RECORDS OF THE JOURNEY
of Mapyntai with 17o houses, reached in i li, neither trees nor villages were visible. Far off (several li) it was bounded by two parallel chains of mountains running north like the road. Just after leaving the last shady village the view opened up to the N. The mountain chains pushed forward a couple of comparatively high mountains connected by a low ridge that closed the valley at about 195°. A large gorge seemed to open up in the direction of 150°. At a distance from the road we could see 2 or 3 large villages embedded in verdure.
The harvest was much later here than in Shensi and Honan. The poppy fields were still in bloom, a difference of a month. The wheat and barley were unusually low in growth. After 3o li Tai yu cheng with 8o houses; after 35 li San hödien with 40. Many of the villages contained a good many caves in the slopes of löss. We had now reached the ridge. A sunken road led us into it, rising very gradually. — After 38 li Jouzashang with zoo houses. For a time the sunken road dipped slightly. At 40 li it was closed by a solid double wall, built in the form of a horseshoe and connecting a fairly large mountain on the right with a hill on the left. Between and outside the two arches of the walls there was a small village, Shih-ling-kuan, with 20 houses. Beyond the village the road turned half to the right round a spur of rock and again led us between walls of löss. When the view was open for a short time, we had a large valley in front of us, running north and considerably lower than the ground, on which we still were. It was framed by long mountain ranges of appreciable size. We had crossed the watershed and the ridge consisted mainly of formations of löss, although there were a number of spurs of rock in granite, especially on the right of the road. On the left there were mostly terraces of löss. After passing another stone wall with 3 archways we reached (45 li) the village of Kuancheng cheng with 15o houses. It was intersected by a small valley, slightly stony and dry at present, with a river bed.
Beyond the latter village we entered a stony road between small hills of löss. Soon after, we left the highway to Sinchow and took a smaller one, slightly further E, which was said to lead to Yutai hsien 20 li sooner. Soon we were out of the sunken road and on the large plain I have just mentioned, a good deal closer to the considerable mountain range on the right than to the mountains that were visible far off to the left. There a chain of small mountains extends, with frequent breaks, far beyond which the actual range appears with chains rising one behind the other. To the N, far ahead of us, the mountain chains seemed to run into each other and close the valley. The fields were slightly stony at times. The numerous large villages in the valley with their shady green trees looked picturesque, enclosed in a beautiful frame of mountains.
We passed the villages of Liuchiaku with zoo houses and Sinchuan with 3o after about 6o li. The walls of Sinchow were visible far to the W on the opposite, slightly falling slope of the plain. After 7o li Hanyang tsung with z,000 houses. At 75, 8o, 83, 86 and 96 li we came to the villages of Hsitai with 7o houses, Peishung with 200, Tsyjantsung with 250, Wi djachuang with 8o and Nanhu. After 104 li we reached Chih-tsung, a village of 500 houses, belonging to Tingsiang hsien. Here gaolyan, peas, millet, tchumiza, some wheat, hemp and a little opium are grown. Average crop 8-9 fold (?). The inhabitants own about 3o head of cattle, 200 horses and mules, 300 donkeys and 50o sheep. — Nothing has been
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