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The strip may be divided into two sections, the desert and the fertile. The former comprises the narrow portion between Schischuisze and Santauho. It is covered almost entirely with scrub and sand, and resembles the Ordos in character. Its north portion is indeed a continuation of the Kuzuptehi (in Ordos) bare sands. The ground slopes- down gently from the mountain ranges to the river. The only large village, of Dengkou, lies on the river bank. Once of considerable importance, it was reduced to its present insignificance by the Tungan rebellion of 1868. But though for the greater part of this section the desert comes right down to the river banks, there is in one portion, a narrow fertile belt, which intervenes between the river and the desert. In places this fertile belt is only a field wide, but in the greater portion its width is a mile or more. On this fertile ground, high scrub and brushwood grow in profusion, among which Mongol yourts are hidden. In places the scrub has been cleared away and crops are grown, but in these cases the inhabitants are Chinese settlers. The under- growth is simply one long nest for pheasants, which breed here in great quantities, and grub about the cultivated fields as if they were ordinary fowls. Hares and wild duck also abound. Wheat, kaoliang, beans, and peas are the chief crops; no opium can be grown as the soil is too dry. The population is very thin, and chiefly Chinese, the whole of the population of Dengkou is Chinese. Taxes are paid to the King of Alashan. The Prince of Hangkin on the other bank of the river (in Ordos) claims Dengkou and its district as part of his territory, but this claim has never been admitted. The only industry other than agriculture is the liquorice root, which is found in profusion to the north of Dengkou; it is worked entirely by Chinese. Coal is mined in the Alashan range, near Schischuisze, and there are also salt pans. There is said to be much mineral wealth on this side of the mountain range.
The latter section of this river strip is the wholly fertile plain lying between the desert and the Orot Kingdom, the mountains of Mongolia, and the Yellow River.
This portion is well watered by irrigation canals, which, as in the Ninghsia district, bring the water of the river to the fields far inland. This section may be said to begin at the Santanho district. The chief crops are wheat, millet, kaoliang, maize, peas, beans, and the poppy, but the enltivation of the last named is somewhat restricted owing to the presence of the Roman Catholic Mission, who forbid its cultivation to their converts.
Bat though the whole plain is fertile only a portion of it is under cultivation, this portion being inhabited by the Chinese immigrants. The rest of the plain is pasture land, on which Mongols graze their flocks and herds. These are inevitably doomed to be pushed northwards on to the Mongolian plateau, before the advancing wave of Chinese immigration. There are no towns in the section, only numerous prosperous villages scattered about. The country is well timbered, but not so extensively so as the district of Ninghsia.
Schischuisze to Santauho,
June 5.-Leaving Schischuisze to the north the ground on the west side slopes up from the water's edge gently to the mountains, and it is across this sloping ground and frequently along the river bank that the road runs. At first bleak, stony and barren, except for tufts of spiky grass, the ground later in the day is covered with low scrub, excellent pasture for camels. There are no houses or cultivation seen till Ho Kwaisze is reached, some 28 miles away. By one track the inn of Err hsú tien is passed, but we got on to another road and missed it. Ho Kwaisze is merely an inn close to the river, a wretched habitation with bad water.
June 6.---Most of the retinue had lost their way in the dark last night, and had been obliged to sleep among the sand-hills. Leaving the inn in a northern direction over the sands we reached, in three hours, the lonely inn of Sanchuansze. The family here (Chinese Mahommedans) are rich, they came only five years ago with one borse, and have now several hundreds of oxen and as many donkeys. They have had a stroke of luck, because the notorious Mahommedan brigand chief, Mawangtai, passed their way hard pressed by Chinese soldiers, and in order to escape the latter, he abandoned his booty of cattle, which formed the basis of the present wealth of the family. Mawangtai is still at large, and is often hard pressed by Chinese soldiers, but there is no concerted action, and every official is content with driving him out of that special district, for the good order of which he is responsible. The road from now onwards continues parallel with the river, which winds about considerably. About 4 miles beyond Sanchuansze we passed another farm-inn of Hwaszetien.
The river here takes a bend to the west, and the road follows it, bending back again some 2 miles or so later at some sand-hills. It is quite impassable for carts. We slept the night at the lonely Mongol farm of Kwandi, on a broad belt of scrub-land.
