The Siberian Express rushed rapidly through the lowlands of Siberia, with their dark virgin forests of pines and cedars. Early in the morning the train passed Irkutsk and its cathedral, rising against the luminous and transparent sky of early dawn. Then came the beautiful southern shore of the great Lake Baikal with its calm surface girded by mountain ranges. Beyond Baikal, the country became mountainous and the train steamed around forest-clad hills. It was Buriatia, and the Buriats in their pointed fur caps and blue coats became more and more prominent on the station platforms. Late in the evening the train reached Verkhne-Udinsk, the capital of the Buriat Republic. Here we spent three busy days arranging for motor cars to carry us and our baggage to Mongolia.

Early on the morning of September 9 we left Verkhne-Udinsk in two Dodge cars, crossed the broad Selenga on a ferry, and continued our journey along the motor road to Troitkosavsk, the last Russian frontier town, once a wealthy colony of tea merchants. After two hours' ride, the country became more wooded and we skirted fine pine forests. Unfortunately the day was dull and rain clouds hovered over the horizon. Drizzling rain and cold winds made the journey far from pleasant. The road was soft and in several places we had to drive over the steppe in order to avoid the sandy and muddy route, which was still under repair. For the whole of the distance from Verkhne-Udinsk to the frontier, it was almost deserted. Only once or twice did we see Buriats on horseback or in small two-wheeled carriages.

In the afternoon we passed the Geese Lake with the famous Geese Lake Monastery or da-tshang (Tib. gra-tshang). This is the reputed seat of Buddhist learning in Transbaikalia, residence of the Buriat Pandita khan-po, with a well-known printing establishment that issues fine xylographs, greatly in demand throughout Buddhist Siberia, the Astrakhan steppes, and Mongolia.

In the afternoon we reached the small Cossack settlement of Selenginsk with its old church and several old houses dating back to the time of the Decembrist movement, many of whose leaders were exiled to this frontier settlement. A few miles above Selenginsk, we crossed the Selenga a second time. The crossing was dangerous, for the current is very swift and there is no ferry. The cars are carried across on boats—one car at a time. One of our cars almost slid into the river through a careless movement of the driver, but the boatmen rescued it in time.

Approaching Troitskosavsk, the landscape becomes more hilly. The road runs through a series of valleys surrounded by low sand hills covered with sturdy pine forests. Our progress was very slow, for the route was sandy, and after the recent heavy rains, extremely slippery and muddy. Often we had to get out and push the cars along the slopes. We were greatly handicapped by the lack of headlights on one of the cars. About midnight, in complete darkness, we entered the town of Troitskosavsk and drove to the hotel—a large white building, much superior to the hotel accommodations at Verkhne-Udinsk.

Next day we rode out to the frontier post to have our passports stamped. After all the necessary formalities were over, we crossed the border and drove toward a small guardhouse occupied by Mongol soldiers in Mongol fur coats with modern rifles and sabers. One of them jumped into our car and accompanied us to the city of Altin-Bulak—the Mongol frontier town, formerly known under the name of Mai-ma-ch'eng, the chief frontier entrepôt of Chinese trade. The surrounding barren hills and the peculiar transparent atmosphere strongly reminded us of the central Asian highlands. We stood on a great geographical divide; behind us lay the wooded country of Siberia, and in front of us, as far as eye could see, spread the vast steppe country of central Asia.

Altin-Bulak is a small town with a floating Russian, Mongolian, and Chinese population. During the severe fighting round Troitskosavsk and Altin-Bulak in 1918-21, it was razed to the ground and its Chinese population massacred. Since those bloody days, the number of Chinese traders has greatly diminished and many of the big Chinese concerns are closed or occupied by Mongols.

We had to spend a considerable time in the office of the Mongol Frontier Commissioner, who was absent. It was a small wooden house of semi-Chinese, semi-European architecture. Long tables filled the rooms and on high tabourets sat the Mongol clerks. Most of them were dressed in the national Mongol coats with large red and yellow sashes and the large Mongol boots with repand toes or gutul . They quietly smoked their long Chinese pipes and attentively scrutinized us. One of them walked about the room, stopped in front of us, and pensively remarked "America!" One of the clerks, a young bichéchi or secretary, read aloud from a big scroll of paper. These Mongol clerks have a curious way of reading correspondence and documents aloud with a peculiar intonation. Sometimes one sees several of them sitting together and repeating aloud the texts of documents they are writing. One always recognizes a yamen or government secretariat by the peculiar buzzing sound of voices coming through the open windows and doors. These governmental clerks are a class by themselves, the lay intellectuals of Mongolia.

About four o'clock in the afternoon all formalities were over and we once more started on the journey. We drove toward the immense and boundless steppes of Mongolia, the country of the greatest conquerors of Asia. The road imperceptibly rises and we crossed several low ridges of grass-covered hills. Like a sparkling white necklace seem their subur-ghans or stupas —the true frontier signs of Buddhist Mongolia.

The crests of the hills are crowned with pine forests, which form a dark line against the glowing sky of sunset. The country is completely deserted. Only seldom does one see a Mongol horseman—a bright colored coat, the high Mongol hat, picturesquely thrown backward, and a sunburnt face with sharp-cut features. He halts for a moment, directs an inquisitive glance toward us, and gallops away into the immensity of his native steppes. Tomorrow the whole neighborhood for several hundred miles around will know about the passage of several foreigners on two gal-terge or "fire-chariots," that is, motor cars. The Mongols are in the habit of covering hundreds of miles visiting each other. News often travels faster by horse than by telegraph or motor car. The present Commander-in-Chief of Mongolia is known to ride three hundred miles a day to pay a brief visit to friends in the steppe.

Strange is the country of Mongolia. One drives for hours and hours without seeing anyone on the road save Russian and Chinese workmen constructing the new motor road from Kiakhta to Urga.

In the evening and in full darkness, we reached the river Iro, one of the tributaries of the Selenga. On the northern bank of the river stood a number of Mongol felt tents, occupied by Russian and Chinese workmen. We persuaded the ferryman to take us over and camped in the open, close to some wretched Mongol tents, from which emerged two old women covered with rags. The night was cold and we had to light camp fires. White mist rose from the river surface and enveloped the farther bank. To the south rose dark silhouettes of forest-clad mountains. In a nearby lamasery the lamas sounded the conchshell for the evening prayer.

Here on the banks of the Iro, a boy was recently born who manifested strange faculties. Mysterious signs accompanied his birth. His mother, a shaman woman, heard mysterious voices, and the boy himself uttered amazing prophecies about the future glory of Buddhist Mongolia. The news of the appearance of the strange child spread like lightning all over Mongolia. The lamas everywhere whispered about the coming of a new incarnation of Je-tsün tam-pa Hutukhtu. The Government of the Republic was obliged to send out a commission of inquiry and to post proclamations in Urga to calm the population. It is sometimes difficult to discount rumors by printed words and the news about the new Bogdo Gegen continues to agitate the minds of the deeply religious Mongols. This boy is not the only candidate to the vacant throne of the Mongolian Pontiff. There is another—a boy known to have appeared in inner Mongolia, who is now studying in some of the lamaseries within the Chinese border.

We started before dawn and drove toward a low pass leading across the forest-clad ridge, south of the river. The newly constructed road was muddy and sandy. Our cars sank deep into the mud and had to be rescued by horsemen.

From the summit of the pass one has a broad vista over the undulating country of rolling hills. The descent leads to the broad river valley of the Bain-gol, a narrow rivulet with treacherous and swampy bed. Several cars, traveling from Urga, stood stranded on its banks. They had endeavored to cross the river but the water had filled the engines. They all warned us that it was foolhardy to try to cross, but we decided to make the effort. We piled all our baggage inside the cars and covered the radiators with several sheets of waterproof canvas. Luckily several horsemen came to our aid and offered their assistance. Ropes were tied to the front of the cars and the riders tied the other ends to the pommels of their saddles. When we were all set, the drivers started their cars and with sudden wild shouts the horsemen rushed toward the opposite river bank. The water splashed high into the air, but the two cars were safely pulled across the river.

From Bain-gol the road led over fine grazing lands. Herds of horses and camels wandered on the slopes of the hills. We passed ruined stone hovels—ruins of Chinese farmsteads destroyed during the civil war of 1919-21. The mountainous country continued up to the Khara-gol, another important tributary of the Selenga, which waters a broad valley with a flat bottom. A wooden bridge spans the river, by which we camped for the night. It was clear but exceptionally cold, and in the morning the small pools of water were covered with a thin crust of ice.

We made an early start again and drove over a fine mountainous country of grass-covered valleys and forest-clad hills. These hills are the branches of the Kentei Mountain system, where General P. K. Kozlov, the eminent Russian explorer, made his brilliant discoveries of ancient textiles in the so-called "animal style." Only a few miles before reaching Urga, the road emerged into the vast valley of the Tola River. To the south of the valley rises the magnificent Bogdo ula, a mountain clad with virgin forests, the haunts of a rich animal life. The gilded roofs of the religious edifices of the capital of Mongol Pontiffs shone in the bright Mongolian sun.

