began to have difficulty with the natives who stole our traps. We
usually marked them with a bit of cotton, and the boys would follow an
entire line down a hedge, taking every one. Sometimes they even brought
specimens to us for sale which we knew had been caught in our stolen traps!

The traps were set under logs and stumps and in the grass where we found
the "runways" or paths which mice, rats and voles often make. These animals
begin to move about just after dark, and we usually would inspect our traps
with a lantern about nine o'clock in the evening. This not only gave the
trap a double chance to be filled but we also secured perfect specimens,
for such species as mice and shrews are cannibalistic, and almost every
night, if the specimens were not taken out early in the evening, several
would be partly eaten.

Small mammals are often of much greater interest and importance
scientifically than large ones, for, especially among the Insectivores,
there are many primitive forms which are apparently of ancestral stock and
throw light on the evolutionary history of other living groups.

Li-chiang is a fur market of considerable importance for the Tibetans bring
down vast quantities of skins for sale and trade. Lambs, goats, foxes,
cats, civets, pandas, and flying squirrels hang in the shops and there are
dozens of fur dressers who do really excellent tanning.

This city is a most interesting place especially on market day, for its
inhabitants represent many different tribes with but comparatively few
Chinese. By far the greatest percentage of natives are the Mosos who are
semi-Tibetan in their life and customs. They were originally an independent
race who ruled a considerable part of northern Yuen-nan, and Li-chiang was
their ancient capital. To the effeminate and "highly civilized" Chinese
they are "barbarians," but we found them to be simple, honest and wholly
delightful people. Many of those whom we met later had never seen a white
woman, and yet their inherent decency was in the greatest contrast to that
of the Chinese who consider themselves so immeasurably their superior.

The Mosos have large herds of sheep and cattle, and this is the one place
in the Orient except in large cities along the coast, where we could obtain
fresh milk and butter. As with the Tibetans, buttered tea and _tsamba_
(parched oatmeal) are the great essentials, but they also grow quantities
of delicious vegetables and fruit. Buttered tea is