Tea horse family of horse culture

In the ethnic minorities inhabited by Sichuan, Yunnan, Tibetan areas there is a saying that the word "tea" itself is a symbol of evil, ghosts and gods do not invade, and the word will be split up that is "twenty people riding", less than twenty robbers do not dare to come to rob, so thieves and bandits! Do not disturb, in the tea and horse road, specializing in long-distance transportation of bulk goods horse gangs, mules and horses more than hundreds of horses, some even up to thousands of heads. Between some small areas, there are countless small horse gangs to build up a spider web of transportation lines, the transportation of goods exchange almost covers every village. Tea Horse Family's ancestors traveled the Tea Horse Road Yunnan-Tibet line. Horse gangs consisted of "pot heads", horse drivers and a certain number of mules and horses. "Horse pot head" that is, the horse gang leader of the common name, he is both the operator, the horse driver's employer, but also most of the direct participants in the transportation activities. Walking in the tea and horses on the ancient road most of the horse gang belongs to the family type of horse gang organization, mules and horses all for their own all, and on the name of the family name, the head of the mule is inserted on the flag of their own home, people look at that is known to be a certain family of the horse gang. Catch a horse person is generally responsible for seven or eight mules and horses. In the old tea-horse road, people are accustomed to the horse driving people called "horse foot child" (Tibetan called "Laju").

Each horse foot must have all the horsemen should have the ability and ability: to understand the time and place, will look at the weather changes, will choose the road, but also will choose the camping place, but also through the language of the various ethnic groups; to know the mule and horse temperament; will be a variety of horse life skills, such as supporting the tent to do the cooking, chopping fire, on the pack under the pack, nail the palm of the palm of the fixing, to find the grass to feed, and even the medical medical animals. Horse gangs of different sizes, small horse gangs only 3-5 mules and horses, and occasionally there are oxen to carry goods, mostly for short and medium-distance transportation. Medium-sized horse gangs by dozens of mules and horses, large horse gangs have one or two hundred mules and horses, more than up to thousands of horses. Large and medium-sized horse gangs for commercial transport, but also for the government to transport goods, so from the form of organization, horse gangs also have official gangs and people gangs of points. The size of the horse gang according to the number of livestock to distinguish:

1. five livestock known as a hand, 5 for a small gang, set up a small pot head is responsible for. The ratio of horse drivers to the number of mules and horses is generally 4 mules and horses equipped with a horse driver, most of them are employed, and some are even the son of the father's business, so that the meager income to maintain their livelihood. A few horsemen do not get paid, but can bring some goods to sell as income on the way.

2, the group - 9 for a group, by the head of the group is responsible for, 9 horses in the selection of a group of horses, the top of the forehead to wear a red cloth with a yellow flame pattern on the bottom of the way to mark, behind the ear to hang 2 feet of red cloth embroidered ball, neck 6 copper bells, the saddle inserted in a red, white teeth bordered with a brocade flag.

3, gang - three groups of a gang, by the head of the gang is responsible for the selection of a gang horse, forehead wear yellow bottom red flame pattern felt velvet waymarks, hanging 4 feet behind the ear red cloth embroidered ball, neck tie 8 copper bells, saddle inserted in a red bottom yellow teeth bordered banner.

4, a gang of all the mules and horses to form a gang, choose three healthy walking to know the way to a good horse, composed of the head mule, two mules, three mules to lead the team. The head mule dress exceptionally gorgeous: forehead wear yellow and red flame pattern gold velvet way mark, mark the center of a mirror decorated with a round mirror, surrounded by 6 small mirrors, set of inlaid jeweled sterling silver cage head, the Department of 9 copper bells, the top of the head Department of the 6-foot red cloth embroidered ball, behind the ear Pei yak tail red tassel a pair of saddles inserted into the gang flag and the ancestor of the flag each side. The flag is a triangular brocade flag with yellow and red edges, and the family name of the master is embroidered in the center. Ancestral flag is a square banner with gold border on a red background, decorated with two brocade chicken feathers in the middle, symbolizing the future of brocade road access. The head mule is the "face" of the horse gang, extremely favored by the horsemen, the decoration is different, as the "horse drive" sung in the tune: "the head mule dressed in glass mirrors, a thousand beads wear full of bridle head, - a red tassel to cover the mouth of the food, the heart of the brain on the tie embroidered ball". The second mule and the third mule are wearing jewelry. Two mules, three mule jewelry is not as expensive as the first mule, but different from other pack horses. Two mule pack horse gangs need medicine, three mule is a big pot head or sick ride. In the tea and horses on the ancient road, people are accustomed to driving the horse called "horse foot child" (Tibetan called "La Du"). Most of the horse foot children born poor, forced to go on the road to drive the horse, because the tea and horse road is not only difficult and unusual, but also very dangerous. At that time, the horse driver can be said to have no social status, in the eyes of some people, they are some of the people selling hard labor. Horse foot must listen to the horse pot head of the command, the horse pot head is their leader, is a team of horse gang core, he is responsible for a variety of purchasing expenses, contact things, even in the field to open the top of the meal, but also by the horse pot head spoon meal share dishes. The horse driver is just a small laborer employed by the horse pot head. However, the relationship between the horse pothead and the horse footman is not purely that of employer and hired laborer. Horse potheads, especially those of some small horse gangs, were mostly their own laborers who participated in the horse driving gangs and ate the same pot of rice with many horse-drivers. The name "pothead" is derived from this. Some horse drivers after a period of effort, will also have their own one or two mules and horses, on the road to their mules and horses to join the horse gang, earn their own share of the freight; if then some money, more can prepare some goods on the pack, they also have a profit. In this way, some of the horse's feet will become a small horse pot head or small boss.

