ed him my photographs--I treated him,
indeed, with proper condescension.

On the 10th we crossed the famous River Salween (2600 ft.). Through an
open tableland, well grassed and sparsely wooded, we came at length to
the cleft in the hills from which is obtained the first view of the
river valley. There was a small village here, and, while we were taking
tea, a soldier came hurriedly down the road, who handed me a letter
addressed in Chinese. I confess that at the moment I had a sudden
misgiving that some impediment was to be put in the way of my journey.
But it was nothing more than a telegram from Mr. Jensen in Yunnan,
telling me of the decision of the Chinese Government to continue the
telegraph to the frontier of Burma. The telegram was written by the
Chinese operator in Yungchang in a neat round hand, without any error of
spelling; it had come to Yungchang after my departure, and had been
courteously forwarded by the Chinese manager. The soldier who brought it
had made a hurried march of thirty-eight miles before overtaking me, and
deserved a reward. I motioned Laotseng, my cash-bearer, to give him a
present, and he meanly counted out 25 cash, and was about to give them,
when I ostentatiously increased the amount to 100 cash. The soldier was
delighted; the onlookers were charmed with this exhibition of Western
munificence. Suppose a rich Chinese traveller in England, who spoke no
English, were to offer Tommy Atkins twopence halfpenny for travelling on
foot thirty-eight miles to bring him a telegram, having then to walk
back thirty-eight miles and find himself on the way, would the English
soldier bow as gratefully as did his perishing Chinese brother when I
thus rewarded him?

We descended by beautiful open country into the Valley of the Shadow of
Death--the valley of the River Salween. No other part of Western China
has the evil repute of this valley; its unhealthiness is a by-word. "It
is impossible to pass," says Marco Polo; "the air in summer is so impure
and bad and any foreigner attempting it would die for certain."

The Salween was formerly the boundary between Burma and China, and it is
to be regretted that at the annexation of Upper Burma England did not
push her frontier back to its former position. But the delimitation of
the frontier of Burma is not yet complete. No time could be more
opportune for its completion than the present, when China is distracted
by her difficulties with Japan. China dishearte