CULTURAL = RELATIONS ON THE KANSU-TIBETAN BORDER

CULTURAL RELATIONS ON THE = KANSU-TIBETAN=20 BORDER

Robert B. Ekvall

The University of Chicago = Press

1977

FOREWORD

The account that follows was prepared by Mr. Ekvall as a result of = his=20 participation in the Seminar on Racial and Cultural Contacts held under = the=20 auspices of the Division of the Social Sciences at the University of=20 Chicago. During 1987-38 the Seminar was maintained under the = direction of=20 the undersigned. Mr. Ekvall delivered a paper to the Seminar: this = was=20 discussed, and thereafter Mr. Ekvall expended his contribution into the = longer=20 document that is here published. The Department of Anthropology of = the=20 University is to be thanked for allowing the inclusion of the paper in = one of=20 its publication series, and has provided funds to make publication = possible.

The account throws light upon a number of little known groups living = in an=20 isolated part of the world. The information we have on the peoples = of this=20 area is very meager. Students of society will welcome new = dependable facts=20 about them. It should be stated, however, that the materials = included here=20 are only a small part of what the author knows about the groups on the=20 Kansu-Tibetan border. In spite of the fact that his memory is = aided by few=20 notes, he is able to reproduce in remarkable detail the characteristics = of life=20 in that area as he lived it for many years in great intimacy with the = natives=20 and in possession of the necessary linguistic knowledge. We asked = Mr.=20 Ekvall to begin the preparation of an account of the composition and = mode of=20 life of one nomadic Tibetan tent-group in which he had lived; this = second=20 manuscript, as yet unpublished, indicates the amount of detailed = descriptive=20 information which he is able to produce.

It is to be hoped that Mr. Ekvall will continue his study of the = area. =20 As a result of political developments in the East, the region, long = isolated, is=20 being brought into a larger organization of society, characterized = by the=20 development of international relations, of more organized warfare, and = of wider=20 cultural contacts. It would be well if these changes could be = followed as=20 they occur by one already familiar with the old life.

The Seminar on Racial and Cultural Contacts has for three years = served as a=20 forum within which members of the staff of the Division interested in = the=20 effects of contacts between societies and cultures could submit their = varying=20 points of view to criticism. It has also served as a place in = which=20 observers of particular cases of such contacts could present their facts = with=20 the hope of improving understanding of the relevance of the of the later = sort;=20 indeed, it is the clearest possible example, for the author came to his = facts=20 with no previous theoretical interests in the nature of social = change. He=20 is an excellent reporter of the facts as simple facts. So his = account=20 becomes a test of the possibility of relating such relatively unguided=20 particular observations to more general considerations.

In summarizing his observations for himself, Mr. Ekvall has called = our=20 attention to some of the advantages of the region for study of general=20 characteristics of inter-group contacts. Within a small area are = to be=20 found easily identifiable ethnic groups, each with its own culture and = social=20 organization. Among these groups the lines of contact are simple = and may=20 be isolated and described effectively. Furthermore the nature of = the=20 contacts between any two of these ethnic groups is interestingly = different from=20 that characterizing the contacts between any other two. The = diagram at the=20 end of the paper gives Mr. Ekvall's designations of these = differences. =20 Whether or not we are to agree with these designations, we must = recognize that=20 these relatively clean-cut differences within a single area and larger = societal=20 framework provide a sort of concentrated experiment in the field of = culture=20 contacts.

Further observation and consideration might result in more fruitful=20 comparisons. What, for example, are the differential effects of = modes of=20 subsistence as compared with religious differences in determining the=20 character of ethnic relations and of both as compared with the fact = of=20 occupation of a common territory? Of the four groups involved = in this=20 report the nomadic Tibetans and the Moslem Chinese differ most sharply = from one=20 another in language, custom and religion, yet are economically useful to = one=20 another and maintain friendly relations and influence one another. = On the=20 other hand the Moslem Chinese and the non-Moslem Chinese dwelling in = separate=20 but neighboring villages, differ very little except in religion, and the = relations between these two groups are expressed in hostility and open=20 conflict. In the formation of the four major constellations of=20 relationship what have been the roles of numbers and vitality of=20 population, of ethnic heritages, religious traditions and practices, = forms of=20 economic organizations and competition for resources?

Mr. Ekvall's preliminary characterizations of the fourfold = relationships=20 suggests the possibility of recognizing more generally applicable = categories in=20 terms of which to classify ethnic relations, as well as of discovering = basic=20 factors and processes which make for fundamentally different = relations=20 between one people and another. The indicated procedure is the = comparison=20 of one paired combination of ethnic groups with all the other pairs in = turn. Mr.=20 Ekvall characterizes the relationships between Chinese and Moslems as = one of=20 segregation and hostility, whereas that between sedentary Tibetans is = one of=20 infiltration. Whereas the relationship between nomadic Tibetans = and=20 Moslems involves trade and diffusion of culture, that between nomadic = Tibetans=20 and sedentary Tibetans involves superordination and subordination. = These=20 characterizations are not to be regarded as mutually exclusive and = exhaustive,=20 yet there is sufficient reason to think that the relations of any = one=20 people to any two others in this area are so different as to warrant = further=20 investigation with a view to the discovery of some major factors in = bringing=20 about types of ethnic relationship.

The four groups differ notably, it appears, in the respective = resist=20 exhibited by the groups to outside influence and also in the areas of = life in=20 which change most easily occurs. The Mohammedans and the nomadic = Tibetans=20 seem to be tough, or resistant groups. In contrast the Chinese = seem to be=20 rather soft, but with a kind of cultural depth that yields continuity = and=20 permits the Chinese culture, with a minimum of conflict, to penetrate = into that=20 of other groups. It might be possible to develop more rigorous = ways of=20 studying these relationships In terms of these differences in = psychological=20 orientation.

Particular interest attaches to the relations between the sedentary = and=20 nomadic Tibetans. Older theories of cultural development regarded = nomadic=20 life as older than sedentary agricultural life, and presumable as one to = be=20 abandoned for the advantages of the latter. Here, however, is a = situation=20 in which the nomads not only consider themselves as superior but are=20 acknowledged to be superior and in which the individual is regarded as = improving=20 his condition if he leaves faming and becomes a nomad. The = situation can=20 be matched elsewhere, but here is one place in which it could well be=20 studied. It would be particularly interesting to study the lines = of=20 cleavage between the nomadic and the sedentary sections of the same = tribe and to=20 make a thorough analysis of their likenesses and differences. = The=20 differences in mutual aid, in the position of women, and in the amount = and=20 character of wealth have been merely alluded to by Mr. Ekvall. = They=20 furnish occasion for much further research.

Attention might well center on particular aspects of ethnic = relations,=20 considering these in each of the four pairs of groups in turn. A=20 fundamental group of problems is raised by Mr. Ekvall's observations on = matters=20 of population. The relative fertility of the Chinese and the = apparent low=20 reproduction rate of the Tibetans represents a striking contrast. = The=20 Tibetans are well organized and aggressive, while the Chinese are less = well=20 organized and much less resistant; yet the Chinese penetrate the Tibetan = area=20 and gain in numbers as the Tibetans lose. Mr. Ekvall refers to = suggestions=20 in the literature as to the effect of horseback riding upon = reproduction. =20 The roles of disease and of diet are obviously to be reckoned for stud = of the=20 relationship between standard of living and number of children including = not=20 merely the birth rate but the survival rate. The effects which = race,=20 religion and various cultural factors have upon the vigor and survival = of a=20 people seem to be particularly inviting matters for study in this=20 area. In the case of the Moslems the form of family life is an = obviously=20 important element. Perhaps also the attitudes toward death and = danger,=20 towards survival and solidarity, toward the ancestors and toward small = children=20 are to be related to the population situation.

The role of trade in the economy and social life of the people seems = to be=20 particularly well adapted for study in this area where trade bears some = of the=20 traits of the more primitive commercial relations that existed long ago = in=20 Europe. The extent to which the cultural tradition operates to = establish=20 certain advantages on the part of one group over another in trade = relations is=20 an interesting issue. Another contribution to the economic life = from the=20 side of tradition is provided by the conventional guest-host relations = referred=20 to by Mr. Ekvall in which the chains of trading connections are forged = out of=20 personally defined linkages between men in settlements distant from one=20 another.

The local forms of warfare also invite particular study. It = would be=20 interesting to discover the functions of feuds, raids and punitive = expeditions=20 in the larger society of the area. The superiority of the Moslems = in this=20 respect is noteworthy.

This study of Mr. Ekvall represents a case of a marginal area. = Because=20 of that fact, and because of the interests of the Seminar, it emphasizes = contacts and interrelations between societies and cultures rather than = the=20 independent development of isolated groups. Nevertheless it calls=20 attention to the fact that although each group is in contact with = others, each=20 has a culture and a life of its own, and undergoes internal development = and=20 change at the same time that contact from without impinges on it. =20 Ethnographic depictions of primitive societies not infrequently = underestimate=20 the role of contacts and variations due to contacts. Reading this = account=20 of Mr. Ekvall's we may over-emphasize contact at the expense of = independent=20 development, Mr. Ekvall knows better than to do this. In the = supplementary=20 memorandum not yet published he has brought forward facts indicating = that=20 particularly within the Tibetan group there is great range for = individual action=20 and initiative. The trends of Tibetan life are largely determined by the = originating action of Tibetans, with no necessary reference to the = effects of=20 contacts with non-Tibetans. As compared with other societies, that = of=20 these nomads places an unusual emphasis upon individual = enterprise. A=20 man's role in the group is largely independent of his membership in any = familial=20 or other group. Mr. Ekvall's unpublished account impressed one = with the=20 importance that must be attached to powerful personalities in the life = of=20 personal the Tibetan group. Apart from matters of culture contact, the = Tibetan=20 society is apparently one in which it would be profitable to study the = way in=20 which new personal relations emerge between people giving rise to new=20 orientations upon the part of such individuals and tending to undermine=20 customary ways of activity. But these last remarks are introduced = here=20 merely as a sort of caveat; the reader of the pages that follow will not = find=20 this problem presented; he will encounter a description of fourfold = inter-ethnic=20 relations. For this straightforward account Mr. Ekvall is to be = thanked.

Herbert Blumer

Ernest Manheim

Robert Redfield

W. Lloyd Warner

Louis Wirth

University of Chicago

PREFACE

I was born on the Kansu-Tibetan border and lived most of the first = fourteen=20 years of my life in that region. I returned to that region as a = missionary under=20 the Christian and Missionary Alliance in 1928 and, with the exception of = one=20 year (1927-1928), lived and worked among the peoples of this part of=20 northwestern China and northeastern Tibet until 1936. The years from = l923 tol925=20 were spent principally among the Chinese and Moslems of the region; from = 1928 on=20 I was for the most part among the Tibetans, though necessity or choice=20 frequently sent my wife and me to the Chinese side of the border.

Our first station was Titao, in Kansu, where I was in charge of the = school=20 work of the mission. Here, as part-time courtesy teacher in the = government=20 normal school, I was fortunate enough to be in close contact with the = scholars=20 and intellectuals of the region. Other evangelical work took me on many = trips=20 through the Chinese and Moslem districts described in this paper and = created=20 many opportunities for close association with the inhabitants of the = Chinese and=20 Moslem villages. Assignment to various missions brought me in touch, as = well,=20 with some of the Moslem military and religious teachers.

In the summer of 1924, acting as interpreter, I went into the field = where the=20 Swedish archaeologist, Dr. J. G. Andersson, was engaged in uncovering = some of=20 the rich finds of late Neolithic culture. That winter we lived for some = time in=20 a Tibetan village, where we began to study the Tibetan language. Later = in 1925=20 we were assigned to the station of Taochow Old City, immediately on the = border=20 of the Tibetan country; here we continued our study of the language and = made=20 trips of exploration among the inhabitants of the former Tibetan = province of=20 Amdo.

The work of exploration initiated at this time and continued during = much of=20 the period since was undertaken primarily as pioneering work in the = cause of=20 missions in new and unexplored areas. Ekit, in studying the language, = tribal=20 organization, customs, conditions of life, distribution of population, = methods=20 of travel, and in reporting on such information, we = secured=20 many data of geographical, ethnological, and anthropological = interest. =20 Linguistic problems are closely boundup with missionary endeavor. My own = medical=20 work, augmented by the experience of a three months' tour of the Tibetan = country=20 as interpreter and sponsor for a missionary doctor, enabled me to note = various=20 physiological phenomena associated with health, regional incidence of = disease,=20 and population growth and decline. Later, I was called into = various tribal=20 councils (once, in the course of a border war with the Chinese, I even = acted as=20 a member of a peace party in making a treaty) and thus had opportunity = to=20 acquire much inside information concerning the political and tribal = organization of the Tibetans and many details of the administration of = their=20 affairs.

Our return to this region in the fall of 1928 brought us for a time = into=20 close association with the Moslems and their leaders in the rebellion of = 1928-1930. The following spring (that is, the spring of 1929), we = again=20 entered the Tibetan country, more or less as refugees, and remained = throughout=20 the fall and winter in the village of Ga-ding-o, in Sam-tsa Rong, = sharing the=20 communal life of it twenty-three families. From there we undertook = a=20 series of trips among the Sam-tsa and other nomadic tribes and = eventually=20 settled in the lamasery center of Lhamo. It was not as having = passport=20 rights and privileges, but rather as claiming and receiving favor under = the=20 Tibetan host-guest system of hospitality, that we were able to make this = our=20 base station from 1930 until we left for the United States in 1935.

Our work consisted largely of visiting among the nomadic and = sedentary tribes=20 of the region. We wore Tibetan clothes and attempted to live as = much like=20 the natives as possible-our tents pitched alongside theirs in the = encampment=20 ring of tents-moving when they moved and sharing the routine of nomadic = life=20 with them. Thus, with our medical and first-aid work we had = opportunity=20 not only to observe the externals of their life but to learn about many = of the=20 troubles and problems which among themselves would ordinarily not be=20 mentioned. In addition we made routine trips to both Chinese and = Moslem=20 centers and to aboriginal tribal communities as well. In the = summer of=20 1926, we visited the independent kingdom of Ngawa, beyond the knee of = the Yellow=20 River; a second, fairly long stay in that principality, in 1932, = included a=20 visit to one of the Golok tribes, where we became acquainted with some = of the=20 Jarong aboriginals.

From early childhood I have spoken Chinese almost as fluently as=20 English. Although my knowledge of Tibetan as a learned language is = far=20 behind my knowledge of Chinese, I have acquired a command of Tibetan, in = both=20 the sedentary and the nomadic dialects, which has been of inestimable = value not=20 only in our missionary work, but also in the gathering of data relative = to=20 culture contact on the Kansu-Tibetan border.

Much of the material to be presented was drawn from first-hand = observation;=20 much, also, is the product of interviews with Chinese, Moslem, and = Tibetan=20 scholars and leaders. This latter material, revealing as it does = their=20 several and widely dissimilar view points, has special significance and = many=20 others of our friends have made their unconscious, but real, = contributions to=20 this study of culture contact.

In writing this monograph, I drew largely upon my memory of = conditions as=20 they existed during my stay on the Kansu-Tibetan border, supplementing = it with a=20 careful check of such maps, travel notes, and manuscripts as I have with = me in=20 the United States. Discussion and close comparison with my wife, = when I=20 felt that two memories were more to be trusted than one, have further = clarified=20 the report. The documentation of this monograph is rather slight, = but I=20 have taken every possible precaution that the presentation should be a = fair and=20 factual treatment of the culture contact between the peoples of the=20 Chinese-Tibetan frontier.

There is little literature extant dealing with the region under=20 consideration; only a few travelers and scientists, and those at = infrequent=20 intervals, have come to this section of the border. In the short=20 bibliography given at the end of the paper attention is called to those = writers=20 who have specifically or incidentally contributed to this = paper.

I. THE KANSU-TIBETAN BORDER

Our travels have taken us to points considerably beyond the rectangle = lying=20 between 102 and 104 degrees east longitude and 34 and 88 degrees north = latitude,=20 but the peoples and conditions described in this paper are for the most = part to=20 be found within that area. It lies on the border between the = province of=20 Kansu-a part of China proper-and that portion of northeastern Tibet = formerly known as the province of Amdo, since tagged with a Chinese name = to=20 indicate a regime of Chinese control which is largely = nonexistent. =20 The map which accompanies this paper will serve to specify further the = strictly=20 geographic aspects of this region.

The matter of elevation deserves some particularization. The = lowest=20 point of the entire area-along its northern limit, in the valley of the = Yellow=20 River--is somewhat over 6000 feet above sea level, and the higher = extreme of=20 human habitation within this quadrangle extends to more than 14,000 feet = elevation. In much a range are created a number of climatic zones, = between=20 the lowest and highest of which occur greater differences of temperature = than=20 are to be found in a spread of twenty to thirty degrees of = latitude. In=20 general, the farther north one travels in this area, the warmer it is;=20 conversely, the farther south one goes, the colder it is. The = differences=20 in elevation also make for striking differences in rainfall. The = lower=20 areas appear to be regions of declining rainfall and increasing aridity, = while=20 in the higher levels there is abundant precipitation during the summer = months=20 One generalization holds good for the entire area: the winters are dry = and cold,=20 the precipitation coming largely during the summer months. Seasons = are=20 much like those in the northern United States, except that seasonal = changes=20 follow more closely the changes of the solar year (mid-winter is nearer = the=20 winter solstice, etc.). The diurnal range of temperature is much = greater; in=20 some parts of the upper steppe country, the variation may be as much as = sixty=20 degrees in twenty-four hours.

The eastern and northern portion- mainly that in which the Chinese = and Moslem=20 populations are located- is part of the loess region of North = China. This=20 deposit varies in thickness anywhere from a few feet on the western = fringes of=20 the 'white earth region" to a maximum layer several hundred feet in = depth. =20 Along the border between the Chinese and the Tibetan communities, this = layer is=20 broken by a number of barrier limestone ranges interspersed with = sandstone,=20 shale, and slate formations. Little mineral is mined in a = primitive=20 fashion, and a few isolated deposits of copper, iron, and lead are = worked. =20 The only mineral wealth exported from the region is salt from the = Tibetan salt=20 lakes.

The distribution of the loess formation has an important bearing on = the=20 agricultural economy of the region. Wherever that rich and = seemingly=20 inexhaustible soil is found with enough moisture present or assured by=20 irrigation, excellent harvests are assured year after year without = fallow=20 fields, by simple rotation of crops combined with the Chinese method of=20 fertilization. Most of the Chinese and Moslem villages are in the = region=20 of the loess deposit. Wherever that formation gives way to the = clays and=20 marls of the border country the yearly yield is much less. Even in = the=20 Tibetan faming country, the best land is found wherever the erratically=20 distributed pockets of loess are located.

The higher country- the steppe or semi-steppe of the Tibetan plateau = has=20 practically none of this soil; its place is taken by alluvial deposits, = glacial=20 debris, and the thin, stony soil of the mountain ranges. Those = same=20 mountains, in the belt between 7,000 and 11,000 feet in elevation, are = covered=20 on the northern slopes with a fair growth of timber or brush, the = principal=20 trees being spruce, juniper, birch, and a number of varieties of poplar = and=20 willow. The slopes facing the south are invariably bare of trees,=20 presenting sharply defined areas of alternating grazing country and=20 woodland. Besides giving the landscape a distinctive aspect, this=20 condition also affects the agricultural economy of the people in the = vicinity,=20 who combine exploitation of the timber and pastures with routine faming. = The=20 loess region, on the other hand, sustains almost no timber and is on the = whole=20 barren and desolate in appearance.

The limits of agriculture in this region are found at about 11,000 = feet above=20 sea level. The true tree line is much harder to estimate, for it = would=20 seem that much of the treeless steppe is considerably lower than the = level at=20 which forest actually flourish when given the right combination of=20 circumstances. Above 12, 000 feet the steppe is absolutely bare of = even=20 the lowest bushes, but in the higher mountains stunted trees are found = up to=20 elevations of 14,000 feet. Good grazing lands can be found as high = as=20 16,000 feet, although domesticated animals are never grazed so = high. From=20 observations made near the great snow mountain, Nyn-bir-yir-tse, beyond = the knee=20 of the Yellow River, I estimate the snow-line at about 17,000 feet.

This region, with its diversified soil, topography, and climate, = supports=20 equally diversified peoples with along though little known history = behind=20 them. From his studies of Neolithic culture, Dr. Andersson came to = believe=20 that it must have been over four thousand years ago that the Chinese = migration=20 entered the Yellow River basin at this point where their descendants = still live.=20 At different times the unidentified peoples of Hor, the Mongols, the = Tanguts,=20 the Ouigour Tartars, Sarts from Samarkand, and Arab mercenaries lived = in, or=20 marched through, the land. In still later times Chinese military = colonists=20 established outposts on the border or dispossessed the more obscure = aboriginal=20 peoples, some of whom have left racial or linguistic fragments to the = present=20 day, while others have vanished, leaving traces of themselves only in = some=20 peculiar custom or odd accent in the speech of the peoples of = today. About=20 six hundred years ago, another immigration from Central Tibet brought an = additional racial and linguistic strain to the Tibetans of the region, = who=20 themselves came from no one knows where.

Although far removed from the outside world- not more than a few = years ago it=20 was a long month's caravan travel from the extremity of the railway (for = which=20 Japanese and Chinese armies are battling so fiercely today) to reach = this=20 frontier region- the people of the region had their part in the larger = history=20 of the past. Fu-hsi the legendary founder of Chinese civilization = lived=20 here, kings and emperors had their origin here, Marco Polo passed this = way; for=20 then, as now, the old caravan road of Central Asia- one of the silk=20 roads-followed the long panhandle of China that reaches between Tibet = and=20 Mongolia, passing through the Jade gate to Turkestan and the lost cities = of the=20 Central Asian deserts. Today military necessity has opened that = road;=20 Soviet emissaries, followers of the Panchen Lama who are working for the = Chinese=20 Central Government, and Tibetans from Lhasa, with British influence = behind them,=20 spread their diverse views among the tribesmen of the region.

In the time of the Manchu dynasty, the entire region was administered = by a=20 viceroy of the Imperial Government. That portion of the country = occupied=20 by Chinese Moslems and some other, smaller, racial units was under = traditional=20 Chinese law. The Tibetans enjoyed almost complete independence and = varying=20 degrees of prestige. The Chone Prince ruled over the forty-eight = "banners"=20 of one group of Tibetans; other Tibetan rulers or chiefs held grants or=20 commissions- some of them hundreds of years old- from the Imperial=20 Government. At that time the ethnic frontier corresponded almost = exactly=20 with the administrative frontier.

Since the establishment of the Republic in 1912, changes have = occurred.=20 Although the region nominally owes allegiance to the Central Government = of=20 China, the administration has been split between Moslem and Chinese=20 factions. As a consequence, what was one province has been split = up into=20 two, the Moslems having a controlling influence in the governmental = affairs of=20 one, the Chinese dominating the other. The territory they = separately=20 administer does not altogether fall into this neat division. = Conditions=20 have changed most radically along the border, and the Chinese government = has=20 attempted to exercise considerably more power over the Tibetans than=20 formerly. This has resulted in the establishment of a greater = degree of=20 control over the Tibetans along the border but has alienated those = Tibetans who=20 persistently maintained their independence, even enhancing that = independence,=20 which is combined with a half-wistful nostalgia for the days of the=20 Empire. At the time we left to return to the United States in = 1935, agents=20 from Mongolia were seeking to use this condition to create a receptive = mood=20 towards Japanese influence.

The economic life of the area can be briefly summed up as pastoral,=20 agricultural, and commercial. Wheat, millet, barley, and other = such grains=20 are raised for local consumption. Of the agricultural products, = only=20 tobacco figures as an item of export in a trade which is maintained in = spite of=20 the very considerable difficulties of transportation to the outside = world. =20 Pure pastoralism is found only among the Tibetans; but both Chinese and = Moslem=20 farmers raise some sheep, and this deviation from a strictly = agricultural=20 economy forms one source of the supply of lambskins. Trade is of = two=20 kinds: Tibetan trade and that which comes from the coast region of China = and=20 other countries. The principle imports from the outside world are = cotton=20 goods and notions of various sorts. In exchange for these, horses, = wool,=20 furs, hides, medicinal herbs, hartshom, musk, and tobacco are = exported. =20 Many of these are brought from Tibet to be exchanged for grain and = locally=20 produced foodstuffs. Thus, in a sense, the Chinese and Moslems of = the=20 region are the intermediaries in the trade between the Tibetan country = and the=20 outside world. Salt from Tibet is consumed entirely by the Chinese = and=20 Tibetan market. There is also a highly profitable, but dangerous, = business=20 in gun-running- firearms of every class and vintage are brought into the = Tibetan=20 country, where they command fancy prices.

In the modern sense of the word, there is no industrialization = anywhere=20 in the area. There are, of course, districts where specialized = types of=20 handicraft flourish, such as the making of rugs, felts, woolen goods, = and linen,=20 cabinet-working, and smithing, but all these are carried out on a = handicraft=20 basis.

Several distinct cultural groups inhabit the region. First of = all are=20 the Chinese. As has been indicated, the Chinese of the region may = be=20 considered as belonging predominantly to the true Chinese stock. = All local=20 records, as well as archaeological evidence from early historic and = bronze=20 periods back to prehistoric kitchen sites and Neolithic burials, testify = to the=20 continuous Chinese occupation of this region for at least four thousand=20 years. In the district of Titao are family graveyards that have a=20 continuous history of nearly two thousand years. Thus, whatever = aboriginal=20 admixtures there may be, the people are basically and characteristically = Chinese=20 of the northern type. The language they speak somewhat resembles = Pekinese,=20 but the occasional use of the fifth tone and some other features of=20 pronunciation indicate relationship with the Sze-chuanese dialect. = Dr. Hu=20 Shi, the great authority on the- "national language' of China, said of = my=20 Chinese that it belonged to the most widely distributed dialect in = China. =20 Because of this linguistic affiliation, the people of the region = properly=20 constitute an Integral part of the great Chinese people-a proud, = conservative,=20 Industrious, frugal, and enduring race.

Religiously these Chinese adhere in general to the so-called 'Three = Great=20 Religions," tolerantly making Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism in = varying=20 proportions, part of their religious system. In regions such as = the=20 above-mentioned Titao district, where in history and culture the people = go back=20 to the main line of the Chinese and where scholarship and tradition have = strengthened the cult of ancestor worship and the ideals and practises = of=20 Confucianism, this system predominates in the religious complex of the = local=20 inhabitants. In the border communities, where the influence of the = nearby=20 Tibetans is strong, the Chinese include a greater amount of Buddhistic=20 observance and practise in their religious activities. Despite = their=20 persistence in styling themselves members of the "great sect"-i.e.,=20 Confucianism- they devote their time and money, in religious matters, to = the=20 performance of Buddhistic ritual. The Chinese of such areas are=20 appreciably more religious than those of the more typically Chinese=20 communities. Taoism is sandwiched into this all-embracing system = of=20 magical practises, necromancy, and whatever other aberrant forms of = philosophy=20 or superstition might spring up. Though subscribing to all three = of these=20 religions in varying proportions, the Chinese as a whole seem rather=20 materialistic; nowhere among them is to be found the religious fervor = and=20 devotion which characterize both the Moslems and the Tibetans of this = part of=20 Asia.