Before entering the city, all travelers have to produce their frontier passes that are obtained from the Mongol Frontier Commissariat, at a small military outpost situated just outside the city boundary. We halted at the small wooden hovel and handed over our passes to a grim Mongol soldier in fur-lined helmet and khaki overcoat. He took our papers to the hut and disappeared for a considerable length of time. Our patience being exhausted, we entered the hut to find out the cause of the delay. The two petty officers were playing chess and the soldier with our passes was waiting until his chiefs had finished! We protested and our passes were duly stamped, and the officers continued their absorbing game. Time means little in Urga, as anywhere in central Asia!

We were very lucky to find a small house of four rooms and two spacious courtyards with stables, for the headquarters of the expedition. Space does not permit a description of all the various day by day activities of the expedition. The great crossing of central Asia, through Mongolia and Tibet, to India, had to be organized and the route carefully studied. From Mongolia, Professor Roerich also sent paintings to the Roerich Museum in New York, a unique pictorial record of the country and its inner life.

Modern Urga is a city of deep contrasts, typical of a country that is experiencing a period of fundamental changes. Modern conveyances, such as airplanes and motor cars, contest their right with the time-honored means of transport—the long files of majestic camels and the clumsy bullock carts.

Ancient Lamaist Urga presents great interest to a student of Buddhism. Urga or Ulan Bator Khoto, the capital of autonomous Mongolia and the greatest city of outer Mongolia, is situated at the confluence of the rivers Tola and Selbi, some one hundred and seventy miles from Kiakhta on the Siberian border. It is situated in the territory of the Tushetu-khan aimak , or province. As one emerges from the Dolan-dabhur Mountains, northwest of Urga, one sees the city lying in the broad valley of the Tola River, extending about twenty miles from east to west and some nine miles north to south. The entire valley is dominated by the massive Bogdo ula, which rises south of the valley and forms the southern boundary of forests in this part of Mongolia. From the east the valley of the Tola is sheltered by the low ridges of Bain-khutul, which rise to a considerable height at some distance from Urga. To the north of the valley lies the highly intersected mountain group of Chingiltu ula and its northwestern branch of Dolan-dabhur. To the west rise the mountains of Sangi-yin ula. The valley is open to the southwest, toward the upper course of the Tola.

The vegetation of the valley is very scant and most of the neighboring hills are covered with grass. Small groves of trees are found along the Tola River at the foot of the Bogdo ula and toward the hills of the Sangi-yin ula.

The only wooded part of the vicinity is the magnificent Bogdo ula—the true natural park of Mongolia, where since the eighteenth century the hewing of wood and hunting have been strictly prohibited. The mountain is considered holy and in the times of the Incarnate Lama rulers of Mongolia, offerings were made to it twice a year. The cult was begun in 1778 A.D. when a petition was presented to the throne, on behalf of the Urga authorities, requesting the Imperial Court to legalize the cult of the sacred mountain. The petition was based on the belief that Chinghiz Khan was born at the foot of the Bogdo ula. The petition was granted and the Emperor was pleased to grant an Imperial Decree ordering the sending of a prescribed quantity of incense sticks and pieces of silk from Peking twice a year.

To a naturalist, the forest reserves of the Bogdo ula are of unique interest. Here on the forest-clad slopes of the holy mountain he can study the fauna of Mongolia and observe many of the larger animals, which have become almost extinct in other parts of Mongolia. The law forbidding hunting and the cutting of trees is still enforced by the Republican Government of Mongolia, which maintains police posts in the numerous gorges on the mountain side. On the southern slope of the mountain, stands the important monastery of Mañjushri-khit, famous throughout Mongolia for the austere life of its monks and the learning of its abbot who exercises considerable influence on the political affairs of the country.

The city of Urga is spread over a large area, and consists of a permanent settlement surrounded by a large nomadic colony of felt tents, in which most of the Urga citizens live during the cold winter months.

The city is known to Europeans under the name of Urga, which corresponds to the Mongolian word örgö meaning "princely camp, palace." This word is never used by Mongols, although this was probably the case in ancient times, when the valley of the Tola was used as a residence by important church dignitaries. The Mongols invariably call it Ikhe-küren or Ikhe-kürä, the "Great Monastery." In everyday language it is called simply Küren, or by its Sino-Mongolian designation Da-kürä (Ta-kürä, Chinese transcription Ta k'u-lun). Under this last name it is generally known to the Tibetans (Ta-khu-re). In November, 1924, the Ikhe-Khuruldan, or the Great National Assembly of Mongolia, changed the name of the city to Ulan Bator Khoto, or the "City of the Red Warrior." But the time-honored name is still universally used.

The earliest notice about Urga is found in the Mongol chronicle Erdeni-yin erikhe , about the year 1649 A.D. It is said in this passage, that Ündür-Gegen, the first historical Je-tsün tam-pa Hutukhtu of Khalkha, or the sixteenth incarnation according to the Lamaist tradition, established on his return from Tibet seven monastic colleges or da-tshang (Mongol; aimak ) in the Nom-un Ikhe-küren. The Ikhe-küren in the valley of the Tola River was probably only a temporary residence of the Incarnate Lama of Khalkha, for Ündür-Gegen himself spent the rest of his life in Jehol, Dolon-nor, and Peking (he died in Peking in 1723). We know that many of his successors on the pontifical throne used to reside in different parts of outer Mongolia. The monastery Ikhe-küren itself was not a permanent settlement. Since 1719 A.D. it had constantly changed its site.

In 1741 A.D. Ikhe-küren, or Urga, became the permanent residence of the Je-tsün tam-pa Hutukhtu. The growth of the monastery begins from that date. In 1756 was established the first Theological School for the study of the tshan-nyid ( mtshan-ñid ) or the higher metaphysics of Buddhism. The school was given the right to confer learned distinctions and lamas began to flock to the monastery. The Chinese were not slow to recognize the growing importance of the monastery. The creation of a permanent center of administration and religious life was of great importance to them for it facilitated the difficult task of controlling the then turbulent Mongolian tribes. In 1741 they created the post of shandzotba (a word borrowed from Tibetan, chän-dzö-pa, phyag-mdzod-pa ) intrusted with the supervision of the large estates of the Hutukhtu and his serfs. In 1758, following the defeat of the Oirat power, the Chinese Government established an Imperial Resident in Urga, who was officially directed to assist the shandzotba in administering Urga. This official was intrusted with all frontier affairs. Three years later, in 1761, a Manchu official was appointed to assist the First Resident who until then was always a Mongol prince. Ikhe-küren and the adjacent trade settlement gradually changed into a permanent settlement. In 1779 a petition was presented to Peking to allow the monastery to settle permanently on the banks of the Selbi River.

In the vicinity of the monastery town, a considerable colony of Russian and Chinese merchants was established. The lamas contended that Chinese shopkeepers built their shops too close to the monastery. On several occasions they presented petitions to Peking, but the Chinese authorities were not always ready to limit the number of Chinese shops in the vicinity of the monastery and thus deliver a heavy blow to Chinese trade in Urga. As is done usually, they allowed the matter to drag. The dissatisfied lamas moved the monastery nearer the Tola River, but each time returned to their former grounds. After much delay, the Chinese authorities notified the Chinese merchants that no shops were allowed to hinder the path reserved for the annual Maidari procession. In view of the pressing request of the lamas to move the shops a little farther, a big trading settlement known under the name of Mai-ma-ch'eng was founded some six miles east of the küren . These restrictions upon the traders imposed by the lamas gradually disappeared and at present the küren is surrounded by numerous shops and big trading establishments.

In the course of years Urga became the religious and administrative center of Mongolia, the seat of the Je-tsün tam-pa Hutukhtu, and the residence of the Chinese Imperial Commissioner.

In 1786 A.D. an imperial decree conferred upon the Imperial Commissioner in Urga the right of final decision in the administration of the Tushetu-khan and Setsen Khan aimaks , the central and eastern provinces of outer Mongolia.

During the nineteenth century, Urga rapidly grew in importance. Through its gates passed most of the tea trade going from Kiakhta to Peking. The yearly export to Siberia greatly increased and an important colony of Russian merchants was established in the city. Urga thus became the chief entrepôt of Mongol-Russian trade. In 1863 an imperial Russian consulate was created, and from that date Urga acquired that cosmopolitan character which is characteristic of the present-day Ulan Bator.

The Chinese colony was also a powerful factor in the development of the Mongol capital. Big Peking and Shan-hsi firms established branches in Urga and throughout Mongolia. In several decades outer Mongolia became almost wholly dependent economically on China. In 1912 Urga was officially proclaimed the capital of autonomous Mongolia, and has retained this distinction during the present republican period of Mongolia.

