﻿'WHERE 
  THE 
  MOUNTAINS 
  WALKED' 
  

  

  461 
  

  

  trade 
  mart 
  of 
  the 
  western 
  half 
  of 
  the 
  

   province. 
  

  

  The 
  first 
  damage 
  done 
  by 
  earthquake 
  

   was 
  found 
  to 
  be 
  among 
  the 
  ancient 
  tab- 
  

   lets 
  of 
  Hwa 
  Yin 
  Temple, 
  lying 
  under 
  the 
  

   shadow 
  of 
  sacred 
  Hwa 
  Mountain, 
  not 
  far 
  

   beyond 
  the 
  Honan 
  border. 
  

  

  In 
  Sianfu, 
  the 
  capital 
  of 
  Shensi, 
  some 
  

   damage 
  was 
  done 
  to 
  houses, 
  but 
  there 
  

   was 
  no 
  loss 
  of 
  life. 
  Lesser 
  destruction 
  

   was 
  wrought 
  in 
  spots 
  between 
  Sianfu 
  

   and 
  Pingliang. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  vicinity 
  of 
  Tsingning 
  and 
  

   Pingliang, 
  five 
  to 
  six 
  thousand 
  feet 
  above 
  

   sea-level, 
  cave-dwellings 
  in 
  the 
  loess 
  cliffs 
  

   collapsed, 
  causing 
  great 
  loss 
  of 
  life 
  among 
  

   the 
  peasants, 
  who 
  principally 
  inhabit 
  this 
  

   style 
  of 
  home. 
  Cattle, 
  horses, 
  and 
  herds, 
  

   stabled 
  and 
  folded 
  in 
  caves, 
  were 
  buried 
  

   alive. 
  

  

  Passing 
  Pingliang, 
  the 
  investigators 
  

   found 
  themselves 
  in 
  the 
  belt 
  of 
  complete 
  

   destruction, 
  where 
  cities 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  peas- 
  

   ant 
  villages 
  suffered 
  heavy 
  loss 
  of 
  life 
  and 
  

   all 
  buildings 
  were 
  leveled. 
  

  

  At 
  Wating, 
  where 
  the 
  highway 
  forks, 
  

   one 
  road 
  going 
  north 
  to 
  Kuyuan 
  and 
  the 
  

   Mohammedan 
  region 
  along 
  the 
  Yellow 
  

   River 
  and 
  the 
  other 
  west 
  to 
  Lanchowfu 
  

   and 
  Turkestan, 
  we 
  obtained 
  our 
  first 
  

   photographs 
  of 
  a 
  ruined 
  city. 
  Taking 
  the 
  

   road 
  to 
  the 
  provincial 
  capital 
  (Lanchow- 
  

   fu), 
  we 
  soon 
  ascended 
  Six 
  Plate 
  Moun- 
  

   tain. 
  With 
  the 
  elevation, 
  evidence 
  of 
  

   seismic 
  disturbance 
  grew 
  less, 
  to 
  become 
  

   again 
  abundant 
  when 
  the 
  loess 
  foothills 
  

   of 
  the 
  west 
  descent 
  were 
  reached. 
  

  

  IN 
  THE 
  DISTRICT 
  WHERE 
  "THE 
  MOUN- 
  

   TAINS 
  walked" 
  

  

  Two 
  of 
  the 
  hardest-hit 
  cities, 
  Lungteh 
  

   and 
  Tsingning 
  (which, 
  being 
  interpreted, 
  

   mean, 
  respectively, 
  Virtuous 
  Dragon 
  

   and 
  — 
  paradoxically 
  — 
  Quiet 
  Peace) 
  were 
  

   passed, 
  and 
  then 
  we 
  visited 
  the 
  district 
  

   where 
  "the 
  mountains 
  walked." 
  

  

  Following 
  the 
  Sianfu 
  - 
  Lanchowfu 
  - 
  

   Turkestan 
  highway, 
  we 
  ascended 
  a 
  small 
  

   valley 
  of 
  steep 
  grade 
  directly 
  west 
  of 
  

   Tsingning. 
  Suddenly 
  the 
  highroad 
  for 
  a 
  

   length 
  of 
  a 
  quarter 
  of 
  a 
  mile 
  dropped 
  out 
  

   of 
  sight. 
  It 
  had 
  been 
  cut 
  as 
  if 
  chopped 
  

   off 
  with 
  an 
  axe, 
  leaving 
  the 
  fifty-year 
  

   old 
  poplars 
  and 
  cottonwoods 
  with 
  which 
  

   it 
  is 
  lined 
  partly 
  uprooted, 
  like 
  sentinels 
  

   stricken 
  at 
  their 
  post, 
  upon 
  the 
  edge 
  of 
  

  

  the 
  sixty- 
  foot 
  gully 
  which 
  occupied 
  the 
  

   position 
  of 
  the 
  road. 
  

