42 Through the Yang-tse Gorges 



inaccessible spots ; our path led along a ledge about half- 

 way up, with the dry river-bed of smooth pebbles below, a 

 desolate and romantic scene. My followers having lagged 

 behind, I wandered on, wondering when I should come to 

 the rock temple, in which I intended to pass the night, the 

 valley getting even more desolate as I advanced, as if I were 

 coming to the end of all things. The sun had already set 

 behind the mountains on my left, but the tops of those on 

 my right were still brilliantly illuminated. Suddenly, a 

 sharp turn discloses another steep valley, ending in a 

 wall of conglomerate, below which is a fine wood of ever- 

 green trees. The narrow path winds round and leads to 

 the wood, through which ascends a fine stone staircase, 

 announcing the approach to a temple. At length, a deep 

 wide cave, which the trickling water has slowly excavated 

 out of the mountain behind the wood, becomes visible, 

 and I toiled up the steep flight as the vesper bell sounds 

 through the still twilight. Very rich and full sound the 

 deej>-toned strokes of the ancient single bell, such as all 

 these Buddhist temples possess. A gate leads into a 

 paved courtyard, whence another flight of steps ascends 

 to a terrace, which runs in front of three spacious temples, 

 all built under shelter of the huge overhanging cavern. A 

 stone basin rises from the terrace, filled by the perpetual 

 dripping from the roof of the cavern, some sixty feet 

 above, which, as one sits in the guest-room, and looks 

 out through it on to the wood, has all the appearance of 

 a shower of rain. The cave, called "Lung Wang Tung" 

 or Dragon King Cavern, is about loo yards across the 

 opening, and extends inwards almost the same distance. 

 At the back of it is a lake, which the priests say extends 

 inwards an unknown distance; only one man has ever 

 tried to explore it, and he never came back again. They 