Such is the brief history of the city. Every new arrival is struck by its peculiar half-permanent, half-nomadic character. The city is the result of a transition period during which the country has abandoned its past but has not as yet absorbed western civilization. Within the boundary of the old settlement, a new city is growing with electric lights and motor car traffic. Amid imposing temples with their roofs aglitter in the bright Mongolian sun, are scattered miserable hovels. The high wooden palisades, that serve as inclosures for most of the Urga houses, give a monotonous character to the narrow streets. Gray, weathered, wooden palisades and red-painted gates, distinguished only by small wooden plates on which are written the house numbers in Mongolian—such is the Urga street. Inside these wooden palisades is usually a large courtyard with a small one-storied house of Russian or Chinese architecture. If the courtyard belongs to a Mongol or Buriat, a Mongol felt tent, or several of them, are pitched beside the house. A Mongol uses the house only during the summer; during the cold winter he has his quarters in the warm felt tent with wooden floor and an iron or brick stove. If large and clean, such winter tents look very cozy. Very often, in the families of wealthy citizens, they are covered with thick white felt ornamented on the edges. Inside such a tent one finds a low seat, which is used as a bed by night, or a bed of European or Chinese make. In the center of the tent is usually the stove with an iron chimney going through an opening in the roof. Besides the bed of the owner, one usually finds a glass case with sacred images, serving as an altar. Before the images stand the "eight happy offerings"—seven metal cups arranged in a row with their water offering, in the middle of the row, a burning lamp or chökung . In wealthy houses such offering cups are made of heavy silver and are richly ornamented. In poorer households they are replaced by simple brass cups.

Some of the more religious possess good collections of religious books, brought at great cost from Tibet, usually from Lhasa, Kum-bum, and Labrang. Most of these books, especially the Kānjur and Tānjur , are brought as objects of worship only and so are badly printed on inferior paper. It is a well-known fact that the copies of the Kānjur and Tānjur produced at the old Narthang Press for rich Mongol pilgrims are of a very inferior quality, both as regards paper and printing; some of the pages are nothing but black spots of ink, and many of them are missing. Infinitely superior are the Kānjur and Tānjur printed at Derge gön-chen; they are usually on thick Chinese paper and the printing is done from metal block prints. The size of the volumes in the Derge Kānjur is a little smaller than that of the Narthang print.

The art of printing was introduced into Tibet from China. The first Tibetan books are said to have been printed at Peking about 1069 A.D. The first Tibetan Tripitaka was probably printed between 1311 and 1319 A.D. The present Narthang print of the Kānjur and Tānjur dates from the year 1747 A.D. Many of the wooden block prints from which printing is done have been badly effaced by time and usage. To remedy the situation, the present Dalai Lama some years ago ordered the cutting of new block prints at the printing establishments of Potala Palace. This new Potala Kānjur is now ready for print, but so far as I know no copies of it exist outside Lhasa. It is not known whether block prints for a Tānjur have been cut. The new Potala Kānjur is said to contain one hundred and eight volumes, but whether it is better than the old Narthang Kānjur or the Derge Kānjur remains to be seen.

In many of the tents inhabited by officials and other educated Mongols, we found electric lights. Furniture of European make is seldom seen. Most of the Mongols squat on the floor or use thick mattresses laid out along the walls of the tent. Large wooden boxes, often painted in bright colors—red, yellow, or blue—serve as storerooms, and usually stand on both sides of the door. Many of the European colony prefer to live in such tents, for they find them much warmer in winter and better protection from the bitterly cold winter winds that sweep the valley of the Tola.

Quite recently attempts were made to adapt the form of a Mongol felt tent to buildings and thus create a national Mongol style. On the vast town site of Ulan Bator, across which Mongol horsemen race on their swift steeds, stands a strange building; upon a polygonal foundation rises a huge dome supported by low walls. The whole structure reminds one of a gigantic Mongol felt tent. The outside of the building is decorated with figures of the eight happy signs. It is the national theater of Mongolia and the People's Club. The architect intended to express the idea of a nomad tent in a monumental creation. So far as I know, this is the first attempt of the kind. During our stay in Urga, the building was still under construction and I did not see the interior arrangements. I do not think that the yurta motive is suited for buildings. The domed structure is too western in character, and at best looks like a Mohammedan mosque without its wonderfully designed lines. The Tibetan architecture is much more monumental and is better adapted to modern requirements. It permits the construction of high buildings without infringing upon the character of the style. Some attempts along this line have already been made in Urga, and it is to be hoped that the Mongol Government will follow this example in erecting new buildings for its secretariats.

Unfortunately most of the modern buildings in Urga are of an indifferent European style or like miserable Chinese hovels, which do not at all suit the character of the city. The summer palaces of the late Je-tsün tam-pa Hutukhtu, now transformed into a national museum and school, situated some two miles from Urga on the banks of the Tola, are of a mixed style and have no particular interest. The brick walls in Chinese style, in front of the main entrance gates, are riddled with bullets that badly damaged some of the bas-relief—traces of the severe fighting that took place here in January, 1921.

The rich private collections of the deceased Hutukhtu consisted of a remarkable assortment of things—valuable sacred images from Tibet and Peking; a considerable library of religious and secular books in Mongol, Tibetan, Chinese, and Manchu; all sorts of European technical devices and curios, cinemas, photographic cameras and field glasses, telescopes; valuable Chinese porcelain and bronzes; a great number of modern European firearms; stores of cigarettes of an unusual length; stuffed animals; and last but not least a small menagerie of wild animals. All these have now been confiscated by the different government departments or sold on the Urga market.

The gilded and brightly painted state carriages of the Hutukhtu were sold at auction and many of them are now plying between Urga and its suburbs as the property of Chinese coachmen. One very often sees these strange state carriages, created by the whim of an oriental ruler, driving through the streets of Urga. These public omnibuses, drawn by two miserable shaggy horses with Chinese and Mongols crowded into them, add much color to the picturesqueness of Urga streets.

Another building of interest is the former palace of Sain Noin Khan, the former Prime Minister of Mongolia; it is situated between Urga and the Tola River and at one time was one of the finest buildings of Urga.

The Chinese fort, built in 1883, during a sudden mobilization in outer Mongolia, is at present in complete ruin. Outside the city are the barracks of the Mongol troops, which consist only of cavalry units, for the Mongols make splendid cavalrymen but very poor infantry.

To the northwest of the large town site are the marketplace and the trading quarters. Here one finds all the principal trading establishments of the city; the Mongolian Central Coöperative Society, the Urga Coöperative Society, and a number of privately owned shops, mostly branches of Harbin firms. A little farther away lies the large Chinese commercial quarter, situated close to the Monastery of Ganden. The narrow streets are lined on both sides by high brick or stone walls, with great gates bearing the name of the firm written in Chinese, Mongol, and Tibetan. As in most of the Chinese houses, the shop itself and the storerooms are situated in the courtyard away from the noise of the streets. The courtyards as a rule are clean and the inside of the shops neat and cozy. Mongol customers spend several hours examining the wares and settling the prices. Tea is invariably offered to customers, and the employees of the firm try their best to induce them to buy or borrow goods.

On the western end of these streets of the Chinese quarter, which all run from east to west, stand numerous small shops of Chinese artisans, silversmiths, metal workers, carpenters, coffin makers, tailors, restaurants; shops trading in religious books and objects of art; fur merchants, etc. Each street has gates at either end, which are closed at night, so that the whole quarter looks like one huge compound.

Round the market and shopping district cluster innumerable houses and hovels, harboring most of the Urga population. Some of the streets are so narrow that only one rider can pass in one direction, and if a motor car ventures into the streets all the traffic coming from the opposite end has to turn back and ride to the crossing place. Sometimes one sees horsemen and camel caravans suddenly turn backward for a considerable distance; it means that a motor car is coming.

Much has been written about the smell and dirt of Urga. In recent years the municipal authorities have tried their best to improve the sanitary conditions of the streets by removing refuse heaps and disinfecting the quarters of the poor. Naturally, much remains yet to be done, for Urga streets know no pavements and the drainage system is in its infancy. In the whole of the city there is no water supply, and the growing population is obliged to carry water from the Tola River. In springtime the river water is usually muddy and has an unpleasant smell. Only the dry climate prevents the spread of epidemics.

Great packs of homeless dogs, huge black animals with shaggy fur, roam in the streets and often attack men. The municipality has endeavored to fight these pests, but has been handicapped by the population which believes it sinful to take life. The city elders had recourse to a wonderful measure. They ordered all the stray dogs to be collected in a huge wooden inclosure, and fed the animals at state expense. This has been an additional cost to the state and has failed to free the city of dogs, which still infest the squares and streets. They are exceedingly fierce and in the evening it is sometimes dangerous to pass the refuse heaps on which they are encamped. I have been obliged to fight a pack of dogs even on horseback, for they jump and try to bite the rider's feet. A story is related of a sentry who was overpowered by the dogs and devoured by night, despite his rifle and sword. The man tried his best to fight the hungry pack and even killed a number of the dogs, but the rest soon bore him to the ground and tore him to pieces. The only traces left of him were his rifle and sword and part of his coat, which were found the next morning. His cap, boots, and even ammunition belts—everything was torn to pieces.

Similar difficulties are said to have been experienced by the newly established police force at Lhasa. The police officers of the Tibetan capital decided to clear the city of its dogs in order to improve the sanitary conditions, but the populace and the monks of the three great monasteries made a violent protest and the project had to be abandoned.

