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season, but that all had been uprooted by expeditions sent out in November and I see December, and there was no trace of any reinaining when he came out.
it was no reason whatever to doubt this statement, but even if it was untrue, practically certain that there would not be a single plant left after his passing through; I therefore decided to take an entirely different road for our joint journey and selected the southern route via Poshang, the Tapeng ferry over the Mekong, Mengka, and Mengchu. This is a fairly well recognised, though little used, road, but possess records of only isolated portions as having been previously traversed by British subjects,
The first two days' journey from Mienning via Poshang to Toukuo call for no special comment beyond the unusually good condition of the road-surface. Nature has so fashioned the province of Yunnan as to render it practically impossible for the road- builder to make the crooked straight; for some weeks prior to our passing through, however, human labour had done a great deal to make the rough places plain. In spite of pouring rain on the second day, we encountered no really serious obstacles.
On the 19th April, at the Taoyin's suggestion, we made a very early start in view of the formidable journey in front of us. After 6 miles of easy going, we reached the limits of the Mienning jurisdiction and bade farewell to the magistrate. No trace of opium poppy had we seen in his district, in which, as far as I could ascertain, he and his subordinates had carried out their suppression duties with exceptional thoroughness. The next 7 miles traversed a corner of what is now known as the Lants'ang (ie., Mekong) district-formerly the sub-prefecture of Chênpien-and the going was very severe, though it must, in all fairness, be admitted that the country is extremely difficult, including a terrific descent for 3 miles through constantly subaiding red clay to the level of the River Mekong (2,750 feet). The crossing of the Mekong is effected in a single huge wooden boat with deep sides; mules and their loads are transported in this craft, the river-current being too swift to admit of the animals swimming across without danger. The ascent up the left or east bank of the Mekong is even more severe, and for 2 miles the ruling gradient is steeper than one in six. The consulate writer and I reached the halting-place about 220 P.M., followed about an hour later by the Taoyin and his party, who took up their quarters in a native hovel close to our selected camping site. Realising our discomfiture at the non-arrival of our mule-loids, Mr. Lu with friendly thoughtfulness sent us over a supply of tea and Australian biscuits, to which I at least did unhesitating justice. It was not till after sunset that the rest of my caravan turned up. At one of the steepest points of the descent to the Mekong the mule entrusted with my small but precious supply of glass and crockery had missed his footing and rolled headlong, load and all, for several hundred feet, and rescue baci taken much time: further, heavy delay had been caused by the passage of the Mekong with but one unwieldy boat, to which the liveliest objection was displayed by most of the mules.
Two stages further. through pine-woods tenauted by peacocks and brilliant emerald-green parrots, brought us to the Chinese Shan town of Môngka. At Tamotacho, the half-way halt; we came across a few families of Lahu race, said to he rapidly dying out in China. Given a plentiful supply of soap, water, and combs, the smaller children could, I am convinced, be made into strikingly pretty little gipsies.
Shortly before reaching Mêngka we were met by the Chingku district magistrate. La Kuang-shib, a Kuangsi man, who accompanied us so long as we continued in his extensive jurisdiction. Môngka, the residence of a Shan Sawbwa, possesses also large temples and two monasteries in the Burmese Shan style; oue in particular, over 200 years old, must have been very fine in bygone days.
At Li utsungte'un, our halt mid-way between Mêngka and Mengchu, the Chinese Shan Sawbwa, of the latter place, and Meng;an came over to pay his respects; both the excellence of his Chinese and his appearance gave the lie, I fancied, to his boasted pure Shan parentage. Mêngeau is one of the old Shan towns whence the original inhabitants have been practically ousted by the more thriving Chinese. Here, I was given fairly decent quarters in the temple of the god of war, now converted into a school, the discipline of which struck me as unusually good; the very natural curiosity at the arrival in their midst of the first white man ever beheld by any of the ninety scholars was never allowed to exceed the bounds of politeness.
