Page:1903 Lhasa and Central Tibet by G. Ts. Tsybikoff.pdf/5

 their Kingdom, are called Bä(l)-bo. They avoid marriage with Tibetans, for such ties mean death in their native land, and they therefore remain permanently in Tibet. The Kashmiris, on the contrary, always marry Tibetans, whom they first convert to Mohammedanism, and rear their children in that religion.

In administrative matters the Chinamen are responsible directly to the Amban, who resides and officiates at the southwest end of the city, near the ruins of the old city wall. The Nepalese and Kashmiris are subject to their elders, who serve as deputies in affairs before the central government of Tibet, with its jurisdiction. The Mongols, about 1,000 of them, are all monks, and only temporary residents, about 15 per cent of their number changing annually. They are distributed over the various monasteries according to their parishes. The Russian subjects among them in 1900 numbered 47, being Buriat Lamas from the region across the Baikal, with one Kalmuk from the Astrakhan government. They are subject to the monastery regulations.

The social classes are the nobility, the clergy, and the peasantry. The nobility consists of the descendants of former rulers of separate principalities and descendants of the fathers of Dalai Lamas and Panchens, who are invested by the Manchu court with the rank of prince of the fifth degree.

The princes, together with the monasteries and their parishes, are large landowners, and the peasants are serfs to them. The central government, or the Dalai Lama, owns, of course, more land and serfs than the classes named.

There is apparently no distinct military caste. Military service accompanies the privilege of special land grants, but we could not secure detailed information about it.

The houses are of stone or unburnt brick, cemented with clay. Most of those in the villages are one story high, while in the cities they are of two or three stories. The windows are without panes, or hung with cotton curtains, though in winter oiled native paper serves as protection from the cold. Fireplaces are used only for cooking. The houses have no chimneys, the smoke escaping as best it may through doors and windows, except that houses with upper stories have roof openings that somewhat alleviate the smoke nuisance, though equally a discomfort during rain. The principal fuel is dry manure of horned cattle and yaks. The clothing is of special design, made from native cloth in various colors. The poor classes wear white, the cheapest color; the richer people red and dark red, the soldiers dark blue, and yellow is used by higher dignitaries and princes. Women prefer the dark-red cloth. Of course, other colors are also met with. In proportion to their means, the Tibetans dress rather elegantly. Their jewelry is of gold, silver, corals, diamonds, rubies, pearls, turquoise, and other stones.