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0045 Ruins of Desert Cathay : vol.2
Ruins of Desert Cathay : vol.2 / Page 45 (Color Image)

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doi: 10.20676/00000213
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Hsüan-tsang, and discovered to my delight that the Amban,
as a scholar of wide reading, knew of the Hsi-yü-chi, the
great pilgrim's genuine memoirs.

His apologies for our inadequate quarters were pro-
fuse, and evidently inspired by sympathy arising from
similar experience. His own furniture and property had
not yet arrived, and the reception hall of his Ya-mên
looked terribly bare in spite of some elegant wood-carving
on the walls and its much-faded gilding. As I looked
round it struck me that the good people of Tun-huang
could have but little attention to spare for their magistrate
if they left him even for a short time without a brazier or
a curtain to keep out the icy wind. It was a comfort to
know that at least he could wear a succession of suits
underneath his official robe to keep himself warm, whereas
my own 'best clothes' strictly prevented similar protec-
tion and left me to feel the bitter cold.

The Buran was still raging when I rode back through
the almost deserted streets and the great waste space
which extended within the southern face of the town-wall.
I hurried to get my half-frozen feet into big fur boots, and
had just begun within my carefully-tucked-up tent to warm
myself a little, when Wang Ta-lao-ye's return call was an-
nounced. There was nothing for it but to receive him in
my inhospitable barn of a hall. However, etiquette having
once been satisfied, I kept on my fur boots. Seated on a
thick Khotan felt rug and with a charcoal fire kept going
in the cauldron which served for my men's mess, I did not
find the conditions quite so trying. From the mule
trunks close at hand I brought forth specimens of ancient
Chinese records excavated at Niya and Lop-nor, repro-
ductions of earlier finds, and anything else that might be
relished by the Amban's antiquarian eyes.

The effect was all I could wish for. Wang Ta-lao-ye
thoroughly enjoyed the scholarly treat which my exhibits
provided. With a kind of intuition, due no doubt to his
interest in the subject matter, he generally managed to
follow the archaeological queries and problems I ventured
to submit to his judgment in my terrible Chinese jargon.
I found him quite familiar with the geography of Eastern