges and Sanpoo, instead of being
between the 29th and 30th degrees of latitude; are, in fact, between the 31st and
32nd . . .³ As regards Lhasa, he says, d'Anville adopted the view of the Lamas and
placed it at 29°35' N. lat. This is on the detailed map; on the general map it is
at 29°10'. ³Father Giorgi, who travelled to Lassa from Bengal (and whose route
is expressed in my map) says the latitude of Lassa is about 30 degrees and a half,
and . . . it can hardly be in a lower parallel.³⁴ In this view Rennell was more
perspicacious than regarding the source of the Ganges. It does not matter that
he is mistaken in believing that Georgi travelled the route to Lhasa himself. Of
this itinerary Rennell says we are entirely in the dark as to the particular direction
of his course, which is not surprising if we remember how little Tibet was known
in Rennell's time.

In the following words Rennell expresses his opinion about Tibetan mountains
in general: ³Between Tassasudon and Paridrong, is a chain of mountains still higher

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