370 EMBANKMENTS. Chap. XVIII. 



for two days, and employed myself in making 

 entomological collections and examining the pro- 

 ductions of tlie district. We tlien went onwards 

 to a small town calted Mei-clie, which was as far as 

 the river was navigable for boats, and from thirty 

 to forty miles west from Hoo-chow-foo. 



Here I moored my boat at a little distance from 

 the town, and determined to remain in the neigh- 

 bourhood long enongh to examine everything of 

 interest which might present itself. Although 

 the country was comparatively level near the 

 banks of the stream, yet I was now surrounded on 

 all sides by hills, and the flat alluvial plain of the 

 Yang-tse-Kiang was quite shut out from my view. 

 In its general features it was rather curious and 

 striking. Everywhere it was cut up into ponds and 

 small lakes, and wide embankments of earth seemed 

 to cross it in all directions. At the first view it 

 was difficult to account for this state of things, and 

 I could not get any satisfactory reason for it, 

 either from my servants or boatmen. I knew 

 well, however, that the Chinese have a good and 

 substantial reason for everything they do, and 

 determined to apply to some farmer as the most 

 likely person to enlighten me. One day when 

 out on an excursion in the country I met an 

 intelligent-looking man, and to him I applied to 

 solve the difficulty. 



" These embankments," said he, " which you 

 now see cutting up the country in all directions, 

 were formed many hundred years ago by our 



