National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books

the Gobi Desert », though not very exactly, and HUANG is unfortunately referred to as Wang.'

As I was extremely anxious to hear some news of the new Lop-nor, I was very interested to be told that the Russian consul in Kashgar had asked Governor-General CHIN for permission to visit this lake and had been refused. Colonel SCHOMBERG, the British secret-service man, had also applied for the same permission, but with the same result. In March of that year, however, HUANG had travelled from Lukchun southwards to Altmish-bulaq, afterwards continuing in the direction of Lou-lan. But he had been stopped by water, that he described as something between a river and a lake. On its shore he had discovered amongst other things a ruin, whence he had excavated a number of Chinese records on wooden slats dating from the Han dynasty.

Now, however, these gentlemen had concluded their service in the expedition, whose Chinese staff had thus shrunk from ten, the original number in the spring and summer of 1927, to two, namely, Professor YUAN, who was still working in Sinkiang, and PARKER C. CHEN, who was with HÖRNER in Kansu.

At a dinner that I afterwards held to welcome the members of the expedition returning from Sinkiang, Professor SIU PING-CH'ANG was also present. He told me that his book on his participation in the expedition from 1927 to 1929 was now ready for the printer. It bore the title Hsi-lu-jih-chi, which may be rendered roughly as »Diary from the Western Road ». His name as author was Hsü Hsü-sheng.

The party broke up rather early, for the same day martial law had been proclaimed in Peking, and the curfew was sounded at lo o'clock in the evening.

1 In 1933 Professor YUAN had a general map drawn, on which were plotted the routes of the Chinese members. From this map one can ascertain that HUANG journeyed in the following way. (It is not possible to make out if some detours from the main routes were made on the outward or homeward journey, but this point is of no importance here).

From Urumchi via Toqsun to Qara-shahr along the main road. Visit to Ming-öi and another archaeological site further west. Along the main road to Bugur and a site to the north thereof, as well as four sites to the south and south-east of Bugur. Thence to Kucha. A couple of detours around this town, both to the north (apparently the many old Buddhist sites) and the south. To Shah-yar; then along the Tarim and the Khotan-darya, crossing over to Keriya and following the Keriya-darya to the archaeological site Qara-dung. Back to Keriya and along the main road to Khotan. A small• detour to the south, regaining the main road at Zan-guya. From Qarghaliq a southerly trip to Tashkurghan and Payik-qaraul and back. Then to Kashgar, Maral-bashi, Aqsu and Bai. Through the T'ien-shan to Kulja and back by the same road. From Bai to Aqsu and a southerly route to Kucha. The main road back to Qara-shahr and Tawilgha, thence by a small road through the mountains to Toqsun. When visiting new Lop-nor HUANG went from Lukchun to Altmish-bulaq and down to the delta of the Qum-darya. The return journey was made along a more easterly route to Lukchun.

If we look for TING's routes on the same map we find that he travelled from Urumchi to Toqsun and westwards into the T'ien-shan; then south to Chuqur and Qara-shahr. Thence towards the north-west to the upper reaches of the Yulduz, following its course westwards to Bayan-buluk. A tour to the upper Kungez; from Bayan-buluk to Kucha, Bai, Aqsu, Kelpin and Kashgar. From there a couple of tours into the mountains to the north and to the west. Thence to Yangi-hissar, Tash-kurghan, Payik-qaraul and back. From Kashgar via Maral-bashi and Aqsu to the southern foot of the T'ien-shan; to Bai, Kucha, Bugur, Qara-shahr and onwards the main road back.

At least in the beginning of this geological round-tour of Eastern Turkistan TING was accompanied by the topographer CHAN. F. B.

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