CHINA 
allows for many luxuries and comforts; an additional £30 per month will 
provide for a second person. There is one indispensable adjunct for a 
successful trip of some months’ duration into the interior. This is a reliable 
interpreter. Such men are hard to find. Many natives would probably 
agree to any conditions imposed at the coast; once away from the railway 
and civilization, unless differing considerably from any Chinaman I met, 
they would develop into a source of endless trouble and worry to their 
unfortunate employer, or, abruptly flitting, leave him to the tender mercies 
of their countrymen. The demand for white hunters in China has not yet 
produced such a supply as is to be found in British East Africa, nor is it 
ever likely to do so. If a man of this description can be found, who talks the 
language fluently and understands the natives, he would, in the end, save 
money and add materially to the success of the trip. £60 per month would 
be about the usual charge. The sportsman who visits China intent on big 
game shooting must be prepared for a good deal of hard work. Such 
animals as the takin, wapiti, serow and burhel are not to be secured with- 
out some pretty stiff climbing, in some cases over very rough country. 
He should have plenty of time at his disposal, for things cannot be hurried, 
and he will want all his available stock of patience. A small but select bag 
should content him, for there is none of the six-or-seven-species-a-day 
business as there is in East Africa. If he works hard and uses discrimina- 
tion, he should, however, secure some most interesting and rare trophies, 
whilst it is quite likely that the man who is content to break fresh ground 
may immortalize his name by the discovery of a new species. 
I used a *275 Rigby-Mauser (pointed bullets), a *350 Magnum (ditto), 
and a 12 -bore shot gun. However, I have no wish to cram my pet weapons 
down anyone’s throat, and as any rifles of this description, by a good maker, 
would do equally well, I will say no more about them. It is not easy to get 
cartridges in China, and it really saves trouble in the long run to send them 
on ahead to Shanghai, or some other port. The Chinese in the interior, 
especially away from the main provincial centres, are a pleasant enough 
lot to deal with. They are curious and inquisitive, but quite friendly. The 
attitude of Chinese towards foreigners generally has undergone a very 
radical change since the Boxer rising of 1900, and we never experienced 
any real trouble. 
In the following pages I shall not deal with the game birds of China, 
as the subject is altogether distinct from that of the larger mammals. 
Pheasants, however, are very abundant, and during the autumn months 
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