The Bhotias, Newars, Limbus, Keratis and Lepchas are all Buddhists, but their religion has become so mixed up with Hinduism that it is now hardly recog nizable. The Newars have entirely abandoned the monastic insti tutions of Buddhism, and have in great measure adopted the rules of caste, though these sit but lightly upon them. They burn their dead, eat the flesh of buffaloes, goats, sheep, ducks and f owls, and drink beer and spirits. The Gorkhalis, Magars and Gurungs are Hindus, but the last two are by no means strict in the observance of their religion. Where temples are so num erous (there are 2,733 shrines in the valley) priests both Hindu and Buddhist abound. The festivals too are many, and holidays incessant. The Raj Guru, or high priest, is an influential person in the State, a member of council, and has a large income from Government lands as well as from fines for offences against caste.
The various races have separate languages, or at least dialects. The Gorkhalis and western tribes use Parbatia (see PAHARI), which, unlike the other dialects, is of Sanskrit origin. The Newars have a distinct language and alphabets, of which three are known to their pandits, though only one is now in use. Their language, called Gubhajius, resembles Tibetan, but is interspersed with many Sanskrit words. The Bhotias use the Tibetan language and alphabet.
There is a college at Kathmandu affiliated to the Patna university, and many schools in the valley of Nepal. This central institution has three departments, Eng lish, Sanskrit and Persian—or more correctly perhaps Urdu.
Kathmandu is a storehouse of ancient Sanskrit literature, and some of the oldest mss. in that language known to scholars have been found there. There is also a fair English library.
All families of good position have at least one baid, or medical man, in constant attendance, and there are also many general practitioners. There are two large central hospitals, civil and military, at Kathmandu and other smaller hospitals distributed over the country, with free beds, and provision for outdoor treat ment. There is also a small hospital for the British Legation.
There are three large towns in the Nepal valley, Kathmandu, the capital, said to contain approximately 90,000 inhabitants, and Patan and Bhatgaon about 30,00o each. The houses are from two to four storeys in height, built of brick and tiled. The windows and balconies are of wood, and many are elaborately carved. There are numerous handsome temples in all the towns, the majority of which are pagoda-shaped and built of brick, with roofs of tiles or copper, which is sometimes gilt. The streets are narrow, many of them paved with brick or stone.
Military service is the main occupation of the Gorkhalis: the agriculture of the valley is carried on chiefly by the Newars. The soil varies from light micaceous sand to dense
ferruginous clay. The whole valley is cultivated and irrigated where practicable, and the slopes of the hills are terraced, so that there is little grazing ground, and few sheep or cattle are kept. There are some milch cows and buffaloes, which are stall-fed or grazed in the jungles at the foot of the hills. Animals for food and sacrifice are all imported, and are consumed as fast as they are brought in. In the cold season the Bhotias bring large flocks of sheep and goats laden with bags of borax, salt and saltpetre. These are sold for food except for a few that are retained to carry back the bags. Poultry are kept and used by the Newars, especially ducks, the eggs of which are in great demand even among the orthodox Hindus. The crops grown in the valley consist of rice, wheat, pulse, murwah, maize, buck wheat, chillies, radishes, mustard, garlic, onions, ginger, turmeric, sugar-cane, potatoes, ground nuts, cucumbers and pumpkins, etc. Only foodstuffs may be grown in the valley; hence its suitability for producing tea, cotton and tobacco is unknown. These, how ever, are grown in other parts of the country, both in the hills and the tarai. Large cardamoms are extensively grown in the eastern hills, and form an important article of export. The hemp plant (Cannabis indica) grows wild.
Many European fruits, flowers and vegetables have been intro duced and grow freely. The country is famous for its oranges and pineapples. Garden and wild flowers are sold for use as religious offerings, and for wear in the hair. Apples and pears, of English stock; apricots, peaches and plums do well; grapes grow freely, but seldom ripen before the rains begin, when they rot.
All the trade and manufactures of the country are in the hands of the Newars, and a few Kash miris and natives of India. The trade in European goods is chiefly carried on by the latter, whilst the Newars deal in corn, oil, salt, tobacco and articles of domestic manufacture. The trade with India is carried on at numerous marts along the fron tier, at each of which a customs station is established, and the taxes are collected by a thikadar or farmer. The Newars also carry on the trade with Tibet, through a colony which has been for many years established at Lhasa, but this trade has dimin ished since the opening of the Lhasa-Darjeeling route. There are two principal routes to Tibet. One runs north-east from Kath mandu to the frontier station of Kuti or Nilam, crossing the Himalayan range at a height of 14,00o ft.; the other passes out of the valley at the north-west corner, and runs at first upwards along the main branch of the Gandak, crossing the Himalayas, near Kerung, at 9,00o ft. All goods on these routes are carried on men's backs, except the salt, etc., carried in bags by the Bhotia sheep and goats.