50 



FORES! AND STREAM. 



temples came in view ( but-, even with ouc glasses, we could 

 not distinguish a living ileitis. I am inclined to think (hat 



its inhabitants, if they are not, iudced, "spfloks," lliusl I" 

 criminals, who, for fearful enures, liavi in; a banished to 

 this desolate spot. 



We were now fairly in Ihe lake, the length of which had 

 been reported to us to be about one hundred ami fifty 

 miles, and approach in.' . ,,/„, which, a.sv.i, had 



not known i hi pre Mi ,; liuropeau. Being without a 



chart, and none of our crew possessing any reliable infor- 

 mation regarding Ihe depth of waler. we kepi n man in the 

 bows with a light bamboo sounding rod constantly going, 

 ■■mi ■ '.i-!'i in taking the ground being to the rudder 



which projected many feet, below the bottom of (lie boat 



aud was hoi-led and lowered by means of a small windlass 



attached to it. 'l'Jiis, with the 'lee-boards, acted as centre- 



and keel, rhen going to windward, and when before 



| arj tO iloi.-.i. Up bolh to make 



I n ■!■ i ,' ' In m hole Cliinesi' rig is ad- 



■ this inland navigation. The light oot- 



ton -an- -stretch J in MM-, reef themselves by simply 



loweiin. i . i sr. and as the bamboo's 



lying upon oue another keep the sail in place, reef points 



rings ii ■ ; i ■ . ed irttn. When try //«- wim, by 



mean;, oi]/i!t gtii/s the bamboos are trimmed out until their 

 andsare almost flush with the mast, making the sail set 

 much better than one would imagine; and in going Free it 

 is only necessary to slack up these guys and the sail, cone 

 nig partly amid-.sbips, brings the strain m ire directly on 

 tne mast, instead ot mast "hoops a lacing is used, which 

 can be taughleiicd ot slackened at pleasure, 



4,5 the upper end of the Poytrag Lake, are located tne 



Potteries, which are celebrated' throughout the Empire for 



beautiful ware they produce. Prom here came the ini- 



■ilded with dragons and woudert'ul ligures of 



iii ladies ami gentlemen, which sometimes- come to 



■ mill-)-. We were strongly desirous of reaching this 

 point, although our native friends had tried to dissuade ua 

 troto making the attempt, representing the difficulties as 

 ueing almost insurmountable. The men engaged in the 

 potteries, they said, formed almost a race by themselves', 



were implacable in their inure. t of foreigners iiu all 

 this was a matter for future consideration; our present des- 

 tination was a point SOtOQ forty miles up the lake where we 

 propose a lauding, and making our way to the White Deer 



■ I, a spot uoted as well for its beautiful surroundings 

 as the classic associations connected with it. <>u the way 



, m returning, we should skirt the foot of the Lushau 



I tains and pass over the ground where we were assured 



■Mi ma not only plenty of pheasants., but probably 



fail in with the wild pig's which were ihe game we were after. 



-i large custom house station, distinguished h} two tall 



mandarin poles, in the boxes ot which some crows had 



aeir nests, was now abreast ot us, and seemed to be 



the last connecting link with the country «.; were leaving 



behind. A few surly looking officials came out to the 



if! stared at, us as we passed. Their gun boat 



lying -it the jetty mid they looked as though they would 



■ ■ , y oo Wl 11 to send it after the insolent bar- 



who dared to pass WlthOUt paying Iribille. The 



.i- -nn !nn--.-ir, 1 1 , i wi-vcr, had rather fl warlike appearance, 

 the rowe of BOafrdfng pikes tuonj the rail and the 

 six-pounder forward, to -ar nothing or the variou 



■ ■ lie p ,iii M m carelessly about the'deck. 



■ Mi- .|iiii-/ers" contented themselves with looking' at 

 a--, ind the old Hag. Which was being carried for the first 



into these distant waters, floated it-elf in their faces 

 licet impunity. 

 By noon, the wind had moderated somewhat, bill we 

 making good time and thoroughly enjoying the situa- 



i. ■ i -mhmI ■■.■'■■■■ '•' of those happy bays 



oan hardly be described .vrired in the comfortable 

 . j , oi ,...■... , .., . , n ,,; -]..-. ni,.. ,; rlo-ts, we lolled on 

 in- -ii the entire day, going I eh}w only tot tiffin |tr an occa- 

 sional sherry ami bitter-. One'- in a while tin' I.ouba, who 

 ,,- - StBBril ig. would call our atleniiou to a flock of ducks 



■ i ni us, or :i huge pelican floating lazily on the water, 

 ..,. Miking (Air guns we would sit in the sthadow of the 



■ n i nil until the boat gradually eauu.- within range, and 



M-tloit birds, saluted with a volley, would lake wing. 



