f the
_Tchukti_ one, two or three rows of small brass or silver bells are
attached, and therefore the approach of the Tibetan dames is announced by
the tinkling of their bells, a quaint custom, the origin of which they
could not explain to me, beyond saying that it was pretty and that they
liked it.

[Illustration: A LADY FROM LHASSA]

The illustration that I give here of a travelling Tibetan lady from
Lhassa was taken at Tucker. She wore her hair, of abnormal length and
beauty, in one huge tress, and round her head, like an aureole, was a
circular wooden ornament, on the outer part of which were fastened beads
of coral, glass and malachite. The arrangement was so heavy that, though
it fitted the head well, it had to be supported by means of strings tied
to the hair and others passed over the head. By the side of her head, and
hanging by the ears and hair, were a pair of huge silver earrings inlaid
with malachite, and round her neck three long strings of beads with
silver brooches.

Considerable modifications necessarily occurred in these garments and
ornaments, according to the locality and the wearer's condition in life,
but the general lines of their clothing were practically everywhere the
same. Often a loose silver chain belt was worn considerably below the
waist, and rings and bracelets were common everywhere.

[Illustration: MONEY BAGS]

CHAPTER LXV

Polyandry--Marriage ceremonies--Jealousy--Divorce--Identification
of children--Courtship--Illegitimacy--Adultery.

THAT the Tibetans legally recognise polyandry and polygamy is well known.
Very little, however, has hitherto transpired as to the actual form of
these marital customs, so that the details which follow, startling as
they may seem when regarded from a Western standpoint, will be found not
without interest.

First of all, I may say that there is not such a thing known in Tibet as
a standard of morality amongst unmarried women of the middle classes;
and, therefore, from a Tibetan point of view, it is not easy to find an
immoral woman. Notwithstanding this apparently irregular state of
affairs, the women's behaviour is better than might be expected. Like the
Shoka girls, they possess a wonderful frankness and simplicity of manner,
with a certain reserve which has its allurements; for the Tibetan swain,
often a young man, being attracted by the charms of a damsel, finds that
his flirtation with her has become an accepted engagement