Page:Mongolia, the Tangut country, and the solitudes of northern Tibet vol 1 (1876).djvu/223

 way. The Chinese would then approach, but instead of answering our questions, they would handle and examine our saddles and boots, look with awe at our guns, enquire whither we were bound, whence and wherefore had we come, &c. As for the directions about our road, they were entirely omitted, and only as an exceptional piece of good luck would a Chinaman point in the direction we had to go. From the number of cross roads leading from village to village such directions as these were an insufficient guide, and we therefore went at hap-hazard till we came to another village, when the same experiences were repeated.

Once the Chinese took it into their heads to let loose one of their chained dogs at us, with the intention of killing 'Faust' Fortunately he happened to be close to me at the time, and no sooner had the mastiff attacked him than I drew one of my revolvers from the holster and shot it dead on the spot. Upon this the Chinese at once dispersed to their homes, and we continued our journey without any further molestation. One must act promptly in these countries, for if you let them kill your dog one day, they may try and kill you the next, and then it becomes a much more serious affair; but if you make them feel that you will not put up with insults, they will treat you much better, although, of course, the hatred to foreigners always remains, and Europeans must endure it.

At Tsagan-chulutai, one of the Chinese