The Urga dogs are the scavengers of the city. Mongols seldom bury their dead. Usually the corpses are carried to a valley north of Urga, where they are thrown on the ground to be devoured by dogs. The animals perform their duty with surprising rapidity and after a few minutes nothing is left but scattered bones. The unpleasant part of the procedure is that the dogs often carry human bones, sometimes whole skulls, into the city. I once found a fresh human skull with skin and hair lying by the roadside not far from the house occupied by the expedition. A dog had brought it during the night and then abandoned it.

The Chinese cemetery in Mai-ma-ch'eng, with wooden coffins placed on the ground unburied, presents a horrible spectacle. The dogs are unable to destroy the bodies because of the coffins and the smell that permeates the place is indescribable. Some of the coffins have fallen to pieces and one can see exposed heads and feet which the dogs hasten to devour. Of course, only the poor deposit their dead in this cemetery; the wealthy families convey the bodies to their native province in China and one often sees camels loaded with huge Chinese coffins on their way to Khalgan.

Urga is the chief transit and distributing point for the whole country. Since 1922 the coöperative movement in Mongolia has begun to spread. The Mongolian Central Coöperative Society or "Moncentcoöp" at present has about 26 branches, 102 minor branches, and 4 agencies in Moscow, Tientsin, Khalgan, and Khailar. The coöperative movement is financially assisted by the Mongolian Government. During the year 1923-24 the Central Coöperative imported various goods amounting to 531,000 Mexican dollars and exported to the sum of 523,000 Mexican dollars. The last available State Report for the year 1927 shows an export of two million tukhriks (one tukhrik —one Mexican dollar, according to the ratio of 1926) and an import of 3,300,000 tukhriks . Until now the imports have greatly exceeded exports. In order to make the country more self-supporting, the Government of Mongolia has established a tannery at Altin-Bulak with a capital of 420,000 tukhriks . The tannery supplies the army and the population with leather products (saddlery, boots, etc.), sheepskins, and winter felt boots. It is rumored that the Government will establish a second tannery to increase the output. Besides the tannery the Government was conducting negotiations to establish brick works, iron works, etc. To finance all these undertakings, it was proposed to establish a Mongol State Bank. According to the Report of 1927, the Government was also anxious to develop the natural resources of the country and special laws are to be promulgated, regulating the granting of concessions to Mongol citizens and foreigners.

Since the civil war of 1918-22, the agricultural population of the country, consisting mostly of Russian and Chinese colonists, has almost totally disappeared. The quantity of land cultivated by Mongols is so insignificant that the state has proposed to assist the development of agriculture. A law was promulgated by which the Government pledged itself to support, by grants of land and agricultural machinery, those who would like to become farmers. Foreign concessioners have endeavored to open the agricultural possibilities of the land, and a Danish concession is actually engaged in farming on a large scale.

Another grave concern of the Government of the Republic is the improvement of its cattle. According to the census of 1926, outer Mongolia had 19,211,736 head of cattle. From time immemorial the Mongols were a cattle and horse breeding nation. The Mongolian animals, although sturdy by nature, have been badly neglected and in the course of centuries have greatly deteriorated. Until recently very little has been done to improve them, although this question is of vital importance to the country itself and all the neighboring countries, which depend on Mongol herds. It remains to be seen by what measures the Government of Mongolia intends to improve the breed. If properly conducted, stock raising in Mongolia could be of the greatest importance and the country could easily become one of the biggest cattle-producing regions of Asia.

Notwithstanding the centralizing tendency of the Government, some 1,697 foreign commercial enterprises and 700 trading establishments still exist in the country. The Chinese population of outer Mongolia is said to be about 100,000, mainly employees in big trading concerns from Peking and Shan-hsi, artisans, laborers, and coolies.

Urga is connected by motor roads with the most important trading centers of Mongolia and the border regions of Siberia and China. The chief routes are the Urga-Uliassutai-Kobdo route with a length of 900 miles, the Kiakhta-Urga trade route running over a distance of 180 miles, the Urga-Manchuria route, connecting the Mongol capital with the town of Manchuria on the Chinese Eastern Railway, with a distance of 800 miles, and the Urga-Khalgan trade route covering a distance of 800 miles. In 1918 a regular motor car service was started between Khalgan and Urga by a company consisting of several Europeans and the Chinese Commissioner of Khalgan. These are not motor roads in our sense of the word; only the Kiakhta-Urga route can boast of such a road, which is in progress of construction. The cars have to travel over steppe country and sand deserts, ford rivers, and climb mountain passes.

So far there is no railway line within the frontiers of outer Mongolia but a branch connecting Urga with Verkhne-Udinsk is frequently discussed. In times past great railroad projects were planned to connect the capital of Hsin-ch'iang with Urga and China proper, but neither the present economic state of the country nor the passenger traffic and transit of goods necessitate at present such a tremendous undertaking.

After the sojourn of the Dalai Lama in 1904 in the capital of Mongolia it became necessary, owing to the large donations received in silver and cattle, to establish a Tibetan government office to look after the property of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. A tsi-pön ( rtsi-dpon ) with the official title of do-nyer ( mgron-gñer ) was appointed to supervise the work of different government agents throughout Mongolia. His duties were to represent the Government and to look after the private property of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, to report to the Tibetan Government on whatever matter might interest the Government, to purchase goods for the Government, to supervise Tibetan trade in Mongolia, and to issue passports to pilgrims traveling by way of Tsaidam and Sining to Nag-chu and Lhasa.

In the time of the Bogdo Gegen, the Tibetan representative enjoyed full jurisdiction over Tibetan nationals. Any Tibetan convicted of a crime was turned over by the Mongol authorities to the do-nyer , who passed judgment according to the laws of his country. The punishment consisted chiefly of flogging, but the convict was sometimes permitted to pay a fine that exempted him from corporal punishment. Only seldom was a prisoner detained in the precincts of the Tibetan "consulate," for this was a troublesome procedure and required a body of men to be maintained as guards. The status of this representative closely approached the position of our consuls.

During the time of the Bogdo Gegen, these Tibetan representatives kept a close watch upon the Mongolian Pontiff, for it is a well-known fact that the church authorities of Tibet were not very pleased with the doings of the Urga Hutukhtu and that on several occasions the Dalai Lama had hinted to the Mongol Pontiff the desirability of his return to Tibet.

The vast amount of private property belonging to His Holiness the Dalai Lama necessitated the maintenance of a large controlling apparatus. The official representative had a number of agents in his employ, who toured the country and collected from the population the sums to the payment of which the local population had pledged itself during the Dalai Lama's visit to Mongolia. Large sums of money were deposited at the Ta-khu-re tsi-khang or barun-sang , the names under which the Tibetan treasury is known to Tibetans and Mongols. The money was often used with great profit in usury and this unofficial occupation was stopped only recently by the Mongolian Government.

It is a well-known fact that Tibetan trade is to a great extent conducted by the State, which employs trade agents and issues trading permits to private traders who are allowed to trade in the name of the Government and are officially designated by the name of shung-gi tshong-pa or government tradesmen.

Urga has always had a large colony of Tibetans. Tibetan lamas often occupy high positions as doctors, being reputed for their learning. Some of them are Incarnate Lamas of Mongol monasteries, others are spiritual advisors to high officials and thus exercise a good deal of influence. Many of the lamas have abandoned monkhood, married Mongol women, and carry on trade in the precincts of Urga. Such former lamas are usually called tra-lo , or "one who has returned his monastic vows," and form a caste by themselves. The rest of the colony consists of traders who carry on business between Urga, Peking, and Sining. Some of these men were former convicts who escaped from Tibet and now lead an easy life in this hospitable land.

Wealthy Tibetan families used to maintain their own private trade agents, who traded in the name of their masters. The well-known Tibetan statesman, the late Lönchen Shatra, had such an agent in Urga. The man accumulated a considerable fortune and was considered to be one of the richest merchants of the Tibetan colony. During the Mongol Civil War of 1919-22, he lost all his fortune and most of his goods. This disaster had a terrible effect on him. He fell dangerously ill and lost his reason. I used to see him often in the streets of Urga, attired in a fine silk coat with a large fur cap on his head, roaming about the bazaars. When addressed, he repeated only one sentence, "Give me my money back." Curiously enough he remembers the names of all the persons who had harmed him. Later on I learned that he tried to commit suicide with a Tibetan sword and that the Tibetan representative had to place guards in his tent.

In former times, before the Civil War of 1919-22, Tibet had an extensive trade with Mongolia. Tibet largely exported holy images, incense made in Lhasa, block-prints of sacred texts, a small quantity of Tibetan furs, ecclesiastical robes, and the prized puru , Tibetan cotton cloth of high quality. The Mongolian export consisted mostly of Chinese silks, foreign wares, Russian leather, hides, furs, and Russian brocades. The present Mongol Government established high custom duties on all articles connected with church worship, and thus brought Mongol-Tibetan commerce practically to a standstill.

The routes connecting Tibet with Mongolia were for almost a whole decade unsafe for trading caravans. During the season of 1926-27 only two Tibetan caravans reached the Mongol capital and the amount of goods brought by them was so insignificant as to justify the statement that Tibet-Mongol trade does not exist at present and that important trade routes have lost their significance as arteries of central Asian commerce.

