The scenic glories of travel China are just beginning to be told. The new motor roads that have been opened in recent months are revealing beauties of nature have een little suspected by the dwellers of our drab port cities. The new overland route from Shanghai to Foochow is so full of grandeur and excitement as. to baffle description. Yet a narrative of our recent Jour~ ney may be of interest to motorcar drivers or other travellers who ike to venture off the beaten highways.
With three weeks ahead of us for a vacation in Fukien we scanned the newspapers for announcement of sailings to southern ports. There was nothing closing for Foochow until the end of the week. Purthermore Sleeawel was publishing un happy reports of typhoons" headed for the northern end of Formosa. So we began investigating the possibility of overland travel, The heavy rains of late June had washed out the railway on. the Chekiang-Kiangsi line, but the China Travel Service assured us thai re-airs had been made and they were Prepared to sell tickets. Their latest Toad maps indicated that the bus Foutes were open to Yenping. But they had -no time schedules and were not at all sure that washouts had int interrupted service. either Would lake. Lacking definite informa ey know how long such a tr
ation they advised our waiting for 1 coast steamer, Other inquiries brought no better returns, A vague rumour had reach-of a foreigner having come through this way from Canton, but questioning had satisfied me that he had followed a different road. from that we proposed to take. Some word had reached me in June that bandits had been operating between Pucheng and Yenping, but more Fecent reports gave assurance "that was now no danger from that quarter. So Tuesday we bought our Ueke's, for Klangshan and told only few' friends. Some were mildly Anterested and thought it might be an unusual Journey. Other said considered us sted they hoped we would send back word if and-when we reached Foochow. So we rolled together some bedding, packed our ssulteases and caught the 7.55 am, express train for Hangchow on We Rail Journey To Mangchow Of the railway journey we wet not ignorant, for T had been throu ast October to the terminus Yushan in Kiangsi. Klangshan is four stations nearer to Hangchow, Just inside the Chekiang border. But my colleague had not seen Hangchow so we took the early train in order to have the afternoon for sight-seeing there. In order rid ourselves of our baggage slayed on the train to Nensingchiao south Stars Bridge), the second of the. three "Hangchow Stations, which is nearest the river ferry. Here porter took our baggage and carried clear to the train on. the other side at the Klangpien station.
For this carriage there is a definite Which is posted in Chi-board in the train shed; T think it is 40 cents for 50 Pounds, or something like that, with five cents for each additional ten pounds, but probably the weights are given in kilogrammes. At any rate We pald 65 cents for approximately 100 Ibs, and the porter seemed well pleased.
This river crossing gave us the first assurance that Lady Luck in our party, for just after we aboard the ferry boat the storm cloud that had been hanging about all_morning precipitated Itself in a torrential "rain which delayed our crossing perhaps fifteen minutes, but had niterly spent itself before we reached the farther bank. So for the rest of our journey we had ideal weather, neither hot nor rainy. And when liter we met a few showers it wag at times and places that gave lus not the slightest "annoyance.
The "afternoon was perfect for sightseeing in Hangchow and we returned to the train about 5.20, in time to get comfortably settled into our compartment before the train left at 610 pin. The second class berths were done in woven rattan with good springs, and we slept fairly "well," There were very few Passengers in the sleeping car.
Beautiful Chekiang Scenery Scenery through Chekiang province was beautiful at the sunset hour, A conspicuous feature were the lotus elds in full bloom. Here and again in Fukien we were treat-fed to the sight of literally acres these gorgeous blooms, "the pink blossoms being most abundant, but the white nota few. The combina tion of Low hills and well cultivated tives soon gave way to exclamations, feds with many waterways made the frst part of the train tip very Jenchanting. Our train was provided with two engines, which indicated something of the' up-grade made on he frst part of this line. Sometime fatter midnight we became aware that the train was on. the down Jgrade and in the morning we found that the second engine had been dropped—perhaps at Kinht We reached Kiangshan at 6.15 o'clock, Thursday morning, and im mediately found a carrier to take our load through the city to the motor bus station outside the south gate, about a mile distant. Here we found a number of substantial Bed ford buses marked for various deslinations and learned that the through bus for Pucheng would not eave until 910 am. This gave us time to walk back into the city for breakfast ata Chinese restaurant.
IThe station master kindly permitted Jus to deposit our bags in his office. Every detail of ticket-selling and This unique institution, situated laespatching cars here was well Inandled. There was no crowding. rickets were on sale for one station fonly after the preceding bus had been cleared. A' time schedule (in Chinese) was posted of departing fears. and also the rates to the. im= portant points. Klangsban is. ina region of natural attractions and photographs of such. places es_ the Chientang "River gorges, the Three Sliced Roces, and" other points of interest were" displayed "in the station.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.