On the 25th April, two days after leaving Mêngchu, we crossed the River Weiyuan (or Chingku, as it is now gradually becoming known) at Patieh. At this season of the year the stream is just fordable here: I manged, however, to find a place not much higher up where a swim proved welcomely refreshing. The next halt bore
the ill-omener name of Ch'on-Shui (Stinking Water"), but I have stayed at many places in Yunnan where the water supply has been even worse. Two days later, after passing a few villages i habited by natives of the strikingly handsome Puman race, we entered the Szemao district and were met by the local magistrate, Hsieh Shik; the following day, the 28th April, we arrived at Szema, where spacious quarters were provided for ine adjoining the Taoyin's Yamên. The Taoyin and magistrate pressed me to stay a week in Szemao; I consented to two days, but on the second day Mr. Lu urged that be still had important business to transact, an I could hardly refuse his request that we should postpons our departure for one more day. Both he and the magistrate were most hospitable during my stay, celebrated by two Chinese dinner- parties and a picnic.
Previons to my departure for Tengyuen, I had written to the commissioner of Szemao Customs, soliciting his co-operation to obtain for me, if possible, information on the subject of opium in the area under his cognisance. With that request M. R. de Nully, the commissioner (French), very courteously complied; he informed me quite definitely that, as the result of several punitive expeditions during the past winter, there was, as far as he was aware, no more cultivation of opium in the Szemao district, and that while probably at least 30 per cent. of the adult population of the town, both male and feinale, still continued to consume the drug, the enormous rise in price bore out his contention.
From Szemac northwards towards Tali three routes were open to me that via Chingku (Weiyan) was ruled out by the fact that it had already been traversed by Lu Taoyin on his journey to Mienning to meet me; on the north-eastern route, via Talang -the main road to Yunnan-fu according to all the information I could obtain, a considerable quantity of opium had been grown, and harvested, earlier in the se son, but very thorough nasures of eradication had been carried out some weeks previously; I therefore decided to take the more direct but less frequented route via P'uêrh, Hainfu (in Chényüan district) and Chingtung.
Leaving Szemao on the 2nd May, some three hours of travel, including a stiff climb, brought us to the boundary of the Puerh district, where the local magistrate, Chou Ju-chao, awaited us; the Szemao magistrate, however, continued to accompany us till the town of Puerh was reached the next day; on this day's journey our route crossed a splendid Chinese arched stone bridge, in admirable preservation. At Puerb, an ol! walled city with relics of fine stone carving, I was again given most comfortable quarters; Mr. Chou also entertained the Taoyin, the Szemao magistrate, and myself at a lengthy Chinese dinner.
At Mabei, the next stage, I took the opportunity to pay a visit to the large and flourishing salt mines about a mile and a half away. Dr. Kelly, the American repre- sentative of the Chinese Salt Administration, who had arrived about two months previously, was away on tour, but his English-speaking Chinese colleague very kindly demonstrated to me all the processes of Chinese salt extraction.
The next four stages, via Mop'o, Maupieh and Manlien, to Hsin-fu, call for little comment save for the extreme beauty of the scenery; on all sides 1 ose range after range of pine-clad hills, mostly well-wonded to their summits; the valleys were, however, parched and bare, and travelling along the lower levels was excessively hot. Our route crossed the eastern section of the Chênyian district, and midway during the third stage we were joined by the magistrate, Mo Yu-Ju, a scholarly man of considerable charm of manner, with whom my relations during our five days of joint travel were exceedingly cordial, and from whom 1 parted with really genuine regret.
The only record in my possession of a route between Hsinft and Chingtung dated from 1881, when the journey was made by a British traveller; our route, however, was almost entirely different from us, and we spent but five days on the distance which had taken him six. For the last three days we were accompanied by the Chingtung magistrate, Ming Fao-ch'ien, who came out to meet us. The surroundings of Chingtung breathe of ancient history; the last 5 miles of the road could hardly have been repaired for centuries, while of the city-wall nothing now remains save one single gate; peacocks strutting unmolested in the main street seemed likewise aloof from modernity. The magistrate's yamên was wofully dilapidated, and I was well housed by comparison in the newly built Saüch'uan Guild premises. From Szemao we had travelled for twelve days on ent, mostly in great heat, and a halt of one day was amply justified. For me it spelled the inevitable Chinese dinner-party, as the guest of the district magistrate.
This latter official was also among the number of those who have displayed special energies in the matter of opium suppression; practically every town and handlet which
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