-....■., I leal were killed ill this manner, and a pelican 



ring over five feci from tip to tip was wing^broki n 



■ i '■■;■. Ml liis in jest i'. however, attempting 



■ u tin- dy<-k was knocked on the head and 



I over to the crow, who pronounced him very good 



l i f-elXOW and suspended him to the mast to be made into 

 ivory compound for their evening's repast. 



: the western shore of the lake we gradually lost 



■ in i i ver and found ourselves surrounded on every 



■ ['piling hdls coming down the Water'.- edge ami 

 ■1 ., iin thick undergrowlh and scattered cedars. The 



if villages, and anything like cultivation, was 



apparent and to he accounted for by Ihe fuel that 



■ .. ,,|i;i.iMiively recent dale, all this pari of the 

 .-.nn in was in the hands of the Taoping Ke.nels. llow- 

 • ■■. . -i. ■; . .in- sun was -mking behind the high peaks ui iln- 



■ ■n ■ ■ l< 3CI ii I hi ■ m nn " , ■■■■ ■ '' ' I '' '-■ prom 



■ . i .' m. ■■■■. -. M..i.eii always mark i 



i i i M i nn I, .n,-. .a .naiidariu'syaiuun, and I'."., .i . 



, ,, mm ■..;■ loiiiifl a lovely bale liay, on ilie .-.bores of 



. , ■ ■ i iie-lleil a piet.ure-u.iic village. The white null, mi 



h- houses, willi Iheir eaves of parti-colored tiles, were 



Hug in the last rays of the setting sun, and Liic entire 



I ■ l n,i ,ii. .ii ivere gathered on Ibe bank to look at bhefltrtl Ig 



. i n,,, 1 In r crew. Sma.ll footed women on thei pig 



;. i-s, came hobbling down and peered ai us troin behind 



;, h ellenug backs of their firmer footed si-lei's, and Ihe 



, crp ,.. ot uciugy am? wollish curs barked in chorus. 



,, dj.fi ,■, nee to i in'' "iiitvm-; i,r ihe more fender portion of 



population, we omitted liic usual anchoring gnu, but 



i. is were towered by the run, and as the chains went 



_■ over ihe bow the .ics-i.- swung to her anchor, and 



i u m mmm- , /i i;. ; inng wa-, snug tor the night. 



, , day opened bright and beautiful, and after 



an earl) breakfasl the dingy was broughl into requisition 

 made two trips, before the whole cavalcade of bar- 

 Mi-,. dogs and coolies were lauded and formed in insirch- 



, ■■ ,.,, r While going through the vilhtguBc-b and Nellie 



,, kept in hand, to order that the natives should not 



M.i ■■ i it) much ocoasipn to fear lor ihe lives of the half- 



, i iii i-n with which the streets were thronged. Buf- 



iii the leash, and with my short Jacob's rifle over his 



Tin under, was almost overcome with pride. Monkey, eariy- 



,, , ,, -jjio'e -hot and chpW-chOW, all In, ugh rut her more 



heavily loaded, was quite jubilant. (.', and myself led the 



and Nifc'k and If, brought up the rear, behind the 



In this ordet our little procession passed through 



the I- of Tsing poo; and reaching the firsi bluff, paused 



before plunging into (lie ,,,■,,,,■,„„.,,,, beyond. At our 

 feel i ■■■■ flie ■ illage, stri cited tlonq the lake, now withoni 



a ripple disturbing the still surface uf the water. The 

 Jessie, looking as saucy as ever, was evidently -till an ob- 

 ject of curiosity K) the unemployed portion of the com- 

 munity, as we eould see numbers of them squatted On. their 

 haunches and watching the operations of the men on board. 

