sence,
giving us a grammatical commentary upon each expression, as he proceeded;
this was our lesson for the day, which we first transcribed several
times, in order to break our hand into the Thibetian writing, and then
chanted, in the manner of the Lamaseries, until the whole page was
thoroughly impressed upon the memory. In the evening our master heard us
recite the portion of dialogue he had written for us in the morning, and
rectified our defects of pronunciation. Sandara acquitted himself of his
task with talent and amiability. From time to time in the course of the
day he would, by way of recreation, give us details full of interest
respecting Thibet and the Lamaseries he had visited. It was impossible
to listen to the descriptions given by this young Lama without
admiration; nowhere had we heard a person express himself with greater
facility or a more winning manner; the simplest, commonest things became
in his mouth picturesque and full of charm; he was especially remarkable
when he sought to induce upon others any particular view of his own upon
some subject in which he really felt an interest. His eloquence was then
really powerful.

After having surmounted the first difficulties of the Thibetian language,
and familiarized ourselves with the expressions in ordinary use, we
proceeded to give our studies an altogether religious direction. We got
Sandara to translate for us into the sacred style of his language some of
the leading Catholic forms, such as the Lord's Prayer, the Salutation,
the Apostles' Creed, the Commandments: and thereupon we took occasion to
explain to him the general truths of the Christian religion. He seemed
all at once struck with this new doctrine, so different from the vague,
incoherent propositions of Buddhism. Before long he attached so much
importance to the study of the Christian religion that he entirely laid
aside the Lama books he had brought with him, and applied himself to the
acquisition of our prayers with an ardour that made us truly joyful.
From time to time in the course of the day he would interrupt what he was
about in order to make the sign of the cross, and he practised this
religious act in a manner so grave and respectful that we thoroughly
believed him to have become a Christian at heart. The excellent
tendencies he manifested filled us with the most lively hopes, and we
gratefully viewed in Sandara an incipient apostle, destined one day to
labour with succes