rower than either of those in which we had been the day before, and after returning from the ascent of the hill, we saw nothing of special interest. The heat was intense all day long, the thermometer standing, for six hours, at 98° in the shade. As nightfall did not bring much alleviation, we sought coolness, and a deliverance from the swarms of mosquitoes, by plunging into the muddy lake, in which we continued for a couple of hours, lying under the water, supported by a short rope from the boat, and occasionally eluding the pursuit of a pertinacious mosquito by plunging wholly under the surface. Before retiring for the night we loaded our revolvers, and fired them off twice, to frighten off any pirates who might be in the vicinity. These canals and lakes are infested by pirates and water thieves, who levy black mail on all the weaker craft. They act, however, with no little moderation-seldom taking more than one third of a boat's cargo. This course commonly prevents a prosecution. Mr. Fortune, who was sent up country by the East India Company to buy tea-plants, was one night robbed, on one of these canals, of a tin box containing all his papers and some silver dollars. The money was to him a matter of importance, but the loss of the papers was irreparable. A hole had been sawn in the side of the boat, and the box taken from under his pillow as he slept. He remained all day at the same place, trying, ineffectually, to discover some trace of the offenders, and had given up all hopes, when, the next night, his boat was hailed from the bank, and a voice informed them that if a man were sent ashore, he would find the box on the tow-path. He accordingly sent ashore and recovered his box, in which not an article had been damaged or removed, except the dollars, which were, of course, all gone. The thieves had, no doubt, surmised, what was actually the case, that the papers were of more impor tance to Mr. Fortune than the money, and hoped, by returning them, to avoid any further enquiry into the occurrence. Ascend Toong-toong-ting-shan-The View-The Great Lake of China-A Beautiful Ar daybreak on the morning of the 13th, we ascended the Toong-toong-ting-shan, a hill about five hundred feet high, which separated the inlet, in which we had passed the night, from the body of the lake. The shape of the hill was irregu lar, being cut up by deep gullies, around the sides of which wound the long flight of stone steps conducting to the summit. On the top is a Boodhist monastery, of thirty or forty monks, and we passed several minor establishments on the way up. These religious houses, as well as the pathway, were well sheltered by trees. At the highest point, above the large monastery, is a small joss-house, under the shade of which we partook of breakfast. An old woman officiated as genius loci, and was terribly frightened by our offering her an empty claret bottle, fearing that it might be in some way connected with a spell, or the Evil Eye. After breakfast, we remained on the summit for a quarter of an hour, enjoying the view. Behind us was the inlet from which we had come, and the low country stretching toward Shanghae; in front another. inlet, separated from the first by the hill on which we were; and beyond it another hill, precisely the counterpart of the first, the Si-toong-ting-shan, the summit of which was also occupied by a monastic establishment. On our right stretched the great lake for a hundred miles, bounded by the range of hills behind us, round which we had come on the previous day. The sun soon became too hot to make a longer exposure to its rays desirable, and we descended to our boat, stopping only to visit the large monastery. This establishment was composed of several quadrangles, surrounded by the cells of monks. At the extremity of the furthest was the temple, in no way remarkable. All the buildings were of stone, and the whole was surrounded by a high stone wall, and shaded by magnificent trees. We saw only a few monks. They were dressed in loose lilac gowns, and had the hair of the head entirely shaven. Many of these Boodhist foundations in China are very rich, and as the monastic vows can be cancelled at will, they afford a sort of asylum to indigent persons who seek a retirement from the troubles of the world in the quiet of the cloister, from which they can emerge at will should better times smile upon them. On returning to the boat, and consulting with the mate, we found that the lowness of the water in the Ty-hao would prevent our crossing it, which was the nearest route to Hoochow, a city which we desired to visit. We, therefore, reluctantly determined to strike into another canal, and proceed to Hoo-chow by a much more round-about route. The Ty-hao, though the largest lake in China, is never more than six or eight feet deep, and when we visited it was in most places not more than two or three feet deep, while some parts were quite dry. This was owing to the two or three months' drought, which it was feared would