The Chinese-speaking Moslems constitute a racial group quite distinct = from=20 the Chinese, although they share with them a sort of joint occupancy of = a good=20 part of the Kansu and Ching-hai provinces. They are the = descendants of the=20 Ta-shi, or Arab mercenaries, that from the eighth century or = there-abouts began=20 to march through the events of Chinese history. As far as we know, = those=20 mercenaries did not bring wives with them and so later took Chinese = wives. =20 Since that time successive intermarriages have diluted the Semitic = strain, which=20 is nevertheless evident to the close observer. Many of them have a = brownish or even ruddy cast to their beards, their faces are = identifiably=20 Semitic in outline, and nine times out of ten they can be distinguished = from the=20 Chinese even when they are not wearing any distinctive article of = apparel.

They differ from the Chinese in character and general traits to an = even more=20 noticeable degree. In houses, dress, manner of living, and in=20 modifications most of the Chinese practises, and in language they are = quite=20 indistinguishable from the Chinese. Yet with all these borrowings, = they=20 are characteristically different. It is difficult to define that=20 difference in its totality- perhaps it is best illustrated by the fact = that=20 occupationally they have a special leaning toward vocations that require = superior hardihood and courage, and that in trade they outwit even the = astute=20 Chinese. By certain faint idiosyncrasies of pronunciation they can = sometimes be identified as Moslems, but only by the use of religious = terms taken=20 from Arabic and by the use of Semitic first names (pronounced with = Chinese=20 inflection) are they linguistically set apart. By far the greater = number=20 of them have as a surname the syllable "Ma," which is the Chinese = rendering of=20 the first syllable of the name Mohammed. It is interesting to = note, also,=20 that this syllable in the termination of a village name identifies the = village=20 as Moslem.

In religion they belong to Islam. They would not measure up to = Wahabi=20 standards, but compared to Moslems in some other parts of the world- = notably the=20 island world- they are strict and punctilious in matters of orthodox = observance,=20 notwithstanding the fact that they are divided into a number of sects, = marked by=20 bitter enmities and feuds.

The third great racial division to be considered comprises the = Tibetans of=20 the region. By all criteria of physical anthropology the Tibetans = of=20 northeastern Tibet are hard to classify. We can safely discount = statements=20 that they are descended from the ancient Goths; they unquestionably = belong to=20 the mongoloid division of the human race, but within that broad = classification=20 they seem to be considerably mixed. Lacking concise = anthropological=20 measurements, we can only make generalizations based on = appearance. Even=20 so, we find a wide range of types. In skin color some individuals, = beneath=20 the accumulated suntan, soot, and grease, are lighter-- less a true = yellow--=20 than the Chinese. Others seem more ruddy or brownish. They = are=20 somewhat larger in build than the Chinese of northwestern China, who = themselves=20 are of the large northern type. Some have typically Mongolian = faces, but=20 others have the aquiline features and peculiar look about the eyes which = we have=20 come to associate with some North American Indians. Even as to = hair and=20 eyes there is a great deal of variation: some have the light brown eyes = seen in=20 certain Tartar types, and some have black eyes, but the so-called = Oriental slant=20 is infrequent: straight black hair predominates, yet curly, or even = kinky, hair=20 is to be found, sometimes in combination with Negroid features. = Any one=20 seeking to establish a basic type through measurements would find the = situation=20 exceedingly complex, for these Tibetans, whether nomadic or sedentary, = present=20 all the characteristics of a mongrel physical type. They are not = nearly so=20 homogeneous as the Chinese of the area.

All this agrees with what little historical information we have for = the=20 region. Certainly during the time of the Mongol dynasties of China = there=20 was a notable dominance of Mongol peoples here. Many tribes whose = language=20 is now Tibetan are known as Mongols, and there are also some tribes so=20 designated who still speak Mongolian. Previous to the period of = Mongol=20 dominance, the mysterious Hor kingdom and people were in the ascendancy; = the=20 Tangut kingdom on the north and the Chiang peoples to the southeast made = their=20 contributions to the Tibetan population of the present day. And = finally,=20 as recently as five hundred years ago, came Tibetans from Lhasa and = Central=20 Tibet, whose descendants are still to be distinguished from the others = in=20 language, tradition of dress, and even physical type.

Yet this mixture and whatever other divergent strains there may be = are welded=20 into a fairly distinct unit by the use of a common language and the = observance=20 of a common religion. While religion and language may be two = distinct=20 aspects of culture, in the culture complex of the Tibetan, these two = aspects are=20 very closely linked. It was Buddhist missionaries who, in the = seventh=20 century, intent upon providing a means of disseminating and perpetuating = their=20 religion, reduced the Tibetan language to writing; and it was Buddhism = which,=20 with many interpolations and modifications, the Tibetans finally = accepted as=20 their religion. Both language and religion are common to all = Tibet. =20 The language of northeastern Tibet can be understood in Lhasa and on the = Indian=20 border. Speaking the dialect of the nomads of northeast Tibet, I = have yet=20 been able to talk with monks from Tashi lumpo or pilgrims from Ladak, = far off in=20 the western comer of the land. There are differences in = pronunciation and=20 structure, of course, and when we come to consider some of the = differences in=20 dialects in the region of the Kansu-Tibetan border we will have to take = into=20 account the differences between those dialects and the Lhasa dialect, as = well as=20 between the language spoken today and its form at the time of its = reduction to=20 writing. The brother of the Panchen Lama assured me that the nomad = dialect=20 of northeast Tibet was closer to the original language than any other = dialect=20 existing at the present time.

The fact that the language has had a written form and a literature = for over a=20 thousand years has frequently led to the mistaken assumption that = Tibetan=20 culture must be advanced far beyond the primitive folk stage. Yet a = written=20 language and the development of a literature are no more an indication = of=20 civilization than are the literacy and the literary attainments in the = case of=20 certain African tribes that have been taught to read and write their own = languages by missionaries. Certainly, by no criteria have the = people of=20 northeastern Tibet an indigenous culture more advanced than the tribal = cultures=20 of the nomadic and sedentary tribes of North American Indians.

The form of Buddhism held by the Tibetans is a comparatively corrupt = form,=20 known as Lamaism, or northern Buddhism. Not only has it taken unto = itself=20 many of the animistic or shamanistic practises of the early Bon religion = of=20 Tibet, setting up an extensive pantheon of gods and demons as an = integral part=20 of the system, but it still admits of distinct sorcerer sects, which are = linked=20 with the orthodox, or Yellow, sect as a part of the religious=20 organization. These sorcerer sects have a non-celibate priesthood = and a=20 ritual which is entirely different from the Buddhist ritual; yet they = are not=20 only tolerated but revered as a part of the "true belief." This ability = to=20 harmonize or integrate utterly incompatible and mutually antagonistic = beliefs=20 and practises runs all through Tibetan life.

First we see how the conflict between the dietary tenets of Buddhism = and the=20 exigencies of a pastoral, meat-eating existence is resolved. = Buddhism=20 forbids the killing of animals for meat, and the Tibetan accepts this=20 theoretically; but he continues to kill sheep and cattle for meat and = rejoices=20 in the delights of the chase. So, also, in the matter of sexual=20 intercourse; the Tibetans practise more license than most people,=20 notwithstanding an interdiction stronger than in most religions. = Neither=20 does the Tibetan see anything incongruous in whirling a prayer wheel and = saying=20 his prayers as he rides to rob and kill.

Similar irregularities are apparent in the control-devices and = organization=20 of Tibetan life. The effective unit of organization is the village, or, = among=20 the nomads, the encampment. Encampments and villages are organized = into=20 tribes for the purposes of defense and the effective maintenance of land = rights. Sometimes the tribe has no chief, in which case all = matters are=20 settled by the council of old men; at other times, there is a hereditary = chief. This chief may exercise control of the tribe in conjunction = with=20 the tribal council of old men, or he may even be nominally autocratic = (such=20 autocracy, however, is always strictly qualified by public = opinion). These=20 tribes are in some cases united in confederacies; one or two groups are = really=20 little states, or kingdoms, and are called such by the Tibetans. = The=20 Political structure, thus, would seem to be fairly complete; = nevertheless, along=20 with all tribal government there is a quasi-rule by the Living Buddhas, = or=20 lamas, and by the great ecclesiastical establishments, or = lamaseries. In=20 some instances, the lamasery may represent merely a separate unit within = the=20 scheme of tribal organization, but a unit which by general agreement is = allowed=20 to run its own affairs without interference from the outside. = Then, again,=20 the lamasery and tribal authority may parallel, or even be = competing. =20 Finally, there are large areas where the tribal organization either has = ceased=20 to exist or never did exist; here the lamasery authority is = supreme. =20 Strictly speaking, the lamaseries should be interested only in matters = of=20 religion and things of the other world; but in view of the fact in Lhasa = is an=20 ecclesiastical hierarchy, it is small wonder that the lamaseries are = powerful in=20 northeastern Tibet. The wonder is, indeed, that they have not = superseded=20 tribal authority entirely.

Aside from all these interesting and diverse aspects of organization, = the=20 most outstanding aspect of Tibetan life from the standpoint of the study = of=20 culture contacts is the absolute division, on the basis of occupation or = subsistence economy, that cuts across state, tribe, clan and even = family,=20 separating the people in interests, traits, and even in dialect. = Together=20 with factors of location, etc., it makes of the Tibetans of the = northeast two=20 distinct groups: the sedentary, or faming, peoples of the low valley = bottoms and=20 the nomadic, or pastoral, peoples of the grassy steppes. This = difference=20 is so great that the cultural relationship between the nomadic and = sedentary=20 peoples may be considered as a problem of culture contact quite as = clearly=20 defined as, and in some respects more interesting than, the problem of = culture=20 contact between peoples of different race.

In addition to these three large racial divisions of Chinese, Chinese = speaking Moslems, and Tibetans, there are a number of other racial and=20 linguistic units to be found in this region. The scope of this paper is = limited=20 to a discussion of only the most important aspects of culture contact = among the=20 larger groups; but it will be proper to mention briefly the composition = and=20 character of these lesser groups.

Around the city of Hsuin-hwa, on the Yellow River, there is an = extensive=20 population of a Tarki-speaking people, who in the thirteenth century = migrated to=20 this region from Samarkand. They stand apart from the Chinese not = only in=20 race but in religion-in which they are fanatical followers of = Islam. Only=20 the more traveled of them speak Chinese, and in their way of life- they = are as=20 different from those around them as though they still lived in far-away=20 Samarkand. The current tradition of their migration is an = interesting=20 one. They were, it seems, a turbulent and horse-thieving lot, who = were=20 eventually forced to emigrate by indignant and victorious = neighbors. With=20 only a bag of earth and a white camel to carry their leader, they set = out to=20 find a home wherever the soil might correspond to the sample in the = bag. =20 As they camped one night- where they now make their home, the camel = died, and in=20 the morning they found that the earth of the place was like that which = they had=20 carried from Samarkand. If you don't believe the story, they will = show you=20 the white camel, which very conveniently turned to stone. Near = them, in=20 another valley, are a number of villages of Tibetans who speak Tibetan = but are=20 Moslem in religion. There are villages of Mongolian farmers, a = peculiar=20 group whose language is a strange form of archaic Chinese (they claim = their=20 ancestors came to the region in the later Han about 200 A.D.), and still = other=20 groups who are called simply in the Peh Ling range, southwest of Titao,=20 inhabited by another group of aborigines numbering some thousand = families, whose=20 language has been neither recorded nor identified.

Finally, there are the Tung Hsiang Huei Huei, who inhabit the = extensive loess=20 plateau found within the triangle made by the influence of the Tao and = the=20 yellow rivers. According to official Chinese estimates they number = about=20 two hundred thousand. They speak Mongolian, are Moslem in = religion, and=20 are the descendents of the Ouigour Tartars who filled the pages of = Chinese=20 history with great deeds during the seventh, eighth, and ninth = centuries.

With these the list of distinct ethnic groups to be found in the area = of our=20 investigation is virtually complete. In certain of the districts = now=20 called Chinese, however, there still remain many traces of aboriginal = admixture=20 of race and culture. Only so can we account for the great variations of = facial=20 form and pronunciation found in the Fu-Chiang district or for the = peculiarities=20 of the people of the Kai Chow district.

From this long list of ethnic groups only four will be = considered. =20 Instead of dealing comprehensively with the many combinations of culture = contacts existing among those four groups, I am arbitrarily limiting the = discussion to four aspects of cultural interaction which are not only = the most=20 important ones but differ sharply in kind and degree. They are as=20 follows:

(1) The Chinese and the=20 Chinese-speaking Moslems (descendants of the Arabs)

(2) The Chinese and the = Sedentary=20 Tibetans

(3) The Moslems and the = Nomadic=20 Tibetans

(4) The Nomadic and the = Sedentary=20 Tibetans

These relationships can be graphically indicated as a rectangle, with = the=20 four groups at the four corners and the relationships indicated by the = lines=20 which form the sides.

Chinese=20 &= nbsp; &n= bsp; =20 Moslems

Sedentary=20 &= nbsp; &n= bsp; =20 Nomadic

Tibetans=20 &= nbsp; &n= bsp; =20 Tibetans

The labeling of the lines connecting the four groups- in other words, = the=20 classifying of the kind and degree of contact- may be left until the = facts have=20 been properly described in the body of this paper.

II. THE CHINESE AND THE CHINESE-SPEAKING MOSLEMS

The first aspect of culture contact to be described is that between = the=20 Chinese and the Chinese-speaking Moslems. The particular = communities which=20 I have in mind are located in the Titao and the Hochow districts. = The city=20 of Titao is strictly Chinese, but, although no Moslems are allowed to = reside=20 within the city gates, there are many Moslem communities and individuals = within=20 the district. Hochow consists of two parts: the city, which is = Chinese,=20 and the southern suburb, which is entirely Moslem. This suburb is = called=20 the Mecca of China; filled with mosques, shrines, and Islamic schools, = it well=20 deserves the title. In these two districts are represented = virtually all=20 the manifestations of Moslem-Moslem contact as it occurs throughout the=20 provinces of Kansu, Chinghai, and Ninghsia.

As has been indicated, this area is largely within the fertile loess = region,=20 where productivity is being seriously threatened by a diminishing=20 rainfall. That threat is being minimized to some extent, however, = by=20 increased irrigation. Thus the area is typical of the farming = economy=20 that is found all the way across the northern half of China. The = crops are=20 the same, and the manner of life is similar.

Not only is the general climatic background the same for both these = groups,=20 but the local unit of organization is identical. Although both are = primarily agricultural peoples, they do not live in isolated = farmhouses,=20 nor does the individual proprietor live in the midst of his own = fields. =20 For the sake of protection and in accordance with a tradition of = settlement that=20 is continent-wide and probably older than history, the farmers are = gathered in=20 villages. When some peculiar suitability, such as location on a=20 well-traveled road, makes a village acceptable to an entire district as = a market=20 town, it may grow to the proportions of a city. A typical faming = village=20 supports between twenty and thirty families. Whenever the = population=20 grows so large that those whose fields lie on the periphery can no = longer=20 go back and forth each day, the village begins to break up, those with = the very=20 distant fields becoming the nucleus of a new settlement.

Those closely integrated units, whether Moslem or Chinese, are alike = not only=20 as to spatial characteristics but as to their function in the social=20 organization. The counties may be administratively divided into=20 districts, "roads," or "directions," but the basic unit of control = is the=20 ad-man who is largely responsible for the maintenance of law and order = and for=20 the carrying out of government regulations. The larger villages = may have=20 their own "family protective associations" and organized units of the = militia,=20 but even the smaller ones that have no such organizations are recognized = by the=20 county administration as autonomous units.

The Chinese and Moslems living in the same general population pattern = seem=20 superficially to have much in common. In the first place, they use = the=20 same language (the Moslems have brought into usage among themselves a = large=20 number of Arabic names, but they are pronounced with a Chinese=20 inflection). In districts where Moslems and Chinese share a = dialect,=20 it is asserted by some that Moslems and Chinese can be distinguished by = certain=20 differences in pronunciation; I have never been able to make such=20 distinctions in the dark, although when hearing was reinforced by = sight, I=20 too fancied that there were minute differences. Among themselves = the=20 Moslems use many religious words that are taken directly from the = Koran,=20 but such words are also given a Chinese twist. They wear much the = same=20 clothing as the Chinese, but with, of course, certain mannerisms and = preferences=20 in dress (such as, among the womenfolk, the wearing of a hood and = sometimes a=20 partial veil) which are sufficient to make them distinguishable in a = crowd.

With language and dress the list of similarities ends. = Racially, in=20 spite of adulteration of the Semitic strain for generations and a fairly = large=20 number of proselytes, they can be distinguished at sight. Some are = very=20 like the Chinese, but at the other end of the scale are those who by = their=20 strongly Semitic features, and heavy beards, sometimes with degrees of = brown or=20 red in them, could never by any stretch of imagination be confused with = the=20 Chinese. Beyond the matter of physical traits, they display many = features=20 of character and disposition that mark them as being = nonChinese. The=20 Chinese of the region truly and typically belong to the northern Chinese = group=20 and by every factor of heredity and a shared history of four thousand = years are=20 fully Chinese.

In religion the Moslems belong to Islam, and the Chinese are ancestor = and=20 idol worshipers. Both have uncomfortable and distressing = histories, and=20 thoughtful members of each group are giving anxious thought to the=20 implications of their heritage. Traditionally the Chinese = have always=20 been dominant in general politics, but they have hardly known what to do = with=20 the high-spirited, restive, and turbulent Moslems who were always a = defiant=20 minority, impossible to assimilate. Even if all other chasms might = have=20 been bridged by tactful treatment (of which there has been little except = when=20 the Chinese were scared by the threat of an impending Mohammedan=20 rebellion), there would still remain the uncompromising creed of = Allah to=20 threaten the Chinese with death and destruction in the name of the All=20 Merciful.

Yet the ground on which these incompatible factions or groups must = meet is=20 that of a common subsistence economy. As the village is the unit = of=20 organization common to Moslems and Chinese alike, so are they both = predominantly=20 farmers, of the small land-owning peasant type, and follow the same = seasonal=20 routine.

Their yearly routine exhibits the characteristic common of all = farming=20 operation, namely, that seasons of comparative leisure alternate with = periods of=20 great activity. Yet the work of preparing the ground, sowing, = cultivating,=20 harvesting, and threshing the crop is more evenly distributed throughout = the=20 year than in many regions. In the dead of winter little can be = done beyond=20 collecting all the sewage and barnyard droppings for use as fertilizer, = but=20 farming operations are begun early in the spring with the carting of = both=20 fertilizer and blocks of ice to the fields. The general openness = of the=20 winters makes it possible to do this very early in February, and with = the first=20 softening of the ground plowing is started. Plowing and seeding is = man's=20 work among the Chinese and Moslem farmers, but when the grain is up two = or three=20 inches the fields are cultivated and weeded by all the members of the = family,=20 who spread out across the field in as long a line as their numbers will = allow=20 and work on hands and knees. Every member of the family is also = employed=20 during the harvest. Threshing and final winnowing of the grain = rarely=20 takes place until early winter, which brings the end of one season's = activity=20 very close to the beginning of the next season. The grain is the = main=20 source of wealth. After the year's supply of food and seed-grain = has beer,=20 set aside, the surplus is sold to the urban population. The amount = that=20 can be sold determines how much cloth and cotton wadding can be bought = for=20 clothes and how many of the extras of life may be enjoyed. Some of = the=20 farmers supplement their income by selling wood, which they cut and = carry, into=20 the city either on their own backs or on the backs of such donkeys or = horses as=20 they have. Sometimes, also, they burn and sell charcoal or peddle=20 fodder.

These peasant farmers have very little in the way of livestock beyond = a few=20 sheep, most of which are needed for working the farm. The only exception = to this=20 is the pig or two which the Chinese fatten for the New Year festivities. = From=20 the wool of the sheep they make felt and felt socks and a coarse = homemade cloth.=20 The thread fort the cloth is spun by hand by the members of the family, = and the=20 weaving is done by certain farmers who carry their portable looms around = from=20 community to community and hire themselves out. The food of the peasant = is the=20 very coarsest, and he had but scant protection against the rigors of the = climate; yet he feels that with his home and a regular yield from his = fields=20 there is little else he needs. Brushwood provides him with more firewood = than=20 the city dweller can generally afford. The stable droppings and = the dried=20 leaves and chaff which he gathers assures him of at least a hot = kang on=20 which to sleep (the kang is a sort of hollow platform made of = dried mud=20 and is heated from beneath by smudge fires). The days are not = unpleasant; he can=20 while away the hours just standing around in the winter sunshine, or he = can=20 inject a little adventure into his life by going to town with grain, = fodder, or=20 firewood, and perhaps bringing back with him something he was able to = buy in the=20 market.

Occasionally the Chinese and Moslem populations are found living=20 together within the same communal unit, but more frequently they = maintain=20 separate villages, which alternate in an irregular pattern throughout = the=20 district. Some districts are predominantly Chinese, others are=20 Moslem. There is a greater degree of mixture to the population = wherever=20 the villages have progressed in size beyond the farm hamlet and have = become=20 towns, because the resultant diversity of occupation has made = possible some=20 divisions of callings or vocations. In such a community, we find a = tendency on the part of the Moslems to follow the more adventurous of = the=20 subsidiary callings, or those which require more hardihood and = daring. =20 Such occupations as innkeeper, trader, muleteer, carter, soldier, and = the like=20 attract many more Moslems, proportionately, than Chinese.

Trade in this part of northwestern China is still very much what it = was in=20 the days of the Marchaunt Adventurers. By their willingness to = dare the=20 uncertainties of a form of trade that is not only affected by all the = vagaries=20 of the markets but is exposed to possible seizures by the military and=20 depredations by bandits and footpads, the Moslems have made themselves = the=20 outstanding traders of the region. They are undaunted by the = hardship=20 of primitive travel and the risks of new situations and unknown=20 roads. Traveling in Tibet, their expeditions often have a = semi-military=20 aspect, and in Chinese areas of warfare and lawlessness they must = sometimes face=20 the risk of prison or at least confiscation of their goods.

The life of the muleteer or carter is even more difficult. At = times=20 they must be awake all night long and at dawn be on the road to walk for = thirty=20 or forty miles before nightfall. They get but little rest in the inn, = for they=20 must feed and care for the animals and tend to the repair of saddles and = gear.=20 They are always in fear that some untoward circumstance will intervene = to wipe=20 out their chances of a livelihood. The best of such interruptions is = that of=20 being commandeered by the civil authorities to carry persons or goods. = In such=20 case there is a fair hope of finishing the task and going again about = their own=20 business; and, if the matter is not too urgent, money in a few palms may = make it=20 possible to escape the task. If, on the other hand, they are = commandeered by the=20 military, it may be weeks and even months before they are finally = permitted to=20 go, and they will have worn out themselves and their animals in return = for a=20 mere subsistence allowance. Frequently their animals are = commandeered=20 outright; then the chances of getting them back are slim indeed. = Finally, they=20 may meet bandits, either Chinese or Moslems, as they travel; in which = case, the=20 traces are cut or the loads tossed to one side, and the bandits ride off = on=20 their new mounts. I have seen an entire squadron of Mohammedan = rebel=20 cavalry going into action with nothing but pack mules and cart horses = for=20 mounts.

Innkeeping is also an adventurous calling. Compared with the profits = from=20 faming or handicrafts in a village community, those from keeping an inn = are=20 large (providing there are no major setbacks), but the risks are = great. If=20 bandits come, the innkeeper must serve them or his inn will be wrecked; = should=20 the soldiers arrive, they will quickly make him regret his entertainment = of the=20 bandits- and order some for themselves. In either case he gets = little or=20 nothing for all he purveys. Indeed, the bandits are more likely to = offer=20 payment, but it is usually some stolen goods that he dare not = accept. So=20 may the unwelcome guests of a single night carry off the profits of a = month.

Lastly, it is as soldiers that the Moslems excel. Even before = the=20 current war in China it was true that every corporal might have a = marshal's=20 baton in his knapsack. The present governor of the province of = Chinghai=20 was first a carter in the transport service of an army, then a private, = and now=20 governor. The Moslems make first-rate soldiers. In difficult = places=20 Moslem troops are supported by a sort of religious frenzy. I have = seen=20 them fighting the Tibetans, and I have seen them fighting the Chinese; = once,=20 when I was being held prisoner by them, I saw about two thousand fight = their way=20 out of a trap formed by six times as many Chinese regulars, taking = machine gun=20 nests and making a way through by sheer courage and superior = daring. It is=20 interesting to note that the last general to stand against the Japanese = in=20 Manchuria, in 1931, was the Moslem Ma-chan-san; and that at the present = time=20 (1988) Generalissimo Chiang Kai Shek's second-in-command is the = Moslem Pai=20 Chong Hsi, who shares honors in the dispatches from the front with yet = another=20 Moslem general Li Tsun Ren.

The Chinese, on the other hand, tend to monopolize the handicraft=20 occupations. They make the best carpenters, silversmiths, blacksmiths, = masons,=20 and tailors. There is one exception to this general rule, namely the = preparation=20 and making up of furs, which is in the hands of Moslems- probably = because the=20 handling of sheep and lambskins was closely associated with the = butchering-trade=20 which, except for pork, is Moslem. The Chinese show greater aptitude, or = at=20 least greater preference, for the scholarly callings; they are the = school=20 teachers, accountants (even in Moslem firms), doctors, engineers, and=20 administrative officials in the civil service.

Instances occur of what might be called a division of labor or a = highly=20 satisfactory cooperation between Moslem enterprise and Chinese skill. = Not many=20 years ago in Taochow Old City there was an extensive industry of casting = brazen=20 pots and kettles for the Tibetan trade. The metal used was that of = the old=20 coinage of China- the time-honored square-holed coin that is now out of=20 date. This coinage was brought up and transported by small Moslem=20 trader-muleteers and then sold to the Chinese artisans, who did the = casting. The=20 finished product was again sold to the Moslems, who took it into the = Tibetan=20 country as an article of trade. Thus by their enterprise the = Moslems found=20 a market for the product of Chinese skill which kept the foundry fires = going a=20 good part of the year. The last Mohammedan rebellion, in = 1929--1930,=20 and the consequent depopulation and enmity interrupted this cooperative = effort=20 for a number of years, but the venture has recently been revived.

Thus, in the callings that may be incidental to the basic pursuits of = the=20 village or in those adventitious callings that may take a man away from = the=20 village and into the larger urban organization, there is possible a = division of=20 interest and activity, based, one may believe, on preferences or natural = gifts. But in the basic occupation of the village- the production = of food=20 for the people of both the village and the city (which may or may not = have a=20 share in that basic occupation)- there may be either communal = cooperation or a=20 rivalry of sufficient intensity to eliminate or segregate one of the=20 parties. This is unquestionably the situation that exists between = the=20 Moslem and the Chinese.

