ANOMALOUS POSITION OF AFFAIRS. 129 



Kan-su, where the Dungans are in such close proxi- 

 mity with the Chinese, we repeatedly heard it stated 

 that the Mussulmans at such and such a place were 

 on good terms with some temple or village in their 

 neighbourhood with which they traded. Thus the 

 Dungans at Tatung were at enmity with the temple 

 of Chobsen and the surrounding district, while at 

 Simni, on the Tatung-gol, forty miles to the north of 

 Chobsen, they were friendly with the Gigen of its 

 temple, trading peacefully and molesting no one. In 

 the same way the commander of Mur-zasak, one of 

 the banners of Koko-nor, as we have already men- 

 tioned, was on excellent terms with the Dungans at 

 Yunan-chen, whom he supplied with cattle. 



Such an anomalous position of affairs could only 

 exist in a country like China. Let us now see what 

 measures were taken by the Chinese to quell the 

 insurrection in Kan-su. 



After the loss in a few years of the whole of 

 Eastern Turkestan, the countries lying at the foot of 

 the Thian-Shan, and a large part of Kan-su, the 

 Chinese Government began to realise the great dan- 

 ger of their position, and determined to employ every 

 means in their power to prevent the insurrection 

 from spreading to the northern provinces of China 

 Proper. With this view a line of defence was drawn 

 along the upper and middle course of the Hoang- 

 ho. Here 70,000 troops were disposed, partly gar- 

 risoning the towns of Kuku-khoto, Bautu, Ding-hu, 

 Ning-hia, Lang-chau, &c., and partly quartered by 

 small detachments in the intermediate villages. The 



VOL. II. к 