 A. few long narrow junks, their sides brightly oiled or var- 

 nislicd. were bauleri alongside tin- liaiil-.s. and receiving on 

 board their cat ■ Of coarse China ware and paper, which 

 seemed to be the chief product- of this district. No idea 

 of the dimensions ot the lake COuld be obtained- from this 

 point, so irregular is its shape, and SO many little promon- 

 tories, all covered with bright, green .-hriihiiery, were jut- 

 ting into if from every direction. In no ol her pari of China 

 have 1 seen such wild country or any thai promised better 

 for sport, The cover every where' on the hill -ides was 

 very thick and seemed excellent for pheasants, while in 

 nearly every valley, certainly in those containing any trace 

 of habitation, was a pond covered with the broad leaves of 

 the lotus plain, ami partly hidden by the dense growth of 

 bamboo on the banks. A Chinaman's mites SO much re- 

 semble an Irishman's, and the instructions we had received 

 in Tsing-poo for finding the grotto were of such an uncer- 

 tain and indefinite description, that we had made every 

 preparation for camping out all night, if necessary. Thirty 

 "li" was the distance given us, but the route we should fake 

 in going by the foothills of the Luslum, and the detours in- 

 cident upon the pursuit of game would undoubtedly make 

 it much greater. Three Chinese "li" arc equal to' one ol 

 our miles, but John is no more a judge of distance than lie 

 is of time. Facing Ihe mountains again, we resumed out- 

 march along the little footpath which formed the means of 

 communication between Tsing-pOo and the only village 

 we should meet in oui journey. Bob and Nellie Were 

 ml bounded on before us, delighted at regaining 

 their freedom, but reaching a particularly promising piece 

 of cover, they were again called in, and leaving the path 

 we formed in skirmishing order on the bill side. We 

 longed now for the setters who were safely housed in the 

 kennels at Kiu Slang, if only for the pleasure ol seeing 

 them work; but regrets were useless, and it was not long 

 before C, on the extreme right of the line, put up a mag- 

 nificent cock pheasant and bOWled him over in fine style. 

 A. hen next fell to me. but was iguominiously missed, while 

 both Nick and II. accounted for birds within a lew 

 minutes. The birds were comparatively plentiful, but, in 

 a short time became very wild, rising out 'of range and in 

 every instance when they could be marked down, taking 

 refuge in the clumps of bamboos in the hollows, where, 

 without dogs, it was impossible to dislodge them. Even 

 with their assistance it is doubtful if we could have re- 

 covered many, as the think canes, almost touching one. 

 another, rendered the brakes impenetrable. On the borders 

 of the lotus ponds, however, an occasional snipe was flushed 

 and added to the bag. 



Resumimrthe path the dogs were again given their liberty 

 and scampered out of sight, ahead of us. Soon, a few cul- 

 tivated fields filled wifii long stalks of the roil let, or here 

 and there a little patch of buckwheat, indicated that we 

 were approaching the half-way village, and us we turned a 

 corner of the road the houses came in sight. To our sur- 

 prise, and somewhat, to our consternation, We found the 

 whole population of the place turned out to receive us. At 

 least, a hundred men and women were approaching, armed 

 with sticks, hoes, flails and everything in the shape ol a 

 weapon, which seemed lo have been at hand. Some were 

 beating tin pans and kettles, and all joiued at the top of 

 their lungs in the discordant din. Hatters began to look 

 serious, and it was not until Bob aud Nellie came trotting 

 back to us as if to 8 1 the tu I of all the disturbance, and 

 we saw our coolies drop their loads and fairly roll on the 

 ground in paroxysms of laughter, that we recognized in the 

 shouts of the "Villagers the dreaded word -'Taw! daw!' 

 and discovered that pooi Bob and his mother had been 

 taken for tigers, After all, the mistake was not such an 

 unnatural one. The dogs were not only totally unlike their 

 own wretched beasts, but Bob's brindled sides, and his im- 

 mense siatui-c gave him some faint resemblance to the 

 tigers which We had heard were, sometimes found in these 

 mountains. 1 have seen a leopard brought into KiuKiang, 

 and his flesh still raw aud bloody, cut into small pieces and 

 sold to the people for charms and to the mandarin "braves" 

 to inspire them with courage. The province of Shantung 

 at the north and the country about Aiuoy, are noted for 

 tigers — the real oid Bengal sort; and witliiu my own recol- 

 lection a magnificent specimen, after killing a native, was 



shot in the presence of an English resident, in the paddy 

 1. I 1- of ihe Tah-ti Creek, not three miles from Canton. 

 Explanations having been made, harmony was restored, 



and we were received with the -civility I have always met 

 with from the country people everywhere, except in Ihe 

 neighborhood Of Canton. It seems strange that there, 

 where foreigners have' been the longest in intercourse with 

 them, and where they have received the strongest proofs Ol 

 their incapacity for coping with the detested barbarians, 

 the people should still be insulting aud inimical. True, the 

 men of the soul hern provinces, reversing the usual rule, are 

 the bravest, and mosi pugnaciously inclined, yet, one would 

 that the lesson received in 1656 would have taught 

 them good manners. At the north, or in the Yang Tsze 

 provinces as far as foreigners usually penetrate, ihe people, 

 lude.-.- lm-ited Ly the soldier, are universally 'ivd Scms- 

 times a hoy would salute u.- with theci vof "Yuug-qui-tsi," 

