CHAPTER V. 



CLARK AND SOWERBY'S NARRATIVE OF JOURNEY TO HSI-AN FU. 



AS already stated in the last chapter, we left Yen-an Fu on January 28th 

 on our way south to Hsi-an Fu, the capital of the province of Shensi. We 

 took with us a small caravan of hired mules and three ponies. A groom to 

 look after the ponies, and three personal servants including Lao Chao, a 

 muleteer temporarily promoted, formed our retinue. The mules, of course, 

 were accompanied by their owners, but these last devoted their energies 

 mainly to opium-smoking, and incidentally to driving and feeding their 

 animals. Lao Chao had first attracted attention in camp at Chao-chuang 

 by his courage and unusual strength — on one occasion he forded the F6n Ho 

 in flood to get provisions for the party. Showing himself very ready to be of 

 use, he had been selected to accompany Cobb and Grant on their journey to 

 Hsi-an Fu, and even went with the former as far as Honan, working his way 

 back independently just in time to come with us on this trip. 



Grant had kept notes of the country passed through on his journey some 

 weeks earlier, and these supplied us with a list of halting-places and inter- 

 vening distances, information always warmly appreciated by travellers in 

 China. The first day's journey was across some very fine game country, 

 which had already been visited by Grant and Sowerby deer-hunting. The 

 travellers followed a long valley to its head in the high shrub-covered loess 

 hills ; a pass was crossed and a second valley entered, similar to the first. 

 Numbers of charcoal-burners were noticed in this wooded area. Near the 

 pass stood a roughly made hut, sheltering a small detachment of soldiers, who 

 were stationed there to protect travellers against highwaymen, for whose 

 atrocities this lonely stretch of country was at one time notorious. The 

 robbers found ready cover in the many ravines branching off from the main 

 valley ; but since the opening of the new road, and the posting of this little 

 garrison, they had found it advisable to disappear. The first halt was made 

 at a small town named Kan-ch'iian Hsien, ninety It from Yen-an Fu, and 

 here comparatively comfortable quarters were found. 



An early start, and a long journey down an ever-widening valley, where 

 large numbers of pheasants were seen and a few shot, brought us next day to 

 a village not far from the large town of Fu Chou. 



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