Interior Travel in China and Its Fascinations:
How I Laughed Myself Out of Danger:
Moral of the Unexpected Br. Scevraroe, often wonder why foreigners so rarely go up" the Yangtsze when their leave falls due instead of down, for then they have time to. travel, When an old traveller is drawn out at a Bubbling Well dinner party to yarn of his experiences the I Rasp, the men pull carelessly away At their smokes and say, "By Jove, that's the life... That's what I'd like to do"—and "know they don't mean a word they say. On the mor~ row they go to theft bank, or their hong, or wherever they have elect-fed to spend half their 1i either okeing out a living or making 'a pretty fortune, forgetting enti their expressed' wish of the hight before that they would like to sec China from within. And in due course, with their shekels in their bags, they retire with scant knowledge of the country and the people among whom they. have lived, only' regretful of the wasted days. It's good to be an Idler now and then, for an idler often learns the art of Of course, I am re of the fortunate. It was many years ago that T essayed, all unaware of hazards; and audacious to a degree, to cross China from the Pacific, see Eastern Tibet, and come down to Bhamo (in British Burma) en route to the sea for Home, I did it. And you see, am still in China!" Those were the wonder years of my life; but that another story. ud feared his early dissolution, my. coffin was made ready, and enterprising scribblers blazoned out before the world the highly exaggerate ed report'that I had crossed the river, surprising me and paining others.
Tu inland tra ever, travel is endure as much as you meet and never turn back; and thus I was able to come to myself again under circumstances that I" shall now relate.
We had done a fong day's tramping, and weary was my cara morrow, then, should be an easy day. As we gazed over the river to the range, up whose slopes were to strain our weather-heated way, we caught a glimpse of the tiny' haven which would house men and horses at night. We had been ina Scotch mist' for dayx—drenched through, bedding wet, horses fagged and lame, bearers churlish and malevolent. At mid-morrow we had pul-drinking dirty tea and delivering foul invective, the quadrupeds picking at scrub and thinking hard. Suddenly a telegram messenger arrived, the message for me. I was to change my course, according to its reading, a8 the people in the village were planning our quick and final disposal. But I disregarded the vice amd ie fellow a few day, travelling several years China's glorious Far West, often months and once for 263. days: fethone hearing eccien vole aad seeing no people other than the Hatives, I do not know; and if I personally' would (being given still to some adventure), I would probably hesitate in advising others to try should fear possess their hearts. For China is to-day a country of freebooting soldiery and undisciplined military pillagers. One may be held for Tansgom, or undergo a dozen equally for more uncomfortable experience. In my day, however, all went well. T should literally have lost my life a cash for bringing it to me. Instead Tmade my way up the hill, shouting back my wishes to my men to harness up and follow, which after considerable hulloballoo they deigned reluctantly to do. Then the toil began. There was no road, no pathway, and recent rains had made the going hard. Just at sundown, weary and very heavy-laden, T rounded a bend in' the mour ud happened upon the tiny haven in the hills above referred to.
But what a kettle of fish! As quick as a flash, several loutish male specimens of those wild hill folk paunched down upon" me, waving huge bamboos and shouting "Da, da (strike),"... this, then was the end. the ascendant, and T came to no harm other than' breaking my arm, suffering from dysentery, snow. blindness and a sunstroke—ills that only the experienced traveller avoids. In the course of time one settles down and learns the way of travel, and for over after places upon such knowledge (bought dearly as it seems at time of purchase) a high-esteem, for along a safer - pathway. On one occasion, too after two kindly souls had befriended this weary traveller!
Thad no weapon'of any kind. Defenceless and by no means brave about the business (let me straightway confess it), I walked a foot or two on the flat "village green" that had been hacked out of the steen hillside, out of which also right-angles dug out at regular distances formed two walls of the dirty hovels in which the people lived.
Hero I sat down on a hi and laughed in their faces.
Why I laughed I cannot tell to George A. Vitcent. this day. Perhaps I was hilarious, of hysterical, or laughed in sheer fear. Anyhow, laughed, suffering interruption even when an old_woman—an awful old hag with a four-inch skirt covering her tottering Timbs—eame upon the scene and ex-borted her worthies to get, on with their ill-natured business. Then she caught sight of me laughing "Hi," she shouted, "waving hee bony indicator towards me, "look, he's one of those lousy foreign devils... he's got a slate loose, rats in the upper story... a bee in his bonnet. "He's a plain idiot."
Meantime I laughed, riveting my attention upon her.
Meantime also men "had rived, with the Toads and ponios—and how they lied! I hate to split on them, for they were decent souls. But they didn't know me, had only met me at the foothill and wore merely carrying my things for me. We had travelled together for many days, however I laughed on, my eye still on the old lady, But she Would have none of it.
Seo the business in hand," roared to the man with the stot bamboo, and just as they raised their rods to execute her corybuntic orders, a sprite of a girl about nine swept past them all, she fiance in the old hag's ear.
"No," eried Little Precious Pearl (that was her name literally trans. lated), "it cannot be, it cannot and, pointing: to me, showed clearly how a fellow with a' spirit like mine would hang round there and invade them for ever. And she curried the point. The importance of this did not enter my consciousness, however, until the old lady, wiping hee opthalmie-stricken eyes and nose with the back of her skinny paw, felt slightly hypnotized under the con-stanley of my gaze. Still T laughed. She condescended to smile so show the lonely.prong that hung whence her teeth formerly belonged. Then it was that T know that the day was won. She laughed at me, taughed at her, the hypnotic fluence being mutual, "Yes, yer,"-abe exclaimed, cons firming Ree sup judgment of " mo: ment before, "yes, he's mad: he's mad as a March hair."
Still T laughed: still she laughed. The men dropped their bamboo death-hammers and Invghed too. My Taujghed. Women with babies on their bucks swooped out of the huts and joined in and laugh= ed. All laughing, we surely made merry spectacle. "Perhaps 30 people, all Laughing one across the other. wanted ty speak, and would watts up to a man to deliver my n only to burst out again into hel laughter, form had now beet cal. They would do the same, ind did it many times, Aha, aha,—it dil not take longer Perhaps to happen than it does in the telling. But when the tempest was overpast, the old lady came shuttingly forward to me, rivers of tears coursing down the real estate fon her wizened cheeks, and aymhungry. Come in and we will give "Great Teacher, you must be very and honey, maize and. dirty hot water were brought for the men, cut straw for the animals, And we' had fayal evening.
T have no space; neither would there be point in tolling how the women put me to bed and roused me at dawn, and how all the village men, women and children—cscortfed me' on my way. Neither will tell of a subsequent visit when, having been down to Rangoon and refitted my caravan, I was passing that way again and' informed mon that I wanted to pay a call two at that tiny haven in the hills.
"What, up there—no can! They are the wild me "But I have friends among them" was my simple reply.
But not a single volunteer came forward until I, the potentate and Paymaster, began to strap my pular over my own back. Then an old man in the caravan—God rest his soul—told me his life was neatly done, and it really did not matter 80 much so long as his family would be looked after by me. He would go. And 50, with his bed on his back and my bed on mine, we climbed the il to call upon my friends. And: ah, auch a welcome was given ins az would melt a heart of stone.
HINA received G. $1,354,942 towards medical education from the Rockefeller Foundation in 1923, according to an advance copy of the annual report which has been: prepared by the President, Dr.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.