98 PASSPORT. DEPARTURE EROM PEKING. 



met with In this country. But these local exchanges 

 do not exclude the general rate which equalises the 

 values of the coin. The latter is known to the 

 Mongols under the name of * 7iianchan^ the former 

 as ' dzelen! Before buying anything you must 

 always ask whether the price is according to the 

 general or local rate ; otherwise, you may find your- 

 self out in your calculations. If, in addition to all 

 this, it be considered that weights and measures 

 differ all over the Empire, you may form an idea 

 of the fraud and dishonesty to which the traveller 

 is exposed even in the most trifling purchases. In 

 order to avoid disputes in weighing silver, and also 

 for the sake of economy, I bought the medium or 

 market scales ; but they seldom answered our pur- 

 pose. We lost heavily by exchanging silver into 

 copper, as we were often unable to ascertain the 

 local rate, which varies every ten miles or so.^ In- 

 deed, from first to last we paid a large premium to 

 the roguery and rascality of the natives, and were 

 imposed upon in the most scandalous way. 



Throuofh the courteous intervention of our Am- 

 bassador we received a passport from the Chinese 

 Government, permitting us to travel in South-eastern 

 Mongolia and Kan-su ; and having completed our 

 preparations, we started from Peking on March 9th, 



' For instance, at Peking a liang (tael) of silver is worth ,1,500 cash, 

 at Dolon-nor 1,600, at Kalgan 1,800, at Ta-jing (in Kan-su) 2,900, and 

 at Tonkir (also in Kan-su) 5,000. The enormous difference between 

 the two latter towns is probably only temporary, and is caused by 

 the excessive rise in price of every article of consumption in those 

 districts after the Пипцап desolation. 



