SIKHIM AND BHUTAN
Thimbu or Tashi-cho-jong Jongpen, while Sir Ugyen Wang-chuk, then about twenty-four years of age, had succeeded his father, Jigme Namgyal, better known as Deb Nagpo, or the Black Deb, as Tongsa Penlop, and Dow Penjo, first cousin to Deb Nagpo, was and still is Penlop of Paro. Two factions formed. On the one side were Deb Gau-Zangpo, Aloo Dorji, the Thimbu Jongpen, and the Poonakha Jongpen, brother-in-law to Aloo Dorji, and who naturally supported him. On the other side were ranged the Tongsa and the Paro Penlops, assisted by some of the smaller Jongpens. The cause of the final rupture was the action of Aloo’s party, who, taking advantage of Ugyen Wang-chuk’s youth and supposed weakness, withheld from him for three years his rightful share of the British subsidy; in return Ugyen refused to pay his quota towards the maintenance of the Ta-tshang, or Government monks, who belong to the five monasteries of Poonakha, Tashi-cho-jong, Paro, Angdu-phodang, and Tongsa, in number about 3000 souls. This, however, was a losing transaction, as the Tongsa's share of the subsidy was a much larger sum; so, failing to receive an account or satisfaction of any kind, Ugyen collected his followers, to the number of about 4000, and, crossing the hills, came down near Chalimaphe. He himself went boldly to Tashi-cho-jong, where the Deb and the Thimbu were residing, and bearded them in their den, demanding satisfaction and accusing them of base ingratitude to their benefactor Deb Nagpo; and, when his demands were laughed at, retorted that if they wished to fight he was quite ready. Returning to his men, he attempted to surprise Tashi-cho-jong by crossing the mountains to the south-east; but his enemies discovered his move, set the grass on the lower slopes of the hills on fire, and the Tongsa had the greatest difficulty in saving his men from being suffocated by the smoke; and how choking and pungent the fumes from such fires can be I have had painful experience myself. He next attempted to storm the fort at Simtoka, which was strongly held by the Thimbu’s
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