Each district seems to have its own local headcovering, the most common being a large flat of palm-leaves sewn together. A straight, scant, horizontally-striped petticoat in blue and yellow, with a body-scarf or shawl worn in various ways, or a tight-fitting jacket, constitutes the not ungraceful costume of a Laos woman; her hair, being drawn back, is fastened in a neat knot by a gold pin and is almost invariably ornamented with flowers. The body of the men of Western Laos is usually covered with tattoo-marks of different animals and emblematic monsters. These figures are usually first sketched by the professional tattooer from the waist to the knees――monkeys, bats, rats, birds and so-forth; then the skin is punctured with a sharp-pointed steel instrument, and an indelible black pigment is well rubbed in. The dress of the ordinary man consists of little more than the waist-cloth, but the young noblemen are adopting the Siamese court-costume. Formerly, all went bare-footed, but buffalo-hide sandals are now much used. Both men and women are passionately fond of flowers. The ear-lobes are bored when very young and stretched with pieces of wood, ivory and metal, and the men almost invariably carry a flower in this hole; cigars and other articles are fastened behind the ear. Large ears are regarded with favor as a sign of longevity. LAOS WORKMANSHIP. Scattered over Laos-land are brick-fields and pottery-works, where the native earthenware, water-jars and other household utensils are made. The earthenware oven used by the Laos is in the shape of a boot, the opening at the top holding the pot, while the upper part of the shoe is cut away for the grate. Wood is burned within. These ovens are very cheap, but break easily. Wood-carving is also much practiced in Laos, and much technical artistic skill is displayed in the carved scroll-work for doors, posts and household utensils. The valuable native varnish called _rack_ is resin collected from the trunk of a special tree in Laos. This black lacquer is a monopoly and little exported, being used in preparing the temples and idols for their covering of paint and gold-leaf. It dries slowly in spite of the hot climate, but gives in the end a perfectly smooth, hard surface unaffected by dampness. The manufacture of lacquer-ware is carried on in all parts of the country. First-class workers are found in almost every hamlet. The foundation is made of woven bamboo strips coated thickly with _rack_. This is polished with the common Laos substitute for sand-paper――rice-husks and water. Then a pattern is drawn with a style and the article finished with coats of red and brown paint. Many household utensils are lacquer-ware, and some of the designs are really well executed. The price varies with the quality of the workmanship.