242 ON THE FRINGE OF THE DESERT 



to keep fairly warm, unless the wind liappened to 

 be dead ahead. At such times 1 would have given 

 a good deal for the Norwegian reindeer sleeping 

 bag which 1 used on a trip in British Columbia 

 some years ago. Such a bag would prove invalu- 

 able to any traveller in these parts. We had also 

 procured fur caps with flaps, which were an absolute 

 necessity. Now we appreciated the tinned stores 

 which we had brought from Shanghai as it was 

 difficult at times to get food. One tin of salmon 

 came to an untimely end. The doctor had placed 

 it near the fire to thaw, but had unfortunately 

 forgotten to puncture the lid ! The consequence 

 was a report like a bomb, a large slimy pink splash 

 on the mud wall of our room, and a reduced menu. 

 Our great anxiety on reaching an inn for the 

 night was to secure a hot 'kang. ^Ve despatched 

 Ching-yii ahead to prepare the way, but even so 

 had usually to wait half-suffocated whilst a blear- 

 eyed underling stuffed the 'kang with fuel, or, 

 freezing with the cold, await the end of his labours 

 in the inadequate shelter of the inn-yard. The 

 smoke from these wood-fires which hung in a dense 

 pall above our heads or enveloped us as we sat, 

 like gods upon Olympus, was calculated to give 

 one " a mouth " quicker than any known combina- 

 tion of drinks which I have ever sampled. Ching- 

 yii really reaped the benefit, for, when we, ha^ ing 

 finished dinner and a pipe, retired to our carts to 

 sleep just as the ^kang was nicely warmed, he slept 

 on it. However, we much preferred the carts and 

 plenty of blankets, as then we did not have to turn 

 out in the chilly mornings, but slept, or tried to 

 sleep, placidly on as the carts got under weigh. 