It is clear that the Moslems and Chinese have not chosen the way of = tolerant=20 cooperation. I know of no strictly farming village where there is = an equal=20 mixture of the two groups; in every case the village is = predominantly one=20 or the other. In some instances, the population is composed almost = entirely of one group, with only a few hangers-on of the other. In = the=20 Hochow district such division of villages is very marked. On one = occasion=20 we made a trip with Moslem muleteers. They were friendly and = suggested=20 that we stay with them in their village, so for that night we stopped in = a=20 little Moslem world. The children were called I-si-mer (4-1-3, Ismael) = Fa-ti-mai=20 (3-1-3, Fatima) Er-pu-tu (4-1-4, Abdul) [the numerals indicate the tones = which=20 were assigned to the syllables of a non-tonal language in rendering them = into=20 Chinese]. It was the fast of Ramadan (or feast, if you think of it in = terms of=20 night), and the fires blazed all night, and people called and shouted. = Before=20 darkness fell, pious bearded men said their evening prayers in public = places;=20 one, who wore a white turban as a sign that he had made the pilgrimage = to Mecca,=20 argued points of theology, quoting the Koran in oddly mutilated Arabic. = The=20 Moslems referred to themselves as "we" (being careful never to use the = inclusive=20 "we," which would include those spoken to) and to the Chinese in the = near-by=20 villages as "they." The village had a small building that did duty for a = mosque,=20 where the children were gathered at regular periods to receive = instruction in=20 Islam and learn the Arabic alphabet and phonetics so that they would be = able to=20 read the sounds of necessary prayers and religious formulas even if they = couldn't understand them. Some of them went also to the government = school,=20 to which a teacher came daily from a neighboring town.

We made another trip over the same general route but on this occasion = had=20 Chinese muleteers. We kept a lookout for the Moslem village but = missed it=20 nevertheless; inquiry brought out that we had been taken around = it. =20 Somehow the landscape seemed to have a much more typically Chinese=20 complexion than before. Again we stayed for the night in the = native=20 village of our muleteers. The homes were plastered with = newly-posted=20 kitchen and door gods. The local shrine, or temple, stood at the=20 crossroads, with a platform over it for the performance of plays, and = the smell=20 of incense was in the air as it is at New Year's time. Pigs = grunted in the=20 courtyards and in the streets; after dark, accompanied by the beating of = gongs=20 and the clashing of cymbals, effigies and masks were carried around in=20 celebration of some aspect of pagan worship. When the people said = "we"-=20 and sometimes, with greater tolerance than the Moslems, they included = us- they=20 referred to themselves and also to Chinese in general; "they" meant the = others,=20 who were defined with some hesitancy as the Moslems who lived in other = villages=20 around.

These two villages- one very near the other- were very clear-cut=20 examples of the pattern of segregation to be expected. They = were=20 strictly farming communities- there wasn't even an inn in either of = them. =20 In a larger community, where there are a shop or two, a blacksmith=20 establishment, and a few inns, one may encounter a Moslem innkeeper in a = Chinese=20 village or a Chinese blacksmith in a Moslem village. The Moslem = inn, with=20 its shingle bearing the sign of a teapot, enjoys not only the exclusive=20 patronage of their own people, who may not eat food prepared by others, = but that=20 of quite a large number of Chinese as well, for these inns are clean and = the=20 food is tasty. Thus, in communities of mixed population the = Moslems tend=20 to monopolize the restaurant business.

A number of factors can be cited to account for the pattern of=20 segregation in the population distribution. As we shall see = later,=20 the Chinese have a higher population gain, and the Moslems are = economically more=20 successful, both of which facts may be sources of jealousy. = But=20 factors related to religious habits and ideals appear to have a = determining=20 effect in keeping the two peoples apart.

To state categorically that the Chinese are rather materialistic in = their=20 outlook does not do away with the fact that Chinese religious observance = and, in=20 particular, their conscientiousness in carrying out the ritual connected = with=20 ancestor worship and veneration of the past occupy a large place in = Chinese=20 communal life. At stated times throughout the year- especially at = the New=20 Year, and during the second, fifth, and eighth moons- festivals honoring = certain=20 deities or commemorating religious events are held. Such a = festival is=20 always a communal matter: all contribute money for the furnishing of = trappings=20 proper to the affair, some are concerned with organizing the = celebration, others=20 carry the images in the procession, and still others collaborate with = the=20 priests- Buddhist or Taoist, as the case may be- in the performance of = the=20 various ceremonies. Such religious festivals are not altogether a = matter=20 of the calendar, for additional celebrations are often held in times of = drought=20 or other community disaster.

Another aspect of communal worship is to be found in the village or = community=20 theatricals. Although the plays given are generally straight drama = (most=20 of them are historical) and not at all like the miracle plays or = so-called=20 "devil dances" of the Tibetans, the primary significance in the = presentation is=20 a religious one- to give the gods pleasure and thus dispose them = favorably to=20 the people of the community. Even the masking and the animal plays = of the=20 New Year's celebration have a definitely religious significance. = That the=20 plays are presented for the pleasure of the gods does not detract, of = course,=20 from the enjoyment of the people themselves.

The local temple or shrine is also a matter of community = effort. =20 Regular assessments are levied for the propitiation of the local deity, = who is=20 often styled "earth god" and is represented as having a very particular = interest=20 in the locality- cannot, in fact, leave unless his idol is = carried. During=20 times of drought he may be taken out on a tour of the fields to see the = extent=20 of the damage; if he proves obdurate and persists in refusing the needed = downpour, he is left for hours in the burning sun so that personal=20 discomfort may add its urgings to the prayers of the people. His = home and=20 its upkeep is a sort of public charge, that is not mandatory by law but = is a=20 matter equally of public opinion and personal faith. At times the = entire=20 population will turn out to rebuild a wall or renew a roof of the local=20 temple.

Such idolatry many Chinese might consider an aberration and a cause = for=20 embarrassment. In truth, it is not strictly in line with the = unifying=20 factor of Chinese culture, which may be defined in a three-fold manner = as the=20 recognition, veneration, and perpetuation of the tie with the = past. The=20 essential religious activity of pure Confucianism- the worship of = the=20 spirits of ancestors- is an integral part of Chinese culture. We = think of=20 a funeral as a strictly family matter, but in a small Chinese hamlet is = very=20 much a community affair. Virtually everyone has a part in the = mourning,=20 feasting, burying, and attendant religious activities. Then, too, = every=20 year during the feast of Ching Ming, in the early spring, the Chinese = decorate=20 the graves, make various of offerings of food and drink, and burn = paper

money and incense, and bewail the dead. The graveyards are not=20 necessarily communal, but as Ching Ming is universally observed no one = can=20 abstain from participation without arousing comment and a certain degree = of=20 reproach; on the other hand, prompt observance of the rites creates at = least a=20 feeling of fellowship. Of course, it is primarily a personal = matter;=20 nevertheless, the entire community responds, just as in the case of the = spring=20 planting and for the same reason; the comradeship each finds in = working=20 with the others in whatever concerns the welfare of the community.

These communal activities, for all their religious significance, play = a large=20 part in creating a community consciousness. The Moslems in the = same=20 community the festivals, theatricals, and temple-building and repair are = offensive as being part of "idol worship"; nevertheless in some subtle = way, they=20 find cause for resentment in being excluded. They, also, have = their=20 special religious observances, some of which are of a communal nature, = although=20 Islam is essentially an individualistic religion. First of these = is the=20 month-long feast of Ramadan. As no good Moslem either eats or = drinks from=20 dawn to dark during that month, in a strictly Moslem community food = disappears=20 from sight during the daylight hours. In a mixed community, when = Ramadan=20 coincides with the general feasting and gaiety of the Chinese New Year, = the=20 behavior of each group is an offense and aggravation to the other. = Neighborhood quarrels and street fights may ensue, and even when there = is no=20 open break there is much covert ill-will as a result. But if the = Moslems=20 have to match the New Year's feasting of the Chinese with long-faced=20 abstinence during the day, they manage to crowd the hours of = darkness with=20 great feasting and good fellowship of their own.

The building and upkeep of the mosque is also, as in the case of the = Chinese=20 temple, a communal matter. Again assessments are made, and=20 cooperative effort is initiated; and, of course, as a project it = rivals and=20 competes with the Chinese temple. The whole business is a fruitful = source of=20 trouble, often ending in lawsuits and boycotts, between the two factions = of the=20 community.

The burial customs of the two groups differ widely. The Chinese busy = their=20 dead in coffins- costly out of all proportion to the simple scale of = Chinese=20 peasant life, for the coffin has come to be a symbol of filial piety. = For years=20 before it is finally called into use the contemplation of the sturdy = timbers of=20 his final narrow bed brings joy and comfort to the grandfather and = grandmother=20 of the family. The Moslems have fiercely resisted the use of the coffin, = probably because of what they conceive to be idolatrous connotations. = Their dead=20 are wrapped in cloths after the manner of mummies. The grave is dug = straight=20 down into the ground, and at a sufficient depth a shelf is hollowed out = on one=20 side, making in effect an artificial cave; the body is laid on this = shelf. To=20 the Chinese the Moslems are savages, who bury their dead like dogs.

Each group has its own graveyard, which among the Moslems is more a = community=20 project than among the Chinese, who are likely to have a system of = family lots.=20 The Moslems take great pains to make their graveyards like parks or = semi-public=20 groves, which become places for informal religious meditation and = acquire a=20 peculiar odor of sanctity. Among the Chinese the graveyards are = open, and=20 there is no prejudice against allowing sheep or cattle to graze over = them- in=20 fact, they are in a way community pastures. But the carefully kept = Moslem=20 graveyards are generally closed to such purposes, and should cattle or = sheep get=20 in there is further cause for friction.

In matters of religious or semi-religious import the = trouble-producing=20 dissimilarities between Moslems and Chinese thus range from issues of a = strictly=20 religious nature to those of veneration and custom, and even to things = which to=20 us seem ludicrous. There is, for example, the matter of = pigs. Pork=20 is the chief meat of the Chinese, and the average village in western = China has=20 pigs in the streets or roads and pigs in the courtyards and = squares. =20 Whatever food shops or butcher-shops the hamlet may boast will have = sections=20 displaying raw or cooked pig. The New Year's pig is to the Chinese = what=20 the Thanksgiving turkey is to the Americans. Item by item this = story of=20 the pig is one long and continuous aggravation to the pious Moslem, for = whom the=20 pig pollutes the air and defiles the ground.

The Moslems on the other hand specialize in beef and thereby violate = one of=20 the mores of the Chinese. The cow is not sacred, as it is in = India, but as=20 the symbol of agriculture it is the object of a sort of veneration, = especially=20 where Confucian traditions are strong. In earlier times, the = killing of=20 cattle was under interdict as a generally recognized crime, and even now = the=20 Chinese butchers leave the killing of beef to the Moslems. I know = many=20 old-time Confucian scholars who have just as great a horror of eating = beef as=20 the Moslem has of eating pork.

These and many other ramifications of the various sources of friction = between=20 the Chinese and Moslems have brought about an acute state of = incompatibility,=20 manifested in overt violence and covert hate, and have resulted in the=20 segregation we now find in areas where the two people live.

There have been three Mohammedan rebellions within the last hundred = years.=20 The first and greatest of the three began in the middle of the last = century and=20 lasted for about twelve years. During this time the population of the = province=20 is said to have been reduced from about twelve million to something less = than=20 four million. For a number of years before the end of that rebellion no = crops=20 were planted (although the accidental yield of the fallow fields was = furtively=20 reaped), and men banded together to hunt human beings for food in the = same wav=20 they would hunt game. There has been one rebellion every thirty = years, the=20 most recent one being that of 1928-1980. The natives say that the=20 recurrence of the rebellion waits only for a generation to grow up = and=20 revenge itself on the slayers of its fathers.

These conflicts have always begun over some matter of political=20 import-oppression, over-taxation, an unjust settlement of some case = in the=20 courts, or even the unwise interference of the government in a sectarian = issue=20 between the Moslems. Yet one cannot say that these immediate = causes were=20 the fundamental, underlying ones. Sometimes, it is true, = persecution,=20 harshness, and the generally overbearing attitude of Chinese officials = towards=20 the Moslems have provoked trouble, but more often Moslems and = Chinese have=20 suffered alike under oppression and misgovernment and only the Moslems = have had=20 the hardihood to resort to arms. However much the war may have = been in the=20 beginning a political one and directed against the government, it = has=20 always degenerated quickly into a holy war of extermination, in which=20 non-combatants were killed wholesale. In no instance has=20 extermination been complete; communities of Chinese in the midst of = Moslems=20 and communities of Moslems in the midst of Chinese have survived. = Yet the=20 net result has been to encourage segregation, Moslem groups fleeing from = Chinese districts and establishing themselves as war refugees in=20 predominantly Moslem communities, and the Chinese following the same=20 course. The degree of segregation appears to be greater at present = than it=20 was thirty years ago.

Over the course of years, segregation has also been brought about = through=20 less drastic measures. In the majority of districts- Titao is an = example-=20 the Chinese are numerically and politically dominant and by means of = that=20 dominance are able, through petty persecution, trumped up lawsuits, and = the=20 like, to make it sufficiently uncomfortable for the Moslems that they = will=20 eventually go elsewhere. The Moslems, in turn, by terrorism and = similar=20 methods, gradually squeeze out a Chinese minority. This is = especially true=20 of districts like Hochow, where the civil power is held by the Chinese = but the=20 military power is in the hands of the Moslems. Thus, throughout = such=20 districts, we find a fairly regular alternation of Chinese and Moslem=20 villages.

All these factors have produced a marked competition for political=20 power. As we have pointed out, the rebellions have often been = precipitated=20 by political issues, and in the negotiations for peace which followed = (for the=20 Chinese have never gained an outright victory) there has always been a=20 maneuvering for more power on the part of the Moslem leaders. = Conditions=20 along the border, also trouble with the restless, turbulent Tibetan = tribes, have=20 often afforded signal opportunity for the Moslem military leaders. One = Moslem=20 general who was made defense commissioner of the border- marches used = that=20 commission and the activities involved as a springboard to the = governorship of a=20 province- one of the two provinces in northwest China ruled by = Moslems. =20 For a long time repressive measures by the Chinese authorities = seemed to be=20 driving these two provinces into revolt, but more recently a policy = aimed=20 at enlisting Moslem cooperation and Moslem military genius in behalf of = the=20 central government has resulted in greater stability, which gives = promise of=20 increasing as time goes on.

The degree of power which the Moslems have won and maintained has = furnished a=20 promising ground for propaganda. Back in the days of the World = War, agents=20 preaching pan-Islam did their best to stir up military ambition and = foster=20 military action. At a later date the Soviet-trained Uzbeks and = Kirghiz=20 worked very hard to get something started among them. The moment = was=20 opportune, for the Central Government of China was then putting strong = pressure=20 on the Moslems, the Soviet agents backed the wrong horse when rightly or = wrongly, Ma Chong Ing, became identified in the minds of Moslems as the = prot=E9g=E9=20 of Moscow; he had been the leader of the last rebellion (quite = definitely the=20 least successful), but he had alienated the most powerful section of = Moslem=20 influence and power. When the Communist armies of Central China on = their=20 famous long march approached through Tibetan territory they met fierce=20 resistance on the part of organized Moslem power, which by that time had = been=20 drawn into cooperation with the Central Government. The body = of=20 Moslem opinion was behind that cooperation, for the Moslems were = thoroughly=20 alarmed at the anti-religious propaganda of the Communists.

In the meantime, after the Japanese coup in Manchuria the rumor = spread among=20 the Moslems of the northwest that a nephew of Abdul Hamid had been = received in=20 Tokyo and was being backed by the Japanese government. A = determined=20 effort followed to build up pro-Japanese sentiment under cover of a = revived idea=20 of pan-Islam, with Japan instead of Germany playing the role of defender = of the=20 faithful. But again fate played into the hands of the Chinese = government=20 when the Moslem general Ka-Chan Shan made himself a national hero by his = die-hard fight against the Japanese. Not only did the fact that he = was a=20 Moslem present the suspect Moslems to the Central Government in a = new=20 light, but the story of his bravery and the fight he made turned Moslem = sympathy=20 away from the Japanese. Thus the rise of Moslem military power in = the far=20 northwest of China, growing out of the incompatibilities of two = peoples,=20 constitutes an interesting story in itself and has furnished a field for = diverse=20 international intrigue and plotting.

However much all this may bring into relief the rivalries of the two = peoples,=20 and however much the pattern of population distribution may = indicate=20 definite incompatibilities, there is, nonetheless, a certain amount of = shift in=20 population from one group to the other- chiefly from the Chinese to=20 Moslem. Three factors are involved here: the less religious, or at = least=20 more religiously tolerant, Chinese can change his with less of a break = than the=20 Moslem, for whom religion is pretty much a life-and-death matter; in the = second=20 place, the Moslems are on the whole a little better off = economically than=20 the Chinese; and finally the population increase is definitely greater = among the=20 Chinese than among the Moslems. This last condition is hard to = explain; it=20 may be that the generally greater incidence of monogamy among the = Chinese is=20 responsible; possibly racial differences are the determining factor; or = it maybe=20 that the Chinese philosophy regarding life and the hereafter creates an = intense=20 desire for progeny not present among the Moslems- though, so far as I = know,=20 there is no birth control practised among the latter. Certainly = the facts=20 are obvious, and anyone going through Moslem and Chinese communities or = living=20 in them is impressed by the comparatively small families of the=20 Moslems.

Intermarriage is one way in which this shift of population is=20 accomplished. In the beginning the Arab mercenaries took = Chinese=20 wives, and their descendants have no prejudice against such a = procedure. =20 Indeed, as far as I have been able to observe, there is in certain = instances a=20 real premium placed on Chinese wives. One Mohammedan official I know of = gave=20 preference to his Chinese wife, for, being a woman of education, she=20 represented Chinese culture. Education is now being initiated = for=20 Moslem women, but it has progressed at a faster rate among the = Chinese. =20 There is, of course, a certain reluctance on the part of most Chinese = women to=20 be party to such marriages, for they are not only expected to become = Moslem in=20 religion, but they must forgo all contact with their own people. = Yet even=20 in peace times, when there is no overt coercion, such marriages do take = place;=20 and of course during the turmoil and upheaval of rebellion a great = number of=20 such marriages occur, being in effect marriages by capture. On the = other=20 hand, I have never heard of a peacetime marriage between a Moslem woman = and a=20 Chinese man. Some marriages by capture do take place during = disturbed=20 conditions, but they are generally only temporary, because the = Moslem woman=20 usually runs away when conditions have quieted down.

Proselytizing is another cause of shift- also from Chinese to Moslem = for=20 one of the duties enjoined on the faithful is the winning of = proselytes. =20 When there is peace and conditions are normal, the feared and hated = Moslems find=20 proselytizing a rather slow process, but always there is a gradual = addition to=20 Islam because of the missionary efforts of the followers of the = prophet. =20 Sometimes the convert wants merely to fit into a Moslem community = or to=20 better his economic position, but sometimes also, conversion is affected = because=20 the creed that cries to Allah satisfies a hunger for truth to a degree = that the=20 painted effigies in the temples can not.

The greatest number of proselytes, however, are gained during the=20 rebellions; when he is confronted with the traditional alternatives = of=20 relinquishing his belief or submitting to the sword, the average = Chinese=20 has no hesitation whatever. Of course, many such converts leave = after the=20 crisis is past, but a great number remain, for the rite of circumcision = gives a=20 peculiar definiteness to the transition and marks the man so that return = to the=20 Chinese group is doubly hard. As has been said, most Moslems have = as a=20 surname the syllable "Ma." An inquiry into the history of Moslem = families with=20 other surnames leads me to believe that they were originally Chinese and = became=20 Moslem through various methods of persuasion. Indeed, the Chinese = style=20 these Moslems of the "odd" surnames "the persuaded Moslems." = However that=20 may be, they seem to be in good standing with their co-religionists = (though they=20 are somewhat less zealous) and are definitely a part of the Moslem group = in the=20 culture complex of the region.

Finally, there is a population shift from the Chinese to the Moslem = group=20 through the adoption of Chinese children by Moslem families. This = fits in=20 with the difference in birth rate, which has already been noted. = As is the=20 case with marriage and proselytizing, the greater number are forcible = adoptions=20 during times of rebellion- then children are of ten spared along with = the=20 younger women, and taken as captives to be regularly adopted into Moslem = families and brought up as true children of the home. At the end = of the=20 rebellion some find their way back to their own families, but by far the = greater=20 number, having adapted themselves to the new conditions of life and = found them=20 on the whole rather pleasant, are willing to stay on.

Though not as impressive numerically, there is also a regular = incidence of=20 peacetime adoptions, largely because of the better economic position of = the=20 Moslems and their greater solidarity. A famine or some other = general=20 disaster provides opportunity for Moslems to adopt children, both girls = and=20 boys, from refugees and from those Chinese whose margin of subsistence = is very=20 narrow. But the children of their own poor are taken care of by = Moslems,=20 in order that they may not have to be cared for by any Chinese (although = there=20 is much less chance in that direction) and so lost to Islam.

In spite of the general incompatibility and antagonism between = Moslems and=20 Chinese and the consequent tendency toward segregation in districts = where the=20 two groups are most closely in contact, and in addition to the = population shift,=20 there are also to be discerned certain reciprocal modifications of=20 character and outlook. The Chinese living in a region where there = are=20 large numbers of Moslems seem to take on a certain hardihood and = daring. =20 The natives recognize this fact and say that the constant friction = brings out=20 the hardiness of one's makeup. The Chinese of the Hochow = district,=20 where there is a strong Moslem predominance, are themselves the most = successful=20 soldiers and muleteers- to name two of the more dangerous callings- of = all the=20 Chinese peoples of the province. On the other hand, a Moslem = community in=20 a region where the influence is overwhelmingly Chinese tends to lose = some of its=20 religious intolerance, and its members manifest a greater leaning = toward, and=20 preference for, scholarship and the so-called learned callings than do = those=20 Moslems who are less subjected to culture pressure from the = Chinese. Such=20 is outstandingly the case in the community of Hinchow, where the Moslems = are=20 definitely a minority.

In summarizing the culture contact found between the Chinese and the=20 Chinese-speaking Moslems in China's northwest one can say that here we = have two=20 cultures, differing in race and religion, but having the same regional=20 distribution, the same subsistence economy, and the same language. = The=20 barrier erected between the two groups by the deep racial and religious=20 dissimilarities has been made stronger rather than weaker by their = sharing of=20 the same subsistence economy. The resulting antagonism has been = expressed=20 in conflict of great intensity, which has led to an increasing degree of = segregation, notwithstanding a certain interchange of population and = some=20 secondary influences. The two peoples stand opposed, with a = tendency to=20 seek a solution to their mutual problems through political=20 self-determination.

III. THE CHINESE AND THE SEDENTARY TIBETANS

The second problem of culture contact with which this paper is = concerned=20 is the infiltration of Chinese into the region occupied by the Tibetan = farming=20 population, many instances of which are found all along the border = between the=20 Chinese and Tibetan country. In the region of the Koko Nor an = extensive=20 colonization project is in process of development, and the government is = putting=20 all possible pressure behind it. Land has been preempted from the = Tibetan=20 tribes, with scant regard for their desires, and is being granted = to=20 Chinese colonists. In still other districts turbulent Tibetan = villages=20 have been brought under strict rule by Chinese authorities, and under = the=20 repressive force of such control the Tibetans have been forced to the=20 wall. There are, however, other sections where the Tibetans, aided = by=20 favoring circumstances of terrain, have been able to resist even = long-continued=20 pressure from the Chinese. The instance we are about to consider = falls in=20 neither of these categories: it is an example of infiltration affected = without=20 benefit of political pressure, the results of which may therefore be = ascribed to=20 cultural causes alone.

It should be noted, first, that the district is located in a sharply = defined=20 geographical area, extending for about seventy miles along the upper = course of=20 the Tao River- from a point about twenty miles above Hinchow to the last = of the=20 villages of the Choni clans, twenty-five miles from Taochow. Most = of those=20 villages are in the main valley of the Tao River, although a few are to = be found=20 on some of the larger tributaries to the south. For part of the = distance=20 the river forms the boundary between Chinese and Tibetan villages; then = Tibetan=20 villages appear on both sides of the stream, though Chinese influence=20 predominates on the northern bank for some distance.

Little farming is carried on at a height above 10,000 feet, and the = riverside=20 level of this area is from 8,000 to 9,000 feet above sea level. = The=20 elevation, combined with the close proximity to forested mountains of=20 considerable height, insures a fairly regular and adequate rainfall- = indeed,=20 some years the problem is not lack of rain but too much of it. The = growing=20 season is quite short, and the principal crops are barley, soybeans, = peas and=20 even some wheat. The soil is definitely not so fertile as in the=20 characteristic loess region and requires not only barnyard = composite but=20 sometimes special burnings of sod to make it productive. Even = then=20 the yield is far below that of the Titao and Hochow districts.

On the other hand, the extensive forest and the good grating slopes = furnish=20 the inhabitants with two kinds of supplementary activity. By means = of=20 lumbering and charcoal-burning the forests are exploited to supplement = the yield=20 of the fields, and the available pasture has stimulated the keeping of = livestock=20 to an appreciably greater extent than in typical Chinese farming = country.

As one follows the river upstream, there is a gradual but definite = change in=20 the physical characteristics of the region. The pockets of the = loess=20 formation found within the protecting contours of steep hills become = infrequent,=20 the forests that stand or hang on the shady slopes become = increasingly=20 dense and valuable, and the soil becomes progressively poorer. = There is a=20 steady gain in altitude in the valley floor of about one thousand = feet in=20 the seventy miles, with an accompanying change in the methods and = schedule of=20 agriculture. The terracing so characteristic of a Chinese = landscape=20 decreases, and more and more the fields are found only on the differing = levels=20 or natural terraces of the valley floor.

Following the river up this steadily changing valley, we pass from = one=20 clearly defined culture pattern to another, progressing through all the=20 intermediate stages in the successive villages. Thus, a trip of = seventy or=20 eighty miles takes one through a veritable laboratory of cultural = change, with=20 every step labeled and illustrated. In the first village Chinese=20 culture is dominant, and there are only vague traces of Tibetan = influence;=20 as one moves on, Tibetan influence increases to a point where the two = cultures=20 are evenly balanced; and from there on Chinese influence decreases until = in the=20 farthest villages the Tibetan aspect of life and manners is virtually=20 unadulterated.

Such a trip likewise recalls a certain sequence of events that makes = it=20 almost a journey into the past; for, leaving the first village, which is = Chinese=20 in almost everything but its name (even that is pronounced with a = Chinese=20 inflection and tones), one leaves, in a sense, the present and travels = gradually=20 backwards in time until he reaches the last village, which, with its = dominantly=20 Tibetan character, represents what the now definitely Chinese village = once=20 was. This journey into the past has been in terms not of years but = of=20 events and cultural changes; indeed, it is hardly possible to think of = the=20 history of the district in any other terms, for there is very little = authentic=20 local history. The Chinese of the adjoining region were once = military=20 colonists, placed as garrisons on the border- marches in the time of the = Ming=20 dynasty. That dynasty began in the thirteenth century and lasted = to the=20 seventeenth century; sometime during those four centuries considerable = numbers=20 of Chinese colonists were brought into the nearby Taochow districts.=20 (Descendants of some of those colonists can even today point back to = their=20 ancestral homes, many of which were in the Nanking district in far-off = Kiangsu.)=20 The aboriginal tribes which inhabited the territory were followed by=20 Mongols. The so-called Mongol wall (the ruins of which can still = be seen,=20 the fortified end of the long rampart occupying an almost impregnable = position=20 within a bend of the Tao River), was based on one of the garrison cities = of the=20 Mongol dynasty. In the Field Museum is an octagonal pillar, = brought back=20 from the Kansu-Tibetan border by Dr. Laufer, which commemorated this = city of=20 Yang-ba, now a mere heap of ruins.