The Chinese artisans are mostly mu-ch'ang or carpenters, who build most of the Urga houses, and t'ung-ch'ang or metal workers, who conduct most of the metal industry of the city. Shoemakers or gutulchi in Mongolian, who make the high Mongolian boots with repand points and sell the ornamented boots of high quality imported from Khalgan, are an important class of Chinese craftsmen in the Mongolian capital. Next to the shoemakers come the fur makers or eldurchi who tan skins bought from the Mongols. Sheepskins tanned by Chinese are used as fur lining for costly silk winter coats, worn by wealthy Mongols. The poorer classes prefer to wear sheepskins of Mongol make, which are much heavier but are said to be warmer and are indispensable on winter journeys in the Gobi. The Chinese tailors or tsai-feng work chiefly for the European and Chinese colonies of the city. The Mongols, unless they prefer the Chinese fashions, favor the Mongol work, which is said to be more durable. Another large class of artisans consists of image makers and silversmiths, who produce bronze or clay images for monasteries and private chapels, and the silver offering cups or silver ornaments. Their work is usually extremely crude and is far from being artistic. Most of these artisans come from Peking or Dolon-nor, where there are large workshops.

Besides these image makers, there are in Urga a number of shops usually called by their semi-Tibetan, semi-Chinese name Ri-wo dze-nga-pu-tzu (Tib. Ri-bo rtse-lnga ), which trade in images and other religious objects manufactured at Dolon-nor or at the famous monastery of Wu-t'ai Shan. Here one can find gilded bronze images of Sakyamuni, the Buddha, the principal yi-dams or titulary deities of the Yellow sect, the Bodhisattvas Avalokitesvara, Mañjushri, and Maitreya, the Tara, and sometimes Tsong-kha-pa, the founder of the Yellow Faith. Most of the figures are of a very crude workmanship and present no interest whatsoever. The images produced by the art workshop of the Wu-t'ai Shan Monastery are a little better than those of Dolon-nor.

Painted images are only rarely found in these shops, for most of them are executed on special orders by Mongol lama painters or dzurachin . The work of these lama artists is far inferior to that of the Kham or Derge artists. The wealthy families of Urga possess some fine examples of Derge or Kham art. The colors on painted banners executed by Mongol artists are crude and the design is generally very poor.

Besides the sacred images, the Ri-wo dze-nga pu-tzu or shops have a large stock of objects used in temple ceremonies and of lama attires. Here one can find offering lamps of different make and size, bum-pas or vases, peacock feathers, damaru or hand tambourines used in Tantric services, religious trumpets, the large trumpets or dung-chen , conchshells, incense sticks of Tibetan and Chinese makes (sticks coming from the Sera Monastery of Lhasa are especially prized) and thick mattresses or olbok used as seats by lamas.

Some of the shops maintain large stocks of books printed at the Wu-t'ai Shan Monastery and at Peking. The printing is usually good, as is also the paper. The Tibetan blocks are in one respect better,—there are fewer misprints and mistakes in them. The book stocks of the shops consist chiefly of prayer books and service manuals. Books on church history or chö-jung , or treaties on higher metaphysics are only rarely found. The Lam-rim chen-mo of Je-rin-po-che Tsong-kha-pa is the only book of this class frequently seen. The edition found in these shops is that of Wu-t'ai Shan. The Lhasa edition of the Lam-rim is of little use, for the wooden block prints became effaced and the modern prints are hardly readable.

Another collection belonging to the same class of literature is the Chang-skya pandita'i sung-bum , or the collection of works by the Chang-skya Hutukhtu. It is printed in Peking and contains five large volumes.

The rnam-thar literature is only poorly represented. In six shops, I found only one copy of the Ra lo-tsa-wa'i rnam-thar , a Tibetan print, which was left in the shop by a passing Tibetan lama.

The different cho-ga or worship manuals and ti-yig ( 'khrid-yig ) or guides to the performance of various rites, are very largely represented and contain the cho-ga of the most important yi-dams or titulary deities, such as Dem-chok, Sung-dü, Yamantaka, and Kye-dorje.

The Tantric literature is almost wholly absent, except for a few short works containing the essence of the four principal systems of the Tantras.

The purely historical literature, consisting of different chö-jung or deb-ther , is only rarely found. It is a known fact that the large and rarer editions have to be acquired from lamas, but it is always difficult to persuade the owner to part with the books. The printing establishments of the Urga monasteries are not very active. During the lifetime of the fourth incarnation of the Bogdo Gegen, block prints for seventy-two volumes of a Tibetan Kānjur were made, but after the death of the Gegen, the work was discontinued and there is no likelihood that it will be resumed.

Some good printing establishments are to be found in the Transbaikal Buriat monasteries, in which some useful works on metaphysics are printed and some original lexicographical works in the form of Mongol-Tibetan dictionaries are edited. These editions are only seldom found at Urga. Before the closing of the Mongol-Chinese border, the bookselling shops received fresh supplies of books from Peking. At that time one could find valuable Chinese, Mongol, Tibetan, and Manchu dictionaries, and Mongol translations of Chinese literary works, such as the description of Hsüan-tsang's travels across central Asia to distant India in quest of knowledge and original Buddhist texts. Now this time is gone, and with the high custom duty on the import of religious objects and texts the number of such objects and books imported yearly has greatly diminished and rare editions and costly bronzes have almost completely disappeared from the market.

During my travels through central Asia and the Buddhist lands of Mongolia and Tibet, I observed the interesting fact that the lamas often prefer European editions of Buddhist texts. They say that the Tibetan texts printed in Calcutta by the Government Press or the texts published at Petrograd are easier to handle and to carry about than the bulky and sometimes badly printed xylographs of their own countries. With many Mongol and Tibetan lamas I found volumes of the Bibliotheca Buddhica published by the Russian Academy of Sciences—a striking example of how European scholarship and western methods of printing penetrate and are appreciated by the learned men of Tibet and Mongolia.

There is a Government Press at Urga which prints the daily newspaper in Mongolian and recently began the editing of a number of textbooks for the Mongolian high schools. This work of supplying the high schools with up-to-date textbooks on geography, history, and natural sciences, owes much to the many-sided activity of Dr. T. Z. Jamtsarano, the learned secretary of the Mongol Scientific Committee, and Mr. Batu Khan, the former Minister of Education in the Mongolian Government. The textbooks already issued are well executed and well printed, considering the limited resources of the press.

There is a growing demand for books in Mongolia which would tell the youth of Mongolia something about the outer world, and the place occupied in it by their own mother country. It is a pleasure to note this awakening quest for knowledge among a people which until recently only dreamed of the great deeds of the past. A nation that will combine the daring of her horsemen with a true and sincere search for the treasures of knowledge has a future before her.

During the recent years Mongolia has endeavored to extend education into the provinces and create provincial schools for boys and girls. The last published Report of 1927 says that there are at present about a hundred primary schools in which 2,904 children receive education. The vast expanses of Mongolia, the inadequate lines of communication, and the scarcity of population, make this extremely difficult, and few of the schools are well attended and well supplied with competent teachers.

The problem of teachers is a very perplexing one, for few of the Mongols are able to do well as such and few Europeans are able to acquire a good knowledge of the colloquial language and of local conditions, to enable them to perform their task successfully. Still the country is trying hard and the interest evinced in things American and European is sincere and will undoubtedly bear fruit. A few years ago it was hard to make a nomad boy sit at a school desk and learn geography or natural sciences. The pupils used to find the lessons boring and again and again ran away into the vastness of their native steppes. One should not represent the young Mongols as being unruly and undisciplined. The nomads have a very strong instinct for order and readily obey their superiors. When on good terms with their superiors they make attentive pupils, and when in the ranks of the army, good soldiers. The reason for their deserting the schools was that the life there was not made attractive and failed to catch their imagination.

The high educational institution of the country is represented by the Ayuting-surgal , which is called the Mongol National University and turns out teachers and future government officials. Its program is far from being extensive and at best corresponds to a high school with the first two years of college. A number of Mongol youths have been sent to Germany, Japan, and Russia to study engineering, agriculture, and military science. Some of them have already returned and are busily engaged in reconstructing Mongolian life on more modern lines. Mongolia is now passing through a transitory state. The nomads of the steppe flock to the town, and large settlements of felt tents or yurtas on the outskirts of a permanent town give evidence of the fact that administrative and trading centers are becoming more and more the focus points of the country's activities. In a varying degree Mongolia is passing through the same social phase that made thousands of people in America and Europe move to the cities and forsake parental hearths.

The highest scientific institution of the land is the Mongol Scientific Committee. Its chief duty is to collect and record all scientific information about Mongolia, be it concerning an old runic monument or about the mineral wealth of the country. The committee gives the necessary permits to foreign scientific expeditions and is engaged in surveying and exploring the vast land of Mongolia. In time, the committee will undoubtedly possess valuable collections and scientific data. Already a nucleus for a national museum is being formed and the rich private collections of the late Bogdo Gegen, confiscated by the state, form a considerable part of it. Under the able leadership of Dr. T. Z. Jamtsarano, a noted scholar in the field of Mongol literature and folklore, the committee is rapidly collecting material to serve for a comprehensive study of Mongolia and its people.

