SPORT AND SCIENCE ON THE 
we made excellent collections of voles, mice and 
hamsters. Two new voles (Microtus johannes and 
M. inez) were secured in this district. Some 
vipers (Ancistrodon intermedius) were also caught. 
The forest and woods, which were rapidly being 
cut down, consisted mainly of spruce, larch and 
pine. The open hillsides at the time of our visit 
were ablaze with the rich yellow blossoms of the 
wild rose and the delicate mauve of the lilac. 
Some varieties of hawthorn and blackthorn were 
also noticed, while a species of wild pear (Pyrus 
sp.) was found growing on the hilltops. In places 
the ground was thickly covered with Solomon’s 
seal, lilies and other flowering herbs. 
The mountains themselves were composed of 
limestone, of the usual grey colour, covered in 
most places with thick deposits of loess and a 
very fertile soil. In spite of the abundant vegeta- 
tion the district was very dry and drinking-water 
scarce. Daily our mules and those of our host 
had to make a six mile journey to secure water 
ata spring which was rapidly drying up, owing to 
drought, and the number of farms it supplied. 
After a stay of ten days we moved on to K’o-lan 
Chou, a dilapidated town some three days’ jour- 
ney north-west of T’ai-yian Fu. From here we 
travelled northward to Ning-wu Fu, passing Wu- 
tsai Hsien and Ch’én-ch’éh Hsien on our way, both 
of which towns are situated on a wide plain stretch- 
ing away to the Yellow River and Ordos Desert. 
34 