So much for the historical background of the district. The = Tibetans of=20 the villages we mention have the tradition that, in whole or in part, = they came=20 from central Tibet shortly after the downfall of the Yan or Mongol=20 dynasty. The Choni Tu-si, who rules over the district traces his = lineage=20 back eighteen generations to a Lhasa family, and certainly the Choni = dialect=20 more nearly resembles that spoken in Lhasa than does any other dialect = of=20 northeastern Tibet. Unquestionably there must have been other = groups of=20 Tibetans or unidentified peoples in the region, whose cultures were = merged with=20 that brought from central Tibet.

With only a few exceptions these mixed villages, called by the = Chinese "pan=20 fan tsi" (half-Tibetan) are under the rule of the Choni Tu-si, who holds = authority from the Chinese government. The pattern of hereditary = rule is=20 little changed by such an overlordship on the part of the Chinese=20 authorities. The Choni Tu-si, or, as the Tibetans call him, = Choni=20 Tbon-po, administers the affairs of the region through village=20 head-man. The court of final appeal in matters of law, equity, or=20 administration is the Choni Tusi himself. In view of the = deep-rooted=20 aversion of the Tibetans to paying anything in the nature of taxes, it = is=20 interesting to note that although regular taxes of a sort are collected = they are=20 not nearly so heavy as those paid by the Chinese of the nearby county of = Taochow. All taxes go to the Choni Tu-si personally, and except = for=20 special assessments levied on him, none are turned over to the Chinese=20 government. In each village there is a head-man ("tseng-kuan"), = who is=20 appointed by the Choni Tu-si and who is responsible for the affairs of = the=20 village. As the village is the basic unit of control, this = head-man has a=20 position of considerable authority. Next above the village is "the = banner"=20 an aggregation of several villages- which has to do with the = organization=20 of the militia, to which every village furnishes a quota. Matters=20 concerning the "banner" as a whole are settled in a council of the = head-men=20 under the direct on of official point by, and acting under, the Ta-si=20 himself. = ; =20

The Chinese of the nearby Chinese communities are organized in = exactly the=20 same way as the Chinese of the Hochow district, as described in = connection=20 with the cultural contacts between the Chinese and the Moslems. = Again we=20 find that the village is the important unit of organization, that the = village=20 organization is integrated in the county, and that the village = authorities are=20 answerable to the county magistrate. These Chinese villages are = taxed much=20 more heavily than are the "pan fan tsi" villages. Direct control = by the=20 Chinese government has been extended over a few of the Tibetan = villages;=20 the reasons for this are not altogether clear- certainly it is not a = case of any=20 preponderance of Chinese culture, for some of these villages are quite = far up in=20 Tibetan country and in their culture conform more to the Tibetan pattern = than to=20 the Chinese. Conversely, there are villages which have become = almost=20 exclusively Chinese but still remain under the Choni Tu-si. From = local=20 tradition we learn that secessionist movements have taken place at times = when=20 the community resented some decision or fiat of his and have brought = about=20 direct control by the Chinese. Then, too, there were, and still = are, a=20 number of hereditary chiefs of minor importance (some of whom have only = a dozen=20 or more families as subjects). In many instances these groups are = being=20 eliminated by nearby local authorities, the means used being not unlike = those=20 used by Hitler in taking over Austria. It is interesting to note = that in=20 no instance has the Chinese government tried to put into force the = system of=20 taxation current in the typical Chinese regions.

Another political factor is the secular power wielded by the great = religious=20 establishments or by powerful lamas- Living Buddhas. This varies = from=20 village to village and from place to place. In the river district = alone=20 there are about a dozen of these religious establishments, or=20 lamaseries. In some instances they are the effective = governing agency=20 and have subjects directly under them. In other places they = function under=20 the patronage of the Choni Tu-si, often times having really the = upper hand=20 as far as power is concerned. Again they may be at outs with him; = and=20 since they can carry on a very effective opposition he must reckon with=20 them.

At the present time there is no overt action on the part of the = Chinese=20 government leading to direct political domination. Indeed, it is=20 sometimes amazing to find the Chinese officials seemingly content = to let=20 matters remain in forms that are centuries old and obviously outmoded. = But=20 on the other hand there is a very clear and certain note of Chinese = dominance in=20 all that concerns the "pan fan tsi" village communities. Under = orders from=20 their Tu-si, the inhabitants cut and haul lumber for the use of the=20 provincial government and perform much service for the Chinese=20 government. Behind every problem that may arise in border affairs = is the=20 sure knowledge that the Chinese government is all powerful when it = wishes to be=20 and that their Tu-si continues in office as a tool (if at times a very = unwilling=20 one) of the Chinese authorities. It is hard to determine just how = largely=20 this factor underlies the culture contact of the border. It has = not been a=20 disruptive force, as it has been in some other regions, acting to = enforce=20 colonization or to deprive Tibetans of their land; and in some ways, = especially=20 in the matter of taxation, the Tibetans seem to fare better than the=20 Chinese. Nevertheless, the power of the government looms large in = the=20 thinking of every Tibetan or half-Tibetan of the region, and by creating = issues=20 of prestige and advantage has definitely affected the cultural = contacts of=20 the border peoples. After all, this prestige and advantage can = fairly be=20 said to represent one phase of the demonstrably stronger culture of the = Chinese,=20 and we are justified, therefore, in giving it place among the = interactive=20 aspects of the two cultures.

Applying to the Chinese-Tibetan contact the same criteria used in=20 defining the Chinese-Moslem pattern, we find those criteria = realigned: in=20 religion and occupation the Chinese and Tibetans are similar; in race = and=20 language they are dissimilar. Yet, lest we should be tempted to = assign=20 identical values to these factors, we must remember that the words = similar and=20 dissimilar represent two extremes, and all the facts that we label one = or the=20 other may lie, in reality, at any distance from those two extremes and = may, in=20 addition, show infinite variations both of kind and of degree. In = contrast=20 to the violent incompatibility existing between the Chinese and the = Moslems, we=20 have between Chinese and Tibetans a mutual tolerance in matters of = religious=20 belief and practise. One of the three great religions = professed by=20 the Chinese is Buddhism, and in the mixed religion practised by the = Tibetans=20 Buddhism is one of the two principal ingredients; thus is created an = adequate=20 basis for religious comity. In noting the religious = differences=20 between the Chinese and Moslems we have already discussed the = religious=20 complex of the Chinese; the Chinese of the border differ from those = already=20 described in that they place a greater emphasis upon Buddhism to the = neglect of=20 some aspects of Confucianism. In particular do the more uneducated = tend to=20 become almost entirely Buddhistic in observance; the scholars, of = course,=20 give greater place to the doctrines of the Sacred Books of Confucian = teaching=20 and always refer to themselves as members of the Confucian sect. = Also, the=20 Chinese of the border country possibly influenced by the religious = fervor=20 of the Tibetans- appear more religious-minded than their fellow = countrymen of=20 the Titao district. Thus we see that in assigning similar values = to the=20 religious beliefs and practises of the Chinese of this district and = those=20 of another district we must qualify the evaluation, for there are = distinct=20 differences both of kind and degree. When we say that the Chinese = and the=20 Tibetans have the same religion, we mean that because of mutual = tolerance the=20 differences in their beliefs have no fundamental effect on the cultural=20 relationship between the two groups.

The faith of the Tibetans is, in fact, far different from that of the = Chinese. Buddhism as developed among the Tibetans has been largely = adulterated by the incorporation of many of the beliefs and = practises of=20 the early Bon religion of Tibet. Sects which are frankly of the = sorcerer=20 variety flourish, and the admission of the mountain gods, earth spirits, = and=20 water demons of the localized Bon religion to the Buddhist pantheon has = changed=20 the horizon of the Tibetan's religious thinking and has even marked the = very=20 landscape in which he lives. On the one hand the Tibetan works his = hardest=20 to fulfill all the requirements of Buddhism, devoting himself to prayers = and=20 meditation; on the other hand he marks his calendar with the festivals = of local=20 mountain gods and crowns the mountain tops with shrines of fearsome = beings that=20 are like gods of a truly savage faith.

Not only is the content of Tibetan religious belief quite different = from that=20 of the Chinese, but the Tibetan in his whole-hearted devotion to, and = absorption=20 in, things religious differs significantly from the more matter-of-fact=20 Chinese. We have defined the essential aspect of Chinese = culture as=20 consisting of a special preoccupation with the tie with the past. = The=20 corresponding aspect of Tibetan culture may be discovered in religion, = although=20 there is a secondary response to the demands of the community, = communal=20 necessity superseding any demand of the individual. Bit, underlying = these=20 considerable differences in expression and importance of religion among = the two=20 groups, there is the common factor of Buddhism, and overlying them is = the=20 tolerance we have remarked; thus, in making a broad classification, we = are not=20 unjustified-particularly in the face of the Chinese-Moslem conflict-in = stating=20 that the Chinese and Tibetans are similar in religion.

In the matter of occupation there is less need for qualification in = putting=20 the Chinese and the Tibetans of the region into the same category. = Both=20 are peasant farmers, the greater number owning their own fields; they = raise not=20 only all their own food but a surplus which is sold to provide whatever = cloth=20 and general notions are needed. Both engage in some = subsidiary=20 value-producing activity: the Chinese supply wood and fodder to the city = and=20 keep a few sheep for wool, which is made into felts and woolen cloth; = the=20 Tibetans keep some livestock (their diet is heavier in milk products and = meat=20 than that of the Chinese), share the exploitation of the forest to some = extent,=20 and, like the Chinese, sell firewood and charcoal.

In both groups the village is supremely important as a unit of=20 organization, socially and politically. The villages are much = alike=20 in size, the average village having a population of between twenty and = thirty=20 families, but in organization and functioning the Chinese village and = the=20 Tibetan village show differences. Within the organization of the = Chinese=20 village we find not only a compact family unit but a clan system as = well. =20 The Tibetans, on the other hand, have no clearly defined clan = organization,=20 and their family is a much looser group than among the Chinese. =20 Nevertheless, the Chinese village organization permits a considerable = degree of=20 individualism, whereas in the Tibetan village communal activity = completely=20 over shadows individual activity. Whether this is because the = Chinese=20 family and clan compete with the village organization, thereby acting as = a check=20 on the exercise of village authority, or whether the more advanced level = of=20 Chinese culture necessarily entails greater liberty of action and=20 initiative for the individual is hard to determine. In all = matters=20 relating to the village-owned woodlands and pasture-lands, as well as in = all=20 matters regulating the time of planting, harvesting, etc., the Tibetan = village=20 acts with a solidarity and unanimity that is comparatively lacking in a = Chinese=20 village community, although that community also owns communal wood-lots = and=20 pastures.

In spite of these differences- which still permit the use of the word = "similar" but forbid the assigning of identical values in any proposed = equation-=20 the subsistence routine is substantially the same for the Chinese farmer = and for=20 the Tibetan farmer, and the village of the one has a close resemblance = to that=20 of the other. In the subsequent discussion, centering around the=20 development of a Chinese village out of what was once a Tibetan village, = the=20 similarities of occupation and organization will have considerable=20 significance.

When we say that the Chinese and Tibetans are racially dissimilar, we = again=20 have to qualify the word, for both are unquestionably Mongoloid. = It is=20 greatly to be regretted that we do not have anthropometric data as a = basis for=20 comparison and so must content ourselves with saying that the Chinese = and=20 Tibetans differ in appearance to about the same degree as a Frenchman = differs=20 from a typical Italian. The process of infiltration over a number = of=20 generations has, of course, given rise to many intermediate types, but = the=20 existence of recognizably intermediate types does not conceal the = essential=20 differences of the two parent stocks.

The Choni dialect of Tibet, like other variations of the=20 rong-skad, or "valley speech,' of the sedentary peoples of = northeastern Tibet, is distinct from the drok-skad, or = "steppe=20 speech," of the nomadic peoples. It is somewhat like the Lhasa=20 dialect-particularly in vowel values and its disregarding of final and = prefixed=20 consonants. It is, of course, radically different from = Chinese;=20 between these two peoples the language dissimilarity is as great = as, or=20 even greater than, that between a Germanic language and a Romance = language, and=20 this dissimilarity must be taken into account in the consideration of = any=20 problem of culture contact between the two peoples.

This culture contact is quite one-sided, the agents being, almost = without=20 exception, Chinese; the contact can be said to be reciprocal only in so = far as=20 the Tibetan community as a whole exerts an influence on the Chinese = migrants=20 within it. The Tibetans go into Chinese country to visit, but they = do not=20 attempt to settle down and make their way among the people. The = only=20 exception to this rule that might be cited is the movement of qualified = Buddhist=20 bonzes, or monks, into Chinese territory to officiate in religious=20 establishments. Even for such purposes the movement is = confined=20 largely to the borders of Mongolia and in no way enters into the = relationship of=20 the Chinese and Tibetans of our border. These religious ventures = to=20 Mongolia, and even to Pekin, area very interesting phenomenon; they are = carried=20 on as a recognized trade, in which the bonzes of the Tibetan = lamaseries=20 sell their highly valued religious services to the more wealthy and=20 simple-hearted Mongols and in due time return with a considerable = fortune=20 in the form of smuggled rifles, which bring enormous further profits to = the=20 pontifical travelers.

The one-sided movement of migrants from the Chinese into the Tibetan = country=20 is chiefly attributable to two causes: first, population pressure makes = the=20 fallow fields of the Tibetan villages very tempting to the land hungry = Chinese;=20 and second, the Tibetan country for a number of reasons is the = traditional=20 refuge for Chinese of the nearby communities whenever rebellion or = banditry is=20 rife. We have already seen that the Chinese, with their large = families,=20 constitute a population reservoir from which the overflow will pass into = any=20 group which does not have a similarly strong population pressure. =20 Certainly the Tibetans, and especially the village people of the Choni = district,=20 offer no such resistance, for their population is unquestionably on = the=20 decrease. An extreme example is a village in the valley of Luchu, = very=20 near the upper limits of the district, which, because it is relatively=20 inaccessible to the stream of Chinese immigration, appears to be dying=20 out. Among the twenty or more houses there, four or five are = deserted and=20 in various stages of dilapidation, and at least half of the area once = cultivated=20 (indicated by terracing and boundary ridges) is now permanently = fallow. So=20 it is in most of the tributary valleys of the Tao River, where Chinese = migration=20 has not kept pace with the recession of the Tibetan population. = Even where=20 a line has persisted one finds a family of three or four persons = occupying a=20 great house built to shelter a dozen or more and tilling only a fraction = of=20 their fields.

It is hard to say just what forces have caused this gradual decline = in=20 population. Most of the causes to which population decline is = generally=20 ascribed are not operative in this case. Chinese population = pressure has=20 followed rather than produced the fact; economic pressure cannot be held = accountable, for there is considerable more land available than is being = utilized, and the native population is not sufficient for an adequate=20 exploitation of the natural resources. It has been suggested that = when a=20 stronger and disruptive culture comes in contact with a simpler and more = primitive one, breaking down ceremonies and beliefs, population follows = because=20 the community as a whole loses the basic satisfaction of a well = rounded=20 pattern of life. The impact of the somewhat similar and extremely = tolerant=20 Chinese system of religion and philosophy could not have produced the = results=20 observable among the Tibetans; yet religion has unquestionably had both = directly=20 and indirectly, an effect in producing this decline in population. = Northern Buddhism as practised by the Tibetans is not only basically = agnostic,=20 but it is apathetic and antisocial in its philosophy of negation and in = its=20 emphasis on asceticism. All sexual irregularity is condemned, the = marriage=20 relationship itself is defined as only a degree less sinful, and the = desire for=20 progeny is stigmatized as a "desire of the blood" incompatible with = religious=20 success. What all this has done to the Tibetan and how large a = part it=20 plays in producing population decline cannot be stated with any = accuracy,=20 but it certainly has had a part.

A clearer cause of the population decline is to be recognized in the=20 religious institution of monasticism. Various estimates have been = made as=20 to the percentage of the Tibetan population to be found in = lamaseries. =20 There are no adequate figures available, but for this part of Tibet = about one=20 seventh of the population would not be too high an estimate. = If the=20 sex ratio were anywhere near equal, that would be nearly one out of = every three=20 males. I know of many families who have one boy out of two, or = even two=20 boys out of three, in lamaseries. Such an arrangement has not only = thrown=20 the sex ratio and marriage out of balance but has resulted in = homosexuality,=20 incest, and a great amount of license. Correspondingly, there is a = very=20 high incidence of venereal disease. This is particularly true of = the=20 farming peoples of the lower part of the Tao valley. All this has = a very=20 direct influence on population decline. One further physiological = factor=20 should be mentioned: the introduction of the use of opium among those = Tibetans=20 nearest to Chinese communities and influence. As in the case of = the=20 introduction of liquor among the American Indians, that drug = produces far=20 more disastrous effects upon the Tibetans than upon the Chinese, who are = habituated to its use and have developed a certain degree of = resistance.

Finally, a low resistance to disease has played a part in the = population=20 recession among the Tibetans. In instance after instance of = epidemics of=20 smallpox, scarlet fever, and influenza, as well as in treating = individual cases=20 of infections, we have found that the Tibetans have much less = resistance to=20 such germ infections than do the Chinese. I have vaccinated = Chinese=20 children and Tibetan children from the same tube of vaccine and found = that with=20 the Chinese it would barely "take," while the Tibetans would have cases = of=20 varioloid which in general severity approached light cases of smallpox = itself.=20 The fear the Tibetans have of epidemic diseases and the strict = quarantines=20 they put into effect, in contrast to the careless attitude of the = average=20 Chinese community, clearly indicate this difference in resistive = power.

Not only have the tempting fields and receding population of the = Tibetan=20 community invited Chinese penetration, but the Tibetan country has again = and=20 again been a most effective refuge for those fleeing from the three = great=20 Mohammedan rebellions and from other, secondary visitations of bandits = and=20 contending armies. In such circumstances the closely = integrated=20 Tibetan community acts more promptly and efficiently to defend itself = than does=20 the Chinese community, for the Tibetans are by habit armed to an extent = unknown=20 among the Chinese. The Tao River, too, has been a protecting = barrier,=20 and back of all the fords and passes which offer means of defense are = the great=20 forests to afford cover and fuel for the refugees.

The Tibetans, like many unsophisticated peoples, are rather = softhearted=20 toward refugees, especially if they be destitute. (They are often=20 sufficiently troublesome toward those who have possessions and=20 wealth). By Tibetan custom the right of refuge has become one of = the basic=20 rights, and when it is reinforced by the claims of acquaintance and the=20 functioning of the "guest-host" system this right of refuge can open a = path into=20 the most exclusive of Tibetan communities. During the most recent=20 Mohammedan rebellion, when many were fleeing its troubles and violence, = we were=20 accorded permission to stay in a Tibetan village with a tolerance that = would not=20 have been possible under ordinary circumstances.

Having discussed the occasions and agents which promote contact = between=20 Chinese and Tibetans, we shall indicate briefly the salient aspects of = the=20 process involved. The refugee situation does not, of course, = constitute a=20 complete process of contact; it merely creates favorable circumstances = for the=20 process, just as does the allure of empty fields, economic adventure, or = manual=20 labor in the exploitation of the natural resources. Sometimes the=20 processor contact is contained within the mechanics of intermarriage, = which is=20 of two kinds: the matrilocal, in which the Chinese man takes his place = as=20 son-in-law in the Tibetan home, and the patrilocal, in which he is able = through=20 his wife's connections to set up his own home in the Tibetan = community.

In every instance intermarriage is between a Chinese man and a = Tibetan woman-=20 never between a Tibetan man and a Chinese woman. This is = attributable=20 partly to the fact that, except in the refugee situation, the advance = agents of=20 culture contact are men and partly to the dislocation of the sex ratio = among the=20 Tibetans by the inroad made on the male population by the = lamaseries. =20 There is still another element. Tibetans have revealed to me that = they=20 find Chinese women, with their extreme decorousness, much less = attractive=20 than the Tibetan women who, with a background of greater social freedom, = have=20 very much of a "good -sport" outlook and manner. And Chinese men = admit,=20 although rather shamefacedly, that Tibetan women, with their = rough-and-readiness=20 of action and great out-of-doors industry are definitely attractive = to=20 them.

Whenever a likely young Chinese is taken into a Tibetan home as a = son-in-law,=20 he naturally becomes as like a Tibetan in dress, mannerisms, and speech = as he=20 can. If other agents do not operate to bring him into further = contact with=20 Chinese culture, he may become very much of a Tibetan. His = children will=20 be brought up as Tibetans, and after a generation or so only a Tibetan = nickname,=20 such as "Chinese boy," baby be left to indicate that there is any = Chinese blood=20 in the family. In the number of children, however, his family will = be more=20 Chinese than Tibetan.

When a Chinese man marries a Tibetan wife and establishes his own = home,=20 however, he generally makes an effort to set up a Chinese home and to = maintain=20 the Chinese manner of living and outlook. Especially is this true = if he=20 has living with him any members of his Chinese connection mother, = brothers,=20 or other relatives. Although the girls of the family will copy the = Tibetans in dress and manners the boys will be brought up with the idea = that=20 they are Chinese and, even though they acquire Tibetan mannerisms and = habits of=20 dress, will avoid identification with the Tibetans. When Chinese = cultural=20 pressure is thus maintained through the processes of contact, these = half-Tibetan homes become foci of Chinese influence and change.

Adoption constitutes another process of contact within the = family. =20 Tibetan families are often pitifully anxious for children, and there are = many=20 instances of their adopting Chinese children. This is especially = true of=20 boys, who can better perpetuate the family line. The Chinese lad=20 becomes thoroughly "Tibetanized" and reacts to Chinese cultural = influence=20 to no greater degree than do the full-bodied Tibetans of the = community.

In a strictly Chinese community the children of mixed marriages are = Tibetans=20 often referred to slightingly as half but in a mixed community they seem = to have=20 the same status as those who are entirely Chinese or entirely=20 Tibetan. For, although the Tibetans on occasion resent Chinese=20 domination and can have quite strong feelings against them. It is = rather=20 for what they represent in outside influence than for the fact that they = have=20 Chinese blood in their veins. If the individual acts in accordance = with=20 recognized behavior patterns, the Tibetans seem to care very little = whether he=20 is half Chinese, half Mongolian, or half something else.

In addition to contacts which are created within the family, there = are others=20 of a strictly economic character. Certain craftsmen, such as = carpenters,=20 blacksmiths, and millers, very easily obtain a foothold in a Tibetan=20 community. They find there a very inferior kind of competition = from most=20 of the Tibetan artisans, although once in a while there is a Tibetan = workman of=20 outstanding skill and reputation. Much of the trade of to = village=20 will also gradually pass into the hands of the Chinese trader who may = come just=20 on a single trade-errand and remain to open a shop and set up a = business. =20 Finally, there are those who may come into the community life as = laborers,=20 willing to do anything and to work a bit harder than the Tibetans to = make a=20 livelihood. In this category are harvest laborers, lumbermen, and = charcoal=20 burners.

To complete the picture of this very one-sided cultural contact we = must=20 indicate some of its results. There is no doubt that the first and = most=20 obvious one is the immediate "Tibetanization" of the migrants. = They come=20 seeking favor and tolerance from the members of the community, not as=20 conquerors, so that both convenience and policy favor the adoption of at = least a=20 part of the Tibetan garb and as much of Tibetan usage as they can = without=20 running counter to deep-seated Chinese prejudices. As has been = intimated,=20 this initial Tibetanization varies in degree according to the different = factors=20 in the process of the cultural contact. The Chinese son -in-law in = a=20 Tibetan home will go completely Tibetan, but in his own home he will = retain some=20 Chinese usage and technology even though he becomes largely Tibetan in = habits,=20 dress, and home arrangements. The wholly Chinese family in a = Tibetan=20 community will remain almost entirely Chinese in culture, taking = over only=20 such Tibetan practises as are obviously more convenient or make = life in the=20 community smoother.

This adoption of Tibetan ways is most noticeable in the matter of=20 clothing. This is natural, for their clothes are far more = convenient for=20 Tibetan life than are Chinese garments. Great sheepskin coats, = felt-lined=20 boots, and fur hats are well suited to the rigors of the Tibetan climate = and can=20 be easily procured locally. As the woman usually bears the=20 responsibility of preparing clothing for the family, this is the = only kind=20 of attire in homes where the wife is Tibetan. A Chinese wife may = keep to=20 Chinese clothing for herself, regarding the big Tibetan gown worn = without=20 trousers as being somewhat indecent, but she will try to make Tibetan=20 garments for the men of the family (yet however much of a Tibetan a = Chinese=20 may become in dress he usually continues to wear trousers). The = Chinese=20 readily adopt the pots and pans of the Tibetan home; the women folk = discard the=20 two water buckets carried on a shoulder-pole and follow the Tibetan = practise of=20 the single large vessel slung from the shoulders and balanced on the = small of=20 the back. The men learn to use saddles, pack-gear, and other such = pieces=20 of Tibetan equipment.

There is, of course, not only an outright adoption of the Tibetan = language=20 for all the contacts of daily life during the initial Tibetanization of = the=20 migrants, but there is also a certain amount of linguistic = borrowing. The=20 two most notable aspects of such borrowing are, first, the acceptance of = certain=20 distinctly Tibetan forms of construction (most obvious in the matter of = word=20 order), and second, the borrowing of Tibetan words that become = incorporated into=20 the Chinese language of the border areas. A complete analysis of = word=20 order would be a most complex matter, so we shall select only one = salient=20 difference between the two languages and then, by taking one example, = show how=20 the influence of Tibetan usage has modified the Chinese word = order. In=20 typical Tibetan the verb always comes at the end of the sentence or = phrase; in=20 Chinese the verb order is much like that in English. As a short = example we=20 have the sentence, "mount the horse." The Chinese sentence would be: = ch'i (ride)=20 shang (up) ma (horse). But in the case of an imperative there is = an=20 atypical usage; the sentence is introduced by the word pa (sign of the = optative)=20 and the word order is reversed, the verbal phrase coming at the end: pa = (sign of=20 the optative) ma (horse) ch'i (ride) shang (up). In such case the = use of=20 pa is essential.

The typical Tibetan version of the sentence would be: rta (horse) = zhon=20 (ride-imperative form). This rule in Tibetan by which the verb = always=20 comes at the end-as in German- has influenced word order in Chinese as = spoken in=20 the border communities to the extent that, ignoring the usage of the = word pa=20 (sign of the optative), they will say: ma (horse) ch'i (ride) shang = (up). =20 The change in the order of two words seems a mere trifle until one hears = the=20 sentence with critical Chinese ears; then it sounds utterly atypical and = foreign=20 to standard Chinese usage, even though all the words are Chinese. = This is=20 just one example of how border Chinese reveals the influence of Tibetan=20 usage.

Tibetan words are also incorporated into the vocabulary of the = Chinese=20 migrants and, to a certain extent, disseminated throughout the = communities along=20 the border which, as a result of the culture contacts between the two = peoples,=20 have become largely Chinese. Such words are pronounced with all = the=20 peculiarities of the Chinese phonetic system and with Chinese tones = added to=20 syllables that originally were non-tonal. The problem of = linguistic=20 borrowing between the Chinese and Tibetans is complicated by the factor = of=20 common origin, and tone is even more confused and controversial. = The short=20 list which, follows will serve to indicate specific instances of = Chinese=20 borrowing and to show how Chinese tones have been used. As the = matter of=20 language borrowing is involved in another one of the four cases of = culture=20 contact we are describing, a short statement of the essential = differences=20 between Chinese and Tibetan is here inserted.

