HANOI TO MONGTSE 



happened ; and certainly the satisfaction extracted from the Chinese 

 Government by the representations of our consul had not been 

 granted out of any goodwill to the Father. Most of the braves 

 were banished to another province — a trivial punishment for men 

 who had no ties. They did indeed select for condemnation one 

 man — he was already dead from natural causes in prison. As for 

 the instigator of the outrage, he was of course undisturbed. It was 

 declared at Pekin that the affair had been exaggerated, and that the 

 reparation was ample. One cannot help thinking what idea of our 

 power the Chinese are likely to derive from our acquiescence in 

 such procedure. After this there is small room for surprise at their 

 attitude towards our Frontier Delimitation Commission. Already it 

 had been attacked in the basin of the Black River, and was reported 

 to be followed by three hundred pirates ostensibly in " the service " 

 of the mandarin of Yunnan. Whether or no, it is certain that the 

 Imperial commissioner betook himself to Mongtse, under pretext of 

 resting from his labours. For ourselves, as travellers, by making 

 the best of things we might hope to pass through without active 

 molestation. 



First of all we had mules to buy. It was difficult to procure any 

 at Mongtse, for the Pavie Mission had taken a good many, and the 

 mandarin himself had just purchased twenty beauties for twelve 

 taels apiece — fixing his own price. M. Gdrard, a P'renchman in 

 the Customs, kindly offered to help us, and spent three days in the 

 mountains among the dirty Miaotses, bringing back fifteen mules 

 and a promise of seven more in a few days. We paid on an averao-e 

 thirty taels for each animal. Then there were pack-saddles to get, 

 straps, and blankets to cover the chattels from rain and the men at 

 night. The beasts were next roughed, and branded on the shoulder 

 with an O. Finally came the question of the hire of followers. 



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