Peking to Lhasa : vol.1 / Page 307 (Color Image)

0307	Peking to Lhasa : vol.1

THE LAST TREK 223

and at 61 miles reached the top of the Hui-shao

P'o, 7477 feet. From there he kept along the

hill-side and at 9 miles reached T'ai-p'ing-t'ang,

7887 feet. Continuing up the valley but descend-

ing some 408 feet, he reached at 14 miles the open

fertile Lutien valley, and at 16f miles reached

Lutien, a town of 310 families. In this valley

rice as well as maize was grown. Pereira saw a

good many walnut trees and some wild plums

and a wild peach. Some rhododendrons were still

in bloom at altitudes over 7000 feet. Lutien,

scattered among fields green with crops and

clusters of trees and surrounded by high tree-

covered hills, was very picturesque. Of the 310

families, roughly 60 were Chinese, 100 were

Tibetan and 150 were Mosu. And three days'

journey to the south were some Lisu. Maize is

the chief food of the people, but they also grow

wheat and barley for a first crop, and for a second

crop buckwheat higher up and rice lower down.

The religious character of the people was ex-

emplified by Pereira's host. Three or four times

a day he would come to the loft where there was

a Buddhist shrine and would kotow before it, say

prayers and burn incense. It reminded Pereira of

Tibet.

Rain fell heavily, so he halted a day at Lutien,

and on the 18th marched 18 miles to Wei-si.

Soon leaving the plain, he climbed 2600 feet

through woods by easy zigzags to Ta-shih-t'ou

P'o, 10,755 feet (Si-jam-bu in Mosu), which he

reached at 5 miles. This is the Yangtze-Mekong

divide. It is 4760 feet above the Yangtze, where

he had left it at Chü-tien. From here there was

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