1919] on Chinese Turkistan: Past and Present 535 



who have invaded Turkistan, their features, though large and coarse, 

 come closer to those of the European than to those of the Chinese 

 or the Mongol. Their complexion is fair ; they are simple and gentle 

 in character, and by no means fanatical, and shut up as they are by 

 their mountain barriers they lead an easy and unenterprising life. 

 In the 13th Century the Turkistanis were Buddhists, but after that 

 time they embraced Islamism, and now they are Mahommedans of 

 the Sunni Sect. 



The shrines of the country are the tombs of saints supposed, by 

 the present-day natives, to have been Mahommedans ; but not a few 

 of these shrines are in fact older than Islamism, and had been 

 equally sacred to Buddhists. It is a fact worthy of observation that 

 when a people change their religion they do not necessarily change 

 their feelings of veneration for places that have derived their sanctity 

 from the religion cast aside. Much has been talked of lately about 

 the Mosque of St. Sophia at Constantinople. Perhaps in that con- 

 nection the lesson of the modest shrines of Turkistan should not be 

 overlooked, as it shows that in the history of Asiatic religion the 

 continuity of local worship has often been a significant feature. 



In close proximity to the graveyards lie the fields of Turkistan. 

 They are not on flat areas of ground, as in this country, but are 

 cut up into small pieces, each being slightly raised one above the 

 other in the manner of terraces. This is necessary to ensure the 

 ground being properly watered, as the rainfall on the plains is barely 

 two inches in the year — a quantity without any practical use ; but 

 the water supply from irrigation canals is abundant, so abundant 

 that in modern times the country scarcely ever suffers from drought. 

 The water supply is drawn from the immense reservoirs of the ice- 

 fields on the summits of the peaks above Kashgar. It is somewhat 

 paradoxical that when the sky is overcast and rain threatens, the 

 fields get no rain, but have to wait for the sun to operate on the ice- 

 fields above. 



The export trade of Turkistan is limited to raw silk, carpets and 

 felts, and a drug, known as Cheras to the Turkistanis, and as 

 Hashish to the European. The fruits grown are those that thrive in 

 a temperate clime, such as apples, pears and grapes ; and melons 

 grow to greater perfection there than elsewhere. 



The Government of Turkistan is chiefly administered by the 

 Chinese, whose practice of making all local officials responsible for 

 insurrection, riot or disturbance in their neighbourhood, is peculiar, 

 but entirely successful. 



The towns and villages that he buried under the sands of 

 Turkistan have been kept in a wonderful state of preservation for 

 close upon twenty centuries, and under the supervision of explorers and 

 archaeologists from Europe, excavations have been carried on, and 

 highly interesting are the relics that have been brought to light. In 

 what must have been an ancient graveyard th« bodies of some well- 



YoL. XXII. (No. 113) 2 



