200 Through the Yang-tse Gorges 



and eating the crops (in China there are no fences). The cruel 

 country people amputated his feet, and, as they thought, 

 put aji end to his wanderings; but Buddha, defender of 

 every breathing thing, turned him into stone on the spot, and 

 on dark nights the horse resumes his fleshly form and still 

 continues his depredations. Higher up we traversed another 

 group of rocklets, which the river has not yet succeeded in 

 eroding entirely, known as the " Chiu shih kang," or " ninety 

 jars," each one of which is filled with silver, secreted there 

 by the inhabitants before their massacre, which would repay 

 a public-spirited surveyor who would clear them from the 

 channel. Beguiled by many such yams, we sped rapidly on, 

 and reached Chung-king at sunset. During these interesting 

 colloquies, my Chinese companions had reclined gracefully 

 in the boat upon a red blanket of foreign manufacture, the 

 advantages of which over the ordinary native wadded quilt 

 they extolled highly. Unlike on the latter, the fleas could not 

 leap on its woolly surface, and were hence easily caught and 

 destroyed, as ocular demonstration showed. 



Our boat took ground under the overhanging battlements 

 of the north gate, to which we ascended by a steep climb of 

 nearly three hundred filthy steps, and, almost groping our way 

 through the dimly-lighted streets, at length reached home in 

 time for a welcome supper. I was anxious to know how 

 our ponies would fare in the dark over the rocky roads, but 

 was told to have no care, for they were accustomed to travel 

 by night ; and " had they not, like all horses, ' night eyes ' in 

 their fetlocks?" 



The river, which during my fortnight's stay had gradually 

 risen ten feet, and covered the greater portion of the shingle 

 beds opposite the city, next day suddenly fell six feet, and 

 gave another respite to the extensive " bamboo " town which 

 grows up under the walls and along the water's edge in the 



