80 A Journey to the Salween 
Chun-tsung-la, a pass further north, only 13,000 feet high, 
the lowest and easiest pass in this region, which we 
were afterwards destined to cross in November on our 
second journey to the Salween. 
The garrison at Bahang was established for the purpose 
of holding the Lissus in check from the north, and the 
soldiers make periodic excursions down the Salween valley, 
there to fight with the tribesmen. These latter are 
thoroughly accustomed to jungle warfare, at which they 
are adepts, and no doubt they enjoy the sport, though 
their only weapon is the cross-bow, pitted against the 
magazine rifle. However, even the cross-bow skilfully 
handled is a match for a rifle fired at haphazard in the 
jungle, and I was told on good authority that in a recent 
attack on a Lissu village, the Chinese soldiers had fired 
four hundred rounds without hitting a man. 
Chinese activity in the Upper Salween valley dates 
from 1910, when two German explorers, who had attempted 
to penetrate into the unknown part of the valley north of 
Mr Lytton’s explorations, were murdered by the Lissus. 
The rights and wrongs of this business will of course 
never be known, but without casting aspersions on two 
brave men, it can scarcely be doubted that they were 
themselves partly responsible for their fate, if only because 
they had with them an Indian cook. If there is one 
hard and fast rule which may profitably be observed when 
travelling amongst the Tibetans and tribesmen, it is this: 
travel with the people of the country and don’t take outside 
Asiatics as servants. Their presence may or may not be 
resented as such, but it is quite certain that sooner or later 
they will get into trouble with the natives. Major Davies, 
who was accompanied by Sepoys, had experience of this 
when he tried to get into Tibet. Lieutenant Clarke, who 
had with him an Indian servant, got into serious trouble with 
the Mohammedan Chinese of Kansu, and lastly the German 
explorers added one more to the list of disasters which | 
firmly believe may be traced at least indirectly to this cause. 
The authorities of Yunnan were goaded on to take 
action in this matter largely owing to the efforts of Consul 
Rose in T’eng-yueh, and an expedition was sent up the 
Salween valley to punish the tribesmen. A village was 
