loose red jacket and striped Lepcha kirtle, wore a very curious
national black hat of felt, with broad flaps turned up all round:
this is represented in the right-hand figure. A somewhat similar bat
is worn by some classes of Nepal soldiery.] who had marched valiantly
beside us for twenty days, carrying the muskets given to the Rajah
the year before by the Governor-General, now lowered their arms, and
vowed that if a red coat crossed the Great Rungeet, they would throw
down their guns and run away. News arrived that the Bhotan
inhabitants of Dorjiling headed by my bold Sirdar Nimbo, had arranged
a night attack for our release; an enterprise to which they were
quite equal, and in which they have had plenty of practice in their
own misgoverned country. Watch-fires gleamed amongst the bushes, we
were thrust into a doubly-guarded house, and bows and arrows were
ostentatiously levelled so as to rake the doorway, should we attempt
to escape. Some of the ponies were sent back to Dikkeeling, though
the Dewan still clung to his merchandise and the feeble hope of
traffic. The confusion increased daily, but though Tchebu Lama looked
brisk and confident, we were extremely anxious; scouts were hourly
arriving from the road to the Great Rungeet, and if our troops had
advanced, the Dewan might have made away with us from pure fear.

Illustration--LEPCHA SEPOYS. TIBETAN SEPAYS IN THE BACK-GROUND.

In the forenoon he paid us a long visit, and brought some flutes, of
which he gave me two very common ones of apricot wood from Lhassa,
producing at the same time a beautiful one, which I believe he
intended for Campbell, but his avarice got the better, and he
commuted his gift into the offer of a tune, and pitching it in a high
key, he went through a Tibetan air that almost deafened us by its
screech. He tried bravely to maintain his equanimity, but as we