Boat, Road and Wheelbarrow:
Delayed by Mud, Held Up by Fighting, Suecoured by a Farmer went back and brought along my barrows; and while we waited the cover, arrow men and pullers all took to Need of Stoking' tae About noon, feeling faint from lack of fuel in the engine, I went {to a farm and asked if I might be supplied with a bowl of rice. Two hot bowls, one of rice and one of vegetables: were set before me, and soon stowed away, and my stranger Ja|host refused the pay I proffered.
As the afternoon wore on and the soldiers I was waiting for were still in the field, I moved my barrows: back about & mile and arranged with farmer near by to prepare a meal {for the three pushers and five pull-jets, While it was being prepared again went forward to see what could do. The soldiers were no linger in the field and when I approached the town and signalled, {two promptly came out to meet me, Jeondueted me in by a safe way, to the house where my wife was stay-jing. Wo were glad to seo each other, 'A company of bandits had en-Jdeavoured to occupy a section of the town, and the soldiers were at-[tempting to capture them. They showed fight and a captain (Lien [Chang) and some soldiers were kill-Jed. The soldiers set fire to that part of the town to burn them out, They also guarded all the approaches to prevent anyone from entering, jand stationed companies at cor manding points all around the town to shoot or arrest any that might Jattempt to escape.
Returning to my barrows I found the men ready to sit down to the meal that had been prepared. The farmer had prepared liberally and T never saw men tuck in with great-for zest, through good n jand Chinese cabbage, him liberally, with w silver doll though he protested that it was not worth as much as that, Returning to the town with my [company I was met by soldiers who informed me that the Colonel, (Ying Chang), had removed my wife to the camp about one li from the town, Twas to Join her there.
in anticipation of further trouble in the town during—the night. So we spent the night. under the wing of the military, and next morning, leaving my card with thanks for the Colonel, we resumed our journey as speedily as possible, and the fourth day found us at a point 110 li from Luchowfu and 100 from Chengyangkuan, Mid forenoon of the 5th day, the 18th instant, found us approaching a river that had to be crossed, lof those that spreads out a mi wide in summer and shrinks to {few rods in winter, It was approached through deep mud; we had {to wait an hour for the ferry boat; it could not come up to the shore jand our whole company, barrow-men, pullers, carriers and bearers, had to take off shoes and stocking land roll up their trousers, and 1 everything, including the heavy, barrows, over the side into the boat.
And when we disembarked every-{thing had to be lifted out; and then ]we had to make our way through a half mile of deep mud before reaching higher ground. Between wait ing, crossing, and getting through the mud this river occupied three hours of our time, and the whole [progress of our fifth day amounted only 20 Li, ses Moral of Mud Daring the sixth and seventh days we were held up in inns with many others heavily loaded lers, by heavy rain. During the|as she has been for afternoon of the seventh day, the|iaboriously through it. "When wi ain having ceased, we left our cook }with the barrowman, to come on as they could, while we went on with the chair and carriers. The remainder of the journey, about 75 Jo struggle through mud, sometimes, but not always deep, but always slippery.We reached home during the afternoon of the 17th instant, nine days after starting out from' Lujchowfu, a distance of 210 li or 70 miles. ' On the 19th heavily and our cook and one of the barrowman came in to, tell me that
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.