SUNDAY ISLAND 7 



was experienced in getting by Sunday Island, the 

 channel past which is, during the winter and spring, 

 when the river is at its lowest, always a cause of delay 

 to the steamers. They always send a boat ahead to 

 sound on the way up, and in spite of all precautions 

 frequently get aground. The bed of the river here is 

 very wide, and consequently shallow, and each year 

 when the water falls low it cuts a new channel for 

 itself. No permanent survey is therefore of any use, 

 and the fairway is usually buoyed afresh as it shifts. 

 This place is the most serious obstacle to navigation 

 on the river below Icliang, and during winter, only 

 steamers of the shallowest draught ever attempt the 

 passage. This town is situated on the left bank of 

 the Yang-tze, and 1,110 miles from its mouth. It is 

 the last treaty port, and I considered that it would form 

 a base for my work for at least a year. The first dif- 

 ficulty was to find a house for my wife and family, and 

 this was by no means an easy task. It was, of course, 

 impossible to live in the city, and for some time it ap- 

 peared to be equally impossible to find any habitation 

 near the European settlement. The Consul, however, 

 most kindly lodged us for about a fortnight, at the 

 expiration of which I was fortunate enough to be able 

 to rent what was called a Chinese house. It really was 

 nothing but an empty barn, with mud walls and a roof 



