Page:Peking the Beautiful.pdf/68

 At the North Sea Gardens

heard much concerning the wonderful view to be nad from the topmost terrace of the Pai T'a, that famous medieval pagoda which Crowns the "Hill of Gold," we decide to make the ascent Crossing the marble bridge, we wend our way slowly upward along the wind ing pathway-through cool, inviting grottoes, past colorful pavilions V and artistic pailous, until at last we reach the upper flight of steep stone steps that leads to the sunnier slopes at the top. A tedious climb up interminable store stairways and we find ourselves a little more than halfway up the sides of the great white "idol tower." Here on the topmost terrace we look down on what is certainly the most beautiful view in Peking. As we look out over the treetops toward the south, a panorama of surpassing loveliness spreads out before us. On our right is the picturesque Nan Hai, or South Sea Gardens, with their colorful pavilions and artistic rockeries "sharply outlined, yet idealized by distance," On the left, within crenelated pink walls, rise row upon row, acre upon acre of gleaming yellov tile roofs—the myriad palaces, temples, and dwelling pavilions of the Forbidden City. (See page 31. Turning northward an equally beautiful vista presents itself to our delighted gaze; for between fine old trees that grace the lower terraces, beyond the blue-green waters of the lake, rise in noble majesty those mighty emblems of a distant age-the Bell and the Drum Tower. [See page 42.] To the east the view is equally enchanting, for just beyond the tile-capped walls of the Pei Hai gardens rise the steepy, wooded slopes of old Ching Shan, or "Prospect Hill." its five mounds crowned by artistic, age-old pavilions. (See pape LOL.) And last of all turning westward, we look out over the gray walls of the city, to the distant but glorious panorama of the Western Hills, Reluctantly we turn away, and slowly descend the rugged, rock-hearn pathway on the north to the terrace and landing stage below. From here we are conveyed across the water to the parklike grounds on the other side of the lake. The Pei Hai is full of surprises, and in this almost forgotten corner of a once royal pleasure resort, we find monuments that are marvels of beauty and art First among these is the splendid porcelain Dragon Dall that stands behind a tiny hillock near the famous Wan Fu Lou. This gorgeous screen, with "its mang-colored dragons, fired and carved in high relief, disporting themselves on a ground of blue rocks and green waves, is unique as a work of art" lt probably served originally as a "spirit screen" to some fine old temple, but now no traces of such a sanctuary remain. Without doubt it is very old, but the green and gold and blue of its encaustic tiles refuse to record the passage of time, and it stands to-day just as lustrous and full of living beauty as the day it was erected. Its mammoth proportions can be judged by the tiny figure of the man standing by its side.