Unquestionably there are fundamental similarities between Chinese and = Tibetan, especially if we take for comparison modern, spoken Tibetan = rather than=20 classical Tibetan, which has been so greatly dominated by Sanskrit form = and=20 usage. Dr. Sapir, in view of this fact, has very aptly placed = classical=20 Tibetan and modern Tibetan in two different categories. Tibetan is = basically a monosyllabic language but, through the frequency of = combination and=20 the use of many particles, exhibits many polysyllabic features. = (Chinese, of=20 course, also manifests similar phenomena but to a lesser degree.) Two=20 phonetic distinctions sharply separate Chinese and Tibetan. = One is=20 the series of retroflex consonants that is such a marked characteristic = of=20 Chinese, and the other is the Chinese system of tones. Tibetan has = been=20 called a tonal language; if we concede that what we get from the = placement of=20 initial consonants is "tone" (far forward being high and far back, low), = then=20 Tibetan is "tonal"-but no more so than, let us say, Hindi, or many = other=20 languages. Chinese on the other hand has an arbitrary set of tones = (four=20 or five, depending on the dialect) which may be given to any combination = of=20 sounds no matter how far forward or how far back the initial consonant = be=20 placed. Thus when compared with Chinese, Tibetan may well be = classified as=20 a non-tonal language although not no-tonal in the strictest sense.

The added Chinese tones have been indicated by numerals written above = the=20 syllables. Care has been taken not to include any instance in = which the=20 Chinese word and the Tibetan word have obviously been derived from a = common=20 source. Many such words are to be found in the centers of language = usage=20 and culture, but the list given above contains words incorporated into = the=20 language only in the area of contact and common only in border = usage. In=20 addition to the Chinese tones and the transposition into the retroflex = series of=20 many of the initial sounds, the stresses and vowel qualities have been = clearly=20 modified to harmonize with the typical language pattern into which the = word has=20 been incorporated.

Closely associated with language borrowings is a certain change in = the use of=20 names. The Tibetans of Amdo have only personal names; there are no = strictly family names or surnames. This lack is sometimes = compensated for=20 by the use of village or clan names, or of nicknames prefixed to the = personal=20 name. The typical Chinese, however, are punctilious in the use of = the=20 surname, personal names being rarely used outside of an extremely = limited=20 circle. It is noticeable that the Chinese of the border towns, and = especially those living in the Tibetan communities, tend more and more = to=20 disregard surnames and use only personal names- often defined by = reference=20 to some personal idiosyncrasy such as "hare-lip" or "cripple"- in one = another,=20 thereby following Tibetan usage.

The Chinese migrants accept to a considerable extent the Tibetan=20 communal ideals and customs relating to village loyalty and = communal=20 activities. In a way they can do nothing else and still remain in = the=20 community; but through continued residence they become accustomed to = such=20 communal activity and will often declare that village loyalty such = as the=20 Tibetans have is preferable to the greater individualism in the Chinese = village,=20 for one of its results is a somewhat greater degree of community = security. =20 When, however, Chinese infiltration has progressed to the point where a=20 community is preponderantly Chinese, that loyalty and communal behavior = become=20 correspondingly weakened.

Lastly, the migrants take on much of Tibetan religious belief and=20 practise. The sudden accentuation of the Buddhist aspects of = belief and=20 observance in the Chinese religious complex is of course initiated to a=20 considerable degree by the necessity or desirability of gaining favor = with the=20 Tibetans, but before long the new religion acquires a definite and = genuine hold=20 on the Chinese mind and temperament. This conversion to a revived = form of=20 Buddhism manifests itself in a number of ways. There is, first of = all, a=20 personal participation in Tibetan religious activity, most frequently = expressed=20 in the saying of Tibetan prayers and religious formulae, personal=20 participation in the circumambulation of shrines, the use of the prayer = wheel,=20 and the making of regular offerings of incense to the local = deities. There=20 is a unique family participation, in conformance to Tibetan religious = custom, in=20 the designating of sons as priests in the lamaseries, and this strikes = hard at=20 the Chinese family ideal and desire for progeny. Finally, there is = participation in all the village or community festivals by personal = attendance, and the making of contributions to defray expenses.

In distinction to these initial results of Tibetan culture on the = agents of=20 contact-migrants that come from Chinese regions into a Tibetan village = community=20 there later develops a secondary cumulative effect on the = Tibetans. Of=20 course, trade contacts made by the Tibetans themselves and certain = aspects of=20 overt or covert political pressure all contribute to enforcing or = inducing a=20 response on the part of the Tibetans to the pressure of Chinese culture, = but the=20 agents through whom the greatest degree of Chinese cultural = pressure comes=20 to bear on the Tibetans is through those same migrants.

The isolated migrant left to himself in the midst of Tibetan = influence and=20 environment would no doubt sooner or later become Tibetan; but behind = him, and=20 in successive stages reinforcing him, is the sustained population = pressure from=20 the Chinese country. One by one, others follow his lead, pressing = into the=20 Tibetan community through the opening he has made. Once a number = of=20 Chinese families are established in a village, simply as a matter of the = difference in the birth rate of the two groups (for even with a Tibetan = wife a=20 Chinese man produces a larger family than is found in the all-Tibetan = marriage),=20 the Chinese are sure to gain; and bit by bit the community becomes more = and more=20 like a Chinese village. Finally, Chinese influence increases = because the=20 agents who exert that influence and spread that culture have a definite=20 advantage over the Tibetans: namely, a certain "savoir faire" when it = comes to=20 dealing with the encroachments of the Chinese government. = They can=20 talk the language of government officials and wealthy merchants and = traders, and=20 they have definitely superior business ability and industry. The = village=20 oil-press or grist-mill sooner or later passes into the hands of a = Chinese if,=20 as is generally the case, he has not started it himself. So by = superior=20 intelligence and initiative the Chinese members of the village community = forge=20 to the front.

The impact of Chinese culture upon the Tibetans is manifested in a = number of=20 ways, and just as clearly as is the initial Tibetanization of the = Chinese=20 migrants. Indications of such impact run all the way from changes = in=20 habits of dress and in building arrangements to changes in language = usage and=20 nomenclature. It can be safely said that the Tibetans of this = region=20 regard trousers as superfluous, feeling that their long coats bloused at = the=20 hips and falling to anywhere from the ankles to above the knees, as = occasion or=20 the varying custom of each district might require are quite sufficient = to=20 modesty. As we have mentioned, the Chinese hangs onto his trousers = no=20 matter how big a Tibetan cost he may wear, and so the general use of = trousers=20 among the Tibetans of the so-called half-Tibetan villages has become a = symbol of=20 swank or prestige. Although the Tibetans of any district upon gala = occasions wear highly-colored jackets or shirts in addition their = "falling=20 apart" and "falling off" coats, it is only those in close contact with = the=20 Chinese who have taken to wearing such shirts every day. Still = more=20 significant is the rapid spread of the use of chopsticks among the=20 Tibetans, for chopsticks area typically Chinese implement and the degree = of=20 their use among Tibetans is in direct ratio to the degree of = Chinese=20 cultural penetration.

Most significant of all the material borrowings is the adoption among = the=20 Tibetans of the kang- the heated platform or masonry bed of the = Chinese=20 which is the most important part of the Chinese house. In the = great=20 earthquake of 1922, when so many thousands of villages in eastern = Kansu=20 were destroyed, it was interesting to note the order followed in = repairing the=20 home. In the bitterly cold winter weather, walls and a roof were = matters=20 of secondary importance. The first concern was to make a kane and = build a=20 smudge fire of refuse and stable- cleanings under it; then the family = camped=20 comfortably on top of the heated platform until the matter of walls and = roof=20 could be attended to. The Tibetans as a whole seem more = architecturally=20 inclined than the Chinese-perhaps because the fine timbers of the region = encourage building ambitions. The Tibetan house of the Choni = district is=20 quite an imposing two-story, fort-like structure, superior in every way = to the=20 typical Chinese house (though in the nearby Chinese communities the = Tibetan=20 style of architecture has been adopted). But in the matter of the=20 kang, the Tibetans are following the Chinese slowly, for in the = Tibetan=20 communities farther removed from Chinese influence it is unknown, or at = least=20 used only infrequently. In the Choni district there is only one to = a home,=20 and it is so constructed that the fire in the semi-open hearth serves = not only=20 for cooking but for heating the platform as well. The Chinese = on the=20 other hand, must have one in every room, and indeed the signification of = a=20 Tibetan village can be gauged with a fair degree of accuracy by the = number of=20 kangs found in its homes.

We also find a change among the Tibetans in the matter of = surnames. In=20 those villages which have sustained the greatest degree of cultural = contact=20 with the Chinese and in which the re-sinification of the original = initially=20 Tibetanized migrants has therefore progressed the furthest, we find that = the=20 Tibetans have arbitrarily taken unto themselves Chinese surnames, = the=20 entire population often taking the same name. Throughout much of = the Choni=20 district one surname occurs with the greatest frequency- that of the = Choni Tu-si=20 himself. The adoption of a surname is most interesting when we = consider it=20 in the light of the origin of surnames among the Chinese = themselves. =20 Originally, the people or subjects of a state were called the = "black-haired=20 peoples," and the ideograph for the syllable "people" was the picture of = a man=20 kneeling, with his hands tied behind his back. Later, as a special = honor-almost like the creation of a hereditary order of nobility- the = emperor=20 conferred family names. The book of surnames is known as the book = of "the=20 hundred surnames," so it would seem that the number was once strictly=20 limited. Now all Chinese have surnames, and the word for citizens = or the=20 people is "hundred surnames." The Tibetans in borrowing surnames thus = seem to be=20 following a step that the Chinese themselves once took in social=20 organization.

In the processes of culture contact the Tibetans have also borrowed=20 extensively from the Chinese language, and we present a sample list of = such=20 borrowings. The words have been properly incorporated into the=20 language, with no attempt made to reproduce Chinese tones or = inflection,=20 and with the consonants represented by the nearest Tibetan = equivalents.

A comparison of this list with that of the words borrowed from the = Tibetan by=20 the Chinese and of the material and symbolic borrowings between the two = peoples=20 indicates that the Chinese borrowings have been largely of a utilitarian = nature=20 whereas those of the Tibetans have been of a more cultural and symbolic=20 nature.

Only in the matter of religion is there little, if any, change. = It=20 would seem that even in the face of a definitely superior culture, = positive=20 religious fervor has some advantage over passive religion, for even a=20 Tibetan community which has been made over almost entirely into a = Chinese=20 community will bear the stamp of the Tibetan emphasis on religion, the = great=20 force of their belief exceeding that of a definitely superior = culture.

The general process of cultural contact and change between these two = distinct=20 cultural groups has generated surprisingly little ill-feeling. = Nowhere is=20 there the bitter, though smoldering. enmity found between Moslems and=20 Chinese. Yet, though the degree may vary according to both the=20 individual and the community, there is no doubt that the Chinese = feel=20 definitely superior to, and look down upon, the Tibetans. After = all, the=20 Tibetans historically are to them part of the barbarians and their = names--the=20 th (eastern barbarians), runi (western barbarians), and = man=20 (southern barbarians)-stand as . terms of reproach on the pages of = Chinese=20 history. The Tibetans are a singularly proud and sensitive people = and=20 resent such an attitude accordingly. the various attitudes generated by = such=20 opinions are factors in the cultural contacts of the two peoples.

Without attempting to give a completely balanced summary of the = various=20 stages in the creation of a Chinese village out of what was once a = Tibetan=20 community, it is possible to epitomize the whole by bringing into relief = three=20 aspects of that process and change. The first Chinese migrants are = willing=20 to sacrifice a great part of their heritage in order to fit into the new = environment, but it is only when a Chinese has given up everything = else=20 that he can bring himself to renounce Chinese burial customs and = veneration of=20 the dead. The Tibetans bury their dead, or rather dispose of = them=20 either by exposure to the vultures on some mountain side, by burning, or = by=20 consigning the bodies to the waters of the river. The river = Tibetans=20 generally practise the last-named method. So the matter on which = Chinese=20 culture makes its last stand at the end of any number of compromises is = that of=20 burial, and soon after the first migrants come to the village W-11 be = set=20 aside. The Tibetans have little or no dread in regard to their own = methods=20 of disposing of the dead; but burying the dead is to them a fearsome = practise,=20 and the plot becomes the haunt of unappeased spirits that have not found = release=20 for the next rebirth. To the Chinese that plot represents the one=20 essential aspect of tradition and cultural heritage which they will not=20 relinquish.

Much later, when, by successive arrivals of new migrants, by the slow = but=20 sure advance of a higher birth-rate, and by the steady pressure of = greater=20 racial virility and economic fitness, the one-time Tibetan village has = become=20 very much like a Chinese community, or has at least a preponderance = of=20 Chinese characteristics, as the crowning proof of its sinification, the = use of=20 the cart enters into the village agricultural routine and = technique. =20 The cart is a strictly Chinese method of transportation, and the = Tibetans avoid=20 its use with a peculiar obstinacy.

Even when the village has become all "Chinese," however, the quiver = shrines=20 of the mountain gods on the tops of the highest mountains are still = tended and=20 replenished year after year (the mountain gods are accepted as the gods = of the=20 locality); for certain aspects of Tibetan culture and religious = observance=20 have persisted in spite of the otherwise nearly complete transformation = of the=20 Tibetan village into a Chinese village.

Thus, the case of the cultural contact between the Chinese faming = communities=20 and the Tibetan faming communities along the border, as exemplified = by=20 conditions in the Choni half-Tibetan villages, represents the impact and = steady=20 pressure of a more vigorous culture and people upon a weaker one, = beginning with=20 infiltration and ending frequently with dispossession or = absorption. =20 In the process the stronger culture sustains changes closely related to, = if not=20 identified with, the strongest aspect of the subordinated culture, and = the=20 impress of Tibetan religion remains long after other Tibetan = characteristics=20 have vanished.

IV. THE MOSLEMS AND THE NOMADIC TIBETANS

The third case of culture contact in the region of the Kansu-Tibetan = border=20 is that which occurs between the Moslems living in farming villages and = the=20 nomadic Tibetans of the upper steppe country. Some of the Moslem=20 communities described in the first part of this paper- those nearest the = Tibetan=20 border and some villages in the Taochow district-are included in the = group now=20 under consideration. The villages of the Taochow district exhibit = certain=20 regional peculiarities of dress and house-style and differences in=20 agricultural routine incident to the higher altitude, but they are in = essentials=20 very like the other exclusively Moslem communities.

It is at this point that the nomadic, or tent-dwelling, Tibetans = really enter=20 our discussion, but because when we come to discuss the differences and = contacts=20 between the nomadic and sedentary Tibetans we shall describe at length = their=20 manner of life, it is necessary here to mention only such aspects of = their=20 culture and subsistence economy as give rise to the need and occasion = for=20 contact with the Moslems. The particular nomadic tribes which = furnish the=20 most typical incidence of trade contacts with the Moslem are the Dok-wo, = Ta-tzen, She-tsang, Sa-mtsa, Bu-wa, Ka-chu-ka, Rzak-dum-ba, Sha-me, = Za-ru,=20 and Chiao-ko. These tribes, with the exception of Shetsang, = Sa-mtsa=20 and Za-ru, are entirely nomadic and are considerably removed from the = border=20 area. The three tribes mentioned are partly sedentary and are = nearer both=20 to the border and to the farming divisions of their own tribes. = There is a=20 distinct tendency for tribes close to the Tibetan farming districts of = the=20 border to do their trading for grain among the farming half of their own = tribes,=20 even though they are not far from the Chinese border. The more = distant=20 nomads, on the other hand, do not stop at the Tibetan farming = communities but,=20 having come so far, go a little farther to the Chinese border and = beyond,=20 thereby reaching the Moslem communities. Thus, the typical trade = contact=20 between the Moslems of the farming communities and the Tibetan = nomads is a=20 long-range matter, proximity in no wise entering in. An exception = is to be=20 found in the case of the tribes west of this strip of nomadic tribes, = who would=20 have to travel for almost a month to reach the Chinese border, and for = that=20 reason depend on the Tibetan farming communities in the lower = levels of the=20 Yang-tze basin, in Khan, for their grain, never going to the Kansu = border for=20 seasonal trade although the hardy and adventurous Moslem traders do go = to=20 them.

Nowhere in the territory occupied by these tribes is the altitude = less than=20 about 1.1,000 feet above sea level; therefore, they can grow nothing for = themselves. There are some edible greens in the region, but, = except for=20 those of the onion family, all are distasteful to the nomad; some of the = tribes=20 even refuse to eat the large fine-flavored mushrooms that grow on the=20 steppe. The edible potentella supplies a small tuber that = is tasty=20 and a great delicacy-the tubers are at beat about the size of a = thirty-two=20 caliber bullet-but even in the most favored spots it requires almost a = day's,=20 labor or dig a pint of the little roots, and they are good only in the = early=20 spring and late fall. Thus if he were to depend entirely upon what = he=20 could produce the Tibetan nomad would be restricted to a diet made up=20 exclusively of meat and milk products. Some of the Golok tribes, = far up=20 along the pilgrim trail to Lhasa, sometimes do go for considerable = periods=20 without grains of any sort; but the Shimdrok tribes. as the tribes I = have listed=20 are called, consider grain a necessity.

The region of their home is partly true steppe and partly = grass-covered=20 mountains of rounded contours. In the midst of this country, = limestone=20 massifs are found in clusters, their peaks rising far above the = 14,000-foot=20 limit of the highest pastures of the nomads. Some of it is in the = basin of=20 the Yellow River, and the southern fringes are in the Yang-tze = drainage. =20 It has by far the best grass-lands in northeastern Tibet; north of this = section=20 of the Koko Nor the land is broken by the salt lakes and marshes of = Tsai-dam and=20 by stretches of near-desert country, and west of the range of the = Shimdrok=20 tribes the Golok country is not only higher and more mountainous = but has=20 extensive tracts which have been completely denuded of vegetation by = swarms of=20 mouse like rodents. As an index of the comparative excellence of = the=20 Shimdrok pasture lands the sheep, horses and cattle of this region are = the=20 largest in northeastern Tibet.

Neither in past history nor in present social or political = organization do=20 the Moslems and Tibetan nomads have anything in common. The = historical=20 background of the Moslems has already been discussed, as has that of the = Tibetans, in a way, for there is little reason to distinguish between = the=20 historical background of the nomadic Tibetans and that of the sedentary = tribes=20 along the border. What little tradition of origin there is among = the=20 nomads at the present time serves only to emphasize the uncertainty of = that=20 origin. Some hundreds of years ago the chroniclers seem to have = lost count=20 of just how many), the kingdom of Hor extended in part, at least, over = this=20 portion of Tibet. There are a number of points in the Shimdrok = range that=20 are pointed out as places where battles took place between the armies of = Hor and=20 China. Just south of the winter camp sites of the Rzak-dum-ba = tribe,=20 far up in a magnificent circle of limestone peaks, I was shown, across a = great=20 gorge- like valley, the mouth of a cave in the sheer face of a = thousand-foot=20 cliff; in that cave are said to be the saddle, weapons, and armor of the = Hor-lin-rgyal-po (king of Hor-ling), and some day his successor will = come out of=20 that cave and ride once more to lead the Tibetans to victory over their=20 enemies.

For all such traditions, the Tibetans are not sure that they are = truly the=20 descendants of the Hor, and I have been able to find no tribal history = that goes=20 back more than three hundred years. It is even possible that not = so very=20 long ago the region was inhabited by faming peoples; both on the Ba = plain where=20 the Yellow River flows into Chinese country and along the banks of that = river=20 where the Black River flows into it, there are remains of villages and = clearly=20 demarcated fields. Indeed, not far from Sok-tsong, at the knee of = the=20 Yellow River, there is a wide flat, called Drag-skye tang (rice-sprout = plain),=20 which poses with added force the question whether there have not been = very=20 recent changes in climate; for these places are 12,000 feet above sea = level and=20 at the present time have such a short summer-only about twenty nights in = the=20 year are free of frost-that the natives claim even barley will not = ripen. =20 Tribal history always seems to begin with the phrase, "We came = from...."

In political organization there is a slight resemblance between the = Moslem=20 villages and the encampments of the nomadic Tibetan tribes. That=20 resemblance lies in the fact that the village and encampment are = somewhat=20 analogous in social structure and have much the -same functions--an=20 aggregation of families associated for the purpose of protection = and to=20 facilitate the exploitation, either agriculturally or pastorally, = of nearby=20 land. But there the resemblance ceases. As we have seen, the = village=20 is integrated into the organization of a county and administered by a = county=20 official, and although it has considerable voice in- the running of its = own=20 affairs it has little to say about its relation with the county as a = whole and,=20 through the county officials, with the provincial government. The=20 encampment, on the other hand, although associated with a tribe as = a unit=20 of tribal organization, maintains considerable independence; and, = although it=20 can hardly establish its rights to grazing privileges without the = consent=20 of the tribe as a whole, it can, being nomadic, always secede and go = somewhere=20 else if it finds tribal rulings harsh and arbitrary or the general = atmosphere=20 uncongenial. Thus it has far more self-determination in its = relation=20 to the next-larger unit of organization than does the Moslem village in = regions=20 administered by the Chinese government; further-more, while tribal = custom and=20 law modify to a certain extent the character of encampment rule, the = Tibetans=20 acknowledge no law or control beyond that of the tribe. About = seventy=20 years ago some of these tribes paid token-taxes to the Chinese = government as a=20 sort of yearly tribute, but even that has gone out of practise; = and, though=20 in a vague way the Tibetans acknowledge the "emperor's household," i.e., = the=20 Chinese government (many of the Tibetans are not sure whether it is in = Peking,=20 Mukden, or Nanking), to all practical purposes Chinese law is = completely=20 ineffective in the region. Not only are the tribes Independent of = the=20 Chinese government but they are even more independent of each = other. In=20 effect they are all sovereign states having complete control over their=20 territory and fiercely resentful of any encroachments on their = sovereign=20 rights. Their ware and inter-tribal feuds affect their own freedom = of=20 movement as they seek to carry on the necessary trade, and the division = of the=20 country into dearly defined areas of control makes travel among them a = nuisance=20 because of the necessity of arranging safe conduct, etc., with so many = different=20 authorities. The Tibetans, though they do not levy formal duties = on=20 caravans passing through, extort various payments for "road rights," = "grass and=20 water rights," and for guides and escorts to ensure protection, so that = the=20 traders pay quite a large hidden tax as they go from tribe to tribe.

The contact existing between the Moslems, whose homes are in the = faming=20 country along the border or accessible from the border, and the Tibetan = Nomads=20 living some distance away as measured by slow caravan travel, is an = unique=20 one. Not only are they not neighbors, but they are utterly=20 different. By each and every criterion we have employed to = characterize=20 the contacts found on the Kansu-Tibetan border, they are dissimilar-and = in this=20 instance we mean dissimilar in the extreme. Racially the Moslems = are=20 strongly Semitic; and the Tibetans, whatever the complexity of their = racial=20 admixture, are Mongoloid and more akin to the Chinese and other peoples = in the=20 southeastern part of Asia. The Moslems speak Chinese, while = peoples in the=20 Tibetans speak the nomadic variation, or dialect, of Tibetan. The = Moslems=20 are monotheists belonging to Islam, whereas the Tibetans subscribe to = the=20 religo-philosophy of Buddhism and worship, in addition, a multitude of = gods and=20 demons inherited from the pre-lamaistic religion of Tibet. = Finally, the=20 Moslems are a sedentary people, having agriculture as their subsistence = economy,=20 while the Tibetan nomads are a pastoral people, who take especial pride = in their=20 manner of life and have deep-seated prejudices against disturbing the = soil.

In spite of the complete dissimilarity of these two peoples, certain = factors=20 in the life, location, and characteristics of each have created an = occasion of=20 contact. That occasion is found in the reciprocal trade which, = operating=20 as it does at a distance, constitutes a most interesting kind of = cultural=20 contact. The Moslems are characteristically traders, and their = strong=20 spirit of commercial adventure has put them in touch with all the = currents of=20 world trade which reach this remote part of the Asian highlands. = By their=20 location on the border, or within easy access to the border, they find=20 themselves in a position of peculiar advantage to act as middlemen in = passing=20 the produce of Tibet to the outside world and, in lesser degree, to = absorb some=20 of it themselves and aid in its distribution to contiguous Chinese = territory. To=20 carry on trade and travel in the Tibetan country requires a certain = mount of=20 daring and initiative, and the same qualities that have placed the = Moslems in=20 other callings of hardihood and daring have made them traders among the=20 Tibetans.

This special fitness is well exemplified by what an old Tibetan = robber once=20 said to me. In telling about the technique of robbing caravans he = very=20 aptly described the difference between the Moslems and the Chinese: = "When we=20 attack a caravan and they begin to cry out 'Lao Tien Ie' (the common = Chinese=20 appeal to the deity) we know that the caravan is practically ours, but = if they=20 cry 'Allah Hu Da' then we know that they are Moslems and we are in for = trouble."=20 Whether this incident also suggests that religion is one of the sources = of that=20 difference is a moot point, but the essential fact remains.

It may be that on the Tibetan side the adventurous spirit of the = nomads=20 also predisposes them to taking part in the venture of trade, but other=20 immediate causes are more convincingly evident. The subsistence = economy of=20 the Moslems makes them practically self-supporting, and trade is = principally a=20 means of acquiring more wealth- especially Tibetan trade, which is = exceedingly=20 gainful in proportion to its hazards: but the Tibetan nomads must do = some=20 trading in order to get any grain at all, for their own subsistence = economy=20 furnishes them only with animal products. Their nearest source of = grain=20 supply is the Tibetan farming communities which lie between them and the = border,=20 but the grain surplus there is rather limited, and there is not nearly = so good a=20 market for nomad products except what can be used locally. The Tibetans=20 therefore prefer to travel a few days longer to the border markets.

The fact that the nomads have almost a monopoly on the transport = system of=20 the land also tends to involve them in trade. All freight is carried on = yaks.=20 The nomads have the greatest number of these animals; so, either = directly, as=20 the source of supply, or indirectly, by contracting for carrier jobs, = they are=20 placed in advantageous contact with the routine of trade. Finally, the = nomads=20 produce most of the things for which there is a demand; lambskins, wool, = sheepskins, livestock for the central China market, and furs all come = from the=20 steppe country. The possession of all these commodities predisposes the = Tibetans=20 to trade, and by the action of the forces operative in both peoples an = effective=20 occasion for cultural contact is created in the seasonal ebb and flow of = that=20 trade.

The action of this contact is reciprocal but different in its effects = in the=20 two peoples, since cultural force is exerted through differently = selected=20 agents, under different circumstances, and for unequal periods of time. = The=20 Moslem traders who go into the Tibetan country form a smaller percentage = of the=20 population of their home communities than do the Tibetan traders who = come down=20 to the border to trade for grain. The Moslems become traders as a means = of=20 increasing their wealth- there is nothing inherent in their agricultural = subsistence economy to force them into such a course. In one Moslem = village that=20 I know, which was a fair example of a border village with a rather high=20 percentage of traders, less than half of the heads of families had ever = gone=20 into the Tibetan country as traders. Among the Tibetans, on the = other=20 hand, practically every head of a family takes part in the annual = journey to the=20 border to trade for the year's supply of grain.

