chneider (_Peking_, p. 53), gives the 25th of
July, 1668, as the date of the destruction of the bridge, which agrees well
with the Chinese accounts.--H.C.] The bridge was renewed, but with only
nine arches instead of thirteen, as appears from the following note of
personal observation with which Dr. Lockhart has favoured me:

"At 27 _li_ from Peking, by the western road leaving the gate of the
Chinese city called Kwang-'an-man, after passing the old walled town of
Feuchen, you reach the bridge of _Lo-Ku-Kiao_. As it now stands it is a
very long bridge of nine arches (real _arches_) spanning the valley of the
Hwan Ho, and surrounded by beautiful scenery. The bridge is built of green
sandstone, and has a good balustrade with short square pilasters crowned by
small lions. It is in very good repair, and has a ceaseless traffic, being
on the road to the coal-mines which supply the city. There is a pavilion at
each end of the bridge with inscriptions, the one recording that K'anghi
(1662-1723) _built_ the bridge, and the other that Kienlung (1736-1796)
_repaired_ it." These circumstances are strictly consistent with
Magaillans' account of the destruction of the mediaeval bridge. Williamson
describes the present bridge as about 700 feet long, and 12 feet wide in
the middle part.

[Dr. Bretschneider saw the bridge, and gives the following description of
it: "The bridge is 350 ordinary paces long and 18 broad. It is built of
sandstone, and has on either side a stone balustrade of square columns,
about 4 feet high, 140 on each side, each crowned by a sculptured lion over
a foot high. Beside these there are a number of smaller lions placed
irregularly on the necks, behind the legs, under the feet, or on the back
of the larger ones. The space between the columns is closed by stone slabs.
Four sculptured stone elephants lean with their foreheads against the edge
of the balustrades. The bridge is supported by eleven arches. At each end
of the bridge two pavilions with yellow roofs have been built, all with
large marble tablets in them; two with inscriptions made by order of the
Emperor K'ang-hi (1662-1723); and two with inscriptions of the time of
K'ien-lung (1736-1796). On these tablets the history of the bridge is
recorded." Dr. Bretschneider adds that Dr. Lockhart is also right in
counting nine arches, for he counts only the waterways, not the arches
resting upon the banks of the river. Dr. Forke (p. 5) counts 11 arches and
280 st