estion to think of organising a service of couriers along that
frightful route. Supposing, besides, the fullest security that could be
desired, the mere length of the journey was a thing to make one shudder.
The road by India seemed alone practicable. From Lha-Ssa to the first
English station is not quite a month's journey. By establishing one
correspondent on the other side of the Himalaya mountains, and one at
Calcutta, our communication with France would become, if not prompt and
easy, at all events feasible. As this plan could only be put into
execution with the consent of the Thibetian government, we communicated
it to the Regent, who immediately entered into our views, and it was
agreed that in the summer M. Gabet should undertake the journey to
Calcutta, with a Thibetian escort, who were to accompany him as far as
Boutan.

Such were the plans we were forming for the establishment of a mission at
Lha-Ssa; but at this very moment the enemy to all good was hard at work
to ruin our projects, and to remove us from a country which he seems to
have chosen for the seat of his empire. Having heard here and there
words of evil auspice, we comprehended that the Chinese ambassador was
secretly plotting our expulsion from Thibet. The vague rumour of this
persecution had, in fact, nothing about it to surprise us. From the
outset, we had foreseen that if difficulties assailed us, they would
emanate from the Chinese Mandarins. Ki-Chan, in fact, could not bear to
see the Thibetian government receive with so much favour a religion and
strangers, whom the absurd prejudices of China have so long driven from
her frontiers. Christianity and the French name excited too forcibly the
sympathy of the people of Lha-Ssa, not to arouse Chinese jealousy. An
agent of the court of Peking could not, without anger, reflect on the
popularity which strangers enjoyed in Thibet, and on the influence which
they might one day exercise in a country which China has every interest
in keeping under her dominion. It was determined, therefore, that the
preachers of the religion of the Lord of Heaven should be driven from
Lha-Ssa.

One day, the ambassador, Ki-Chan, sent for us, and after sundry attempts
at cajolery, ended by saying that Thibet was too cold, too poor a country
for us, and that we had better think of returning to our kingdom of
France. Ki-Chan addressed these words to us, with a sort of indifferent,
careless manner, as though he su