The circumstances under which these agents are exposed to the = influences=20 of the other cultural group and the degree to which they impart = cultural=20 influences also vary. The Moslem trader goes into the Tibetan = country for=20 periods of time from three months to two years. Though he travels = in a=20 company which often times represents a rather large caravan, = nevertheless, he=20 will stay, with at best one or two companions, for a long time in very = intimate=20 association with a Tibetan community. Not only is he exposed to = Tibetan=20 influence for long periods, but because he is necessarily greatly = obligated to=20 the Tibetans and will naturally seek to placate them, his exposure to = the=20 influences of Tibetan culture is favorable to his acquiring Tibetan = culture=20 traits. When a Tibetan visits a Moslem community in the Chinese = border=20 country, he stays at the most only a month or-so and during that time = camps=20 apart with his Tibetan companions. And though he is under = obligation to=20 his Moslem host, he has a much less Intimate relation with the Moslem = community=20 than his the Moslem trader In the Tibetan community, who stays in the = tent of=20 his Tibetan host or pitches his own at the door of his Tibetan = sponsor.

Moslem traders who go to the nearer tribes frequently go in small = parties but=20 a typical trade caravan starting out on a trade venture among the = nomadic=20 Tibetan tribes is organized on a large scale. The very smallest caravans = number=20 at least two or three "kettles," and the largest may number forty or = even fifty=20 "kettles." (A "kettle" denotes the members of a unit having one campfire = and the=20 same food supply; in other words, they eat out of the same kettle. The = group may=20 vary in size from three men to a dozen, the average being eight or = nine.) This=20 tendency to combine into large caravans comes from a desire for = protection and=20 from the fact that by dividing the expense of guides and escorts- and of = the=20 latter what amounts to a small force of the military may be necessary in = going=20 through a bad section- the cost of traveling through the Tibetan areas = is=20 considerably reduced.

The Tibetan people among whom the trading is being done often move = the=20 freight, but the traders usually bring their own transport animals. The = yak-ox=20 is the traditional beast of burden in Tibet; and commercial caravans are = generally composed of numbers of this hybrid ox, which is a cross = between the=20 yak and the ordinary cow. These animals form an important item in = the=20 export trade from the Tibetan country; they are sold both for = caravans and=20 for agricultural operations along the border and in the Chinese = regions. A=20 good ox will carry a load of about two hundred pounds at an average rate = of=20 fifteen miles a day and can live off the country, except during the last = months=20 of winter and the period before the new grass is well up in the early = part of=20 the summer.

Travel routine requires getting as early a start as possible- the = camp is=20 roused long before dawn and should be leaving by daybreak, the new camp = is made=20 and the cattle unloaded and turned loose to graze by noon. In = stores and=20 bad weather, plenty of which can be found on the high steppe, it is a = hard=20 life. For two men to handle the loading and driving of twenty oxen = means=20 spurts of back-breaking, heart-bursting activity. In safe country = with=20 favorable weather, there is a certain freedom and thrill- even gaiety- = in=20 Tibetan travel, and the traders who do much of it confess to a keen = longing for=20 the excitement of the=20 trail. &= nbsp; =20

Travel through the Tibetan country necessitates securing the = permission and=20 good will of the tribesmen, and this is done through the various hosts = that are=20 claimed in each tribe by the leaders of the "kettles. " When a=20 caravan reaches a tribe it breaks up, each group going to its = particular=20 host. The same caravan may never be reassembled, for the various = traders=20 have different interests or different routes and form new caravans with=20 whatever companions they may find as they wander through the = country as=20 visitors and strangers. The traders have no particular rights = except as=20 guests of their various hosts In the tribe. This "guest-host" = relationship=20 is of varying degrees of cordiality, ranging all the way from a = life-long warm=20 and intimate friendship to a very casual and mercenary association = whereby=20 the "guest" makes a gift to his "host" and receives certain privileges = and=20 recognized status in the community. However varying the degree of=20 friendliness involved, the arrangement has an aspect of permanency, for = it is=20 expected that the contact will be renewed at each successive = opportunity. When=20 going through territory the traders are careful to look up their hosts = and leave=20 gifts at each tent, even when they do not expect to stop.

This relationship is initiated usually by an introduction through a = mutual=20 friend, but occasionally it is the result of casual contact. A=20 reference or a message sent by word of mouth through the guide who = takes=20 the caravan on may suffice for an introduction. The trade caravan, = or=20 party, camps either within the circle of the encampment, or outside but = close to=20 the tent of the host. As soon as camp is made the members of the = party=20 adjourn to the tent of the host to have a meal (which may vary in = amplitude=20 according to the cordiality of the relationship) and to present the gift = which=20 is always covered with the "scarf of felicity"- a special token in the = form of a=20 -small white, or light blue, silken scarf which is the polite, = congratulatory,=20 social gesture that must accompany every gift. Indeed, the scarf = of=20 felicity is enclosed in every letter and is exchanged whenever the = two meet=20 on any occasion of-social significance.

If the tie between the host and his guests is a close one, he gives = them a=20 sheep to kill (they always give back the skin of that sheep) and sees = that they=20 are supplied with the first bucket of water needed for their cookery, = with=20 clobbered milk and other such delicacies during their stay, and with the = fuel=20 they need. The other extreme-the minimum-of such attention, = is to=20 -supply the first bucket of water and one basket of fuel as a -sort of = token=20 payment of the debt, after which the guests look after their own = needs. =20 Whatever the degree of friendliness In the host-guest relationship = (easily=20 determined from the material benefits granted during the stay at the = tent door=20 as well as by all the more personal contacts and intercourse), in one = respect=20 that relationship functions without variance. The host I o always = the=20 sponsor of hi a guests. Tb a great extent they carryon trade with = the rest=20 of the tribe through him. In cases of dispute they appeal to him, = and they=20 are definitely under his protection. He al so helps them make = trade=20 contacts, may even take them with him to the various encampments of the = tribe,=20 and act as sort of advertising agent for them; when the time comes to go = on he=20 either goes himself or makes arrangements for hiring the guides and=20 escort. The traders on the other hand, are supposed to give = him=20 -somewhat preferred rates on any merchandise he wants, and I f they have = to hi=20 re transportation they first find out whether he has any animals to hire = before=20 seeking transport elsewhere.

The trading itself is the very ultimate in haggling and bargaining, = with all=20 the intricacies of Oriental concern with quality, quantity, and payment=20 involved. Most of the trade is on the basis of immediate payment, = although=20 between those who have considerable mutual confidence some is done on a = credit=20 basis. Much of the payment is in goods, making it seem like = barter, but=20 there is little true barter of article for article without filing = the=20 price; for even though no "money" changes hands-catties of butter are = the small=20 change, and ounces of silver or fractions thereof, are the larger units = of=20 value-nevertheless the goods bought and the goods in which payment is = made are=20 both translated into terms of those two units of value. The use of = butter=20 as the recognized unit of value in nomad land is an index of the great, = if not=20 supreme, importance of that article in the subsistence economy of the=20 region.

A general list of imports into Tibetan country included cotton cloth = of=20 various grades, coarse silks, chiefly for girdles and the scarfs used = such as=20 needles, thread, and colored cord, satins and brocades, pots and = kettles, rifles=20 and ammunition, fine artesian leather brought from Mongolia, and luxury=20 foodstuffs such as dried ju-jubes, rice, sugar, raisins, and wheat = flour. =20 Grain for food is imported in large quantities, and barley is the one = item which=20 is never carried by the traders going into the Tibetan country, but is = secured=20 by the Tibetans themselves when they go down to the border to = trade. Tea=20 is an import that is in a class by itself. It is not a luxury but = a=20 necessity and constitutes a specialized trade, with a procedure and = routine=20 of its own; as it does not enter Tibet from this part of the border, = however, it=20 need not concern us in our consideration of Tibetan trade.

The principal exports are cattle (beeves for work animals and = breeding=20 stock), sheep, horses--there is a specialized large-scale trade in = cavalry=20 mounts for the Chinese army, as well as trade in mares for the mule- = breeding=20 areas of central China- wool, hides, furs, yak tails, salt, and to a = more=20 limited degree felts. -sheepskins, and yak-hair Cloth for the use of = those=20 traders who must keep up caravans and maintain pack saddle equipment and = tents. Hartshorn and musk also form two relatively small but = valuable=20 items of export.

The Tibetan expeditions that go to the border are organized on much = the same=20 pattern as the Moslem trade caravans, but there are minor = variations. =20 Most frequently a caravan is composed of representatives of the tents of = an=20 encampment, who are grouped into "kettles" according to convenience = and=20 considerations of friendship; but this arrangement is by no means = binding, for=20 friends or relatives who live in different encampments may unite to form = a=20 caravan, ignoring the encampment caravan. Practically every tent = at=20 sometime during the season has a representative in a trade caravan. once = in a=20 while, when a family is very small and poor or is in particular trouble, = the=20 people of a tent will ask a friend or two to drive some of their cattle = for them=20 and do the trading for them. The trade caravan never includes = representatives of more than one tribe. Thus all the members have = the same=20 general set of feuds and avoidances to keep in mind, leaving only = personal or=20 encampment feuds to complicate the situation.

Once the Tibetan trade caravan is organized it is a more closely=20 integrated and cohesive unit than the Moslem caravan. I have = traveled=20 with both and have always found the degree of cooperation, the almost=20 instinctive discipline and unity of action much greater in the Tibetan=20 caravan. This is quite consistent with the greater force of the = communal=20 ideal as against that of individualism in their social = organization. The=20 tradition Is that a Tibetan trade caravan never breaks up until it has = returned=20 to the point of origin, one member's trouble or delay meaning trouble = and delay=20 for all. The caravan does not break up into separate units when arriving = at a=20 Moslem village but makes one camp, although the members may claim = separate hosts=20 among the inhabitants of the village.

There are other differences between the Moslem and Tibetan trade=20 caravans than the differences in the length of time spent away from = home=20 and in their organization. One is in the schedule of their trade = journeys=20 within the round of the year's activities. As the Moslem = trade=20 venture is less a matter of community necessity and more a matter of = individual=20 initiative, it is organized with little regard to the agricultural = routine in=20 the village; rather is it scheduled on the basis of conditions = within the=20 Tibetan country. Midwinter is the preferred time for the start; at = that=20 time the winter' s catch of furs is pretty well in, and the spring yield = of=20 lambskins will soon be ready. Salt can only be transported during = the dry=20 winter, and there is always a certain amount of pressure upon the = Tibetans to=20 dispose of the stocks of wool and hides before the problems of = spring=20 moving become acute. Thus some of the Moslem traders plan on a = quick trip=20 of just a few months, getting back to the border before the deep snows = of late=20 spring and the rains of the summer; others plan to stay over through the = summer. The late spring or early summer is the best time to buy = horses and=20 cattle; any kind of ox or horse looks good when carrying the flesh from = a whole=20 summer's good grazing, but it is only when they are thin from the rigors = of the=20 winter that the good and bad points stand out. Also, the degree to = which=20 they have stood the winter offers a good indication of the degree to = which they=20 possess that elusive but very real thing the Tibetans call = "bone"-constitutional=20 hardihood. Unless the caravan plans to stay over an entire season = (and=20 some even remain in the Tibetan country for two years or more), the = traders try=20 to get back in the early fall so as to be home when the nomads come down = to=20 trade. It may be said here that the fall or early winter is the = best time=20 to travel in the Tibetan country. The cold comes early, but the = weather is=20 dry. There is an abundance of dry fuel cow dung and dried = sheep=20 manure- and the frosted hay is much better fodder than the deceptive = green grass=20 of the early summer. Also the bogs are frozen, and there are no = horse=20 flies to stampede the cattle.

The schedule for the Tibetan trade caravan's journey is strictly=20 limited. It must be undertaken while the tribe is in the winter=20 encampment, for the routine of moving in the summer requires both the = oxen and=20 the men, and the summer camp sites are usually farther away from the = farming=20 country and the border. Also it must be before the cattle are = weakened by=20 the privations of the winter and while the grazing is still = sufficiently=20 good to keep them in shape while carrying heavy loads. Finally, it = must be=20 while the sheep and beeves, which are the principal livestock commodity = for the=20 foodstuffs trade of the nomads, are fat and in condition to be = butchered. The=20 caravan period is thus limited to a few months in the fall and early=20 winter. It cannot be too early, for the caravan roads will not be = open to=20 great droves of cattle until the crops of the Tibetan farming country = lying on=20 the route have been harvested; furthermore it is only after the harvests = are in,=20 in the Chinese country and surplus grain stocks are high that the Moslem = village=20 folk are ready to trade grain foodstuffs.

The time involved is short; the Tibetans are always anxious to finish = their=20 trading and get back for the mid winter festivities in the = lamaseries. =20 Then, too, the farming country-even though stocks of straw and -such = fodder may=20 be available-is no place to maintain a yak caravan for any length of = time. =20 It is-seldom, therefore, that a Tibetan trade caravan 'Will-stay in the = Moslem=20 community for longer than two or three weeks. The Tibetan always = makes=20 much less effort to adjust himself to the tempo of life in a Moslem = village=20 under Chinese law than does the Moslem trader to the Tibetan = encampment,=20 for the latter stays much longer and is in more intimate = association with=20 Tibetan life.

There is another fundamental difference between the Moslem and the = Tibetan=20 trade caravans, and that is in the commodities carried for = exchange. The=20 trading done by the Tibetan caravans is in a sense a simpler kind, = springing=20 from the basic need of all life. It is the immediate exchange of a = percentage of an exclusively protein and fats food supply for enough = grain to=20 make a suitable diet. This, in-spite of the fact that the yield of = butter=20 from the flocks and herds, which is the most obvious return from the=20 exploitation of the one basic source of wealth in nomad land grass does = not=20 figure in the exchange for grain at the border. Surplus stocks of = butter=20 constitute the medium of exchange among the Tibetan themselves and are = paid out=20 for services and the working expenses of caring for the herds so that = livestock,=20 hides, and wool from those herds may be converted into grain at the=20 border. Thus the trade caravans of the Tibetans which go to Moslem = farming=20 communities are engaged in a basic and imperative foodstuffs = exchange.

The trade of the Moslem caravans which go to the encampments of the = Tibetan=20 nomads is a much more complicated matter. It is based on certain = demands=20 of the Chinese and even of world markets and is motivated by a desire = for the=20 gain to be derived from the middleman function in the movement of = regional=20 products from one place to another. In a sense it is a luxury = trade,=20 depending partly on arousing desires among the Tibetans for cloth, silk, = luxury=20 foodstuffs, arms, and ornaments. A favorable trade balance often = enables=20 the Tibetans to start for their foodstuff exchange with an extra stake = or=20 reserve of silver or other wealth; much of this wealth from the sale of = horses,=20 furs, etc., however, as well as the luxury goods taken in, is stored in = the=20 lamaseries or otherwise accumulated in individual hoards. Expansion of = the trade=20 is dependent upon an increasing sophistication of the Tibetans and an = increasing=20 demand for all kinds of notions.

The effects of this diversified, yet sharply controlled, contact are=20 discernable in both culture groups. These effects on both Moslems = and=20 nomadic Tibetans are most clearly, attributable to diffused = influence=20 alone, for the contact is not only reciprocal but is maintained through = selected=20 agents. No population pressure is involved, nor does political = pressure or=20 aggression enter into the situation. Prestige is Involved but it = is=20 somewhat equalized, being on the side of Tibetan culture when the = contact=20 takes place where Tibetan tribal custom and usage obtain and on the side = of=20 Moslem culture when it takes place in the Moslem villages.

The effects of this contact are to be found in two aspects of the = Tibetan=20 nomad population: on the population as a whole and on the selected = individuals=20 who make the visits to the Moslem villages and trade centers of the=20 border. Exponents of Moslem culture are pretty well diffused=20 throughout the Tibetan communities by the prolonged stay of the = traders in=20 intimate and leisurely contact with the Tibetans. The degree = to which=20 the general population acquires certain traits as a result of this = process is=20 greatly accentuated in those individuals who make the annual trade visit = to the=20 centers of that culture. There for a brief time they are exposed = to a=20 relatively intensive form of culture influence. The results of = this=20 process in both its diffused and intensive forms appear in a number of=20 ways. Unquestionably the Tibetans owe much of their knowledge of = the=20 outside world to the Moslem influence. The Tibetan language = has not=20 yet been modified to allow of proper terminology to describe = civilization, but=20 the people talk about planes and tanks, speaking of them respectively as = "iron=20 birds" and "iron cattle." The traders tell their hosts and friends the = news of=20 the outside world and introduce them to a consideration of things far = removed=20 from the round of camp life. These traders are also the agents of=20 -sophistication; they introduce tastes for luxuries in the matter of = foods and=20 persuade the tent-dwellers to buy flashlights and cotton cloth. = Older=20 Tibetans have told me that fifty years ago no Tibetan ever needed Cloth; = now,=20 though the nomads haven't followed the Choni Tibetans in the adoption of = trousers, there is a distinct tendency towards an increased use of = cloth, both=20 for trimming the borders of the big -sheepskin coats and for shirts and=20 jackets.

Because of this contact certain words of obvious Chinese (Moslem) = origin have=20 come into general use among the Tibetans of the steppe. Such = words, as in=20 the case of the language borrowings by the sedentary Tibetans, have been = changed=20 to harmonize phonetically with Tibetan, and the distinctive Chinese = tones=20 attached to each syllable have been dropped. The following is a = sample=20 list of words which have been so borrowed (many other instances of = borrowing are=20 identical with those we have already noted along the border). As to = Chinese=20 itself, it is but seldom that the nomads ever learn more than a few = words of=20 it.

There is one notion current among the Tibetans which obviously comes = from=20 observance of the eating-habits of the Moslems, especially their = refusal to=20 eat meat that has not been killed by a believer of Islam. In = different=20 parts of the Tibetan country there are varying prejudices in regard to = food,=20 some foods being distasteful to certain of the Tibetans: for some, = mushrooms;=20 for many more, eggs, marmots, fish, fowl, etc. Birds are not = popular in=20 the Tibetan diet because of the association between their claws and = those of=20 vultures which have such a prominent part in the final disposal of the = Tibetan=20 dead, but this religious prejudice seems to have no country-wide=20 distribution. Marmots, which the Tibetans of one district = think of=20 with the greatest abhorrence area highly appreciated treat to = others. The=20 symbolic use of the word "kha" (mouth) is not applied to such = differences of=20 usage and taste, but the Tibetans do have a notion that certain = fundamental=20 differences exist between the food for people of one religion and that = for=20 people of another religion, and when they hear about other peoples the = question=20 is always asked: "Is their mouth the same as ours, or is it like the = mouth of=20 the Moslems, or do they have some other mouth?"

The influence of Tibetan culture, on the other hand, is not so widely = diffused throughout the Moslem community. The stay-at-homes and = the=20 womenfolk of the Moslems have very little direct contact with the = Tibetans;=20 whatever influence Tibetan culture has upon them comes to them through = their own=20 traders and depends upon the degree to which these selected members of = the=20 community have responded to Tibetan cultural influences and acquired = Tibetan=20 traits. As leaders of the community- they are usually its = wealthiest=20 members- these traders are able to make certain habits and traits the=20 vogue. They undergo a more intensive exposure to the Tibetan = manner of=20 life than do Tibetan traders to a Moslem community and become remarkably = Tibetanized in many things. Certain it is that much of the ready = response=20 to danger and the flair for decisive action that characterize the = nomadic=20 Tibetan strikes a responsive chord in the nature of the Moslem. = Maybe it=20 is that he, too, by heritage, is a nomad, though many times removed; and = that=20 the call of a nomadic existence is still potent for him. The = Moslem=20 villages which have been most in contact with the Tibetans are most = likely to=20 resort to arms to defend themselves against the recurrent scourge = of=20 banditry. In the year 1914 it was the fighting traders of the = Moslem=20 community of Taochow Old City who administered the first defeat the = great=20 Chinese bandit, White Wolf, had ever known up to that time. The = traders=20 not only acquire a fondness for Tibetan clothing and saddlery and adopt = Tibetan=20 travel equipment in its entirety, but when at home they like to = showoff=20 their Tibetan boots and great fur hats and talk in a half-Tibetan lingo = for the=20 admiration of the home-town folks- they parade Tibetan words the way the = sailors=20 who had sailed with Drake mixed Spanish with English when they talked in = Biddleford town. They all, of course, speak Tibetan fluently, = though=20 most of them speak it with a marked accent.

Naturally, there has resulted a considerable amount of language=20 borrowing. Some of it has been an outright borrowing of = words, with=20 the usual modifications of consonant and vowel quality common in such=20 borrowings, plus, in this case, the addition of tones to make the words = of=20 non-tonal Tibetan fit into their Moslem-Chinese speech. Some = borrowings=20 have been more subtle; for example, a Chinese word will be reinterpreted = according to the delimitations or connotations of its nearest Tibetan=20 equivalent. Herewith are listed a few of the many Tibetan words = which have=20 been incorporated into the language usage of the traders, and to a = lesser=20 degree, into the language usage of their home communities.

Then, of course, the various words for cheese, tether rope, etc. = which have=20 been borrowed from Tibetan by the Chinese along the border, as listed in = an=20 earlier part of this paper, are used in the same way by these = people.

I shall give, also, a few examples of the more subtle borrowings of = Tibetan=20 connotations and meanings: the Tibetans have one word, mthso, for = lake=20 and sea, which with a prefix signifying bigness, is also used for = ocean. =20 The traders, of course, hear mthso used for the salt lakes and = for all=20 the lakes of the Tibetan country, yet know that it really means sea and = ocean as=20 well, so they have taken to using the Chinese word hat in a new broader = sense=20 for lake, sea, and ocean, and have discarded the more particular words = hu=20 and ch'i even when speaking of a very small pond. This is clearly = an=20 instance of borrowing the system of classification of another language = and using=20 it in one's own language with words of one's own language.

The use of the word "kettle" to designate a group of men- those who = share a=20 single campfire- is a case of borrowing a Tibetan connotation and fixing = it to=20 the Chinese word of nearest meaning. The Tibetan call such a = wa-ka=20 (kettle-at); so the traders, if they do not borrow the Tibetan term, = affect the=20 Tibetan connotation for the Chinese word kuo-tre (kettle), = a=20 connotation it never had in the Chinese original.

The experiences and influences of Tibetan trade and travel seem also = to have=20 modified the truculence and religious intolerance of the Moslems, for = those=20 Moslem communities which have had much trade and contact with the = Tibetans are=20 not so bigoted as their co-religionists of the Hochow district.

One more result of this contact should be mentioned. During = their=20 rather extended periods of residence in the Tibetan country, many of the = Moslem=20 traders take temporary Tibetan wives, and those who do not have numerous = sexual=20 affairs with the free and easy Tibetans. Unquestionably this has = had some=20 influence upon the population of the nomad tribes and may have had a = part in=20 creating the puzzling mixture of types often found among the = Tibetans. =20 Once in a while a Moslem trader will even take his Tibetan wife = back to his=20 home and make her his principal wife, thus bringing further Tibetan = influence=20 into his home and to the community an added source of racial = admixture.

In this third instance of culture contact we have two groups which = are=20 different in race, religion, language, and occupation, and which are not = contiguous but removed from each other by considerable distances as = judged by=20 slow caravan travel. Yet the needs growing out of the subsistence=20 economy of the one group and the commercial stimulus exerted upon = the other=20 by their peculiarly advantageous position on or near the frontier have = produced=20 a strong trade movement, carried on by variously selected agents in a = regular=20 seasonal cycle. The contact established through these agents and = this=20 trade has been sufficient to produce marked variations and changes in = each of=20 the two groups involved and furnishes an opportunity for the study of a = closely=20 controlled example of race and culture contact.

V. THE SEDENTARY AND NOMADIC TIBETANS

The culture contact between the sedentary and the nomadic Tibetan's = is the=20 fourth of such contacts with which we are concerned. The = distribution of=20 these two groups as it appears on a map suggests no orderly factors = underlying=20 their relative positions, but in terms of elevation and the = accompanying=20 zoning of climatic conditions and plant life the distribution is quite=20 regular. The chan-tang, the high "cold plain" the = central=20 Tibetan plateau, is mostly uninhabited; even the hardiest of the = "dwellers=20 in the black tents" cannot live at altitudes of 16,000 feet and = more. =20 Eastward from this highest table-land-now in wide, sloping plains, = now in=20 abrupt, broken country, mountainous and rough-the land falls away to the = steppe=20 country where the various Shim-drok and Wa-nak tribes of nomads are = found. =20 Only a part of the nomad range is in the ideal steppe country; = following=20 the drainage of the many rivers, the steppe breaks up into = mountainous=20 country, with more or less rounded contours covered over with varieties = of=20 steppe grasses. Along the courses of these rivers, as they cut = further=20 into the Plateau, the country finally changes; the valleys become deep=20 sided-canyons with steep, partly-wooded walls. At about the level = of the=20 first forests, from elevations of 11,000 feet and under, agriculture = takes the=20 place of cattle and sheep-raising, and one moves from the region of the = nomads=20 into the country of the sedentary faming tribes of this part of = Tibet.

There are many variations of and exceptions to, the typical = conditions as=20 here described. Particularly in the Bo-ra and Am-chok region, the=20 villages of the faming peoples are found in country which, although = it is=20 low enough for faming, is more like the true steppe than like the valley = bottoms=20 of the Tibetan farms. In spite of all the exceptions that can be=20 mentioned, "steppe" and "valley" describe two peoples and two conditions = of=20 life. The Tibetan term for nomad's drok-pa = (drok-open=20 country, steppe, free from forest and not precipitous; pa- a = particle=20 signifying relationship or participation). The term for a = sedentary=20 individual is rong-pa (rong- valley, and, by = later=20 usage, cultivated valley). Other names, chief of which are the = terms=20 "People of the black tents" and "people of the earthen houses," are also = used to=20 designate those who are nomadic or sedentary, pastoral or = agricultural.

The drainage slope of the country on the whole is toward the east, = and as we=20 go toward the Chinese frontier typical nomad country gradually gives way = to more=20 level land, suitable for farming. Along the border, with the = exception of=20 one or two isolated bits of table-land and high mountainous country, = there are=20 found only sedentary tribes of Tibetans.

The special nomadic culture of the various Wa-nak and Shim-drok = tribes=20 occupies a belt of country extending north and south which coincides = with the=20 best portion of the typical and near-typical steppe country. All = these=20 tribes are very much alike in culture despite the fact that in the north = there=20 is a considerable admixture of Mongol influence-some of the tribes are = called=20 Mongol, and one or two of them speak Mongolian. Various travelers = have=20 called them all by one name- Drowka- assuming it to be a tribal name, = whereas it=20 really designates a manner of life. To the west of these various = tribes,=20 who number about thirty all told, in the higher and more inaccessible or = inhospitable country, are to be found the eighteen tribes of the Goloks- = "round-heads"- who differ to a very considerable extent in physical=20 characteristics, cultural traits, and linguistic usage. They = are=20 easily distinguished from the Shim-drok tribes by certain = linguistic habits=20 which would seem to indicate that they have migrated recently from = central=20 Tibet, and by certain physical differences which may be due to = difference of=20 stock or may be the result of greater privation and the effects of = attitude.

