DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.22470#0071
March 5, 1961
Himalayan Times
Tiye
(Continued from page 3 )
off an experience calculated to
unnerve one. In between Ling-
dong uud Liu them, the crossing
over the river was very difii
cult and the only means of
crossing the exceedingly narrow
gorge, whoso bottom was- aU
moat impossible to see and
only the roar of the river
could ,bo heard wore done by
placing a tree from the bank.
Across this very unsteady flat
pole I had to go '.whether I
like 'it--or not, as: there was
no other way. On readin g in.,
the centre of the flat pole I
had to crawl through oii hands
and knees and foil thankful
when fairly^ on the opposite
bank. It' was a very nasty
place and I do not mind ad-
mitting I .would have giwn a
good deal to avoid it. Thia
bridge is cdled by the Lepch.as'1
Tak Nil-Vong-Do Zah rind occa-
sionally u o by them when
they go up the valley collec-
ting wax.
On t^he way to Ngon Sang
dong village we had to scale
a perpendicular projecting cock
height about 150 feet by means
of the joined pieces of the
trunk of trees with notches
at alternate intervals to put
one's feet in. This Lopcha
style1 of Jacob's ladder is well
enough for tl»e barefoot ted peo-
ple, but not at, all easy fur
the leather-shod pernors. And.
underneath this ladder, the ri-
ver was rushing to dash itself
angrily over a preeipiece: some
300 feet high with a deafen-
ing road. A false step, and.
once in the water, that would
be the end, with no possible
chance to oscape. I had ma-
naged to cross the flat pole
safely, but could not face this
notched ladder. I felt I was
doomed, I was going to die,
and nothing could save me.
Finally I did with the help of
our guide but all tho time 1
was trembling with f«ar and
sweet was oozing out from the
pores like rain,and heartily-
glad I was ' to get to the ton
and on to the- hill-ide. These .
Lepcba paths are an excellent
specimen of engineering.
The situation of the villa-
ges' are the mixture of slope
and level. The place' is all of
there, exc-pt that the, .amount
of ieVjel ground is negligible;
and it was not- possible to yo
iiiaro than a hundred ' yards
or so in any direction, without .
going either* steeply . up' or
down hiil .The 1 nvesl and
highest houses in s the; village,
wore not -more than , a mile
apart but to go from one. to
,the other involved a climb., of
well over two thousand feet.
: - The Jougu Area is very
^beautiful. - lie whole hillsides
were b^ifi^ cultivated up-, to
the highest elevations; Though
poyerty reigns, the Jpngu arsa
is. prosperous in comparison
with more unlucky ones. \V here-
ever we went .through villages,
terraced lar'ey fields climbed,
up tthe grey lulls, lined ■-■with
irrigation canals, Further down
in the prosperous valley, Small
fields in which wheat, peas,
. radic-hes, and other vegetables
were cul! ivated, surrounded a
group of *tone houses. Pig-
tailed L» peha, farmers could be
seen pit-ribbing these mat farm
lands with teams of bullocks.
I could not Ji.elp sitting down
ct\ the damp grass, watchb g
these nii'ii, fascinated by the
deep impiession of happings
uud quite of this little para-
dise, h was the happiness one
would not, expect, to find on
earth but p< :h»ps on another
planet, the of happiness
which spring-- from very rare
thing now-a-tfnya; j>oaco of mind,
the pence • 1 a people who
have an unshakable and deep
faith iu ramtthing which is far
btyoud life and death.
Wiiilc going from I.ii gdom
to TjngVootig Village, we had
to cross the Teeata by a rickety-
cane 'suspension bridge not less
than • 350 feet in length, and
in consequence of .. the - lateness
of the season! very rotten and
much sagged m the Centre, it
was. so rottoif'I was afraid it'
would give \yay and furbicl any-
one else.' -erossiugY I were on
it; half the ".bamboo platform
/had...disappeared and the sua--'
pending' split canes were in
many " places, broken. I went -
firsts the swinging motion was
, great and. rattling of the loose
dry bamboos was neither . a
musical sound pbr one calcula-
.ted to inspire confidence, the
whole structure seemed' as if
about to break down. I felt
dizzy when I saw a wide gap
hi--.the middle of the ' bridge,
which I 'had to stretch across
the gap while the whole bridge
swing like a rope, "ladder." In ■
this -way we eventually got
safely across, but it was a
hazardous proceeding.
At Ragdong, the combs of
the wild bees are found on
overhanging high prec;pieofs,
and the only means by which
they can be reached is to des-
cend from above on narrow
cane ladders just wide enough,
for a. mania foot, and about
300 f-. t to 400 'feet long, the
Lepcha comes down the ladder
with an eurthern Vassel con-
taining fire on his head, and.
on reaching the combs puts
some green leaves on it. This
makes a dense smoke and
drives the bees away. While
be cuts off the combs which
are -often 6 feet long- and 4
feet thick; he then throws them
down to Ins companions, but
it is a hazardous business as,
r-hould the smoke not drive off
the bees, the man banging in
the-nnd-air ban no chance if
they attack him. The man
waiting below catch the combs,
squeeze' out the honey and
Himalayan Times
Tiye
(Continued from page 3 )
off an experience calculated to
unnerve one. In between Ling-
dong uud Liu them, the crossing
over the river was very difii
cult and the only means of
crossing the exceedingly narrow
gorge, whoso bottom was- aU
moat impossible to see and
only the roar of the river
could ,bo heard wore done by
placing a tree from the bank.