 (foreign devil,) but 1 doubt if they knew of any other name 

 by which to call us. 



Leaving the village and the chiu-ehin:-. of its Celestial la 



habitants behind* an hour or two of brisk walking brought 



i, m brow of a hill, from which we looked down upon 



one of the loveliest, spots f have ever seen. It could not 

 have been more than forty or fifty acres in extent— an al- 

 most circular ampifheatre, three sides of which were 

 covered with pines and Other frees; and on the fourth, the 

 noble old Lushau lulls, which had been our landmarks all 

 the dav. sloped for 5,000 feet to their rocky summits above 

 us In ihe centre of the valley was a rather extensive and 

 handsomlv ornamented building, with an open courtyard— 

 half temple, half mmim. There were no idols about it, 

 but on the walls Of the different apartments were tables in- 

 scribed with extracts from the five books aud four classtes, 

 and in the courtyard sluggish gold fish swam m tanks 

 shaded by the broad leaves of the lotus plant. 



Near the house ran a beautiful brook, and crossing this 

 We discovered the far-famed grotto, at the entrance to which 

 was a life-size plaster east of a white deer. The legend of 

 ihe place is, that the cave or grotto was once the home of 



a celebrated writer or philosopher belonging to the sect of 

 Tan i t- or Rationalists. Retiring to this spot for that quiet 

 contemplation of virtue which "is supposed to result in 

 spiritual perfection and fif the devotee for a return to the 

 bosom of supreme Reason, he was fed and his material 

 wants supplied by a while deer, who with a little basket 

 tied lo her neck. 'would go to the neighboring village >nnl 

 return with a supply of food. Bemg met by a party of 

 hunters one day, she was shot, and returning to the phil- 

 osopher with tiie arrow in her side, expired at his feet. 

 The story goes on lo say that the old man pined awnv and 

 died, ahd his admirers 'and scholars erected the building 

 and statue. 



We found m number of well-dressed aud .superior looking 

 Chinamen on the premises, many of them wearing the 

 scarf of the successful candiikue for literary honors, who 

 were probably preparing for the last grand effort at Pek- 

 ing. They treated us With the coldest politeness, amonni- 

 i.i'i m'mm.m ;o indifference, which was remarkable, consider- 

 ing that many of fhem had never beheld a foreigner. 

 Nevertheless, they were gentlemen, and as different in ap- 

 pearance from the ordinary native as black is from white. 

 Their mode of life appeared ascetic, and flic only petticoats 

 to be seen were worn by the men. 



Willingly would we have lingered longer in this enchant- 

 ing spot, but, the clay was wauiug and a long journey still 

 before us. Following the stream in the direction of the 

 mountain, we found ourselves in a narrow defile and on a 

 rapidly ascending grade, which carried us to a series of low 

 hills, covered in places with small scrub cedars, and again 

 with tangled masses of jungle, which in the hollows be- 

 tween the hills, were also impenetrable swamps. Here 

 was the ground which we had been informed contained the 

 haunts of the wild pigs and sometimes larger and more 

 dangerous game. 1 suggested that we divide our forces 

 and that while two took stations below, the others, with the 

 coolies and dogs, should make a detour to one of the hills 

 above us, and beat the cover as well as was practicable, in 

 our direction. 



