The Rose of Tibet (34 page)

The third, one of a batch of memos from T.L., who was in New York, was less good. I had not been keeping him in touch with our quest for
trustworthy indpt confmn of the facts
, and my heart sank as I read it.  

The fourth was not good at all.

I said with mild panic, ‘Miss Marks, get on to Worplesdon and say I’d like to come down this afternoon,’ and watched while she did so. I was thus able to see her face change and to appreciate why.

I said, ‘When was it?’

‘Half past eight this morning. He never woke up.’  

Father Harris took the service, and afterwards over a cup of tea I explained the position to him. He took it very calmly.

‘My boy, you worry too much. I’ve noticed it before. Why not leave everything in God’s hands?’

‘I wish I could, Father. The snag is it’s in ours at the moment. I’m in the unenviable position of being publisher, agent and trustee of a piece of literary property about which I entertain the gravest doubts.’

‘Have your doubts increased since you began to look into the evidence?’

‘They’ve certainly become more insistent.’

‘Because you’re worrying more about the unresolved ones – this is all it is. As I understand it, there is ample evidence that this man went to Tibet, and that he came back from Tibet. All you’re unable to check is what he did in between.’

‘That’s all.’

‘Well. That doesn’t seem to me,’ said Father Harris with a sharp look, ‘a good enough reason to doubt him. Every point you’ve been able to check shows that his account is a reliable one. If somebody had told you six months ago that
an obscure schoolteacher had gone into Tibet and come out again with injuries that necessitated the loss of an arm, and with his material circumstances apparently greatly changed, wouldn’t that have aroused your interest? It
did
arouse your interest.’

‘Unfortunately.’

‘Never mind about that,’ said Father Harris. ‘The trouble with you is you’re getting blasé. You’re dazzled by wonders. You want more and more of them. First things first. You were interested enough to want to publish the book. Why prevent this American publisher from doing the same?’

‘Because we know a bit more about it now.’

‘I’m sure you’re doing this to annoy me,’ Father Harris said. ‘Well, I’m not going to be drawn. There is no point of scruple or conscience here. Quite the reverse. … How many dollars did you say?’

I told him how many dollars.

‘Heavens above!’ said Father Harris mildly. ‘What use couldn’t I put that to? Never mind. The scholars will benefit. As your co-trustee, I say take the money. It’s rather more than you put up, but then they’re getting rather more for it by this time, aren’t they?’

‘What about my doubts?’

‘Very obtuse ones,’ said Father Harris firmly, ‘which you are holding in the face of rather more numerous proofs than I am accustomed to considering. God and the logic of events will I am sure shortly set them at rest.’  

Whether due to God, the logic of events, or Father Harris himself, my doubts began from that moment to disperse. A certain slap-happy hilarity set in. As publisher I had bought, as co-trustee sold, and as agent now began to collect commissions on, Mr Oliphant’s notebooks; the two latter activities rapidly becoming extensive. Coincidently, and as though a portent of Father Harris’s promised heavenly approval, confirmatory matter began to flow in.

From Portland Place, London, came a letter from the Chinese
Chargé d’Affaires
. He said briefly that he understood we had information relating to certain well-known valuables stolen from the Tibetan Autonomous Region during a period
of ‘separatist activities’. On the instructions of his ‘Authorities in Peking’ he had to point out that since our two governments were in friendly relations with each other, our correct course was to place this information at his disposal, and that any other course would be not only incorrect and unfriendly but would lay us open to the charge of compounding a felony.

‘Hello. How did they get on to that?’

‘Very rum,’ Underwood said.

‘I expect we’ll find out in good time.’

We found out from Dr Shankar Lal Roy.    

I write
(he wrote)
to advise you that you may hear from the
Chinese Diplomatic Service – there is no need for alarm on this score.
I am having to pursue inquiries with some of our people in Tibet.
Some are ‘doubles’ working with the Chinese Intelligence Service,
and to get information it is frequently necessary to give some – of a
harmless and checkable kind. If you do hear it will be useful to confirm,
without disclosing anything, that you have in fact some informa
tion relating to the Yamdring treasure
.
… I will write more fully
later
.    

Dr Roy was as good as his word. An inundation of ten and twelve-page single-spaced letters began to arrive, which Underwood summarized as under:    

Duke of Ganzing: left Tibet on
ticket-
of-
leave at invitation of
India Maha Bodhi Society which organized official world celebrations
for
2,500
th anniversary of the Buddha’s enlightenment in
1956
.
Dalai Lama, heads of several monasteries, and hundreds of other lay
figures also attended. No Yamdring dignitaries appeared, although
invited. All religious figures returned, but
70
temporal ones did not.
In
1957
these people offered amnesty by Chinese and also promised
good jobs in government; almost all, including duke, then returned
.

Very shortly after, situation worsened in Tibet. General Chang
Kuo-hua, commander of Chinese Liberation Army, signed order of
the day calling for ‘constant vigilance against the subversive activities
of imperialist elements and the rebellious activities of separatists’.
His efforts approved by Peking Radio, which commented, ‘The
People’s Liberation Army has the responsibility to suppress revolts
and will certainly join hands with all patriotic Tibetan citizens in
dealing firm and telling blows to rebellious elements.’

That blows not telling enough shown by subsequent wide scale
revolt. Tibetans set up revolutionary movement called
Mi-Mang Tsong-Du –
People’s Committee Against Chinese Communism.
Chinese eventually lost patience, decided to drop puppet government
and set up in its place Preparatory Committee for Proposed Tibetan
Autonomous Region. Also moved in three million Chinese males and
embarked upon policy of Pacification by Impregnation
.

