THE HIGHWAYS AND BYWAYS OF KWEICnOW 188 



terranean passage up to a monastery perched amongst the 

 rooks a hundred feet above it, and with the most enchanting 

 stream flowing out of the cavern. 



Everywhere the country was a blaze of poppy flowers, 

 rose red, violet, puce, purple and white. The growth of it 

 is frankly encouraged and the price, which had risen to 

 six dollars per ounce has now dropped to forty cents, and 

 with this bumper harvest will probably fall to twenty cents. 

 Immense fortunes are being made out of it by some of the 

 officials. 



In the neighbourhood of Ta Feng Ting we saw many 

 Black Miao, who certainly have a fine carriage and look 

 very smart in their sombre dress, all black, including head- 

 dress, and adorned with very dark-coloured embroideries. 

 They wear large silver necklets and the men wear a single 

 silver ring in the left ear. In photos of the various Miao 

 tribes a very erroneous impression is given of their com- 

 plexion, making it appear almost black. Those we saw were 

 for the most part hardly darker than the Chinese, but tanned 

 of course with the constant exposure of an open air life. 

 It is often supposed that photography is of superior value 

 to pen or brush work, because it has a mechanical accuracy; 

 but for that very reason it is the more dangerous, because 

 it frequently gives a totally wrong impression, as for instance 

 with regard to the height of mountains. 



Before reaching Hsinchow we came to a fine suspension 

 bridge formed of iron chains, 50 ft. long and 15 ft. broad, 

 built into solid stone masonry at each end and with carved 

 stone elephants ornamenting the pedestals at one end. A 

 curious feature of this day's travel was the fine stone walls 

 by the road side, built, it is said, by the Black Miao, but 

 the use of which is not quite apparent. 



Before reaching Sha-p'ing we came to a noted cave 

 with a remarkable figure of Kwanyin on a pedestal, enclosed 

 in a kind of bamboo cage. There were smaller figures in the 

 stalactite walls and a black, seated god, which is supposed 

 to cure any pain, by the patient rubbing him on the spot 

 where he feels a pain. From the town of Sha-p'ing it is 

 possible to go by river down to Chen Yuen through a fine 

 gorge, but it seemed better to us to go by road, and I 

 should have been sorry to miss the fine approach over a 

 pass, from which you look down a narrow vista to the 

 valley some thousand feet below. 



We spent seme days at Chen Yuen, which looks as if 

 it were in a complete cul de sac of precipitous mountains, 

 the end of which is closed by a fine crag, against which are 

 several temples most strikingly built up the face of the 



