158 Through the Yang-tse Gorges 



I afterwards called, by invitation, on the China Inland 

 Mission, one of whose chief stations is in this city. This 

 mission is English, and, apart from my commiseration 

 for people forced to live like poor Chinamen, it is 

 always pleasant to meet one's fellow-countrymen in distant 

 parts, and I was delighted to go and see them. The 

 members of this mission, male and female, all adopt the 

 Chinese dress. They rent extensive and rather dilapidated 

 Chinese buildings in the upper and more open portion of 

 the city, and have boys' and girls' schools, besides religious 

 services. Their converts are as yet but few; but these 

 earnest missionaries are, as they say, satisfied to sow the seed, 

 and leave the harvest to a Higher Power. It must be dis- 

 heartening work thus trying to convert the very poor, whose 

 motives in changing their religion can never be trusted ; 

 while, as a rule, the upper classes in China disdain all inter- 

 course with them. 



I was accompanied in my rounds to-day by an obliging 

 volunteer guide. He astonished me, however, in reply to 

 the usual questions, by telling one magistrate he was a 

 native of Chili; another, that his province was Shantung; 

 while he was, I believe, really a native of Shansi. I asked 

 him afterwards what was his object in thus concealing his 

 birthplace. He replied it was well not to let the officials 

 know too much. No one who has not been in China (in 

 Shanghai and Hong-kong the whole tone is too European 

 to learn anything really about the natives) can form any idea 

 of the labour to be gone through to gain an exact know- 

 ledge of the simplest fact. 



The forwarding of letters by post between the treaty 

 ports is now (1898) a monopoly of the foreign Customs, but 

 the bulk of the inland postage is still carried on by private 

 native organizations. During my visit to Chung-king, in 



