We started up river again on. March 14, and should have gone straight through to a point 10 miles up the river on the same day, But! we were first held up by the customs and later, after taking our photographs of the "Duck's Ege" rapids, were held up for the night, headquarters of bandits was situated two miles further up the wr, I was beginning to get a bit fed up with this bandit business, but our boat's crew had th own ideas, and I had learned to respect the opinion of my Chine: helpers when it came to a question' Jof dealing with other Chinese, so we tied up for the night. Early in Fuki next morning we slipped past the danger point and the boatman assured me that thereafter we shoul see no more of bandits. Nor did' we on the river nor until I had sent Krainukov back to Shanghai and had carried on alone to Chungan and the mountains behind where I "met up" with my friend] Pope.
T-was much disappointed that Pope could not be with us on the vening when we went out to] "round up" the bandits, for he too fad suffered much at their hands and would, I knew, be glad of an he was down in Sankan where he cowld-not be reached in the. rapid development' of events, and this how it happened. It had been.raiaing all. day (as usual) - and, I sat. in the. opening' lof our mountain-side camp, cursing the weather and watching with appreciative eye the signs of clearing, I noticed a group of three: youths passing with guns Shoulder." Shortly afterwards four more passed and behind them came a pair armed as were the others. When the fourth contingent show. ed up T called to. my taxidermist to find out what it was all about, and this is what he learned. "Futei, (bandits) have been reported 20 eust, coming in this direction, and presumably will attack us to: night, so we are going to the pass to stop them there." This "listened" fine. I had six modern guns anti six men who knew how to use them, and in a matter of minutes we had changed clothes and were ready to go out with these lads to help them defend their homes and to-give the bandits back 4 Dit of their own.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.