34 



TEA DISTKICTS OF CHINA. 



Chap. II. 



given them to engage another chair for the remainder 

 of the journey, to a place called Kan-du, which is 

 situated on the banks of the large river which here 

 falls into the bay of Hang-chow. 



Everything being satisfactorily arranged, I stepped 

 into the chair, and, desiring my two servants to follow 

 me, proceeded along the narrow streets at a rapid 

 pace. After travelling in this way for about a mile, 

 and expecting every moment to get out into the open 

 country, I was greatly surprised by finding that I was 

 getting more and more into a dense town. For the 

 first time I began to suspect that my servants were 

 deceiving me, and that I was to pass through the city 

 of Hang-chow after all. These suspicions were soon 

 confirmed by the appearance of the walls and ram- 

 parts of the city. It was now too late to object to 

 this procedure, and I thought the best way to act 

 was to let matters take their course and remain 

 passive in the business. 



We passed through the gates into the city. It 

 seemed an ancient place : the walls and ramparts were 

 high and in excellent repair, and the gates were 

 guarded as usual by a number of soldiers. Its main 

 street, through which I passed, is narrow when com- 

 pared with streets in European towns ; but it is well 

 paved, and reminded me of the main street of Ning- 

 po. Hang-chow, however, is a place of much greater 

 importance than Ning-po, both in a political and 

 mercantile point of view. It is the chief town of 

 the Chekiang province, and is the residence of many 

 of the principal mandarins and officers of govern- 



