Excursions in the South of China. 



351 



In the middle of the river here is the large flat island of Kwang-li, 

 forming a triangle, with its two sides to the north. The channel 

 on the south side is the shallowest, but gave 3^ fathoms. The 

 mountains now frowned close above us, and in vain the eye sought 

 for a gap through which the broad volume of the Si-Kiang could 

 pass. However, the river narrowed rapidly as we ascended it, 

 and when we had left the white fort sixteen miles behind us, we 

 could perceive a magnificent but narrow gorge gradually opening 

 to our admiring gaze. The river here, narrowed suddenly from 

 1000 to 200 or 300 yards, winds swiftly through a vast rent in the 



Fig. I. — Entrance to River, &c. 



mountain chain, whose dark precipices rise perpendicularly on 

 either side several hundred feet above us. The wooded summits 

 culminate on the south side in a peak 2800 feet elevation, and on 

 the north in one of 1800 feet. We entered this pass at 1.45 p.m., 

 barely able to stem the current, whilst above us hovered some large 

 kites (Milvus melanotis) that frequent this locality. The mountain 

 pass is called the Antelope Pass or Hibiscus Gap, sometimes the 

 Shiu-Hing-Hup. At its eastern entrance is the village and custom- 

 house of How-li. In the pass itself we sounded, and repeatedly 

 found no bottom at 12;^ fathoms, even close to the edge of the 

 beetling rocks. The naked sides of the cliffs were caverned and 