The two greatest treasures of the committee's museum and library are the wonderful finds made by General P. K. Kozlov in the Noin ula Mountains and a complete set of a Mongolian printed Tānjür . For a long time scholars have doubted the existence of a Tānjür printed in Mongolian. The Chinese sources tell us that the great Emperor Ch'ien-long ordered a committee of interpreters and scholars to translate the 225 volumes of the Tānjür into Mongolian and prepare block prints for its printing. According to the Chinese sources, this tremendous work was begun about October, 1740, and was ready by December, 1741—a truly wonderful achievement, considering the difficulties of translating from Tibetan into Mongolian. The complete copy of the Tānjür , now in the possession of the Scientific Committee, was found in the territory of the Prince Nga-wang, in the vicinity of Khalgan in southeastern Mongolia.

Besides the two great collections of Buddhist scriptures and commentaries and the well-furnished library of Mongol works, both manuscript and printed, containing editions produced in all the principal presses of Lamaist Asia, the library has good collections of Tibetan exegetic literature. The library has most of the works edited by the great printing establishments of Labrang, Kumbum, and Derge. Books printed at Lhasa and Shigatse are also well represented and this part of the collection is continuously growing. The library possesses valuable editions of Chinese literary works translated into Mongolian and richly illustrated. The Chinese collection of the library is less extensive and will have to be increased.

At the time of our stay in Urga, the learned keeper of the Tibetan department of the library, Lama Shakju, was busily engaged in preparing an exhaustive dictionary of the Mongol language. He possesses a rare knowledge of his mother tongue and is well versed in Tibetan and in Buddhism, and his work should prove of the greatest value and assistance to all scholars interested in things Mongolian.

Urga presents quite unique opportunities for a student of Tibetan literature, for many of its monasteries and even private individuals possess good collections of Tibetan works, printed mostly in Derge or Kham, and composed with great care and true understanding. More accessible than Tibet, the capital of Mongolia and its learned men are always ready to assist European savants in their quest. It was always a great pleasure and an intellectual treat to me to discuss scientific problems with Dr. Jamtsarano, for with his deep knowledge he possesses a singular gift of unfolding the ancient sacred lore of Mongolia and Tibet.

The Scientific Committee has quite recently carried out extensive explorations in outer Mongolia and has surveyed a number of ancient sites. It has also continued the excavations of the tumuli or funeral mounds in the Noin ula Mountains, where valuable finds were made, that threw fresh light on the culture revealed and facilitated the dating of the discoveries of General P. K. Kozlov. The Noin ula finds are closely related to the antiquities of the Transbaikal Province, brought to light by the Russian archaeologist Dr. Talko-Grincevich. The newly found antiquities form the easternmost end of a vast belt of nomad culture which passed through Minusinsk, Altai (Kotanda), Issik köl, and the Aralo-Caspian steppes. The groups of tumuli, containing the royal tombs of a nomad people, are situated in the forest-clad valleys of Gujirte, Sudzukte, and Tsurumte in the Noin ula Mountains, north of Urga. Most of the tumuli have been damaged by treasure seekers and many of the things have been stolen. As to whom the tombs belonged, whether to Hiung-nu chiefs or to some other paleo-Asiatic tribes, it is difficult to express an opinion at present.

An outstanding feature of the Kozlov discoveries is the presence of several fine pieces of textile fabric in Scytho-Siberian style, the first textiles of their kind discovered. The art is of a very composite nature, in which Greek, Iranian, native Scytho-Siberian, and Chinese elements are clearly discernible. Nomad central Asia, with its constant great tribal movements, had an extensive intercourse with different cultural provinces. The Kozlov textiles bear striking resemblance to the silks excavated by Sir Aurel Stein at Lou-lan in the Tarim Basin, these last being fairly well dated as belonging to the first century B.C. Some of the newly discovered textile fragments exhibit certain analogies to the art of Mediterranean countries. On one of them, we find according to Mr. Borovka, is the representation of the Mesopotamian sacred tree, inserted between the principal representations of fighting animals. Others exhibit a style recalling the Chinese art of the Ch'ou or Han periods. On several fragments the motive is purely Scytho-Siberian, but the execution shows strongly Chinese influences.

It seems very probable that Chinese artists furnished to the nomads objects in their national style, as was done by Greek artists for the Scythian population of South Russia and as is still practiced by Chinese firms trading in Tibet and Mongolia. Notwithstanding the composite nature of the nomad art, we can affirm that there existed a common source from which different artistic provinces of central Asia borrowed their inspiration. Modern researches tend to show that this center of nomad culture lay somewhere in central Asia. In a subsequent chapter, I shall discuss the existence of an animal style in Tibet and particularly among the nomad tribes of the northeast and north of Tibet.

The chief interest in Urga lies in its monasteries and other religious edifices. They dominate the city and their glittering gilded roofs add much to its outward appearance. The Ikhe-küren is its oldest religious establishment. We have already seen that this was the center round which grew the present city of Urga, and for many decades the official residence of the Je-tsün tam-pa Hutukhtu. It is at present divided into twenty-nine aimaks or monastic colleges. Besides these colleges there are at least seven temples consecrated to certain branches of the study of worship. One of the most important is the tshok-chin (Tib. tshogs-chen ) or the assembly hall of the monastic congregation. According to ecclesiastical tradition, the building of the assembly hall was started by Ündür-Gegen, the first and most famous Gegen of Urga. It is a square wooden building, many times enlarged during its history to suit the growing congregation of monks. The roof of the structure is crowned by a gilded gañjira in the form of a bum-pa or vase. On the four corners of the roof stand the black and white religious banners or jyal-tsen (Tib. rgyal-mtshan ). These banners have a long history. They are usually found on temple roofs in Mongolia and Tibet and date back to a remote nomadic past.

Inside the cathedral, at its northern wall, stands the state throne of the Hutukhtu, and on both sides of the throne are large glass cases with the holy images—among which are prominent the image of Sakyamuni, the last human Buddha, Tsong-kha-pa, the great reformer of the fourteenth century with his two principal disciples, Khe-dup-je (Tib. mKhas-grub-rje) and Jye-tshap-je (Tib. rGyal-tshab-rje), and the image of Ündür-Gegen. Most of these images are made of gilded clay and are covered by costly silk garments. Above the glass cases hang numerous religious banners or thang-kas . Most of the paintings are the work of Mongol artists or dzurachin and are far inferior in quality and design to the paintings belonging to the eastern Tibetan school.

The roof of the cathedral is supported by 108 columns, an auspicious number, being the number of volumes in the Kānjür . Between the columns are laid out low mattresses or shap-den (Tib. shabs-ldan ) for the use of lamas during the services.

The temple has a very large treasury or sang , in which are preserved many religious objects dating back to the time of Ündür-Gegen. Outside the temple stands a high wooden platform, from which lamas are summoned by trumpets, called bura-yin shata , or the "platform of the trumpet."

There are only four great assemblies of the clergy, for which use the assembly hall was primarily built: 1, The Assembly of the Clergy on the New Year; 2, The festival of Chönkor duchin; 3, The great Maidari festival in the third and fourth months; 4, The Presentation of Offerings to the Bogdo Gegen ( dansik ). With the abolishment of future incarnations of the Hutukhtu, this assembly has been discontinued.

All these great assemblies of the clergy are impressive functions, during which imposing scenes are witnessed. First one sees purple and yellow-clad lamas in high hats and flowing monastic robes, ascending the bura-yin shata or the "platform of the trumpet" and summoning the monks with the deep drawling sounds of their long trumpets or dung-chen . The narrow lanes and streets of the monastic city suddenly fill with purple-clad lamas; imposing gray-haired geshe and gabju (Tib. bka-bcu ) or fully-pledged priests who observe the ten commandments, move in procession to the assembly hall. Young getsul or novices and probationers throng the entrance to the hall. The presiding lamas take up their seats to the left and right, in front of the throne of the Bogdo Gegen, which is usually covered with the red mantle and the ceremonial hat of the Pontiff. The Tshok-chin Gebkö or the Provost Marshal of the assembly hall takes his seat at the entrance of the hall. The rest of the clergy sit down on the low mattresses spread in rows parallel to the northern wall. At the ends of the rows close to the entrance of the hall, sit the lama musicians with long trumpets, hautboys, and tambours. The service starts, and the low voices intone a chant, occasionally interrupted by the deep sounds of the trumpets and the sharp ringing tones of the hautboys. Tambours rhythmically sounded, join in the service, and sometimes the harrowing sounds of cymbals rise in the semidarkness of the hall. The deep low voices of the elder monks are accompanied by the shrill high voices of the boy novices, who rhythmically shake their heads and bodies while chanting their prayers. It is quite unlike the chants in Tibetan monasteries, but is similar to that of the Tsaidam Mongols. This temple music, a remnant of an ancient past, going back to shamanistic antiquity, is not without a peculiar charm of its own, and never fails to make a deep impression on a visitor.

The next important temple in the küren is the Da-ching galba-yinsümä, founded in 1739 during the reign of the Emperor Ch'ien long. The temple was destroyed by fire in 1892, but was subsequently rebuilt. Formerly its compound was used by the Bogdo Gegen, whose yurtas were pitched in it. Tibetan lamas, belonging to the immediate following of the Gegen, officiated in the temple. The last Bogdo Gegen spent most of his time in his summer palace on the banks of the Tola River. With his death, the temple lost its importance. The temple itself is built in Chinese style and its gilded roof forms one of the attractions in the küren , but its interior is unimportant.