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June 7.-The dense high scrub close to the river bank conceals many Mongol yourts: a great deal of the scrub is cut for fire-wood. For the last 4 miles into Dengkou the river and sand-hills are only separated by practically one field of cultivation. The road runs along the top of the crumbling river bank, and follows all the sinuosities of the stream.
Dengkou is a bleak, desolate-looking place, with no trees or vegetation near, and what a succession of Mahommedan rebellions have left is rapidly being choked by sand. I doubt the population being as much as 400. They seem desperately poor, and as opium is universally smoked the cause of their poverty is not far to seek.
The Chinese may not be land-owners here, but pay rent to the King of Alasban. A house for which only 4 taels a-year was asked a few years ago (12.) is now expected to bring in 100 taels (157). In consequence, the population, which is practically all Chinese, are discontented. On the east outskirt of the town is a yamên, at which travelling Mongol officials may rest. Just outside this are a number of coffins deposited on the sands and above ground, awaiting removal for burial in the respective provinces of the deceased. This is hardly sanitary in summer, when the mud covering the cheap wooden coffins becomes cracked in many places. Continuing northwards over the most terrible bare sand hillocks, for some 5 miles, we descended to the river again, the sands receding towards the west; travelling was now pleasant, through woodland and nicely cultivated country. We halted five hours from Dengkon at the Chinese farm of Fu hwa wan, among a belt of tamarisk.
June 8.---Continuing for some miles, first over rough country and then over bare sands, and back again to rough laud, we reached the Catholic village of Ching-tse-mias, the outskirts of the Belgian Mission sphere of activity.
Before reaching the village we passed a liquorice industry camp. One Chinese man employs 200 coolies here in the work. He pays them 2 taels (68.) a-month, and gives them three meals a-day. They are lodged in rough tents protected by some trees and scrub. Another 6 miles beyond Ching tse mios, over for the most part cultivated land, intersected with irrigation canals, brought us to the centre of the district--the Église de Saint-Jacques-the walled enclosure of Sanchungkung. Most of the surrounding villages are Catholic, and each has its neat little church and European priest in charge.
From the foreign missionaries I learnt that the Viceroy at Lanchow is starting a steam-boat, drawing 1 foot of water, to ply on the reaches between Lanchowfu and Bautu. The boat has been supplied by Belgians and Germans (firm of Cockerill) and is said to have arrived in sections at Tutschöng, near Kweihuacheng, where it is being put together. There are said to be some rapids between Ninghsia and Lanchow which are difficult to navigate.
The chief work of the priests seems to be the upkeep of the irrigation canals. These have to be partially redug every year, because of the sediment which falls into them. The annual cost of upkeep is 500 taels (757.). The original construction seems to have been a great labour and to have cost the neighbourhood 6,000 taels (9001). For this work alone, if for no other reason, the Chinese owe a debt of gratitude to the Belgian Mission,
June 9.-Leaving by the north gate of the fortress mission we made for the ferry which crosses the river some 12 miles to the north-east. The road wound through cultivated fields, and over ground covered with low tamarisk bushes, crossing countless canals, and passing a fair number of Chinese farmos. We slept the night at the small village of Monohei ("bad dog"), alias Tukou ("river crossing"). The whole village is Christian and numbers 800 souls. It is surrounded by cultivation, but there is an entire absence of trees. The people are desperately poor, but have built a big church and maintain a European priest. The ground is said to be fertile and to grow two crops a-year; one of these will fail if water is scarce, but it is seldom that both fail,
June 10-We left in an east-south-easterly direction for the ferry, which, though only 5 miles away, is extremely difficult to find, thanks to the tremendous undergrowth on the left bank of the river, in which we lost our way completely. There is no habitation of any kind on the Alashan side of the stream, and only a miserable hut on the Ordos bank. The stream is here very broad, about a quarter of a-mile probably, and no amount of shouting could induce the ferrymen to come to our help. Fortunately there was a large boat moored to our shore waiting, on her way up to Ninghsia, for a couple of hours, on the chance of getting some merchant and goods to take up. These boats carry 20,000 catties and are very commodious vessels. They offered to take all our party down to Bautu for 8 taels (248.), or, indeed, what we liked to give; but we were to wait till some Chinese merchant came through the scrub and who would give as much, otherwise they demanded 40 taels (67.). We made use of the big boat for some of our party to cross and to bring diplomatic pressure to bear on the ferrymen
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