Chap. XIII. 
A PRIEST'S RESIDENCE. 
207 
stones, with large letters carved upon them, let in or 
built into the face of these rocks. These, at a distance, 
have a most curious appearance. 
The old priest with whom I had taken up my quarters 
seemed miserably poor ; the piece of ground attached to 
the temple for his support was very small. Now and 
then one of his own sect, who came to worship at the 
temples amongst these hills, left him a small present, 
but such visits were " few and far between." And there 
was nothing grand or imposing about his temple to at- 
tract the rich and great, except indeed the scenery which 
surrounded it. 
Having given the old man some money to purchase a 
dinner for myself and my men, I made a hasty meal 
and went out to explore the hills. I visited many of the 
tea-farms, and was successful in procuring about four 
hundred young plants. These were taken to Shanghae 
in good order, and many of them are now growing 
vigorously in the Government tea plantations in the 
Himalayas. 
The old priest and his wife could not afford to bum 
either candle or oil, and were therefore in the habit of 
retiring very early to rest. As the night was wet and 
my quarters far from comfortable, I soon followed their 
example. Sing-Hoo, who was in the room with me, 
said he had no confidence in these Fokien men, as he 
called them, and that he would let down the trap-door 
of our garret and make all fast for the night before we 
went to sleep. However soundly I sleep, the least 
noise of an unusual kind is sure to awake me. Some- 
where about midnight I awoke, and for a second or two 