To the south of the temple compound lies a large open square on which the late Bogdo Gegen used to receive the mandal or "offering" and give blessing to the faithful. At present the middle of the large square is occupied by several triumphal arches in Chinese style, erected in 1883 in honor of the Eighth Incarnation of Je-tsün tam-pa Hutukhtu. A Chinese inscription and a Mongol translation of it tell of the event.

The Barun Örgö or the temple consecrated to Abatai Khan, the reputed introducer of Lamaistic Buddhism into Mongolia, was once a place of importance, but since the transportation of many images to the summer palace of the Bogdo Gegen its importance has rapidly diminished.

The Jude-yin-sümä, the temple consecrated to Tantric worship (Tib. rgyud ), is another important institution in the küren . Here are performed the mystic services according to the four principal systems of Tantras.

The Emchi-yin-sümä or the Temple of Doctors is reserved for lamas studying medicine, and regular courses in medical science are delivered there. Many of the professors are graduates of the famous school of medicine in the Chak-po ri in Lhasa. An affiliated religious institution is the great Manla-yin-sümä, or the temple in honor of the Healing Buddha (Tib. sMan-bla ). This form of Buddha is extremely popular among the Buddhists in Mongolia and Tibet. Images of the Buddha, both bronzes and painted scrolls, are very numerous in monasteries and private chapels.

The Tsürkha-yin-sümä, or the Temple of Astrology, is an important learned institution in the Mongol capital. It was built in 1798 A.D. during the lifetime of the Fourth Incarnation of Je-tsün tam-pa Hutukhtu. It is held in great sanctity and visitors are not generally allowed to enter it, a special permission being required in order to see the building and the images inside it.

A special staff of lamas officiates in the temple and a special preparation is required of those who intend to enter the temple. Each aspirant has to pass several examinations in Lamaist astronomy and allied subjects in order to qualify as a student or member of the Temple of Astrology. In the temple are found paintings or painted scrolls representing the mandala or the mystic sphere of influence of the Kalacakra system or the Wheel of Time. A thorough knowledge of kar-tsi or astronomy is essential for a correct understanding of the doctrine. This mystic doctrine was introduced into Tibet by the great Dipankara Shri-jñana or Atisha, a famous professor from the Indian convent of Vikramashila, in the eleventh century A.D. The doctrine which probably appeared in India about the end of the tenth century A.D. originated in the Realm of Shambhala, a region situated north of Tibet proper.

The center of the Kalacakra doctrine was the Tashi-lhun-po Monastery. One of the monastic colleges of Tashi-lhun-po was consecrated to the study of Kalacakra and is known under the name of Dün-khor-gyi da-tshang (Tib. Dus-'khor-gyi gra-tshang) or College of Kalacakra. This college was for a long time the chief seat of learning, where specially approved pupils could consecrate their time to the study of the abstruse treatises on the doctrine. Books on the Kalacakra doctrine are given only to trustworthy pupils, and an outsider can obtain books on it only after having obtained a special permission to do so from the Dalai Lama or the clerical authorities of Tibet. Such books are seldom printed and the block prints are preserved at big monastic presses. When a person has received the necessary permission, the book is printed on paper furnished by the applicant, no fee being taken for printing.

The Grand Lama of Tashi-lhun-po was in his Second Incarnation Rig-den jam-pe dak-pa (Tib. Rigs-ldan 'jam-dpal grags-pa) one of the rulers of Shambhala, who are said to govern the realm for one hundred years. In his future incarnation, His Holiness the Tashi Lama will be reborn as Rigden Jye-po, the future ruler of Shambhala, whose destiny it is to conquer the followers of evil, and establish the reign of Maitreya, the future Buddha. The doctrine of Shambhala is the hidden doctrine of Tibet and Mongolia, and His Holiness the Tashi Lama is regarded as the chief expounder of the doctrine in this world.

Since the departure of the present Tashi Lama in 1923, the doctrine received a powerful new impulse, and numerous Kalacakra colleges were established by His Holiness himself in inner Mongolia and Buddhist China. Even in distant Buriatia is to be observed the same movement. Most of the monasteries establish special Kalacakra colleges with a special staff of lamas to officiate in them. Shambhala is not only considered to be the abode of hidden Buddhist learning, it is the guiding of a lotus flower which supports the book and sword—symbols of Mañjushri, the Prince of Knowledge. In some ancient paintings, the King is seen attired in a breastplate armor, and wears the pointed helmet. In more modern images, he is seen attired in flowing robes ornamented with rich golden design. At the foot of his throne sit his parents designated under the name of Rig-den Jye-po 'i yab-yum, or, sometimes, instead of them Rig-den pema karpo, the first expounder of Kalacakra doctrine in India, and the Bodhisattva Padmapani.

In the lower corner we sometimes see represented Atisha Shrijñana, the introducer of Kalacakra into Tibet.

On some paintings beneath the throne of the King of Shambhala is depicted the coming war of Shambhala against the Lalo'i jye-po, the King of the Evil Ones. In it we see the King of Shambhala mounted on a raven black charger defeating the King of the La-los. The details are interesting for they show us all the accouterment of ancient Tibetan warriors—breastplate armor, helmets with small flags, heavy swords, matchlocks, bow and arrows, and even bamboo guns placed on strange carriages.

Other images represent the mandala of Shambhala. The King of Shambhala is represented seated in front of one of his palace towers. The palace, a large structure in Sino-Tibetan style, is surrounded by a circle of high snowy mountains, for it is said in the Shambhala lam-yig or "Itinerary of Shambhala" that the Realm of Shambhala is situated in a mountain region sheltered on every side by high snowy ranges.

In the upper corner of such paintings we see the representation of Pal-den ye-she, the third Tashi Lama, holding the monastic bowl and the one-headed form of the yi-dam of Kalacakra (Tib. dPal-dus-kyi 'khor-lo yab-yum ). Very often the yi-dam is represented with four heads and twelve or twenty-four arms. The color of his body is invariably blue; his shakti or yum is dark orange-yellow or sometimes red. The yi-dam of Kalacakra is frequently represented as a bodhisattva. When represented as such he wears the bodhisattva attire and holds in his folded hands the Wheel of Law or Dharmacakra . In this form the color of his body is yellow ochre. The yi-dam of Kalacakra has been frequently misrepresented in western literature on the subject as a god Kalacakra. In reality the yi-dam of Kalacakra symbolizes the mystic force of the system and is never considered to be a divine being.

In the Temple of Astrology in Urga, the lama students are first trained in astronomy and astrology and then initiated into the secrets of Kalacakra. There exists a prescribed order of subjects in which the study of Kalacakra has to be taken up; but as it necessitates a lengthy description of allied Tantric systems, it must be omitted here.

The best temple in the küren is dedicated to Maitreya. The huge statue of the coming Buddha was executed by Chinese craftsmen in Dolon-nor. The first temple to accommodate the statue was built in the lifetime of the Fifth Incarnation of the Bogdo Gegen, but it soon fell down and representatives were sent to the Tashi Lama in Tibet to inquire the reason of such a calamity. The Tashi Lama gave the explanation that the image of the future Buddha preferred a temple of Tibetan architecture, and it is said that he himself contributed a general plan for the new temple.

The present temple was built in the lifetime of the Seventh Incarnation of Je-tsün tam-pa Hutukhtu. It is a square wooden building with a dome in the middle of the roof, crowned with a gañjira , and the traditional banners or jyal-tsen on the corners. The colossal image of Maitreya, some fifty feet high, stands in the middle of the temple. Behind the figure at the northern wall stand five huge figures of attending bodhisattvas. The other walls are covered with glass cases containing brass images of the thousand Tathagatas .

In front of the image of Maitreya stands an altar table with the usual offering lamps, the eight happy symbols, and large incense pots. In the middle of the altar is placed a framed representation of the Samsara-cakra or the Wheel of Life. Massive wooden columns painted in bright colors support a gallery on which are placed shelves or kün-ra , containing two complete sets of the Kānjür and Tānjür . Outside the temple stand numerous prayer wheels, and pilgrims usually walk around the temple and put the wheels into motion.

The rest of the küren represents a collection of inclosed compounds surrounded by wooden palisades, in which stand the small wooden hovels or felt tents of the monks. It is a city by itself, standing apart from the rush and dust of modern Ulan Bator. On the southern side of the küren is situated a large open square on which stands an open wooden platform, where religious dances are performed by the monks. I witnessed here the Black-Hat dance performed during the New Year festivities. The square was thronged by an eager and ever increasing crowd of spectators. Lamas and laymen in bright yellow, blue, and purple silk coats, Chinese traders in somber black attire, Europeans, Mongol soldiers in khaki overcoats and fur-lined helmets, all stood and watched some twenty lamas performing the dance. They all were dressed in black coats with green embroidered silk sleeves, over which they wore rü-jyen (Tib. rus-rgyan ) or bone ornaments, and the peculiar black hats which gave the name to the dance.