cause a famine in all, the northern part of China, by lowering the great canals, and drying up their smaller and shallower branches, on which the country depended for irrigation. In the south of China, on the other hand, they had had that year just the opposite trouble, the country being flooded, villages entirely covered by water, and the crops destroyed in consequence of violent and long-continued rains. The canal which we now entered was a fine one, and appa rently well kept up. It was frequently spanned by tall stone bridges, which were in good condition, and some of them actually undergoing repair. The bridges, like those which I had before seen in similar positions, were built with one semicircular arch, the upper line of the bridge rising to a point. No mortar was used in their construction, the structure being held together entirely by the accurate cutting of the stones, and the scientific perfection of the arch. I should have mentioned that the material of all is grey granite. The country through which we were passing was prettier than on any previous day. The hills on the Ty-hao, and those between that lake and Soo-chow, were all visible, and the fields on each side of the canal were relieved of their monotony by the frequent occurrence of private cemeteries and monasteries. We passed through several very large villages, one of which extended along the canal for more than three miles. When the canal passed through a village, its sides were generally lined with flights of stone steps, ascending to the level of the street, or paved levée. In villages, a large part of the canal was frequently occupied by the buffaloes, who, to get relief from the great heat, stand in the canal when it is shallow enough, with only their eyes and nose above water. We noticed that many of the water-wheels which we passed during this day were turned by very pretty girls, with much clearer complexions than those of the women on the coast. The only drawback to their appearance was that, like all women in the north of China, they had little feet, but even to this one soon gets accustomed, and I am not sure that, after all, it is not a much less unnatural distortion, than the habit which occidental ladies have of compressing the waist. By evening we again arrived at Soo-chow, to which city we had been compelled to return in order to proceed to Hoochow via the Grand Canal. We had again to pass through the crowded ranks of junks, which I have described as moored about the city, and it was consequently late before we entered the Grand Canal. By nine o'clock we had got clear of the suburbs, and of other boats, and again anchored for the night. The next morning we had a better view of the great highway to the capital of China-for centuries the largest artificial water-course in the world. It is here more than one hundred and fifty feet in width, but is in some parts of its course narrower, and in some even broader. It is crossed by bridges, similar to those which I had seen on the other canals, but of course longer, and proportionately larger. The embankments on each side were faced with stone, and the tow-path paved with square stone blocks. We continued up the Grand Canal all day. It led us through several lakes, like the Ty-hao, broad but shallow. At a town called Ping-bong we were stopped at a customs' barrier, but as soon as the officials in charge learned who we were, they made no objection to our passing, merely requesting that we would kindly give them some books-a reasonable demand, which my friend hastened to comply with, by presenting to them some of the Chinese publications of a London society. The subjects of these works come under the head of useful knowledge, and it is always customary for foreigners to carry such books on their inland excursions, as they make the best presents to native officials who are disposed to be civil. The city of Ping-bong is situated in a lake, and all the streets are traversed by canals. The town itself is not walled, but the approaches by the canal, in both directions, are protected by small forts and batteries. In the latter, the guns are of assorted sizes, from two feet to six in length, some mounted, and some lying on the ground. Even in the largest Chinese cannon, the bore is seldom more than four inches in diameter; since, as the celestials buy their guns by weight, it is, of course, the interest of the English manufacturer, to make the calibre as small as possible. The appearance of Ping-bong, as it were, floating upon the water, is really very pretty, and some wooded islands which surround it, increase the picturesque effect. Many of the bridges which cross the Grand Canal, in its passage through the town, are forty feet high, and the quays are strongly built of stone, descending by stone steps to the water. The city, like all others in the low plain of Northern China, is entirely built on piles. Passing Ping-bong, we proceeded a few miles further along the canal, and again anchored for the night. |