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THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



MIXING PORCELAIN CLAYS: CHING-TEH-CHEN 



Some clays are brittle, some are tough. This is the method of mixing used in all the factories 



(see text, page 401). 



then singing, first to the water spirits and 

 then to the spirits in the heavens. After 

 an interval of rowing for a mile or more. 

 the boatmen would rest by getting out 

 and taking the boat in tow with a long 

 rope attached to the mast, while the 

 guard sat in the stern at the rudder and 

 kept us away from the shore. 



The craft itself was about 40 feet long 

 and was divided into three sections, with 

 space in each for two "p'u kais,"' or 

 mattresses. In the stern, covered with 

 boards, was a charcoal stove, with an 

 ample supply of rice near by. The prin- 

 cipal articles of food were eggs, rice, fish, 

 several kinds of vegetables, and tea — 

 good, substantial food when one is living 

 in the open. By removing the floor and 

 standing on the bottom of the boat, one 

 could assume an erect position with ease. 



Life on a house-boat means an abun- 

 dance of fresh air and freedom from the 

 ever-present and noisy Chinese crowd. 

 To appreciate its comforts, one must 

 make the boat his dwelling-place long 

 enough to grow attached to it. 



Late in the afternoon of the second 

 day out from Raochow we approached 



Ching-teh-chen. I shall never forget the 

 thrill I experienced as I first caught sight 

 of the smoke issuing from the chimneys 

 of scores of kilns. Quite an ordinary 

 scene in any Western industrial city, but 

 here, far away from the main routes of 

 travel, in a conservative, interior prov- 

 ince of China, it was as striking as it 

 was unusual. 



The first view one g^ets of any Chinese 

 city is likely to be the bold outline of a 

 tower or temple, but in Ching-teh-chen 

 the first thing that caught our expectant 

 gaze was something entirely different. 



A CITY WONDERFULLY SITUATED 



The situation of Ching-teh-chen is per- 

 fect, from the Chinese point of view. 

 The city is located between the mouths 

 of two rivers which flow into the North 

 River, one from the east and one from 

 the west. The town is naturally supplied 

 with an abundance of fresh water, the 

 clearness of which still stands out in my 

 mind in vivid contrast to the muddy yel- 

 lowness of the Yangtze and of Po Yang 

 Lake. 