The Tibetan horse gangs generally look for Yunnan and Tibet edge of the Tibetans as a horse foot, so there is no language and customary barriers. A horse foot can take care of up to 12 mules and horses, that is to be extremely capable of driving the horse people can do, the general horse foot is responsible for seven or eight mules and horses. A horse driver and his care of the mules and horses and their cargo is called "a". So a few dozens of hand to form a horse gang. Compared with those local warlords of the rabble, the horse gang is more like a well-trained, well-organized army. Horse potheads, horse drivers and mules and horses in their respective roles, step by step, conscientious, every time they go out on the road, every day from morning to night, they are well organized action.

The team of mules and horses marching had their own leaders, that is, the head mule and the second mule. They were the best mules in a team of horse gangs. Horse gangs generally only use female mules as the head mule two mules. Horse gangs say, female mules are more sensitive, and know, alert, can know where there is danger, and male mules are too reckless, not suitable for leadership. The head mule two mules is not only the best mule in the horse gang, and their decoration is also very special, very elaborate. They go on the road to wear flower cage head, on the brain mirror, tasseled beard, eyebrows at the red cloth and red silk made of "red color", nose on the nose tassel, saddle on the bumper, tail vertebrae made of yak tail. The head mule neck hangs a very loud big copper bell, two mules are hanging small "two hairpin". Head mule two mule often want a hair color. "The first mule run, two mule heel", the whole gang of horses into a line, easy to travel in the narrow rugged mountain roads. The head mule also inserted on the horse gang's dog teeth "gang flag", written above the gang name of the horse gang, so that people know at a glance which one of the horse gang. Head mule two mule a wind, the whole horse gang has a momentum, all the way to the vast and majestic, and even drive the horse people walk themselves have the spirit. At the end of the whole team of horse gangs, but also a very powerful tail mule. It should be able to follow the brigade, but also to hold down the line, so that a large series of horse gang ranks to form a whole.

On the way, the horse driver at any time to check the palm of the horse, a damaged, immediately have to nail fill. Palm horse nail, is the horse gang's common consumer goods. Nail horse palm is quite delicate professional skills. The same applies to the saddle pads and bundles. Each mule has a special saddle pad, go to Tibet because the road is narrow, steep and dangerous, bundled are soft pack. The so-called soft pack is the goods in sacks or leather bags and other soft packaging, with ropes tied directly on the back of mules and horses, so that both lightweight and convenient and flexible and fast. Of course, different goods have different bundling method, generally the most commonly used is a single cross "tab". Paving saddle pad first in the mule and horse back to put a piece of "horse coir". It is produced in Tibet, is a rectangular piece of felt, four corners of the flower, the background color of red, green, above the cross pattern, very nice. Horse coated and then placed on the linen sewing cushion cover, which is stuffed with felt wool, very soft and gentle. The top layer is a piece of skin called "Gongbu", mostly made of hairy cowhide or donkey skin. Pads on these, the pack will not wear mules and horses. These mats are also the bedding for the horsemen to sleep on at night.

The Tibetan horse gangs do not use tulip wood, tulip beads to the mule and horse tail, they increase the burden of mules and horses on the one hand, on the other hand, easy to abrasion mules and horses, and no way to repair the bad. So go to Tibet's horse gangs only use burlap hemp rope twisted into rowan rope to use, both lightweight and soft, but also very solid. Mules and horses on the road, we must wear their own special with gabions and fine leather woven wrap up the cage head, so that they do not go all the way all the way greedy. They eat also have their own special material bag, like people, three meals a day, the night on the mountain to play wild to eat grass. Horse gangs every day of their lives are almost always carried out in this way, in the morning to find mules and horses, horse feed, people eat, walking, on the pack under the pack, camping and cooking, put the horse, sleep, week after week, month after month, year after year.