It fell to the lot of McK. and myself to remain below, so 

 separating from my companion, I took up my station di- 

 rectly opposite a jungle covered hill, on the side of another 

 covered with cedars, which, while screening me sufficiently, 

 still allowed of an uninterrupted view in the direction from 

 which we expected the game to approach. McK. placed 

 himself in a similar position some few hundred yards on 

 my left. For a while we could hear the noise made by the 

 beating party as their footsteps crackled on the dry under 

 brush," and then all was still. I. lighted my pipe and en- 

 joyed a smoke while admiring the bold grandeur of the 

 mountains; but time passed very slow T ly r and the silence 

 was so oppressive'that I fancied 1 could hear the beating of 

 my own heart. Sometimes I was on the point of calling to 

 McK. but restrained myself. He afterwards admitted that 

 he was in the same frame of mind. At last— it had seemed 

 hours — we heard a shout, a long distance in front, and then 

 another half hour's silence. This time it was broken by 

 Nellie's familiar whimper, ecliod by Bob's deep bass, and 

 we knew that game of some kind was afoot. Nearer and 

 nearer the sounds approached, and we could hear the 

 Shouts Of -the beaters as they urged the dogs on, and pre- 

 vented the game from turning towards the mountains. 

 Looking across the little hollow in front of me I could see 

 the bushes shaken as though by some beast forcing a pas- 

 sage through, and soon an old sow, black as night, and fol- 

 lowed by "some half dozen little porkers, broke cover. 

 Whether she heard the clicking of the gun locks sis T 

 cocked both barrels, I know not, but just as I was prepar- 

 ing to fire, she suddenly swerved, and followed by her pro- 

 geny, went off in the direction of Nick. Presently I heard 

 the report of his gun, succeeded by a most infernal sqeal 

 ing. Either in his excitement he had missed the sow, or 

 tiis gun scattering, the buckshot had struck one of the pigs, 

 Hearing him calling my name I ran over to the spot and 

 found that the sow r had turned and was standing alongside 

 of a pig who had apparently had his leg broken. The old 

 beast looked very vicious and was evidently preparing for 

 a charge, when, "her attention being directed by my appear- 

 ance, McK managed to get a broadside shot, and at twenty- 

 yards distance planted the whole charge of his second bar- 

 Tel directly behind her forcshoulder. She dropped like a 

 log, and after a few convulsive struggles, gave up the 

 ghost. I gave the little fellow his quietus, but the rest of 

 the brood had scattered and secreted themselves in the 

 underbrush. Going back to where we could hear S. and 

 H. encouraging the dogs we found them standing outside 

 of a small thicket in which a boar had taken refuge. The 

 coolies were on the other side throwing in stones, but as 

 they did not work with much enthusiasm, McK. and H. 

 went around to their side. We had not waited many 

 minutes before there was a great rustling and crashing in 

 the bushes, and the brute, closely followed by the dogs, 

 broke cover directly in front, of us. 



"Foitti from ihe Ulil-.kel iu-lusd another boar, 

 So large be seemed ihe tyrant of the woods. 

 With sill hi.- di i si.tfiil bristles rais'd up high: 

 Thev seem'd a "rove nf spesirs upon his back. 

 Foaming he cAme at me where 1 was posted, 

 Whetting hi,- hia-f Vine, tu-k- unci --aping wide. 

 As he already had me lor his prey."- 

 Dtway's lines apply very aptly to the great iron gray 

 liea-t that came at us," with the foam dropping iu clots from 

 liis tusks, as the dogs worried and harrassed him aud then 

 nimbly avoided his furious charges. The boar, now quite 

 infuriated, repeatedly charged C. and myself, but before 

 reaching our position Bob and Nellie would be on his flanks 

 and force him to stand at hay. We did not dare to shool 

 for fear of hitting the dogs, but at length, as he turned ami 

 attempted to regain the cover, we fired together, ami at 

 least n dozen bueksho! striking him brought, him to his 

 knees, it was with great difficulty we called off the dogs, 

 wdio were every instant in danger of being ripped up by the 

 furious lunges lie inside with his tusks, and with a second 

 barrel gave him the whj, (U <//'<trc. The proper thing under 

 such circumstances would have been to have- stopped for- 

 ward with a mutant <fe ,:hii«ne and administered 1 he death 

 blow, but unfortunately we had neither hunting knives or 

 swords, and however well such a thing may look in Ihe 

 llluxlmtal Loudon .Ve»-,*, I, for one, must confess to a pre- 

 . ,,, ot a more respectful distance and gunpowder and 

 lead in place of cold steel. 



The coolies now coming up with the information thai 

 two more pigs had gone off up the hill side, I took the 

 Jacob's rifle fri.mi Buffalo, and calling Bob, went iu the di- 

 rection they had taken. Bob al the word jumped into the 

 brush, and in a moment was lost to sight. I followed him 

 until 1 reached a more open piece of ground ou the steep 

 hillside, where were seal! .1. !■■■' ■ it and then 



