National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books

and goats, when they are hurt, and even rub their own skins with it, when they are sore.
Several weeks later, we found more of this stone between Nako and Chang and Pindi Lal
bought a large quantity of it for two paisa. There we were told that in a pulverised
state this stone could be used internally and externally, and would cure all diseases both
real and imaginary.

Pindi Lal's treasure stood us in good stead in the course of our tour, for people
continually approached us with the desire to be cured of all kinds of diseases. Govern-
ment had granted us five rupees worth of Quinine and Castor Oil which had to serve as
a cure for everything. The fame of my medical skill which was, however, without any
foundation, spread far and wide. Once when travelling through the desert between
Bashahr and Spiti, and far away from any human habitation, I met with a youth and
an old woman, his mother, who said that they had travelled three days to meet me and
get medicine to cure the old woman's eyes. As I was a Christian lama, it was my duty to
render help, they said. All who have travelled in this country know how unpleasant it
is to unload boxes in the middle of a stage, open them, and have them loaded again. In
a case like the present there was, however, no escape, and I had to get at one of my
boxes to find some ointment which would be, as I hoped, a little more efficacious than
Castor Oil. Ordinarily Pindi Lal attended to the sick who were continually hovering
about our camp and made them happy by handing over to them one or other of our blue
stones with much genial advice.

The aspect of the village of Shipke is not different from that of the villages on the
other side of the border, but the appearance of the inhabitants undoubtedly is. Not only
does their dress show the genuine Tibetan cut, but also the pigtail is much in evidence
here. I am sure that the people of Poo also were in the habit of wearing pigtails at an
earlier date than 1650 A.D. But after they had become subjects of the Bashahr Raja,
they assumed the fashions of that State. The people of Shipke try their best to extract
as much money as possible from the few European travellers, they see. But as Mr.
Schnabel said, there is some excuse, for tax-collecting is carried on in the most cruel way
all over Tibet, and they have to part with all their few rupees, when the tax-collector
comes. Only recently news was brought to Poo that an unfortunate wretch whose taxes
had not been paid for the last three years was whipped to death at Shipke. No wonder,
that most of the Tibetans would prefer to become British subjects.

There are three ruined castles at Shipke.¹ The oldest of them is situated rather
high up above the village on the West. It is known by the name of mKhar-gog (broken
castle), and is built in cyclopean style (Plate XI, a). Only portions of two walls are
still in their original position. There are no traditions whatever current about this
castle. We bought an ancient stone axe of the type of the Ladakhi Kalam which was
asserted to have been found on the site of this stronghold. It is interesting that this
kind of stone implement was in use here also.