Across this very unsteady flat
pole I had to go '.whether I
like 'it--or not, as: there was
no other way. On readin g in.,
the centre of the flat pole I
had to crawl through oii hands
and knees and foil thankful
when fairly^ on the opposite
bank. It' was a very nasty
place and I do not mind ad-
mitting I .would have giwn a
good deal to avoid it. Thia
bridge is cdled by the Lepch.as'1
Tak Nil-Vong-Do Zah rind occa-
sionally u o by them when
they go up the valley collec-
ting wax.
On t^he way to Ngon Sang
dong village we had to scale
a perpendicular projecting cock
height about 150 feet by means
of the joined pieces of the
trunk of trees with notches
at alternate intervals to put
one's feet in. This Lopcha
style1 of Jacob's ladder is well
enough for tl»e barefoot ted peo-
ple, but not at, all easy fur
the leather-shod pernors. And.
underneath this ladder, the ri-
ver was rushing to dash itself
angrily over a preeipiece: some
300 feet high with a deafen-
ing road. A false step, and.
once in the water, that would
be the end, with no possible
chance to oscape. I had ma-
naged to cross the flat pole
safely, but could not face this
notched ladder. I felt I was
doomed, I was going to die,
and nothing could save me.
Finally I did with the help of
our guide but all tho time 1
was trembling with f«ar and
sweet was oozing out from the
pores like rain,and heartily-
glad I was ' to get to the ton
and on to the- hill-ide. These .
Lepcba paths are an excellent
specimen of engineering.
The situation of the villa-
ges' are the mixture of slope
and level. The place' is all of
there, exc-pt that the, .amount
of ieVjel ground is negligible;
and it was not- possible to yo
iiiaro than a hundred ' yards
or so in any direction, without .
going either* steeply . up' or
down hiil .The 1 nvesl and
highest houses in s the; village,
wore not -more than , a mile
apart but to go from one. to
,the other involved a climb., of
well over two thousand feet.
: - The Jougu Area is very
^beautiful. - lie whole hillsides
were b^ifi^ cultivated up-, to
the highest elevations; Though
poyerty reigns, the Jpngu arsa
is. prosperous in comparison
with more unlucky ones. \V here-
ever we went .through villages,
terraced lar'ey fields climbed,
up tthe grey lulls, lined ■-■with
irrigation canals, Further down
in the prosperous valley, Small
fields in which wheat, peas,
. radic-hes, and other vegetables
were cul! ivated, surrounded a
group of *tone houses. Pig-
tailed L» peha, farmers could be
seen pit-ribbing these mat farm
lands with teams of bullocks.
I could not Ji.elp sitting down
ct\ the damp grass, watchb g
these nii'ii, fascinated by the
deep impiession of happings
uud quite of this little para-
dise, h was the happiness one
would not, expect, to find on
earth but p< :h»ps on another
planet, the of happiness
which spring-- from very rare
thing now-a-tfnya; j>oaco of mind,
the pence • 1 a people who
have an unshakable and deep
faith iu ramtthing which is far
btyoud life and death.
Wiiilc going from I.ii gdom
to TjngVootig Village, we had
to cross the Teeata by a rickety-
cane 'suspension bridge not less
than • 350 feet in length, and
in consequence of .. the - lateness
of the season! very rotten and
much sagged m the Centre, it
was. so rottoif'I was afraid it'
would give \yay and furbicl any-
one else.' -erossiugY I were on
it; half the ".bamboo platform
/had...disappeared and the sua--'
pending' split canes were in
many " places, broken. I went -
firsts the swinging motion was
, great and. rattling of the loose
dry bamboos was neither . a
musical sound pbr one calcula-
.ted to inspire confidence, the
whole structure seemed' as if
about to break down. I felt
dizzy when I saw a wide gap
hi--.the middle of the ' bridge,
which I 'had to stretch across
the gap while the whole bridge
swing like a rope, "ladder." In ■
this -way we eventually got
safely across, but it was a
hazardous proceeding.
At Ragdong, the combs of
the wild bees are found on
overhanging high prec;pieofs,
and the only means by which
they can be reached is to des-
cend from above on narrow
cane ladders just wide enough,
for a. mania foot, and about
300 f-. t to 400 'feet long, the
Lepcha comes down the ladder
with an eurthern Vassel con-
taining fire on his head, and.
on reaching the combs puts
some green leaves on it. This
makes a dense smoke and
drives the bees away. While
be cuts off the combs which
are -often 6 feet long- and 4
feet thick; he then throws them
down to Ins companions, but
it is a hazardous business as,
r-hould the smoke not drive off
the bees, the man banging in
the-nnd-air ban no chance if
they attack him. The man
waiting below catch the combs,
squeeze' out the honey and