Qn Monday afternoon, November 28, I was granted an interview by. the Panchen Lama, or, as he 3s generally known in the Wes Tashi Lama of Tibet, the vi of the Dalai Lama and spiritual head of the Lama church of abou: The "interview residence in the modern build-ug erected at the time of Yuan Shihekai and used by hin and later by Chang Tso-lin for the residence of their womenfolk. This building thas since been allowed to fall into complete disrepair, and it was striking contrast to see a long row strip of yellow cloth Inid down for His Holiness from the entrance, through the bare and dilapidated reception-rooms, to his private apartments, along which he walked on his return from a prayer-meeting in the North Ci Together with other persons waiting for an interview I was shown into a large reception-room where We were each served with a cup of tan tea, poured out of huge brass and. pewter ten-pots studded with turquoises. As to this Tibetan tea, a mixture of brick ten, butter, and salt, 1 found it neither unpalatable as some travellers Tibet have made out, nor, on other hand, 0 delicious as certain foreigners who shared it with me Kept on exclaiming. It tasted tome ike any ordinary kind of thick soup, only, as it happened, I was not feeling particularly inclined for thick Soup at that time of the after-
A:—Outer Mongolia ix at present such a disordered and irreligious ate, that the Living Buddha cannot appear there at present. There is not likely to be a re-birth, until vgs settle down again.
then became more bold and, although I had been warned not to talk polities, and especially not to mention anything to do with the Dalai Lama between whom and him there is said to be no love lost, the interview finished on the following note:
How long has His Holiness (Fo Yeh Buddha was the term used) been away from Tibet?
Ten years.
Has he any news from there? I hear there was some trouble at What was the 'A: T have been away so long that I do not know very well what has been happening there during my Anyhow, things sre now quite quiet there again.
Q:—What was the cause of the recent fighting in Hsikang between the Chinese and Tibetans'? ces over boundaries. It is now over.
Haw was it settled?
Al—A\ Treaty has been signed between "the two parties and. the boundaries have been definitely fixed.
was about to ask him for his opinions on this frontier question when he put in, that he had no Jdirect information from that. part. of the world and that he did not concern himself) with those ques:
After a short wait I was led into A small ide-room furnished European style, the chairs and sec-tees covered with yellow silk. The Panchen Lama entered almost immediately with short rapid steps, T presented him with the usual cere monial scarf of blue silk and was given one in return. He then took his seat. on a foreign chair at small table, like any ordinary mortal, and beckoned me to be seated.
The Panchen Lama is a short, foutish man with a frank, pleas ut expression, a light complexion with a tinge of red-in his cheeks, clean-shaven except, for a small moustache, and with the usual Drownish-green eyes of the Tibetan which ave so noticeably different. from the black almond-shaped eyes of the Chinese, He was dressed in splendid yellow silk robes, but avithout ornaments of any kind and Without any head-dress. During our: interview a Tibetan priest, a. tall intel agent-looking man dressed an olive-brown robe with a black "makuatz," and the Chinese P'thinicoremained standing all the time. The Panchen Lama only speaks a few words of Chinese, so four conversation had tobe carried on in Chinese chiefly through the interpreter.
We started off with the usual preliminaries about health, ago, and 40 forth. It-appears that his Health was not quite satisfactory, ashe Wns still suffering from toothache. His age, he informed me, was fifty: one, "My comment that he didn't ook {tin this. case. not merely ompimentary ase certainly does not look anything like fifty—seemed. to. give him considerable. satisfac: tions" (This. struck me as strange There, ie one other matter of interest to me, Englishman, about which ness would po lews said that, for a long time, a struggle has been going on between. Eng: land "and China for influence Tibet which is reflected there by a pro-English and a pro-Chinese party, and that His Holiness is inclined to support the latter?
A:—That question is not so, simple as you put it. On the one hand, Tibet has always had close and friendly relations ith you English in India and direct commercial relations with you, because the. pro: vince in which the capital, Lhase, situated is much closer. to In than to China. On the other hand, it cannot be denied that Tibet has Jong had close relations with China which are based on historical ase sociations ever since the days of Chien Lung. So you cannot be surprised that in many things we tend towards Chinese influence, For myself however, I do not take part in polities and am not the head of any party whatsoever, and am certainly not antagonistic to. you English people who treated me very Kindly, when 1 was in India some Years ago.
That is very good news. But! I have still one question. I hope His Holiness does not object to my being quite frank? (He made a gesture for me to continue.) It has been repeatedly stated in' the forand Chinese press "here that Holiness was no friend to the because he considered that' so, may I enquire the otievances against us English are?
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.