  

  The 
  roadside 
  water-supply 
  of 
  a 
  near- 
  

   by 
  village 
  had 
  disappeared 
  down 
  this 
  

   same 
  gully. 
  The 
  natives 
  were 
  carrying 
  

   their 
  water 
  from 
  a 
  new 
  lake 
  a 
  mile 
  to 
  the 
  

   south, 
  in 
  the 
  center 
  of 
  the 
  valley. 
  

  

  Making 
  his 
  way 
  over 
  the 
  rent 
  terraces 
  

   to 
  this 
  lake, 
  which 
  had 
  been 
  formed 
  by 
  

   the 
  damming 
  up 
  of 
  the 
  valley 
  stream 
  by 
  

   a 
  two-mouthed 
  slide 
  from 
  the 
  hills 
  on 
  the 
  

   opposite 
  bank, 
  Mr. 
  Hall 
  procured 
  what 
  

   are, 
  perhaps, 
  the 
  three 
  most 
  explanatory 
  

   illustrations 
  (pages 
  450 
  and 
  460). 
  

  

  THE 
  CLIMAX 
  OE 
  DESOLATION 
  

  

  The 
  short 
  valleys 
  in 
  this 
  section 
  join 
  

   one 
  another 
  like 
  links 
  in 
  a 
  chain. 
  Riding 
  

   to 
  the 
  summit 
  of 
  the 
  divide 
  which 
  sepa- 
  

   rated 
  this 
  from 
  the 
  next 
  link, 
  we 
  were 
  

   amazed 
  by 
  the 
  panorama 
  of 
  a 
  valley 
  

   filled 
  with 
  the 
  loess 
  dust 
  and 
  clouds 
  of 
  

   seven 
  tremendous 
  landslips 
  which 
  had 
  

   come 
  out 
  of 
  the 
  hills 
  on 
  either 
  side. 
  This 
  

   little 
  nook 
  in 
  the 
  hills, 
  some 
  five 
  miles 
  long, 
  

   known 
  as 
  the 
  "Teng 
  Clan 
  Draw," 
  had 
  be- 
  

   come 
  in 
  verity 
  the 
  climax 
  of 
  desolation. 
  

  

  Hardly 
  enough 
  valley-floor 
  land 
  re- 
  

   mained 
  uncovered 
  for 
  one 
  good 
  kitchen 
  

   garden 
  ; 
  several 
  peasant 
  settlements 
  lay 
  

   buried 
  beneath 
  the 
  debris 
  ; 
  one 
  "village 
  of 
  

   the 
  dead," 
  containing 
  not 
  a 
  single 
  sur- 
  

   vivor, 
  lay 
  in 
  ruins. 
  

  

  A 
  lone 
  mound 
  of 
  fresh 
  earth 
  — 
  the 
  

   grave 
  of 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  few 
  victims 
  who 
  have 
  

   been 
  excavated 
  — 
  stood 
  between 
  the 
  ruins 
  

   and 
  a 
  thirty- 
  foot 
  precipice 
  cut 
  by 
  the 
  

   slide 
  which 
  had 
  just 
  missed 
  the 
  village. 
  

   From 
  a 
  reed 
  stuck 
  in 
  the 
  earth 
  hung 
  a 
  

   paper 
  strip 
  bearing 
  the 
  inscription 
  : 
  "The 
  

   Eastern 
  Lord 
  of 
  the 
  Church, 
  if 
  you 
  seek 
  

   and 
  call, 
  may 
  save 
  your 
  bitterness." 
  The 
  

   dead 
  was 
  Mohammedan. 
  

  

  THE 
  EIRST 
  SHOCK 
  CAME 
  AT 
  9:30 
  IN 
  THE 
  

   EVENING 
  

  

  The 
  only 
  survivors 
  of 
  this 
  valley 
  were 
  

   saved 
  as 
  if 
  by 
  miracle 
  — 
  a 
  husbandman 
  

   and 
  his 
  two 
  young 
  sons, 
  whose 
  farmstead, 
  

   instead 
  of 
  being 
  buried, 
  was 
  caught 
  upon 
  

   the 
  back 
  of 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  slides, 
  carried 
  half 
  

   a 
  mile 
  down 
  the 
  valley 
  to 
  where 
  it 
  was 
  

   diverted 
  by 
  two 
  streams 
  of 
  earth 
  coming 
  

   from 
  other 
  directions 
  and, 
  as 
  the 
  resultant 
  

   of 
  the 
  two 
  forces, 
  was 
  pushed 
  another 
  

   quarter 
  of 
  a 
  mile 
  up 
  a 
  small 
  draw. 
  

  

  