Peking to Lhasa : vol.1 / Page 296 (Color Image)

0296	Peking to Lhasa : vol.1

212 PEKING TO LHASA

the junction of the Wen-tao Ho and the Wu-mo

Ho by another ferry. Wu-mo has seventy-five

families and is at an elevation of 3660 feet.

Pereira had felt ill and worn out at Yunnan

Fu, probably owing to the heat of Tonquin. But

now he was on the march again he felt better.

And as he looked down the So-Ling Ho valley

he thought of the great journey he had made

from Omsk to Kashgar, Urumchi, Lanchow,

Chengtu and down by Ning - yüan Fu and Hui-

Li Chow to this very spot where he had now

crossed the So-Ling Ho, and then on to Yunnan

Fu and Amoy. He now wore a big circular

Chinese bamboo hat, like a shield, which served

as a small umbrella in keeping off the rain. He

also wore a green oilskin native mackintosh, which

appeared to be designed for anything except

keeping out rain, but which worn over a Burberry

helped a little to keep him dry.

The so-called high road, though bad after rain,

was no worse than other roads in China during

wet weather, and was nothing like so bad as the

loess roads of Honan or the clay roads of South

Szechwan.

Ascending the Wu-mo Ho valley on July 24,

there was a steep climb up the Ta-shao-Shan to

the top, 4940 feet, at 8 miles, and then along the

ridge for 3 miles. From here the most southerly

bend of the Yangtze was only 6 miles off to the

eastward. There was then an easy descent to Tso-ch'io, a city of 550 families, at 5071 feet

elevation. The next day he marched to Ta-pa-

kuan, 5502 feet, 134 miles, over low hills with

higher wooded hills round. The Wu-mo Ho had

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