The story of the origin of the dance is well known. King Lang-darma of Tibet, who ruled the country in the ninth century A.D., was a faithful follower and supporter of the ancient Bön faith. He did everything possible to suppress the doctrine of Buddha, closed monasteries and massacred monks. A famous Buddhist ascetic, Pal-dorje, decided to free the country from the oppressing monarch and kill him. He accordingly rode to Lhasa on a shaggy white pony, which he painted black with coal, himself dressed as a Bön magician. He carried a bow and arrow in his large sleeves. He went so attired into the presence of the king and started to perform a magic dance. The king was intensely interested and drew nearer to the dancing lama, who took advantage of this and shot a poisoned arrow into him. The king fell mortally wounded and soon expired. The lama avenger fled toward his horse and disappeared from the city. While crossing a river, the coal with which his pony was painted was washed away and he continued his journey on a white horse. Warriors were mustered to pursue the murderer, who was said to have come into the city riding a black pony.

They rushed in pursuit and overtook Pal-dorje on the way, but instead of a Bön magician riding a black horse, they only found a poor Buddhist lama riding a shaggy white horse. They naturally did not suspect him to be the murderer and hastened farther on, searching the countryside for the vanished murderer. So was Buddhism avenged and the event is commemorated by the Black-Hat dance annually performed throughout Tibet and Mongolia during the New Year celebration.

On the northwest of Urga stands the great monastery of Ganden, the seat of higher Buddhist learning. When entering Urga by the Kiakhta route, one sees this huge square block of small wooden hovels and palisades, over which towers the great temple or lha-khang of Aryabalo or Avalokitesvara. Outside the monastery on its northern and eastern extremities stand twenty-eight white stupas which protect the approaches to the monastery. Narrow lanes on either side of which rise gray wooden palisades, sheltering the monk's quarters, lead to the center of the monastery where is situated the great temple of the Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara. It is a huge building in the Sino-Mongolian style, with high terraces that rise above the main building. The Chinese roof of the temple with its projecting corners is crowned by a gilded gañjira in the form of a vase or bum-pa . The temple was begun in the lifetime of the eighth Bogdo Gegen and was completed about the end of 1913 after the Mongol Revolution.

A richly carved entrance of painted wooden columns leads to the temple. Two rows of windows in Tibetan style, the window frames being narrower at the top and somewhat broader at the base, afford sufficient light in the vast sanctuary, in the center of which stands the huge brass image of the Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, the Merciful Lord. Along the walls range glass cases with thousands of brass Buddhas, made in Warsaw. In the right corner of the temple are two thrones covered by the red ceremonial mantles, on which are set framed photographs of the late Bogdo Gegen and his consort the Dara-Eke.

Outside the temple of Avalokitesvara are situated the sepulchers of the Bogdo Gegens of Urga. The fifth, the seventh, and the last Bogdo Gegen are entombed here. The Sixth Incarnation has been buried in the monastery of Dam-ba Dorje (Tibetan: Dam-pa Do-rje). To the east of the temple of Avalokitesvara is situated the assembly hall or tshok-chin —a square wooden building, somewhat like a huge square tent. Services are held daily and when one passes near the hall one usually hears the chants of the monks rising in the frosty air.

The present monastery of Ganden was founded in 1809 in the lifetime of the Fourth Incarnation of Je-tsün tam-pa Taranatha. Its chief importance lies in the fact, that in it are situated the colleges for the study of tshan-nyid or abhidharma , Buddhist metaphysics, and that here live the most learned monks of Urga.

During my stay in Urga, I often went to visit the monastery and discuss with lamas the intricate problems of the Buddhist viewpoint on the outside world,—a kind of projection of one's inner self. Such learned lamas, holders of the high scholarly degrees in divinity of rap-cham-pa (Tibetan: rab-'byams-pa ) and lha-ram-pa , usually live with their disciples, who attend to their bodily needs, in Mongol felt tents pitched inside the courtyards of the monastery. The felt tent of a lama is usually much cleaner and sometimes even better furnished than that of a layman of equal means. One day we paid a visit to a learned lha-ram-pa or doctor of divinity, well known in Urga for his great knowledge and general acumen. We were anxious to see him, for we had heard that he had a deep and sincere interest in western science and a very sane point of view on the future of the Buddhist doctrine.

On arriving in Ganden, we were ushered into a narrow lane, leading to a small red-painted door with the Mongol number on it. Behind the door lay a small courtyard in which two Mongol tents were pitched: The white tent of the lha-ram-pa and an ordinary Mongol tent of gray felt for his attendants and disciples. A young lama lifted up the heavy carpet that serves as door in most of the yurtas , when the wooden door is left open. The lha-ram-pa , a man of sixty, was sitting on a low mattress in front of a low table covered with books and papers. He rose from his seat, greeted us, and offered us a seat on a low couch which served him as a bed.

The furnishing of his tent was simple but clean and cozy. A large iron stove in the center gave plenty of warmth. An altar with a glass case containing several small images and photos of great lamas, stood at the northern wall of the tent. Near to the altar stood a table and a large wooden case containing the lama's library. He himself was engaged in translating into Tibetan a Russian textbook on algebra for the use of the monastery lamas. He told us that Buddhism should be renovated in the light of modern science. It was necessary to improve the general education of the lamas. According to him, in times past one met learned lamas, who knew Sanskrit and had a thorough knowledge of the tshan-nyid literature of Buddhism. Now such men are rare, and most of the lamas content themselves with learning by heart a few proscribed prayer books. The lha-ram-pa was well aware of the fact that unless the church would improve the education of the lamas, the influence of religion would rapidly wane. A question that greatly agitated the clerical masses was that of the khuvaraks or novices. According to the old rule, boys of seven were given away by their parents to a monastery to become lamas. A family that had several sons would always give one of them away. Educated from early boyhood in the precepts and traditions of the Lamaist order, the boys grew into staunch supporters of the church. The new progressive government of Mongolia recently promulgated a law that only boys of eighteen could enter the monastery and that they should do so entirely of their own accord. This was a heavy blow to the church, which suddenly lost its right of recruiting novices among the population. Our informer was, however, of the opinion that the importance lay in quality and not in quantity: let there be fewer lamas, but real ones, learned in the precepts of their religion.

The lamas, being the only intellectual class, had to evolve with the time, participate in the life of the nation, and help in the upbuilding of their country. The views of the learned lha-ram-pa , I must add, are shared by a number of monks throughout Mongolia and even Tibet.

Another picturesque building of Urga is the Chö-jin Lama-yin-sümä, situated in the town of Urga. It was built in 1910 to serve as residence to the brother of the Bogdo Gegen, who was one of the foremost state oracles of Mongolia.

Such are the principal monasteries and temples of Ulan Bator or Urga. Besides them there exist in the city several resthouses or branch monasteries, belonging to big provincial monastic establishments, and small chapels mostly situated in felt tents. Two or three lamas usually officiate in such chapels and look after the property. The Tibetan colony has also a kind of assembly hall of its own for Tibetan monks. This establishment is also in felt tents; and on the eighth, fifteenth, and thirtieth of each month services are held, in which all the clerical members of the colony take part. Several great Tibetan lamas live constantly in Urga. Some of them belonged to the staff of the late Bogdo Gegen and others fled from Tibet as a result of the recent persecutions of the followers of the Tashi Lama.

The most famous monastery in the immediate neighborhood of the Mongol capital is the Mañjushri Khit or the monastic retreat of Mañjushri. It is situated on the southern slopes of the sacred Bogdo ula and overlooks the Gobi expanse, that stretches to the south of the massive mountain. This monastery is built entirely in Tibetan style and is reputed for the strict discipline of its monks. The Mañjushri Khit-in shiretu or Abbot of the Mañjushri Khit is reputed for his learning and wields a considerable amount of influence both in secular and clerical circles of Urga.

One of the most important events in the religious life of the capital is the Maidari procession, which takes place in the third or fourth month of the Mongol year. It is a very imposing parade, which encircles the city; and huge crowds watch the passing of the image of the coming Buddha. Its approach is heralded by the concentrated look of the crowd and the dim and ever rising sound of trumpets and cymbals and many voices chanting prayers. The air is dusty, and in the yellowish cloud move huge palanquins and state umbrellas carried over the holy images, some of which are borne by monks, others by richly caparisoned horses. The long trumpets send out their deep sonorous notes and are accompanied by the clear ringing tones of the hautboys and clarinets. Now and then is heard the clashing sound of cymbals, deadened by the drums. A thousand feet trample on the dusty road. Majestic abbots in high lama hats and purple mantles, young getsul or novices in shabby garments, officials and commoners, all in one huge crowd follow the image of the One who incarnates all the hopes of Buddhist Mongolia. Some of the onlookers prostrate themselves in the dust before the passing images, others murmur prayers and jostle each other to get nearer to the images. This procession is the passing of old Mongolia, the country of Incarnate Lamas and gorgeously fantastic garments—the colorful costumes of the crowd and the deep purple clerical robes are sharply contrasted with the somber khaki uniforms of the Mongol cavalrymen who line the path of the procession—symbols of old and new Mongolia.