38 
WANDERINGS IN CHINA. 
Chap. II. 
below. These mallets were continually rising and falling, 
as the axle was driven rapidly round by the outside 
wheels, which were turned by the stream. The boat 
was thatched over to afford protection from the rain. 
As we got farther up the river we found that machines 
of this description were very common. 
About ten or twelve miles above Yen-chow the 
country appears more fertile ; the hills are covered again 
with low pines, and the lowlands abound in tallow-trees, 
camphor-trees, and bamboos. Large quantities of Indian 
corn and millet are grown in this part of the country, 
which is, for the most part, too hilly for rice crops. 
Our progress upwards was now very slow, owing to the 
great rapidity of the river. Every now and then we 
came to rapids, which it took us hours to get over, not- 
withstanding that fifteen men, with long ropes fastened 
to the mast of our boat, were tracking along the shore, 
and five or six more were poling with long bamboos. 
Nothing shows so much as this the indefatigable perse- 
verance of the Chinese. When looking upon a river 
such as this is, one would think it quite impossible to 
navigate it, yet even this difficulty is overcome by hard 
labour and perseverance. 
The slow progress which we necessarily made suited my 
purposes exactly, and enabled me to explore the botanical 
riches of the country with convenience and ease. I used 
to rise at break of day, and spend the morning inspecting 
the hills and valleys near the sides of the river, and then 
return to the boat in time for breakfast. Breakfast over, 
I generally went on shore again, accompanied by my 
men, who carried the seeds, plants, or flowers we might 