We are defining as typical nomad culture that which characterizes the = tribes=20 of the Shim-drok who are least exposed to influences from the = sedentary=20 districts. In the matter of ideals, language usage, and habits of = dress=20 there is a set of patterns definitely ascribed to the nomads by the = Tibetans-=20 both nomad and sedentary- and by the Moslem and Chinese traders who have = come in=20 contact with both peoples. (Golok culture is much like typical nomad = culture but=20 shows great enough variation so that it would probably warrant separate = mention=20 if it were included in this part of the paper. My acquaintance = with the=20 Goloks, however, has not been of sufficient range or duration to furnish = material for a comparison with the other type of Tibetan culture.)

The sedentary communities that we are taking as representative of the = farming=20 peoples of northeastern Tibet are similar to, but not identical with, = the=20 farming communities of the Choni district which are changing under the = impact of=20 Chinese culture, reinforced by population pressure. The farming=20 communities farther from the border are somewhat removed from = Chinese=20 influence and offer a better basis for comparing the strictly Tibetan = culture of=20 the sedentary people with the strictly Tibetan culture of the = nomads. =20 Indeed, some of those communities comprise the sedentary half of tribes = which=20 have both nomadic and sedentary, sections, and thus they constitute an = ideal=20 basis of comparison. Certain basic traits link the people of the = Labrang,=20 Hehtse, Amchek, Samtsa, Shes-tsang, and Te-bu districts; all are = known as=20 rong-pa and live in valley levels below the grazing = country of the=20 mountains and the true steppe.

Fundamentally the steppe people and the valley people differ only in=20 location. In race, religion, and language they are the same or so = nearly=20 similar that the absolute sense of the word requires but little=20 qualification. Both sedentary peoples and nomads present the = same=20 physical characteristics. In the recorded craniological = measurements=20 of Tibetans there have been found two types, variously designated as = type A and=20 type B or as "warrior type" and "priestly type," but I have found no = mention of=20 any distinction on the basis of nomadic and sedentary. (Rockhill = does,=20 however, claim for the "Drug-pa" tribe the purest strain of Tibetan = racial=20 characteristics, but he is evidently speaking about nomads, using = the=20 Tibetan word "nomad" as a tribal designation.) Much as the nomads hate = being=20 classed with the sedentary peoples in any way, the Tibetans regard = themselves as=20 one People- the Bod- which includes both groups. Different = conditions of=20 life and diet have resulted in some variations in physique and a = predisposition=20 or resistance to certain diseases.

In religion the two peoples are also similar; to much the same degree = both=20 are fervently devoted to the same branch and kind of Buddhism. = There are=20 some slight variations: the sedentary people appear to be more = completely=20 under the domination of the lamaseries and are more meticulous in the = observance=20 and performance of all the religious duties incident to Lamaism. = Also=20 among them there is a much greater amount of animism- the still active = residue=20 of the ancient Bon religion of Tibet- than among the nomads. In Reb-kong = and=20 Te-kok, the most typical sedentary districts of Amdo, are found the = headquarters=20 of two branches of the "sorcerer sect," and the People of the valleys, = the=20 rong-wa, are the most devout of all the Tibetans. An = agricultural routine and subsistence economy, with the ritual demands of = plowing, seeding, and harvest, together with the recurrent threat of = hail or=20 drought, have stimulated a greater interest in the purely magical = aspects of=20 religion. From the persistence of the older forms of religion = (there are=20 many survivals not only of Bon religious activity but of the older, = unreformed=20 Red sect of lamaism, as distinguished from the reformed or Yellow sect = founded=20 by Tsong-ka-ba in the twelfth century) it might be possible to infer = that=20 agricultural routine tended to foster religious conservatism.

It cannot be said, however, that agricultural routine has fostered = linguistic=20 conservatism. The nomadic and sedentary Tibetans can always = understand=20 each other, but there are marked dialectic differences in the language = spoken=20 among the drok-pa and that spoken among the = rong-pa-=20 so marked that both the Tibetans themselves and the Moslems and Chinese = who are=20 in contact with them distinguish two dialects for most of northeastern = Tibet-=20 drok-skad, or the language of the drok-pa; and = rong-skad,=20 or the language of the rong-pa. If the Tibetan system of = spelling=20 and the evidences of Tibetan phonology are to be trusted, the = greater=20 departure and change has been in the rong-skad, the=20 drok-skad, or speech of the nomads, adhering more closely = to the=20 sound values current in Tibetan when it was reduced to writing in the = seventh=20 century. The brother of the Panchen Lama who until his death = last=20 year(1937) was the highest in the lamaist system when he was on the=20 Chinese-Tibetan border about to return to central Tibet, made this same=20 statement in so many words: "The drok-skad of Amdo sounds = much=20 like bod-skad sounded when it was first written. Our = dialect of=20 central Tibet has changed very much."

When the Tibetan and Indian scholars of the seventh century took over = many of=20 the grammatical constructions of Sanskrit and adapted an alphabet from = that=20 language, the language of Tibet must have presented many = consonantal=20 prefixes, together with superscribed or subjoined consonants. This = resulted in some of the fearsome transcription of initial sounds in = Tibetan=20 dictionaries, such as brgy, bsky, mgr, tg, gch, gs, lng, sbr, and any = number of=20 other such difficult mouthfuls. According to Dr. Laufer's = researches in=20 "Tibetan Phonology of the Ninth Century," many of these consonantal=20 combinations had gone out of usage in the Lhasa dialect as spoken = in the=20 ninth century. From the descriptions of language usage by Sir = Charles=20 Bell, the Reverend Graham, and Chandra Das, it would seem that at the = present=20 time the prefixed consonants are not indicated in any way in the spoken = language=20 of central Tibet, and many if not most of the final consonants have = either been=20 dropped entirely, modified to an unarticulated stop, or permitted = to modify=20 the quality of the vowel preceding. Along with these changes there = has=20 appeared a greater nicety in the matter of tones, it having become = necessary to=20 use tones to distinguish words of the same sound that were once = distinguished by=20 the endings or the consonantal prefixes. With the loss of = consonantal=20 combinations and endings and a gain in the attention paid to somewhat = arbitrary=20 tones there has come about, or perhaps it would be better to say = there has=20 been retained, a careful distinction between the five vowels of the = language. All this is exactly what I observed in the small amount = of the=20 Lhasa dialect that I have heard.

One or two of the variations of the nomadic dialect that I have heard = have=20 preserved most of the value of the prefixed and super-added consonants. = The=20 pronunciation of such combinations as brgy is a remarkable = performance. =20 But the mean of nomad usage has been content to indicate the presence of = these=20 prefixed and super-added consonants by half-pronounced consonants, or by = variations of breathing, etc., preceding the main initial = consonant. Most,=20 if not all, of the final consonants are pronounced at least partially, = but the=20 use of tones is very unobtrusive and the three vowels i, u, and a have = all=20 become centralized until there is very little difference. Whether = that is=20 true of early Tibetan we have no way of knowing; but if the = drok-skad=20 usage has preserved more of the consonant values as they were first = written, it=20 is reasonable to suppose that the same holds good for vowel values.

We give here a comparative chart of the drok-skad and=20 rong-skad pronunciation of the cardinals up to ten = against=20 the Tibetan spelling transcribed according to standard usage as = found in=20 the dictionaries. For further comparison it would be well to have = the=20 Lhasa pronunciation, but my recollection of what I have heard of that = dialect is=20 not sufficient to attempt a transcription, and I have not been able to = find a=20 close phonetic transcription of the Lhasa dialect. From what Sir = Charles=20 Bell says about Tibetan pronunciation in general and from some of the = arbitrary=20 renderings in his English-Tibetan dictionary, it would seem that the=20 rong-skad more nearly approaches the Lhasa form than does = the=20 drok-skad.

In giving drok-skad usage I have tried to give what = would be a=20 rather widely accepted mean rather than any extreme (one or two tribes = that I=20 know pronounce practically every part of the consonant = combinations). The=20 above is only a sample, but in the ten words which through their = position in the=20 language form such a good index there are fortunately illustrated a = number of=20 the more important consonantal and vowel differences in the two = dialects.

By the three criteria of race, religion, and language, these two = Tibetan=20 groups exhibit real differences but of so inconsiderable magnitude that = we are=20 not warranted in using them as our basis for differentiating between the = cultures of the two groups. For, after all, these = dissimilarities=20 reflect the action, and in themselves are part of the result, of=20 differentiation- they do not constitute that differentiation. Nor = can=20 differences of social or political organization be adduced as reasons or = calling=20 the cultures different. The family occupies much the position in = the=20 social structure of both the drok-pa and the=20 rong-pa. Among both, the village (and we use the term in = its=20 broader sense, as defining a unit of organization) is the essential unit = of=20 organization. Among the farmers the people live in a group of = houses in=20 the midst of their fields; the real village, however, is not the = aggregate of=20 the dwellings but the conscious organization of the people into a = closely=20 integrated unit. Among the nomads the ring of tents, shifted from = campsite=20 to campsite as pasturage needs require, is still the "village" and the = most=20 cohesive and powerful unit in the Tibetan political and social = structure. =20 The Tibetan word for village, de-wa, is sometimes used for = encampment (there is, however, a special word for encampment,=20 ru-sker- tent circle), and in asking a nomad what his home = community is, one always refers to his de-wa. As = there are=20 linguistic links connecting the words for village and for encampment, so = there=20 are similar links connecting the various terms for tent and house. = The=20 common word for house is khang-ba, but khyim is = used for=20 the important living-room of the house. The words for tent are = wa,=20 ru, and nak-thsang (nest or den), and the tents of the = Goloks=20 are called nak (black) thsang (nest). The word for = household=20 in use among both the nomads and the sedentary peoples is = khyim=20 (house) and thsang (tent); thus, khyim-thsang.

The village organization is generally an informal one. Among = the=20 farmers there is a tendency to have a properly chosen head-man; but = among the=20 nomads, although there is usually one person in the encampment who is = known as=20 the head-man by right of his influence, it is seldom that he has been = chosen=20 formally. The real power and final court of appeal is found in the = group=20 of substantial middle-aged and elderly men known as the elders = (rang-po),=20 and their word is final in village affairs. Villages- whether = villages in=20 the restricted sense, like those of the sedentary districts, or in the = larger=20 sense which includes the encampments of the nomads are associated = in groups=20 that have common territorial interests.

Frequently the faming villages that are so organized have claims to = one=20 valley from its source to where it joins a larger one, or they may = occupy a=20 segment of some larger valley. Encampments so organized maintain = not only=20 rights of residence in certain sites but also all = grazing-privileges in=20 their territory or range. In a number of instances a group of = villages and=20 a group of encampments form the two halves of a single tribe, and in at = least=20 one instance the territories of the two halves are not contiguous but = are=20 separated by a strip of territory belonging to another tribe.

The tribes vary in organization and the form of control. Some = of the=20 tribes- notably some of the smaller ones- have no chief; all matters of = policy=20 are decided by a council of elders somewhat analogous to the = encampment=20 council. The members of this tribal council have no special title but = are also=20 known simply as the rgan-po (the aged ones). Nor is=20 participation determined by any formal election; by common consent = the=20 leading mean men of each encampment attend.

Still others of the tribes have chiefs whose offices are = hereditary. =20 The power of the chief varies greatly, depending on the tradition of the = tribe,=20 the ability of his predecessors, and on his own gifts and = resources. In=20 some tribes the position of chief is little more than an empty title, = the real=20 power of control and administration being entirely in the hands of the=20 rgan-po. At the other extreme are tribes in which = the chief=20 is all powerful because he is the able scion of able forebears; the = rgan-po is here nothing more than an advisory group, whose = function is to nod assent to the orations of the chief. Yet even = such=20 autocratic control is sharply limited, not by any competing body of = power, but=20 by the individualism and hatred of arbitrary restraint which are very = strong In=20 the Tibetans.

There are also tribes who have no chiefs but are ruled by the = lamaseries to=20 which they belong. In such a case the lamasery functions toward = the group=20 in two ways. It has a general religious influence and taps the = people for=20 contributions and fees, in return for which it undertakes to neutralize = the evil=20 effects of all the malignant influences in the region, to maintain = itself an a=20 gathering-point offering constant religious opportunity to the=20 religious-minded, and to celebrate for the benefit of all the = inhabitants so=20 linked to it the many religious festivals designated in the religious=20 calendar. In this general way the lamasery is related to = all. =20 Secondly, the lamasery, through its leaders acts as ruler for certain=20 tribes. Lamasery rule tends to be autocratic, and, in general, the = role=20 played by the rgan-po in determining policy is a smaller = one when=20 a lamasery is the ruler than when a chief is the head of the = tribe. Some=20 of the lamaseries, in addition to exercising control over the = population=20 which has gathered immediately around the lamasery, have been able to = extend=20 their power in varying degrees over entire groups of tribes, ultimately = either=20 superseding the chief s or reducing them to a very subordinate = position. =20 There are many tribes and chiefs, however, who have most successfully = resisted=20 such ecclesiastical domination.

There are two tribes which, to my knowledge, are different from most = of the=20 tribes of northeastern Tibet in structure and organization. In the = case of=20 other tribes encampments are the only units within the tribes, but in = these two=20 tribes there is an intermediate organization called the = thsu-ba. In=20 one of these tribes the encampments are organized in twelve = divisions- the=20 thsu-ba- according to the valleys in which their winter = campsites=20 are located. These twelve divisions have recognized leaders or = head-men=20 whose offices are hereditary and who exercise considerable power; but = all are=20 under the one chief who is concurrently the head of his own=20 thsu-ba and the unquestioned chief of the entire = tribe. =20 Incidentally, he is one of the most powerful and autocratic chiefs in = the nomad=20 country. From all indication these thsu-ba were once = tribes but=20 were reduced to a subordinate position: they are no longer called = rgyud-=20 tribes- but are merely parts of a tribe. Such a tribe would seem = to=20 illustrate one of the stages in the formation of a state. The = other has=20 fewer thsu-ba; they are more independent of the chief and so more = resemble a=20 confederacy than the beginnings of a state. Among the tribes of = this part=20 of Amdo are also found confederations or associations of tribes, which = are=20 banded together for the carrying out of certain aims and = objectives. Such=20 leagues are more permanent than mere temporary alliances of tribes to = carryout=20 particular military operations against a common enemy.

Lastly there are three chiefs in northeastern Tibet whose power and = control=20 have been so extended through the absorption of lesser tribes and the = attracting=20 of refugee groups by exercising patronage and diplomacy combined with = military=20 prowess, that they are no longer called ngo-ba- chief = (literally=20 the head one)- but are called by the Tibetans rgyal-po, or king; = in their=20 dealings with the Chinese, they have been grudgingly called by them = wang=20 -king.

In no instance do the Tibetans pay any sort of regular taxes. = If war is=20 determined, levies on the economic resources are voted or decided upon = by the=20 rgan-po and the ngo-ba. If peace is = made, all=20 share in bearing the expenses of conference and treaty-making. The = chief=20 or leader derives no direct material benefit from his position except as = position and influence give him unusual opportunity to amass = wealth. There=20 is no such thing as a standing army nor are there any paid public=20 officials. Even the individuals required to handle affairs for the = chief=20 or ruler act as his personal retainers, and he may either pay them, = or what=20 is more likely, place in their way opportunities to profit in trade or=20 war. On the other hand, fines imposed as penalties are = generally=20 regarded as belonging to the chief; it is he who has been wronged, not = any=20 abstract rules that have been broken. A crime is determined byte = position=20 of the one against whom it is committed. Robbery of a stranger is=20 laudable; robbery of another Tibetan is serious only if he is powerful = and has=20 great prestige; robbery of a chief may be a life-and-death matter; and = robbery=20 of some great living Buddha would mean almost certain death. All = matter of=20 punishment is further complicated by the difficulty of inflicting it; = for the=20 right of refuge is inviolate, and simply by fleeing to another tribe a = criminal=20 can gain safety.

These facts as to Tibetan social and political life apply equally to = nomadic=20 and sedentary peoples. There is nothing in political life, as = there is=20 nothing in the essential aspects of race, religion, or language, to=20 differentiate between the two groups or divisions; yet the=20 drok-pa and the rong-pa are sharply set = apart in=20 what, for want of a term more closely definitive, may well be = called two=20 cultures. Fundamentally, then, the two are distinguished by = location, the=20 nomads occupying the grazing country and the sedentary Tibetans living = in the=20 farming valleys. Their cultures are different because the = subsistence=20 economy of the one group is entirely different from that of the = other. =20 That difference finds expression not only in such matters as dwellings,=20 occupational technique, and routine, but in different standards of = behavior,=20 avoidances, taboos, and general outlook on life, as well.

A typical village of the rong-pa- "the people of = the=20 earthen houses''- may number anywhere from a dozen to seventy or = eighty=20 families, and is located in the midst of the arable land belonging to = the=20 members of the village. Grazing-land and forest belong to the = village=20 commune, but the fields are owned privately by the families, as are the = houses=20 and house sites. All members of the village may graze their cattle = and=20 sheep without restriction in the communal meadows and may gather = firewood=20 without stint from the community forests, although the taking of lumber = for=20 building purposes or sale is subject to restriction by the village as a=20 whole. Such restriction is well illustrated by the regulation in = one of=20 the Jangtsa villages whereby any member of the village may cut and haul = as much=20 large timber as he pleases but may not cut any saplings for grain-rack = poles=20 until he has explained the reasonableness of his needs to the village = elders and=20 secured their permission.

The houses are built close together and have two stories, the second = story=20 consisting of one or two small rooms opening onto the flat roof of the = larger=20 first story. These rooms are called the summer rooms and during = the winter=20 are left unoccupied. The roofs are flat and adjoin, making, when = the=20 village site is level, one large communal parade ground. Even when = the=20 village is built on sloping ground, it is possible to go all over the=20 village without ever getting off the roofs by using the notched log = ladders=20 which connect the different levels. The ground-plan of the house = consists=20 of open stabling and woodsheds in front through which one passes into a = long=20 entrance with stables or cattle pens on either side, at the end of this = one=20 comes into the khyim (home), a large room with the fireplace in = the=20 middle, lighted from a skylight which also serves as a chimney.

The grain racks, upon which the grain is laid to ripen after it has = been=20 harvested, are set close to the house, usually immediately in front of = or behind=20 it; the front wall or edge of the roof is piled with a huge stack of=20 firewood. The odds and ends of firewood from the pile are used, = and=20 sometimes under considerable pressure the owner will use or sell some = from the=20 pile itself, but the real significance of the wood is as a symbol of=20 prestige. The base of the pile is composed of half-sections of = large logs=20 cut in five-foot lengths and rotted out of shape, while the top of the = pile=20 shows the newly cut logs recently placed there. During each slack = season=20 in the agricultural routine, the owner of the horse works his hardest to = make a=20 substantial addition to the pile. In some instances there is not = only a=20 great rampart of stacked cordwood around the front of the house but also = a large=20 stack piled high in the nearest field of the family; it will never be = used but=20 stands merely as a symbol of the importance of the family in the = community.

The agricultural technique and routine of life, of which the "earthen = houses'=20 in a sense are the symbol as well as an integral part-as the "black = tents" are a=20 symbol of the nomad manner of life-involves a large amount of avoidable=20 drudgery. Although they are acquainted with the wheel, the Tibetan = farmers=20 steadfastly refuse to use it, and all the farming operations are = accomplished by=20 using the backs of either the womenfolk or the cattle. By the New = Year the=20 women are already engaged in stacking the piles of manure and stable = cleanings,=20 which in the process of decay generate considerable heat so that = even in=20 the cold weather the change that takes place is partly a burning and = partly a=20 rotting. Because the Tibetans have more livestock than the Chinese = farmers=20 and do not use stable cleanings for firing kangs, the = accumulation of=20 manure is considerable and makes it unnecessary for the Tibetans, who = have no=20 systematic sanitary arrangements, to utilize human excrement for=20 fertilizer. As soon as the New Year's festivities are over = the manure=20 is carried, either on cattle or on the backs of the women, to the fields = and=20 spread. Then at the right time in the spring, after religious = ceremonies=20 have been performed to insure the success of the operations, the plowing = is done=20 by the men of the village. Each plows his own fields, but all work = at the=20 same time on particular days, and both the men and the women (who lead = the=20 cattle in the plowing) dress in their very best clothing, creating a = festive=20 atmosphere. The sowing is done in much the same way, and after the = fields=20 are sown the entire system of community fences is repaired and = warders are=20 appointed to protect the crops.

From this time until after the harvest the farming country is=20 practically closed to caravans of any size, especially caravans of=20 oxen. Even small parties of horsemen may be held up and required = to pay=20 lo-krims (year-in the sense of yield or harvest-law or fine), and = if the=20 party has pack animals of any kind they must be led, not driven along = the paths;=20 meanwhile the maximum amount of payment is collected, to the = accompaniment=20 of much wrangling and verbal abuse. Thus one aspect of the year's = routine=20 acts to close the farming areas to any considerable amount of travel and = trade. The wardens or guardians of the crops also keep close watch = to=20 prevent any of the pigs or goats of the village from getting through the = system=20 of fences. These watchers carry swords and spears and any pigs or = goats=20 that do get through are killed if they can be cornered.

The harvesting is done, after the proper observance of religious = services, in=20 the same way as the plowing and seeding. Throughout the=20 time the crops are growing, hail is warded = away=20 and droughts are broken by the chanting of appropriate passages from the = sacred=20 writings and by the carrying of all the two hundred and twenty-eight = volumes of=20 the Buddhist scriptures around the fields by the members of the = village. =20 The harvesting must be finished within the time it takes those with the = smallest=20 fields to finish cutting the grain with small hand sickles. Thus = the=20 wealthy must hire help from other villages, even though the members of = the=20 family could harvest without outside help if they could take their = time. =20 There is a practical reason behind this as well as tradition: once the = communal=20 fences have been broken down there is no more communal protection for = the grain=20 and all must be reaped together in order that none may be stolen either = by=20 fellow villagers or by prowlers from other villages. Once the = grain has=20 been cut and stacked on the racks to dry, the district is open to = travel, and=20 lo-krims or fines are no longer collected.

The work of threshing and preparing the grain is also accomplished in = a few=20 days. The threshing is done with flails; the threshers work early = and=20 late, for the grain must be roasted and ground before the winter's cold = has=20 frozen the mill-race of the village mill. Cultivating and weeding = are done=20 as in Chinese territory, by a painstaking hand process; but, unlike the = Chinese=20 custom, the women bear the entire burden of this work.

If the family does not have enough fields to supply grain for the = whole year,=20 as soon as their grain is harvested, threshed, and milled, the home is = closed=20 and the members of the family start off in a group on a begging = expedition=20 throughout the district and even to other tribes. They return home = only=20 when the stock of grain begged, added to that grown, will see them = through the=20 rest of the year.

In addition to feed-grain-barley, peas, and a little wheat-the = Tibetans=20 also raise some grains from which vegetable oils are extracted and large = crops=20 of turnips, which when dried are used for fodder and for fattening = the pigs=20 that will be killed as part of the winter's meat.

With this short description of the routine of the farming economy of = the=20 rong-pa, we may next consider how the activities of this = basic=20 subsistence economy fit into the Tibetan ideas concerning the basic = needs of=20 existence. Those needs are summarized as clothes, food, = dwelling. =20 The farming activities of the rong-pa contribute only = indirectly=20 to supplying the need for clothing. No flax or other vegetable = fibre is=20 raised, and although some cloth is used for clothing it is = purchased cotton=20 goods for the most part, with some homemade woolen goods. = Sheepskins and=20 goatskins are chiefly used and these are obtained from the nomads, as is = the=20 wool used to make the woolen cloth. Thus fanning supplies the = wealth with=20 which clothing can be bought, but clothing does not come directly from = the=20 agricultural activity.

Farming provides grain and pork, but for dairy products and other = meats the=20 agriculturalists again have to depend on the nomads' produce, exchanging = their=20 surplus grain for sheep, beeves, butter, and cheese. The dwellings = of the=20 rong-pa are not the result of any part of the faming cycle = but are=20 entirely a matter of extraneous effort in which lumbering operations, = carpenter=20 work, and the pounding of the earth into adobe walls &I 1 have a = part. =20 The nomad routine and pastoral economy, on the other hand, is a more=20 comprehensive and more closely integrated subsistence economy, requiring = less=20 extraneous activity to meet the needs of life.

There is a greater degree of security and comfort in the sedentary = mode of=20 existence than in the nomad way of life. Security in the village = depends=20 not on any disinclination on the part of the rong-pa to-get into = feuds=20 and trouble but on the fact that the village is less vulnerable to = attack than=20 the encampment. Danger may lurk in the lanes and roads close to = the=20 villages, but is seldom that any direct attack is made on even the = smallest=20 villages. once he is within his house the valley dweller not only has = shelter=20 from rain and cold but can rest secure.

Since it is the subsistence economy which sets apart the two ways of = life,=20 the routine and technique of the nomads must also receive = attention. The=20 typical encampment varies in size to the same degree that the village=20 varies. The smallest encampment I was ever in comprised only five = tents,=20 while the largest numbered eighty. As the Tibetan name indicates, = the=20 encampment- ru-sker, "tent circle"- is always in the form = of a=20 rough circle. This rule does not apply to the winter quarters of = such=20 tribes as have wattle-and-fence huts, sod houses, or huts with sod walls = and=20 tent roofs, which take the place of the tents in the winter time. = In such=20 a case the arrangement is much like that of a village, but when tents = are used,=20 the form of the encampment is a circle, within which the cattle, horses, = and=20 sheep are herded at night.

As the earthen houses are the symbol of one way of life, so, too, is = the=20 black tent an analogous symbol of another way of life. Indeed the = forms of=20 tent life express more directly the social units than do the forms of = house=20 life. A man who has two wives (though we might point out that both = polygyny and polyandry are rather infrequent) in the faming country = keeps them=20 both in the same house, but among the nomads the material stake-the = cattle,=20 sheep, and horses--is divided into two parts, and the two wives, in = separate=20 tents, manage the herds and flocks as two distinct units. The man = is=20 equally the owner of the wealth of both tents, as he is the husband of = the two=20 wives, but neither wife has any interest in, or claim upon, the wealth = of the=20 other tent.

The tent of the truly Tibetan nomadic tribes of northeastern Tibet, = as=20 distinguished from the conical felt yurt of the Mongol tribes and the=20 teepee-shaped cattle-camp tents of some of the sedentary peoples, is = low,=20 rectangular, and made of black yak-hair cloth. There is a slight = degree of=20 pitch to the roof, and the walls hang free from the edge of the roof = like=20 curtains. By an ingenious system of outside tent poles which are = higher=20 than the tent over which the guy ropes are stretched, the tent is more = or less=20 suspended by the edges of the roof and the corners and has only two sets = of=20 poles in the very center, on each side of the smoke vent-about two feet=20 wide-which runs from front to back. The average tent makes one = heavy yak=20 load and the poles another, but if the tent is wet from rain it will be = made=20 into two loads. A nomad tent in good condition is no cheap, = make-shift=20 shelter but represents in value quite as much as the average house of = the=20 sedentary peoples. Year by year it is renewed; two strips of = tent-cloth-=20 the cloth is about a foot wide- are sewn into the tent on either side of = the=20 smoke vent (the smoke partially waterproofs the new addition), and the = ropes are=20 rearranged to move the roof out to the sides. Thus, the edge that = drags on=20 the ground is always old and frayed, while the central part of the roof = is=20 new.

