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Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books
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The heart of a continent : vol.1 |
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and roused every spark of exploring ardour in me. No
excitement I have ever experienced has come up to that of
planning out a great journey. The only drawback in such a
life is the subsequent reaction when all is over, and the
monotonous round of ordinary existence oppresses one by its
torpidity and flatness in comparison. The project before me
was a journey in length nearly as great as one across Central
Africa and back again, and, to me at least, far more interesting
than any African travel—a journey through countries varying
from the level wastes of the Gobi desert, to the snow-clad
masses of the Himalayas; passing, moreover, through the
entire length of an empire with a history of three thousand
years, and still fresh in interest to the present day. And
with the chance of making such a journey, who could help
feeling all the ardent excitement of travel rising in him, and
long to be started on it.
Colonel Bell arrived in Peking towards the end of March,
and said he would be only too glad to allow me to accompany
him; but he thought that it would be rather a waste of energy
for two officers to travel together, so we arranged to follow
different routes.
There were, of course, some initial difficulties to be overcome
—the chief one being leave of absence from my regiment. But
Sir John Walsham, for whose kindness on this occasion I could
never feel too grateful, overcame this by telegraphing direct
to Lord Dufferin, and that difficulty—generally the greatest
which military explorers have to encounter—was at once
removed.
The telegram having been despatched, Colonel Bell and I
spread out our maps and discussed operations. He was anxious
to see the populous parts of China, so decided upon going
through the provinces inside of the Great Wall to Kansu, and
then striking across the Gobi desert to Hami, following
throughout the main route between Peking and Chinese
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