148 BOAD LOST 



at last I managed to get a den in which to pass the 

 niffht. It had no ventilation: the stench was abo- 

 minable and the heat almost unbearable ; but it was 

 better than nothing. 



My coolies went off to smoke opium as usual. It is 

 a most pernicious habit, no doubt, but they will do it 

 whenever they have money, and it has become with 

 most of them such a habit that they cannot do without it, 



I was glad to leave the heat and discomfort of Fu-lin 

 as soon as I could the next morning, and after a hard 

 day's work over bad roads I got to Chin-ki-za, in a 

 delightful climate 6,000 feet above the sea level, at 6 p.m., 

 and on the 22nd I reached Huang-mu-chang, where 

 I found Pere Martin, who gave me a warm welcome. 



On August 23rd I sent my coolies on in the morning 

 to Ta-tien-chih, keeping two only with me, my object 

 in staying behind being to take a photograph of Pere 

 Martin, who was very anxious to have it done. Having 

 accomplished this, satisfactorily as I thought, I made a 

 start at 2 p.m., but had a most unfortunate journey. 

 The coolie whom I had trusted as a guide missed the way, 

 and for some time did not find out what a mistake he 

 had made. In the end we were about ten miles on a 

 wrong road and had to return. We reached the top of 

 the So-i-ling Pass, 8,770 feet, just as it became pitch 

 dark, and the descent was absolutely dangerous. 



