THE DOME 25 
On the other side of the river, at the village of 
Annan-miao, the Europeans have a small cemetery, 
where they have great difficulty in preventing the 
Chinese from desecrating the graves. During my stay 
I was present at the funeral of a young missionary who 
had died of dysentery at Sha-shih. 
An interesting trip may be made from Ichang to a 
hill known to Europeans as ‘The Dome.’ It is situated 
some little distance inland on the right bank of the 
river below the town, from which it may be seen on 
clear days, the top of the hill having a dome-like ap- 
pearance, whence its name. It is approached by a very 
picturesque valley, which is called the Monastery 
Valley, in which there is a temple and cave, called 
Lung-woung-tung, on the side of a hill. In the cave is 
a lake which is held in great veneration by the Chinese, 
and which has no visible inlet or outlet. Europeans 
are not allowed to thoroughly explore it, and it is pro- 
bable that it is some enlargement of a subterranean 
river, which are not uncommon in the district. 
In the month of September one is often surprised 
to see thousands of tiny lighted lamps floating down on 
the surface of the river. They sometimes extend for 
miles, and are started at some little distance above the 
Chinese city. They are offerings to the deity for the 
souls of those who have lost their lives by drowning in 