Every sizeable village billeted and forcible mating begun with
all spinsters and women whose husbands taken away. Programme
called ‘Han-
isation’. Apparently well organized and conducted on
methodical lines, each ‘district’ or ‘region’ heavily garrisoned and
patrols and pickets out on hilltops to keep area clear of ‘bandit
attacks’ while operation completed. Army doctors followed up on
schedule to make pregnancy tests, and when majority successful, troops
moved on to next area. Tibetans fond of babies, anybody’s babies, and
in most areas plan seems to have worked very well
.

By
28
March
1959
Peking announced rebellion over and ‘Tibetan
Autonomous Region in full exercise of its powers’. Few days before
this,
17
March, Dalai Lama had fled to India. He reported to
International Commission of Jurists that Chinese were sterilizing
Tibetan males, had killed
65,000
of them and had destroyed
1,000
monasteries. Huge numbers of monks put on to road building work,
in the proportion of (in English round figures)
15,300
to each
140
-mile section. Several thousand miles of roads being built
.

Policy, he said, to degrade religion as unifying force for Tibetans
and humiliate religious leaders. Buddha himself described as ‘reac
tionary element’ in ‘their vulgar propaganda’. Monastery treasure
taken over by State or simply looted
.
…

Governor of Hodzo: Chinese report that he was tried
1951
,
sentenced to
15
years. No information on wives, but children photo
graphed in Chinese propaganda sheet ‘happily joining hands with
young comrades to build a steel smelter in the grounds of their Peking
Academy.’

Abbot of Yamdring: ‘died of over-
eating’ (Chinese report, April
1952
– evidently euphemism for poisoning); incarnation recognized
January
1958
(
Mi-Mang Tsong-Du report, March
1959
).

Abbess of Yamdring: no information. Dr Roy investigating
.

Deputy Abbot and other dignitaries: no news, but monastery
apparently still functioning
(
March
1959
).

Yamdring Treasure: MMTD report, March
1959
,
‘Chinese
operations still continuing to find residue of treasure, presumed to
have been cached on route — to —
.’  

There was also a scholarly outline of the history and traditions of Yamdring with a detailed description of the ceremonies; no item of which departed in any way from Houston’s own account. Since many of the details, particularly those concerning the Second Festival of the Monkey, had only recently, according to Dr Roy, come to light, this seemed to be a decided gain.

None of it, of course, was conclusive – but it certainly helped.

‘It helps?’ said Father Harris. ‘I would describe you, Davidson, as a bit of a caution. Prepare your presses. Start writing some of those splendid advertisements. What are you waiting for?’

‘For news of Sheila Wolferston, Da Costa and Houston. … Unless we can shed light on –’

‘News will come and light will be shed,’ said Father Harris confidently. ‘I have an instinct about it.’

That his instinct was justified was soon evident, but whether the news brought light or darkness was less easy to decide.

The first item came from Calcutta. Dr Roy wrote:  

Abbess of Yamdring: still, I am afraid, nothing certain to add.
Mi-Mang Tsong-Du agents in the Chinese Foreign Section IV (a) –
Movement Control, Transfer Section – report troop movements,
evidently to quell disturbances, in Hodzo province last September
(
1959
).
Since Hodzo Dzong is itself garrisoned and apparently
quiet (my letter
29
March) and the only other sizeable centre is
Yamdring, we may conclude that trouble has broken out there. In this
connexion it will be as well to cite an allegedly old prophecy that the
Abbess would vacate her eighteenth body (i.e. die) in the sixth month
of Earth-Pig (September
1959
).
Whether a disturbance broke out
because the inhabitants were trying to avert this fate, or whether
because it had actually occurred
.
…
  

The next news came from Tobago. I had been having a bit of trouble with Joshua Gundala,
O.B.E
., who despite his promise to keep me informed, had not even replied to my two further letters. I had therefore shown the correspondence
to Oliver Gooch, on whose advice I had written telling Mr Gundala that unless we heard from him by 30 April 1960, we would insert a displayed inquiry in the Trinidad
Guardian
putting forward all the information at our disposal including the anonymous letter whose contents had already been communicated to him.

Mr Gundala did not wait for 30 April. He wrote by return:  

I thank you for your letter of
10
April but am unable to understand
all the agitation. It is not as if Mr Houston was a man of normal
habits. I hear he has gone away before for many months without
warning. And with regard to lunkies, this is a piece of scandalous
nonsense. No reliable witness has ever seen a shark of any kind near
Rum Bay. If anywhere, they are at the other side of the island where
unscrupulous rivals are jealous of my success. Rum Bay is a beautiful
site, ideal for retired people – safer even than Montego Bay and far
less spoilt. These stories of lunkies are put about by ignorant fishermen
who do it only to get new nets from the government. Do you wonder
that the
Tobago Times
will not publish such silly gossip?

With regard to Mr Houston, the facts are as follows:

His houseboy states that last September he became very restless,
walking about all night, etc. He went once to Scarborough (and
perhaps while there bought himself a ticket either to Venezuela,
Trinidad or the other islands – it is very easily done). One day Mr
Houston gave a month’s wages to the house staff, cook, gardener, and
the boy himself, and the next morning was absent from breakfast.
The boy found his shoes on the beach as if he had gone for a bathe.
This was unusual because with only one arm he would never bathe
by himself but always with the boy. The boy informed the police
constable at Rum Bay D.C
.