Horse gangs on the road, most of the time living a camping life. Generally at daybreak, we get up from the mountains to retrieve the mules and horses, feed them, and then on the pack on the road. At noon, they opened the "top" once. "Kaitou" is the meaning of lunch, that is, a ghee tea, knead a little tsampa to eat. When the sky darkens down, the horse gangs have to try to rush to they must reach the "nest", where it is good to "open light". Open light is camping. They had to bury the gong pot and cook the rice, unload the packs and set up the tents before dark. Every day of the wild open light, by everyone to share the labor cooperation, looking for firewood to find firewood, cooking cooking, tent tenting, washing dishes to wash the dishes, and is to take turns to do, so as not to be unfair. The scenery of the horse running gang. That is a heroic era, horse-driven people are women in the heart of the top of the man, they not only bring the indispensable items of life, but also bring them rouge, powder, red thread and other women's products. Catch the horse of the man to see a lot of knowledge, far away from India, Nepal, Sikkim, close to have been to Ali, Lhasa, Kunming, Chengdu, etc., they flow is a real man's blood, with unparalleled courage and strong will. Hundreds of horses, hundreds of people composed of horse gangs traveling through the deep mountain valleys, horse hooves, horse bells Dingdang, encountered a dangerous section, hundreds of people together to yell up, the sound of the sound curbing clouds, in the mountains back and forth floating. If in the journey, the horsemen encountered women passing by, there will immediately be a folk song contest. This side of the "oh ho ho" sound, there will immediately be someone to respond. This side sings, "Throw a stone to test the depths, sing a tune to test your sister's heart." The other side sings: "Pick flowers to pick the first one, the leaves are green and fresh ......" and so on until the fun is over.

On the old tea-horse road, those girls known as "three red" are specifically looking for horse-drivers. Why are they called "three red"? It is said to be because they have three red threads in their hair braids, so the horsemen call them that.

The "three red" is the symbol of unmarried women in western Yunnan. "Three red" is the old tea and horse road on the horsemen to relieve the pastime of boredom: in the boring journey, the horse pot head with cigarettes, walking in the middle of them, and they joked, flirting, dirty talk, and sometimes move their feet, the three red will giggle more than a laugh. In the open a little place, outside the village, the three red gathering, each searching for objects, there are interested in the dishwasher wash vegetables, panning rice panning, a moment to make the meal, and then invited the horse driver to eat.

When they stayed in the hotel at night, the three dao hongs made foot-washing water for the horse's pot-head and washed their own feet. Add firewood to the fire pit. Then they surrounded Ma Potou in the center, playing the three strings while singing love songs. If Ma Potou was happy, he even bought some wine and candies to enjoy with everyone. In order to curry favor with Ma Potou, they would fill up a cup of wine, laughingly raise it to Ma Potou's mouth, and say fondly, "If you think I'm good enough, just drink this cup." Horse pot head hehehe smile, the heart blossomed, a drunkenness. The early stage of the formation of the horse gang, each family just use their own horses for transportation. With the development of foreign trade, the need for long-distance transportation of goods gradually increased, coupled with the complex road conditions, a single horse is very difficult to travel, but also unable to undertake all the transportation business, so they are a number of people to meet in partnership with peers, **** transportation of a number of goods, thus forming the initial horse gang. This kind of horse gang is only temporary organization in the agricultural leisure time, or for the delivery of a batch of goods together, after that will be dispersed, so it can be called temporary horse gang. Later, due to the further expansion of the scale of commodity circulation, transportation distance is also more and more far away, a few months or even a year to go up a round trip, the temporary horse gang obviously can not meet the needs of the emergence of a professional horse gang. This kind of horse gang has basically separated from agriculture or animal husbandry, initially organized by the merchant gang. The end of the Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China period, Yunnan around the emergence of some large merchant gangs, most of them have their own horse gangs. With the passage of time, some horse-drivers accumulated certain capital, owned a considerable number of horses, and also possessed the ability to hire their own grooms. They did not engage in business, but only transported goods for the merchant firms or merchants, so they detached themselves from the merchant gangs, and became simple horse gangs.

The merchant and the horse gang in the production and marketing and transportation between the formation of the professional division of labor and dependence on the relationship between the two sides of the expansion of reproduction is extremely beneficial, but also a great progress of the horse transportation industry.

Because of the needs of the resale trade, the firms generally have their own horse gangs, the formation of their own transportation power, as few as 20 or 30 horses, more than two or three hundred horses, the trade rely on mules and horses one stop, a course of the goods in the origin and demand for transportation between the places.

Generally speaking, the organization of the Yunnan horse gang has three forms. One is the family, the whole family into the cause of the horse gang, mules and horses all for their own, and on the name of their family name. The second is to tease together to help, generally the same village or close to the village of people, each family out on a few mules and horses, teamed up, each take care of their own mules and horses, choose a respected, experienced people as a horse pot head, by which to contact the business, the settlement of dividends can be more than about two percent of the income. The third type we will call it gang, it has no fixed organization, but because of the same road, or accept the same business, or because of the fear of banditry and come together. These forms of organization are sometimes mixed together to make a complex and interesting landscape of horse gangs. The horse gangs that traveled Tibet were generally those of large family-owned merchants.

It is estimated that, to the anti-Japanese war period, Yunnan in the tea and horse on the ancient road to do business with more than 1500 large and small merchants, at that time each year to and from Yunnan, Tibet, India and other places between the horse gang of about 30,000 packs of more!