The routine of tent life is quite different from that of the farm, = but both=20 are alike in that the winter is a time of somewhat greater leisure, = especially=20 for the nomads. There is little milking to be done and less = churning, fuel=20 is abundant and has only to be picked up from the cattle pens, and as = the tribe=20 stays in the winter encampment the labor of moving camp does not break = into the=20 leisure of the winter season. Nor does early spring bring much = change,=20 although lambing-time means some extra care of the sheep and the = choosing and=20 preparing of the year's yield of lambskins.

The move to the first of the summer's campsites is made sometime = about the=20 middle or latter part of Nay. There is no particular reason to = move any=20 earlier; the first grass appears in the latter part of April, but a = little=20 grazing at that time will have no effect on the richness of the = pasturage around=20 the winter campsite in the fall, and the new grass is as plentiful in = the winter=20 pastures as anywhere else. Also the heavy snows of the latter part = of=20 April and early May are particularly to be dreaded. May is the = crucial=20 time for the nomad, and, except for the incidence of rinderpest or=20 hoof-and-mouth disease, a heavy fall of snow at that time is the = greatest=20 danger, for it may mean the death of half the sheep and many of the = cattle.

As has been intimated, during the winter some of the tribes live in = rather=20 well made huts, made either of fencing plastered over with cow dung or = of=20 sod. Still others have sod walls over which tents are stretched = for=20 roofs. These winter structures are permanent, although those = tribes which=20 are farthest from timbered country find it necessary to dismantle the = roofs of=20 the sod huts and bury all the timbers to keep them from being stolen = after the=20 tribe has moved away from the winter campsite. Movement to pasture = is=20 necessary for the Tibetans because the cattle cannot be grazed on a = range but=20 must be collected in the encampment every night, and can therefore graze = only=20 within the radius of a daily trip to pasture and back. When the = grass has=20 been eaten off- and in the beginning of the summer it takes only about = ten days-=20 the tribe must move on. Thus the tribe moves anywhere from six to = nine=20 times before the last move back to the winter quarters, sometime in = the=20 latter part of November. In the latter part of September some of = the=20 members of the tribe make a trip back to the winter encampment and cut = hay from=20 certain selected hayfields for use throughout the winter. It is=20 interesting to note that although the range and grazing-lands belong to = the=20 tribe, and within the tribe the rights belong to the encampment, the = right to=20 cut hay in certain hayfields belongs to individual tents.

With the return to the winter encampment and the release from the = strain of=20 being on guard-for the winter encampment gives the greatest = security of any=20 campsite- part of the men of the community go on the annual expeditions = to the=20 sedentary districts or to the Chinese border to trade for the year's = supply of=20 grain. When that has been done the nomads have time not only to = visit the=20 lamaseries for trade and religious purposes but also for raiding their = enemies=20 and robbing travelers; the winter season is therefore somewhat dangerous = until=20 early in the spring when the horses of the nomads are no longer = insufficiently=20 good condition to permit hard riding.

A comparison of the nomadic routine with the agricultural routine = shows that=20 the pastoral subsistence economy of the nomads has a definite advantage = over the=20 agricultural economy of the sedentary Tibetans. One of the direct = products=20 of the pastoral economy provides the nomad with the basic = materials-=20 sheepskins and hides- for his clothing and boots. The pastoral = products=20 furnish him with all the butter and proteins of his diet, and the = surplus of the=20 yield from the flocks and herds in cattle, butter, wool, and hides is = traded for=20 what grain he needs. Trade must enter in, also, in supplying the = farmer=20 with the meat portion of his diet. And here we note that both = sedentary=20 and nomadic Tibetans live on the same kind of food in different=20 proportions. In each case parched barley flour, meat, butter, and = cheese=20 form the staples, but the proportions are different; the diet of the = nomad has a=20 higher protein content than that of the farmer.

The long silky hair pulled from the yak in the late spring, spun by = hand, and=20 woven in the same primitive way supplies the nomad with the roof over = his=20 head. Thus the herds supply practically all his life-needs. = Even in=20 the matter of fuel cow chips and dried sheep manure are all that are = used. The=20 nomad has to engage in little else than the basic livestock subsistence = economy,=20 whereas the farmer must exploit the forests and rely on trade to house = and=20 clothe himself.

The nomad has less in the way of comfort and security than the = farmer. =20 The weather of the Tibetan plateau has driven travelers to the at most = in=20 descriptive vilification, and the black tents are by no means minor = storm=20 proof. The nomads must sleep on the damp ground, live in a tent = that is=20 often filled with flying spray and even swirling snow, and move in all = kinds of=20 weather. When he is on the move or in the summer encampments, he = is much=20 more vulnerable to attack than the farmer in his protected, fortress = like,=20 village home.

Such are the basic facts for a comparison of the lives of the two = peoples,=20 and yet with this account we have hardly touched the real = differences-=20 those of outlook, of ideals and practises in trade, war, and social=20 relationships. That these differences must have some relation to = the=20 difference of environment is fairly obvious, but just what that=20 relationship is, is difficult to determine.

We may start with the bald statement that the nomad is definitely = superior,=20 not solely by his own account but by that also of all who have any = dealings with=20 the two cultural groups. The Moslem and Chinese traders so = evaluate them;=20 the nomads naively classify themselves as superior and the farmers = agree, for=20 the sedentary communities of northeastern Tibet are oddly apologetic of = their=20 lot and status. The farmers, in fact, have a definite inferiority = complex;=20 they will say, "Oh, we are only farmers, not nomads." The farmer labors = under a=20 definite sense of disability in spite of his more secure existence and = the=20 greater degree of Comfort in his more sheltered life; though debarred = from it,=20 he agrees that life in the saddle and in a tent would be ideal. = Certain=20 facts stand out to buttress this evaluation. Given a higher rule = by public=20 opinion, the nomad lives up to it by greater liberality in his social=20 relationships, by greater sportsmanship in the carrying on of feuds = and=20 raids, and by being, in general, more trustworthy.

When guests and travelers stay with the sedentary people the = treatment=20 accorded them is niggardly compared to the way the nomads treat their=20 guests. The farmers will kill women, children, and even the = animals of the=20 enemy in the course of an inter-village or inter-tribal war, but the = nomads=20 disdain to injure women or children. The lot of captives is much = easier=20 among the nomads than among the sedentary people. Stong-the = life=20 money that is paid in atonement to the family of a man who has been = killed-is=20 very much greater among the tent-dwellers than among the farmers. = Every=20 tribe has its own custom, but "life money" rates are uniformly higher = among the=20 nomadic tribes and a comparison of the two extremes- the smallest = life-money I=20 know of is about $35 and the greatest is about $800- indicates that = among the=20 nomads a man is worth many times what he is among the sedentary people. = The=20 life-money rates given are those for a man of ordinary standing, a = chief or=20 any of his relatives has a much greater price.

Finally, if assigning a higher position to women is any criterion, = the nomads=20 are notably above the farming Tibetans. In both instances the = women are=20 amazingly industrious, but among the nomads the women have much more to = say=20 about the management of affairs and have a definite claim to a share of = the=20 family wealth. This may be because in making butter and cheese and = in=20 milking the cattle and sheep (all such work is definitely women's work) = the=20 women have such an important place in the nomad economy; they are so=20 indispensable in the management of the capital wealth of the tent that = they have=20 gained greater power and voice in affairs. The women of the = farming=20 communities have a similarly important role in the agricultural routine, = but=20 they do not have similar status.

One aspect of the difference between the rong-pa and the=20 drok-pa is the prevalence among the latter of a greater = number of=20 prejudices and avoidances in the matter of eating. None of these=20 avoidances has a universal religious basis, though all are = variations or=20 distortions of the fundamental Buddhist prohibition against eating=20 meat. None of the Tibetans of northeastern Tibet will eat fish, = although=20 fish are eaten without prejudice in Lhasa, and few will eat eggs. = The=20 sedentary peoples will eat hares, marmots, and game birds of the = pheasant=20 family, as well as pork, but some of the nomadic tribes farthest removed = from=20 contact with the sedentary communities will not eat even pork, nor will = they eat=20 green vegetables or mushrooms. Thus step by step, from the = sedentary=20 peoples on up to the nomads, what is decent and cleanly as food = becomes=20 subject to closer discrimination. The nomads take pride in their = taboos as=20 showing what especially fine people they are and make frequent reference = to the=20 disgusting eating habits of the rong-pa, who, though he dearly = loves the=20 taste of a fat marmot, confesses it shamefacedly, for in his heart of = hearts he=20 thinks that the drok-pa is right.

The superiority of the nomad in physique and health is also = marked. =20 Such was the opinion of Dr. Rees, who traveled with us for about three = months,=20 visiting both nomadic and sedentary communities. We examined over = three=20 thousand men and women and had ample opportunity to form an opinion. in = spite of=20 the greater exposure and hardship incident to nomadic life, the nomads = were far=20 healthier than the sedentary people. There was a much higher = incidence of=20 syphilis among the sedentary peoples than among the nomads, although = there=20 seemed to be more gonorrhea among the latter. There is no leprosy = to be=20 found among the nomads although there is a very high incidence of that = disease=20 among the farming peoples.

The Tibetans explanation of this shows something of the disability = under=20 which the farmer pursues his farming activity. The Tibetans as a = whole are=20 morbidly afraid of arousing the wrath of the sa-ndre = (earth=20 spirits) which can very easily be done by any activity involving = digging. The=20 nomads who live in tents all the year around escape the necessity of = offending=20 the earth spirits. Those who dig sod for their winter huts admit = that they=20 have trespassed but consider the trespass a minor one. The poor = farmers=20 must go on year after year antagonizing the earth spirits, and each year = new=20 cases of leprosy appear among the dwellers of the earthen houses.

On first sight, the farmers with their well built homes and carefully = kept,=20 personally owned, fields would seem to have a much larger economic = capital than=20 the nomads, but the fact is that the Tibetan plutocrats of the land are = to be=20 found among the nomads. A careful comparison of the value of a = good nomad=20 tent with that of a good house reveals that in spite of appearances the = tent is=20 quite as valuable as the house; and when the value of the herds and = flocks is=20 added the capital of the nomad tent is somewhat larger, on a similar = scale of=20 wealth, than the capital of the farmer. Proof is to be found in = the=20 tendency of wealthy farmers to branch out toward a nomad way of life by = setting=20 up cattle camps in the higher, uncultivated ranges of the farming = regions. =20 Such a cattle camp is often a transition into nomadism, and wealthy = farmers=20 often retire to a nomad existence.

The preference for the nomad way of life is clearly illustrated by = the=20 position and habits of the Samtsa chief. The Samtsa tribe is one = of those=20 tribes which has two halves-a nomadic and a sedentary one. The = chief is=20 known as the Muk-ring chief, and his family probably originated in the = village=20 of that name down in the valley. The family homestead is located = there,=20 and the priest-uncle lives in the big house. The chief visits the = village=20 occasionally, but he lives in the nomadic encampment, which is called=20 ngo-sker, and would be insulted if anyone called him a=20 rong-pa.

All these differences cut squarely across the social structure of=20 Tibetan life. There are tribes of which one half is nomadic and one = half=20 sedentary, there are thsu-ba (clans), and even = families, that=20 are divided in the same way. The Tibetan family is a small unit = and cannot=20 very well be actually divided, but there are cases in which the father = and one=20 of the sons have joined the nomads, leaving the farm and the life of the = farmer=20 to other sons. During the old man's lifetime both the tent and the = farm=20 are his, and during the winter he may actually visit and live in the = village=20 home; with the growing-up of the second generation, however, the family = becomes=20 two separate units, one nomadic, the other sedentary. The = differences=20 between the drok-pa and the rong-pa are expressed = in every=20 aspect of living. There is a drok-pa way to make boots and = a=20 rong-pa way, a drok-pa way to wear one's clothes = and a=20 rong-pa way, a drok-pa outlook and a rong-pa = outlook; and the difference expressed by such catchwords as steppe and = valley,=20 farmer and shepherd, dweller of the black tents and dweller of the = earthen=20 houses, divides the two people culturally even though there is no other = ground=20 on which they are appreciably different.

The matter of priority is a question that arises in every aspect of = our=20 comparison of the two peoples, but there seems to be no certain = answer. =20 The linguistic conservatism of the nomads might indicate the greater=20 antiquity of their mode of life. But their unquestioned = superiority=20 and their higher standards might indicate that as their mode of life is = higher=20 and better so it is a later development, away from the sedentary way of=20 life. History, such as there is, gives no clue. At the = present time=20 certain population trends that we shall explain seem to indicate a = movement=20 from the sedentary manner of life to the nomadic manner of life. = It may be=20 that there has been here, as Owen Lattimore suggests in the case of the = Mongols,=20 a succession of changes presenting at this time the anomaly of two = cultures=20 one sedentary and one nomadic- existing side by side with = unmistakable=20 signs of a drift from the sedentary to the nomadic and with the latter = by most=20 criteria definitely superior.

It remains to describe the nature and degree of contact between=20 drok-pa and rong-pa and to = report the=20 interactive effect of such contact. Foremost in creating the urge = to meet=20 and the occasion of contact is trade. That trade seems one-sided, for it = would=20 conceivably be possible for the farming communities to be = self-contained,=20 whereas the nomads must trade somewhere for grain. Yet it is not = so=20 one-sided as would first appear. There are Ngo-lok tribes which = manage for=20 prolonged periods on what their herds and flock supply them- plus the = bulbs of=20 edible potentella and some edible seeds- and get grain only at = irregular=20 intervals. So, if necessary, the drog-pa could be = self-sufficient=20 for a considerable period of time; although it is not certain whether = their=20 numbers would remain the same because a diet of milk products and meat = is=20 considerably more expensive than a mixed diet. The exchange of = foodstuffs=20 between the nomads and the sedentary peonies brings about the fact that = both the=20 nomadic and the sedentary Tibetans eat the same- chiefly=20 tsam-ba (parched barley flour), butter, cheese and = meat. The=20 proportions, however, are different; the nomads eat more proteins and = the=20 sedentary folk eat more starches, as we have pointed out earlier.

It is the nomads who take sheep, cattle, butter, and cheese to the = lowlands=20 and brings back grain, for only the nomads possess enough cattle to = carry the=20 grain; in other kinds of trade the sedentary people often take the = initiative=20 and carry their wares to the nomad communities. In either case, = the=20 standing and security of the visitor is based on the functioning of the = same=20 quest-host relationship which enables the Moslem traders to travel in = Tibetan=20 country. 'n-e Tibetan may have certain advantages in dealing with = a=20 fellow-Tibetan, but, on the other hand, he may also have a tribal or = clan feud=20 to consider; so he must make arrangements to establish himself in = relation to=20 the community he visits in the same way a Chinese trader or an American=20 missionary would.

The sedentary Tibetans go to the nomads to sell the special wares = that are=20 created in wooded country. The farmers exploit the forests to add = to the=20 yield of their farms; in this way chums. buckets, rakes, tent-poles,=20 fence-palings, wooden bowls, saddles, and lance-shafts are taken into = the nomad=20 country. This inventory suggests the fact that there is more = craftsmanship=20 among the farming people. About the only distinctive article the = nomads=20 create is the black tent-cloth woven out of the yak hair, and this is so = highly=20 valued it can hardly be bought; hence the only trade in manufactured = articles=20 comes from the sedentary regions.

In addition to the occasions for contact created by trade, there is a = one-sided movement of seasonal labor from the farming country to the = grazing=20 country. This is most pronounced at the time of the fall haying; = long=20 before the farming people have finished their harvesting, the poorer = farmers go=20 up to nomad areas to work in the hay fields. For a few days their = services=20 command fancy prices, and they get a chance to do what every Tibetan = longs to=20 do- eat meat and butter. Besides this strictly seasonal movement, = there is=20 constant slow movement of unattached men and women to nomad regions, = where they=20 try to attach themselves to some nomad family. By helping first = with rush=20 jobs, such as the shearing of the sheep in the summer and the de-hairing = of the=20 yak in the spring, some manage to get a permanent place and eventually = become=20 true nomads.

This brings us to the next, and probably most important, means of=20 contact between these two cultural groups; this is the population = shift=20 from the sedentary to the nomadic groups. In spite of the better = physiques=20 and the better food of the nomads, their birth rate is extremely low- = perhaps=20 because of certain physiological factors affecting both men and women = and their=20 sexual relations as well, perhaps because of some other reason. = From=20 historical suggestions as to sexual impotency among the ancient = Scythians and=20 other horseback peoples to more immediate considerations of the = possibility=20 that a life in the saddle such as the Tibetans live creates = temperatures=20 and conditions unfavorable for the proper development of sperm, there is = a wide=20 range for hypothesis and investigation; but the fact remains that the = nomads=20 have fewer children than the sedentary families. The sedentary = communities under=20 consideration, as has been mentioned, are similar to, but not identical = with,=20 those communities that appear to be dying out before the advance of the = Chinese;=20 and these sedentary people have a fairly good birth rate, although it is = not so=20 high as that of the Chinese. The movement of population among the = Tibetans of=20 northeastern Tibet is plainly from the sedentary communities to the = nomadic=20 communities. I have personally known scores of nomads who = were first=20 or second generation arrivals from the farming country, but I have never = known a=20 nomad to adapt himself to the conditions of life among the farmers.

The population shift is on two levels-the highest and the = lowest. How=20 wealthy farmers retire and become nomads has already been described; = also how=20 the poorest members of the sedentary community can and do find their way = into=20 the nomad manner of living. Every rong-pa I ever = talked with=20 seemed to think that the arduous but far more exciting and adventurous = life of=20 the nomad was an alluring existence.

These contacts of varying kind and degree bring about certain=20 modifications in the distinguishing features of each culture. = The=20 nomad's high and lofty contempt for the farmer is kept in check by the = fact that=20 at least once a year he will have to be beholden to the farmer for = protection,=20 and patronage while he does his annual marketing for foodstuffs. = Also he=20 makes many friends and learns many things from them. Thus it = happens that=20 the nomadic tribes which are nearest the sedentary tribes acquire more = sedentary=20 traits than do the more distant nomads; a corresponding statement = can be=20 made with reference to the farming tribes and clans. Thus = whatever=20 differentiation has taken place is subject to a secondary modification = through=20 the maintenance of a fairly continuous cycle of intermittent = contact.

The most obvious result is a more balanced diet for each of the two=20 groups. Another result is to be seen in the life of the sedentary=20 People. As a link between the true nomadic existence and the = sedentary=20 existence, the cattle camps of the farmers have a function over and = above their=20 immediate one. They follow nomadic patterns and are based on = the=20 demonstrated profit of pastoral enterprise. They give the farmers = a taste=20 of nomad life and serve to introduce many an aspirant to life in the = tent and=20 saddle.

In summarizing the cultural situation among the sedentary and nomadic = peoples=20 of northeastern Tibet, we find an ethnic group that is homogenous in = race,=20 language, and religion, but which is divided into two distinct cultural=20 groups. This distinction is manifested in material culture, = customs,=20 ideals, and general outlook, and is recognized by both groups in terms = of higher=20 and lower, better and poorer, more desirable and less desirable. it can = be=20 ascribed to a dissimilarity in subsistence economy, which, in turn, = derives from=20 a difference in locale. In each case, the particular subsistence = economy=20 has fostered the distinctive cultural traits of the group.

V. SUMMARY

The nature and results of the culture contacts in each instance have = been=20 summarized, and we can now correlate, or compare, the different = varieties=20 of culture contact illustrated by the four instances cited. We = began with=20 four cultural groups: Chinese, Moslems, sedentary Tibetans, and nomadic=20 Tibetans. Placing them at the comers of a quadrilateral, we, = undertook to=20 describe the four aspects of culture contact represented by the sides of = that=20 quadrilateral. The salient features of these four instances of = contact may=20 now be summarized in descriptive phrases, with which we will label the = sides of=20 the original diagram.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Andersson, Johann Gunnar. Children of the Yellow=20 Earth. New York: The MacMillan Co., 1934.

= This book=20 gives the prehistoric background of the Chinese people as revealed in = grave and=20 kitchen site findings in the loess. It also incidentally gives = brief=20 descriptions of present day conditions and manner of life in China.

Andersson, Johann Gunnar. "Preliminary Report on Archaeological = Research in Kansu," Peking Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce, The=20 Geological Survey of China, 1925.

= This=20 Pamphlet gives a detailed account of findings in the Titao area where = most of=20 the excavations were made together with a tentative reconstruction = of life=20 in this area over four thousand years ago.

Andrew, G. Finlay. The Crescent in North West = China. =20 London, Philadelphia: The China Inland Mission, 1921.

= This is a=20 fairly comprehensive account of the various Moslem peoples found in = China'-,=20 Northwest with special reference to racial peculiarities, religious=20 organization, stirrings of Pan Islam, and the general problem of their=20 adjustment within the body politic of the Chinese.

Bell, Sir Charles Alfred - The Religion of Tibet. The = Clarendon Press,=20 1931.

= This book=20 tells much of the general religious beliefs and more especially of = the=20 religious organization of the Tibetans discussed from the Lhasa view = point and=20 thus more specifically informative about southern Tibet.

Bell, Sir Charles Alfred. Tibet, Past and Present. = Oxford:=20 The Clarendon Press, 1924.

= Deals=20 mostly with the present political organization of Tibet with reference = to=20 treaties and contact with the powers. Has one or two chapters = giving a=20 general view of Tibetan history as drawn from Tibetan records.

Hedin, Sven Anders. Through Asia. London: Methuen and = Co.,=20 1898.

= Volume two=20 tells something of travel in Tibet together with an account of some = of the=20 people of the Tsaidam. It also deals briefly with incidents = connected with=20 the next but last rebellion of the Moslem in the nineties of the last=20 century.

Huc, Evariste R. and Gabet, Joseph. Travels in Tartary, = Thibet and=20 China. New York and London: Harper and Bros., 1928.

A = record=20 of the travels of Catholic missionaries in l835 through a part of = Tibet. =20 The observations about Chinese, Moslems, and Tibetans furnishes a = very=20 interesting basis of comparison wit present day conditions. See in = particular the description of the Kolos (Goloks).

Futterer, Karl. Geographische skizze = Nordost-Ttbet. Gotha:=20 J. Perthes, 1903.

= The=20 account of the Futterer-Holder expedition forty years ago. The = expedition=20 traveled through the area of the Kansu-Tibetan Border and were robbed by = some of=20 the very tribes we have traveled among. Contains much data of = truly=20 scientific interest.

Grenard, Fernand. Tibet: The Country and its = Inhabitants. =20 London: Hutchinson and Co., 1904.

An = account=20 of the travels of Henry Dutreil de Rhins and party in Tibet. = Gives an=20 incidental but very accurate description of the surly sedentary = Tibetans-=20 their villages and their character.

Laufer, Berthold. Bird Divinations Among the = Tibetans...=20 with a study of Tibetan Phonology of the Ninth Century. = T'oung Lao,=20 Vol. 15, 1914, pp. 1-110.

= This=20 monograph discusses probable phonetics of Tibetan in the ninth century = showing=20 changes that had already taken place in pronunciation in the two = centuries since=20 it had been reduced to writing in the seventh.

Laufer, Berthold. "Origin of Tibetan Writing," American=20 Oriental Society Journal, Vol. 38, 1918. p.=20 34-46.

= This is a=20 defense of the theory of the derivation from the Sanskrit of the Tibetan = system=20 of writing as against the theory of a Central Asian origin from Ouigour = or Turki=20 sources.

Laufer, Berthold. Loan Words In Tibetan. Leide: E. = J.=20 Brill, 1918.

=20 Principally demonstrates the preponderance of Chinese loan words in the = total=20 number of loan words found in Tibetan. Rather incomplete in = instances=20 quoted.

Laufer, Berthold. The Si-Hia Language. Leide: = Libraire=20 ci-devant, E. J. Brill, 1916.

A=20 description of a now dead language once spoken by peoples somewhere = in the=20 Kansa-Tibetan area. It may be that some of the aboriginal = languages as yet=20 unrecorded may prove to be the lineal descendents of the Si-Hia = language.

Przhevalskii, N. M. Mongolia, The Tangut = Country and=20 Solitudes of Northern Tibet. London: S. Low, Marston, = Searle=20 and Rivington, 1876.

= Although=20 much of his research and observations was concerned with geographic and = biologic=20 matters this account of the travels of the great Russian explorer has = much in it=20 about the life and manners of the Tanguts (Tibetans).

Rijnhart, Mrs. Susis (Carson). With the Tibetans in Tent and = Temple. New York, Chicago: P. H. Revell Co., (1911, = 1901).

= The=20 account of a trip toward Lhasa through north east Tibet giving much = information=20 about the Tibetans and also interesting items about the next but last = Moslem=20 rebellion, a part of which the writer was an eyewitness.

Rockhill, William Woodville. Notes on the Ethnology of=20 Tibet. Washington: Government Printing Office, 1895. (2) p. = 665-747.=20 Smithsonian Institute.

A = very=20 considerable though by no means exhaustive compilation of information = about=20 Tibetan ethnology. Mentions superiority of nomads and suggests = reasons why=20 northeast Tibet may be cited as the center from which Tibetan people and = culture=20 spread. Contains much detailed information about Tibetan = technicology.

Rockhill, William Woodville. "Explorations in Mongolia and = Tibet," (In=20 Smithsonian Institution Annual Report, 1892) Washington 1893, p.=20 659-679.

= Along with=20 much incidental information about the Tibetans this report gives=20 considerable space to a discussion of the Salar Moslems.

Rockhill, William Woodville. Diary of a = Journey=20 Through Mongolia and Tibet in 1891 and 1892. = Washington:=20 Smithsonian Institution, 1894.

=20 Considerable anthropological matter found in the detailed = descriptions of=20 Salar Moslems, Dru-pa (Drok-pa) Tibetans, and the = aborigines. =20 Mentions comparative purity of the Dra-pa type of Tibetans as well as=20 dialect. Some discussion of skin coloring and anthropological = types.

Rockhill, William Woodville. Land of the = Lamas. Kew=20 York: The Century Co., 1891.

= This book=20 is rather a popularized presentation of the material found in other = works. =20 There are some interesting descriptions of the Goloks and other Tibetans = and=20 reference is made to the early Chinese classification of peoples as = agricultural=20 and nomadic.

Stevenson, Paul Houston. The Chinese-Tibetan Borderland=20 and its People. Peking: The Peking Society of = Natural=20 History, 1927.

= Describes=20 with a distinctly anthropological flavor the border peoples on a section = of the=20 border to the south of the Kansu-Tibetan border. There are many = striking=20 similarities between conditions in both places. Contains some = detailed=20 anthropologic description of some of the aborigines.

Tafel, Albert. Meine Tibetreies. Stuttgart: Union = Deutsche=20 Verlagsgesellschaft, 1914.

A = good=20 account of travel among the nomadic Tibetan with realistic data on = topography,=20 travel techniques, and Tibetan life, all given from very much the = outsider's=20 viewpoint.

Teichman, Eric. Travels of a Consular Officer in Eastern=20 Tibet. Cambridge: The University Press, 1922.

A matter of fact record of travel stages, places, and people. = Some=20 incidental ethnological data.

Younghusband, Sir Francis Edward. Peking to Lhasa. = London:=20 Constable and Co., Ldt., 1925.

= The diary=20 of Brigadier-General George Pereira's trip. Only as in a few pages = he=20 gives some details about travel through the Chone district does it have = any=20 direct bearing on the material presented in the monograph.