worse. Their manner was extremely rough, and they dragged me away
from the dignified seat I had occupied in the place of honour in the
tent, and knocked me violently down on a heap of dung which they used for
fuel.

"That is the place for _plenkis!_" shouted one of the men, "not in the
best part of the tent."

They pounced upon me roughly, and though I made no resistance whatever,
they again tied my feet together, and another rope was fastened round my
knees. The ends of these ropes were left long, and each was given in
charge of a soldier.

No part of a Tibetan tent is over clean, but the spot where I was to rest
for the night was the dirtiest. Bound so tightly that the ropes cut
channels in my flesh, it was out of the question to sleep; but tenfold
worse than this was the disgusting fact that I soon got covered with
vermin, which swarmed in the tent. From this time till the end of my
captivity, or twenty-five days later, I suffered unspeakable tortures
from this pest. The guards, with their swords drawn, were all round me
inside the tent, and others were posted outside.

The night was full of strange events. Shouts could be heard at intervals
from a distance outside, and some one of the guard in the tent answered
them. They were to keep the men awake and make sure that I was still
there. One of the soldiers in the tent revolved his prayer-wheel,
muttering the following prayer so often that I learned it by heart:

Sangbo, sangbo
Yabni namla dupchenche
Yumni sala lockchendir
Lashin shukpi Kani san
Pashin tagpe Kani san
Yulo parba palui san
Tumlo parba wumboi san
Lassan lussan tamjeh san
Chedan Kordan jindan san
Takpeh yeiki polloh san
Takpeh yonki molloh san
Tzurzu Kaghi Tablah san
Arah, Banza, Nattitti
Jehmi jangla changzalu.

The almost literal translation of the words is this:

Oh, my God, I confess
That my father has gone to heaven,
But my mother is at present alive (_lit._ in the house).
First my mother sinned
And you took all men to heaven,
Then my mother and father sinned and I will go to heaven.
If all other men and I sin, and we withdraw our sins,
We are all liable to sin and the wumboo wood absolves (_lit._
washes all) from all sins.
On the North-west (Lassan) and South-east (Lussan) are the two
ways to heaven.
I read the holy book and purify myself,
My arm-bo