THK BIG GAMK OF \\'ESTERN CHINA. 253 



scoff) at native reports, yet as a matter of fact in almost 

 every case in which the hunters told us of the existence of 

 uncouth animals, they w^re able to make good their words, 

 much to the astonishment of our leader, who had apparently 

 never heard of any other wild animals than pigs and deer; 

 moreover, the traveller in far western China will be shown 

 skins that probably no zoologist in Europe could place, and 

 there was shown us at least a skin to bolster up the claim of 

 the monkey-eater to scientific recognition. Here then is a 

 magnificent chance for someone who has time and money, 

 not to mention skill and patience, to investigate the identity 

 of this curious animal, the existence of which I am ready to 

 guarantee without upholding any of the popular stories as to 

 its habits. If it does really live on monkeys it is presumbly 

 an arboreal animal, and the name "sloth" comes instinctively 

 to one's mind; but a carnivorous sloth would be acuriousity 

 indeed! Can it be a giant vampire? These ranges of south- 

 western Kansu and northern Szechwan stretching away to 

 the Great Snowy Mountains which form the rim of the 

 grassland plateau beyond Sung-pan, would repay close 

 investigation; but such investigation is naturally a con- 

 siderable undertaking in a country of such distances and 

 difficulty, for these forested mountains may be put down as 

 uninhabited for many hundreds of square miles. In one of 

 the rapid mountain rivers of northern Szechwan I saw 

 an otter swimming down with the current; it is astonishing 

 how long these animals can keep under water, and also how 

 they seem able to go through big rapids without material 

 damage, though they must be severely buffeted. This animal 

 dived at the least suspicious movement on my part, and 

 refused to come anywhere near the shore; like most 

 carnivorous animals, he did not care to be watched. 



Though we actually saw only two wild animals of any 

 size in Szechwan, and those comparatively small, yet this is 

 undoubtedly one of the richest provinces in China for the 

 big-game hunter; Szechwan and Yunanarethe mountainous 

 provinces /)ar excellence. In the mountains above Tatsienlu 

 at an altitude of about 15,000 feet we came across a curious 

 wild dog of a foxy red colour, an inhabitant of the 

 rhododendron thickets, though it probably descends to 

 considerably lower elevations in the winter, when all around 

 Tatsienlu is under snow. The animal was sufficiently 

 unacquainted with man to remain watching within easy rifle 

 range, but refused to come within gunshot. In winter the 

 mountain-sheep come down the hillsides till they are visible 

 from the city, though in the summer one has to go some 

 distance for them. Another curious little animal of this 

 region- is the "snow-pig" ,(to translate the Chinese name 



