168 
WANDERINGS IN CHINA. 
Chap. X. 
latitude from the south, is very mountainous, now 
changes, and becomes perfectly level. The shores of the 
river are in many places lower than the river itself, 
which is kept within its bounds by large and strong em- 
bankments. The mountainous scenery disappears en- 
tirely, and even from the top of the highest mast of 
a ship no hill is seen to bound the distant horizon — all 
the view is a vast level plain. That is what is called 
the valley of the Yang-tse-kiang, and is the great 
northern Nanking cotton district. The land is a deep 
rich loam, and is without doubt the finest in China, if 
not in the world. 
At the entrance of the river the navigation is rather 
difficult, particularly in thick weather, owing partly to 
the numerous sand-banks, which are all covered at high 
water, and partly to the difficulty of getting prominent 
landmarks. Since the opening of the trade in 1843 
several ships have got entangled amongst these banks, 
and have been totally wrecked. When I first visited 
the Yang-tse-kiang it was quite a common occurrence 
for vessels to get aground at low water, but as the 
greater part of them were small opium clippers, com- 
manded by men who knew the region well, they gene- 
rally got easily off again when the tide flowed. One 
evening in April we were sailing up this river with 
a fair light breeze, which was sending us on at the rate 
of six or seven miles an hour. The man at the lead was 
singing out his soundings ; and as it was " and a half 
three," and "by the mark three," the captain concluded 
that we were in the right channel, and went below for a 
minute or two. The leadsman was still singing out 
