tain tracts of this province, had been without result, and HAUDE had made observations in the Bogdo-ula instead. He had already made such progress with his researches that he could with great precision foretell the outbreak of storms that were on their way to the Inner Asiatic desert belts from the Bogdo-ula. But if our knowledge of the circulation of winds in the interior of the mighty continent was to be rendered more complete, it was necessary to obtain an exact idea of the paths of the monsoons and of the laws governing their movements. This important scientific conquest was refused us by CHIN SHU-JEN. HALIDE thus lost a year, or was in any case obliged to revise his whole plan of research. Under no circumstances was I willing that he should lay down his work in the expedition with any feeling of not having completed his task in a manner satisfactory to himself. And if the road from Sinkiang to Kansu was to be closed to us, eastern China could nevertheless provide us with open roads from the coast to Kansu. But at this juncture it would be most advisable for HAUDE, after visiting Dr COCHING CHU, the head of China's central meteorological institute in Nanking, to return home for a rest after his long stay in Asia. He could afterwards come back to Peking and start out on his next expedition from there. Accordingly, on December 16th, he left for Peking and Nanking, and from there home to Germany by boat. A little later ZIMMERMANN also returned to his Fatherland by the sea-route. MÜHLENwEG did not leave until January 14th, when he took the Siberian route via Japan and Vladivostok.
In the middle of December we had a copious snow-fall in Kalgan. The whole country was covered with a thick, white mantle. The days were brilliantly clear and the sky was without a speck of cloud. The mountains in the east and the west stood out dazzlingly white. The temperature sometimes sank as low as —2o° C. All of us celebrated Christmas in the Swedish fashion in LAxsoN's house. On December 27th MoNTELL travelled up to Mongolia in company with Mr TESDORPF, a Danish land-owner, while HUMMEL and I went down to Peking. The eight-hour train journey was not exactly a pleasure; in the morning the temperature in our compartment was —13° C., and the frost-patterns on the window-panes prevented one from looking out. Once out of the Nan-k'ou pass we were able to congratulate ourselves on having only one degree of frost in our carriage. In Peking we settled down in our old rooms in Hotel Wagons Lits.
IIIFカラー高解像度
