CHAPTER VII 



A MOUNTAIN VILI>AGE AND TAI-PEI-SHAN 



LiNG-TAi-MiAO is a pretty little village, lying 

 beside a brawling mountain torrent, fringed by 

 shaking poplars, ash-trees, and some magnificent 

 willows. The way was pleasanter than heretofore, 

 through green rice-fields and clear-running streams, 

 which flowed on beds of gritty sand and not the 

 horrible red loess. Snipe rose from the marshes, 

 and the wild duck brought a sense of home, for 

 there is no bird so evocative of old associations. 

 The heat was very trying, and we panted for the 

 hills, lifting our eyes with greater fervour than did 

 ever the Israelites of old. 



On the fourth day after leaving Sian-fu we 

 passed, by the rocky medium of a river-bed, among 

 the foothills, and presently saw our destination 

 lying in the valley below. We received a warm 

 welcome — or rather, our companion did, for the 

 people knew him well. They were most friendly 

 during the whole of our stay ; but the highlanders 

 of any country, once their initial reserve has been 

 overcome, are far pleasanter to deal with than the 

 dwellers in the plains. 



Over 50 per cent, of the people we met here 

 suffered from goitre, which seems very prevalent 



