nd turned over the leaves, and then closing it again, raised
it reverentially to his forehead, saying, "It is your Book of Prayer: we
should always honour and respect prayer." By-and-by he added, "Your
religion and ours are like this," and so saying he put the knuckles of
his two forefingers together. "Yes," said we, "you are right; your creed
and ours are in a state of hostility, and we do not conceal from you that
the object of our journey and of our labours is to substitute our prayers
for those which are used in your Lamaseries." "I know that," he replied,
smilingly; "I knew that long ago." He then took up the Breviary again,
and asked us explanations of the engravings. He evinced no surprise at
what we told him, only, when we had related to him the subject of the
plate representing the crucifixion, he shook his head compassionately,
and raised his joined hands to his head. After he had examined all the
prints, he took the Breviary once more in both hands, and raised it
respectfully to his forehead. He then rose, and having saluted us with
great affability, withdrew, we escorting him to the door.

Upon being left alone, we felt for a moment stupified as it were at this
singular visit. We tried to conceive what thoughts could have filled the
mind of the Living Buddha as he sat there beside us, and what impression
he had derived from the sketch we gave him of our holy religion. Now, it
seemed to us that strange feelings must have arisen in his heart; and
then again, we imagined that after all he had felt nothing whatever, but
that, a mere ordinary person, he had mechanically availed himself of his
position, without reflection, and without himself attaching any real
importance to his pretended divinity. We became so interested in the
point, that we determined to see this personage once more before we
departed. As that departure was fixed for an early hour next morning, we
went, accordingly, to return his visit before we slept. We found him in
his apartment, seated on thick large cushions, covered with magnificent
tiger-skins; before him stood, on a small lacquer table, a silver
tea-pot, and a steatite cup in a richly-worked gold saucer. He was
evidently in the last stage of ennui, and was correspondingly delighted
to see us. For fear he should take it into his head to let us remain
standing, we proceeded, upon entering the room, to seat ourselves beside
him. His suite, who were assembled in a contiguous ro