of Teng-yueh, over the great caravan road to Bhamo on the
upper Irawadi.

An important post of the Chinese Foreign Customs, which are administered by
the British government as security for the Boxer indemnity, is situated in
this city, and we were looking forward with the greatest interest to
meeting its white population. At the time of our visit the foreigners
included Messrs. H.G. Fletcher and Ralph C. Grierson, respectively Acting
Commissioner and Assistant Commissioner of Customs; Messrs. W.R. Palmer and
Abertsen, also of the Customs; Mr. Eastes, H.B.M. Consul; Dr. Chang, Indian
Medical Officer, and Reverend and Mrs. Embry of the China Inland Mission;
Mr. Eastes, accompanied by the resident mandarin, was absent on a three
months' opium inspection tour so that we did not meet him.

We reached Teng-yueh on Sunday morning and camped in a temple outside the
city walls. Immediately after tiffin we called upon Mr. Grierson and went
with him to the Customs House where Messrs. Abertsen and Palmer were
living. We found there a Scotch botanist, Mr. Forrest, an old traveler in
Yuen-nan who was _en route_ to A-tun-zu on a three-year plant-hunting
expedition for an English commercial firm. We had heard much of Forrest
from Messrs. Kok and Hanna and were especially glad to meet him because of
his wide knowledge of the northwestern part of the province. Mr. Forrest
was interested chiefly in primroses and rhododendrons, I believe, and in
former years obtained a rather remarkable collection of these plants.

From Mr. Grierson we first learned that the United States had declared war
on Germany. It had been announced only a week before, and the information
had reached Teng-yueh by cable and telegraph almost immediately. It came as
welcome news to us Americans who had been vainly endeavoring to justify to
ourselves and others our country's lethargy in the face of Teuton
insolence, and made us feel that once again we could acknowledge our
nationality with the pride we used to feel.

On Monday Mr. Grierson invited us to become his guests and to move our
caravan and belongings to his beautiful home. We were charmed with it and
our host. The house was built with upturned, temple-like gables, and from
his cool verandah we could look across an exquisite flower-filled garden to
the blue mountains from which we had had our first view of Teng-yueh the
day before. The interior of the dwelling was as attractive as its
surroundings, and the beau